Independent Horror

All posts tagged Independent Horror

Review: TerrorTales. 2013 (VHS)

Published November 6, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

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Possessed, soul zapping guitar strings…Dog kicking mummies!

Yes, Screaming Like Banshees’ VHS based anthology wonder is delightfully gritty, oft times inventive NO BUDGET Wisconsin terror FUN!!! The mini-mini shorts, here, come off like humorous experiments between friends (Let’s see what this make-up looks like on film! Cool!!) -BUT the Flesh Eating Fog segment is hilariously gory and extremely creative while The Christmas Mummy sequence is plain brilliance with a smart beginning, hysterically nasty middle and a haunting, mist shrouded ending.

Carolyn Baker and crew are doing some truly awesome “Lets Put on a Show” stuff, here, and Mickey ‘n Judy are bloody jealous, yo!!!

Check it at http://www.screaminglikebanshees.com!

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

http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan

Author Spotlight: Adrian Lilly

Published November 1, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

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Many things have landed at my door, lately. On Monday, the arthritic vampire from the down the hallway paused by my apartment to compose himself – and then couldn’t move an inch for three days! Yesterday, I went to grab a Pomegranate Rip-It, my life blood, at the convenience store in the lobby and tripped over the remains of Hilda, one of the lesbian prostitute nuns who raised me. (Oh, those tangled, blood stained maternal coils!) Thankfully, exquisite author Adrian Lilly is luckier than I. His latest novel is titled The Wolf at His Door and it sounds like a scintillating wonder. Proving that point, Lilly, recently, joined me in a lively chat about his woolly literary pursuits and his love of horror.

BGHF: Hey, Adrian! Let’s do a more interesting take on Maria Van Trapp – and start at the very beginning! What first got you interested in horror?

Adrian: My first horror story was a brutal, little story about a family getting murdered; I wrote that in the first grade. Later, in a computer programming class in middle school, my friends and I programmed a choose-your-own adventure horror/murder game, where the character’s sister went mad and was killing everyone. In short, I’ve always loved horror. Starting when I was really little, my mom and I would stay up and watch all the classic horror on the late, late show — Beyond the Door, Exorcist, The Shining, less-than-memorable Hammer films, and many others.

BGHF: Cool! So, was it always your intention to be a writer or did you just fall into it?

Adrian: I’ve always been a reader and a writer. I love both. I briefly detoured in college when I planned to be a marine biologist. Then, about half-way through college, I switched to creative writing. I’ve never looked back.

BGHF: That could be dangerous in a slasher flick! Are werewolves your favorite creatures?

Adrian: I’m a sucker for werewolf horror but not just the I-just-changed-into-a-lame-wolf werewolves. I really love the half-human monsters—The Howling, American Werewolf in London and the like. Okay, so I actually also love zombies, vampires, and just crazy beasts, too. I pretty much like all monsters.

BGHF: I love them all, too. Well, expect for the ones I wind up dating, of course!! Can you tell us about The Wolf at His Door? And – What is your take on gay themed horror in movies and literature? I, myself, almost prefer films and books that contain strong queer characters as opposed to works that are completely gay oriented. (They often seem to apply to the lowest common denominator and focus on sex. I don’t think throwing some blood on a former porn star and calling it a horror film really qualifies.)
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Adrian: The Wolf at His Door is your everyday world—people like your friends and neighbors—thrust into a maelstrom of lycanthropic horror. The Runes family is at the center of the novel, with secrets of their own, that threaten to destroy them. As the body count rises, Alec Rune begins to suspect his new boyfriend, Jared, may know more about the werewolves than he’s admitting; only adding to the tension.

In The Wolf at His Door, I more fully explore the spectrum of sexuality, with gay, straight, and bisexual love/sex scenes. I try to create a world that more closely approximates the one we live in. As an author, I don’t ignore that the gay characters have straight family members and friends. So, for me, it’s important to create a world that isn’t only inhabited by a narrow definition of gay.

BGHF: Brilliant! Are you working on anything else, currently, that you would like us to know about?

