ALL THE WEEK'S HORROR HEADLINES (15th–22nd June)

Not got time to trawl the web for all the top horror news of the last week? Well allow me to give you a bite-size breakdown of the all biggest nightmarish news!

1. MICHAEL MYERS RETURNS

Easily the biggest news of the past seven days — a new Halloween film, entitled Halloween Returns, is coming. It is a direct sequel to the original movies (ignoring Rob Zombie's remake continuity), will de written and directed Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunston, the creative team behind several Saw sequels, the Collector films and Guillermo Del Toro's Pacific Rim, and will feature the return of Deputy Gary Hunt, who is now the sheriff of Haddonfield.

That's a lot to digest, am I right?

Read Bloody Disgusting's stories here, here and here.

2. FATHER MURDER REVEALED

Want to know what Malcolm McDowell's villainous Father Murder will look like in Rob Zombie's 31?

THAT's what he'll look like! KInd of a demented panto dame vibe? I'm down with this!

3. NEIL GAIMAN’S AMERICAN GODS COMING TO STARZ

Brian Fuller, the TV guru behind the incredible Hannibal will work with Michael Green to bring Neil Gaiman's superb novel, American Gods, to the small screen. HO-LEE SHIT.

Read the press release below:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

STARZ GIVES GREEN LIGHT TO “AMERICAN GODS” FROM FREMANTLEMEDIA NORTH AMERICA

#CastingShadow BEGINS!

Bryan Fuller and Michael Green to Serve as Showrunners on the New Scripted Drama Series Based on Neil Gaiman’s Blockbuster Novel

Beverly Hills, Calif. - June 16, 2015 – Starz has given a greenlight to FremantleMedia North America’s (FMNA) adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s acclaimed contemporary fantasy novel American Gods. Bryan Fuller (“Hannibal,” “Pushing Daisies,” “Heroes”) and Michael Green (“The River,” “Kings,” “Heroes”), will pen and showrun the series. Gaiman will also executive produce the series. FremantleMedia North America will produce. Start of production is dependent on casting the lead role of “Shadow Moon.”

Starz CEO Chris Albrecht said, “STARZ is committed to bring American Gods to its legions of fans. With our partners at FremantleMedia and with Bryan, Michael and Neil guiding the project, we hope to create a series that honors the book and does right by the fans, who have been casting it in their minds for years. The search for Shadow begins today!”

Commented Neil Gaiman, "I am thrilled, ‎scared, delighted, nervous and a ball of glorious anticipation. The team that is going to bring the world of American Gods to the screen has been assembled like the master criminals in a caper movie: I'm relieved and confident that my baby is in good hands. Now we finally move to the exciting business that fans have been doing for the last dozen years: casting our Shadow, our Wednesday, our Laura..."

Commented Bryan Fuller and Michael Green, “Almost 15 years ago, Neil Gaiman filled a toy box with gods and magic and we are thrilled to finally crack it open and play. We're grateful to have STARZ above us and FremantleMedia at our backs as we appease the gods, American or otherwise."

Craig Cegielski, Co-CEO, FremantleMedia North America said “’American Gods’ has been the passion project for us at FMNA since Stefanie Berk brought this exceptional piece of literature to the company when she joined two years ago. Chris, Carmi and the entire team at Starz are committed partners, sharing the same creative vision and ambition for this series. Neil’s novel is a brilliant work of art, and together with the talented Bryan Fuller and Michael Green, we are committed to delivering a series that is nothing short of extraordinary.”

The 2001 novel has been translated into over 30 languages and earned numerous accolades including Hugo, Nebula and Bram Stoker Awards for Best Novel. The plot posits a war brewing between old and new gods: the traditional gods of biblical and mythological roots from around the world steadily losing believers to an upstart pantheon of gods reflecting society’s modern love of money, technology, media, celebrity and drugs. Its protagonist, Shadow Moon, is an ex-con who becomes bodyguard and traveling partner to Mr. Wednesday, a conman but in reality one of the older gods, on a cross-country mission to gather his forces in preparation to battle the new deities.

FremantleMedia North America’s Craig Cegielski and Stefanie Berk will executive produce the series along with Bryan Fuller, Michael Green and Neil Gaiman. Senior Vice President of Original Programming Ken Segna will be the Starz executive in charge of “American Gods.” Starz will retain all network pay TV and SVOD rights to the project. FremantleMedia will distribute the series worldwide.

