Short film. Recommended.

The Visitor

An extremely short film made by an independent director/screen writer about a boy who was never believed by his parents when he tells them about anything. One night, he was left alone in the house and a horrifying clown kept trying to make him open the door so they can play.

Part 1

http://vimeo.com/1014870

Part 2

http://vimeo.com/1015041

Part 3

http://vimeo.com/1016180

Personally, I am terrified of clowns. Put them in a horror movie, my toes are already curling behind tons of bed sheets and pillows before the film opens. The clown in this movie reminded me so much of the clown in King's IT, which gives so much credit to the actor portraying the clown in Simm's movie, given it's just a short independent film and the budget practically non-existent. He made me jump and did give me the heebeejeebees. Too bad I cannot say the same for the other actors. Nevertheless, it is worth a few minutes of your time. The links are already posted above. Enjoy!

brad pitt staring in a zombie movie??? thats what is says, called "world war z"...


World War Z will hit theaters Summer 2012.

After a few years spent in development hell, Paramount Pictures and director Marc Forster may be pushing forward with their plans to adapt Max Brooks' World War Z into a feature film. With Brad Pitt having already been locked in as the star, the trades reports that Mireille Enos is circling the role of his female counterpart. Enos has been on a roll recently, having earned her own AMC show ("The Killing") after a few years of co-starring in HBO's "Big Love."

With Forster likely beginning production as soon as possible to meet their 2012 summer release plans, the Quantum of Solace director would be tackling the project based on a screenplay by J. Michael Straczynski and Matthew Michael Carnahan, with the latter recently coming on board to perform some rewrites.

Plot Concept: Based on the Max Brooks best-selling novel about a worldwide infestation of flesh-eating zombies, Brooks -- the son of Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft -- wrote a detailed tale in which a researcher for the U.N. Postwar Commission interviews survivors from countries all over the world, 10 years after the crisis, to gather a first-person post-mortem on a war that obliterated every country on the map. Brad Pitt has been set to play a U.N. researcher while Enos would potentially play his wife.

World War Z is an excellent book, it's written like a journalist gathered stories about the zombie outbreak, from ground zero to various people around the world dealing with it.

Brooks also wrote the very entertaining Zombie Survival Guide.

There is a God!

i haven't seen brad pitt in a bad movie yet, so i'm hoping this will be good to

Here's some obscuro 80's horror films I want to see-

Spine '86

Victims! '85

Blood Nasty '89 (Yes, there is a Linnea Quigley movie I haven't seen)

Bits And Pieces '85

Into The Darkness '86(Donald Pleasance and his daughter Polly Jo)

Moonstalker '89 (aka Camper Stamper)

The Moon God '88

A Day Of Judgment '81

Suffer, Little Children '83

Tracking '81

Killer! '89

Recently re-watched Welcome To Spring Break '89 aka Nightmare Beach. It's a cheesy combination of teen sexy comedy and revenge/slasher. The killer rides a modified motorcycle that he uses to electrocute people. I like it. Besides it has both John Saxon and Michael Parks.

Just watched HEARTLESS
Recommended.

I watched Heartless, which is a 2009 British horror film directed by Philip Ridley and starring Jim Sturgess, Noel Clarke, Clémence Poésy and Eddie Marsan.

Jamie Morgan (Jim Sturgess) is a troubled photographer with a heart-shaped birthmark on his face. At the photographic studio he shares with his brother and nephew Lee, he meets aspiring model Tia (Clémence Poésy).

A series of horrific events - including the separate murders of his mother and former gang member neighbour A.J. - lead Jamie first to the brink of suicide, then to the apartment of Papa B (Joseph Mawle) and his assistant Belle (Nikita Mistry). He is offered a Faustian bargain: fulfill Papa B's desire for chaos with occasional acts of vandalism in return for the removal of his birthmarks. Despite Papa B being responsible for his mother's death Jamie consents, his skin being restored by an act of self-immolation.

