‘Some students just don’t make the grade’

After School Massacre is a 2014 American slasher horror film written and directed by Jared Masters (Slink). It stars Nikole Howell, Lindsay Lamb, Andrew Phillips, Courtney Rood, Danika Galindo, Yasmine Soofi, and Savannah Matlow.

A high school teacher who goes on a killing spree after being fired, stalking his former female students at their slumber party…

Reviews:

“Asides to the camera and a bizarre murder attack that turns into a slap fight add to the fun, and while there isn’t actual blood on display here (apart from one bit involving an electric carving knife), the spirit is definitely right with an abundance of creative kills and skimpy underwear.” Nathaniel Thompson, Mondo Digital

” … there’s a certain light-footedness to this one mostly absent from today’s fare (as long as they’re not actual comedies or parodies), as well as an innocent sexiness that’s again lacking in more recent films – and these are the things that really make this movie: So it’s silly and formulaic alright, but it’s obvious everybody involved had fun…” Mike Haberfelner, Search My Trash

“This film in and of itself does no harm but as long as people continue to watch bad films like this there will be people who will make them and think they are wanted.” Ben French, HorrorNews.net

The acting in this one is surprisingly decent. The mostly all female cast does a great job and added a lot of spunk and sex appeal to the film. This film was cast perfectly and it showed. The story for this is your typical slasher but the follow through was extremely poor […] Sadly, they revealed the killer way too early with a very poor back story and a shitty mask to top off the sh*tcake.” Blacktooth, Horror Society

Cast and characters:

• Nikole Howell as Devon
• Andrew Phillips as Luke Dalton
• Courtney Rood as Erin
• Lindsay Lamb as Laura
• Danika Galindo as Steph
• Yasmine Soofi as Alex
• Savannah Matlow as Jess Perkins (as Savvy Matlow)
• Simone Wasserman as Dee Dee Perkins
• Lonnie Alcide Gardner as Max (as Lonnie Gardner)
• Nick Siniseas as Joel
• Dawna Lee Heising as Karla Perkins
• Steve Crestas as Officer Harris
• Julia Faye West as Anny Briteheart
• Kelly De Vries as Kara
• Mindy Robinson as Linda
• Art Roberts as Principal Wheatley
• Kristyn Archibald as Shelly
• LeJon as Steve
• Levi Factora as Deon
• Abby Summers as Erica
• Kamuela Kim as Mr. Lox
• Geena Lovato as Chloe
• Mystic Marlow as Janitor
• Paul Tirado as Pizza Delivery Boy
• Laura Amelia as Ambulance Driver
• Bruce Kade as Paramedic

Trivia:

The film was originally titled Teacher’s Day.

Wikipedia | IMDb

AMC Visionaries: Eli Roth’s History of Horror is a forthcoming 2018 American six-part TV documentary series. The director of Knock Knock; The Green Inferno, the first two Hostel films and Cabin Fever commented:

“I’m thrilled to be part of this incredible series. For years, I’ve wanted to create a definitive ‘History of Horror,’ a living record of the genre with interviews from all the greats, old and new.

Sadly, we lose more of these masters every year and with them go their stories and experiences. This show will serve as a record for future generations — fans and filmmakers alike — to enjoy. I could not be prouder to create this with AMC.”

Nauséabond [translation: “Fart Stink”] is a French short horror film directed by Sean Delecroix and Thomas Pantalacci from a script by Sean Delecroix et Olivier Gissot. It stars Michelle Murat, Jean-Baptiste Plaetevoet, and the voice of Michel Gissot.

After fifty years of marriage, Robert’s ‘nocturnal melodies’ still prevent Sylvaine from sleeping…

Source: Horrorfreak News

To Hell and Back: The Kane Hodder Story is a 2017 American documentary film co-produced and directed by Derek Dennis Herbert. 

Production company Masterfully Macabre Entertainment provide the following synopsis:

“To Hell and Back: The Kane Hodder Story is the harrowing story of a stuntman overcoming a dehumanising childhood filled with torment and bullying in Sparks, Nevada.

After surviving a near-death burn accident, he worked his way up through Hollywood, leading to his ultimate rise as Jason Voorhees in the Friday the 13th series and making countless moviegoers forever terrified of hockey masks and summer camp.

Featuring interviews with cinema legends, including Bruce Campbell (Ash vs. Evil Dead), Robert Englund (Freddy Krueger), and Cassandra Peterson (Elvira: Mistress of the Dark), To Hell and Back peels off the mask of Kane Hodder, cinema’s most prolific killer, in a gut-wrenching, but inspiring, documentary.

