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2021 Festival Review – From Dusk Till Dawn (25 Year Anniversary)

from dusk till dawn

(Warning some spoilers ahead!)

Hellbent on mashing the barbarism of westerns with the seductive appeal of vampires, topped with a slew of brutal action and profanity is Robert Rodriguez’s 1996 superb horror film ‘From Dusk Till Dawn’. 

In the wake of a heist with multiple deaths, fugitives Seth Gecko (George Clooney) and his brother Richie Gecko (Quentin Tarantino) further their crime spree as they take Jacob Fuller (Harvey Keitel) and his two teenage children hostage to help them over the border to Mexico to escape from their misdeeds. But their quick stop at a truckers bar turns into bloody carnage as the bar is riddled with thirsty vampires.

From Dusk Till Dawn [25 Year Retrospective]: Okay Vampire Killers… - Bombshells & Blueshells

From Dusk Till Dawn has taken center stage in the 1990s horror scene ever since its release, partly due to the top tier casting. Featuring is an ample level of star power as we see Danny Trejo, Fred Williamson, John Saxon, Juliette Lewis, and special effect royalty Tom Savini join Clooney, Keitel, and Tarantino.

Cult Film Reviews: From Dusk till Dawn

The film plays out as two acts. The first half is a tense action-thriller with guns and reckless thieves fuelling the narrative. Seth smoothly portrays the ‘good-guy-bad-guy’ role, with his villainous actions being pushed to one side as his slight moralistic touch puts him in our good books. Whereas Richie is a nihilistic psychopath with perverted tendencies. Coupling the rogue brothers’ feisty persona’s is the quintessential conventions that action films relish in, including quick pacing, power divides, and deadpan humour. 

It’s evident that the witty dialogue and lack of sensitivity is due to Tarantino’s input as the screenplay writer, but what strikes a cord the most throughout this purposefully misleading first half is its necessity and importance. The film manages to do the impossible as it brews a slow build up, taking its time to generate a familiarity with the characters, almost forcing us into submission where we just have to carry on watching to find out who stays alive. With the foreboding story delaying a release we sort of relax, allowing Rodriguez to pull the rug out from underneath us and shock us with a sexually amped world of slaughter. 

We become comfortable in what we know, thus when the vampires attack it’s quite a shock to the system. However, instead of being confused and put off by the sudden change we revel in the delight of nonsensical violence. 

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) Review |BasementRejects

Granting From Dusk Till Dawn’s fluidity from action to horror is a combination of eccentric characterisation and the outlandish setting, which is indisputably a feast for the eyes. After the Gecko’s and Fuller’s reach Mexico they reach their final stop before freedom as they plan to meet a contact that will take them to a hidden fugitive hideout. However, the aptly named “Titty-Twister” doesn’t just house drunken dirty men ogling over the bar’s strippers, but also a coven of lusty vampires. Rodriguez didn’t just name the bar crudely for a quick giggle, the dive’ truly wallows in titillating essences, particularly through the erotic dancing and bawdy egos of the bikers in attendance. 

Movie Review: From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) | Movierdo

Vampires naturally exude a bodily charm that both fascinate and repel. From Dusk Till Dawn understands this power and uses it as a comical guise to accelerate the action. After watching Santanico (Salma Hayek) perform, the tantalisation reaches a peak, but within minutes the gawking crowd are ripped to shreds as the vampires transform into frightful reptile-like beasts baring their fangs and feasting on whoever they please. Similarly to the disturbance of the genre change half-way through, the sudden vampire attack on the mere mortals proves that Rodriguez is not here to play.

The Horror Digest: From Dusk Till Dawn: A Titty Twister Sounds Scary

The erupting second half explicitly displays as much gratuitous violence as possible (the film was even banned in Ireland for eight years!). Decapitations, impalements, stabbings, shootings, and bodies being set on fire are just some of the film’s most lawless moments. Inducing the B-movie aesthetic even further is the quasi neo-western elements that prove the unruliness of the film’s ambience, such as violent gang mentality, border crossing, bar fights, dusty tonal palettes, and vast desert settings. Rather than this mashup of themes becoming excessive, it simply adds to the chaos and sheer pandemonium that is From Dusk Till Dawn. 

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

The constant switching of events encompassed by an abundance of splatter and violence is not only cinematically impressive, but also a wild take on the typical creature feature that you are sure to not forget…

We’ll be screening From Dusk Till Dawn on Saturday 25th September 2021 at this years fest, tickets and details here.

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2021 Festival Review- Red Snow

Red Snow

Sean Nichols Lynch brings us Red Snow, a genre bending vampire film that crumples the conventions of the genre through purposeful deception and dismantling everything you thought you knew about vampires.

Red Snow (2021) - IMDb

Taking us on the journey is Olivia Romo (Dennice Cisneros), a struggling vampire romance novelist who is all alone on Christmas at her family’s cozy cabin by Lake Tahoe. Her loneliness at the supposed ‘happiest time of the year’ takes a hopeful turn as she finds herself in the company of Luke (Nico Bellamy), a real life vampire. Although her dreams have come true she must now battle with mistrust and the looming consequences…

Although it would be easy for Red Snow to develop into another archetypal holiday romance, accompanied by immortals, Lynch disavows any soppiness in favour of pushing a rich and introspective narrative that only furthers the incredibly dimensional characters. Olivia and Luke are rounded, their bond as ostracised people is inexplicably computed as their chemistry burns bright throughout. The pair’s kinship is warming without overshadowing their own individual personalities as their sole personas propel a certain air of charm that forces the viewer into a sympathetic position. 

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That’s not to say that sentiment dominates, as Luke and the rest of the vampire coven are undeniably capable of creating unease. The vampires that exist within the world of Red Snow are vicious, unnerving, and spine-tingling, but what truly furthers their ruthlessness is an apt humanness that Lynch bravely anchors onto. 

