Occasionally movies pop up that I want to like. They may not be the greatest, but they seem like the passion projects of young filmmakers trying to get a foothold in the business. I imagine they maxed out their credit cards and took loans from rich uncles to get the project funded. As such, I’m…

When I was in my twenties, I discovered the British film “Peeping Tom” about a serial killer who uses a movie camera to film his murders of young women. I suspect that film, made in 1960, as well as Hitchcock’s “Psycho”, released the same year, were big influences on 1965’s “The Collector.” All three movies…

Action horror” can be considered its own subgenre, one with distinct scenarios and tropes. A recurring setup involves characters trapped in a confined area, forced to fight amongst themselves to escape. In movie form, this might be “Escape from New York” (and “L.A.”), “Battle Royale”, and “The Warriors.” “Black Friday” has a lot of fun…

It’s easy to forget that before “The Matrix” we had movies built on the idea that we might be living in a false reality. 1992’s sci-fi/horror film “Mindwarp” is one such film. If you’ll allow me a tangent, let’s explore this theme, which goes back to Plato and his shadows on cave walls, or similar…

I first saw David Cronenberg’s “The Fly” when it came out in 1986. Hot damn, did they know how to make horror movies back then. I’ve rewatched it a few times over the years, most recently with my mom about a week ago, and I’m pleased to report it still holds up as a masterpiece…

Just when you think you’ve seen every slasher ever made in the 80s, a new one pops up.  1980’s “Funeral Home” was a low rent, relatively bloodless horror flick. If you know what you’re getting into, it’s fun enough. Young Heather comes to work with her grandmother in some nameless small town for the summer.…

The film “Suitable Flesh” is based on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “The Thing on the Doorstep”, but I’m pretty sure the famed horror author’s brain would melt out of his ears if he saw it. My understanding is H.P. was somewhat prudish, and “Suitable Flesh”, starring the vivacious Heather Grarham, is a breastiliscious sex-fest. It’s…

I’ve talked about the challenges that come with uniting horror and comedy, two disparate elements that might be the oil and water of the storytelling world. A while back, I critiqued the film “Night of the Living Deb” which I felt fell flat in its attempt. Good news: “Life After Beth” is the movie “Night…

Now, I know what you’re saying. “Wait a second, Forbis. Didn’t you just review a film called ‘Madhouse’?” Indeed I did, my eagle eyed friend. But that was an asylum horror picture released in 2004. Today’s unrelated “Madhouse” came out in 1981. I raved about the 2004 version. How does the 80s entry compare? Uh,…

I love asylum horror. Why wouldn’t I? Drooling lunatics, homicidal psychopaths, hyper-sexed nymphomaniacs, power-mad head nurses—it’s all there, baby! As such, I was drawn to try 2004’s “Madhouse”, a horror flick set in an asylum and streaming on Amazon, which curiously tagged the film as “edifying”. Was it? Umm, I dunno about that. But it…

Capturing the stories of HP Lovecraft to film can be a challenge. Director Stuart Gordon probably did it best with his movies “Re-Animator”, “From Beyond” and “Dagon” but others have stumbled with unwieldy adaptations hooked around Lovecraft’s particular brand of cosmic horror. “Color out of Space” does a decent job. I don’t think I ever…

When I saw mention of “Suddenly, Last Summer” on a list of film noir recommendations, my first thought was “Wait? It’s more than just a song by The Motels?*”  *Humblebrag: In my career as a musician, I was in a band that opened for the Motels, though long after their heyday. In fact, it was…

I decided to watch 1984’s “Screamplay” under the assumption that it was a middling horror comedy set in the gritty underbelly of Hollywood. Maybe I’d get some spatters of gore, I thought, or at least a blonde starlet losing her clothes on the casting couch. Umm… no. Upon clicking the play button, I discovered Screamplay…

Here’s the thing: James Spader was the biggest d-bag in the 80s. I mean, not him personally, but his characters. He mocked Molly Ringwald and John Cryer in “Pretty in Pink”. In “The New Kids”, he menaced innocent girls as a psychopathic gang leader. In “Less Than Zero, he did no less than pimp out…

I keep mentioning Hitchcock these days. One of his greatest films was 1948’s “Rope”, a retelling of the famous 1924 Leopold and Loeb murders where two young men killed someone just for the thrill of it. 1959’s “Compulsion” is about the same case. “Compulsion” feels like two films in one. The first half details the…