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Mad About Horror are the leading online retailer in the UK and Europe for specialist horror masks and collectibles. As the largest official European retailer of Trick or Treat Studios, they bring the latest US releases to the UK and Europe, offering a wide array of masks, collector’s items, and replica props.
In addition to their partnership with Trick or Treat Studios, Mad About Horror showcases a vast selection of leading collectible brands including NECA, Mezco and Sideshow as well as niche brands such as Black Heart Models, Pallbearer Press, Infinite Statues.
They also have a huge range of Halloween animatronics, masks and decorations. Renowned for sourcing the latest Halloween props and animatronics from the US, Mad About Horror pride themselves on retailing items that are rarely available this side of the pond.
With an extensive product range specialising in all thing’s Horror and Halloween, Mad About Horror serves as the ultimate one-stop shop for horror fans. Their passion for the genre is evident in their commitment to staying up to date with latest releases and engaging with the horror community.
Looking to bring the thrill of the big screen home? Explore their Horror-movie section, featuring a wide array of collectibles, officially licensed masks, and an exclusive selection of Waxwork Records for soundtrack enthusiasts. Whether you’re expanding your horror collection or hunting for the perfect gift, Mad About Horror has everything you need to recreate the cinematic horror experience.
The ultimate classic game Space Invaders is often coined the definitive forerunner for horror gaming. Its fixed shooter design and sci-fi scenario generate a legacy that has stood the test of time. The chase and survival aspects involving an alien invasion that gradually obliterates the terrain are, at their root, the core premise for many horror arcade games that came to fruition only a couple of years after Space Invaders arrived.
Haunted House (1982)
The action-adventure game Haunted House made history as one of the first games to use a scrolling mechanism that allowed the screen to be moved as the player moved across spaces. Whilst this tech may be the standard now, 42 years ago, this was a revolutionary factor to gaming that permitted the user to traverse with speed across the game, where they must collect pieces of a mystical urn with powers that are situated across a total of 24 rooms of a haunted house. Along the way, players will be confronted with a mirage of horror mythology from bats to tarantulas, all the way to spooky ghosts.
Castlevania (1986)
Many horror video game fans will remember playing the Japanese classic Castlevania growing up. The game’s absorbing and user-friendly gameplay, coupled with the countless appearances from the genre’s favourite beasts, from the dreaded Grim Reaper to the intimidating Frankenstein’s Monster, are all that make Castlevania a must-play 38 years later. However, while praise is certainly owed to the game’s ‘monsterific’ charm and nostalgia-ridden interface, the most worthy factor of applause is how Castlevania became a benchmark from which future horror games derived. The game did not invent the Metroidvania platform where users can roam an expansive, connected map, but it did aid in the popularisation of these iconic mechanics. Castlevania’s seemingly endless land to traverse in the game creates many instances for battles to ensue and a barrel of horror fun to emerge.
Alone in the Dark (1992)
The 1920s Louisiana setting sees the player trapped in a haunted mansion where supernatural forces run amock. To proceed to the next level, the user must complete an array of puzzles and tasks while evading the wrath of the sinister ghouls. Alone in the Dark took inspiration from the likes of horror auteurs such as the zombie king Goerge Romero and giallo champion Dario Argento. What was quite unique at the time for the game was how the creators used a fixed-camera setup where the 3D character’s actions and events would shine against the 2D backdrop. This mechanical creativity, alongside the dramatic music and ambience, earned the film immediate applause from critics and players alike, with the game even going on to be lauded as the very first 3D survival game in the horror subset.
Zombies Ate My Neighbours (1993)
Zombies Ate My Neighbours delivers on its promises of being precisely what the title indicates, with the plot following two friends, Zeke and Julie, who must rescue their neighbours from hungry monsters created by the evil scientist, Dr. Tongue. The humourous game was not necessarily winning any prizes upon its lukewarm release, but over the years, Zombies Ate My Neighbours has rightly become a bonafide cult classic. The two-player mode, coupled with the archetypal 1990s graphics, continuous references to beloved horror movies and comedic outlook, has made the game a staple.
Phantasmagoria (1995)
Phantasmagoria is a classic adventure horror that features a point-and-click mode of playing that follows the story of a writer who, after moving into an isolated mansion, encounters supernatural forces hellbent on terrorising her. At the time of the game’s release, interactive movie games were all the rage, where live-action characters, footage, and cinema-like sequences were featured throughout the gameplay. Phantasmagoria took inspiration from these features and made a game that can only be described as an interactive horror movie. Particularly for the time, the content was theatrical and screen-worthy, with the game’s script even consisting of over 500 pages. Most of these spectacles were heavy on both violence and sexual content, which garnered praise from audiences who admired the boldness of the game and equal dismay from censors, with some retailers refusing to sell the game due to the graphic content. Despite the hurrah, the game proved successful, grossing over $12 million within its first weekend.
House of the Dead (1996)
The iconic House of the Dead game series first appeared as a light gun-shooter arcade game, which has since gone on to become an entire franchise, equipped with a cinema-adapted trilogy (which is rather notoriously bashed upon). The late 1990s arcade game chronicles the player defeating a horde of zombies made undead by a mad scientist. Much of the initial acclaim derived from the game’s hyper-stylised graphics enriched with over-the-top verve – indicative of arcade-like flamboyance. Ironically, the devil-may-care merryness of the now harmless appearing graphics saw the game being taken to court by the city of Indianapolis in a bid to ban all and any violent video games, citing that House of the Dead was one of the worst of its kind. Retrospectively, the game is now championed for its cultural impact in booming the zombie subgenre at the turn of the millennium, particularly within the popularisation of fast-moving zombies that the game so frequently used.
Out of this World: Sci-fi Explorations
Doom 3 (2004)
Doom 3 acts not as a sequel in the Doom video game series but instead as its own reboot that strays away from its two predecessors, with the third entry forgoing the prior lack of storylines and opting for a more ample synopsis that would eventually go on to determine the game’s impressive acclaim. As such, the premise is more detailed, following a space marine who acts as the force preventing extraterrestrial creatures from entering Earth. The extensive backdrop also furthers the game’s overall presentation, particularly considering that the designers have more richness to play with.
Dead Space (2008)
The premise of a spaceship becoming overrun by undead creatures chillingly known as Necromorphs gathers sufficient spine shivers on its own, let alone the game’s riveting ability to harness the player and figuratively pull them right into the deadly action. In developing Dead Space, the creators took slight inspiration from the likes of System Shock (1994) and its sequel (1999), along with the ever-influential Resident Evil 4 (2005). Despite these games being entirely meritable, Dead Space wanted to abandon the typical run-and-shoot tactics that habitually take the player ‘out of the game.’ The result of this is a third-person perspective game that is genuinely effective and easily provocative of a taut tension that is hard to beat.
Alien: Isolation (2014)
Unlike many entries on this list of games that have since been adapted after their success, as the title suggests, Alien: Isolation did things differently. It is based and set 15 years after the 1979 Ridley Scott film Alien, following Ellen Ripley’s engineer daughter who boards the space station to investigate her mother’s disappearance. The gameplay allows for many abilities and tasks, with the first-person character being able to hide in abandoned lockers, duck under spaces, vent crawl, run ladders and break the line of sight. The freedom of movement remains a big attraction to the game, with the flexibility forcing a heavy immersive intensity where the mystery of the mission and the enemies’ threatening portrayal make for a game that will have the player fixated on the screen for hours upon end.
Fighting the Hordes: Zombies and Viruses
Resident Evil 4 (2005)
In Resident Evil, its fourth output is universally praised as one of the franchise’s best. Maybe it’s the sinister cast of morbid creatures that spring to life throughout the game or the intense gameplay coupled with the fleshed-out characters that make this survival horror game a standout feat. Either way, acclaim is abundant throughout this rip-roaring, frenzied play that showcases a detailed-oriented approach to its camera system, which namely popularised the over-the-shoulder angle that so many players are accustomed to now. It was an interesting take on the land within the game, the player essentially has the ability to immersive themselves into the action akin to the first person shooter view, but additionally have an almost gods view perspective on the action.
Left 4 Dead (2008)
On the surface level, this fierce zombie thriller may appear as yet another zombie riot to join the extremely packed subgenre, but as any player will inform, Left 4 Dead is a powerful, consuming voyage into the horrors of the undead, with the game’s zombies having devastatingly horrific traits that will get hearts racing in no time as you fight for survival. Left 4 Dead truly comes to life when the multiplayer system is utilised. The four-game mode offers a single-player mode, with the other characters being controlled via AI bots, and whilst this play does still elicit a spirited exercise, the game thrives when the four-player mode is enacted, and cooperative gameplay ensues. As a result of the multiplayer mechanics, Left 4 Dead is a classic social game that demands the thrills that come with interactive group sessions.
The Last of Us (2013)
In the scheme of video game adaptions, it is rare to find one that is as universally beloved by seemingly everyone, horror fans or not, video game enthusiasts and ones who have never touched a console. However, whilst prestige is owed to the 2023 TV series, the original source material is even more impressive and epic. Emotionally driven and melancholic in tone is this action-adventure game that follows the remaining survivors after a fungus-fuelled virus has spread amongst the U.S., leaving the landscape barren except for the god-awful mutated creatures and the last of humanity. With its stunning visuals and intense gaming choreography, what truly propels The Last of Us is the strikingly fruitful character development where relationships and bonds are paid detailed attention, creating a meaningful and engaging experience for the player.
SURVIVAL of the Fittest
Condemned Criminal Origins (2005)
This survival, first-person horror game takes a more grounded approach to its plot, focusing on the terror within reality as we follow a detective on the hunt for a serial killer. Whilst the game does slightly tiptoe into the supernatural realm, its nucleus remains fixated on graphic, visceral violence that is true to its real-world aesthetic. The design and theming are noted to be replicative of psychological thrillers including Se7en (1995) and The Silence of the Lambs (1991). As such, the atmosphere is a key component in the game’s success, with the dramatic, stylised aura pairing nicely with the brutally violent hand-to-hand combat that features throughout.
Amnesia: The Dark Descent (2010)
Amnesia: The Dark Descent has only grown in popularity since its release nearly fifteen years ago, with the game’s focus on horrors that lie in the pitch dark, stirring waves of psychological threats. The looming presence of gruesome monsters that lie in the wake is emphasized by the game’s keenness not continuously to show the enemies’ appearance; alternatively, the frights are brought forward by the knowing that these creatures are waiting – it is certainly a situation that will leave you in trepidation. The gameplay itself furthers the vigour of the horror as the lead character, Daniel, is unable to fight off the monsters upon contact, instead he can only escape if they are unable to see him. The sense of hopelessness and unease combined with the dark graphics and aura makes The Dark Descent an unmissable experience.
