DKTM 360

It's incredible to think that since January 2009 I have done three-hundred-and-sixty of these news post things. In the interest of symmetry, I think it's time to close the loop on them. While part of the regimen was about archiving cool stuff that was going on, as an actual news delivery device it's largely redundant as there are a million other places you can get your news.

The shutting down of DKTM is the first step in a Horror Section overhaul that I'll elaborate more on in 2018. Rest assured I'm not going anywhere, but the coming year is going to be a busy one, so I mean to take steps to streamline things around here.

Have a great NYE and I'll see you back here later in the week.

DKTM 359

Howdy all! I am breathing a big sigh of relief that this rammed schedule I've been experiencing for the last four months has finally opened up some. I can enjoy my holidays, play some video games and pretty much go full-on sloth until attacking 2018 anew.

Neon Dreams.

I just heard about this new game being developed by Storymind Entertainment out of the Ukraine called My Eyes On You. A third person action game, it follows FBI agent Jordan Adalien as he tries to track down a serial killer in Chicago.

I've been listening to synth-wave almost exclusively the last few months so I'm digging the look, but I wish the teaser showed off more of its game play mechanics. There is no release date as of yet, so plenty of time for that I suppose.

Holiday Cheer.

With one week left until Santa arrives, I suppose I should start getting into the Christmas spirit. For those of you who dread this time of you, I found a little short film for you by Matt Thiesen & Justin Lee entitled Humbug.

Dark Nat.

Here's my thought process that happened to me earlier today while on social media.

“Hmmm, don't know much about this Justice League Dark thing, but this Swamp Thing design looked cool, who els-- OHHHMYGODD”

She would've made a better Captain Marvel, but I'd take anything at this point.

DKTM 358

Hello all. I hope you are all having a good weekend. Here's what I've got for you this week.

Invading the Popular Consciousness.

YouTuber Jarvis City sent me a cool video recently compiling eighteen minutes worth of references to The Shining from pop culture. You're welcome!

Having done a few of these myself, I know how time intensive they can be. I also give him props for not including The Chickening because that shit hurts my eyes -- and my soul.

On The Vanguard.

Last week, during the Blood in the Snow Film Festival's awards ceremony last weekend, my friend and prolific Canadian actor Ry Barrett was presented with the Vanguard Award in recognition of work in Canadian genre cinema. The award was preceded by a compilation reel of his work compiled by director and compatriot Gabriel Carrer.

I was honoured to have his work in my short films Lively and The Good Samaritan included in there. Ry deserved every bit of this recognition.

Going to the Dogs.

So, what if Reservoir Dogs had had an actual dog? Like a killer dog that showed up at the warehouse mid-film! Well, your prayers have been answered!

Though I haven't seen Dark Summer, I was a fan of Paul Solet's 2009 debut Grace and his weird BMX-western segment in Tales of Halloween, so I'm eager to see what he can do with a larger budget. It appears to be fairly action heavy, which is good, but I guess it comes down to how digital will the antagonist be. Bullet Head releases in theatres and VOD on Dec 8th.

DKTM 357

Hello all. I'll use this opportunity between IFFF and BITS to get in a little Don't Kill the Messenger post - well that and watch eight Freddy movies but more on that later. Here's what I've got.

Stranger Pulp.

Artist Butcher Billy is at it again, this time envisioning each Stranger Things 2 episode as its own pulp paperback novel.

Click to enlarge.

He also did some sweet Atari cartridges that you can see here.

I might as well sound off on the second season while I'm on the subject. I liked it well enough, but I feel like The Duffer Brothers kind of doubled down on the less desirable aspects of the show, as they hit the “look it's the eighties” vibe even harder this time around. I get that they were often using it to mirror thematic elements - Dragon's Lair foreshadowing the Max/Lucas/Dustin love triangle for instance - but it was decidedly distracting, especially when I'd seen it done less sensationally in It this summer.

