Summer
Ashley Greene (Twilight) is set to topline alongside Stephen McHattie, Barbara Niven and Peter Mooney, who will all play the deranged kinfolk that Greene’s character encounters on her quest to find the father she’s never known.
Ashley Greene (Twilight) is set to topline alongside Stephen McHattie, Barbara Niven and Peter Mooney, who will all play the deranged kinfolk that Greene’s character encounters on her quest to find the father she’s never known.
A werewolf-thriller. Hayter said he hatched “Slaughter’s Road” after he was offered a slew of werewolf movies and found enough flaws in each to never want to make such a pic; genre-savvy friends changed his mind.
Cayden Richards, 18, has it all: Captain of the high school football team; straight-A student; gorgeous girlfriend. But when he wakes one dark night to find his parents brutally murdered, he is horrified to realize that he is turning into an animal: a wild, savage wolf. Panicked, Cayden runs, determined to find out what is happening to him. His quest leads him to the strange, isolated town of Lupine Ridge, where two clans of wolves are on the brink of war. The opposing clans are lead by Connor, the powerful, pure-blood alpha of a savage pack and John Tollerman, an old farmer, committed to protecting the human citizens of Lupine Ridge. But when Cayden falls for Angelina, the beautiful, young mate promised to Connor, a battle to the death is inevitable. And as the past begins to reveal itself, Cayden’s place in the world becomes clearer — As does his power to put an end to the savage violence building up around, and within him…
Little Bit Zombie sees Turner play a company exec who becomes infected by a virus during a bachelor party, forced to avoid an obsessed zombie hunter and his Bridezilla-to-be (Crystal Lowe).
Lisa Johnson is one day shy of her sixteenth birthday. And she will be forever. She and her family are dead and doomed to repeat that fateful last day before they were all killed in 1985. Only Lisa has “woken up” and realizes what is going on. She starts to feel as if she is being haunted, but the “ghost” turns out to be Olivia, a very much alive girl who lives in the house in the present day with her own family. With her help, Lisa discovers that the house once belonged to a serial killer who kidnapped teenage girls and burned their remains in a hidden furnace room. When he died, he became a Haunter – a powerful, evil spirit able to possess the living.
Foresight Features (Monster Brawl, Exit Humanity) has passed along the poster for HellmouthPontypool’s Tony Burgess and stars Stephen McHattie (PontyPool, The Watchmen). It was directed by John Geddes (Exit Humanity) and is now in post.
Hellmouth is described as a 1950′s throwback (something I can definitely get behind). Per Director Geddes, “I wanted to create a story-driven film with fantasy and horror combined. Something that was directly inspired by the era of Hitchcock and even Ed Wood. Working with a writer like Tony Burgess was a pleasure as we both love the simplicity in many of the old classic films of the 50′s and 60′s, and even earlier in films like Nosferatu and Faust. We worked really hard to make Hellmouth something fresh.”
Head inside to check out the poster which was designed by the Justin Erickson from Phantom City Creative and Rue Morgue. READ MORE
The film follows Lars Olafssen (played by Lindhardt), a once young celebrity in the prestigious art world, who is now slipping away into the land of has-beens. His long-time art dealer, Ronny (McHattie), is now an ungracefully aging hipster who desperately wants his meal ticket back.
But Lars refuses to paint.
His creativity comes at too high a cost – his inspiration is carnage – blood, guts and limbs. Not surprisingly, this lead to a dreadful breakdown in the past. Nevertheless, an eager Ronny arranges a teaching job for Lars with his old friend Harry (Goulem) at an art school in Koda Lake, a small Canadian town in the middle of nowhere. It’s a “therapeutic” measure for Lars – a means to conquer his need to paint in the “safety” of a country retreat… and perhaps lead to romance, with his fellow teacher, Leslie (Reilly). That is, until Eddie (Smith) comes into his life.
I’m a huge fan of Vincenzo Natali, the man behind Cube and Splice, which is why I have high hopes for his latest genre offering.
