I recently received a press release from James Cullen Bressack (director of MY PURE JOY and HATE CRIME) about his recent production of TREASURE CHEST OF HORRORS 2, an indie horror anthology that boasts "Six Sick and Twisted Tales of Terror." It's coming out on DVD in a few months and should be a real treat for fans of ultra low-budget horror flicks!
Synopsis: From Executive Producers James Cullen Bressack (My Pure Joy, HATE CRIME) and Jarret Cohen at Psykik Junky Pictures and directors Doug Waugh, Shawn C. Phillips, and Alex Powers, comes the second installment in the TREASURE CHEST OF HORRORS ANTHOLOGY series starring Penthouse Pet Veronica Ricci (Bloody Mary 3D) Shawn C. Phillips (Don & Murph), James Cullen Bressack, Nick Clarck (Hate Crime) Joseph Frantz (CKY & VIVA LA BAM), and Miles Dougal (Detroit Rock City & Chillerama).
Sexy, sinful horror host Mona Screamalot (Penthouse Pet Veronica Ricci) and her crazy backwoods family invite you to take a seat on the couch as they serve up six sick short films from their secret stash of horror trash. Featuring the work of emerging genre directors, this is a bloody and brain-numbing buffet of the bizarre.
TREASURE CHEST OF HORRORS 2 hits DVD on April 23rd, for the low low price of $9.99, and you can PRE-ORDER IT AT AMAZON.COM right now! Also available is a cool TREASURE CHEST OF HORRORS 2 t-shirt courtesy of Fast Custom Shirts. It's $14.99 and can be purchased HERE.
As you may recall, I wrote about "The ABCs of Death" a while back in my last INDIE FILMS YOU SHOULD BE STOKED FOR article. When I first heard of the project, I was quite excited for it. The poster was extremely cool, and the concept was something that hasn't really been done before (at least not on such a large scale). Twenty-six Horror directors signed on, got a letter of the alphabet, and had to come up with a short based off the letter. (For example: A is for Apocalypse.)
Well it came out on Video on Demand this past week, and I couldn't help myself. I just had to give this a look! Plus, I'd rather spend ten bucks now instead of twenty-five later when it came out on Blu-ray, especially if it sucked. Last night, I took the plunge, paid my "pre-theatrical rental" fee, and sat through two hours of total "what the f*ck" cinema.
So how was it you may be wondering? Well... pretty disappointing actually. I'd say that out of the twenty-six shorts, I only really liked about five or six of them. I'm not saying the rest were all horrible, but some were just too weird (all of the Asian ones) or too artsy ("O is for Orgasm") for their own good. Here are some of the better shorts:
C is for CYCLE This one was kind of cool; I was honestly expecting this one to be C for Clone. Multiple realities mergewhen a guy witnesses his own murder.... by himself. Is he having a glimpse of the future? Is he about to be replaced by an evil doppelganger or twisted twin brother? It is never really revealed, but hey I'm cool with that because this was a cool idea.
D is for Dogfight This one was pretty weird. A guy prepares for an underground dogfight against an actual dog. As he and the hound trade blows and bites, they eventually stop and turn on their abusive masters. This was gritty and cool. Still wondering if the guy that was fighting the dog, was actually a dog the entire time?
H is for Hydro-Electric Diffusion This one was INSANE and I loved it! It's World War II and a fighter pilot walks into a bar to catch a stripshow. The twist? The pilot is an anthropomorphic dog, and the stripper is a fox... literally! It's a twisted cartoon brought to life, with the brave pilot being captured and nearly tortured to death by the Nazi fox-woman in disguise. Is is weird for me to find a weird human/fox hybrid sexy? Hahaha.
This ain't Disney's "Fox and the Hound!"
Q is for Quack Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett think outside the box on this one. Filmed as a "behind-the-scenes" video of their creation of their "Q short," the two brainstorm but can't come up with anything. Eventually they decide to snuff a duck on camera with some funny results.
T is for Toilet After sitting through a lot of toilet and sh*t-themed shorts (seriously, a lot of these directors have a toilet/bodily fluids fetish), here was one that I could get behind. Lee Hardcastle, the genius behind "The Thing" and "The Raid" with claymation cats, tells us the story of a child that's afraid to use the toilet. This short was picked in a contest hosted by Drafthouse Films; you can check it out for yourself below.
V is for Vagitus This one really took the ball and ran with it. Set in a dystopian future where childbirth is controlled by the people in power, we watch as a police officer and her GIANT ROBOTIC PARTNER WITH A FORE-ARM MOUNTED MINI-GUN break into a warehouse and start gunning people down. The crime? Having a child without government consent. There's a lot more to this short film that I won't spoil, but after all the other toilet humor and weirdness, this one was a breath of fresh air. So what about the rest? Well some are mediocre, some are OK, and many are just plain... f*cked.... up. Noboru Iguchi's "F is for Fart" is insanely bizarre and had me staring slack-jawed at the screen. Timo Tjahjanto's "L is for Libido" is perhaps the most f*cked up short in the entire anthology. A guy is stuck in a life-or-death game where he has to masturbate and reach climax before his competitor. The thing is, they have to whack-off to some truly disturbing stuff, like masturbating amputees and child rape. It's really disturbing and shocking and kind of left a bad taste in my mouth.
