“Love is stronger than death… even than life.”
Twenty-five years before Bram Stoker revolutionized the world of horror with his iconic novel Dracula, another sensual vampire was drifting into the moonlit bedchambers of society’s upper crust. First appearing in a 1871 edition of the literary magazine The Dark Blue, Carmilla, a.k.a. Mircalla, Countess Karnstein, preys upon unsuspecting young women in the crumbling castles of the Austrian countryside. Despite never gaining the ubiquity of Stoker’s dark antagonist, Sheridan Le Fanu’s gothic novella Carmilla is one of the world’s first examples of vampiric literature and helped to establish the archetype of the lesbian vampire. Belgian director Harry Kümel combines this foundational text with the true story of Hungarian serial killer Elizabeth Báthory to create another sinister seductress in his 1971 erotic horror film Daughters of Darkness.
Newlyweds Stefan (John Karlen) and Valerie (Danielle Ouimet) are still enjoying the...
Twenty-five years before Bram Stoker revolutionized the world of horror with his iconic novel Dracula, another sensual vampire was drifting into the moonlit bedchambers of society’s upper crust. First appearing in a 1871 edition of the literary magazine The Dark Blue, Carmilla, a.k.a. Mircalla, Countess Karnstein, preys upon unsuspecting young women in the crumbling castles of the Austrian countryside. Despite never gaining the ubiquity of Stoker’s dark antagonist, Sheridan Le Fanu’s gothic novella Carmilla is one of the world’s first examples of vampiric literature and helped to establish the archetype of the lesbian vampire. Belgian director Harry Kümel combines this foundational text with the true story of Hungarian serial killer Elizabeth Báthory to create another sinister seductress in his 1971 erotic horror film Daughters of Darkness.
Newlyweds Stefan (John Karlen) and Valerie (Danielle Ouimet) are still enjoying the...
- 1/11/2024
- by Jenn Adams
- bloody-disgusting.com
Clockwise from top left: Bram Stoker’s Dracula (Sony), Dracula (Universal), Only Lovers Left Alive (Sony), The Hunger (MGM/UA), Nosferatu The Vampyre (Shout Factory), Nosferatu (Kino Lorber) Graphic: AVClub
The vampire is cinema’s favorite monster. Ever since Nosferatu more than a century ago, bloodsuckers of every conceivable persuasion...
The vampire is cinema’s favorite monster. Ever since Nosferatu more than a century ago, bloodsuckers of every conceivable persuasion...
- 10/17/2023
- by Matthew Jackson
- avclub.com
Click here to read the full article.
The Oldenburg Film Festival, Germany’s leading fest for independent cinema, has announced its 2022 lineup.
The 29th Oldenburg Festival will kick off Sept. 14 with The Ordinaries, the first feature from German director Sophie Linnenbaum. The meta tragicomedy stars Fine Sendel as Paula, a simple Supporting Character in a repressive three class-society where there are Main Characters, Supporting Characters and the untouchable Outtakes. The Ordinaries premiered at the Munich festival this year, winning Linnebaum and her production team the German Cinema New Talent Award.
Also screening at Oldenburg this year will be Lola Quivoron’s Rodeo, which premiered in Cannes, Colin West’s SXSW sci-fi comedy Linoleum starring Jim Gaffigan and Better Caul Saul‘s Rhea Seehorn; TIFF 2022 title The Gravity from French director Cédric Ido; Andrea Bagney’s Spanish drama Ramona, which prmiered in Karlovy Vary this year; and Jean-Paul Civeyrac’s A Woman...
The Oldenburg Film Festival, Germany’s leading fest for independent cinema, has announced its 2022 lineup.
The 29th Oldenburg Festival will kick off Sept. 14 with The Ordinaries, the first feature from German director Sophie Linnenbaum. The meta tragicomedy stars Fine Sendel as Paula, a simple Supporting Character in a repressive three class-society where there are Main Characters, Supporting Characters and the untouchable Outtakes. The Ordinaries premiered at the Munich festival this year, winning Linnebaum and her production team the German Cinema New Talent Award.
Also screening at Oldenburg this year will be Lola Quivoron’s Rodeo, which premiered in Cannes, Colin West’s SXSW sci-fi comedy Linoleum starring Jim Gaffigan and Better Caul Saul‘s Rhea Seehorn; TIFF 2022 title The Gravity from French director Cédric Ido; Andrea Bagney’s Spanish drama Ramona, which prmiered in Karlovy Vary this year; and Jean-Paul Civeyrac’s A Woman...
- 9/2/2022
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Lea Mysius’s ‘The Five Devils’ will open the festival, which runs July 1-9.
Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival, one of Europe’s leading fantasy festivals, has announced its full programme today (16 June).
The festival will open with the international premiere of The Five Devils by Léa Mysius, while the closing film is Sun Haipeng’s animated feature I Am What I Am.
This is the first edition under Pierre-Yves Walder, who took up the post of general and artistic director last July after 11 years as part of the Nifff programming team. The competition jury is to be headed by US author Joyce Carol Oates,...
Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival, one of Europe’s leading fantasy festivals, has announced its full programme today (16 June).
The festival will open with the international premiere of The Five Devils by Léa Mysius, while the closing film is Sun Haipeng’s animated feature I Am What I Am.
This is the first edition under Pierre-Yves Walder, who took up the post of general and artistic director last July after 11 years as part of the Nifff programming team. The competition jury is to be headed by US author Joyce Carol Oates,...
- 6/16/2022
- by Geoffrey Macnab
- ScreenDaily
No two ways about it: April’s a great month for the Criterion Channel, which (among other things; more in a second) adds two recent favorites. We’re thrilled at the SVOD premiere of Hamaguchi’s entrancing Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy, our #3 of 2021, and Bruno Dumont’s lacerating France, featuring Léa Seydoux’s finest performance yet.
Ethan Hawke’s Adventures in Moviegoing runs the gamut from Eagle Pennell’s Last Night at the Alamo to 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, while a 14-film John Ford retro (mostly) skips westerns altogether. And no notes on the Delphine Seyrig retro—multiple by Akerman, Ulrike Ottinger, Duras, a smattering of Buñuel, and Seyrig’s own film Be Pretty and Shut Up! That of all things might be the crown jewl.
See the full list of April titles below and more on the Criterion Channel.
—
3 Bad Men, John Ford, 1926
Aar paar, Guru Dutt,...
Ethan Hawke’s Adventures in Moviegoing runs the gamut from Eagle Pennell’s Last Night at the Alamo to 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, while a 14-film John Ford retro (mostly) skips westerns altogether. And no notes on the Delphine Seyrig retro—multiple by Akerman, Ulrike Ottinger, Duras, a smattering of Buñuel, and Seyrig’s own film Be Pretty and Shut Up! That of all things might be the crown jewl.
See the full list of April titles below and more on the Criterion Channel.
—
3 Bad Men, John Ford, 1926
Aar paar, Guru Dutt,...
- 3/25/2022
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Horror icon Barbara Crampton discusses a few of her favorite movies with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.
Show Notes:
Movies Referenced In This Episode
Re-Animator (1985)
Body Double (1984)
Jakob’s Wife (2021)
The Court Jester (1955) – John Landis’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings
The Adventures Of Robin Hood (1938)
The Three Musketeers (1974) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
The Matrix (1999)
Bound (1996)
Eyes Without A Face (1962) – Sam Hamm’s trailer commentary, Dennis Cozzalio’s review, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Halloween (1978) Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing, Alex Kirschenbaum’s film power rankings, Alex Kirschenbaum’s timeline power rankings
All About Eve (1950)
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Alien (1979) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings
Relic (2020)
Anything For Jackson (2020)
The Haunting (1963) – Dan Ireland’s trailer commentary
Strait-Jacket (1964) – David DeCoteau’s trailer commentary
The Silence Of The Lambs (1991) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary,...
Show Notes:
Movies Referenced In This Episode
Re-Animator (1985)
Body Double (1984)
Jakob’s Wife (2021)
The Court Jester (1955) – John Landis’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings
The Adventures Of Robin Hood (1938)
The Three Musketeers (1974) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
The Matrix (1999)
Bound (1996)
Eyes Without A Face (1962) – Sam Hamm’s trailer commentary, Dennis Cozzalio’s review, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Halloween (1978) Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing, Alex Kirschenbaum’s film power rankings, Alex Kirschenbaum’s timeline power rankings
All About Eve (1950)
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Alien (1979) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings
Relic (2020)
Anything For Jackson (2020)
The Haunting (1963) – Dan Ireland’s trailer commentary
Strait-Jacket (1964) – David DeCoteau’s trailer commentary
The Silence Of The Lambs (1991) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary,...
