Category: Horror

“The Walking Dead: Dead City” – Season 1 (2023) starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan & Lauren Cohan / Z-View

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The Walking Dead: Dead City – Season 1 (2023)

Written by: Eli Jorné (eps. 1-2, 4, 6); Keith Staskiewicz (ep.3); Brenna Kouf (ep. 5)

Directed by: Loren Yaconelli (eps. 1-2); Kevin Dowling (eps. 3-4); Gandja Monteiro (eps. 5-6)

Stars: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Lauren Cohan, Gaius Charles, Mahina Napoleon, Zeljko Ivanek, Logan Kim, Jonathan Higginbotham, Karina Ortiz, Michael Anthony, David Chen and Lisa Emery

Tagline: Keep Your Enemies Close

The Plot…

Maggie’s son, Hershel, has been taken hostage by a sadist known as “The Croat”.  The Croat was an enforcer for Negan, when Negan led The Saviors. So Maggie recruits Negan to go with her to Manhattan to rescue Hershel.  Negan agrees on the condition that Maggie’s group give Ginny, a young orphaned girl, refuge.

Maggie and Negan head to Manhattan unaware that three Marshalls are tracking Negan who is wanted for murder.  Because of their past history, Maggie and Negan’s partnership is uneasy at best.  Add in the complications of the Marshalls, New York City full of zombies, dangerous survivalist groups, plus the sadistic Croat with plans of his own… let the fun begin!

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

The Walking Dead: Dead City – Season 1 clocks in with just six episodes, which is a smart move.  I think all of the Walking Dead spin-offs should come up with a story to tell and get to it,

I wasn’t too sure about the pairing of Negan and Maggie.  Maggie’s hate for Negan should override every reason for her to be around, much less work with him for a common goal.  Then the writer’s came up with a plausible reason… to save her son.  I liked how Negan put his murdering her husband back on Maggie when he asked her “How many husbands have you killed?”  Maggie also got to see how Negan using over-the-top “theatrics” when murdering a person kept a group from attacking them.  Well played, writers.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Laura Cohen are two of the most popular Walking Dead characters.  They have the star power to carry the series.  Zeljko Ivanek plays The Croat with zeal.  Gaius Charles as the Marshall is an interesting character that I believe will be come more important in season two.  Lisa (Ozark) Emery is a welcome addition to the cast. She was mean in Ozark and now she’s mean and creepy.

Bring on Season 2.

The Walking Dead: Dead City – Season 1 (2023) earns 4 of 5 stars.

“Bloodthrist” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

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Bloodthrist has the look and feel of a drive-in movie.  And who doesn’t like a good drive-in movie once in a while?

Lionsgate’s BLOOTHIRST, starring Costas Mandylor, Tara Reid and Robert LaSardo, will be available on digital and on demand on October 31. After the apocalypse, only two tribes remain: desperate humans and the roving vampires that feed on them. Across the desolate West, John Shepard (Costas Mandylor, Saw IV) seeks the aging head vampire, hoping to destroy him and free mankind. But when Shepard and his posse of native sons and farmer’s daughters joins forces with a local militia, they learn that they’re closer to the Master than they think…

George Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead” Alt Print by Paul Mann!

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Paul Mann, Bottleneck Gallery and Image Ten have teamed to create a new alt poster for George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead.  There are three variants of this limited edition print.  All are 24×36 and hand-numbered.  You can see a bigger version of this one as well as the green and blue variants by clicking here. (You can even get one if supplies last.)

Mike Flannigan’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” – The Trailer is Here!

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She’s coming for them all.
In this wicked series from Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House) and based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe, ruthless siblings Roderick and Madeline Usher have built Fortunato Pharmaceuticals into an empire of wealth, privilege and power. But past secrets come to light when the heirs to the Usher dynasty start dying at the hands of a mysterious woman from their youth.

“Mr. Sardonicus” (1961) / Z-View

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Mr. Sardonicus (1961)

Director: William Castle

Screenplay: Ray Russell

Stars: Oscar Homolka, Ronald Lewis, Audrey Dalton, Guy Rolfe and William Castle.

Tagline:  YOU decide the fate of Mr. Sardonicus during the “Punishment Poll”! Vote “mercy” or “no mercy” right in your theatre seat!

The Plot…

The year is 1880.  Sir Robert Cargrave (Lewis), a world famous physician gets a letter from Maude (Dalton), his former lover.  She requests that he come meet with her husband in a matter of great importance.  Because Cargrave still has feelings for Maude he goes.

Her husband is the rich and feared  Baron Sardonicus (Rolfe).  Upon arrival at Castle Sardonicus, Cargrave is greeted by Krull (Homolka), Sardonicus’ disfigured servant.  When he meets Maude, she says that if Cargrave cannot cure her husband, Baron Sardonicus will take it out on her!  Baron Sardonicus enters the room so she cannot say more.  Cargrave is shocked to see that Sardonicus wears a mask.

We learn that Baron Sardonicus’ face is hideously disfigured.  Sardonicus expects Dr. Cargrave to cure him.  If he doesn’t then Maude will be “punished”.  As Dr. Cargrave decides his next move, he learns that as deformed as Sardoniscus’ face is, his sadistic behaviors are even worse.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)

William Castle, the King of Movie Gimmicks, came up with a winner.  Before the start of the film, William Castle tells the audience that the cards they were given on entry will decide the ending of the film.  Before the last scene, Castle will return to tell the audience to hold up cards with glow-in-the-dark thumbs.  Sardoniscus will either be given “mercy” or not depending on how the majority of the audience votes. Thumbs up equals mercy.  Thumbs down, no mercy.   Truth be told, there was only one ending – no mercy.

