Having its Canadian premiere at the Scotiabank theater, the Toronto After Dark film festival unveils Making Monsters which proves itself to be a fun and occasionally creepy spin on familiar horror motifs, both classic and modern. There are nods to the tropes of Final Girl, Torture Porn, and the horrors of the modern world, all…
Tag: creepy
The Haunting of Hill House (2018) – Blu-Ray Review
Last year Netflix dropped the addictive, binge it all at once series, The Haunting of Hill House from writer-director Mike Flanagan. And now it comes home on blu-ray with extended episodes and commentary tracks to enhance the viewing experience as one of the most famous haunted house tales comes home in a new way. Taking…
The Family Plot (2016) – Cherie Priest
Haunted house stories take a fine hand to craft and make them entertaining, believable, and scary. Cherie Priest accomplishes all of that with her superior horror novel, The Family Plot. Music City Salvage is barely staying afloat, and Charles Dutton the owner, risks everything to keep it afloat when he buys the Withrow house for…
Sleepy Hollow (1999) – Tim Burton
DK Canada’s Monsters in the Movies book takes me into classic ghost tales territory with the next film that haunts the chapter on spirits, Tim Burton’s take on the legend of Sleepy Hollow. His bloody film, which serves as his version of the tale, also serves as a nod and homage to Hammer Films as…
The Changeling (1980) – Peter Medak
Next up in DK Canada’s immensely enjoyable Monsters in the Movies, is the classic Canadian horror (shot in Vancouver and featuring some homegrown talent), The Changeling, a wonderful addition to the ghost chapter I am currently delving into. After his wife and child are killed in an accident while on vacation, composer John Russell (George…
The Fog (1980) – John Carpenter
The venture into the paranormal continues as I delve into the chapter on ghosts in DK Canada’s very entertaining Monsters in the Movies book. This time, it’s John Carpenter’s take on what plays out as a classic ghost story. The story itself is basic, and in the hands of Carpenter we get a creepy little…
Ghostbusters II (1989) – Ivan Reitman
They’re back! Ghostbusters II from 1989, is the next ghost title in DK Canada’s Monsters in the Movies book, and it has been a long time since I actually sat and watched this one. It’s undeniable that the first film is the better one, but there are some cool things at work in the follow-up…
Moonlighting (1985) – The Lady in the Iron Mask, and Money Talks… Maddie Walks
Roger Director pens the first episode up this week. It originally aired on 1 October, 1985, and finds David (Bruce Willis) and Maddie (Cybill Shepherd) taking on a very strange case that gets them, and the Blue Moon Detective Agency, tangled up in murder, yet again. When a woman, Barbara Wylie (Judith Hansen) wearing a…
Horrorstor (2014) – Grady Hendrix
Grady Hendrix has quickly become one of my favorite writers, his ability to balance real and comedic moments with truly terrifying scares. So, when I came across his first novel, Horrorstor, I was delighted and snapped it right up, and couldn’t wait to dig into it. It did not disappoint. Finding that perfect balance between…
Toy Story 4: The Official Guide (2019) – Ruth Amos
With Buzz, Woody and the rest of the gang returning to theaters this summer with Disney Pixar’s Toy Story 4, DK Canada thought it might help out younger viewers by releasing The Official Guide for the new film which lets us catch up with old friends, meet new ones, including Canada’s Greatest Stuntman, Duke Caboom!…
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1998) – Wrongs Darker Than Death or Night, and Inquisition
Station log: stadate unknown Hans Beimler and Ira Steven Behr pen this Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) story that first aired on 1 April, 1998. When the Cardassian, Dukat (Marc Alaimo) stuns Kira with the revelation that he claims her Bajoran mother was his lover during the occupation she turns to Sikso (Avery Brooks) not as…
Summer of Night (1991) – Dan Simmons
This week, I dig into another Dan Simmons horror novel, and decided on Summer of Night. While not necessarily derivative of Stephen King’s It, there are striking similarities, although both prove to be very entertaining. Set in 1960, Simmons novel doesn’t quite mine the nostalgia factor as King did (It made me long for a…
