Our editor-in-chief Nate Yapp is proud to have contributed to the new book Hidden Horror: A Celebration of 101 Underrated and Overlooked Fright Flicks, edited by Aaron Christensen. Another contributors include Anthony Timpone, B.J. Colangelo, Dave Alexander, Classic-Horror.com's own Robert C. Ring and John W. Bowen. Pick up a copy today from Amazon.com!

Posts by Chris Justice

Review: Godsend (2004)

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After watching Nick Hamm's Godsend, which stars Robert De Niro, Greg Kinnear, and Rebecca Romijn-Stamos, I sent an e-mail to friends stating that my wife and I wanted another child, but due to physical complications, we couldn't conceive. Subsequently, we turned to Godsend, a fertility clinic specializing in stem cell research, gene mapping, and genetic engineering. Godsend was founded by "one of the true visionaries in fertility," Dr. Richard Wells. Even more devilishly, I pointed them to Godsend's Website.(read more...)

Review: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers 1956 poster

No film captures the anxieties of an entire decade of American history better than Don Siegel's Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Shot in only 23 days at a cost of roughly $420,000, Invasion is based on a Jack Finney serial story published in Colliers Magazine in 1954. A year later, the novel "The Body Snatchers" was released; a year after, the film, which Walter Wanger produced, emerged as one of the best sci-fi thrillers of the 1950s.(read more...)

Review: The Shining (1980)

The Shining poster

Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is one of the best horror movies ever. Just look at how frequently it ranks on "All-Time Best Horror Film" lists. It is a Rorschach test reflecting one's relationship with terror because it serves modern audiences a complex visual and narrative metaphor that represents the struggles individuals, institutions, and nations suffer when they overlook their own terrorist impulses. The film literally bleeds with impressionistic, atmospheric gloom. That's what you get when you throw into the blender the ideas of three talented artists at the top of their game: Stephen King, Jack Nicholson, and Kubrick.(read more...)

Review: In the Mouth of Madness (1995)

In the Mouth of Madness poster

Many peaks and valleys punctuate John Carpenter's directorial career. The peaks are capped with classics such as Halloween (1978) and The Thing (1982); underachievers such as Ghost of Mars (2001) and They Live (1988) haunt the valleys. In the Mouth of Madness is a film that struggles for a place in either category. While by no means a failure, the film is far from a success.(read more...)

Review: The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

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The Silence of the Lambs should be read from a variety of perspectives. The film is most obviously a psychological thriller that features a range of psychiatric and psychological themes. The film also functions as a police procedural because it is narrated through the point of view of a fledgling FBI agent and walks viewers through the process of capturing a serial killer. There is enough gore and suspense to qualify, at least marginally, as a horror film, and to take that notion one step further, the infamous Dr. Hannibal Lecter could be viewed as one of the more eccentric "monsters" in recent film memory. But the list shouldn't stop there.(read more...)

Review: Psycho (1960)

Psycho 1960 poster

Writing a review lauding the merits of Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho is like writing an essay on why breathing is important. Or better yet, why sex feels good. Talk about begging the question. Anyone who watches Psycho brings his or her own insights, cinematic IQ, prejudices, fears, and collective memories into the interpretation. And like any classic film, Psycho resonates with new meaning every time one watches it. Perceptions change, interpretations mutate, and assumptions evolve. If one goal of a good film review is to recreate the experience of watching the film, then reviewing Psycho is the equivalent of reveling in cinematic ecstasy. So beware, here comes the swoon.(read more...)

Review: Vampyr (1932)

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Carl Theodor Dreyer's experimental Vampyr is an exercise in audacity. Watching certain scenes in the film reminds one of shorts produced in university film classes that are full of daring, cunning, and innovation. However, unlike most of those novice films, a man many consider to be one of Europe's most underrated "great directors" directed Vampyr.(read more...)

Review: Targets (1968)

Targets poster

One of Hollywood's most endearing strengths is its ability to survive its own cannibalistic impulses. While film is certainly not the first medium to successfully criticize itself, Hollywood's cadre of horror filmmakers have been particularly effective in using self-deprecation and self-parody to pave new artistic paths. Although Peter Bogdanovich is no monolith in the horror genre, as an actor, director, critic, film editor, screenwriter, film historian, author, and general cinephile, his shadow transcends the horror clique. Like all good auteurs, Bogdanovich doesn't restrict himself to one genre; his one great foray into horror, Targets, released in 1968, reveals an acute sense of the genre's history and future. More importantly, he is keenly aware of the relationship between the two.(read more...)

Review: The Phantom of the Opera (1925)

Phantom of the Opera 1925 poster

"You're standing in the wings,
There you wait for the curtain to fall.
Knowing the terror and holding
You have on us all."

Those are the lyrics from the heavy metal giant Iron Maiden's timeless classic "Phantom of the Opera" released in 1980. They were my first introduction to this timeless ghoul, and the "holding" this phantom has had on me has lasted ever since. But clearly I am not alone.(read more...)

Review: Duel (1971)

Duel 1971 poster

Too many film critics find joy in bashing Steven Spielberg. I am not an ardent fan of his, but his genius and love of cinema exceed the majority of those in Hollywood. Anyone who can claim directorial rights to Jaws, Schindler's List, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and E.T. is, to put it mildly, okay in my book. And yes, I have seen several of his films, and I have enjoyed many. But to truly appreciate Spielberg's talents, one should visit his 1971 closet classic Duel. Released as a television movie and produced on a shoestring budget in two weeks, Duel resonates with the sparks of genius that have lit the fire illuminating Spielberg's Hollywood journey.(read more...)