Today I watched John Holmes’s penis get bitten by a vampire. What did you do today?
In the ‘70s and ‘80s many pornographic filmmakers made pornos with stories. Whether it was action, horror, or comedy, there was usually a genre represented by more story and less sexy time. As a horror enthusiast, I get excited more ways than one when the porno has horror elements and Dracula Sucks has more horror than porno. . . and it is freaking weird.
Earlier this year, we interviewed Steven DeGennaro, the director of an upcoming indie movie called Found Footage 3D. It was a ridiculous concept, and I actually called him out on it on Twitter. He responded, which led to the interview, and I’ve been keeping tabs on the project ever since.
The film is in post-production now, and they’ve run into a snag.
Crowdfunding is still a controversial practice. I approve of it, by and large, especially if the cause is good enough. Participating in a worthwhile crowdfunding campaign makes me feel magnanimous, like a DeMedici, a patron of the arts.
Check out the Found Footage 3D Indiegogo page, where they are raising money for one specific important element of their film. They have one of the smartest, funniest pitch videos I’ve seen in a while, and it explains precisely what they need the money for. There’s nothing vague to it, no nebulous goal in carefully couched language.
Even if you can’t give, or choose not to, the pitch video itself is a great watch. If you’re a horror fan, though, consider throwing a couple bucks their way. As major studios continue to botch a majority of the horror movies they put out, the best hope for the genre seems to be independent films with small budgets and great creativity. Crowdfunding allows unparalleled contact between filmmakers and their audience, and it looks like DeGennaro has a good idea of what his demographic is after.
Please follow the movie on Facebook to keep up with the latest news.
If, like me, your knowledge of New Zealand cinema is limited to Peter Jackson and Taika Waititi, then Housebound will both delight and surprise you. I went into Housebound with zero knowledge of the plot, but you should know that it’s essentially a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside a red herring. Just when you think you’ve figured out what kind of movie it’s going to be, it turns into something else. Rather than being confusing, it makes the movie that much more fun to watch.
Even though it’s a movie that still feels fresh and influential, Beetlejuice came out almost a quarter of a century ago. It’s no secret that many of Tim Burton’s biggest fans feel like he hasn’t done anything in the last 20 years to rival it. Those people need to see Suburban Gothic immediately.
The cruelly and ironically titled Nothing Bad Can Happen is nothing less than a hard kick to the stomach. Katrin Gebbe’s debut isn’t a horror film, yet it still horrifies. Nothing Bad Can Happen stuns and unsettles the viewer like the also-incendiary debuts of Maury and Bustillo (À l’intérieur) or Du Welz (Calvaire), yet without the gore of the former and the surrealism of the latter.
I’ve recently discovered filmmaker Richard Griffin. I love Richard Griffin and you should, too.
A couple of years ago my friend Jay handed me a disc with one word on it: Found. He said he saw it at a horror convention and it was something I would love. I watched Found that night and he was right.
Full disclosure: I have no idea how to review the new, incredibly comprehensive, fully-remastered, nine-disc Monty Python box set, Monty Python’s Total Rubbish: The Complete Collection. I, like any good misfit worth her salt, went through a rather serious Monty Python phase while in high school, and spent every weekend watching Monty Python’s Flying Circus with my best pal Lori (and arguing over who was cuter, Michael Palin or Eric Idle. The answer was yes), imitating the sketches, knotting handkerchiefs for our heads, and being fully immersed in Pythonalia. I have no objectivity when it comes to Monty Python. I love them. Full on. I learned more about world history from Monty Python than I did in high school (of course, if it had been taught in funny voices, I might’ve paid more attention).
Although horror is often considered a masculine domain, there are many female horror fans who can quickly disprove that stereotype. One is photographer Ashlea Wessel, who is currently working on her short film debut, Ink. As a huge fan of monster movies, Ashlea always wanted to make her own movie; such cinematic ideals have frequently seeped into her photographs over the years.
It’s best not to know a whole lot about the plot going into Jim Mickle’s latest film Cold In July. If you haven’t read the Joe R. Lansdale novel upon which the movie is based (like me), try not to form any preconceived notions from the tag line or cover art and just go with it. If you’re about ten minutes in and thinking, “Damn, this is just a whole bunch of stalker-revenge movie clichés that aren’t really doing it for me,” keep watching. There’s no M. Night Shyamalan-style twist, just a lot of well-crafted narrative turns that will keep your attention even after the movie ends. It’s that good, and easily the best of Mickle’s last three films.