Stephen King, Split, George Romero and other news!

Guys,

I failed.

I made it what...two weeks? Not even? Of writing three times a week. IN MY DEFENSE...work took a turn (for the good!) and I've have been throwing myself into that. And as much as I love you and this website, I do not make a dime off of this. And someone's got to pay for all these horror movies I watch! And that is me. I pay. Most of the time. Although, I am working on something with Morbidly Beautiful which is pretty cool. You can check out my article over there right now showcasing the amazing women of the Scream franchise, Scream Article

ANYWAY

Here I am....let's talk about some good old fashioned horror news shall we?

Obviously this wouldn't be Horrorbound without a Stephen King update, and this master of horror has seen IT....and he liked it! And we can trust him. He's super vocal when he doesn't like something. Just the other day I saw him casting shade on twitter about The Shining. Producer of IT, Seth Grahame-Smith let everyone know on instagram what King thought by sharing an email:

Steve asked me to pass along that he saw a screening of IT today and wanted to let everybody know that they should stop worrying about it as the producers have done a wonderful job with the production.

Honestly, I cannot wait for this fucking movie. It hits theaters September 8th and I am counting down the FREAKIN' DAYS. Also, I am currently re-reading Under the Dome and I truly forgot how addicting and wonderful this book was. I feel like when I tried to watch the TV show it tainted my memory of this actually amazing story.

Speaking of IT, a newly updated listing has popped up on the internet saying that the filming for the second half of the IT movie begins on March 17th, 2017 which is kind of insane considering they're not even waiting for box office numbers to jump right in. BUT I AM HERE FOR IT!

In Split news, it remains amazing and I am smug as hell, but we also have a release date - coming to Digital HD on April 4th and on Blu-ray and DVD and On Demand April 18th. So if ya'll wanna get me a birthday gift.......it's on the 21st.
But the best part about this DVD release is the features - deleted scenes, a look at the making of the film, AND A NEVER BEFORE SEEN ALTERNATE ENDINGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!

In podcast news Mick Garris has a new one for us called Post Mortem where bi-weekly he delivers us great interviews with horror icons. Mick Garris is of course one of my favs because he's tackled Stephen King adaptations including The Stand. He also brought us Psycho 4 and directed Dead of Summer. Garris also brought us the amazing anthology series Masters of Horror which was on Showtime. He's a passionate, knowledgeable host.

The first one was Rob Zombie and it was amazing. He was so candid and funny as always. This weeks' features John Landis and Joe Dante and while I haven't listened just yet it sounds amazing - they discuss politics in horror. Go download on itunes now!

And lastly, I saw this trailer for an upcoming documentary series called "Untold Horror" and it's genius. I can't wait! This will cover all those projects that were never made and will feature interviews with filmmakers like John Landis and George Romero. They'll talk in detail about the projects they almost made. And just hearing about a few of them in the trailer made me so angry - SO MANY COOL THINGS COULD'VE BEEN MADE.

The series was conceived in 2015 by Dave Alexander and Mark Pollesel and asks the questions whatever happened to that movie? Together, along with Bob Barrett and Kevin Burke, they'll uncover exactly what those never-seen projects from those great horror directors were really all about.

Check out the trailer below. As of right now there's no premier date but I'm crossing my fingers it comes out soon.

Alright that's it for now!

Sorry for all the yelling - I'm in a weird mood.

Stay spooky!

(Hopefully I can get back to my three a week schedule when things die down. But for now we're back to sporadic posts. But did you really expect anything less?)

Day 31 - Halloween - Horror Movie Challenge

HALLOWEEN (2007)

Inside every one us, there exists a dark side. Most people rise above it, but some are consumed by it. Until there is nothing left, but pure evil. 

It's Halloween in Haddonfield and young Michael is living inside an abusive home and being picked on at school. But today he's had enough. After murdering one of his bullies in the woods he goes home to trick or treat. Unfortunately his sister Judith isn't interested in taking him, his mom Deb is at work at the strip club and Deb's boyfriend is drunk and in a wheelchair. Michael heads out by himself but it isn't the same. When he gets home, Ronnie, Deb's boyfriend taunts Michael until he kills him by taping him up and slitting his throat. Next up is Judith's boyfriend, and then Judith, who he stabs 17 times.