- 12/28/2021
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Sacrificing oneself for love is a too cute and too familiar interaction thrown in movies like strawberry jam. It is simple, ordinary, and expected. Romance in horror films, however, is chaotic, bloody, and revolting. Horror and eroticism are an unexpected sweetness, so go ahead and serve that with your morning toast. Monsters have indulged in romance with mortals as we have seen in The Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) to more recent movies like The Shape of Water (2017). It’s a classic story about a beautiful woman and a hideous beast, but even cinema changed the familiar storyline.
The 1970s opened an endless coffin of vampire films about love, sexuality, and the survival of the fittest. Open relationships, casual sex, gender fluid romances, and bloodthirsty villains painted the theater towns crimson red. The decade brought light to cultural issues that never seemed to be reflected on the mirrors of prior vampire films.
The 1970s opened an endless coffin of vampire films about love, sexuality, and the survival of the fittest. Open relationships, casual sex, gender fluid romances, and bloodthirsty villains painted the theater towns crimson red. The decade brought light to cultural issues that never seemed to be reflected on the mirrors of prior vampire films.
- 11/5/2021
- by Leticia Lopez
- DailyDead
Finally, a horror shocker that needs to make no excuses! Harry Kümel’s interpretation of the Elizabeth Báthory legend excels in all departments and succeeds in each of its aims. Erotic Eurohorror meets Sternbergian visual decadence, making a vivid (and bloody) statement about classic screen exoticism. Given the full glamour treatment, silky Delphine Seyrig is striking as the deceptively congenial vampire queen. It’s a rare throwback to the beginnings of erotic Eurohorror — sex and death, together again! Blue Underground takes the leap to 4K Ultra HD and stacks the extras with key interview content, and a soundtrack CD.
Daughters of Darkness
Ultra-hd + Blu-ray + CD
Blue Underground
1971 / Color / 1:66 widescreen / 100 min. / Le Rouge aux Lèvres, Les Lèvres Rouges Street Date October 27, 2020 / 59.95
Starring: Delphine Seyrig, John Karlen, Danielle Ouimet, Andrea Rau, Paul Esser.
Cinematography: Eduard van der Enden
Film Editors: Denis Bonan, Gust Verschueren
Original Music: François de Roubaix
Written by Pierre Drouot,...
Daughters of Darkness
Ultra-hd + Blu-ray + CD
Blue Underground
1971 / Color / 1:66 widescreen / 100 min. / Le Rouge aux Lèvres, Les Lèvres Rouges Street Date October 27, 2020 / 59.95
Starring: Delphine Seyrig, John Karlen, Danielle Ouimet, Andrea Rau, Paul Esser.
Cinematography: Eduard van der Enden
Film Editors: Denis Bonan, Gust Verschueren
Original Music: François de Roubaix
Written by Pierre Drouot,...
- 11/3/2020
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
With Halloween approaching quickly, we have one final round of home media releases headed our way this week in case you’re looking to pick up some last-minute films to check out this spooky season. Blue Underground is releasing Daughters of Darkness in 4K this Tuesday, and Severin Films is keeping busy with an array of titles, including The Black Cat, Patrick Still Lives, and Shock Treatment.
Vinegar Syndrome also has quite the lineup of films coming home this week, including Grave Robbers, Memorial Valley Massacre, Zombie 5: Killing Birds, and several Amityville sequels. Arrow Video is also showing some love to both Cold Light of Day and The Last Starfighter, and if you’re a big fan of The Monster Squad, you’ll definitely want to check out the Wolfman’s Got Nards documentary.
Other releases for October 27th include Scary Tales, Spine Chiller, Weedjies: Halloweed Night, Attack of the Unknown,...
Vinegar Syndrome also has quite the lineup of films coming home this week, including Grave Robbers, Memorial Valley Massacre, Zombie 5: Killing Birds, and several Amityville sequels. Arrow Video is also showing some love to both Cold Light of Day and The Last Starfighter, and if you’re a big fan of The Monster Squad, you’ll definitely want to check out the Wolfman’s Got Nards documentary.
Other releases for October 27th include Scary Tales, Spine Chiller, Weedjies: Halloweed Night, Attack of the Unknown,...
- 10/26/2020
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
“Love is stronger than death… even than life.”
Limited Collector’s Edition of Daughters Of Darkness includes 4K Uhd Blu-ray, Blu-ray, Soundtrack CD, collectable booklet, reversible sleeve, and 3D lenticular slipcover (First Pressing). Blu-ray features 1080p HD Resolution and DTS-hd Master Audio Uhd features 2160p Ultra HD Resolution and Dolby Vision Hdr, with Dolby Atmos and DTS-hd Master Audio. Check out this trailer for the restoration:
International screen icon Delphine Seyrig (Last Year At Marienbad) stars as Elizabeth Bathory, an ageless Countess with a beautiful young ‘companion’ (Goth goddess Andrea Rau) and a legendary legacy of perversion. But when the two women seduce a troubled newlywed couple (Canadian beauty Danielle Ouimet and John Karlen of Dark Shadows and Cagney & Lacey), they unleash a frenzy of sudden violence and depraved desire that shocked both art house audiences and grindhouse crowds worldwide.
Co-written and directed by Harry Kümel, Daughters Of Darkness remains...
Limited Collector’s Edition of Daughters Of Darkness includes 4K Uhd Blu-ray, Blu-ray, Soundtrack CD, collectable booklet, reversible sleeve, and 3D lenticular slipcover (First Pressing). Blu-ray features 1080p HD Resolution and DTS-hd Master Audio Uhd features 2160p Ultra HD Resolution and Dolby Vision Hdr, with Dolby Atmos and DTS-hd Master Audio. Check out this trailer for the restoration:
International screen icon Delphine Seyrig (Last Year At Marienbad) stars as Elizabeth Bathory, an ageless Countess with a beautiful young ‘companion’ (Goth goddess Andrea Rau) and a legendary legacy of perversion. But when the two women seduce a troubled newlywed couple (Canadian beauty Danielle Ouimet and John Karlen of Dark Shadows and Cagney & Lacey), they unleash a frenzy of sudden violence and depraved desire that shocked both art house audiences and grindhouse crowds worldwide.
Co-written and directed by Harry Kümel, Daughters Of Darkness remains...
- 10/5/2020
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
It’s a great time to be a horror fan. Not only are Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and Shudder awash with all kinds of horror movies old and new, but the Criterion Channel is getting in on the gruesome action with a month’s worth of horror titles from the 1970s.
The subscription service is the digital offshoot of the Criterion Collection, which for more than 35 years has been providing definitive archival home video versions of classic and contemporary films from around the world. Criterion launched its streaming service last year as a way to offer a curated cross-section of its library of films online.
Horror has always had a respectful home at Criterion, with the company publishing definitive editions of a number of the genre’s landmark films. The October rollout of horror movies for the Halloween season is similar to what other companies are doing, but the focus is the difference here.
The subscription service is the digital offshoot of the Criterion Collection, which for more than 35 years has been providing definitive archival home video versions of classic and contemporary films from around the world. Criterion launched its streaming service last year as a way to offer a curated cross-section of its library of films online.
Horror has always had a respectful home at Criterion, with the company publishing definitive editions of a number of the genre’s landmark films. The October rollout of horror movies for the Halloween season is similar to what other companies are doing, but the focus is the difference here.
- 10/1/2020
- by Don Kaye
- Den of Geek
The Criterion Channel’s stellar offerings are continuing next month with a selection of new releases, retrospective, series, and more. Leading the pack is, of course, a horror lineup perfectly timed for Halloween, featuring ’70s classics and underseen gems, including Abel Ferrara’s The Driller Killer (pictured above), Tobe Hopper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, early films by David Cronenberg, Wes Craven, and Brian De Palma, Bill Gunn’s Ganja & Hess, and more.
Also of note is a New Korean Cinema retrospective, featuring a new introduction by critic Grady Hendrix and a conversation between directors Bong Joon Ho and Park Chan-wook, whose Barking Dogs Never Bite, The Host, Mother, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, and Lady Vengeance are part of the lineup, as well as Lee Myung-se’s Nowhere to Hide, and more titles to be announced. Bong’s short Influenza will also arrive, paired with Michael Haneke’s Caché.
