A Haunted House Directed by Michael Tides Written by Marlon Wayans and Rick Alvarez USA, 2013 Opens Jan. 25 in Toronto Have you ever opened up a history textbook and found that every single image of Josef Stalin was defaced with some sort of phallic or scatological graffiti? Or that his pictures were accompanied by …
The 1980s saw a huge surge for monster design with some of the most iconic monsters in film history coming out of that one decade, unfortunately the advent of CGI have not been too kind to movie monsters, and many of the CGI creations of the past twenty years have been totally flat. The genre …
Many film websites published “decade’s best horror films” lists in late 2009/early 2010. While these lists collectively provided a rough snapshot of the genre’s ups and downs during that time, with more time to reflect, it becomes increasingly clear what an important period the 2000’s were for the horror genre on a global scale. Not …
Grave Encounters 2 Directed by John Poliquin Written by The Vicious Brothers Canada/USA, 2012 Remember when The Blair Witch Project caused a bit of a kerfuffle back in 1999? Thanks to a potent concoction of viral and apocryphal marketing, the film caused a bit of a furor amongst the movie-going public, with heated debates over …
[REC]³ Génesis Directed by Paco Plaza Written by Paco Plaza, Luiso Berdejo and David Gallart Spain, 2012 The first [Rec] was a haunting and sinister horror film that ended on an intended note of malevolent ambiguity. [Rec] ², for better or worse, tried to elucidate the questions posed in the first. In [REC]³ Génesis, however, …
Today is October 1st and like every year I spend the majority of the month watching as many horror movies as I possibly can. So I decided to take it upon myself to list off the greatest horror movies ever made. I felt the need to break up the list into several categories. You see, …
Day two of Saskatoon’s first installment in to the Dark Bridges Films festival opened with a bang despite a less than desired turnout on September 25th. Due to an early showtime and a myriad of other early Saturday issues (Hangovers, work, etc..) Day two opener Werewolf Fever was seen by a only a fraction of …
#6 – Paranormal Activity (2009) Directed by Oren Peli The faux-documentary, “cinema verité” camera style is increasingly prevalent in horror flicks these days, mostly because it cuts down on budget-costs for genre filmmakers. Paranormal Activity is a prime example. The film is one of the most profitable movies ever made, based on return on investment. …
Two decades before The Blair Witch Project, the 1980 Italian exploitation film Cannibal Holocaust, directed by Ruggero Deodato, broke traditional cinematic conventions while creating major controversy following its release. Filmed in the Amazon Rainforest, the movie tells the story of four documentarians who journey deep into the jungle to film indigenous tribes. Two months later, …
Originally I was only going to list my five favourite films of the entire fourteen year history of Fantasia. Only after last night’s screening I couldn’t help but add on Scott Pilgim vs. The World. These six films are without a doubt my SIX FAVORITE FIRST RUN FEATURES to ever screen at the festival. Look …
70- Love Exposure (2008) Directed by Shion Sono Genre: Comedy, Romance Over its four-hour running time, Love Exposure unfolds an extremely bizarre odyssey revolving around an unusual love triangle, advanced techniques in upskirt photography, Japanese Catholicism, perversion, guilt and obsession amongst another dozen or so motifs. Masterfully directed by Sion Sono (Suicide Club, Hair Extensions), …
69 – A Serious Man (2009) Directed by Ethan Coen & Joel Coen Genre: Drama, Dark Comedy Blending dark humor with profoundly personal themes, The Coen Brothers deliver their most intimate film yet. Expanding upon some of the themes they’ve played with in the past, the film deals with everything from man’s search for meaning, …
69 – A Serious Man (2009) Directed by Ethan Coen & Joel Coen Genre: Drama, Dark Comedy Blending dark humor with profoundly personal themes, The Coen Brothers deliver their most intimate film yet. Expanding upon some of the themes they’ve played with in the past, the film deals with everything from man’s search for meaning, …