Starring Zombieland and The Call‘s Abigail Breslin, as well as Stephen McHattie, Peter Outerbridge, Michelle Nolden and David Hewlett, Haunter premiered last night at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas. In it, the ghost of a teenager who died years ago reaches out to the land of the living in order to save someone from suffering her same fate.
Evan Dickson attended the World Premiere and had mixed feelings.
“It’s an interesting concept, The Others meets Groundhog Day. Some truly special stuff comes out of this early on as Natali and screenwriter Brian King nicely develop their world.”
Even with a cool concept, the film’s direction is where it falters: “I just wish it hadn’t gone in the direction it did,” Dickson states. “It starts with the makings of a modest miracle, but eventually uses up exactly as much goodwill as it earns.”
Click here for the entire review. READ MORE
It’s tough when you can’t fall in love with a movie you admire but, unfortunately, director Vincenzo Natali (the excellent Splice) is unable to bring his usual flair to the heavily uneven Haunter. After getting easily hooked into the film via an incredibly interesting first act, I found myself losing more and more interest as the movie began to throw its own rules out the window.
Abigail Breslin is excellent as Lisa, a mopey new-wave teen who also happens to be dead and stuck in 1986. Her whole family is dead too, but she’s the only one who’s actually aware of their predicament. Thus, her family enacts the same routine every day and treats her as if she’s acting out when she tries to tell them that she’s tired of having meatloaf for the thousandth day in a row. It’s an interesting concept, The Others meets Groundhog Day. Some truly special stuff comes out of this early on as Natali and screenwriter Brian King nicely develop their world. There’s a moment about halfway though when Lisa’s father suddenly starts smoking at dinner – not part of his normal routine – that signals the onset of what I assumed would be a truly remarkable second half.
Sadly, the remarkable version never shows up. Instead, Haunter disappears down a convoluted rabbit hole once Lisa’s objective – to save the family living in the 2013 version of their house – becomes clear. There’s very little that works after this point. We never get to know the family Lisa’s trying to save well enough (or at all, really) to become truly invested. It’s a horror movie, so when you place the innocent and anonymous in peril the audience doesn’t really care if they die or not. But Haunter isn’t interested in providing that type of investment. The film becomes obsessed with the ins and outs of ghost time travel (that’s a thing here) and, much like its’ protagonists, disappears into a virtual limbo.
Stephen McHattie (Pontypool) is effectively creepy as the film’s villain, but the energy around his motives and actions is so laconic and thinly drawn that his efforts are effectively neutered. An evil lacking any sort of definition, he’s sort of reduced to mugging for the camera by the end. Additionally, in what seems like a bid to appeal to younger teens and a PG-13 rating, the film lacks any punch whatsoever. Brightly lit with people learning important life (or death, I suppose) lessons, I was fairly shocked by the gummy toothlessness of its ending.
Haunter isn’t a bad film, and I certainly commend it for trying something new, I just wish it hadn’t gone in the direction it did. It starts with the makings of a modest miracle, but eventually uses up exactly as much goodwill as it earns. Hopefully it just serves as the ultimate palate cleanser (and expectation diminisher) before Natali returns back to better waters.
Director Vincenzo Natali (Splice, Cube) premiered his new film, Haunter, from Copperheart Entertainment, last night at the SXSW film festival in Austin, TX. Starring Abigail Breslin (Zombieland, Rango, Little Miss Sunshine), Stephen McHattie (300, Watchmen, Immortals, Pontypool), Peter Outerbridge (Silent Hill: Revelation, Lucky Number Slevin), Michelle Nolden (Red, Time Traveler’s Wife) and David Hewlett (Rise of the Planet of the Apes). It’s an inventive take on the haunted house genre and I look forward to sharing my review with you in a day or so.
In the film “Teenage Lisa (Breslin) and her family died in 1986 under sinister circumstances but remain trapped in their house, unable to move on. Lisa must reach out from beyond the grave to help her present-day, living counterpart, Olivia, avoid the same fate Lisa and her family suffered.”
Directed by Natali from a screenplay written by Brian King (Cypher, Night Train), the film is produced by Steven Hoban (Splice, Ryan, Ginger Snaps trilogy) and co-produced by Mark Smith (388 Arletta Avenue, The Spine).
