I had a ball describing Fear(s) of the Dark to my fellow movie freaks. After really enjoying the film at last January's Sundance Film Festival (and calling Fantastic Fest Master Chief Tim League to give him the scoop), I made sure to come up with an apt description for the film. "Hmm, what's it about?" my fellow fest-goers would ask, to which I'd reply "Oh, it's your typical French animated ... horror ... anthology. In black & white." The next response was either "Oooh, cool," (my friends) or "Meh, not my speed." (total strangers).

Created by a collection of gifted graphic artists that includes names like Charles Burns, Romain Slocombe, and Marie Caillou, Fear(s) of the Dark is not exactly a Creepshow-style omnibus, but for genre fans who can appreciate a little culture now and again, I'd call it a very cool little treat. And if you're a big fan of graphic arts or the craft of animation, then I suspect you'll devour this French delicacy with a very large spoon. Plus, best of all, it's creepy!

Fear(s) of the Dark opens on in New York City (and On Demand! Like in your living room!) on October 24 before rolling into other towns -- and yep, it's also screening a few times at Austin's Fantastic Fest -- but we're very proud to bring you the first official poster for the film. Trust me when I say the poster fits the movie quite well. Click below for the noir-ness!

In a development noted on several horror sites, not the least of which are Shock and BD.com, it appears that Lionsgate is indeed opening the oft-shuffled adaptation of Clive Barker's The Midnight Meat Train on roughly 100 screens this Friday. However, all currently-posted showtimes are at second-run theaters -- otherwise known as dollar theaters, although it never seems to be that cheap anymore, not even on Tuesdays.

In my neck of the woods, one theater has it booked for two evening shows a day, for an engagement that I'm willing to bet will last only one week. The last time I remember a first-run film being shown at this theater, it was the Weinsteins' Feast, although that usually neglectful studio did so as part of a clear strategy to boost general awareness of that movie before its DVD release a month later (and wouldn't you know it, that wasn't a bad flick at all).

Despite all the fuss between Barker and the studio and the frequent release date changes, Scott saw it at Comic-Con and really dug it, and he doesn't seem to be alone among the genre gurus, which leads one to wonder just why Lionsgate would go to such curious lengths to so poorly fulfill a contractual obligation when it seems that fans might, y'know, actually turn out and pay full price to get the grisly goods. (On the flip side, at least it'll hit more cities than Pathology or Rogue did when they were similarly dumped.)

What do you guys think? Are you still interested in catching the film, and if so, do you find yourself inconvenienced by this odd distribution tactic?

Anyone who watches a considerable amount of movies has a tendency to champion the occasional gem, a title bound - nay, fated - to be overlooked by the masses. As you may have noticed, we here at Cinematical are not immune to such behavior.

On other occasions, fans of films that are being remade will find themselves violently, vocally opposed to the idea of a tainted classic or fave, whereas cooler minds step in and point out that their precious original will exist no less in its wake.

With that said, I'm about to spout off on why I think American remake Quarantine is primed to squander the considerable merits of its source material, [REC].

(Now, what nitpicks I have are about to wander off into moderate spoiler territory, which is actually my greater concern. Ergo, any of you planning to catch either film in the near future might be best served by directing their browsers elsewhere, including away from the newly released trailer for Quarantine.)

As for the twelve of you who I know have either managed to see [REC] or who just plain don't care -- come on in, the water's whine...

Whenever Scott and I aren't out fighting crime together, we tend to be chatting each other up about horror films, as he has often either pointed me towards many a overlooked gem or brought to my attention the best titles currently making the festival rounds.

Whether or not Weinberg was the one who got me initially amped up for [REC], I can't accurately recall, but the point is that I can support his many praises over the film, and I think it's safe to say that we're both cautiously optimistic about the forthcoming American remake, Quarantine. It seems that Sony's smarter minds are also prone to cautious optimism, as Shock Till You Drop informs us that the film's release has been bumped up a week, from October 17th to October 10th.

Now, the 10th is a crowded weekend - we also have a crime thriller, a family adventure, and a teen sex romp - but what's important is that not only do none of those films appeal to the same horror-seeking demographic as Quarantine, whereas video game adaptation Max Payne might on the 17th, but the move gives it an extra week to rake it in until Saw V comes around and effectively dominates the market come the 24th.

As for me, I'm still curious about Quarantine director John Erick Dowdle's previous film, the still-unreleased The Poughkeepsie Tapes. Is it some sort of staring contest between them and the equally delayed All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, or what?

Not three weeks ago, I made first mention of a brief and bland teaser for the forthcoming horror film, Mirrors. Now, along comes IGN Movies with a red-band trailer that, at first, didn't do much for me. Blah blah blah, Jack Bauer as security guard for old department store, blah blah, former guard grew obsessed with surrounding mirrors, blah blah -- look, even Amy Smart is yawning after all that exposition.

Oh, did I say 'yawning'? I meant 'tearing off her own jaw'. Yes, while we still seem to be saddled with a fairly ridiculous premise that's seen better and worse days, there's modest comfort to be taken that the R rating ain't exactly being shied away from. Let's face facts here, people: all it takes sometimes is a couple of nifty death scenes to make movies like this that much easier to stomach (well, some might argue the opposite).