Also of note is a New Korean Cinema retrospective, featuring a new introduction by critic Grady Hendrix and a conversation between directors Bong Joon Ho and Park Chan-wook, whose Barking Dogs Never Bite, The Host, Mother, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, and Lady Vengeance are part of the lineup, as well as Lee Myung-se’s Nowhere to Hide, and more titles to be announced. Bong’s short Influenza will also arrive, paired with Michael Haneke’s Caché.
- 9/29/2020
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
In addition to their 4K Ultra HD releases of movies such as Lucio Fulci's Zombie and William Lustig's Maniac, Blue Underground has announced that they're bringing Harry Kümel's 1971 vampire film Daughters of Darkness to 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray this year as well.
Special features and a specific release date have yet to be announced for the 4K Ultra HD release of Daughters of Darkness, but according to Blue Underground's Twitter account and Blu-ray.com, it is slated for a fall release.
You can view the official cover art (via Twitter) and synopsis (via Blu-ray.com) below, and stay tuned to Daily Dead for more updates.
Synopsis: " International screen icon Delphine Seyrig (Last Year at Marienbad) stars as Elizabeth Bathory, an ageless Countess with a beautiful young "companion" (Goth goddess Andrea Rau) and a legendary legacy of perversion. But when the two women seduce a troubled newlywed couple...
Special features and a specific release date have yet to be announced for the 4K Ultra HD release of Daughters of Darkness, but according to Blue Underground's Twitter account and Blu-ray.com, it is slated for a fall release.
You can view the official cover art (via Twitter) and synopsis (via Blu-ray.com) below, and stay tuned to Daily Dead for more updates.
Synopsis: " International screen icon Delphine Seyrig (Last Year at Marienbad) stars as Elizabeth Bathory, an ageless Countess with a beautiful young "companion" (Goth goddess Andrea Rau) and a legendary legacy of perversion. But when the two women seduce a troubled newlywed couple...
- 6/11/2020
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Moose and Dean are coming to you all day this Halloween Wednesday, the best day of the year, with a marathon of epic proportions. Some of Sam and Dean's most fright-filled Supernatural episodes will play throughout the day on TNT, but if you just can't wait, check out the Supernatural marathon video. Also: Horror-Rama 2018's new event poster revealed and three exclusive photos for Mass Hysteria.
Watch TNT's Supernatural All-Day Marathon Video: "This Halloween, TNT is bringing fans spooks, chills and thrills with an all-day
Supernatural marathon, starting at 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., spanning four seasons of the most terrifying episodes from the fan-favorite series. From hauntings to ghosts, zombies and even Bloody Mary, TNT is your destination for getting into the Halloween spirit.
In the series, Sam Winchester (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) lost their mother to a mysterious and demonic supernatural force twenty-six years ago.
Watch TNT's Supernatural All-Day Marathon Video: "This Halloween, TNT is bringing fans spooks, chills and thrills with an all-day
Supernatural marathon, starting at 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., spanning four seasons of the most terrifying episodes from the fan-favorite series. From hauntings to ghosts, zombies and even Bloody Mary, TNT is your destination for getting into the Halloween spirit.
In the series, Sam Winchester (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) lost their mother to a mysterious and demonic supernatural force twenty-six years ago.
- 10/29/2018
- by Tamika Jones
- DailyDead
From their "Hammer's House of Horror" screenings to their 21-movie Mario Bava spotlight, New York's Quad Cinema has been an essential source for celebrating the horror genre's past, and they will continue to do just that this October with a massive retrospective series celebrating filmmaker Jean Rollin, as well as a complementary set of screenings highlighting some of horror's most memorable female vampires.
Read on for full details on Quad Cinema's Jean Rollin Retrospective (kicking off on October 18th) and "A Woman's Bite: Cinema’s Sapphic Vampires" (beginning October 26th) and be sure to visit their official website for more information!
"Jean Rollin Retrospective + Sapphic Vampires
October 18-November 1
This October the Quad salutes the lurid eroticism of Jean Rollin with a retrospective including Fascination, Requiem for a Vampire, and Lips of Blood
Plus a survey of sapphic vampire films indebted to his aesthetic with titles including The Hunger, Lust for a Vampire,...
Read on for full details on Quad Cinema's Jean Rollin Retrospective (kicking off on October 18th) and "A Woman's Bite: Cinema’s Sapphic Vampires" (beginning October 26th) and be sure to visit their official website for more information!
"Jean Rollin Retrospective + Sapphic Vampires
October 18-November 1
This October the Quad salutes the lurid eroticism of Jean Rollin with a retrospective including Fascination, Requiem for a Vampire, and Lips of Blood
Plus a survey of sapphic vampire films indebted to his aesthetic with titles including The Hunger, Lust for a Vampire,...
- 10/15/2018
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
When isn't it cool to see Dee Wallace, Louis Del Grande, Martha Gibson, Richard Band, Linnea Quigley, Lynn Lowry, and Ghoulish Gary Pullin? Well, those in the Toronto area are in luck, because Horror-Rama Toronto has all of those guests and more this November! Also: Fandor's list of movies to stream for Halloween, Fathom Spotlight's Twilight theatrical screenings, ZombieCON's La Comic Con premiere details, and Ithaca Fantastik 2018's final lineup.
Horror-Rama Toronto 2018 Guests Announced: "Get ready to blow yer brains out, Toronto! Horror-rama - Toronto's Only straight-up Horror and Cult Movie culture convention - is coming back for its Fifth and Freakiest year!
Special guests announced thus far are The Howling and Cujo legend Dee Wallace, Scanners, Seeing Things and Of Unknown Origin star Louis Del Grande, Re-animator and From Beyond composer Richard Band (in his first Canadian appearance), Return Of The Living Dead icon Linnea Quigley, artist Ghoulish Gary Pullin (Rue Morgue.
Horror-Rama Toronto 2018 Guests Announced: "Get ready to blow yer brains out, Toronto! Horror-rama - Toronto's Only straight-up Horror and Cult Movie culture convention - is coming back for its Fifth and Freakiest year!
Special guests announced thus far are The Howling and Cujo legend Dee Wallace, Scanners, Seeing Things and Of Unknown Origin star Louis Del Grande, Re-animator and From Beyond composer Richard Band (in his first Canadian appearance), Return Of The Living Dead icon Linnea Quigley, artist Ghoulish Gary Pullin (Rue Morgue.
- 10/12/2018
- by Tamika Jones
- DailyDead
The Bloodthirsty Trilogy
Blu ray
Arrow Films
1970 – 1974 /2:35 / Street Date May 22, 2018
Starring Yukiko Kobayashi, Chôei Takahashi, Toshio Kurosawa
Cinematography by Kazutami Hara, Rokurô Nishigaki
Written by Ei Ogawa, Hiroshi Nagano
Directed by Michio Yamamoto
Hell-raising vampires invade the normally serene confines of Japanese cinema in three elegant 70’s shockers directed by Michio Yamamoto. Joining far-flung contemporaries like Jean Rollin, Harry Kümel and Stephanie Rothman, Yamamoto’s trilogy helped rejuvenate a genre always hungry for fresh blood.
In 1970’s The Vampire Doll, a restless spirit’s killing spree is the product of a tragic family secret – a storyline out of a Ross Hunter weepy with arterial spray taking the place of tears.
In search of her wayward brother and his girlfriend, Keiko arrives at a lonely country home only to find the sibling gone and his fiancee Yuko dead. Yuko’s saturnine mother is unusually tight-lipped about the circumstances surrounding her...
Blu ray
Arrow Films
1970 – 1974 /2:35 / Street Date May 22, 2018
Starring Yukiko Kobayashi, Chôei Takahashi, Toshio Kurosawa
Cinematography by Kazutami Hara, Rokurô Nishigaki
Written by Ei Ogawa, Hiroshi Nagano
Directed by Michio Yamamoto
Hell-raising vampires invade the normally serene confines of Japanese cinema in three elegant 70’s shockers directed by Michio Yamamoto. Joining far-flung contemporaries like Jean Rollin, Harry Kümel and Stephanie Rothman, Yamamoto’s trilogy helped rejuvenate a genre always hungry for fresh blood.
In 1970’s The Vampire Doll, a restless spirit’s killing spree is the product of a tragic family secret – a storyline out of a Ross Hunter weepy with arterial spray taking the place of tears.
In search of her wayward brother and his girlfriend, Keiko arrives at a lonely country home only to find the sibling gone and his fiancee Yuko dead. Yuko’s saturnine mother is unusually tight-lipped about the circumstances surrounding her...