Adrian: I’m the type who works on a few things at once. The second book in The Runes Trilogy, The Wolf in His Arms, will be out in early 2014. I’m also working on a series called The BlackBird Mysteries. Daniel Black and Pete Bird, the main characters, have no choice but to work together to solve supernatural mysteries, despite not liking each other very much (or at least despite the crazy sexual tension). There’s a good deal of camp in these, so they’re a little lighter than most of my work. The first in the series is called Last Will and (De)testament. If anyone wants to know more, they can follow me on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/adrianwlilly – friend me on Goodreads (there are a number of reader reviews there) or find me on Google+. I’m completely open to questions, so that would be cool.

BGHF: Awesome! Thanks, Adrian!

You can purchase The Wolf at His Door for a mere $3.99 at Amazon, as well!:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_0_11?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=wolf+at+his+door&sprefix=wolf+at+his%2Cnull%2C322

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

http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan

M is for Mime Time!

Published October 30, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

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If Whitney Houston had really known what she was doing she would have sung “One Moment in Mime” all those years ago. (Oh, well! Blame it on Bobby Brown!)

Prolific filmmaker John Borowski (Albert Fish, Carl Panzram, H.H. Holmes), gets where it’s at, though, because his very fun entry in the ABC’s of Death 2 competition is M is for Mime Time.

You can check out his entry and vote for it until November 14th, 2013, below.

http://26th.abcsofdeathpart2.com/entry/m-is-for-mime-time/

Big Gay Horror Fan, meanwhile, is always worshipping kick-ass actresses named Beka at http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan!

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

Jason Coffman’s Still

Published October 25, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

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Granted, I am blind to a lot of stuff – including criticism. (Although, I did get it, recently, when one online commentator called me a “dork” and another called me the “worst interviewer ever” re: my Danielle Harris video interview! Y–OUCH!!!)

But, the heroine of Jason Coffman’s latest thriller Still has got it really bad. After an attack, she discovers she is suffering from a rare condition called akinetopsia, or motion blindness. The complications from that are sure to be riskily adventurous as described in Coffman’s passionate Kickstarter campaign.

Coffman whom has already graced the independent cinematic landscape with such (shorter) offerings as Tape and The Gamma-Ray Man is sure to use every cent generated to create something truly unique and enjoyable.

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

http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan

Countdown to Carrie: Janet Lockwood as Cassandra Dregstone, “Terror at Baxter U”

Published October 17, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

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(The Carrie remake will be upon us on October 18th– thus we celebrate the strong women in horror, science fiction and exploitation with Countdown to Carrie!)

It can be rough being a woman in horror and exploitation. Take the Brides of Fu Manchu in The Brides of Fu Manchu, for instance. Prime focus of the film, they are, yet not one actress portraying a bride receives billing in the opening credits. Bum rap!!

terrorJanet Lockwood, who was the director of the Michigan Film Office from 1992 – 2010, makes up for previous femme negations in exploitation with her portrayal of the powerful, often nasty Cassandra Dregstone in 2003’s low budget (multi-pack orphan) Terror at Baxter U, though. In a film that features an idiotically murderous janitor and a monstrous chupacabra, Dregstone is by far the scariest thing on display. Whether cutting down errant students, scheming behind the backs of bumbling professor types or engaging in ancient ceremonies, Lockwood’s Dregstone steals the show, here, proving that even in overacted, micro-budget terror, women can rule the roost!

Until the next time, continue to worship at the altar of volatile women in horror – and

SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan

http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan

Red Clark’s Gray Matter!

Published October 15, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

gray matter

Oh, if I only had a brain! I’ve sung that to myself so many times that I’ve felt like a small town queer stuck caught in a community theater production of The Wizard of Oz, Sisyphus-style!

But who needs brains when they can experience the terror of Gray Matter?!? This stunning short film is an adaptation of a Stephen King story – and inventive filmmaker Red Clark tells me he only used practical effects (based on some amazing concept designs by Tom A. Denney)! Viva, au natural, baby!!

Check out the gooey, first look trailer, here!:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upABTiaSCO0

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

http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan

Deborah Dutch Saves the World as the Hollywood Warrioress!

Published October 2, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

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Whenever I wake up, bloodied and dangling from a cliff, wearing only my Miley Cyrus underwear, I often wonder why there isn’t someone around to help me out! Well, count my worries as being over, for amazing genre icon Deborah Dutch (Hard to Die, Sorority Girls and the Creature from Hell, Graduation Day) has created the heroine to end all heroines, the Hollywood Warrioress.

