Characters will always be the most fascinating things about movies. In spite of the fact that every aspect of filmmaking has to come together in a cacophony of timing and storytelling, we always find ourselves relating in some way to the more memorable characters. In May, the main character is a …
Read More »George Waggner’s ‘The Wolf Man’ (1941) Turns 80 – Retro Review
“Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night may become a wolf when the wolf bane blooms, and the autumn moon is bright.” That’s the verse we hear over and over again in The Wolf Man. In 1941, Universal Pictures added a werewolf to its …
Read More »Eric Red’s ‘Bad Moon’ (1996) Still Has Bite – Retro Review
Werewolf movies have quite simply become one of the most overpopulated sub-genres in horror. From the teen dramas to the gruesome slashers, you can find a werewolf movie in any style these days. But one of the more overlooked efforts is 1996’s Bad Moon. Released on November 1, the film …
Read More »Wes Craven’s ‘Deadly Friend’ (1986) Turns 35 – Retro Review
Deadly Friend is one of those movies that could easily fly under the radar, given the surplus of famous films that we flocked to in the mid-80s. But it has something of a Made for-TV charm to it that puts it among Wes Craven’s most underrated efforts. A mix of science …
Read More »Adam Green’s ‘Hatchet’ (2006) Still Cuts Deep Fifteen Years Later – Retro Review
For decades, the slasher flick has been a staple of popular horror. A masked or disfigured creep running around bludgeoning unsuspecting teens has always made for a perfect date night at the drive-in. Hatchet not only used those popular ’70s and ’80s tropes, turning the dial up to ten, as a …
Read More »‘Don’t Breathe’ (2016): Leaving Fans Breathless – Retro Review
It’s been five years since the unique film, Don’t Breathe, hit theaters, and it caused one of the most chilling public experiences for moviegoers. The entire premise of Don’t Breathe is that a band of robbers break into the home of a blind man, expecting an easy score. What they get …
Read More »Anthony Perkins’ ‘Psycho III’ (1986): Checking In 35 Years Later – Retro Review
When Psycho rode its massive hype train into theaters in 1960, its promotion and formula were considered groundbreaking. Alfred Hitchcock had found his magnum opus, raising the slasher film into prominence for perhaps the first time on a national level in America. Twenty-three years later, after Hitchcock was no longer living, a …
Read More »Mark Cantu’s ‘Massacre Academy’ (2021) Brings Slasher Fans To School – Movie Review
Slasher films are perhaps one of horror’s most hallowed subgenres. Since they first rose to mainstream popularity in the 1980s, we’ve seen decades worth of attempts from filmmakers trying to bring masked serial killers back to prominence. Massacre Academy is the newest entry to that long and luxurious laundry list, …
Read More »Steve Miner’s ‘Friday The 13th Part 2’ (1981) Turns 40 – Retro Review
When Friday The 13th was released in 1980, most people (including its cast and crew) believed it would be a standalone horror film. Enter Friday The 13th Part 2 the following year. Once the studios realized that these slasher films would be cheap to produce and easy to turn a profit, we …
Read More »‘The Boonies’ (2021): A Backwoods Trail Of Death – Movie Review
There are few more beloved and battle-tested subgenres in horror than the backwoods slasher family. You can’t go wrong with youthful friends out on a celebratory adventure that get hacked up by a bloodthirsty brood. What was once made iconic by The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (read our franchise ranking …
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