"X is for XXL" features an overweight woman being brutally picked on by everyone that sees her. When she arrives home, she stuffs her face with food, then goes into the bathroom with a knife and begins hacking off her fatty flesh. Then there's "W is for WTF!" which totally lives up to its name, and "Z is for Zetsumetsu" which is full of mutants, penises, and capped off with a parody of "Dr. Strangelove."
Now I'm all for filmmakers taking a chance on making something different, and like I said earlier, the concept is really cool, but in the end "The ABCs of Death" just didn't do it for me. The good shorts are too few, and the majority of them are obsessed with bodily-fluids other than blood. It's a movie that'll have you laughing one minute, staring in shock another, and will ultimately have you asking "What the f*ck is wrong with Asians?!"
Do I recommend "The ABCs of Death?" No, not really, but there are a few diamonds in the rough so it isn't a total waste of two hours. In the end, it was all one gloriously failed experiment. There is definite room for improvement in the future though, and I am totally ready to embrace a followup film. But next time guys and gals, could you please toss more blood and less poop at the screen?
I was nearly done emptying out my inbox of all the press releases, movie news, and other assorted fun stuff I get (e.g. offers for penile enhancement, breast enhancement, prescription drugs, porn, etc.), when I came across a press release concerning a new indie Horror anthology that is nearing completion, called VOICES FROM THE GRAVE.
Here's a quick synopsis:
"From master horror writer Gary Brandner, author of 'The Howling', and filmmakers Richard Stoudt and Laurence Holloway comes a relentlessly harrowing film experience. A trio of horrors that will make your flesh creep and your heart palpitate.
Deadly spirits, vengeful and maliciously spiteful give fuel to these tales of supernatural terrors. 'Invitation', based on a short story by Gary Brandner, tells the tale of loser Len Krager, who attends a party he'll never forget!
A vengeful spirit exacts revenge in the tale 'All Hallows' Eve'! An exercise in suspense and atmosphere. Robert Mundy doesn't celebrate Halloween since the accidental death of his brother on Halloween night. But this Halloween night, vengeance will rise and seek retribution.
Ghostly road hazards endanger a used car owner in the turbo-charged yarn 'Repossessed', a spine tingling 'vehicle' for absolute fright. Jeff purchases a killer car for a killer deal... unfortunately, the car really is a killer! A true exercise in style and terror, 'Voices from The Grave' will thrill and chill even the most jaded horror fan!"
It will thrill and chill even the most jaded horror fan?! That's some pretty big talk; I hope they can actually back that claim up! Let's take a gander at the newly released teaser trailer and see what "Voices from the Grave" has to offer.
Well, that was more of a highlight reel than a trailer, but I liked a lot of what I saw. Some of the effects work and camera angles/shots were pretty impressive! I'd definitely like to check this movie out, however at the moment, the film is still in production. It seems that principal photography and even the editing are pretty much done; all that's left is to finish work on the audio (foley and ADR) and put a soundtrack together!
I'll keep you all posted about a future DVD release date for "Voices." Until then you can visit the film's IMDB page for more info on the cast and crew, OR you can get further updates on the production by liking the Voices from the Grave Facebook Page!
I recently received a press release from filmmaker Walter Ruether about his new Horror anthology, entitled "Scream Machine." Taking a cue from last year's surprise hit "V/H/S," Ruether's "Scream Machine" features five tales of terror that exist on various video tapes that are popped into a cursed VCR!
Here's the synopsis of the film:
FIVE OF THE DEADLIEST TALES EVER TOLD ON AN OLD HAUNTED VCR CALLED SCREAM MACHINE. (**OFFICIAL SELECTION PHOENIX COMIC CON 2012!**)
A battered and mysterious VCR... A bevy of lethal videotapes... These are the building blocks of horror in "SCREAM MACHINE." A mind blowing descent into madness and death. Five shocking vignettes, designed to take your sanity and devour your soul! Mild curiosity leads to severe consequences when a couple rents a supposedly cursed video cassette recorder. An urban legend renowned for leaving a trail of agonizing and torturous death. Unbelieving, they take the plunge... And another legend is horrifyingly born.
Do you dare give fate a winning hand, and test yourself against the hellish consequences of the SCREAM MACHINE?
Insert Cassette Press Play...DIE!
USA PREMIERE MAY 2013 PHOENIX COMIC CON-USA DVD RELEASE WITH WORLDWIDE MULTI MEDIA... SPRING 2013!
What's that? Your curiosity is still not sated and you want to see some pics and a trailer? Well ask and you shall receive:
For a production that only cost around ten grand, that's some pretty impressive makeup f/x and gore. But you know, I kind of wish that this movie had some more eye candy. Like, oh say.... a smoking hot redhead dressed in a nurse's outfit or something....
Yeah! That's exactly what I was talking about!
Hooray! It's as if Walter Ruether's read my mind and put this gal into the movie just for me. I can't wait to see how she figures into things! I'm sure things will totally go her way; what's the worst that can happen to an attractive woman in a nurse's outfit in a Horror film?
