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  • No Choice, Palm Springs International Short Fest

    No Choice, Palm Springs International Short Fest
    2025/06/29
    This time around, we’ve only one full-length film, an indie called “No Choice” (2025), which has just been released. Other than that, we’re focusing on a whole bunch of new short films. This week, the Palm Springs International ShortFest happened, with 311 short films from 64 countries. We’ve watched all the ones that are horror or horror-adjacent and brought them here for you.“The Horror Guys Guide to the Horror Films of Christopher Lee” is available NOW!https://www.horrormonthly.com/horror-guys-guides/christopher-lee-filmsCheck out our selection of short horror biographies, including Christopher Lee, Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, and many more: https://www.hourlongpress.com/The latest issue of “Horror Monthly” is now on sale! Check out all the back issues, as well as our other books, with one easy link: https://horrormonthly.comOne of my favorite writing and organizing tools is Workflowy, the endless outliner. Check it out at https://workflowy.com/invite/4958355e.lnxMainstream Films:2025 No Choice* Directed by: Nate Hilgartner* Written by: Nate Hilgartner* Stars: Hannah Deale, Jennifer Herzog, Robert Denzel Edwards* Run Time: 1 Hour, 35 Minutes* Trailer: Spoiler-Free Judgment ZoneThe horror elements in this one are those in the real world. A character who is trapped, stressed beyond limits, beaten down at every turn, and having nightmares. It’s low budget, but the acting, direction, and camera work more than compensate. Don’t expect classic horror, but we’d recommend it for a good drama.Spoilery SynopsisAmy’s having a dream where she finds twenty bucks and a pill. She wakes up to find her life isn’t so interesting. She listens to the man on the radio rant about abortion. Amy argues with her mother, Debra, about medication; Debra appears to be an addict. Credits roll.As Amy rides her bike to work, we see that she lives in a rural farming area. We’re told that it’s “Week 0.” She and her coworker Lucas joke and play at the gas station where she works. Boss Randy comes in and chews them out for not wearing name tags; he’s a jerk.In the morning, Amy goes to her Sociology class and then home to her mother, who’s taken almost the whole bottle of pills. The next night, she flirts with the same customer she met last night. That night, she fantasizes about the guy. The man, Seth, invites her out for real, not long after, and she goes with him. One thing leads to another, and soon they’re having sex in his truck. During the act, the cheap gas-station condom breaks.Amy has a terrifying dream about things leaking. She Googles “morning after pills,” but they’re pricey and she has no credit card for online purchases. She prays instead. She thinks about it and goes to the drugstore, but a friend of her mother’s works there, so that’s not gonna work. She rides to a pharmacy in the next town over, and she’s a couple of dollars short. That night, she dreams about eggs.Amy finally gets the money for a morning-after pill and takes it immediately, but it’s been more hours than recommended for the drug to be useful. This leads to more terrifying dreams. Weeks pass.Amy registers for her next college class, just one at a time. Also, her period is late. She watches videos about “abortion pills” and then starts puking. Yeah, she’s pregnant.Amy goes to the emergency room with a fake accident, and they know she’s lied on the intake forms about her identity. The doctor is pretty understanding and tells her to go to an OB-GYN, but can’t do much about the pregnancy. She points out that abortion is illegal in this state, but she “doesn’t tell her about” the options in other states.Lucas covers for Amy at the store, she doesn’t show up, and Lucas ends up getting fired for it.Debra’s pharmacist friend, who sells her drugs, gets arrested. Amy tells her about the pregnancy, and Debra wants her to have the baby. Debra promises to quit the drugs, starting now, and clean up her act. More nightmares follow.Amy goes to the OB and sees the baby on the ultrasound. She asks him about abortion, but he is not supportive at all. Debra quickly falls off the wagon, and she gets nasty with Amy about it. Desperate, Amy calls Seth but can’t talk to him.Debra overdoses, and it’s going to be expensive for the hospital. When she recovers, Amy asks her for help in getting to the next state for an abortion, but she’s too far gone to talk about it.She calls Seth again and tells him what’s up. He agrees to drive her for an abortion, but Randy won’t give her the time off. He fires her over this. When she gets to Seth’s, he delays and makes her wait. After many hours, it’s too late to go all the way there. He seems like a nice guy, but she dreams about being chained up and trapped. Also, he might be a serial killer. When she has a nightmare about him killing her, she pulls a knife on Seth, who freaks out and drives away, leaving her… wherever she is.Amy leaves the motel ...