- 5/19/2018
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
No jokes about fish and visitors please — Agnieszka Smoczyńska’s horror fantasy musical is indeed about delectable creatures from the deep, but these particular mythical misses have their own agenda, and woe to the man who trifles with their affections. What’s today’s catch? A Polish phantasmagoria seemingly teleported from the glitzy 1980s.
The Lure
Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 896
2015 / Color / 2:39 widescreen / 92 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date October 10, 2017 / 39.95
Starring: Kinga Preis, Michalina Olszańska, Marta Mazurek, Jakub Gierszał, Andrzej Konopka, Zygmunt Malanowicz, Marcin Kowalczyk.
Cinematography: Kuba Kijowski
Film Editor: Jarosław Kamiński
Production Design: Joanna Macha
Costume: Katarzyna Lewińska
Special Effects makeup: Tomasz Matraszek
Choreography: Kaya Kołodziejczyk and Jarosław Staniek
Original Music and Lyrics: Barbara Wrońska and Zuzanna Wrońska
Written by Robert Bolesto
Produced by Włodzimierz Niderhaus
Directed by Agnieszka Smoczyńska
I’m normally an easy mark for bizarre genre-bending horror fare. I also like musicals of all sorts,...
The Lure
Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 896
2015 / Color / 2:39 widescreen / 92 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date October 10, 2017 / 39.95
Starring: Kinga Preis, Michalina Olszańska, Marta Mazurek, Jakub Gierszał, Andrzej Konopka, Zygmunt Malanowicz, Marcin Kowalczyk.
Cinematography: Kuba Kijowski
Film Editor: Jarosław Kamiński
Production Design: Joanna Macha
Costume: Katarzyna Lewińska
Special Effects makeup: Tomasz Matraszek
Choreography: Kaya Kołodziejczyk and Jarosław Staniek
Original Music and Lyrics: Barbara Wrońska and Zuzanna Wrońska
Written by Robert Bolesto
Produced by Włodzimierz Niderhaus
Directed by Agnieszka Smoczyńska
I’m normally an easy mark for bizarre genre-bending horror fare. I also like musicals of all sorts,...
- 10/7/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
If you’re a cult/exploitation fan, you’re no doubt well acquainted with Harry Kümel’s 1971 cult classic Daughters of Darkness, which featured lesbian vampires aplenty! Screen Daily reports that four decades later, Kümel is finally revamping and plotting a sequel. Details… Continue Reading →
The post Daughters of Darkness Getting a Sequel! Lesbian Vampires Suck Again! appeared first on Dread Central.
The post Daughters of Darkness Getting a Sequel! Lesbian Vampires Suck Again! appeared first on Dread Central.
- 5/22/2017
- by Steve Barton
- DreadCentral.com
Exclusive: Director revisiting his 70s cult horror.
Harry Kümel’s cult classic Daughters Of Darkness (1971) was one of the cult lesbian vampire films of the 1970s.
Now, more than 40 years later, Kümel is revamping and plotting a sequel.
Details of the new feature, Mothers Of Darkness, were revealed by producer Tomas Leyers of Brussels-based Minds Meet, the art-house company best known for such titles as Little Baby Jesus Flandr and Lost Persons Area.
“He (Kümel) came to me with several projects. I read all of them and one of them was the first draft of the script for Mothers Of Darkness… it sparked the fire immediately to work on this project,” Leyers said.
A new version of the script is now finished and the filmmakers are talking to international cast for the English-language project, which is slated to shoot in the summer of 2018.
“It’s the world of Harry, of course, gorgeous women and...
Harry Kümel’s cult classic Daughters Of Darkness (1971) was one of the cult lesbian vampire films of the 1970s.
Now, more than 40 years later, Kümel is revamping and plotting a sequel.
Details of the new feature, Mothers Of Darkness, were revealed by producer Tomas Leyers of Brussels-based Minds Meet, the art-house company best known for such titles as Little Baby Jesus Flandr and Lost Persons Area.
“He (Kümel) came to me with several projects. I read all of them and one of them was the first draft of the script for Mothers Of Darkness… it sparked the fire immediately to work on this project,” Leyers said.
A new version of the script is now finished and the filmmakers are talking to international cast for the English-language project, which is slated to shoot in the summer of 2018.
“It’s the world of Harry, of course, gorgeous women and...
- 5/21/2017
- by geoffrey@macnab.demon.co.uk (Geoffrey Macnab)
- ScreenDaily
Savant UK correspondent Lee Broughton analyzes one of his favorite pictures starring Stacy Keach, who seemed to make only cult items in the '70s and '80s. William Peter Blatty dishes out a thick mix of comedy and dark soul-searching about the human condition as a Caligari- insane asylum, but with new twists. The Ninth Configuration Second Sight Region B Blu-ray 1980 / Colour / 2.35:1 enhanced widescreen / 118 m. / available through Amazon.uk Starring Stacy Keach, Scott Wilson, Jason Miller, Ed Flanders, Neville Brand, George Dicenzo, Moses Gunn, Robert Loggia, Joe Spinell, Tom Atkins. Cinematography Gerry Fisher Production Design William Malley Film Editors Peter Taylor, T. Battle Davis, Roberto Silvi, Peter Lee-Thompson Original Music Barry DeVorzon Written, Produced and Directed by William Peter Blatty from his novel
Reviewed by Lee Broughton
(Note: Savant reviews as a guest at Tfh. Here I stretch my prerogatives by presenting a review from Lee Broughton, a valued U.
Reviewed by Lee Broughton
(Note: Savant reviews as a guest at Tfh. Here I stretch my prerogatives by presenting a review from Lee Broughton, a valued U.
- 6/26/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Special mention: Häxan
Directed by Benjamin Christensen
Denmark / Sweden, 1922
Genre: Documentary
Häxan (a.k.a The Witches or Witchcraft Through The Ages) is a 1922 silent documentary about the history of witchcraft, told in a variety of styles, from illustrated slideshows to dramatized reenactments of alleged real-life events. Written and directed by Benjamin Christensen, and based partly on Christensen’s study of the Malleus Maleficarum, Häxan is a fine examination of how superstition and the misunderstanding of mental illness could lead to the hysteria of the witch-hunts. At the time, it was the most expensive Scandinavian film ever made, costing nearly 2 million Swedish krona. Although it won acclaim in Denmark and Sweden, the film was banned in the United States and heavily censored in other countries for what were considered, at that time, graphic depictions of torture, nudity, and sexual perversion. Depending on which version you’re watching, the commentary is...
Directed by Benjamin Christensen
Denmark / Sweden, 1922
Genre: Documentary
Häxan (a.k.a The Witches or Witchcraft Through The Ages) is a 1922 silent documentary about the history of witchcraft, told in a variety of styles, from illustrated slideshows to dramatized reenactments of alleged real-life events. Written and directed by Benjamin Christensen, and based partly on Christensen’s study of the Malleus Maleficarum, Häxan is a fine examination of how superstition and the misunderstanding of mental illness could lead to the hysteria of the witch-hunts. At the time, it was the most expensive Scandinavian film ever made, costing nearly 2 million Swedish krona. Although it won acclaim in Denmark and Sweden, the film was banned in the United States and heavily censored in other countries for what were considered, at that time, graphic depictions of torture, nudity, and sexual perversion. Depending on which version you’re watching, the commentary is...
- 10/27/2015
- by Ricky Fernandes
- SoundOnSight
After premiering at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, Peter Strickland‘s third feature The Duke of Burgundy went on to a limited theatrical release in January, 2015, though it ended up being a poor quarter chosen to unleash the film. Like Strickland’s previous features, Katalin Varga (still without distribution in the Us) and Berberian Sound Studio, his latest was in need of more innovative marketing strategies in order to reach an appreciative audience, though it should hopefully amass a growing field of devotees now that it’s available for home viewing.
Beginning like something that should have been called Exploits of a Chambermaid, replete with a fantastically sumptuous rendering of a vintage title sequence lifted right out of the 1970s, The Duke of Burgundy seduces us immediately. Much like his last film, the incredibly underrated Berberian Sound Studio, which was an homage to the giallo genre, his latest is a reconsideration of erotic exploitation cinema,...
Beginning like something that should have been called Exploits of a Chambermaid, replete with a fantastically sumptuous rendering of a vintage title sequence lifted right out of the 1970s, The Duke of Burgundy seduces us immediately. Much like his last film, the incredibly underrated Berberian Sound Studio, which was an homage to the giallo genre, his latest is a reconsideration of erotic exploitation cinema,...
