I haven’t really been following the latest adaptation of I Am Legend, so it came as a bit of a surprise to me that not only did they reshoot the ending to make it less dismal, but apparently their first take wasn’t faithful to the source material to begin with. What, is it going to end with the vampires wheeling out a giant cake that says “Congratulations! You Am Legend!”

Regular readers of this blog may have noticed that I rarely get worked up about lousy interpretations of my favourite genre offerings. I stopped caring long before my top three horror movies were remade into shoddy copies, so it isn’t the fact that they’re tinkering with my favourite horror novel that has me upset. I’m just dismayed that my estimation of Hollywood could sink even lower. Why purchase the rights to I Am Legend only to change arguably the best part of the novel? Isn’t that a little like buying the rights to Jaws and asking Steven Spielberg to take out the shark?

This reminds me of what happened with the movie Payback. Director Brian Helgeland wanted to succeed where others had failed and make a straight-up, modestly budgeted adaptation of a Richard Stark novel. Then Mel Gibson became interested. By the time the studio was done with it Helgeland was kicked out of the editing suite, just about every scene was altered, an additional third of the movie was tacked on, and Payback was a farce.

There’s no reason that I Am Legend couldn’t be made on a tiny budget which would allow for greater artistic risks and less of a need for a huge return. 30 Days of Night certainly showed that it was possible. Add Will Smith and the outlandish budget that comes with him and suddenly Robert Neville’s greatest threat isn’t creatures of the night but focus groups and nervous executives.

One thing’s for sure. I’d love to see this creative team take a crack at something like Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl.

With the end of 2007 rapidly approaching I’ve been giving a lot of thought to which are my favourite horror movies of the year. One film that keeps fighting for the top spot is Mulberry Street, which I caught at the Fantasia Film Festival over the summer. It’s about as straightforward a siege film as you can get, with the denizens of a New York City tenement building fighting off hordes of people infected by a rat-borne virus. What really struck me about the film was how director/co-writer Jim Mickle and actor/co-writer Nick Damici made the audience care about the characters by making the characters themselves care for each other. It’s easily the best independent horror film I’ve seen in years, and you can catch it on the big screen as part of the 8 To Die For horror festival taking place across the United States. Don’t miss it.

“Black Hole” the Charles Burns graphic novel

There’s something about this comic series that had a pretty horrifying effect on me that’s been hard to shake, even if I wanted to. The story concerns an outbreak of a sexually transmitted “teen plague” in the 1970s Northwest. A group of teenagers start catching it, and it leads to all sorts of weird mutations and bodily “changes”. It’s a dark and heavy thematic dish with all kinds of metaphors for AIDS, puberty, and twisted coming of age dramas. It’s SOOO damn creepy while somehow managing to be completely heartbreaking throughout. Narratively and artistically it’s perfect, and you can’t help but be emotionally haunted by all of the characters, fumbling around in search of what they hope is adulthood, only to become mutated outcasts living in a colony in the woods. It’s all presented in a kind of surreal back and forth between two kids dealing with their own bizarre anatomy changes, and by the end of it I found I was actually getting choked up.

On top of the absolutely gorgeous B&W illustrations, there’s something weirdly primal about the whole story and the way it’s told, and that’s what makes something truly scary, when it’s touching on universal fears besides just “run for your life and don’t get killed”. Some characters grow mouths on their necks, some start shedding their skin, and some grow a tail (all beautifully drawn). The details sound kind of ridiculous out of context, but somehow Burns took me back to my squeamishly awkward health classes and makes a completely original horror story out of unprotected sex and adolescent ignorance. Once the characters start turning on each other, and teenage depression kicks in, you start feeling the helplessness of these kids in a strangely uncomfortable way. The artwork is dreamlike and minimalist and hyper-real in its own way, so you can identify with the characters while projecting all your own weird fears into their head. It’s never jaw-droppingly terrifying, but the allegory is deeply effective in a kind of Cronenberg fashion, only the sweet and naive narration by the main teens gives it more emotional depth. I usually go for comics for the artwork, or the hard to find great writing, but this one’s the perfect mix of both. I remember finishing it and not being able to close the book for a while, so it’s stuck with me a lot longer than the usual “scary” suspects.

Read it and dig it!

Today I present two of the actors that made Cabin Fever such an enjoyable experience for me. First up is Arie Verveen, unrecognizable as the hapless hermit who introduced the plague to the gang. Mr. Verveen recently wrapped up a pilot for Guy Ritchie’s new project ‘Suspect’.

In response to your question, the first thought that pops in my head was an almighty clap of thunder that woke me in the middle of the night when I was maybe 7 years old. Don’t remember what I had been dreaming at the time but when I hopped out of bed, my knees were so shaky, I could hardly walk down my hallway. Almost threw up. Of course I’m much tougher these days!!