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    34 分
  • Clown in a Cornfield, Bogieville, Silent Zone, Killers from Space, and Feed the Gods

    Clown in a Cornfield, Bogieville, Silent Zone, Killers from Space, and Feed the Gods
    2025/06/22
    This time around, we’ll watch three new releases and two oldies. We’ll start off with the better-than-expected “Clown in a Cornfield,” then move on to the godawful “Bogieville.” “Silent Zone” was pretty good, while “Feed the Gods” (2014) was pretty mediocre. For an eye-popping experience, we’ll finish off with “Killers from Space” from way back in 1954.“The Horror Guys Guide to the Horror Films of Christopher Lee” is available NOW!https://www.horrormonthly.com/horror-guys-guides/christopher-lee-filmsCheck out our selection of short horror biographies, including Christopher Lee, Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, and many more: https://www.hourlongpress.com/The latest issue of “Horror Monthly” is now on sale! Check out all the back issues, as well as our other books, with one easy link: https://horrormonthly.comOne of my favorite writing and organizing tools is Workflowy, the endless outliner. Check it out at https://workflowy.com/invite/4958355e.lnxMainstream Films:2025 Clown in a Cornfield* Directed by: Eli Craig* Written by: Carter Blanchard, Eli Craig, Adam Cesare* Stars: Katie Douglas, Aaron Abrams, Carson MacCormac* Run Time: 1 Hour, 36 Minutes* Trailer: * Buy it: https://amzn.to/3ZT7nhJSpoiler-Free Judgment ZoneThis was a very well made entry into the slasher genre, done more seriously than we expected. There are some laughs, but it’s mostly done straight with a bit of satire. The acting, effects, story, direction, all the elements were very well put together. It moves well and doesn’t drag. Brian liked it quite a bit, but Kevin was left feeling kind of meh.Spoilery SynopsisIt’s 1991 at a barn party. A girl plays with a jack-in-the-box with a clown and then goes off into the cornfield to get naked with her boyfriend. They are soon chased and killed by… a clown in the cornfield! Credits roll.In the present day, Quinn and her father, Dr. Glenn Maybrook, move to a very large house in a very small town. He’s the new town doctor. He bought the house unseen, and it has some issues. They see a big old farm factory across the cornfield. There’s no cell service or even wifi in this old house.Quinn meets Rust, the neighbor, who walks Quinn to school. He gives her some tips about the area and the school. The entire class picks on Mr. Vern, the teacher, and he’s a jerk about it. She gets detention right away, and she meets all the cool kids there. They talk about how Kettle Springs is stuck in the 90s, and Founder’s Day is this weekend. Baypen Corn Syrup is the main industry in town, and the clown is their logo. The kids have made videos about that clown being a serial killer, just for fun.After school, Sheriff Dunne says hello to the new doctor. He recommends that Quinn stay away from a group of kids, who just happen to be her new friends. The group easily manages to steal alcohol from the convenience store but they pay for it as well. Cole and his friends were blamed for setting the Baypen factory on fire, but they say they didn’t do it.Suddenly, the group is attacked by a clown! No, it’s a prank video as the teens make another “serial killer clown” video. Quinn tells Cole that her mother overdosed last summer, and her father needed a change, so here they are.Later that night, Tucker, the guy who wore the clown costume in the video, is home alone and sees a clown on the Ring camera. He finds the same jack-in-the-box we saw earlier. Then the clown comes out of nowhere and kills him.Cole gets in trouble with his parents; his father is the town mayor, and he’s running the Founder’s Day celebration. Janet and Ronnie tell Cole and Quinn that they want to do another video since the last one got so many views.The parade goes… badly, and the teens get blamed and arrested for it. The old harbinger in their jail cell says, “You are dead. Never f**k with Frendo.” What? Who?Matt, another of the teens, finds the jack-in-the-box on his weight bench. When he gets back to lifting, the clown beheads him.Quinn’s father overreacts and grounds Quinn, so she sneaks out for the big party tonight. Cole shows her a jack-in-the-box with branding from the Baypen company and then they nearly run over Rust, who’s been hunting. Cole and Rust used to be friends until the factory burned down.The party is at the same barn as from 1991. Tucker and Matt haven’t shown up, so the remaining teens think they’re planning a new prank. It’s quite an elaborate party, and it leads to Quinn and Cole making out in the barn until he rejects her.Ginger comes out of the woods and “dies” in front of everyone, who assume it’s another prank video until someone throws Matt’s severed head at them. They all assume that’s fake as well until Frendo the clown comes in and kills more teens with his crossbow. Rust ends up shooting the clown; he says everyone’s tires have been slashed. Suddenly, more clowns appear. It’s a whole posse of insane clowns. Of course, there’s no 911 ...