Deb arrives home to find her son sitting outside covered in blood and holding his baby sister in his arms, who he didn't harm.

Michael is of course found guilty but placed into Smith's Grove Sanitarium under the care of Dr. Samuel Loomis. Michael doesn't remember anything from Halloween night and works with Dr. Loomis, but soon slips into his own mind. His Mom visits him every week but as Michael gets worse and worse and stops speaking and becomes obsessed with making and wearing masks, his Mom and Dr. Loomis are giving up. Then one day Michael kills a nurse violently and Deb can't take it anymore, she goes home and commits suicide, leaving her youngest daughter behind.

Over the next 15 years Michael lives in the Sanitarium making masks quietly. Loomis attempts multiple times over the years to reach him but it never works. Then one day Michael snaps after being tormented by a guard and his drunk cousin and kills them. He's able to escape and heads home, which is now an abandoned house that local residents are scared of.

His baby sister who was left orphaned has been taken in by the Strodes who live down the street and renamed Laurie. She's got a good life now but little does she know that her murderous brother has returned home and is watching her.

Alright...what did I love about this movie?

• Daeg Faerch puts on a powerhouse of a performance as young Michael Myers and Tyler Mane makes Michael even more terrifying as an adult, if that's even possible. At 6'9" he's a horrific slowly walking force.
• Amazing soundtrack, but that's usually to be expected from Rob Zombie.
• Sheri Moon Zombie can honestly do no wrong in my eyes and she's best in these strong but beaten down women type roles.
• The backstory on Michael is a refreshing touch on the series, seeing what made him into the psycho he is, and seeing how his Mother was left to deal with the aftermath of it all.
• Malcolm McDowell is so fucking great as Loomis.

What didn't I love?

• Waaaay too long. Slasher flicks have no business being over 2 hours.

Overall?

Firstly, ya'll know I'm a big Rob Zombie fan so I'm not here for your hate. Secondly, every year I always end the horror movie challenge with Halloween so this year I thought I'd shake it up with the remake.

I love the remake. I think Zombie did a great job putting his touch on it, like I mentioned above I love the backstory, the depth of Michael Myers. I get why it can be scarier to have no idea why he snapped at 10 years old and stalk Laurie for 100 movies. BUT I do love that we also have this option to watch to learn more about why he did what he did. We get to learn about the mask - why it's so important to Michael and why he hides behind it, such a devastating concept. And our hearts break watching Deb's horrific life and devastating ending.

Is this a Rob Zombie film? Yes. You can feel it in every conversation, every scene, every actor choice etc. But is it a good Rob Zombie film? Yes! It's a slasher flick with 17 violent kills and lots of spooky moments, but it's also a think piece with the prequel part of the film.

I adore this remake and believe it can sit side by side with the original series. Is it better than the original? Of course not! But there's room for both.

9/10

I've got two days left of my vacation and then I'm headed home! Highlight of this week so far? Getting to fly to the waterfall used in Jurassic Park in a helicopter! It's on protected land and can only be reached by helicopter and you have to wear protective booties on your shoes to protect the environment. It's absolutely beautiful and was honestly the coolest thing that's ever happened to me.

And here's a pic! Don't judge me for my fanny pack and safety vest wrapped around my waist:

Day 2 - 31 - October Horror Movie Challenge

31 (2016)

In 120 seconds we will begin and all you have to do is survive 12 hours inside the walls of our own private little hell...

(There will be major spoilers so skip if you don't want to be spoiled)

Oh boy, I have waited a lonnnnnnng time to watch this movie. Back in the day when Zombie was first talking about he described it as 5 strangers get kidnapped on Halloween and are tormented by clowns while playing the game 31. And I was like....sign me the fuck up. And here we are like...what...three years later? And I finally got to watch it.

We open on Doom-Head monologuing like the psycho he is in black and white. He's covered in blood and he's talking to a very terrified priest tied to a chair. I ain't no fucking clown. It's a great intro, puts you completely in the mood for this movie.

In hell everyone loves popcorn.