Darkwood (2014)
Darkwood may initially present itself as a run-of-the-mill survival game, taking place in an eerie Polish forest where the player must make their way out of the turmoil. However, the pulsing terror does not derive from continuous jumpscares which has become somewhat typical of the subgenre, but instead, the looming sense of nihilistic dread is stirred purely by the uneasy atmosphere and threat of the utterly barbaric creatures that appear throughout. Joining the macabre vibes is the detailed gameplay that revolves around a plethora of side quests and missions that add bountiful depth to the mystifying game.
The Evil Within (2014)
Shinji Mikami, the creator of the infamous Resident Evil game began to notice that contemporary survival games no longer scratched the itch of intense battles to escape and survive, instead, Mikami noticed a strong uptake in these games becoming solely action-horrors despite the survival genre label. In a bid to re-transform the scene again, just as he did years prior, he created The Evil Within, a nail-bitingly creepy game centring on secret organisations and the desperate bid to survive such calamity. The fruitful combat scernaios, heaped with the eerie environment propel The Evil Within to be a standout game of the early 2010’s, with the frenzied, gory displays of terror making for an adrenline-filled ride from start to finish. The sheer chaoticness of the enemies and the thoroughly rich plot pump freshness into the survival element of the game, ensuring that each spine-chilling second spent playing is brimming with excitement, nerves and a great deal of fear.
The Quarry (2022)
The fairly recently released The Quarry was almost inescapable for many upon its arrival. Positive reviews were peppered across forums, advertisements were unavoidable, and sales exceeded expectations, which is unsurprising considering the game’s meta-like qualities, brilliantly executed character development and overall aesthetic and atmosphere that hails to many horror fans’ nostalgic acclaim to summer camp nightmares. The plot follows a group of counsellors at Hackett’s Quarry Camp spending their final night at the site. However, any chance of merriment is cut short after supernatural creatures, alongside vicious locals, make their presence known. The game’s interactivity means that all the playable characters can either die or survive, with their life depending on the players’ decisions, creating a multifaceted sense of immersion that raises the stakes. The game’s intense thematics speak to its spiritual predecessor, Until Dawn (2015), with the gameplay and plot exploring that same sense of malicious cruelty and infamous cabin, woodsy setting.
Unleash Your Dark Side: Reverse Horror Games
Carrion (2020)
Carrion belongs to the intricate reign of reverse horror games, which in this case leads the player to take on the role of a tentacled creature travelling through a research facility killing everyone in sight. Carrion is comparable to that of a maze where the game’s map shows a series of twisted and intertwined areas that the player can only access once they have completed a series of tasks. The aesthetics made up of pixel art and the creature’s gnarly design is reminiscent of nostalgia-driven video games of the late 1990s and early 2000s, it is simple and effective, and from a contemporary perspective, it is a refreshing change that allows the player to set aside how hyper-realistic and sensical the game could be and just simply play and enjoy.
Dead by Daylight (2016)
Dead by Daylight is a feast for any horror fan, with the game allowing the chance for players to be either the killer or the victim. This measure of hunter and prey creates a dynamic that allows for the slasher-like plot to entwine itself within the diegesis of the game, with the outcome being equivalent to that of the ‘ultimate slasher’. The story follows a team of survivors who must persist in fighting against a mysterious killer whose goal is to sacrificially impale its victims on hooks to please a macabre presence otherwise known as The Entity. The gameplay teases all by creating ruses where the killer’s and victims’ information both allow for advantages. Whilst the killer has natural power within its antagonism and ability to know where the group’s missions are located and so forth, what the victims have is the ability to switch from third-person to first-person views, creating an all-encompassing perspective where every angle is at the player’s command.
Sea Salt (2019)
Sea Salt is an independent reverse horror game that lives and breathes Lovecraftian aesthetics, with the story set in the late 19th Century in a small seaside village. The players take on the role of Dagon’s army, a sinister god of the ocean who is worshipped by the town as they provide regular sacrifices. However, when the sacrifice runs short, Dagon decides to invade and massacre the village. It is a misconception that all reverse horror games innately create an environment where the victims easily bow to the player’s antagonistic force; Sea Salt demonstrates that this is quite the opposite, with the villagers teaming up to create swarms, wielding weapons and creating massive retaliations that the player can find themselves struggling to defeat. The intense and challenging gameplay is joined by the game’s gloomy appearance that matches the overcast Victorian-esque seaside town.
Screen to Scream: Horror Games from the Movies
Halloween (1983)
Halloween, seemingly many fans favourite autumnal slasher, perked the interest of Games of Apollo employees in the midst of the great video game crash of 1983. The hide and seek device within the 1978 John Carpenter film was a large inspiration for the creators, with the game following a babysitter escaping the presence of an unnamed killer. Whilst the game was titled Halloween, with the poster featuring a large pumpkin (the exact same design used in the film’s poster), along with Carpenter’s titular theme song appearing throughout, the game never indicates that the characters are that of Laurie Strode and Michael Myers. Although the game has fared well over the years, primarily due to the nostalgia, fan-driven culture surrounding Halloween, at the time of its release, the game aided in Wizard Video Games filing for bankruptcy due to the sales. In fact, in the midst of liquidation, the company sold copies of the game with minimal effort, not even labelling the case, instead the edge was simply lined with a white sticker with the word ‘Halloween’ sloppily hand-written on it.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2023)
The Tobe Hooper 1974 classic The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is no stranger to the world of video games, with the first being developed into gaming format in 1983 for the Atari 2600. Forty years after the fact came the revived 2023 asymmetrical-based game which sees a group of 7 victims who must escape the deadly cannibalistic family. The atmosphere, music and pacing, challenges, maps and much more are all a testament to the barrage of amusement this game delivers. It may not be a chilling expedition akin to the paranormal antics seen in other games, yet what Texas Chainsaw does yield is a vibrant, bloodied immersive experience that will keep you hooked for hours as you battle with the unique characters and fight for survival. That specific combination of fear and excitement colluding throughout the various cat-and-mouse situations is amplified by the horror star power behind the characters. Kane Hodder, who played Jason in four of the Friday the 13th films (as well as acting as a stunt coordinator for Texas Chainsaw Massacre III [1993]), stars as Leatherface. Hodder’s expertise in playing formidable forces elevates this intimidating motion capture experience.
Friday the 13th (2017)
Yet another asymmetrical horror game is the ‘slasherific’ Friday the 13th which aids in lingering, expanding and exploring the maddening lore of Jason Vorhees and his brutal killing sprees. The game is built on a semi-open world chassis, where players can investigate the intricate design found within the crevices of Camp Crystal Lake. The game was seemingly made with the interest of fans of the franchise in mind, with the in-game virtual cabin offering a plethora of trivia that peaks into the land of an array of Friday the 13th films. Some of this fandom-orientated trivia includes Pamela Vorhees tapes and Tommy Jarvis tapes – both of whom are some of the franchise’s most acclaimed characters. However, all of the success was short-lived as the game’s servers were closed down in late 2020 due to licensing issues, leaving the game only available online through a peer-to-peer network. Once again, the game was officially delisted late last year, but the game’s creators have endlessly teased future creations.
Evil Dead: The Game (2022)
As with key players in the horror movie landscape, The Evil Dead is familiar with the virtual world, with the 2022 game being the latest in a lineup of 10 games adapted from the lore of Necronomicon. The game primarily succeeds through its callbacks to the iconic world of Ash and the gory demons that he can never seem to escape. The game walks the tightrope of being uncomplicated, providing easy, messy fun where ample weaponry and bloody battles are plentiful; whilst also enacting a full-bodied storyline to prevent the game from becoming too elemental. In other words, the game makes use of simplistic, groovy fun that fits in nicely amongst the expansive Evil Dead universe.
Twisted Mind Games: Psychological Mayhem
Silent Hill 2 (2001)
The lore of the Silent Hill spectrum is part of the entire gaming series’ major intrigue. Metamorphic creatures, gangly beasts and gnarly monsters parade their nasty frightfulness throughout the game, making for a play that is not for the faint of heart. Joining the fantastical yet chilling land of Silent Hill is the game’s bizarre and puzzling premise where the horror is akin to a carnival of circus-like madness, all of which is complimented by its disorienting scoring and sound that is reminiscent of disturbed, discordant drones that cling and clang to produce the ultimate unnerving experience. Further propelling Silent Hill’s second entry into gaming stardom is the development of the cinematic aesthetics that made its predecessor successful. The game is brimming with psychologically rich storylines, immense visuals and that whopping grandiose soundtrack that is synonymous with the game.
P.T (2014)
P.T. was developed by none other than gaming auteur Hideo Kojima (Metal Gear [1987]) as part of a collaboration with Guillermo del Toro. P.T. has ties to the Silent Hill series, mainly as the game was developed as a teaser for the now cancelled Silent Hills. However, as Kojima has expressed, P.T. is essentially its own standalone game that does not piggyback off of the Silent Hill franchise. Upon its release P.T. soared the market with unbelievable popularity, it became known as the must-have game, the unmissable experience. The visuals were terrifying, the tension was immaculately built and the plot of a labyrinth-like haunted corridor that the player must escape, all made the game a roaring success. That was until it was deleted from the PlayStation Network less than a year after its release due to the cancellation of Silent Hills. Uproar ensued as P.T. was its own game, leading to various fans remaking the game multiple times, only for it to be taken down shortly after.
Omori (2020)
Omori is an independent, Kickstarter-funded game based upon director Omocat’s webcomic ‘Omoriboy’. The concept is similar to that of role-playing games of Japanese origin, which often focus on strong character development and fleshed-out background stories. The overall plot follows Sunny, a teenage boy, and Omori, his alter ego. Throughout the game, the user delves into Omori’s fantasy world, as well as Sunny’s real world. The theming and tone throughout the gameplay between the two lands deal with darkly dramatic issues including mental trauma and suicidal ideations.
Paranormal Activity
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly (2003)
The Fatal Frame series, also known as ‘Project Zero’, is a staple Japanese horror game which has grown quite the fan base, particularly the game’s second feature, Crimson Butterfly. The game mostly toys with the paranormal and all haunting paraphernalia associated with ghostly ghouls, leaving players often aghast due to the game’s genuinely creepy material. The fear factor is amplified by the unique play of the game, with the objective being that the player must use a special camera, think Camera Obscura, leaving the horrifying ghosts to leap out on the screen the minute the shutter button is pressed. Shockings’ and intensity are two rules of the adventure that make for an entertaining and above all, addictive game.