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    44 分
  • Sinners, Cannibal Mukbang, Hot Fuzz, Tucker & Dale vs Evil, and The Man from Planet X

    Sinners, Cannibal Mukbang, Hot Fuzz, Tucker & Dale vs Evil, and The Man from Planet X
    2025/06/15
    We’ve got two amazing new releases and three fun oldies this week. We’ll start off with the critically acclaimed “Sinners” that’s just come to streaming. We’ll then stop for a snack with “Cannibal Mukbang,” another tasty new release. We’ll do a couple of comedy-horrors next, “Hot Fuzz” (2007) and “Tucker and Dale vs. Evil” (2010). Lastly, we’ll go way back in time and meet “The Man from Planet X” from 1951.“The Horror Guys Guide to the Horror Films of Christopher Lee” is available NOW!https://www.horrormonthly.com/horror-guys-guides/christopher-lee-filmsCheck out our selection of short horror biographies, including Christopher Lee, Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, and many more: https://www.hourlongpress.com/The latest issue of “Horror Monthly” is now on sale! Check out all the back issues, as well as our other books, with one easy link: https://horrormonthly.comOne of my favorite writing and organizing tools is Workflowy, the endless outliner. Check it out at https://workflowy.com/invite/4958355e.lnxMainstream Films:2025 Sinners* Directed by: Ryan Coogler* Written by: Ryan Coogler* Stars: Michael B. Jordan, Miles Caton, Saul Williams* Run Time: 2 Hours, 17 Minutes* Get it here: https://amzn.to/45Vl2s8* Trailer: Spoiler-Free Judgment ZoneIt’s very much a humanity and period drama with magic and horror in the background, at first. Then things get crazy toward the second half. The cast, direction, music, and effects are all excellent. Especially the use of music. It’s on the long side but worth it.Spoilery SynopsisIt’s 1932 in Clarksdale, Mississippi. A man with a broken guitar walks into church, and the preacher gets really upset, changing the sermon to talk about men who are full of sin. He wants Sammie to give up his sinful ways. We get flashes of violence and blood.We flash back to the cotton farm, where all the black people work in the fields; it’s after slavery, but the echoes of it are still strong. We then cut again to two brothers, Smoke and Stack, who are dressed up with a fancy car. Mr. Hogwood shows up and shows them some property. It gets a little tense, but they’ve got a bagful of money and buy it.Sammie argues with his preacher father about going out for the evening. “You keep going out with the devil, sooner or later, you’re gonna bring him home.” He goes off with Stack and Smoke, saying he’ll be back for service tomorrow. They’ve got big plans for the day and night.The three are planning on putting a juke joint together, with lots of drinking, at the old sawmill they just bought. Stack runs into Mary, an old jilted lover, and a white looking woman as well, so she could be trouble. The harmonica player, Delta Slim, tells a story about why black folks shouldn’t get too successful.Smoke goes to see Annie about cooking at the juke joint tonight, and they have a long history. We get a montage of everyone setting up for the party, including the cooking.Elsewhere, a dirty-looking and injured white man beats on a door and asks a white couple for shelter from the Choctaws. He offers them money to let him inside, and they invite him in. A short while later, a Choctaw scout with others shows up, and he says he’s looking for a dangerous man who’s not what he seems. She lies and says she hasn’t seen him. They soon leave, and the strange man kills the couple, who should’ve never invited him in. Before long, all three of them are vampires.Mary shows up to the big party, and she looks a little out of place there. Stack wants her out of there before trouble breaks out; she’s part black in the family, but has been passing for years, a prime target for lynching.Delta Slim finishes his piano set and introduces Sammie, who plays the guitar. The magic of music fills the room. We see a guy playing an electric guitar and half the crowd is dressed like anachronistic rappers, ancient Africans, and even Asian musicians and dancers thanks to the Asian grocer and his wife. (I guess the Blues are timeless?). They are having a goooood time.And then the three vampires, Bert, Joan, and Remmick, show up outside. They talk to the doorman/bouncer and want it. They pull out instruments and start playing; they say they just want to join the party, and they’re pretty good bluegrass singers as well. Smoke does not want to let them in.Smoke gives Sammie some career advice; he wants to keep his young cousin out of trouble, but Sammie thinks he might want to go to Chicago like the twins did.Mary wants to talk to the white trio about coming back; the twins are going to need every dollar they can get. She finds them playing their music right outside the barn. They’ve very friendly– until they aren’t.When Mary returns to the party, she needs an invitation to come inside. The vampires start picking off people as they go outside to pee. As Smoke deals with a cheating gambler, Stack and Mary make out; she’s drooling. We see that yes, they did turn her ...
