Realm of Horror - News and Blog

Tuesday, 7 February 2023

SITE ANNOUNCEMENT - TAKING A BREAK

OK guys, I've decided I need to take a break from maintaining the website for a short while. So there will no more news updates or reviews until further notice.

Life has got kinda hectic these last few months and I've had a lot of family related stuff to deal with during December, and keeping this place updated was again starting to feel like a second full time job.

So, for the sake of my own sanity, I've decided I need to give things a rest for a while. Just so I can get stuff sorted and to allow myself time to indulge in some other interests.

I'm not planning on shutting the place down, but will be using the time to consider how best to move things forward with the site and it's related social media pages.

I will still be making the occiaisonal post over on Facebook and Twitter, though not as regularly and hopefully doing the odd YouTube video, so please subscribe to me over there if you haven't already done so!

I've also just launched a Discord server, if you want to get chatting with us over there.

That's all for now. Friday night chat sessions will continue as normal in the chat room if you want to stop by.

Normal service will resume in the near future.

Best Wishes

Simon T (Dark Angel)

VIDEOSHOP TALES OF TERROR – A Review

An old 1980s video rental store is the setting for indie horror VIDEOSHOP TALES OF TERROR, which is currently doing the rounds on the festival circuit in the UK.

Described as a “Loving homage to the Amicus horror anthologies of the 60s and 70s”, the basic plot centres around the shop's creepy old Proprietor (played by a heavily made up Martin W Payne), who takes on new employee Clara (Hannah Paterson), as she has racked up a load of late fees and has reluctantly agreed to work there to pay them off.

What follows is a series of blood curdling, and downright hilarious scenes, showing how the Proprietor deals with rude customers and people who don't bother rewinding their tapes. With each one forming the introduction to 6 short films.

The first of these, “Egghead” by MJ Dixon (Cleaver's : Killer Clowns) involves a disgraced plastic surgeon, Eggbert Humphries (or Egghead to his friends), who is forced to visit one of his rivals, hoping to change his appearance, so he can take on a new identity. But unfortunately, his rival has other plans...

Having been hideously deformed, he subsequently breaks free from his shackles, grabs an oversized prop spoon and goes on the rampage, turning the clinic into a bloodbath as he exacts (eggsacts?) his revenge. Boasting some hilariously gory scenes and a deluge of egg related puns.

Next up was "The Red Lipped Moon" by Sam Mason Bell (VHS violence) which was a touch darker and a bit more serious in tone. Filmed in Black and White in the style of a Film Noir thriller, a private detective is trying to track down the person who killed one of his informants, only to find that he may be looking for a vampire.

"Fleurs De Mal" by Andrew Elias (Tales from the Great War) was a Gothic horror, with a tongue in cheek twist. A woman, who claims to be from the future, is being cared for by the nuns at a convent, who believe she is insane. But when the patient in question appears to be horror actress Paula Valentine (Dani Thompson, in one of her several roles in the film), could there be something in her claims?

Then it was onto the fourth short film, "Mary Whitehouse You're a C***", by Alex Churchyard (Mosaic, I Scream on the Beach), who also directed the Videoshop wraparound feature. This was easily my favourite of all the short films, in which a couple of horror fans, watching old movies out in their garden shed, inadvertently resurrect the spirit of the long dead morality campaigner Mary Whitehouse, in the form of a Demon, who proceeds to go on a hilarious “Evil Dead” style killing spree.

"These Burnt Children" by Thomas Lee Rutter (Day of the Stranger) is a dark comedy, about a failed film director, who blames his problems on the last producer he worked with. But after getting some decidedly dodgy advice from a psychic medium, decides to exact a bloody revenge on his former associate and his ex-wife.

The final short film, "Vergessen" by Michael Fausti (Exit), was the most serious and indeed the most interesting of all the segments, in what appears to be a nod to the old nazi-sploitation films. Set in occupied Europe during WW2, an enterprising club owner tries extorting senior ranking German officials who frequent his business, by drugging them and filming their exploits with the young ladies at his establishment, but goes too far after trying to blackmail the wrong officer...

Produced by Singh Lall, who is one of the organisers of the Horror on Sea festival, the film features a whole host of indie horror stars, including Martin W Payne, who has worked with several of the directors before. But most notably Dani Thompson, who makes several appearances in the film, both as herself, and as various characters throughout each segment.

Horror actor Laurence Harvey, who's probably best known for his roles in The Human Centipede series of films also makes a number of appearances, one of which comes to regret swearing at the aforementioned Proprietor.

Regular visitors to my website will remember that I actually visited the Videoshop film set in December 2021 and made a short feature about the production. So maybe my review is slightly coloured by my time spent on set, but I really enjoyed this. It's clearly been made by horror fans for horror fans, and I had a lot of fun spotting the numerous references to other horror films (indeed, the proprietor is highly reminiscent of the shopkeeper played by Peter Cushing in "From Beyond the Grave").

The film had it's premier at this years Horror on Sea festival, where it went down an absolute storm and is due to be screened at this months Romford Horror Festival, as part of it's festival tour.

