31 Days of Horror: Day 11 ‘Intruder’ (1989)
Directed by: Scott Spiegel

By
Ronny Sharpes
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Synopsis: The overnight stock crew of a local supermarket find themselves being stalked and slashed by a mysterious maniac.

I never actually sat down to watch this one in all my years of being immersed in horror. I do, however, remember hearing about this flick simply because it was promoted as starring Sam Raimi, Ted Raimi and the legend himself, Bruce Campbell. Paramount wanted to use their names to promote Intruder even though the “starring” roles were in actuality only bit parts. Even Greg Nicotero pops up briefly in this one. I knew this one had a bit of a cult following so I figured, let’s go ahead and finally knock this one off the list.

Jennifer (Liz Kern) and Linda (Renee Estevez) are closing up shop and prepping for the overnight stock crew to do their thing when Jennifer’s ex Craig (David Byrnes) shows up. After becoming violent with her he is subdued and escorted out by her co-workers. Craig continues to stalk and harass her, always staying just out of sight. Soon the grocery store employees begin to be dispatched in extremely gruesome ways by an unseen assailant. As the night progresses, a deeper story starts to unveil itself as Jennifer and her co-workers fight for their survival.

This was an interesting one. I went in expecting absolutely nothing and was pleasantly surprised by a decent slasher set entirely in a grocery store. It wasn’t just a straight up gore-fest either, Spiegel made use of some experimental artistic shots that added a sense of class to what essentially is a bit of trash cinema. I’m kind of in awe. Shot completely in one location, after hours and using what’s known as “short ends” (partial rolls of unexposed stock) this film manages to put together an interesting cinematic trip filled with gore that would put a grin on any genre fan’s face.

If you haven’t seen this one then you definitely need to seek it out. You can find this one streaming on Tubi as of this writing.

Sidenote…No offense to Shudder, Screambox and the like, but Tubi is fast becoming my favorite streaming service for obscure genre cinema.

‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Undergoes Creative Overhaul As Behind-The-Scenes Chaos At Marvel TV Is Revealed

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October 11, 2023

After more than a decade of blockbuster dominance, some cracks have started to form at Marvel Studios. Recent films haven’t performed nearly as well, either at the box office or with fans. And I think it’s safe to say a lot of the problems began when added emphasis was given to Marvel TV, which some would also say has been less than successful. And now in a new THR report, we’re starting to see some of the fallout, and it begins with a massive creative overhaul on Daredevil: Born Again.

Marvel execs, including chief Kevin Feige, took a look at what had been shot of the ambitious 18-episode first season of Daredevil: Born Again, and decided the show was not working. This is the series that returns Charlie Cox to the role of Matt Murdock/Daredevil, a part he played to great popularity during the Marvel/Netflix era. Despite this, the decision was made last month to fire the series’ writers, Chris Ord and Matt Corman, as well as the directors for the remainder of the season. With less than half of the season already filmed, they are essentially starting from scratch with new writers and filmmakers, borrowing some elements from previously-shot content.

This leads one to wonder if we can expect to see Jon Bernthal’s return as the Punisher or not, despite him being previously announced. What’s being scrapped of Daredevil: Born Again is described as a legal procedural that “did not resemble the Netflix version, known for its action and violence [and] Cox didn’t even show up in costume until the fourth episode.”

The report chalks a lot of this up to Marvel’s untraditional way of doing TV, which is to basically do each show like one of their big-budget movies. There was no need for proper showrunners, no pilots, just shoot these massively expensive (upwards of $150M) productions on the fly and fix them in post-production with multiple reshoots, which makes the director essentially meaningless.

Basically, don’t expect Daredevil: Born Again to arrive when it was expected to in 2024.

Marvel is now nixing the approach that hasn’t worked in favor of one typical to series television.“It also is revamping its development process. Showrunners will write pilots and show Bibles. The days of Marvel shooting an entire series, from ‘She-Hulk’ to ‘Secret Invasion,’ then looking at what’s working and what’s not, are done.”

Unfortunately, it’s taken a lot of headaches on a number of shows before Marvel figured this out. On the aforementioned She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, series writer/creator Jessica Gao was pushed to the sideline upon the hiring of director Kat Coiro. Moon Knight creator Jeremy Slater quit the Oscar Isaac-led series early on and was replaced by filmmaker Mohamed Diab.

