With the Halloween season upon us, I’ve been asked to remind our loyal followers of some of the great movie themes from horror films.  So without further ado, here are some themes to put you in the Halloween spirit:

The Exorcist: This is a haunting movie theme as it is a score that definitely reminds people of the film, but if you were listening to the music with no knowledge of The Exorcist, I bet you would think it would come from sci-fi film.  To me, this score is made better because of the film and not the other way around, but that’s not to say that it is not great, because it is.

Halloween: The piano theme to Halloween is eerie and haunting, but it is never bold and in your face. There are never any moments in the score that jump out and cause any terror.  Instead, when you hear this theme, even if Michael Myers is not on the screen when it plays, you just know that something bad is going to happen.  I’m sure most of you to this site know this upcoming fact, but just in case you didn’t, director John Carpenter also composed the music for the film.

Jaws: Two notes are all it took for people to instantly recognize that they shouldn’t go into the water.  There is more to the score than the opening two notes, but it’s amazing to think of how recognizable the film is because of it. The score is a good one, not just because of how recognizable it is, but because if you listen to it, without letting the movie influence you, you definitely feel that you are in for a ride, which is what a good horror film should deliver to the viewer, at least I think so.  The crescendos, the decrescendos, the quiet parts, the loud parts, it’s definitely a blockbuster score.  John Williams has written many fantastic scores and the one to Jaws is one of his best.

Fantasia – Night on Bald Mountain: I may be cheating when I include this, because this was not written for the film, but man, this is a frightening score.  Even without the images of Fantasia to go with it, this just has a feeling of evil to it.  It’s mean, it’s loud, it’s unapologetic and as a kid, this score used to scare me.  Add in the images from Fantasia (which fit the score very very well, because that image of the devil is the defining one for me in film history), and this is a great piece of music from an animated horror short.

Psycho: Bernard Herrmann’s score sets the tone from the opening credit sequence.  Have a listen here. It’s an urgent opening score that grabs your attention, and lets you know that you’re in for an unsettling ride.  The piercing sound of the strings is a theme that will come back later in the film, but it is haunting enough that you remember it.  When the famous shower scene takes place, the fact that it is so quiet and silent in the lead up to the scene (we just watch Marion Crane get into the shower) that it’s disconcerting for the viewer.  We know that something is going to happen and we are scared at what that might be.  Then, when the mother appears and rips the curtain back, the strings return with that piercing sound and the shower scene goes into high gear.  Every sound of the strings makes the viewer feel like Marion is getting stabbed, even though there is not one shot of a knife piercing Marion’s body.  It is a masterful job of editing, and really Bernard Herrmann’s score makes the violent act seem more vile than it actually is.  Here’s the scene for your viewing pleasure: 

The theme returns a couple of more times in the film, but the shower scene is the most effective use of it.  The biggest compliment you can get is when you get parodied, and the Psycho shower scene and the music that goes along with it has been parodied numerous times in pop culture.  The score and images together make for a perfect marriage, and that is why the theme to Psycho is the scariest piece of music in horror history.

Well, that concludes my look at some horror movie themes. Did I miss any great themes?  Do you think I’m way off the mark?  Let me know as I’d love to hear from you.  Until then, have a Happy Halloween!

I love horror movies. As a lot of people have, I started watching them when I probably shouldn’t have been. I would sneak down into the living room when my parents were watching them and watch through the railing, scaring my self like crazy and then running back up to my room, scared out of my mind and having to get myself to sleep with visions of ghouls and ghosts dancing in my head.

There are some scenes that I can remember being the scariest that I have seen, the ones that really stick with you. Here they are in no particular order.

DAWN OF THE DEAD:

Little girls in nightgowns scare the hell out of me. It doesn’t matter where they are, if you see a little girl in a white gown, run. Run for your life. They are stereotypically evil. Thus was the case in Dawn of the Dead. SPOILERS – If you haven’t seen the opening scene, it’s basically a little girl that knocks on her parents bedroom door, says “mommy…”, and then – when her father goes to comfort her – proceeds to eat him. It’s terrifying! I wouldn’t sleep with my door ajar for a while after seeing this one.

SALEM’S LOT:

I explained this one in an earlier article. The part where the vampire child Danny visits Mark outside of his window. He scrapes his nails, and salivates. His dead, cold eyes and the tone of his voice…wow. Seriously, this scene is embedded in my memory. It’s like the directors of these movies take things that you normally see every day – doors, windows – things that you look at all the time, and then permanently scar your mind into remembering these scary scenes every time you see them. Windows hide lurking figures, doors are always creaking in the dark.

THE HALLOWEEN SERIES:

While the movies on the whole didn’t scare me too much, what stayed with me about these was the general terror of being hunted. They all revolved – usually – around a central character that was chased around for an hour or so, the whole time screaming and fearing for their life. I remember having nightmares about being chased and hunted, hiding and just being generally terrified, and I have these movies to thank for being the catalyst of all of those fears.

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2:

This series is basically the reason that a lot of people feel uncomfortable in their own homes. It made the thought of a warm cozy house less comforting by showing that everyday people could become the victim of dangerous poltergeists. And, when you get right down to it, the end scene – SPOILERS – where the girl snaps her husbands neck on the couch, was probably one of the most unexpectedly horrifying scene I’ve ever seen.

POLTERGEIST:

Again, little girls in white gowns. Terrifying. It was also the movie that made me a little uneasy around white noise. And of course, the infamous line, “Theyyy’reee Heerreeee!”

THE EXORCIST:

I couldn’t sleep for weeks after watching this. As a demonic child, Linda Blair couldn’t have been more shocking. Her foul-mouthed performance was truly scary, and would make even a strong non-believer in demons have second thoughts. Her scarred face and jerky movements created an atmosphere that made every moment she was possessed on screen both a pleasure and torture to watch. I dare anyone to watch her crab-walk down the stairs or the head-spinning scene and then try and sleep afterwards. Truly one of the scariest movies I’ve ever seen.

I think what makes a movie truly scary is its ability to stay with you long after the credits have rolled. If you can remember that specific part that made your blood run cold, then the director has done his job, and the horror movie has served its purpose.

What is your favourite scary moment in a horror movie? Let us know in the comments section!

Halloween is still my favourite holiday of the year by far. Candy, costumes, horror films and no family obligations? Awesome. And call it nostalgia or die hard loyalty, but The Simpsons is still my favourite source of Halloween-themed entertainment. So, in celebration of my favourite holiday and my favourite show, I’m happy to bring you my Top 5 Simpsons Halloween episodes.

Now sure, some of you fell off the Simpsons wagon awhile back… and maybe  you hit your head and forgot how awesome the show is. But let’s not forget that for a solid oh, 15 years, The Simpsons dominated the airwaves and drove the baseline for cultural comedy. Since its second season The Simpsons has embraced Halloween in annual Treehouse of Horror episodes, and these Top 5 are by far my favourite episodes for getting a strong dose of Halloween spirit.

#5: Treehouse of Horror

The first episode of the Simpsons Halloween saga began as an ode to one of my favourite horror films, Creepshow; and still holds its own against later episodes (which became subsequently more abstract in their take on ‘Halloween’). I love this episode because it offers three awesome bone chillers, all gorgeously ‘Simpsonified’ as Bart and Lisa try to top each other’s ghost stories (while Homer eavesdrops). Bad Dream House and Hungry are the Damned are fun stories with a twist, but James Earl Jones reading Edgar Allen Poe’s The Raven, is classic. We used to play the audio from The Raven in this episode on a loop at my house on Halloween and people loved it! This episode totally sets the Halloween mood.

#4 Treehouse of Horror IV

Another episode that stuck to its Halloween guns and my 4th favourite features Homer making deals with the devil, a gremlin on the plane, and something the writers threw together with Vampires. Casting Ned Flanders as the Devil was one of the more brilliant establishing elements of this episode; that and the insatiable appetite for mocking classic horror films. William Shatner’s Nightmare at 20,000 feet and Bram Stoker’s Dracula (the cinematic version) all get the Springfield treatment in this clever classic episode.

#3 Treehouse of Horror VIII

Somehow this episode marks the beginning of the end for Simpsons Halloween…. but it’s a great final huzzah before the writers spiraled in to Harry Potter references (cough). I sincerely love this episode, although it’s only sitting at #3… I’m a sci-fi fan at heart, so each of these might be borderline horror but they still work at Halloween for me. HΩmega Man puts Homer against the zombie apolcalpyse, and taught me that dancing in church can be fun. Fly vs Fly shows how to haggle at garage sales, and warns of the dangers of imitating Jeff Goldblum. And finally, Easy Bake Coven… one of the more clever explanations of where Halloween came from. A solid #3 episode, for sure.

#2: Treehouse of Horror V

I had a hard time putting this episode as #2, because I love The Shining and really enjoy seeing Willy struggle. Probably the most memorable of all Simpsons Halloween episodes, the sixth season brought us The Shinning, Time and Punishment, and Nightmare Cafeteria. Almost all of the core cast is used in this episode and at the height of ‘Simpsons greatness’, it also has a lot of great punchy one-liners about Willy, Üter, and the follies of time travel. I also love the continuity between segments, with Willy being axed in the back in each story (sorry Willy). As a strong Halloween-themed episode, this comes in at a very close second to my #1.

#1: Treehouse of Horror VI (7th season)

This gem probably stands as #1 because it aired at the height of my Simpsons fanaticism. I can (shamelessly) admit that I sing the jingle for Stopping Monsters on a weekly basis, and “Holy Macaroni” has been enshrined as a point of exclamation. Why is this my #1? The episode is solid, 3 good shorts that are all Halloweeny, especially Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace (although Homer3 is borderline sci-fi) and the jokes are non-stop. This episode also featured the first 3D rendering of the Simpsons, overlaid on a real video sequence… it even won the grand prize at The Ottawa International Animation Festival (woohoo).

Enjoy – Happy Halloween!!!

There aren’t many games out there that scare me anymore. I’ve mentioned a few before in previous articles, but aside from those, it’s pretty tame out there in the world of horror games. That’s why this game caught me so off guard: I can confidently say, that if you’re looking for a genuine creep-fest, look no farther than Slender.

A “survival horror” game from Parsec Productions, it’s based on the recently created myth – completely made up during a contest to alter a picture and make it ‘paranormal’ – of Slender Man, a tall malevolent being that haunts and abducts humans. He is generally described as being between 6-15 feet tall and always dressed in a black suit. What makes him so creepy is the fact that he has no discernible facial features, only a white blank face. He is shown in the backgrounds of various pictures being generally creepy and disturbing. Go ahead and Google a few pictures of him, I’ll wait…Ok, freaky, no?

Yeah, there’s nowhere to run. Get ready to be caught!

Now picture being lost in the woods, at night, armed with nothing but a flashlight. Getting scarier! Now add in the fact that you’re being hunted by Slender Man, and he’s silently and effectively cutting off all of your escape routes. There’s no music, just you and the sounds of a forest at night, your footsteps and some sporadic white noise. You have limited battery in the flashlight, your stamina bar limits how much you can run and you have no defenses or map. It’s complete seclusion and isolation. You’re tasked with finding eight pieces of paper, each depicting some fact about the legendary Slender Man. With each paper you find, his abilities to hunt you grow stronger. It starts with you simply seeing him in the distance, watching you. But after 5-6 papers, he’s teleporting insanely fast and can even force you to look at him…killing you.

Find the papers!

Now when I say killing you, I mean it. Not only does the game end, but you’re treated to loud terrifying static and a close-up of Slender Man’s face as he catches you, and then it completely shuts off and sends you back to your desktop. Really! Not ‘please try again’ or ‘continue?’, just pure, flat-out game over.

It does a lot of things really well. No, it doesn’t have the best graphics, or any story line to speak of, but it NAILS the horror aspect, because 99% of the time you spend playing this game, you’re terrified. Play it in the dark! I dare you! It’s one of the only ‘horror’ games that legitimately gave me the creeps.

It’s a free download, it’s scary and it’s a definite play for anyone looking to get a jump-start on the Halloween season! Try it and let us know what you think!

This is it, a Halloween tradition for me every year, one of my favorite flicks, and not just the granddaddy of zombie movies, but the first zombie movie. Find out why I love it, why it’s still a classic, and why it’s one of the legendary Rob Zombie’s favorites as well. More on White Zombie after the jump.

First!

Most folks, or at least most folks of the last few generations, think about zombies, and they think George Romero is the man. Well, that’s true, he is the man, but he wasn’t the first guy to do a movie about zombies. True, he did revitalize the creature as a monster with his cannibalistic shoot-them-in-the-head bulldozer of a shambling threat in Night of the Living Dead, but he did not originate the idea of the zombie.

Three’s a crowd…

White Zombie, in 1932, is the first zombie film, and in my opinion, one of the best and scariest, for zombies of its kind. Here, the zombies are much closer to the legends of the islands, and the religion of voodoo. They’re not cannibals, hungry for brains, or easily dispatched by a blow to the head. These zombies are the undead slaves of an evil man who runs the sugar cane industry on the island of Haiti.

Enter a happy couple on vacation in Haiti planning marriage, when they cross the evil voodoo master Murder Legendre (is that just the coolest name or what?), played by Bela Lugosi. Bela takes a liking to the girl and horror hilarity ensues. Simple plot but surrounded by Lugosi’s amazing talent, stunning sets, and of course, the creepy zombies – the first zombie movie.

Indie Before Indie Was Cool

Contrary to popular belief, White Zombie is not a Universal Horror, along side other classics like Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Wolfman. The movie was an independent production with a threadbare budget, but that doesn’t mean for a minute it was cheap or haphazard. Producer Victor Halperin, a director famous from the silent days, wanted to make something that would stand up to the big boys, and I think he succeeded.

Despite being independent and not related to the Universals, it looked like a Universal Horror – mostly because it borrowed their look. White Zombie was shot on the same amazing sets that Frankenstein, The Cat and the Canary and The Hunchback of Notre Dame were shot on. When you want to look like the big boys, use their toys. In my opinion, some of these sets look better in White Zombie than the originals.

Bela Bela Bela

I think most of the film is carried by the charismatic power of Bela Lugosi. When he made White Zombie for a rumored $5000, he was red hot off of the success of Universal’s Dracula and considered one of the most frightening actors this side of Boris Karloff or the late Lon Chaney. He may have won his stripes with the Count, but he upped the ante with Murder Legendre.

One of the lasting and scarier effects from the film is the overlay of Legendre’s eyes whenever he summoned his zombie slaves or try to exert his control over others. The zombies themselves, most in silent roles, are horrifying in their own right. Even the extras that you’re not sure if they’re zombies or not are scary.

No sugar for me please!

There’s even a messed up moment in the vein of “Kitchen Nightmares,” that I’m not even sure was scripted or planned. Watch carefully and you’ll see a zombie fall into the grinding mill at the sugar factory. It’s a cringe scene for a whole different set of reasons. I still get chills, and I’m off Frosted Flakes for a few days thinking about it.

Legacy

White Zombie in its time was actually quite a success. Halperin put a sequel into production in 1936 called Revolt of the Zombies, but unfortunately there were legal problems with the rights to the film. Elements of the movie were altered so it’s not a direct sequel, but it’s easy to see how it could be. If you watch, you’ll see Bela’s eyes have been lifted from the original movie to appear in Revolt.

Oddly enough, even though White Zombie is now in the public domain, there are still rights issues. Such problems reportedly prevented a remake from being made as recently as a couple years ago with director Tobe Hooper attached. Apparently the original story for the film has questionable sources.

Today, people know the name as Rob Zombie’s first commercial band from the 1980s and 90s, but only a handful of horror fans know the industrial noise rockers were inspired by the film. For me, much to some of my friends’ dismay, watching White Zombie is an annual Halloween tradition. Yeah, I love it that much.

White Zombie was the first zombie film, and not only serves as the starting point for the George Romero version of the walking dead, but also movies of its time like King of the Zombies, and another one of my favorites, Val Lewton’s I Walked with a Zombie, which contains many of the elements that made White Zombie itself a classic. If you haven’t seen it, please do, and if you have, visit some old friends this Halloween, you won’t regret it.

Robin Renee is a terrifically talented singer/songwriter who has guest-blogged with us here at Biff Bam Pop! before, about Stompin’ Tom Connors, as well as granting the site an exclusive interview earlier this year. Today she takes a very special holiday look at the work of her friend and idol, the late Warren Zevon.

On Beyond Werewolves – Your Soundtrack for a Very Zevon Halloween, by Robin Renée

The blessing of having one big hit is that virtually everyone – at least everyone who came of age in a certain era with a certain taste in music – will know the song. The flip-side of one-hit-wonder status is the low profile of whatever else the artist may have to contribute to the world of music, however powerful, however similar or different from the song that brought fame.

“Ol’ Velvet Nose,” Warren’s semi-official logo

Sometimes the big hit that made the artist a darling of the Top 40 for that shining moment is more mainstream and less representative of the rest of the catalogue. That isn’t quite true of Warren Zevon’s highest charting single, “Werewolves of London,” which has a lot of what many of the best Zevon songs have to offer – twisted humor, smart turns of phrase, a stark look at violence, an off-beat, location-specific tale, and spot-on vocal delivery. An entertaining song any time of year, you might hear it a bit more in October on the radio or on a costume store’s seasonal music mix. “Werewolves of London” has become a Halloween classic.

The brilliant and underrated songwriter and performer left us with a catalog of great depth that is worthy of deep listening and analysis from many angles. For our purposes this spooky season, here is a look at a few songs where Zevon’s tales take us to places disconcerting and scary, be they humorous, unnerving, or his characteristic, seamless intermingling of the two.

Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner (Excitable Boy, 1978)

Never mind your run-of-the-mill headless horseman, you might really do well to watch out for Roland instead. While our UK werewolf was ordering beef chow mein at Lee Ho Fook, Roland was a warrior from Norway engaged in the Congo War of the 1960’s. When his supposed mercenary comrade Van Owen blows him away in a CIA hit, he vows to track down his killer and return the favor:

They can still see his headless body stalking through the night
In the muzzle flash of Roland’s Thompson gun

Things end badly for Van Owen in a bar in Mombasa. But if you think seeing the hitman take his last drink before blowing him away set Roland’s soul to rest, think again. Zevon brings the story home to a terroristic, misguided mission of the then current times. With the song’s final words, he reminds us that by some twist of fate there might be some aspect of the headless warrior ready to reveal itself in any of us:

Patty Hearst heard the burst of Roland’s Thompson gun and bought it.

Excitable Boy (Excitable Boy 1978)

At the beginning of this piano-driven pop rock tune, you could easily think you’re in for a fun and simple sing-along. Then the lyrics kick in. “Excitable Boy” begins with truly strange and silly imagery:

Well, he went down to dinner in his Sunday best
“Excitable Boy,” they all said
And he rubbed a pot roast all over his chest
“Excitable Boy,” they all said
“Well he’s just an Excitable Boy”

This guy might still sound like a wacky, impulsive friend who would be good for laughs. However, we then hear he goes on to bite an usherette on the leg, escalates to date rape and murder, and commits further violations after his release from “the home.” Perhaps “excitable” was a bit of an understatement for this freak, whose terrible, though in this upbeat musical context, cartoonish acts makes “Excitable Boy” another Zevon contender for the Halloween canon.

Play it All Night Long (Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School, 1980)

This menacing, NSFW southern rock infused stomp lets listeners in on a central fact of many a great Zevon tune: there is plenty more to fear than the typical ghouls of October. In “Play It All Night Long,” the rougher edges of human existence prove to be far more bone-chilling. The song catalogues ungraceful aging, PTSD, incest, diseases (of both humans and livestock), and in the last verse breaks rural life down to its four basic body fluids. “Play It All Night Long” gets extra rock history points for its being a response to Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama,” which in turn was a response to Neil Young’s “Alabama” and “Southern Man.”

Charlie’s Medicine (The Envoy, 1982)

“Charlie’s Medicine” is intense and menacing guitar rock in which its brief character sketches capture drug abuse, isolation, and tragedy. These lines offer up the psychological terror of witnessing those no longer truly alive, even before the homicide:

Some respectable doctor from Beverly Hills shot him through the heart
Charlie never felt a thing
Neither of them did –
Poor kid

Jesus Mentioned (The Envoy, 1982)

Drugs play a role in this one, too, but in this case, there’s no mere murder. Instead we return to the exhumation theme first mentioned in “Excitable Boy.” This time, though, the deceased is none other than the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll. The song’s protagonist (so to speak) imagines digging up Elvis and convincing him to sing a spiritual one more time. Now that’s just creepy.