Visage (2020)
Partially inspired by the intricacies of P.T. is Visage, an independent game centred on a strangely laid out house where players must determine the root cause of the paranormal activity. The semi-open world structure of the house allows for a range of puzzles to be solved, which vary from gaining information from the cryptic surroundings to obscure challenges where the player has to immerse themselves right into the daunting action. The non-linear flow of the game makes for plenty of unexpected twists and turns as the player unearths the lore of this strange and confusing house.
MADiSON (2022)
The Argentinian game MADiSON is perfectly simple, it delivers scares by the bucket load, the gameplay is smoothly developed and just the right amount of challenging; the visual and aural aesthetics have that hard to achieve balance is intense, but not too much like a caricature. This melodic approach is what makes MADiSON the ‘Scariest Video Game of All Time’ as declared by Broadband Choices The Science of Scare Project where 200 players were made to play 45 horror video games, whilst connected to a heart rate monitor. On average players of MADiSON had a BPM of 97, peaking at an extortionate 131 BPM!
Shock Frights: Jumpscares
Outlast (2013)
Outlast has gained a reputation over the years as being a terrifyingly graphic and cruel game that will have you playing with the lights on. The game centres on a freelance writer who gets wind that a psychiatric hospital is performing inhumane human experiments – think MK Ultra, leading the journalist into the hellish bowels of the nightmare-inducing wards where all kinds of harrowing beings lie in wait. Outlast exercises a rare feat in horror video games, the lead character – the player, has no special abilities, nor any powers or weaponry that can defeat the utterly soul-shiveringly creepy enemy. Alternatively, the player must solely rely on stealth tactics to avoid a genuinely brutal demise.
Five Nights at Freddy’s (2014)
Five Nights at Freddy’s has become one of the most popular staples in horror video game spectre in recent years, with the animatronic-themed chaos interweaving itself into the tapestry of books, comics, films and the culture of cosplay fandoms. Whilst some may argue against this, the game itself is not necessarily nerve-shatteringly scary, it is however an abundance of total fun where the jumpscares and creepy scoring make for quick bursts of entertaining frights. The majority of the games take on the story of a fictional Chuck E. Cheese-style place where night shift employees have to watch over anthropomorphic animatronics that are inhabited by the souls of murdered children. The rather dark background story and impressively creative design of the game make it a must-play.
TheMortuary Assistant (2022)
TheMortuary Assistant comes from MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games) creator Brian Clarke, whose admiration of found footage horror films led to the creation of a prototype of what would go on to become the future hit game. The concept is set in a small town in Connecticut circa 1998 where players take on the role of a beginner mortuary assistant. Initial feedback for the prototype consisted of audiences wanting a more detailed simulation of the embalming side of the plot. Disturbingly but brilliantly, the game evolved to feature hyperrealist embalming procedures which focused on many old-time archaic methods that make for an even gorier game. As if the deathly processes were not enough for the player, the game also implements a staggering amount of effectively executed jump scares that come from the demons that haunt the surgery. Players will encounter countless jumps, boos, and screams as they make their way through the morbid game.
To Be Released
Until Dawn (Late 2024)
It is not uncommon to develop a hand of god feeling whilst playing a game. At the root, it is you who is calling the shots. However, Until Dawn takes this idea and maximises it to its fullest capacity. The game uses a brilliant butterfly effect where each step and decision you make within the game, affects the outcome and consequences, where you can find yourself in a plethora of differentiating webs and conflicts every time you play. Maximising the interactivity of the gameplay is the overall emotional depth that the narrative-driven plot thrives on, with the story breeding a sense of drastic permanency; whilst playing if you were to make a wrong move and one of the characters meet their gory demise, the act is final and the character will remain dead until the game is started over. With all of the game’s excellence, fans were ecstatic to find out that a remaster of the hit game will be released later this year, showcasing even crisper graphics that will enhance the true terror that bleeds throughout.
Ghosts (Release Date: TBC)
Jed Shepherd, writer, director, producer and now video game creator is known for his phenomenal contributions to horror, with productions such as Host (2020) and Dashcam (2021) lining his credits. Shepherd heralds the upcoming interactive horror video game that is set to be released across Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Microsft Windows and Nintendo Switch; with the big gaming names featuring Ghosts, it can be assured that no one will miss out on this frightful play. The game focuses on a television producer of Ghosts, a live-action ghost-hunting show. The game takes place in real-time, with the job consisting of accommodating the hosts, choosing which footage to include, select the advertisements for the show, all the whilst keeping a lookout for ‘The Long Lady’ – the in-game urban legend whose Medusa-like gaze kills anyone the moment they meet eyes. Along with the unique and exciting plot is the FMV (Full-Motion-Video) stylisation that also comes with an interesting time restriction. The game can only begin at 10 pm local time and if the user were to end the game before the show ends then all the characters will die. Whilst the Kickstart-funded game has not received an official release date as of yet, it’s a sure fact that this live-action, totally distinctive game is not to be missed.
OD (Release Date: TBC)
Hunter Schafer (Euphoria), Sophia Lillie (IT: Chapter Two) and Udo Kier (Bladerunner) star in this Hideo Kojima and Jordan Peele written game. The details behind the story have been kept deliberately tightly under wraps, with Kojima only teasing the overarching scenario that revolves around testing fear thresholds and what happens when one overdoses on fear. Unfortunately just under three minutes of the gameplay was leaked which showed a nurse lingering around a darkened hospital with a flashlight followed by a treacherous scream. Whilst still little is known, what has been promised is that this will be no ordinary game, but instead an innovative form of gaming media unlike no other.
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British horror cinema continuously delivers fantastic films and filmmakers alike, with countless classics rising from home soil; whether that’s folkloric nightmares, Hammer Horrors, gritty zombie fests, satiric parodies or creature features, Britain is a motherland of talent. One of these standout contributors to the genre is director Rob Savage. In the past couple of years, Savage’s work has traversed the land of short films, indie features, and major Hollywood debuts, with each picture delivering a unique, distinctive slice of terror for audiences to devour.
Savage’s efforts to captivate his audiences can be traced back to his pure passion for filmmaking, which began early in the award-winning director’s journey when he made his first short film at the young age of 13. For a budding teen, his debut short, Sex Scene (2009), tackled quite the earnest storyline of two young individuals trying to navigate the world of intimacy. Following his first taste of creation, Savage continued to wield a camera and direct, edit and write a bundle of independent short stories such as Act (2010), Sit in Silence (2011), and I Am (2012).
By the time Savage hit the later years of adolescence, it was clear that the young man with a movie camera would be bound to a career within the industry. Throughout the following years, Savage’s hard graft and drive for creation would yield significant results, being a testament to contemporary horror cinema.
Strings (2012)
Savage’s first feature-length film was a pure grassroots venture, and the filmmaker has since expressed the opportune nature of its production. Straight out of school, Savage used all his university savings to create a film, which he made off a borrowed camera and was filmed at his college. However, just like many great directors, Savage did not need the expensive thrills to produce a standout debut.
String’s warm reception is mainly owed to Savage’s emotive take on a tender yet dramatic coming-of-age story following four teenagers who vow to spend their last summer together before venturing into adulthood. The film is thematically reminiscent of the series Skins (2007) and visually remindful of the likes of Fish Tank(2009), with the film’s microbudget adding to the close, personal feel where the narrative is given the chance to hone in on the character dynamics.
The film went on to win the Raindance Award at the British Independent Film Awards before being procured by Vertigo Films for distribution. Upon this triumph, Savage went on to create a streak of short films, one of which, Dawn of the Deaf (2016), co-written by Jed Shepherd, would foreshadow the pair’s success in the horror genre.
Host (2020)
Savage’s second feature is the sensational Host, an unforgettable film that not only catered to many horror hounds’ frightful tastes but also invited an influx of new fans to the genre due to its rapid, viral success. Much of Host’s achievements come from how the film weaponizes its desktop setting to initially familiarize, drag the viewer in, and then torment them for long after watching. Its authentic coding also spoke to the film’s timely release.
Filmed and distributed during lockdown was Savage’s full-length version of a prank gone array. Savage revealed in an exclusive interview with Dead Northern that he kept up with social outings during lockdown via Zoom meetings to catch up with friends; however, when he began hearing strange noises in his attic, he knew that he could play the ultimate joke on the unsuspecting crowd. With the idea of a laugh in mind, Savage arranged a call with pals to provide emotional support as he scoped out his supposedly haunted attic, only for him to edit the live call and insert a jumpscare of a zombie lurching out from the dark from the Spanish found footage movie Rec (2007). The subsequent screams and panics got the viral treatment from the internet, making studios desperate for Savage to extend his one-minute idea into a feature-length desktop horror.
With Shudder eventually pinning the release, Host became the most talked about film of 2020, and to this day, Host still holds a 99% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes against a whopping 99 reviews!
Host’s stellar outcome is largely owed to its gritty natural tone, where the character’s actions do not feel forced but genuine, forcing the fear to become palpable. The film’s immersive structural format is a consequence of how the entire cast and crew knew each other prior to filming and were only given loose scripts and action commands by Savage, along with co-writers Shepherd and Gemma Hurley. Host is far from rigid. It feels as if the footage from this haunted Zoom meeting really was just happened upon. It would be easy to compare Host to the likes of fellow desktop features such as Unfriended (2014) and Searching (2018), but instead, Host is a film unlike any other.
Dashcam (2021)
After the victory that was Host, the rumour mill reported that Savage had entered into a deal with Blumhouse Productions to create three features under their wing. The first entry to stem from this exciting collaboration was Dashcam, a screen-life horror surrounding the contentious musician Annie (Annie Hardy) as she treks through one hell of a wild night. The found footage boom is undoubtedly alive and well throughout the film, with the firsthand footage originating from dashcams, live streams and phones.
What ensues for the next 76 minutes is a bundle of mania, including but not limited to MAGA-endorsing protagonists, lockdown conspiracies, possessed elderly women, abandoned amusement parks, car wrecks, chase scenes, occult symbols, stabbings, and an oddly entertaining but rather vulgar spew of songs carolled from Annie as she goes about this disastrous night.
The rambunctious expedition, joyously accompanied by all of the conundrums and quirks is what makes Dashcam feel like a hazardous fever dream, where you will most definitely be left thinking ‘what on earth have I just witnessed?’ But nevertheless, in the best way possible. Dashcam is a valiant film from Savage and returning co-writers Shepherd and Hurley. It is not a movie that has been previously accomplished, and it is unlikely that cinema will get a film as provocative and brilliantly feral any time soon.
The Boogeyman (2023)
Savage’s latest film, The Boogeyman, saw the director take an alternative approach to horror than his previous feats, with the film taking a more traditional filming approach and swaying away from found footage altogether.