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    44 分
  • Piglet, Consecration, Self Driver, Hellraiser: Revelations, and House of Wax

    Piglet, Consecration, Self Driver, Hellraiser: Revelations, and House of Wax
    2025/06/08
    We’ve got three new releases this week as well as a pair of oldies. We’ll open on the not-Poohverse “Piglet” and then go to church for “Consecration.” For our oldies, we’ll take a look at one more episode that even Pinhead didn’t show up for in “Hellraiser: Revelations” from 2011, followed by the remake of “House of Wax” from 2005. And we’ve got more shorts as well!“The Horror Guys Guide to the Horror Films of Christopher Lee” is available NOW!https://www.horrormonthly.com/horror-guys-guides/christopher-lee-filmsCheck out our selection of short horror biographies, including Christopher Lee, Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, and many more: https://www.hourlongpress.com/The latest issue of “Horror Monthly” is now on sale! Check out all the back issues, as well as our other books, with one easy link: https://horrormonthly.comMainstream Films:2025 Piglet* Directed by Andrea M. Catinella* Written by Harry Boxley* Stars Alexander Butler, Lauren Staerck, Alina Desmond* Run Time: 1 Hour, 23 Minutes* Trailer: Spoiler-Free Judgment ZoneThis isn’t the Piglet from “Pooh: Blood and Honey,” it’s a separate tale. This Piglet is a big, mutated guy wearing a mask and having a big appetite for killing. Reminiscent of Leatherface from “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” movies. The music and accents required subtitles. Brian was harsher on it than Kevin was, who found it entertaining more than not. But we both agree it didn’t show us enough new to really be interesting. It’s not a standout film, and we thought it was okay at best.Spoilery SynopsisA prison van stops in the woods so the driver can pee. “Is it true what they say about him? About the experiment… and his family?” The prisoner was part of a scientific experiment that deformed him. Dr. Bickley turned the scrawny man into a huge killing machine. He then murdered the people in the prison. Naturally, the prisoner gets out of his chains and kills all three of the inept security guards. The masked killer returns to his lair and puts on a pig mask. Credits roll.A carload of party girls stop on the side of the road so one of them can throw up. Kate is upset about hiding from her insane boyfriend. Two other girls talk about the pig serial-killer who used to operate in this area. A man comes out of the woods and tells them not to go to the camp, as bad things always happen there.A man in a cowboy hat talks to Piglet about the girls who will be coming to stay at the farm. Piglet can have his pick of one of the girls; the rest will go in the freezer.The girls arrive at Mr. Hogarth’s farm for the first time in ten years. Kate sees Piglet in the woods, but only for a moment. Mr. Hogarth, the man in the cowboy hat, shows the girls around; he runs the camp.On the road, three other people stop their car with a breakdown and have to walk the rest of the way to camp through the forest. Courtney is autistic or something and forces them to stop so she can draw. As they wait, the other two stop for sex. Piglet kills the couple, Riley and Bruce, with a big meat hook. Courtney goes looking for them and finds herself in a bear trap until Piglet catches up to her.Kate gets a scare from a man covered in blood. The police come and pick up the homeless man as Mr. Hogarth assures the girls that animals won’t come into the camp. One of the girls tells the story about the local serial killer they used to call “Piglet,” who fell in love with a girl named Kate.Judith soon finds Courtney chained up in the barn and hides while Piglet comes in and kills Courtney with a hook before killing Judith as well.Kate and Susie talk about Spencer, Kate’s crazy ex, who used to follow her around and stalk her. She feels like that again. They both plan to move to Salt Lake City. Meanwhile, Alex and Dianne make out in the hot tub as Mr. Hogarth watches. Hogarth then kills Dianne with an axe.Alex, Kate, and Susie wonder what happened to all their friends. They talk about making a phone call, but try to drive to town instead; the car has been sabotaged.Hogarth and Piglet work together to kill Alex with a sledgehammer. Kate thinks Spencer has followed them and is causing all their troubles. Bret, the weird harbinger from the woods, shows up and tells them they need to leave– he offers them gas for their car. They soon see Piglet, and the chase is on. Bret shoots Piglet, and then the girls take his gun and force him to drive them to town. Bret explains the whole thing, but Susie and Kate are skeptical. Hogarth comes outside and blames Bret for keeping a bloodthirsty monster on the grounds.Piglet shows up and kills Bret while Hogart shoots Susie in the leg. Piglet takes Susie to the barn and chains her up. He then peels her face off with the help of his knife.Kate runs to the road and flags down a cop, Officer Burke, who handcuffs her and takes her back to Hogarth and Piglet. They all sit around and sing “Happy Birthday to you” to Kate. Instead of a ...
