Blu-ray Review: TALES OF HALLOWEEN (2015)

TALES OF HALLOWEEN
Directed by  Multiple Directors
Distributed by Epic Pictures

  I am a huge fan of anthology movies.  I think it's probably because I have a pretty short attention span, so multiple short stories is much easier for me to sit and watch than one story for 2 hours.   Plus, with shorts there is not much filler, or slow times.  Everything is fit into a short time frame so it's pretty much entertaining the entire running time, as long as it's a good story of course.   There are quite a few horror anthologies, some much better than others.  I honestly had no idea what to expect from TALES OF HALLOWEEN, but after watching it I can easily say it is among the top tier of horror anthologies.   Here is the plot synopsis from the film's official website:

  Named “the best horror anthology since Trick 'r Treat” by Fangoria and “among the best Halloween-themed horror movies ever made” by DailyDead, this critically acclaimed film weaves together ten chilling tales from horror's top directors. Ghosts, ghouls, monsters, and the devil delight in terrorizing unsuspecting residents of a suburban neighborhood on Halloween night. The all-star directorial lineup includes Neil Marshall (Game of Thrones, The Descent), Darren Lynn Bousman (SAW 2,3,4), Lucky McKee (The Woman, All Cheerleaders Must Die), and Mike Mendez (Gravedancers, Big Ass Spider!). Cameos by horror heavyweights such as Barry Bostwick (The Rocky Horror Picture Show), Lin Shaye (Insidious), John Savage (The Deer Hunter), Adrienne Barbeau (The Fog), John Landis (Director of Animal House), Joe Dante (Director of Gremlins), Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator, We Are Still Here), Booboo Stewart (Twilight), Keir Gilchrist (It Follows), Grace Phipps (Fright Night), Pat Healy (Cheap Thrills), Kristina Klebe (Rob Zombie's Halloween), Greg Grunberg (Heroes, Star Wars), Alex Essoe (Starry Eyes), Pollyanna McIntosh (The Woman), and more.

 This movie was so much fun, and I loved each story having been done by a different director.  It's a lot of fun to see all the different types of short stories and see all the different film styles.   This film consists of 10 shorts, which I will list and describe each a little here for you.

1. SWEET TOOTH  (Directed by Dave Parker) - The first film of the movie is a classic "urban legend" type story about a boy who's parents never let him eat his Halloween candy.  The boy killed his parents, and finally was able to eat all his candy.  The legend says that he still roams today, and you must leave part of your candy out for Sweet Tooth, otherwise you'll wind up dead!  This was one of my favorite of the short films.  It had some great gore, and what looked to be all practical effects.

2.  THE NIGHT BILLY RAISED HELL (Directed by Darren Lynn Bousman) -  This is a dark comedic tale about a boy who hangs out with the devil on Halloween, and is coerced into pulling off some crazy Halloween pranks, each one a little more worse than the previous. 

3.  TRICK  (Directed by Adam Gierasch)  -  This was a very creepy tale about a group of kids that attack the people of a house they are trick or treating at.    The man who went to the door to hand out the candy had no idea the cute little girl would end up stabbing him!  Eventually other kids join in and terrorize the people of the house.   Killer kids terrifies me, so this segment was very effective!

4.  THE WEAK AND THE WICKED  (Directed by Paul Solet)  - This was actually one of my least favorite of all the stories.   It centers around a group of bullies that have been terrorizing people since they were young kids.  This time though, they seem to have messed with the wrong person who has someone, or something on their side.

5.  GRIM GRINNING GHOST  (Directed by Axelle Carolyn) - This is a fun story about a lady driving home from a party after listening to ghost stories.  Her car breaks down and she has to walk home alone...or is she?  This is a very simple premise, but  is executed extremely well with some great, creepy imagery.

6.  DING DONG  (Directed by Lucky McKee)  - This is an interesting tale of a husband and wife who lost their son, and is now picking out the perfect replacement from the trick or treaters that come by.