If I had to name one thing that has prompted me to watch and rewatch Cabin Fever it would be Giuseppe Andrews’ turn as Deputy Winston and his return to that role is the only reason I’m looking forward to the sequel. His response is so to the point that it doesn’t even require punctuation, but it made me laugh, hence it’s inclusion here.

tv

Following Sean T. Collins’ take on presenting his favourite horror movies, here are the nine that take up my top spots as of this moment.

See how many you can name!

As regular readers may have noticed, I was unable to follow through on the promise of a kick-ass Halloween in the last half of October. Unfortunately, real world responsibilities always come before blogging. My greatest regret was in my inability to participate in 31 Flicks That Give You The Willies over at Shoot The Projectionist. The proprietor, Ed Hardy, Jr., was kind enough to send me an invite for the event, and I was about halfway though my list when other matters stole my attention. To make up for my absence, if only in a small way, I’d like to post my thoughts on the somewhat controversial results.

Unlike some of the contributors, I found the list itself to be more diverse than I expected. How often do you come across a list that places such films as Eyes Without A Face or the original Nosferatu so highly? But for the most part I like lists like this more for what it says about the participants and their views on horror than I do the actual films on the list. In the comments section of the post Kimberly of Cinebeats points out that genre mainstays such as Bava and Corman didn’t make the cut. Even Ed Hardy, Jr. shows some dismay at the selection. I wonder how these lists are influenced by the availability of the material, or if the horror canon has been shaped over the years to exclude certain movies, at least in some circles. I know that for myself there are certain kinds of horror films which I have only a passing familiarity with. If my lack of breadth in the genre were revealed I would probably be drummed right out of the club.

Adding to that is the fact that both the nominating and voting process were open to people who weren’t necessarily horror enthusiasts. I don’t doubt that at least a few people participating in either level had only seen maybe double the amount of horror movies necessary to contribute. If I had to choose 31 of my favourite comedies, the final half would consist of whatever I could remember having watched, not what I consider quality film. This may seem as if I object to non-horror fans participating, but that isn’t the case at all. Last year I invited some of my favourite non-horror bloggers to write posts for The Horror Blog. I’m always interested in the insight of those people not immersed in the genre. It’s just that, with their wider focus on all film, it’s less likely that they’ve seen many horror offerings from outside the usual suspects.

A quick look at the 33 winners by decade (there were a few ties) shows that the 60s and 70s combined overtake the other six decades represented by 19 films to 14. I found this somewhat surprising as I have always considered most bloggers to be of an age where their nostalgia would show preference to the 80s (which, to be fair, placed third behind the 70s). Were the 60s and 70s actually a Golden Age for Horror? Or are we trading on the opinions of those before us?

None of the above should be seen as a criticism of the list itself. Like I said, I prefer mulling over the ‘whys’ over the ‘whats’ in a list like this and 31 Flicks That Give Me The Willies provides plenty of grist for the mill. My one complaint, and the only thing that almost makes me glad I didn’t participate, is some of the negative commentary that accompanies the selections in the post itself. Hardy says in the comments “I’d tried to be diplomatic in presenting the results, since it was after all my survey,” but it’s hard to see how with quips like “If there is such a thing as a one-hit wonder in the film, this was it” and “Not to step on any toes here, but… this one I just don’t get.” The two movies targeted above would have probably made my list, and I would have felt a little put out if I had taken the time to participate only to have my choices ridiculed. There are plenty of selections in the list which I wouldn’t place in my top 100 let alone my top 31, but I can at least acknowledge why I think they’re important movies, if not very good ones. If he considers repeating the event in years to come Hardy would do well to allow select people who actually chose the movies he dislikes to offer their own commentary, not unlike what he did with a few selections.

I’ve been both surprised and in awe of the caliber of participants in this series, but of all the people who chose to write in, one in particular made me weak in the knees. It is my pleasure to introduce Judith O’Dea, the actress who portrayed Barbara in Night of the Living Dead and helped usher in a new era for horror. After that terrifying night, what else could possibly scare her?

When I was around seven or eight years old, my parents took me out to the movies one evening to see Vincent Price in the 3-D version of THE HOUSE OF WAX. They had no idea what the story was all about. Had they known, I’m sure I would have been left safely at home with my sister to read a Mary Poppins or Nancy Drew book. But that’s not the way it happened.

The movie scared me so badly that I literally dragged them out of the theatre before the big climactic ending. And then there were the nightmares! For oh, so many nights after that, my poor mother was wakened by my terrified cries and tears. Night after night bad dreams would tear me awake, and she would calmly have to assure me that everything was all right and that no evil, horrifically burned man was coming to get me. Talk about prophetic, huh?!

