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Masters of Horror: Celebrating the Five Directors of ‘Nightmare Cinema’
There are horror anthologies, and then there are horror anthologies assembled by a murderers’ row of genre veterans. Nightmare Cinema unequivocally falls in the latter. In it, five strangers converge at a strange theater where The Projectionist (Mickey Rourke) shows them their darkest, deepest fears over five tales of terror. Each of those tales are directed by a master of horror, new class and old alike, including curator Mick Garris.
Garris’ intent was to showcase genre talent across the globe, and he nailed it- Nightmare Cinema features segments from directors whose previous work hailed from Japan, Cuba, the U.K., and the U.S. After making its world premiere nearly a year ago at the Fantasia International Film Festival, Nightmare Cinema is releasing in limited theaters and VOD today, June 21, 2019.
In celebration, we pay tribute to the five masters of horror responsible for this anthology!
Alejandro Brugués
This Argentinian born director made waves in 2011 with Spanish-Cuban produced zombie comedy Juan of the Dead. Hailed for its political relevancy, harkening back to the zombie roots planted by George A. Romero, as well as its unique atypical heroes and sense of humor, Juan of the Dead was a strong debut in horror for the director. It also happened to be Cuba’s first ever zombie film. Next came Brugués’ segment “E for Equilibrium” in horror anthology ABCs of Death 2, which continued his blend of social commentary and horror-comedy. This was followed by a directorial stint on Robert Rodriguez’s From Dusk till Dawn: The Series.
Brugués work in horror leans toward the humorous, playful side but it also tends to have an underlying social metaphor or message. If you’re still unfamiliar with his work, his latest credit will change that- his segment kickstarts Nightmare Cinema with high-octane energy and a playful spin on slasher tropes. It’s a blast.
Joe Dante
There are no shortage of horror memories thanks to this veteran. He began his film career working for Roger Corman, under whom he directed his first horror feature- the Jaws inspired Piranha. It was well received, and led to his next mark on horror; The Howling. The special effects-laden spectacle set the bar high for lycanthropic horror, still drawing debate today on whether or not it’s the definitive showcase of werewolf horror. Next came a segment Dante directed for Twilight Zone: The Movie, all-time Christmas horror Gremlins, Explorers, The ‘Burbs, Gremlins 2: The New Batch. In recent years he directed The Hole and Burying the Ex.
He was just as busy in television, too, with work in The Twilight Zone ‘80s reboot, Amazing Stories, Eerie, Indiana, and more. Like his segment in Nightmare Cinema, and as evidenced by his body of work in genre, Dante’s style is playful and full of heart. His sense of humor perpetually on display, Dante’s brand of horror tends to be accessible to all.
Ryuhei Kitamura
This Japanese born director first made waves stateside with the gory, action horror film Versus that pit Yakuzas, prisoners, and a kidnapped girl against a horde of zombies. Kitamura infused the lower budget gore fest with homages to his inspirations; The Evil Dead and Highlander. After, he helmed Japanese genre films like Alive, Azumi, Sky High, and Godzilla: Final Wars before making his American feature debut with The Midnight Meat Train, based on Clive Barker’s short story of the same name. Action horror film No One Lives and intense sniper standoff Downrange continued his signature use of no holds barred gore.
With this horror master’s work, you can count on intensity and copious bloodshed. He has a knack for blocking, action, and unrelenting violence that’s addictive. He’s fearless when it comes to breaking taboos. Look for his segment in Nightmare Cinema to do just that; unapologetic, taboo-breaking gore.
David Slade
Of all the horror masters involved with Nightmare Cinema, British director David Slade is the most enigmatic. Coming from a background in music videos, his body of work is the most diverse in terms of style, making him a wildcard in the best possible way. His debut feature was the chilling American thriller Hard Candy, which pit a 14-year-old vigilante against a grown man she suspects of being a sexual predator of minors. As tense as it is unsettling, this bold debut marked him as one to watch. He followed this up with 30 Days of Night, a comic book adaptation that returned vampires to their primal, monstrous roots. Slade wasn’t quite done with vampires, though, as next came The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, showing off the romantic side of the bloodsuckers in this sequel of the mega-popular YA series.
Slade is also responsible for delivering some of the most compelling hours in television, having directed many episodes of Hannibal, American Gods, and Black Mirror. In the genre space, Slade has a strong vision and adaptable style. In Nightmare Cinema, this means Slade’s segment stands out as the most unique and hallucinogenic.
Mick Garris
Very few directors can match the sheer passion and dedication to horror as Mick Garris. The filmmaker behind beloved gems like Critters 2: The Main Course, Psycho IV: The Beginning, Sleepwalkers, and The Stand, Garris is also a resident Stephen King expert, having closely worked with the prolific author on multiple adaptations of his work. He’s also one of the writers behind Halloween favorite Hocus Pocus.