Hatchet director Adam Green

After decades of watching Kane Hodder on screen, get ready to meet the man behind the mask in To Hell and Back – an uniquely human story about one of cinema’s most vicious monsters.”

The film features interviews with Danielle Harris, Sid Haig, Zach Galligan, Bill Moseley, Felissa Rose, Adam Green, Sean S. Cunningham, John Carl Buechler and many others.

To Hell and Back: The Kane Hodder Story is being shown at the Horror Channel FrightFest in London on 26 August 2017.

IMDb

‘Just when you thought it was safe in the Arctic’

Ice Sharks is a 2016 American action horror film written and directed by Emile Edwin Smith (Mega Shark vs. Mecha Shark; visual effects on Zoombies; Sharknado movies and Bermuda Tentacles). It stars Edward DeRuiter, Jenna Parker and Kaiwi Lyman-Mersereau.

A new breed of aggressive, ravenous sharks cracks the frozen ocean floor of an Arctic research station, devouring all who fall through. As the station sinks into frigid waters, those alive must fashion makeshift weapons or suffer the same fate…

Buy: Amazon.co.uk

Reviews:

“Director and writer Emile Edwin Smith treats his movie as what appears to be a straight up feature without any of the over the top, frivolous tropes of other, more laughed at shark themed pictures. Any humour that does crop up feels unintentional as Emile concentrates on – gasp – creating tension.” James Simpson, Infernal Cinema

“The usual cheap effects of The Asylum’s films are not too bad – there are one or two slightly dodgy ones but these are kept brief, while most of the others look perfectly reasonable. The film even manages to shoot some underwater sequences during the efforts of the divers to repair the habitat as sharks circle behind them, which look reasonably convincing.” Richard Scheib, Moria

” …there aren’t that many people available to kill, which is why Smith’s feels much more like Agatha Christie’s Ten Little Indians with sharks rather than an out-and-out CGI slaughterfest like Sharknado et al. The fact it doesn’t let up also means that it doesn’t drag and there’s absolutely no filler – even with a just-under 90 minutes running time Ice Sharks seems to be over just as it’s begun.” Phil Wheat, Nerdly

“Ice Sharks is a surprisingly dark little movie. Don’t get me wrong.  It’s an Asylum film so, of course, Ice Sharks has an appropriately macabre sense of humor. But, especially when compared to Sharknado 3, Ice Sharks is rather grim. Director Emile Edwin Smith does a good job of creating and maintaining a claustrophobic atmosphere inside the sunken Oasis station.” Lisa Marie Bowman, Through the Shattered Lens

Buy: Amazon.co.uk

Main cast:

Edward DeRuiter, Jenna Parker, Kaiwi Lyman-Mersereau, Clarissa Thibeaux, Travis Lincoln Cox, Mia Danelle, Leddie Garcia, Shamar Philippe, Jim Helton, Emile Edwin Smith (as Radio Operator MacReady), Kris Marconi, Sharnae Caceres, Zo Zosak, Chris Arellano.

IMDb

‘In Wales, no-one can hear you scream’

Canaries is a 2017 British science fiction comedy horror film written and directed by Peter Stray, making his feature debut. It stars Robert Pugh, Kai Owen, Richard Mylan and Hannah Danie.

Wales: A group of friends at a New Year’s Eve bash hosted by Steve Denis, London’s 53rd-most-listened-to DJ (a returning local boy made good), are pitted against an invasion task force of creepy time travelling aliens…

Canaries has its world premiere at the Horror Channel FrightFest in London on 26 August 2017.

IMDb

Poseidon Rex is a 2013 American sci-fi horror film directed by Mark L. Lester (Pterodactyl; Class of 1984; Firestarter) from a screenplay by Rafael Jordan (Cowboys vs Dinosaurs; Yeti: Curse of the Snow Demon; Dragon Wasps; et al). It stars Brian Krause, Anne McDaniels and Steven Helmkamp.