7.  THIS MEANS WAR (Directed by Andrew Kasch & John Skipp)  - This was one of my favorite entries, as it deals with one of my favorite parts of the Halloween season which is the Halloween decorations.  This story is about new neighbors that come in and try to outdo the guy on the street that normally has the biggest and best decorations, ending up in a deadly battle!

8.  FRIDAY THE 31st (Directed by Mike Mendez)  -   This was a weird one, but one of my favorites!  It involves an awesome killer reminiscent of Jason Voorhees, but mixes in some humor and a little weird animated alien.  The results are a funny, but bloody, good time!

9.   THE RANSOM OF RUSTY REX  (Directed by Ryan Schifrin)  -  This is a great kidnapping tale.  The kidnappers think they are kidnapping the kid of a rich businessman, but it turns out, kidnapping this "kid" did the businessman a favor!

10.  BAD SEED  (Directed by Neil Marshall)  -  The final tale is an extremely fun tale about a demon jack-o-lantern.   Man eating jack-o-lanterns running through the streets eating people is a perfect way to end this awesome anthology!

  
  This is a must have for any horror fan in my opinion.  I hope this catches on and we get a new TALES OF HALLOWEEN every year or so, using the same format of multiple short films all made by different directors.  I also have to mention all the awesome cameos from some horror legends, such as:  Adrienne Barbeau, Caroline Williams, Tiffany Shepis, Barbara Crampton, Mick Garris, Stuart Gordon, Felissa Rose, John Landis, Kristina Klebe, Adam Green, and Joe Dante!

  TALES is available now on an awesome Blu-ray/DVD/CD combo pack and contains the following special features:

*  7 Bonus Short Films
*  Feature Commentary
*  Bonus Commentary Tracks on Certain Shorts
*  Deleted Scene (Grim Grinning Ghost)
*  Anatomy of a Scene  (Friday the 31st)
*  Fun Facts  (Pop-On Video Commentary for Selected Segments)
*  Photo Gallery  (Bad Seed)
*  Storyboards  (Ding Dong)
*  Diaries  (23 Videos of Behind-the-Scenes & Interviews)
*  Collectible Trading Cards
*  CD Soundtrack



CLICK HERE to watch the trailer
CLICK HERE to purchase the DVD/BD/CD combo pack

Book Reviews: 6-13: A FRIDAY THE 13th MOVIE TRIVIA BOOK and 10-31: A HALLOWEEN MOVIE TRIVIA BOOK

6-13: A FRIDAY THE 13th MOVIE TRIVIA BOOK
by Gene DeRosa
Published by Samson Publishing Company

  FRIDAY THE 13th is probably my favorite horror movie franchise of all time.  I love all the films in the series and I really love reading about the films in various books on this franchise.   Recently I ran across author Gene DeRosa at the Tulsa Comic Con and his trivia books based on the FRIDAY THE 13th films and the HALLOWEEN films! 

  6-13:  A FRIDAY THE 13th MOVIE TRIVIA BOOK is a very comprehensive look at the Jason Voorhees films.   There are some very tough questions here, giving you some wonderful details into the films.  Along with the normal trivia you would find in a book like this, there is also just a lot of great information on the films. DeRosa's book is much more than just a trivia book, it is also a great reference book for the FRIDAY THE 13th films.   Some examples include a great section of the book that lists every actor that has ever played the part of Jason Voorhees and the films they appeared in.  Another is a list of every film in the series and the location the movie takes place in along with all the actual filming locations for each film.   Here are a few more great reference items you will find in this book:

*  A list of the number of kills and type of kills from each film
*  A list of every FRIDAY THE 13th comic book series
*  A list of every survivor from each film
*  A list of every way Jason was killed at the end of each film
*  A kill list of every character killed in the films and how they died


10-31: A HALLOWEEN  MOVIE TRIVIA BOOK
by Gene DeRosa
Published by Samson Publishing Company