Cast

Jim Sturgess as Jamie Morgan
Nikita Mistry as Belle
Noel Clarke as A.J.
Clémence Poésy as Tia
Eddie Marsan as Weapons Man
Joseph Mawle as Papa B
Ruth Sheen as Marion Morgan
Timothy Spall as George Morgan
Luke Treadaway as Lee Morgan

I've been seeing heartless on netflix...i'll have to check it out. Just watched black swan...pretty twisted.

Hi, mle! I very much liked Heartless though when I first read several reviews, they were not pleasant. I think it's because the movie cannot be classified in one genre. In my opinion, a lot of viewers who were expecting the typical horror package completely missed the philosophical point altogether and were, therefore, disappointed. Also, I loved the ending which is a bit uncommon in such movies.

Black Swan was a brilliant movie. Watched it before. There was a thread here that had that movie as a topic. You may want to see the past pages and check it out. :)

Oh, nice joining date. :)

This is for you, Red



After Years on the Shelf, Joss Whedon's Cabin in the Woods Gets New Life at Lionsgate




Lionsgate has picked up the distribution rights to The Cabin in the Woods, a long-on-the-shelf horror film starring Thor's Chris Hemsworth, Oscar nominee Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford, Deadline reports.

The MGM film was directed by Cloverfield writer Drew Goddard, who co-wrote the screenplay with The Avengers director Joss Whedon.


Cabin in the Woods was originally set for release by MGM in Oct. 2009, but the studio pushed the release back so it could convert the film to 3D.

Amid financial turmoil, the studio filed for bankruptcy protection in late 2010, only to emerge from the filing less than two months later under new management. Cabin was one of many films that were put in limbo during the financial trouble.


Lionsgate is expected to release the film this fall. The studio is no doubt hoping to capitalize on the international fame Woods star Hemsworth will likely reap after Thor opens in May.

The Cabin in the Woods has received positive buzz from early screenings. While an official release date has not yet been announced, Deadline expects the film will finally see the light of day in October.


http://blog.moviefone.com/2011/04/29...woods-release/

First, Brad Pitt in a zombie movie...now, Hemsworth in a horror film...I'm crying tears of joy!

MAY DVD/BLU-RAY RELEASE DATES:


MAY 3
-Being Human: Season Three (3-DVD, 3-Blu-ray sets): BBC/Warner
-Below (new DVD): Echo Bridge
-Bound By Blood: Wendigo (special edition): Midnight Releasing
-Ghost Sweeper Mikami Collection 4 (2-DVD set): Sentai/Section23
-Halloween H2O (Blu-ray): Echo Bridge
-Horror 4 Pack (Poker Run, Grizzly Park, Lost Colony, Blood Creek); DVD rerelease): Phase 4
-The Man Who Could Cheat Death/The Skull(Blu-ray): Legend Films
-Midnight Movie: The Killer Cut (new special edition): Bigfoot
-Ninjas VS Vampires (special edition): Vicious Circle/Breaking Glass
Sinister: Brain Damage
-Tales From The Crypt: Ritual (new DVD): Echo Bridge
-They (new DVD): Echo Bridge
-You'll Never Get Out Alive(4-movie rerelease): First Look

MAY 10
-Alien (Blu-ray): Fox
-Aliens (Blu-ray): Fox
-Alien 3 (Blu-ray): Fox
-Alien Resurrection (Blu-ray): Fox
-Asunder (new DVD): Echo Bridge
-Black Death (special edition, Blu-ray): Magnet/Magnolia
-Blood Junkie (special edition): Troma
-Blood Oath (special edition): Troma
-Children Of The Corn III: Blood Harvest (Blu-ray): Echo Bridge
-Children Of The Corn V: Fields Of Terror (new DVD): Echo Bridge
-Children Of The Corn 666: Isaac's Return (new DVD): Echo Bridge
-Cropsey (special edition): Vicious Circle/Breaking Glass
-Dahmer VS Gacey (DVD, Blu-ray): Virgil
-Detention: Take 2/Allegro
-eXistenZ (new DVD): Echo Bridge
-Exotic Malice (special edition): One 7
-Eyes Of The Chameleon (special edition): Troma
-Halloween: Curse Of Michael Myers (Blu-ray): Echo Bridge
-Hellraiser: Bloodline (Blu-ray): Echo Bridge
-I Saw The Devil (DVD, Blu-ray): Magnet/Magnolia
-Killer Yacht Party (a.k.a. DEAD IN THE WATER; special edition): Troma
-The Nameless(new DVD): Echo Bridge
-Sex, Demons, And Death: One 7
-Sledgehammer (special edition): Innervision
-Slime City Massacre (special edition): Shriek Show/Media Blasters
-Tale Of The Mummy (new DVD): Echo Bridge
-The Violent Kind (special edition, Blu-ray): Image
-Venom (new DVD): Echo Bridge