The Boogeyman comes from a 1973 short story of the same name from the one and only Stephen King, which chronicles a grieving family tormented by the Boogeyman. The film’s primary forte is the deadening atmosphere that trickles through every ounce of the film, covering the screen in a dreary, raw, and authentic mood where the sombre emotions of grief washes over every moment, alongside the peaks of haunting scares provided by the titular antagonising force.
The film wields a commendable balance of brief ‘got ya!’ scares amidst its layers of more sincere horror which comes from both the stunning performances from Sophie Thatcher, Chris Messina, and Vivien Lyra Blair and the film’s aesthetics. The final act is brimming with these scenes of great visual capacity, where giallo-esque lighting and colourful hues fuse with the horrific imagery and the omnipresent vibe, providing a feeling that urges you to believe that evil really does lurk.
The cinematic cherry on top, if you will, is The Boogeyman’s official seal of approval from the King of Horror, with Savage describing that King had openly praised the film and stated how it lingered with him after watching, just as a horror film should.
Savage’s next move in his booming career is a further step into the land of horror, with it being confirmed that he is to adapt the graphic horror novel Night of the Ghoul, which follows a father and son duo as they search for the truth surrounding a long-lost horror film. However, as they unearth the secrets, they discover that this cursed film was left hidden away from the masses for good reason. What propels Savage to be one of the contemporary greats is how his love for the genre is palpable within his filmography. Horror fans make the best horror movies, and Savage’s works precisely proves this time and time again.
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Bumps in the dark and strange creatures are brilliant devices used by many filmmakers. Nevertheless, it is often rare that there comes about a film that employs these facets with such power that it will leave you not just fully engrossed in the on-screen magic but also enthralled by the sheer capacity to frighten. Dutch Marich’s Horror in the High Desert (2021) and its equally haunting sequel Horror in the High Desert 2: Minerva (2023) is an exercise in visceral found footage cinema that deserves to be registered as one of the greats.
The first entry chronicles the disappearance of hiker Gary Hinge (Eric Mencis), who went missing in the summer of 2017 after hiking in the Great Basin Desert, Nevada. For the first time since the tragedy, family and friends are interviewed, recalling the horrific events and the terrifying conclusion of what happened in the high desert.
At first glance, Horror in the High Desert’s stylistic choices may seem to emulate the found footage storytelling device as seen countless times before. However, the complexity Marich exerts throughout propels the aspect of the first-hand camera into new and exciting territory that imposes an awfully stringent omnipotent force. The film takes inspiration from the authenticity of documentary filmmaking, featuring interviews and archival footage, and presents its facts on screen as if learnt in real-time whilst editing a supposedly real documentary on a genuine case. It is an intoxicatingly fascinating approach to horror that has been excellently handed in the likes of The Blair Witch Project (1999) and Lake Mungo (2008), with the product having an undictated tonality, where the events unravel in real time, making the finished content much more authentically coded and therefore tenfolds more terrifying.
With all these hyperrealist intentions, exploring the film’s visual aesthetics is crucial. Night vision is a potent aspect that Marich amalgamates to extradite a deeply intrinsic fear held within us. What we can’t see is always scarier; the dark figures hiding behind pillars and the whispers of entities are more often than not more startling than the constant exposure of the antagonising force. Marich heavily enlists this ‘less is more approach’ during the film’s final act, which shows the last footage from Gary shoots on his camcorder. Supposedly alone in the dark heights of the isolated desert, Gary captures a deserted cabin surrounded by sparse trees, all washed in total darkness, naked to the human eye, except for the camera’s night vision capabilities.
Fear is survival. It is a preservation instinct that keeps us alive. We become near defenceless when we are denied light and are steeped in the darkness, unable to see the predatory threats. Horror in the High Desert, throughout its conclusion, calls upon this evolutionary cycle to enhance our senses and thus force us to look at the screen, taking in every frame to see where the monstrousness lies, pay audible attention to every branch stepped on to determine how close menace is to our surroundings and ultimately force us to watch on as the gruelling events unfold. In tandem, the close bond developed by the first-hand diegetic camera thrusts our perspective to be at one with Gary, fully and brutally immersing us in his position throughout this bone-chilling sequence.
Identifying an immersed spectatorial experience and the discharge of all-consuming darkness that entices a haptic touch towards the film translates to Horror in the High Desert’s corpus that stimulates folkloric-based rhetoric. This idea of lore and mystery is presented heavily throughout the sequel, Horror in the High Desert 2: Minerva. Featuring a similar outline and based in the same context, is a secondary disappearance story focusing on the geological researcher Minerva Sound (Solveig Helene), who relocated to a rural trailer amidst the desert where she documented a string of strange occurrences. Accompanying this are various subplots of other people’s experiences with the ominous area, including the case of the young mother, Ameliana Brasher (Brooke Bradshaw), who goes missing along Highway 50. This is followed by the bodycam footage of Luke Wells (David Nichols Jr.), an EMT who was part of the initial search party for Ameliana.
Minerva’s story unravels slowly, featuring video calls between herself and loved ones concerning the discoveries she has made inside the trailer, such as discarded home video tapes featuring chilling visuals that play out as stalker-like footage, reminiscent of the recordings in The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007), but with a more covert, suspenseful tone. However, the most macabre discovery is of an unidentified person creeping around the trailer, breathing sluggishly and grunting, “he’s comin’ in..” and “I got one for ya”. It is an eerie sequence enough on its own, yet the true bite comes from its suggestion that whatever wreaks havoc among the high desert is something that is far more sinister than a lone wolf, a night stalker, but instead, an uncanny force that is bigger than us all.
Deepening this are the performances above from the likes of Ameliana and Luke, whose experiences with the land are both utterly perplexing and strikingly frightening. After driving from Las Vegas, Ameliana’s car breaks down, but not to fear; her family has a strategy for this long abandoned stretch of highway; if they do not get home at the specified time, the stranded must wait outside the car until rescue appears. Marich makes brilliant use of the surveillance style of found footage by inserting clips from Ameliana’s dashcam. Details will be spared to avoid spoiling the unforgettable (and frankly nightmare-fueled) surprise. What can be noted is how Marich bravely takes the time not to rush the sequence of Ameliana’s fate. It’s a torturous slow burn that makes the viewer wait in pure fear and trepidation, knowing that Ameliana’s blisteringly gruesome fate will occur at any given moment.
One final punch to the gut is Luke’s bodycam footage, which is an extract that horror filmmakers spend their entire careers learning how to craft, as Marich has done. Again, specifics will be spared in a bid to ‘keep mum’ on the finale. By this process, take heed of this: Luke enters a stranded mining facility in the pitch darkness, having broken his flashlight, unable to see that he is always nearly mere feet away from bumping into a disfigured, unexplainable figure capable of ungodly terror.
Marich has discussed Horror in the High Desert becoming a multi-entried horror series, with the film’s official website confirming that the third edition, Horror in the High Desert 3: Firewatch, is coming soon. Given the excellence of the original and its equally distinctive sequel, Marich is certainly becoming a signature figure in the found footage world, causing waves and creating overwhelmingly smashing cinema.
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1- The Wolf House (Cristobal León and Joaquin Cociña, 2018)
Kicking off this mind-twisting list is the Chilean stop-motion film The Wolf House. Directed by Cristobal León and Joaquin Cociña and co-written by Alejandra Moffat, is the animated, surreal fairytale that takes the viewer through a mirage of labyrinth-like settings and worlds in a desolate house. The film’s visual incoherence is a guise that shelters and replicates the intense and complex meaning behind the story—inspired by the troubling Colonia Dignidad, a colony established in Chile post WW2 where various acts of torture were committed. The Wolf House’s myriad of madness is captivatingly gruesome, with each scene being near impossible to decode at first glance; for instance, as the meaning behind the house unravels within the story, the bones of its foundations experience a metamorphosis where objects become people and people become animals.
2- Possum (Matthew Holness, 2018)
Akin to the backwards world of British TV series The League of Gentlemen (1999-2002) and infused with a touch of Ben Wheatley’s Neo-folk filmmaking style is the utterly fantastic and incredibly dark Possum. From the mind of director Matthew Holness is the story of a child puppeteer, Philip (Sean Harris), who returns home where he is confronted with his past trauma. The film was adapted from Holness’s short story of the same name that was influenced by the works of Sigmund Freud. Considering this, Possum is brimming with the uncanny, whether that be through the offensively disturbed arachnid puppet that features throughout, or the cold, dismal world that the film takes place in. Possum is one of those films that may be watched a dozen times before one can truly get to grips with every single detail of great emotional significance that seeps throughout every frame.
3- House (Nobuhiko Obayashi, 1977)
House is a kaleidoscopic fever dream that emulates psychedelia with a pungent extremity, with its ethereal quality coming off as both haunting and unreasonably excessive. The hallucinatory facets within House derive from director Nobuhiko Obayashi’s wanting to create a film that goes beyond human understanding, or more accurately, adults’ understanding of the logical world. In creating the script, Obayashi enlisted his daughter’s help where he observed that a child’s imagination conjures the most fascinating of concepts that traverses far beyond the mundanity of what the mature mind summons. With this, House takes aspects of childhood nightmares of colourful monsters and nonsensical scenarios to create a film that is wildly ambitious and genuinely startling.
4- Begotten (E. Elias Merhige, 1989)
Back in the mid 1980s E. Elias Merhige developed an idea for a piece of experimental theatre where live music and dance would be performed against a story of mythology, religion and the disgrace of humanity. Whilst traction was aligned with the project and the concept blossomed, Merhige realised that the production as a live piece of theatre would be too costly, leading to his concept becoming a film. With the knowledge that Begotten’s corpus derived from experimental theatre, it becomes easier to mentally digest the final product, which is by all intents and purposes a complete deluge that resembles a total exodus of reality. The hellish imagery consists of the self-disembowelment of God whose mutilated remains gives birth to Mother Earth before conceiving the ‘Son of Earth’ and going on a surreal, nauseating path of destruction and discovery. Take this rambunctious idea and now imagine it paired with the film’s obtrusive score that runs throughout which features nothing but insect-like squirming noises over a ‘thu-dum’ heartbeat sound. Begotten obliterates normality and acts a sporadic experience from beginning to end.
5- Koko-di Koko-da (Johannes Nyholm, 2019)
Koko-di Koko-da is another Groundhog Day story that chronicles a grieving couple that are stuck in a time loop by nursery rhyme characters. The complex and structurally intricate storyline deliberately never makes sense or fully acknowledges its strangeness, it is just accepted by the cinematic universe, making every confused and disjointed emotion extracted from the viewers all the more disturbing. Paired with the absurdity of the events, there is an overall aggravation towards the antagonising characters. The beings terrorising the couple strive through with a morbid happiness that seems whimsical until we are reminded that this is very much a horrific story.
