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This Day in Horror History: February 14th

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Happy Valentine’s Day! This Day in Horror History February 14th, we celebrate a classic film that was billed as a love story for the ages!

Dracula released February 14, 1931

There may be no more iconic image in our genre than that of handsome, charming Bela Lugosi as the immortal Count Dracula in his impeccable evening wear and silk cape in the sprawling ruin of his ancestral home delivering some of those memorable lines in film.

“I never drink…wine.”

“Listen to them. Children of the night. What music they make.”

They’re burned into our memory, and evoke his presence whenever they are uttered, but it might be surprising for you to learn that bringing the legend to the screen was not an easy task.

There were budget concerns–the country was in the midst of the Great Depression after all–and worries about whether film audiences were ready for a full blown, feature length supernatural horror film. Still, they carried on, putting the full power of the studio behind the project and its director Tod Browning.

Unfortunately, with the studio’s power came the studio’s meddling when it came to paying its stars and the film was altered many times before its release.

Bela Lugosi and Helen Chandler in Dracula 1931

Lugosi, who had played the role of Count Dracula on Broadway for 261 performances in 1927, was not the first choice to play the role on film. Universal initially wanted Lon Chaney, but he died two years before the project came to fruition.

Hungarian-born Lugosi lobbied heavily and perhaps desperately to play the role and was eventually cast, but the studio did its level best to screw him in the bargain. They paid him only $500 a week for the seven-week shoot, an abysmally small sum for a leading actor even during the Depression.

When execs and censors read the script, they sent many memos to Browning about what he could and could not show on screen hiding behind the rules of the Hays Code. They didn’t want the scene where Renfield is attacked by Dracula actually in the film, for instance, because they were afraid that audiences might perceive a gay subtext to the scene, and so they told Browning that Dracula was only to attack women in the film.

Further, when the feature was finished and a final print was sent to the studio heads, Carl Laemmle, Sr. informed Browning that the film was far too creepy and should be re-cut. Unfortunately, doing so created a multitude of continuity errors.

When it came time for the film’s release, once again the studio execs stepped in promoting the film as a supernatural thriller, but also as a love story, playing up the angle of the Count’s desire for Mina Harker and adding the tagline, “The story of the strangest passion the world has ever know!”

The film released on February 12, 1931 in New York City, and nationwide release came two days later on Valentine’s Day to promote that love story angle. It is estimated that it sold 50,000 tickets in the first 48 hours of its release which ultimately led to a $700,000 profit for the film.

It has been 87 years since the film’s release, and it continues to enthrall audiences. Some call it a love story, others a horror classic, but I believe it has stood the test of time because it is inherently both.

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New Vampire Flick “Flesh of the Gods” Will Star Kristen Stewart and Oscar Isaac

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Kristen-Stewart-and-Oscar-Isaac

80s nostalgia is still going strong in the horror community. As proof of this, Panos Cosmatos (Mandy) is developing a new 80s themed vampire film. However, unlike some of the other nostalgia bait films that have come out recently, Flesh of the Gods is packing some serious talent.

First, the film is written by the legendary Andrew Kevin Walker (Se7en). If that wasn’t enough, the film will star Oscar Isaac (Moon Knight) and Kristen Stewart (Underwater).

Kristen Stewart
Oscar Isaac, Flesh of the Gods article

Variety gives us a glimpse into the story line, stating that: “Flesh of the Gods is set in glittering ’80s L.A., where married couple Raoul (Oscar Isaac) and Alex (Kristen Stewart) each evening descend from their luxury skyscraper condo and head into the city’s electric nighttime realm. When they cross paths with a mysterious and enigmatic figure known as Nameless and her hard-partying cabal, the pair are seduced into a glamorous, surrealistic world of hedonism, thrills and violence.”

