October is always a prime month for horror movies (what with, you know, Halloween and all), and there seems to be even more blood-soaked offerings than usual this year, with no less than nine fright fests set to hit theaters over the next 31 days.
Take a look at what tricks and treats are in store for you, including the fourth installment in the "Paranormal Activity" series, a 3-D sequel to "Silent Hill" and a return to form for Tim Burton with the animated "Frankenweenie."
Frankenweenie
Release Date: Oct. 5
Starring: Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, Martin Short, Martin Landau, Charlie Tahan, Atticus Shaffer, Robert Capron, Conchata Ferrell.
The Horror: Heh heh, well, "The Horror" in that stop-motion animated kind of way. "Frankenweenie" tells the gruesome yet heartwarming tale of Victor Von Frankenstein, a young boy with a passion for homemade monster movies who resurrects his pet dog Sparky after the poor pooch is hit by a car. Victor then has to deal with a neighborhood suddenly up in arms and terrified of the back-from-the-dead canine, who's really just the same old lovable best pal he's always been (albeit now with a few scars and a couple of bolts in his neck). Screenwriter John August ("Big Fish") expands director Tim Burton's 1984 short film into what is reportedly a welcome return to form for the macabre filmmaker who's spent the last couple of years lazily churning out mildly amusing yet immediately disposable trifles like "Alice in Wonderland" and "Dark Shadows."
Hold Your Breath
Release Date: Oct. 5
Starring: Katrina Bowden, Randy Wayne, Erin Marie Hogan, Seth Cassell, Steve Hanks, Jordan Pratt-Thatcher, Gerald Webb, Darin Cooper.
The Horror: Previously called "#Holdyourbreath," though apparently the world isn't quite ready for Twitter-friendly titles just yet. An unofficial companion piece to "Urban Legend" (remember that one?) and a variation of sorts on the Denzel Washington thriller "Fallen" (remember that one?), "Hold Your Breath" warns us that you really, really should heed the old wives' tale about not breathing while you pass a cemetery, lest you welcome an evil spirit into your midst; a group of college kids learn this the hard way when one of their group ignores the warning, summoning the ghost of a serial killer that proceeds to possess the students and inflict lots of body-hopping carnage. You have to give credit to a horror film with a trailer that opens with attractive young people excitedly gathering for a camping trip without any sense of irony in a post-"Cabin in the Woods" world; double credit goes to Bowden for being a good sport and yammering the movie's entire premise shortly thereafter.
V/H/S
Release Date: Oct. 5
Starring: Calvin Reeder, Lane Hughes, Adam Wingard, Hannah Fierman, Mike Donlan, Joe Sykes, Drew Sawyer, Jas Sams, Joe Swanberg.
The Horror: One of the past month's most popular On Demand titles gets a theatrical release for those who like their horror movies to be more of a communal experience rather than something for their own living room. Terror goes analog as a bunch of thieves are hired for the seemingly simple task of breaking into a house and stealing a single VHS tape; they find the house chock full of the old cassettes (really, what is it about an unlabeled VHS tape that makes it so ominous?) containing hours of "found footage" that prompt a six-part horror anthology film dealing with hauntings, possessions, scary monsters, running and screaming through the woods and, occasionally, fornication. At least one segment of "V/H/S" caused at least one audience member at this year's Sundance Film Festival to faint; the trailer certainly promises a wild ride of "Blair Witch"-style horror taken to even more lo-fi extremes, making for a "Creepshow" for an era where everyone with a Flip camera can make a damn movie.
More to follow shortly..........................
No comments:
Post a Comment