horrorfest Tagged Articles at Cinematical

When the After Dark Horrorfest popped up in November of 2006, I caught about half of the offered 8 Films to Die For, despite a transparently sensationalized campaign of just how horrendously extreme these titles must've been to get such a specialized release. My experiences ranged from not bad (The Abandoned and The Gravedancers) to pretty dreadful (Penny Dreadful), but between the ratio of enjoyment that year and the yanking of actually-possibly-horrific Frontier(s) the next, I just passed entirely in 2007.

One might assume that, in an effort to meet me halfway, the Horrorfest has skipped out on itself this year, but while this is technically true, it's merely shuffled away into the doldrums of this coming January 2-9 instead. Scott Weinberg had already pointed out that The Broken and The Butterfly Effect 3 were among this year's (next year's?) selected batch of titles, and now The Hollywood Reporter reports that From Within -- about a rash of suicides in a small town -- and three After Dark productions: the aforementioned Effect, Slaughter, and Perkins' 14.

That leaves three more titles in the running. Any guesses? Just remember now: they can't be too scary.

The first one was a theatrical release. The sequel was a direct-to-video affair. So for the third one, we get a little mixture of both. Yep, it's time for another trip to Butterfly Effect territory, and you can only find it through the third annual After Dark Horrorfest event. According to The Hollywood Reporter, production on Butterfly Effect 3 will begin on September 1. No director has been mentioned yet, but the screenplay comes from a newbie called Holly Brix. Here's the plot: "A young man with the power to time travel who attempts to solve the mystery of his high school girlfriend's death."

But I wouldn't necessarily expect BE3 to arrive for this November's AD festival ... seeing as how production is scheduled for early September. Good to see After Dark taking some initiative and co-producing their own flicks. Lord knows they've been a little inconsistent with their "indie acquisitions" -- although they did snatch up The Broken, which played last Sundance and earned a positive review from yours truly. And since I know the AD guys are big Cinematical readers, I'll offer up Dying Breed as a possible pick-up. It's an Aussie import that's got a basic plot but a very icky atmosphere.

Last week I brought you what I thought was the final list for the 2008 After Dark Horrorfest, but since that time the event A) tossed out Unearthed, B) added a flick called Crazy Eights, C) removed Frontiere(s) from the mix, and D) wedged Unearthed back on to the slate. So what's going on here?

Apparently Xavier Gens' Frontiere(s) (review here) did not receive an R rating from the MPAA, which means (for some reason) that After Dark / Lionsgate won't release it for the festival. Call me nuts, but didn't last year's After Dark trailer promise movies that were "too extreme" for mainstream? And now they ashcan a solid horror flick instead of trying to go "unrated" with it? Then again, After Dark chief Courtney Solomon hasn't made many friends over at the MPAA. It was his advertising gimmick "faux pas" on Captivity that angered the ratings board a few months back. (More on that here.)

Apparently the plan is to give Frontiere(s) its very own release date, precisely like After Dark did with The Abandoned. But if they won't release it "unrated" for the Horrorfest, then what are the odds that Lionsgate will go "unrated" on a later theatrical release? (Very slim?) Or maybe I'm just annoyed because I saw Frontiere(s), dug it, and now believe that Horrorfest jettisoned a really fine flick from their line-up. Impatience aside, as long as Solomon and Lionsgate plan don't snip the flick down, then they're doing the right thing.

After the jump: The full press release on the After Dark Horrorfest.

Last year was somewhat of a rough start for the After Dark Horrorfest, and I'm basing that statement solely on the movies the event had to offer. The eight "official" titles were The Abandoned, Dark Ride, The Gravedancers, The Hamiltons, Penny Dreadful, Reincarnation, Unrest and Wicked Little Things. I've seen 'em all and I'd call The Gravedancers the best of the bunch, with the dry-but-passable The Abandoned a close second. The rest ... meh.

So it is with much geeky excitement that I share a new opinion: Horrorfest 2007 is guaranteed to be an improvement over last year -- and I can say that with some confidence because I've already seen three of the chosen flicks, and all three of 'em are worth seeing. Regarding the other five, I heard good things about some and really negative things about others ... but here's what the overall slate looks like for this year. (Synopses are taken from the official Horrorfest website.)

Borderland -- "When three Texas University students travel to a Mexican border town on the eve of their graduation, the last thing they expect is to face their own deaths. Without warning, they fall prey to an ancient blood cult hellbent on finding candidates for human sacrifice. Based on true events, Borderland tells a story which blends the raw fear of Texas Chainsaw Massacre with the stark reality of In Cold Blood, evoking a world soaked in paranoia, fear, and dread." (Starring Rider Strong, Jake Muxworthy, Brian Presley and Sean Astin, directed by Zev Berman) ** I saw this one last March at SXSW. It's southern-fried survival horror with a splash of satanism mixed in. Full review here.

The Deaths of Ian Stone -- "On an otherwise ordinary night, the young Ian Stone encounters a mysterious creature and is forced into the path of an oncoming train. Rather than facing certain death, Ian finds himself reborn into a new life that feels strangely familiar. After his second death, it becomes apparent that Ian is being hunted by an evil presence, and will be forced to die every day until he can solve the mystery of his own life." (Starring Mike Vogel and Christina Cole, directed by Dario Piana) ** I know next to nothing about this one.

Frontier(s) -- "When a small gang of criminals takes refuge in an isolated country inn, their welcome is less than warm. As the evening wears on, the young outlaws are subjected to a macabre nightmare where blood flows and screams flood the night." (Starring Karina Testa and Sameul Le Bihan, directed by Xavier Gens) ** Caught this last month at Toronto. Full review here.

Yesterday I posted my probing piece of investigative journalism: "Blood n' Babes: Cinematical's Trip to the 2007 Miss Horrorfest House." Today I was offered a spot on Nightline. OK, not really, but I hope that those of you who read the piece enjoyed it. I think it is safe to say that readers were expecting photographs of the candidates that were a little more...explicit. But to be honest, those weren't the ladies I met. They were all attractive and provocatively dressed, sure, but for the most part, these were just nice, normal women who happened to be covered in blood and gore. Plus, c'mon, I'm no Hugh Hefner, and there's something unseemly about asking girls you've just met to show a little more skin. Good thing for you guys, I didn't even have to ask! I was just sent a new batch of photographs of the eight finalists, and they are definitely worth checking out.

You've got Sweet Dead Sara, rocking a slit throat. You've got Chieko coming out of her shell...and a coffin. Mistress Malice is sporting taped nipples and a whip, and I think it's safe to say votes for her are about to skyrocket. It's sad but true -- show some skin, you always win. Countess Elizabeth Bathory is, um, sitting in a chair. That's sick! The Morbid Sisters look mighty guilty in their photo, although I'm not sure why they didn't perform some of their acrobatics for the shoot. Nixon Suicide is getting in touch with her wild animal. And Shannon Lark manages to look seductive even with a chainsaw in her hand. Remember, to cast your vote and track the results, head over to the Horrorfest YouTube page. They've just given you more time to vote -- the top three finalists will now be announced on October 24th. Check out the photos in the gallery, and to learn more about my wild experiences with the Miss Horrorfest girls, be sure to check out yesterday's post.

After Dark Horrorfest is a week of "8 Films To Die For" -- 8 new horror flicks released in theaters for one week only, November 9th through the 18th. Over the last month, contestants have performed at live auditions or submitted 90-second YouTube videos in the hopes of being crowned Miss Horrorfest 2007. The competition is now down to eight finalists. The chosen ones lived in a house together for days, Real World-style, and each competed in "chilling competitions" to win "$50,000, fame, glory, and a year of exotic travel as the reigning Miss Horrorfest!" The videos are on YouTube -- last year's contest proved to be the most successful in the site's history. The final three candidates should be announced tomorrow.

Of all the assignments I've had and interviews I've conducted, none have filled me with as much unease as my trip to the Miss Horrorfest House. I have a difficult time talking to girls as it is. It certainly doesn't make things any easier when they're covered in blood and holding chainsaws. These ladies are hardcore! I was concerned that I'd feel a bit out of place. 1) I'm not a big horror enthusiast. If I want to see people screaming and trying to stab each other, I'll go home for Thanksgiving. 2) Although I do own volumes one and two of The Cure's greatest hits, I am not at all comfortable in the Goth lifestyle. 3) My taste in erotica does not involve whips, chains, or ball gags.

Was I going to be able to find common ground with these people? Luckily, I was partnered for my interviews with the editor-in-chief -- excuse me, DEADitor-in-chief -- of a magazine called Girls and Corpses. Yes, girls and corpses -- together at last! As you can imagine, he was extremely familiar with the horror chick world, and he put me at ease very quickly. If you get a free second and don't mind getting fired from your job -- check out his site! The two of us spoke briefly with each of the eight finalists, discussed after the jump. It was a trip.

I was all set and ready to head out to the multiplex and enjoy a few of the one-weekend-only After Dark Horrorfest offerings, but unfortunately I got sidetracked and was able to catch only The Gravedancers -- which I quite liked! And then I found myself wondering when those horror titles would be available on DVD ... just as Fangoria was announcing the information!

On March 27 Lionsgate will be unleashing the following titles on DVD: Dark Ride, The Gravedancers, The Hamiltons, Penny Dreadful, Reincarnation, Unrest and Wicked Little Things. Regarding the other titles, Fango informs us that Nacho Cerda's The Abandoned will re-hit theaters early next year, that Snoop Dogg's Hood of Horror hits DVD on January 9 and that David Arquette's The Tripper (which popped up at only a few After Dark locations) will be released at an as-yet-undetermined time.

It's hard to say determine how big a success the After Dark Fest turned out to be, but it looks like it was a semi-clever gimmick to get a few direct-to-video Lionsgate titles some pre-release buzz (and bucks). Having seen only two of the flicks (Unrest being the other), I don't feel comfortable commenting on the quality of the concept, but hey: more horror movies for me!!

Happy Halloween, Cinematical readers! We know you've got lots to do, what with digging through that bowl of candy for the trick-or-treaters to hunt out all the Snickers and peanut butter cups, carving those last minute jack-o-lanterns, and, of course, putting the finishing touches on your costume so you can enter our spooktacular Halloween Costume Contest. You don't have time to poke around the internet hunting out all the cool Halloween stuff out there. But we do! Just for you, to help you get in that Halloween spirit, here's a roundup of some of the coolest Halloween tricks and treats we could dig up for you. Happy Halloween!

Who doesn't love a good vampire flick? Get out your garlic necklace, because over at the Film Experience Blog, they've got more vampire posts than you can wave a bottle of holy water at with their Vampire Blog-a-Thon. In addition to a blood-tastic rundown of his own fave vampire flicks, Nathaniel has compiled a list of other blogs with vampire-related posts ranging from Eddie Copeland's piece on why Fright Night is the best vampire film ever, to Modern Fabulosity's tribute to Klaus Kinski as Nosferatu, to The Boob Tubers pondering something I myself have spend many a sleepless night contemplating: Spike -- or Angel? (Actually, it's not much of a contest for me -- Angel is hot, but he's such a goody-two-shoes -- and I'd definitely pay to go see a good Spike movie on the big screen). Want more? Get thee over to Film Experience and check out the full list of entries in the Blog-a-Thon.

More after the jump ...