As for Secret Invasion, one of the biggest Marvel series fails, was a chaotic mess. Series exec-producer and writer Kyle Bradstreet, who also worked on Emmy-winner Mr. Robot, was fired after more than a year. Ultimately, a power struggle for control erupted with “a good portion of the’ Invasion’ team had been replaced, with new line producers, unit production managers and assistant directors.”

To me, all of this sounds like that untouchable, unbeaten fighter who takes that first really good punch to the mouth and is now flailing to stay upright. Marvel seems to be taking the steps to right the ship, but what if it’s too late and they don’t see immediate results? Only time will tell!

‘The Iron Claw’ Trailer: Zac Efron And Jeremy Allen White Grapple With Tragedy In Sean Durkin’s Von Erich Wrestling Drama

By

Travis Hopson

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October 11, 2023

pdc_ironclaw1 — THE IRON CLAW- After attending the world premiere of The Iron Claw, I thought to myself that Sean Durkin has made the best wrestling movie ever. A tragic, true story of brotherhood, family legacy, and the true cost of professional wrestling. It is a business that takes more than it can ever give back. After seeing it a handful of times, I can say now that The Iron Claw isn’t just the best wrestling movie, it’s one of the year’s best movies, period, with Zac Efron giving a heartbreaking turn as Kevin Von Erich that will change the way you think of him as an actor.

2008’s The Wrestler showed moviegoers who have no interest in professional wrestling that there are dramatic, deeply personal stories to be told within the sport. And we’ve seen many films set in the world of wrestling, from Fighting With My Family to Cassandro. But there’s none more anticipated, certainly by me, than The Iron Claw, which features a star-studded cast as the talented, cursed Von Erich wrestling family.

Sean Durkin, known for Martha Mary May Marlene and The Nest, writes and directs The Iron Claw, based on the story of the Texas-based Von Erich wrestling family. Powerful forces within professional wrestling for decades, the family is said to be victims of a terrible curse that impacted their children in the 1980s. Five of patriarch Fritz Von Erich’s six sons, most of them professional wrestlers like him, would precede him in death.

Zac Efron plays Kevin Von Erich, with The Bear‘s Jeremy Allen White (who apparently gained 40lbs of muscle) as Kerry “Texas Tornado” Von Erich, Harris Dickinson as David Von Erich, believed by many to be the most talented son, and Stanley Simons as Mike Von Erich. Holt McCallany plays Fritz Von Erich, joined by Lily James, Maura Tierney, and real-life professional wrestlers AEW World Heavyweight Champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman as Lance Von Erich, Chavo Guerrero Jr. as The Sheik, and Ryan Nemeth as Gino Hernandez.

I can’t tell you how excited I am for this film. The Von Erich family’s tragic downfall was something I knew about as a kid who adored professional wrestling. And now as an adult who still loves sports entertainment, I look back at those years and wonder what might’ve been if the Von Erich sons had reached their full potential.

Here’s the synopsis: The true story of the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s. Through tragedy and triumph, under the shadow of their domineering father and coach, the brothers seek larger-than-life immortality on the biggest stage in sports.” Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Stanley Simons, Maura Tierney, with Holt McCallany and Lily James.

The Iron Claw opens in theaters on December 22nd, courtesy of A24.

Review: ‘Foe’
Saoirse Ronan And Paul Mescal Bring Heart To Garth Davis' Futuristic Sci-Fi Romance

By
Travis Hopson
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Artificial intelligence is here, folks. If you don’t believe it by its pervasiveness into your life, Hollywood is here to remind you. Garth Davis’ Foe is just the latest in a string of movies focused on AI, but unlike more actiony predecessors, his film, co-written with the source material’s author Iain Reid, is focused on matters of the heart rather than battles with deadly robots or globe-hopping conspiracies. A single married couple in a not-too-distant future face something much more personal and scary than out of control tech; a love tested by boredom, dissatisfaction, and stagnation as the rest of the world moves on.

That married couple is played by quite the beautiful pair of actors. Oscar nominees Saiorse Ronan and Paul Mescal are Hen and Junior, respectively. In the year 2065, much of humanity has fled the dying planet for space stations, but they are among the few who continue to reside on Earth at Junior’s family farm. Not that they do any real farming or anything. She works a dull job at a nearby diner, returning home to make use of their recycled water, keeping one poor tree alive as best she can with it. That tree is about as lifeless as their homestead. Junior works a job at a chicken processing plant, and it’s hard to tell what is more dead inside.