Then it switches to our main group, who I'm thinking are some sort of carnies? It never really explains clearly who they are or really where they're going. Unless I totally missed something. Which is possible because while I was watching it I was also dog sitting three dogs and four cats. We learn it's Halloween, 1976. They stop at a gas station to fill up and Roscoe is approached by a woman who asks him about his RV and the group. After a flirtatious conversation the group head off.

Later that night they get stopped on the road because there's a bunch of scarecrows blocking the way. A couple of them get out to investigate and are suddenly attacked. Half of them are killed (thank god - there were waaaay too many characters) and 5 are kidnapped.

The 5 wake up chained in some sort of creepy mansion where two people stand above them dressed up in some old school french getup's. Massive powdery wigs and all. They inform them that they are now playing the game of 31. They have to survive the next 12 hours while they are hunted down by Sick-Head - a little person dressed up as Hitler. As you do.

They're released into a sort of underground boiler room type situation and run around while Sick-Head tries to kill them. Soon they take out Sick-Head and then two more clowns are introduced - this time its Psycho-Head and Schizo-Head, chainsaw wielding brothers. They lose one of their team but eventually defeat these two clowns as well. Next up is Sex-Head and Death-Head, two Germans wearing tutus. Sex-Head is the mysterious woman who approached them at the gas station. When the group finally defeats these two, losing one of their own, the wig wielding maniacs controlling this whole thing are forced to bring in Doom-Head as a last resort.

And let me tell you...Doom-Head is a life savior for this movie.

31 is kind of boring? I feel bad saying that because I'm a huge Zombie fan but it was pretty boring. It only really got exciting near the end when Doom-Head got involved.

Alright....so what did I love about this movie?

• I loved Charly and Venus, the two female leads. They were incredibly bad ass while the men just kind of ran around making fools of themselves, including accidentally eating one of their own friends when tricked into it. 
• I LOVED Doom-Head. He was serving some Negan realness. He was psychotic and it was an incredible performance by Richard Brake. He was hypnotic to watch and the only creepy thing about this film. Murder school is now in session.
• The costumes were well done, the imagery was great. Some of the scene setups were so cool - like the circus cage and the dining room.
• Ending - awesome. Charly vs. Doom-Head WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN?!?! I'm obsessed.  
• Malcolm McDowell DELIVERED as Father Murder. 
• The soundtrack is SO GOOD

What I didn't love?

• There was one scene where there was like a strobe light going off and it was awful to watch. It gave me a headache.
• A lot of the scenes were incredibly dark and distracting.
• You're left with a lot of questions - specifically who are these clowns? Are they new ones every year? Or is this the first time a group has been able to kill them. Are they also held hostage? Who was that blow-up doll girl? Where did she come from? Who the hell owns this much land in the middle of nowhere?

Overall?
As far as Rob Zombie movies go - this is a Zombie movie through and through. But it's not my favorite by a long shot. It's quite dull in the middle and it feels very unfinished in its story. Now, I am aware that the movie had to be cut three times just to hit an R rating, so I'm hoping one day we'll get a full directors cut type release where we can see it in all its glory, and perhaps a lot of the questions I had will be answered.

6/10

Stay spooky!

Upcoming Horror Movies - a completely biased list

Upcoming Horror Movies - a completely biased list

Let's take a look at the upcoming horror movies and the ones I'm excited for!
Aka this is a completely biased list of upcoming horror movies that I'm excited for but you may not be.
But that's how I role.

Of course - first up is the new Blair Witch. I am still shook from that reveal and I'm trying to be brave enough to go see this in theatres. Premiering September 16th this movie follows Heather's brother after he's sent a tape that supposedly shows Heather and her friends. The brother heads out to the Black Hills Woods with a group of his own friends and shit goes down.

I'm trying to ignore all the trailers and the hype about this film as I just want to see it myself and not let my expectations get in the way. Which is kind of why I want to see it in theatres as soon as possible.

I'm also hoping so hard that they don't show the witch, which rumor has it they don't.

Check out the latest episode of Shock Waves on iTunes where they sit down with the writer of this new Blair Witch, Simon Barrett.



