Jerry Blake is a successful real estate man who values his job, his clients, and above all else, his family. Jerry Blake is also a homicidal maniac who drifts from town to town leaving slaughtered families in his wake. Hey, it's cheaper than divorce and at least in this scenario one party gets to walk away happy.

On the surface The Stepfather is typical 80s pseudo-slasher fare wrapped in the guise of a suburban thriller. Deeper though, it is a study in modern serial killers.  We aren't talking about the "he was always the quiet type" serial killer, but instead the " Jesus Jumping Christ!, he used to walk me to my car after work serial killer”... and that is what makes the film a successful entry into the genre… successful enough to spawn multiple sequels and a remake.

Terry O Quinn, who most of the audience will recognize as the sage-like philosopher and survivalist John Locke from tv's Lost, plays Jerry, a husband that any divorcee would count herself lucky to meet… and all Jerry wants is for his family to exist in harmony, living the American dream. Enter his new wife's teen daughter, who's all like " whatever, whatever, you don't know me... You ain't my daddy.. I do what I want!" and suddenly Jerry's dreams start to shatter...oh and remember that bit about him being a serial murderer.. Yeah, that too... Cuz it looks like Jerry's old brother -in-law is also on a mission of vengeance to track down Jerry in his new personna and finally put and end to his driftin and mass murderin ways.

It's O'Quinn who sells this film and we are reminded of his acting chops every time Blake's veneer starts to break and we see the monster underneath. He is also the reason the film, which might have easily fallen through the cracks with similar films of the same period in the late 80s went on tto make such an impression with the video rental audience.

Despite some rather typical and paint-by-numbers direction from Joseph Rubin and a score that falls somewhere between an aerobics video and a cheap porno, The Stepfather is a worthwhile watch and at the risk of looking too deep into the film's core a worthwhile examination of the death of the nuclear family unit and it's flawed ideals, and maybe just a little superfluously how maniacs often masquerade as Ward Cleaver in suburban America.

Tags: 80s horror, Joseph Rubin, The Stepfather

I am a huge fan of "what if" films. What if the alien from Alien went up against a rough and tumble group of Space Marines? What if Freddy actual fought Jason? What if a zombie was cognizant and if that zombie were you, what would you do? The Revenant, starring David Anders and Chris Wylde not only answers that question but does so in such a gleeful fashion that you might wonder why we have had to sit through so many uninventive zombie movies when offerings such as this are on the table. I'm not going to say that it reinvents the zombie film but it manages to be so much fun that you could care less what it reinvents as long as it keeps doing what it does and it pretty much manages to do that for the bulk of its running time.

"...it manages to be so much fun that you could care less what it reinvents as long as it keeps doing what it does"

Its the middle of the night in war ravaged Iraq and Bart and the rest of his platoon are driving their humvee to an undisclosed location when Bart hits, what he believes to be a child, standing in the middle of the road. Much to the displeasure of his men Bart leaves the safety of the vehicle to check on the child only to get gunned down, shot in the head, and subsequently shipped back to the states for burial, leaving his man-child best friend and pining girlriend mourning his untimely death.

We all have friends like Bart's best, Joey. Friends that while we were building our careers or fostering relationships or creating families were still spending their late nights playing Xbox, eating cold pizza and borrowing their rent money from their parents. Friends that allowed us to forget our stresses at work, the complications of our marriage or the doldrums of PTA meetings and slip back into those years where responsibilities took a back seat to having fun and plain old fucking off. These friends, while they may encourage us to call in sick to work or lie to our spouses about where we went drinking sometimes represent the last bastion of hope that our youth is still accessible, just within reach for us to pick up and try on for size when the pressures of the adult world become too much. sometimes, however, they are the proverbial bag of bricks that tumble across the ocean floor, pulling us down and slowing our progress now matter how hard we try to swim against their weight. Bart, for all of his good intentions and ambitions, just couldn't pull free of the gravity of Joey's lethargy, even in death, and that, is exactly where he winds up after clawing his way to thhe top of the fresh dirt covering his coffin.