 Halloween is another one of my favorite horror film franchises, and just like the FRIDAY THE 13th trivia book above, DeRosa's HALLOWEEN trivia book is just as in-depth and informative.  10-31 is almost twice a thick as the FRIDAY book and in addition to an abundance of great trivia questions, it too is jammed full of useful info and stats.  Lists in this book include:

*  every actor to portray Michael Myers in each film
*  every comic book series produced about the HALLOWEEN films or Michael Myers.
*  pictures of each mask used in each HALLOWEEN film
*  release dates and box office numbers for each film

  As you can see these are more than just trivia books.  These are must have in-depth reference books for fans of these films.  I can't imagine the research that had to go into each of these amazing books.  I highly recommend picking up a copy of each from the Samson Publishing website.  Right now, you can get both books for just $20!


CLICK HERE to purchase the FRIDAY THE 13th TRIVIA BOOK for $9.99
CLICK HERE to purchase the HALLOWEEN TRIVIA BOOK $14.99
CLICK HERE to purchase BOTH books for only $20!

Check out the interview Rob Zombie about his new film, 31, and how you can help support the film!

  I'm sure by now everyone has heard about Rob Zombie's next horror project, a film called 31.   I guess he is going a different route with this film and is not going through a studio with the film.  In fact, he is using the site FanBacked  (similar to Kickstarter or Indiegogo) to raise money for the film!  Contributors can get some great perks for donating, including signed posters and DVDs, and even the chance to be an extra in the film!

 According to Mr. Zombie, 31 was inspired by a fact he read about how many people disappear every October 31st.   Here is the plot from the film's imdb page:

Five people are kidnapped on the days leading up to Halloween and held hostage in a place called Murder World. While trapped, they must play a violent game called 31 where the mission is to survive 12 hours against a gang of evil clowns.


CLICK HERE to visit the 31 FanBacked website, watch the interview, and contribute!

It's pumpkin carving time!!

  It's getting close to Halloween, which means it's time to carve pumpkins!!!  My family headed out to the  pumpkin patch today to pick out some future Jack-o-lanterns!!  I have done some pretty detailed pumpkins in the past, like a Jason Voorhees pumpkin and a Freddy Krueger pumpkin.

  This year I kept it a little more simple with a pumpkin inspired by the opening credits pumpkin from the 1978 classic, HALLOWEEN.  I also helped one of my boys do a cool Jack Skelington pumpkin which I think turned out pretty good!   Here are our pumpkins we did today:

First up is my 7 year old son's Vampire pumpkin!  My boy drew the face, and cut it out all by himself!  This was the first year he did everything himself  (even cleaning out the pumpkin before carving it).  I was pretty proud of his creation!!






Next is my pumpkin inspired by John Carpenter's 1978 masterpiece, HALLOWEEN!  This is the pumpkin you see in the opening credits sequence.  Very simple, yet spooky!

And here is the Jack Skelington pumpkin that I helped my other son do!  He cleaned the pumpkin out himself, and poked the holes for the pattern, but I did the cutting.  I think this turned out awesome, and it looks even cooler since we used a solid white pumpkin!





Here are all our finished products!  We had a great time carving the pumpkins outside on a beautiful day!









 
I know some of you out there have carved some cool pumpkins this year!  Email me pics of your pumpkins and I will do a blog post with a gallery of everyone's pumpkins!    Email your pumpkin pics to zombiehayes@hotmail.com!

Blu-ray Review: HALLOWEEN 35TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION

HALLOWEEN:  35TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION
Directed by:  John Carpenter
Distributed by:  Anchor Bay Home Entertainment

I'm sure everyone that reads this blog has seen John Carpenter's classic horror masterpiece, HALLOWEEN.  If you are a true fan of horror, you have seen this film numerous times and it is required viewing every October!  If you have never seen this film, do so asap.  This is as close to a perfect horror movie as you can get.   For those not familiar with the film, here is a description from the Anchor Bay website:

Halloween stars Jamie Lee Curtis (A Fish Called Wanda, True Lies) in her debut role. Anyone who’s ever watched a horror film in the last 35 years knows the story of Michael Myers, who as a child, butchered his sister with a kitchen knife. Committed to a mental institution and watched over by Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasance, Halloween II, IV & V, Fantastic Voyage), he engineers his escape 15 years later, returning to his hometown of Haddonfield, Illinois on Halloween night to terrorize anyone who gets in his way, including babysitter Laurie Strode (Curtis). Co-starring P.J. Soles (Carrie, Stripes, Rock ‘n Roll High School), Kyle Richards (The Watcher in the Woods, Eaten Alive), Nancy Loomis (Carpenter’s Assault On Precinct 13, The Fog), Charles Cyphers (Escape From New York, The Fog) and Brian Andrews (The Great Santini, Three O’Clock High), Halloween also cemented the careers of many behind the camera including Carpenter, Cundey, producer Debra Hill and film editor/production designer Tommy Lee Wallace (Halloween III: Season of the Witch, “It”).

  I don't feel the need to review the actual movie.  You have probably all seen it, and like I said before, it is about as close to the perfect horror film as you can get.  So, I'm gonna tell you all  about the other stuff you get with this new edition. Now I realize you probably already own this film, either on DVD or the earlier Blu-ray release, but you will definitely want to pick up this new Blu-ray edition.  In addition to the new HD transfer of the film, this set contains a very cool built in booklet full of info and behind the scenes pics from the film.  This new Blu-ray edition also contains some great special features including a new commentary with John Carpenter and Jamie Lee Curtis and two very cool documentaries.  One is new doc called, THE NIGHT SHE CAME HOME, about a rare horror convention appearance Jamie Lee Curtis did back in 2012 to raise money for charity.  Jamie Lee Curtis does not do many appearances at all when it comes to horror conventions, so this was a lot of fun to see. 
  The other great documentary is called, ON LOCATION:  25 YEARS LATER which was previously available on past DVD and Blu-ray releases. It is a cool look at the filming locations and how they look today compared to back I the late 70's when the film was shot.

  If you have not seen this film, this is the version you will want to get for sure.  The picture looks amazing on this new HD transfer.  The HALLOWEEN: 35TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION Blu-ray is available now from Anchor Bay Home Entertainment!


CLICK HERE to watch the trailer
CLICK HERE to purchase the Blu-ray

Check out the trailer for ALL HALLOWS' EVE!

 While browsing the web today, I ran across the trailer for a killer clown film called ALL HALLOWS' EVE.  The film was written and directed by Damien Leone. I had not heard anything about this film until now, and I am a big fan of creepy clowns, so I wanted to check this out.  Here is the basic plot from the film's imdb.com page:

While watching two children on Halloween night, a babysitter finds an old VHS tape in the kids' trick or treat bag. The tape features three tales of terror, all linked together by a murderous clown. As the night goes on strange things begin to occur in the house. It isn't long before the babysitter learns the horrifying truth... the maniacal clown is slowly working his way into her reality.

  The trailer looks like this could be a pretty cool film! Watch the trailer and let me know what you think!

ALL HALLOWS' EVE will be released on VOD and DVD on October 29th.

CLICK HERE to watch the trailer
CLICK HERE to visit the film's official facebook page

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

I hope you all had a great Halloween night!!  I had a great time walking around with the kiddos trick-or-treating! I am worn out (and under the weather..again!! Ugh), so I am headed to bed.  I will get back to regular postings in the next day or so.

Until then..I want to share with you a pic of my friend Caleb who went as Beetlejuice this Halloween!! Caleb always has the best costumes and this year was no different!  His attention to detail is ridiculous!  That is real moss on his face and clothes!  Nice work Caleb!

If any of you have some great costumes you would like to share, send them to me at ZombieHayes@hotmail.com and I will post them on a future post for all the world to see!

Thanks, and Happy Halloween!!

Sorry for the lack of posts lately......I've been too busy to even carve a pumpkin this year, so show me yours!!