A key plot motivation is how Olivia’s failing book relies too much on vampire tropes, and with Luke’s assistance she uncovers that these creatures can identify with the excitements and trials just as much as mundane humans can. And it’s this relatability where the film’s horror stems from- they know that their savageness is wrong but they persist in continuing their frightening lifestyle. It’s this precise reason as to why Red Snow lingers with me, the budding bond between Luke and Olivia is admirable, but Lynch toys with what we know and expect to see in a vampire film, diminishing any predictability. 

Ensuring that Red Snow evokes an emotive response are the performances by both Bellamy and Cisneros who beyond a shadow of doubt create an immersive experience. Olivia isn’t drawn as a vampire-fangirl dreaming of someone sweeping her off her feet, instead she’s not unfamiliar to insecurities and is grounded in reality. Similarly to Luke, although he is presented with that classic bad boy charm, his sensitivity gradually comes to light. Lynch boldly bares the heart of the film whilst not slumping the threat. 

Red Snow challenges what we know as the distinctive vampire chronicle, however, it still uses some genre highlights but in a more innovative form. Fairly on we are introduced to Julius King (Vernon Wells), an infamous vampire hunter part of a much larger group known as The Severon Group. Wells has already cemented his reputation within cinema through his roles in Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981) and Weird Science (1985), which highlights his dramatic knack for eccentricity, with Red Snow being no exception to his flair as the role of Julius King is what drops the tension in the first place and makes us second guess Luke’s true intentions.  

The fleshed out story is not the only factor worthy of praise as the marriage between the setting and the overall aesthetic harmonises together to form a visual banquet. Olivia’s fondness for the macabre at Christmas time did make me chuckle, joining the shining baubles on the tree is vampire fang decorations and instead of wearing snowman holiday jumpers she dons Nosferatu T-shirts, a girl after my own heart. Red Snow completely took me by surprise every step of the way, cementing itself as a solid entry into both vampire and holiday horror.

You can check out Red Snow on Saturday 25th September 2021 at this years fest, tickets and details here.

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2021 Festival Review – Followers

Social media brazenly bites back in this upcoming found footage horror film, Followers. Directed by Marcus Harben and starring Harry Jarvis (The Knight Before Christmas) and Loreece Harrison (Black Mirror), we follow the arrogant influencer, Jonty (Jarvis) as he and his university flatmates awaken a dark force that brings them online attention, but at what cost? 

It’s best to abandon preconceptions regarding found footage films as this buzz-worthy horror fluently toys with audience expectations leaving us unsure of what to expect and untrusting of every individual. Taking the stance of using contemporary trends such as ‘social influencers’ alongside an age-old ghost tale creates a unique film that both scares and amuses the viewer.

As with many independent horrors Followers was made on a lower budget, but any amateur effects are hastily avoided. The film quite guilefully uses the indie cinema stance to its advantage; excessive gore and a realistic setting provide a sturdy backbone that immerses us in the situation. Built alongside these technicalities is a witty commentary on the ridiculousness that can come with social media fame. However, unlike other recent films that tackle online status whilst wrongly mock this profession, Followers focuses upon how easily this modern career can morally alter an individual’s judgment. 

Tiptoeing in is one of the film’s most unparalleled charms, the lack of animosity. A bloating amount of found footage films take advantage of the personalisation that naturally ties in with the sub-genre. In Followers we see the narrative play out entirely with nothing ‘hidden’. On screen we see the disputes, falseness of paranormal activity, and the troubling aftermath. We do not receive a title card warning us that the filmmakers are still lost or how they don’t know how or why their fates met terrible ends. It’s this lack of discretion and ambiguity that yields its magnetism. 


Followers hit’s the ground fast, with quick pacing that bravely dives into the antics rather soon. Leading a film with an intense narrative concentration during the first act can be difficult to maintain, but Followers does just this, all the whilst reaching an even higher level of tension during climactic scenes, yet Followers is in it for the long run. From beginning to end an unpredictable and haunting storyline is thoroughly played out, making this film definitely one to add to the watchlist.       

   

You can check out Followers on Saturday 25th September 2021 at this years fest, tickets and details here.

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2021 Festival Review – Zomblogalypse

Back in 2008 three friends Hannah Bungard, Miles Watts, and Tony Hipwell took up the ingenious idea of mashing the upcoming blog craze with good ole’ zombies to create the hit web series Zomblogalypse. Across the years the hype for this ultra-violent, yet hilariously amusing web series only grew, so why not make it into a movie? 

Zomblogalypse follows a group of three ineffective survivors of a zombie outbreak, however instead of wallowing in despair over the world being ripped to shreds Hannah, Miles, and Tony find alternative ways to pass the time, including blogging their adventures in this wild and quaint lifestyle they have found themselves in post-apocalypse.

Comedy and zombies are two peas in a pod, but this subgenre has had its edginess worn down over the years as hundreds of quick-buck’ horror’s have saturated the market, but do not be fooled, Zomblogalypse is fresh, exciting, and beyond a doubt ludicrously entertaining. Boasting about great fun and silly events is all well and good, but you also need a strong backbone that supports the film amongst all the buffoonery. Zomblogalypse is certainly not without its wits as the ultra gory and ghastly zombie practical effects shine a light on the immense craft that has clearly gone into creating the film. 