Mr. Bad Example (Mr. Bad Example, 1991)

The character in “Mr. Bad Example” isn’t among the undead, nor is he a cold-blooded killer. Instead, he is a swindler of the first degree. Halloween celebrations can always use a little camp and levity mixed in with the fear factor, so allow this shifty guy to bring the comic relief. He starts out pilfering from the Children’s Fund in church, then quickly graduates to stealing from everyone he meets including a French prostitute and an entire population of indigenous people in Australia. He’s unsavory enough to run amok with a Werewolf, but there’s no need to take him too seriously (unless you meet up with him in a casino or a business deal). If you want to add a boisterous drinking song to your Halloween playlist, this is a good one.

Something Bad Happened to a Clown (Mutineer, 1995)

Well, it involves a clown, which already weirds out a whole lot of people. Add the mechanized drum programming, simple hook, and eerie, interwoven keyboards and the song sounds like a tune from an old amusement park’s slightly off-kilter merry-go-round. All the songs from the Mutineer album are relatively underproduced, and on this one the approach is unsettling and spot on. It may be a simple case of lost love, but because we never are explicitly told of the “something bad” that’s happened to this clown, the imagination is left to conjure something worse.

Hostage-O (Life’ll Kill Ya, 2000)

I can see me bound and gagged
Dragged behind a clownmobile
You can treat me like a dog
If you make me feel what others feel

Is this a deeply submissive love ballad? A dark look at a BDSM romp with no apparent safe word? The cry of someone seeking any connection or sensation strong enough to shake loneliness and alienation? In places, it is reminiscent of the much earlier “Ain’t That Pretty At All” where the singer “would rather feel bad than feel nothing at all.” The difference is that “Hostage-O” is not the sound of an angry young man thrashing about by his own force, but more the sound of frightful, perhaps final resignation to an imprisoned, forlorn life. If there is a sense of sexy role-play in this song at all, it is well hidden within the desolate acoustic guitar and vocal delivery mournful enough to make one’s arm hair stand on end.

Bonus Track: The French Inhaler (from Warren Zevon, 1976)

… for its stunning kiss-off that evokes death personified and contends for the rock era’s most wonderfully acerbic lines:

When the lights came up at two, I caught a glimpse of you
And your face looked like something Death brought with him in his suitcase

Finally, it wouldn’t be right to end the party without the big Halloween hit. Enjoy the holiday traditions, the costumes, the music, and the weird, nervous laughter.

Werewolves of London (from Excitable Boy, 1978)

——
A freelance writer and performing songwriter, Robin Renee‘s work has appeared in many publications including PanGaia, Blessed Bi Spirit, Big Hammer #12, The New York Quarterly, Songwriter’s Market, and That Takes Ovaries – Bold Females and their Brazen Acts (Random House). Her recordings include In Progress, All Six Senses, Live Devotion, spirit.rocks.sexy, and This. By some dumb luck, karma, or amazing grace she met her rock idol Warren Zevon in 1994 and remained a friend until his passing in 2003.

As we celebrate Halloween, and the end of 31 Days of Horror here at Biff Bam Pop!, I thought I’d take a look at a TV series long known for making kids watch from behind their sofas in terror for almost five decades. Meet me after the jump and we’ll talk about the monsters of Doctor Who.

Monsters Who’s Who

Long before it would become known as the most watched TV series on the planet, I first became aware of “Doctor Who” from a book called Monsters Who’s Who, a book my big sister’s best friend gave me. At the time, I was more interested in Godzilla and the other Toho daikaiju, and maybe a few of the traditional Universal monsters, but that wasn’t all that this book had to offer.

“Monsters Who’s Who” with a different title, same cover though…

There was also a selection of Marvel Comics creatures including the Hulk, the Fantastic Four, and some of Spider-Man’s bizarre foes (although to this day I remain perplexed by the inclusion of the Bi-Beast). I loved that stuff, being a comic geek. The book had material on real life cryptids like the Loch Ness monster and the Abominable Snowman as well, spurring my interests there.

And then there were the Doctor Who monsters. This was before PBS started showing the series, so the only Doctor Who I knew was the bad guy from King Kong Escapes and the “Kong” cartoons. Still, this was my first exposure to the Daleks, the Cybermen, and the Ice Warriors. The pictures alone frightened me, before I ever had any point of reference.

The Daleks

The Doctor’s arch-enemies are, without a doubt, the Daleks. Created by Terry Nation, these were the adversaries who he faced in two feature films, took the UK by storm in the 1960s much the same way TV’s “Batman” did in the US, and they were the first of the classic monsters to reappear when “Doctor Who” was revamped for the 21st century. They were also the monsters that made children and some adults watch their television from behind the safety of the sofa.

The Daleks first appeared in 1963, as a hideous extraterrestrial race from the planet Skaro who were experimented on by the evil scientist Davros. He integrated the mutant race into cyborg creatures inside large rolling battle cylinders, then removed all of their emotions save hatred. Seeing themselves as the superior race in the universe, they set out to conquer everything.

The electronic bleet of their battle cry “Exterminate!” can send chills of excitement and fear down the spines of fans the world over. The Daleks have appeared in almost one hundred episodes and will return in the show’s 50th anniversary special, “The Day of The Doctor,” on November 23rd.

The Cybermen

The other classic big bads of the DW universe are similarly cybernetic. The Cybermen however were once human. Origin stories of these baddies vary, but essentially they are humans from an alternate Earth where they have slowly replaced organic parts of their bodies with machine parts until they are nothing but machines.

In the revamp of the series, this aspect was made even more horrific by making Blue Tooth devices the key to turning Cyber. They have had multiple designs as they evolve, a matter made more confusing by the fact that The Doctor has not encountered them chronologically in their timeline. Their battle cry of “Delete!” is almost as frightening as the Daleks’ as it even sounds more electronic.

In the new series, their design is much heavier, especially in the boots. When they march, the Cybermen take on a different kind of horror, the sound reminiscent of the jackboots of the Nazi stormtroopers as they took to the streets. There’s nothing scarier than something that evokes a real evil.

Other Classic Terrors

Also glimpsed in Monsters Who’s Who were the Ice Warriors of Mars, huge armored hulks who want to terraform the Earth into their more hospitable home. As their name might infer, they like the cold and hate heat, and they’ve encountered The Doctor many times. The Tenth Doctor had to contend with The Flood, a Martian virus possibly connected to these creatures.

A current enemy of The Doctor, the Great Intelligence, first appeared using Yeti as his pawns, and later nasty-smiled Snowmen, both monsters, though decades apart, were quite enough to send old and new fans scampering behind the sofa. Another terror that has fought against The Doctor in both the old series and the new would be the warlike Sontarans. These alien clone warriors with heads like deformed Cabbage Patch Kids are more dangerous than they appear, as they live only to do battle.

Then there are the true rulers of the Earth. The Silurians and the related Sea Devils are humanoid reptilian races that dominated the planet when mankind were apes. Various disasters caused them to seek refuge underground and in hibernation. They are almost always looking for a way to eradiate the monkey men and take back the planet. As the years have gone by, the special effects have gotten better, and these monsters have become scarier.

There are many others I could mention, among them the Nimon, the Mara, Kroll, the Macra, the Tractators, and the Kandy Man, but there is another race that disguished themselves as particularly dangerous – the Zygons. These hideous sucker-skinned aliens, who return in the aforementioned “The Day of The Doctor,” are the shape-shifting survivors of a destroyed planet who dwelt beneath Loch Ness for centuries. Although fan favorites, and appearing in various other media, The Doctor has only encountered the Zygons once on television.

They Might Look Human…

Some of The Doctor’s adversaries don’t look scary at all, they look like just folks, until of course they speak or you see them in action. Chief among these human looking enemies might well be his own people, the Time Lords themselves. Evil power hungry Gallifreyan human monsters, like The Rani, The Meddling Monk, Borusa, Morbius, and even Rassilon himself, have all stood against The Doctor.

The most evil of Time Lords however, is The Master, The Doctor’s opposite number and perhaps his most dangerous adversary and archenemy. Driven insane by the time vortex on Gallifrey he seeks only to make the drumming of time itself stop, and to kill The Doctor. And as if all those other Time Lords weren’t bad enough, there have even been evil dopplegangers of The Doctor himself like Salamander, The Dream Lord, and The Valeyard who have opposed them.

In the new series, The Doctor faced foes so fearsome he was forced to go into hiding, and make himself forget who he was. These monsters who looked like humans were called the Family of Blood. Wearing the forms of humans, these gaseous aliens with the power to possess other living beings nearly succeeded in destroying our hero.

The New Horrors

When “Doctor Who” was revived for the twenty-first century in 2005, new monsters were created to make the show fresh. Many were created by showrunner Russell T. Davies, but the more frightening examples came from the mind of current executive producer Steven Moffat. From the horrific giant female centaur-spider that was the Empress of the Racnoss to the almost comedic belching and farting Slitheen who wore human skins like clothes, the new era had more than its share of terrors.

One of the most frightening monsters The Doctor ever faced appeared in the episode “Midnight,” or rather it didn’t. We don’t actually see it. In one of the most intense forty-five minutes in genre television, The Doctor and a handful of passengers are trapped in a shuttle with an entity that can possess them one at a time and only communicates by repeating what everyone else says. I get chills just thinking about that one.

During Davies’ run, we also saw The Doctor come face to face with The Devil, but it was in Moffat’s writing debut, “The Empty Child,” that many of us got the most chills behind the sofa. In the award-winning episode, and its conclusion, The Doctor and friends are subjected to children in gas masks walking through Blitz era London saying the haunting words, “Are you my mummy?” So scary, just typing the words creeps me out.

The Worst of the Worst

The Silence are hideous monsters in suits with faces that resemble “The Scream” by Scandinavian artist Edvard Munch. These creatures are depicted as having manipulated the human race throughout history, and have one particular psychological affect – you can only see them while directly viewing them, once they are out of your sight, you forget that they ever existed. This leads to the rather startling visual of “Doctor Who” characters marking themselves to prove they had seen a Silent. This Steven Moffat horror however takes a back seat to his most terrifying Who monster – the Weeping Angels.

The Weeping Angels take a page from the Autons as in they are something ordinary that perhaps we might not normally be afraid of. Whereas the Autons bring shop mannequins to horrific life, the Weeping Angels are statues. But not just any statues, these are living statues, who only move when you are not looking at them, so as The Doctor says in their first appearance, “Don’t blink!”

Most of the time the Angels have the form of angel statues, sometimes hiding their eyes with their hands, sometimes crying, but always, once discovered, bearing fangs and forming their hands in grasping claws in rage. On the level of monsters to make one hide behind a couch, these are the worst, especially if there are statues near where you live, in your yard, or in your house. You will never look at them the same again!

Happy Halloween!

Halloween: The Complete Collection

This week sees the release of the massive 15-disc Halloween: The Complete Collection Blu-ray set, compiling every film in the franchise, including the Rob Zombie remakes. The folks at Anchor Bay set over a set for perusal, so I thought a little unboxing video would be fun. You can check out the video below.

You can order the set from Amazon right here.

The Biff Bam Pop! Podcast Network presents Gobbledygeek featuring hosts Paul Smith and AJ Wiley and focusing on a variety of entertainment subjects, with our hosts and special guests frequently discussing films, comics, and television.

This week, the Gobbledygeek crew are joined by Biff Bam Poppers K. Dale Koontz and Ensley F. Guffey of The Ten Percent to discuss The Babadook for… Gobbledyween. See and hear more after the jump.

Episode 251 of Gobbledygeek is described here: “If it’s in a word or it’s in a look, you can’t get rid of… Gobbledyween. Why would you want to? Especially when Paul and AJ are joined by such enlightening guests as K. Dale Koontz and Ensley F. Guffey, authors of Wanna Cook? The Complete, Unofficial Companion to Breaking Bad. Dale and Ensley help the boys crack open Jennifer Kent’s feature debut The Babadook, which has been called one of the most terrifying films ever made. The gang discusses the expectations that kind of praise sets up, how Kent uses the horror genre to explore depression and grief, the incredible acting of Essie Davis and Noah Wiseman, and, uh, Tarkovsky for some reason.” All this and more can be found right here.

Gobbledygeek episode 251, “Dooks-a-Million (featuring Ensley F. Guffey and K. Dale Koontz),” is available for listening or download right here, and on iTunes here.

Gobbledygeek can be found on Facebook, on Twitter, and at their own website.

Each week, one of Biff Bam Pop’s illustrious writers will delve into one of their favorite things. Perhaps it’s a movie or album they’ve carried with them for years. Maybe it’s something new that moved them and they think might move you too. Each week, a new subject, a new voice writing on… something they love.

Few horror films can be considered classics. John Carpenter’s Halloween is one of them. It has a scary boogeyman, a haunting score, and tells a simple tale that manages to be chilling without blood, gore, or CGI. Let’s examine this holiday masterpiece.

John Carpenter’s story begins with young Michael Myers. Dressed in a clown suit, kitchen knife in hand, he climbs the stairs to his sister Judith’s room. She is seated at her vanity as her little brother stabs her to death. Their parents arrive home to find their son on the front lawn in his costume, still clutching the murder weapon.

Fast forward years later. That little boy now calls a mental hospital home, and he hasn’t spoken since the night he murdered his sister.

Much to his doctor’s dismay, Myers escapes from the institution. Dr. Sam Loomis believes his patient will return to the area he is most familiar, the scene of his crime, Haddonfield, Illinois. The search is on to find the killer before the body count rises.

The fictional Haddonfield in the movie gets its name from the real Haddonfield, New Jersey. Debra Hill co-wrote the screenplay for the film, and she was from the quaint town with the tree-lined streets. I drive through Haddonfield on my way to work, a bit giddy from the horror history in my area, any house having the potential to be the Myers house.

Halloween’s opening scenes are unusual in that they feature the point of view of the villain. In fact, it’s Debra Hill’s hand that is seen reaching for the kitchen knife. Once the mask is put in place, the killer’s breathing becomes audible, adding to the menace.

The Michael Myers character is the boogeyman. Killers who stalk their victims without a sound are terrifying. The emotionless mask is recognizable immediately to horror fans. Carpenter chose a William Shatner mask, painted it white, teased the hair, and enlarged the eyeholes. This is the common story behind Michael Myers’s trademark look.

Myers uses body language to compensate for his lack of expression. When the knife is plunged into Bob, leaving him a fixture of the door, the killer tilts his head at his victim, appearing to admire his handiwork. He almost looks amazed at his gross accomplishment.

One of my favorite scenes is when Laurie is catching her breath after a recent encounter with Myers. You can’t keep a good madman down, and when the audience thinks the killer may be defeated, he rallies. Myers is shown laying on the floor, only to sit up straight at the waist, and turn his head in the direction of the babysitter. The movement is so fluid, so awesome.

As popular as the Donald Pleasance character of Dr. Loomis is, I find him overdramatic and annoying. The doctor, hot on the trail of his charge, comes off a bit over the top in the delivery of some of his lines. “The evil is gone from here!” I like Dr. Loomis, but I laugh at some of his cheesiness. He’s also fond of launching into speeches. You have to appreciate his intensity. He’s still a great character.

Sam Loomis does have some great lines. Some other favorites are “A road block wouldn’t stop a five year old,” and “It’ll be your funeral.”

Other characters have quotable lines as well. Annie’s father, Sheriff Brackett, has one of the best, “It’s Halloween, everyone is entitled to one good scare.” His daughter Annie says, “Hey jerk, speed kills” as a car drives past the three girls. The irony is that the vehicle is doing anything but going fast down the residential street.

There are three friends who are stalked by Myers. First is bookish Laurie Strode, played by then newcomer Jamie Lee Curtis, who went on to scream queen status, no doubt in part due to this film. Curtis currently appears in “Scream Queens,” a television show on FOX. In Halloween, she babysits Tommy Doyle.

Next is Annie Brackett (Nancy Loomis), sarcastic and a bit rough around the edges. She’s more interested in her boyfriend Paul than her charge for the evening, Lindsey Wallace. In fact, she drops off Lindsey to Laurie, leaving “the old girl scout” to watch two children so she can meet Paul.

The third friend is cheerleader Lynda (P.J. Soles). She and boyfriend Bob go to visit Annie, only to discover that she went to see Paul, leaving Linsdey with Laurie. The couple decide to stay at the now empty Wallace house.

The plot is simple. An escaped killer from a mental hospital stalks young people on Halloween night. It’s not so strange an idea that it couldn’t happen, and the characters resemble people that could live anywhere.

Did you know that this movie originally did not take place on Halloween? An early title was ‘The Babysitter Murders’ before the film was changed to take place on the creepiest of holidays and given a new title.

One thing that has always perplexed me is why Michael Myers sometimes is referred to as The Shape? I have a shirt with the killer’s image with the play on words, “Halloween The Shape of Things to Come.” I haven’t found a definitive explanation for it.

Michael Myers has his own theme song, created by director John Carpenter. It makes a great ringtone for October. Halloween has one of the scariest soundtracks, and it adds to the overall feel of the film. In fact, this movie wasn’t considered scary by test audiences until after the music was added.

This film delivers the scares with minimal blood and no gore. It was made long before the invention of CGI, and it’s suspenseful and creepy without fancy special effects. Sometimes less is more when it comes to horror.

Halloween is a classic horror film, almost required viewing during the month of October. Some theaters will show it on the big screen close to the holiday. If you have the chance to see it that way, don’t pass on the opportunity. It’s so much better on a large screen, and you tend to notice things that you hadn’t before from just watching it at home. The movie never gets old, even if it is approaching its 40^th anniversary. It is perfection. Happy Halloween!

Many people associate Halloween with horror movies, but what about music? Sure, Disney’s Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House album is fun, but you can’t dance to it at a party.

Back in the days of LiveJournal, one of my online pals (a.k.a. MC 5 Hour Boner) sent me a CD featuring seven hours of Halloween-themed MP3s. Some of the tracks were only loosely connected to Halloween (such as Sparks’ “Eaten By the Monster of Love”) while others were Halloween party time personified (like Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”).

Over the past 15 years, I’ve taken my faves from that original track list and added my own selections. I created a short version of the mix that I burned on CD for friends and family, but the advent of the iPod meant that I could let my macabre mix-making skills run as wild as the Walkers on a certain cable television show.

Some songs have stayed (I have MC 5 Hour Boner to thank for introducing me to the wonders of The Misfits) while others have come and gone (that atmospheric haunted house CD I’d included at one point was fun but went on for way too long and was a bit of a party downer).

The current iteration of the mix spans a little over four and a half hours and includes 77 tracks. There’s a wide variety: classic horror movie music, spooky film scores, old-school Goth, weirdo industrial/experimental stuff, Disney tunes, death rock, campy rockabilly tracks, creepy covers, punk rock, post-punk, pop tunes, and witch house, plus a couple of fun spoken word bits from Elvira, Mistress of the Dark.

I’ve provided YouTube links where available. Otherwise, many of these tracks can probably be found on Spotify, iTunes, or Halloween mix CDs, so happy haunting, I mean, hunting!