Enter the smart divergence where The Revenant decides to play it loose and instead of Joey grappling with the horror of finding out that his dead best friend is back from the grave with a taste for fresh blood, he revels in it, seeing his new friend's apparent invulnerabilities as an opportunity to elevate his own status. Wylde tears the role open as the two do what any self respecting team of zombie and human would do: they take arms and become fly-by-night vigilantes.. Robbing the dreggs of society...of their blood. It is this portion of the film that will immediately win most detractors over as the duo hop from convenience store to urban locale, easily putting themselves in the middle of heist, robbery and drug deal, soon enjoying the monetary fringe benfits as they lift more than plasma from their victims. This horror send up of Robin Hood works so well that, in fact, the movie could have relied on this one device alone to propel it to cult status.

Early on however we get the inkling that nothing good lasts forever. Bart, although dead, is still trying to carry on as thou death is just a temporary setback. When not robbing petty crooks of the red stuff, Bart is, albeit reluctantly at first, still seeing his girlfriend and as his situation brings himself closer to the limits of just what his supernatural affliction is capable of, that relationship strains the bond between he and Joey.

I'm not going to highlight The Revenant as the viewer really needs to see the film with a fresh pair of eyes that allows them to experience the surprises firsthand. Luckily, that is the word that most will walk way with after seeing the film: SURPRISES. The Revenant manages to pull them off with a competence rarely seen and at no point does the film seem to struggle with its ambitions. If the film will have any fault with its audience, it will be its gradual change of tone in its third act. Remember when I hinted at the subtext that "the party can't go on forever"? Well when the lights go up and it's last call on The Revenant the morose turn is noticeable and might throw people a little off the rails of the preceding roller coaster of comedy and action. this is not to say that the third act is ungrounded, unnecessary, or even unfitting of the film. It's logical and sadly a little tragic, but it is framed in such an explosion of violence and weirdness that the climax takes this horror comedy and gives it a very real and disturbing resonance.In other words, even if you've come for the comedy, stay for the horror. The Revenant has already cemented it's place in my top 5 of 2012 and I expect that upon further viewings it will secure a place among my all time favorites. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

The Revenant hits dvd tomorrow September 18th, 2012.

Tags: Chris Wylde, David Anders, horror-comedy, Kerry Prior, Lionsgate Entertainment, zombie movies, The Revenant

Horror Fix, the horror movie news and review site is expanding its focus to include the publishing of horror novels and horror themed comic books. To celebrate this bold new direction they have decided to give away their first full-length novel free to visitors. Nine Tenths is the first novel from Horror Fix author Ash Hamilton. 

In a world on the brink of destruction from demonic forces, a ragtag group of survivors travel across the remains of the United States in search of anything that can even the odds against their hellish pursuers.

Chapter 2 shifts focus to a larger group of refugees who are learning more about the difficulties of staying alive and holding on as the possessed come to add more numbers to their ranks. 

You can download the second chapter, Refuge, here.

Tags: Ash Hamilton, free horror novel, Nine Tenths, horror nove

The Pact proves that you dont need to teach an old dog new tricks as long as he does the ones he knows well. THAT is the crux of The Pact's effectiveness and by the time we reach the film's final and satisfying conclusion we are watching these old tricks with renewed interest, impressed by the craft and their execution.

The impression that I want to impart on would-be viewers is that The Pact manages something rather extraordinary in its depiction of the mundane and uses it to lure the audience into familiar surroundings, all the while pressing the shadows of the unknown slowly down upon them. There is nothing spectacular in the settings of The Pact. This is no lush mansion on the outskirts of a town hiding an age old secret of depravity and the occult. Annie is not a successful author returning to her roots after the enigmatic death of her eccentric uncle. In fact, The Pact is a movie whose conventions are so rooted in the average and unimpressive that it manages to allow you to suspend disbeleif more easily than some of its contemporaries. This is where it literally sneaks in the scares and produces an atmosphere that despite the film's suburban setting is thick in otherworldly unease.

Tags: Caity Lotz, Nicholas McCarthy, The Pact

It is said in certain circles that so much testosterone was fused into the very film used to shoot James’ Cameron’s Aliens that if you play the movie backwards it will give you an abortion. That being said, Cameron’s Aliens is a “what if” scenario film that takes big and makes it even bigger. Bigger guns, bigger ships and bigger Aliens. It does so in such a fashion that it literally date rapes the original’s stifling sense of isolation and confinement and gives us a whole new world to play with. And that is the name of the game with the sequel to Scott’s classic scifi shocker, EXPANSION.

