Thursday, July 9, 2015

3 Minute First Look At Upcoming Sci-fi Thriller "Encounter"

Check out the 2015 3 minute first look at upcoming sci-fi thriller "Encounter" directed by Cosmo Losco. The film stars Losco, Michael Cephas, Daniel Chevez, Rob Durkee, Ash Hatcher, Hanna Walton, Will Durkee, Amie Bruce, Nick Karnbach, Evan Miller, Jim Schweiker, and Zohra Alnoor. Not sure when the release date is on this alien horror but it is still slated for sometime this year!

Millions believe. Thousands claim they have proof. No one saw this coming. 
In a quiet community outside of Washington, DC, a pair of tech-savvy roommates, Kyle (Daniel Chevez) and Paul (Rob Durkee), discover a hidden signal within our nations data and security systems.
As the pair try to locate the source, strange happenings begin to occur throughout the neighborhood and the unsuspecting citizens discover something is stalking them.As the truth of the unknown is revealed, they find themselves face to face with a chilling encounter.

4 New Clips Released For "The Divine Tragedies"

Four new clips have been released for stylized horror drama "The Divine Tragedies". The film is directed by Jose Prendes and is based loosely on the famous Leopold and Loeb murder case, tells the tale of Charles Brubaker (Graham Denman) and his half-brother Thomas Lo Bianco (Jon Kondelik), who concoct a deadly game to test their superior intelligence against the dimwitted masses. This game will eventually lead to murder, and when Genevieve, a beautiful single mother, enters their lives they finally find the perfect girl for their first kill. But problems arise when they quickly discover that Detective Homer Gaul (Ken Foree), a cop with a very special gift, is hot on their trail.

"The Divine Tragedies" stars Graham Denman, Jon Kondelik, Hannah Levien, Sean Whalen, Lynn Lowry, Ruben Pla, Aaron Pruner, Ken Foree, and Barbara Crampton. Not sure when this one is due out. Check out the clips below!













Little Hints At The Divine Tragedies @ A Southern Horror Fan's Place


First Trailer For Season 2 'From Dusk Till Dawn'

The first trailer has been released for season 2 of El Rey's 'From Dusk Till Dawn'. The series returns with new cast members Danny Trejo and Jeff Fahey. It is really a cool update for the vampire franchise that brings the fangs from across our southern border. I can't wait for the series return. 

Our characters are all living in very separate worlds –Santánico and Richie are outside Houston, doing their best Bonnie and Clyde; Seth and Kate are scraping by South of the Border; and Freddie Gonzalez is protecting his wife and young daughter in the suburbs. Carlos Madrigal and Scott Fuller emerge from the Titty Twister, changed men. They will all come together once again – this time facing off against an even bigger threat.




Season 2 Almost Here For 'From Dusk Till Dawn' Series @ A Southern Horror Fan's Place


First Official Trailer For "Goosebumps"

Check out the official trailer upcoming feature "Goosebumps" starring Jack Black, Halston Sage, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush, Amy Ryan, Ken Marino, and Kumail Nanjiani. The film is directed by Rob Letterman and due out October 16th, 2015.

 Upset about moving from a big city to a small town, teenager Zach Cooper (Dylan Minnette) finds a silver lining when he meets the beautiful girl, Hannah (Odeya Rush), living right next door. But every silver lining has a cloud, and Zach’s comes when he learns that Hannah has a mysterious dad who is revealed to be R. L. Stine (Jack Black), the author of the bestselling Goosebumps series. It turns out that there is a reason why Stine is so strange… he is a prisoner of his own imagination – the monsters that his books made famous are real, and Stine protects his readers by keeping them locked up in their books. When Zach unintentionally unleashes the monsters from their manuscripts and they begin to terrorize the town, it’s suddenly up to Stine, Zach, and Hannah to get all of them back in the books where they belong.





Goosebumps And Jack Black...HMMM...@ A Southern Horror Fan's Place

New Character Posters For 'Scream Queen' Series Are To Die For

One of the coolest new series coming this Fall is the horror comedy series from Glee creators, 'Scream Queen'. And proving why this is a hot piece of genre fabulousness are these hot new character posters featuring a hot, and very eclectic cast to die for. The posters really set the tone of what these characters are going to give us. Plus Jamie Lee Curtis and Nick Jonas on the same show weekly is a queer horror TV fan's wet dream! I can't wait for Fall to get here!


'Scream Queens' stars Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis,Lea Michele, Abigail Breslin, Nasim Pedrad, Oliver Hudson, Skyler Samuels, Keke Palmer, Billie Lourd, Diego Boneta, Glen Powell, Niecy Nash, Nick Jonas, and Ariana Grande. The (obviously) hits airwaves on Sept. 22nd. Check out the posters below.


















