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Remembering Anne Heche & Two Outstanding Roles in Horror Movies

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Anne Heche holding a kinife in I know What You Did Last Summer

Tragedy struck one of Hollywood’s most controversial celebrities, Anne Heche, last week. The star died today after being on life support. On Friday, she crashed her car into two Los Angeles homes. The 53-year-old actress was not expected to survive her injuries.

Heche is a soap opera veteran who has won many Daytime Emmys. She often took many independent film roles and it wasn’t until the disaster film Volcano (1997) that Hollywood discovered she could stand on her own as a box office draw despite her controversial appeal.

I Know What You Did Last Summer

The actress was on a roll in the mid-nineties, taking on many off-beat characters. She even dipped her toe in the horror pond during that time. One of her most iconic roles was that of Melissa Egan, in I Know What You Did Last Summer.

Although she was only in the film a short time, she made an impact. Depending on who you ask, Heche’s character, Missy, has the most memorable scene next to Jennifer Love Hewitt’s rant to the heavens.

Missy’s scene is pivotal to the plot, because her dialogue seemingly revealed a potential suspect killing the young adults of Southport, NC. Heche played Missy as a country bumpkin living off the grid in a backwoods hovel. Hewitt’s character Julie and her friend Helen (Sarah Michelle Geller) pretend their car has broken down and ask to use Missy’s phone using subterfuge to get information about her brother who she thinks took his own life.

The scene is strikingly tense because at this point anyone could be the killer. The audience judges Missy for her lifestyle, but Heche’s performance is so good you never know if she knows more than what she is saying or if she has something to do with the murders. Sadly Heche may have been working with method for the role since she had a brother in real-life who died by suicide.

She also proved the film with its most innocuous jump scare. Even though it’s a small cameo, Heche’s role is iconic because she is so believable as someone who may be unhinged.

Psycho (Remake) 1998

Gus Van Sant took notice of Heche and cast her as the iconic Marion Crane in his controversial shot-for-shot remake of Psycho in 1997.

Heche plays the apprehensive Crane much like her predecessor Janet Leigh did in the Hitchcock original; with a driven mind, but a guilty heart. The facial expressions in the clip below showcase Heche’s talent to emote without speaking a word. She’s beautiful, vulnerable, but determined. In fact, it is her performance that sells the film, despite Vince Vaughn’s attempt at Norman Bates.

As far as the iconic shower scene, Heche allowed herself to trust her talents. Leigh will never be outdone by anyone doing that scene because the terror is real. Hitchcock notoriously put the actress through immense psychological torture to get it right and it shows.

Heche finds her own pain and when the knife strikes her body, we never get a sense that she is as weak as Marion was. But it still works because we want Marion to survive, to make good on her redemption by returning the money. Her death never gives us the satisfaction of a satisfyingly resolved story arc and so, it becomes tragic.

What makes Heche’s performance even more intriguing is that she had never seen the original.

Heche has other projects scheduled to be released over the next year. Some are completed while others are in post-production. Her penultimate film, Chasing Nightmares, is a horror movie.

Anne Heche brought a lot of awareness to Hollywood. From dealing with mental health issues to bravely coming out publically. But most of all, she will be remembered as the spitfire actress who took strong female lead roles at a time when Hollywood was shy about handing them out. She was an inspirational trailblazer in Tinsel Town who leaves many fans in her wake.

Anne Heche (1969 – 2022)

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‘The Strangers’ Invaded Coachella in Instagramable PR Stunt

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Renny Harlin’s reboot of The Strangers isn’t coming out until May 17, but those murderous home invaders are making a pit stop at Coachella first.

In the latest Instagramable PR stunt, the studio behind the film decided to have the trio of masked intruders crash Coachella, a music festival that takes place for two weekends in Southern California.

The Strangers

This type of publicity began when Paramount did the same thing with their horror movie Smile in 2022. Their version had seemingly ordinary people in populated places look directly into a camera with an evil grin.

The Strangers

Harlin’s reboot is actually a trilogy with a more expansive world than that of the original.

