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28 WEEKS LATER director to helm INTRUDERS

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 12:41:31 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Fango got in a news tidbit about INTRUDERS, an upcoming filmby Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, the Spanish director who first won notice with the2001 thriller INTACTO and then helmed 2007’s superior sequel 28 WEEKS LATER.

Oursource tells us that INTRUDERS is a genre piece whose story revolves around an11-year-old girl, and will be written and directed by Fresnadillo. Productionis scheduled to begin in mid-May. No other details are forthcoming, but we’llkeep you posted. Fresnadillo is also attached to the film version of the hitvideo game BIOSHOCK for Universal, and a remake of X: THE MAN WITH X-RAY EYESfor MGM.
Posted on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:05:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...-helm.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

First photo from del Toro-produced JULIA’S EYES

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 12:41:31 -0800

By Michael Gingold

An early photo from JULIA’S EYES (LOS OJOS DE JULIA), thelatest chiller to have Guillermo del Toro on board as a producer, has appearedon-line with news that the movie has started selling to assorted internationalterritories. Check out the pic after the jump.

Screen Daily reports that the co-production between del Toro, Focus Features and Rodar yRodar has sold to Optimum Releasing in the UK, CinemaMondo in Scandinavia, KinoSwiat in Poland and Rosebud in Greece, with more deals expected to be signedthis week. Belén Rueda (pictured) from the del Toro-produced THE ORPHANAGEstars in JULIA’S EYES as a woman who, while dealing with the loss of her sight,investigates the mysterious death of her twin sister. Directed by GuillemMorales from a script he wrote with Oriol Paulo, the film also stars LluísHomar, Daniel Grao, Héctor Claramunt, Julia Gutiérrez Caba and Francesc Orella,with cinematography by ORPHANAGE’s Óscar Faura and FX by DDT.

Posted on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:04:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...duced.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

DRAG ME TO HELL leads horror nominees for 36th Annual Saturn Awards

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 08:14:16 -0800

By Michael Gingold

The Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Filmshas announced the nominees for its 36th Annual Saturn Awards (though strangelyenough, as of this posting, they haven’t posted them at the org’s official website yet). Sam Raimi’s DRAG ME TO HELL turnedout to be the most honored fright feature, scoring five nominations includingBest Horror Film.

Raimi’s tale of a gypsy curse is also up for Best Actress(Alison Lohman), Best Supporting Actress (Lorna Raver), Best Music (ChristopherYoung) and Best Makeup (Gregory Nicotero and Howard Berger). Also in therunning for Best Horror Film are THE BOX (plus Best Supporting Actor for FrankLangella), FROZEN, THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON(??—plus Best Younger Actor for Taylor Lautner) and ZOMBIELAND (plus BestSupporting Actor for Woody Harrelson). Other fear films in the running are THEROAD for Best Actor (Viggo Mortensen) and Best Younger Actor (KodiSmit-McPhee), and THIRST for Best International Film. Sadly, not a singlehorror feature is up for either Best Director or Best Writing.

Inthe television category, the Best Syndicated/Cable Series nominees includeShowtime’s DEXTER (plus Best Actor for Michael C. Hall, Best Supporting Actressfor Julie Benz and Jennifer Carpenter and Best Guest Star for John Lithgow) andHBO’s TRUE BLOOD (plus Best Actor for Stephen Moyer, Best Actress for AnnaPaquin, Best Supporting Actor for Alexander Skarsgard and Best Guest Star forMichelle Forbes). In addition, Fox’s FRINGE is up for Best Actress (Anna Torv),Best Supporting Actor (John Noble) and Best Guest Star (Leonard Nimoy). ForBest DVD Release, Dark Sky/Magnet’s THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL, Anchor Bay’s LAIDTO REST, MPI’s PONTYPOOL and Magnolia’s SURVEILLANCE are all in the running,while MGM’s THE HANNIBAL LECTER ANTHOLOGY, Anchor Bay’s HELLRAISER BOXED SETand Sony’s THE WILLIAM CASTLE COLLECTION are among those vying for BestCollection. The Saturns will be awarded June 24 in Burbank, CA.
Posted on Fri, 19 Feb 2010 15:15:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...inees.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

SOMETHING scary and funny coming from Universal

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 08:14:16 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Variety reports that Universal has madea mid-six-figure deal to buy up a horror/comedy pitch called THE SOMETHING fromRodney Rothman, who will script. The writer, whose credits include producinggigs on FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL and the upcoming GET HIM TO THE GREEK, willalso serve that function on THE SOMETHING.

Plotdetails haven’t been revealed, but the setting is outer space and the tone issaid to be similar to that of ZOMBIELAND. In addition to his big-screencredits, Rothman was also the youngest head writer in the history of LATE NIGHTWITH DAVID LETTERMAN.
Posted on Fri, 19 Feb 2010 14:48:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...-from.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Filmmaker talks MACHETE MAIDENS and PATRICK remake

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:31:21 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Fango caught up with Australian director Mark Hartley,creator of the amazing documentary NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD: THE WILD, UNTOLD STORYOF OZPLOITATION!, while he was in NYC grabbing interviews for his follow-up,MACHETE MAIDENS UNLEASHED. This project is in a similar vein, covering thehistory of genre filmmaking in the Philippines—though not so much homegrownproduct, he points out.