6- Uzumaki (Higuchinsky, 2000)
Based on the Junji Ito manga of the same name is Uzumaki, a film where atmosphere, aura and an unhinged narrative take over to create a boggling adaption. Uzumaki has received a decent share of criticism over time, partially due to its off-kilter humour that sporadically features throughout, which seems quite out of place. However, it is this strange placement of slapstick comedy that pierces the tension and makes the film an untamed watch where the entire direction of the film is consistently unprecedented. Adding to the peculiarity is the film’s central focus surrounding the spiral pattern and how it essentially drives the characters to the brinks of their psyche. The Fibonacci spiral hysteria twists and turns the story in the most unexpected of ways, leaving for the most memorable of watches.
7- Society (Brian Yuzna, 1989)
The magnificence of body horror is forever in debt to Brian Yuzna’s Society. Yuzna’s epic exploration into the potentials of depravity is an exercise in the brilliance of cinema that doesn’t take itself too seriously, with plenty of amalgamated bodies that fuse flesh to flesh and limb to limb to create a gigantic creature formed by body parts. The aspect of anthropomorphism plays a large role in Society with the monstrosity of the final act being a repulsive feast for the senses. For fans of excessive gore and stomach churning terror, this film is not to be missed!
8- Resurrection (Andrew Semans, 2022)
Despite the brilliance of the leads, Rebecca Hall and Tim Roth, Andrew Semans Resurrection is criminally underrated. Whilst many absurd films tackle obscene comedy to further the surreal nightmarish quality of mind-boggling horror, Resurrection takes a much more gloom-ridden route where the calamitous nature of the film shines alongside the unearthly and bizarre plot points. Whilst the story is best left as an enigma for first time watchers, what can be revealed is that Resurrection follows the disciplined business woman Maggie (Hall), whose life implodes when a strange figure (Roth) from her past comes back to haunt her. The words brutal and cold rings strong throughout this relentless shocker.
9- Visitor Q (Takashi Miike, 2001)
Hmm… where to begin with horror legend Takashi Miike’s Visitor Q? Not for the faint hearted and certainly not a family film is this utterly barbaric and gut-wrenchingly twisted tale of nihilistic dread following the perverted Yamazaki family as they fall apart at the hands of their own lewdness. Themes of incest, voyeurism, sadio-masochism, torture, necrophilia, coprophilia, lactophilia (and copius other ‘philia’ related terms) all take centre stage throughout the film, leaving any seasoned viewer affected, let alone an unsuspecting spectator. However, whilst there is a lot to be said about its extremity, Visitor Q is a fascinating watch, particularly due to its stylistic output. The film mimics documentary footage with the camera acting as a fly on the wall for most scenes, creeping up where you’d least expect it and bringing us uncomfortably close to the experimental action.
10- The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (Robert Wiene, 1920)
German expressionism roots its origins within Berlin circa 1920s as a reflection of the turmoil during that era. Notable films from the period include the likes of Nosferatu (1922), Faust (1926) and most importantly in this case, Robert Wiene’s The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. The film is renowned for its graphic style and striking aura that is straight from the dark underbelly of horror thematics. The set’s were purposefully built to create a dizzying effect where the walls were angled and floors were tilted, where featured trees would appear diagonal and staircases would be spiralized messes. It was a radical decision to portray such a frenzy that still pays off over 100 years later.
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A harmless weekend turns deadly when a Danish couple, Bjørn (Morten Burian) and Louise (Sidsel Siem Koch) and their daughter Agnes (Liva Forsberg) meet up with Patrick (Fedja van Huêt), Karin (Karina Smulders) and Abel (Marius Damslev), a family they met on holiday.
Yelling at the screen and simmering in frustration are common occurrences whilst watching Speak No Evil. But it is this exact vexation that the film thrives in as we are forced to watch deliberate, misinformed choices taking place, all for the characters to fall victim to one of modern horror’s most irrefutably evil couples. Patrick and Karin maliciously play this running game of ‘coincidences’ to play off their subtle, cruel jibes, disorientating the innocent family and forcing them to fall into the true horrific pits of their sinister intentions. Patrick and Karin employ a cold callousness that teases the viewer throughout, where we find ourselves constantly second-guessing whether the pair are building up to an act of violence or whether we are just being paranoid.
2- Henry (Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, 1986)
Following his release from prison, Henry (Michael Rooker) carries on his murderous antics as he goes on a wild and vicious killing spree.
The contentious reputation of Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer is an ode to the pure brutality of the titular character’s actions throughout the film. Acts of depravity from murder, torture and assault all take centre stage throughout the brutish movie; however, whilst these homages to brutalism are entirely shocking, what makes the film so powerful and significant is the nonchalant carelessness that Henry displays. There is no regard given to his devastations, not a thought behind his eyes whilst dicing his way through victims and most importantly, there is no stopping him whatsoever. Henry states that he just moves on from state to state, killing with no particular modus operandi, implying that his limits are unfounded and that he will never be caught.
3- La Tenia (Irréversible, 2002)
Told in reverse order, Irréversible follows the acts of revenge two men commit after the torture and attack of the woman they love.
It would be hard to come by a spectator who was not left feeling emotionally torn after watching Irréversible. The film has become known as one of the more severe mainstream depictions of graphic violence, with the focus of terror being the infamous ‘tunnel scene’ showcasing an abhorrent pimp known as La Tenia (Jo Prestia) pinning down and sodomising Alex (Monica Bellucci), a young woman who was innocently walking past him, minding her own business. Emotions from fury to sickness and then back to anger all flood through us as we see La Tenia spew venomous sentiments at Alex whilst she is laid cold and battered on a dirty Parisian underpass. The camera statically lingers for a dreaded nine whole minutes as La Tenia exercises sheer immorality. Many movie villains are praised and held up as deviant icons within film; however, La Tenia is far from praise, becoming one of cinema’s most abominable monsters ever.
4- Patrick Bateman (American Psycho, 2000)
Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) is a successful investment banker by day and a murderous psychopath by night whose grip on reality loosens as his habits become increasingly violent.
Patrick Bateman is the personification of arrogance. He views people not as humans but as toys in a treasure chest for him to do whatever he pleases with, whether that be to ridicule their class status or to savagely murder and dismember them. Whichever method of evisceration Bateman chooses, he will do it with a unique poise that ensures he is the most powerful and controlling person in the room. It is this assuredness that makes him overwhelmingly intimidating. Remaining both calm and manic, ruthless and serene, is a quality that makes Bateman stand out amongst the rest.
5- Troubled youth (Eden Lake, 2008)
Jenny (Kelly Reilly) and Steve’s (Michael Fassbender) romantic weekend away is cut short when they cross paths with an enraged group of local teens.
Eden Lake’s state of antagonism is wrapped up with the idea of generational horror. Although the force of horror mainly comes from the terror enforced by the teenagers, the film reveals that the gang’s thirst for trauma is rooted deep within their habitat. Eden Lake concludes with Jenny seeking rescue in a seemingly warming, normal family home, however, it is revealed that the house is occupied by the relatives of the gang she barely escaped from. The manner of the more mature members of the families are worse than that of the youth, exemplifying how nurtured, damaged behaviour is a terrifying cyclic practise.
6- Esther (Ophan, 2009)
A couple gets more than what they bargained for when they adopt Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman), a sweet ‘young’ orphan looking for a new family.
Esther has become synonymous with contemporary horror villainy, with her flawless infiltration system being savagely creative and cruel. As it happens, Esther is not a child but a woman in her thirties with an appetite for destruction. Her caring demeanour and her tragic orphaned backstory make the people in her life fall into her trap, only to ensnare them viscerally. Esther’s story is one that is scarily plausible and unique within the genre, making for a gnarly, fearful watch.
7- Kyung-chul (I Saw the Devil, 2010)
A cat and mouse game ensues after Soo-hyeon’s (Lee Byung-hun) wife and unborn child are found dead at the hands of serial killer, Kyung-chul (Choi Min-sik).
The antagonism exercised by the character Kyung-chul is utterly barbaric and reprehensible. Nothing, no one and no act is off limits for this despicable man. The film depicts each killing with such ferocity that it is nearly impossible not to feel some form of hatred for his character. Accompanying Kyung-chul’s beastliness is the film’s melancholy tones, a quintessential facet of South Korea’s fantastic filmmaking style, with each scene juxtaposing Kyung-chul’s inhuman actions with the audience’s evidential empathy towards his victims.
8- The Poughkeepsie killer (The Poughkeepsie Tapes, 2007)
A serial killer’s life’s work is unleashed as New York detectives find thousands of home videos depicting countless acts of murder, dismemberment and torture.
Although relatively infamous amongst many found footage fans, The Poughkeepsie Tape’s central antagonist (whose identity is never revealed) is rarely discussed regarding their atrocity. The film discloses that their victim count reaches far into the hundreds. Each tape screened revels in the killer’s gratuitous displays of punishment and abuse, with the perpetrator additionally employing disturbing fetishism throughout his inflictions of pain.
9- Mum and Dad (Mum & Dad, 2008)
Lone airport worker Lena (Olga Fedori) is held hostage by a sick and twisted family.
Head of the sadistic family are Mum (Dido Miles) and Dad (Perry Benson), who encompass the epitome of all things grotesque and macabre. Their incestuous attitudes and gleeful will to traumatise leave for an incredibly uncomfortable watch as we see the pair exude delight whilst tormenting the innocent. Adding to the pair’s awfully horrid actions is the film’s bleak and dreary flair that embodies a sense of misanthropic unease, forcing the viewer to wallow away within all of its overarching angst.
10- Chris Cleek (The Woman, 2011)
Whilst out hunting, Chris Cleek (Sean Bridgers) captures an uncivilised woman and brings her to his family home, keeping her tied up in an old out-shack for him to keep as a trophy, doing what he pleases.
Immediately there is a strong sense of banality seeping through Chris’s motives and actions, but what is the real nail in the coffin is how his actions are mimicked by those around him. He nurtures his teenage son to also treat the woman as an object for his desire, with the father son duo feeding from each other’s willingness to harm. Master manipulation and evil toxicity truly is the bread and butter of supposed ‘family-man’ Chris Cleek’s persona.
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In Frankenstein or, The Modern Prometheus (1818), author Mary Shelley once wrote, “There is something at work in my soul, which I do not understand”. It is an undeniably beautiful quote reminiscent of the delicate nature of the soul that speaks to the fragileness within humanity; it paints pictures of pale pinks and cotton with its sweetness. However, just as nature pins the human form as sensitive and innocent, there is equally a brutality, a malevolence that seeps through the soft belly and permeates the soul with an air of monstrousness that is impossible to precisely identify – it is, as Shelley details, something which we do not understand.