But more than a genre filmmaker, Garris is a curator of horror talent. After bringing together horror’s best for dinner gatherings, he parlayed that into anthology series Masters of Horror and Fear Itself. On a smaller scale, his ongoing podcast series “Post Mortem with Mick Garris” rotates out many genre filmmakers and stars for intimate one-on-one interviews to detail their horror careers. And it’s continued in Nightmare Cinema, where he’s united five great directors (himself included) to bring another Masters of Horror style anthology.
The entire trajectory of Garris’ career demonstrates his consuming adoration of horror, and a selflessness in boosting other voices- both emerging and long-standing- in the genre. That he approaches it with intelligence, reverence, and sense of fun makes him an all-time horror legend.
Nightmare Cinema arrives on VOD and in limited theaters on June 21, 2019. Opening weekend also brings special screenings with Q&A opportunities:
This Friday night (tonight!) for the 8PM show at the Arena Cinemalounge with Q&A immediately following with Mick Garris, Joe Dante, Alejandro Brugués, and Ryuhei Kitamura.
This Saturday night at The Frida for the 7:30PM show with Q&A immediately following with Mick Garris, Alejandro Brugués, and Ryuhei Kitamura.
Details can be found here.
A luxury team-building trip descends into a bloody fight for survival against a vengeful retreat leader in Corporate Retreat, out today in theaters. It’s the latest entry in a cathartic subgenre of workplace horror that examines every harrowing aspect of job employment.
No job is safe from horror, either, from babysitting to even the most white-collar gigs. But if you work an overnight shift? All bets are off. Vengeful co-workers and bosses aside, the night shift is likely to come armed with witches, creatures, demons, and all manner of things that go bump in the night. Even deadly outbreaks.
Corporate Retreat, along with these five horror movies centered around some of the worst night shifts, will make you glad the weekend has finally arrived.
The Autopsy of Jane Doe
Passenger director André Øvredal goes full throttle for the scares in this quiet little chiller that sees a father and son coroner team stumped over the bizarre mysteries contained within the body of an unidentified young woman during an unexpected night shift. Well-executed scares, clever twists, and earnest performances by Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch give this supernatural haunter serious heft. While the narrative bides its time unveiling the truth behind Jane Doe’s battered body, it’s heavily steeped in witchcraft. In other words, The Autopsy of Jane Doe presents a new take on the subgenre. More importantly, it’s seriously scary.
Cold Storage
COLD STORAGE, StudioCanal 2023
A lethal, mutated fungus breaks free from confinement deep within the bowels of a storage facility. At the frontlines of the madness are Teacake (Stranger Things’ Joe Keery) and Naomi (Barbarian‘s Georgina Campbell), two employees thrust into the middle of the chaos when they investigate an alarm beeping somewhere deep within the building. Director Jonny Campbell (Netflix’s Dracula), working from a script by David Koepp based on his novel, helms the goopy madness with workman efficiency. This lighthearted, goopy horror comedy romp makes the deadly night shift a bit more bearable.
Graveyard Shift
Graveyard Shift follows new hire Hall (David Andrews) tasked by his mean boss Warwick (Stephen Macht) to assist with the insane rat infestation beneath their mill. They find something much most monstrous as the cause. Though the film was panned, it’s a fun creature feature with an always welcome appearance by Brad Dourif as the intensely eccentric exterminator. The film also opts for a happier ending, whereas (spoiler), the story sees both Hall and Warwick getting devoured by the mutated rats, the crew in the upstairs mill none the wiser.
Last Shift
‘Last Shift’
Rookie Officer Jessica Loren (Juliana Harkavy) has been assigned to watch over a closing precinct on its final night of operation…alone. With nearly everything already moved over to the new station, including rerouted 911 calls, it should be a pretty quiet night as she waits for a Hazmat team to arrive to remove biohazardous waste. Instead, it becomes a waking nightmare as she’s forced to deal with unsettling visitors. Last Shift, co-written by Scott Poiley and director Anthony DiBlasi, brings the scares.
Intruder
The overnight stock crew of a local grocery store finds themselves falling victim to an unseen killer in this highly infectious late ‘80s slasher. The deaths are delightfully gruesome and inventive; look for this killer to make excellent use of grocery store items as weapons. Frequent Raimi collaborator Scott Spiegel directed this bloody slasher, which means a lot of overlap with the Evil Dead II. That means putting Sam Raimi in front of the camera for a change, along with Ted Raimi and Evil Dead II’s Dan Hicks. Look for a cameo by Bruce Campbell as well!
Corporate Retreat releases in theaters today; get tickets now.
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