horror

A collection of 538 posts

Event

#31DaysofHorror: Come Out and Play Review (Film, 2012)

Come Out and Play is the second cinematic adaptation of Juan José Plans novel El juego de los niños (The Children's Game). Though it may seem like this film is a shot-for-shot remake of Who Can Kill a Child?, it really is another accurate adaptation of Plans'

Event

#31DaysofHorror: Introduction

#31DaysofHorror is a long tradition at Sketchy Details. It started when I was in high school (years before Sketchy Details existed), when I participated in the IMDB Horror board's October viewing challenge. The goal, as you can imagine, was to watch the most horror films. Other goals were

Games

Watch: The Zombie Bridge Puzzle

You know that old brain teaser about getting livestock across a river so a wolf doesn't eat them? You know, you can only carry so many of the critters at a time, but leaving a critter by itself guarantees death by wolf? I stumbled across a fun zombie-spin

Film

Horror Thursday: Blood Feast

I'm unintentionally on a Hershell Gordon Lewis Kick. Last week, I raved about Two Thousand Maniacs! right here. This week, I share the love by raving about Blood Feast over at Man, I Love Films. When did Hershell Gordon Lewis turn into one of my favorite horror directors?

Film

Two Night Only: Dracula & Drácula in Theaters

This is not a drill. Do not adjust your dial. There is a cinema re-release event you have to know about. You know that great Universal version of Dracula? You know,  the Todd Browning directed, Bela Lugosi starring, black and white classic from 1931? Yeah, that's not the

Film

The Blair Witch Project Review (Film, 1999)

You gotta hand it to indie horror directors committing to a concept. It's not enough to just make the film on your own. You need to sell it: to the audience, to distributors, to critics--anyone who can advocate for the film and get it seen by more people.

Film

Horror Thursday: Donkey Punch

You know what? I didn't ever think to give Donkey Punch a try because of that title and the marketing when it came out. I was pleasantly surprised to find a sharp, psychological horror film about a crime in open waters. Read the full review at Man, I

Event

Watch: Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular at Disney World

I have haunted attraction envy. It's true. I'm perfectly satisfied with my own yard haunt. I'm also fortunate to live within an hour's drive of two professional haunts consistently ranked among the best in America (Forest of Fear in Tuxedo, NY and

Film

Watch: Cats vs Zombies

I never thought I'd see a zombie short starring cats. Cats have a long history of being used in horror films. It's because of the superstitions surrounding black cats and witches' familiars, combined with their stealth and aggression when confronted. It's a horror

Film

Two Thousand Maniacs! Review (Film, 1964)

For a director best known for gore, Herschell Gordon Lewis could pull off a very subtle psychological horror story. I'm not trying to claim Two Thousand Maniacs! is some misunderstood intellectual masterpiece. I am saying there's a lot more going on than face value, which is

News

Are You Ready for More X-Files?

When I was growing up, Fox was the channel to watch. It was the new kid on the block and aired programming no one else would dare to. Married with Children still holds up as an act of sitcom rebellion and those early The Simpsons episodes still air censored before

Film

Excision Review (Film, 2012)

Excision is a teenage body horror film. Mix Heathers with May and you get the tone of this one. AnnaLynne McCord plays Pauline, a delusional teenager obsessed with surgery and mortality. She's a social outcast doing everything in her power to convince her parents that she needs psychiatric

Advertising

The American Horror Story: Hotel Promo Machine

For some people, the ads for American Horror Story are actually better than the series itself. I don't disagree. These tiny little 15-30 second spots of distilled horror are entrancing. They create hype, capture the imagination, and imprint suggestions of what could be in a given season. Many

Film

Introducing: Must Watch Horror

I quietly added an extra page to the Menu over the weekend called Must Watch Horror. It's not what you think it is. I spend a good bit of time going through "best of" lists in genre films to see where my favorites wind up. I

Film

Horror Thursday: Two Evil Eyes + A Video

I love a good anthology horror film. The big risk with the rare two in one (that's two stories total) anthology is balance. If one film is just terrible, the other one doesn't hold up as well. Man, I wish Two Evil Eyes was just a

Film

Horror Thursday: Pulse

Over at Man, I Love Films, I covered Pulse today. Why Pulse? Why Now? Simple: Wes Craven was heavily involved in the creation of the English language remake, and his passing on Sunday night reminded me that I never actually wrote anything about Pulse. Pulse is a techno-horror crossed with

Film

Wes Craven (1939-2015)

Last night, Wes Craven's family announced that the acclaimed horror writer and director passed away at the age of 76. I'm a big Wes Craven fan. Even at his worst (Cursed, naturally), I found his ideas very interesting. He also never phoned in a direction job,

Film

Horror Thursday: Unfriended

I can't tell you how long I wanted to see Unfriended. I was hooked on the concept alone the first time I saw a trailer. Then I got so bogged down with work that it was in and out of theater before I got a chance to see

Film

Horror Thursday: Fear(s) of the Dark

I reviewed Fear(s) of the Dark for my Horror Thursday Column at Man, I Love Films. It was the first of many, many animated horror films I'll be watching over the next month to prep for my Animated Horror from Around the World panel at ConnectiCon. So,

Announcements

Animated Horror from Around the World @ ConnectiCon

I am very excited to announce that my brand new panel, Animated Horror from Around the World, will be debuting at ConnectiCon next month. This is an idea I've been developing for years and it's finally going to happen. Here's the full description: While

Event

Fourth Annual Cinefessions Summer Screams Challenge – Sketchy Details' List

FINAL LISTIt's that time of the year again. Our friends over at Cinefessions are hosting their Fourth Annual Cinefessions Summer Screams Challenge. This is now a summer institution at Sketchy Details, as I've competed every year this contest has existed. You can join me, too, by

Film

Slipstream Reviews #1: It Follows

I've wanted to do a film review comic for a long time. No time like the present. Enjoy this graphic look at the solid new horror film It Follows. See it in theaters if you can. It Follows definitely benefits from the intimacy and hypnotic power of the

Film

Horror Thursday: The ABCs of Death 2

I cannot say enough great things about The ABCs of Death 2. I was lukewarm on the first anthology because it felt like a half-boiled joke. This time around? The directors went for it. If something fails, it's a spectacular failure driven by genre preferences rather than, shall

Film

Horror Thursday: A Short Vision

How could an animated short with art this beautiful be a horror film? What if I told you it was made a few years after the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and showed what happens when flesh meets nuclear weapons? Full review over at Man, I Love Films.

Announcements

ETC: Trip Mix by Robert Gannon

Good news, everyone. I published a new short story on Amazon. It's called "ETC: Trip Mix" and it's paranoid psychological horror. Technically, it's a short story I started writing a few years ago when my OCD was the absolute worst. It was