Monthly Archives: May 2015

Horror Realm is coming my friends

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www.horrorrealmcon.com

We are a little less than two months away film fiends! A diverse lineup this time around shows Horror Realm is trying to be a little different and give something interesting to convention fans as you can see in the picture. If that wasn’t enough you will get to see some great vendors in Buzzworks (cool dude), T-shirt Joe (www.fastcustomshirts.com) and Gross Movie Reviews approved coolest dude on earth, several other vendors, authors, etc., including myself hanging with Out of Print Dan and selling our film Jagoff Massacre and my newest book “Gross Movie Reviews: The Wrath of Gross”… See Yinz There!!!!

Horror Realm PopHorror Realm 2015

Lance Henriksen Confronts BEING!

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A solid cast of top talent headlined by Horror/Sci-Fi legend Lance Henriksen have joined forces to Kickstart the new indie film, BEING. In addition to Henriksen, the cast also includes heavyweight actor Robert John Burke, best known for his lead roles in RoboCop 3 and Stephen King’s Thinner, and indie film veteran Brian Foyster.

BEING is an edgy and one-of-a-kind film that transcends the typical horror genre. The story provokes an unnerving reflection of human behavior and tragic violence that occurs when someone, or something, threatens a person’s beliefs. BEING is designed to leave you on the edge of your seat and shake the convictions of what you believe in.

BEING already has several days of shooting in the can from locations in Norwalk, CT and the Catskills in upstate NY where paranormal activity and UFO sightings are frequently reported. Production is targeted to resume in August 2015 after the completion of a Kickstarter campaign and the production team is encouraging involvement from fans of the Horror/Sci-Fi genre.

“When this film becomes a reality, it will be in large part because of Kickstarter fans” says Director Doug C. Williams, “The opportunity to endorse and be a part of the artistic film process can be one of the most rewarding and exhilarating experiences a person can have in their lifetime. The pride of joining with extremely talented artists to develop cinematic works of art is immeasurable. We have taken advantage of every resource and contributing factor available to us, which has allowed us to already shoot some amazing footage for the film and to release our promotional teaser.”

The teaser and Kickstarter campaign can be found at:

http://kck.st/1HK453m

The story all takes place over one night on a farmhouse in a small town in the mountains. A mysterious, bright burst of light explodes from inside the barn, knocking out the power. The drunken gathering going on in the main house comes to an abrupt halt. There is a creature they will discover in the barn. Something they do not understand. And as always, when the beliefs of the weak and fearful are threatened, they turn on each other…

“The modern world is getting very comfortable with fear and isolation…and if isolation becomes comforting to you, there’s something very wrong with that” says Lance Henriksen. “Fear in a spiritual sense is becoming an addiction” continues Henriksen, “and I’m very happy to be a part of this crew and believe me they’re kicking butt!”

Kickstarter contributors are rewarded with memorabilia from the film and participation levels go from $5 all the way up to $10,000 with the reward of being named as an Executive Producer on the film. 

BEING POSTER

Ray Bradbury’s Pillar Of Fire: Bill Oberst Jr. Solo Show Opens In Hollywood On Anniversary Of Author’s Death

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Los Angeles, CA (May 28, 2015): Once upon a time, when Americans burned their horror comics, a young man named Ray Bradbury fought back with his typewriter…and a story about a living corpse.

Actor Bill Oberst Jr.‘s theatrical reading of Ray Bradbury’s Pillar Of Fire opens in Los Angeles on June 5,  the anniversary of the author’s death. It runs through June 25 at two Hollywood area theaters. Details and ticket information on the performance are at www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/2496.

Pillar Of Fire is set in the year 2349 on an Earth cleansed of all superstition – a place where Halloween, dark literature and burials are banned. Bodies are burned without ceremony in massive towers of cremation; the ashes of the forgotten dead blown into the wind. As Bradbury’s tale opens, the last cemetery on the planet is nearly emptied when the last dead man in the world wakes up. William Lantry is a 400 year-old walking corpse filled with hate for the living and determined to teach this sterile and sensible world the meaning of fear.