“It looks not so much at Filipino exploitation movies, butthe Americans who went over there to shoot films,” Hartley (pictured below) tellsFango, “so it’s kind of a fish-out-of-water story. It covers Roger Corman’sproductions, Cirio Santiago’s movies, the BLOOD ISLAND series and EddieRomero’s other pictures and Bobby Suarez, who literally just died two days ago.Bobby made CLEOPATRA WONG, THE ONE ARMED EXECUTIONER, BIONIC BOY II and thingslike that. They were films that tried to take on Hollywood and be mainstream,but were kind of beyond mainstream in trying to do it.”

MACHETE MAIDENS will showcase interviews with quite a numberof B-movie stalwarts, including several Fango faves. “We’ve spoken to lots andlots of cast and crew,” Hartley says. “We talked to Joe Viola, who went overthere with Jonathan Demme and made THE HOT BOX. We’re interviewing Eddie Romeroin the Philippines and a bunch of cast from the Corman and Santiago films whohave never really spoken about this stuff before, so it has been really, reallyinteresting. Sid Haig and Joe Dante, Allan Arkush and Jon Davison, who were allworking in the trailer and promotion department at New World when these filmswere getting made; Jane Schaffer, who produced Jack Hill’s films, and Hillhimself. It will be pretty definitive, and this is an era that has never beendocumented much, so it’s in the same vein as NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD—another untoldstory.”

Having completed his Los Angeles interviews and wrapping uphis New York stint, Hartley next heads to London, Manila and Singapore, aimingto have MACHETE MAIDENS ready in time to play the major festivals this summerand fall. Director of photography Karl von Moller and co-editors Sara Edwardsand Jamie Blanks (the latter doing the score this time) are returning from NOTQUITE HOLLYWOOD, and Hartley, who says the new docu will be in the same spirit,is still enormously gratified by the response to that movie. “I was absolutelyamazed by the goodwill toward NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD; the feedback from people andthe reviews were beyond my wildest dreams. The fact that it has inspired manypeople to go and seek out the films [it covered] is truly rewarding for me, andfor all the filmmakers who told their tales. Those movies have been dismissedfor so long, and suddenly the only places you can see them is at festivals!”

One Down Under chiller spotlighted in NOT QUITE HOLLYWOODwas Richard Franklin’s PATRICK, and Hartley reveals that he’s bringing a freshtake on that tale of telekinetic terror to the screen. “After we finished NOTQUITE HOLLYWOOD, I had discussed this with PATRICK’s producer, Tony Ginnane,and we decided we’d take a crack at reinventing it. So Justin King and I wrotea treatment and Justin’s working on the script at the moment, and hopefully, assoon as MACHETE MAIDENS is finished, we’ll get right into it.”

The original PATRICK, written by Everett De Roche, is theHitchcock-influenced story of the titular young man, who goes into a coma afterelectrocuting his mother and winds up in a hospital being tended to by Dr.Roget and nurse Kathy Jacquard, who discover that despite his inert physicalstate, he now possesses deadly psychic abilities. For the update, “We’re sortof giving it a creepier, Gothic flavor, very much in a similar style to THEORPHANAGE,” reveals Hartley, who will direct. “There’s much more of a backstoryfor Dr. Roget, and Patrick has dream sequences and flashbacks where he’s out ofthe bed. We don’t want to turn Patrick into Freddy Kreuger; we like to think ofit as a love story with a body count. The great thing about the original wasthe fact that here’s a guy with unlimited powers, but all he wants to do is usethem to manipulate the events in that nurse’s life to make her fall in lovewith him. So we’ve kept that central premise and really upped the ante.”

Other elements will be altered, however. “The first PATRICK,as much as it’s a really interesting film, is very much of its time. It’spredominantly set in one hospital room, and we’re trying to open it up. To behonest—and I’ve said this to Tony—it’s not that scary when you watch it now,and we’re all about giving it those jolts. Obviously, I’m a fan of PATRICK, andI want people who’ve seen the original to appreciate the remake, so we’recertainly putting nods to the first one throughout the film, but we’re notdoing a Gus Van Sant PSYCHO. I believe Jamie’s remake of LONG WEEKEND [releasedin the U.S. as NATURE’S GRAVE] suffers because they used the original script,and when people love these films and know them so well, there’s no way thatthey can embrace a film that’s so similar. We learned a lesson there, and we’lltry to tailor our PATRICK for modern audiences.”

Ginnane is currently seeking funding and working onpre-sales for PATRICK, and Hartley is hoping to start shooting before the endof this year on a budget around $4 million. Clearly, he’s got a lot on hisplate this year—and couldn’t be happier about it. “I’d been trying to get afeature going for a long time, and then NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD, which I had workedon for 10 years, got out there,” he says. “I was just so amazed to get broughtin on MACHETE MAIDENS; I was a gun for hire on it at first, and I changed theconcept to suit the story I wanted to tell and the people I wanted to meet. Sothat has really taken over my workload, but if that comes out and I jump rightinto PATRICK, I’ll be very, very happy.” (Thanks to Arianne Ayers)

Posted on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:04:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...s-and.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

First set report on Aussie horror NEEDLE

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:31:21 -0800

By Michael Helms

No notable horror films have lurched out of WesternAustralia since ZOMBIE BRIGADE circa 1988. NEEDLE, shot just before Christmas2009, is seeking to redress the situation, and goes about it with a deadlydevice from the 18th century. The third feature from John V. Soto, who wrotePREY (released Down Under to negligible returns last year) and co-directedCRUSH (now visible via video on demand and hitting U.S. DVD April 21) with JeffGerritsen, helmed NEEDLE from a script he wrote with Tony Egan.