This odd polarity has often been used in horror to analyse the female. She is mellow yet ferocious, harmless yet venomous. This dissection of the monstrous speaks to countless films from Carrie (1976) to Raw (2016), where the likes of female witches, vampires, aliens, possessed creatures and werewolves are ignited on their path of abjection. However, one entity has somewhat escaped the line of fire – the feminine mediation of Frankenstein.
Monsters represent what we can fantastically be and are most certainly not, almost akin to the folkloric nature of haunting mythology surrounding culturally specific warnings like the La Llorona tale originating from Latin America. It is the knowing that otherness is a potent potential that we simultaneously want to hide from whilst devouring its unique alienness. Regarding feminising Frankenstein, the focal topic is the female body and its all-controlling, all-consuming traits and how it affects otherness and others.
Tyler MacIntyre’s Patchwork (2015) follows three women, Jennifer (Tory Stopler), Ellie (Tracey Fairaway) and Madeleine (Maria Blasucci), who, after spending the night partying, find themselves butchered and reattached together. Similarly, Frank Henenlotter’s Frankenhooker (1990) sees widowed scientist Jeffrey (James Lorinz) bring his wife back to life by attaching the few remnants left of her corpse with random body parts from prostitutes that he murdered. Within both of these films, the unwillingly and unknowingly spliced and diced female corpse represents the act of objection, particularly concerning the womanly form being a commodity for desire.
Whilst Jeffrey’s motives seem slightly touching at first, the film makes a point of showing his self-fulfilling prophecies; for example, during one of his grief-ridden rambles where he has the lightbulb moment of Frankenstein-ing his wife Elizabeth (Patty Mullen), he comments that he will give her the best figure possible. Adding to this is his nonchalant attitude to the several sex workers he kills to compose the new body, as well as his frustration over Elizabeth seeking agency over her new form (which she never even asked for). Jeffrey is frustrated over his lack of control, with this anger slipping into pure vexation when the film ends with Elizabeth performing the same body reassembly on Jeffrey.
Here, Elizabeth is a vessel in which to be fascinated and fearful. There is no conforming to the norm. The ‘new’ Elizabeth was biologically constructed to be an object of desire for Jeffrey, something to stare at and admire. But, she becomes a source of fear and allure when she begins to reject and sway from her presumed destined stature. Within this corruption, a tie is formed between the spectacle and the feminised monster. We internalise the knowledge of Elizabeth being undead, a reanimated dead, rotting corpse and internalise this grotesqueness along with her refusal to comply and see her as the epitome of the monstrous feminine.
The physical threat of decay paired with the fragility of female morals is additionally explored in Patchwork. The triptych-like Frankenstein creature goes on a path of vengeance within the narrative. When looking at the prospect of monstrosity and revenge, an immediate connection is made, exhibiting a cathartic purge of vehemence and revolt. Like Elizabeth, the characters experience a bodily rebirth regarding their new forced physical form and spirituality. They reluctantly take on their flesh with a sense of fury, shedding their skin and disengaging from the agency of their mutilator. With this, they create a new identity.
Further elaborating this facet of new autonomy is the secondary strain of the female Frankenstein – the ‘actual’ Frankenstein. Of course, when the term ‘Frankenstein’ is correctly used, it refers to the creator of the monster (known as Dr. Victor Frankenstein in the book and original media), with his creation being deemed as ‘Frankenstein’s monster’. Nevertheless, it is precisely this idea of Frankenstein’s creator that we are going to explore next.
Womanly, mad scientists taking discarded corpses and creating their own twisted, semi-living sapient beings has been a significant area that the horror and thriller world has traversed. Films such as Lady Frankenstein (Mel Welles, 1971), Birth/Rebirth (Laura Moss, 2023), The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster (Bomani Story, 2023) and the upcoming Lisa Frankenstein (Zelda Williams, 2024) all employ the use of a female scientist. Although under different strains, these creators of monsters all act as makers of individuals, albeit not necessarily ‘traditional’ cognisant beings. They are motherly architects of horror.
In horror, the maternal figure is continuously seen as monstrous because of her perceived transgressions that defy social normalities, with the focus being on all of the bodily changes experienced during pregnancy, childbirth and the aftermath of rearing the child. As seen in The Brood (David Cronenberg, 1979) and the more contemporary film Titane (Julia Ducournau, 2021), horror cinema utilises these themes of the motherly body, castration anxiety and the threat of maternal domination to create apprehension and dread. The female Dr. Frankenstein spends their blood, sweat and tears creating, nurturing, and training their creations before unleashing them. These creatures are motherly-esque creations made in a symbolic womb (improvised labs). Herein lies the possibility that the femme creator of the beast is the catalyst for all things monstrous.
In essence, the trajectory of femininity within the concept of the female Frankenstein reveals a nuanced portrait of monstrosity that has the ability to be explored in an extremely wide capacity. Going back to the beginning, Shelley’s timeless quote, “There is something at work in my soul, which I do not understand”, condenses the intricate web of the female experience, oscillating between fragility and fury, purity and wickedness. Through the likes of Frankenhooker and Patchwork, the female form is moulded to form a site of manipulation perpetuated by their cruel creators, with the films showing their journey to take back the power over their bodies. The barbaric transformations the women go through speak to the rejection of their prescribed roles, ultimately leading to an uproar.
On the other hand, we have the portrayal of the mother monster that blurs the complicated line between motherhood and monstrosity. Despite their nurturing intentions, these figures challenge and invoke fear through insubordination towards their traditional role. The female Frankenstein underscores the duality of beauty and brutality. It serves as a stringent cue of the complex and innate struggle to gain autonomy and agency in a world that seeks to confine.
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Here’s your guide to every screening, event and dark delight at this years Dead Northern Horror and Fantasy Film Festival 2023!
Friday – 29th September
As you join the queue in to the city screen with your fellow horror lovers, check in at our front desk with Josh, Gareth and Dave and grab your festival pass.
Head through to the main lobby and pick up any provisions you need with Cath and the team at City Screen Picture house, and head up to Screen one for your first day of spooky screenings…
11:00am – Student Short Films
A King in Yellow -A brother attempts to bring his sister’s sense of hearing back by performing an occult ritual involving vinyl records.
…And Again, And Again – Opening right amidst the action, a knife wielding maniac pursues his terrified victim home. Bloodshed ensues, but things are far from what they appear to be…
Serpentine Petrol Product reel No.7 ”Skin Cream” – A snake oil salesman with the latest in beauty products: A skin cream that melts away your skin.
Swine – Witness the death of society as two powerful men, driven entirely by their greed, gorge themselves on pork and wine before revealing their true nature.
Ariane’s Baby – Ariane is a single and lonely woman who craves love after a history of abusive relationships. The birth of her child represents a chance to start everything anew and form her own happy family, but she worries about not being up to the task.
Morto Rossa – A dance school organizes a mysterious casting to select a dancer for a future show. Suzie, after passing the audition, will be chosen as the lucky one.
The Machine – Alexis is a college student in her early 20s. One night while gathering with her friends she takes interest in the pinball machine in the arcade room…
Lucid – Lucid follows a protagonist, Wes, who becomes obsessed with the concept of lucid dreaming and spirals into a chase for power in his sleep.
Yokai In My House – Miyako a girl in her 20’s inherits a house in Japan. Unbeknown to her it is haunted by the Mokumokuren. Will she survive the night or will she succumb to the same fate as her predecessor?
12:30pm – ISAAC (Feature film) -Sci-fi Horror – Northern Premier with Q&A
In the near future a company specialising in cellular meat trial its synthetic technology in a bid to create the perfect child. Nicholas and Sarah are guinea pigs to this trial and are provided with a seemingly healthy son, after losing their own child to a genetic disease. As their new son, Isaac, develops he becomes increasingly violent and dangerous, leaving the parents with no choice but to lock him away and keep him hidden while they try to uncover the truth as to what is driving him insane.
2:30pm – The Good Times (Mini Feature) – Post Apocalyptic Horror
Fantastic short feature film, made by brilliant local talent and filmed in and around York!
A young man lives alone in a dystopian future, trying to survive a post-apocalyptic world and his own conscience.
One bashful vicar… One haunted nudist camp… Prepare to get the willies. In this paranormal comedy from the makers of 2018 festival-hit Paul Is Dead, BAFTA-nominee Spencer Jones leads a star cast (alongside veteran actors from ‘Hot Fuzz’, ‘Game Of Thrones’ & ‘Spaced’) as Rev Howard Lee Jr, a bashful local vicar who is called upon to save a haunted nudist camp from the prudish poltergeist covering their privates.
4:00pm – Folk Horror and Mystery Short Films
Kicking off our Folk Horror themed afternoon is a mixture of eerie short films…
Kiddo – On a rickety bus trundling through wilting countryside, a mysterious older woman named ‘Kiddo’ and a cohort of overexcited teenagers meander towards Wonderland, a theme park like no other. Sinister secrets await as Kiddo and her compatriots face off with their hosts and draw closer to discovering the truth of their journey.
Creulon – High in the mountains above the sleepy town of Creulon, a charismatic Radio DJ and a malicious Serial Killer share a sinister connection.
No Such thing – An obsessed alcoholic and his reluctant grandson search the Mourne Mountains for the fabled Banshee. Synopsis: Decades after his Father’s death, Paddy’s search for the mythical ‘Banshee’ is unwavering. Conor loved his grandfather’s stories when he was a child, but now an adult, he’s tired of the camping trips and the unhealthy obsessions. As the two set off into the mountains, their real struggle isn’t a ghost story, but their own decayed relationship.
The Wyrm of Bwlch Pen Barras – Early one winter morning in the rural town of Rhuthun in North Wales, three men are called upon once again to carry out a terrible assignment on the Bwlch Pen Barras mountain pass. Shot on 16mm by cinematographer Sean Price Williams (Good Time, Her Smell) and featuring a score by Cian Ciaran and Dafydd Ieuan from The Super Furry Animals, The Wyrm of Bwlch Pen Barras is a Welsh language folk horror film about modern Wales, rooted in the country’s rich mythology.
The Lure – Late at night, a lone fisherman discovers he is not the only one hoping to hook something.
Find You Here – Find You Here is a gnarly piece of folkloric horror about what happens when a toxic couple find themselves at an abandoned scare event built on evil land. Will they survive the night?
My Dreams Have Been Dark of Late – A knight finds himself at the mercy of his armour.
BREAK
A chance to come out of the darkness and find nourishment before the second half of day one…
6:00pm – Folk Horror Panel (Hosted by London Horror Society)
Chris and the team from LHS will be joining us all weekend and bringing some special guests from across the film industry for a good old chat about Friday afternoons theme ‘ FOLK HORROR’.