My fear of fire was so strong, in fact, that whenever my family traveled on holiday some place, I’d have to check all the escape routes out of the motel or hotel just in case a fire occurred.

Yep, good old Vincent Price in the HOUSE OF WAX was my own NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD!

A few decades from now you’ll be watching the AFI’s 100 Greatest Movies and House of the Dead will take first place for the second time in a row. You’ll tell your granddaughter that there was once a time when Uwe Boll was not considered a genius and she’ll turn to you and say “LOL! O RLY? You’ve been pwned, n00b! LMFAO!” And she’ll take off on her hoverboard, leaving you behind with only your regrets to keep you company.

I saw ROSEMARY’S BABY when I was 10 years old. It came on TV in the middle of the night. My parents were sleeping and I silently went into the living room and watched the movie. I was scared shitless. In the middle of the movie my mother walked into the room and I was super scared because I thought the DEVIL came in. I jumped from the couch and tried to escape - till I realized that it was my mother. After the movie was finished (my mother was so nice to let me see the end) I went in my bedroom and I started sleeping till I heard a noise in my closet. Of course the noise was only in my head. The door of the closet opened up and a woman came out and screamed I’M BLIND. I’M BLIND. I had this dream with the blind woman walking slowly over to me for a few months and I couldn’t figure out why …because a blind woman has nothing to do with ROSEMARY’S BABY.

It’s Toonie Tuesday at The Horror Blog, and today I’m offering up two fellow Canadians who are keeping the fine tradition of Canuxploitation alive and well into the 21st Century.

Brett Kelly directed one of my favourite horror films of last year, My Dead Girlfriend, recently wrapped Prey for the Beast with screenwriter and Horror Roundtable contributor Jeff O’Brien and is hard at work on a remake of Attack of the Giant Leeches.

When I was a kid I think the piece of art that frightened me the most was the old Michael Redgrave movie “Dead of Night”, there was a scene involving a coachman and a prmonition of death that freaked me out. I still love that movie.

Nothing recently has scared me.

David DeCoteau has been crafting totally hot horror films for more than two decades, including Creepazoids, The Brotherhood, Witchhouse and personal favourite Leeches! and shows no sign of slowing down.

I remember back in December 1978 I was invited to a sneak preview of a little horror movie called HALLOWEEN. The movie scared the crap out of me and my friends. Never heard an audience scream louder since! Amazing evening!

Like many young horror movie directors, J.R. Bookwalter set his sights impossibly high. Unlike most of his peers he not only completed his project, the epic zombie flick The Dead Next Door, but also spun that cult classic into a career that’s still going strong over twenty years later, culminating in the founding of Tempe Entertainment, home of some of my favourite direct-to-video releases. What terrible things could possibly set a young man on this path to madness?

It may sound like a cheesy choice, but I remember as a kid watching the Dan Curtis TV movie BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA starring Jack Palance and it scared the hell out of me… there was some scene where Dracula was trying to get into a locked door and the man or woman inside the room were freaking out… it’s one of the only times I went running to my mother’s bedroom after watching a horror flick on TV, that’s for sure!

Runner up has to go to the also-cheesy ’70s documentary THE MYSTERIOUS MONSTERS… the reenactment scene where Bigfoot smashes his arm through the window to grab someone sitting next to it totally had me moving my bed away from the window for weeks afterward… and my bedroom was on the second floor!

Why introduce today’s guest when he’s more than willing to do it himself? And with 300% more haiku, to boot. Ladies, gentlemen, and regular readers of The Horror Blog, I present Stu Charno, known in some circles as Ted, the prank playing misfit from Friday the 13th Part 2.

After 40 year playing jazz piano, twenty-five as an working actor, twenty teaching internal martial arts, and fifteen building one-of-a-kind furninture, I’m now mostly writing. My life has led up to this — a just published book of haiku, called “High Koo — Wisdumb from our time…”. It’s available on Amazon. (A Haiku is a Japanese verse form, with 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables, respectively)

Such doozies as;

Being can tickle
Certainty gets in the way
Enjoy not knowing…

Anyone asked why
will tell you all kinds of things
Words can’t hold the truth…

It only looks like
other people are thinking
We’re on the same bus….

www.StuCharno.com is where to find further invitations…

Smiles n’ vertical head shakes,

utS

Like a magician’s assistant, who knows the tricks, I’m no longer ordinarily scared or as entertained by films, as others may be. But, before I became an actor, the film, “The Haunting”, scared me senseless.

I think that madness is much scarier than gore, and that movie pointed in that direction beautifully, and scares me to this day. Bellowing walls and doors, squeaking their horror-filled resistance, are the stuff of my nightmares…

You may recall that a few weeks back I had been sent a press release for a movie entitled Deadly Suspicion. While that movie didn’t really fall within the parameters of this blog, others from the same film catalogue did. One movie that was recommended to me by the same company was The Hive. As big a fan of nature-runs-amok films as I am, I was hesitiant to pursue it. Then I discovered something.

