The Days of Rental Have Gone

So I was actually going to write a post of movie decades and whilst researching, it made me remember how I used to choose horrors at the video store (long before the days of Netflix and Amazon prime)  in the little town I grew up we had a little video rental store called Forward Video.

 Friday nights were the days we could choose and this was all by the cover, the artwork was incredible and I appreciate it so much more now.

The 1950s to early 90s had some of the best video tape covers for horrors. After all, that was the first thing you saw. So here is my list of video tape covers.

When Will Hollywood Discover Richard Laymon?

I'm not gonna lie. I was never a big book reader, my yearly average was pretty much one a year, if that. I know, it's shameful. But, over the past couple of years something clicked and I've been on a book binge ever since.

I've read most of Stephen King's catalog, nearly all but finished Thomis Harris', delved into Dean Koontz, took a few reads from Clive Barker and James Herbert, and most recently I've been into Richard Laymon.

Now most of these authors have become household names, and I'm sure many of you discovered most through their film adaptations rather than their literature, and that's me all over.

Watched all the films but never though to read the source material until recently. But, one thing that has stood out is that I can't find a single adaptation of any of Laymon's books, not one. Why is that? Why won't anyone touch his work? I take a look within.

Weird and Wonderful or Just Weird?

A friend recently reminded me of a little independent horror called Rubber, it's about a killer tyre named Robert which has telekinesis and goes on a rolling killing rampage to anything and anyone who stands in its way.

It had me think that it was one of the weirdest horrors that I had seen and I started listing other weird and wonderful horrors so what better place than to list them here.

Here are five of my favourite weird and wonderful horror movies.

Better Grab the Garlic....

As it's the 32nd anniversary of The Lost boys, I thought I would list my favourite vampire movies.

Schools Out for Summer - A Look at 'Scream'

As it's summer break here in England, I thought I'd take a look at my favourite horror movie set in a school.

 The film in question is Scream, directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson. 

Top Ten Scenes That Stayed with Me

Following on from my favourite quotes I thought I would take a look at 10 disturbing or shocking scenes that have stayed with me.

1) Alien, 1979

Chest burst scene.

This scene was such an iconic scene in Alien, I think it set the stage for the Alien franchise, it definitely plays on the fear of having foreign bodies/parasites taking over the body.  John Hurt as Kane was incredible, the fear in his eyes really hit me first. This is one of the scenes in sci-horror that will go down in history.

Top 10 Songs Made Sinister by Horror Films

Music in horror films have always been awesome. We have had some truly tremendous scores created for some of the most greatest horror movies of all time, just look at Halloween, Psycho, A Nightmare On Elm Street etc., as soon as you hear that jingle, beat, note, it automatically takes you back to that scary movie.

But what about innocent songs? You know, songs that weren't specifically created for the movie in question, in stead a choice was made to include such a song for a certain scene and for some bizarre reason it just fits, it just makes sense. In some cases it even makes the film even more frightening, as some of these songs are from happier times, but suddenly they are transported into the unknown and all bets are off.

So I've come up with a list of songs that I thought fit perfectly into horror films perfectly, even though they shouldn't

Famous Lines - Top 8 Horror Movie Quotes

As Chris recently posted an article on horror movie taglines, it had me thinking about some of my favourite quotes in horror.

Here are some of my favourite horror movie quotes;

1) Hellraiser (1987)

Pinhead~ "No tears please it's a waste of good suffering"

Top Ten Horror Movie Taglines

So the other day I was looking through my DVDs deciding which one to watch, so I picked out the original The Last House on The Left and there it was, the tagline “To Avoid fainting, keep repeating ‘It’s only a movie…It’s only a movie…” It’s so awesome. So it got me thinking what other great horror taglines are out there? So I racked the old memory banks to bring you my top 10. These are the ones that I thought were either awesome, made me laugh out loud, or was just straight to the point.

I could have went on forever as there are absolutely thousands of awesome taglines out there and I kept questioning myself if I have chosen the right ones, but, you can never get the perfect list, so here's some that I enjoyed....

10 Terrifying British Public Information Films

I don't watch TV as often as I used to, so I can't tell you if Public Information Films are still be played, if they're maybe they're just in cinemas or maybe that's stopped too? Either way, I remember way back in the day that there used to be a different PIF (Public Information Film) every other week, maybe even every other day.

If you're unaware what a PIF is, it's the UK equivalent of the USA's PSA (Public Service Announcement). They're a series of government-commissioned short films that were (maybe still are) shown during advert/commercial breaks. And I have to tell you, some of these were absolutely terrifying, and I guess that's the point. 

So, within, I have selected ten of these films (in no particular order) which I think perfectly did their job in terrifying their audience into paying attention to the message displayed, as well as leaving many youngsters, me included, with vivid nightmares since.

When Toys Go Bad - A Look at Killer Dolls

With the Child's Play remake now playing in cinemas, I thought it would be a good time to revisit two of my favourite murderous toy movies in depth with you, starting with one of the most well known killer dolls, Chucky.

Chucky and Child's Play goes all the way back to 1988 and has firmly cemented itself as a certified legend in the horror genre and we wouldn't have it any other way.

So, make your way within and check out my in-depth look at two of my favorite murderous dolls.

Disturbing Horror Films Etched in My Mind

It's always tough to do a "Top 10" list or something along those lines. Everyone is different, we have different tastes. We aren't going to agree on everything and that's fine. So I decided I'd share with you a list of films which have left a mark on me, in one way or another. These films, for me, are the ones that sometimes send a shiver done my spine, helping me remember some of my favorite disturbing moments.