1. Foetus Interruptus, “Asbestos”
2. “Friday The 13th Part 2 Theme”
3. Wojciech Kilar, “The Hunters Prelude” (Bram Stoker’s Dracula)
4. John Carpenter, “Theme from Halloween“
5. Goblin, “Suspiria”
6. Umberto, “Temple Room”
7. Foetus, “Lilith”
8. Bernard Herrmann, “Theme from Psycho“
9. Hans Zimmer & James Newton Howard, “Always A Catch” (The Dark Knight)
10. COIL, “The Pope Held Upside Down”
11. Siouxsie & The Banshees, “Spellbound”
12. Bauhaus, “The Sanity Assassin”
13. Tones On Tail, “Christian Says”
14. The Ghastly Ones, “Attack of Robot Atomico”
15. The Subsonics, “Frankenstein”
16. The Cramps, “I Was A Teenage Werewolf”
17. The Rocky Horror Picture Show Soundtrack, “Science Fiction/Double Feature”
18. Elvira, “Introduction”
19. Michael Jackson, “Thriller”
20. Bobby “Boris” Pickett, “Monster Mash”
21. John Buzon Trio, “Mr. Ghost Goes to Town”
22. Disney, “Grim Grinning Ghosts”
23. The Five Blobs, “The Blob”
24. Victor Mizzy, “The Addams Family: Main Theme”
25. Screamin Jay Hawkins, “Little Demon”
26. Bobby “Boris” Pickett, “The Werewolf Watusi”
27. Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs, “Haunted House”
28. Los Straitjackets, “The Munsters Theme”
29. The Bomboras, “A Fistful of Terror”
30. The Woggles, “Zombie Stomp”
31. The Revillos, “She’s Fallen in Love With a Monster Man”
32. The Ramones, “Texas Chainsaw Massacre”
33. Sparks, “Eaten by the Monster of Love”
34. The Swingin’ Neckbreakers, “No Costume, No Candy”
35. The Misfits, “Skulls”
36. 45 Grave, “Partytime (Zombie Version)” (Return Of The Living Dead)
37. The Damned, “Grimly Fiendish”
38. Bobby “Boris” Pickett, “The Monster Swim”
39. Elvira, “Outro”
40. The Misfits, “Last Caress”
41. Dead Kennedys, “Holiday in Cambodia”
42. The Beatles, “Helter Skelter”
43. Foetus, “Baphomet”
44. Siouxsie & The Banshees, “Into The Light”
45. John Murphy, “In The House In A Heartbeat” (28 Days Later)
46. Ghost, “Nocturnal Me”
47. Severed Heads, “Godsong”
48. Goblin, “Witch”
49. COIL, “Homage To Sewage”
50. Demdike Stare, “Hashshashin Chant”
51. Hans Zimmer & James Newton Howard, “Watch The World Burn” (The Dark Knight)
52. Tones On Tail, “Burning Skies”
53. Deadbolt, “Psychic Voodoo Doll”
54. The Three Suns, “Haunted Guitar”
55. The Cramps, “Human Fly”
56. Southern Culture on the Skids, “Werewolf”
57. The Ghastly Ones, “The Ghastly Stomp (Everybody’s Doin’)”
58. Rocket from the Crypt, “I Drink Blood”
59. Danzig, “Mother”
60. Dead Kennedys, “Halloween”
61. The Ramones, “Pet Sematary”
62. David Bowie, “Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)”
63. Japan, “Halloween”
64. Severed Heads, “Dead Eyes Opened”
65. Steve Moore, “Intro and Credits” (Cub)
66. Victrola, “Maritime Tatami”
67. Q Lazarus, “Goodbye Horses”
68. Electric Six, “White Eyes”
69. Ladytron, “Evil”
70. Fabio Frizzi, “Theme from Zombi 2“
71. PowwowW, “Secret Black”
72. DKMD, “Mirrorball Massacre”
73. Dali’s Car, “Cornwall Stone”
74. Tones On Tail, “Twist”
75. Clint Ruin and Lydia Lunch, “Don’t Fear the Reaper”
76. The Misfits, “Die, Die My Darling”
77. Siouxsie & The Banshees, “Halloween”

I have a long history with The Rocky Horror Picture Show, but not as long as some folks my age. And as loyal and passionate as I am about the original, I had to watch and/or hate-watch the Fox TV remake last night. Meet me after a jump to the left for my thoughts.

Rocky Virgin

My first memories of Rocky are of the ads on the movie pages in the newspaper when it was first released. I remember the catchphrase, “A Different Set of Jaws,” a play on the shark blockbuster of the time.  It was one of the first movies playing constantly on cable, which I didn’t have but read of in TV Guide. But I never saw it.

My first real encounter with the film was lying to a girl I met at the skating rink. She was part of a shadow cast telling me about the part she played. I must have been pitiful, pretending to know the character who tap danced during “Time Warp” even though I had no idea.  At that point I had only heard the song on Dr. Demento and that was it.  She wasn’t fooled, and there was no second date. I tried. I eventually saw the film in college, and was much better lying to them that I wasn’t a virgin.

Partic-i-pation

Years later I began to frequent the late Harwan Theatre to see the Transducer Players perform to the film. It was there I proposed to The Bride (yes, during “Damn It, Janet”), and later for a year or so after that performed with the Transducers. With them, and two or three other later casts, I played Brad, Eddie, Dr. Scott, the Criminologist, Rocky, Transylvanians, and Ralph among others.

And that’s what makes Rocky special, you can be part of the film, whether it’s on stage, just in front of a screen, or merely sitting in the audience yelling call back lines. This is more than a movie, it’s an experience, an interactive one that’s different every time you attend or just see it. More than the recent controversy over the Ghostbusters remake, that’s what makes Rocky sacred, and a film that shouldn’t be remade. Nevertheless I watched the new version, and if I’m honest, it wasn’t bad – it wasn’t great, but it wasn’t bad.

Let’s Do the Time Warp Again

A remake of The Rocky Horror Picture Show has been rumored for years, decades even, and considering that it was made 40-plus years ago, it is ripe for remake, no matter how anyone feels about it. Let’s face it, we live in an age when Spider-Man and Batman are rebooted and remade every five years or so. Perhaps it’s about time for a new Rocky Horror; maybe it’s time to give a new generation its turn. After all, a new version does not negate the original, we will always have the real film we all love.

The Fox TV version this year is subtitled Let’s Do the Time Warp Again, with the acknowledgement that it is both a remake and an homage, right there in the title. This one, while keeping much of the music and script by the legendary creator Richard O’Brien, changes a lot up even as it maintains quite a bit of the original. The genius behind the High School Musical movies, as well as one of the worst music videos ever, Kenny Ortega, directed it, for better or worse.

The Cast

I have to admit, that other than Laverne Cox as Dr. Frank-N-Furter, from Orange Is the New Black; Adam Lambert as Eddie, one of the few American Idol contestants to hold my interest after leaving the show; and Reeve Carney as Riff-Raff, who was Spider-Man on Broadway and Dorian Gray on Penny Dreadful; I hadn’t heard of most of the rest of the cast. I was thrilled to see Tim Curry, no matter how he was struggling with the aftermath of his stroke, as the Crim/Narrator, and Ben Vereen as Dr. Scott was a surprise, even if he had little to do.

Those new to me, like Victoria Justice, did justice to their roles. She was an adequate Janet, which was what many of these newbies were, adequate. I was surprised by the minimizing of Magenta’s role, and then I realized that it hadn’t changed, Patricia Quinn just brought more energy and charisma to the role. Really, only Broadway star Annaleigh Ashford (wow, what a dead ringer for Courtney Love) as Columbia and singer/songwriter Ivy Levan as Trixie stood out for me.

Laverne Cox as Frank

We’ve covered some of the good, some of the bad, and now, it’s time for the ugly. Wow, Laverne Cox was terrible, and what was that accent?? Now don’t get me wrong, she was dazzling visually, and I loved the costumes and costume changes (even the ones that didn’t make sense). Her singing and dancing were superb, and her facial expressions were on target, perhaps in places, better than Tim Curry – she portrayed menace well. But her acting… was the worst, and hated her on screen when she wasn’t singing.

I can’t imagine what they were thinking. She’s great on Orange Is the New Black so I have to lay this at the director’s feet. When I’d heard she was cast, I was thrilled, I thought it was inspired, I thought it was brilliant, and I thought it was perfect. It was none of those things. Even her Tina Turner impression during “Wild and Untamed Thing” fell flat for me, no matter how good she looked. Laverne Cox was the worst part of this. Even sadder than seeing Tim Curry in such a state, the poor man.

The Doing

I tried to watch with an open mind, unlike many Rocky fans who planned to hate-watch it if at all. The Bride sat next to me, subconsciously saying audience lines, as we watched, bearing witness to how close this was to the original – the lines still worked, in both context and timing, for the most part. I liked the castle/theater overlay, which gave a new and interesting context to the movie within a movie about movies. During the first two songs, the remake began to diverge from the original subtly, and by the time they got to the “Time Warp,” it had become its own thing.

At some point during “Time Warp,” I stopped comparing, I stopped thinking about the original, and was pulled into this version. By the time Columbia showed up, and especially Frank, I was into this movie and its world and waiting to see what it offered next. The only times I mentally referenced the original was to wonder, how will they do this? I liked the addition of a band, and enjoyed the new takes on “Time Warp,” “Sweet Transvestite,” and “Rose Tint My World” (even though the latter lost its sinister edge). I would have preferred a more rock score, but enjoyed the doo-wop take.

Conclusion

One thing I did not like was the removal of the iconography of Rocky Horror. Where were the boas, the fishnets, the garters, and bustiers? Without them, this wasn’t Rocky in a way that was soulless. I understand taking the 8 PM audience into account, and that’s why I’m not complaining about the missing nudity and the F word, but Rocky without fishnets, well, it just isn’t Rocky.

Should you see The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let’s Do the Time Warp Again? I would say yes. It’s good for the newbies, good for the oldies, even if for a laugh, or even to get more moves for your Transylvanians to do in shadow casts. I did dig some of the new dance moves for a few songs, even the “Time Warp.” It’s not blasphemy, it’s just new. Remember, no one can take the original from us, so why not give the new one a chance? It’s not great, but it’s not bad.

Horror movies are the name of the game for many during this season, but not so much for me. In fact, since July, the name of the game for me is Pokémon GO. “Yes, I’m one of those,” I have answered many an exasperated questioner. Love it, hate it, or never played it, and despite the drop-off in players since the initial craze, millions of people are in hot pursuit of cute creatures in augmented reality. October 26^th saw the release of the Halloween update of Pokémon GO, and there will be special treats in the game through November 1^st. I tested out the Halloween Pokémon experience Wednesday night on South Street in Philadelphia.

Poké Balls for capturing the little monsters and other items you’ll need on your journey are found at PokéStops, which can be located just about anywhere from businesses to post offices, but many are found at historical buildings, art installations, and other significant landmarks. Philadelphia has plenty of those, so I was in luck for stocking up. With each Pokémon capture, you usually get three candies for that Pokémon type, and 100 Stardust, which go toward either evolving or powering up your Pokémon for battle.

Opening up the app outside the Tattooed Mom, one of my favorite spots in the city, revealed there was a Pokémon gym right at that location, and a bonanza of PokéStops to visit all along the street and in the immediate area. I decided not to send my Vaporeon, Jolteon, or Scyther into battle. I was anxious to set out to catch some spooky critters, as well as to put in some walking distance. One of the things I like most about the game is that Pokémon GO encourages activity, and I love to walk and run. I always have one or more Pokémon eggs incubating, ready to hatch at the 2k, 5k, or 10k marks. Plus as I have been most interested in evolving and powering up Eevees, I had chosen an Eevee to “walk” with me. Usually only one candy is earned every 5k for Eevee, but for Halloween, candy for your buddy comes in four times as fast.

Almost immediately, the ghostly Pokémon began to show up. Ghastly was by far the most prolific where I was. I already had Haunter, the evolved Ghastly, but was happy to keep the Ghastlies and the double candy rewards – six per catch – coming in. I was on a mission to level up if I could, so the extras were a real boon.

I headed down South Street past the Theatre of Living Arts where people were gathered outside for a big show. I avoided the line as not to miss a catch while negotiating a crowd. I snagged a couple of Cubones and a mesmerizing Drowzee. A Pidgey hatched out of a 2k egg along the way, which was funny because the usual plethora of Pidgeys and Rattatas were otherwise nowhere to be found. I wondered why I didn’t see a Zubat- usually fairly ubiquitous in the game and a no-brainer for the Halloween vibe. I admit I’m not the best at catching them with their erratic flying motion, so I didn’t particularly mind their absence.

However, I did mind the glitches. I’d heard tell of glitches for some in past versions, but so far those had been minimal for me. That wasn’t the case on this trip, where on several occasions the screen froze just as a catch was in progress. The Poké Ball hovered eerily on the screen. In most cases the animation began moving again and the Pokémon was caught. In two cases I had to reboot. I lost one Meowth that way which was definitely annoying, but thankfully they were out in force. A nice touch was that some of the PokéStops as I made my way down toward Front Street were well in keeping with the spirit of the season, like the Lady of Death sculpture. I left South Street and hit some more stops throughout the area.

Once home, I took stock of the trip. I had enough Ghastly candies to evolve two Haunters and I evolved a Meowth into Persian, a new one to add to my Pokédex. I already had a plethora of Pidgeys; I traded some of those in to the Professor and instead of the usual one candy each, received two. I evolved four Pidgeys and realized my goal of finally reaching Level 22. Despite the glitches, it was a productive outing. Lastly, I decided to temporarily trade in my Eevee buddy for the lowly Magikarp. Magikarp is not much to look at, but with 400 candies – a ridiculous amount! – its evolved form is the awesome and powerful water dragon, Gyarados. I’ve got 316 Magikarp candies left to go, so I figured why not rack some up 4 per kilometer while I can.

Despite the technical issues, I recommend checking out Pokémon GO for Halloween. It worked better for me the next day, and here’s hoping Niantic will work out the problems. If you’re new to the game, it is something fun and seasonal to do outside. If you already “gotta catch ‘em all,” it’s a boost and a welcome variation. Have fun and Happy Halloween!

Sometimes movies just come around and hit you in that sweet spot – that was the case with The Houses October Built and its sequel. To be honest, the first one, released back in 2014, absolutely slipped past me, but when I received an email about the sequel and whether I’d be interested in talking to any of the principles involved, and I went back and watched the original.

I loved it. The Houses October Built is a found footage/documentary style story about a group of friends looking for the most extreme haunt in America (haunts is the vernacular for haunted house attractions). Legendary among fans is The Blue Skeleton, which as the film shares, is supposed to be the most extreme of the extreme. Which means, of course, that our leads wind up facing off against what The Blue Skeleton has to offer.

The Houses October Built 2 picks up immediately following the first film, and serves as a chapter two rather than a sequel or follow-up. Both films give audiences a look into what goes into making a great haunt, as the ones depicting are the real deal. They also feature believeable performances from everyone involved, and make a strong case for the ongoing use of found footage in horror films, especially when its done right.

On that note, here is my email interview with series director/co-writer/actor Bobby Roe and co-writer/actor Zack Andrews. Be warned – there are spoilers contained for the first film here:

Andy Burns: Congrats on a great new franchise. I love what you guys have created with The Houses October Built. How did you two come up with the concept?

Zack Andrews:  Thank you very much.  We wanted to take a setting that we loved, Halloween haunted houses, and make a film around them that felt unique and not just the same old thing that has run the genre stale.  We knew we had an audience: over 35 million people a year go to these attractions and Americans spend over 8 billion dollars on Halloween every year.  So it was about finding a narrative that would allow us to shoot on real sets using real scare actors in order to take the audience on a genuine Halloween adventure.

Andy Burns: For those of that don’t know (including me), how did you two meet in the first place?

Bobby Roe: AP English. We grew up in the same town playing basketball and both loved movies. We’ve known each other for 25 years.  And actually, in high school in October, we used to love going to a horror movie and then hitting up one of our local haunted houses.

Andy Burns: I think we all know that at this time in the horror genre, found footage/documentary style films are really hit and miss. I’m happy to say you nailed the genre in my mind. Did you have any concerns with the first film wading into those waters?

Bobby Roe: We always have concerns because we try to be ahead of the curve.  Before Paranormal Activity, living in our shared one bedroom apartment, we had The Houses October Built Part 1.0 already on paper…but to have something become tangible takes years of hard work, so by the time you saw the 2014 version (no one really saw the 2011 version)…found footage had been over-saturated.  So with Part 2, we wanted to inject life with a little different and more cinematic feel…but still following the rules.

Andy Burns: One of the things I loved about both films was how you managed to meld a world of fictional storytelling with a look at the real life world of haunted attractions/extreme haunts. When you visited the various haunts in both films, was it hard to get access? Were the owners/participants wary of outsiders? If so, how did you convince them to let you see behind the curtain, as it were?

Zack Andrews: I hope, and we think, the owners know this will always be our love letter to Halloween and the Haunt Industry.  So far everyone has had open arms and in return I hope they thrive on the exposure we are fortunate enough to give them.  We see it as a win/win.  We make sure to thank and credit every haunt and many scare actors specifically that participate.  For Part 1 we made a map for viewers to follow along and go to every haunt in the movie.  We are going to do that again for Part 2.

Andy Burns: The first film ends on what I’m now calling a Twin Peaks Season 3 note – somewhat ambiguous and extremely compelling. There was the assumption that everyone was done for…but it wasn’t totally obvious. What led to that creative decision – was a sequel already in your heads?

Bobby Roe: The sequel will button up to the end of Part 1.  We also wanted both movies to be able to play back to back as one whole story.  As a kid, the first movie I can recall that did this was The Karate Kid 2.  That may be a strange reference for a horror film, but the idea that the sequel started right where we left Daniel LaRusso, exiting his victorious All Valley tournament blew my mind as a child.  So even though two years have passed in our world, we never missed a second of Daniel’s life.  I loved that.   So that’s what we did with Houses Part 2.

Andy Burns: How much time passed between the release of the first film and knowing there would be a second? And how quickly did you guys go about working on that second film? Were there holdover ideas you knew you wanted to explore?

Zack Andrews: Like Bobby was saying, we looked at the end of Part 1 as more of an intermission.  We had to have that movie end, but we always hoped we would be able to complete the story as we had planned it.  Fortunately, there was enough positive reception to the film that the studio wanted a sequel.  This isn’t a movie for everyone.  We know that.  But we love that so many fans say it’s one of their favorite horror movies and is in their Halloween rotation.  We don’t mind being polarizing, rather than everyone just say “it was OK.”

Andy Burns: What was the experience like on the second go around – how did things change making the sequel? Was it harder or easier to access to haunts? Were there new haunts you wanted to explore that opened up between the shooting of the two films?

Bobby Roe:  We still go to haunts, and they were very receptive once again, but we wanted to add more Halloween events to make the second film feel bigger and different.

Zack Andrews: We also needed to have a believable way to get Brandy back into the adventure.  We didn’t want to just show up and her say “okay.”  I think we made it organic and real and this allowed us to see some other experiences like a Zombie Pub Crawl and Zombie 5k that would warm Brandy up to the road trip.

Andy Burns How much room for improvisation was there on the second film – there’s a natural, unscripted feeling to the performances and the experiences in both films that I really appreciated. As creators, does the screenplay become a blue print with room for movement, or do you want things delivered pretty close to how you’ve written it?

Bobby Roe:  We want story to stay close to script.  But on live sets, dialogue can…and should… get a mind of it’s own.  That’s the only way to make these films feel natural. So it’s a credit to the actors for knowing what was needed, but rolling with the punches based on the actual experience.

Andy Burns: In all of your filming and research and experiences, I need to know – is there anything remotely close to a Blue Skeleton experience out there?

Bobby Roe: We all always wanted The Blue Skeleton to feel like an All-Star style group that was cherry picked from the best haunted houses all over the world.  Haunters are getting more and more creative every day…so I’m excited to see what comes this Halloween.

Andy Burns: The Houses October Built 2 is about to be released. What is next for you both? what are you working on, and could we see a third?

Zack Andrews: It’s always nice to have different films in different processes of the creative process. We have another horror franchise we want to start for the studio (RLJ) as well as finishing an 8-month rewrite on a project for the company that started The Walking Dead. We also think that the “entire” world of haunted houses needs to be explored…and hope that fans of this franchise continue to want to explore that with us.

Thanks to Bobby Roe and Zack Andrews for taking the time to talk to Biff Bam Pop! The Houses October Built 2 is out Friday, September 22nd. 

Chris Cavoretto a.k.a. Werewolves In Siberia has been steadily putting out high-quality, endlessly listenable, horror synth music for the last few years. He’s been able to keep things fresh and exciting within a seemingly limited medium.

In addition to new music, he has created Halloween mix tapes that he releases through his Bandcamp page each October as well as some fantastic covers of John Carpenter’s “Halloween theme” and The Misfits’ “Halloween” and “London Dungeon.”

