News
My Favorite Horror Franchises
The summer of 2015 is gearing up to be The Summer of Sequels. We’ve already had The Woman in Black 2, [REC] 4, Taken 3, and Avengers: Age of Ultron, and in the upcoming months we’ll be getting Insidious: Chapter 3, Jurassic World, Terminator: Genisys, Sinister 2, Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (and I’m sure I missed a few). So I thought this would be a good time to list the best horror franchises out there.
Please note that my criteria for a franchise is at least three films in a series (sorry Predator and Laid to Rest). I can watch all these franchises again and again without ever getting bored. This list isn’t in any particular order.
Romero’s Dead Trilogy
I’m of course talking about Night of the Living Dead (1968), Dawn of the Dead (1978), and Day of the Dead (1985). Not only are these films the standard by which all other zombie films are measured, they also kick some serious ass. They are well-written, well-executed, well-acted, and Dawn and Day have some of the best gore around. I’m limiting this franchise to the first three films because, let’s face it, the other three Romero zombie flicks are pretty uneven. Oh let’s be honest, 2005s Land of the Dead sucked out loud!!
Hellraiser Trilogy
Once again, I’m limiting this franchise to the first three films (it’s my list and I’ll do whatever I want). Hellraiser (1987) is a groundbreaking film. Nothing like it was seen before. The first film also proved that Clive Barker is more than just a master of the written word. Hellhound: Hellraiser II (1988) is darker, gorier, and further explores the world and mythology of Pinhead and his cohorts. Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth (1992) has its flaws, but is overall a pretty damn strong movie that introduces a few new cenobites.
Friday the 13th Films
Say what you will about this franchise, but I’ll take this one over the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise any day. Jason is a stone-cold killer with no stupid one-liners, and after all the films in the series, Jason still manages to be scary. The first four films in the franchise are the best, but I watch all of them every time we get a Friday the 13th calendar day.
The Alien Films
This is another solid franchise, but to make it a great horror series, I’m removing Aliens (1986) from the rotation. Aliens is a fun action flick, but it most definitely is not a horror film. The original Alien (1979), Alien 3 (1992), and Alien: Resurrection (1997) kick some major ass, though.
The Evil Dead Trilogy
Another classic franchise that is hugely entertaining, gory, and scary. I admit that I’m not as big a fan of Army of Darkness (1992) as most fans (it is way to campy with not enough gore for me), it’s still a terrific trilogy.
The Tremors Franchise
Did you know that there’s four Tremors films, with a fifth one coming out later in 2015? I just recently showed the first two to my kids (ages ten and seven) and they love them. Watching the Graboids snatch and eat up the cast is so much fun. I also love how the writers evolve the creatures in the sequels. They walk on land in Tremors II: Aftershocks (1996) and they fly in Tremors 3: Back to Perfection (2001). I can’t wait to see what they do in part five!!
The Wrong Turn Films
This franchise may never win any awards, but it’s one of my guilty pleasure franchises (along with Final Destination, see below). I wasn’t really a fan of the original Wrong Turn (2003), but since that film, the filmmakers have settled into a pattern of creating some of the goriest and craziest horror films out there. If you’re looking for logic, solid stories, and character development, look elsewhere. If you want to see hot girls split in two, people torn apart, and other grizzly sights, then this franchise is for you. There are currently six film in the franchise and I don’t see an end in sight.
The Hatchet Trilogy
Thank you Adam Green for going back to the basics!! At the end of the day, the Hatchet trilogy is simply a slasher killing characters in the swamp. Victor Crowley became an instant horror icon for the new generation. What makes this trilogy so much fun are all the great practical effects, a great killer, and tons of genre cameos. Even more, though, is writer-director Adam Green. You can tell from watching his films that this man loves the horror genre. This franchise is both a throwback to the classic slasher films of the 1980s, and is Green’s love letter to the genre.
The [Rec] Franchise
This franchise admittedly has its ups and downs but is overall a tremendously fun and gory franchise. Are you sick and tired of the found footage-style movies? Well, you obviously haven’t seen any of the [Rec] films. [Rec] (2007) and [Rec] 2 (2009) are so damn good that as soon as they end you’ll immediately want to watch them over again (I did). [Rec] 2 is no doubt the best film in the series, but all the films in the franchise have over the top gore and fun stories.
Final Destination Franchise
This is my other guilty pleasure franchise on my list. Let’s face it, every sequel has been a remake of the first Final Destination (2000). What makes these films so damn fun, though, are the opening sequence, that always involves some kind of horrendous accident, and all the inventive deaths throughout the films. The filmmakers here don’t pull any punches either… most of the death scenes are gory and explicit.
The Saw Trilogy
You knew this was going to pop up on my list!! Ultimately I enjoyed all the films in this franchise, but I thought the first three were the strongest. Some of the later films felt rushed and didn’t do it for me. The first three films, though, are pretty damn amazing with great stories and great gore.
So, what’s your favorite horror franchises? Let me know in the comments section below!!
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News
Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role
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
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)
Ghostface (2021)
Ghost Face (2023)
Don’t Scream (2022)
Scream: A Fan Film (2023)
The Scream (2023)
A Scream Fan Film (2023)
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Movies
Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month
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.
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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