I apologize for the lack of posts lately, this is a very busy time of year for me!  I love the week leading up to Halloween, and all the festivities, but it has been keeping me very busy.  In fact, I haven't even found time to carve a pumpkin this year! I think this will be the first Halloween I haven't carved a pumpkin since I can remember!
Here is one of my favorites that I carved a couple of years ago, Freddy Krueger!

I would love to see some of your creations!  Email pics of some of your cool Jack-O-Lanterns to:
ZombieHayes@hotmail.com and I will show off some of your cool creations right here on the 4H Blog!

DVD Review: HALLOWEEN NIGHT (2006)

------Review by contributing writer Scott Baker------

Hayes has been on a roll lately with the quality of the movies he's picking out for me to review. So far, the last several he has given me have been nice surprises. I'm happy to report that HALLOWEEN NIGHT continues that trend. I really enjoyed this one and will probably watch it again soon. I have to admit, though: this one had me worried. When I read the back of the DVD case, I cringed because the premise sounds VERY familiar. Here it is, straight from the case:

"Based on the actual events of Halloween night, 1982, an inmate of a maximum security medical facility escapes after brutally murdering two guards. Upon returning to the house where he was born, he goes on a killing spree that will make him Southern California's greatest mass murderer."

Egh...how many times of you heard that shtick? BUT, thankfully, the movie is so much more than this brief description lets on. In fact, I would describe it is an inventive and slick thriller that contains a lot of gore, chills, and even dark humor.

One thing that is surprisingly not mentioned in the synopsis is the fact that the killer is a horribly disfigured teen who has been burned beyond recognition. I gotta tell you: the burn make-up job for this character is excellent. The effects team probably didn't have a huge budget to work with, but you can't tell that from looking at this guy's face. Wow. He's so hideous that he makes Freddy Krueger look like a super-model. Even with the make-up aside, the special effects overall are very well done and the gore is very believable. One of the greatest gore effects comes about in the beginning, when the main character's mother has part of her head blown off. Not to sound freakish, but I was very impressed. There are also many other death scenes that are fun to watch as well, including a girl's unique demise using a wooden hangar.

The film is shot well, although my only complaint about it visually is that I feel like the lighting was off in certain scenes. The lack of light in some scenes gives the shots a grainy look, while there is too much light in a couple of the later shots. But this is hardly noticeable and certainly doesn't detract from the frights. The cast was top-notch, too, which is (as I've stated in previous reviews) surprising, given the low budget of the film. The members of the cast were able to lend credibility to their characters and throw in a great deal of dark humor with each of them as well. This is not an easy thing to do, but director Mark Atkins and his team pull it off without a hitch.

Overall, I give this movie high marks all the way around. If you're looking for the perfect late-night Halloween movie to watch, give Halloween Night a look for sure. But make sure you've eaten first before you sit down to watch. The blood and gore might not take you to Vomit-town, but the ghastly appearance of the killer's burned skin probably will.

HALLOWEEN NIGHT is out now on DVD from THE ASYLUM!

CLICK HERE to purchase the DVD

CLICK HERE to visit the official website of THE ASYLUM

Support horror films in the theater! 2 new horror films opened this weekend....go see 'em!!

I'm sure most of you know, but if you don't, both THE FINAL DESTINATION 3D and Rob Zombie's HALLOWEEN 2 opened yesterday in theaters. Please support these films and check them out while still in the theaters. We have to support R-Rated horror films so that they will continue to be successful and therefore keep getting made. As opposed to studios just making the PG-13 horror movies to guarantee the extra $$$. So, watch the trailers, go see whichever one you think looks best, or both, and then come back and comment and let me know what you thought of these films. I will be catching HALLOWEEN 2 Sunday night and then THE FINAL DESTINATION 3D a little later in the week next week. Let me know what you think!!

Click HERE to watch an unused trailer for HALLOWEEN 2

Click HERE to watch a trailer for THE FINAL DESTINATION 3D