Next up is Jack Goes Home which premiers on VOD and in select theatres October 14th. It has a phenomenal cast with Rory Culkin in the lead role as Jack, a guy whose Dad just died and now he's headed home to deal with everything. But when he gets home he finds a tape from his Dad telling him to go to the attic. When he heads up, shit gets wild. I'm guessing. The trailer doesn't reveal too much, thank god. It also stars Nikki Reed, Natasha Lyonne and Lin Shaye.



Then it's time for Rob Zombie's 31 which ya'll know I've been hyped on for a long time now. I can't WAIT to see this movie. It had an initial release on September 1st and some of the reviews I've read (people are SO critical of Zombie...what's with that?) say it's very "rob zombie" which to that I say....good? That's why I like his movies? The actual premier date, I believe, is October 21st but I don't think it's getting too wide of a release. So I'm hoping for a quick VOD release.

Sheri Moon Zombie of course stars in all her glory in a story about 5 carnival workers who are kidnapped and forced to play a game where only one of them can survive. There's violence, there's clowns, there's probably nudity.....I mean....gimme that VOD.


This next one I am EXTREMELY hesitant about because I despised the original. Ouija came out in 2014 and I turned it off half way through and angry blogged about. It was garbage. I was insulted. But damnit if this sequel doesn't look 100000 times better? I'm just a sucker for horror movies set in the 60's and I'm fascinated with the whole faking séances thing that used to happen a lot back then. Those con artists got so creative. And in this movie those fake séances turn into real ones after the mom brings home a Ouija board and her youngest daughter basically go nuts. It looks so good but I'm not holding my breath. It will probably be shit.
The movie is called Ouija: Origin of Evil and is premiering October 20th I think? Premier dates are so confusing.


Coming October 28th is the much awaited sequel/remake/reboot/who knows anymore to The Ring and The Ring 2 ....Rings. 14 years after the original adaptation we have a new story which is basically the same story. The video is no longer a V/H/S it's online and it still kills you after 7 days. Samara is still kicking around only this time it looks like she's trying to possess the main character instead of simply killing her. So maybe Samara is finally sick of living in the bottom of a well? We'll find out! Hooray! I'm really rooting for this one.


Shut In looks pretty spooky and intense so I'm adding that on here. Naomi Watts plays the mother, Jacob Tremblay plays the little boy and Charlie Heaton (aka baby Norman Reedus) plays her son. Naomi Watts' character is a widowed child psychologist who saves a little boy in a winter storm and then...he dies? I think? I have no idea, the trailer is kind of confusing but I am HERE for this spooky, isolated, winter horror film. Released on November 11th. Probably? Again, don't trust me on these dates.


It's been a great year for horror so far, and in fact horror movies were really the only ones who made a splash at the box office this summer. Looks like the rest of the year will hold up too!

Tomorrow Mitch is off to Victoria and my weekend of horror movie binge watching BEGINS!

Stay spooky!

ps; can I just toot my own horn for a second? look at all the videos I finally managed to embed....it's been a long, useless road...but we've made it.

CLOVERFIELD'S BACK YA'LL and other news

Hey everyone,
After a very awful and stressful day where I basically had my entire paycheck taken away from me and now I'm not sure how to get through the next two weeks....let's talk about things that make me happy....HORROR NEWS!

These are my favorite stories right now and what I'm most excited about up and coming so LET'S TALK ABOUT IT.

First up, the sequel to The Conjuring, an amazing movie that came out awhile back and features my favorite demon hunters - Ed and Lorraine Warren. Now they're back investigating the Enfield Poltergeist. Which, in real life, they had not a lot to do with, BUT this is mostly fictional so I'm excited nonetheless. Hopefully it's even better than the amazing mini series I spoke about a few entries ago. In 1977 Peggy Hodgson and her four children are haunted by a poltergeist like spirit in their home. And now we have a trailer and some photos!

Bloody Disgusting is also reporting that The Conjuring 2 will open with The Amityville Horror Case which is kind of fucking amazing. Look for it in theaters on June 10th!