Oberst, a rabid Bradbury fan, says he hopes to tour with Pillar Of Fire and other Bradbury stories. “Vincent Price used to tour the world with living renditions of Poe’s works that delighted fans. I’d like to do the same with Ray Bradbury” he says.  “These LA shows are a test. I want to prove that fans will respond to great horror and fantasy literature done live.” Oberst says he especially hopes to make a tour of American libraries as a way of honoring Bradbury’s lifelong love affair with books.

Bradbury wrote the story in 1948 as comics like Tales From The Crypt, The Vault Of Horror and The Haunt Of Fear were being thrown into bonfires after a psychiatrist attacked them as morally corrupt in a best-selling book. “The campaign to cleanse young minds caught fire” says Oberst “and that’s the atmosphere in which Bradbury created Pillar Of Fire, which makes the case that we need the dark in order to to balance the light. It’s a passionate defense of Halloween and things that go bump in the night. I hope fans will support it if they are in Los Angeles in June. We who work in the darker genres still take heat from those who look down on us, but Ray Bradbury wasn’t ashamed to have his name associated with horror, neither am I.”

(Pillar of Fire is read with the permission of Don Congdon Associates,Inc. on behalf of Ray Bradbury Enterprises, Inc. Copyright 1948 Love Romances, Inc.)

 

EC-Comics-Ray-Bradbury

Episode 163 we do a commentary for unnatural reasons

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This week Kyle was injured in a life or death battle with an Evil Dead tree and jacked up his cyanic nerve in his back.  Long story short he can’t sit for too long so instead of doing a normal show we decided to give you a fan commentary for one of the best semi crashing’, electric knife slashing’, bazooka shootin’, pop machine murderin’, steamrolling’, kid killin’, monster truck jammie jam of all time!!!  MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE!!! So check it out.  Sponsored in part by the fine folks of Miller Brewing Company, Happy Toyz INC. and the fine folks of The Dixie Boy Truck Stop.

 EPISODE 163

http://www.bloodbathspodcast.blogspot.com/

 

Indie Cult Classic “The Dead Next Door” Shambles Onto Blu-Ray This Fall, Preorders Now Available

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First time in high-definition, restored from original film elements.

May 27, 2015 – Akron, Ohio: Tempe Video today announced the immediate launch of an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign to support preorders for a 3-Disc “Ultimate Edition” Blu-ray of the 1990 landmark independent shocker “The Dead Next Door,” the boutique cult label’s first HD release.

Two and a half decades before “The Walking Dead” made zombies mainstream on cable television, 19-year-old writer/director J.R. Bookwalter (“Ozone,” “Witchouse 2: Blood Coven”) embarked on “The Dead Next Door,” an ambitious Super-8mm horror feature pitting an elite team of Zombie Squad soldiers against hoards of the undead and the secretive religious cult hell-bent on protecting them. The film would ultimately take four years to complete with the help of a now-famous Hollywood director and more than 1,500 Northeast Ohio residents, who portrayed the multitudes of bloodthirsty ghouls.

For this one-of-a-kind release, Tempe has assembled four unrated versions of the film, two created from a brand-new 2K restoration using the original film elements. To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the film’s original home video debut this fall, collectors and fans will now be able to enjoy the movie in 1080p HD in either 4:3 original aspect ratio or 16:9 cropped alongside the standard-definition masters used for previous VHS and DVD releases, together with all of the extras from with those versions.

Featuring Blu-ray, DVD, and soundtrack CD discs, “The Dead Next Door” Ultimate Edition also adds a number of all-new bonus features, including a look at the extensive restoration, and a 5.1 surround mix which resurrects the voices of the original actors recorded on location for the very first time as an alternate audio track alongside the dubbed mix fans already know.

 

The release is capped off with reversible artwork and a full-color booklet including behind-the-scenes photos and comprehensive liner notes. The set is available with a variety of optional perks including reversible theatrical-sized poster, a book containing all six drafts of the original screenplay, and a VHX Digital HD copy which can be streamed to web browsers or Apple, Roku, and Chromecast devices.