Aliens is not so much the sequel to Alien as it is the sequel to the late night diner conversations about Alien. It gives us the coolness and the novelty of the original by taking those ideas and questions and expanding them. What is the world of Alien like and how does it differ from the world now? What kinds of weapons do they have in this world? What if instead of bluecollar workers the alien(s) was up against a band of gun-toting, foulmouthed, trigger happy space marines?!?!?

Our story opens with sole survivor of the first film Ripley, still in a heavy cryosleep as a salvage team finds her and her cat 57 years after the events of the original. After recounting the events that left her crew dead she is held accountable for her actions of self preservation which, coincidentally, resulted in the destruction of corporation property totaling in the tens of millions. The Weyland Yutani corporation quickly revokes our heroine’s flight license telling her that the planet whose distress signal they responded to has been colonized for the last twenty years therefore throwing her testimony out in an act of true douchebaggery. Fastforward to Ripley taking the only job she can on the loading docks when out-of-the-blue… Weyland Yutani loses contact with their colony. Asking for Ripley’s help the corporation leverages the reinstatement of her flight license and Ripley, along with company rep Paul Reiser and a group of surly, firepower packing marines is on her way to LV-426.

The rest of the film follows a core group of the soldiers, along with Ripley and Reiser’s character Burke, as they attempt to escape the legions of aliens on LV-426 with their lives. Although we are treated to a “who survives and what will be left of them” formula, Cameron’s approach almost singlehandedly redefined the sub-genre of sc-fi action. There is a giddy love and reverence for Scott’s universe that makes Cameron’s film approachable and, in some terms a more mainstream and digestible approach to the franchise.

Cameron’s soldiers are stereotypes,sure but are still likable and we genuinely want to see them live to fight another day. Ripley is stronger and somehow her wisdom in the face of Weyland yutani’s greedy naievete makes her ever more the hero. Henricksen’s take on the human-loving android Bishop AGAIN brings our audience to sympathise with yet another character, this one almost incapable of complete destruction, yet somehow we still fear for his safety. AGAIN, we are dealing with EXPANSION, this time of the classic character archetype.

SO it might all seem like glitz and spent shells but Aliens introduces an interesting social narrative into the film that continues throughout the rest of the series. The aliens, as vicious as they are, represent an investment and corporation’s like to earn a return on their investments. As Ripley and the colonial marines fight for their lives, reiser’s Burke fights for a sinister corporate agenda and the real monster finally makes it appearance. It is Weyland Yutani’s deception and ultimately inhuman lust for profit shares that makes our character’s struggle that much more personal.

It has often been said that to compare Scott’s Alien to Cameron’s Aliens is like comparing apples to oranges. I disagree. I think the inability to compare the two should be a hallmark of any great episodic story. Not only did Aliens set a benchmark for genre sequels, it also set a benchmark for Cameron’s career as he went on to direct the current top two worldwide grossing films of all time.

My only criticsm of Aliens is not a fault of its own, but in that its iconic action movie portrayl of the marines has been so over-used and copied over the last 26 years that in retrospect it is almost a parody of itself. Well, that and the director’s choice not to use Queen’s Killer Queen when we first see the queen alien, which would have been balls-out awesome. 

Tags: HR Giger, James Cameron, Prometheus, Ridley Scott, Sigourney Weaver, xenomorph, Aliens

We horror fans can be a finicky bunch and buying for us can often seem like a nightmare. In light of this little dilemma, I have decided to take it upon myself to write this handy guide to what to buy this holiday season. Here you will find video games, DVDs, toys and maybe even a few little plush monstrosities to fill those stockings. Just remember, no matter how frustrated you get... BACK AWAY FROM THE SOCKS AND UNDERWEAR!!!! Especially if you're shopping at a second hand store... I mean, really?!?!? That's how germs are spread. Shall we begin? VIDEO GAMES: Wii Horror fans might find the wii a little too family friendly friendly for their tastes. That being said, there are still some great titles to get the blood flowing and the adrenaline surging. Dead Space: Extraction