When it comes to a zombie film, the undead is typically just one piece that brings the whole puzzle together, though that certainly doesn’t mean that their importance goes undetected. Throughout the film the SFX team does not hold back, expect to see plenty of rotting, decaying flesh, accompanied by stringy tendons and flailing limbs! The entire ‘look’ of the zombies breaks any micro-budget conventions as they really are a horrendous sight to look at, even a bit too frightful, seriously their horrific appearance will definitely linger with you…

This visual bravado undoubtedly excels. But Zomblogalypse would not be the same without the spirited characters of Hannah, Miles, and Tom who put on a great performance. Throughout the film, I couldn’t fail to notice an unequivocal sense of Britishness that leads to many laughs. Instead of focusing too much on the hurrah of the end of the world, we are treated to plenty of everyday household squabbles and general bickering. And that’s why Zomblogalypse totally works, it knows not to take itself too seriously, thus perfecting a noble level of comedic timing.

The film makes the brave decision of using found footage to drive the film. Found footage has somewhat of a ‘marmite’ reputation amongst horror fans, you either love it or you hate it. Nevertheless, the effectiveness is all the same. The intimate method takes you on the journey with the gang, making sure that we get to see every little tidbit, particularly the haphazardous ways in which they battle the zombies. 

Zomblogalypse deserves to be raved about. I have been put off once or twice by zombie comedies in the past, but I can admit that this web series turned future movie hit has definitely changed my mind for the better. Adding to this unmatched gem is the homegrown essence. Bungard, Hipwell, and Watts created the original series with no financial backing whatsoever, and across the years they have formed a movie that has already received great buzz. The heart that has gone into the film is obvious and I cannot wait to see what they come up with next. 

You can check out Zomblogalypse on Sunday 26th September 2021 at this years fest, tickets and details here.

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Curiosity Corner Reviews

The Video Nasties: A brief history of the UK’s moral panic in the 1980’s

Video Nasties

Censorship has consistently exerted a high level of control over what is and is not acceptable to be viewed. In particular, The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has made sure that horror has endured a string of scrutiny for decades, leaving a trail of irony, criticism, and controversy across horror history. The BBFC is the ruling authority that has been in power since 1912 due to the Cinematograph act 1909 which regulated what films were granted permission to be screened at the cinema.

As time has progressed a series of changes has been made internally within the BBFC, with the primary alteration surrounding the changing role of the chief censor. At first, the BBFC was rather friendly with somewhat obscene material, as Chief John Trevelyan had a more open view of acceptability, take for example Ken Russel’s The Devils (1971). Trevelyan passed this film which was not shy about exposing sacrilegious imagery with an X rating. This soon transpired a series of outrage from the British Public. However, this brief enlightening of liberalization was harshly interrupted by the arrival of home video. 

In 1979 video players were first released in all high street shops, available to anyone. Regardless of one’s age you could view any material no matter the content as film’s did not have to go through the rigmarole of censoring. In retrospect the introduction of this marvellous invention is ground breaking, yet many mainstream distributors were more than reluctant to release any films, as they saw it as a threat to cinema and piracy infringements. This reluctance aided an influx of low budget horror films to dominate the market. TV was no longer solely there to appease family values, instead it was a chance to watch lurid and explicit content without numerous cuts and interferences. The accessibility was viewed as a major threat to the “youth of Britain’s mental health”, as supposedly these graphic horrors could literally possess children and force them to repeat the acts that they saw on screen. 

Quite understandably, this new territory could have been minutely intimidating, but the painstakingly long journey that horror went through to gain integration into the mainstream was beyond dramatically treacherous. The nation, bargained by the media, believed that these films were serious enough to be considered a moral panic, meaning that a general feeling of fear was felt across society mainly due to scaremongering and falsely constructed information. The barrage of terror was helmed by the one and only Mary Whitehouse, who for those who may not know is horror’s worst enemy. 

Whitehouse alongside the National Viewers and Listeners Association (now Mediawatch-UK) launched the Clean-up TV campaign which garnered over 500,000 signatures. The crusade gained both government and media attention very quickly, resulting in mass vexation. Soon titles such as  “How High Street Horror is Invading the Home’‘ (The Sunday Times, 1982) dominated newspapers, with The Daily Mail jumpstarting their own campaign literally called “Ban the Sadist Video”. The most ludicrous statement of them all can be seen in an interview with MP Graham Bright who states that the video nasties will even affect your family pets! Whilst every outlet was busy fabricating how these films were corrupting the youth of Britain, the actual films themselves were basking in the attention, their sales had gone through the roof. Supposedly the saying of ‘all publicity is good publicity’ is true after all. 

With the hatred was this arrival of attention which made people crave the gore even more. The fantastical cover artwork was purposefully daring, alluring audiences in with the promise of salacious material. Half of the time the covers and titles were far more smutty than the films could ever be. For example, The Toolbox Murders (Dennis Donnelly, 1978) vividly presents a nude woman crouched in front of a masked man wielding a phallically held drill. But the moral campaigners decided to forgo actually watching the content to decipher the actual material, apparently the cover was enough alone to ban this film. 

This judgemental notion was truly enforced once Whitehouse, alongside PM Margaret Thatcher, and MP Gareth Wardell had briefly introduced a harsher version of the already implicated Obscene Publication Act 1959 (OPA act), which saw the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) create a list of films that breached the OPA act, the list was modified monthly and at one point featured 72 titles including the now classics Cannibal Holocuast (Ruggero Deodato, 1980), I Spit on Your Grave (Meir Zarchi, 1978), and The Last House on the Left (Wes Craven, 1972). The list proved faulty, but instead of rationalising the seriousness of the ‘issue’ the panic continued to surge, resulting in The Videos Recording Act 1984  (VRA Act) being introduced. From this point on copious films were illegal to sell, with video shops selling such material even facing jail time alongside a hefty fine and license stripping. 

