News
Toronto After Dark Review: ‘Victor Crowley’ Puts the “Laughter” in “Slaughter”
Fans of Adam Green’s Hatchet films rejoiced at the announcement that a fourth film – Victor Crowley – was not only on the way, it was already finished. Filmed in secret, it was premiered for an audience at Los Angeles’ ArcLight Hollywood theatre that gathered for a tenth anniversary screening of Hatchet. To their surprise, they were shown the brand new sequel instead.
I was able to catch a screening of Victor Crowley at this year’s Toronto After Dark, but iHorror fans can see it as part of Nightmares Film Festival on October 19th.
Full disclosure, I haven’t actually seen the first film in the Hatchet series. It’s blasphemous, I know, so keep and eye out for my Late to the Party post in November. That being said, you don’t actually need to see the original to appreciate the fourth segment in the franchise. So if you, like me, are uninitiated, don’t let that stop you from enjoying Victor Crowley. It’s ruthlessly fun and totally deserves to be seen.
Chloe (Katie Booth, Tell Me How I Die) is an aspiring filmmaker who has her sights set on making a film about killer Crowley. Along with her boyfriend Alex (Chase Williamson, John Dies At the End) and best friend Rose (Laura Ortiz, Holliston), she treks to Honey Island Swamp to film a trailer in hopes of securing financing.
Meanwhile, survivor Andrew (Parry Shen, Hatchet III) returns to Honey Island Swamp with publicist Kathleen (Felissa Rose, Sleepaway Camp) and a television crew to film his epic return to the site of the massacre after his harrowing escape. He is extremely reluctant, but the promise of substantial compensation is enough to urge him onto the private plane headed straight back to his own private hell.
Once they arrive at the swamp, Chloe and Rose try to find the proper pronunciation of the curse that created Victor Crowley via YouTube. Naturally, Crowley (played once again by the incomparable Kane Hodder) is summoned by the power of the curse, back for one last bloody romp.
What follows is a gloriously entertaining bonus round of slaughter. With its tongue firmly in-cheek, Victor Crowley delivers a gory, gruesome good time.
The cast are all fantastic, delivering their own caricatures to great effect. Felissa Rose as Kathleen stands out for her over-the-top performance, adding a heavy dose of comedic absurdity to all her scenes. Although no one takes it too seriously, there is a balance of heart. Tiffany Shepis as Casey (above) offers a particularly grounding effect on all the chaos.
Creative kills abound, and honestly, I haven’t had such a fun theatrical experience in a long time. The ending is hilariously abrupt and actually pretty damn perfect.
If you’re a fan of Adam Green, Hatchet, or horror comedy in general, definitely check this one out.
Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'
News
Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role
Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.
Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.
“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”
Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.
While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?
The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.
Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'
Editorial
7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch
The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.
The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.
We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.
Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?
Scream Live (2023)
Ghostface (2021)
Ghost Face (2023)
Don’t Scream (2022)
Scream: A Fan Film (2023)
The Scream (2023)
A Scream Fan Film (2023)
Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'
Movies
Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month
Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.
Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.
According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.
Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.
Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.
Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.
While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.
According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”
The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.
Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'
-
News4 days ago
This Horror Film Just Derailed a Record Held by ‘Train to Busan’
-
Movies4 days ago
Watch ‘Immaculate’ At Home Right Now
-
News3 days ago
Home Depot’s 12-Foot Skeleton Returns with a New Friend, Plus New Life-Size Prop from Spirit Halloween
-
News5 days ago
Read Reviews For ‘Abigail’ The Latest From Radio Silence
-
News2 days ago
Woman Brings Corpse Into Bank To Sign Loan Papers
-
News5 days ago
Melissa Barrera Says Her ‘Scream’ Contract Never Included a Third Movie
-
Editorial5 days ago
Rob Zombie’s Directorial Debut Was Almost ‘The Crow 3’
-
News4 days ago
A24 Joins Blockbuster Movie Club With Their Biggest Opening Ever
You must be logged in to post a comment Login