Although I haven't played this particular title, the Dead Space franchise seems to be a mainstay in the industry and I've heard good things about this shooter. There is also an enhanced version for those PS3 owners out there that ports over the wii controls for the Playstation Move.Buy Now from Amazon The House of the Dead: Overkill

This one is not for the pint-sized zombies in your house, unless you want your nine year old going to school sounding like Samuel Jackson on a smack binge... For the most part HOTD: Overkill sets out to do exactly what it promises: zombies, gore, a huge nod to exploitation cinema and a lot of fun. Although a little repetitive and featuring some pretty clunky reload action, this is a title you'll be glad you have for when the New Years revelers show up with dip and that jailhouse toilet-wine your friend Rodney makes.Buy Now from Amazon Cursed Mountain

Cursed Mountain in no way references the stack of nudie mags in your shed that your uncle left you when he went into the clink. What is does is provide a wii exclusive (console anyways) horror game that is heavy on atmosphere and story.Buy Now from Amazon You might also want to check out: Silent Hill: Shattered Memories Resident Evil 4 Calling VIDEO GAMES: PS3 PS3 is admittedly my console of choice. I know there are a lot of 360 purists out there, but I was sold on the bluray playback, so nanner, nanner, nanner. (Of course if I was making my game selections solely for Playstation Network accessibility I would have been sitting on a watertower somewhere with an assault rifle earlier this year, so go figure) Splatterhouse

Although not a "look-over-your-shoulder" title, Splaterhouse delivers on so many levels for the die-hard gorehound. For those that remember the original Splatterhouse in the late 80s, you are going to bathe in blood soaked nostalgia. For those that don't, well... bask in your youth and go chase girls and backpack across Europe... what the hell are you doing sitting around playing video games, anyways?!?!?Buy for the PS3 on Amazon    Buy for XBOX 360 on Amazon Siren Blood Curse

Although I was not a huge fan of the controls of this game (using the games' patented Epileptic-at-a-Rave technology) I have been told that should I stick it out Blood Curse proves itself to be quite possibly the most chill inducing horror title for the PS3. Couple that with the fact that it is a available as a download might make this one a no-brainer.The House of the Dead: Overkill (Extended Cut)

So we might have covered this already in the Wii, but there are levels not included in that version here, PLUS... this one is 3D compatible... so you can kick ass in at least one more dimension... just like Buckaroo Bonzai...You might also want to check out: Dead Space 2 Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare VIDEO GAMES: XBOX 360 Ok... I know there is this "cult of xbox"; xbox enthusiasts who rival the long-term supporters of Apple... they are rabid... dress in the skin of their kills and will defend their favorite console to a grisly end. However, I don't own one, so it looks like I will have to listen to the people's voice on this one and give some suggestions based on user reviews and what not... Dead Island

Oh yeah... zombies and a place where you are almost guaranteed hot towels monogramed with the emblem of the resort and its faceless parent company... throw in a volleyball and we are all over it!!! Better yet, read  our in depth review of it here and get the real skinny!!! Read our ReviewRise of Nightmares

Its the first M-rated game for the Kinect and although we were all hoping this would be that long rumored first person Ron Jeremy "shooter" alas... it is Rise of Nightmares. However, its nice to see Kinect stepping up with a nice horror title such as this, AND, xbox has been promoting it pretty heavily took which is refreshing. Search for your missing wife amidst zombies and try not to become dinner... I still think it might have benefitted from Mr. Jeremy at the helm, but my pleas for common sense go unanswered.Dead Rising 2

Play it some more, same as before. More zombies need to be killed inventively and its up to you to come back to Dead Rising for another round. I enjoy this franchise and its base element is really a huge love letter to fans of horror and zombie cinema. Use whatever you can to dispatch of the undead... and in a move that equals a hiroshima of the rotting and shambling... Celine Dion is your secret weapon (this is a joke... well its actually two jokes if you count Ms. Dion... so don't go scouring the net for Celine Dion DLC for Dead Rising 2... but if you do, and you find something... I want it).These are just a few, but based on either personal experience or a lot of positive reviews web-wide... you really can't go wrong with these titles. Next stop... Blurays, DVDs and all those films that fit snugly in a sock nailed to your fireplace (not that sock, we've talked about that sock) ... this might take a while, but we promise we'll be done before you hear those familiar footsteps on the rooftop...

Tags: Horror X-Mas Gifts