Davis and cinematographer Mátyás Erdély find beautiful imagery everywhere, even in Hen and Junior’s desolate, dusty surroundings. Swirling, wind-swept salt flats of pure pink make for a peaceful, if ominous backdrop. Sure enough, the couple’s tedium is broken by the arrival of Terrance (Aaron Pierre), a mysterious company man who informs them that Junior has been chosen to join colonists on a far away space station, setting up a new home for humanity. However, Hen isn’t invited to be a part of it. She’ll have to stay home all by her lonesome.

Or…not? Here’s the thing about Foe; if you dig around too much into the plot you’ll find lots to pick with. It is much better when focused on the heartbreaking interactions between Hen and Junior, who have drifted apart and can’t find their way back together. The other details just mess things up. So that Hen isn’t lonely, Terrance’s company will provide for her an AI simulant of Junior, a copy, to keep her company. And Terrance has to live with them for a while to make sure they get everything right.

Huh?

Why would the company go through all of this trouble when they could just…I dunno, give them both long-range cell phones? Or have Hen tag along just to keep Junior happy? It doesn’t make a lot of sense, honestly.

That said, the tension in the house is thick with Terrance’s added presence. From the beginning, something hasn’t felt right about Hen and Junior’s marriage. She seems ready to crawl out of her skin to get away from him. He seems angry and jealous of everyone, especially the handsome Terrance. Did I mention all of these people are extremely gorgeous? But there’s more to it, and Davis unfolds the mystery with cautious, suspenseful turns that reel you in despite a few dips in the narrative. This movie moves at its own deliberate pace, and while it’s definitely too slow at times, it also allows for Ronan and Mescal to really dig into their performances.

With such a small cast mostly set in a single location, Foe leans on the strength of its stars. Ronan’s Hen could’ve been portrayed as a pitiful victim, but she’s a woman with an interior life and a strength of her own. For Mescal, he’s got the enigmatic, angry young man thing down to a science, and a final act twist adds a new layer of complexity to his performance. Foe is imperfect, a bit too reserved at times, and works best when kept to its simplest elements. With lush visuals and performances just as thriving, any shortcomings can be forgiven for a sci-fi romance that has its heart in the right place.

Foe is in theaters now.

31 Days of Horror: Day 10 ‘Mutilator’ (1984)
Directed by: Buddy Cooper & John Douglass

By
Ronny Sharpes
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Synopsis: A college student, who accidentally killed his mother as a child, decides to take his friends to his father’s fishing cabin during Fall break, not knowing that his crazed father is stalking the place.

A few weeks ago, it was brought to my attention that after 39 years Buddy Cooper is stepping back into the director’s chair to helm Mutilator 2. Upon hearing this information, I slowly realized I had never actually seen the original cult classic Mutilator aka Fall Break…blasphemy, I know. Well, seeing that I am in the process of watching all the films I missed (or as many as humanly possible in 31 days) what better time than now to rectify that situation.

This film opens with Ed Jr. accidentally killing his mother while cleaning his father’s guns as a birthday gift. This pushes Ed Sr. to the brink, driving him insane. Fast forward 10 years and Ed is in college and at a bar with friends discussing what exactly to do for Fall break. Out of nowhere, Ed gets a phone call from his estranged dad requesting him to come winterize the beach condo. Seeing an opportunity to take advantage of the situation, Ed’s friends convince him to go. Little do they know, Ed Sr. is still on the premises, hiding out in the shed waiting to stalk and kill every single one of them.

This is another example of classic 80’s trash cinema and it is glorious. I was in awe of the realism accomplished by the team using nothing but practical effects. The plot was pretty common and basic but that didn’t matter one bit. The kills were enough to keep you enthralled. At times it was difficult to discern what vibe Cooper & Douglas were going for. Comedy? Horror? Or a combo of the two? The soundtrack was a curious one that contributed to that confusion, juxtaposing ominous tropey horror synth tones with sitcom level jingles. There were scenes that were comedically sped up that almost had me waiting for a looney tunes-esque stinger. None of that mattered though. It all combined into a perfect storm of good old fashioned 80’s horror. Hell, it’s even got a bit of a blooper reel during the credits…for real.

Join me again tomorrow as we continue this strange journey down that horror rabbit hole.

And bonus…There’s a trailer for Mutilator 2.