 

Only 1,000 units of “The Dead Next Door” Ultimate Edition Blu-ray will be offered during the 30-day campaign, with a single-disc retail edition planned for a later date. Preorders are estimated to ship in October, with a limited theatrical release for the new 16:9 version also in the works.

 

Ultimate Edition Blu-ray

on Indiegogo:

http://igg.me/at/deadnextdoor

 

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Gross Movie Reviews #349

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Gross Movie Reviews #349

 

By Tim Gross

 

Age of Tomorrow (DVD/SyFy Channel) – It is a cheap “Armageddon” meets “War of the Worlds”, so of course I had to see it but the real question is: Do you? I give it 1 star.

 

Mad Max: Fury Road (Theater) – What can be said about this amazing movie that hasn’t already been said. I know just thinking about the film gets me a high school boner but anyway it has been 30 years since the last sequel and things have changed script wise, casting wise, etc. But George Miller being undeterred by this process possibly put together the best movie sequel ever made? Oh yes I went there “Aliens”, “Terminator 2”, and “Dawn of the Dead” fans. I believe this film has entered that debate but that is for another time… Max now played by Tom Hardy, perfectly mind you is or has gone completely mad. He has flashbacks, he is afraid of the living and dead but yet there is still an ounce of humanity in him to help people against all odds with his life in the balance. After Max’s narration at the beginning of the film, insanity begins as Max is being chased, captured, escapes, captured again and becomes a blood bag (long story). After that you are introduced to Charlize Theron who apparently has a robotic arm of sorts and has her own plans driving the ‘war rig’ to a different destination. Through incredible stunts, car chases, death, and complete insanity Max rules and explains there is no hope. My best example of what this movie could be summarized is: Imagine George Miller goes I want $150 million dollars to make “The Road Warrior” on steroids! DONE! Toecutter is back, a blind man playing a guitar on top of a rig that shoots flames; the 660 HP police interceptor is back, Tom Hardy has eight lines in two hours of movie, old ladies can ride motorcycles and fuck up your ass from a distance, for the love of Mel Gibson and Tom Hardy this is the movie of 2015 hands down. Now for those of you that are complete asses that a) did not go, b) and the biggest problem claim the movie is 90% CG’d, c) think “Pitch Perfect 2” was a better choice… FUCK OFF! Now if you thought the film was 90% CG’d there is a good chance you are not reading this review or you are my friend at this point. Very few films get me wanting to argue the geek things of films but this film is my line in the sand of writing reviews. What does that mean? Well you can have the opinion that you didn’t like the movie, cool, I understand we can have an intelligent conversation about that shit. But your first line or two that comes out of your mouth is that its 80 or 90% CG’d, please do all of us a favor and stop existing so we have more air, fuel, and electricity for a little longer before the world does become a wasteland! The movie is so bad ass it gets 4 ½ out of 4 stars!  Thank you George Miller.

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Samurai Avenger: The Blind Wolf (Blu-ray) – A man who is out with his family by the lake basically has his dream raped and tortured. Several years later a blind samurai is seeking the man, Nathan Flesher, who did this wrong. But the blind samurai must overcome several tests before he even gets in front of Nathan for possibly his final fight of his life. A film that was released in 2009 that is getting the proper treatment from is a fun homage of cinema that became in vogue for a lot of Americans during the late 80s and early 90s of tape trading. The fun flick also has oodles of extras for fans to pore over for many hours. Synapse as usual did a great job on the package and the movie is a must see for “samurai’ fans as to me at least it had the feel of “Six-string Samurai” if it helps? I give it 3 out of 4 stars and can be purchased at www.synapse-films.com .

