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“America is the final girl, and I hope she survives.”

Salem Horror Fest‘s eighth annual event kicked off last night at Salem’s Peabody Essex Museum, and festival manager Leslie Adams‘ brief opening statement — which concluded with the above quote — assured attendees that the event remains steadfast in its mission to cultivate a safe, inclusive, and fun community for genre fans.

This year’s festival is the first under the new leadership of Horror Arts Collective — formed by legacy staff members in the wake of founder Kay Lynch stepping down last year — but the team upholds the ethos instilled by Lynch, who cheered on her successors from the front row like a proud mom.

The new guard also upheld the tradition of kicking off with a memorable opening night headlined by a horror icon, with Hellraiser‘s Ashley Laurence serving as this year’s guest of honor. Media personality...

Filmmaker Michael Winnick made his feature directorial debut with the psychological sci-fi thriller Deuces back in 2001, and has since followed that up with the horror thriller Shadow Puppets, the crime thriller Guns, Girls and Gambling, the family drama The Better Half, the Steven Seagal vehicle Code of Honor, the horror film Malicious, the horror mystery Disquiet, and the action film Dark Asset. Now, Deadline reports that Winnick has wrapped production on his latest directorial effort, a sci-fi action film called Kill Him ‘Til He’s Dead. He managed to assemble a cool cast for this one as well, with Byron Mann (Wu Assassins), Milo Ventimiglia (This Is Us), Ashley Greene (Twilight), Anson Mount (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds), and Fivel Stewart (The Recruit) taking the lead roles.

Winnick wrote the screenplay for the film, which follows a broken-down hitman (Mann) who finds himself waking up in different bodies as he...

Stars: Zachary Le Vey, Alyson Gorske, Angel Prater, Caryn Richman, Michael Paré, Kio Cyr | Written by Brandon Christensen, Ryan Christensen, Matt Manjourides | Directed by Brandon Christensen

Closing out the first night of this year’s Saskatoon Fantastic Film Festival, The Puppetman tossed me a nugget of nostalgia early in the film when the leads make a booze run and I recognized the upside-down sign of Buffalo’s On the Rox Liquors, where many an eventful weekend of my own started.

But that doesn’t come until after we see a man brutally murder his wife while his young daughter cowers, caged in a dark closet. He seems to be struggling with himself as he beats her with a frying pan and stabs her. And that is his defence in court, it wasn’t him, someone or something else was controlling his body. It doesn’t get him acquitted, but it does get him a nickname,...

The Puppetman, the latest horror film from writer/director Brandon Christensen (Z, Superhost, Still/Born), is set to be released through the Shudder streaming service on Friday, October 13th – and with that date just a couple weeks away, we have shared the film’s trailer to help you decide whether or not The Puppetman is a movie you’ll be adding to your Halloween season viewing list. You can check it out in the embed above.

Starring Michael Paré (Bad Moon), Caryn Richman (The New Gidget), and Alyson Gorske (Amy’s F**k It List), The Puppetman tells the following story: The Puppetman is a convicted killer on death row. He has always maintained his innocence saying it was an evil force controlling his body as he slaughtered his victims. Now Michal, the killer’s daughter, begins to suspect that there may be some truth to her father’s claim...

Just because everything is now warm and sunny outside doesn’t mean that horror movies can’t find their place. Just look at Midsommar or Jaws. Both films are set in an idyllic location for summer travel, they boast bright and colorful summertime fun… with something sinister lurking just below the happy façade. This July, (between July 2 and the end of the month), Shudder will be the exclusive host for streaming the 2023 Etheria Film Festival on their platform. The festival highlights all the latest horror film creations from an entirely female director pool, including Zoey Martinson (Cupids), Jennifer Zhang (Charon), Meg Swertlow (Give Me an A), Alix Austin (Do Not Resuscitate), and many more.

Responding to challenging and dark times with art is perhaps the best way for humans to process their emotions and find a way to make their voices heard even when all seems lost. Such is the case with Give Me An A, an anthology film put together by a handful of notable filmmakers and actors who wanted to make a stand following the unprecedented overturning of Roe v. Wade. It’s almost been a full year since the Supreme Court cast its life-altering votes to undo the landmark abortion case, limiting the rights of those able to give birth around the country. While many felt silenced, 17 female filmmakers joined with actors including Alyssa Milano and Jennifer Holland to put the unthinkable decision under the lens of such genres as horror, sci-fi, and dark comedy.

Exclusive: The Coven (Terrifier 2) has boarded sales on the all-female anthology Give Me An A responding to the 2022 overturning of Roe V. Wade and is bringing the film to the Cannes market under the title of Objection.

The horror-sci-fi-dark comedy film, created by Natasha Halevi, comprises 16 segments tied together by one wraparound film, directed by different female filmmakers, with the work exploring issues including reproductive rights, women’s rights, mental health, and human rights.

