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 Shaughn Ander

Review: Halloween 5 (1989)

Halloween 5 poster

The Halloween franchise had delivered some pretty strong films with four entries under it's belt already, so a fifth chapter should be promising and a natural move. Sadly, the fact of the matter is that Halloween 5 is a major disappointment. While it isn't without some merit (emphasis on some), the entire film is a feature-length missed opportunity of epic proportions. Characters we loved in previous installments are now rendered impossible to connect with, lapses in series continuity are impossible to ignore and the story eventually commits the ultimate cinematic sin: instead of thrilling, it just becomes unbearably boring.(read more...)

Review: Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988)

Halloween 4 poster

After Halloween III: Season of the Witch became a box-office disappointment and left fans bewildered over the absence of the series' main villain, Michael Myers, producer Moustapha Akkad decided to bring the character back for the next installment. The resulting movie is an attempt to recapture the original film's atmospheric feel and update it for a newer audience. Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers is an entertaining film and one of the better in a long line of sequels, though it lacks the suspense that made the first Halloween so successful. (read more...)

Review: The Brides of Dracula (1960)

Brides of Dracula poster

After the massive success of Horror of Dracula in 1958, Hammer Films was keen on making a sequel - even when Christopher Lee was not set to return to the role of Count Dracula. Nonetheless, filming began on a sequel that carried on without Dracula and surprisingly became one of the best sequels in the entire Hammer horror cannon. Ladies and gentlemen - I present Terence Fisher's The Brides of Dracula.
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Review: Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)

Mystery of the Wax Museum poster

Michael Curtiz's Mystery of the Wax Museum is a fun and curious little film. Released in February 1933, it was one of the earliest experiments with color film as well as one of the earliest treatments of a now well-known mystery plot, topped with an intriguing visual style and some horror icons in fine form for good measure. Though it is not entirely without its flaws, this is a quickly paced, creative and entertaining work from an era when the horror film was still in it's relative adolescence.(read more...)

Review: The Monster Squad (1987)

Monster Squad poster

Fred Dekker's The Monster Squad is an endearing love letter to the movies of the 1930s and 1940s — albeit with a decidedly 1980s mentality. Instead of being confined to Victorian graveyards and decrepit old tombs in far corners of the globe, the classic monsters now stalk modern city streets and even take trips in airplanes. Adding the Little Rascals' comedic spirit to the mix with a group of underage heroes, the end result is a fun and memorable monster romp that will satisfy both children and adults in a big way.(read more...)

Review: Dracula's Daughter (1936)

Dracula's Daughter

Lambert Hillyer's Dracula's Daughter - the sequel to Tod Browning's 1931 classic Dracula - has long been considered an inferior follow-up and a forgettable film by many horror fans and critics, despite the fact that it is one of the best Universal sequels and horror tales of the period. Following an iconic and legendary film such as Dracula is never an easy task, for any director in any time, but Hillyer and crew manage to pull it off with some strong acting, fast paced and more linear camera-work, and an interesting plot centered around a main character that we both loathe and empathize with. The result is an atmospheric and entertaining film that works well as both a sequel and as its own stand alone feature, one that is certainly worth a look by any fan of Universal's monster classics of the 1930s and 1940s.(read more...)

Review: Jack the Ripper (1976)

Jack the Ripper poster

Many attempts have been made to dramatize the tale of Jack the Ripper, but Jesus Franco's 1976 effort into the subject proves to be one of the best. Our killer is given a sense of duality and warped motivations that surpass those provided to him in other treatments and some of the camera work and direction is impressively well planned and executed. However - though it may be one of the better attempts at the subject matter in general - certain internal issues, like limp acting, steal some vital impact from the film and manage to hold it back from being a full-fledged classic.(read more...)