Film Review: DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK (2009)

Twin siblings Jen and Sylvia Soska’s debut feature Dead Hooker in a Trunk (2009) is an undisputed underground cult film.  Why?  Because the Soska sisters are such Bad-ass genius’ with one of the most unconventional films as their first film (and with an equally impressive resume that includes American Mary and See No Evil 2).  There is nothing that can prepare you for the crazy and zany adventures that populate this film. 

Jen and Sylvia also star in this film (in addition to having written/produced/directed) as the Geek and the Badass, respectfully, who with their Junkie friend (Rikki Gagne) and Bible thumping friend Goody Two Shoes (C.J. Wallis) are forced into an uneasy alliance with one another when they discover a dead hooker in their trunk after a night of hellish nastiness.  They don’t know how the hooker got there but Badass thinks at first that it might be her fault since she can’t remember the events of the night before.  They all decide to help by burying the body so that no one finds out.  Easier said than done as the four unlikely friends encounter all manner of trouble and opposition leaving them to believe that there is more going on than just a simple dead hooker in the trunk.

What follows is the grandest misadventures and misunderstandings since Weekend at Bernies (1989) or Men at Work (1990) but a whole lot meaner as limps are chopped off and blood splatters everywhere in this zany film where anything can and likely will happen.  The most likely comparison is that of Six-String Samurai (1998) and Shogun Assassin (1980) by way of twin sisters with no limits to their imagination.

This being said, the acting is not on the higher end or the cinematography but the film has enough love from the filmmakers in it to move any jaded audience members and the soundtrack is killer adding that indie creed to the whole process.  This is unlike any other debut film you’re likely to see from two filmmakers who just want to have fun and want you to join in as well, so why don’t you just jump into the trunk and see what you find.

“Rants & Ravings About Horror” - Week 6: “A Weekend at Days of the Dead Horror Convention!”

Week 6: “A Weekend at Days of the Dead Horror Convention!”

The horror convention is a great place to meet and greet some of our most iconic stars who have influenced not only the genre of horror but also our enjoyment of the genre as well.  I was on hand this past weekend at the Atlanta, Georgia,  Days of the Dead event as a Vendor representing Dark Arts Props & Vintage Collectables (owner Ron McLellen, who is also an indie horror film maker).  This was my second year at the event as well as the second horror con that I’ve ever been to (I’ve ventured into the world of DragonCon briefly but never went back).  One of the main reasons I decided to come back for a second year is the fact that as a vendor I got to meet a lot of great people who were not only fans of horror but also created original horror art or had merchandise to sell.  It is the vendors that interest me the most at a horror con.

I’m an avid collector of art.  Be it horror related or the more mundane lighthouses (don’t judge me too much, my film company is called Broken Lighthouse Pictures), Asian culture, Egyptian artwork, and just about anything related to George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead (my number one favorite film).  I also collect artwork from friends (but I never display any of my own artwork).  I’ve given away all of my own artwork because personally I don’t like looking at my own work.  I’d rather look at other peoples’ artwork.

At a horror con you get a taste of all different types and styles of artwork in all different media.  This year there were several mask makers on hand of which I picked up a new mask from Night Terror Productions (www.ntpfx.com).  Doomsday FX Studios (owned by Eric Molinaris) had a table to show off some of their stuff.  There were also more films being represented this year which included “Sorrow” represented by Slasher Marketing (www.slashermarketing.com) and the film makers behind “Attack of the Morningside Monster”, which screened at the event last year and can now be seen on DVD and various VOD services.  Monster Buster Entertainment (www.monsterbusterentertainment.com) was advertising the upcoming World Premiere of their film “Invasion of the Undead”, which took three years to make and has some amazing CGI and stop motion visual FX and director Byron Erwin was on hand to put awareness out there for his latest horror spectacle “Mr. Lockjaw”, a series pilot about a man, a Ventriloquist dummy, and murder.

Monsterama (www.monsterama.com) is just around the corner and they had a table again this year while representatives of the con Mad Monster Party (www.madmonster.com) were on site to make sure horror fans were aware of that upcoming event.  There were just a lot of great vendors and services at the event this year which was more diversified than last year.  Although I must say that Funko Pop! Toys were the entire rave as an overwhelming majority of store vendors had these fun toys in their booths.

If you are a fan of the stars then there was a great list of attendees this year from Tony Todd (Candyman), Angus Scrimm (Phantasm), Doug Bradley (Hellraiser) and a whole collection of stars that played Cenobites in the Clive Barker classic film, Corey Feldman (The Lost Boys), David Naughton (An American Werewolf in London), Sid Haig (Freaks, The Devil’s Rejects), Kane Hodder (Jason of various Friday the 13^th films), Bill Mosley (Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2), and many more than I can list here.  Just be assured that fans of Hellraiser, The Devil’s Rejects, Sleepaway Camp, and The Lost Boys, to name a few, all had a lot to be thankful for this weekend.  I didn’t happen to get any stars’ autographs this year but a highlight was meeting writer John Russo, who helped write Night of the Living Dead and Return of the Living Dead (not to mention a whole collection of other books and films) and getting my book Phantasm Exhumed: The Unauthorized Companion signed by author Dustin McNeill and photographer Kristen Deem.  My vendor table was just across from McNeill and Deem and so we talked a lot over the weekend.  Russo and I talked at great lengths on Friday before the event even started so that was a great treat.