I dug the new characters Max and Kali, but never felt they weren't given as much to do as they should have been. Mainly, I just have to echo Max's statement to Lucas in episode five - something to the effect of “I liked it, but it was derivative in parts and I just wish it had a little more originality”.

Sadie Sink as "Mad" Max Mayfield.

I mean, did they think that re-staging the battle scene from Aliens (with Paul Reiser no less) was going to be met with anything but chuckles at best and eye rolls at worst? Anyway, moving on.

Vamp's Gotta Eat.

I wanted to plug a Kickstarter campaign for a local short project called TiCK.

Burke and Wessel are both local film community fixtures, so I'd like to see this succeed. Twenty-Four by Thirty-Six was a really entertaining documentary and Wessell's last short Ink had a really unique energy to it. If you feel like dropping some coin, click here.

Housesitting Woes.

Here below is the newest trailer for Gabriel Carrer's Death on Scenic Drive.

I'm looking forward to this, as not only does it feature some of my favourite people, but it looks like Carrer has gone full-Refn, something that I know he has been wanting to do for quite sometime. I believe this is set to be released in the coming months, so keep your eyes out.

DKTM 356

Hello all. This post is coming to you posthumously, as I am currently taking in the festivities at this year's Horror-Rama. You can expect a full report on that in a few days, but here's what I've got for you right now.

FMV FTW.

Earlier this year, I posted about a special screening of Phantasmagoria: A Puzzle of Flesh. Toronto-based filmmaker Pierce Derks had pieced together all the cut-scenes from Lorilei Shannon's 1996 video game oddity into a coherent feature length narrative and it was a sight to behold for many reasons. In celebration of Halloween, Derks posted the full video on his Vimeo page for all to enjoy.

After our Hellraiser marathon last week, we discovered that Puzzle of Flesh shared a lot in common with Hellseeker (the sixth entry in the franchise), but I'm sure you will agree that Shannon's effort bears much more forbidden fruit than that ever did.

Frank's Back.

I discovered that Eibon Press has resurrected Bill Lustig's iconic character Frank Zito for a limited comic series. From the sweat-streaked film reels of 42nd Street and onto the page comes more Maniac for a new crop of degenerates.

Pre-orders are still ongoing for Issue #1 and Eibon just recently teased the second issue, which puts Frank up against another well-known scourge of NYC, Lucio Fulci's New York Ripper!

This artwork is as lewd and provocative as any VHS back in the day, so it's definitely worth a look. To check out more from Eibon press, click here.

Hell Springs Eternal.

Filmmaker & actor Jeff Sinasac, whom I've worked with on many occasions, has for quite sometime been slaving over a passion project of his called Red Spring. Now, it finally looks it is ready to be unleashed. Check out the trailer below.

It was just announced yesterday that Red Spring will having its world premiere at this year's Blood in the Snow Fesitval. Hope to see you there!

DKTM 355

Hey guys! I've extricated myself from watching the second stanza of Stranger Things long enough to regale you with some recent goings on around the Web. Today, I will be undergoing some legendary suffering, but more on that next week. For now, enjoy your Sunday!

Bite-Sized Awesome.

I've been watching hundreds of short films over the last few months for different fests, so it's a little funny that one of the best this year has come from an outside source. Fox and Mars got together to broadcast some two-minute horror shorts over the last week or so. They were all decent, but the one brought to us by Skittles was far and away the best.

That's some “next level” storytelling right there. Kudos to filmmakers Simon Allen & Toby Meakins for pulling that one off. To check out the M&M's, Starburst and Snickers shorts, click here.

Ride Along.

Local filmmaker Mikey McMurran burst onto the scene a few years ago with his irreverent Xmas horror, Secret Santa. Now, he's currently crowdfunding for his newest project, the comedy horror anthology The Final Ride. Here's the pitch below.

I think that vintage workout video featuring Ry Barrett may be worth the price of admission alone. To contribute to the campaign, click here.

Neon & Palm Trees.