Head inside for the interview! READ MORE
We now have the first official stills from Wolves, David Hayer’s horror pic starring Jason Momoa (Conan, “Game of Thrones”), Stephen McHattie (Watchmen, Pontypool), Merritt Patterson and X-Men‘s Lucas Till.
“Cayden Richards, 18, has it all: Captain of the high school football team; straight-A student; gorgeous girlfriend. But when he wakes one dark night to find his parents brutally murdered, he is horrified to realize that he is turning into an animal: a wild, savage wolf. Panicked, Cayden runs, determined to find out what is happening to him. His quest leads him to the strange, isolated town of Lupine Ridge, where two clans of wolves are on the brink of war. The opposing clans are lead by Connor, the powerful, pure-blood alpha of a savage pack and John Tollerman, an old farmer, committed to protecting the human citizens of Lupine Ridge. But when Cayden falls for Angelina, the beautiful, young mate promised to Connor, a battle to the death is inevitable. And as the past begins to reveal itself, Cayden’s place in the world becomes clearer — As does his power to put an end to the savage violence building up around, and within him…”
Check out four pics inside. READ MORE
Review by Patrick Cooper
Director Dick Richards only helmed seven movies during his career. Not a lot, but he managed to cover a lot of genre territory along the way. Wedged in between a war epic and a family melodrama is 1982’s obscure horror-thriller Death Valley. The film follows Billy, a young city boy on a reluctant trip to the west. His mom forces him to go so she can soften him up to her new boyfriend, who’s pretty much the opposite of Billy’s intellectual biological father. It’s more thriller than horror and Richards manages to infuse it with some nice western aesthetics. And now the folks at Scream Factory have dropped this obscure little film onto Blu-ray and DVD for the first time. Prepare to stare into the abyss of Peter Billingsley’s rosy cheeks in HD…
A pre-Christmas Story Billingsley stars as Billy. We first meet him during the film’s whimsical prologue as he roams around Manhattan with his dad (Edward Herrmann – The Lost Boys), doing academic shit like playing chess and going to book stores. This NYC montage is in sharp contrast to where we see Billy next: stepping out of an airport in Arizona, looking like they just put his dog to sleep. He has no interest in Arizona, or the desert, or his mom’s new boyfriend, Mike (Paul Le Mat – Puppetmaster). Mike doesn’t seem all that interested in Billy either. He’s a total dick to him behind his back, rolling his eyes whenever Billy opens his mouth looking really off-put by Billy’s intelligence.
While stopped in Death Valley, mom and Mike let Billy wander around the desert by himself. I’m sure Mike was hoping the kid would get lost and never be heard from again. But instead Billy comes across a motor home where a triple murder just occurred. This is where Death Valley really starts to pick up. The killer, Hal, starts stalking Billy’s family around the desert. We know who the killer is pretty early on because he’s wearing the same frog necklace MacGuffin Billy finds in the motor home.
It’s Stephen McHattie! That creepy guy who looks like Lance Henriksen! There are some pretty great set pieces between Billy and Hal. The best is in an old west museum where Hal has a bandana on so Billy thinks he’s part of the show. See, it’s one of those living museums where people dress up in period costume and talk to you so you feel super awkward. Billy calls him “Black Bart” – that’s two movies in a row Billingsley calls someone “Black Bart”! Pretty thought-provoking film criticism, I know.
Wilfred Brimley plays the sheriff and is as amazing as always. That guy has such incredible, stoic presence. Throw a cowboy hat and a badge on him and game over, pal. You can shove your diabetes jokes up you ass. Show some respect for Brimley’s greatness.