Long a dream project of the vibrant Dutch, this action-fantasy flick (with heart) has recently completed filming. The generous Dutch has begun sharing clips from the project and, here, are a couple scenarios to whet your appetite:

Be sure to check back often for more on Dutch and the Hollywood Warrioress.

And, as always, Big Gay Horror Fan is fawning over the female legends of scream at http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan!

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

Now, That’s One Bloody Sacrament!

Published October 1, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

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Oh, the lesbian prostitute nuns who raised me might not like this at all! But, as we live to defy our parents, I have to give full props to director-writer Shawn Ewert and his latest film Sacrament.

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Sacrament, which exploits its hick horror vibe to maximum potential by featuring Texas Chainsaw Massacre veterans Marilyn Burns and Ed Guinn, concerns a gay couple and their friends whom encounter a group of backwoods, murderous religious freaks. Add a tagline stating “Sinners 4 Dinner” to the mix and this project ends up sounding like a delicious dose of independent horror, no?

The unconvinced can check out the trailer, here:

Further information can be obtained at http://www.sinners4dinner.com and http://www.facebook.com/sacramentfilm!

Big Gay Horror Fan, meanwhile, is always eating Christians at http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan.

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

Review: Crinoline Head & Generation Ax

Published September 24, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

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If John Waters was born a couple decades later and got his start in independent horror, the result might have been something like Tommy Faircloth’s 1995 low budget feature, Crinoline Head.
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Featuring a killer who slices his way through the cast with a skirt on his head, a demented transsexual as the roadside portent of doom, plenty of sexual ambiguity among the victims and (an eventual)death by celery, Crinoline Head is a fun homage to the slashers of the ‘80s.

Recently released for the first time on DVD, this critic’s darling is highlighted by a brilliantly bonkers performance from Tracy Powlas (pictured above) as sorority happy Jenny. Powlas recites her lines in an exaggerated sing-song all while continually squirming, skipping and bouncing her way through the film! And that is no simple “Whatever,” my fiends! For while the other cast members (including Billie Fontanez as the ‘athletic’ Cathy and Brian Kelly as the intellectual outcast) offer up some finely understated moments, this is truly Powlas’ ecstatic, elastic show!

generation axSix years later, the determined Faircloth returned to the terror playground with the enjoyable Generation Ax (2001). Here, he merges the Tarantino-esque antics of such popular 90’s adventures as Kalifornia, Natural Born Killers and True Romance into the horror mix by concentrating on a high school couple (nicely played by Brian Kelly and Marina Morgan) whom forge a bond over episodes of murderous bloodlust. As they off everyone from cruel cheerleaders to obnoxious theater employees, the film significantly connects due to the fact that every (formerly) awkward viewer can put themselves in the main couple’s shoes. Who hasn’t imagined causing harm to those that have bullied them?

Just as in Crinoline Head, even the most inexperienced performers have a certain charm here and it is a blast to watch future fitness guru Jennifer Peluso (memorable for her super fun turn in the Debbie Rochon starring anthology flick Hellblock 13) prance through the flick as awkward cheerleading wannabe Leslie.

Despite an ending that, while tying into the excellent opening scene, feels a bit abrupt, Generation Ax, like Crinoline Head before it, can count itself among the better low budget indie horror flicks.

To find more about Crinoline Head and Generation Ax, please visit http://www.horsecreekproductions.com and http://www.facebook.com/horsecreekproductions.

Big Gay Horror Fan, meanwhile, is always throwing damp dishcloths on his head at http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan.

Until the next time – SWEET love and pink GRUE!

Wish Upon A Scream Queen!

Published September 11, 2013 by biggayhorrorfan

Some may count the stars when they look up at the heavens. Big Gay Horror Fan, though, imagines the skies are full of brightly screaming independent horror divas!

Here, I was lucky enough to interview two adorable, up and coming mistresses of terror – Stephanie Leigh Rose (Don’t Go to the Reunion, Desperate Dolls) and Rhiann Owen (Chop Shop).

Enjoy!

Until the next time – SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan (www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan)!