Whew! Finally the elections are over, and no matter which side of the political fence you sit on, you can’t deny that history has been made. The week of November 1-7, 2008, was full of highs and lows for me; while I was rejoicing at Obama’s resounding success, I couldn’t help but feel disheartened by the passage of Prop 8 in California and similar measures in other states. We’ve come so far; yet, there’s still a lot of work to be done to ensure equal rights for all. But I know that’s not what we’re here to talk about. So let’s rehash horror‘s wins and losses over the past seven days.
One upcoming flick that looks like a frontrunner is 100 Feet. Be sure to check out the new clip that showed up online. I don’t know about you, but I get a real The Entity vibe off this thing. I can’t wait to see if I’m right.
Zombies, zombies, everywhere — you can’t deny their longevity and versatility. And I’d say 2008 has been quite kind to the creatures. One of the best tales of the undead this year is definitely Zombie Diaries, and we’ve got both a DVD review and the scoop on a possible sequel to whet your appetite for the disc’s November 18th release date.
Does anyone want a follow-up to RZ’s Halloween? According to the crowd I was with at the Halloween 30 Years of Terror convention, yes, lots of people do. If, of course, it doesn’t suck like the remake did. We got a tiny piece of news about Halloween 2 that indicates steps are being taken in the right direction. I can’t help but be hopeful since Michael is my favorite of the Top 3 horror baddies, but as the saying goes, Fool me once … We’ll see how this develops.
Even more than zombies, vampires come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and types; and while I prefer a more visceral and brutal portrayal to a romanticized version, you can’t deny that the only way for our genre to survive is for the younger generation to embrace it in whatever form it takes and then move on to some of the other, more hardcore subgenres, so I’m in favor of Twilight kicking butt at the box office. Not only do we increase our numbers, but as an incentive to take a walk on the dark side, everyone buying tickets early earns a free song download. Get more info and watch two new Twilight clips here.
The Goth subculture may have originated in the UK, but Americans were quick to embrace it — and it still thrives today. So just by virtue of name alone, I have to make sure you guys know about two films in various stages of production based on the popular Japanese manga Goth: A Novel of Horror. You can find teaser art and a trailer for Gen Takahashi’s version here. It contains six stories about Japanese youth gone wrong with themes ranging from teen suicide to self abuse. JT Petty also has an idea for an adaptation, so we could have a win/win situation here.
During the campaign Obama and McCain paid homage to those who had influenced them: Reagan, Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Jr. We horror fans are fortunate that two of our icons are still with us and deeply involved in impending projects. Clive Barker has so much going on I can’t even keep it straight. Click his name for a quick overview and update. And George A. Romero has just wrapped on his next chapter in the Dead anthology. Click his name for a look at the first still from the film, and click here to see two promotional posters from AFM.
I know Dead Space, Saints Row 2, Gears of War 2, Guitar Hero III, and others have gamers’ attention right now, but this month there is a reason to put down those controllers for a few minutes: Xbox LIVE is running a series of shorts from some of the genre’s best up-and-coming filmmakers called Horror Meets Comedy. The first, “The Janitor”, is already available (listen to our interview with its director, John Clisham). Filmmakers involved in future episodes include James Wan, David Slade, Lucky McKee, James Gunn, Andrew Douglas, Marcus Nispel, and the newly added Adam Green and Peter Cornwell.
Butane scoffed at the plot description, but I’m all over Hideo Nakata’s Chatroom. Not only do I have faith in Nakata to return to form, but I’m also curious about Enda Walsh’s script. The award-winning Irish playwright is adapting his own play, which should bode well for the production.
From the abovementioned Chatroom to All the Boys Love Mandy Lane to 3D offerings Piranha and The Hole, the news from this year’s AFM has been non-stop and encouraging. Multiple horror projects are being bought and sold via this annual showcase, and Andrew’s efforts to submit enough material to help make us feel like we’re there, too, are paying off. Click here for all the gory details!
First zombies invaded reality TV via the UK series “Dead Set“; now BBC Three is presenting “Being Human” about a vampire, werewolf, and ghost who are desperate be a part of the life we all take for granted. I predict it won’t be long before similar monsters pop up in an Americanized take on the subject.
Speaking of TV, I’ve been enjoying Christian Slater’s return to form in “My Own Worst Enemy” (a modern twist on Jekyll and Hyde) so look forward to seeing what he does in Dolan’s Cadillac, which is derived from Stephen King’s short story of the same name. We uncovered some early stills from the film here.
While we’re on the topic of indies, the palindrome-friendly Live Evil provided a special trailer to AFM; learn more about it here. Tim Thomerson portrays a vampire hunting priest who is helping along the bloodsuckers’ steady progression toward extinction. You had me at hello.
Which brings us to the Woman’s Story of the Week: Paranormal Activity Sold Around the World! 99.9% of the people I know who’ve seen Paranormal Activity fell in love with it just like I did so the prospect of it reaching a larger, international audience makes me giddy. Congrats to Oren! Katie and Micha — Get ready for your close-ups! From Australia to Scandinavia, South Korea to Portugal, soon the rest of the world will know what we here at Dread Central have been saying for months: This is one scary-ass flick! Now all that’s missing is word on a Stateside release. That, my friends, will be almost as sweet a victory as what transpired on November 4th!