Then there’s the scene with the babysitter. Ho-lee shit. Billy’s family leaves him alone in a hotel room with this babysitter who looks like a bigger version of that fat blonde kid from Trick ‘r Treat who hose-vomits chocolate. And it’s a girl. As Billy watches television, she eyeballs a bunch of snacks that are sitting on the TV stand. There’s a Twinkie, a Mr. Goodbar, and some chips. This scene goes on forever. It’s baffling and hilarious. Richards makes us watch this girl in real-time drool over the snacks, ask if she can eat the snacks, then she eats the snacks, then she folds up the wrappers super loud, and uses them as a napkin. It goes on for like five minutes and miraculously it doesn’t impede the suspense building. If anything it makes you more on edge because you can’t wait for this girl to get killed! She even sticks her little sausage fingers in Billy’s ice cream! Ah!
The climactic twist is predictable but pulled off really well. The ending is pretty tense and the entire movie builds up to it nicely. I was hoping Billy’s real dad would show up and save the day though. He could’ve not only stopped Hal, but also smack Mike around for being a dick to his son. It’s fun to imagine the phone call the mom had to make to Billy’s dad, telling him all about how a serial killer almost murdered the kid. I bet Billy’s dad won the custody battle after this.
On Scream Factory’s Facebook page, people have expressed worry that the company is cranking these sets out too fast – that they won’t be able to keep up the quality of A/V and special features. I’ve got faith in them though. I’m sure resources for Death Valley were pretty slim, but they still managed to put together a set that’s worth your hard-earned money. And a lot of people, including myself, never even heard of this movie before Scream Factory announced it. So I say keep ‘em coming.
A/V
Scream Factory presents Death Valley in 1080p 1.78:1 widescreen. The transfer’s got a few specks and scratches but otherwise looks fantastic. The bright colors of the desert contrast crisply with the nighttime scenes. Like I mentioned earlier, Billingsley’s chubby rosy cheeks are hypnotizing. The 5.1 track sounds fine.
Special Features
Audio commentary with director Dick Richards, moderated by Edwin Samuelson of AV Maniacs: Richards talks about the development of the film. He explains how he wanted to make one film in every genre, but he’s bummed he never made a musical. He considers Death Valley to be more of thriller than horror, and I’d have to agree. He’s says some pretty funny stuff about Billingsley – how he was a 40-yr-old trapped in a little kid’s body. He calls him “all business.” Samuelson tries to dig deeper and keep the conversation going, but Richards doesn’t seem to remember a lot (he’s pretty old now).
Trailer and TV spot
DVD copy for all you cavemen
Stephen McHattie (pictured above; 300, Watchmen, A History Of Violence) has joined Jason Momoa, Merritt Patterson and Lucas Till in the cast of Wolves, the werewolf thriller from writer/director David Hayter, per Variety.
In the film, “Till will portray an 18-year-old who’s forced to hit the road after the death of his parents and finds his way to an isolated town to hunt down the truth of his ancestry — giving rise to the question of who’s hunting whom.”
Copperheart Entertainment, French financier-sales agent TF1 Intl. and Telefilm Canada will co-finance Wolves. Igor Studios’ Dave Elsey is designing the original creatures for Wolves He created “Beast” for X-Men: First Class, for which he won a Saturn Award.
Wolves starts shooting on Thursday near Toronto.
In an isolated, slowly dying mining town, children are vanishing without a trace – abducted, the townsfolk whisper, by a mysterious entity known locally as “The Tall Man.” Town nurse Julia Denning (Jessica Biel) seems skeptical…until her young David disappears in the middle of night. Frantic to rescue the boy, Julia lives every parent’s darkest nightmare in this twisting, shock-around-each-corner thriller.
The other day we exclusively premiered the one-sheet for The Tall Man, now witness his rise in the first trailer that comes out of France (where it’s titled The Secret). Thanks to BD reader Glenn for the heads up.
Arriving in theaters August 31 from Image Entertainment, the trailer features star Jessica Biel (Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Blade: Trinity, Total Recall) and the legend of “The Tall Man”. The footage is edited together incredibly “dramatic”, which I find interesting. I’ve heard it’s not incredibly violent like Martyrs.
Directed by Pascal Laugier of Martyrs fame, “In an isolated, slowly dying mining town, children are vanishing without a trace – abducted, the townsfolk whisper, by a mysterious entity known locally as “The Tall Man.” Town nurse Julia Denning (Biel) seems skeptical…until her young David disappears in the middle of night. Frantic to rescue the boy, Julia lives every parent’s darkest nightmare in this twisting, shock-around-each-corner thriller from acclaimed director Pascal Laugier.”