At first I was planning on doing a massive list with the likes of Cannibal Holocaust, A Serbian Film, August Underground, Murder-Set-Pieces, Salo and the likes, but then I got around to thinking that while these were disturbing, they didn't quite leave a mark on me, so I narrowed it down to to the following six films.

It definitely wasn't easy by any means, but this is a list of films that have disturbed me in a way that I just can’t stop thinking about them. Now, I know this list will probably be different from yours, so I urge you to share your list in the comments below. For now, welcome to my 6 Disturbing Films Etched in my Mind.

Where Have the Horror Cartoons Gone?

I think as time winds on we often get a little nostalgic. For me though, it doesn't take much to trigger a fond memory of days gone by, you’d think I’d have a case of those “Member berries” from South Park lying around with the amount I procrastinate about the good ol’ days. It's probably not too healthy reminiscing on days gone by, but what the heck.

So, as many of you may know, I have a son, he's two. We watch all kinds of stuff from Blippi to Duggee and everything in between and that's fine. But as he gets older I'm looking to branch out to other cartoons, and sadly, I'm having a hard time finding something remotely like the stuff we used to have. So, where have the horror cartoons gone?

When Chucky "Invaded" WCW

Oh 1998, how we miss you. Bruce Willis' Armageddon was dueling with Deep Impact in cinemas while Titanic was completely dominating any and all competition, Europe agreed on the single currency the Euro, and the WWF and WCW was at the height of the Monday Night Wars.

But, there was something just as poignant happening as well. The fourth entry in the Child's Play series, Bride of Chucky, was gearing up for its release and that sucker, Chucky, was getting everywhere, including the world of professional wrestling. So, with the Child's Play reboot hitting cinemas this Friday, the 20th June, I thought it was the perfect time to take a peek at when Chucky invaded WCW.

19th June 1987. I Will Never Forget

I will never forget that on June 19th 1987
22 years ago, earth passed through the tail of rogue comet Rhea-M.

Which started the chain of homicidal machines, including an ice cream van, lawn mower and even a steam roller.

Of course I am talking about Stephen King's cult classic, Maximum Overdrive.

Who could forget Emilio Estevez' turn as unlikely hero. Or the ring leader of the trucks, the Green Goblin look alike.

This movie has been cemented in my life as one of the fantastically awesome, yet bizarre horrors. I will always remember the Cans shooting out of the vending machine, and the awesome soundtrack by AC-DC.

Thank you Stephen king for being such a legend.

In Defence of 'Jaws: The Revenge'

For years I heard that Joseph Sargent’s Jaws: The Revenge is one of the worst movies ever made. It has made countless “Worst Of” lists, received a slew of negative reviews such as, “Jaws: The Revenge may very well be the dullest and most pointless sequel ever made.” [Common Sense Media] and “This film is one of the most egregious belly-flops in recent cinema.” [Empire].

This is just an example of the slew of negative reviews that Jaws: The Revenge has received. But is it really that bad? Welcome to my In Defense of Jaws: The Revenge.

Transforming into the Beast

One of my favourite horror genres is movie monsters particularly Werewolves or otherwise known as the Lycanthrope. With this in mind I wanted to share my favourite scenes with you all, this is just my opinion and I welcome any thoughts and or ideas.

Tash. 🙂

In Defense of 'Howard the Duck'

Oh man. I don't know what I've got myself into, but here goes. Yes, it's the infamous and critically panned 1986 film Howard the Duck from director Willard Huyck, and I'm here to tell you that, well, it's not as bad as you may think or even remember, it's actually a really fun movie that deserves at least a second chance, I mean, c'mon, just look at Howard's innocent eyes with his duck-like... Well, human-like eyelids... I'm not sure I'm ready for this, but here goes.

Has Lara still got it?

I have been a gamer for as long as I can remember, started out on the NES, played the classics such as Megaman, Super Mario and Castlevania.

It wasn't until Playstation released the female Indiana Jones~ Lara Croft A.K.A Tomb Raider I then realised how much gaming meant to me. The intricate puzzles paired with combat. Was a match made in heaven to me.

I must admit I was very apprehensive when a reboot was in the mix and due to be released in 2013.

I was pleasantly surprised, Lara was now a younger female on her journey to becoming the Tomb Raider. Puzzles were more intense and combat increased with an option to "purchase" new skills.

Fast forward to 2018 The long awaited Shadow of the Tomb Raider was released and my oh my, it didn't let me down, it had a darker theme, notes of horror, even a few jump scares. I was always a Tomb Raider fan, and I am pleased to say that my journey with Lara has definitely not ended yet.

Women in Horror: Melantha Blackthorne

As you guys are aware there is a movement that is happening within the horror genre which started way back in 2009 I believe. Since then, in the month of February, women within the genre have been celebrated for their work and basically giving them the recognition they deserve, pointing out that the genre isn't just for the guys.

Now you are probably think, "But it isn't February, aren't you a little late?" Well, I tend to not follow "rules" and what not and both men and women should be celebrated all year long for their contributions, whether it's the horror genre or any profession. So, I'm hoping to be doing an ongoing editorial where I will be looking at some up and coming men and women in the genre, as well as already established stars and simply trying to spread the word of who they're and what they've done.

This time around, the spotlight is on not only an awesome actress, a bodacious female but also a very good friend of mine, well, I'd like to think she is. So, without further-ado let me introduce to you, Melantha Blackthorne.