MAY 17
-The Blood Shed (new special edition): R2
-Children Of The Corn V: Fields Of Terror/Children Of The Corn 666: Isaac's Return (Blu-ray): Echo Bridge
-The Corporate Cut Throat Massacre: Creepersin Films
-Dead Enders (special edition): Big Bite/R2
-Deep Red (new special edition, Blu-ray): Blue Underground
-Diabolique(1955; new special edition, Blu-ray): Criterion
-Dies And Let Live/Raising The Stakes (new special edition): IWC/Tempe
-Emerging Past (special edition): Spectra Records
-An Erotic Vampire In Paris Collection (Erotic Vampire In Paris, Purgatory Blues,An Erotic Werewolf In London; 2-DVD rerelease): Seduction Cinema
-The Fergusons: S’more
-From Dusk Till Dawn/From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money(Blu-ray): Echo Bridge
-Gargoyles (1972; special edition): Hen’s Tooth
-Halloween: The Curse Of Michael Myers/Halloween: H2O(Blu-ray): Echo Bridge
-Hellraiser: Bloodline/Hellraiser: Inferno (Blu-ray): Echo Bridge
-Ju-On: White Ghost/Ju-On: Black Ghost (DVD, Blu-ray): Well Go USA
-My Bloody Wedding: R2
-Red, White & Blue (special edition): IFC/MPI
-The Rite (special edition, Blu-ray): New Line/Warner
-The Roomate (special edition, Blu-ray): Sony Pictures
-Schoolgirls In Chains/Terror Circus: Code Red
-Shutterbug: R2
-Skin Eating Jungle Vampires (special edition): Chemical Burn
-The Twlight Zone: Season 4 (5-Blu-ray set): Image
-Vampire Knight: Guilty Vol. 2 (anime): Viz/Warner
-Vanishing On 7th Street (special edition, Blu-ray): Magnet/Magnolia

MAY 24
-Backyard/Bajo La Sal (2-DVD rerelease): Maya
-Death Hunter: Werewolves VS Vampires(special edition): MTI
-Fertile Ground (special edition): Lionsgate
-Forget Me Not (special edition): Phase 4
-The Hole (new DVD): Echo Bridge
-Psycho Gothic Lolita: Tokyo Shock/Media Blasters
-Seconds Apart (special edition): Lionsgate
-Soul Eater: Season One Parts One and Two (anime; 4-DVD, 3-Blu-ray sets): FUNimation

MAY 31
-The Cat O'Nine Tails (Blu-ray): Blue Underground
-Drive Angry (special edition, 2D and 3D Blu-rays): Summit
-Kaboom: IFC/MPI
-Prey (2010): IFC/MPI
-Savage County: FilmBuff/MPI
-True Blood: The Complete Third Season (5-DVD, 5-Blu-ray sets): HBO

DEAD SET

Recommended.



Dead Set was a show created by Charlie Brooker for E4 and first broadcast over the week leading up to Halloween in 2008. The show was recently repeated on Channel 4 to coincide with the latest edition of Celebrity Big Brother so I thought now would be a good time to take another look at it and review the DVD.



Charlie Brooker is famous for being a curmudgeonly TV critic. Charlie has a show called ‘Screenwipe’ on BBC Four which is used as a platform for his insults and the occasional praise of current television. He also uses the show to educate his audience about elements of television, such as reality TV show construction, advertising, and moral outrages/TV crusades. Anyway, this review isn’t about Screenwipe (which is an excellent show) but rather this is to give you some background on the writer of Dead Set and the expectations of certain members of the audience. You see, Charlie is a TV critic and now he’s become an object of criticism by writing a TV show. Many of his fans expected Dead Set to be satirical and rich with Charlie’s misanthropic views on life and his gift for foul language. Did they get what they wanted? Well, yes and no.