Silent Hill‘s Jodelle Ferland also stars with Stephen McHattie (Pontypool, Watchmen), William B. Davis and Samantha Ferris.
Keep up on the film’s official website or Image’s Facebook. READ MORE
It’s time to meet The Tall Man on the official theatrical one-sheet!
Arriving in theaters August 31 from Image Entertainment, Bloody landed your exclusive first look at the creeptastic poster that features star Jessica Biel (Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Blade: Trinity, Total Recall) being stalked by the legendary “Tall Man”.
Directed by Pascal Laugier of Martyrs fame, “In an isolated, slowly dying mining town, children are vanishing without a trace – abducted, the townsfolk whisper, by a mysterious entity known locally as “The Tall Man.” Town nurse Julia Denning (Biel) seems skeptical…until her young David disappears in the middle of night. Frantic to rescue the boy, Julia lives every parent’s darkest nightmare in this twisting, shock-around-each-corner thriller from acclaimed director Pascal Laugier.”
Silent Hill‘s Jodelle Ferland also stars with Stephen McHattie (Pontypool, Watchmen), William B. Davis and Samantha Ferris.
Keep up on the film’s official website or Image’s Facebook. READ MORE
It was just announced that Martyrs director Pascal Laugier’s The Tall Man will open in limited theaters on August 31st from Image Entertainment with a DVD/Blu-ray street date of September 25th. Starring Jessica Biel, Jodelle Ferland, Stephen McHattie, William B. Davis and Samantha Ferris, Bloody Disgusting reader Fabien Monnier tipped us off to over 30 images from the political horror movie, all of which can be viewed inside.
In the film, “In an isolated, slowly dying mining town, children are vanishing without a trace – abducted, the townsfolk whisper, by a mysterious entity known locally as “The Tall Man.” Town nurse Julia Denning (Jessica Biel) seems skeptical…until her young David disappears in the middle of night. Frantic to rescue the boy, Julia lives every parent’s darkest nightmare in this twisting, shock-around-each-corner thriller.”
For more info on the film itself, hit up the official website and Facebook. READ MORE
With filming still underway in Toronto, we’ve landed a first look at Vincenzo Natali‘s (Splice, Cube) new feature, Haunter, from Copperheart Entertainment, starring Abigail Breslin (Zombieland, Rango, Little Miss Sunshine), Stephen McHattie (300, Watchmen, Immortals, Pontypool), Peter Outerbridge (Silent Hill: Revelation, Lucky Number Slevin), Michelle Nolden (Red, Time Traveler’s Wife) and David Hewlett (Rise of the Planet of the Apes).
Breslin is pictured in the first look at the reverse ghost story broke exclusively by Bloody Disgusting earlier this year. “Teenage Lisa (Breslin) and her family died in 1986 under sinister circumstances but remain trapped in their house, unable to move on. Lisa must reach out from beyond the grave to help her present-day, living counterpart, Olivia, avoid the same fate Lisa and her family suffered.”
Haunter, directed by Vincenzo Natali from a screenplay written by Brian King (Cypher, Night Train), is produced by Steven Hoban (Splice, Ryan, Ginger Snaps trilogy), and co-produced by Mark Smith (388 Arletta Avenue, The Spine). Principal photography will run until May 19, 2012 in Toronto and Brantford. READ MORE
Toronto Principal photography on Vincenzo Natali‘s (Splice, Cube) new feature, Haunter, from Copperheart Entertainment, starring Abigail Breslin (Zombieland, Rango, Little Miss Sunshine), Stephen McHattie (300, Watchmen, Immortals, Pontypool), Peter Outerbridge (Silent Hill: Revelation, Lucky Number Slevin), Michelle Nolden (Red, Time Traveler’s Wife) and David Hewlett (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) has begun.