Wild ‘Aquaman 2’ Reports: Amber Heard Role Cut, Elon Musk To The Rescue, Drunk Momoa Dressed As Johnny Depp

By

Travis Hopson

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October 10, 2023

You’ve undoubtedly heard the rumors already. Amber Heard’s role in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom was drastically reduced, due to a couple of reported issues. The first was the lack of chemistry between Heard and Aquaman star Jason Momoa. The second is the general bad publicity surrounding her ever since the Johnny Depp trial. With the film finally due to arrive this December, new salacious reports have surfaced at Variety that suggest it could be the biggest DCEU flop of the year, which is no small feat given how bad things have been.

Court documents from the Heard/Depp trial, as well as other anonymous sources, describe an Aquaman 2 production that was pure chaos. About reports that Heard saw her role cut, the actress wasn’t happy and got help from her then-boyfriend, the despicable Elon Musk, who threatened the studio with legal action if they fired her. Instead, it looks as if two of her biggest scenes, an action scene and a love scene with Momoa, were dropped.

In what sounds like a joke somebody made up, Heard alleged that Momoa would arrive on set drunk and dressed as Johnny Depp just to harass her. Momoa’s reps dispute this, of course, but it makes you wonder if there are set photos of him dressed as Jack Sparrow or Sweeney Todd? That would be interesting.

Finally, test screenings of the film were reportedly terrible, causing the studio to call for massive reshoots all the way up to the recent WGA strike. The studio says there was only one week of reshoots, which is normal, but who knows if they’re being honest?

This does not seem like a James Wan production at all. Wan usually has pretty smooth sailing when he takes the helm of a project, but this sounds like a nightmare. Given the failures of Shazam: Fury of the Gods, The Flash, and Blue Beetle, we could see Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom as one final black eye on the Snyderverse.

James Gunn’s New DCU Will Not Include Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, Or Ezra Miller

By

Travis Hopson

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October 10, 2023

With James Gunn’s new DCU largely rebooting the DC Universe on the big screen, we know that some familiar faces will be returning, such as John Cena’s Peacemaker, Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller, and Blue Beetle actor Xolo Maridueña, while others such as Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck were phased out. But that left questions around some of the biggest and most successful actors, such as Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, and Ezra Miller. Well, now we know what their fate is.

According to a report at Variety, Gadot will not be returning as Wonder Woman, just as Momoa is done as Aquaman and Miller is finished as the Flash. Momoa is set to return one more time for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, and there are still conversations about him coming back in the role of Lobo. If that happens, it could be in Superman: Legacy, Gunn’s film that recently cast David Corenswet as the new Man of Steel.

This comes as a little bit of a surprise, at least in regards to Gadot. The actress has been one of the DCEU’s most popular, and recently made disputed claims that a new sequel was in the works.

As far as Miller goes, the nail in the coffin was the miserable performance of The Flash. If it had made $1B at the box office, you can bet Warner Bros. could’ve looked past their legal troubles.

So there you have it. When the DCU arrives in 2025 expect it to have a whole new coat of paint.

Guillermo Del Toro Reveals What Really Happened With ‘Pacific Rim Uprising’ And Why He Won’t Watch It

By

Travis Hopson

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October 10, 2023

Guillermo Del Toro achieved one of his pet projects in 2013 with Pacific Rim, a film that saw him bring a love of giant robot and kaiju battles to the big screen. However, while fans dug it and the reviews were generally pretty good, it was an expensive movie that made just over $400M worldwide. It took a while for a sequel to be announced, and in 2018 we got it with Pacific Rim Uprising, but…Del Toro was only a producer on it, as Steven S. DeKnight took over as director. Fans have always wondered what happened with that, and now Del Toro provides a pretty simple, albeit lame, answer to Collider.

“We were getting ready to do it, it was different from the first, but it had a continuation of many of the things that I was trying to do. Then what happened is – I mean, this is why life’s crazy, right? – they had to give a deposit for the stages at 5pm or we would lose the stages in Toronto for many months. So, I said, ‘Don’t forget we’re gonna lose the stages,’ and five o’clock came and went, and we lost the stages. They said, ‘Well, we can shoot it in China.’ And I go, ‘What do you mean we?’ [Laughs] ‘I’ve gotta go do Shape of Water.'”

That sucks, right? Because some studio jerks were off the ball, we didn’t get to see what Del Toro could’ve done with a sequel, which he revealed would’ve included a role for Donnie Yen! Oh well. The sequel performed poorly at the box office with just $290M, and received worse reviews despite the casting of John Boyega and Cailee Spaeny, two fan favorites.