Dead Set focuses on the cast and crew of a production of Big Brother and their efforts to survive a zombie apocalypse. The opening episode opens innocently enough with the production crew focusing on broadcasting a live eviction night episode of the show and the Big Brother housemates argue about eggs. The first episode introduces the threat of the zombies gradually, first via background hints and images, then suggestions of zombie attacks, before finally unleashing them on the protagonists. The Big Brother house soon becomes the only safe haven in the country…



What’s surprising to me as a viewer is that Brooker managed to create a show that wasn’t an outright snark fest or unsubtle satire. Brooker created a zombie film first and foremost. This is clearly the work of a fan of the zombie genre, from the dialogue tributes to other films (“She’s got a face like a Manchester morgue.”) to the familiar construction of the narrative. The zombie story itself is not groundbreaking, there are no twists on the zombie menace, no new theories on their origins or scenes that you haven’t really seen in other zombie films (well, apart from someone creating zombie ‘food’ or ‘chum’). What’s impressive about Dead Set is that Brooker has managed to create a drama that is compelling despite containing largely unlikeable but naturalistic characters. Jamie is the protagonist but although she’s bright and capable, she’s cheating on her devoted boyfriend Riq. The housemates conform to certain Big Brother contestant stereotypes, The Chav Couple, The Flamboyant Gay One, The Streetwise Kid, The Nice But Dim One, The Old Intellectual, and The Gobby One. The stereotypes are convenient narrative shorthand to create a believable Big Brother cast and an appropriately hostile atmosphere. Charlie saves his best dialogue for Patrick the producer (played with gusto by an excellent Andy Nyman) who spends his time insulting everyone within earshot and defecating into a bin. Patrick is an exaggerated character and he’s used to deliver Brooker’s patented tirades and insults to great effect, his rant about reality TV contestants in the penultimate episode is pure Brooker.



The show is shot well; director Yann Demange does a fantastic job of making the best of limited resources. The director has washed out the colour of the film giving it a naturalistic but bleak look and there’s frequent use of hand cameras during action sequences but without the frequent and choppy editing in modern cinema. It’s clear that some scenes suffered due to lack of budget, a car breaks down spontaneously rather than suffering a crash, and there’s a dialogue reference to the engine being covered in skin and blood despite no outward damage to the vehicle. The location shooting is obviously limited to the Big Brother studios and immediate surroundings and there are no ‘money’ shots of deserted city streets or scenes of zombies roaming vast urban areas. Despite these limitations the apocalypse is conveyed through background images, static TV screens and deserted outdoor locations.



The DVD contains a lot of short extras that don’t outstay their welcome. There are interviews with cast, crew, Big Brother host Davina, and Brooker himself. The interviews are all entertaining and never dull, Davina relishes her part in the show and Brooker explains his inspirations for the show. There’s a tour of the Big Brother house that was specially created for the show and there are some fun sequences involving the special effects guys and their gore effects. There are also a few deleted scenes that were originally cut for time.



I have one gripe about the DVD though, the episodes aren’t cut together as one long movie. Although Dead Set was transmitted as 5 separate episodes, it was later broadcast as an omnibus edition. It’s tiring to have to skip the ‘Previously on Dead Set’ recaps before each episode when you’ve selected ‘Play All’. As there are no end credits until the final episode, surely they could’ve cut the end title and the recaps from each episode for the ‘Play All’ feature? Still, it’s a petty gripe but one that annoyed me.



In conclusion, Dead Set is a fine addition to the zombie genre. It’s an entertaining series that captures the dark humour and spirit of Romero whilst using the modern, running zombies of 28 Days Later and the Dawn of the Dead remake. (http://snarkandfury.blogspot.com/2009/01/dvd-review-dead-set.html)

Just finished watching:

MARTYRS

Note: NOT for the faint of heart.



