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Scream, Ep. 1.08 to 1.10: Strong direction makes for an exciting finale

Scream, Season 1, Episodes 8 to 10 Created by Jill E. Blotevogel, Jay Beattie, and Dan Dworkin Aired Tuesdays at 10pm (ET) on MTV There’s something we’ve got to talk about before we can talk about the final three episodes of Scream, and that’s about the sad passing of Wes Craven on Sunday, August 30th. There’s a thousand …

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Scream, Ep. 1.01 to 1.03: Sharpen your knives, this could actually be good

If one glances around at the Movie-to-TV adaptation landscape, things are looking surprisingly good. Hannibal is the best show on television right now, Fargo was one of the best surprises of last year and looks like it will continue as such in its second season this fall, and now MTV is adding one more Movie-to-TV adaptation to its roster; shout out to MTV’s other Movie-to-TV breadwinner Teen Wolf,

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25 Best Horror Films of 2014 (Part 2)

This list is in alphabetical order. Only Lovers Left Alive (voted by Rick) Only Lovers Left Alive, the latest film from cult indie director Jim Jarmusch, stars Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton as Adam and Eve, two century old vampires. Adam is an underground musician with a dedicated cult following. In his past time, he …

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‘The House of the Devil’: The Most Definitive Ti West Film

As far as personal histories with a film go, Ti West’s The House of the Devil is one of the more transformative and memorable of mine. I first watched the film one night after hearing some chatter about it on the internet, and to be honest I didn’t really like it too much the first …

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Found Footage Friday: ‘The Sacrament’

Just when I thought there weren’t any great filmmakers working in horror anymore, Ti West just scared the shit out of me. West bust out on the scene with the moody throwback The House of the Devil showing that he could replicate period aesthetic with ease. His first several films were shot standardly, but for The Sacrament, West dips his toes in the waters of the found footage genre.

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Satanic Sunday: ‘The House of the Devil’ a suspenseful brand of evil that stays with you

In Ti West’s The House of the Devil, an earnest college student tries to get rent together by taking on a last minute babysitting job. Samantha (Jocelin Donahue of The Burrowers and The End of Love) willfully ignores the inherent danger in going out to a remote house to provide care for complete strangers. Her clients are incredibly desperate for help but the promise of fast cash is far too enticing for the young woman. Samantha’s job provides a quiet, creeping evil that makes the audience hold its collective breath for a protracted time before the action kicks in. It’s effective in sustaining a lasting dread of harm of the unknown and accomplishes what most movies associated with the Devil fail to do- convince us that followers of Satan and their ultimate goal are a genuine threat without edging into cheesy or overwrought territory that is well-worn.

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Ti West and the Tropes and Expectations Within the Horror Genre

This Friday horror auteur Ti West will release his latest film in limited release with the found-footage film The Sacrament. I’ve seen the film through VOD, and while it earned its justifiable detractors, I find it a fitting entry into his filmography. With that in mind it’s relevant to look back at some of his …

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Ricky D’s 20 Most Anticipated Horror Films of 2014

10. Poltergeist Directed by Gil Kenan Written by David Lindsay-Abaire USA Release Date: November 14th Production recently wrapped on the Poltergeist remake with Gil Kenan (Monster House) in the director’s chair and Sam Raimi (Evil Dead) producing. Little is known as they continue to put the movie together in post-production, but we do have a few details, beginning …

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Ricky D’s 20 Most Anticipated Horror Films of 2014

In case it isn’t obvious, I’m a pretty big fan of the horror genre, and so I wanted to spotlight some of my most anticipated horror films of 2014. Between the big studio releases and the crop of independent features from some of our favourite directors, 2014 looks to be a great year. Note: I …

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Without Theatres: ‘Silver Bullets’ a romance of werewolves and art

The term “mumblecore” is usually evoked as a derisive umbrella-term for the films of Joe Swanberg, the Duplass brothers, Andrew Bujalski, and several other twentysomething directors of the 2000s working with little to no budget and a lot of talking. Critics such as Vadim Rizov reject the labeling entirely, noting their disparate qualities, yet the term …

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31 Days of Horror: ‘The Innkeepers’ uses mood as a way of lulling the viewer into a false sense of security

The Innkeepers Directed by Ti West Written by Ti West 2011, USA Great horror films are made with the understanding that our imaginations only need a gentle nudge to send us spirally down a rabbit hole of fear. Our minds can wander to some terrible places when left to their own devices. In the Innkeepers …