The latest from Werewolves In Siberia, which goes live on Friday the 13th this October, is The Thing That Goes Bump In The Night, eight tracks to score the great horror film in your head. Like with preceding albums, listening to The Thing makes me thirsty to write the screenplay for whatever story is unfolding in my ears. I’ve left the album playing on a loop for hours and it’s still playing now.

Chris takes you by the hand and calmly, but forcibly, brings you through the door with the title track opener, filling you with tension and dread before shifting gears into violent exploitation territory with “Strange Visions.” “Day Dreaming” and “He Watches You While You Sleep” seem like companion pieces that call to mind something like Phantasm. One of my favorite tracks, “The Chase Is On,” instantly provide visions of someone running down a dark, empty street in Rome, pursued by a black gloved killer with a razor blade.

“Voices In The Wall” is a gorgeous, haunted, ambient track while “The Last Stand” is the sort of big, cinematic piece that really defines Werewolves In Siberia, communicating many different ideas, moods, or scenarios at once. “Home Again” closes the album. It’s the longest track, breaking the four-minute mark, with an insistent, thudding rhythm, that despite the hopeful title, doesn’t give you a sense of being safe at all. It’s like waking from a dream only to find yourself in a nightmare.

As a bonus, to be released on the same day, Chris will have two new covers available on his personal Bandcamp page; an acoustic cover of the Creedence Clearwater Revival classic “Bad Moon Rising” and the ’80s Phil Collins hit “In The Air Tonight,” which yeah, sounds like an odd choice, but man, it works.

Check out Werewolves In Siberia’s Bandcamp page HERE for a plethora of stellar synth rock.

The Halloween franchise is near and dear to my heart as Part 4 was just coming out at a time when I was jumping into horror with both feet. Michael was on the cover of Fangoria and I read my friend’s copy with much excitement. I was least familiar with Halloween since I’d only seen Part 2 on TV in pieces, but still I felt that The Return Of Michael Myers was a pretty big deal and I’d need to rent it the moment it hit my local video store. In the meantime, I had three other films to catch up on.

I feel like Halloween is a story you almost know even if you don’t. Its reach and influence are so thorough throughout pop culture you’re already familiar with the mute, unstoppable killing machine and the pretty, vulnerable, but wholly capable babysitter. I’m not here to talk about that today. I’m here to talk about the third film, the one that defied expectations and bombed because of it.

Halloween III; Season Of The Witch takes place outside of the Myers reality. In fact, Halloween is just a film inside of Season Of The Witch and that’s just the start of how far removed III is from II. Series creators/producers/writers John Carpenter and Debra Hill didn’t want to do another Myers story. Carpenter thought Halloween would have been better served with a completely different story for each sequel, independent of what came before. I think he was both right and wrong.

I love Season Of The Witch and always have, and would love to know what could have followed if it had been a success. At the same time, I wouldn’t want to give up parts 4 through 6. Unfortunately, fans overwhelmingly disagreed. It’s not Halloween without Michael, they’d say for years, practically forcing Myers to return and become a slave to the tropes he’d once innovated.

Season Of The Witch‘s reputation has done a 180 in the last decade, with more and more people coming to its defense and praising not only the excellent performances of Tom Atkins, Stacey Nelkin, and Dan O’Herlihy, but also the creepy and atmospheric direction by Tommy Lee Wallace. It’s a lean movie that covers a lot of ground across it’s 98-minute run time, but maintains a deliberate, slow-burn pace. It marries science fiction with pagan folk horror and seamlessly integrates creepy automatons, ancient rituals, and the threat of mass human sacrifice.

Tom Atkins plays Doctor Daniel Challis, a divorced, drunk doctor that stumbles into a weird conspiracy when a new patient is assassinated in his hospital and the killer then seemingly kills himself. The patient’s granddaughter, Ellie Grimbridge (Nelkin), comes to the hospital seeking answers and Challis can’t help but get involved; after all, the murder happened on his watch. Their investigation takes them to a small, creepy California town and toy factory that manufactures Halloween masks with a dark secret.

Season Of The Witch isn’t without its fair share of problems. There are plot holes and leaps of logic, to be sure, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that it has a fairly high concept for a horror film. There are huge stakes if Challis fails to solve the mystery and stop what comes next. There are also great performances, pretty decent kills, and a scope that the other Halloween films (save for Part 6 The Producer’s Cut) lack.

If it had been released as simply Season Of The Witch with no ties to Halloween I believe the film would have fared much better. Even in 1982 when a lot of the slasher tropes were still being filled out, people were generally resistant to such a radical departure. At this point though, I think Carpenter, Wallace, the producers, cast, and crew have started to be vindicated while Season Of the Witch becomes more widely regarded as the holiday classic it always was.

25 more days till Halloween, Halloween, 25 more days till Halloween… Silver Shamrock!

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Riverdale can be a pretty scary place.

Well, maybe it’s just growing up that can be scary at times.

Depending upon what you’re reading (or watching these days!) and between boyfriends and girlfriends, bullies and gossipers, teachers and principals, moms and dads, and all sorts of mischief by friends – Riverdale, home to Archie and his pals, can be a pretty scary place (especially in October!)…but it’s also a pretty interesting and fun place to visit alongside your best fictional pals!

The adventures of Archie, Betty, Veronica, Jughead and all the others continue in amazing popularity with kids and adults – over seventy five years after they first saw publication, way back in 1941!

And, keeping up with trends and interests of a twenty-first century fan-base, Archie, like us at Biff Bam Pop!, loves the Halloween season.

Continuing with our month-long 31 Days of Horror theme, that’s why this particular column is focusing on Archie Comics today…and their release of the Archie Halloween Spectacular #1!

Archie Halloween Spectacular #1

Written By: Alex Simmons, Paul Kupperberg & Dexter Taylor

Illustrated By: Pat & Tim Kennedy, Jim Amash, Jack Morelli & many others

Published By: Archie Comics

At 24-pages long, the Archie Halloween Spectacular (wouldn’t it have been more fun to call it the “Spooktacular” or is that just too obvious a pun? Scaretacular, then? No?), out at your local comic book shop, only costs $2.99. That’s a pretty good price point for multiple stories of decidedly warped, but always humorous, fun.

Here, Archie and his pals star in multiple tales of Halloween-themed hijinx, including “Scary, Scary, Doooo!” and “Giving Up the Ghost”, written and drawn by a whole haunted house of Archie talent.

The Archie Halloween Spectacular #1 is great comic book fun for any fan of Archie Comics – regardless of age. Pick it up, read it, and hand it over to your kid for their own Halloween amusement. Use it as a stuffer for Trick-Or-Treat bags and gifts – it’s a great way to get into the spirit of the season!

But that’s not the only October-themed release from Archie Comics this year!

As a double fun pick-up, you can grab the Betty and Veronica Halloween Annual #237, also out today! Written and illustrated by Archie stalwart, Dan Parent, this comic book is a hefty 192 pages at $5.99 and contains numerous short stories including “The Many Loves of Archie Andrews” and “Lodge of Terror”!

 Visit Riverdale…for a scary fun treat!

Make the Wednesday run to your local comic book shop and pick up the Archie Halloween Spectacular #1 and the Betty and Veronica Halloween Annual #237 and celebrate October and Halloween like they should: with lots of spooky-themed fun!

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The fall season.

It is a time when the leaves turn shades of red and yellow and brown, then die and pile forlornly on the ground below. It is a time when the wind blows sharply stronger while the sky turns a gray overcast. It is a time when the days become shorter and the nights become longer and malevolent shadows seem to lurk around every corner.

Every day of October, and especially the last day of the month, deserves a dose of classic horror! Whether you’re a fan of film, television, art, music, books, or comic books, there’s something for everyone’s thirst for the darker elements of pop culture mythology this time of year.

During the early part of the 1970’s, comic book publishers pushed and pulled and railed against the yoke of the Comics Code Authority – and horror-themed comics were on the front lines of that war, growing increasingly popular by readers.

With Tomb of Dracula, originally published in 1972, Marvel Comics brought horror to the masses! Drawing upon Bram Stoker’s classic character, here was a comic book version of Dracula like no other: creatively cinematic in scope, dreamily horrific in the telling, Dracula was an antagonistic and charismatic title character that a reader could both fear and root for!

And now, Marvel Comics publishes those classic tales again in a new paperback volume called, appropriately enough, Tomb Of Dracula: The Complete Collection Vol. 1!

This is not the first time the writers of Biff Bam Pop! have chronicled their love for the Tomb Of Dracula series.

Staple contributor and BBP! editor, Glenn Walker, gave a wonderful historic account of the Tomb Of Dracula series back in 2012. Appropriately, it, too, was published during that year’s sequence of 31 Days Of Horror pieces! You can read it here.

BBP! contributor ,Jason Shayer got in on the horror act that same year, with another historical  look at Tomb of Dracula in the Tales From The Longbox column. Along with the series’ historical relevance, there’s some interesting trivia in that particular piece by Shayer, which you can read right here.

On a personal note, I’ve purchased and read the collected three hardcover volumes of the Tomb Of Dracula Omnibus, published by Marvel Comics from 2008 through 2010. They are weighty tomes, indeed, each as heavy as a coffin filled to the brim with unconsecrated earth, with each book containing nearly 1000 pages of comic book brilliance (and horror). Originally, they could each be purchased for approximately $100, but the first volume, now in scarce supply, can fetch upwards of $500, with some sellers asking for exorbitant prices as high as $3500!

That’s absolutely ridiculous, maddening even, if you’re in the market for your very own Omnibus copy! It, does, however, make the great series virtually unobtainable to most people – and this is a series meant to be enjoyed, much like Dracula himself, for countless generations!

But as Dracula tells those attempting to put a stake in his dead heart in the first issue of the Tomb of Dracula series: “I promise you, foul daylighter…Dracula is not so easily dispatched…for long.”

And this week, we get a new softcover trade paperback version of Tomb of Dracula: the Complete Collection Vol. 1 at the much more affordable price of approximately $25.

Here again is the delicious tale of Dracula, hunted by those who would see him dead in a more <ah-hem> permanent fashion, including: Frank Drake, Dracula’s living descendant, and the vampire hunters Rachel Van Helsing and Quincy Harker. And of course, there’s the incessant and deadly vampire hunter, Blade, who is after Dracula as well.

Tomb of Dracula: the Complete Collection Vol. 1 is written by industry luminaries such as Gerry Conway, Archie Goodwin, Gardner Fox and Marv Wolfman, and cinematically illustrated by the atmospheric pencil work of the legendary Gene Colan. Joining Colan are the big names of Alan Weiss, Rich Buckler and Neal Adams! It’s truly a who’s who of illustrative talent that graces the 512 pages of this first volume of blood suckers, monsters, hell-crawlers, wizards, voodoo queens and gargoyles!

Treat yourself to a fabulous scare this Halloween season – pick up and read Tomb of Dracula: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 by candlelight, with the cold October wind blowing through leafless limbs, as they restlessly tap against your bedroom window!

It’s the perfect setting for such a perfect read!

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I enjoy amusement parks. Being more of a dedicated New Jersey beach comber, however, it is easy for the whole season to slip by without my ever getting around to heading to Great Adventure or the quaint and homey Clementon Park. Except for a short day trip to Point Pleasant, it seemed that missing out on amusement park fun was inevitable again this year. Then I got a very cool invitation. An old friend invited me down to Virginia to join her for a day at Kings Dominion.

We spent our daytime hours at Kings Dominion checking out more than a few of its over 60 attractions – I decided to sit out some of the more extreme roller coasters like The Anaconda and The Intimidator. Those were among my friends’ favorites, though I was more a fan of the gentler coaster, The Avalanche, along with the old school bumper cars, the view from the Ferris wheel, and visiting the PokéStops all over the park.

But it was in the evening that the real fun started. At 7 PM, fog began to rise from the ground. We noticed people gathering in groups to witness the entrance of another type of Kings Dominion visitor – It was time for the ghouls’ grand entrance. Before we knew it, the crowds were infiltrated with the undead, bizarre-faced creatures in tattered attire, and all manner of monsters.

Aside from never knowing when a freaky being is going to pop out and scream in your general direction, Halloween Haunt boasts eight mazes, five scare zones, plus haunted rides and Halloween-themed shows. Blood on the Bayou had us on edge in the best of ways as we wove through the old New Orleans voodoo mansion, complete with scenes of mock murder and sinister magic. I had as much fun trying to stare down and weird out the weirdos as I had being startled by them. One of my favorite things about haunted houses is being in the midst of other people’s reactions. A nervous kid shouting out to his friend, “Stay with me, bro!” in the maze confusion was a memorable moment.

We happened upon a witches’ dance, though it was hard to see through the group of onlookers that had gathered around. Later, we caught the performance of a New Orleans funeral band giving a lively performance of “When the Saints Go Marching In.”

The little kids’ area, Planet Snoopy, super cute by day, morphed into the sinister Feary Tales. The transformation made for one of the creepiest areas, as distorted music box tunes played familiar nursery rhymes. Kings Dominion advises parental discretion for these evenings from late September through October, which may be too much for most young children. The very young and the timid may prefer to opt for The Great Pumpkin Fest, a scare-free autumn alternative.

There is something to reaching deep into childhood memories and twisting them just enough. My favorite haunted attraction of all was Zombie High. Its bloodied walls, classrooms, lab, and locker room, had more than a few students who had seen better days. Combined with intense lighting effects, Zombie High got into my psyche in all the right ways. I would have eagerly gotten in line to go through again.

I am so glad my first trip to Kings Dominion came during the Halloween season. Tricks of light, dry ice, makeup, and over-the-top acting still work their fun and spooky magic. The many freaky characters throughout the park – and there are a lot of them – create an atmosphere of edgy adventure full of nervous laughter. Make the journey to Doswell, VA in the Richmond area to see for yourself. Halloween Haunt continues Fridays through Sundays, ending on October 29^th.

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We’re literally six sleeps away from one of the best times of year!

And with all the little ghosts and ghouls and goblins (and, let’s face it, superheroes) ringing your doorbell and asking for tricks or treats next Tuesday evening, you may want to shake things up a bit.

Instead of the usual candy and chocolate bars and chip bags handed out on Halloween, why not a comic book as a loot bag stuffer?

It’s a great idea: the gift of four-colour literacy! Of pop culture personified! Of imagination and excitement!

Then again, it can get pricey handing out all those comics.

So, treat yourself (or a select few) to some comic book scares this Halloween with the just-released, over-sized, frightfully awesome, completely fun, and altogether appropriate, DC House of Horror #1!

DC House Of Horror #1

Written By: Various

Illustrated By: Various

Published By: DC Comics

Despite all the silver age shine that is currently making the DC Universe stable of comic books shimmer, this time of year brings long shadows and a sense of eeriness to every superhero’s cape, mask and cowl.

But it’s not all dark and ominous – it’s also a fun time to be a comic book reader! Who needs tricks? As a Halloween treat, DC Comics is publishing an immense 80-page comic book of Halloween-flavoured stories, featuring all of their top characters: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and the Flash, plus many, many more!

Written by a number of new talents to the industry (including Mary Sangiovanni, Nick Cutter, Brian L. Keene, Edward Lee, Bryan Smith, Weston Ochse, Ronald Malfi, Wrath James White, whew!) and illustrated by just as many comic book greats (including Dale Eaglesham, Scott Kolins, Howard Porter, Bilquis Evely, Rags Morales, whew!), and joined my master storyteller Keith Giffen, the DC House of Horror #1 (there’s only going to be one issue – it’s a seasonal special, after all!), has got a lot going on!

Martha Kent fights for her life against an alien creature from a landed spacecraft! A young woman is possessed by the spirit of a murderous Amazon warrior! And the last surviving member of the Justice League faces a horror beyond imagining! Plus more – a whole lot more!

DC House Of Horror #1: These are the kinds of stories that make comic book reading fun – your favourite characters put in oddball circumstances that celebrate the season, as much as they do our reading of the art form!

Trick or treat, indeed!

Make the run to your local comic book shop today and pick up the DC House Of Horror #1 as a Halloween treat for yourself – or as a fun “Boo!” for a youngster in your life, dressed up in a great pop culture costume!

Happy Halloween!

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Belle Ghoul’s Bandcamp notes that they hope to “provide a part of the soundtrack to your life.” The band’s latest video, for the delightful track “Lift Me Up,” is perfect for the Halloween season.

It’s a ridiculously clever and charming homage to silent films, puppetry, and one of Halloween’s all-time heavyweights, Count Dracula.

Belle Ghoul is comprised of Christopher Tait, Jesse Paris Smith, Matt Van, Zach Shipps, and Mike Alonso.

For more info on the band, check out their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/belleghoul/

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Toy Fair 2018 is on this week and there’s been a number of exciting announcements for kids and collectors, but for horror fans, NECA has added two figures to their retro line of Mego style figures: Captain Blake from John Carpenter’s The Fog and Herbert West from Stuart Gordon’s Re-Animator. Amok Time toys had announced a small line of Re-Animator figures a few years ago in a six-inch line, but the only one that ever came out was a four-inch Herbert that came with Dr Hill’s severed head. It’s a great figure, perfect for experimenting on GI Joes captured by Cobra for unethical bio-medical practices, but in this day and age of high quality, detailed collectibles, it was disappointing not to get a larger, more detailed version.

NECA’s retro line has had a number of great figures, with amazing head sculpts and an array of accessories. My Friday the 13th Jason is one of the jewels of my horror collection. The NECA West figure beautifully captures Jeffery Combs’ likeness and comes with some gruesome accessories. Captain Blake is an even bigger surprise, especially since NECA tends to avoid things that are too niche because it can be a financial gamble. After saying no to figures from The Thing, getting a ghost pirate zombie from The Fog is out of left field and looks equally amazing.

The countdown to Halloween and Halloween begins as Jamie Lee Curtis has completed filming her scenes for the upcoming David Gordon Green/Danny McBride direct follow up to the original John Carpenter classic, which drops this October. According to Curtis, “it’s terrifying.”

This month marks the 30th anniversary of Wes Craven’s voodoo classic, The Serpent and the Rainbow. For my money, it’s Craven’s best film. As much as I love A Nightmare on Elm Street or The Hills Have Eyes, Serpent is just scarier (partly because its based on an actual investigation into voodoo practices by Wade Davis), more exotic, surprising, and beautiful. Scream Factory has a collector’s edition Blu-ray available at their website, highly recommended.

Excited about Shane Black’s upcoming Predator sequel?  Well, it’s been pushed back from August to September, which isn’t as extreme as the New Mutants getting pushed back nine frigging months, but still, doesn’t it feel like we’ve been waiting a while for a new Predator film?

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Michael Myers is one of the most recognizable horror icons of all time, a seemingly unstoppable masked killer with a penchant for babysitters and family members. But with all the sequels, reboots, and retcons, fans of the Halloween franchise have been through the wringer. Is Michael actually part of a cult? Is Laurie Strode really his sister? Why did the producers bring Busta Rhymes into this whole mess?

When the news hit that Danny McBride and David Gordon Green were making a new Halloween film, reactions were mixed. Fans weren’t too enthused about another entry in the series. Then Jamie Lee Curtis got involved, and the creator of the original film, John Carpenter, came aboard as both executive producer and composer. That got some noses open.

Now, we have a full trailer for the new film, also titled Halloween (a small change from the working title, Halloween Returns). It seems to take place directly after the first film, ignoring the events of the sequels. There is the dispelling of myths, the return of some familiar music, and teeth. All the teeth.

Check out the trailer for the new Halloween and let us know how you feel about the latest entry in the Haddonfield Multiverse.

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You know that summer’s coming to the end here in the city when details of the Toronto International Film Festival start trickling out. Even more than when the big Galas and Special Presentations (McConaugheys and Moss’s and Gagas, oh my!) are announced, the reveal of the Midnight Madness lineup, that dark corner of bloody and weird fare, hand-selected by programmer Peter Kuplowsky, is like Christmas to me. Films like Saw, The Grudge, Dazed and Confused, Insidious, Martyrs, and then-unknown directors like Ben Wheatley, the Spierig Brothers, and more all got their starts in the Midnight lineup, and maybe one of these films will end up becoming a classic as well. Here’s what Peter has on tap for us this year:

The Predator (Opening Film) 
Oh you’ve heard of Predator, have you? Maybe you remember it from such despicable acts as blowing a hole in Jesse Ventura, or ripping off Apollo Creed’s best punchin’ arm. Either way, director Shane Black’s vision of the alien hunter has a killer cast, including Yvonne “Serena Joy” Strahovski, Sterling K. Brown, and Keegan Michael Kay. I’ve had my eye on this sequel for a couple years now, so my expectations are high. Let the hunt begin!