- 9/29/2015
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
An amateur psychic investigator once told a friend of mine that the way to access the other dimensions around this one was to meditate upon the works of Lewis Carroll, Aleister Crowley, or the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Or to drink a lot of whisky and smoke a lot of dope.And it's a well-attested fact that hanging around people who are drunk or high can make you feel drunk or high too, even if you're abstinent.So it follows that the boundaries between this world and the mysterious others underlying it must have been considerably thinner in the seventies, since so many people were so messed up on assorted chemicals and herbs, and so many of them were reading the right kind of material, and the rest of the populace had to hang out with those weirdos.The Coming of Joachim Stiller (De komst van Joachim Stiller, 1976) was made...
- 6/11/2015
- by David Cairns
- MUBI
I love the movies, really, truly I do, I love the movies. Cinema, motion pictures, movies, film, whatever you want to label this peculiar art form that we all cherish here at We Are Movie Geeks, I have loved it ever since the first time I saw a movie on television, in a theater or at a drive-in. I wish I could recall the first movie I ever saw and what the medium was in which I saw it.
One of my earliest memories was the yearly showing of Wizard of Oz on television and my delight at seeing Judy Garland in a different movie, Pigskin Parade, and realizing that actors made a living by appearing in more than one movie or television series.
I can recall seeing Battle Beyond the Stars at the Pine Hill Drive-in in Piedmont, Missouri, one of the Russian space movies bought and re-edited by Roger Corman.
One of my earliest memories was the yearly showing of Wizard of Oz on television and my delight at seeing Judy Garland in a different movie, Pigskin Parade, and realizing that actors made a living by appearing in more than one movie or television series.
I can recall seeing Battle Beyond the Stars at the Pine Hill Drive-in in Piedmont, Missouri, one of the Russian space movies bought and re-edited by Roger Corman.
- 3/10/2015
- by Sam Moffitt
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The Body and the Whip: Strickland’s Sublime Homage to Erotic Cinema
Beginning like something that should have been called Exploits of a Chambermaid, replete with a fantastically sumptuous rendering of a vintage title sequence lifted right out of the 1970s, Peter Strickland’s The Duke of Burgundy seduces us immediately. Much like his last film, the incredibly underrated Berberian Sound Studio, which was an homage to the giallo genre, his latest is a reconsideration of erotic exploitation cinema, where names like Jesus Franco and Jean Rollin garnered a notable cult following. But considering such influences, Strickland’s title is hardly cheap, though one would be remiss to deny a certain air of tawdry sentiment.
Evelyn (Chiara D’Anna) is a newly hired housekeeper. Making her way to her new employer, a strict, unfriendly woman named Cynthia (Sidse Babett Knudsen), it seems they already have a tense relationship that may...
Beginning like something that should have been called Exploits of a Chambermaid, replete with a fantastically sumptuous rendering of a vintage title sequence lifted right out of the 1970s, Peter Strickland’s The Duke of Burgundy seduces us immediately. Much like his last film, the incredibly underrated Berberian Sound Studio, which was an homage to the giallo genre, his latest is a reconsideration of erotic exploitation cinema, where names like Jesus Franco and Jean Rollin garnered a notable cult following. But considering such influences, Strickland’s title is hardly cheap, though one would be remiss to deny a certain air of tawdry sentiment.
Evelyn (Chiara D’Anna) is a newly hired housekeeper. Making her way to her new employer, a strict, unfriendly woman named Cynthia (Sidse Babett Knudsen), it seems they already have a tense relationship that may...
- 1/21/2015
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Every year, we here at Sound On Sight celebrate the month of October with 31 Days of Horror; and every year, I update the list of my favourite horror films ever made. Last year, I released a list that included 150 picks. This year, I’ll be upgrading the list, making minor alterations, changing the rankings, adding new entries, and possibly removing a few titles. I’ve also decided to publish each post backwards this time for one reason: the new additions appear lower on my list, whereas my top 50 haven’t changed much, except for maybe in ranking. Enjoy!
****
Special Mention:
Shock Corridor
Written and directed by Samuel Fuller
USA, 1963
Shock Corridor stars Peter Breck as Johnny Barrett, an ambitious reporter who wants to expose the killer at the local insane asylum. To solve the case, he must pretend to be insane so they have him committed. Once in the asylum,...
****
Special Mention:
Shock Corridor
Written and directed by Samuel Fuller
USA, 1963
Shock Corridor stars Peter Breck as Johnny Barrett, an ambitious reporter who wants to expose the killer at the local insane asylum. To solve the case, he must pretend to be insane so they have him committed. Once in the asylum,...
- 10/28/2013
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
Interview James Peaty 30 May 2013 - 06:44
With his new film Byzantium out this week, Neil Jordan chats to us about vampire movies, and his career to date...
In a career spanning more than three decades, Irish writer and director Neil Jordan has created some unforgettable movies. Some, such as his adaptation of Angela Carter's The Company Of Wolves, or Mona Lisa, or The Crying Game, are cult classics.
His glossy 1994 vampire movie Interview With The Vampire was his biggest box-office hit to date, with its starry cast - including Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt - and the popularity of Anne Rice's source novels behind it.
Since then, Jordan's brought a varied range of movies to the screen, from thrillers (In Dreams, The Brave One, The Good Thief) to dramas (The End Of The Affair, Breakfast On Pluto).
Just under 20 years after Interview With The Vampire, Jordan's returned to...
With his new film Byzantium out this week, Neil Jordan chats to us about vampire movies, and his career to date...
In a career spanning more than three decades, Irish writer and director Neil Jordan has created some unforgettable movies. Some, such as his adaptation of Angela Carter's The Company Of Wolves, or Mona Lisa, or The Crying Game, are cult classics.
His glossy 1994 vampire movie Interview With The Vampire was his biggest box-office hit to date, with its starry cast - including Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt - and the popularity of Anne Rice's source novels behind it.
Since then, Jordan's brought a varied range of movies to the screen, from thrillers (In Dreams, The Brave One, The Good Thief) to dramas (The End Of The Affair, Breakfast On Pluto).
Just under 20 years after Interview With The Vampire, Jordan's returned to...
- 5/29/2013
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
Byzantium
Written by Moira Buffini
Directed by Neil Jordan
UK/USA/Ireland, 2012
Two female vampires holed up in a seaside town hotel; for certain savvy viewers, this distilled description of Byzantium’s premise may bring to mind Harry Kümel’s strange and sensual film Daughters of Darkness from 1971. Neil Jordan’s return to both horror and the bloodsucking is a much different beast, though.
Two centuries old soucouyants, Clara (Gemma Arterton) and her daughter Eleanor (Saoirse Ronan), are on the run from men of an ancient vampiric order, though Eleanor has never been made aware of others of their kind. Clara, stuck in rotating cycles of prostitution or burlesque employment since her pre-immortal days, works for money to help them get by, feeding on those unlikely to be missed; Eleanor, meanwhile, preys on elderly people who seem willing and ready to pass on. The two are able to manoeuvre during daylight,...
Written by Moira Buffini
Directed by Neil Jordan
UK/USA/Ireland, 2012
Two female vampires holed up in a seaside town hotel; for certain savvy viewers, this distilled description of Byzantium’s premise may bring to mind Harry Kümel’s strange and sensual film Daughters of Darkness from 1971. Neil Jordan’s return to both horror and the bloodsucking is a much different beast, though.
Two centuries old soucouyants, Clara (Gemma Arterton) and her daughter Eleanor (Saoirse Ronan), are on the run from men of an ancient vampiric order, though Eleanor has never been made aware of others of their kind. Clara, stuck in rotating cycles of prostitution or burlesque employment since her pre-immortal days, works for money to help them get by, feeding on those unlikely to be missed; Eleanor, meanwhile, preys on elderly people who seem willing and ready to pass on. The two are able to manoeuvre during daylight,...
- 2/27/2013
- by Josh Slater-Williams
- SoundOnSight
Kiss Of The Damned readily recalls the likes of Jean Rollin and Harry Kümel, imbuing vampires with a dripping sensuality, bloodthirst and European sensibility and style that's been lacking from recent bloodsucking fare. Thankfully, it's more than just homage as Cassavettes has a story to tell about familial conflict and the intensity of new love. I greatly enjoyed the movie and its ability to bring an exhilarating nature to its beautiful creatures and suspect many fans of the aforementioned Eurohorror will, too.
