SINISTER SIX: BIG REVIEWS COMING TO THE HOUSE IN THE WEEKS AHEAD

The festive period has been and gone and now is the time that stony-faced workers return to their place of employment to begin the annual slog anew.

After a most eventful holiday season, I've realised that I've allowed myself to full rather behind in my review schedule. I've a to-do list of over a dozen titles and several of them really are very exciting indeed.

Don't believe me? Well read on!

SINISTER SIX BIG REVIEWS COMING IN EARLY 2015

1. THE BABADOOK
(Jennifer Kent, 2014) 

Scheduled for home release here in the UK on 16th February, I aim to give you the heads up on the film a week or so prior to that date.

Jennifer Kent's tale of a fractured family and a malevolent storybook entity featured on just about every Best of 2014 list, so I eagerly look forward to seeing if the hype was warranted.

2. PHOBIA A.K.A. ALONE
(Rory Douglas Abel, 2013)

A movie that has been on my schedule for far too long, Phobia is next up for review.

Highly successful on the festival circuit, this psychological thriller focuses on an agoraphobic man trapped in his apartment at the mercy of a sinister home invader. This low-budget chiller has tonnes of potential and, as an aside, I'll also be reviewing the production company's sister film, Gut (starring The Cabin's Jason Vail) in the weeks ahead.

3. THE WHITE FACED MAN
(Luke Ramer, 2014)

You probably haven't heard of this movie, but I've got a feeling this is one of those titles that will build a strong following among the more hardcore horror afficionados.

West 2nd Productions’ 50 minute indie flick is the story of a contract killer who finds himself in a deadly battle with the Grim Reaper himself.

Self-distributed and extremely rare, there are VERY few reviews online — and I aim to address that. Stay tuned!

4. COYOTE
(Trevor Juenger, 2014)

This movie has caused quite a lot of controversy. Lavished with awards at some film festivals, banned at others, this art house psychological horror about an insomniac writer driven to violence is an intriguing proposition.

Starring the always magnificent Bill Oberst Jr. (which probably means I'm contractually obligated to review it!), I really have no idea what wonders and horrors are in store for me.

I've got a feeling that this will be a review you can't afford to miss...

5. SHEEP SKIN
(Kurtis Spieler, 2013)

This is a film that has taken a long time getting to screens, but with a premise that seems well worth the wait. Get this, a group of deranged punks kidnap a businessman because they have reason to suspect that he may be a werewolf.
Reviews suggest that this single-setting mystery keeps you guessing what is happening right up until the final moments and I’m quietly excited at the potential this film has.

6. SICK: SURVIVE THE NIGHT
(Ryan M Andrews, 2012)

Okay, this is a zombie movie, but hold fire. Trying to take a different route to others in the sub-genre, the film follows a group of survivors, including a doctor, holed up in a house trying to survive the night (during which the infected are most active). It is said to have plenty of twists and turns, plus it features appearances by not one but two Hickey’s House of Horrors faves — scream queen legend Debbie Rochon AND Worm and Familiar’s fantastic Robert Nolan!

With other releases including Muck and Heir on the horizon, plus big name sequels in Insidious: Chapter 3 and even Gutterballs 2, I think it’s safe to say that 2015 is shaping up to be a good one for our beloved genre. I hope you’ll join me in celebrating it.

If you haven’t already, do please check out and like the Hickey’s House of Horrors Facebook page, which you can find here. It gives you a nice quick link to any new posts on this blog, plus regular news updates from around the web. I check the Internet so you don’t have to!

Until next time, I hope you enjoyed your stay.

RAW REVIEWS AND FROM THE CRYPT: AN EXPLANATION

When I started this blog, I saw it very much as a fun hobby, something to come to every now and then and devote plenty of hours to dissecting a classic horror film from my dvd collection. I enjoyed doing that. Counting the number of onscreen kills, lovingly laughing as I found ways to poke fun at the events onscreen with my Sinister Sister, jotting down the most quotable snippets of dialogue (and often using them in conversation for weeks afterwards!).
I do still love doing that, but now this blog and the Hickey’s House of Horrors brand as a whole has evolved. Through organic growth, I've now become a part of the online horror community, who are the most welcoming and greatest group of people you really could hope to mingle with. What this means is that I have been in contact with plenty of talented film-makers who send me new or upcoming releases to review.

As I'm sure you understand, this is fantastic and helps me tip you, my readers, onto some great upcoming gems (and trust me, with the reviews I have in the pipeline I have some real diamonds for you to discover!). The only problem is that the heavily in-depth review style I adopted early on, really doesn’t work for these films. It completely spoils them for one thing, which isn’t fair to you guys OR the people that worked so hard on the films and want their audiences to be surprised by their work.

So now things need to change.

I’m going to write two types of review from now on. One, like the current Scary Cinematic Snapshot, will be quick, to the point but mostly spoiler-free. These will be Raw Reviews. I may even design a little logo for them. If a film is brand new or not yet released, this will be the format I use to let you know about them.

If the film has been out for some time, I’ll assume that a lot of you will have seen or at least be very familiar with the title. These will be the ones that take my long and often more irreverent take on reviewing. And these shall be called From The Crypt.

I’m going to go into each review I’ve written so far and assign one of these labels, so it’ll make it easier for you to tell if you risk spoilers. I think this will make navigating this blog MUCH more simple and I’m genuinely over the moon that the House has grown so quickly and so strong, thanks mainly to you guys sharing the reviews, liking the Facebook page and clicking on the ads. The blog has already reached 7500 people, which is far more people than I ever thought would want to hear me wittering on about Bruce Campbell, tiny shorts, my burgeoning love of Bill Oberst Jr, Grace Jones, the fantastic array of short films for genre fans and a certain ruggedly stoic actor who may well be the patron saint of this House.

Thank you all for getting me and the House this far. I’ve got plenty of great stuff in store for you all. Until next time, I really do hope you have enjoyed your stay.

PS Have a photo of LANCE FUCKING HENRIKSEN looking cool as a gift for being so great

If you haven’t already, do please check out and like the Hickey’s House of Horrors Facebook page, which you can find here. It gives you a nice quick link to any new posts on this blog, plus regular news updates from around the web. I check the Internet so you don’t have to! Alternatively, follow me on twitter: The House@HickeysHorrors

Until next time, I hope you enjoyed your stay.