Assassination Nation 
Between Open Windows, The Den, and the Unfriended movies, internet horror is extremely on trend right now, but Sam Levinson’s Assassination Nation indicts our online presence in a more direct way. In the town of Salem, some internet fuckery causes an entire town to turn into something resembling The Purge. Starring Suki Waterhouse, Odessa Young, Hari Nef, Bill “Pennywise” Skarsgard, and Joel McHale, Assassination Nation looks like a crowd pleaser and exactly the kind of movie that the famously-rowdy Midnight audience will lap up.

CLIMAX
Provocateur filmmaker Gaspar Noe is known for his ability to shock, and Climax looks to be no departure from his perfect record of dark and controversial (to say the least) projects. Whether it’s 1998’s I Stand Alone, 2002’s Irreversible, 2009’s Enter The Void, or 2015’s LOVE, each of Noe’s films plays like a pipe bomb being dropped into a multiplex, spraying shrapnel and changing the lives and the outlook of everyone it touches. With Climax, Noe puts us in the centre of a hedonistic orgy that gets turned into a psychedelic nightmare with a few hits of acid. This one is not for the faint of heart, or the weak-willed.

Halloween 
What do I need to say about Halloween? Nothing, that’s what. But early buzz is that this sequel to the original Halloween , from two writers (David Gordon Green and Danny McBride) that are best known for comedy, is a serious banger. With Jamie Lee Curtis back in the fray and a trailer that has been giving me goosebumps over the last month, Halloween is certain to be one of the most memorable horror experiences this year.

In Fabric 
I adore Peter Strickland’s vision. His films Berberian Sound Studio and The Duke Of Burgundy (both of which screened at TIFF) are like nothing else I’ve ever seen. They’re dark, for sure, but have a lush beauty to them that conceals that darkness. You can call In Fabric the sinister cousin to Paul Thomas Anderson’s Phantom Thread, but that movie didn’t feature a haunted dress, now did it?

Nekrotronic 
The garish Wyrmwood should have been a warning to us all about what was coming next from Kiah Roache-Turner. That blood-soaked, ultraviolent zombie actioner was over the top, even for an Australian genre film. So how do you top that? Well, for starters, I guess you can cast Monica Belluci as the Queen of The Demons. Like it’s fellow Midnight entry Assassination Nation, this is an irreverent tale about the evils of the internet, though Nekrotronic is much more hellish story, in the literal sense.

The Standoff At Sparrow Creek 
This is where Midnight Madness puts on its serious face. A gritty feature debut for Henry Dunham, Standoff At Sparrow Creek looks like an intense bottle story about one night, a lumber warehouse, and some very harsh interrogation techniques. It’s got some great character actors on board and a distinct visual style. If you’re a little worn out from supernatural fare, this could be your jam.

The Wind 
Midnight Madness features only one woman behind the camera this year. Emma Tammi’s horror western, The Wind, reads like a study in loneliness and isolation and the madness and doom that go with it. Set in the 1800’s, nothing says being driven insane like the pioneers and their clackety wooden teeth. Tammi is better known for her documentary work, so her first fiction piece will definitely be something to keep an eye on.

The Man Who Feels No Pain 
Midnight Madness’s first foray into Bollywood looks like a total riot, with Vasan Bala’s tale of an invincible man who must defeat a hundred foes, presumably using karate or something similar. Bala’s Peddlers played TIFF in 2012, so it’ll be an auspicious return when he graces the Ryerson stage for Midnight Madness.

Diamantino 
I don’t quite know how to explain Diamantino, and I’m not sure that I’ll be able to do any better a job with that once the credits roll either. Gabriel Abrantes and Daniel Schmidt’s mockumentary about a famous, self-obsessed soccer player – kind of like Ben Stiller’s Zoolander – has a strong political message underneath. All signs point to Diamantino being something truly surreal, existing somewhere between Spinal Tap and a twisted Sasha Baron Cohen project. It’s been getting rave reviews since it’s screening at Cannes, so I’m looking forward to this Midnight Madness closer to end the festivities with a resounding, ‘huh?’

So there you have it. Ten off-the-wall Christmas presents to open, each containing something to transport you to places you can’t, or maybe don’t want to, visit outside of a darkened theatre with a thousand of your closest friends. Ten straight nights of Madness kick off on September 6th. See you there!

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I’m so psyched for the new Halloween film. I can’t wait to see it at TIFF this Saturday night. To whet our collective whistles, a brand new trailer just dropped for this direct sequel to John Carpenter’s original, and it delivers everything you’d want.

Halloween arrives October 19th, 2018.

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40 years after the original Halloween was unleashed and became not only one of the most successful independent films of all time, but a touchstone and influence on the entire horror genre, a new sequel premiered at TIFF, and laid claim to the title of best sequel in the series. Hell, for me, it may wind up becoming my favourite of the entire franchise.

Considering the film’s general release is still a few weeks away, I’m going to avoid spoilers for the most part. And really, to appreciate what co-writer/director David Gordon Green and co-writer Danny McBride have come up, you’re actually better off going in cold. On that note, here are some point form thoughts on what Halloween (2018) delivers:

• An Oscar worth performance from the incredible Jamie Lee Curtis, who has never been better. Curtis’ portrayal of Laurie Strode is a fierce take on how someone deals with severe trauma (a word Curtis used many times in the after-film Q & A). Blumhouse should get their “For Your Consideration” ads ready, because the actor certainly deserves at least a nomination for her iconic work.
• Great performances by all the other actors involved, including Judy Greer as Laurie’s daughter, and newcomer Andi Matichak as Allyson, Laurie’s granddaughter. This is undoubtedly a film featuring strong women, and it is a movie for the times.
• Seriously sadistic kills by Michael Myers. This is a hard-R movie, with blood and guts to spare. If you love The Shape, you’re in for a treat.
• An unrelating final third that utilizes sound, light and tension to deliver a memorable and violent final act.
• Throwbacks and nods to previous films. Halloween is a direct sequel to the original, discarding all subsequent entries. However, there are lots of easter eggs, subtle and not so much, that tip their hat to what came before. There’s also a score comprised of music both old and new, courtesy of John Carpenter, his son Cody, and their collaborator, Daniel Davies.
• Lots of humour. This aspect of the film may be a dealbreaker to some fans (I did hear some grumbling as I walked out of the Midnight Madness screening). The laughs in Halloween are genuine, which may not fly  with those who want their Michael Myers film to features purely visceral violence. The jokes worked for me, and there was lots of laughter in the theatre, but how much the humour appeals to you will likely impact your final thoughts on the film.

Halloween was greeted with a standing ovation before it even began, and it earned the one that came as the lights went up. For me, it’s a superior sequel, and one of the best movies I’ve seen all year, horror or otherwise. It’s a return to Haddonfield that’s well worth making.

Halloween opens in theatres October 19th.

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It’s an old story now, but everyone except John Carpenter, Debra Hill, and Tommy Lee Wallace, were wrong about Halloween III: Season of the Witch and the concept of turning the fledgling franchise into an anthology series died. It was inevitable that Michael Myers would stalk once again, especially in the golden age of slashers that Halloween had nearly single-handedly birthed.

We’d seen The Shape, Michael Myers, and his burdened and driven caretaker, Doctor Loomis, go to their fiery deaths in Halloween 2. But by 1988, we’d seen Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger return from the dead a number of times in Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street respectively. Even Leatherface, who hadn’t been seen since 1974’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre had re-emerged by then. Producer Moustapha Akkad was intent to bring his own masked madman back from the apparent grave.

Originally, Carpenter and Hill were on board for H4 and brought in Dennis Etchison, who had written the novelizations for parts 1 and 2 (and are required reading for any Halloween fans!) to write the script. But Akkad didn’t like the cerebral, supernatural approach and wanted the story to both return to its roots and up the body count and gore to compete with the Jasons and Freddys. So Carpenter, Hill, and Etchison were all out, but Etchison did stay on to write the novelization of 4.

The directing task went to Dwight H Little, while the story was developed by no less than four writers; Dhani Lipsius, Larry Rattner, Benjamin Ruffner, and Alan B McElroy. McElroy would go on to write the screenplay. The number one task would be to explain Myers’ return in a believable way. Easy; Myers and Loomis both survived the fire in the hospital. Loomis suffered major burns, but returned to work eventually, while Michael’s injuries were far more severe. He wound up in a coma, locked in the basement of a mental institution. For reasons that would only make sense after watching Part 6, Myers was scheduled to be transferred just before Halloween night, ten years after his brutal rampage through the quiet town of Haddonfield. During the trip in an ambulance, the attendants chat about Myers and mention his niece, the daughter of his now deceased sister, Laurie. It’s all the motivation Michael needs to wake up and kill the four-person ambulance crew and and head for home.

We find Michael’s niece, Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris,) an orphan living with a foster family and haunted by visions of her uncle even before he finds her. At school, all the kids know that Jamie’s uncle is the boogeyman and they torture her endlessly as Michael closes in on her, with Loomis in hot pursuit.

Overall, Return is successful as a sequel, if not occasionally silly. It has one of the absolute best opening sequence of the franchise and some genuinely tense moments. As a standalone film though, its hardly more than a retread of the first two films. However, it is strengthened in the context of the next two films, creating the Jamie Trilogy or the Thorn Saga. I’ll get into that when we look at The Revenge of Michael Myers and The Curse of Michael Myers.

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Poor Halloween III: Season of the Witch. The bastard son of the franchise, it was a grand experiment that failed in its initial purpose. Really, it was a bad idea to begin with. Audiences already associated the Halloween movies with the iconic Michael Myers. Suddenly turning it into an anthology series with different standalone stories, all somehow based around Halloween, was bound to be confusing. It would be like taking the Friday the 13th franchise and turning it into separate spooky tales based in an antique shop.

But if I were to say to you, “Listen. This isn’t a sexual thing at all, but I want to show you a movie. It’s got an army of murderous robots that dress like Young Republicans. It’s about Halloween masks that can be activated by a television signal to kill anyone who wears one. Also, it stars the glorious Tom Atkins.” That would grab your interest, wouldn’t it? Would you care what the title was?

As it turns out, a lot of people are invested in what Halloween III is called. If only they had referred to it as something different. If only they had kept the revered name of Halloween away from it. Maybe it wouldn’t have taken so long for audiences to discover the unadulterated B-movie joy of Halloween III. But I’m not here to defend this movie, because I don’t think it needs defending. It may be a little cheesy, with its giant computer banks and bizarre concept, but Halloween III is one of the best second-bill drive-in sci-fi/horror movies ever made. It explains nothing. It apologizes for even less. And if you don’t like it, Halloween III has got two words for ya: Silver Shamrock.

That commercial for the Silver Shamrock mask company is the recurring theme for the entire film and, much like the original Halloween music, it has taken on a life of its own. Happy, happy Halloween, Halloween, Halloween… that catchy little ditty is probably more famous than the film it comes from. It pops up in memes. Kids who have never seen the movie walk around humming it. It’s become a Halloween carol.

But that’s not the finest thing Halloween III has to offer. Look no further than Ed O’Herlihy’s fantastic portrayal of Conal Cochran, the mad maskmaker who has enacted a plan to kill as many children as he can. It’s all part of an ancient ritual for Samhain (a word O’Herlihy pronounces correctly, which Donald Pleasence does not in Halloween II). He’s talking about sacrifices, appeasing the gods, possibly even listening to XTC.

We can’t overlook the aforementioned Tom Atkins, one of the horror genres best tough guys. He’s a flannel-wearing, hard drinking, babe-shagging doctor, and he’s going to get the bottom of this whole mystery because that’s what he does. He plays the whole thing perfectly straight, even when the script itself can’t explain how things work.

Somehow, Cochran has stolen one of the standing stones from Stonehenge and placed a sliver of it into each of the masks. Those are what cause the masks to melt when exposed to the proper frequency. Whoever is wearing an activated mask gets their face torn apart by bugs and snakes that suddenly materialize inside their heads. It’s magic! Hell, that’s technomancy, and that is some next level operating. Cochran never reveals how they got the stone to the Silver Shamrock company, either. He doesn’t have to. “A good magician never explains,” Cochran says, and that’s all you get. You take that and you accept it.

It sounds ludicrous, but so did pod people or an amorphous hunk of aspic that could ooze its way into a movie theater. It may sound bold to compare Halloween III to such classics as Invasion of the Body Snatchers or The Blob, but the movie deserves that place. What it doesn’t deserve is being hated for its title.

This is a movie about Halloween, but it isn’t a Halloween movie. Instead of a masked killer, the killers are the masks themselves. There are young people in peril and an unstoppable force, but that thing is television, not Michael. There are similarities then, between Halloween III and the rest of the series, but this film is the one thing that is not like the others.

Despite being marketed under a brand with expectations it couldn’t live up to, Halloween III has taken on a life of its own. It has transcended. This is a good thing; it deserves to be seen and appreciated for the wonderful blend of mad science and modern horror it is. Cheesy? Sure. But it’s the good cheese, the kind you get in little restaurants that doesn’t come in individually wrapped slices.

There may still be some Myers purists who reject the film for being Shape-less, but those folks are doing themselves a disservice. Halloween III is the right film with the wrong name, the square peg in the round hole. If you want Michael, you literally have ten other movies to choose from. Go on, then. Scurry off back to Haddonfield. The rest of us will be singing that damned Silver Shamrock song and grinning like fools.

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Picking up with the closing moments of Michael’s death scene in Return, Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers continues Michael’s fall in a hail of bullets, crashing into a mine. A deputy throws dynamite down the shaft, but we see Michael crawl out of a cave and float down river. He then makes his way to the shack of some lakeside homeless man with a pet parrot, before collapsing into a coma that lasts until the next Halloween. The opening has inspired eye rolls among some fans, but I always thought it was a nice touch from writers Michael Jacobs, Shem Bitterman, and writer/director Dominique Othenin-Girard. A throw back to the old days of the cliff-hanger when at the end of one chapter we see there’s no possible escape for our hero who has gone to certain death, only to see a different perspective at the beginning of the next chapter showing their inexplicable escape. And the old man in the shack taking Michael in is a nice call back to James Whale’s The Bride of Frankenstein, when the monster befriends the old blind man.

The movie moves quickly to the following year’s Halloween, where we find Jamie in a mental hospital with a deep psychic connection to her now waking Uncle. On top of that, we find out that the people of Haddonfield believe that Jamie is destined to carry on her uncle’s work after she tried to kill her adoptive mother the same night Michael “died.”

Overall, it’s a good set up and the movie moves at a fast clip, playing like a proper continuation of Return, without ever slowing down for lengthy re-caps or exposition. Revenge has a more frenetic pace than 1,2, or 4 and also marks the beginning of ‘The Thorn Saga,’ when we see (for the first time) the vertical line with a triangle on the side tattooed on Michael’s wrist and the arrival of ‘The Man in Black,’ who arrives in town via bus, wearing cowboy boots, black hat, and a black duster. Building off 4, when Michael is inexplicably transferred, the tattoo and The Man in Black are unresolved narrative threads until Part 6, and this is another point where the films are heavily criticized: were they just making it up as they went along? Well, yes, that’s often how storytelling works.

One thing that often hurt all the big slasher franchises was the fact that none of them were planned past part one. Carpenter didn’t plan to reveal Laurie was Michael’s sister. Cunningham didn’t plan for Jason to emerge as a hockey mask wearing brute, and Craven didn’t plan for Freddy to one day face The Dream Warriors. But the public wasn’t satisfied with a one and done, they demanded follow-up chapters and, in the absence of their creators, new writers and directors had to build deeper and deeper mythologies. Some sequels worked better than others. Halloween 5 isn’t a deep narrative by any means, and perhaps could have benefited from another rewrite, but as connective tissue in the Jamie Trilogy/Thorn Saga, it works very well.

Robert Draper’s cinematography is really strong, as is Alan Howarth’s score. KNB EFX Group aren’t given much to work with though, as the film is goreless with almost no blood, despite a respectable body count. Not that Halloween ever depended on blood and gore, but I have to wonder if the team wasn’t hired just to have their name sell tickets. One thing that brings Revenge to a screeching halt is the tone-deaf comedy elements provided by two bumbling cops who get their own clown theme in the score. It is never funny or welcome. Probably the biggest mark against the film is Michael’s mask. The de-evolution of the mask from Halloween 2 is famously bad, with part 5 being the second worst look after the ridiculous H20. Another glaring error is the Myers’ house. That’s not the Myers’ house. I assume Othenin-Girard was once again going for a more gothic, classic ode, but it’s a step too far, unfortunately.

Cast wise, Danielle Harris continues to do good work as Jamie Lloyd and Donald Pleasance has his most demented, Ahab moment in the climax. Don Shanks did double duty as Michael and The Man in Black and cuts an imposing figure, but doesn’t distinguish himself much from Nick Castle or Dick Warlock. The rest of the cast are fine, likable enough, and no more annoying than any other group of teens lined up for slaughter in one of these films.

The Revenge of Michael Myers works best when it’s focusing on the dramatic triangle of Michael, Jamie, and Loomis. Everything else, for better or worse, is filler. To me, the movie has aged pretty well, though, but works best when watched with 4 and 6 back to back to back. And in our next installment, I’ll tackle both the Theatrical and Producer’s Cut of The Curse of Michael Myers. 

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Let’s get something out of the way right now; this is the second time I’m writing this article after my first one got mysteriously deleted. The first time around I took time to break down the differences between the Theatrical Cut and the Producer’s Cut, what went wrong behind the scenes, and why the Producer’s Cut is the only one you should bother watching. Well, not this time buster. Now I’m in a bad mood and I’m not feeling super fair, so let’s be blunt…

The Theatrical Cut (which I re-watched in preparation for this piece) is a dog shit movie, directed, edited, and released by people who hate movies, but love a fast buck. This is the Halloween film that marked the beginning of the Dimension/Miramax era-you know, the folks famous taking pre-existing non- Hellraiser screenplays and shoving Pinhead into them to keep rolling out Hellraiser films. They’re responsible for the hideous mask in Halloween H20 and the fact that Busta Rhymes tried kung fu on Michael in Resurrection. Curse hit theaters and was no less a cluster-fuck than the aforementioned films. Producer Paul Freeman and director Joe Chapelle ignored the script and ignored Moustapha Akkad, who had been Halloween’s producer since the first film and had hired Carpenter and Hill to make the film in the first place. Freeman and Chapelle instead dealt directly with Dimension, rewrote the script on the fly, changed everything about the beginning and end, and had to rush extensive reshoots to finish this cold turd on golden plate. Their changes left a number of confusing threads through out the film and the hack job editing meant losing helpful dialogue and creating scenes that contradicted each other. And then when we finally get to the part where the bad guys’ plan is ultimately revealed, we get a bit of inaudible dialogue followed by a woman saying “it’s based on Dr Wynn’s own research.” before they go into a surgery that is never explained or shown and has nothing to do with any of the characters we’ve been following throughout the film. The only part in the whole film worth watching is the scene that immediately follows, when Michael enters the surgery and hacks everyone to death, before pursuing Paul Rudd and company down a tunnel that looks like it was lit by Dario Argento.

The thing is though, The Curse of Michael Myers never had to be a bad movie and in fact there was a legendary work print that existed on a rough bootleg, which circulated among fans for years. When a special edition Blu-ray box set came out in 2014, it included that version of the film and it was called the Producer’s Cut, referring to the vision Moustapha Akkad wanted for Curse when he hired screenwriter Daniel Farrands to craft it. Farrands was a big Halloween fan and really knew the Franchise by heart, but he also knew the novelizations of part 1, 2, and 4-all written by Dennis Etchison. Farrands went to his first meeting with Akkad with a ‘bible,’ that included the family trees and timelines of the series, with a screenplay that pulled together the disparate thread of 4 and 5 and bridged them to 1 and 2, with a nod to 3 in the Cult of Thorn, which, similar to Season of the Witch’s Conal Cochran, believed Halloween or Samhain had strayed too far from its original purpose and looked to bring the holiday back to its bloody roots.

