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Head Trauma: 8 Great Scenes of Gore Above The Shoulders

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The headline photo of this article from Friday the 13th Part 3 looks really fake. But in the early 80s… yeah, it still looked pretty unconvincing. That being said it was in 3D and everyone wearing those uncomfortable glasses screamed (then laughed) watching that scene in the theater. It was pretty cool.

As times have changed so too are the ways filmmakers create special effects. Since the scenes in the list below involve the head, you couldn’t put the actor in danger just to get the shot. That means practical effects engineers have to come up with something to pull off the gag.

SPOILERS AHEAD:

Final Destination 2

Driving behind logging trucks became an instant trigger after the release of Final Destination 2. The massive highway pile-up premonition is one of the most memorable in the franchise.

Poor officer Thomas Burke can’t avoid a spilled log as it crashes into the driver’s-side windshield and ultimately through his head.

Friday the 13th Part 3

Paramount Pictures

Although the gimmick looked cheap (as mentioned above), there was a lot of work that went into 3D movies from the 80s. Filmmakers had to invent ways to make it work even if that included ruining the effect because of exposed fishing wire or other visible gadgetry.

Let’s face it, the tech was rudimentary. However, that didn’t stop us from paying money to see it, and when we learned that Friday the 13th III was going to use this contrivance, we leaned into the hype.

There were a few great moments in the movie, including this one where poor Rick got his skull crushed by Jason. It may look cheesier now than it did then, but it was one of the highlights of the movie.

Scanners (1981)

Talk about movie buzz, perhaps this is the most memorable of all the horror movie head trauma. When Scanners was released in 1981 it was actually the cover of Fangoria magazine that spoiled this effects showstopper for everyone.

The issue, although hidden in the 18 and over section of bookstores, gave away the classic Cronenberg ending with the image of a headless torso emitting smoke and viscera.

That image alone got the public interested in this movie and they weren’t disappointed when they finally got to see the film and this famous scene.

Planet Terror (2007)

This jump scare comes out of nowhere, and it was a bit emotional because the character was pretty cool.

Robert Rodriguez’s Planet Terror has some great special effects, but since it is an homage to schlocky grindhouse movies of the 70s the viewer is never sure if the director meant some of them to resemble the low-budget feel of that period.

That anxiety was triggered even further by the unexpected and realistic death of Abby (Naveen Andrews) in the film.

Hereditary (2018)

A24

Ari Aster’s masterpiece is all about head trauma. So it would be remiss to not include the centerpiece, and most memorable plot twist, that of Charlie being decapitated by a telephone pole.

The scene is so unexpected and tragic, it was all anyone could talk about following its release. To avoid spoilers, when people discussed the movie, they would refer to it as “that scene,” and if you knew, you knew.

The Thing (2011)

This poor movie never gets the love it deserves, mostly because people didn’t know if it was a remake, a reboot, a requel? But it stands on its own as a fearsome entry into The Thing universe with some great special effects, both practical and digital.

If you are a diehard fan of the original you can appreciate what director Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. was trying to accomplish here, which was to try and capture the anxious tension of the original but also give fans what they really came for: the gore!

Deadly Friend (1986)

Deadly Friend: Warner Bros.

Raise your hand if you miss Wes Craven. Move over M3GAN, there was a killer “robot” way before your circuits were built. Her name was Sam and although she was born human (she is resurrected via a microchip), her skills are just as murderous and R-rated.

Coming off her role as the slapstick villain in the pirate adventure film The Goonies, distinctive actress Anne Ramsey was cast as a serious villain in Deadly Friend. It was a little disturbing to see her death scene in the latter film after her comedic performance in the former.

Watch out PG-13 M3GAN, there was an R-rated version of you back in 1986.

Jigsaw (2017)

There is so much body horror in the Saw franchise, it’s hard to pick just one. As far as horror movie head trauma goes, this makes the list because of its uniqueness and effect.

Detective Halloran (Callum Keith Rennie) gets the evil plan re-cap from Logan (Matt Passmore) just before his head gets split open by lasers.

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‘Longlegs’ Creepy “Part 2” Teaser Appears on Instagram

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Longlegs

Neon Films released an Insta-teaser for their horror film Longlegs today. Titled Dirty: Part 2, the clip only furthers the mystery of what we are in for when this movie is finally released on July 12.

The official logline is: FBI Agent Lee Harker is assigned to an unsolved serial killer case that takes unexpected turns, revealing evidence of the occult. Harker discovers a personal connection to the killer and must stop him before he strikes again.

Directed by former actor Oz Perkins who also gave us The Blackcoat’s Daughter and Gretel & Hansel, Longlegs is already creating buzz with its moody images and cryptic hints. The film is rated R for bloody violence, and disturbing images.