Hot, Diverse, And To Die For! @  A Southern Horror Fan's Place


Tuesday, July 7, 2015

My Review Of "Darkside Witches"

Gerard Diefenthal's "Darkside Witches" is a modern Italian fantasy horror set in a remote village in the Italian countryside. The film stars Barbara Bouchet, Anna Orso, Gerard Diefenthal, Simona Cappia, Mirela David, Angelica Novak, Pino Michienzi, and Marco di Stefano. "Darkside Witches" is a mixed bag of bad and good, so much so that I watched a few times just to make sure my impression was legit from the movie or my dumbfounded-ness of at aspects of Diefenthal's choices in making this movie.

First the story, it is a cool throwback to more Gothic, dark fantasy horror revolving around witches, persecution and revenge. You could place this situation in any European and Colonial setting and the story is the same. Females burned for being witches, town cursed, and wah-lah! Witches survive to get their vengeance. I actually love these kinds of films involving the occult and witches. The classic, old world concept of witches that may be insensitive to the modern day witch/Wiccan, but true to our ancient past's view of the hag/crone/wicked maiden. 

Gerard Diefenthal manages to give the story some lift, creating iconic character types, Gothic settings, and plenty of drama mixed with gore. The film does move almost mirror-image to what I image the storyboard concept looked like. The transitions are blunt, quick changing and move the story quickly from moment to moment much like graphic novel/animation adaptations tend to do. For example one moment there is a woman in the kitchen preparing and in the next instant the scene transitions to her handing some homeless guy soup or something to eat with a wicked grin. The dialog is not over-burdening to the story, only crucial conversations that give the plot and sinister plans the witches have for the town, other characters idle chatter, or short scenes with just a couple of sentences. It allows for the action and suggested drama tell a lot of the story instead of some long speech like dialog delivered laboriously by the cast. It is overdubbed so be warned.

Now for me the nail in the coffin for this film isn't the overdubbed vs. subtitle choice, it is the CGI choices that were made to create the supernatural, witchy-ness side of the film. It is very low grade stuff, closer to Syfy on a dime. Think "Witchville". It is almost comical when those scenes take over the story. It all really shreds "Darkside Witches" momentum, and potential for being one of the modern day cult classics - you know the ones that are so bad they are good. Well the CGI here is just really bad and sad. That said, there are some really awesome, gory moments that use splattergore styled practical effects that scream Italian giallo! Really nice blood drenched moments. And the nudity is almost on soft-core porn level. 

All this is why I had to watch the film a few times. At first I thought-"What is this crap?", then the practical effects moments kicked in and I was like "Heck yeah!". Overall "Darkside Witches" is not gonna go over well for most horror fans, I mean this film is really gonna aim at a small select group of people who like the Syfy, CGI saturated stuff that uses gaming level computer effects. I am truly conflicted. Not because I am split on the film. I am conflicted because I liked the story, I love films about witches, and the gore and horror here, when practical choices are made, are awesome! Yet the overdubbed voices are so hokey and kill the seriousness of the dialog and scenes that it is troublesome. The CGI is, in all honesty, crap! And the transitions and smoothness of the story just moves to choppy and hurried to allow for any real connection with the characters.

The Digital Downfall Of "Darkside Witches" @ A Southern Horror Fan's Place

Crowd Funding Begins For Horror Documentary "Hoia-Baciu Forest: Beyond The Legend"

The crowd funding campaign has started for indie horror documentary "Hoia-Baciu Forest: Beyond The Legend". A legend I , like many Westerners ( I assume) have not heard about before other than lists of mysterious places. I have never delved into the actual legend but thankfully there are a few who have, most recently is Paul Dadrian.

Hoia-Baciu Forest, one of the most mysterious places in the world, lays a few kilometers away from the city of Cluj-Napoca, also known as the "heart of Transylvania". Locals nearby are familiar with the strange powers detained by the forrest. The phenomenas manifested there, beyond their power of understanding, prompted them not to ask reckless questions. Because of fear, the forest remained, for a long period of  time, shrouded in the unknown. Until the ‘60s, when biologist Alexandru Sift began an intense study of the phenomenas manifested there, in an attempt to solve the mystery. In 1968, newspapers around the world published the wonderful photos of an UFO that has just flown over the area. The photos were studied in research institutes from Europe and the US, all cataloging the picture as authentic. Since then, Hoia-Baciu Forest has become a living legend.

The crowd funding is taking place over on Indiegogo.com so go check it out. Filming is scheduled for July 2015, in part because of the availability of the participants. Post-production will be completed, most likely, this Fall. Then, the documentary will be screened at several locations in Romania, facilitating the direct public contact with some of those involved, including the experts. Subsequently, it will be available for free viewing online, subtitled in English.






The Legend Of Hoia-Baciu Forest @ A Southern Horror Fan's Place

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