The Producer’s Cut has a lengthy intro, taking us back to the end of part 5, where we see the Man in Black slaughtering the Haddonfield police and breaking Michael out of jail. We see cult members load Michael into the back of a van and kidnap Jamie. They make a fast get away, then we jump a few years into the future and see Jamie ritualistically raped by Michael (it’s the most fucked up thing in the franchise, fortunately it’s more suggested and we’re not subjected to anything graphic), another time jump and Jamie is pregnant and going into labor. Her baby is to be Michael’s final sacrifice, as a new boy has been chosen to take Michael’s place.

In the Theatrical Cut, most characters seemed like throwaways, including some of the main characters. Why they even existed within the narrative or why we should care is never revealed. In the Producer’s Cut, those same characters become integral to the story. Donald Pleasance returns, despite being in ill-health, for one more run at Michael, and Paul Rudd takes the lead role as the PTSD suffering Tommy Doyle, who has grown into an obsessed young man, devoting his life to unlocking the secret of the bogeyman that scarred him for life on that fateful night back in 1978. We see shades of his trauma in Laurie when she returns in both H20 and in this year’s amazing reboot. What the Producer’s Cut successfully accomplishes is completes the story arc started in part 1 and sets up the franchise to go in a new direction with what could have been part 7. But as we know, the extensive tampering with the script and the fact that no one thought it was important to make a good film, much less one that made sense, led Dimension to turn Halloween H20 into a cheap Scream clone with Friday the 13th alum Steve Miner in the directors chair.

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In 2007, Rob Zombie did what for many was an unthinkable cinematic no-no. He made a remake of John Carpenter’s 1978 groundbreaking film, Halloween. A masterclass in indie filmmaking, Carpenter co-wrote, scored and directed the movie that introduced audiences to the embodiment of evil, Michael Myers. A giant of a man, clad in a William Shatner Halloween mask, Myers unleashes terror on the town of Haddonfield, killing babysitters and boyfriends, until he’s finally (though temporarily) stopped by his psychiatrist, Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence) and the one who gets away, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis).

Of course, nothing could really stop Michael, who would go return in a series of sequels (some good, some not so much), that in many ways numbed the impact that character and the original film had made. By the time Rob Zombie was offered a chance to reboot the series in the mid 2000’s, Michael Myers had joined the pantheon of horror villain like Jason and Freddy Krueger who, while iconic to the genre, just weren’t that scary anymore.

To give Zombie the keys to the Halloween kingdom was a bold choice for Dimension Films and producer Malek Akkad. Neither of Zombie’s previous film’s, House of 1000 Corpses (2003) and The Devil’s Rejects (2005), had been big moneymakers by any stretch of the imagination. However, what they had done was demonstrate Zombie’s skill behind the camera, and his place as a visionary horror director. Now, many genre fans hate Zombie’s work (pre and post-Halloween) – they say it’s too dirty, too violent, too Southern Rock. Depending on your tastes, those aren’t necessarily wrong assessments, especially with the case of The Devil’s Rejects, a more grounded, serial killer sequel to the twisted horror funhouse ride of House of 1000 Corpses. You can feel the grit and grime seeping into the frame when you watch The Devil’s Rejects, and it’s certainly not a pleasant film. It is, however, chilling and contains strong performances from his cast, along with the best usage of the song “Freebird” outside of the final encore of a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert.

It’s this style that made Rob Zombie an interesting choice to reboot the series. After getting clearance from John Carpenter to work on the film, with the famed director encouraging Zombie to make the movie his own, Rob wound up creating a screenplay that took many of the best parts from the original, and merged them with a backstory for Michael Myers, something that the original had never given the character (though the second film established Laurie Strode as his sister, and other sequels gave the character connections to the occult).

In the first half of the film, we watch how Michael, played by Daeg Farch, has developed clear psychotic tendencies prior to his initial murderous actions, killing his pet rat and then asking his benevolent and oblivious mother Deborah (Sherri Moon Zombie) for another. Michael is surrounded by a verbally (and most likely physically) abusive step-father, played with white trash glee by William Forsythe, and an older sister who barely acknowledges him. There’s enough alarm bells at school that the Principal calls in noted psychologist Sam Loomis (played by Malcolm McDowell with an unbridled angst that Donald Pleasence never allowed in his role) to talk with Deborah, and suggest that Michael’s troubles are deeper than anyone suspects. Michael’s rage plays out when he unapologetically and violently kills a bully who had been picking on him at school, and then on Halloween night, murders his stepfather, sister, and her boyfriend. Zombie directs these scenes with as much violence as he can muster, and for a mainstream horror film (which this Halloween was definitely released as), it was significantly more graphic than the usual season releases. From there, we watch as Michael, committed to Smith’s Grove Psychiatric Hospital, regresses from a somewhat charming kid to a near-monosyllabic monster who ultimately only wishes to hide behind a mask… and kill. It’s a sad story, and gives a real insight into The Shape, who could be the boy next door to you or I.

I’ve always found this to be what makes Rob Zombie’s Halloween a genuinely wrenching piece of horror. This isn’t the supernatural at play, here. This is a boy/man who ultimately has developed into someone powerfully evil (the full grown Michael is played by former pro wrestler Tyler Mane, huge and intimidating). When the second half of the film becomes a more brutal homage to Carpenter’s original, with Scout Taylor-Compton facing the unenviable task of stepping into the shoes of Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode, knowing where Michael’s come from simply gives the story a greater resonance; it makes it more than just a simple remake.

The huge success of the 2007 film, which opened on Labour Day and still maintains the record for biggest opening gross for that weekend with $26 million, meant a sequel was inevitable. However, according to Rob Zombie, producer Malek Akkad told the director to go as far out as he wanted; he wasn’t beholden to Carpenter’s sequel. Having explored the psyche of Michael Myers in his first film, it made sense that this time out, Zombie would look at the mental impact that the events would have on Taylor-Compton’s Laurie. While Halloween (2018) is being rightly hailed for its depiction of trauma on Curtis’ character, Zombie’s Halloween II (2009) actually did it first. There are, of course, differences; Curtis’ Laurie is 40 years removed from her encounter with Michael Myers, while it’s only been about two years for Taylor-Compton’s character. The former cute and bookish Laurie is now alienated from her friend Annie (Danielle Harris), and is having unexplained visions of a woman on a white horse, visions she unknowingly shares with Michael, who is thought dead but who has actually been hiding. Throughout the film, Laurie has to deal with the anxiety and trauma of having lost her friends and, by the middle of the film, the revelation that Michael Myers is actually her brother. This fact sends her spiraling as she looks to numb her pain. Inevitably, Michael returns for a family reunion that leaves Laurie as the ultimate heir to the Myers legacy.

Upon its release, Halloween II was a huge critical and commercial failure. As someone who had loved Zombie’s first take, I was hugely disappointed walking out of the second film. The movie felt heavy handed and ridiculous to me, and the white horse moments exceedingly comical. When I talked with Zombie about The Lords of Salem in 2013, I mentioned to Rob how it seemed there had been a lot of meddling going on with Halloween II.

“Both Halloweens were nonstop meddling and fighting, all day long, every single day, on both movies, to a point where you kind of feel like you’re losing your mind,” he recalled. “It’s a really hard thing to explain unless you’ve been there, but it’s kind of like, you build a sand castle and every five seconds a wave destroys it. And every five seconds someone says, “Where’s the sand castle?” You just destroyed it! And that goes on month after month and you’re losing your mind. So with both of those movies, I don’t even know how I feel since they were both such miserable experiences to make. Funny thing, same with the cast. When we wrapped both those movies, the cast would come over and say, “Rob, I love you, but I’ve got to get out of here.” They were both really hard. There’s the parametres that it’s Halloween, it’s Michael Myers, you’re sort of locked into some expectations that people have.”

Years later, I rewatched both films back to back, and the director’s goals finally clicked for me; I managed to walk away with a newfound respect for Halloween II. Zombie was exploring new territory, the connection between Michael and Laurie as siblings who likely shared elements of the same psychological make-up. Both were victims in their own way; Michael, at the hands of his family, Laurie at the hands of her brother. It’s heady stuff, especially for a franchise that for many epitomized the jump-scare, violent focus of the slasher genre. Much credit is due to Scout Taylor-Compton; Zombie puts her through the wringer through both films, and she delivers bravura performances each time.

Taken together, Rob Zombie’s Halloween films were ahead of their time tales of psychological and physical trauma meshed with his stock-in-trade cinematic vision. While far from perfect, their maligned legacy (especially in the case of Halloween II) is worth reconsidering.

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The producers seemed so set on making Halloween: H20 – 20 Years Later an event film, they couldn’t be bothered enough to properly name it. It’s a Halloween movie, here’s when it takes place, Jamie Lee Curtis and Michael are in it. See the awful late 90s floating heads poster? If that isn’t enough to make you buy a ticket, then stay home, fellow kid. Your loss. Well, regardless of its place in the linear timeline, H20 isn’t a milestone. It’s a millstone, one of the lowest points in a series that skinned its knee on the bottom more than once.

H20 serves as a fine example of what we refer to as The Haddonfield Multiverse. This movie acknowledges the events of the first two films, but ignores Return, Revenge, and Curse of Michael Myers. The Cult of Thorn? Forget it. Never happened. Jamie Lloyd? What is that, some kind of mixed drink? She’s not involved with this. That all took place on an alternate timeline, in a Haddonfield somewhen out there. Even though you saw it happen, it never occurred. You were never there. You want to go home and rethink your life.

The big conceit here is that, at some point after Halloween II, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) faked her own death in an automobile accident. It is never explained how she pulled that off. Whose body did she use to stand in for her own? Doesn’t that make her a murderer? Was it even in this timeline? Using an assumed identity, her name is now Keri Tate, and she is the headmistress of a posh private school in Northern California. She has a son, John (Josh Hartnett), and a secret boyfriend, the school counselor (Adam Arkin). She also has nightmares, a drinking problem, and a full blown case of PTSD. All the students have gotten onto buses and have headed off for a weekend of camping in Yosemite. John and his friends, however, have decided to stay behind and have their own romantic Halloween party. Meanwhile, Michael, that clever boy, has discovered Laurie’s secret identity and where she lives. It’s October 31st, and Michael has some family business to attend to.

You can figure it out from there. H20 does nothing to escape from the slasher formula the series established for itself in 1978. If anything, this movie takes a decent idea and, twenty years later, has grown up to be a debaser. As much as I would love to sit you down and tell you every single thing that is wrong with H20, it’s important to focus on the main aspect the filmmakers screw up: Michael.

Michael Myers is the Boogeyman. That is it. End of discussion. But in the tremendous span of time between Rosenthal’s second film and David Gordon Green’s most recent entry, they have never gotten the mask right. See, the mask and the eyes visible beneath it work in hellish tandem. The only glimpse we as viewers get into the dead psyche of Michael Myers is those cold, black eyes. This is how we know he is a monster: there’s nothing there but the occasional glare of rage.

Chris Durand, who plays Michael in H20, is way too thin. He is lithe like a dancer. Unless Michael has spent the last two decades on the South Beach Diet, this dude is not Michael. There is also too much pale skin visible around his eyes. It is obvious how young he is. No wrinkles can be seen. He hasn’t earned them. There’s no character to this character. Even a child would be able to tell that this acrobat in Dickies has not survived a hospital fire, gotten both of his eyes shot out, and tracked his sister down from Illinois to California. This little twerp is lucky if he can make it home from the club without throwing up all the Ecstasy he took while the DJ was playing “Firestarter” for the fourth time that night.

This isn’t a William Shatner mask anymore. It’s a Frank Doubleday mask, and it doesn’t work. And when your Michael is wrong, your whole movie is wrong. He isn’t the Boogeyman anymore. He’s just some putz in a mask. He is generic and his lackluster presence sucks the movie into an abyss of blech it never arises from.

But does it matter? Is this even the same Michael we learned to fear twenty years prior? Which strand of the Haddonfield Multiverse are we in? Will Rick and Morty show up?

Let’s not even talk about LL Cool J as the security guard who writes romance fiction. Let’s not bring up the scene where Laurie dumps out a kitchen drawer filled with knives and begins hurling them at her brother, like she’s the lead performer in a shit circus. How are all those blades consistently razor sharp? I’ve got a knife like Michael uses, and I have to practically smash half a tomato to get one decent slice for a corned beef sandwich. Let’s also ignore the part where Michael starts slashing madly at a couple of kids through a wrought-iron gate. It’s a furious, animalistic thing to do, but we have learned that Michael is methodical. He doesn’t run. He is a shadow. This one little bit of business, this lapse of character continuity, is enough to betray the entire film as a knock-off of itself. H20 is a Halloween movie, pretending to be a Halloween movie that might not even be a Halloween movie.

Halloween: H20 – 20 Years Later cherry picks the elements it wants to emphasize and scuttles the rest. The Halloween franchise is famous for doing that. You didn’t like what happened in a particular story arc? No problem. Wait a few years and a new production team will kick it to the curb. In that respect, you can watch H20 and, in the end, it just won’t matter. The next movie, Halloween: Resurrection, retcons the events of H20. David Gordon Green’s film chucks damned near the whole lot of Michael’s tale. But H20 is a special kind of suckmonkey, so concerned with the surface appearance of pleasing the fans, that it can best be represented by one simple fact.

H20 is dedicated to the memory of Donald Pleasence. In the credits, where the memoriam is placed, his name is spelled wrong.

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Most franchises have that one movie that’s so bad, you get to the end credits scratching your head and wondering if everyone else just saw the same travesty you did. You have your Jason Takes Manhattan, Phantom Menace, Moonraker…all of which inspire one to exclaim, “What the fuck?” Halloween: Resurrection is right there, floating in the muck at the bottom of the barrel.

Directed by Halloween 2’s Rick Rosenthal, it’s a direct sequel to the previous film, Halloween: H20, so it continues to ignore parts 4-6, but it also undoes the ending of H20, which was honestly the best part of that film. No, not Laurie beheading Michael. I mean the end credits. I love the Halloween franchise with all my heart, but I can’t hide my distaste for H20 and Resurrection.

I went to see Resurrection the weekend it opened. I had actually skipped H20 based on the hideous trailer that made a Halloween film look like not a Scream knock-off, but a knock-off of a Scream knock-off. This wasn’t a great era to be a horror fan anyway. I don’t even remember why I talked my wife into go seeing a film I was fairly sure wasn’t going to be very good and it didn’t take ten minutes before I wanted my money back. And then it got worse.

The film stars rapper Busta Rhymes, who gets top billing, and runs a production company with Tyra Banks, called Dangertainment. It’s kind of a Fear Factor/Big Brother web show, where contestants wear cameras and act as criminal investigators. The latest episode is set to take place in the infamous Myers House, which has been wired with cameras and filled with props to scare the contestants. What the actual objective is, I don’t know. Is it a game show? Are people supposed to just watch a group of dorks be scared for hours on end? It’s not at all clear. Worse is the rest of the cast, six poorly written stereotypes, five of which we know will die as soon as we meet them and one, the smart sensible one, we know will be our final girl. The most famously bad part of the film is Busta kung-fuing Michael, and that’s the part that’s often brought up when discussing how shitty Resurrection is, but let’s be fair. Busta is given a mouthful of exposition and nonsense to spout in cluttered chunks, but he’s also the only member of the cast that seems happy to be in the film. His performance is bad, but I blame that on writing and direction, and as bad as he is, he acts circles around everyone else.

Like H20, Michael’s mask looks horrible, the actor isn’t the least bit imposing and, in fact, most of the scenes in the Myers House remind me of the Porky Pig cartoon, The Case of the Stuttering Pig. A good example is the scene where Busta is dressed as Michael and Michael is creeping behind him. Busta turns around, not knowing it’s Michael and starts yelling at him to go back to where Tyra Banks is and that the back door is unlocked (not joking). And Michael just walks off! Seriously, watch Resurrection and The Case of the Stuttering Pig as a double feature. This begs the question: was the movie supposed to be kinda funny? Probably not, but it plays like an Abbott and Costello Meets Frankenstein more than a horror movie. Worse, we have two sets of characters that couple up, each with a skeezy guy trying to get in the pants of a girl. When their scenes are back to back, we pretty much just watch the same scene twice. Not one kill is memorable, the overall saga of Michael Myers is not progressed an inch, and literally the only almost good line is Busta saying, “Happy Halloween, motherfucker!”

From the theatrical cut of part 6 to the laundry list of bad ideas in H20 to this abomination, I think the blame can be laid at the feet of Dimension Films, who absolutely did not care about the product (as I mentioned in my part 6 review, just look what they did to Hellraiser). Who watched Halloween: Resurrection and said, “OK?” I know there was some level of quality control, because there are three rejected endings on the Blu-ray (they’re all terrible), but this cold turd got served to theaters.

Sadly, this was the last of the series that long time producer Moustapha Akkad’s name appears on a Halloween movie. He and his daughter were killed in a terrorist bombing in Jordan. His son, Malek, took over for his father and let the franchise breathe a few years before handing over the project to Rob Zombie for his two remakes. As far as I’m concerned, Moustapha’s legacy was tarnished by the partnership with Dimension and I don’t hold him or Malek responsible for the quality of the films. Zombie, for whatever flaws you want to lay at his feet, made Halloween scary and serious again.

I don’t recommend watching Halloween: Resurrection unless you’re a die hard completist. If you do, don’t forget my double feature recommendation.

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With today’s release of Avengers Halloween Special #1 (don’t expect a second issue any time soon!), you’ll see that even your favourite Marvel Comics superheroes can get scared at this time of year!

Trick or treat, indeed, true believers!

It’s not like horror and terror and things that go bump in the night is new to Marvel Comics. This is the company that has recently given us various publications of Marvel Zombies over the years. An undead Wolverine shambling across the grounds of Professor Xavier’s School of the (deadly) gifted! A decomposing Captain America staring into the (dead) eyes of D.C. congressmen at the nation’s capital!

Marvel Zombies was a beloved title…by those that, uh, be-loved such things. It was fun, after all, and caught the wings of the zombie-popularity that was, and still is, ruling the pop culture landscape.

Marvel Comics has never shied away from dark-themed comics. In fact, the comic book publisher has a rich history of horror publications; beginning in the 1950’s when Marvel was called Timely.

Under the Timely banner – and then Atlas – the world was given amazing comic books like Adventures Into Terror, Astonishing, Menace, and the fondly recalled, Journey Into Mystery. Later, Marvel Comics gave us some of the most well-known horror-themed titles in The Tomb of Dracula and Man-Thing!

You can read a brief and fascinating history of Marvel Comic’s horror themed publications right here.

Following that storied tradition, it’s a special treat to get a superhero-centric one-off special, like the Avengers Halloween Special #1 on the day of All Hallows Eve.

It’s a comic book that can be enjoyed by anyone of just about any age, and of any horror-themed disposition!

Avengers Halloween Special #1
Written By: Various
Illustrated By: Various
Published By: Marvel Comics

Avengers Halloween Special #1 contains a number of stories written and illustrated by a plethora of talented ghouls specters and features characters, heroes and villains like Daredevil, Captain America and even the X-Men and Doctor Doom! From hauntings to cosmic horror, you’ve got it all in one volume – perfect reading for this very special day (and night)!

As a special bonus, Avengers Halloween Special #1 features the Marvel Comics writing debut of actor and screenwriter, Jay Baruchel (Tropic Thunder, This Is the End, Goon, and the upcoming horror film based on a comic book, Random Acts of Violence).

Make the run to your local comic book shop today – either for yourself, or for a friend, or a (slightly older) child, and pick up Avengers Halloween Special #1. It makes for perfect reading while eating all of those ‘Trick or Treat’ candies!

For a fun Marvel Halloween Reading List, one that‘ll keep you occupied well into the Christmas season, you can click here!

Happy Halloween!

The post 31 Days Of Horror: Even Superheroes Get Scared In ‘Avengers Halloween Special #1’ On The Wednesday Run appeared first on .