I found this awesome retrofier app online this week. Check it out!

To make your own, go here!

DKTM 354

Hello all. I hope you are enjoying your Thanksgiving Day weekend (for those us in Canada anyway). This weekend represents the calm before the storm, as my October gets into high gear next week. In the meantime, here are some trailers for things I am very much looking forward to in the coming weeks/months.

The Return of the Creep.

Recently, the trailer for Mark Duplass' follow-up to his found footage gem Creep has come online.

I'm all over this. I loved the understated tension created in the first film. It affected me so much that I actually dressed as Peach Fuzz for Halloween a few years ago. Creep 2 releases on VOD October 24th.

Oh I Like It!

It was a good day when Severin announced they were released (for the first time on DVD) the whacked-out Canuxploitation opus Beyond The Seventh Door. I mean, look at this bonkers trailer.

The amount of time it took me to pre-order this movie after seeing that was infinitesimal and just another reason to look forward to October 31st. You too can order it here.

Netflix Dark.

Coming in December to the Big N is Dark, a German produced sci-fi mystery series.

Described as a cross between Stranger Things and Les Revenants, I was unable to attend the sneak they had at TIFF last month so I am elated that this is getting released here so soon. Dark releases globally on December 1st.

DKTM 353

Hey all! I have recovered from TIFF and now have a few more days to relax before the busiest month of the year starts. Here's what I've got for you today.

Stranger Eighties.

With the upcoming second season of Stranger Things approaching, The Duffer Brothers have been releasing one-sheet posters on Twitter to celebrate their influences. I'm sure I don't need to include the originals for you to get where they were coming from.

Stranger Things returns to Netflix on October 27.

Haunted Puppets.

Those who have seen Kevin McTurk's Mill at Calder's End (now available on the Minutes Past Midnight anthology) know his puppetry skills are second-to-none. Currently he is hard at work on his newest opus, The Haunted Swordsman and he needs your help.

This is an all or nothing campaign, so please give if you want to see this project come to fruition.

Toulon's Trunk.

I received an email last week about this upcoming release from Full Moon and I just had to post about it.

It's such a gorgeous set and very hard for me to refuse. When you think of it, twelve discs for two-fitty ain't half bad. Hmmmm. The set will be available for presale here starting October 2nd.   

DKTM 352

Hello all. I hope you are enjoying your Labour Day weekend. I am basically just killing time before the two-hour finale of Twin Peaks tonight, but in the meantime here are some damn good bits of genre to chew on.

Better Watch Out!

I wanted to call attention to an awesome publication that is currently taking pre-orders on IndieGogo, Spectacular Optical's Yuletide Terror. I'll let the pitch video take the floor.

Edited by Kier-La Janisse & Paul Corupe, they have been putting out quality books on film for years, including 2014's Kid Power and 2015's Satanic Panic. I am super stoked for this one, as it will have articles on some of my favourite Xmas titles, including Black Christmas & 3615: Code Pere Noël aka Game Over.

I immediately pledged when I found out that there was a perk available commemorating Ed Hunt's 1988's Christmas classic The Brain.

For more info on the campaign, click here.

Rue Morgue Turns 20.

Congratulations to Rue Morgue magazine to hitting twenty years, as their new Halloween issue hit stands recently.

It's a pretty ballin' issue with extensive articles on the history of witches on film and media as well as the terrific piece (which I also contributed to) 25 Non-Fiction Genre Film Books That Everyone Should Own. To commemorate the 20th anniversary, music editor Aaron Von Lupton compiled this sweet horror-synth playlist entitled They Came From Rue Morgue.

Here's to twenty more, Rue Morgue!

Bustin' Cape Town Style!

Check out this awesome proof-of-concept video for Michael Matthew's adaptation of the Charlie Human novel.

The comparisons to Ghostbusters and District 9 are obviously apt, but I actually got a big John Dies At The End vibe, as well. Hopefully, something larger comes from this.

Barker Bits.