On the set, situated within the confines of an old networkTV studio in a languid Perth suburb, the common NEEDLE description offered byall is “a psychological thriller with horror elements.” Soto even says as much,before explaining a little history of the movie (which we previously reportedon with exclusive photos here).

Collaborating with Egan when the latter was brought in togive the CRUSH screenplay a polish sparked the development of NEEDLE. (Egan, bythe way, is the writer of FLIES 3D, a project that STORM WARNING’s Jamie Blanksis attached to direct; Blanks supplied the score for NEEDLE, as he did forCRUSH). “Over the last three years, I’ve wanted to do a whodunit/murdermystery-type movie, a sort of Agatha Christie,” Soto tells Fango. “She waslight years ahead of most people. A lot of her work has been turned into films,and she was the master of ‘Who is the killer?’ I just love the puzzle element.

“We talked about that,” he continues, “and at the same timewanting to involve our favorite genre, horror, and include a supernaturalelement. We pitched ideas to each other continuously for months untilessentially arriving at the same concept, which was a machine with supernaturalpowers that kills people from afar. I can’t go into specifics, but let me justsay that I’d call CRUSH a gentle thriller, while in NEEDLE, the gloves are offand it’s full-on with very strong elements of horror.”

The director casually mentions that people do die painfullyin NEEDLE: “They basically come apart from the inside. We got MEG FX involvedto help us with the kills, but it took an enormous amount of work creating themachine’s mythology. We looked at Grand Guignol, and in those days, they didhave devices that could create illusions, all these weird and wonderful things.I read somewhere about a scientist who created something like that and thought,‘That’s not a bad idea.’ I could see how it could work. So we basically builtthe mythology based on some rumors, or things we’d read or heard and theresearch we’d done. And the machine, supposedly built in the late 1800s, hasplausibility. I can’t say what it does, but it has supernatural powers and isvery effective at its job.”

NEEDLE puts the device in the reluctant possession of ayoung guy (DAYBREAKERS’ Michael Dorman) whose father has died in a car accidenta couple of years earlier. Academic connections are called in, and soon discoverthe worst. “It’s got amazing supernatural powers—bad powers,” Soto explains.“It’s a machine for revenge. And there’s also a major backstory on that. Hisfriends get him to do a big feature story on it in the university newspaper. Hegoes back to his room, back to where he has hidden it away, and it’s gone. Onenight at a party, he had shown it to his friends, so all of them know about it,about seven of them. The next day, one of them is murdered. The police can’tsolve it, and the coroner is puzzled, as it seems the victim’s body somehowheated up on the inside. It’s quite graphic. There is no entry wound, but thereare exit wounds. It’s a real mystery. We’ve spent a lot of time mythologizingthis. When the concept is revealed, you’ll realize, ‘I should have thought ofthat.’ ”

Investigationsinto the pointy end of NEEDLE will continue in Fango’s pages…
Posted on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 20:39:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...orror.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

SOMEONE’S KNOCKING, GOD OF VAMPIRES, VINDICATION and more indie DVD date/art news

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:31:21 -0800

By Michael Gingold

• Fango got the word from Breaking Glass Pictures that it has picked up Chad Ferrin’s newshocker SOMEONE’S KNOCKING AT THE DOOR for release under its Vicious Circlebanner. The company also grabbed Ferrin’s previous feature EASTER BUNNY, KILL!KILL!, as well as the German production SLASHER.

SOMEONE’S KNOCKING (see trailer below) stars CABIN FEVER 2’sNoah Segan (who discusses the movie in Fango #291, on sale now) as one of agroup of med students who mix drug-taking with an investigation into ’70s serialkillers John and Wilma Hopper, and are soon suffering extremely unpleasantfates. It’ll hit disc May 25, while EASTER BUNNY, in which a monstrousincarnation of the titular critter takes bloody revenge on behalf of a mentallydisabled boy, will follow on June 1. Frank W. Montag’s SLASHER, in which agroup of friends are terrorized and cut up during a forest vacation, hits May4. Final cover art and specs on all these titles are coming soon.

• Midnight Releasing has set a May 4 street date for GOD OF VAMPIRES,Rob Fitz’s ode to Asian genre fare, and passed on a first look at the cover.Dharma Lim stars as Frank Ng, a hitman assigned to take out a crime boss whoturns out to be a monstrous creature of the night. The movie will beaccompanied by an interview featurette, a gag reel and trailers, and retailsfor $24.98. Check out Fango #289 for Fitz’s Notes from the Underground articleon the making of GOD OF VAMPIRES.

• R² Films has set up a newlabel called Big Bite Entertainment, and gave Fango the scoop on the lineup andsome cover art. Bart Mastronardi’s surreal chiller VINDICATION streets April 13(see details here),while Immanuel Martin’s MIYUKI, about a Japanese exchange student with a verydark side (which we previously reported on here),arrives May 11. Also coming on the 11th are TERROR OVERLOAD, a horror anthologywith segments directed by Brant Johnson, Kevin Myhre and Jason Stephenson, andMatt A. Cade’s UNDERBELLY, in which a writer searching for his missing wiferuns afoul of a gang of psychopaths.

Further down the line is LONG PIGS, a docu-style chiller bywriter/directors Nathan Hynes and Chris Power in which they play themselves asfilmmakers following the grisly activities of a cannibalistic serial killer.This Canadian production has won awards at several festivals; check out thetrailer below. We’ll bring you further info on these titles as they becomeavailable, and you can read more about VINDICATION in Fango #292, on sale inMarch.

Posted on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 20:34:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...pires.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Morse and Burke will DRIVE ANGRY

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:31:21 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Arrow in the Head got the first word that DavidMorse has joined the cast of Summit Entertainment’s 3-D action-chiller DRIVEANGRY. This comes hard on the heels of a Moviehole announcement that Billy Burke has also signed onto the film.

Directed and written by the MY BLOODY VALENTINE team ofPatrick Lussier and Todd Farmer respectively, DRIVE ANGRY is about a criminal(Nicolas Cage) who sets out on a road trip of revenge against the evil cult whohave murdered his daughter and plan to sacrifice his baby granddaughter. Alsostarring William Fichtner and busy genre actress Amber Heard (from ZOMBIELAND,THE STEPFATHER and the upcoming THE WARD, AND SOON THE DARKNESS and ALL THEBOYS LOVE MANDY LANE) the film is set to roll in Shreveport, LA next month,with release currently scheduled for February 11, 2011. Morse’s long career asa character actor has included genre turns in DISTURBIA, DOUBLE VISION, THEGOOD SON and TV’s THE LANGOLIERS as well as the non-horror Stephen King filmsTHE GREEN MILE and HEARTS IN ATLANTIS, while Burke, most visible recently asBella’s father Charlie Swan in Summit’s TWILIGHT films, has also been seen inUNTRACEABLE, AFTER IMAGE, KOMODO and the Wes Craven-presented TV movie DON’TLOOK DOWN.

Posted on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:21:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...angry.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Cast and director set for Gothic thriller THE MONK

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:31:21 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Variety reports that Vincent Cassel,fresh off Darren Aronofsky’s supernatural drama BLACK SWAN, has been cast inthe title role of THE MONK for France’s Diaphana Films and Spain’s MorenaFilms. Based on Matthew Lewis’ 18th-century Gothic novel, the film will toplineCassel as Capucin Ambrosio, who is undone by temptation brought on by blackmagic and the devil himself.

DominikMoll, who first won notice with the 2000 psychological thriller WITH A FRIENDLIKE HARRY…, will direct the movie, which will co-star HARRY and PAN’SLABYRINTH’s Sergi Lopez, Geraldine Chaplin from THE ORPHANAGE and THE WOLFMANand Deborah Francois. Art director Antxon Gomez and composer Alberto Iglesiasare also part of the MONK team. The $15-million production starts its 12-weekshoot in mid-April; a previous 1990 screen version of THE MONK was written anddirected by Francisco Lara Polop and starred Paul McGann, BOOK OF BLOOD’sSophie Ward, Isla Blair and Aitana Sánchez-Gijón. Cassel’s previous genrecredits include SHEITAN (in which he was the devil), BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLFand THE CRIMSON RIVERS.

Posted on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 22:31:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...othic.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

SHUTTER ISLAND (Film Review)

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:31:21 -0800

By Michael Gingold

The first thing that should be said here about SHUTTERISLAND is that it’s not the consistently scarifying horror film that some ofthe ads are making it out as—and nor is it trying to be one. While there areplenty of creepy events and imagery scattered throughout its running time,here’s a movie that truly warrants description as a “psychological thriller”—nosurprise coming from Martin Scorsese, a director who has always been just asinterested, if not moreso, in tortured souls as in tortured bodies.

When he last visited genre territory with 1991’s CAPE FEARremake, Scorsese changed the targets of Max Cady’s revenge from asqueaky-clean, all-American brood to the ultimate dysfunctional family, to thepoint where it eventually became difficult to feel for them. A moreconsistently sympathetic protagonist is SHUTTER ISLAND’s Teddy Daniels(Leonardo DiCaprio), a member of the U.S. Marshals who is first seen heavinginto a toilet on a boat en route to the titular locale, located in the watersoff Boston, in 1954, where he and new partner Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo) havebeen assigned to investigate the disappearance of an inmate at the AshecliffeHospital for the Criminally Insane.

Teddy regains his physical bearing when he reaches theisland, but his psyche isn’t as stable. He’s tormented by visions of his deadwife Dolores (Michelle Williams) and the victims he encountered when, as anArmy soldier, he helped liberate the Nazi death camp in Dachau. The latter experiencemeans that it’s dislike at first sight when Teddy meets the German Dr. Naehring(Max von Sydow), one of the key staff under Dr. Cawley (Ben Kingsley), whogives Teddy and Chuck a tour of Ashecliffe and explains the situation. Thevanished prisoner—er, patient was a mother who murdered her three children andappears to have vanished without a trace from her locked room within thehighest-security of the facility’s three wards. The attempt to track her downwill lead Teddy into a mystery that comes to encompass more ghosts from hispast, plus the possibility of bizarre medical experiments, secret conspiracies,Cold War paranoia and visits to dark, dripping passageways, the local cemeteryand its mausoleum, the imposing cliffs at the edge of Shutter Island and thelighthouse beyond them—and oh yes, a good deal of the action takes place duringa cataclysmic hurricane.

All the ingredients, in other words, are here for a wild,lurid Gothic ride, and Scorsese certainly doesn’t hold back. He unleashes thefull bag of filmmaker’s tricks to create a modern, full-color (complete withbrighter-than-natural blood), widescreen version of a vintage picture byadmitted influence Val Lewton, with sudden, sharp camera moves and small,apparently intentional jump cuts to keep the audience on edge. As usual,Scorsese has marshaled sterling production values from his regular team ofcraftspeople, with impeccable cinematography by Robert Richardson, productiondesign by Dante Ferretti and costumes by Sandy Powell, plus an eclectic andspooky assembly of music from the divergent likes of Gustav Mahler, GyörgyLigeti, Krzysztof Penderecki, John Cage and Brian Eno. Thelma Schoonmaker’sediting is, for the most part, razor-sharp from scene to scene—though the movieas a whole could stand to be tightened up somewhat.

That’s because the longer the story (scripted by LaetaKalogridis, adapting Dennis Lehane’s dense and twisty puzzle of a novel) goeson, the more it becomes clear where things are ultimately headed. As he plungesinto the third act, Scorsese seems determined to plumb every nook and cranny ofTeddy’s psyche at the expense of narrative economy, and at least one majorrevelation is both explained in dialogue and dramatized in flashback wheneither one or the other (probably the latter) would have sufficed. Nonetheless,DiCaprio holds the center throughout, his still-boyish looks adding to thevulnerability of a man struggling to submerge his insecurities beneath anauthority-figure exterior. Ruffalo, as the one guy he can trust on thisassignment, offers a fine sounding board and welcome levity, Kingsley and vonSydow evoke just the right amounts of empowerment and suspicion and Williamsallows Teddy’s deceased beloved to become fully alive in his eyes. Makingstrong impressions in smaller roles are the impeccably cast likes of EmilyMortimer, Patricia Clarkson, John Carroll Lynch, Ted Levine, Elias Koteas,actor/HOME MOVIE director Christopher Denham and Jackie Earle Haley, whose solebut lengthy pivotal scene opposite DiCaprio promises great things from hisFreddy Krueger.

SHUTTERISLAND effectively raises the hackles at moments like this, but Scorsese’sendgame isn’t to send the audience reeling from the theater in terror, but toleave them shaken from the personal tragedy at the story’s core. As such,Saturday-night thrillseekers may be a bit disappointed or nonplussed, whilethose who can get on the director’s wavelength will appreciate how he harksback to the virtues of a classic style of thriller-making. One thing’s forsure: His craft is so aggressive and unrelenting that nobody who sees SHUTTERISLAND is likely to be bored.
Posted on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 22:02:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...eview.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

DVDetails for THE COLLECTOR

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Fango got the scoop on the special features that have beencollected for the DVD and Blu-ray releases of THE COLLECTOR, coming April 6from Vivendi Entertainment. The directorial debut ofMarcus Dunstan, who scripted with his FEAST trilogy/SAW sequels writing partnerPatrick Melton, the film follows a small-time burglar (Josh Stewart) as heattempts to rip off a wealthy family’s mansion one night and runs into a fardeadlier home invader, who has set murderous traps for him and the house’sowners.

The discs will present the movie in widescreen; audio specshave not been confirmed, but the supplements will include:

• Filmmaker audio commentary

• Deleted scenes

• Alternate ending

• Soundtrack song preview

• Music video

Retailprice is $28.99 for the DVD, $34.99 for the Blu-ray.
Posted on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 20:21:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...ector.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Exclusive Interview: Hugo Weaving on THE WOLFMAN

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By Lee Gambin

Universal’s eagerlyanticipated update of THE WOLFMAN was unleashed in cinemas everywhere this pastFriday, and one of its stars, the MATRIX films’ Hugo Weaving, gave Fango someof his time to talk up the lycanthropic epic. We spoke to him while he was inthe midst of the Melbourne (Australia) Theatre Company’s production of theacclaimed play GOD OF CARNAGE.

FANGORIA: Are you a fan of the horror genre?

HUGO WEAVING: I like things that are well-written. If the scriptis good, then I’ll enjoy it. If the script is bad or loose or silly, then Ican’t get into it. However, I believe genre pictures such as horror filmsshould be allowed to have a sense of freedom in the writing. But sadly, those picturestend to be looked down upon or overlooked as serious pieces of art. TheWestern, the musical, action films, horror films, fantasy films—I mean, theyare the founding and starting point of great American cinema, yet even thoughthey’re commercially successful and often critically well-received, they arenever given the proper respect they deserve just because they entertain.There’s a weird resentment toward escapism in intellectual circles, whichhappens not only in film, but in theater too.

FANG: What can you tell us about your character in THEWOLFMAN, Scotland Yard’s Inspector Aberline?

WEAVING: Well, he’s a no-nonsense detective who comes intothe lives of the Talbots by investigating the strange murders that are somehowhappening around the family. He was not in the original film from the ’40s,although after watching that film with Lon Chaney, I kind of liken him to theClaude Rains character. I even tried to do a Rains-style voice in preshootrehearsals, but it didn’t work [laughs].

FANG: On that note, how did the original WOLF MANtroupe—Lon Chaney Jr., Rains, Evelyn Ankers, Maria Ouspenskaya and RalphBellamy—feed the performances of your fellow cast members?

WEAVING: Everyone seemed to bring their own interpretationof their character to this film. It’s a far grittier movie than the 1941 film,as you could imagine. The original is loaded with that glamour of the Universalhorror pictures of the golden age. In this film, everything is on show, andthat includes the blood, sweat, and tears, and that most definitely alters themood and style and totally feeds the performances of the actors. GeraldineChaplin, who is the legendary Charlie Chaplin’s daughter, was a hoot to workwith and brought so much of herself to the role created by that great characteractress Maria Ouspenskaya. But listening to her, it’s as if she had channeledMaria. There was something truly haunting about her performance. But I believeBenicio Del Toro [playing Lawrence Talbot] did the most studying of Lon ChaneyJr. There are points in the film where he looks remarkably like him.

FANG: He also kind of resembles Oliver Reed in theHammer classic CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF. Do you have a favorite werewolf movie?

WEAVING: I remember seeing AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDONwhen it first came out, and that was really good. A great combination of horrorand comedy.

FANG: What was it like working with legendary makeupartist Rick Baker? Were you in the chair for any prosthetic work?

WEAVING: Rick Baker was charming, and a soft-spoken gentlemanwho excelled at his craft. It is dumbfounding what that man could do withmaterials that have been with the industry forever. His work on the werewolfsequences was astounding. And yes, I did get to have some work done, but Iwon’t tell you too much. Let’s just say that this film has a healthy amount ofblood and guts, so the makeups go beyond fur and fangs.

FANG: How much would you say Lon Chaney’s Wolf Mandesign was a reference point for Baker?

WEAVING: He had images galore of those old Universalwerewolves, the one with the bad case of sideburns too…who was he again?

FANG: Henry Hull from THE WEREWOLF OF LONDON?

WEAVING: Yeah. Rick wanted to put his own mark on thedesign but still pay homage to the Lon Chaney Wolf Man. He came out looking amazing,truly amazing. Rick Baker is possibly one of the most modest yet talentedpeople I’ve met. He is his craft. It’s phenomenal. He is definitely the masterof werewolf makeup artistry, and it was cool to work with the man whooriginally did the FX for AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON. We shared a fewstories and I was kind of like a teenager again, asking him how he did what hedid on that film.

FANG: Was THE WOLFMAN a fun experience overall, and willyou return to the horror genre in the future?

WEAVING: It was agood experience; I just wish the studios and distributors and press andeverything that has nothing whatsoever to do with us actors had gotten theirshit together and brought this movie to the eager public sooner rather thanlater. Films lose momentum, and this one has been whetting the appetites ofmoviegoers, especially horror fans, for too long now. I also want to make notethat the fans of horror are possibly the most hardcore and fanatical andlovely. Ever since doing this film, I’ve had more conversations than ever. Soyep, for sure, I would love to do more horror films, just as long as they’rethe right projects.
Posted on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 19:51:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...ng-on.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Writer/actress talks THE GHOST OF SLAUGHTERFORD

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By Michael Gingold

We reported the other day on an upcoming supernaturalfeature called THE GHOST OF SLAUGHTERFORD, but the news break omitted one veryimportant name: screenwriter Axelle Carolyn, who will also star in the movie. Aformer Fango scribe who has since appeared in a number of features and shortfilms (including DOOMSDAY and CENTURION for GHOST executive producer NeilMarshall, as well as THE DESCENT: PART 2), Carolyn dropped us a line to give usa bit of background about the project.

“THE GHOST OF SLAUGHTERFORD is a throwback to classic ghoststories and British horror,” she tells us. “It was inspired by movies like THEHAUNTING and THE INNOCENTS, with a touch of THE WICKER MAN and Hammer films. Itwas also born out of frustration, in a way: frustration as an actress with thelack of strong female roles to play, and as a writer, with the fact that movieshave, in the past few years, too often gone for gore and jump-scares instead ofatmosphere and emotion.”

Carolyn will play novelist Audrey Barker, who is grievingthe loss of her husband when she travels to the remote town of Slaughterford toseek inspiration for her latest book. When she moves into the abandoned RolphManor, she encounters the ghost of Victor Rolph, who committed suicide in theold place. Instead of threatening Audrey, however, Victor’s spirit becomes herally when it turns out that Slaughterford’s residents have satanic secrets.“We’re hoping to close the financing soon,” adds the writer/actress, who alsopenned the genre study IT LIVES AGAIN! HORROR FILMS IN THE NEW MILLENNIUM, “andshoot this spring in the UK.” Ian D. Fleming, who has numerous TV, feature andshort-film and 2nd-unit directing credits, will helm THE GHOST OFSLAUGHTERFORD, which is co-produced with London’s Intandem Films, which alsohas worldwide distribution rights.

AddsMarshall in a statement, “THE GHOST OF SLAUGHTERFORD reminds me of a kind offilm that Britain doesn’t make any more, a creeping menace full of greatcharacters, heart-stopping terror, intrigue, suspense and even romance. I wantto make this movie mainly because I want to see this movie.” We do too, andwe’ll keep you informed as SLAUGHTERFORD moves toward production.
Posted on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 16:37:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...st-of.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Details on scary/sexy DEMONIC II/FOREST OF THE DAMNED II

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Mark Evans, co-writer and co-producer of the new DEMONIC II(a.k.a. FOREST OF THE DAMNED II), got in touch to talk up the sequel, for whichan official website has opened. The movie is a follow-up to the 2005 featureknown as FOREST OF THE DAMNED overseas and retitled DEMONIC for its 2006 U.S.DVD release; the original’s director/co-writer, Johannes Roberts, is anassociate producer on the new film.

Ernest Riera makes his directorial debut on DEMONIC II afterserving as a producer on the first film as well as Roberts’ upcoming youth-gone-crazythriller F and other features; he also scripted and produced with Evans. “As inthe first film, we follow a group of people into the woods for a weekendbreak,” Evans tells us, “but this time it’s couples hoping to enjoy a naughtyweekend of swinging in a rented holiday home on a remote island. They soonrealize that the place isn’t quite right, and when the party gets into fullswing, things turn horribly wrong as they’re preyed upon by murderous fallenangels.”

The cast is headed by Francesca Fowler, Alex Humes, RachelFreeman, Sebastian Knapp, Lewis Clements, Sally Janman and Victoria Broom. Inaddition, Evans notes, “Marysia Kay and Eleanor James [also seen together innext week’s DVD release COLOUR FROM THE DARK] return to continue their roles asthe seductive, bloodthirsty monsters.” The official website, featuring a bunchof grisly pics as well as some non-work-safe topless-demon shots, can be foundhere.

There will be no shortage of grue in the movie, Evans promises:“It starts with a very nasty scene where a young women has to chose betweencutting off her trapped leg with a rusty ax or taking her chances with thepursuing angels. The tension and violence increase throughout the film,climaxing in a final fight between the main character and the main angel.That’s very intense—I’ve probably seen it over 100 times and it still makes meuncomfortable. There are also gouged eyes, exposed intestines, severed limbs,brutal stabbings and a basement full of bodies.”

Riera, who has previously helmed a number of short films,first hooked up with Roberts when he lensed a documentary about the making ofthe latter’s feature DARKHUNTERS. When Roberts was too busy scripting F totackle the DEMONIC sequel, Riera, who had just finished directing the 2nd uniton Roberts’ WHEN EVIL CALLS, was tapped to take it on. “Ernest hadn’t had muchexperience writing horror, and he approached me to co-write the script,” Evansrecalls. “At our first meeting, we realized we could work very well togetherand that the project was going to be a lot of fun. However, after our thirdsession, we found out that the financiers had decided to put the money into aFormula One car instead! At that stage, we were so involved in the movie thatwe decided to finish the script, and I would raise the money myself.” He alsoput together a creative team that includes cinematographers John Raggett andRainer Antesberger (both encoring from DEMONIC and other Roberts flicks;Antesberger edited the film as well), production designer Ryan Haysom, LukeMcNally and his makeup FX team, CGI creator Eren Ozkural and soundtrack/soundFX artists Bernie Riener and Robert Pawliczek.

Theend result, Evans says, “is even more violent than the original, with verytense scenes between strong characters and a horrible fight for survival. Ouraim was not to allow the audience to relax. The awkward sexual tension betweenthe couples and the terrible ways in which they die will really keep youwatching.” We’ll keep you posted on the film’s release status.
Posted on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 16:35:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...orest.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Werewolves are only HUMAN in SAUNA director’s latest

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Screen Daily reports that Finnish director Antti-Jussi Annila will follow up hiswell-received chiller SAUNA with a werewolf movie called HUMAN. As the titlesuggests, this is a reverse-transformation tale—about a wolf that becomes aman.

“WithHUMAN I expect to do a totally different kind of werewolf film, so don’t expectanything familiar to this subgenre,” Annila tells the trade. The script isbeing co-written by Doug Taylor, whose credits include THEY WAIT and VincenzoNatali’s upcoming SPLICE. Dean English and Karen Powell of Canada’s PerfectCircle Productions are co-producing with Finland’s Blind Spot Pictures, whoseTero Kaukomaa comments, “It’s really exciting to get all this internationaltalent to work alongside AJ and our Finnish team. Their participation willdefinitely broaden the international appeal of the film.” A start date has yetto be announced.
Posted on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 15:46:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...sauna.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Get viral with THE CRAZIES’ Operation Scarlet Omega

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Dread Central has been reporting on all the viral activity going on surrounding the upcomingrelease of Overture Films and director Breck Eisner’s THE CRAZIES, and todayhad an update on Operation Scarlet Omega. That’s a government/military programdealing with security breaches at chemical facilities—like the one that causesall the madness in the movie’s setting of Ogden Marsh, Iowa.

There are all kinds of places you can explore THE CRAZIES’frightening scenario; Ogden Marsh has its own official website, while the activities of an activist trying to savethe town from toxic peril are chronicled here. The outfit responsible for the threat is the Dakon/Pendrill Chemical Corporation (log in as jbmartin with the passwordp@ssword for some unsettling details), and you can also read The Truth AboutTrixie, detailing the particular biohazard, here. Dread got ahold of an exclusive video detailing Trixie’s effects on one poorsoul, and you can see it below.

THE CRAZIES opens next Friday, Feburary 26, and its officialwebsite can be seen here. You can read ourexclusive two-part set visit in Fango #291, which may still be on sale in someplaces, and #292, just out this week.

Scarlet Omega -Trixie on Gurney
by dreadcentral

Posted on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 15:45:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...ation.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Clive Barker’s Dark Bazaar at Toy Fair 2010

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By David McKendry

At the current Toy Fair event in NYC, Fango dropped by theshowroom of JAKKS Pacific, where we got an up-close-and-personal look at thisHalloween’s sweetest costumes. From JAKKS subsidiary Disguise comes CliveBarker’s Dark Bazaar, a costume lineup based on the original artwork of theauthor/artist/filmmaker and horror legend. See some pics after the jump!

Not only was stunning original artwork by the man himself ondisplay, but to see it replicated with such close resemblance in costume formwas quite amazing. The line will include an assortment of both full costumesand masks starting at $49.99. Definitely look for them at your local Party Cityand other costume retailers this Halloween.

Posted on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:17:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...-fair.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

THE DESCENT: PART 2 DVDetails

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By Michael Gingold

Fango got ahold of the specs for the DVD of THE DESCENT:PART 2, coming from Lionsgate Home Entertainment April 27. The sequel to Neil Marshall’s subterranean scare film, directed by JonHarris from a script by James McCarthy, J. Blakeson and James Watkins, sendsthe first film’s heroine Sarah (returning star Shauna McDonald) back into themonster-infested caves with a rescue party in an attempt to save any of herfriends who may have survived the creatures’ attack.

The movie will be presented in 16x9 widescreen with DolbyDigital 5.1 sound, and is currently slated to be accompanied by the followingspecial features:

• Audio commentary by Harris and actresses MacDonald,Krysten Cummings and Anna Skellern

• Deleted scenes

• “The Making of THE DESCENT: PART 2: Deeper and Darker”featurette

• Storyboards

Retailprice is $28.98. See Fango #293, on sale in April, for an exclusive set-visitreport on THE DESCENT: PART 2.
Posted on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:15:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...tails.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

Freddy, his new glove and more at Toy Fair 2010

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By Bekah McKendry

Fango spent another exciting day at Toy Fair 2010 (see ourfirst report here),checking out the licensed products and original terrors coming to frighten youthis year. Read on past the jump for the details and pics…

Over at Mezco’s booth, a couple of kickass 12-inchers andMez-its from FRIDAY THE 13TH, the NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET remake, BEETLEJUICE,SAW and THE WOLFMAN topped the bill. Speaking of WOLFMAN, look for both 12-inchand 7-inch figures (already available in stores), along with a 9-inch stylizedversion of Benicio Del Toro’s canis lupus sapien. For you Living Dead Dollfans, Mezco debuted both their “In Wonderland” series based on ALICE INWONDERLAND book characters (including the Red Queen seen below) and Series 19:Children of the Night, a vampire-based line.

We also got a more in-depth gander at some of NECA’supcoming NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET products. In addition to some great actionfigures, they also revealed a replica Freddy glove we got to try on, instantlyfalling in love with the piece. It’s the best mockup of the dream stalker’ssignature weapon we’ve seen, with actual metal blades (dulled down, of course).It even bears the slight metal creaking sound from the movies. The glove can beworn, but for regular display it also comes with a replica hand to mount it on.

It was also exciting to finally see a toy from our favoriteof the NIGHTMARE sequels—THE DREAM WARRIORS. The Freddy puppet scene in thismovie has always been a highlight, and we were ecstatic today when NECAunveiled its soon-to-be-released old-school Freddy marionette. This puppet wasactually cast from the same molds as the one used for the film prop, and is anecessary piece for any ELM STREET fan. Hopefully, this puppet won’t rip outyour veins—but this gorgeous collectible will be worth the risk. Check outFango #293, on sale in March, for additional coverage.

They’re not the scariest creatures on the block, butcertainly some of the most creative and endearing: 4KIDS Entertainmentpremiered a line of monsters designed by Jim Henson Studios, the company knownfor amazing critter work in movies like LABYRINTH, THE DARK CRYSTAL and themore recently disturbing mind-trip MIRRORMASK. These new creations are also greatrepresentations of the creativity and purity involved in taking the scary andobscure and bringing it to life. Some of the monsters from this line made priorappearances as small toys sold in “blind assortment” boxes at Kid Robot storesand comic-book shops nationwide; this tester line has now been expanded toinclude monster plushes and other larger figures as well as apparel.

Stay tuned for more from Toy Fair 2010!

Posted on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:12:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...t-toy.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)

More info, DVD release and art for MEADOWOODS

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:42:39 -0800

By Michael Gingold

We first reported here abouta new independent horror feature called MEADOWOODS, which was being virallypromoted via a couple of disturbing on-line videos. Now we have more info aboutthe movie, as well as the scoop on its DVD release and a first look at thecover.

Directed by Scott Phillips (not the same one, as far as weknow, who helmed GIMME SKELTER among others) from a script by Anna Siri,MEADOWOODS is about a trio of college students who decide to murder a randomvictim. Travis (Connor Thorp), Stephanie (Michele Roe) and Ryan (MichaelDowney) are bored or otherwise dissatisfied with life and decide to capture theplanning and execution of their crime on video, with the movie playing out astheir taped footage. The disc streets May 11 from Monterey Media, and will carry a retail price of $26.95. You can join the “MEADOWOODS Army”on-line, interact with the characters and receive exclusive clips at theofficial website. The movie also has a Facebookpage here.

Posted on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 20:49:00 +0000 at http://fangorianews.blogspot.com/2010/02...t-for.html
Author: noreply@blogger.com (FANGORIA Magazine Editors)