In this reverse ghost story broke exclusively by Bloody Disgusting, “teenage Lisa (Breslin) and her family died in 1986 under sinister circumstances but remain trapped in their house, unable to move on. Lisa must reach out from beyond the grave to help her present-day, living counterpart, Olivia, avoid the same fate Lisa and her family suffered.”
Haunter, directed by Vincenzo Natali from a screenplay written by Brian King (Cypher, Night Train), is produced by Steven Hoban (Splice, Ryan, Ginger Snaps trilogy), and co-produced by Mark Smith (388 Arletta Avenue, The Spine). Principal photography will run from April 16 until May 19, 2012 in Toronto and Brantford. Release is slated for 2013.
“‘Haunter’ vividly demonstrates that even ghosts have a lot to be afraid of. Brian King’s script constructs a Borgian Labyrinth out of the most mundane settings and shows us how even in our everyday lives, we are spirits living in the material world,” said Natali.
BD reader ‘Mrhy’ just tipped us over to a Jessica Biel fan site that has landed two new looks at Martyrs director Pascal Laugier’s The Tall Man.
Biel plays a nurse living in a small town where children have gone missing over the years, leaving no clues. One night, she finds her son’s bed empty and, desperately rushing downstairs, confronts a huge dark figure, with her son in his arms. Teach Grant, William Davis, Samantha Ferris, Jodelle Ferland, and Stephen McHattie also star.
No word yet on distribution or festival showings. Hopefully there’s good things on the horizon. READ MORE
A film that’s quietly been in post production for quite some time that’s on the top of my must see list of 2012 is The Tall Man, the latest horror project from Martyrs director Pascal Laugier.
Starring Jessica Beil, Teach Grant, William Davis, Samantha Ferris, Jodelle Ferland and Stephen McHattie, last November we shared with you a ton of images, now we’ve got 10-seconds of footage that’s part of a demo-reel.
Biel plays a nurse living in a small town where children have gone missing over the years, leaving no clues. One night, she finds her son’s bed empty and, desperately rushing downstairs, confronts a huge dark figure, with her son in his arms. READ MORE
A family of serial killers stalk a young woman out to find the father she’s never known.
A small-town radio station discovers that recent madness in the local population may be caused by a virus transmitted through speech.
The flick is set in a radio station in Pontypool where one day the morning team starts taking reports of extreme, bloody incidents of violence occurring in town. As the story unfolds, the radio staff soon realizes the violence that is ripping society apart is due to a virus being spread through the English language. That in turn poses a problem for a yappy radio jock and his staff holed up in the broadcast booth housed in the basement of the town’s abandoned church as a slaughter rages beyond its walls.
A big budget action movies with amazing gun fights! A man named Mr. Smith (Owen) delivers a woman’s baby during a shootout, and is then called upon to protect the newborn from the army of gunmen.
One last day.
That’s all small town sheriff Wayne (Sean Patrick Flanery THE BOONDOCK SAINTS, POWDER), has left before moving away to a better life with his wife Cynthia (Kristin Booth). But what starts as a typical day, soon turns into a deadly battle for survival.
KAW is the story of a bustling community that comes under attack by a conspiracy of ravens. Clyde (Stephen McHattie) was the first to notice the aggressive behavior of the birds as they attacked his farm. But since Clyde long ago lost his good standing in the town, his rantings and complaints are summarily ignored…until things take a drastic turn for the worst.
As it will soon be discovered, local farmer Oskar (John Ralston) has been hiding some unnatural developments from the townsfolk…and this leads to the deadly assault the town now must struggle to survive.
When the local girls’ soccer team comes under siege by the killer ravens, everyone desperately fights their way towards the town diner. Wayne and Doc (Rod Taylor, THE BIRDS) board up the windows and doors, but to little avail. The ravens have a taste for blood and furiously attack the makeshift stronghold trying to reach the human flesh inside.
There is nowhere to run, and no one is safe.
Now Wayne will need to uncover the truth behind the dark flock that waits outside… if the last of the survivors have any hope of making it through the night…
EXCLUSIVE: Platinum Dunes Partnering With Paramount For ‘Friday The 13th’ Sequel!!!