The Red Giallo Antics of Days’ Eve

Published August 4, 2020 by biggayhorrorfan

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Sporting a giallo red dress, her form surrounded by pure white lighting while an offscreen wind machine ruffled her hair dramatically, Days of Our Lives perennial bad girl Eve Donovan made her grand re-entrance on the daytime scene this past week.

Determined to stop reformed serial killer Ben Weston (subtly intense Robert Scott Wilson) from finding happiness on his wedding day to refreshingly honest heroine Ciara Brady (the forever spunky Victoria Konefal) , Donovan deployed a bomb as a distraction tactic (just as the ceremony completed) and whisked the former compulsive murderer off to a mysterious warehouse lair. Eve Solo Red

As portrayer Kassie DePaiva notes in a recent interview, Eve has “definitely gone off the deep end!” Of course, this is not surprising if one charts the series of misguided love affairs, false accusations and general bad luck that have plagued this character during the prime of her run on the show. Add in the fact that during his long-ago reign of terror, Ben claimed Eve’s sweet daughter Paige as one of his victims and you have a Molotov cocktail of intense motivation happening here. Now Eve is determined to brainwash Ben into murdering his new wife, allowing him to liberally partake in the intense pain that she herself feels over the loss of her greatest love, her one and only child.

Of course, as the mechanics of this revenge-soaked plot play out one truly hopes that the atmosphere will remain saturated in the glow of the European revenge horror films that it is already nicely imitating.

One thing will remain certain, though. DePaiva, who has always immersed herself into the mindset of every character that she plays, will compel and entrance….and possibly find herself with an Emmy nomination for her work – a feat that would bring her total nods for her efforts with this role up to three.

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For further information on Days/DePaiva, be sure to check out https://www.facebook.com/daysofourlives & https://www.facebook.com/kassie.depaiva.

Until the next time, SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan!

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Who Killed the Homecoming Queen?

Published April 4, 2019 by biggayhorrorfan

One of my fondest memories of high school – yes, I do have one or two! – was when Kristin, my very blonde and pretty senior prom date, wore the same dress as the very nasty, slightly dog faced class president. I wasn’t very popular (and that moment may have made me even more of a pariah to some) but Kristin definitely won the “Who Wore It Better” poll that night.

The amazing Count the Clock Productions show another, more vicious way to teen victory with the Giallo shaded music video, Who Killed the Homecoming Queen? here. As always, their visual style radiates with LGBTQIA friendly potency and Euro-tinged delight.

Be sure to keep up with all of their cutting edge work at https://www.facebook.com/counttheclock/.

Until the next time, SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan!

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Horror Mash-Up: Fay Wray and Farley Granger

Published March 23, 2019 by biggayhorrorfan

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As with many superstars, Mary Astor and Constance Bennett among them, King Kong’s expressive Fay Wray found herself playing mothers of grown daughters onscreen far too soon. Nicely, Wray finds plenty of moments to bring a sense of charm and joy to her Mrs. Gordon Kimbell – no first name given!!! – in the 1953 MGM musical Small Town Girl.

Mothering musical sensation Jane Powell as she romances Farley Granger’s society playboy (while simultaneously wrangling her way through the rest of her loved one’s strong personalities), Wray is able to show moments of exasperated tenderness over her brood’s foibles and eccentricities while providing evidence that she is the force that keeps her family on the right track. Small Farley

Terror celebrants, meanwhile, will be pleased to see Wray, whose other horror credits include Doctor X and Mystery in the Wax Museum, share a scene or two with Granger. Granger, who proves here that he was one of the most striking presences in the Golden Age of Hollywood, is well known for his work in Hitchcock’s homoerotic masterpieces, Rope and Strangers on a Train. Besides that amazing contribution to the legacy of dark cinema, this eclectic specimen appeared in a variety of Giallo enterprises (So Sweet, So Dead, Something Creeping in the Dark, What Have They Done to Your Daughters?) and enlivened the beloved 1981 slasher The Prowler, which is highlighted by Tom Savini’s gruesome effects work.

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Until the next time, SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan!

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Review: Printsploitation 3

Published February 24, 2018 by biggayhorrorfan

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If one needs evidence of the diversity of the horror fan, they have to look no further than the latest issue of Printsploitation magazine. A combination of a comic book, fine art publication and a more traditional genre magazine, this brain child of artist Scott Miller, features drawings from a number of influential indie genre artists devoted to various decades of terror cinema.

Nicely, in the third volume, the glorious black and white artwork is balanced out by a terrific article on the posters of ‘80s sexploitation flicks (and fun reviews of the films themselves) by Heavy Metal Movies author Mike “McBeardo” McPadden and a celebration of acclaimed yet obscure VHS box artist CW Taylor by Dr. Jose.