The film includes the stunning, stunning Josephine de la Baume and Rubber's Roxanne Mesquida, and sees beautiful vampire Djuna (Baume) try to resist the advances of the handsome, human screenwriter Paolo (Milo Ventimiglia), but eventually gives in to their passion. When her troublemaker sister Mimi (Mesquida) unexpectedly comes to visit, Djuna’s love story is threatened, and the whole vampire community becomes endangered...
Kiss Of The Damned is...
The film includes the stunning, stunning Josephine de la Baume and Rubber's Roxanne Mesquida, and sees beautiful vampire Djuna (Baume) try to resist the advances of the handsome, human screenwriter Paolo (Milo Ventimiglia), but eventually gives in to their passion. When her troublemaker sister Mimi (Mesquida) unexpectedly comes to visit, Djuna’s love story is threatened, and the whole vampire community becomes endangered...
Kiss Of The Damned is...
- 2/12/2013
- by samueldzimmerman@gmail.com (Samuel Zimmerman)
- Fangoria
Kiss Of The Damned readily recalls the likes of Jean Rollin and Harry Kümel, imbuing vampires with a dripping sensuality, bloodthirst and European sensibility and style that's been lacking from recent bloodsucking fare. Thankfully, it's more than just homage as Cassavettes has a story to tell about familial conflict and the intensity of new love. I greatly enjoyed the movie and its ability to bring an exhilarating nature to its beautiful creatures and suspect many fans of the aforementioned Eurohorror will, too.
The film includes the stunning, stunning Josephine de la Baume and Rubber's Roxanne Mesquida, and sees beautiful vampire Djuna (Baume) try to resist the advances of the handsome, human screenwriter Paolo (Milo Ventimiglia), but eventually gives in to their passion. When her troublemaker sister Mimi (Mesquida) unexpectedly comes to visit, Djuna’s love story is threatened, and the whole vampire community becomes endangered...
Kiss Of The Damned is...
The film includes the stunning, stunning Josephine de la Baume and Rubber's Roxanne Mesquida, and sees beautiful vampire Djuna (Baume) try to resist the advances of the handsome, human screenwriter Paolo (Milo Ventimiglia), but eventually gives in to their passion. When her troublemaker sister Mimi (Mesquida) unexpectedly comes to visit, Djuna’s love story is threatened, and the whole vampire community becomes endangered...
Kiss Of The Damned is...
- 2/12/2013
- by samueldzimmerman@gmail.com (Samuel Zimmerman)
- Fangoria
Just about every horror fan knows about Chris Alexander – writer, musician, journalist, and most famously Editor-in-Chief of Fangoria magazine. Now you can add film directing, cinematography and editing to that resume, as Chris has recently completed his first feature Blood for Irina – a surreal, dreamlike and provocative experiment inspired in part by some of international cinema's most beloved auteurs. I had a very cool Q&A with Chris about the film, his creative process, and the musical score, which he composed and performed himself.
FEARnet: I'm excited that Blood for Irina is making the rounds now. How does it feel seeing it on the big screen? Chris: It is exciting, and extra special for me, considering it was made for nothing and was my “hobby” movie. A few people actually like it and some even think it's destined for cult status. Who knows? But I'm enjoying the ride. How many...
FEARnet: I'm excited that Blood for Irina is making the rounds now. How does it feel seeing it on the big screen? Chris: It is exciting, and extra special for me, considering it was made for nothing and was my “hobby” movie. A few people actually like it and some even think it's destined for cult status. Who knows? But I'm enjoying the ride. How many...
- 1/30/2013
- by Gregory Burkart
- FEARnet
Already a winner at Buffalo Screams (Best Picture and Director, Medium Length Feature) and Pollygrind (Best Experimental Picture) and screening in Bruges at Razor Reel on November 2nd, then at Horrible Imaginings in San Diego on November 10th, Blood For Irina will also see its Canadian premiere on December 2nd at the newly minted Canadian horror film festival Blood in the Snow. Blood in the Snow is programmed by Fango contributor and Toronto-based film enthusiast Kelly Michael Stewart, an offshoot of his successful Fright Nights indie horror screening series.
Daughters Of Darkness director Harry Kumel calls Blood For Irina “"Most interesting... mood aplenty, pretty images and lots and lots of blood” and horror website Cinezilla calls "Sublime...a passionate, dedicated fervor that walks the thin line between life, death, fantasy and reality..."
For more head to Mórbido Film Fest, Fright Nights and Autonomy Pictures.
Daughters Of Darkness director Harry Kumel calls Blood For Irina “"Most interesting... mood aplenty, pretty images and lots and lots of blood” and horror website Cinezilla calls "Sublime...a passionate, dedicated fervor that walks the thin line between life, death, fantasy and reality..."
For more head to Mórbido Film Fest, Fright Nights and Autonomy Pictures.
- 11/1/2012
- by samueldzimmerman@gmail.com (FANGORIA Staff)
- Fangoria
Already a winner at Buffalo Screams (Best Picture and Director, Medium Length Feature) and Pollygrind (Best Experimental Picture) and screening in Bruges at Razor Reel on November 2nd, then at Horrible Imaginings in San Diego on November 10th, Blood For Irina will also see its Canadian premiere on December 2nd at the newly minted Canadian horror film festival Blood in the Snow. Blood in the Snow is programmed by Fango contributor and Toronto-based film enthusiast Kelly Michael Stewart, an offshoot of his successful Fright Nights indie horror screening series.
Daughters Of Darkness director Harry Kumel calls Blood For Irina “"Most interesting... mood aplenty, pretty images and lots and lots of blood” and horror website Cinezilla calls "Sublime...a passionate, dedicated fervor that walks the thin line between life, death, fantasy and reality..."
For more head to Mórbido Film Fest, Fright Nights and Autonomy Pictures.
Daughters Of Darkness director Harry Kumel calls Blood For Irina “"Most interesting... mood aplenty, pretty images and lots and lots of blood” and horror website Cinezilla calls "Sublime...a passionate, dedicated fervor that walks the thin line between life, death, fantasy and reality..."
For more head to Mórbido Film Fest, Fright Nights and Autonomy Pictures.
- 11/1/2012
- by samueldzimmerman@gmail.com (FANGORIA Staff)
- Fangoria
Already a winner at Buffalo Screams (Best Picture and Director, Medium Length Feature) and Pollygrind (Best Experimental Picture) and screening in Bruges at Razor Reel on November 2nd, then at Horrible Imaginings in San Diego on November 10th, Blood For Irina will also see its Canadian premiere on December 2nd at the newly minted Canadian horror film festival Blood in the Snow. Blood in the Snow is programmed by Fango contributor and Toronto-based film enthusiast Kelly Michael Stewart, an offshoot of his successful Fright Nights indie horror screening series.
Daughters Of Darkness director Harry Kumel calls Blood For Irina “"Most interesting... mood aplenty, pretty images and lots and lots of blood” and horror website Cinezilla calls "Sublime...a passionate, dedicated fervor that walks the thin line between life, death, fantasy and reality..."
For more head to Mórbido Film Fest, Fright Nights and Autonomy Pictures.
Daughters Of Darkness director Harry Kumel calls Blood For Irina “"Most interesting... mood aplenty, pretty images and lots and lots of blood” and horror website Cinezilla calls "Sublime...a passionate, dedicated fervor that walks the thin line between life, death, fantasy and reality..."
For more head to Mórbido Film Fest, Fright Nights and Autonomy Pictures.
- 11/1/2012
- by samueldzimmerman@gmail.com (FANGORIA Staff)
- Fangoria
The Doctor Who and Sherlock writer takes an expert look at cinematic spine chillers, from Argento to Del Toro, says Sarah Dempster
A full moon looms, a synthesizer gulps and – dun dun duuuuuun – it's all aboard Horror Europa With Mark Gatiss (Tuesday, 9pm, BBC4) for a trundle through the bloodied annals of continental terror. A one-off sequel to 2010's sterling A History of Horror, it finds Gatiss in endearingly tweedy tour guide mode, bringing relish and twinkle to a cross-continental tale of beleaguered mavericks, visionary hacks, broiling political subtexts and no-budget eviscerations.
First stop: Ostend. "What is commercial? Commercial is violence, blood, sex, horror," rumbles director Harry Kümel, a voluminously bearded pensioner in a sensible jumper who discusses murderous lesbians and ritualistic disembowelment with the polite weariness of a vicar extracting cress from a Bhs egg bap. He's right, of course, but it's the history and the curios that most interest Gatiss,...