In addendum to my piece on HexFest's Rawhead Rex last weekend, there was also some coverage done by the Clive Barker Podcast via correspondent Jonathan Kui. Check it out below if you wanna hear interviews with yours truly, HXFF director Aaron Allen and the full talk with Greg Lamberson that followed the movie.

DKTM 351

Hello all. I hope you're weekend is going well. Mine has been a super quiet one in front of the various screens. I do have some interesting stuff to post about this week, so let's get right to it.

OMG Yes.

The creators of the burgeoning Wyrmwood franchise dropped a concept trailer this week for their other project, Daemonrunner.

I loved that. This is an infinitely more interesting world to me than their other IP, so I hope they bring this to fruition at some point.

Deja Vampire.

You know of my disdain of remakes, but I heard of one this week that actually made some kind of sense. Robert Eggers, the main behind 2015's terrific film The Witch is going to tackle the 1922 classic Nosferatu. 

This seems like a perfect fit for him as he has proven his dedication to detail and world building is second to none. Furthermore, Eggers is reuniting with Ana Taylor-Joy, one of the most exciting actresses working in the genre today in my opinion. I mean, how can this go wrong, right?

Art & Hammer.

I was ecstatic to hear this week that Gary Pullin & Sara Deck's art exhibition series Below The Line is returning to Hamilton next month. Below The Line 2 will feature not only new artwork from Pullin & Deck, but also Jason Edmiston, Justin Erickson, Paige Reynolds, Matty Ryan Tobin & Kevin Tong. Check out some of what's in store below.

Art by Gary Pullin.

Art by Paul Jackson.

Art by Jason Edmiston.

Art by Jason Edmiston.

The show opens September 8th at Mills Hardware as part of Hamiton's Supercrawl Weekend. For more details, click here.

DKTM 350

Good afternoon. Here's what I've got for you this week.

Niagara Frights.

There is a new horror convention descending on the Golden Horseshoe come this fall. Frightmare in the Falls will be hitting Niagara this November 11-12th.

There have been conventions out this way before, but this one seems to be more horror-centric - like the short-lived ventures of years past like MacabreCon and Dark Carnival - so let's hope this one sticks. They have certainly got some star power involved with the likes of Kane Hodder and Tom Savini, but the real draw for me is the appearance of Christine herself, the 1958 Plymouth Fury.

If you're interested in attending, tickets - that are a fraction of what you'd pay at Fan Expo I might add - are available here.

...Sitting In A Tree

With a new Annabelle movie out this weekend, it looks like Full Moon took it upon themselves to riff on it, using one of their most enduring properties.

I have to admit, I am intrigued. For more Blade though, you can check out Puppet Master: Axis Termination Episode One: War Toys over at Full Moon's Amazon Channel.

Dance of the Dead.

I wanted to end of things with a cool little video created by YouTube user Jarvis City. It's a sharp little ditty compiling some dance sequences from various horror films. Enjoy!

If you liked this, you can check out some of his more long-form vids, including ones about slashers and lady killers.

DKTM 349

Hey all! Apart from TIFF's Midnight line-up being announced it's been a pretty quiet week here, so it will be a quick one today. Have a good one!

Hexed.

This week, a film festival I program for in Hamilton, Ontario announced its new name. After much deliberation over the last few months, Fright Night Theatre has now become the Hexploitation Film Festival.

The name didn't wow me right away, but I've warmed to it. I like that it's a combination of Horror and Exploitation - our two biggest programming cornerstones - and the abbreviated moniker of HexFest rolls off the tongue easily.

The festival runs Mar 23-25th, 2018 and we have begun taking submissions for both shorts and features, so if you're a filmmaker or know one, send them here. Hope to see you next year.

122 Nightmares.

I came across this pretty awesome video from last year compiled by Diego Carrerra where he beautifully traces the history of horror from 1895 to 2016. Enjoy!

DKTM 348

Hey all. I'm just checking before attending a friend's movie marathon all day. Here's some interesting stuff for the week.