Next up is Rob Zombie's 31.
I've talked about this movie a bit over the last year because I'm a big Rob Zombie fan and an even bigger Sherri Moon Zombie fan. The news we have now is that is is officially an R rating....after receiving an NC-17 a few times. And in celebration of that rating, and the upcoming Sundance premier we got a sort of poster/collage type showing us all the great looking characters. I'm so damn stoked to see this bloody, violent film which tells the story of 5 friends who get kidnapped the day before Halloween and get held hostage at a place called Murder World. aka my new home. They have to play a game called 31 which gives them 12 hours to survive against a group of evil clowns.
NOW GIVE ME A TRAILER!

Up next? TNT is reviving Tales From the Crypt and the show's curator is none other than M Night Shamalamadingdong. Obviously everyone is furious and I'm like, guys, please, just give him another chance.
The next bit of news is that Bloody Disgusting reported the new revival won't feature the Crypt Keeper like we remember him, voiced by John Kassir. This is because HBO owns the original one so the new host will be something different, or as Shamalamadingdong puts it "cool and dark" but we can't trust him. The host could've been dead the whole time. OR BE A TREE.

Anyway, reports are saying the new show will be closer to the original comic series. But let's all chill guys, we'll all watch it no matter how bad it is. So lets just get excited!

And last but certainly not least BECAUSE THIS IS THE CRAZIEST BEST NEWS EVER.....

A couple of years ago a movie was spoken about called Valencia which was produced by JJ Abrams and directed by Dan Trachtenberg. But apparently those mother fuckers were being sneaky as hell and Valencia was actually the secret title for 10 Cloverfield Lane. THATS RIGHT YA'LL. WE'RE GETTING A SEQUEL. ALL OUR CONSPIRACY THEORIES ARE COMING TRUEEEEE.
Yep, it's been confirmed, it's connected to 2008's amazing film Cloverfield. Abrams said that they wanted to make it a "blood relative" to Cloverfield whatever that means. But when you watch the trailer, at the end when the title appears, Cloverfield shows up first, then 10 and Lane. So err....WHAT ELSE ARE WE SUPPOSED TO THINK.

And this morning we got this trailer dropped on us and NO ONE WAS PREPARED.
omg.
like no one in NYC was prepared when the Cloverfield monster attacked.....

It's headed our way on March 11th and I was not prepared for this in any way and I'm going opening night and screaming about it every damn day until it happens. I CANT STOP YELLING ABOUT IT.

And let's talk about those stars!!! John fucking Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Final Destination 3) and John Gallagher, Jr.


WHY ARE YOU STILL READING THIS? WATCH THE TRAILER!!!!

Alright,
I've calmed down.
I'm going to go enjoy my weekend and try not to cry about my gypsy cursed life.
This weekend I'm also going to try and watch some more horror movies that were on my list, but I also need to watch the Oscar noms because I have no aspirations in life.

Stay spooky!

horror news and fan expo vancouver

Upcoming things I am thrilled about:

The Woods Movie

A documentary on the making of The Blair Witch Project. The festival trailer is out for this exciting documentary that will reveal footage from the hundreds of hours of footage that was taken during the filming, and compacted into an interesting and tell all documentary. The movie that changed the genre of horror and broke the box office is still such a big secret. Not much is really known about the making of and the actors themselves mostly vanished. And now we get to see all the behind the scenes goodies that we love.

Watch the trailer here

There's also a rumour floating around out there, reported by Bloody Disgusting, that there's a new Blair Witch movie being discussed behind closed doors. Could be a reboot? Could be a remake? Either way it's the stupidest thing I've ever heard and you bet your ass I'm gonna watch it just like Book of Shadows (*muffled groaning*).

The Gift

This movie has got me excited. I love a good creepy, high production thriller/horror and this one looks like a winner. A young married couple encounter an old friend who soon becomes a part of their lives even though they don't want him to. And when the husband remembers what really happened in the past with him and this creep, things get cray. The trailer is really good, and I'm really judgmental of trailers, but this one passed. And we got a bunch of new posters that look creepy as hell.

Watch the trailer here

Starring Jason Bateman, Joel Edgerton and Rebecca Hall opening in theaters July 31st. 

Sinister 2

 FINALLY THINGS ARE COMING OUT!! Jesus, I was getting so mad. This movie is due out in August and yet we had nothing until last week when everything just spilled out of the woodwork. We got some promo photos, we got a teaster trailer, and now we finally have the first full length trailer. Although, tbh, I'm not loving it? But I'll still watch. It's just something about the trailer seems off and I have a gut feeling this will completely fall apart which will be devastating. Maybe it's because Sinister didn't really need a sequel? And the way it all ties up to the first movie doesn't make any sense?
Regardless, I'm excited to finally get some news about the sequel - bad or good.

