Connect with us

News

Looking Ahead: Will 2020 be the Year of Henry James?

Published

on

Henry James

The year is quickly coming to a close, and looking ahead to 2020, one can’t help noticing an abundance of Henry James adaptations in the mix. While most of these are based around James’s incredible The Turn of the Screw, there is potential for more.

But who was Henry James?

Depending on how inclusive your high school literature courses were, you might not know James, though horror fans have a leg up in this field primarily because of The Turn of the Screw.

Henry James was born in New York in 1843. His father, Henry James, Sr., was a lecturer, philosopher, and theologian who was considered a highly intelligent, congenial and even-tempered man. His mother, Mary, came from a wealthy family, but little more is known about her.

They traveled the world in his youth, and it gave James a love of learning and languages. By age 26, he had settled in England, himself, and it was here that his most well-known works were inspired and written.

Many of his stories and novels were domestic stories involving Americans living outside the United States. Thankfully, he also possessed a talent for telling ghost stories, some of which shared the same themes, and he would pen many of them throughout his life including The Romance of Certain Old Clothes, The Jolly Corner, and of course, The Turn of the Screw.

Much like Shirley Jackson, forever and rightfully lauded for her The Haunting of Hill House, James’s story is one of the most talked about ghost stories in the genre. To date, it has been adapted over 150 times for radio plays, stage plays, a ballet, a chamber opera, numerous films, and television series, and in 2020, we will see three more.

The Turn of the Screw is a terrifying novella about a governess who takes a job in the country watching over the niece and nephew of a man who became their custodian after their parents died. Shortly after her arrival, she begins to notice strange occurrences around the estate and even stranger behavior from her charges.

James’s novella was beautifully written with an ambiguity that left his reader wondering if there were actual supernatural forces at work or if the governess was simply losing her mind. It is because of this ambiguity that The Turn of the Screw has been one of the most debated and discussed novellas of its kind.

Subsequent adaptations have divided into two camps with one attempting to answer that question with others meticulously attempting to preserve James’s ambiguity, and there’s an argument in adaptation for both. I, personally, rather enjoy the more ambiguous interpretations.

Regardless, the novella has spawned some beautiful and haunting films in the last 100 years like 1961’s The Innocents starring Deborah Kerr and for that, every horror fan who loves a good ghost story should be grateful.

This, of course, brings us to 2020. Henry James has been gone for over a century, but his work is on everyone’s mind in the coming year.

On January, 24, 2020, The Turning is set to hit theaters starring Mackenzie Davis (Blade Runner 2049) in the role of the governess with Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things) and Brooklynn Prince (The Florida Project) as her charges Miles and Flora.

The film has garnered early praise and you can watch the terrifying trailer below.

Then there’s Mike Flanagan (Gerald’s Game) who is working on a second season of his series titled The Haunting for Netflix.

After successfully and inventively adapting Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House last year, Flanagan has turned his eye on James’s novella but has also told reporters in various interviews that he’ll include other ghost stories by the author in the series.

And finally Quibi is developing yet another adaptation of The Turn of the Screw according to Deadline. Much like The Turning, this series adaptation will update the story setting it on a small island in the Pacific Northwest where a Mexican-American nanny is sent to take care of two children.

The series was initially planned for Freeform, but was brought to Quibi after the network passed.

It seems that as 2019 comes to an end, now might be the perfect time to acquaint yourself with the work of this masterful storyteller. You can pick up a copy of his collected ghost stories or The Turn of the Screw by itself on Amazon, and see why so many have turned to his work for inspiration.

 

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

News

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

Published

on

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.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Editorial

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

Published

on

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
Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

Published

on

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.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading