Posts

Showing posts from May, 2019

Favorite Horror Novels

Check out my list of favorite horror novels here . I'll be adding lists of favorite single author collections and multi-author anthologies at some point too.

Mini-Reviews

Image
Cutting Class Cutting Class stars underrated genre goddess Jill Schoelen as Paula Carson; it also features Martin Mull, Roddy McDowell, and a baby faced Brad Pitt in one of his first (credited) feature film rolls. Revolving around a series of murders that take place at Paula's high school after the return of outsider Brian (Donovn Leitch) after a stay in a mental hospital, Cutting Class is unfortunately too silly to work as a straight horror film but not really over the top enough to work as a parody. Still for horror fans, there's a lot to enjoy in this late 80's slasher, particularly Schoelen who always makes for a likable lead. Pitt fans will also want to check it out, if only to see the star before he made it to the A-list. Popcorn And Jill Schoelen's back in the significantly more effective, Popcorn , which works better than Cutting Class as both a slasher and as a humorous love letter to horror cinema. While it is often silly and requires some serious

God Save Us from the Men Who Want To: Graham Masterton's "Picnic at Lac du Sang"

Image
God save us from the men who want to. That thought stuck in my mind as I read Graham Masterton's short story, "Picnic at Lac du Sang " from his 2000 collection, Feelings of Fear. Masterton is an expert at writing stories that get under your skin in one way or another, but none has ever really punched me in the gut quite like "Picnic." The story opens with the recently divorced Vincent traveling to a rural brothel with his friend Barnaby. Barnaby is a regular at the out-of-the way bordello, but Vincent has never done anything like this before. Upon arrival, he is struck by the youth of the girls, who, outside of the owner, Madame Leduc, all appear to be no older than 18 or 19, as well as the old fashioned decor and atmosphere of the Gothic mansion where they live. Vincent is particularly transfixed by a quiet girl named Catherine, whom he soon learns is pregnant. Masterton details their very explicit sex scene (outside of horror, Masterton is a prolific

Happy Mother's Day!

Image
Happy Mother's Day! In honor of the day, and my incredibly awesome mother, today I'm listing my picks for the 5 best and worst mothers in horror. Best Diane Freeling (JoBeth Williams) - Poltergeist Selene (Kate Beckinsale) - Underworld Christine (Adrien Barbeau) - The Convent Samantha (Evangeline Lilly) - Little Evil Mortisha Adams (Angelica Houston) - The Addams Family Worst Norma Bates - Psycho Maddy (Louise Lasser) - Blood Rage Deborah ( Chus Pereiro ) - Atrocious Rachel Creed (Denise Crosby) - Pet Sematary Margaret White (Piper Laurie) - Carrie

Check out my other blog!

Image
Hey guys, I've started another blog: https://ya-horror.com I'll be reviewing YA horror novels over there, while maintaining this page for horror movie and general horror fiction discussion. Enjoy!

The Haunting of Molly Hartley

Image
I admit that I have never heard anything good about The Haunting of Molly Hartley . It has a lousy 3% on Rotten Tomatoes and an average IMDB rating of 3.9/10. Still, when I saw it on Netflix, I decided, "what the hell?" It was late at night, and I didn't want something that was going to require a lot of attention or thought. The opening scene is promising. In 1997, a girl (Jessica Lowndes, Abattoir ) visits her boyfriend (Randy Wayne, Grizzly Park - a personal favorite) in a secluded cabin. Her boyfriend gives her a diamond necklace, an early birthday present - she's turning 18 in one week. The happy couple is almost immediately interrupted by her father, who demands she leave with him. He then proceeds to kill her on the ride home, because, he says, he can't let her turn 18. Alright, so, so far, so good. I'm interested. Maybe this movie will be better than I thought. But then, it jumps to the present, where we meet our protagonist Molly (Haley Benn