“When setting out to remake The Strangers, we felt there was a bigger story to be told, which could be as powerful, chilling, and terrifying as the original and could really expand that world,” said producer Courtney Solomon. “Shooting this story as a trilogy allows us to create a hyperreal and terrifying character study. We’re fortunate to be joining forces with Madelaine Petsch, an amazing talent whose character is the driving force of this story.”

The Strangers

The movie follows a young couple (Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez) who “after their car breaks down in an eerie small town, are forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive in The Strangers: Chapter 1 the chilling first entry of this upcoming horror feature film series.”

The Strangers

The Strangers: Chapter 1 opens in theaters on May 17.

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‘Alien’ Returning to Theaters For a Limited Time

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It’s been 45 years since Ridley Scott’s Alien hit theaters and in celebration of that milestone, it is headed back to the big screen for a limited time. And what better day to do that than Alien Day on April 26?

It also works as a primer for the upcoming Fede Alvarez sequel Alien: Romulus opening on August 16. A special feature in which both Alvarez and Scott discuss the original sci-fi classic will be shown as a part of your theater admission. Take a look at the preview of that conversation below.

Fede Alvarez and Ridley Scott

Back in 1979, the original trailer for Alien was kind of terrifying. Imagine sitting in front of a CRT TV (Cathode Ray Tube) at night and suddenly Jerry Goldsmith’s haunting score begins to play as a giant chicken egg starts to crack with beams of light bursting through the shell and the word “Alien” slowly forms in slanted all caps across the screen. To a twelve-year-old, it was a scary pre-bedtime experience, especially Goldsmith’s screaming electronic musical flourishes playing over scenes of the actual movie. Let the “Is it horror or sci-fi?” debate begin.

Alien became a pop culture phenomenon, complete with kid’s toys, a graphic novel, and an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. It also inspired dioramas in wax museums and even a frightening setpiece at Walt Disney World in the now-defunct Great Movie Ride attraction.

Great Movie Ride

The film stars Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, and John Hurt. It tells the tale of a futuristic crew of blue-collar workers suddenly awakened out of stasis to investigate an undecipherable distress signal coming from a nearby moon. They investigate the source of the signal and discover it’s a warning and not a cry for help. Unbeknownst to the crew, they have brought a giant space creature back on board which they find out in one of the most iconic scenes in cinema history.

It is said that Alvarez’s sequel will pay homage to the original film’s storytelling and set design.

Alien Romulus
Alien (1979)

The Alien theatrical re-release will take place on April 26. Pre-order your tickets and find out where Alien will screen at a theater near you.

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Home Depot’s 12-Foot Skeleton Returns with a New Friend, Plus New Life-Size Prop from Spirit Halloween

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Halloween is the greatest holiday of them all. However, every great holiday needs amazing props to go with it. Luckily for you, there are two new amazing props that have been released, which are sure to impress your neighbors and frighten any neighborhood children who are unfortunate enough to wander past your yard.

The first entry is the return of the Home Depot 12-foot skeleton prop. Home Depot has outdone themselves in the past. But this year the company is bringing bigger and better things to their Halloween prop lineup.

Home Depot Skeleton Prop

This year, the company unveiled its new and improved Skelly. But what is a giant skeleton without a loyal friend? Home Depot has also announced that they will release a five-foot tall skeleton dog prop to eternally keep Skelly company as he haunts your yard this spooky season.

This bony pooch will be five feet tall and seven feet long. The prop will also feature a posable mouth and LCD eyes with eight variable settings. Lance Allen, Home Depot’s merchant of decorative Holliday gear, had the following to say about this year’s lineup.

“This year we increased our realism within the animatronics category, created some impressive, licensed characters and even brought back some fan favorites. Overall, we are most proud of the quality and value we are able to bring to our customers with these pieces so they can continue to grow their collections.”

Home Depot Prop

But what if giant skeletons just aren’t your thing? Well, Spirit Halloween has you covered with their giant life size Terror Dog replica. This massive prop has been ripped out of your nightmares to appear frighteningly on your lawn.

This prop weighs in at almost fifty pounds and features glowing red eyes that are sure to keep your yard safe from any toilet paper throwing hooligans. This iconic Ghostbusters nightmare is a must have for any fan of 80s horror. Or, anyone who loves all things spooky.

Terror Dog Prop
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