Supposedly the word “martyr” is derived from the Latin word for “witness”. They are those rare humans that suffer agonizing pain, but will not be broken, finally seeing beyond death into the mysterious void. Does it exist? Only the martyrs know, but none have ever survived to actually relate their experience, their vision.

Until now.



Pascal Laugier’s Martyrs (2008), a French/French-Canadian co-production, is a brutal assault on the senses that presents a very dark quest for the perverted uber-wealthy. In some ways the movie is similar to elements of Eli Roth’s Hostel: Part II (2007), both portray a terrible underworld where money and power can let you indulge in your most depraved desires, where victims become pieces of ragged art to an agenda of a truly dark design.


Young Lucie (Jessie Pham) escapes

A young adolescent Lucie (Jessie Pham) has managed to escape some kind of dreadful incarceration (a derelict industrial warehouse), where she has been held prisoner and tortured for Gods knows how long. At the rehabilitation centre she is befriended by young Anna (Erika Scott), another victim of child abuse. Neither of them were sexually abused, but Lucie’s captors have remained a mystery. In the room she shares with Anna Lucie is visited upon by a silhouetted female demon figure …



Fifteen years later after Lucie (Mylène Jampanoï) has been released she immediately sets about on her mission of revenge. Anna (Morjana Alaoui) has accompanied her, but doesn’t realise just how intent the psychologically unstable Lucie really is. Lucie arrives at the home of a husband and wife and their teenage son and daughter. Within minutes she has murdered them all with a shotgun. The house is a bloodied mess. Anna, in shock, attempts to dispose of the bodies, not believing that the adult couple was responsible for the crimes Lucie claims.



Lucie is visited again by her demon spectre; a screeching, mutilated, skeletal female that causes Lucie to commit grievous bodily harm on herself with a blade. Anna tries to intervene and save Lucie. Later Anna discovers a secret passageway in the house leading to an elaborate underground dungeon. It is here that she discovers a female prisoner victim and realises Lucie was telling the truth. But Anna’s nightmare hasn’t even begun.



Martyrs is extremely well-made, which makes the movie incredibly compelling. The acting from the two leads is excellent, especially Jampanoï, the direction and editing are tight, and the production design is impressive. The special effects make-up are okay, but much of the violence is actually far-fetched. It is intensely brutal at times and the execution of it is powerful, but the consequences aren’t realistic. It’s a bone of contention I have when movies portray horrendous ultra-violence, but there's inconsistency. Some victims die plausibly while others manage to escape the kind of serious injuries or bloodletting that would realistically follow. For example, there is no way that such a tiny amount of blood would be released after Lucie slices her arms and throat open with a straight razor. There is no way Anna could survive the kind of facial beating she receives without her jaw being completely shattered.



These irritating elements aside, Martyrs still packs an extraordinary punch, with a real doozy near the end, just when you wonder how on earth the movie can wrap things up. That’s when the ugly truth rears its head and presents you with a startling and rather novel explanation. It’s far-fetched, but in a kind of “theological fantasy” mode it works.



Martyrs has been polarising audiences since it was first released last year. It’s been called one of the most ferocious horror movie ever made. I’ve seen more disturbing movies, and I’ve seen far more graphic movies, but Martyrs does capture a very grim realm. There’s a section in the movie’s second half which deals with systematic physical abuse which is arguably the toughest part of the movie to deal with. The extreme horror revelation right near the end, while shocking, isn’t quite as outrageous as I thought it might be, but perhaps that’s because much of what’s come before was pummeling.



I’m making Martyrs sound like an altogether desperately grueling experience, and parts of it are very intense, but the detached presentation of the movie’s second half is masterfully constructed, while the movie’s first half is brilliantly ferocious and at times utterly harrowing. And the movie’s final scene is really rather satisfying, if I may be so bold.(Horrorphile.com)

Martyrs was excellent, I need to watch it again.

This was the second time I watched it, but only because the first one I downloaded was incomplete and didn't have the English subtitles.

i watched 976-EVIL 2 last night... total cheese, but the blonde was hot...