Okay Chicago area Fulci Fans, in case you might have forgotten, there are midnight screenings of Fulci’s The Beyond next weekend at the Music Box, thanks to the wonderful people at Grindhouse Releasing. If you haven’t had the chance to see this on the big screen, it is a must.
Then on April 17th & 18th, the Music Box will also be screening the one and only Pieces! Nothing better than watching movie with a bunch of other crazy horror fans. Such a good time. Hope to see you there for both events!
I don’t know about you, but I am more than ready for our first convention for this year’s Kryptic World Tour 2015, which happens to be the HorrorHound Weekend in Cincinnait Ohio this weekend….like in two days!!!! After the last couple of brutal work weeks, I am more than ready to hang out with a bunch of like minded horror fiends, and have some fun and serious conversations about horror movies!
Of course, we will be set up there with a wide range of amazing titles to add to your horror reference library. And I can guarantee that you won’t find titles on my table that are $180! I’m more interested in getting this volumes to good homes, where horror fans can learn more about this amazing genre, and to truly Discover the Horror.
And did I mention they are having a Re-Animator reunion?
So if you coming out to the show this weekend, make sure you stop by our table and say hello.
A Companion to the Horror Film
Edited by Harry Benshoff
Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd., 2014. 588 pages.
My first thought about this book of collected essays was the cost, retail price of $180. Now, this is a very thick and heavy hardcover book, close to 600 pages, written by a group of people that have Professor or other intellectual monikers before or after their names. But is any book worth that much? Are you going to get that much out of it? Well, right away, Tim Lucus’ Bava book comes to mind and yeah, I do think that is worth the heavy price. Plus the fact that Lucus’ tome is quite a bit larger in size, and is chocked full of amazing color photos. With a price of $180, it is going to take a special collector and fan to afford this volume for their collection. But even if you have the money, is it still worth buying?
For me personally, there were a few things that I found very interesting, such as Aaron Smuts chapter “Cognitive and Philosophical Approaches to Horror”. He discusses what is known as the Paradox of Horror, which is a slight take-off of the Paradox of Tragedy, which asks the question of why we would want to indulge in, like reading or watching something, that is “likely to arouse negative emotions.” He asks the age old question of why horror is popular. But at the end of essay, all he does is recap his and others theories but never answers the question that he posed. But none the less, I enjoyed what he was discussing.
I just couldn’t help posting a shot from The Car for our last Mystery Photo. Since reviewing the soundtrack, I had to sit down and re-watch the movie. And for me, it never loses its charm. The scene that I used for the photo, with the headlights appearing in the window, is one thing I can remember from first seeing the trailer on TV. Kudos to the following for sending in the correct answer. And there were a few of you….Hoby Abernathy, Abe Bloom, Cate Cameron, Dahlia Daniels, Ken Johnson, Doug Lamoreux, Ivan Mccann, David Schmidt, G Edwin Taylor, and Wayne Teeter. Well done!
So let’s get on to this week’s photo. This one might be easy, or one that you might have to use your brain a bit. But be careful how hard you look…sometimes something will look back at you!
Just send me an email at jon@kitleyskrypt.com with your answer.
The Car
Released by Intrada
26 Tracks, with a total running time of 40:50 min.
Composed and Conducted by Leonard Rosenman
The Car was a film that stuck in my head as a kid, even though it took years for me to finally get to see it, Just seeing the trailer on TV had etched it in my brain, especially the part with the car coming at the window. Such a great scene.
Today, Mr. Cronenberg turns 72 years old. Not only has he created so many amazing films in his career, he also created one that I would have in my Top Ten Films. That would be his remake of The Fly.
Not only should Jeff Goldblum been nominated for Best Actor for his role, he should have won. But we know that is stuff of fairy tales. None the less, Goldblum’s performance in this tragic tale of discover, love, and lost, is really a piece of incredible art. Of course, major kudos to Chris Walas for creating the mind-blowing makeup effects as well. But it Goldblum that had to act through all of that makeup, and he did an amazing job there.
But Cronenberg made so many other great titles that are favorites of mine, such as Videodrome. What is your favorite of his work?
After an 80 hour work week, this is what I’m feeling like. Plus, why the hell isn’t someone putting out the soundtrack for this movie?!?!?!
Duel
Released by Intrada
19 Tracks with a total running time of 47:39 min.
Composed and Conducted by Billy Goldenberg
A few years before he made Jaws, Steven Spielberg gave us another beastly predator, one that is much more common than the Great White shark….a semi-truck. In his tele-film Duel, Spielberg created a work of suspense and terror that everyone has felt for a moment every now and then while driving on the highway, thinking that one of these mechanical beast just might be out to destroy you. One of the reasons this film works as well is it does it due to the incredibly tension-building score from Billy Goldenberg.
I realized that the answer I posted in our last update was from the photo from 2 photos ago. The last one was from Shock Waves, and I said it was from Cold Prey. Needless to say, I’m as confused as you are.
But I at least know that our LAST photo was from the fun sci-fi/horror flick Missile to the Moon (1958). This is a great time if yo haven’t seen it, filled with not only these rock creatures but a bad-ass giant spider as well. I had seen scenes of this years ago thanks to It Came From Hollywood, but took years to realize which movie those scenes were from. And kudos to Hoby Abernathy and Doug Lamoreux for sending in the correct answer. Hopefully I didn’t forget anybody again this time. I blame too any hours at work.
Anyway, let’s get to this week’s photo. It might be an easy one but it has always been one of my favorite films as well as one of my favorite sequences. Remember this from the TV trailer years ago and it has always stuck with me.
And remember, please don’t post your answer in the comment section, but send me an email at jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good luck.
For this marathon, I was not going to have to make this journey alone. I found a sucker…I mean, a fellow movie fan that had the guts to put his love of bad movies to the test. Dr. AC (aka Aaron Christensen) joined me that faithful day to for another festival of B-movies and other such wonders. Though, he must have been pretty trusting of me since we’d only met a few months earlier. Little did he know of the horrors that I was going to put him through….(cue devilish laugh here) heheheh.
Blood Freak (1972) – Yes, we did watch this film last year. And since this was AC’s first Turkey Day experience, I didn’t want to give him a full frontal assault right away. But I felt that since he had never witnessed Blood Freak before, that we’d have to make that the first film. Sort of breaking him in. Or breaking him down. Not sure which. And even I had watched it last year, watching this movie with a new viewer is almost as fun as watching the film itself for the first time. The look on their faces is always a riot. When the turkey monster first makes its appearance, and they look over at you with this “Are you fucking kidding me?” look….priceless.
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