A full moon looms, a synthesizer gulps and – dun dun duuuuuun – it's all aboard Horror Europa With Mark Gatiss (Tuesday, 9pm, BBC4) for a trundle through the bloodied annals of continental terror. A one-off sequel to 2010's sterling A History of Horror, it finds Gatiss in endearingly tweedy tour guide mode, bringing relish and twinkle to a cross-continental tale of beleaguered mavericks, visionary hacks, broiling political subtexts and no-budget eviscerations.
First stop: Ostend. "What is commercial? Commercial is violence, blood, sex, horror," rumbles director Harry Kümel, a voluminously bearded pensioner in a sensible jumper who discusses murderous lesbians and ritualistic disembowelment with the polite weariness of a vicar extracting cress from a Bhs egg bap. He's right, of course, but it's the history and the curios that most interest Gatiss,...
- 10/26/2012
- by Sarah Dempster
- The Guardian - Film News
Throughout the month of October, Editor-in-Chief and resident Horror expert Ricky D, will be posting a list of his favorite Horror films of all time. The list will be posted in six parts. Click here to see every entry.
As with all lists, this is personal and nobody will agree with every choice – and if you do, that would be incredibly disturbing. It was almost impossible for me to rank them in order, but I tried and eventually gave up.
****
Special Mention:
American Psycho
Directed by Mary Harrron
Written by Mary Harron
2000, USA
Bret Easton Ellis’s dark and violent satire of America in the 1980s was brought to the big screen by director Mary Harron. Initially slapped with the MPAA’s kiss of death (an Nc-17 rating), American Psycho was later re-edited and reduced to a more commercially dependable “R”. Perhaps the film works best as a slick satire about misogyny,...
As with all lists, this is personal and nobody will agree with every choice – and if you do, that would be incredibly disturbing. It was almost impossible for me to rank them in order, but I tried and eventually gave up.
****
Special Mention:
American Psycho
Directed by Mary Harrron
Written by Mary Harron
2000, USA
Bret Easton Ellis’s dark and violent satire of America in the 1980s was brought to the big screen by director Mary Harron. Initially slapped with the MPAA’s kiss of death (an Nc-17 rating), American Psycho was later re-edited and reduced to a more commercially dependable “R”. Perhaps the film works best as a slick satire about misogyny,...
- 10/25/2012
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
In a climate when most horror movies rely on either shock value or a cheap “gotcha” scare, it’s sometimes hard to remember when horror movies didn’t function that way. Belgian filmmaker Harry Kümel’s film Daughters of Darkness (1971) is a perfect example of this seemingly lost mode of horror film, and has earned its reputation as one of the most beautiful and interesting vampire films to date.
Stefan and Valerie (John Karlen and Danielle Ouimet) are a recently married couple on the way to their honeymoon when they make a detour and stay at an opulent, yet empty hotel. Shortly after arriving, another pair of guests appears on the scene, Countess Elizabeth Bathory (Delphine Seyrig) and her “secretary” Ilona (Andrea Rau). In a virtually plotless film, these four characters are able to create a sumptuous ballet, running the gamut from intense seduction to the eroticism of fear. Every...
Stefan and Valerie (John Karlen and Danielle Ouimet) are a recently married couple on the way to their honeymoon when they make a detour and stay at an opulent, yet empty hotel. Shortly after arriving, another pair of guests appears on the scene, Countess Elizabeth Bathory (Delphine Seyrig) and her “secretary” Ilona (Andrea Rau). In a virtually plotless film, these four characters are able to create a sumptuous ballet, running the gamut from intense seduction to the eroticism of fear. Every...
- 8/20/2012
- by Derek Botelho
- DailyDead
Belgian director Harry Kumel’s most accessible film is a measured, erotic Euro horror about “The Blood Countess” Elizabeth Bathory, a Hungarian serial killer who legendarily tortured hundreds of young girls and bathed in virgins’ blood to stay eternally young. The Dietrich-like Delphine Seyrig channels her performance in Last Year at Marienbad in the similarly dreamlike setting of the Grand Hotel des Thermes. The memorable music score is by Robert Enrico regular Francois de Roubaix.
- 5/14/2012
- by Danny
- Trailers from Hell
Choosing my favourite horror films of all time is like choosing between my children – not that I have children, but if I did, I am sure I would categorize them quite like my DVD collection. As with all lists, this is personal and nobody will agree with every choice – and if you do, that would be incredibly disturbing. Also, it was almost impossible for me to rank them in order, but I tried. I based my list taking into consideration three points:
1- Technical accomplishments / artistry and their influence on the genre.
2- How many times I’ve revisited the films and how easily it makes for a repeated viewings.
3- Its story, atmosphere and how much it affected me when I first watched them.
Finally, there are many great films such as The Witchfinder General, The Wickerman and even Hour Of The Wolf that won’t appear here. I...
1- Technical accomplishments / artistry and their influence on the genre.
2- How many times I’ve revisited the films and how easily it makes for a repeated viewings.
3- Its story, atmosphere and how much it affected me when I first watched them.
Finally, there are many great films such as The Witchfinder General, The Wickerman and even Hour Of The Wolf that won’t appear here. I...
- 10/29/2011
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
42 – Nosferatu: The First Vampire
Directed by F.W. Murnau
1922 – Germany
The earliest surviving film based on Dracula is Nosferatu, an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel. One of the first vampire movies, it is perhaps on one of the best vampire movies ever made. Generally creepy from beginning to the last frame.
41- Spirits Of The Dead (Histoires extraordinaires)
Directed by
Federico Fellini (segment Toby Dammit)
Louis Malle (segment William Wilson)
Roger Vadim (segment Metzengerstein)
1968 – France
First thing to notice is the three directors: Federico Fellini, Louis Malle and Roger Vadim. Second you need to take notice in the cast which includes Brigitte Bardot, Jane Fonda, Peter Fonda, Alain Delon, Terence Stamp, Salvo Randone, James Robertson Justice, Françoise Prévost and Marlène Alexandre. Spirits Of The Dead is an adaptation of three Edgar Allan Poe stories that amount to one mixed bad, but with one incredible segment that needs to be seen.
Directed by F.W. Murnau
1922 – Germany
The earliest surviving film based on Dracula is Nosferatu, an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel. One of the first vampire movies, it is perhaps on one of the best vampire movies ever made. Generally creepy from beginning to the last frame.
41- Spirits Of The Dead (Histoires extraordinaires)
Directed by
Federico Fellini (segment Toby Dammit)
Louis Malle (segment William Wilson)
Roger Vadim (segment Metzengerstein)
1968 – France
First thing to notice is the three directors: Federico Fellini, Louis Malle and Roger Vadim. Second you need to take notice in the cast which includes Brigitte Bardot, Jane Fonda, Peter Fonda, Alain Delon, Terence Stamp, Salvo Randone, James Robertson Justice, Françoise Prévost and Marlène Alexandre. Spirits Of The Dead is an adaptation of three Edgar Allan Poe stories that amount to one mixed bad, but with one incredible segment that needs to be seen.
- 10/28/2011
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
For the horror buff, Fall is the best time of the year. The air is crisp, the leaves are falling and a feeling of death hangs on the air. Here at Sound on Sight we have some of the biggest horror fans you can find. We are continually showcasing the best of genre cinema, so we’ve decided to put our horror knowledge and passion to the test in a horror watching contest. Each week in October, Ricky D, James Merolla and Justine Smith will post a list of the horror films they have watched. By the end of the month, the person who has seen the most films wins. Prize Tbd.
Justine Smith (9 viewings) Total of 40 viewings
Purchase
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
Directed by Tobe Hooper
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is one of the best horror films ever made, in competition with Possession, The Exorcist, The Birds and Suspiria.
Justine Smith (9 viewings) Total of 40 viewings
Purchase
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
Directed by Tobe Hooper
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is one of the best horror films ever made, in competition with Possession, The Exorcist, The Birds and Suspiria.
- 10/26/2011
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
On 11 October, Halloween began early at the Barbican Centre with a screen talk by Mark Gatiss and film critic Jonathan Rigby, followed by a screening of Harry Kümel's Belgian vampire film Daughters of Darkness (1971). The hour-long discussion covered much the same ground as Gatiss' BBC4 series A History of Horror - on which Rigby was show consultant - but for fans it was a great opportunity to see in person these two engaging, funny, and impressively knowledgeable horror enthusiasts.
The pair chatted about German Expressionism and the striking black and white images from Robert Wiene's The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920) and F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu (1922) that stayed with them long before they were able to view the actual films. A large part of the talk was given to Universal's classic monster movies, which started with Lon Chaney in The Phantom of the Opera (1925) and The Hunchback of Notre Dame...
