Author Archives: Jon Kitley

Marshmallow Sequel Coming

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I had picked Daniel DelPurgatorio’s feature film debut, Marshmallow (2025) for my Best Viewings of last year. If you still haven’t seen it, PLEASE seek it out, which should be available on a few different streaming services. BUT… and this is very important… DO NOT READ ANYTHING ABOUT IT! You want to go into this film completely blind. And just when you think you know what is going on, just sit back and wait. Trust me.

Anyway, the reason for this post is that a sequel has been announced, with director DelPurgatorio and writer Andy Greskoviak returning, as well as actor main actor Kue Lawrence, as well as Kai Cech, Dylan Friedman, and Max Malas. No title has been released just yet, but just like the original, they are making sure the plot is kept under wraps. The basic premise they have stated is that it takes place years after the events of the film, and what has happened to the characters who survived and throughout the world.

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Book Review: Rear Window

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Rear Window: The Making of a Hitchcock Masterpiece in the Hollywood Golden Age
Published by Citadel Press, 2025. 253 pages.
By Jennifer O’Callaghan

I hadn’t expected to read a second book on a Hitchcock film after just finishing Criss-Cross by Stephen Rebello, but since Rear Window is my favorite of the director’s work, and I was already knee-deep in the Hitchcock cinematic world, I figured why not. And just like the Rebello book, there is a ton of information on the making of it. From finding the right writer to tackle adapting the short story by Cornell Woolrich, to getting the studio to foot the bill for an entire neighborhood to be built on a soundstage.  And then there casting as well, along with the design, art direction, and all that other fun stuff that goes into making a classic.

Finding an actor for the lead role would have to be someone that would follow Hitchcock’s direction. When he had worked with Montgomery Cliff in I Confess (1953), the director ran into issues getting him to do what he wanted because Cliff was a method actor, something Hitchcock did not care for. Hitchcock worked in visuals, what the audience was going to see and how that carried the story along. When Cliff didn’t want to do something in particular because “my character wouldn’t do that”, it caused issues with Hitchcock not being able to get the shots he wanted. Hitchcock had said “It’s a movie. You’re an actor. Act.”

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Super-Horror-Rama – New Year New You

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The fine folks from Super-Horror-Rama have some up with another great two features to celebrate the new year. The theme is New Year, New You! Because of all the silly New Year’s resolutions we all make, most of which we don’t stick to, this is a good example of when those new changes might not be the best change! But that doesn’t mean it’s not fun for us to watch!

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T.K. Carter – Rest in Peace

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While he might not have appeared in hardly any horror films in throughout his career, he did appear in one of the greatest horror movies ever made, as Nauls in John Carpenter’s The Thing, so that is more than enough to be mentioned here in the Krypt. Actor T.K. Carter passed away on Jan. 9th. Although one could argue his appearance in Southern Comfort the year before might add that title as a horror film, or at least to say it was damn scary in parts!

But at least we all know that he will always be remembered as the cook, listening to Stevie Wonder, thinking that we might be at war with Norway. Our thoughts go out to his friends and family during this difficult time. Rest in Peace. Never to be forgotten.

Mystery Photo 1-12

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Look at that! We made it through that first full week of the new year. Though personally, I’ve been battling a simple cold virus that has had me trying to cough up my lungs, but besides that, things are going just swell! It seems January is not a good month for me, since last year around this time I had Covid. I guess a bad cold is an improvement, right? Always got to look at the positives! Our photo from last week was from Eugenio Martín’s A Candle for the Devil aka It Happened at Nightmare Inn (1973). I have to say the recently released 4K disc of this from Vinegar Syndrome looks just amazing and has some great extras on it as well. Kudos to the following for sending in the correct answer: Steve Archacki, Dave Fronto, and Kevin Hart. Well done!

For this week’s photo, going a little further back. So, take a look and see if you can correctly identify what film this shot is taken from. Remember to send your guess to me in an email, to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

Johnny Legend – Rest in Peace

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Johnny Legend is a name that quite a few people might not know, and that’s okay. But if you ever had the chance to meet him, you’d never forget. He was an actor, director, wrestling manager and promoter, rockabilly singer, but most of all, he was a true lover of cult films and their filmmakers. I had the chance to meet him a couple of times over the years, and you never forget that. That man just exploded with passion with every work he said whether he was talking about Jack Hill’s Spider Baby or come other underground cult movie. He appeared in Bride of Re-Animator (1990), Severed Ties (1992) and even the Andy Kaufman biopic Man of the Moon (1999). On the laserdisc release of Spider Baby, there was a little piece outside of a midnight screening of the film, where some of the cast was there along with Jack Hill, including Sid Haig. They were all being interviewed by Legend, who praised the film so much. And this was a few years before Haig would be a big star because of House of 1000 Corpses.

This Legend passed away on January 2nd, and with that, the cult world lost one of its biggest supporters and mouthpiece. Truly a one-of-a-kind person. Rest in peace and know that because of the passion you passed on to others, they will now continue to pass on the love of the weird and the strange. Thank you, Mr. Legend!

DtH Episode 113 – 2025 Wrap Up

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Another year in the books, which means it is time for our annual Wrap Up, where we not only go through our personal favorites of the year, but also some other standout films, as well as some others that came out in the last 12 months. For the second year in a row, it is astounding at some of the high-quality pictures that have been getting released. From some going straight to streaming services, to other wide release pictures, there have been plenty of fantastic titles out there. It really is a great time to be a horror fan.

It’s a long episode, so make sure you have a pad and pen, because we cover a LOT here!

Titles mentioned in this episode.

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Mystery Photo 1-5

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A new year, a new Monday, which means a new Mystery Photo! Unfortunately, it seems nobody recognized our photo from last week. It was from Ghost of Kasane Swamp (1970), a staple in Japanese ghost stories, which has been filmed a few times. It has recently been released in the 2nd volume of Daiei Gothic from Radiance. Highly recommend both sets!

So on to this week’s photo. See if anybody can recognize where this shot came from. Take a good look and then send me an email with you guess, to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

Year End Review Part 3 – Never to Forget

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It’s strange that as I grow older, turning 60 this year, it seems more and more people that I grew up watching on the screen are leaving. Obvious, I know. But it hits harder now than before. There are some true icons listed here with some connection to the horror genre, as slight as it might be, as well as those that worked hard to help to promote the genre. And for each and every single one of them, I thank you for what you have given us fans of cinema. Your work will live on and never be forgotten.

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2025 Year End Review Part 2 – Best Viewings

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And who says there are no good movies coming out these days? For the last couple of years, my Best Viewings of the year have mainly been recent releases, most from that current year. And 2025 was no different. There are 2 from the ’60s, 1 from 2023, 1 from 2024, and the rest from 2025. That tells me a couple of things. That either in past years, I was busy playing catch up with a lot of older great titles that I had never seen before, or that there are some still people out there busting their ass to make some original and entertaining horror films.

I didn’t think I was going to make it, but I set a new personal record for me, barely, but still did it. I manage to knock out 447 films this year, with 209 being new viewings. It sometimes amazes me how many I actually get through each year, but honestly, there are some nights when I can get through 3 movies with no problem. It really has to do with the love of cinema.

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