ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MARCH 13, 2003 Why would anyone bother to remake a 32-year-old rampaging-rats flick that was never much good in the first place? Sure, the original Willard did boffo box office in ’71—enough to spawn an awful sequel (Ben) that also made money—but its story of a mother-dominated, boss-abused office … Continue reading Horror review: Willard
Final Destination 2 is one sick, gruesomely over-the-top flick
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JAN. 30, 2003 By Steve Newton In his 1981 treatise on horror, Danse Macabre, Stephen King wrote: “I recognize terror as the finest emotion and so I will try to terrorize the reader. But if I find that I cannot terrify, I will try to horrify, and if I find that I … Continue reading Final Destination 2 is one sick, gruesomely over-the-top flick
John Butler’s deep-groove bassist brings the Snoop Dogg beats
Australian roots-jam singer-songwriter John Butler is quite the groove monster on his new album, Flesh & Blood, but he got a lot of help on one of the funkier numbers from his bassist Byron Luiters. As Butler explained on the line from New York the other day--on a tour that brings him to Vancouver's Commodore … Continue reading John Butler’s deep-groove bassist brings the Snoop Dogg beats
Horror review: Darkness Falls
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JAN. 30, 2003 On the Darkness Falls Web site, there’s a poll question that asks: “If you were forced to die in one of the following ways, which would it be?” Between the five options available—being buried alive, eaten alive by insects, burned alive, dismembered, or beheaded—85 percent of … Continue reading Horror review: Darkness Falls
Horror review: They
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, DEC. 5, 2002 The makers of They thought that by throwing the name of horror master Wes Craven around—as in “Wes Craven Presents They”—they would garner interest in the film from the millions of moviegoers who made the Craven-created Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream series so successful. But … Continue reading Horror review: They
Horror review: Ghost Ship
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, OCT. 31, 2002 By Steve Newton The folks at Hollywood’s Dark Castle Entertainment just don’t know when to give up. After nauseating viewers big time with their lamebrained haunted-house remakes, Thir13en Ghosts and House on Haunted Hill, they’re now polluting the high seas with this dead-in-the-water combo of The … Continue reading Horror review: Ghost Ship
Horror review: Halloween–Resurrection
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JULY 18, 2002 Two of the most memorable attributes of the original 1978 Halloween movie—director John Carpenter’s unsettling score and the realistic performance by scream-queen-to-be Jamie Lee Curtis—are revived for this eighth entry in executive-producer Moustapha Akkad’s undying slasher series. Unfortunately, neither of them lasts long enough to make … Continue reading Horror review: Halloween–Resurrection
Horror review: Reign of Fire
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JULY 18, 2002 Reign of Fire is one of the most intense and enjoyable monster flicks I’ve ever seen. It’s got throat-clutching suspense, pulse-pounding action, incredible-looking sets, deft direction, stunning cinematography, razor-sharp editing, rich production values, and terrifying creatures. In other words, it ranks right up there with Alien … Continue reading Horror review: Reign of Fire
Horror review: feardotcom
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, SEPT. 5, 2002 I figured feardotcom was gonna be bad news when I saw the TV trailer and noticed it was promoted with the line “From the director of House on Haunted Hill”, as if that was anything to be proud of. William Malone’s special-effects–heavy 1999 remake of William … Continue reading Horror review: feardotcom
Horror review: Eight Legged Freaks
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JULY 25, 2002 By Steve Newton I love watching horror movies starring spiders, mainly because they scare the heck out of me. I don’t mean those pretty gold-coloured ones you sometimes see hanging out in the garden, or those spindly daddy longlegs; I mean those hairy, brown, sinister-looking wolf … Continue reading Horror review: Eight Legged Freaks
Horror review: Jason X
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON APRIL 25, 2002 By Steve Newton I met Jason once. Back in ’89, they were filming Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan at an abandoned high school in Burnaby and I was covering the shoot for American horror mag Fangoria. During a break, stuntman-actor Kane Hodder came lumbering down the … Continue reading Horror review: Jason X
Horror review: Frailty
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, APRIL 25, 2002 Hollywood marketing departments seem more desperate than ever to find sources for the hyperbolic reviewer quotes they splash across TV screens and newspaper ads. There’s no need to rely on established critical outlets like the New York Times and the Village Voice when they can magnify … Continue reading Horror review: Frailty
Horror review: Resident Evil
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MARCH 21, 2002 The TV trailer for Resident Evil features a scene in which a scrappy chick in a red dress takes on a pack of bloodthirsty mutant Dobermans that appear to have been skinned alive. The part where she runs up a wall and then twists around to … Continue reading Horror review: Resident Evil