4. V/H/S's 'I LIKE YOU' GIRL GETS A FEATURE

What was the best segment of the first V/H/S? 
Why, it was David Bruckner's Amateur Night with Lily the creepy 'I like you'-girl, of course! So, I'm pretty intrigued to hear that Chiller will be producing a feature length adaptation of that segment called Siren. Can it sustain that level of tension over a far longer running time? It'll be interesting to see.

Read Aint It Cool's story here.

5. FIRST FEAR THE WALKING DEAD PROMO HITS THE WEB

THIS.

6. NEW RELEASES

There are two massive releases this week, both of which you'll be seeing reviewed here at the House VERY, VERY soon.

First, Aussie slasher flick, Charlie's Farm has been getting rave reviews down under. Starring the gigantic Nathan Jones, along with the likes of Tara Reid, Kane Hodder and Bill Moseley, this is a lean mean brutal film.
Buy it at Amazon here.

 Also this week, we get to check out the much-anticipated Digging Up The Marrow. A cool as hell mockumentary from Adam Green (director of Hatchet), this film takes a look at monsters in mythology and what could possibly have inspired these legends and art… 
Buy it at Amazon here.

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.

SINISTER SIX: ACE ANTHOLOGIES

With my recent review of Tales of the Supernatural and upcoming coverage of Dreadtime Stories, it got me thinking about the plethora of portmanteau style horror anthologies out there.

With recent releases such as V/H/S: Viral and ABCs of Death 2 proving there is still plenty of demand for this type of storytelling, it seems like a great time to look back at the very best.

6: V/H/S 2 
Various, 2013

This is the most recent movie on the list (yep, I'm going old-school today) and it is definitely one of the most extreme. While the first and third efforts in the V/H/S series were something of a mixed bag (although Hannah Fierman's 'I like you' girl in the Amateur Night section of the first is amazing) there is barely a duff moment in the middle film. The segments were longer than in the first film, giving them more time to crawl under your skin.

The undoubted highlight is Safe Haven, directed by The Raid's Gareth Evans. Following a diabolical Far Eastern cult this visceral explosion of sheer, unadulterated awesome screams out for a feature-length adaptation and is enough to warrant inclusion on this list by itself. But that isn't to say that the other segments are duds — far from it! 
Jason Eisener (the man behind one of my favourite Grindhouse homages, Hobo WIth A Shotgun) brings us the hilariously deranged Slumber Party Alien Abduction, The Blair Witch Project’s Eduardo Sanchez hits us with his unique take on the zombie flick, A Ride In The Park and THE Adam Wingard (he of You’re Next fame) gives us a delightfully atmospheric chiller with Phase I Clinical Trials. 
You need to see it.

5. TRICK 'R TREAT
Michael Dougherty, 2007

Odds are that if you've read one of my features you know all about my unbridled love for Michael Dougherty's amazingly atmospheric Halloween anthology.

There's really very little left to say about why this movie is a stone-cold classic. The awesome cast (featuring the likes of X-Men’s Anna Paquin, Manhunter’s Brian Cox and Spider-man’s Dylan Baker), a brilliantly creepy and intricately interwoven series of wonderful stories and the birth of a legitimate horror icon in the incredible Sam, plus cinematography that means the film positively OOZES Autumnal atmosphere — this kicks all kinds of ass and the long-awaited sequel cannot come soon enough for this fan.
With storylines including zombies, ghosts, werewolves, serial-killers and the worst kind of demonic imp, Trick 'r Treat is a seasonal masterpiece. If you haven't yet seen it, make sure you set it aside to watch on 31st October this year. You absolutely will not regret it.

4. TALES FROM THE DARKSIDE
Jon Harrison, 1990

Apparently this was the unofficial Creepshow 3 and, thankfully, it is FAR superior to the official one released in 2006. In fact, many of the crew from the first two Creepshow movies were reunited on this picture. Furthermore, Tales From The Darkside sprang from a TV series that was essentially Creepshow: the TV series (albeit renamed), so the lineage is there.
You know what else is there? BRILLIANT stories and an equally brilliant cast!
The wraparound tale featuring Blondie's Debbie Harry as a Hansel and Gretel-esque witch preparing a young boy as meal is pretty good, but the segments are jaw-dropping.
Take Lot 249, based on the original and best mummy tale as penned by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It boasts an amazing practical effects undead assailant and stars Christian Slater, Julianne Moore AND Steve Buscemi.
Read that again.
That's just one section!
The second, the Poe-like Cat From Hell (penned by George A Romero no less!) stars character actor supreme William Hickey as a wheelchair bound CEO of a pharmaceutical company that has killed thousands of cats for medical research. Now he hires a hitman to rid him of a sinister single black cat that he claims is out for revenge. Wackiness ensues.
But it is the third segment that cements TFTDS as one of all my all-time favourites. Lover’s Vow stars Rae Dawn Chong and James Remar along with one of the very finest practical creature effects from the era in which these things were at their best. The story is simple, poignant and creepy — and the movie is a classic.