With this, the video nasties were officially born. The arrival of the VRA act was damning for future productions, but what truly cast their baptism as dreadful films tainting the scoundrels who dared to watch them was the comedic irony of the whole situation. The papers who blasted the nasties were so strict and constant in their abuse that naturally, the public conformed to what they were being told. In the 1980s there was no social media to get a second opinion, the views were majorly swayed. The moral panic was gradually slowed due to the VRA, with the nasties becoming old news. It wasn’t until years later when these films began to emerge from the pits of darkness (where they supposedly belong), and although horror is home to some pretty grim material some films have still never been released uncut. 

The nasties are gone but not forgotten. Villainizing a film is effective to a degree if you are sat on the opposite side, but eventually, the opposition will fall. Brainwashing the public to see the nasties as detrimental undoubtedly worked, yet it is widely known that the peddle pushing did not revolve entirely around the content; the threat of the unknown stayed close within the BBFC’s peripheral, these people were comfortable with their right lifestyle, and the nasties that had injected themselves into Britain’s mainstream were mainly Italian and American produced, showing a whole new set of cultural values. The conformity of the ‘known’ was breaking down, thus forcing traditional British values to be malleable and no longer set in stone. The fear did not solely surround the content of the nasties, but instead the alarm was rung due to the uncharted territory that the films invited in. 

Within the current climate, one can view whatever material they wish at the click of a keypad. The iceberg system of disturbing horror would have genuinely caused an entire breakdown across the country if films such as A Serbian Film (Srdjan Spasojevic, 2010) had been released in Britain back then. Even in this day and age, Spasojevic’s exploration into exploitation cinema had major issues with censorship from the BBFC, with multiple cuts being necessary for a release. Audiences are still being tested to this day, many films including A Serbian Film are not overly controversial in comparison to some of horror’s most daring ventures, take for example The Bunny Game (Adam Rehmeier, 2010). Rehmeier is the creator of one of the most harrowing tales legal cinema has ever seen.

The Bunny Game has been rejected for release in multiple countries including the UK and America, with its strong emphasis on violence against women and unstimulated scenes being too much for censors to handle. Matching this level of violence is Grotesque (Koji Shiraishi, 2009), which gives Takasi Miike’s reputation as Japan’s most controversial director a run for its money. Over time the craving for particularly gruesome horror has soared with many directors battling it out to try and test the boundaries as much as possible. 

What can be taken away from the video nasty era is the sense of miscontrol that the genre really has. Although profits have soared and popularity has grown there will always be a stigma against the content. The nasties are a reminder that liberalization within cinema is still a touchy subject.

The days of the nasties seem so long ago, but instead of that section of history being dead and buried it seems that censorship lives on, not necessarily through the BBFC but through public attitudes to the weird and wonderful world of horror.

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The Howling (1981): A Retrospective 40 Years On

The figure of the werewolf habitually ignites a viscerally violent vision of one’s own inner self; bestial, carnalous and rage filled. The werewolf is a staple in the long list of monsters that has been constructed throughout time, with its counterparts being vampires, ghouls, witches, and zombies (all continuously appearing in the Halloween costume aisles for years).

The significant prevalence of the creature of the wolf has lied within mythology dating back to ancient paganist times. This rurality and earthliness that the werewolf obtains in defying against systematic patriarchalism only contributes to the enhancement of the monster. 

The generalized mythology of werewolves is one that has injected itself into horror for decades now, with Universal Pictures releasing Werewolf of London (Stuart Walker, 1935), followed by The Wolf Man (George Waggner, 1941). Through early cinema acknowledging the transgressive nature of werewolves, the monster has adapted and has become rather indispensable within horror. One film that entirely embraces the creature’s violation of societal norms is Joe Dante’s The Howling (1981). 

The Howling follows Karen (Dee Wallace), a television news anchor who travels to a secluded resort (known as the ‘Colony’) with her husband Bill (Christopher Stone) to treat her amnesia after a brutal attack. At first glance the Colony is a scenic place of calmful bliss, where Karen can heal from her trauma. However, little do they know  the resort is inhabited by bloodthirsty werewolves. Dante’s reputation for ‘over the top’, comedy filled horror’s began in 1978 with Piranha.

Although many audiences at the time were slightly dissatisfied with the aim of creating a purpose built b-movie, retrospectively Piranha is beloved as a cult classic. The Howling which was adapted from a 1977 poem written by Gary Brandner deters almost entirely from its source material, but the drifting certainly works in its favour. Rather than sticking to the basis of the poem, Dante along with writer John Sayles concocted a self-aware script brimming with a heavy satirical attitude. 

Forty years after its release the film still has a good bite. The lashing’s of referential nods to cinema is a delight to watch, as many characters are named after directors who dipped into lycanthropic films including The Curse of the Werewolf (1961) creator Terence Fisher. Besides those more obvious inner jokes is a series of ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ moments such as Dante’s inclusion of the book Howl (Allen Ginsberg) on the counter, as well as wolf based artwork featuring throughout the Colony. Matching the witty gags is the overt exposition of dramatic themes such as assault, trauma, adultery, violence, and perversion. But instead of presenting the film as a crucifying tale of sorrow and cruelty, Dante paints the scene in an entertaining yet aware tone. 

The Howling stays true to 1980s horror, as the above mentioned pinnacle points are enveloped in spontaneously fun scenes. The iconic scene featuring Bill and the nymphomaniac werewolf Marsha (Elisabeth Brooks) ‘making the beasts with two backs’ exudes a prominent animalistic energy that werewolves are known for. Their joint transfiguration into their true wolf form symbolically stands for the breaking of bodily barriers that mere humans are physically incapable of performing. The Howling focuses on glamorizing the viciousness of werewolves; they can transgress further than any other being ever could. To a certain extent they allow their darkest urges to take over, through baring their fur and erecting their claws.