A small, secluded island off the coast of Belize suddenly finds itself terrorized by a deadly predator from the planet’s distant past when deep sea divers accidentally awaken an ancient evil…

Buy DVD: Amazon.co.uk

Reviews:

“The often inane screenplay, by frequent Lester collaborator Rafael Jordan (Dragons of Camelot, Pterodactyl), vaguely recognizable cast struggling to make the script seem intelligible and strictly functional cinematography betray the movie’s most earnest intentions, however. Lacking sufficient self-parody to entertain as a campy monster-movie spoof or the budget to thrill as action-adventure or sci-fi, much like the creature it depicts, Poseidon Rex represents a throwback that even its own distributor can’t really get behind.” Justin Lowe, The Hollywood Reporter

“If nothing else, it is better than the average B monster movie simply because it doesn’t look so cheap. The better budget has allowed the production crew to travel to Belize, which offers a sunny tourist locale and beautiful azure oceans. Moreover, it allows the crew to film underwater – even if the locations do nothing to approximate what is described as the dangerous and turbulent unexplored rift of The Blowhole. The film also has a decent level of digital creature effects.” Richard Scheib, Moria

“It’s not a hidden gem by any means, but it has a slickness and a professionalism that is certainly lacking from the relatively snarky Sharknado or the even-cheaper mockbusters produced by The Asylum. One can always tell if the makers of a B-movie are sincere about making an entertaining film, or if they’re just being cynical. The makers of Poseidon Rex clearly meant it.” Witney Seibold, Nerdist

Buy DVD: Amazon.com

“Screenwriter Rafael Jordan and director Mark Lester unnecessarily embrangle the film with irrelevant subplots involving local thugs, treasure hunters and lost Mayan gold. The gangsters barge in on what is relatively the film’s best scene, in which Anne McDaniels’ buxom marine biologist cracks open a P-rex egg with her impeccably painted nails.” Martin Tsai, Los Angeles Times

“The action sequences are nonsensical and cheesy, as expected, but Poseidon Rex fails to get even remotely creative with its kills, which greatly damages the final product and the primary reason most people will watch the movie. Most would be willing to endure unbearable dialogue and a groan inducing love story for a few spectacularly silly dinosaur kills, but we are deprived of such.” Cliff Wheatley, IGN

“There is a lot of Star Trek style shaking whenever a boat is attacked and plenty of over-animated pantomime by actors working with empty space later populated by a computer-generated dinosaur. Sometimes it is humorous. Sometimes it is laughable for different reasons. Either way, Poseidon Rex could have benefitted from a better balance for unifying everyone involved.” Ian Sedensky, Culture Crypt

Main cast:

Brian Krause (Be Afraid; Plan 9; Camel Spiders; et al), Anne McDaniels (Snake Outta Compton; The Dead Tales; Rock Paper Dead; ), Steven Helmkamp (Street Eyes; Dominion), Candice Nunes (Terrordactyl), Berne Velasquez, Gildon Roland, Pulu Lightburn, Remo, Phillip Coc, Serapio Chun, Paul Hyde, Joe Requena, Aaron Lauriano, Chase Kilburn, Trey Schesser.

IMDb

Giuseppe “Pino” Donaggio (born 24 November 1941) is an Italian musician and film composer. A classically-trained violinist, Donaggio is best known for his collaborations with American director Brian De Palma, scoring films such as Carrie, Dressed to Kill, Body Double, and Raising Cain.

Born in Burano, Venice, Donaggio began studying violin at the age of ten. At the age of fourteen, he made his solo debut in a Vivaldi concert for radio. The discovery of rock and roll during the summer of 1959 diverted Donaggio’s classical career when he made his singing debut with Paul Anka. He then began to write his own songs and had a string of successes including ‘Una casa in cima al mondo’.

His greatest hit was the 1965 song ‘Io che non vivo’, which sold 80 million records worldwide and was performed in English as “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me” by the likes of Dusty Springfield and Elvis Presley.

His first film soundtrack composition was for Nicolas Roeg’s British/Italian horror film Don’t Look Now (1973). Since then he has composed music for several Italian genre films, including Dario Argento’s Two Evil Eyes, Trauma and Do You Like Hitchcock?. He also composed the scores for a host of notable horror movies including Piranha, Tourist Trap,The Howling and Seed of Chucky.

Selected filmography:

• Don’t Look Now (1973)
• Carrie (1976)
• A Whisper in the Dark (1976)
• Haunts (1977)
• Damned in Venice (1978)
• Piranha (1978)
• Tourist Trap (1979)
• Dressed to Kill (1980)
• Beyond Evil (1980)
• The Fan (1981)
• The Howling (1981)
• The Black Cat (1981)
• Body Double (1984)
• Nothing Underneath (1985)
• Crawlspace (1986)
• Phantom of Death (1988)
• Catacombs (1988)
• Meridian (1990)
• Two Evil Eyes (1990)
• The Sect aka The Devil’s Daughter (1991)
• Raising Cain (1992)
• Trauma (1993)
• Arcane Sorcerer (1996)
• Seed of Chucky (2004)
• Do You Like Hitchcock? (2005)
• Patrick: Evil Awakens (2013)

Wikipedia | IMDb

‘Terror has new teeth’

Malibu Shark Attack – aka Mega Shark of Malibu – is a 2009 Canadian/Australian action horror film directed by David Lister from a screenplay by Keith Shaw. It stars Warren Christie, Peta Wilson and Chelan Simmons.