Longlegs stars Nicolas Cage, Maika Monroe, and Alicia Witt.

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Melissa Barrera Says ‘Scary Movie VI’ Would Be “Fun To Do”

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Melissa Barrera might literally get the last laugh on Spyglass thanks to a possible Scary Movie sequel. Paramount and Miramax are seeing the right opportunity to bring the satirical franchise back into the fold and announced last week one might be in production as early as this fall.

The last chapter of the Scary Movie franchise was almost a decade ago and since the series lampoons thematic horror movies and pop culture trends, it would seem they have a lot of content to draw ideas from, including the recent reboot of slasher series Scream.

Barerra, who starred as final girl Samantha in those movies was abruptly fired from the latest chapter, Scream VII, for expressing what Spyglass interpreted as “antisemitism,” after the actress came out in support of Palestine on social media.

Even though the drama wasn’t a laughing matter, Barrera might get her chance to parody Sam in Scary Movie VI. That is if the opportunity arises. In an interview with Inverse, the 33-year-old actress was asked about Scary Movie VI, and her reply was intriguing.

“I always loved those movies,” the actress told Inverse. “When I saw it announced, I was like, ‘Oh, that would be fun. That would be so fun to do.’”

That “fun to do” part could be construed as a passive pitch to Paramount, but that’s open to interpretation.

Just like in her franchise, Scary Movie also has a legacy cast including Anna Faris and Regina Hall. There is no word yet on if either of those actors will appear in the reboot. With or without them, Barrera is still a fan of the comedies. “They have the iconic cast that did it, so we’ll see what goes on with that. I’m just excited to see a new one,” she told the publication.

Barrera is currently celebrating the box office success of her latest horror movie Abigail.

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Thrills and Chills: Ranking ‘Radio Silence’ Films from Bloody Brilliant to Just Bloody

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Radio Silence Films

Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett, and Chad Villella are all filmmakers under the collective label called Radio Silence. Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett are the primary directors under that moniker while Villella produces.

They have gained popularity over the past 13 years and their films have become known as having a certain Radio Silence “signature.” They are bloody, usually contain monsters, and have breakneck action sequences. Their recent film Abigail exemplifies that signature and is perhaps their best film yet. They are currently working on a reboot of John Carpenter’s Escape From New York.

We thought we would go through the list of projects they have directed and rank them from high to low. None of the movies and shorts on this list are bad, they all have their merits. These rankings from top to bottom are just ones we felt showcased their talents the best.

We didn’t include movies they produced but didn’t direct.

#1. Abigail

An update to the second film on this list, Abagail is the natural progression of Radio Silence’s love of lockdown horror. It follows in pretty much the same footsteps of Ready or Not, but manages to go one better — make it about vampires.

Abigail

#2. Ready or Not

This film put Radio Silence on the map. While not as successful at the box office as some of their other films, Ready or Not proved that the team could step outside their limited anthology space and create a fun, thrilling, and bloody adventure-length film.

Ready or Not

#3. Scream (2022)

While Scream will always be a polarizing franchise, this prequel, sequel, reboot — however you want to label it showed just how much Radio Silence knew the source material. It wasn’t lazy or cash-grabby, just a good time with legendary characters we love and new ones who grew on us.

Scream (2022)

#4 Southbound (The Way Out)

Radio Silence tosses their found footage modus operandi for this anthology film. Responsible for the bookend stories, they create a terrifying world in their segment titled The Way Out, which involves strange floating beings and some sort of time loop. It’s kind of the first time we see their work without a shaky cam. If we were to rank this entire film, it would remain at this position on the list.

Southbound

#5. V/H/S (10/31/98)

The film that started it all for Radio Silence. Or should we say the segment that started it all. Even though this isn’t feature-length what they managed to do with the time they had was very good. Their chapter was titled 10/31/98, a found-footage short involving a group of friends who crash what they think is a staged exorcism only to learn not to assume things on Halloween night.

V/H/S

#6. Scream VI

Cranking up the action, moving to the big city and letting Ghostface use a shotgun, Scream VI turned the franchise on its head. Like their first one, this film played with canon and managed to win over a lot of fans in its direction, but alienated others for coloring too far outside the lines of Wes Craven’s beloved series. If any sequel was showing how the trope was going stale it was Scream VI, but it managed to squeeze some fresh blood out of this nearly three-decade mainstay.

Scream VI

#7. Devil’s Due

Fairly underrated, this, Radio Silence’s first feature-length film, is a sampler of things they took from V/H/S. It was filmed in an omnipresent found footage style, showcasing a form of possession, and features clueless men. Since this was their first bonafide major studio job it’s a wonderful touchstone to see how far they have come with their storytelling.

Devil’s Due

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