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Toronto After Dark Summer Screening: ‘V/H/S’ is essentially the macabre kin of America’s Funniest Home Videos

V/H/S Directed by Adam Wingard, David Bruckner, Ti West, Glenn McQuaid, Joe Swanberg, and Radio Silence Written by Simon Barrett, David Bruckner, Nicholas Tecosky, Ti West, Glenn McQuaid, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett, Justin Martinez, and Chad Villella USA, 2011 Imagine you went trick-or-treating. Knowing the area, you take a big empty bag. You go to …

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EIFF 2012: ‘V/H/S’, like most anthology features, is too wildly inconsistent to provoke a wholly positive response

V/H/S Written by David Bruckner, Ti West, Radio Silence, Simon Barrett, Nicholas Tecosky and Glenn McQuaid Directed by Adam Wingard, David Bruckner, Ti West, Glenn McQuaid, Joe Swanberg and Radio Silence (Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett, Justin Martinez, Chad Villella) USA, 2012 A collaborative anthology feature, V/H/S is essentially five short films in the “found footage” …

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I know what you’re going to do this summer: The Toronto After Dark Film Festival Summer Screenings

For fans of all films macabre, The Toronto After Dark Film Festival is the venue for you. But for those that can’t wait until October for nine nights of horror, sci-fi, action and cult movies running from the 18th to the 26th, the good people behind TADFF have answered your counter intuitive prayers. For two …

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SXSW 2012 Wrap-Up: ‘ Cabin In The Woods’ and more!

Black Pond Directed by Tom Kingsley & Will Sharpe Black Pond heralds an incredibly original, startlingly mature, and completely inscrutable new film-making duo. It’s unclear what exactly they have made with Black Pond; suffice it to say it is equal parts profound and hilarious while refusing classification… (read the full review) Cabin In The Woods …

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SXSW 2012: ‘V/H/S’ is a mixed bag, as with most horror anthologies

V/H/S Written by Simon Barrett, David Bruckner, Nicholas Tecosky, Ti West, Glenn McQuaid, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett, Justin Martinez, Chad Villella Directed by Adam Wingard, David Bruckner, Ti West, Glenn McQuaid, Joe Swanberg, Radio Silence USA, 2011 One of the most anticipated additions to the growing pantheon of “found footage” films this year comes in …

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‘The Innkeepers’ is a rare gem

The Innkeepers Directed and Written by Ti West USA, 2011 Fantasia imdb Chuck Jones directed a trilogy of horror cartoons (Scaredy Cat, 1948, Claws for Alarm, 1954 and Jumpin’ Jupiter, 1955) featuring Porky Pig blissfully unaware that his life is in danger, while his pet cat, – Sylvester, naturally – only too aware of the …

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Fantasia 2011: Ti West is a singular genius, and ‘The Innkeepers’ is his best film to date. (Review #2)

The Innkeepers Directed and Written by Ti West USA, 2011 Fantasia imdb Chuck Jones directed a trilogy of horror cartoons (Scaredy Cat, 1948, Claws for Alarm, 1954 and Jumpin’ Jupiter, 1955) featuring Porky Pig blissfully unaware that his life is in danger, while his pet cat, – Sylvester, naturally – only too aware of the …

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Fantasia 2011: ‘The Innkeepers’ a misfire from a contemporary horror original

The Innkeepers Directed by Ti West Written by Ti West 2011, USA Like The House of the Devil, his love letter to early ’80s horror, Ti West’s latest, The Innkeepers is a slow-burn and a re-imagination of classic horror tropes; but this time around his film is made up of two distinct genres – horror …

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Fantasia 2011: Just Added! Ti West’s ‘The Innkeepers’ + Will There Be A Second Jet Li Film At Fantasia?

Anyone who follows my Twitter feed would have noticed that I posted a tweet stating that one of the secret/last minute additions to the Fantasia Film Festival would be Ti West’s latest horror flick The Innkeepers. You see every year I pretty much guess what all the “secret” screenings will be. Two years ago I …

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SXSW 2011: ‘The Innkeepers’ – Ti West Delivers Again

The Innkeepers Directed by Ti West Written by Ti West 2011, USA Ti West’s last film, the reproduction vintage horror flick The House of the Devil, signified his ascent from suspiciously young horror fanboy with a movie crew to clever and mature director/writer/editor. Those who love that film–like this reviewer–love that it is clearly a …

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