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Jacob’s 7 Horror Movies That Put The ‘Maul’ In Mall For Black Friday!

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Post Thanksgiving is a time of food coma recovery, spending time with loved ones, often going to the movies, and sweet, sweet Black Friday deals that people will literally brawl over! Fortunately, with a lot of these sales moving to safer internet venues, I thought it would be fun to list a few great horror movies set at the mall to show the kinds of danger you maybe avoiding this year…

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DAWN OF THE DEAD (1976)

The classic socio-political horror satire of consumerism from the king of the zombies, George Romero. Following the events of Night Of the Living Dead, zombies are everywhere and cannot seem to be stopped. A small group of survivors try to find the safest, and most equipped place to ride out the undead armageddon – at the mall! Unfortunately, so did a huge mob of zombies. The ghouls congregating there, as one charcter notes after they question why “Some kind of instinct. Memory, of what they used to do. This was an important place in their lives.” All while watching the clueless and dumb zombies wander the mall aimlessly, unable to do anything but shamble and consume.

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CHOPPING MALL (Feature Image)

Now we move into the height of mall based mayhem with that most excellent decade, the eighties! Malls were the peak of commerce and social gatherings, so it makes sense that the malls of suburban Los Angeles would want to beef up security… with deadly force! The mall establishes some fool-proof sentry droids to keep the peace, only for the mechanized mall cops to go haywire after some kids sneak in after hours, now terminating any living thing in their way with explosive laser blasts!

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NIGHT OF THE COMET

What happens when the apocalypse hits Beverly Hills? Some very fashionable survivors trying to fight off zombie hordes and evil scientists! After the Earth experiences an extinction level event, passing through the radioactive tail of the titular comet, all that are left are those who survived by staying in steel lined locations, government agents, and irradiated undead who’re slowly disintegrating into dust. Thankfully for our teenage heroes, the malls of Beverly Hills pack uzis.

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SORORITY BABES IN THE SLIMEBALL BOWL-O-RAMA

Another Linnea Quigley horror classic. A group of pledges will do anything to get into the big sorority, be it paddling or breaking and entry. The college kids and following nerds unwittingly unleash a wish granting Imp while trying to steal a bowling trophy from the mall/bowling alley in a strange turn of events. “Uncle Impy” seems like a pretty stand-up wish granting demon at first… but then heads start rolling and are used to hit some strikes!

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PHANTOM OF THE MALL: ERIC’S REVENGE

The trend of mall based horror in the eighties gave us perhaps one of the more bizarre interpretations of The Phantom Of The Opera. A newly built mall experiences multiple ‘accidents’ that are in fact murders staged by Eric, the titular Phantom Of The Mall. His body was horribly disfigured in a fire concocted by the greedy developers who wanted his family’s land to build the mall and now he’s back with a vengeance! And anyone who harasses or attacks his former girlfriend Melody also has to go. Lots of great kills in this one, and featuring Pauly Shore as the comic relief!

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EIGHT LEGGED FREAKS

A modern day B-Movie starring David Arquette and Scarlett Johannson that has some topical jokes on mall economics. The small town of Prosperity, Arizona is as nearly dried up as its former goldmine. Attempts to kickstart the economy with a new mall… created a desolate mall. And now toxic waste has created thousands of deadly, giant spiders to make things worse. All leading to a climactic battle at the shopping center when the surviving townspeople barricade themselves in and stock up on anything they can find to fight off the arachnid hordes.

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DAWN OF THE DEAD (2004)

The well regarded remake written by James Gunn and directed by Zack Snyder, managing to recapture the horror and political sensibilities of the original with a heaping dose of action. Ana, a young nurse, awakens to find the neighborhood kid zombified and soon chewing on her husband. After a chaotic escape showcasing the sheer destructive fallout of a fast acting and fast running zombie apocalypse, she and other survivors find themselves at the modern mall run by some armed authoritarian security guards. They manage to take control, but as time moves on, and the undead horde grows, they find that living at the mall gets pretty old, pretty fast…

If you’re looking for more movies, check out these other listings on iHorror!

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‘The Strangers’ Invaded Coachella in Instagramable PR Stunt

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Renny Harlin’s reboot of The Strangers isn’t coming out until May 17, but those murderous home invaders are making a pit stop at Coachella first.

In the latest Instagramable PR stunt, the studio behind the film decided to have the trio of masked intruders crash Coachella, a music festival that takes place for two weekends in Southern California.