Heather (Peta Wilson) is the head-lifeguard on a Malibu beach, alongside her ex-boyfriend Chavez (Warren Christie), Doug (Remi Broadway) and Barb (Sonya Salomaa).

Also on the beach are Jenny (Chelan Simmons), a teenage girl who is reluctantly cleaning the beach for community service after she got caught shoplifting, and Bryan (Nicholas G. Cooper), Barb’s boyfriend.

Chavez travels to a nearby house that is undergoing construction and meets with the workers Colin (Jeffery Gannon), George (Mungo McKay), Yancey (Renee Bowen) and Karl (Evert McQueen). Meanwhile, a tremor unleashes a group of living fossil goblin sharks who begin to devour swimmers along the beach…

Buy DVD: Amazon.com

Review:

We’ve become used to all manner of silly shark movies in recent times. Film producers seem determined to come up with more and more absurd situations and sharksploitation variations, with Sand Sharks and Snow Sharks being particularly daft examples of this trend. But, hey, at least these movies are tongue-in-cheek.

On the other hand, the serious Malibu Shark Attack simply presents us with a bunch of unlikable characters besieged by the some bizarre-looking CGI sharks from prehistory and repeats itself ad nauseum. Shot-after-shot is used again and again, as if the film’s makers hoped we wouldn’t notice. Things improve slightly with some power tools vs. sharks action in a semi-flooded house, however it’s too little too late to save yet another inferior Maneater entry from mere mediocrity.

Adrian J Smith, Horrorpedia

Other reviews:

” …there are dangerous dives, twee news reports, gratuitous amounts of not-quite-nudity and some splashing round the corridors à la Deep Blue Sea. The sharks are fierce enough but either die instantly or survive ridiculous amounts of damage, according to the demands of the plot. Too much time is wasted just watching them swim about or ogling bronzed bodies on the beach…” Jennie Kermode, Eye for Film

” …it has all the expected marks from women in bikinis, heroic young men and being a TV movie characters which end up pretty anonymous as there is no room for character depth […] just another modern shark movie and whilst below average is not as terrible as many would have you believe. In fact it is one of those movies which works in an enjoyable bad movie way.” Andy Webb, The Movie Scene

” …David Lister generates fair and reasonable tension. The steps to get everybody there seem contrived, nevertheless the scenes with the cast trapped inside the lifeguard station on stilts in the midst of the flood water and surrounded by sharks that are trying to batter their way in maintains a reasonable pressure cooker situation.” Richard Scheib, Moria

Buy DVD: Amazon.co.uk

“The main problem is that Malibu Shark Attack is just mighty dull. We spend too much time locked in enclosed rooms with imaginary bumping against these rooms listening to Chelan Simmons howling, watching Warren Christie be a jerk and observing Peta Wilson wishing she’d stayed in college. That’s doesn’t make for inspired movie watching, and uninspired is what we got with Malibu Shark Attack.” Christopher Armstead, Film Critics United

” …on the plus side, it’s a fantastic comedy if viewed in the right frame of mind and this is why I give it such a boost in my personal rating. Movies like this one (and Mega Piranha and Mega Shark Vs. Giant Octopus) are often slated by every sane person in the entry world but to me they simply represent a CGI-equivalent of the old Bert I Gordon (Mr BIG) movies of yesteryear.” Kevin Matthews, Flickfeast

“Almost every shark attack suffers from a sense that it is completely random, without any suspenseful build-up, and the depictions of which quickly become visually repetitive. There appeared to be a finite number of goblin shark CGI visuals that kept getting looped over and over in accordance to the action of the scene. By the time the tsunami hit about a quarter of the way in, I was already bored…” Dread Central

“A badly executed idea. Wrong shark type, bad CGI, inexcusable shot non-continuity, and using way too many cliched horror tropes just buried this film.” Horror-Movies.ca

Goblin Sharks are:

• Prehistoric,
• Once thought to be extinct,
• Unseen for millions of years,
• “probably blind”, but have “electrosensory organs”,
• Not bothered by nail guns or rotary saws,
  
