Toronto After Dark brings us a tale out of South Africa tonight with 8. Marrying the feel of a haunted house tale with the legends and myths of the tribes of South Africa this film plays almost as a gentle tale, and while light on real scares, there are some character moments that resonate and…
Tag: scares
Toronto After Dark 2019: Making Monsters (2019) – Justin Harding & Rob Brunner
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…
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…
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…
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…
Dawn of the Dead (2004) – Zack Snyder
It takes guts to want to remake a Romero zombie classic, but that’s where we are with the next zombie film featured in DK Canada’s highly enjoyable Monsters in the Movies book. Zack Snyder, a wonderfully visual director, who never actually seems to be able to handle story and character (or any measure of subtlety)…
House On Haunted Hill (1999) – William Malone
I’m not sure how this title, a remake of the classic 1959 William Castle film ended up in the zombie chapter of DK Canada’s Monsters in the Movies book, as having just sat through this one, I don’t recall any zombies, or living dead. The concept itself is fun enough, an amusement park mogul, Stephen…
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1997) – Blaze of Glory, and Empok Nor
Station log: stardate unknown Eddington (Ken Marshall) returns in this episode written by Ira Steven Behr and Robert Hewitt Wolfe that first aired on 12 May, 1997. The Maquis are planning on launching a bio-weapon assault against Cardassia, who since their alliance with the Dominion has made things more desperate for the Maquis. Captain Sisko…
War of the Worlds (1988) – The Resurrection
Back in 1988, a year after Paramount launched the Enterprise back into space with The Next Generation, they turned to another sci-fi property they owned, with the intentions of bringing it to the small screen in a weekly syndicated series. Serving as a sequel to the classic 1953 film, the series developed by showrunner Greg…
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark & More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (1981 & 1984) – Alvin Schwartz
Scary stories are always a delight to take part in, wrapped oneself in darkness and trying to laugh the chill that the scares gives us, while enjoying the fright and perceived danger of it, like whistling past a graveyard, seems to be ingrained in our DNA. I never read these young adult collections when they…
The Mind Reels 