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    43 分
  • Call of Cthulhu, The Resurrected, Castle Freak, Lurking Fear, and Necronomicon

    Call of Cthulhu, The Resurrected, Castle Freak, Lurking Fear, and Necronomicon
    2025/05/11
    It’s Lovecraft week here with the Horror Guys. We’ve got five adaptations of stories from H.P. Lovecraft. We’ve done many others in the past, but if you know of any that we haven’t talked about, drop us a note! This time, we’ll do “The Call of Cthulhu,” a unique film from 2005. The next four are all from the 90s: “The Resurrected” from 1991, “Necronomicon: Book of the Dead” from 1993, “Lurking Fear” from 1995, and “Castle Freak” from 1995.Why Lovecraft week? Because we’ve got a new book out: “H.P. Lovecraft: A Biography,” which you can pick up right here: https://amzn.to/435mJQJThe latest issue of “Horror Monthly” is now on sale! Check out all the back issues, as well as our other books, with one easy link: https://horrormonthly.comMainstream Films:2005 The Call of Cthulhu* Directed by Andrew Leman* Written by H.P. Lovecraft, Sean Branney* Stars Matt Foyer, John Bolen, Ralph Lucas* Run Time: 47 Minutes* Trailer: * Buy it: https://amzn.to/3ETYIEgSpoiler-Free Judgment ZoneThis version was like a trip to the old days of silent films. It’s black and white, interspaced with speech panels instead of dialogue, with a music soundtrack. They did capture the look and feel of a movie from the 20s, though the film speed and quality didn’t quite match how it used to be. It’s a pretty good telling of the story, it’s short, and it’s worth checking out.Spoilery SynopsisTwo men talk about one of their great-uncle’s life work. The man wants the other man to burn the stories. He tells us that he was the executor of the old man’s estate, including a locked box full of folders and news clippings.It tells the story of Henry Wilcox, who has a new wood carving of something he saw in a dream last night and takes it to the narrator’s great uncle. He felt the earthquake last night very strongly. All through his dream last night, something was calling to him with a name he couldn’t pronounce.The doctor asks Wilcox to start writing down his dreams. He does this, along with many pictures, which greatly upsets him. He continues to show the great-uncle what he’s seen. Henry falls into a fever, and the old man tries to care for him, but once the fever broke, he didn’t get any more visions, nor could he remember the old ones.We cut to the American Archaeological Society, where a detective talks to a professor. He shows them an object, and one man there recognizes it. We get a flashback to a tribe that worshipped a god named Cthulhu. That’s where the man lost his eye. The inspector tells the men his tale from last year, when he investigated some disappearances in the New Orleans swamp. “This ain’t just some Voodoo cult, this is the devil hisself,” says one witness. The cultists were chanting the Cthulhu ritual as the policemen watched. Forty-seven cultists were arrested, and one explains that they worship the Great Old Ones, who sleep now, but will reclaim their world soon. Great Cthulhu lies sleeping in R’yLeh, and he’ll awaken soon.Back in the present, the nephew starts getting strange dreams. Anyone he asked about the cult either knew nothing or was dead. He reads a new article about the Emma, a ship that ran into a storm at sea and started to sink. They all boarded the Alert, an abandoned fishing vessel. The log says the crew went ashore on an island three days ago, but there’s nothing on the map. They found a strange tentacled idol and soon the whole crew was lost except for one man who went mad.The nephew starts putting his dates and facts together, and it’s all very terrifying. He tracks down the idol at a museum and follows the sole survivor of the Alert to Oslo. The man was dead by the time he arrived, but the nephew managed to read the man’s logbook and learned what really happened on the island.The island was covered with jagged peaks and terrifying statuary. One man falls off a tower and dies, and immediately after, there’s an earthquake, and Cthulhu himself shows up. Everyone runs, but only two men make it to the boat. The one who got a good look at the monster goes mad, bleeds from the eyes, and dies. The other is the one man who escaped with the log.The nephew tells all this to his psychiatrist, and we’re back at the beginning, when he told the man to burn all the notebooks. Cthulhu is still out there, waiting to rise. The doctor, naturally, doesn’t burn them, he starts reading…Brian’s CommentaryIt’s a black-and-white silent film, done in the style of a movie from Lovecraft’s day, the 1920s and 30s. It’s done in the style of the old German Expressionist films, and it looks pretty good considering. It was released through the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society, essentially a fan film. The story, probably Lovecraft’s most famous, has long been considered unfilmable, so this is a good attempt.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Call_of_Cthulhu_(film)Kevin’s CommentaryThis was an interesting novelty, and it was worth seeing it for...
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    30 分