Most William Castle films focus on horror and jump scares.  Mr. Sardonicus places emphasis on suspense.

Mr. Sardonicus (1961) rates 3 of 5 stars.

“Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” starring Kurt Russell & Wyatt Russell – The Trailer is Here!

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The trailer looks cool.  Add in Kurt and Wyatt Russell and I’m sold.  Deal me in!

When monsters emerge, secrets follow. Monarch: Legacy of Monsters premieres November 17 on Apple TV+ https://apple.co/_Monarch

Following the thunderous battle between Godzilla and the Titans that leveled San Francisco, and the shocking revelation that monsters are real, “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” tracks two siblings following in their father’s footsteps to uncover their family’s connection to the secretive organization known as Monarch. Clues lead them into the world of monsters and ultimately down the rabbit hole to Army Officer Lee Shaw (played by Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell), taking place in the 1950s and half a century later where Monarch is threatened by what Shaw knows. The dramatic saga — spanning three generations — reveals buried secrets and the ways that epic, earth-shattering events can reverberate through our lives.

“Vindicta” – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

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The poster doesn’t do much for me, but the trailer has my attention!

DIRECTED BY: Sean McNamara
STORY BY: Steven Paul
SCREENPLAY BY: Ian Neligh
STARRING: Elena Kampouris, Sean Astin and Jeremy Piven
EXECUTIVE PRODUCED BY: Scott Karol and Charles Cooper
PRODUCED BY: Steven Paul

About Vindicta: When a city is terrorized by a sadistic serial killer, a seasoned detective and a newly recruited paramedic are forced into a deadly game of vengeance, only to discover the key to stopping the bloodshed lies in unlocking the truth of their own haunted pasts. Elena Kampouris (Children of the Corn), Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings franchise), and Jeremy Piven (Entourage) star in this edge-of-your-seat thriller from the director of On a Wing and a Prayer.

Things Have Been Coming Up “Kolchak” Lately!

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Things have been coming up Kolchak around here lately.  I recently saw the above Kolchak art on Facebook.  It brought back memories of the two Kolchak tv movies, The Night Stalker and The Night Strangler from when I was a kid in junior high.  Great memories.

I decided to find out more about the art.  Turns out it was the cover for KOLCHAK: The Night Strangler Files.  The tv movie was written by Richard Matheson. Chris Mills (writer) and Amin Amat (artist) adapted it into the graphic novel.  I’m not sure who the cover artist is, but I sure do like that art.

Then Svengoolie announced that he would be getting the two Kolchak movies in the near future.  THAT is awesome news.

And that’s your Kolchak update for the day.

A TROLL WALKS INTO A BAR: A Noir Urban Fantasy Novel (Alexander Southerland, P.I.) by Douglas Lumsden

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I usually like my crime fiction to be hardboiled and realistic.  Well, as realistic as hardboiled fiction usually is.  Still, sometimes it’s fun to venture off into some crazier territory. A TROLL WALKS INTO A BAR: A Noir Urban Fantasy Novel (Alexander Southerland, P.I.) by Douglas Lumsden looks to fit the bill.

When a troll speaks–listen up! Hardboiled P.I. Alexander Southerland just wants to enjoy a quiet drink when a 500-pound troll walks into the bar. Next thing he knows, Southerland is navigating his way through rogue cops, a gang war, beautiful nymphs from the ocean depths, a were-rat, the mayor’s corrupt fixer, the sleaziest (and cleverest) gnome in Yerba City, and creatures right out of legend. At the center of it all is a mysterious locked box. Can Southerland discover its explosive secret–and survive long enough to pay his rent on time?

I read the Amazon sample and liked what I saw.  Check it out.  You may as well.

“65” (2023) starring Adam Driver & Ariana Greenblatt / Z-View

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65 (2023)

Directors: Scott Beck, Bryan Woods

Screenplay: Scott Beck, Bryan Woods

Stars: Adam Driver, Ariana Greenblatt, Chloe Coleman and Nika King.

Tagline:  65 million years ago prehistoric earth had a visitor.

The Plot…

Mills (Driver) accepts a job to pilot a deep space ship for three times his normal pay.  He needs the money to pay for treatment for a potentially fatal illness his daughter has.  When Mills’ ship is knocked off course by meteors, it crash lands on Earth 65 million years ago.

Mills and a nine year old girl, Kona (Greenblatt) are the sole survivors.  The have a small shot at getting home.  One of the ship’s escape pods is located 15 kilometers away.  To get to it they will have to cross an unforgiving environment full of carnivorous dinosaurs, poisonous plants and bugs, quicksand, landslides and more.  The Earth 65 million years ago is a dangerous place.  Oh, and Mills just learned that the main meteor in the ring his ship went through is due to hit earth in 12 hours… and that meteor is a planet-killer.  The clock is ticking.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)

Reviewers haven’t been kind to 65.  I was pleasantly surprised that it resonated with me much more than most.  It caused me to jump more than a couple of times.

Unlike many films of this nature, when the lead character is injured, he just shakes it off.  In 65, Mills’ injuries appear painful and take their toll.

While 65 features a happy ending, it’s as Rocky Balboa might say, “Not all sunshine and roses.”  If it had been, maybe reviewers would have enjoyed it more.

65 (2023) rates 3 of 5 stars.