Although The Howling embraces this Freudian concept of inner identity, Dante refuses to succumb to pure psychology. We do not feel as if we are watching a harrowing tale of bestial passion, but instead a zealous exploration into horror’s most entertaining creature. 

The Howling creates this amusing aesthetic through its quick pacing and energy that certainly packs a punch. Each scene bounces to the next in a successful attempt to avoid a moment of dullness. Accompanying the lively stride that Dante infuses throughout is the noteworthy practical effects that still hold up to this day. Despite the marvellous technology that allows for filmmakers to have great freedom in their films, there is something very special about old school practical makeup effects that take centre stage.

The character design of the werewolves focuses on exaggerating their hunched backs, long tails, matted fur and signature facial features. The creatures of the Colony were made at the hands of Rob Bottin. Across his career Bottin has worked with John Carpenter on The Fog (1980) and The Thing (1982), and has received a Special Achievement Award at the 1991 Academy Awards. Bottin had to take over from Rick Baker after he left production to work on An American Werewolf in London (John Landis, 1981), despite this brief setback Bottin excelled in creating graphically gruesome beasts. One particular look that remains acclaimed to this day is the transformation of Eddie Quist (Robert Picardo). His metamorphosis into a werewolf avoided the use of camera tricks and relied upon creative ploys such as employing the use of ‘air bladder’ effects to give the illusion of flesh swelling and bursting. 

The Howling went on to produce a further seven films, all following a similar basis. The future of the franchise is still being developed as Netflix has joined forces with Andy Muschietti (It) to create a direct remake of the 1981 film. Not much can be said for the various sequels as they are all missing that certain spark that Dante so perfectly captured in the original. It is difficult to pinpoint what allows The Howling to still hold onto its success a whole forty years later, perhaps it was Dante’s unique take on creating a bizarre land of misfit scenarios, or even the film’s moving storyline that is still relevant. But one thing is for sure, it’s hard to come across a werewolf film so embellished in meaning, whilst also relishing in pure bloodshed and chaos! 

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Review: Fear Street Part Three: 1666

fear street part 3

In a bold move Fear Street Part Three: 1666 travels back in time to the 1600s, a period plagued by witch trials that saw countless women being executed due to falsified mass hysteria. Although the Fear Street trilogy prefers to stay on the slasher path, the inclusion of bygone times inserted a rich narrative history that prevented the film from falling flat and suffering from a shallow ending. 

Fear Street: 1666 begins where we left off in Part Two: 1978, as Deena (in 1994 present time) is shown the real story of Shadyside’s local legend Sarah Fier, a witch who was hung from a tree and cursed the soil beneath the town. Across the flashback we see Fier and her brother Henry live peacefully in a small settlement known as Union, which would go on to be the grounds of Sunnyvale and Shadyside. The commune is bound by archetypal laws surrounding pilgrim beliefs, therefore when the local pastor suddenly kills the town’s children the sole cause of his madness must be down to witchcraft. To make matters more damning, Fier and the pastor’s daughter Hannah begin a forbidden affair, thus enforcing the belief that they are the dark force behind the pastor’s breakdown. 

FEAR STREET PART 3: 1666 (Pictured) KIANA MADEIRA as SARAH FIER. NETFLIX © 2021

The film divulges a heavy subplot surrounding Fier’s actual lack of malice and the conceited misfire concerning her execution. Fear Street: 1666 is laden with bolshy twists that are not afraid of bullying the audience into submissiveness. If we were to write down the story beats and major plot twists it would be a convulsed mess. But director Leigh Janiak makes it work, mostly due to the impeccable set design that has every intention to immerse us into the world of Fear Street, but also primarily due to the thoroughly written characters whose arcs never become dull, or predictable. However, this riveting grab that these characters have on us wouldn’t be as strong if it was not for the striking performances. 

At the end of 1978 the preview revealed that the land of Union would be made up of characters who we’ve already seen throughout the previous films. They would be playing their ancestral versions of themselves. Upon first glance I was not entirely enthusiastic about this idea as truly I was excited to see some fresh faces, nevertheless, Kiana Madeira (Deena), Ashley Zukerman (Nick), Gillian Jacobs (Ziggy), Olivia Scott Welch (Sam), and Benjamin Flores Jr. (Josh) all took to their roles with ease. The same thing however cannot be said for the abominable Irish accents that they had to put on. Though I’ve decided to pardon that, as I suppose you could say that the dialect tone could be a translation of early settlement accents? Yeah, we’ll go with that… 

FEAR STREET PART 3: 1666 – McCABE SLYE as MAD THOMAS. Cr: Netflix © 2021

Moving on, the pacing thrives across the first act, and as we reach a good bubbling point of tension towards the middle, the film does a 180 and reverts us back to the present (1994), with the title card simply reading 1994 Part II. It certainly came as a shock as the narrative was very much on a roll. But, the disappointment over an abrupt halt soon diminishes as 1994 Part II brings a whole new outlook to the series.

Across the first two films and most of 1666, the plot mainly relied on the mystery of events, with the story encompassing the history of Shadyside, as well as how to defeat the curse, how to get Sam back, and how to put Fier’s rage to rest. 1994 Part II decides to not wallow in the copious ‘hows?’ Instead it finally dishes out the answers and exposes the secrets we’ve been waiting for this whole time. Coupled with the long-awaited revelations is 1994’s aesthetic that focuses on encapsulating 90s iconography through stylizing nearly every scene in vivid neon lighting and having the final battle be in a mall. Although the second half is a visual world away from the earthy land of Union the juxtaposition works and keeps the setting very exciting.

Across the Fear Street trilogy Janiak has had no issue in cementing an intrinsically rich backstory that undoubtedly anchors on the marriage between patriarchy and sorrow. Without divulging into spoilers, Fier’s death was not as simple as a hanging due to witchcraft, alternatively, her demise was met thanks to the Union’s fear of emasculation and the creation of marginalised groups. Furthering the tone of malevolent connotations of good natured people perceived as evil is the Fear Street killers. 