“In the aftermath of the shocking events in Sinister, a protective mother and her 9-year-old twin sons find themselves in a rural house marked for death as the evil spirit of Buhguul continues to spread with frightening intensity.”

Watch the trailer here

Afterlife with Archie

This comic book series is amazing!! And this is old news, but I finally got around to reading it. I'm about half way through. The art is to die for, the story is spot on, and watching the characters of my childhood die and turn into zombies is so weirdly satisfying. You can buy the entire volume at your local comic book store or online at comixology. It's written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and the art is by Francesco Francavilla. It was inspired by a zombie-themed variant cover which Francavilla did himself. One of the best parts is at the end of each issue they put in an old school horror comic that's almost as fun to read as the original story itself.

Leatherface

Let's talk about this prequel! I was over the moon when they announced it awhile ago and the more news that comes out, the more excited I'm getting. I love the idea of this!

Here is the rumored plot according to bloody disgusting:

The film centers around a violent teen who one day will become Leatherface. He escapes from a mental hospital with three other inmates, kidnaps a young nurse and takes her on a road trip from hell. Along the way, they are pursued by an equally deranged lawman out for revenge.

We've got some cast news and lots and lots of rumors. But this project has a lot weighing on it and I hope the team is ready for the judgment coming their way. 

31

A new Rob Zombie film! I'm a huge Rob Zombie fan and was devastated awhile ago when he said he was going to stop doing horror. But JK YA'LL, he's back. And this movie looks like it'll be gorier than all the others combined. It was kickstarted and completely fan funded which i'm all about. The art that he shared to show how he envisioned it all going down has become some of my favorite art. It was seriously amazing.
They've just finished filming and we've been given a slew of news including casting and a few photos.
Cast wise we've got: Jeff Daniel Phillips, Malcolm McDowell, Judy Geeson, David Ury to name a few and of course Sheri Moon Zombie.

“31 follows five carnival workers who are kidnapped the night before Halloween and held hostage in a large secret compound known as Murder World.
Once there, they have 12 hours to survive a terrifying game called 31 in which ‘The Heads’- murderous maniacs dressed as clowns – are released to hunt them down and kill them.” - bloody digusting

Follow all the news over at Rob's site Rob Zombie Official

Kill-Crazy Nymphos Attack!

Daniel Way has teamed up with my main girls, the Soska twins to kick start this amazing comic book series. It was originally supposed to be a film but I think it's a great move to create a comic book instead. It's the story of a disgusting pervert who creates a drug that makes women have an uncontrollable lust for sex but ultimately turns against him when they also have an uncontrollable lust...for killing.
I funded this project and have been getting constant updates about this series and I suggest ya'll do the same because this is going to be phenomenal. They've already surpassed their goal but are still accepting money to make this as amazing as they can. Everything the Soska twins touch turns to bloody and demented gold.

Check out the project here

FAN EXPO!
Fan Expo was last weekend and it was a total blast! The only dissapointment was that Rue Morgue wasn't there this year and neither was the Festival of Fear so the lack of horror was depressing. I rocked my Jason Vorhees jersey on Saturday and all together I'd say there was maaaaybe 7 people cosplaying as horror icons? Hopefully next year they bring back the horror element, but I'm also considering attending the horror convention in Calgary next summer so maybe I'll get my fix that way.
One guy was cosplaying as Jason Vorhees and I got so freakin excited I ran up and embraced him:
(warning....you're about to see my face :O)

So mad props to that guy!!!!!!!!! He also had Michael and Freddy with him too but Jason's my bae.

Leanna Vamp was also there who is an amazingly beautiful cosplayer, model, and youtube personality (see Star Wars Girls). She works with horror block and is a big promoter of all things horror. She was absolutely wonderful and kind and made my day.

Right now me and Mitch are house sitting for my co worker and taking care of two dogs, plus our little guy, and two cats. It's a mad house over here but it's entertaining.