Our topic at hand for the week of Halloween is a related but different custom — the observation of Samhain. This most sacred and solemn of the Pagan holidays occurs at the time of the traditional Celtic new year, and for Pagans today it is a time to remember those who have died. For many, the day is a time for communing and celebrating with loved ones who have passed and for seeking insight through divination. It is a time for quietude in the dark time of the year in the Northern hemisphere, a time for reassessment, and for looking forward to renewal. Wendy Sheridan, Mary McGinley, and Robin Renée each talk about the Samhain customs that speak to them most and how they navigate enjoying all the fun of the secular version of the celebration, Halloween, in the same time frame. Robin shares a Samhain poem that you can see on her website, and the three co-hosts interpret readings using handmade Viking runes, The Shakespeare Oracle, and The Aquarian Tarot. Wendy gives little-known information about the artist behind the classic Rider-Waite Tarot, Pamela Coleman Smith.

In keeping with the Samhain and Halloween theme, October 31 is also National Magic Day and National Increase Your Psychic Powers Day. It is also Girl Scout Founder’s Day and Knock Knock Joke Day (hence the silly beginning to this episode). In the news, there is “creativity” involved in voter suppression and there are dueling hexes and prayers at work engaging in a political fight in the metaphysical realm. Birthday shout outs go to Peter Jackson, Ethel Waters, Al Paxton, John Candy, Michael Landon, Neal Stephenson, Bernard Edwards, Willow Smith, and Piper Perabo, who Mary is happy to have worked with on a very funny play by George Bernard Shaw.

Before the main discussion gets started, a correction is in order: Mary and Wendy discuss how they were both right in Episode 21 about aspects of the plot of Sophie’s Choice. They each had selective memory, combined with some conflation with Hobson’s Choice.

Blessed Samhain and Happy Halloween!

 The Leftscape – the shape of progressive conversation: “Samhain Traditions (Episode 22).”

View story at Medium.com

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You can’t kill the Boogeyman and, even forty years later, Michael Myers is still slashing throats and making money at the box office. If you’re a United States resident, you can register to win a Blu-ray copy of David Gordon Green’s Halloween. Cower in fear in the comfort of your own home! Just leave a comment on this article and you’ll be entered for your chance to win!

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As an admitted horror fan I’ve made a point of seeing virtually all the Halloween films (I skipped out on Resurrection, and have a feeling I’m the better for it).While I was too young to experience any of them in the theatres, back in the pre-Fox TV days, WUTV, one of the Buffalo stations, made a point of broadcasting Friday night and weekend horror flicks, and I’m fairly certain that’s where I caught the earliest ones in the series, including the original John Carpenter film that introduced Michael Myers. I even recall catching Halloween III: Season Of The Witch on tv and kind of enjoying it. But even with the history, I was never emotionally invested in the series, so when word came out in 2006 that Rob Zombie was directing a remake of the original, I didn’t throw my arms up in disgust like so many other geeks and diehards did. I pretty much figured the worst he’d do is make a bad movie, which in the grand scheme of things doesn’t really matter, since the original will always be available for us to watch (it also seems to be a film that will be endlessly repackaged; a five disc box set is due in stores any day now).

When I watched Rob Zombie’s Halloween in the theaters just about a year ago, I really enjoyed it. I thought it was very stylish, violent but not to the point of gratuitousness (something many would argue is a Zombie-as-director trait). The film is carried by a decent performance from Malcolm McDowell, who stepped into the trench coat of the late Donald Pleasance as Dr. Loomis, the psychiatrist treating the psychotic Michael Myers, played as a adolescent by Daeg Faerch and as an adult by former wrestler Tyler Mane (both actors do good jobs too, though Mane doesn’t have to do to much except hulk around). I walked out thinking that I’d definitely pick up Halloween when it hit DVD, which I did months later when it was released in an “unrated director’s cut” version. For whatever reason, I never got around to watching it until this week, when I decided to revisit the film during the Halloween season and see how it held up.

That may not have been such a good idea.

First the good news: the first half of Halloween really is a reinvention, a prologue where you see the elements that could make a boy become a psychopath, and remains captivating and uncomfortable. It’s totally unique from the original film and it’s where Rob Zombie seems to have put his heart into it. He takes his time and develops both Michael Myers and Dr. Loomis. Fans and critics alike debated whether Zombie should have given his main character any sympathetic traits when he’s supposed to simply be an unstoppable killing machine. Watching Halloween a second time, I think it was a great move on the director’s part. While we do feel bad for young Michael initially, Zombie makes sure there’s no mistaking any lingering innocence in the character with a brutal hospital murder scene that might be the best in the film. It’s certainly one of the most disturbing, in my mind.

The above performances are still solid and the film remains stylish, with Zombie giving Halloween’s first half an authentic 70’s vibe with grainy hues and a quintessential soundtrack (cue Kiss and Blue Oyster Cult) while also making generous use of John Carpenter’s original score. As for the scares, they’re still there, and there are scenes that made me jump, even on second viewing. I also noticed a lot more of the cameos throughout (I can’t believe I missed Mickey Dolenz the first time).

Unfortunately, it’s the film’s second half, which strays close to the original that feels by the numbers and just didn’t hold up on second viewing. At no point did I ever care for the nubile teenage girls whose sole purpose seems to be eye candy. There’s no character development at all for them; Scout Taylor-Compton’s Laurie, first essayed in the original by Jamie Lee Curtis, is cute, but her personality never grows with you. But to her credit, Taylor-Compton does have a great final few seconds in the film in her final showdown with “the Shape”. But when you don’t care about the characters and you know what’s coming, it’s hard to feel involved with a film.

The unrated version of Halloween features the addition of a rape scene, first seen in a leaked work print of the film but which was expunged when the film hit theatres Labour Day Weekend 2007. It’s a gratuitous and brutal moment and not one I needed to experience. But with that scene back in the film, Michael’s escape from the psychiatric hospital is much more plausible than in the theatrical version, so its return is a double edged sword.

Upon my return to Rob Zombie’s Halloween, I suppose I was expecting to as impressed as I was when I first saw it in the theaters. But sitting on one’s couch, with the potential of myriad distractions, the film just didn’t hold up or hold me how I’d hoped. It certainly didn’t sully the original, but it didn’t improve upon it either.

Or did it? Find out in the coming days when I revisit the original Halloween 30 years after it first hit theaters.

The post Andy B Revisits Rob Zombie’s Halloween – Does He Like What He Sees? appeared first on .

For everyone who loved Rob Zombies’ 2007 film Halloween, you’re likely anxious to check out the sequel H2, which is due in theaters on August 28th. The trailer makes it clear that this film is totally unrelated to the original Halloween sequel. Those that had issues with Zombie’s reimagining be warned – you aren’t going to like what you see. Rather than simply have Michael Myers run rampant after his sister one more, Zombie is going to show us what’s been driving him the whole time. Watching the trailer it’s clear that Michael has mommy issues, which is cool with me because it means more Sherri Moon Zombie.

H2 was a quick shoot, something like 35 days. This trailer leaves me keen to see what Zombie comes up with this time. Get your first taste of H2 here.

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We’re less than a week away from the release of Halloween II, Rob Zombie’s follow-up to his 2007 reimagining/remake of the Michael Myers saga. While some loved Zombie’s take on the John Carpenter classic, it seems like most were downright disappointed. Personally, the first time I saw Halloween in the theater I really dug it, but watching the extended director’s cut last year I too was let down. There are many moments of coolness throughout, but the film didn’t hold up for a repeat viewing (you can get more on that here).

Halloween II looks like Zombie’s taken the gloves off. It’s neither a remake or homage to the original sequel, which is a good thing. We’ll find out this Friday. In the meantime, check out the trailer for Halloween II below.

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Just a little under two weeks from now another Halloween will be upon us. I don’t know about you, but this is really one of my favourite times of year. The dress up, the scariness, the appreciation for ghosts and goblins and things that go bump in the night – how you can you go wrong?

Growing up, I watched a lot of television and I always got a kick out of the sitcom episodes that featured a Halloween theme. For starters, situation comedies aren’t typically where you’d find anything particularly horrific so the spookiness was always a change of pace. Then there was the fact that the supernatural elements were always played for laughs, which meant fewer nightmares for me (key word there – fewer).

On that note, today I offer you a look back at some of my favourite spooky sitcom moments. There are lots of them, mind you, including episodes of Kate & Allie and Cheers, but the ones below are episodes that immediately sprang to mind. Some are Halloween themed, but a few get in just because I found them genuinely creepy when I first saw them. Let’s begin, shall we?

ROSEANNE:SEASON 2-8

I don’t think any sitcom celebrated Halloween with more love and fun than Roseanne. Nearly every season of the series had a special theme episode and the entire cast always seemed to have a ball with them. None of them ever sent chills down your spine, but somehow they always captured the spirit of the season. I especially liked the Season 3 episode where Rosie dressed up as a lumberjack and got to experience life as a man. However, like the show itself, by the time we got around to Season 8 with the ghost of Jerry Garcia visiting, the shark had indeed jumped when it came to Roseanne and Halloween.

<img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_mumbhXpGZqQ/TLuHpQGay3I/AAAAAAAAD2E/NrNQZlpFde0/video48f6138834f1%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('15917826-3ce1-469d-915c-4963c8b024e0'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "

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DIFFERENT STROKES: HOORAY FOR HOLLYWOOD

Now, this was not a Halloween episode at all, and there were far scarier episodes of Different Strokes throughout its run (just about every “very special episode” or the one where Sam and Arnold wound up being pseudo-ghostbusters, which was just scary bad). However, Hooray For Hollywood was my first experience with Psycho and Universal studios, a magical place my father would take me too not long after seeing this particular two-part episode. Check out the memorable scene in question, in a slightly different format from how you and I first watched it back in the early 80’s.

<img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_mumbhXpGZqQ/TLuHp_s7aGI/AAAAAAAAD2I/6x5H51Xdy50/video06efa434b583%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('22dbdd69-79d8-421c-89bd-63b0c50757ab'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "

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THE FACTS OF LIFE: SEVEN LITTLE INDIANS

Did you know that The Facts of Life did multiple Halloween episodes? I had no idea. The only one that’s stuck with me was a great Twilight Zone parody that featured a Rod Serling-esque narrator and the entire post-Mrs. Garret cast getting bumped off, one by one. It’s creepy, kind of kooky and, oh yeah, it’s got George Clooney. And Tootie. Tootie. I just like typing…Tootie.

<img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_mumbhXpGZqQ/TLuHqKXeQpI/AAAAAAAAD2M/FWY6yGn4Rc8/video2206b070f226%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('c4fb87fd-6bd8-4084-b7a7-b4d03a91cdc9'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "

http://www.youtube.com/v/wbsEWj1nBSg&hl=en“;” alt=””>

WEBSTER: MOVING ON

My final selection is once again not a Halloween episode per se, but one that features a fairly creepy scene in a house straight out of The Addams Family (minus Thing Or Lurch). I remember watching this episode of Webster and being absolutely enthralled by the Victorian House that Ma’am, George and Web were looking to move into after their apartment burned up. Hidden passages, ladders, dumbwaiters oh my! But the spooky doll scene below was genuinely eerie, as is the track suit that Emmanuelle Lewis is sporting.

<img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_mumbhXpGZqQ/TLuHqYD-XMI/AAAAAAAAD2Q/fwko8udjF3A/videod9921d720168%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('f95b8488-f0e5-4ebb-87c5-1a3ca80bac4e'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "

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Every year just after Christmas, “amateur haunter” Joey Schweigert of Asbury Park, NJ sets out on a mission. He begins his plan to create the best home Halloween experience ever. His Halloween wonderlands for kids are a beloved part of the neighborhood holiday tradition, and they are more of the retro and whimsical variety than the frightening kind. This year’s creation will be a wizard’s den and dragon nursery where each child must pass three (fun and easy) tests before receiving a special handmade gift. Hear him chat with Wendy Sheridan about this year’s adventure as well as previous themes like Mad Scientist Lab, Jurassic Cottage, the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, and Night Circus. Learn how Joey seeks to inspire neighborhood kids, and in case you were wondering, the secret to making gnome toenails and chicken lips!

November begins this week, so naturally the show starts with things to celebrate in the new month: Native American Heritage Month, Adopt a Senior Pet Month, Movember, NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), NoSHAVEember, and Vegan Month all happen in November. Daily celebrations and observances this week include National Candy Corn Day (October 30), Halloween, Samhain, and Girl Scout Founder’s Day (October 31), National Author’s Day (November 1), Deviled Egg Day and Bison Day (November 2), and National Chicken Lady Day, which honors Dr. Marthenia “Tina” Dupree. (November 4). Daylight Saving Time ends on Sunday, November 3, and in the U.S., state and local elections will be held on Tuesday, November 5. Birthday acknowledgments of the week go to Henry Winkler, Piper Perabo, John Candy, Vanilla Ice, Tim Cook, Nelly, Elizabeth Smart, Adam Ant, and Diddy.

In the All the News We Can Handle segment, Wendy and Robin Renée bid farewell to Rep. Elijah Cummings and discuss the importance of getting informed, voting, and supporting candidates in challenging races around the country. In the Why is this Awesome? segment, Robin asks Wendy for a primer on King Crimson and their classic, In the Court of the Crimson King. Wendy happily shares about one of her favorites.

The Leftscape – the shape of progressive conversation: “A Handmade Halloween Haunt (Episode 62)”

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Bad news first.

Halloween Kills has been delayed until October 2021. Considering the state of the world, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anybody.

Good news.

Our first taste of Halloween Kills has arrived and makes it clear just how Michael Myers will be back to terrorize Laurie Strode and her family yet again.

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October is finally here which means I’ve allowed myself to cannonball right into the deep end of the Halloween pool. Not to oversell it but I’ll be going on a socially distant haunted hayride next week. I think the most frightening part will be having to be around other people for the first time in seven months.

Luckily for this column there are a whole lot of Halloween themed comics hitting the stands this month, so let’s look at some!

LEGEND OF THE SWAMP THING HALLOWEEN SPECTACULAR #1
Various (W/A)
DC Comics

Right off the bat can we just take a moment to appreciate that Swamp Thing had a cartoon in 1990 with a completely ridiculous theme song?

Cool, right?

At the risk of bleeding over into Figure Friday territory, the action figures that the cartoon was trying to sell you were pretty faithful representations of Swampy’s comic book appearance. I had a glow-in-the-dark one, it was awesome, AND it came with a VHS of the pilot episode of the cartoon. I was also just a couple years out from having been given a random Alan Moore issue by an unsuspecting relative that had stuffed one in my Easter basket.

When you also factor in the USA Network’s Swamp Thing TV series to the mix, it’s safe to say my history with the character is widely uneven.

Thankfully, the intervening years brought context and I’ve come to see Swamp Thing as one of DC’s flagship horror titles. On stands TODAY is the Legend of The Swamp Thing Halloween Spectacular. Here’s the blurb:

It’s Halloween, and DC invites you to welcome Swamp Thing to your witching-hour festivities. In this 48-page collection of all-new stories, the Guardian of the Green reveals past lives and the unforgettable horrors that befall those who cross his path. From ancient Rome to present day, Swamp Thing stalks these ghostly and ghastly tales-all of which are best read by the light of a jack-o’-lantern!

By and large, DC does horror books right. I’m always glad to see the publisher putting out a new one-shot horror anthology because they really nail the tone necessary for a horror book. Swamp Thing himself grew out of (plant pun!) House of Secrets one of DC’s horror anthology titles of yore, so a book like this one feels like the perfect fit for the character.

I had to jump in the Way Back Machine because I mistakenly thought it was LAST year that I wrote about the DC/Walmart joint venture 100-Page Giant Swamp Thing book. It actually ended up being two years ago and the Walmart exclusive books are now just a distant memory. Who would have thought cramming comics in a place with little to no foot traffic in a store would lure in new readers?

This book is a great start for your October horror reading list, so check it out.

ARCHIE HALLOWEEN SPECTACULAR #1
Various (W/A)
Archie Comics

In what could be described as a complete 180 from the previous title, the Archie Halloween Spectacular is a solid all-ages book that celebrates the spooky season in a way that’s very…Archie.

Just last week I wrote about how titles like The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and Afterlife With Archie were some of the most surprising horror titles in recent memory. To be clear, this book isn’t that…it’s CLASSIC Archie fare. The kind of stuff that you would find on the spinner rack at the corner drug store or at the supermarket checkout.

Typically, I don’t shy away from all-ages stuff in this column and I think a lot of people interpret “all ages” as meaning “for kids.” That said, if you’ve got a kid around that’s just starting off with comics this is probably an ideal book to send their way. The book focuses mostly on the “Trick” aspect of “Trick or Treat” and leaves the really spooky stuff squarely in the domain of the publisher’s more mature books. Plus, there’s a great Twilight Zone takeoff that caps the book which I absolutely adored.

The post 31 Days Of Horror 2020 Presents Heroes & Villains: Swamp Thing, Archie Halloween Specials appeared first on .

It’s almost killing time.

The final trailer for Halloween Kills has arrived, giving us another look at the upcoming direct sequel to 2018’s commercially successful and critically acclaimed Halloween. Believe it or not, Michael Myers is still alive, but this time he’s the hunted.

Halloween Kills arrives in theatres and on Peacock in the US on Friday, October 15th

To be a horror fan is to be constantly chasing thrills and chills. It might seem odd to some, but
for me, a good horror film is one of the best cures for my near-constant anxiety. Watching horror
movies allows me not only an entry into a fantasy world but a safe release for that
aforementioned anxiety. The danger is artificial, and I am in the safety of my own home most of
the time. The stress is released through a ritual of fear, and I am able to go about my life.

But the rub of it is, the more horror movies you watch, the harder it is for you to get scared. I’m
not stating this to sound jaded or tough. I LOVE it when a movie gives me the heebie-jeebies.
It’s just a simple fact, hardcore horror junkies can get a little desensitized.

With that in mind, it pays to have a few go-to movies that always hit that horror sweet spot. A
playlist of fright flicks that will get you spooked no matter what. Below is a collection of films that
always manage to frighten me.

Salem’s Lot (1979)

Family traditions can be a little strange. Case in point, there was nearly a five-year streak
during my childhood in which my family would annually rent Tobe Hooper’s epic adaptation of
Stephen King’s seminal vampire novel Salem’s Lot and watch it the day after Thanksgiving
while eating leftovers. I’m not really sure how this began or why it continued, but I do know that
I was enthralled by the film, even though it scared the stuffing out of me.

Modern horror fans will often claim that vampire movies are not scary. I will gladly hold up this
movie as a strong rebuke of that idea. The movie (originally a TV mini-series) expertly sets up
its small-town characters while also giving a real sense of doom and gloom over the
proceedings. The townspeople of Salem’s Lot are damned, and you feel it from frame one.

Then there’s Kurt Barlow, the master vampire. A departure from the smooth amalgamation of
Bela Lugosi and Christopher Lee featured in the novel, Hooper’s Barlow is a hissing update of
Nosferatu, with the blue-tinted skin of a corpse and the yellow eyes of a crocodile. This version
of Barlow has become iconic and it’s easy to see why, as the make-up design is so arresting to
look at. And yet, he’s not the scariest thing in the movie.

The most unsettling image in Salem’s Lot, a movie filled with unsettling imagery, is the surreal
figure of the undead Ralphie Glick clawing at a second-story window, trying to get in and feed
on his older brother Danny. Glick is a unique-looking movie vampire. He’s a child for one,
decked out in pajamas. His blueish pallor and milky eyes, reminding us that he is the freshly
buried dead. This is also a scene in which not having modern special effects actually benefits it
greatly. Glick is surrounded by fog as he floats around the window like a demonic Peter Pan. It
doesn’t quite look real, but it does look ghostly.

The infamous “window scene” is well remembered for being nightmarish. It encapsulates the
themes of Salem’s Lot nicely, making horror feel both domestic and otherworldly at the same
time. Both King and Hooper are of course well known for bringing terror to America’s backyards
and back roads. But our next film wasn’t content to stay on dry land…

JAWS (1975)

The small Texas town I grew up in was worlds away from Amity Island. Still, it was surrounded
by lakes, swamps, and creeks, so I had a healthy notion that water could hide unseen terrors.
That notion became ironclad when, one fateful weekend, when my parents brought home
Steven Spielberg’s JAWS from the video store.