Directed by Alexandre Aja and starring Kiefer Sutherland, you can see Mirrors (bah-dum-cha!) on August 15th.

As someone who's only grown decreasingly fond of the Saw franchise (at least since the second one) and still marvels at the fact that we as a world find ourselves facing the prospect of a fifth (and possibly sixth!) one this coming Halloween and the next, I must attest to being weirdly admirable of how creatively macabre the series' marketing campaigns have been.

Case in point: the first revealed poster for Saw V, included in full after the jump and courtesy of IMP Awards. Following up the magically MPAA-approved acts of amputated limbs, dislodged teeth, and bent fingernails is the face of actor Tobin Bell acting as a mask on another body entirely, in spirit with the films' perpetual acknowledgement that Bell's character, John Kramer/Jigsaw, kinda died at the end of Saw III and sorta went through an autopsy at the beginning of Saw IV.

As Bell remains flaunted and credited in equal measure - as does the similarly deceased Shawnee Smith - I think it's safe to expect A) more flashbacks, a la #4, and B) more exceedingly gruesome demises, a la #1-4. However, at a combined worldwide gross of $553 million to date, it's also safe to say that there are many who'd hope -- who'd pay -- for nothing less.

You know what I call 18 consecutive days of horror, sci-fi, action foreign, indie, obscure, and generally weird movies? Well obviously I call it heaven, but most normal people refer to it as Montreal's Fantasia Film Festival, which runs every July and throws a couple hundred features and shorts to a very ravenous crowd of genre freaks. And with folks like Mitch Davis, Tony Timpone, and Todd Brown (among others) on the programming end, you could probably just book a flight to Montreal without even checking the official Fantasia website.

I'm still not sure if I can make the trek up north next month, but I have been invited and (based mainly on the recently-released full lineup of flicks) I can pretty much guarantee that the current registrants are in for one hell of a good time. Among their selected titles, I can very strongly recommend All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, Dance of the Dead, Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer, Let the Right One In, Mother of Tears, [REC], Stuck, and Timecrimes -- plus they're offering solid titles like Fear(s) of the Dark, The Objective, Red, Second Skin, and Spine Tingler. Among the stuff I'm still drooling to see: Babysitter Wanted, Dark Floors, Midnight Meat Train, Pig Hunt, Repo: The Genetic Opera, and (of course) a new Uwe Boll flick. Plus this festival seems to offer more "Asian weirdness" movies than you'll ever find in one place. At least a dozen that look and sound certifiably insane, unless you'd define Tokyo Gore Police and Negative Happy Chain as "mainstream."

For a complete schedule, lineup, trailer bank, and tons of geeky goodness (in your choice of English or French!), click here and then here. (Montreal's not all that far away...)

More than once in recent weeks, I've found myself subjected to the bonanza of pre-show 'entertainment' at a local multiplex, the arguable best portion of which has been a fake trailer for a new Sprint phone, a spot unabashedly proud of both spoofing the nature of product placement and succumbing to it.

So when I first heard of a film called Text - about killer text messages - I assumed it was likewise a joke, a hoax, a ruse, a cunning attempt to trick me. I mean, doesn't that sound like the one faux trailer that didn't make it into Grindhouse? Alas, if Fangoria is to be believed, it's no joke...

Ever since the first details have slipped out about Mirrors, Alexandre Aja's follow-up to High Tension and The Hills Have Eyes, I can't say there's been any vested interest on my part to see the end result. After all, those films were grisly pieces of work, and while I would respect Aja for deciding to mix it up with something a bit more psychological, the central premise of "vengeful reflections" is one that I've yet to see the suspense in, particularly in the wake of a certain SNL Digital Short (attached after the jump for your enjoyment).

The film's new teaser trailer has shown up over at Yahoo! Movies, and as unfair as it may be to judge a full-length feature on the merits of these whopping forty-five seconds alone, there's nothing here that indicates to me that the oh-so-spooky reflections of Kiefer Sutherland, Amy Smart, and Paula Patton are going to send chills up my spine come August 15.

Then again, it doesn't help that a demotion to the role of mall security guard doesn't stop my mind from automatically associating Kiefer with his gun-toting, voice-raising '24' hero, Jack Bauer. As such, feel free to wake me up if Aja opts to bring either Elisha Cuthbert and/or a cougar into the works. Now THAT's suspense, my friends!

Any regular readers of the site know and love Scott Weinberg, who knows and loves the horror genre like nobody's business. He has already (rightfully) sung the praises of a freaky foreign handheld horror flick called [REC] (the American remake of which, Quarantine, is due out Stateside this October), and while I'd add my own voice to that choir, today comes news of a sequel to the original, vividly titled [REC] 2 (hey, it's a step above The De2cent).

Originally featured on Spanish-language site Aullidos, a simple and striking teaser poster comes bearing the news that a sequel was even in the works, touting precious little information besides the promised reunion of original helmers Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza. The original is good enough that I fear for any attempt to re-catch lightning in a bottle, but while it didn't beg for any sort of follow-up, it didn't quite eliminate the potential for one either.

Since this puppy doesn't even have an IMDb page yet, we'll keep you posted on more details as they come in. Otherwise, enjoy the trailer for [REC] included after the jump, since it reveals less about what goes down that fateful evening than what its American cousin has already managed to spoil.

[Thanks to Bloody-Disgusting for the heads-up.]