The art, itself, is an amazing display of eclectic interests and themes. From Don England’s take on Peter Cushing to Putrid’s detailed reimagining of the (much maligned) 1979 monster film Prophecy, this volume has surprises on every page. Favorites here include Corrine Halbert’s darkly innocent take on Michael from the epically trashy Euro horror Burial Ground and the beautiful rendered power profiles of such icons as Susan Tyrell, Debbie Rochon and William Girdler by Klon J. Waldrip.

Capped off by Halbert’s hypnotically quirky take on 1962 indie masterpiece Carnival of Souls on the cover, this beautiful tribute is a must have in the collection of any serious fan of the scare scene.

Printsploitation Issue No. 3 is available for purchase from

www.corinnehalbert.com and

http://printsploitation.bigcartel.com/.

Until the next time, SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan!

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Hell of a Gal: Rings of Fear

Published March 23, 2017 by biggayhorrorfan

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(Hell of a Gal explores the films of the ever luscious Euro Vixen Helga Liné.)

The radiant Helga Liné has over 130 credits on her resume. If all of the alternative titles of Rings of Fear, a mid career giallo, were counted among those credentials, she would have quite a number more. Known, alternatively, as Red Rings of Fear (or Enigma Rosso), Trauma and Virgin Terror, this final entry in an unofficial Italian film series known as the Schoolgirl Trilogy, also found Liné portraying a totally sympathetic character, something that she was rarely given a chance to do.

As Mrs. Russo, the anguished mother of the film’s first victim, Liné is given just a couple scenes here, but she provides plenty of understated sorrow and maternal strife in them. She also shares a nice connection with fellow Euro superstars Fabio Testi (What Have They Done to Solange, Four of the Apocalypse), as the detective investigating the case, and Nicoletta Elmi (Deep Red, Demons), who plays her youngest, incredibly inquisitive daughter. In fact, her best moments come as she, thoughtfully and quietly, answers Testi’s Di Salvo as he questions her after the funeral of her eldest child. Nicely, she gives these moments a disconnected quality, as well, nodding to her character’s expected melancholy.

The rest of the picture focuses on the unusual friendship that develops between Testi and Elmi as they try to discover what happened to her sister. Bolstered by such genre regulars as Ivan Desny, (Franco favorite) Jack Taylor and Christine Kauffman (Murders in the Rue Morgue), whose kleptomaniac character simply decides to leave Di Salvo halfway through the film, this slow burner is redeemed by an ending with several twists. Director Alberto Negrin also provides some interesting moments like the one where the off-kilter Di Salvo physically threatens Taylor’s smarmy shop owner on a roller coaster.

Helga VK 1 Granted, the world probably didn’t need another sleazy film about underage prostitutes being done in by sweaty superiors, but the sight of the exquisite Liné, for even a very short period of time, is always a good reason to let some greasy celluloid settle like red dust around your sagging viewing chair.

Until the next time – SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan

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Review: Honey

Published November 25, 2016 by biggayhorrorfan

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Is there such a thing as domestic bliss? Well, when you are brilliant artist-cartoonist Corinne Halbert there is!

Honey, Halbert’s latest comic details the adventures of the world’s happiest couple. Who cares if one of them just happens to be dead? And…well…rotting?!? Often hilarious, completely twisted and surprisingly sweet, this work just might prove to be Halbert, known for the savagely cool Hate Baby, at her best.

Imbued with her love of horror and the sexually bizarre (or is that normal?), Honey is available for purchase from Halbert at http://corinnehalbert.bigcartel.com/

Until the next time – SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan!

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Hell of a Gal: Death Will Have Your Eyes

Published July 25, 2016 by biggayhorrorfan

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(Hell of a Gal explores the exceptionally European film career of the always glorious Helga Liné.)

Sometimes a bra is tossed, irretrievably, away…and sometimes friends are ignored. Sigh. Support is just not appreciated on occasion.

The glorious Helga Liné learned this first hand in 1974 Euro trash fest Death Will Have Your Eyes. As Yvonne, the saucy best friend of Marissa Mell’s adulterous Louisa, Liné finds her honest council ignored – with murderous consequences. Of course, at first, these two ravishing beauties play nice and Liné brings a wearied friendliness to the table as Yvonne helps Louisa establish herself. helga 2

Fortified, Louisa soon marries an older, upscale doctor (Farley Granger) whose idea of a good time is reciting poetry into a recording machine. Bored, Louisa begins an affair with Stefano (Riccardo Salvino), a colleague of her husband’s. Murdering her husband in order to be with Stefano, Louisa is soon ensnared in the clutches of an all seeing blackmailer and, despite a desperate call to Yvonne, ends up falling further into self-destructiveness.

Mell, known for such films as Danger: Diabolik and The Mad Dog Killer, is just as ravishing as Liné here and one would like to think that this duo could have gone onto create even more continental mayhem if the goddesses of cinema had looked (even more) kindly upon them.

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Until the next time – SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan!

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