If you love independent horror films, then this is an absolute blast. If you get chance, I would wholeheartedly recommend seeing this at a festival, as nothing beats watching these films with a group of like minded horror fans.

If all this wasn't enough, work is already well underway for a sequel. So be sure to stay tuned for that one.

For more info checkout the following links

Videoshop Tales of Terror Facebook Page

TIS films Facebook Page

TIS films Twitter Page

View the trailer below...

Check out my behind the scenes feature...

Thursday, 5 January 2023

The Realm of Horror's Films of 2022

My annual New Years video is up on my YouTube channel, see what my favourite horrors were from the last 12 months...

Subscribe to my YouTube channel at... https://www.youtube.com/@Realm-of-Horror

Tuesday, 27 December 2022

VIPCO & BayView Entertainment celebrate December with 4 new Horror releases

VIPCO & BayView Entertainment are celebrating December with not 1, but 4 new horror releases.

13 TRACKS TO FRIGHTEN AGATHA BLACK

Synopsis:
After a tragic event, a sheltered young woman seeks the comfort of some long-forgotten scary story records from her youth.

The specter of losing her family home and a string of crimes in her neighborhood propel her toward a dark obsession with the frightening tales.

Eerily, they begin to reveal occult truths and hint at a violent, inescapable fate. Like a disease, the stories begin to infect others who enter her world, creating disturbing encounters that bring her to the threshold of terror.

View the trailer on YouTube.

13 TRACKS TO FRIGHTEN AGATHA BLACK is out now on Blu-ray and Prime Video from VIPCO & BayView Entertainment.

Buy the UK BD from Amazon.co.uk.

THE LAST SLAY RIDE

Synopsis:
The holiday themed comedy/horror THE LAST SLAY RIDE starring Elissa Dowling (Girl On The Third Floor) and Eileen Dietz (The Exorcist) is out now on Blu-ray from VIPCO & BayView Entertainment.

When a group of indie filmmakers are ripped off by a crooked distributor, they set out on a mission of revenge.

But they quickly find themselves facing off against literal bloodsuckers in what becomes the ultimate battle of good vs evil, featuring filmmakers, vampires, loan sharks and more!

View the trailer on YouTube.

THE LAST SLAY RIDE is out now on Blu-ray and Prime Video from VIPCO & BayView Entertainment.

Buy the UK BD from Amazon.co.uk.

THE SALAMANDER HOUSE

Synopsis:
A famous Italian-American writer of horror novels comes to Puglia to spend a few days in an old house on the coast. The real estate agent tries to convince the writer to buy it, but he only wants to spend a few days there hoping to find inspiration.

The history of the house begins to manifest itself with hallucinations, which the writer notes as ideas for his novel. He then meets some locals who tell him the story of a cult, that came to the house in the 1970s to build a temple dedicated to the Satan.

The writer will very soon discover that the cult is still there and that he is only a tool driven by evil.

View the trailer on YouTube.

THE SALAMANDER HOUSE is out now on Blu-ray and Prime Video from VIPCO & BayView Entertainment.

Buy the UK BD from Amazon.co.uk.

SCREAMS FROM THE SWAMP

Synopsis:
When Angela’s husband and son die in hospital after a car crash, she takes it upon herself to seek justice against the doctor who operated on the pair. Desperation and obsession lead Angela into a paranoid state, dissociating her from reality.

She follows the doctor day after day: behind the anonymous facade, the man hides a parallel life of depravity and murders committed together with his colleagues. Discovering these new horrors, Angela turns to dark otherworldly forces to find the strength to eliminate the killers.

This decision leads her into a spiral of violence and hallucinations, where pleasure and fear intermingle but ultimately there is a high price to pay.

View the trailer on YouTube.

SCREAMS FROM THE SWAMP is out now on Blu-ray and Prime Video from VIPCO & BayView Entertainment.

Buy the UK BD from Amazon.co.uk.

Keep up to date with all things VIPCO by following them on social media and via their website.

Links below:

WWW: https://www.vipcovaults.com
FB: https://www.facebook.com/VIPCOfilm
TW: https://twitter.com/Vipcoltd
IG: https://www.instagram.com/vipcofilm
YT: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkNMKoiSc_dm2fFr6JckUYg

Thursday, 22 December 2022

A Mammoth New Year on the ARROW player, this January...

Key highlights this January on the essential, alternative streaming service ARROW include a double helping of martial arts mayhem starring the incomparable Sonny Chiba, a definitive collection of films by Swedish director Lukas Moodysson, a diptych of Paul Joyce documentaries, one portraying a Hollywood legend and the other dissecting gender, alongside much more...

Also presented in January, The Executioner, and The Executioner II: Karate Inferno. Fists flurry and blood flows as legendary cult director Teruo Ishii (Shogun’s Joy of Torture, Horrors of Malformed Men) joins forces with martial arts legend Shin’ichi ‘Sonny’ Chiba in this bone-crunching double whammy of classic karate exploitation from Toei.

Seasons in January include: RAVENOUS CANNIBALS, with titles including Offspring, Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death and The Hills Have Eyes; THE FIRST TIME featuring a host of film from legendary, cult and breakthrough directors; ADAM EGYPT MORTIMER SELECTS, the indie American director curates a season filled with cult classics, ranging from Branded to Kill to The Testament of Dr Mabuse.