3. TALES FROM THE CRYPT

Freddie Francis, 1972

I'll be honest, I could have done a Sinister Six Ace Amicus Anthologies list, but sense prevailed and I forced myself to limit Amicus’ presence on this list to just one entry. A contemporary cousin and rival to Britain's indomitable Hammer Films, the UK-based Amicus Productions pretty much made its name with a stunning series of ghoulish portmanteau tales that started with 1965's Dr Terror's House of Horrors (hey, that's a cool name...) and continued all the way through to 1974's From Beyond The Grave. Several of these were based on stories by Psycho writer Robert Bloch, and it was a bit of a toss-up as to whether I'd go for the incredible Asylum or Tales From The Crypt for my Amicus selection on this list. In the end I opted for the film based on the EC Comics title. 
It has developed a real cult following, not least for the All Through The Night section that saw Joan Collins under attack from a killer Santa a full 12 years before Silent Night, Deadly Night was banned for a similar story. Collins joins impressive names such as Peter Cushing (whose heartbreaking segment is a rollicking revenge tale) and Patrick Magee who bosses the screen as the stony-faced blind man out for vengeance against a greedy care home owner.

The wrap around story is great and features a killer punch at the end, while other segments such as the Monkey's Paw-like Wish You Were Here are more than satisfying. This is a sterling film from a time when British cinematic output was incredibly strong. It is highly, highly recommended.

2. CREEPSHOW

George A Romero, 1982

An homage to the banned and lurid 1950s horror comics, filled with stories written by Stephen King and directed by the father of the zombie movie, George A Romero.

I’m tempted to just leave this description there as evidence enough as to why this film rules, but that would actually do the flick an injustice. Featuring fabulous effects work from the one and only Tom Savini, this is a legitimate cult classic.

The stories are a little flimsy, revelling in their trashy roots but they are all great fun, boasting appearances from the likes of the late, great Leslie Nielsen, Ted Danson and even King himself! My favourite segment, The Crate, has been mentioned in my epic horror movie links feature, and is a brilliantly dark and surprisingly personal tale, while the other standout, They’re Creeping Up On You, descends into a stomach-turning nightmare with its creepy-crawly overload.

Now a confession — I actually prefer the second Creepshow movie. I think The Raft is a genuine classic horror story and probably prefer The Hitch-hiker with its 'Thanks for the ride, lady' catchphrase over the segments in this film, but as THE film that brought back the anthology format during the Golden Age of Eighties horror, Creepshow is a movie landmark. 

1. DEAD OF NIGHT

Various, 1945

I did say I was going old-school! And there are none more old-school than this classic film from the revered Ealing Studios. I won't go so far as to call this film and its various segments the prototype for the genre, but the fact remains that without Dead of Night the horror landscape would be very different indeed. Without this picture Amicus would have never tried to replicate its success and brought us the string of class anthologies mentioned earlier.

Sure, it feels a little dated now, but this film came a good 30-40 years before the films which took its ideas and ran with them.

With an amazing cast of top acting talent and some legitimately scary segments, Dead of Night is widely regarded by horror makers as one of the all-time greats. Martin Scorsese himself has hailed the film as one of the scariest of all-time, while Andy Nyman, one of the creators of the incredible horror portmanteau stageplay Ghost Stories is unashamed in his admiration for the film (in fact, upon closer inspection its influences on the show are plentiful).
OK, the light-hearted story about the pair of golfing rivals is a bit of a misfire, but as recently as last year the film’s legacy could be seen in the likes of Oculus. The Hearse Driver, The Haunted Mirror, The Christmas Party and, last but not least, The Ventriloquist’s Dummy with the spine chilling Hugo — these are all genuinely incredible and iconic horror tales. The old-time era just adds to the creepiness in what is, purely and simple, a classic. 
The bottom-line is that Dead of Night is essential viewing. 

So what do you think of the list? Are there any glaring omissions or choices you disagree with? Do you have a particular favourite horror anthologies that you feel I've overlooked? Or perhaps you think I’ve given one of the movies above too much credit?

Leave your comments below or drop me a message, it'd be great to hear from you.

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.