7:00pm – Sins of the Father (Feature Film) – UK Premiere – Folk Horror
After the death of his father, Aden and his mother, Sarah, find themselves responsible for the sale of his family home – a place they thought they’d left behind. When Sarah’s friends arrive to help, the task seems almost manageable. However, as they clear out the house, they uncover secrets in Sarah’s past and the sinister nature of the cultivated community Aden was raised in…. And his father’s family is not so eager to let the sins of the past go unpunished.
9:00pm – The Wicker Man (50th Anniversary Screening)
One of the original trilogy of British Folk Horror films that established the sub genre, join us in a celebration of the iconic film on a very special anniversary.
The plot centres on the visit of a police officer, Sergeant Neil Howie, to the isolated Scottish island of Summerisle in search of a missing girl. Howie, a devout Christian, is appalled to find that the inhabitants of the island have abandoned Christianity and now practise a form of Celtic paganism. The Wicker Man is well-regarded by critics. Film magazine Cinefantastique described it as “The Citizen Kane of horror movies”, and in 2004, Total Film magazine named The Wicker Man the sixth-greatest British film of all time. It also won the 1978 Saturn Award for Best Horror Film. The final scene was number 45 on Bravo’s 100 Scariest Movie Moments, and during the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, it was included as part of a sequence that celebrated British cinema. The film brought the wicker man into modern popular culture.
10.00pm – Till Late – Welcome Social with London Horror Society (Pitcher and Piano)
For those ready to party and meet some like minded horror folk, head just 30 seconds across the road to Pitcher and Piano where we welcome horror fans to the 2023 festival!
Whether you’re a seasoned horror aficionado or a curious newbie, at our indie horror mixer you’ll have the perfect opportunity to connect with friendly and talented people, and share your passion for all things spooky! The mixer will run from 10:00pm till late, giving you plenty of time to grab a drink, mingle and make new friends in the horror community.
Freshly bleary eyed from day 1, we’ll be welcoming you back to the City Screen (Bloody Mary in Hand) for day 2 of the fest!
11:00am – Satanic & Spooky Short Films
Opening Saturdays is a fantastic group of short films celebrating everything ghostly and demonic!
La Nueva – Maria is the new teacher who arrives at an old religious school. On her first day, she will have to teach a group of rebellious kids who are part of a punishment class. An unexpected event will turn the classroom into a real hell.
Death Date – Boy Meets Girl on the Day of His Death
Fuse – An electrician finds himself stalked by a ghostly presence as he attends a night call at an elderly woman’s house.
Sylvie Made it – In hell, the dead work in call centers under the illusion of earning a place in heaven by satisfying the living. This is not worth the money for some, except when their loved ones suddenly disappear for heaven…
The Unquiet Dead – A therapist treats an unstable young woman who claims to be harassed by an assortment of malevolent spirits – who are demanding something from her.
Ghost Insurance – Stressed about the supernatural? Paul is selling ghost insurance policies, but one family isn’t convinced.
12:30pm – Haunted Ulster Live (Feature film) – Norther Premiere with Q&A – Paranormal Mockumentary
On Halloween night 1998, TV veteran Gerry Burns, teams up with popular children’s presenter Michelle Kelly to investigate poltergeist activity in a haunted house in Belfast. A seance causes the broadcast to descend into chaos. When the youngest child is mysteriously abducted by an unseen force, the two presenters must face their greatest fears on live TV.
2:30pm – Creature & Body Horror Shorts
The Heritage – After growing up adopted, a man makes a gargantuan discovery when meeting his biological father.
Dead Skin – Disgruntled teenager Jess has an itch she just can’t scratch and she’s willing to do whatever it takes to be rid of it.
Wormies – In 1980s suburbia, a distant family is forced to come together when the Summer’s hottest new toy, a cute aquatic pet, mutates into a repulsive monster.
Dinghy – After barely making it ashore onto the English coastline, a refugee and the man who smuggled him seek safety after a treacherous channel crossing, both pursued by and summoned to a place of darkness.
Growing Horns – On the verge of adulthood, Alva is studying meat cutting at a butchering school. Alva is severely bullied and her fellow students turn her daily life into torment. To control at least one aspect of her life, Alva has stopped eating. As the bullying escalates and her hunger grows, Alva begins to lose control of herself and sees red.
Forever – Shani and Amar are two half-dead girls, being sex-trafficked with a high price tag. When the thugs transporting them head to get food, the pair are hungry too and escape. They dodge the men in the shadows, but with hunger and dawn rising something has to give.
4:00pm – Video Shop Tales of Terror (Feature film)- Northern Premiere – Anthology Horror
A sinister video shop holds the key to a collection of terrifying VHS related tales, told by a collective of the best UK indie horror filmmakers including MJ Dixon (Pandamonium), Michael Fausti (Exit), Andrew Elias (The Numbers), Tom Lee Rutter (Day of the Stranger), Sam Mason Bell (The Millenial Killer) & Alexander Churchyard (The Allotment). With fake trailers from Tony Mardon & Geoff Harmer.
Horror legends Dani Thompson (My Bloody Banjo), Laurence R. Harvey (The Human Centipede II) join the cast, along with Martin W Payne (Monstrous Disunion), Hannah Paterson (Horrorscopes: Vol 1), Ayvianna Snow (Vampire Virus), Annabella Rich (Hacker), Chris Mills (Terror at Black Tree Forest), Cy Henty (Cleaver: Rise of the Killer Clown), Eve Oliver (Mask of Thorn), Charlie Bond (Powertool Cheerleaders vs The Boyband of the Screeching Dead), James Hamer-Morton (Dead Air) & Glyn Angell (Tales From the Great War).
BREAK
Saturday is all about pacing yourself so have a wonder around our Bizarre Bazaar marketplace in the City Screen basement and refresh your eyes for some unmissable evening events!
7.30pm- Spirits with Spirits (Live event) Sponsored by Sinners Gin
Back by popular demand Dead Northern’s resident ghost whisperer Paul Forster will be sharing some of York’s dark secrets and spooky stories and invite the audience to tell some of their own.
Partnered with a campfire cocktail courtesy of our sponsor Sinners Gin, who will have mixologists creating you delicious drinks throughout the spooky event.
9:00pm – How to Kill Monsters – Northern Premiere with Q&A (Feature film)
Our first ever fully sold out feature at the festival, and a brilliant gore fest to round of the second day of screenings!
The sole survivor of a blood-drenched massacre must team up with a rag-tag bunch of rookie cops and lawbreakers to fight off an invasion of monsters from another dimension. With a menagerie of monsters realised entirely with practical effects and buckets of fake blood and guts thrown in for good measure, HOW TO KILL MONSTERS will scratch the itch of horror fans craving a throwback popcorn horror movie that delivers thrills, kills and laughs in equal measure.
11:00pm – Awards party
Fresh out of the sold out screening and Q&A, VIPs and filmmakers will head down into the main lobby to celebrate all the amazing creators at this years festival for one hell of a party!
Awards, live music and lots of new horror pals made, you’ll stumble home after (just about) surviving day two of Dead Northern 2023.
Sunday – 1st October
For festival goers looking to recover from Saturday night or just fuel up, there will be some amazing brunch available to keep you going for the final day!
11:00am – Thriller Short Films
Suspense filled thrillers kick of our final day, and are sure to keep you on the edge of your seat!
Caterpillar – Luke’s world is rocked when a stranger shows up claiming to be his partner. Luke descents into madness as he struggles to get the bottom of who the imposter is while also experiencing his own terrifying metamorphosis.
Shut – When Jonas visits his father after a long time, he’s shocked to find him in a confused state. Has his father’s mental state badly deteriorated or is something more sinister going on?
Morgue – Working the late shift at an old city morgue, the night porter passes the time playing pranks on the corpses. His usual party tricks come to an horrific end when after a delivery of eight new bodies earlier in the day, they vanish in the middle of a power cut…
Illusion – A delicious dinner, a stage, a magic show – what can go wrong? When Lisa accompanies the nice magician home after the show, she has to learn that some tricks are better not to be questioned.
The Family Man – Roger is the perfect Family man, but he keeps secrets , secrets that must be buried deep.
12:45pm – Dead Talks (Live Event)
Way back when we first started Dead Northern in 2020 we wanted to bring our own live horror podcast to the event, finally 4 years later we pilot ‘Dead Talks’.
Talks from industry professionals on spooky subjects, all will be revealed when you take your seat…
1:30pm – Dead on the Vine (Feature film) – Northern premiere with Q&A – Thriller
As two men leave a small rural town one of them has a seizure forcing the other to pull into the nearest place – A vineyard. The women owners are deep into prep for a make or break wine tasting but the men are welcomed in. But after recovering from his seizure one man throws a violent spanner into the works, leaving his friend and the women with choices that may destroy not only their business but themselves.
3:30pm – It be an Evil Moon (Feature film) – UK Premiere with Q&A – Werewolf horror
Brilliantly endearing feature from first time director Ben Etchells.
Set in the highlands of Scotland and Northern England, a disgraced scientist develops a hair growth formula derived from pickled wolfsbane which turns him into a bloodthirsty werewolf.
5:30pm – Music Videos
Crooks Heart of Vengance – The story of a scientist inventing the key to eternal life. A couple of thugs steal his invention and leave him and his daughter for dead. In order to come back to life he sells his soul to the devil. Armed only with a heart of vengeance, and an Axe, he hunts down the crooks one by one. . . . They picked the wrong man to kill!!
Hoodie On – The fantasies of a serial killer. A car driver going fast on the highway. A murder has been committed.
Old Flames – A haunting portrayal of a recovering addict learning to live with her demons.
Subvisions – Flesh – Joshua is walking his dog into a dark tunnel and is attacked by a gang of carnivorous old people. They want his flesh.
The Windstorm
Candlestick Maker – Alien Chicks
BREAK
Almost reaching the end of Dead Northern 2023 and your final chance to enjoy the fantastic venue and city we call home for the weekend. Grab yourself some scran and then settle in for a brilliant final double feature!
7:00pm – Perfectly Good Moment (Feature film) – UK Premiere – Sci-fi Thriller
This psychosexual thriller asks the question: what happens when the things that make your relationship passionate and exciting are the same things that make it toxic? Ruby and David have been together on-and-off for 8 years, since she was 19 and he 34. Six months after Ruby last ran out on him, she has returned. Once the initial bliss of the reunion wears off, old toxic patterns re-emerge. Is David too demanding and controlling or is Ruby just too sensitive? Is Ruby as delicate and demure as she appears to be…or is there something more sinister behind the surface? Why did Ruby really come back? Perfectly Good Moment is Lauren Greenhall’s narrative directorial debut. It features Broadway star Stephen Carlile in his cinematic debut and Amanda Jane Stern (1 Angry Black Man, Lifetime’s Amish Witches). It marks Stern’s first feature screenwriting credit, and boasts an original score by Mdou Moctar’s Mikey Coltun.