Del Toro won’t bring himself to watch the sequel, either, despite being a producer on it…

“I didn’t see the final movie because that’s like watching home movies from your ex-wife. It is terrible if they’re good and worse if they’re bad, or the opposite. You don’t wanna know. So, I didn’t see it. I did read the final script, and it was very different. Some of the elements were the same but very different.”

Honestly, I kinda like Pacific Rim Uprising but Del Toro isn’t really missing anything. The franchise continued on in an animated Netflix series that lasted two seasons, concluding in 2022.

‘The Fall Of The House Of Usher’ Teaser: Carla Gugino Is A Malevolent Force In Mike Flanagan’s Poe Thriller Series

By

Travis Hopson

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October 10, 2023

“She’s Coming.”

The new teaser for Mike Flanagan’s latest Netflix horror series, The Fall of the House of Usher, centers on the mysterious Verna character played by Carla Gugino. What we know about the series is that it’s not a direct adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s 1839 short, but a very loose take on many of the author’s notable works. That includes his most famous, The Raven, and if Verna seems to share a connection with that classic story, well, it’s definitely not a coincidence.

Here’s the synopsis: From Mike Flanagan, the creator of The Haunting of Hill House and Midnight Mass, a wicked horror series based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe. Ruthless siblings Roderick and Madeline Usher have built Fortunato Pharmaceuticals into an empire of wealth, privilege and power. But past secrets come to light when the heirs to the Usher dynasty start dying at the hands of a mysterious woman from their youth.

Bruce Greenwood, Mary McDonnell, Carl Lumbly, Mark Hamill, Michael Trucco, T’Nia Miller, Paola Nuñez, Henry Thomas, Kyleigh Curran, Samantha Sloyan, Rahul Kohli, Kate Siegel, Sauriyan Sapkota, Zach Gilford, Willa Fitzgerald, Katie Parker, Malcolm Goodwin, Crystal Balint, Aya Furukawa, Daniel Jun, Matt Biedel, Ruth Codd, Annabeth Gish, Igby Rigney, and Robert Longstreet.

Much of the principle cast can be seen in new character posters revealed by Netflix over social media. But again, this looks like a spotlight series for Gugino, who is best known for her work on Watchmen and Sin City.

The Fall of the House of Usher hits Netflix on October 12th.

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— Netflix (@netflix) October 9, 2023

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— Netflix (@netflix) October 9, 2023

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— Netflix (@netflix) October 9, 2023

‘Pain Hustlers’ Trailer: Emily Blunt And Chris Evans Get Rich Quick During The Opioid Crisis

By

Travis Hopson

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October 10, 2023

Pain Hustlers (L-R) Chris Evans as Brenner, Andy Garcia as Neel and Emily Blunt as Liza in Pain Hustlers. Cr. Brian Douglas/Netflix © 2023.

What is a single mother to do when she’s lost her job and has a mountain of debt to get out from under and a sick child at home? In the case of Emily Blunt’s character Liza in Netflix’s upcoming film Pain Hustlers, you jump at the chance opportunity to make some big cash in the opioid market, but she soon learns that the cost of such ill-gotten gains is extremely steep.

Also starring Chris Evans, the film is an adaptation of Evan Hughes’ novel, with Harry Potter franchise director David Yates at the helm. Also in the cast are Catherine O’Hara, Chloe Coleman, Jay Duplass, Brian d’Arcy James, Amit Shah, Aubrey Dollar, Willie Raysor, and Andy Garcia.

Here’s the synopsis: Liza Drake (Emily Blunt) is a blue-collar single mom who has just lost her job and is at the end of her rope. A chance meeting with pharmaceutical sales rep Pete Brenner (Chris Evans) puts her on an upward trajectory economically but dubious path ethically as she becomes entangled in a dangerous racketeering scheme. Dealing with her increasingly unhinged boss (Andy Garcia), the worsening medical condition of her daughter (Chloe Coleman), and a growing awareness of the devastation the company is causing forces Liza to examine her choices. Pain Hustlers is a sharp and revealing look at what some people do out of desperation, and others do out of greed. The film is directed by BAFTA award winner David Yates, produced by Lawrence Grey, and also stars Catherine O’Hara, Jay Duplass, and Brian d’Arcy James.

Pain Hustlers hits select theaters on October 20th, followed by Netflix on October 27th.