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REVIEW: Horror-Comedy Collection ‘Hellarious’ is Frightfully Funny

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Hellarious

There’s a brand new feature-length collection of horror-comedy shorts coming to Blu-Ray this month. It’s called Hellarious, and it’s perfect for fans who like a little hilarity mixed in with their carnage.

Curated by Jason Tostevin, co-founder of Nightmares Film Festival, and distributed by Chris Ethridge (Haven’s End) at Film Spawn this collection has something for everyone, especially those whose sense of humor run to the dark and twisty.

Hellarious

The Hellarious official artwork was designed by Marc Schoenbach

Take for instance, Killer Kart. Directed by James Feeney, the film finds a small crew of employees shutting down a grocery store for the evening when they suddenly find themselves in a gory life-and-death struggle for survival against a very angry feral shopping cart.

The premise is completely, farcically ridiculous, but Killer Kart works because Feeney and his cast understood that the best way to play farce is to do it completely seriously. There are no winks to the audience here. The campy dialogue is delivered like discount Shakespeare and I was there for every hilarious and bloody minute of it.

Then there’s Horrific from Rob Boocheck–whose work you might recognize from ABCs of Death 2–in which a goat rancher in Texas finds himself in a face-off against the legendary chupacabra. Boocheck’s creature is one step shy of terrifying and his protagonist played by Mike C. Nelson gives a fearless performance fighting off the infamous creature with all the bravado of The Three Stooges.

Tostevin’s own ‘Til Death finds four very unhappily married friends who decide the best way to deal with their wives is to get rid of their wives. Unfortunately for them, they make the mistake of burying them in cursed ground and they wake to find their wives “alive” the next morning and quite impossible to re-kill.

Watching these guys, who deftly manage to not learn their lesson in the least, slowly lose it over the course of the short is comedic gold. As a bonus, the make-up and effects are bloody brilliant, displaying exactly how each wife was killed without having to show the deaths themselves.

Death Metal has never been so deadly!

Chris McInroy’s Death Metal finds a musician who wants to be great, but he just doesn’t have what it takes. That is, until his dad gives him a badass guitar created by Satan himself.

Unfortunately, he doesn’t listen to the rules of using the instrument and well, let’s just say there’s a reason they call a guitar an axe. McInroy’s effects are fantastic, and there’s something brilliantly funny and wide-eyed about his protagonist.

Clarissa Jacobson’s Lunch Ladies will take you on a gore-laden trip back to your school days where we find Seretta and LouAnne, fraternal twins who have entered a contest to become personal chefs for Johnny Depp. These ladies love Johnny. The problem is their dead-end job in the cafeteria doesn’t allow them to be creative.

Hellarious Lunch Ladies

Sometimes you just have to get creative according to the Lunch Ladies.

When some, shall we say, fresh ingredients present themselves, however, Johnny is right there to inspire them with one of their favorite movies.

Donna Pieroni and Mary Manofsky are absolutely perfect in the roles of Seretta and LouAnne, respectively. Their comedic timing is on point, even in the most harrowing of circumstances, and they bring a palpable earnestness to the short that sells it completely.

Bitten, a film by Sarah K. Reimers which will also be screening at the iHorror Film Festival this October, might just be one of the best horror-comedy shorts I’ve seen in years, and it all starts when a dog find himself on the wrong end of a werewolf’s bite.

Hilariously funny, Reimers blends suspense and possibility beautifully and Michael Curran gives an unforgettable performance that you have to see to believe.

Michael Curran is brilliant in Bitten from Sarah K. Reimers

The collection rounds out with a second entry from Tostevin, co-written by Randall Greenland, titled Born Again, which concerns a group of ill-prepared Satanist attempting to summon up some serious evil.

Unfortunately for them, they seriously messed up this particular ritual and well, someone totally unexpected shows up instead. This short is excellently paced with excellent practical effects.

What’s so brilliant about Hellarious is that it is shining a spotlight on films that would often find themselves lost after their time on the festival circuit. By packaging them together in this collection, it promises these shorts a longer life, but also gives an opportunity for those who don’t regularly get to attend festivals a taste of what they’ve missed.

This can be especially true with horror-comedies, which aren’t easy to pull off to begin with. It takes a skilled hand to combine laughter with the horrific and the filmmakers included in Hellarious prove that they are more than up to the task.

You can pre-order a copy of the collection on Blu-Ray for $20 plus shipping by clicking here. The disc comes with a bonus short from Clarissa Jacobson title A Very Important Film which parodies some of the self-important festival film tropes recognizable to anyone who has ever attended one.

Blu-Rays of Hellarious ship on around September 17, 2019! Check out the trailer below.

Hellarious – Official Trailer from Hands Off Productions on Vimeo.

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New Poster Reveal For Nicolas Cage’s Survival Creature Feature ‘Arcadian’ [Trailer]

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Nicolas Cage Arcadian

In the latest cinematic venture featuring Nicolas Cage, Arcadian emerges as a compelling creature feature, teeming with suspense, horror, and emotional depth. RLJE Films has recently released a series of new images and a captivating poster, offering audiences a glimpse into the eerie and thrilling world of “Arcadian”. Scheduled to hit theaters on April 12, 2024, the film will later be available on Shudder and AMC+, ensuring a wide audience can experience its gripping narrative.