The cast includes Alyssa Milano (Brazen), Virginia Madsen (Sideways), Gina Torres (9-1-1: Lone Star), Milana Vayntrub (This Is Us), Jennifer Holland (Peacemaker), Sean Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy), Molly C. Quinn (Castle), Jason George (Grey’s Anatomy) and Jackie Tohn (Glow).

The film began principal photography in July of 2022, less than a month after the June 24, 2022 Supreme Court ruling and had its first screening at Fantastic Fest 2022 less than two months later.

It went...

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3Fans and critics have applauded Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the third and final film in James Gunn's fiery Marvel trilogy. To be sure, it’s delivered an emotional closure for our beloved posse of intergalactic misfits. Audiences were thrust into Rocket’s (Bradley Cooper) traumatic backstory as the Guardians fought diligently to save his life after a surprise attack. We also got a new, seething foe in the form of The High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji). By film’s end, Rocket is back to his old sassy self, and Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) hands over the Guardians' leadership role to him before venturing off to reunite with his own father. Meanwhile, Gamora (Zoe Saldaña), Drax (Dave Bautista), Nebula (Karen Gillan), and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) decide to go their own ways, too.

Now what? Well, we’ll always have those yummy mid-credits,...

Give Me an A is a a horror, sci-fi, dark comedy response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade and will be screening Sunday April 2nd at 3:30 at the Overlook Film Festival. Ahead of the fest, I caught up with Natasha Halevi, who talked about the origins of this film, the quick turnaround on the project, tackling this important subject, and more:

Give Me an A was created as a response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. How did the idea of this project first come about?

On June 24th, 2022 Roe v. Wade was overturned. Like a lot women (and anyone of any gender affected) I crumpled to the ground sobbing. I felt powerless and totally out of control. I knew in many states people would be affected immediately. I heard the Clarance Thomas statement that contraception and same sex marriage would be next so I knew this...

The second and final wave of The Brooklyn Horror Film Festival have been announced and it's filled with horror movie premieres, special events, and much more!

The Brooklyn Horror Film Festival announces today the second and final wave of titles for their upcoming 2022 edition, presented by Shudder, running October 13th to the 20th with screenings held at Nitehawk Cinema Williamsburg and Williamsburg Cinemas.

The 7th edition of New York City’s celebrated genre event will close with the U.S. Premiere of the “straight cut” of Gaspar Noé’s Irreversible, also a highlight of the festival’s Fear In Focus: French Extremity sidebar, coinciding with the film’s 20th anniversary, and will spotlight Charlotte Le Bon’s supernatural coming-of-age feature debut Falcon Lake — hot off of its North American premiere at TIFF — as Centerpiece. In addition, Bhff is proud to host a special event screening of the new genre anthology Give Me An A.

The Brooklyn Horror Film Festival announced today an impressive second wave of titles for their explosive 2022 edition running from October 13th to the 20th with screenings held at Nitehawk Cinema Williamsburg and Williamsburg Cinemas. Following last year’s return to theaters, BHFFs presents its most robust slate to date.

From the press release:

The 7th edition of New York City’s celebrated genre event will close with the U.S. Premiere of the “straight cut” of Gaspar Noé’s Irreversible, also a highlight of the festival’s Fear In Focus: French Extremity sidebar, coinciding with the film’s 20th anniversary, and will spotlight

Charlotte Le Bon’s supernatural coming-of-age feature debut Falcon Lake — hot off of its North American premiere at TIFF — as Centerpiece. In addition, Bhff is proud to host a special event screening of the new genre anthology Give Me An A. Executive produced by Natasha Halevi, member...

Exclusive: Alyssa Milano (Brazen), Virginia Madsen (Sideways), Gina Torres (9-1-1: Lone Star) and Milana Vayntrub (This Is Us) have signed on for roles in the feature-length anthology Give Me an A, which links together 15 short films, in response to the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade.

The film currently in post-production will have been completed within two months from the date of Roe’s overturning — which eliminated the longstanding constitutional right to abortion — in an effort to ensure this is a response and not a delayed reaction. The creators, cast and crew have made a significant effort to expedite the process in order to start a conversation with audiences about the importance of bodily autonomy and address the dysfunction of a democracy that is not protecting the needs of a majority of the population. Support from vendors like Keslow, Panavision and The Ebell of Los Angeles has allowed...

Exclusive: Jennifer Holland (Peacemaker), Sean Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy films), Molly C. Quinn (Castle), Jason George (Grey’s Anatomy) and Jackie Tohn (Glow) have been tapped for roles in Give Me An A, a feature-length anthology made by more than two dozen female filmmakers and producers that links together 15 short films, in response to the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade. The actors will appear in segments from different directors, in genres ranging from horror and sci-fi, to satire and dark comedy.

The film currently in post-production will have been completed in less than 10 weeks from the date of Roe’s overturning — which eliminated the longstanding constitutional right to abortion — in an effort to ensure this is a response and not a delayed reaction. The creators, cast and crew have made a significant effort to expedite the process in order to start a conversation with audiences about the importance of...