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The Thanksgiving Slasher You Never Knew Existed

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Think you have seen every slasher film there is — every one that takes place on a United States holiday circa the 80’s? Think again.

This Thanksgiving gem is called “Blood Rage,” originally “Nightmare at Shadow Woods,” but if you watch it on Amazon Prime right now you’ll notice the title credit sequence has it as “Slasher.” Confused? Just look for “Blood Rage” on Amazon.

You see, in 1987 the film had a theatrical run but was heavily edited and released as “Nightmare at Shadow Woods,” Arrow has resurrected it, put all the missing pieces back and re-released it on DVD.

In the title role is whiskey voiced Louise Lasser as the matriarch of twins Todd and Terry; one a sociopath the other his pawn. In the cold open amid synth-heavy Casio keyboard midi claps and cymbals, we are introduced to the young twins at a  drive-in theater with their mom and her new beau.

The boys sneak out of the car and spy another couple in mid coitus. The young Terry somehow has an axe and bludgeons the man’s face with the blade then implicates his twin. As a result Todd is institutionalized having been fingered for the crime.

Todd is catatonic but escapes the hospital ten years later. Meanwhile his twin, the real guilty one, is enjoying Thanksgiving with mom who makes an announcement she is engaged. For some reason Todd isn’t thankful for this revelation and goes on a killing spree. His victims are high school (college?) friends although, it’s not clear why.

As slasher movies go, this one is surprisingly gory. Although the kills aren’t that great, you’ll appreciate the department workroom’s detailed and sometimes effective attempts at viscera.

Who doesn’t love when a therapist is separated from the bottom half of her body and her legs continue to move? Or soon-to-be-stepdad is be-handed with a beer still attached — It’s really cult gold. Especially one scene involving the same stepdad in an office chair (wait for it).

It’s sort of American Psycho without the etiquette or wealth.

Mark Soper plays both Terry and his twin brother. He gives a sort of humorous side to Terry, trying to perfect the 80’s art of zingers before or after some kills. “It’s not cranberry sauce,” he says at one point after tasting the blood spatter on his jersey. So that’s what you’ve got to work with for 90 minutes.

But through its thigh hemmed gym shorts, calf length striped tube socks, headbands and feathered hair  “Blood Rage” isn’t at all bad.

All the tropes are there if only briefly and the cube in the Magic 8 Ball would make a better script, this 80’s blood bath should be more of a cult classic than it is: heavy handed piano F and F sharp keys notwithstanding. This is strictly-by-the numbers horror fare, none of them prime.

It has a high body count and a twist ending so awkward you’ll writhe in discomfort as the performers try to method act their way out of it.

Undeniably campy, overacted and with an overstuffed gimmick, “Blood Rage” is a finely cooked turkey just in time for Thanksgiving.

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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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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Movies

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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