 

Interzone (VHS/DVD-R) – A 1987 post-apocalyptic flick that stars a Bruce Abbott fresh off of “Re-Animator” playing a character named ‘Swan’ who may be the savior to some monk named ‘Panasonic’ and his friends who are trying to protect their treasure. Meanwhile a hot looking muscle bound woman wants that treasure and has failed several times to bust through the monk’s force field but knows it is weakening. So it’s up to Swan after his life is saved by Panasonic to stop these weirdos from killing all the monks and taking their treasure. There is a six-wheeler golf cart with cannon on it but it’s never used which is a big bag of bullshit. And if wondering I believe there is an out-of-print region 2 DVD floating around out there as I give it 2 ½ stars. Would have gotten 3 out of 4 stars if Bruce would have be shooting people with that cannon “Sonny Boy” style.

 

House of the Long Shadows (VHS) – A writer makes a bet for $20,000 he can write a manuscript in a haunted house in 24 hours and it would be called, “Midnight Manor”. Soon John Carradine, Vincent Price, Peter Cushing all show up for a family reunion of sorts knowing the house is being sold and the man buying it shows up and just happens to be Christopher Lee! Plus the family has a deep secret that has been hidden for 40 years. Great concept for 60s or 70s Hammer flick but this is 1983 and those crazy two guys that gave us a bunch of over the top 80s action flicks thought they could make it happen again. Like I said cool concept but even in 1983 let alone watching it now the film just seems out of place and kind of distorted. Any way worth watching just because of the cast as I give it 2 stars.

 

Shocking Dark (DVD-R/YouTube) – An 1989 Eye-talian flick that was directed by Vincent Dawn aka Bruno Mattei and was at one point titled “Terminator 2” is a combo of “Aliens” and “Terminator” with most of the popular scenes from James Cameron’s “Aliens” ripped off! Venice, Italy has become what is now called “Dead City” as experiments poisoned the water and a deadly cloud sits above the city not allowing humans to live there unless underground. But once contact with ‘Shelter 65’ is lost it is up too Operation: Delta Venice to go in for a rescue and hope it’s not a bug hunt? Scientists fucked up and now they are all mutating and attacking any live humans. All I know someone’s has got sued by 20th Century Fox and most likely by several other people as I give this weird greatness called “Shocking Dark” 2 stars.

 

Matango: Attack of the Mushroom People (DVD) – A Toho Production about a ship that gets caught up in a storm and shipwrecks on an island that seems to have no life. While searching for help the small crew finds another large shipwrecked vessel that they find food on and use it as shelter. They also find that scientists were on board doing experiments that eventually went wrong. Now, if you eat the mushrooms you trip your ass off then die or get attacked by mushroom monsters/zombies that make you eat the mushrooms. Weird, creepy, and a little hilarious describe this 1963 flick as I give it 2 ½ stars.

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Rollerblade Warriors: Taken By Force (VHS/DVD-R/YouTube) – A very popular title on Rhonda Shear’s “USA Up All Night” stars Kathleen Kinmont who is a pretty blonde actress who became a favorite of horror fans after her roles in “Halloween 4” and “Bride of Re-Animator”. Here Miss Kinmont aka former wife of Lorenzo Lamas is a sword wielding Karin Cross who is protecting a creature or woman of hope or post-apocalyptic nun named Gretchen during their trip across the Wasteland. Gretchen is considered a ‘seer’. Important… Meanwhile some dude in a gas mask and bio-hazard outfit must get a virgin sacrifice for the radioactive creature that roams the refinery that keeps the wasteland town up and running. Reminds me a lot of “When Hell Comes to Frogtown”. The most hilarious part is there are warriors on roller skates trying to skate across the desert but when it becomes fight time they suddenly lose their skates in most scenes and they are foot fighting men and for that I am thankful so no one was getting hurt. I give this senseless but fun movie that only seems to exist because I do 2 ½ stars.

 

The Walking Deceased (DVD) – A brand new spoof of course on “The Walking Dead” series but incorporates every popular zombie flick most people ever heard of into the plot. A sheriff wakes from his coma looking for his kid Chris, I mean Carl, actually Chris and trying to find this group of people who are hiding in a mall away from zombies. Once they all meet up and they close down the zombie strip club they travel to a farm in hopes of finding salvation. First thirty minutes I was laughing a ton but as most spoofs go on they lose their steam and become your average spoof that you usually never revisit again. But just knowing this exists will most likely piss off “The Walking Dead” hardcore fans which is cool with me. I give it 1 ½ stars.