8:30pm – Puzzle Box (Feature film) – UK Premiere – Found Footage Horror
Puzzle Box follows the story of a struggling drug addict, Kait (Boyé), and her younger sister, Olivia (Denne). Running from a violent incident in her past and not wanting to go back to rehab, Kait flees to a remote house in the woods to self-rehabilitate, where Olivia joins her to document the process. But they quickly find that the house isn’t what it seems and the internal layout is constantly changing, trapping them inside an inescapable puzzle box of a house. As they attempt to solve the mystery and find a way out, they discover there are far worse things in this house to be afraid of.
We hope you brought a spare pair of trousers… DN Alumni Jack Dignan returns with a punchy found footage horror leaving you terrified just before we send you back home on Sunday night!
Check out the full festival programme and get your tickets here!!
Have you ever watched someone run upstairs, when you know that you would have run outside? Have you yelled at the screen, because there’s a killer stalking right behind those happy campers? Do you secretly want to be in your own scary movie? Then there’s good news – because we did too.
Parable Games is proud to present to you: SHIVER – the Horror Movie Role-playing Game! Now you and your friends can find out once and for all who would survive a rampaging killer at summer camp, who would make it through the zombie apocalypse, and which one of you is most likely to use the others as bait for a hissing alien monster!
SHIVER is a tabletop role-playing game, or an “RPG” – but what does that actually mean? Well, it means that it’s a game where you play as individual characters, playing out a story created by another player – known as the Director, and the other players make up the cast of characters.
These characters are the kind you’d usually find in a horror movie: a jock, a cheerleader, an Antarctic scientist, a space marine… Whatever, wherever or whenever your story takes place, SHIVER gives you simple tools to make sure your characters fit in to your world.
“This sounds a little complicated” you might be thinking, and you’d be right. It does “sound” complicated – but it actually isn’t! Parable Games loves games (surprise-surprise), but what we love more is getting new people to play games. SHIVER is designed to be a game that you can pick up and have fun with, even if you’ve never played anything more complicated than snakes and ladders.
So, how does it work? SHIVER uses an intuitive symbol dice system, where each symbol represents a different “skill” – or to put it a different way, a different way your characters might solve problems. Solving problems with your fists? Then you’re lying on your Grit skill. Maybe you face your challenges more with your brain than your brawn? Then that’s Smarts. Different characters have different skill strengths and weaknesses based on their personality, but each of them can try anything – here’s nothing like learning a new skill when your (fictional) life is on the line!
Why not gather your friends round for a scary movie night, but this time you’re all going to be in the movie! All you need to get started is the SHIVER Core Rulebook. With this simple and easy to read guide to the dark and unknown (world of RPG rules), you’ve got all you need to get started. We have a free online digital dice roller so if you wanted to roll ‘dem bones virtually, go ahead and give it a try.
With the SHIVER Core Rulebook you can run stories anywhere from a cabin in the woods to the International Space Station, and any-when from the dawn of mankind to the space faring future. Whatever your imagination can conjure up, SHIVER can help you turn it into an interactive, spooky experience.
Of course, horror is a varied and many headed beast. We know that. That’s why we’re always working on expansions for the game – new books themed around some of our favourite horror sub-genres…
Gothic horror – with Vampires, Frankenstein’s Monster, and the Wolfman fighting supernatural horrors in Victorian London? We’ve got it covered in SHIVER Gothic.
Maybe your tastes lie less in the fantastical – maybe you’re more of a “nothing’s scarier than a guy with a knife who just… SNAPS” type. If that’s your modus operandi, then you’d need to keep an eye out for SHIVER: Slasher. A decades spanning story where the killers always come back, but the survivors aren’t guaranteed as much.
If you struggle with the hardcore violence in horror, or maybe you want a more safe way to introduce your love of the genre to sceptical friends or family – then SHIVER: Blockbuster is the answer you’re looking for. Giant Sharks, Spaceship Adventures, Ghost Pirates and Skeletal Dragons? Launch your own mega-horror-franchise with bang!
We love horror, and we love horror movies. It’s why we’re proud to sponsor Dead Northern, and why we can’t wait to be there, but most of all it’s why we made SHIVER to begin with. We wanted to play our favourite horror movies, but also make our own – and besides, how many games can you play where you actually get to kill your friends and still get to keep your friends? Not many, I’ll tell you!
Want to give SHIVER a try? You can sign up to our mailing list and receive a copy of our QuickStart version of the game!
Created in 2020, ‘Unusual Horror’ has been bringing the brutality of underground horror and metal to market, giving fans of slam, death metal and extreme horror a means to express themselves. The brainchild of someone whose two obsessions of extreme metal and horror have culminated in the creation of brutal apparel and accessories for the community.
‘Unusual Horror’ focuses on 3 main areas: Horror inspired prints, slam & death metal merchandise and underground/extreme horror licensed merchandise. Through collaborating with underground bands, directors and independent artists, you are guaranteed to get a once in a lifetime piece of merchandise. From the likes of t-shirts, hoodies and other apparel donning edgy death metal script and independently designed artworks, those in the alternative community have a new way to express themselves.
Initially starting with a handful of pieces that donned edgy prints of Nuns in illicit situations and other quintessential metal-like prints, like Baphomet at a ritual, etc, the brand has grown significantly. With popular designs such as the ‘Sisters of …’, ‘Ritualistic Offering’ and ‘GoreChrist’ being repeatedly re-printed due to high demand – the want for more extreme prints is simply growing. It appears that people in the alternative circle are sick of the tame designs from the likes of Killstar and are now hunting down these sorts of designs, which ‘Unusual Horror’ are serving up to the masses. They pride themselves in collaborating with independent artists to offer the best quality and unique pieces, which give the buyers a unique item and the artist more exposure for their work. With new designs very much on the way, ‘Unusual Horror’ fans are in for a hell of a ride with their new signature collections and not to mention new additions to the ‘Sisters of…’ collection.
On top of their signature pieces, ‘Unusual Horror’ also gives a home to those fans of extreme & underground horror; creating licensed collections of some of cinema’s most controversial titles. With titles like ‘Deathgasm’, ‘Septic’, ‘Nekromantic’ & ‘American Mary’, the store’s collection only seems to grow with each release. Boasting a huge accomplishment with their latest release, their ‘A Serbian Film’ collection is classed as the only licensed merchandise collection for the film (worldwide) and has received a huge amount of interest since its pre-order release.
‘Unusual Horror’ prides itself in collaborating with these underground and extreme film makers, to allow them to have the same type of platform that the more mainstream horrors get. Regardless of backlash from people who aren’t fans of the extreme side of horror, it appears that, thanks to ‘Unusual Horror’, the world of extreme horror is simply growing, simply due to people wearing the merchandise and boasting their interests in this type of film – something that many fans have had to suppress due to lack of representation in clothing and also the fear of judgement.
It isn’t just licensed merch that they are passionate about on the front of extreme horror, their newest venture will see them distributing new underground/extreme horrors. They have recently received the distributing rights to up and coming Italian, queer extreme horror films ‘ELDORADO’ and ‘La Perdición’ by renowned director Domiziano Cristopharo, who directed films like ‘House of Flesh Mannequins’ and ‘Xpiation’. Filmed in Gran Canaria, Director Cristopharo boasts that these films are the quintessential watch for any extreme horror fan that has an interest in queer cinema. These are aiming to be released in December 2023 with a brand new range of merchandise for each film that should tantalise any extreme horror fan.
It’s clear that ‘Unusual Horror’ doesn’t just make merchandise, but have now expanded their options by creating distribution options for underground extreme horror; a feat many small brands couldn’t accomplish. Their final pillar of interest is mainly focussed on the slam/death metal/deathcore scene; this has always been a focus for the brand, with their logo invoking similarities to a lot of death metal band logos. This passion for underground music has been a catalyst for the brand, with them creating merchandise for local and home-grown death metal bands and allowing fans to show off their favourite underground metal bands, while also letting these smaller bands have the option to promote themselves. They have created merch for bands like ‘Guttural Slug’ and ‘Devourment’, while also showcasing smaller local bands by the likes of ‘Coprocephalic Mutation’ and ‘357 Homicide’.
‘Unusual Horror’ have been at the forefront of providing good quality pieces with brutal designs that have satisfied the masses of slam and death metal fans world wide, but their efforts to preserve and support the community don’t end with merchandise creation and distribution. ‘Rancid Offal Promotions’ was set up in 2022 by a member in the scene, as a means to get these underground slam, death metal and grindcore bands on stage and touring; there was a knowledge there that there was a huge fan base, who simply didn’t have the opportunity to see these bands live.
‘Unusual Horror’ began to collaborate with the original team of RxOx, in the way of merchandising and advertising and soon was adopted under the brand after the success of their first event. Thanks to RxOx and the collaboration with ‘Unusual Horror’, underground metal has a home for live performance. Starting with their first ever festival ‘Offal Fest’ in March 2023, the event showcased bands like ‘Crepitation’ and ‘Twitch of the Death Nerve’, while also bringing over ‘Guttural Slug’ to perform ‘Megalodon’ in full.
This was a huge moment for the scene, as this was ‘Guttural Slug’s’ debut live show, with them also playing one of the most influential albums in the scene. This event was not some local affair, patrons from overseas came from the likes of America and Canada just to check out the first ever ‘Offal Fest’. Since its creation RxOx has been planning and creating more events for the community to feast their eyes on. They have many upcoming events, like ‘Goremageddon’ and ‘Cannibalising the UK’, showcasing bands like ‘Torsofuck’ and the reunion of ‘Pivorapist’. RxOx are now the heart of the community and are bringing these brutal lineups to the masses, and their reign of terror will not end, as the next ‘Offal Fest’ is looming over the horizon.
In short, ‘Unusual Horror’ is a home for those who have been ostracised because of their interests in extreme horror and music. Their space and apparel are for those who stray between the lines of brutality and extremity, who don’t wish to align with societal norms. Whether you are an extreme horror or music fan looking to showcase your favourite niche band or film, or an alternative person looking for something just a bit more heavy to wear out and about, ‘Unusual Horror’ has it all for you. This is only the beginning for them, not just merchandise wise, but also in the sense of live music and film distribution.
When you buy your first piece from this incredible small brand, you will not just be holding a piece of merchandise, you will now be a part of an ever-growing community of fans who walk to their own beat. Make sure to keep an eye on both ‘Unusual Horror’ and ‘Rancid Offal Promotions’, as you are in for a treat and don’t want to miss out on what’s coming.
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