The Strangers

This type of publicity began when Paramount did the same thing with their horror movie Smile in 2022. Their version had seemingly ordinary people in populated places look directly into a camera with an evil grin.

The Strangers

Harlin’s reboot is actually a trilogy with a more expansive world than that of the original.

“When setting out to remake The Strangers, we felt there was a bigger story to be told, which could be as powerful, chilling, and terrifying as the original and could really expand that world,” said producer Courtney Solomon. “Shooting this story as a trilogy allows us to create a hyperreal and terrifying character study. We’re fortunate to be joining forces with Madelaine Petsch, an amazing talent whose character is the driving force of this story.”

The Strangers

The movie follows a young couple (Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez) who “after their car breaks down in an eerie small town, are forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive in The Strangers: Chapter 1 the chilling first entry of this upcoming horror feature film series.”

The Strangers

The Strangers: Chapter 1 opens in theaters on May 17.

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‘Alien’ Returning to Theaters For a Limited Time

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It’s been 45 years since Ridley Scott’s Alien hit theaters and in celebration of that milestone, it is headed back to the big screen for a limited time. And what better day to do that than Alien Day on April 26?

It also works as a primer for the upcoming Fede Alvarez sequel Alien: Romulus opening on August 16. A special feature in which both Alvarez and Scott discuss the original sci-fi classic will be shown as a part of your theater admission. Take a look at the preview of that conversation below.

Fede Alvarez and Ridley Scott

Back in 1979, the original trailer for Alien was kind of terrifying. Imagine sitting in front of a CRT TV (Cathode Ray Tube) at night and suddenly Jerry Goldsmith’s haunting score begins to play as a giant chicken egg starts to crack with beams of light bursting through the shell and the word “Alien” slowly forms in slanted all caps across the screen. To a twelve-year-old, it was a scary pre-bedtime experience, especially Goldsmith’s screaming electronic musical flourishes playing over scenes of the actual movie. Let the “Is it horror or sci-fi?” debate begin.

Alien became a pop culture phenomenon, complete with kid’s toys, a graphic novel, and an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. It also inspired dioramas in wax museums and even a frightening setpiece at Walt Disney World in the now-defunct Great Movie Ride attraction.

Great Movie Ride

The film stars Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, and John Hurt. It tells the tale of a futuristic crew of blue-collar workers suddenly awakened out of stasis to investigate an undecipherable distress signal coming from a nearby moon. They investigate the source of the signal and discover it’s a warning and not a cry for help. Unbeknownst to the crew, they have brought a giant space creature back on board which they find out in one of the most iconic scenes in cinema history.

It is said that Alvarez’s sequel will pay homage to the original film’s storytelling and set design.

Alien Romulus
Alien (1979)

The Alien theatrical re-release will take place on April 26. Pre-order your tickets and find out where Alien will screen at a theater near you.

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Home Depot’s 12-Foot Skeleton Returns with a New Friend, Plus New Life-Size Prop from Spirit Halloween

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Halloween is the greatest holiday of them all. However, every great holiday needs amazing props to go with it. Luckily for you, there are two new amazing props that have been released, which are sure to impress your neighbors and frighten any neighborhood children who are unfortunate enough to wander past your yard.

The first entry is the return of the Home Depot 12-foot skeleton prop. Home Depot has outdone themselves in the past. But this year the company is bringing bigger and better things to their Halloween prop lineup.

Home Depot Skeleton Prop

This year, the company unveiled its new and improved Skelly. But what is a giant skeleton without a loyal friend? Home Depot has also announced that they will release a five-foot tall skeleton dog prop to eternally keep Skelly company as he haunts your yard this spooky season.

This bony pooch will be five feet tall and seven feet long. The prop will also feature a posable mouth and LCD eyes with eight variable settings. Lance Allen, Home Depot’s merchant of decorative Holliday gear, had the following to say about this year’s lineup.

“This year we increased our realism within the animatronics category, created some impressive, licensed characters and even brought back some fan favorites. Overall, we are most proud of the quality and value we are able to bring to our customers with these pieces so they can continue to grow their collections.”

Home Depot Prop

But what if giant skeletons just aren’t your thing? Well, Spirit Halloween has you covered with their giant life size Terror Dog replica. This massive prop has been ripped out of your nightmares to appear frighteningly on your lawn.

This prop weighs in at almost fifty pounds and features glowing red eyes that are sure to keep your yard safe from any toilet paper throwing hooligans. This iconic Ghostbusters nightmare is a must have for any fan of 80s horror. Or, anyone who loves all things spooky.

Terror Dog Prop
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