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‘Dead By Midnight’ is a Love Letter to the Retro Horror Anthology – Review

Published

6 years ago

April 14, 2018

I love horror anthologies, so when I had the opportunity to watch Dead By Midnight (11pm Central), I was thrilled. And I have to say, I was thoroughly impressed. It’s a wildly entertaining collection of cautionary tales that brilliantly executes the creative potential of the anthology format.

Dead By Midnight (11pm Central) is a collection of 6 stories – five separate short segments with one comprehensive plot tying them together. The description is as follows:

It’s Halloween at WKIZ when the malicious Mistress of Midnight arrives to host her annual horror movie marathon ‘Dead by Midnight’. When the WKIZ staff begins disappearing only to turn up in the increasingly darker films, it’s up to line producer Candice Spelling to stop the Mistress of Midnight before her final and most diabolical film goes to air.

And check out this awesome poster design!

via You42

Each of the anthology chapters have a great premise and a solid execution. There’s honestly not a weak entry among them.

The anthology’s main storyline (known as Dead Air, directed by Torey Haas) shows the characters gradually shifting over as “actors” in the movie marathon entries, allowing the film’s cast to showcase their talent with double duty roles. This is a great creative choice that ties everything together very well, giving Dead By Midnight an overarching plot that clearly builds a full story.

It’s also just a very clever way to present an anthology that ties back to the roots of the sub-genre; shows and films like Tales From the Crypt, Thriller, Trilogy of Terror, Waxworks, Hammer House of Horror and The Vampira Show.

I was so happy to see Hannah Fierman (SiREN, V/H/S) as line producer Candice Spelling – she’s such a great talent and she can communicate so much with her physicality and facial expressions (take into consideration that her role in SiREN is mainly non-speaking, and you’ll know what I mean).

Each segment is introduced by the Mistress of Midnight (Erin Brown, Masters of Horror: Sick Girl), the saucy hostess of the Dead By Midnight TV special. She’s basically a hybrid of Elvira and Evelyn (Barbara Crampton’s VHS game guide character from Beyond the Gates) and her coy quips mask her dark intentions.

The first “official” short entry, titled Jersey Devil (directed by Tony Reames), features a punchy script that I greatly enjoyed (written by the segment’s lead actress, Davi Crimmins). The comedic timing of this entry is fantastic and I definitely appreciated the Evil Dead homage of the camera-rushing-at-the-cabin visual gag. Delightful!

The next segment, Creepy Dolls (directed by Eric Davis) stood out for me because of Emma Green’s character, Toni. She’s wise to the ways of a spooky story and shows that it really is easy to incorporate diversity of sexual orientation into the genre.

Director Jay Holloway’s segment, Lost Laundry, uses a combination of stop-motion animation and practical gore effects to turn his story into a fun creature feature. Anyone who has ever had an uncomfortable roommate situation will definitely identify with this short.

Day Three – written and directed by Anissa Matlock – is beautifully subdued in comparison to the previous segments. It’s full of emotion and communicates a deep trauma with characters that are struggling to cope. The climax is stunning with phenomenal practical effects and design. It really won me over.

Dead By Midnight

The last segment, Blind Side (directed by Torey Haas and written by Melissa Oulton) is the nightmare of anyone who relies on prescription glasses. The short’s main character, Rebecca (Jenni McCarthy), finds herself blurrily struggling through a horrific situation and still follows all the logical steps – for once – which deserves applause.

Overall, the film had such a strong group of stories that it would be difficult to pick a favorite. Dead By Midnight (11pm Central) is a killer indie anthology that fully embraces the format and does a damn good job.

Dead By Midnight (11pm Central) will screen as part of the Atlanta Film Festival on April 14th (9:30pm at the Plaza Theatre). You can check out the trailer below.

Craving more horror anthologies? Check out the teaser trailer for Lilith!

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Jake Gyllenhaal’s Thriller ‘Presumed Innocent’ Series Gets Early Release Date

Published

30 mins ago

April 26, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Jake Gyllenhaal’s limited series Presumed Innocent is dropping on AppleTV+ on June 12 instead of June 14 as originally planned. The star, whose Road House reboot has brought mixed reviews on Amazon Prime, is embracing the small screen for the first time since his appearance on Homicide: Life on the Street in 1994.

Jake Gyllenhaal’s in ‘Presumed Innocent’

Presumed Innocent is being produced by David E. Kelley, J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot, and Warner Bros. It is an adaptation of Scott Turow’s 1990 film in which Harrison Ford plays a lawyer doing double duty as an investigator looking for the murderer of his colleague.

These types of sexy thrillers were popular in the ’90s and usually contained twist endings. Here’s the trailer for the original:

According to Deadline, Presumed Innocent doesn’t stray far from the source material: “…the Presumed Innocent series will explore obsession, sex, politics and the power and limits of love as the accused fights to hold his family and marriage together.”

Up next for Gyllenhaal is the Guy Ritchie action movie titled In the Grey scheduled for release in January 2025.

Presumed Innocent is an eight-episode limited series set to stream on AppleTV+ starting June 12.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Movies

Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

Published

19 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.

Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.

The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.

Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”

Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.

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News

Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween

Published

21 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Spirit Halloween has declared that this week marks the start of spooky season and to celebrate they are offering fans a chance to stay at the Lizzie Borden House with so many perks Lizzie herself would approve.

The Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA is claimed to be one of the most haunted houses in America. Of course one lucky winner and up to 12 of their friends will find out if the rumors are true if they win the grand prize: A private stay in the notorious house.

“We are delighted to work with Spirit Halloween to roll out the red carpet and offer the public a chance to win a one-of-a-kind experience at the infamous Lizzie Borden House, which also includes additional haunted experiences and merchandise,” said Lance Zaal, President & Founder of US Ghost Adventures.

Fans can enter to win by following Spirit Halloween‘s Instagram and leaving a comment on the contest post from now through April 28.

The prize also includes:

An exclusive guided house tour, including insider insight around the murder, the trial, and commonly reported hauntings

A late-night ghost tour, complete with professional ghost-hunting gear

A private breakfast in the Borden family dining room

A ghost hunting starter kit with two pieces of Ghost Daddy Ghost Hunting Gear and a lesson for two at US Ghost Adventures Ghost Hunting Course

The ultimate Lizzie Borden gift package, featuring an official hatchet, the Lizzie Borden board game, Lily the Haunted Doll, and America’s Most Haunted Volume II

Winner’s choice of a Ghost Tour experience in Salem or a True Crime experience in Boston for two

“Our Halfway to Halloween celebration provides fans an exhilarating taste of what’s to come this fall and empowers them to start planning for their favorite season as early as they please,” said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. “We have cultivated an incredible following of enthusiasts who embody the Halloween lifestyle, and we’re thrilled to bring the fun back to life.”

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Spirit Halloween is also preparing for their retail haunted houses. On Thursday, August 1 their flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. will officially open to start off the season. That event usually draws in hordes of people eager to see what new merch, animatronics, and exclusive IP goods will be trending this year.