Retro Reviews

The horror film, The Fog, was released 4 decades ago on February 8, 1980 to critical success. This cult classic comes from one of the masters of horror, John Carpenter. He directed, co-wrote the screen play, and created the music for the film. It stars Adrienne Barbeau (Creepshow 1982 – read …

Let’s face it… horror by its very nature is a lightning rod for controversy. It’s the genre of film tailor-made to push the envelope, to take things to extremes where others would dare not tread. We live to test the limits of decency, to see just how much we can …

There’s an elite tier of films out there. There’s the poor, unfortunate lot of potential blockbusters that got off track and eventually derailed in a fiery explosion of overspending, inflated egos, studio meddling, and about a thousand different interpretations of what the original vision happened to be. It inevitably is …

Earlier this month marked the fifteenth anniversary of one of the most uncompromising additions to modern horror – Eli Roth’s Hostel. In 2005, when Hostel was unleashed at the Toronto International Film Festival, the United States and beyond were facing some diabolical issues. Issues such as terrorism, war, and the …

Here we are at the end of January, a time when large swaths of the population experience seasonal depression. The feasts are long gone, old man winter is biting at your nose, and it’s time to take down those yuletide decorations. Leave them up for one last night, because I’ve …

It may lack the impact of the original two, but Jeff Burr’s Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III is still a surprisingly good film. Released twenty years ago on January 12, 1990, this movie demonstrates that, when it comes to horror, the story never needs to be first and foremost. …

In the 1980s, no special occasion was ignored by horror filmmakers. Halloween, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Friday the 13th, New Year’s Eve, Mother’s Day… they all had their time in the spotlight. However, Buddy Cooper decided one important time of year was being ignored: Fall Break. So, he took a group of …

“It’s better to be a fake somebody, than a real nobody!” — Tom Ripley Of all the sociopaths I’ve seen on film, my favorite one has always been Tom Ripley. On Christmas Day 2019, we celebrate the 20th anniversary of Anthony Minghella’s The Talented Mr. Ripley, adapted from Patricia Highsmith’s …

Getting a good night’s sleep has never been the same for horror fans since Wes Craven changed the game in 1984 with A Nightmare on Elm Street. Slashers and monsters were nothing new, but a villain that could kill you in your sleep kicked the terror up a whole new level. …

I always am drawn to horror films that are foreign, resurrected by Alamo Drafthouse, or have myriad alternate titles.  Deadly Games OR Dial Code Santa Claus OR Game Over OR 36.15 code Pere Noel is a French holiday-themed film from Filmmaker Rene Manzor (The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles TV series) that …