News - Straw Dogs (2010)

Hi again, Marvel Man here once more, on an especially prolific blogging day (did you all check out Jennifer's Body? Are you as psyched as I am? What did you all think?). This time around I have a bit of news which should be exciting for a fair proportion of horror and classic film fans.
Channel 4's digital teletext service is reporting that a cast is now in place for the, now official, remake of seventies controversial classic, and Mr B favourite, Straw Dogs.
They state that Superman Returns stars Kate Bosworth and James Marsden will take the lead roles, and be joined by genre veteran/bona fide legend/ Family Guy favourite James Woods (Videodrome).
The piece states:

"The Superman Returns star plays the wife of a Hollywood screenwriter - played by Marsden - who returns to her home town, only to find that life there is not as idyllic as she remembered.
Straw Dogs shocked audiences with its violence on release in 1971. The new film version is due out in 2010."

I shall refrain from commenting on the original film, as my views were made clear in a previous piece, but I will say that it is arguably influential, definitely infamous and an absolute favourite of Mr B who will no doubt comment further. From a solely casting standpoint I have to say Marsden is a favourite of mine, and Woods should be great in this role. Bosworth has never struck me as great but there may be a slight glimmer of potential, she certainly has a lot to prove, and live up to, here.

MM

Jennifer's Body - Preview and Green Band Trailer

I'll be honest the more I see or read about this movie the more interested I become, and not JUST because it has Mega(n) Fox in the lead role looking and acting pretty hot. Writer Diablo Cody seems to at least have an ear for authentic youth dialogue (though I haven't actually watched all of Juno) and knows how to milk the situations for humour or horror from the reality and the truth of being young and messed up (literally in this case).
For those not in the know the movie sees Fox's bitchy cheerleader, the hottest girl in school type, kidnapped by a Satan-worshipping rock band and possessed by a demon. As she goes on a killing spree, rampaging through the school's male population, her wallflower best friend (Mamma Mia's Amanda Seyfried, but don't hold that against her) must find her strength, kill her and despatch those responsible.
I'll admit it's not exactly looking original, the high school tropes and types seem a bit cheesy, and unrelatable potentially. But the piece seems to be quite intense and takes itself refreshingly seriously for the most part. And the trailer definitely looks quite cool, do seriously check it out (it's just below...), and see the Red Band version too if you can (embedding was disabled and some copies wouldn't play in the UK). Yup, I do definitely wanna check this one out...



MM

Pride and Prejudice... and Zombies.

Hey guys. An intriguing thing happened to me this weekend, whilst at work I got my hands on a copy of a book I've been interested in for a while named, you guessed it, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. What surprised me was, informing my partner in terror-blogging Mr B about it he wasn't aware of its existence. To that end I realised that a lot of fans of the genre may be unfamiliar with some circles, literary being one of them, so think of me as your own personal Newsnight Review, or perhaps Richard and Judy...
The book is co-written by an author named Seth Grahame-Smith, along with original author Jane Austen , who remains credited. The reason being that what Grahame-Smith has done is simply take the text of the original Pride and Prejudice and, in his own words, added "all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie mayhem", expanding the book and "transforming a masterpiece of world literature into something you'd actually want to read". In other words the novel is, to over-simplify, merely Pride and Prejudice reimagined as a sort of Dawn of the Dead style zombie survival horror,... with romance... and a bizarre clash of subject and era.
The first noticeable thing about the book, having begun to read it, is just how close to the source text Grahame-Smith can be, the author himself has commented that in certain places where metaphors like "unmentionables" were deployed and references to enemies and fighting in wars utilised it was easy to see the story his way. There are added bits though, including bizarre subplots and a lot of familiar imagery and dialogue for zombie fans, and as mentioned some truly bizarre and admittedly hilarious clashes of genre. Initially I feared that some of this might get old, but up to now it has remained both engaging and hilarious, sample dialogue:

" It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains."

" The wedding took place, and no one other than Elizabeth suspected the bride's condition."

""My dear girl," said her ladyship. "I suggest you take this contest seriously. My ninjas will show you no mercy."

As an unusual experiment it seems to really work, one can absorb the original story, and see where it remains, quite easily. This leaves the reader feeling a bit intellectual but not bored and thrilled in fact by the overt horror tropes. It's not surprising that the book is a New York Times Best Seller and, of course, a Hollywood movie is in the works. In the end the title and truly amazing cover say it all, its up to the reader to decide if they will enjoy it, but this reader and horror fan is enjoying the expeience of working through it, and it puts a smile on my face.

MM

Zombieland - Red Band Trailer

My good friend Marvel Man will tell you that I'm not a fan of horror mixed with comedy - I'm not sure I get the point of it whatsoever. You can't become a quivering heap of terrified flesh and then be laughing your head off (pardon the pun) at the same time. Something in Zombieland seems to do it for me though. See what you think.

Note: This is the red band trailer. For adults only.

A Poltergeist Remake?

BloodyDisgusting.com has picked up on the story that MGM is moving along with a remake of the horror classic Poltergeist. Vadim Perelman has been mooted to direct (could be an interesting choice as he's an intelligent, thoughtful chap) and a tentative date of November 2010 has been given.

Poltergeist is the tale of a property development on an Indian burial ground which awakens an evil spirit. The original film remains a classic and a genre favourite of mine.

Fright Fest on TV - Film 4 line up

Okay, so I went searching as promised and discovered that the Film 4 schedules will be given over to horror double bills which they claim to be airing EVERY night at around 11pm and 1am until the end of the month. I'll be honest and say that's later than I was hoping, and I won't be catching the 1 in the morning movies. The listings tell a different story anyhow though, and there is a fair bit of repetition, but here's the available line up for both weeks:

Monday 17 August

23:00 Wolf Creek (2004) FrightFest season. When a backpacker's car breaks down, salvation arrives in the form of John Jarratt, but then events take a grisly turn. Adults only: scenes of horror/torture.

00:55 Reeker (2005) FrightFest season. David Payne's imaginative slasher in which a bunch of teenagers stranded in a deserted motel are hunted by a malodorous murderer. Strong language/violence.

Tuesday 18 August

23:05 The Hills Have Eyes(2006) FrightFest season. Ted Levine stars as the head of a family stranded in the desert where flesh-hungry mutant monsters wait... Very strong violence/sexual violence/language.

01:10 One Missed Call (2003) FrightFest season. Takashi Miike's horror in which teenagers receive calls from their future selves, predicting their violent deaths within 72 hours from supernatural forces.

Wednesday 19 August

22:40 Silent Hill (2006) FrightFest season. Christophe Gans' horror stars Radha Mitchell, whose infant daughter (Jodelle Ferland) vanishes in a town populated by zombies. Very strong violence/language.
That's right Mr B, a firm favourite, ripe for a re-watching!

01:00 The Cave (2005) FrightFest season. Bruce Hunt's horror film in which a group of cavers descend into a sealed cavern beneath a church, little realising what demons await their arrival...
Incidentally also being shown tonight.

Thursday 20 August

23:45 The Breed (2006) A group of teenagers, including Michelle Rodriguez, land on an idyllic island for a party weekend. But lurking in the woods are genetically enhanced hounds, hungry for blood...

01:30 Wolf Creek (2004)
Seems the season's taking a bit of a back seat today.

Friday 21 August

00:40 Cabin Fever (2002) FrightFest season. Eli Roth's horror film in which five college pals on a camping trip in the woods face a flesh-consuming virus. Who will survive? Contains offensive language.
Hmm the season almost an after thought, but an awesome film, one of my faves so in my opinion good enough to carry the night if only it wasn't on so late, if you have the DVD, like me, whack that in at a reasonable hour maybe.

Saturday 22 August

22:45 Donkey Punch (2008) FrightFest season. Oliver Blackburn's thriller has a group of teen girls and lads party on a luxury yacht. But then there's a violent death and witnesses must be silenced.

00:40 The House by the Cemetery (1981) FrightFest season. Italian horror in which a doctor takes over the work and house of a deceased colleague, little knowing a ghoul that feasts on flesh lurks in the basement.

Sunday 23 August

23:25 Isolation (2005) FrightFest season. On a failing farm in Ireland, Dan Reilly (John Lynch) agrees that his last cow can be used for DNA experiments. Cue bloody mayhem... Strong language.

01:15 The Hills Have Eyes (2006)

Monday 24 August

23:15 Lake Placid (1999) FrightFest season. When an environmentalist is eaten by something large hiding in a Maine lake, a disparate group of heroes (including Brendan Gleeson) gather to track it down.

00:50 Silent Hill (2006)

Tuesday 25 August

23:20 Diary of the Dead (2007) FrightFest season. George Romero's fifth zombie horror stars Josh Close as a student filmmaker, who finds himself shooting the goriest TV reality show ever. Strong language.

01:10 The Breed (2006)

Wednesday 26 August

00:40 Wilderness (2006) FrightFest season. Young offenders, on an outward bound course on a deserted island, become the target of a killer out to avenge his son's death. Strong language/violence.

Thursday 27 August

23:15 Final Destination 2 (2003) FrightFest season. Death is back to reap the souls of those who escaped a freeway pile-up. Can Ali Carter and Michael Landes save those marked for death? Violence/strong language.

01:00 Cabin Fever (2002)
It's like a personal DVD double bill tonight.

Friday 28 August

23:25 The Descent (2005) FrightFest season. Neil Marshall's chiller in which six women on a caving expedition find that once plunged into the depths, they are not alone... Strong language/violence.

01:20 The House by the Cemetery (1981)

Listings and descriptions courtesy the Channel 4 website (my italics), for full C4 series tv listings and info go to http://www.channel4.com/tv-listings/daily/2009/.

MM

Fright Fest - Tis the season to be scared

Hi all. In case you're unaware I just wanted to give a heads up that Film 4's 10th annual Fright Fest is about to get underway on August 27th, with some awesome guests, premieres, talks and classic horror on the big screen down at the Empire, Leicester Square. I myself won't be attending despite wishing I was (though I suspect Mr B wishes he were going even more) due to lack of money, holiday time or motivation but if anyone is heading down there I would really love to hear from you about the experience, the rest of us can find details over at the site:

http://www.frightfest.co.uk/

More relevant is the news, announced (or at least discovered by me via commercial) yesterday that Film 4 itself will be hosting a season of 15 days of horror films to coincide. For the record Film 4 is available and completely free via most satellite, cable and freeview services. Whilst I would probably lose my mind and enact the plot of one of these films if I were to try and watch them all (and for the sake of my sanity I shan't) I WILL endeavour to watch as many as I can, and especially those which interest me, and post reviews and comments, both short and long, in the very place you're reading right now.

The full line up is still unclear (but I will go searching and try and post as soon as I can) but the trailer/ad showed scenes from various interesting looking films and announced that the season starts on Monday with Wolf Creek. Again if you are watching along with any, or all, of the films at the festival, or on TV, feel free, nee encouraged, to post comments about it, and do enjoy...

Marvel Man signing off.