My favorite film festival here in South Korea, the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BiFan), kicks off its 21st edition this week on Thursday, July 13. The fest runs through July 23 with a slate of more than 200 feature-length and short films from around the world, focusing on horror, science fiction, fantasy, dark comedy, thriller, action, and other genre fare. Trying to choose only about 20-plus of those films to see at BiFan was […]
It’s an almost true story that started way back in 1984… You don’t have to be a fan of Troma Studio movies to be familiar with their franchise freak, The Toxic Avenger. What started as an R-Rated horror/comedy about a wimpy health club mop boy named Melvin Junko who gets thrown into a vat of toxic waste and is transformed into an oozing superhero was surprisingly embraced by the public, who not only supported several […]
The third annual Popcorn Frights Film Festival (http://www.popcornfrights.com/), Florida’s largest and most respected genre film event, looks to be an exciting event for fright fare fans, with 40 film premieres from 8 countries, special guests, and live DJ sets inspired by iconic horror film music. The fest takes place in Miami from August 11-17. Popcorn Frights prides itself on premiering films from emerging and established filmmakers alike, which allows both industry and general audiences to […]
Here at Gruesome Magazine, we love Fantasia and all the genre films from across the globe that it brings to the spotlight. While we may never have had the pleasure of attending personally, we have been a part of the festival from a remote capacity. The films the festival includes are certain to be one we will talk about for months and years to come. The Fantasia International Film Festival runs July 13, 2017 thru […]
Attack of the 50 Foot Film Fest, a new “mini film fest”, is coming to the Plaza Theatre in Atlanta, GA on June 27, 2017. The festival showcases sci-fi, horror, and suspense short films from a variety of Atlanta filmmakers. The Atlanta area has a strong filmmaking community, and it looks like there are some fun short films lined up for the evening. The festival begins at 7 pm, but if you want to go, you […]
The Women in Horror Film Festival has announced its guest list for 2017, and it looks to include a great group of filmmakers. Guests include genre favorites such as Lynn Lowry (Cat People (1982)), , Sonya Thompson (The Walking Dead (2010)), and Greg Nicotero (The Walking Dead). Additionally, the festival will include several panels featuring additional guests. A panel on A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) will feature series alums, Heather Langenkamp and Amanda Wyss. Those looking for […]
Striking the right balance of tone and genres in a horror comedy can be a tricky proposition. Writer Tim Ryan and director Trevor Ryan manage to pull this off with their alien-thriller-comedy splatterfest Welcome to Willits (Nevermore Film Festival 2017). The film, which played at the Nevermore Film Festival in Durham, North Carolina on the weekend of February 24 – 26, 2017, recounts the tale of California marijuana farmer who has been having problems with […]
Paul Cardullo joins Doc Rotten to discuss the 10 films that played during the 18th Annual Nevermore Film Festival in Durham, NC, February 24-26, 2017. Each year, the highly anticipated film festival shares some of the best the horror genre has to offer – along with some sci-fi and thriller options as well. Ten films were presented during the weekend, 9 were in competition and one (The Love Witch) was an official release included during […]
Everything about Life (2017) – the synopsis, the trailer, the poster, and the promotions – make the film out to be a second cousin to the Alien franchise. The film sets up a cast of six astronauts on the International Space Station investigating rock samples from Mars and discovering the first proof of alien life – a small one cell creature hidden in the rocks. Before you know it, the alien grows, attacks, and escapes, […]
Some of the most effective horror comes from fear of the unknown. In this way, there is much overlap between horror, mystery, and suspense genres. Keeping an audience in the dark as to what is going on or as to just who is in control can increase the level of terror in a film. In some ways, writer/director Paul Hills’ The Power (Nevermore Film Festival 2017) can be considered a mystery/suspense tale, though, in the […]
The 2017 Boston Underground Film Festival (aka BUFF) has announced its slate of shorts for this year, and it looks like there is just about something for all tastes. They have over 60 shorts lined up in 6 different themed blocks. They also have selected shorts playing in front of thematically linked features, which is a cool trend we have started seeing at some other festivals. The festival runs March 22 – March 26, 2017, so you […]
It may be called The Void (Nevermore Film Festival 2017), but the film, which played at the Nevermore Film Festival in Durham, North Carolina on the weekend of February 24 – 26, 2017, is far from empty. On the contrary, it is chock full of horror goodness. A small group of people is trapped when the rural hospital in which they find themselves is surrounded by a silent but threatening group of hooded cultists. They […]
In the supernatural horror short The Maiden, real estate agent Lucy Wells (Alia Raelynn) is determined to sell an old house — and desperate enough to forge ahead even when a former resident makes it terrifyingly clear that she considers Lucy a trespasser. Writer/director Michael Chaves has forged a great-looking, suspenseful film that fans of haunted house cinema will relish. It’s no spoiler to say that The Maiden is a supernatural story because the […]
Part supernatural mystery thriller and part gory slasher movie, writer/director Tommy Faircloth’s Family Possessions is a fun ride that kept me entertained throughout. Fans of independent fright fare should also have a great time with this offering. The Dunn family is in dire financial straits; father Steve (Jason Vail) is between jobs and mother Sarah (Morgan Monnig) is doing her best to hold things together. When Steve’s mother Albertha dies, the family is shocked to […]
Somewhere between classic Pandora’s Box-style cautions and good intentions paving their own roads to hell lies director/co-writer Eric Dresden Connelly’s Darla (2015). What begins as a human drama story with a heartwarming act of concern merges into science fiction and horror territory. A homeless man (Matt Fowler, also co-writer) is rummaging for food and other items in an alley when he suddenly hears the unmistakable sound of a baby crying. He determines that the […]