ALSO SHOWING: Reel Women, a revealing documentary on women working in film; Marlon Brando: Wild One, an examination of the craft of the iconic star, narrated by professionals of the film industry, and much more…

Watch the January sizzle reel...

JANUARY RELEASE CALENDAR

New Titles – From January 6

- The Executioner
- The Executioner II: Karate Inferno

New Titles – January 13

- Reel Women

New Titles – From January 20

- Marlon Brando: Wild One

New Titles – From January 27

- Show Me Love (aka F**king Amal)
- Together
- A Hole in My Heart
- Container
- We Are the Best!
- Lilya 4-ever
- Mammoth

Where to get it

The Art of Cult. Head to ARROW and start your 30-day free trial. Available on the following Apps/devices: Xbox, Roku (all Roku sticks, boxes, devices, etc), Apple TV; iOS devices, Android TV and mobile devices, Fire TV (all Amazon Fire TV Sticks, boxes, etc), and on all web browsers at www.ARROW-Player.com.

Subscriptions are available for £4.99 monthly or £49.99 annually

MAIKA MONROE stars in nerve-shredding thriller WATCHER out 6th February

Mediumrare Entertainment announces the award-winning thriller WATCHER is being released on DVD and Blu-ray on 6 February 2023.

Julia (Maika Monroe - It Follows) joins her husband (Karl Glusman - The Neon Demon) when he relocates to his family’s native Romania for a new job. Having recently abandoned her acting career, she finds herself frequently alone and unoccupied. One night, people-watching from her picture window, she spots a vague figure in an adjacent building, who seems to be looking back at her.

Soon after, while alone at a local movie theatre, Julia’s sense of being watched intensifies, and she becomes certain she’s being followed - could it be the same unknown neighbour? Meanwhile, a serial killer known as The Spider stalks the city. Plagued with lurking anxiety, is she imaging things, or are her ever-mounting fears warranted?

The debut film from Chloe Okuno is a sleek, remarkably assured thriller that puts a thoroughly modern spin on Hitchcock’s classic Rear Window. Featuring a superb cast including Maika Monroe, Karl Glusman and Burn Gorman (The Dark Knight Rises), WATCHER was nominated for awards at Sundance and SXSW festivals, and won Best Feature at this year’s Boston Underground Film Festival.

With the forbidding Bucharest locations, a wonderfully atmospheric score by the brilliant Nathan Halpern (Emily The Criminal), and the tension escalated almost unbearably in the creepy and brutal climactic scenes, WATCHER is a sleek, superb thrill ride of a film.

Extras include:
- Audio Commentary by Director Chloe Okuno and Editor Michael Block

Pre-order the UK BD from Amazon.co.uk

Pre-order the UK DVD from Amazon.co.uk

Spanish horror THE HOUSE THAT SCREAMED - On UK BD this March, from Arrow

Spain’s first major horror film production, THE HOUSE THAT SCREAMED is a stylish gothic tale of tortured passions and bloody murder that bridges the bloody gap between Psycho and Suspiria.

Thérèse (Cristina Galbó) is the latest arrival at the boarding school for wayward girls run under the stern, authoritarian eye of Mme Fourneau (Lilli Palmer).

As the newcomer becomes accustomed to the strict routines, the whip-hand hierarchies among the girls and their furtive extra-curricular methods of release from within the forbidding walls of institutional life, she learns that several of her fellow students have recently vanished mysteriously.

Meanwhile, tensions grow within this isolated hothouse environment as Mme Fourneau’s callow but curious 15-year-old son Louis (John Moulder-Brown) ignores his mother’s strict orders not to get close to the “tainted” ladies under her ward.

Directed by Narciso Ibáñez Serrador (Who Can Kill a Child?), this landmark title in Spanish genre cinema has been restored to its director’s original full-length vision for the first time.

SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS

• Brand new 2K restoration from the original negative by Arrow Films

• High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentations of the 105-minute uncut version titled The Finishing School (La Residencia), and the 94-minute US theatrical version titled The House That Screamed, via seamless branching

• Original lossless English mono audio on both versions, and lossless Spanish audio on the uncut version

• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing on both versions, and optional English subtitles for the Spanish audio

• Brand new audio commentary by critic Anna Bogutskaya

• This Boy’s Innocence, a previously unreleased interview with actor John Moulder-Brown

• Archive interview with Mary Maude, from the 2012 edition of the Festival of Fantastic Films

• All About My “Mama”, a brand new interview with Juan Tébar, author of the original story

• The Legacy of Terror, a brand new interview with the director’s son, Alejandro Ibáñez

• Screaming the House Down, a brand new interview with Spanish horror expert Dr Antonio Lázaro-Reboll, discussing the history of the film and its director

• Alternative footage from the original Spanish theatrical version

• Original trailers, TV and radio spots

• Image gallery

• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Colin Murdoch

FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by Shelagh Rowan-Legg and double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Colin Murdoch

Pre-order the UK BD from Amazon.co.uk