  Goblin Sharks can:

• Eat anyone just by swimming towards them, no need to actually bite,
• Phase shift themselves through wood floors when convenient,
• Swim faster than a jet ski,
• Be blown up by bottles of Windex and a flare gun,
• Jump out of the water and grab people, despite being, ya’ know, blind,

Peter Hall, Horror’s Not Dead

Main cast and characters:

• Remi Broadway as Doug (Scooby-Doo)
• Warren Christie as Chavez (Rise of the Damned; Beneath [2007]; The Thing Below)
• Nicolas G. Cooper as Bryan (short: The Masque of the Red Death)
• Jeffery Gannon as Colin Smith
• Mungo McKay as George
• Evert McQueen as Karl
• Sonya Salomaa as Barb (The Tooth Fairy; House of the Dead)
• Chelan Simmons as Jenny (See No Evil 2; Hannibal; Tucker and Dale vs Evil; Final Destination 3; Chupacabra Terror; Snakehead Terror; Monster Island; Carrie [2002]; It)
• Peta Wilson as Heather
• Renee Bowen as Yancey

Filming locations:

Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Wikipedia | IMDb

‘They don’t care if you believe’

Camp Cold Brook is a 2017 American paranormal horror film directed by Andy Palmer (Badlands of Kain; The Funhouse Massacre; Alien Strain). It stars Chad Michael Murray and Danielle Harris and Courtney Gains.

Reality TV producer and host, Jack Wilson (Chad Michael Murray), finds himself in a tough spot. His finances have crumbled and his show, ‘Haunt Squad’, is about to be cancelled.

In a last ditch effort to spark ratings to land a final season, he and his producers Angela (Danielle Harris) and Emma as well as their trusted cameraman Kevin choose the legend of Camp Cold Brook to save their show. The camp was host to a horrific incident, where the young campers were drowned in a nearby creek twenty years ago.

Their arrival begins like any other episode. Cameras are placed, lights spark to life, but this is not going to be a regular episode of chasing errant noises and measuring for EVP. The terror here was real and the ‘thirty’ are about to rise…

Camp Cold Brook, which is currently filming, is produced by Warner Davis of Petri Entertainment, Joe Dante (Burying the Ex; Trapped Ashes; Gremlins) and Mark Alan of Renfield Productions, and Jason Van Eman and Ross Marroso of Weathervane Productions.

Main cast:

Chad Michael Murray (House of Wax), Danielle Harris (Inoperable; Halloween films, Hatchet III; et al), Courtney Gains (The Burbs, Children of the Corn), Michael Eric Reid, Candice De Visser (The Funhouse Massacre), Mary Kathryn Bryant (Hellraiser: Judgement), Loren Lodesma (A.S.K.), and Jason Van Eman.

IMDb

Mississippi River Sharks is a 2017 American action horror film directed by Misty Talley (Ozark Sharks; Zombie Shark aka Shark Island; editor of Ghost Shark and Arachnoquake) from a screenplay by Marcy Holland (Ozark Sharks). It stars Jason London, Jeremy London and Cassie Steele.

Sharks attack a fish rodeo on the Mississippi River, and it is up to a group of locals, along with a visiting actor from a successful franchise of shark movies, to fend off the killer fish…

The film debuted on the Syfy channel on July 31, 2017 as part of their Sharknado Week.

Main cast:

Jason London (Nightworld; Dam Sharks; Zombie Shark; et al), Jeremy London (7 Faces of Jack the Ripper; The Devil’s Dozen; Basilisk: The Serpent King), Cassie Steele (Zombie Shark; The Dorm; My Babysitter’s a Vampire), Ashton Leigh, Dean J. West, Marco St. John, Miles Doleac, Terence Rosemore, Danny Cosmo, Michelle West, Nathan O’Neil Smith, Jeff Pearson, Catherine Quinn, Creek Wilson, Kevin J. McGrath.

Filming locations:

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Ocean Springs, Mississippi, USA

IMDb 

Toxic Shark is a 2017 American action horror film directed by Cole Sharpe. It stars Eric Etebari, Kabby Borders and Christina Masterson.

What was supposed to be days of relaxation at a tropical retreat turns deadly for singles when they discover they are not alone. While enjoying an array of social activities in and around the ocean, the guests have no idea they are being hunted by a deadly shark.

Not only does this toxic shark rip you apart, but it also uses projectile acid to blind you, burn you, and leave you incapacitated so it can prey on you… in and out of the water!