1994 and 1978 established that these gruesome murderers did not transform into immoral beings on their own, they were possessed and unaware of their actions. Essentially the turn of their possession resulted in their death as if their skin was a suit in which corruption could flourish in disguise. The caring Tommy who turned into the Camp Nightwing murderer was not consciously committing these acts, neither were Ruby Lane, and Ryan Torres (Skull Mask). These disempowered beings were convicted for no fault of their own, similarly to Fier’s fatal end. 


The opinion that modern horror cinema is soaked with faults is one that I do not agree with. In fact, there are countless films that will still be discussed in years to come that have only been recently released. The Fear Street trilogy proves that the nostalgic spark that many are unable to find in newer horror films is achievable once again. The trilogy may not be to everyone’s taste, but it certainly was to mine. Everything from the timing of the releases, down to the quintessential details was exemplary, and I will sorely miss not being able to get a new slice of Fear Street every Friday.

This weeks article comes via Grace from Film Overload, you can check out more of her work here.

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Review: Fear Street Part Two 1978

fear street 1978


Fear Street Part Two: 1978 presents itself as a throwback to 1970s summer camp slaughters, swarmed with cold-blooded kills, a jukebox-worthy soundtrack, and self-aware imitations. Luckily enough this ambition sequel is a worthy component to its predecessor, unlike many slasher sequels… What could have been a muddled backstory is instead a richly original yet bombastically brave referential take on sunshine-filled woodsy horror. 

This singing praise is no exaggeration. I was as hesitant about Fear Street: 1978 just as much as everyone else. When a new flashy horror film lands it can lose that certain spark that many individual independent films grace the screen with, but when Fear Street: 1994 arrived on the scene a certain harmony in streaming originals was restored. However, as solid as Part One was the Fear Street Trilogy director Leigh Janiak hadn’t completely won me over just yet as the trailers and teasers for 1978 promised a heck of a lot. Rest assured my initial hesitation was soon thrown over once the real bite of the film began.

The overtly effective sequel is one that proudly admires the subgenres’ mistakes and baskes in the stereotypical characters and story beats. Particularly the setting. 

FEAR STREET PART 2: 1978 – Cr: Netflix © 2021

Camp Nightwing is everything that sounds like a nightmare to me; bratty teen hierarchies, constant group activities, and overbearing camp counsellors who in no way should be in charge. Fear Street: 1978 could be overbearing with its obvious nods to Friday the 13th, Sleepaway Camp, The Burning, and Madman, the originality aspect is a touchy point here, but what disperses from these inspirational nods is a fresh look at a supposed joyous social environment turning into an isolated hellscape painted with brutal kills and a mad axeman on the loose.

Paving the way for the final film of the trilogy is 1978’s great storytelling journey that takes the series’ unconventional time loop and creates a smoothly flowing adventure back in time. The end of 1994 saw Deena (Kiana Madeira) and Josh (Benjamin Flores Jr.) under threat from the newly possessed Sam (Olivia Scott Welch). The sequel picks up straight away from the ending as they make their way to the recluse C. Berman (Gillian Jacobs), who survived seeing the witch back in the Camp Nightwing Massacre. Christine has become a nervous shell of a person, but she still musters up the courage to tell Deena and Josh the blood-curdling story of how mountains of dead bodies collected over just one night. The simple baseline of the massacre is rich and heavy with subplots and exposition, but Janiak also throws in a revenge tale of an archaic witch, ‘present day’ timelines, and looped character origin stories for good measure. 

The nearly two hour runtime did not bear a grudge and weather over the course, alternatively, I would have gladly sat through another hour to grasp more and more of what the history of Shadyside has to offer. 

What further tickles the intrigue is the mysterious whodunnit nature of the story, except the conundrum is not based on who the killer is, but who the survivor is. The present day Berman does not overtly reveal what her position was in the story, the only information we score is that she is one of the two sisters that the story focuses on. Across the film, we are rooting for both of them, but unfortunately, it is all wishful thinking as ultimately we know that one of them will suffer a brutal death. It is this exact toying that kept me on the edge of my seat, unlike many horror’s there is not much hope and everyone really is at risk. 


Fear Street: 1978 is reminiscent of a campfire tale, one that would be told in a large group in your scariest voice, paired with the classic torch under the chin for optimum scares. It’s the perfect slasher for the new generation of horror watchers or even those who fancy something old in a new fashion.

This weeks article comes via Grace from Film Overload, you can check out more of her work here.

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Original vs remake Reviews

Original vs. Remake: Friday the 13th

friday the 13th

Friday the 13th has become ceremoniously linked to the birth of 1980s horror. From amateur viewers to horror connoisseurs the character of Jason Voorhees rings familiar, primarily due to the Friday the 13th franchise spawning twelve films and the fact that altogether the series has grossed approximately $755 million, but what truly endorses the slasher’s core reputation is it’s kickstarting of sleazy, rampant, and violent horror’s that progressed into one of the most dominating subsections of the genre. 

The birth of the slasher is tricky to nail, as truthfully John Carpenter brought the essentialities to the forefront in 1978 with the knife-wielding maniacal Michael Myers in Halloween. Whilst Halloween was crowned by critics, Friday the 13th was torn apart in reviews. Despite the lack of applause Sean S. Cunningham’s conduction of a summer of nightmares has grown into an absolute sensation. 

The financial success of previous horror films pinged a lightbulb in a young Cunningham, who had previously worked with Wes Craven on The Last House On the Left (1972). It seems harsh to call the beloved Friday the 13th a cash grab, but at the roots, that is what it was. In 1979 Cunningham with no legal trademarking over the title placed an advert in Variety for the film (pictured above). At this point, the production team was not established, nor were any locations, actors, or equipment.

