Classic-Horror.com | Reviewing the History of Horror Movies

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: Ghidorah: The Three-Headed Monster (1964)

Submitted by Nate Yapp on Wed, 2009-05-20 01:41

When I was in the third grade, all I wanted for my ninth birthday was a copy of Ghidorah: The Three-Headed Monster. Why this film in particular held such fascination for me, I couldn't say for certain. I suspect that two factors spurred my desire: the majestic still of a rampaging Ghidorah (or Ghidrah as it's sometimes spelled) in William K. Everson's Classics of the Horror Film and an entry in Leonard Maltin's 1988 Movie Guide that informed interested readers that the flick featured four monsters, including the legendary Godzilla, for the price of one. What boy could pass that up? When I finally received my cherished VHS tape, I was not disappointed. It had monsters and they fought each other (and the human stuff was okay to pass the time between monster appearances). Watching Ghidorah today, I feel like I'm sitting with that kid right next to me, the seventeen years of distance reduced to the length of my couch.(read more...)

Godzilla and Friends Stomp San Francisco This August

Godzilla and the Monsters of Mass Destruction

Submitted by Nate Yapp on Tue, 2009-05-19 19:28

Tokyo can breathe easy for once; this August, Godzilla and his fellow kaiju will invade the Bay Area for the Godzilla and the Monsters of Mass Destruction Japanese Monster Movie Festival. Running August 21 - 23 at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco, this event will feature five double features of giant monster madness, for a total of ten movies. While the final lineup has yet to be announced, all movies will be projected from a 35mm print.(read more...)

Review: Godzilla 1985 (1985)

Submitted by Kevin Nickelson on Tue, 2009-05-19 01:51

There is a word that is being bandied about more in the film community these days: re-imagining. Re-imagine a film and you hold on to the original idea but deck it out with just enough new elements to reel in new fans. Or more simply, a producer, out of fresh ideas, dusts off an old tried-and-true formula, tweaking things just enough to fool viewers into thinking they’re seeing something different. This is like a used car dealer who pours all the money they have into fixing the exterior an old classic while leaving the cracking vinyl seats alone and still trying to sell it as “like new”. Godzilla 1985 is a rebuilt version of that classic car, replete with cool, dark green paint and new spinning wheel rims. There’s an improved look to this film. Too bad the interior is still the same old and worn material.
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Review: Godzilla 2000 (1999)

Submitted by John Dubrawa on Mon, 2009-05-18 22:40

Previous Godzilla lore is cast aside in Takao Okawara’s Godzilla 2000, a sustainable attempt to resurrect Japan’s greatest movie monster in the new millennium. After over twenty films, Godzilla has been woven through plots that are beginning to tangle on themselves. It is refreshing not to have to think about how Godzilla could both have sired a son in Son of Godzilla and been a mother in the American-made Godzilla (1998). Okawara’s efforts to restore Godzilla back to his original conception are well-intended, though the execution is heavily flawed. Instead of a Godzilla that puts fear back into the audience’s hearts, we’re given a Godzilla that we cannot help but laugh at. Godzilla 2000 is no better than the previous incarnations that it is trying to so hard to forget, purposely-bad English dubbing, silly battle sequences, and a lame-duck plot that only serves to fuel the fire.(read more...)

Welcome to Godzilla Week

Submitted by Nate Yapp on Mon, 2009-05-18 10:27

Here he comes, the King of Monsters, one of the great pop culture icons of all time, the one and only Godzilla. This giant lizard has been stomping around for the past fifty-five years, variably as villain, hero, and antihero. He's faced dozens of other monsters, from the benevolent Mothra to the world-conqueror King Ghidorah. He's been the subject of cartoons, pop songs, and a metric ton of collectible toys. This week, Classic-Horror.com has teamed up with The Sci-Fi Block to honor the big guy with a week of reviews. Each day this week, Monday through Friday, we'll post a new Godzilla review here at Classic-Horror, and a different review of the same film will go up over at SFB.

Monday, May 18th: Godzilla 2000 (1999) -- Classic-Horror review / Sci-Fi Block review
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Keanu Reeves is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Woah.

Submitted by Nate Yapp on Fri, 2009-05-08 01:38

First of all, I apologize for the subject line. I'm sure there was a way to work in "I know kung fu" instead, but it's late and I'm tired. Moving on. Keanu Reeves will star in Universal's Jekyll, described by The Hollywood Reporter as a "modern retelling" of Robert Louis Stevenson's novella Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Justin Haythe (Revolutionary Road) will write the script and Nicolas Winding Refn (Pusher I-III) is in negotiations to direct.(read more...)

Classic-Horror.com Joins the League of Tana Tea Drinkers

Submitted by Nate Yapp on Thu, 2009-05-07 15:06

If you swing your gaze over to the site's sidebar, you'll notice a brand-new addition -- a badge that proudly proclaims that Classic-Horror.com has joined the League of Tana Tea Drinkers. The invitation came this morning and I accepted it almost instantly. But what is this mysterious organization sometimes known as LOTT-D? Is it a cult? Is it a conspiracy? Or is it something even more sinister -- a collective of the top horror bloggers on the Internet?!

Wait, yes, it's that third one. Sorry to ruin the suspense.(read more...)

The Week in Classic Horror: April 19 - 25, 2009

Submitted by Nate Yapp on Tue, 2009-04-28 16:00

We've been generally inconsistent in posting these and for that I apologize. However, given all the neat stuff coming up over the next few months (announcements to be made soon), well, the trend is unlikely to change. So let's get down to some of the stories posted last week that were of note to fans of classic horror movies.(read more...)

Universal Remaking "Videodrome" as an "Action Thriller"

Submitted by Nate Yapp on Sun, 2009-04-26 21:34

Universal will remake David Cronenberg's Videodrome, according to this Variety.com article. If you suddenly feel waves of anger coming at you from you computer screen, well, that's me. I'm transmitting my own Videodrome signal. I'm a pretty laidback guy when it comes to the remake machine. I wish they'd stop, but I'd rather occupy my time with the original films. However, when I see a sentence like, "The new picture will modernize the concept, infuse it with the(read more...)

Review: Death Line (1972)

Submitted by Tom Fallows on Sat, 2009-04-25 22:00

Death Line is a film of constant (and contrasting) sleazy delights. Director Gary Sherman presents a 70s London brimming with violent murder, cheap sex, and a ruling class prepared to greedily feed of the destitute.(read more...)