Toxic Shark premieres on TV on August 3, 2017, as part of the Syfy channel’s Sharknado Week.

Main cast:

Eric Etebari (2 Lava 2 Lantula; Scream at the Devil; Vegas Vampires), Kabby Borders (Dam Sharks!; They Found Hell), Christina Masterson (Truth or Dare; Zombie 360; Deadgirl), Mónica López, Bryce Durfee, Michelle Cortés, Owen Saxon, Quinn Bozza, Sean Samuels, Jaime Wallace, Cristina Jayo, Angel R. Pagan Colon.

IMDb

Piranha JPN: Teeth of the Piranha is a 2018 Japanese/American horror film currently being developed by executive producer Roger Corman, alongside producer Hisako Tsukuba (also known as Chako van Leeuwen).

Previously mooted titles for the project were Piranha JPN: Summer of the Piranha and, when initially announced, Piranha in Japan. Don’t be surprised if there is another title change.

The only confirmed cast member is Christopher Lloyd, previously in the 2010 remake Piranha 3D as well as its sequel Piranha 3DD.

Hisako Tsukuba and Roger Corman

IMDb

Image credits: Dread Central

Zombie Collectible Enamel Pin is a collectible, officially-licensed, enamel pin produced by Cavity Colors.

The image, designed by Aaron Crawford, is based upon the iconic worm-eyed conquistador zombie from the Lucio Fulci-directed Italian gore-drenched horror classic Zombi 2 aka Zombie Flesh Eaters (1979).

The 1.7-inch tall pin, which is a limited edition of just 400 available worldwide, features worms attached to a spinner inside the eye socket!

‘7 days, 7 sharks… 1 survivor!’

Shark Week – aka Shark Assault and Shark Island – is a 2012 American action horror film directed by Christopher Ray (5-Headed; 3-Headed and 2-Headed Shark Attack; Mega Shark vs. Kolossus) from a screenplay by Liz Adams and H. Perry Horton (Mega Shark vs. Mecha Shark; 2-Headed Shark Attack; A Haunting in Salem). The Asylum production stars Yancy Butler, Patrick Bergin and Joshua Michael Allen.

A group of complete strangers find themselves kidnapped and isolated by a wealthy madman (Patrick Bergin) and his female partner (Yancy Butler) on his island compound…

Reviews:

“Shark Week is another meager offering with plenty of cartoonish CGI beasts […] director Chris Ray does what he can to hide them, but it only renders the shark attacks mostly incomprehensible, so what should be the most satisfying part doesn’t even pay off except in unintentional humor. Even Ray’s attempt to mimic the Saw speed-ramping aesthetic comes off as a cheap, jittery tic that looks like a mastering error.” Brett Gallman, Oh, the Horror!

“It seems like The Asylum are learning their lessons and not constantly bombarding the viewer with scenes that last a maximum of a minute before rapidly moving on to the next one. The film tries to draw itself out a little bit, introducing the overall problem quickly but then settling down a little to try and flesh out the characters and develop some sort of story.” Andrew Smith, Popcorn Pictures

” …the whole movie is so poorly written and executed that any hope of it being funny due to the sheer suspension of disbelief that you are expected to have is wasted and it just becomes annoying. The dialogue is equally terrible…” Josh Pasnak, The Video Graveyard

“While the story proves halfway interesting and the picture moves along at a reasonable pace, it sadly suffers from many of the shortcomings found in the majority of lower-end Asylum features. The picture features largely miserable special effects. Shark Week, surprisingly, isn’t an effects-heavy effort, but the digital sharks, various underwater shots, and a few explosions look poor to downright goofy.” Martin Liebman, Blu-ray.com

“For a movie about man-eating sharks, and especially for the usually over-the-top business model of The Asylum, the deaths were practically PG by comparison. In fact, in the beginning when the group endured their first attack, the principals were practically unscathed afterwards, not a scratch on any of them. The remaining ordeals were also minimally bloodless and appendage-free.” Mike Thomas, Matchflick

Buy DVD: Amazon.com

“We didn’t even get the one prosthetic shark head held by some guy off camera to work with. Our actors just splashed in water to simulate shark attacks, when it really just looked like they were just splashing in water. And the sharks growled…” Christopher Armstead, Film Critics United

Choice dialogue:

“You know why most shark attacks happen the three feet of water? Because that’s where the food is!”

“Anyone want sushi?”