My Head Is Killing Me.

Ahead of the anticipated second season of their horror series Channel Zero, SyFy has released this teaser.

Creepy shit, and so simple! The second season will focus on the Creepypasta story No-End House and will premiere on October 1st. I can't wait!

Bava Bound!

Remember when I was incredibly jealous of the Mario Bava retrospective that was happening in NYC and desperately hoped that it would somehow make it to Toronto? Well, my prayers have been answered! From August 11th to 13th, The Royal Cinema & Horror-Rama are bringing four of Bava's classics here.

I am so stoked for this. Planet of the Vampires and Kill Baby, Kill are two of the most influential pictures out there, Black Sunday features one of Barbara Steele's most striking performances and I've not even seen Hatchet For A Honeymoon, so this is a real treat. For more info, visit The Royal's website here.

For The Birds.

I saw this cool little construct on Bloody Disgusting this week. Reddit user murdrfaze has fashioned themselves a birdhouse replica of the cabin from the Sam Raimi classic The Evil Dead.

Apparently due to the demand, murdrfaze has decided to build ten for sale on his Etsy page. No word on when that will be, but if you'd like to read the original BD article, click here.

That's it for me kiddies, I got me some movies to watch. Have a great rest of the weekend! 

DKTM 347

Hey all. Here's what I've got for you this week.

VHS Love.

I found this great little piece on Bloody Disgusting this week. An artist by the name of Steelberg has made a name for himself by creating retro style VHS coverboxes featuring recent titles and here are some of his latest.

Steelberg is obviously not the only cat who is doing this, but I'd say he is the best and certainly the most authentic right down to the rental stickers. To see the rest of the run, check out the original article here.

Don't Go In The Woods.

Here's the trailer for the David Bruckner's new backwoods horror flick The Ritual.

I read the book this was based on a few years ago so I'm interested to see how this turned out. Hopefully, it comes to my neck of the woods later this year.

...& Ecstacy.

Madmind Studios' Agony, the video that literally takes place in hell, has a new trailer out.

This looks cool. Gameplay-wise it looks pretty standard, but I'm really intrigued by the world. I'm definitely up for trekking around some Hellraiser/Event Horizon-like digs. Agony is scheduled for release later this year on all platforms. You can check out the website here.

DKTM 346

Hello all! I hope you're enjoying your weekend and that sweet spot in between Canada Day and Fourth of July. Here's what I've got for you.

Bava Buffet.

While it is often that I wish I could attend something that is screening in NYC, this takes the torta, so to speak. The Quad Cinema in New York will be celebrating the work of Italian icon Mario Bava in July by playing twenty-one (!) of his classic films.

Mario Bava's Black Sabbath (1963)

Kicking off July. the Mondo Bava series also will play other such titles as Blood & Black Lace, Black Sabbath, Bay of Blood, Shock and a new 4K restoration of his seminal sci-fi title Planet of the Vampires. For the full line-up, click here.

Planet of the Vampires (1965)

I can only pray to any higher power that will listen that some organization in the Big Smoke will bring this series to Toronto. I'm crossing my black gloved fingers.

Trailer Two-Fer.

I have a couple of trailers here, the first of which is for the newest Child's Play movie, Cult of Chucky. 

I still haven't seen the one from a few years ago yet, but fortunately a friend is having a Chucky marathon this month so I'll be able to catch up soon enough. Second is the trailer for Black Fawn's newest The Heretics.

Each picture these guys make as part of their eight picture deal with Breakthrough is better than the last and having worked with two of the leads (Ry Barrett & Jorja Cadence) in the past, I am expecting good things. Look for both titles later this year.

If Only.

Lastly, since I'm still clocking in nightly sessions with Gun Media's Friday the 13th game, I thought this mock-up was particularly awesome.

I'm afraid I don't know who is responsible for this, but I like to think there is an alternative universe where these titles actually exist. What a childhood that would be!