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!

Review: The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue (1974)

The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue poster

Although the influence of George Romero's Night of the Living Dead is undeniable, the film didn't produce anywhere near the number of followers as its sequel, Dawn of the Dead. One of the few films that followed in Night of the Living Dead's zombified footsteps is Spanish filmmaker Jorge Grau's The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue. Inspired by Romero's unrelenting piece of work, Grau headed to the U.K. in order to make a film that his producers hoped would be little more than a colorized version of Night of the Living Dead. What the producers got instead was a film that stands on its own merits and now ranks among the subgenre's finest due to an intelligent screenplay, sharp cinematography, and shocking gore effects. (read more...)

Review: Cannibal Girls (1973)

Cannibal Girls poster

All the right pieces are in place for Cannibal Girls to be a schlocky, comedic gem: a pre-Ghostbusters Ivan Reitman at the helm, the fresh-faced tandem of Eugene Levy and Andrea Martin in the lead roles working with a mostly impromptu script, and a cheesy "warning bell" gimmick that alerts viewers of a particularly gruesome death sequence. Yet the potential wallop that Cannibal Girls packs with its one-two punch of dark comedy and B-movie cheese never quite hits the intended mark. Despite the simplicity suggested in its title, the film's plot is unfocused at times and further mired with pacing issues. Though the humor provides temporary reprieve from the listless pace, the comedic bits are few and far between and typically hit-or-miss. Suffice to say, Cannibal Girls is middle-of-the-road schlock horror. (read more...)

Review: The Quatermass Xperiment (1955)

The Creeping Unknown (The Quatermass Xperiment) poster

From 1957 to 1973, Hammer Film Productions reached iconic status within the genre of Gothic horror, with such entries as The Curse of Frankenstein, The Horror of Dracula, The Mummy, and The Vampire Lovers among others. However, the film that helped launch Hammer's successful, 16-year run as the king of the horror box office was, in fact, a contemporary science fiction film. Based on a 1953 BBC television serial written by Nigel Kneale, the superbly crafted and acted The Quatermass Xperiment put Hammer on the worldwide financial map and added to the sci-fi lexicon a new scientist-hero, Professor Bernard Quatermass.

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Cold Reads: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

Cold Reads A Christmas Carol cover

The story of Ebenezer's Scrooge ghostly redemption has been the basis for countless adaptations, spin-offs, and parodies. It has become a classic story of the Yuletide tradition, and chances are there has already been a bombardment of film versions that have played on television by the time of this writing. At times it almost seems like the public forgets that A Christmas Carol is actually a book, one that happens to be written by one of the most well-respected artists to have graced the English language. What's forgotten even more frequently is that A Christmas Carol is at its core, past all the sugar plums and rosy-cheeked merriness, a horror story. (read more...)

Cool Vincent Price Tribute Poster

Vincent Price tribute poster by Eric Slager

Disheartened by a conversation he overheard at his local video rental store, graphic designer Eric Slager felt that word needed to get out on the awesomeness that is Vincent Price. So he created an awesome poster that presents the titles of some of Price's greatest works in the shape of the actor's face, garnished with his meticulously coiffed hair and waxed moustache. You can read the whole story at Slager's blog. It's a really cool piece of art for which we are happy to boost the signal.

Review: The Terror Within (1989)

The Terror Within poster

Once upon a time, a fella named Ridley Scott made a little film called Alien.  It is universally agreed (or it should be if it isn't) that Alien is only like the most awesome movie in the history of history, and a wee bonny horror fan like myself had her brain broken on brown shag carpeting in a living room in the Midwest many moons ago whilst watching it.  That little girl horror fan grew up into a full-grown horror nerd, but I have never stopped loving Alien.

And then along came The Terror Within. This Roger Corman-produced Alien wannabe has about twice the sleaze and half the scares, and while the mostly educated, judgmental little feminist in me might have a problem with that, I can't help but say the movie is a damn good time-despite its many faults.  Of course, if you're going to enjoy it, you have to view it with the right attitude.(read more...)

The Terrorphile: Waldemar Daninsky's Black Mirror (fanvid)

Paul Naschy Blogathon

Those crazy fellas over at Mad Mad Mad Mad Movies have been throwing the Paul Naschy Blogathon all week long, finishing, well... today. Actually, in about a half-hour by my clock. However, that's just enough time to get my entry in, which I've been working on all week. It's a tribute to Paul Naschy's most enduring creation, the werewolf Waldemar Daninsky. In nine films released between 1968 and 1983, Daninsky dealt with the tragedy of lycanthropy, often while searching for someone who would love him enough to kill him. The video follows the general line of his story, backed by Arcade Fire's "Black Mirror."

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The Disused Fane: Never Meant for the World of the Living

Old Hag in Room 237 in The Shining

For my money, The Shining (1980) is the scariest movie ever made, and the book is frightening as well. There are numerous reasons for this, but one of the main ones is that damn woman in Room 237 (217 in the book). When Danny foolishly enters the room, the film cuts away, and later it is left ambiguous who put those marks on his neck. The film does this to heighten the psychological tension that results from Wendy's suspicion of Jack. The book, however, is pretty unambiguous. Danny sees a dead, decaying woman rising from the bathtub and stumbles away in terror; huddled against a wall, he closes his eyes and reminds himself that she will go away in a little while, like a dream, when he opens his eyes; and that ghosts, the residues left by the dead, can't actually hurt living people. And then fingers begin to close around his throat... (read more...)

Review: Not of This Earth (1988)

Not of This Earth 1988 poster

The 1988 remake of Roger Corman's 1957 Not of This Earth originated in a bet that exploitation director Jim Wynorski made with horror legend Corman. Wynorski bet that he could shoot the film in 12 days, a bet which he won. While Wynorski surely scores points for efficiency, he nevertheless delivers a film that is lacking in most respects. A cheaply made film does not necessarily have to look as cheap as this one does, and it appears that Wynorski sacrificed thought and imagination to get the film completed in so quick a time. While it does have occasional interesting, or at least titillating, moments, ultimately this is a boring film that displays contempt for its story and its audience as well.

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Ingrid Pitt (1937 - 2010)

Ingrid Pitt

Ingrid Pitt, best remembered to horror fans for her bloodthirsty and sexually charged roles in The Vampire Lovers, Countess Dracula, and The House that Dripped Blood has died at the age of 73. The BBC are reporting that she passed away in a London hospital after collapsing several days ago. (read more...)