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‘Nightmare Soup’ Is A Clever ‘Scary Stories’ For Nostalgic Adults

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Written by Patti Pauley

As a loyal fan from the age of seven of  Alvin Shwartz’s Scary Stories trilogy of books, that I happened to fall into courtesy of my second grade library book fair,  it’s almost blasphemy to even think anything could come close to the nostalgic feel those tales of terror and revised urban legends those paperbacks bring us. Well, Author Jake Tri and partner illustrator Andy Sciakzo have hit all the right fuzzies with their book Nightmare Soup. To put it simply for 90’s kids everywhere- if Are You Afraid of the Dark and Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark had a twisted relationship, with an occasional appearance of Tales From the Crypt trying to hop in the bed, the beautiful result you would get is Nightmare Soup.

 

nightmare soup

 

Not to say this collection of tales isn’t for young horror readers as well. As a matter of fact, my two kids ages seven and twelve, who HATE to read, fought over who’s turn it was to peruse the 30 tales of frights and were enthralled at the mind-warping illustrations that takes your imagination right into the segments you’re reading.

 

While the illustrations and layout of the tales do indeed seem to be heavily inspired by Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, the Nightmare Soup stories themselves hold their own kind of magic that completely separates them into their own entity of nightmarish illusions that I feel many young and older horror readers will cherish for years to come.

 

As I sat reading these two-three page tales of horror, while the stories themselves are unique, my horror movie mind horn was blowing harder than the cheap Vegas hooker down the street. Many of the little stories inside the book for me personally, seem to give nod to a few classic horror films and TV shows. A good example would be the very first piece of nightmare fuel in the book entitled “I Hate Clowns”. The short throws a reminiscent smell towards Eli Roth’s Clown, while another segment titled “Woman in the Window”, felt like something off an Unsolved Mysteries program. And you’re correct when assuming I read that passage in Robert Stack’s voice.

 

 

 

Just like the novella’s inspiration “Scary Stories”, the book doesn’t just limit itself to creepy passages. There’s a few funny as hell tales in there that will most likely make you laugh out loud; so be wary if you’re reading in public to avoid the awkward WTF stare. Passages such as “Mr. Wilson” and “The Troll” are definitely one-of-kind, truly funny stories with of course a horror touch, that serve as a breath of fresh air that is much-needed after getting the MASSIVE skeevies from tales such as the intertwined stories of the “The Fly” and “The Tongue” . I’m not kidding, you may want to take a shower after reading those two gems.

 

I absolutely encourage any horror lover to pick up this book up for your household coffee table and literally just leave it there. You, and if you have kids, are going to want to pick it up multiple times to revisit these future nostalgic tales for the next generation. So it’s best to just keep it off the bookshelf. If you’re interested in investing in your own copy, visit Nightmare Soup’s website by clicking here to pick up this little treasure trove of horror delight.

 

Just stay away from eating any seed-bearing fruit while you’re reading this book. Trust me. You’ll thank me later.

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‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2’ Comes to Brilliant 4K UHD From Vinegar Syndrome

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Texas

Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 is on its way to us from Vinegar Syndrome. The new release comes with an entire heck load of special features to boot. From new interviews with Tom Savini to Caroline Williams and more the disc is loaded with all kinds of new features to dig into. Of course, the new collection also made sure to include all the previously released special features. This makes for one hell of an absolutely complete collection.

The entire Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 experience on its own is a brilliant one. Director, Tobe Hooper took things in a vastly different level from that of the first film. Gone are the greasy, dirty, sweat-drenched Texas summers with the underlined stench of a cattle feed lot. Instead, Hooper went in a direction that underlined a comicbookish feel to the characters and the evil undeground lair in which The Saw and The Family took to hiding. It isn’t a direction everyone woul have gone with but Hooper wasn’t everyone and his brilliance shined through immensely with this gigantic choice.

The Vinegar Syndrome Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 special features include:

  • 4K Ultra HD / Region A Blu-ray Set
  • 4K UHD presented in High-Dynamic-Range
  • Newly scanned & restored in 4K from its 35mm original camera negative
  • Presented with it’s original 2.0 stereo theatrical mix
  • Brand new audio commentary with film critic Patrick Bromley
  • Audio commentary with director Tobe Hooper
  • Audio commentary with actors Bill Moseley, Caroline Williams and special effects makeup creator Tom Savini
  • Audio commentary with director of photography Richard Kooris, production designer Cary White, script supervisor Laura Kooris and property master Michael Sullivan
  • “The Saw and Savini” – a brand new 2022 interview with special effects makeup creator Tom Savini
  • “Stretch Lives!” – a brand new 2022 interview with actress Caroline Williams
  • “Serving Tom” – a brand new 2022 interview with special makeup effects artist Gabe Bartalos
  • “Remember The Alamo” – a brand new 2022 interview with actor Kirk Sisco
  • “Texas Blood Bath” – a brand new 2022 interview with special makeup effects artist Barton Mixon
  • “Die Yuppie Scum” – a brand new 2022 interview with actor Barry Kinyon
  • “Leatherface Revisited” – a brand new 2022 interview with actor Bill Johnson
  • “Beneath The Battle Land: Remembering The Lair” – a brand new 2022 featurette with actors Caroline Williams, Barry Kinyon, Bill Johnson, and Kirk Sisco
  • Never-before-seen extended interviews with director Tobe Hooper and co-producer Cynthia Hargrave – from director Mark Hartley’s documentary “Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films”
  • “It Runs In The Family” – an 85-minute documentary on the making of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
  • “IRITF Outtakes” – extended interviews with L.M. Kit Carson and Lou Perryman
  • “House Of Pain” – an interview with makeup effects artists John Vulich, Bart Mixon, Gabe Bartalos and Gino Crognale
  • “Yuppie Meat” – an interview with actors Chris Douridas and Barry Kinyon
  • “Cutting Moments” – an interview with editor Alain Jakubowicz
  • “Behind The Mask” – an interview with stunt man and Leatherface performer Bob Elmore
  • “Horror’s Hallowed Grounds” – a featurette on the locations of the film
  • “Still Feelin’ The Buzz” – an interview with author and film historian Stephen Thrower
  • 43 minute behind-the-scenes video footage shot during the film’s production
  • Alternate Openingl
  • Deleted Scenes
  • Original theatrical trailers for U.S. and Japan
  • TV Spots
  • Extensive promotional still and image gallery
  • Reversible cover artwork
  • English SDH subtitles

Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 is coming to 4K UHD from Vinegar Syndome. Head over HERE to place your order before they are all gone. (They are selling out fast!)

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‘Bambi’ Meets ‘Apocolypse Now’ Fever Dream ‘Unicorn Wars’ Coming to Blu-Ray

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Unicorn

Director, Alberto Vázquez brings the animated fever dream Unicorn Wars to life in a must-see spectacle and surprisingly heavy political statement. Fantastic Fest 2022 selected Unicorn Wars as part of its programming and it didn’t let down in the heavy genre fest. The film which is best described as Apocalypse Now meets Bambi is an incredible film with surprisingly heavy drama for being such a squishy, and happy animation style. That juxtaposition makes for an incredible and singular viewing. Luckily for us, the radical experience is coming to Blu-Ray from G Kids and Shout! Factory.

The synopsis for Unicorn Wars goes like this:

For ages, teddy bears have been locked in an ancestral war against their sworn enemy, the unicorns, with the promise that victory will complete the prophecy and usher in a new era. Aggressive, confident teddy bear Bluet and his sensitive, withdrawn brother Tubby could not be more different. As the rigors and humiliation of teddy bear bootcamp turn to the psychedelic horrors of a combat tour in the Magic Forest, their complicated history and increasingly strained relationship will come to determine the fate of the entire war.

unicorn

Unicorn Wars Bonus Features

  • Interview with the director Alberto Vásquez
  • “Working in Blender” featurette
  • Feature-length animatic
  • Trailer

Unicorn Wars arrives on Blu-Ray beginning May 9. Are you excited about the insanely over-the-top experience? Let us know in the comments section.

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Evil Tech Might Be Behind an Online Predator Ruse in ‘The Artifice Girl’

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An evil A.I. program appears to be behind the fake abduction of a young girl in XYZ’s forthcoming thriller The Artifice Girl.

This movie was originally a festival contender where it garnered the Adam Yauch Hörnblowér Award at SXSW, and won Best International Feature at last year’s Fantasia Film Festival.

The teaser trailer is below (a full one will be released soon), and it feels like a twisted take on the cult fave Megan is Missing. Although, unlike Megan, The Artifice Girl isn’t a found footage film it employs third-person computer tech in its narrative.

The Artifice Girl is the directorial feature film debut of Franklin Ritch. The film stars Tatum Matthews (The Waltons: Homecoming), David Girard (short “Teardrop Goodbye with Mandatory Directorial Commentary by Remy Von Trout”), Sinda Nichols (That Abandoned Place, “Bubblegum Crisis”), Franklin Ritch and Lance Henriksen (Aliens, The Quick and the Dead)

XYZ Films will release The Artifice Girl in Theaters, On Digital, and On Demand on April 27, 2023.

The More:

A team of special agents discovers a revolutionary new computer program to bait and trap online predators. After teaming up with the program’s troubled developer, they soon find that the AI is rapidly advancing beyond its original purpose. 

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