Main cast:

Yancy Butler (Death Race 2050; Lake Placid vs. Anaconda; Rage of the Yeti), Patrick Bergin (GallowWalkers; Highway to Hell; Ghostwood), Joshua Michael Allen (Age of Dinosaurs; Nazis at the Center of the Earth) , Bart Baggett, Erin Coker, Frankie Cullen, Valerie K. Garcia, Billy Ray, Meredith Thomas, Robert Matthew Wallace, Eric Wilson, Israel Wright, Josh Williams, John Paul Bennett.

Filming locations:

Eleuthera Island, Bahamas
Malibu, California, USA

IMDb

Downrange is a 2017 American thriller film directed by Ryuhei Kitamura (Midnight Meat Train; Godzilla: Final Wars; Versus) from a screenplay co-written with Joey O’Bryan. It stars Kelly Connaire, Stephanie Pearson, Rod Hernandez-Farella, Anthony Kirlew, Alexa Yeames, Jason Tobias.

Six college students are carpooling cross-country when one of their tyres blows out on a desolate stretch of country road. As they begin to fix the flat tyre, they soon realise that this was no accident. The tyre was shot out.

With their vehicle incapacitated, the group is pinned down and mercilessly attacked by an unseen assailant as they desperately attempt to find a way to escape…

Director Ryuhei Kitamura has said:

“While I’ve created single location films in the past, Downrange marks a new style of storytelling for me, wherein sustained, breathless terror in a singular location is what drives the entire plot. We’ve crafted a film in which is fueled by relentless dread, and are very excited to share it with horror and suspense fans around the world.”

Cut Shoot Kill is a 2017 horror thriller film written and directed by Michael Walker (The Maid’s Room). The Pango Films production stars Alexandra Socha, Alex Hurt and Phil Burke.

Serena Brooks, an ambitious young actress, signs on as the star of a horror film with a crew of backwoods filmmakers that have worked together for years.

When the cast starts disappearing, Serena has to become her character if she wants to survive…

Cut Shoot Kill is available on iTunes and other VOD platforms from August 8, 2017.

Main cast:

Alexandra Socha, Alex Hurt (Grimm), Phil Burke (Van Helsing; 100 Million B.C.; Zombie Town), Jay Devore, Lexi Lapp, Zanny Laird, Josh Salt, Michael Oberholtzer, Lance Channing, Kett Turton, Ian Flanders, Nils Lawton, Keenan Jolliff, Henry Zebrowski, Kyle Harris.

Trivia:

The film’s working title was Call Sheet.

IMDb | Facebook

‘A suburban nightmare’

The Ice Cream Truck is a 2017 comedy horror film written and directed by Megan Freels Johnston (Rebound). It stars Deanna Russo, Dana Gaier, John Redlinger and Emil Johnsen.

Mary’s husband gets relocated for work which allows her to move back to her suburban hometown. As her family ties up loose ends back home, Mary moves into their new house all alone and… waits.

Yet in this idealistic world, something seems very odd. The Ice Cream Man, a symbol of youth and good times, starts killing some of her neighbours. Mary soon learns that the suburbs are scarier in more ways that she ever remembered…

The Ice Cream Truck is released by Uncork’d Entertainment in theaters and on VOD August 18, 2017.

Reviews:

“We really can’t help but watch in fascination as the layers of repressed brutality hiding underneath the supposed safety of a suburban bubble, something that’s supposed to shield one from the brutality of the outside world, are peeled away and revealed to be a place of dangerous animalistic violence. Ultimately, The Ice Cream Truck is a hell of an exploration of unconscious fear, and it’s very much worth checking out.” Patrick King, Cultured Vultures

“Russo’s performance alone makes it worthwhile, and even though he doesn’t get as much to do as I would have liked, Johnsen’s performance as the ice cream truck driver is convincing and not without a hint of menace. The movie paints an uneasy portrait of suburbia that freely lives in a world of parody, but fortunately never falls into camp.” Chris Beaumont, Critical Outcast

“It may be a little too slow for your typical fan but I do believe there’s an audience for it if they find it. It felt like one of the more off beat horror movies off the 80’s & 90’s that were just a little too slow for mainstream but are remembered fondly by all […] The offbeat, scary but friendly portrayal of The Ice Cream Man by Emil Johnsen was perfectly fitting for the films pace.” Jason Minton, Without Your Head

“At no point in this film was I tense or frightened. I might have fallen asleep but couldn’t say because I didn’t miss anything. The acting is strong. The production is well done. The Ice Cream Truck is a nice looking movie, but like the ice cream being peddled onscreen, there’s no real substance to be found.” Nik Holman, Nerdly

“While The Ice Cream Truck is, overall, a successful film, it may have benefited from more emphasis on the horror aspect of its plot. The pacing is a bit slow at times when the focus lingers too much on the more dramatic side of the film, while the horror side often feels too short in comparison.” Luce Allan, Tn Horror News

IMDb

Related: Ice Cream Man (1995)

Don’t is a 2013 American short horror film directed and edited by Colton Puterbaugh. It stars Cody Reed and Derek Fox.