The movie caused unbridled fear in me. While nearby Possum Kingdom Lake doesn’t have any
giant sharks swimming in its waters, as a kid it was difficult to convince me otherwise. Even as
an adult, JAWS continues to have a singular ability to make me feel powerless. It’s a movie that
grabs hold of you from its first scene and clamps down like the fangs of a great sea monster.

While Spielberg isn’t known to be a master of cinematic horror the same way directors like John
Carpenter are, he has often dabbled in the genre. From his breakout TV movie Duel to the
more gruesome aspects of the Jurassic Park films, Spielberg shows a great understanding of
how to make an audience deeply ill-at-ease. And JAWS is probably his purest exercise in
flexing those muscles.

While the movie has many terrific scares, for my money the most frightening moment is purely
character-driven. Towards the end of the movie, our three heroes get drunk and grizzled shark
hunter Quint explains the origins of his hatred of sharks. Based on a true story, the entire movie
stops so Quint (embodied by Robert Shaw) can tell the tale of the doomed USS Indianapolis.
After delivering the atomic bomb, the ship was torpedoed by a Japanese sub while trying to
return to Allied waters. Amazingly, not all of the sailors died from the ship sinking.
Unfortunately for them, they began to get picked off by hungry sharks– a detail that Quint
delivers with a suitably macabre tone.

It’s the best scene in an amazing film and one that should chill even the bravest of moviegoers.
Reminding us all how vulnerable we are in the water. Our next movie, however, brings horror
home.

The Haunting (1963)

Robert Wise’s adaptation of Shirley Jackson’s classic haunted house novel is often cited as one
of the all-time best horror films. It is easy to see why; the movie is dripping with atmosphere and
manages to spook you silly with barely any special effects. Instead, the movie uses sound
effects to represent its ghosts. Coupling that with an amazing central performance by Julie
Harris as the tormented Eleanor, The Haunting is an experience viewers will never forget.

A perfect example of how the movie mines so much from so little plays out when Eleanor is
sharing a bed with fellow ghost hunter Theo (Claire Bloom). At this stage in the film, the duo is
now afraid to sleep alone– and with good reason, as it turns out.

The scene begins with Eleanor rising from her sleep. The spectral voice of a man rises in the
darkness, seemingly coming from nowhere. Joining in shortly after is malevolent laughter,
becoming a chorus of terrible sounds. Eleanor cries out to Theo, saying she is crushing her
hand in their embrace. A ghostly child joins the chorus, its shrill cries sounding like it is in pain.
This is too much for Eleanor who screams into the night. The spirits silence themselves as
Theo turns on the lights. Yet, the light brings no comfort, as it revealed Eleanor wasn’t in bed
with Theo at all. The scene concludes with one last chill up your spine as Eleanor ponders
“whose hand was I holding?” Other films have to rely on gore for their shocks, but The Haunting does just as much by showing you nothing but the fear on its characters’ faces. And like all great ghost stories, it leaves you something to ponder when you turn out the lights at
night.

TERRIFIED (2017)

I want you to imagine the film Ghostbusters, take out the sci-fi technology and dial the humour
back from a 10 to a 4. That’s Terrified at its core. A group of occult investigators enters a
seemingly haunted Buenos Aires neighbourhood and are systematically destroyed by the evil
that dwells there.

Terrified doesn’t care for explanations, it only wants to make your skin crawl. It never bothers to
pin down what is the root of the haunting. Demons? Ghosts? Lovecraftian monsters? It could
be all of the above or something else entirely. The lack of concrete lore to attach to its
apparitions allows the film to bombard the viewer with weird imagery that shocks and unnerves.

The movie’s creepiest moment is its simplest. Two of our protagonists encounter the corpse of
a child that has been displayed at the dinner table in a macabre parody of a family breakfast.
While the investigators discuss how the boy ended up there, the corpse seems to move subtly
every time they turn away from it. The effect is nothing short of chilling.

For those who don’t normally care for foreign films, I urge you to ignore your biases and give
this Argentinian shocker a chance. It’s one of the most effective contemporary horror flicks I’ve
seen in a good while.

An American Werewolf in London (1981)

Sometimes it’s the little things that stay with you the most. John Landis’ An American Werewolf
in London is considered by many to be the definitive ’80s monster movie, The film has many
standout moments of horror. Well-crafted jump scares, shape-shifting body horror and
character-based existential crisis. But what haunts me about American Werewolf is its final
moments.

I’ve often made the case that despite its witty, comedic, dialogue, that An American Werewolf
in London is a deeply cynical movie populated by doomed, tragic characters. I back this up
by citing its ending. The film’s hero David has transformed into his hellhound alter-ego one final
time, resulting in a rampage across Piccadilly Circus. David’s love interest, the compassionate
nurse Alex, pushes her way past the heavily armed police. As the werewolf readies to pounce
on her, Alex steadies herself and says firmly “I love you, David,” hoping to reach the man within
the monster. The beast advances on her and is shot down by the cops. As Alex breaks down
while looking down at David’s now-human corpse, The Marcel’s doo-wop take on “Blue Moon”
begins to play abruptly cutting to the ending credits.

The scene encapsulates the tragedy of the Wolf Man mythos. You want these two likeable young
people to have a future together. But they live in an unkind universe that sneers at the idea of
hope. The perfect use of an upbeat song from the early years of rock feels like a slap in the
face. One last cruel joke played on the audience, as the film seemingly dances on the grave of
its hero. An American Werewolf in London is proof a movie need not rely purely on visceral thrills
to frighten you. Sometimes you only have to rip at the viewer’s heartstrings.

So, there you have it. Five movies that never fall to give me the shivers. Fear is, of course,
relative. You might find the above-mentioned fright flicks about as scary as a glass of warm milk.
Still, as the spooky season continues, I urge you to dig deep, reflect on what frightens you, and
seek it out in its cinematic form. After all, it’s the best way to honour Halloween!

Drew Edwards is the writer/creator of the long-running underground comic Halloween Man and its related spin-off Lucy Chaplin: Science Starlet. He is a Ringo nominee and a member of the Pen America Fellowship, and can be heard regularly on the Castle of Horror Podcast. His work is currently published by Comixology: https://www.comixology.com/Sugar-Skull-Media/comics-publisher/5811-0 

The latest chapter in the Halloween franchise hit theatres this weekend and unfortunately, I left the film feeling indifferent, which is not what you want to feel when you watch a horror film.

Halloween Kills is set moment after 2018’s Halloween, with lots of flashbacks thrown in for good measure. We learn that Michael Myers escaped the fire at Laurie Strode’s house and killed all the fireman trying to put out the blaze. I will say this is probably the most inventive sequence of the film as I liked some of the camera shots and angles, especially when we had a fireman’s fogged up mask POV shot and when Michael walks out of the house with water coming down in the foreground while the flames reach their apex in the background.

The Strode family (Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer and Andi Matichak) are on their way to the hospital to tend to their wounds after their encounter with Michael in the 2018 film and for the most part, that’s where those characters stay throughout the events of Halloween Kills. Michael’s story has him heading home, violently killing anyone who gets in his way. What is interesting about Halloween Kills is the decision that screenwriters Scott Teems, Danny McBride and David Gordon Green made to make this film focus more on the victims from the original 1978 film and how they want their revenge on Michael Myers, instead of the Strode family. It has a mixed effect, because we get a very strong performance from Anthony Michael Hall, who plays Tommy Doyle, but lose interest in the storyline that was setup in the first film with the Strode family. For those of you who have not seen the 1978 original film (like myself) Tommy was one of the kids Laurie Strode babysat. I think for Halloween Kills, it would have definitely helped if I had seen the 1978 film when watching this, which is interesting because I did not feel that way when I saw the 2018 version.

When Doyle finds out that Michael has escaped, he begins to recruit people from the town to come together to stop Michael by any means necessary. This to me was the true horror of the film, seeing people unite because of a singular focus without rationally thinking through that vengeance is not good and it is not ok to take the law into your own hands. When the police lose control and the mob demands justice, it is truly horrifying to watch because of how blinded they are by their hate. In a way, Tommy Doyle became the antagonist in Halloween Kills for me as it was interesting to see his character’s arc progress to one where you sympathize with him at the start to one where you cannot justify his actions.

Other things I liked about Halloween Kill were the fact that the whole film takes place over the course of an evening, so there is no sunlight at all, giving the film a very dark and moody atmosphere. I also have to commend Scott MacArthur and Michael McDonald as they had good chemistry on the screen playing the two John’s. As well, the score is solid throughout.

Unfortunately, there is a lot about Halloween Kills that does not work. The Strode women are wasted and not given a ton to do in the film, because they either argue or get angry at others in the hospital. To be blunt, Halloween Kill drags anytime there is a sequence at the hospital. There is also a minor storyline about an escaped convict that I thought was handled poorly. I found that I didn’t love the flashback sequences as they took away from the momentum of the main story and I actually wished that they changed the start of the film to be when Laurie is being taken to the hospital, Michael escaping from the burning house and then we can get into the flashbacks as a long flashback opens the film.

As most horror film fans know, it is frustrating watching stupid people do stupid things and Halloween Kills has a lot of dumb people. From a man dressed as a doctor going back into a bar to leave his wife alone in a parking lot so he can get his stethoscope, to the decision of a supporting character going into a house alone even though he has people with him, a character seeing Michael coming at her and just letting him stab her without really fighting back to the absolutely terrible accuracy of anyone firing a gun from close range. All of these things are groan inducing. A minor quibble I had at the end of Halloween Kill is that I did not like the edits that happen in the final moments as I literally had to ask my friend where someone was located as the edits were quick.

My final issue with Halloween Kill is something that I don’t like to say about any horror film and that is that it just was not scary. There was one jump scare that got me, which I always enjoy, but the rest of the time, I honestly did not react. I hope this is corrected in Halloween Ends.

An interesting thing for me is that for most of the Halloween films that I have seen, I just look at Michael Myers as a man who just cannot be killed. In the climatic moments of Halloween Kills, I realized my view of him is wrong and that he is actually the purist representation of evil. Evil will always be around and cannot be stopped, no matter how hard anyone tries. That does not mean that we should not try to stop it, but darkness will always be there. It has no emotion, it shows no mercy and leaves many victims in its wake. So having my mindset change was an interesting aspect for my viewing experience.

Although I was disappointed overall with Halloween Kills, I am looking forward to next year when Halloween Ends comes out, as it will be interesting to see where they go next with the story. Again, I hope they can correct some of the mistakes from this film.

This morning I woke up with a song in my head. It’s not an uncommon experience for me but my brain had decided to go with, what I perceive to be, a deep David Bowie cut which I deemed odd. That’s not to say that I don’t consider myself to be a Bowie fan, I do. In point of fact I’ll bring him up just so I can mention that I saw him on his last full tour of the States. I tend to stick to the shallow waters of the greatest hits collections but also have special places in my heart reserved for Outside and Blackstar, but Station to Station is hard for me to get into.

I don’t think I’m overselling it when I write that the brain is weird. The human brain in general, that is…not just mine. As I was getting ready to log on to work this morning I was trying to unpack the deeper meaning behind why my brain had decided to call up a song I’ve barely ever listened to and drop it in the forefront of my consciousness. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. Other times it’s a Thin White Duke.

Who can I be now? Hopefully, the guy that writes about comics today because that’s what I’m supposed to be doing here.

Overflow
Winston Gambro (W/A)

A couple of months ago I put word out on Twitter that I was looking for comics to write about. I get sent stuff from publishers on a regular basis but I have a soft spot for the creators who are out there on the grind, self-publishing, and otherwise making it happen. Very few people produce art with the intention of not sharing it with the general public and it’s a tremendous endeavour to create something. If I can in some small way help some creators reach a wider audience then I’m all for using my platform to amplify those voices.

Here’s the blurb on Overflow:

Overflow is Mr.Robot meets Parasite, an exploration of hacking and class divide and all tied together by a mystery.

Ava Lee, a former cop turned private investigator is forced to prove her brother’s innocence after his military vehicle fires upon a friendly Russian unit, igniting mutually assured destruction.

In the investigation, she finds a group of hackers that attempted to change the world through hacking, fraud and murder. Her life is put at risk as she attempts to expose the truth, all while questioning if this apathy filled world is even worth saving.

One of the first things that struck me about the story in Overflow was that dystopian fiction in recent years only requires a few tweaks to our current society and a couple extremely small jumps in speculation to make for a full-blown and totally believable future. Reading Overflow had me muttering to myself, “Yeah, that could be like five years from now…”

Overflow had a completely engrossing story, art that was very much in line with the book’s cyberpunk tone, and and ending that was a fantastic rug-pull.

Overflow can be purchased at https://gumroad.com/winstongambro or read for free at Overflowcomic.com.

Halloween Hangover

Figurative, not literal.

You know, if not for BBP’s 31 Days of Horror I don’t know how in I would have been to the season this year. It’s a favourite holiday and one to which I can partially jokingly say I owe my existence to, but if it weren’t for my pseudo job here and having the “obligation” to write about Halloween stuff, I don’t know how much time I would have found for it.

Writing this column is also an excuse for me to further delay taking down my Halloween decorations. I went to the trouble of digging them out of my basement a month ago so they should be on display as long as possible. I shan’t be decorating for Christmas so this is my new sideboard table’s time to shine.

This year my “white whale” of decorations was replacing my light-up Jack-o-Lantern that I apparently through in a dumpster last year in a fit of mania brought on by the stress of moving. It was insanely difficult to find a “traditional” scary face light-up pumpkin this year, I don’t know if they just weren’t in vogue or if I should blame the now omnipresent “supply chain issues.” Everywhere I went in my area seemed to be a little anemic when it came to decorations.

As fate would have it, I stopped at a local supermarket on Devil’s Night and was able to secure a plastic pumpkin that was roughly in the ballpark of what I was after. Even better…it was already on clearance. I also picked up an orange lightbulb for my porch light to add to the general vibe and I have resolved that next year I will have lawn decorations AND a smoke machine.

Sadly, my enthusiasm for the day wasn’t quite matched by my neighbours. Very few houses on my street were participating and I ended up with even less trick or treaters then I had anticipated. Still, I was able to provide validation to a kid who dressed up as Coraline by correctly identifying their costume. Apparently, most people thought they were dressed up as Georgie from It. So, net win altogether.

Around 8 pm it started to rain so I opted to call it an evening and retreat inside to watch Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark while enjoying some apple cider purchased from a local cider mill…and maybe a few seasonally appropriate porters after that.

I really liked Halloween Ends. Like, I really liked it.

Now, I know there’s a whole lot of hate for the film coming from vocal folks across social media who didn’t like it for many a reason, with a lack of Michael Myers and the introduction of a new character who takes up a lot of scream…I mean, screen time… apparently being the film’s main offences. Of course, a lot of the people complaining haven’t themselves created a piece of art and wouldn’t know the first thing that goes into making a movie.

I can’t stand those people. They’re probably the same ones who watch Halloween III: Season of the Witch and continue to bemoan the lack of connection to the first two movies and miss the fact, yes FACT, that SOTW is one of the greatest films in the entire Halloween franchise, not to mention of the past forty years of horror as well.

In Halloween Ends, director and co-writer David Gordon Green swings for the fences while also trying to do something new with the franchise, and damnit if so many people hate it when a director does that (sorry Rian Johnson, fandom sucks). I’m not saying everyone who doesn’t view Halloween Ends through my eyes is wrong; far from that. Biff Bam Pop!’s Sachin Hingoo didn’t enjoy the film like I did, and while we haven’t gone deep into his reasons, I respect him as a horror fan and cinephile and know they are valid. He’s also not screaming from his social media how awful he thinks the film is, mind you, which is something all of us at Biff Bam Pop! tend to follow when we’re writing for the site. There’s enough negativity out there, so we try to mainly write positive pieces; and when we do share critical words, it’s always keeping in mind that there are artists and creators who have worked hard on what we’re writing about.

That being said, I am glad I enjoyed Halloween Ends, especially because 2021’s Halloween Kills didn’t work for me at all. I walked into this new one with low expectations and sat through it pretty much loving everything I saw on screen. While I personally would have enjoyed a few more jump scares, I did find myself covering my eyes on occasion while also uncomfortably laughing out loud during some fairly vicious kill scenes (the radio station kills are instant classics). The performances in Halloween Ends all worked for me as well, including Jamie Lee Curtis’ older and wiser Laurie, as well as Andi Matichak’s Allyson, who has gone through significant trauma over the last two films and is ready to break out of Haddonfield and her past.

The most divisive performance of Halloween Ends, the one that makes me scream, comes from Rohan Campbell, who plays the new character of Corey Cunningham, a victim of psychological abuse and a town that resents and hates him. I don’t want to give too much away about Corey and his arc, but it is hugely significant and takes up a lot of Halloween Ends’ run time. While lots of fans resent Corey’s presence in the movies, I think the character is well-defined and even gives insight into what makes a monster like Michael Myers tick. Campbell’s performance is multifaceted, as he puts both Corey and the audience through the ringer – are we supposed to love or hate this kid? Is he misunderstood and deserving of our sympathy, or is there a darkness in him that’s just been hidden…until it’s not.

Movies and are opinions are subjective, I know that. I’m someone who went from reviling Rob Zombie’s Halloween II to thinking it’s a unique examination of trauma, a revelation that came after watching and rewatching Halloween (2018) and realizing soon after that Zombie was working on the same subject matter. So sitting here, thinking about how much I liked Halloween Ends and the performance by Rohan Campbell, I’m left with the opinion that some day, one day, people will come back to the film and not only acknowledge how unique it is, but that it also contains what could become a classic horror character in Corey Cunningham, who just wanted to burn it all down.

And in many ways, he has.

Spooky season is upon us and Figure Friday is not immune to it’s chilling charms. Aside from Halloween being an important day to me for a myriad of reasons, it’s just fun. This year I’ve stacked the deck and I have some seasonal events cooking for each weekend in October and the best way to kick that off is with a 31 Days of Horror Figure Friday column.

Want to know how I’m decorating my yard? Check this out!

Transformers ReAction Figure Optimus Prime (Halloween)

Horrifying? Maybe if you’re a stickler for Transformers canon because well actually Optimus Prime never appeared in this orange & black configuration in the entirety of the Generation One cartoon or any of its associated media. To that I say…shut up, nerd. 

This is a fun variant from Super7’s ReAction line of retro-inspired figures and I’m all for it. Check the blurb:

On Halloween, Optimus Prime doesn’t say “trick-or-treat!”- he surely says “TRUCK-or-treat!” This 3.75” scale, articulated Transformers ReAction Figure of Optimus Prime depicts the Autobots leader looking festive for Halloween in an orange, yellow, and black colorway with color-coordinated Ion Blaster accessory. Not to sound (candy) corny, but this Transformers ReAction Figure will be a treat you don’t need to be tricked into adding to your collection!

Perfection. No notes.

Halloween III: Season of the Witch Limited Edition Candy Pail

Halloween III: Season of the Witch is the best Halloween movie and I will take no questions on this. I think it would have been cool for the Halloween series of movies to continue in name only, free of Michael Myers for the last 40-plus years. At least Halloween (2018) and Halloween Kills were good. Bonus points are awarded for Kills having that kick ass Ghost song on its soundtrack.

Trick or Treat Studios has some truly spectacular Season of the Witch merch this year, so of course they sold out right away.

Check out the description:

Get ready for trick or treating with a Universal Studios officially licensed Halloween III: Season of the Witch candy pail. Crafted from durable blow mold plastic, this 9″ tall candy pail brings the classic horror icon to life in retro style. This candy pail features painted details and a flexible plastic handle making it perfect for trick or treating. 

Had I known these were going to sell out so fast, I’d have been quicker on the draw to order myself the full set. The blow mold plastic has a decidedly vintage appeal without the hefty price tag that usually comes along with it. The Witch, Skull, and Pumpkin are all represented in this set and if you’re lucky enough to snag a set…do it!

Halloween Ends Corey’s Scarecrow Mask

In the interest of equal time, now you can own a mask from the new worst third movie in the Halloween franchise. 

The movie started and ended well, I’ll give it that much and that’s about it. At least it’s finally over, right?

What’s that? Ah fu-