This really was a wild chance, luckily enough it paid off with independent financers flooding in to score on this soon-to-be hit. From this point on, the history of Friday the 13th was written, with the film thriving in its banal dialogue, cringe acting, gratuitous nudity, cliched characters, and jump scare ending. The corniness could be easily perceived as crude schlock, but its self-aware texture and bendy edges make the film loveable and a true iconic cult classic. 

The overarching stylisation is what has kept Friday the 13th on its pedestal, primarily thanks to special effects artist and makeup designer Tom Savini. Savini was already celebrated thanks to his work in Dawn of the Dead (George A. Romero, 1978), and in Friday the 13th his talent was only further exhibited, with his depiction of some of horror’s most notorious kills being down to his staggering creations. Through his work, Jason was born. Originally in Victor Miller’s script Jason’s mother Pamela would be the sole antagonist. Her fatal decapitation was the end of the chaos, with Alice’s (Adrienne King) appearance in the boat ending the film. The ending we all know and love was nowhere to be found. That was until Savini noted that Carrie’s (Brian De Palma, 1976) jumpscare ending left a mark on the viewer.

Jason’s deformed entrance belonged to Savini, and rightly so, as Voorhees disfigured front gave a lingering spark to the film. The fear factor across the film won’t necessarily leave you with nightmares, but Alice’s dream of a mutilated Jason leaping out of the water and grabbing her by the throat to drag her down into the dark grubby waters goes straight for the jugular and ensures an impact is made. 

Concerning Friday the 13th’s most intrinsically complex element is the breakage of the masculine stalker convention, as Jason’s mother Pamela (Betsy Palmer) is Camp Crystal Lake’s grounds-killer. Her motivation revolves around vengeance, as she gets her comeuppance against the neglectful camp counsellors who let Jason drown due to their own selfish desires. Since Jason’s death Pamela has ensured that the grounds of Crystal Lake were abandoned, and whoever dared to set foot on the soil met a tragic death, as revealed in the first act by the locals.

As much as Jason circles the entire franchise, Pamela is the creator of this destruction, her damning degree of psychosis is the catalyst across the entire film. As unconventional as the villain is, what we know and love about the Friday the 13th franchise is the character of Jason, that’s not to say that the deeper conceptual levels of maternal devotion are not appreciated, in fact, Part II and Part III take aim at the seedy underbelly of his madness, but in Part I there is a slight lack of flashy barbarity that Jason brings to the table unlike anyone else. 

The 2009 remake targets the story portrayed in the 1980 original, but it also elicits Jason as the primary destructor. The first four films in the franchise conjure an intense mythos, and rather than banning any of this build-up in the remake, director Marcus Nispel dives into the deep end and packs these four films into one giant reimagining. 

Nispel’s creates a lean, vibrant, ambitious, and dramatic take on Cunningham and Miller’s slasher. The remake is not entirely monotonous, yet the gory facade is just that, a veil. Do not expect tense thrills as this horror is not necessarily a landmark in genre cinema, instead, its consensus still remains rather negative. Certain criticised factors are understandable, but then again there are some brief and hidden moments of distinction wavering across the 1hr 46min runtime. 

The first aspect that battles against the criticism is the stellar opening scene that shows Jason (Derek Mears) at his most ruthless. The film opens with a brief backstory of Jason watching his mother’s beheading, feeding his killer drive. Flash forward to thirty years later we see a group of friends as they venture into Camp Crystal Lake to search for marijuana crops. As night falls, tents are set up and their debaucheries begin, but Jason arrives on the scene and the peace is truly disturbed as the camp becomes a bloodbath once again.

Multiple deaths occur within the first twenty minutes, setting the path for the rest of the film. The opener takes great and memorable moments from previous films and amps them up to create a gritty, twisted first act. The iconic sleeping bag kill in Friday the 13th VII: The New Blood (1988) is recreated, but instead of the fatal blow being a whack against the tree, we see his victim hanging from a tree in a sleeping bag burning alive over a roaring campfire. The human-toasted marshmallow is not the only feisty punch thrown in the opening, as we are also treated to hacked-up bodies, nasty bear traps to the ankles, and a clean machete blow straight to the forehead. 

Although these deaths are pretty gruesome and entertaining for fellow horror nerds, the film does reach its peak here. The enthusiasm for exhilarating bursts drops and there isn’t any remaining mitigating factors, besides the overall ‘look’ of the film, but style over substance isn’t enough to cut it.

It seems that the general opinion concerning the mixed bunch of personalities tends to lean towards the cynical side. No one is particularly likeable and minus three people, they are all extremely irritating, verging on the side of unbearable. In homage to the original, the gender roles are switched as there is no final girl, instead, we follow Clay Miller (Jared Padalecki) as he attempts to hunt down his missing sister Whitney (Amanda Righetti), who was one of the campers in the opening scene. Across his journey, he stumbles across Jenna (Danielle Panabaker), her boyfriend Trent (Travis Van Winkle), and their friends Chelsea (Willa Ford), Bree (Julianna Guill), Chewie (Aaron Yoo), Nolan (Ryan Hansen), and Lawrence (Arlen Escarpeta).

Trent and his posse travel to his rich parent’s cabin bordering Crystal Lake and soon chaos breaks loose. The plot remains very bland and overdone. We could have been spared some boredom by creating some real inner tension, and by making the characters more than just docile bodies waiting to be flayed. 

Their dialogue is beyond laughable, as the majority of their lines wouldn’t be out of place in a slapstick comedy. The “stupendous” female characters are portrayed as nothing but eye-candy, and the men (besides Clay) follow them along like drooling puppies. It’s funny at first, but the humour soon wears off when the film acts like a horror version of American Pie. 