This was another great year at Days of the Dead and even though I didn’t get to watch any of the films screened and didn’t go to any of the panel discussions or after parties, as a vendor I got to experience the event from a completely different aspect than a casual fan wondering through the aisles.  I got to meet a lot of great artists and film makers and people I can now call friends.  Whether you’re a patron or a guest or a vendor, Days of the Dead is a great event in which we can all come together and enjoy what we all enjoy most in life which is – HORROR!

Film Review: THE DEAD OF NIGHT (2004)

In the horror film The Dead of Night (2004) a mental patient escapes from a hospital and kills everyone thinking they are possessed by some type of demon that likes to reveal itself during the night.  He escapes into a nearby cemetery where a group of teenagers are cruelly initiating several “geeks” by bounding their hands and throwing them into an open grave.  Soon, the teenagers discover that the cemetery may be the latest site for the demons that possess each of the teenagers one by one. 

The teenagers don’t know who to trust as during the day their friends are normal but at night they turn into hideous demons that want to possess them and their only hope is in the escaped mental patient who knows more then he’s letting on about what is happening.  Time is running out as one by one each person is possessed and the demons don’t plan on stopping just with the teenagers but have bigger plans.

This sounds like a film that might actually be decent but sadly it is not.  Hampered by meager production values and a repetitive screenplay that renders all the characters as two-dimensional caricatures this film is made even more inept by the horrible demon masks and special FX.  If made in the ‘80s or ‘90s I could probably forgive some of this but this is a film of ‘00s and this film is just bad.  This is a highly forgettable film.

Film Review: WAR OF THE DEAD (2011)

The walking dead has taken over just about every genre of film from comedy (Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland) to period film (Fido) to action (World War Z) to drama (AMC’s The Walking Dead) and now with war as seen in the film War of the Dead (2011).  Now zombie-war films are nothing new (and you can even call World War Z a modern zombie-war film) but war takes center stage in War of the Dead. 

During WWII a platoon of American and Finnish soldiers are driven into Russian territory where they discover that they have more to worry about than just the enemy as the dead begin to return to the living with a ferocious appetite for the living and for war.  As the platoon’s number dwindles with each invading attack they soon discover the truth about the dead uprising and must decide who their true enemy in this new war is. 

This film is more in the vein of an action film but director Marko Makilaakso knows how to throw in the scary and gore moments (something missing from World War Z) making this the perfect film for gore hounds.  War films don’t always successful mix with the zombie genre but, in my opinion, this film has enough to satisfy.  What may be a detriment to the film is the more elaborate liberties taken with these zombies as they are reminiscent of the undead found in Verses (200) or Dance of the Dead (2008) or the bonkers Day of the Dead (2008) remake that seem to defy gravity and can do supernatural things but I’m a huge fan of Verses and welcome zombies with more menace.

War of the Dead is definitely not for everyone especially those zombie fans who want a little logic to go with their zombie film but if you liked Dead Snow (2009) or Braindead (1992) then you’ll enjoy entering combat in War of the Dead.

Film Review: STATE OF EMERGENCY (2011)

Zombie films have come a long way since George A. Romero unleashed Night of the Living Dead (1968), which was a dead serious look into a world of the undead, and Shaun of the Dead (2004), the best in comedy zombie film, which changed the way audiences view all types of zombie films.  There are both Hollywood blockbusters (such as this year’s World War Z) and smaller films (Warm Bodies) and the undead has even taken over the small screen with The Walking Dead television show.  The film State of Emergency (2011) is a low budget independent film that may have a simple plot but makes up for that by having a story to tell and a cast capable of telling that story. 

After a chemical facility explodes in a small town a deadly toxic gas exposes the residents causing them to become mindless killing machines.  Jim (Jay Hayden) has just lost his wife in the chaos and is struggling to survive on his own until he meets other survivors holed up a warehouse.  As Jim strives to survive in a new world without the woman he loves he must find hope to survive in the people he has chosen to come live…and survive with.

State of Emergency is one of those rare films that actually tries to pay homage to NOTLD without wholeheartedly just ripping it off.  The “zombies” in this film are not really dead but infected and even though for the most part they may appear to be mindless they do in fact speak when they have to in the form of manipulation.  The film is less concerned with these “zombies” and more concerned with the relationships of Jim and his survivors who strive to work and live together despite their differences and the danger outside their walls.

This film is a slow burn character piece which is less concerned with gore and zombie mayhem (I’m talking about you World War Z) and more concerned with telling a compelling character driven story.  Unlike NOTLD, State of Emergency is more concerned with its main character finding a way to survive in a new world in which all hope was lost with the death of his wife.  Jim is on a journey of self-discovery of which audiences will be satisfied by journey’s end.  This film may not be as graphic or action packed as other zombie films but it is one of the better ones out there.