The Hive features ants that form into giant fists and try to kill humans. Also, from what I’ve gleaned so far, the ants can use computers.

You had me at nerdy ant fists.

Scarred Tuesdays double your pleasure with contributions by two exploitation greats with similar tastes.

Not many people can claim that they changed the face of cinema. Herschell Gordon Lewis, the undisputed Godfather of Gore, is one such person. Director of seminal gore flicks Blood Feast, 2,000 Maniacs, The Gore Gore Girls and countless others, as well as current projects like The Gore Gore Gore-Met, Lewis has spilled more blood in one scene than most modern horror filmmakers will see in a lifetime. All this may make what he finds frightening a bit of a surprise to some.

The nature of my involvement in the entertainment industry makes my attitude so unrelentingly analytical that fright doesn’t enter the mix, although occasional “startlement” might occur. For fright, I recall my initial reaction to the painting “Scream” by Edvard Munch. The primitive nature of this art has to be a major factor in evoking an emotional reaction.

Brandon Maggart pulled at the heartstrings while simoutaneously attempting to sever them as the greatest murderous Santa of all time in Christmas Evil. Maggart’s truly unhinged performance focuses as much on a true love for the holidays as it does taking out those on his naughty list, to great effect. With that in mind, what makes even Old St. Nick tremble in his coal black boots?

I was afraid of… the dark… then, of course, I read Bram Stoker’s Dracula…scared the crap out of me… of paintings:”The Scream” is unsettling…don’t want it around… but the winner is still… as a child, being left alone in the house in THE DARK.. But I found that a baseball bat by my bedside was an amazing comfort.

I’m off to Trash Palace in Toronto this Friday for a screening of the Bud Spencer poliziotteschi Flat Foot, which reminds me that I never did get around to talking about this wonderful cinematic experience.

In order to gain access to Trash Palace, you first have to buy a ticket at the Suspect Video store on Queen St. The ticket describes how to get to the secret location where the screening will take place. Dependent on how late you get there, the proprietors may throw the keys down to you so you can let yourself in. After climbing a set of stairs, you enter a darkened studio filled with screen printing equipment, Mexican movie memorabilia, folding chairs, gym mats and a makeshift screen against one wall. A small alcove to the side of the room contains the snack bar, where you can purchase popcorn in beautiful screen printed bags, assorted pop and candy and, most importantly, beer. This is truly the classiest movie theatre in all of Toronto.

What really sets Trash Palace apart from the vast majority of cinematic experiences I’ve had is the unbridled enthusiam of the hosts, Stacey Case and Matt Mullen. Before each screening they take a few moments to describe what you’re about to witness and why it’s worth watching, often interrupting one another in a manic effort to get the crowd riled up. Both before and after the film they present assorted educational shorts and trailers, letting things slide well past midnight like a party no one wants to be the first to leave for fear that they’ll miss something cool. I have never seen a movie presented with as much passion as the screening of Deathsport J. and I attended a few months back, with the duo going so far as to sincerely thank everyone for attending and making their dream of running a movie night come true. Their love for these films, and their glee in presenting them, is so overwhelming that during the credits for Deathsport Stacey came up to my seat and began discussing the merits of the score based solely upon catching me nod my head to the music.

If these guys weren’t able to share these treasures with others I think they’d explode. If you get a chance make sure you check it out, no matter what they’re showing.

Karl Hardman Schon has passed away at the age of 80.

Night of the Living Dead has often been cited as one of the turning points in Horror cinema history, if not the one great demarcation defining the latter half of the 20th century for the genre. With a legacy that colossal it’s sometimes easy to forget that it took a lot of faith and sweat just to get it made. Karl Hardman Schon was one of the architects instrumental in the creation of Night of the Living Dead. It’s easy to just cite his role as an actor in the film as the stubbornly antagonistic Harry Cooper, but his participation behind-the-scenes, while not as glamourous, is certainly worth pointing out. One of the ‘ten’ in Image Ten, the production company formed around the film, Hardman not only contributed cash to the budget, shot the production stills and helped with casting, but he also chose and edited the score and, with the help of his partner Marilyn Eastman, the sound effects. It’s safe to assume that without Mr. Hardman Night of the Living Dead, and modern horror cinema, wouldn’t be as we know it today.

A remembrance by his daughter, Kyra Schon, can be found here, and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has a guestbook in which people can leave their sympathies. An interview with Karl Hardman Schon and Marilyn Eastman can be found here.

Rest in peace, Mr. Hardman. And thanks.