Arcadian Movie Trailer

The Motion Picture Association (MPA) has given this film an “R” rating for its “bloody images,” hinting at the visceral and intense experience awaiting viewers. The film draws inspiration from acclaimed horror benchmarks like “A Quiet Place,” weaving a post-apocalyptic tale of a father and his two sons navigating a desolate world. Following a catastrophic event that depopulates the planet, the family faces the dual challenge of surviving their dystopian environment and eluding mysterious nocturnal creatures.

Joining Nicolas Cage in this harrowing journey are Jaeden Martell, known for his role in “IT” (2017), Maxwell Jenkins from “Lost in Space,” and Sadie Soverall, featured in “Fate: The Winx Saga.” Directed by Ben Brewer (“The Trust”) and penned by Mike Nilon (“Braven”), “Arcadian” promises a unique blend of poignant storytelling and electrifying survival horror.

Maxwell Jenkins, Nicolas Cage, and Jaeden Martell 

Critics have already begun to praise “Arcadian” for its imaginative monster designs and exhilarating action sequences, with one review from Bloody Disgusting highlighting the film’s balance between emotional coming-of-age elements and heart-pounding horror. Despite sharing thematic elements with similar genre films, “Arcadian” sets itself apart through its creative approach and action-driven plot, promising a cinematic experience filled with mystery, suspense, and relentless thrills.

Arcadian Official Movie Poster

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‘Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 3’ Is a Go with Enhanced Budget and New Characters

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Winnie the Pooh 3

Wow, they’re churning things out fast! The upcoming sequel “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 3” is officially moving forward, promising an expanded narrative with a larger budget and the introduction of beloved characters from A.A. Milne’s original tales. As confirmed by Variety, the third installment in the horror franchise will welcome Rabbit, the heffalumps, and the woozles into its dark and twisted narrative.

This sequel is a part of an ambitious cinematic universe that reimagines children’s stories as horror tales. Alongside “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey” and its first sequel, the universe includes films such as “Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare”, “Bambi: The Reckoning,” and “Pinocchio Unstrung”. These movies are set to converge in the crossover event “Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble,” slated for a 2025 release.

Winnie the Pooh Poohniverse

The creation of these films was made possible when A.A. Milne’s 1926 children’s book “Winnie-the-Pooh” entered the public domain last year, allowing filmmakers to explore these cherished characters in unprecedented ways. Director Rhys Frake-Waterfield and producer Scott Jeffrey Chambers, of Jagged Edge Productions, have led the charge in this innovative endeavor.

The inclusion of Rabbit, heffalumps, and woozles in the upcoming sequel introduces a new layer to the franchise. In Milne’s original stories, heffalumps are imagined creatures resembling elephants, while woozles are known for their weasel-like characteristics and a penchant for stealing honey. Their roles in the narrative remain to be seen, but their addition promises to enrich the horror universe with deeper connections to the source material.

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How to Watch ‘Late Night with the Devil’ from Home: Dates and Platforms

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Late Night With The Devil

For fans eager to dive into one of this year’s most talked-about horror films from the comfort of their own home, “Late Night with the Devil” will be available for streaming exclusively on Shudder starting April 19, 2024. This announcement has been highly anticipated following the film’s successful theatrical release by IFC Films, which saw it earning rave reviews and a record-breaking opening weekend for the distributor.

“Late Night with the Devil” emerges as a standout horror film, captivating audiences and critics alike, with Stephen King himself offering high praise for the 1977-set film. Starring David Dastmalchian, the movie unfolds on Halloween night during a live late-night talk show broadcast that disastrously unleashes evil across the nation. This found footage-style film not only delivers scares but also authentically captures the aesthetic of the 1970s, drawing viewers into its nightmarish scenario.

David Dastmalchian in Late Night with the Devil

The film’s initial box office success, opening to $2.8 million in 1,034 theaters, underscores its wide appeal and marks the highest opening weekend for an IFC Films release. Critically acclaimed, “Late Night with the Devil” boasts a 96% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 135 reviews, with the consensus praising it for rejuvenating the possession horror genre and showcasing David Dastmalchian’s exceptional performance.

Rotten Tomatoes score as of 3/28/2024

Simon Rother of iHorror.com encapsulates the film’s allure, emphasizing its immersive quality that transports viewers back to the 1970s, making them feel as if they are part of the eerie “Night Owls” Halloween broadcast. Rother lauds the film for its meticulously crafted script and the emotional and shocking journey it takes viewers on, stating, “This whole experience will have viewers of the Cairnes brothers’ film glued to their screen… The script, from beginning to end, is neatly sewn together with an ending that’ll have jaws on the floor.” You can read the full review here.

Rother further encourages audiences to watch the film, highlighting its multifaceted appeal: “Whenever it is made available to you, you must attempt to view the Cairnes Brothers’ latest project as it will make you laugh, it will creep you out, it will amaze you, and it might even strike an emotional cord.”

Set to stream on Shudder on April 19, 2024, “Late Night with the Devil” offers a compelling blend of horror, history, and heart. This film is not just a must-watch for horror aficionados but for anyone looking to be thoroughly entertained and moved by a cinematic experience that redefines the boundaries of its genre.

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