Related: Don’t Read This!!! – article

‘A theme that has thrilled audiences all over the world, now terrifyingly set forth:’

Exorcism – aka Exorcismo – is a 1975 Spanish horror film directed by Juan Bosch [as Joan Bosch] (Bloody Sect; The Killer Wore Gloves) from a screenplay co-written with Jordi Gigó [as Georges Gigo] (Devil’s Kiss) and Jacinto Molina. The latter stars, using his screen name, Paul Naschy, alongside Maria Perschy,  María Kosty and Mercedes Molina [as Grace Mills].

A young woman (Grace Mills) participates – unknowingly – in a satanic ceremony and becomes possessed by the spirit of her late father. A priest (Paul Naschy) must save her from evil…

Reviews:

“When Father Naschy isn’t busy making coffee or collecting “odd” things, he’s trying to help this very dysfunctional family, and eventually performs a classic exorcism (he even hallucinates a rubber snake popping its head through the kitchen faucet!). There is some uninspired gore and nudity, and several ensuing murders occur to keep the thin plot moving along…” George R. Reis, DVD Drive-In

“No stranger to traditional gothic imagery and supernatural themes, Naschy proves himself the ideal character actor to make the priest image successful. In a plot more concerned with sensationalism than character, the director pours on mood and pseudo psychological arguments, taking full advantage of conventional supernatural underpinnings to squeeze tension and shock from his lewd story and themes.” William Simmons, Sex Gore Mutants

” …the third act is a fairly pitiful Exorcist rehash distinguished only by some quite good horror make-up applied to Molina. That the film is fearful reflection on modern youth is made obvious when the resident police inspector equates streaking (!) with Devil worship…” Jonathan Rigby, Euro Gothic

Buy: Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.com | Amazon.ca

“The picture blatantly rips off The Exorcist only at the very end, during Father Dunning’s exorcism of Leila, which is executed much the same way though the make-up effects are impressively creepy for such a modestly-budgeted film, especially its use of demon-eyes contact lenses and the vividly conveyed implication that Leila’s body, fully-possessed, is rotting into putrid meat like a corpse.” Stuart Galbraith IV, DVD Talk

“It opens well enough with a satanic orgy unfolding on a beach, evocatively filmed through torches. And there are a few striking compositions here and there (usually involving the rites and demonic iconography) courtesy of DP Francisco Sanchez. But this film is competent, and that’s about it. Eventually it becomes a rather dull series of expository scenes…” Robert Monell, I’m in a Jess Franco State of Mind

“From the dried face and transparent slime running from her lips, to the nasty eye lenses, this is just awesome and very well-made. If you turn your expectations down a little bit and doesn’t expect gore and nudity, Exorcismo is a decent and cozy Spanish horror-thriller with a very fine performance by everyone, and Naschy in the front row of course.” Fred Anderson, Ninja Dixon

“Viewers hoping for a satanic shocker are likely to be disappointed. Overly talky, Exorcismo offers few big moments, but they are there […] Atmosphere comes less from director Juan Bosch than composer Alberto Argudo.” Rod Lott, Flick Attack

“Generally entertaining (if too subtly paced), this picks up some steam towards the last half hour and culminates with the girl’s obligatory showdown with the cloth. Good possession makeup during the finale.” The Terror Trap

Offline reading:

Buy Memoirs of a Wolfman: Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.com

Buy: Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.com | Amazon.ca

Trivia:

Paul Naschy’s voice was dubbed by Jack Taylor for the English language version of the film

Main cast:

Paul Naschy, Maria Perschy (The Blue Eyes of the Broken Doll; The Ghost Galleon; El Espectro del Terror), María Kosty (A Dragonfly for Each Corpse; The Night of the Sorcerers; The Dracula Saga), Mercedes Molina [as Grace Mills] (The Werewolf and the Yeti), Jordi Torras, Luis Induni, Roger Leveder, Joan Llaneras, Marta Avilés, Juan Velilla, Florencio Calpe, Dora Santacreu.

Filming locations:

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
England, UK

IMDb