Cosmatos offers his own opinion of the film. “Like Los Angeles itself, ‘Flesh of the Gods’ inhabits the liminal realm between fantasy and nightmare. Both propulsive and hypnotic, ‘Flesh’ will take you on a hot rod joy ride deep into the glittering heart of hell.”

Producer Adam McKay (Don’t Look Up) seems to also be excited about The Flesh of the Gods. “This director, this writer, these incredible actors, vampires, choice ’80s punk, style and attitude for miles… that’s the film we’re bringing you today. We think it’s wildly commercial and wildly artful. Our ambitions are to make a movie that ripples through popular culture, fashion, music and film. Can you tell how excited I am?”

Flesh of the Gods is set to begin filming later this year. It will launch at Cannes with WME Independent, CAA Media Finance, and XYZ Films. The Flesh of the Gods does not currently have a release date.

That’s all the information we have at this time. Make sure to check back here for more news and updates.

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The Pope’s Exorcist Officially Announces New Sequel

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The Pope’s Exorcist is one of those films that’s just fun to watch. It isn’t the most terrifying film around, but there’s something about Russel Crow (Gladiator) playing a wise cracking Catholic priest that just feels right.

Screen Gems seems to agree with this assessment, as they have just officially announced that The Pope’s Exorcist sequel is in the works. It makes sense that Screen Gems would want to keep this franchise going, considering the first film scared up almost $80 million with a budget of only $18 million.

The Pope's Exorcist
The Pope’s Exorcist

According to Crow, there may even be a The Pope’s Exorcist trilogy in the works. However, recent changes with the studio may have put the third film on hold. In a sit-down with The Six O’Clock Show, Crow gave the following statement about the project.

“Well that’s in discussion at the moment. The producers originally got the kick off from the studio not just for one sequel but for two. But there’s been a change of studio heads at the moment, so that’s going around in a few circles. But very definitely, man. We set that character up that you could take him out and put him into a lot of different circumstances.”

Crow has also stated that film’s source material involves twelve separate books. This would allow the studio to take the story in all kinds of directions. With that much source material, The Pope’s Exorcist could even rival The Conjuring Universe.

Only the future will tell what becomes of The Pope’s Exorcist. But as always, more horror is always a good thing.

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New ‘Faces of Death’ Remake Will Be Rated R For “Strong Bloody Violence and Gore”

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In a move that should surprise absolutely no one, the Faces of Death reboot has been given an R rating from the MPA. Why has the film been given this rating? For strong bloody violence, gore, sexual content, nudity, language, and drug use, of course.

What else would you expect from a Faces of Death reboot? It would honestly be alarming if the film received anything less than an R rating.

Faces of death
Faces of Death

For those unaware, the original Faces of Death film released in 1978 and promised viewers video evidence of real deaths. Of course, this was just a marketing gimmick. Promoting a real snuff film would be a terrible idea.

But the gimmick worked, and franchise lived on in infamy. The Faces of Death reboot is hoping to gain the same amount of viral sensation as its predecessor. Isa Mazzei (Cam) and Daniel Goldhaber (How to Blow Up a Pipeline) will spearhead this new addition.

The hope is that this reboot will do well enough to recreate the infamous franchise for a new audience. While we don’t know much about the film at this point, but a joint statement from Mazzei and Goldhaber gives us the following info on the plot.

“Faces of Death was one of the first viral video tapes, and we are so lucky to be able to use it as a jumping off point for this exploration of cycles of violence and the way they perpetuate themselves online.”

“The new plot revolves around a female moderator of a YouTube-like website, whose job is to weed out offensive and violent content and who herself is recovering from a serious trauma, that stumbles across a group that is recreating the murders from the original film. But in the story primed for the digital age and age of online misinformation, the question faced is are the murders real or fake?”

The reboot will have some bloody shoes to fill. But from the looks of it, this iconic franchise is in good hands. Unfortunately, the film does not have a release date at this time.

That’s all the information we have at this time. Make sure to check back here for more news and updates.

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