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The House that Screamed: A Spanish Slasher with Lasting Impact
Known in Spain as La Residencia, The House That Screamed from 1969 is another Psycho-inspired horror movie. With each iteration on the psychological thriller’s base formula, more extreme themes and gore are introduced, pushing movies like Dementia 13 and The House that Screamed away from thrillers and mysteries, and more solidly into horror. The themes of abuse of power, control and isolation that…
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Blacula: Revisiting a Legend
Released in 1972, Blacula was my first experience with Black horror, horror written and/or directed by Black people from their perspective. Directed by William Crain, the lasting impression that this movie leaves is largely due to his influence. Most avid film watchers have a moment when they encounter a movie that, regardless of how they feel about it, they…
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Mad Monster Party 2025: Review and Recap
I don’t go to a lot of conventions—something I’d like to change this year—but Mad Monster has been a twice-a -year event for us for a while now. I covered Mad Monster Expo last August. Does Mad Monster Party offer a different enough experience to justify two shows in one year? Yes and no, and both answers are why I…
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The Monkey Review: Death is a Funny Thing.
I did not love Longlegs, Osgood Perkins’s previous movie, but it did make me super-curious to see his next project, The Monkey. Especially after the marketing made it obvious that it was intended to be the darkest of dark comedies, the kind where death itself is the punchline. If that’s your idea of humor, you’re in for a…
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Dementia 13: Introducing Francis Ford Coppola
In 1963, Roger Corman gave a young Francis Ford Coppola the opportunity to direct the low-budget film Dementia 13. Corman was looking for something tonally in line with Psycho, heavy on psychological drama and brutal knife kills. Despite giving creative freedom during filming, Corman was displeased with Coppola’s finished film and required changes to make it releasable.…
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Politics and Horror: The Washingtonians
This President’s Day politics, horror and camp collide with an episode of Master’s of Horror called “The Washingtonians”. But first, a word about politics in fiction, specifically horror. It feels like about ten years ago when I first remember hearing the complaints about how everything in entertainment was “becoming too political”. To me, this statement has…
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Valentine: A Slasher With No Heart
Saving the most derivative for last, Valentine is a retro-inspired slasher that hits all the high notes without adding anything new. While critics called it too much like ‘80s slashers, with the benefit of 24 years of hindsight, the real problem is Valentine isn’t nearly enough like the beloved slashers of the ‘80s. Recap and Review: Spoilers Ahead! Traumatic Past Valentine opens with…
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Before The Substance, Coralie Fargeat got Revenge.
Coralie Fargeat has gotten a lot of well-deserved attention and accolades for The Substance, so I want to talk about her previous movie instead: Revenge. Around 2018, my then-coworker recommended I check out this super-bloody movie on streaming. I didn’t know anything about the director at the time, but I’m generally a fan of revenge movies. The title had…
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Heart Eyes: Good Rom-Com, Better Horror
Finally, after weeks of being promised horror by various marketing campaigns, Heart Eyes delivers. This delightful slasher/rom-com combo delivers on all fronts, hitting the highlights for both genres. Horror-comedy is a usually tough genre for me, but Josh Ruben made Werewolves Within, so I was pretty confident going in. Spoiler Free Review My main issue with horror-comedy usually comes down…
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My Bloody Valentine 3-D: Gore With a Heart
Yes, I’m actually going to cover My Bloody Valentine 3-D and the original in back-to-back weeks. And honestly, I’m doing it for no other reason than it’s one of my favorite horror franchises, and it’s Valentine’s season. My Blood Valentine 3-D follows much the same general ideas as the original. After a cave-in, miner Harry Warden snaps…