The pair chatted about German Expressionism and the striking black and white images from Robert Wiene's The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920) and F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu (1922) that stayed with them long before they were able to view the actual films. A large part of the talk was given to Universal's classic monster movies, which started with Lon Chaney in The Phantom of the Opera (1925) and The Hunchback of Notre Dame...
- 10/19/2011
- by Daniel Green
- CineVue
For the horror buff, Fall is the best time of the year. The air is crisp, the leaves are falling and a feeling of death hangs on the air. Here at Sound on Sight we have some of the biggest horror fans you can find. We are continually showcasing the best of genre cinema, so we’ve decided to put our horror knowledge and passion to the test in a horror watching contest. Each week in October, Ricky D, James Merolla and Justine Smith will post a list of the horror films they have watched. By the end of the month, the person who has seen the most films wins. Prize Tbd.
Justine Smith (11 viewings) Total of 31 viewings
Purchase
Spider Baby or The Maddest Story Ever Told
Directed by Jack Jill
This movie is very fun, not so much scary as gleefully depraved. The film revels in it’s childhood attitude,...
Justine Smith (11 viewings) Total of 31 viewings
Purchase
Spider Baby or The Maddest Story Ever Told
Directed by Jack Jill
This movie is very fun, not so much scary as gleefully depraved. The film revels in it’s childhood attitude,...
- 10/18/2011
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
If you don't count TV doc Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession, we can finally say that Xan Cassavetes has joined her sis, her bro and her pops as a feature filmmaker. In fact, Variety reports that her debut film, Kiss of the Damned has already wrapped and had French thesps Josephine de la Baume (bit role in Gavras' Our Day Will Come and soon to be seen in Confession of a Child of the Century) and Roxane Mesquida (Catherine Breillat regular) and Milo Ventimiglia toplining with supporting roles going to Michael Rapaport, Anna Mouglalis and Riley Keough, who probably received a thumbs up recommendation from Nick Cassavetes (she starred in Yellow). Gist: The Variety piece mentions that some of the films to have influenced the filmmaker/cinephile include: Tony Scott's "The Hunger," Bernardo Bertolucci's "The Conformist" and Harry Kümel's "Daughters of Darkness." This centers around two beautiful...
- 6/9/2011
- IONCINEMA.com
Short on money this week? Well, guess what? I’m short on releases. However there is one release definitely worth your time for you Hi-Def fans. Check out this week’s releases.
All Descriptions of the following titles are provided by Amazon.com unless otherwise noted. If you plan on buying a flick from this list, please click on the links provided or click on the cover as it helps us pay the bills around here. Also, unlike most sites, we provide the Netflix widget which we think is pretty convenient to add these films to your queue. If you don’t have Netflix, feel free to click on “Free Trial” and try it out!
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Anneliese: The Exorcist Tapes
Format: DVD
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Purporting to be real footage of an exorcism that inspired the blockbuster 1970s horror film, this feature observes a young woman in the throes of demonic possession. German Anneliese,...
All Descriptions of the following titles are provided by Amazon.com unless otherwise noted. If you plan on buying a flick from this list, please click on the links provided or click on the cover as it helps us pay the bills around here. Also, unlike most sites, we provide the Netflix widget which we think is pretty convenient to add these films to your queue. If you don’t have Netflix, feel free to click on “Free Trial” and try it out!
——————————————–
Anneliese: The Exorcist Tapes
Format: DVD
———–
Purporting to be real footage of an exorcism that inspired the blockbuster 1970s horror film, this feature observes a young woman in the throes of demonic possession. German Anneliese,...
- 3/1/2011
- by Andy Triefenbach
- Destroy the Brain
Your Weekly Source for Blu-Ray and DVD Release News
Another big week for Blu-Ray, this time loaded with fresh new films. Danny Boyle’s Oscar-contender 127 Hours debuts and is certain to have viewers cringing, but also feeling incredibly uplifted. Disney’s beloved animated classic Bambi steps out from the woods and into your home viewing library; and Steven Soderbergh’s adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s Out Of Sight is now visible. Cher and Christina put on the glitz and get risque in the hit musical Burlesque, and if you’re a big fan, go to Best Buy for their exclusive version including Burlesque corsets. Blue Underground is giving Harry Kumel’s stylish 70′s vampire flick Daughters Of Darkness a Blu-Ray day pass, while the Pirate Of The Caribbean unite to bring force in numbers to your home-viewing experience.
Blu-Ray for Tuesday, March 1st, 2011 James Franco in Danny Boyle’s...
Another big week for Blu-Ray, this time loaded with fresh new films. Danny Boyle’s Oscar-contender 127 Hours debuts and is certain to have viewers cringing, but also feeling incredibly uplifted. Disney’s beloved animated classic Bambi steps out from the woods and into your home viewing library; and Steven Soderbergh’s adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s Out Of Sight is now visible. Cher and Christina put on the glitz and get risque in the hit musical Burlesque, and if you’re a big fan, go to Best Buy for their exclusive version including Burlesque corsets. Blue Underground is giving Harry Kumel’s stylish 70′s vampire flick Daughters Of Darkness a Blu-Ray day pass, while the Pirate Of The Caribbean unite to bring force in numbers to your home-viewing experience.
Blu-Ray for Tuesday, March 1st, 2011 James Franco in Danny Boyle’s...
- 2/28/2011
- by Travis Keune
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Lust, power, murder, the quest for eternal youth and a dash of lesbianism – no wonder the story of Erzébet Báthory appeals to film-makers so much
Deep within the preposterous Euro pudding that is Bathory, there lurks a would-be revisionist account of the woman cited in the Guinness World Records as having killed "the most number [650] of victims attributed to one murderess". In between Anna Friel's mad wigs, a babel of accents and a parade of indistinguishable Magyars, Juraj Jakubisko's film suggests Erzsébet Báthory was a sort of Renaissance Florence Nightingale figure who had an affair with Caravaggio. She didn't mean to stab her hairdresser with a pair of scissors! Those bathtubs of virgins' blood were nothing but water tinted red by herbs! She was framed!
Báthory has been portrayed on film some 30 times since 1970, has lent her name to a Swedish black metal band and, since she could...
Deep within the preposterous Euro pudding that is Bathory, there lurks a would-be revisionist account of the woman cited in the Guinness World Records as having killed "the most number [650] of victims attributed to one murderess". In between Anna Friel's mad wigs, a babel of accents and a parade of indistinguishable Magyars, Juraj Jakubisko's film suggests Erzsébet Báthory was a sort of Renaissance Florence Nightingale figure who had an affair with Caravaggio. She didn't mean to stab her hairdresser with a pair of scissors! Those bathtubs of virgins' blood were nothing but water tinted red by herbs! She was framed!
Báthory has been portrayed on film some 30 times since 1970, has lent her name to a Swedish black metal band and, since she could...
- 12/3/2010
- by Anne Billson
- The Guardian - Film News
Fangoria #299 doesn’t hit the shelves or arrive in your mailbox till December, but we’re ready to give you a sneak peek at it now! We’ve got the first look at the cover, featuring the stark image of Natalie Portman from Black Swan, which is covered within via exclusive interviews and photos. The issue celebrates other women of horror, like Danielle Harris, part of our on-set Stake Land coverage; the beautiful creatures of Jean Rollin and Daughter Of Darkness’ Harry Kümel, both of whom are interviewed; former Runaways singer Cherie Currie, who recalls her painful stint on Parasite; and more. There’s also a preview of Dead Space 2 and much more; see the cover and complete contents after the jump!
- 11/8/2010
- by gingold@starloggroup.com (Michael Gingold)
- Fangoria
Giallo films are an acquired taste, to be sure, but many influential filmmakers have come up through the giallo ranks, including Dario Argento, Mario Bava, and Lucio Fulci. Many films in this subgenre of horror are often accused of adhering so strictly to its own well-established conventions - the black-gloved killer, the tight eye close-ups, the erotic overtones, etc. - that the films themselves become almost interchangeable. To make that accusation is to show a lack of understanding of what giallo fans and filmmakers love about them: they are more about a feeling than they are about what's actually happening on the screen. Story, while still important, becomes almost secondary to style. That's never been more apparent than in Amer, a France-Belgium co-production from co-writers/directors Bruno Forzani and Hélène Cattet, two filmmakers whose love of giallo shines through in their two previous shorts, 2004's La fin de notre amour and 2006's Santos Palace.
- 10/25/2010
- IONCINEMA.com
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