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[Telluride Horror Show Review] ‘Deadtectives’ is a Non-Stop Blast

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Tony West pulls off the near-impossible with his new film Deadtectives: he’s crafted a tonally perfect horror comedy, one that balances scares, laughs and heart-tugs with equal success. There’s not a single beat that doesn’t work in this hilarious, spooky film, and that’s a rarity, indeed.

You’re The Worst‘s Chris Geere plays Sam, the host of a lackluster ghost-hunting reality TV series on its last legs in both ratings and ideas. Sam’s joined by his competent producer/wife Kate (Tina Ivlev), cocky co-host Javier (José María de Tavira) and Sam’s unsophisticated brother Lloyd (David Newman), the only member of this team that actually believes ghosts are real.

By the time we meet the Deadtectives, everything’s falling apart: Kate’s tired of duping innocent victims who believe their cupcake stands are haunted by vengeful grandmas or whatever, and the network’s ready to cancel them after seasons of bad ratings. The network exec gives them one last chance, surrendering them to an unhinged and ball-busting new producer (Martha Higareda) and sending them all to a much scarier location than they’re accustomed to facing. After some mildly racist travel gags, they arrive at an ancient home in Mexico that’s been beset by the unholy trinity of supernatural motivations: Mayan curses, Revolutionary War mayhem and the murder/suicide of a family. As you might suspect, Sam and his team are immediately in over their heads when actual ghosts appear.

This movie is funny. Our audience was full-on guffawing at most of the jokes, which are delivered at an almost breakneck speed. But it’s also legitimately creepy at times, with some very effective jump-scares, ghostly gore and extremely cool and clearly defined supernatural rules, some of which we’ve rarely seen before, like a window/portal trick that is used sparingly and well throughout the film.

Deadtectives works on a visual level, too: it’s bright and stylish, with cool makeup effects and excellent production design. It moves at a swift and captivating pace, never giving the audience a chance to be bored or wonder how much time has passed since the opening credits. There are no lulls in Deadtectives; there’s no fat to be trimmed. Everything matters and engages here, and perhaps most impressively, the few emotional moments actually land, too. There’s some moving character nuance given to Sam that won’t make viewers want to roll their eyes: it’s deftly woven into the rest of the story and both preceded and followed by immediate laughs and scares. That’s just how I want my feelings stuff in a horror comedy!

In spirit and tone, Deadtectives could almost be called Beetlejuice-y at times, and of course that’s not a title that should be summoned lightly. But much like Tim Burton’s arguably best film, Deadtectives offers a groovy, free-wheeling energy that dips back and forth between scary and funny with shocking ease. Watch just about any other horror comedy out there and ask yourself how easy that is to accomplish. It’s much, much harder than Tony West makes it seem here.

Meredith Borders is the Managing Editor of FANGORIA and a freelance writer and editor living in Houston, where she owns a brewery and restaurant with her husband.

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SCREAMBOX Investigates UFOs and Extraterrestrials: Several Documentaries Streaming Right Now!

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As someone who is obsessed with UFOS (or more recently known as UAPs) and the concept of extraterrestrials, I love a good documentary. Sightings have been on the rise since the 1940s, with the atomic bomb seemingly acting as a catalyst for new visitors. But what are these UFOs/UAPs? Is there an explanation or are they simply beyond our explanation? Why are they here? Who are they? How much do our governments know? The questions are endless and so are the documentaries that attempt to uncover the secrets behind decades of sightings and alleged confrontations.

Whether you’re a seasoned viewer or new to the rabbit hole, there’s always a handful of interesting documentaries to get your neurons firing and leave you with sleepless nights. SCREAMBOX is investigating with the addition of several docs, all streaming now on the Bloody Disgusting-powered service. Here’s the breakdown:

Aliens (2021): Beam into this unidentified streaming documentary for a glimpse into Extraterrestrial life. Aliens are hypothetical life forms that may occur outside Earth or that did not originate on Earth.

Aliens Uncovered: Origins (2021): Before Area 51, hidden deep in the desert, the military discovered a hidden gem that helped them create Project Bluebook.

Aliens Uncovered: ET or Man-Made (2022): The crash of Roswell wasn’t meant for New Mexico. In 1947, a neighboring state had 3 major sightings that were swept under the rug.

Aliens Uncovered: The Golden Record (2023): In the late 70s, the US government launched a message to our distant neighbors.

Roswell (2021): This high-flying documentary examines the July 1947 crash of a United States Army Air Forces balloon at a ranch near Roswell, New Mexico. Theories claim the crash was actually that of a flying saucer, but what is the truth?

Also check out:

The British UFO Files (2004): Since the 1940’s the British Government has been investigating the Flying Saucer phenomenon. High-ranking military and government personnel, speak out for the first time, offering unique eyewitness accounts and inside information.

Alien Abductions and Paranormal Sightings (2016): Amazing Footage and stories from real people as they reveal their personal encounters of being abducted by Aliens.

And do not miss Hellier (2019): A crew of paranormal researchers find themselves in a dying coal town, where a series of strange coincidences lead them to a decades-old mystery.

These documentaries join SCREAMBOX’s growing library of unique horror content, including Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls, Here for Blood, Terrifier 2, RoboDoc: The Creation of RoboCop, Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story, The Outwaters, Living with Chucky, Project Wolf Hunting, and Pennywise: The Story of IT.

Start screaming now with SCREAMBOX on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Prime Video, Roku, YouTube TV, Samsung, Comcast, Cox, and Screambox.com.

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