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Halloween is NOT For Adults, Writer Says

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In a recent New York Post article, a writer gives commentary on why adults should leave Halloween to the kiddies. Adults shouldn’t dress up they say, nor should they carve pumpkins.

The writer remains nameless probably because they don’t want to be known as the person who worked so hard to ruin everyone’s fun.

The author’s byline is simply, Post Staff Report and he/she begins the article titled “Adults Should Celebrate Halloween Without Dressing Up” by referencing America’s current turmoil, not mass shootings or hurricanes, but adults donning costumes for that once-a-year nationwide masquerade on October 31.

“We assume some of these folks have kids,” they write. “Give it a break. Give the holiday back to the children. Grow up.” They write.

They amend that inflammatory statement by saying it’s okay to celebrate the holiday, but do it with tasteful home décor or make a “Halloween-themed” dessert, but that is as far as an adult should go.

The writer’s prejudice is bolstered by referencing vanilla impulse buy housewife magazines.

Better Homes and Gardens and Good Housekeeping are suggested primers on how adults should “behave.”

This means NOT carving pumpkins, but painting them instead: “a personal” touch they suggest.

At iHorror we suspected the article might be “fake news” or even written as a parody, maybe clickbait, which we certainly understand given the nature of online news these days.

But this editorial came from the New York Post, not as reputable as the Times, but still a formidable news agency on the east coast.

There are a few problems with the writer of this article’s views. First and foremost why are they so hellbent on taking the fun out of Halloween for adults? It’s the only time of the year for most of us to express our creativity and go out in public.

I am not a historian on Halloween or its origins but what I do know is that it’s a night to embrace what makes us different; pay homage to movies and iconic characters that were so important to our childhoods, bond with our own kids and in the same moment formulate new memories.

Not only that, horror movies and Halloween go hand-in-hand. Who hasn’t dressed up like a vampire or a zombie either as a kid or as an adult? These characters have a lot to do with our own identities. In fact, without these legendary characters, kids would still be cowboys or “indians” or cutting two eyeholes into a sheet to go out as a ghost.

Halloween is not all about the candy either. Yes, it’s certainly a plus, but I would say that Halloween candy is now sort of a gift of appreciation–nobody offers the “trick” option anymore. Adults who walk the long residential blocks with their kids in costume are just as excited to see the extravagance that goes into a themed house. To suggest that adults remove themselves from the celebration would mean suburban blocks would go dark, back into the ages before electricity.

Plus, let’s not forget it’s just plain fun. As adults, we have to traverse through work, kids, traffic, trolls in our social media feed and a multitude of other things that suck the fun out of our lives.

On Halloween, we can live vicariously through our superheroes, other-worldly beings who are above reality, not susceptible to stress. Our costumes are projections of our anger, sexiness, love, desire to be accepted or any other emotion we want to publically display.

The idea that adults should not celebrate Halloween is like saying they shouldn’t go to Disneyland or the fair or anywhere with child-like delineations.

Adults need an outlet to express themselves and whether it’s carving a pumpkin, making spooky cocktail stirrers or dressing up like a werewolf, All Hallows Eve is the perfect time to show our creativity.

To take that away just makes the world a dull, stressful place with no expression and devoid of fun.

Who wants that? The Post writer should remove the stick from their backside, straddle it and pretend to be a witch.

We promise not to judge.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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Part Concert, Part Horror Movie M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Trap’ Trailer Released

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In true Shyamalan form, he sets his film Trap inside a social situation where we aren’t sure what is going on. Hopefully, there is a twist at the end. Furthermore, we hope it’s better than the one in his divisive 2021 movie Old.

The trailer seemingly gives away a lot, but, as in the past, you can’t rely on his trailers because they are often red herrings and you are being gaslit to think a certain way. For instance, his movie Knock at the Cabin was completely different than what the trailer implied and if you hadn’t read the book on which the film is based it was still like going in blind.

The plot for Trap is being dubbed an “experience” and we aren’t quite sure what that means. If we were to guess based on the trailer, it’s a concert movie wrapped around a horror mystery. There are original songs performed by Saleka, who plays Lady Raven, a kind of Taylor Swift/Lady Gaga hybrid. They have even set up a Lady Raven website to further the illusion.

Here is the fresh trailer:

According to the synopsis, a father takes his daughter to one of Lady Raven’s jam-packed concerts, “where they realize they’re at the center of a dark and sinister event.”

Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, Trap stars Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka Shyamalan, Hayley Mills and Allison Pill. The film is produced by Ashwin Rajan, Marc Bienstock and M. Night Shyamalan. The executive producer is Steven Schneider.

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