The original is not a perfect film, but it is beloved. For what definitive reason I’m not entirely sure, but the creepy atmosphere, combined with good old practical effects still holds up to this day, which is only furthered by the nostalgic factor. And although the remake attempts to claw away from the typical ‘cat and mouse’ game that Jason plays by throwing in a hostage story, it ultimately falls flat.

Cunningham’s Friday the 13th is perfect for a sentimental fun watch when you’re in the mood for an energetic slasher. Nispel’s re-envision is great as a popcorn movie, but that’s it, its reputation hasn’t soared nor has it gained too much of a following. So in this battle of original vs remakes, 1980 smashes it out of the park!

Love to read more about the iconic horror villain? Check out our article on Jason Voorhees here.

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Reviews

Review: Fear Street Part One: 1994

The slasher subgenre has done for horror what Shakespeare did for playwriting. It’s that precise allure that accompanies the stalk and kill system, whilst revelling in motive, victim strategies, and exposing the cathartic sense of relief when a fatal conclusion is met, although the joyous reaction could be towards the killer just as much as the victim.

There’s a reason as to why the 1980s and early 1990s were indoctrinated with splatters, slashers, and schlock, it was exhilarating and constant, and now from a retrospective point these frameworks still exist, but it has become even more prevalent on the extension of tributes and commemoration. 

The Fear Street trilogy displays exactly that, a keen sense of nostalgia whilst still maintaining a fresh balance of new tactics and modern archetypes. 

Based on R.L. Stine’s Fear Street novels is Leigh Janiak’s ‘Fear Street Part One: 1994’ which follows an amalgamation of various books from the series to create one giant story that will be historically linked in the next two films. The basic premise follows a group of adolescents who must battle off Sarah Fier (Elizabeth Scopel), a ‘deceased’ witch who has put a damning curse on the town of Shadyside prior to being executed during the witch trials.

Although the collective outline relies upon an ancient curse placed in the 1660s, Fear Street: 1994 is very much alive and thriving. Beginning the film is a sequence that can describe the film as a whole. The opening shot sets up the atmosphere nicely, as we see book store employee Heather (Maya Hawke), working late one night in an eerily empty mall, with the only sense of life coming from beaming neon lights strewn across the food court (immediately reminding me of Stranger Things). In typical fashion, her loneliness is soon met with an alarmingly loud phone ringing, a fake jumpscare, shadows lurking, and then finally a masked killer wearing a Ghostface-esque gown appears and murders who we believed was going to be our final girl. If you thought that this sounded overly familiar to Casey Becker’s (Drew Barrymore) fatal opening scene in Scream (1996) then you’d be correct! 

FEAR STREET PART 1: 1994 – (L-R) JULIA REHWALD as KATE, FRED HECHINGER as SIMON and KIANA MADEIRA as DEENA . Cr: Netflix © 2021

Feeding off of horror’s most tactful tropes is Janiak’s somehow unique crafting of frankly overdone clichés, allowing for optimal attention-grabbing moments. Combine this rose-tinted nostalgia with exhilarating characters then we really have a go-getter of a film. It’s with this that I’ll move onto my next point, the cracking twists and turns. Without spoiling any sordid details I do have to admit that I was seriously impressed with the relationships amongst the characters, with Janiak not becoming too complacent in saving who the audience is naturally drawn to, nothing is sacred and no one is off-limits.

Our motley crew of teens consists of Deena (Kiana Madeira), and her brother Josh (Benjamin Flores Jr.), alongside her two friends Kate (Julia Rehwald) and Simon (Fred Hechinger) who must battle Sarah Fier and her army of killers to save Deena’s estranged girlfriend Sam (Olivia Scott Welch) from a dreadful fate. Together they make a mishmash group where none of them fall into the place of the jock, the blonde, the smart one, the skeptic, or the final girl. Yes, the tween Josh does have more criminal knowledge than the normal boy, and Deena does have some inner ruthlessness that embodies ‘the last one left alive’ emblem, but all in all, there is a clear and successful attempt at rustling up the unexpected and allowing everyone to shine, not just the ‘lead’. 

Fear Street: 1994 understands it’s alterations to the classic slasher, but it also comprehends what makes the film stand out from current ‘blockbusters’, which consequently originates in the harsh gore exposed throughout. I for one have a neutral outlook on the graphicness in a horror film, there are a plethora of tense films that only sparsely rely on bloodshed to affect the viewer, and then there are outstanding films that secrete slaughter from start to finish. However, Fear Street: 1994 definitely took the visually mature path, with Janiak dismissing any prior beliefs that this would be tame in any shape or form. 

The killers presented in this first entry are the Skull Mask Killer, The Camp Nightwing Killer, and Ruby Lane, all of who deliver noteworthy scares throughout. The cult-like culmination of very different antagonists could be messy if in the wrong hands, yet there’s that slight animosity that accompanies their very brief backstory that allows for their quick-paced appearances to be short and snappy, with the focus constantly remaining on the Deena and the gang.

As much as I’ve discussed this slasher aspect, especially in terms of the film’s inextricable character-based narrative, an unorthodox element that pushes Fear Street to feed off of the flexibility of horror is the inclusion of the occult. Shadyside has been jinxed by Fier’s wickedness and with that comes an interesting backstory that is nicely touched upon, but not fully delved into. However, instead of being irate over the briefness, we only end up more excited for the following two films. 

Fear Street Part Two: 1978 and Fear Street Part Three: 1666 will both be released one week after another, promising much more carnage, curveballs, and adrenaline-pumping scares.

This weeks article comes via Grace from Film Overload, you can check out more of her work here.