 

Butchered (DVD) – A convicted killer/Terrace Skinner aka bootleg Kurt Angle has escaped custody before being sent to the electric chair to death. Meanwhile bootleg Joe Estevez drops his younger brother and friends off at an island in North Carolina for one last weekend of partying before parting for college. Do yourself a favor for a drinking game: Watch this movie and chug a beer or take a shot when you hear a character say “Oh my god, we are all going to die” and you will be dead. I give it 2 out of 4 stars just for having two bootleg characters in an independent flick.

 

A Bothered Conscience (DVD) – The independent flick begins in 1974 Arkansas where a man has a child with him and shoots another hunter. Soon this becomes a regular thing. Speed up about 20 years and the man is an old guy who is still with the child who is a grown man and is teaching him about killing people who are trespassing. The local sheriff comes out bitching about the 41 unsolved incidents and the old guy doesn’t care but threatens the sheriff’s life. Old guy gets his head blown off after someone is seeking revenge for a relative and now it is up to the son to take care of business. Problem, the grown kid is haunted by those who have been killed by his father. The movie is well-produced but I found myself not nearly interested in it as much I should have been? Different plot or structure it may have kept my interest but it did show the filmmakers have talent or at least an idea of what they want to do and that’s awesome in my book as I give this flick 2 out of 4 stars and can be found at www.midnightreleasing.com .

 

Any comments or questions please send to: GrossMovieReview@verizon.net, GrossMovieReview@aol.com or www.facebook.com/grossmoviereviews . Remember folks always support your local independent movie theater, independent video store, and independent filmmakers! It will keep horror alive………

You can always visit and see some past reviews, independent film news, or me ranting at: www.grossmoviereviews.com !!!

Don’t forget you can also hear Kyle Poling and me talking about horror flicks on a weekly basis on the Bloodbaths and Boomsticks podcast at: www.bloodbathspodcast.blogspot.com/

Plus you can always go to the greatest T-shirt place online or if you are in Texas visit the store of “Fast Custom Shirts” where T-shirt Joe is the only place you should purchase your horror T-shirts: Go to www.fastcustomshirts.com for details.

And do not forget to order your copy of Gross Movie Reviews: The Wrath of Gross at: http://www.lulu.com/shop/tim-gross/gross-movie-reviews-the-wrath-of-gross/paperback/product-21975934.html or pick up a copy at Horror Realm July 24-26th, 2015 as Out of Print Dan and myself will have a table there! Go to www.horrorrealmcon.com for more details on the convention.

The Mad Max episode is up!

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This week Kyle and Tim talk about the movie we have been waiting for for a long ass time.  And that magnum opus is George Miller’s MAD  MAX: FURY ROAD.  We even get to hear Tim’s mom’s thoughts on it.  Also, we see what happens when Re-Animator’s Bruce Abbot does after the apocalypse in INTERZONE… A movie about a golf cart with a cannon.  And Kyle watches a movie that is a bit of a slog to get through, but, boy does it pay off in the end in GNAW: FOOD OF THE GODS 2.  We also run down all of your viewer questions, and Kyle has a bang-up 2 weeks of movie watching to talk about.  Including that Kurt Cobain documentary that everyone is yammering about…….   Heroin is a hell of a drug!

 

http://www.bloodbathspodcast.blogspot.com/

 

episode 162

To help celebrate the new Mad Max movie this weekend my book is on sale!!!

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http://www.lulu.com/shop/tim-gross/gross-movie-reviews-the-wrath-of-gross/paperback/product-21975934.html

Click on the link and its 10% off from now until Sunday night 7pm as I celebrate the new Mad Max flick so take advantage of the sale now at lulu.com

 

Wrath of Gross color

 

We have our “Mad Max” boner party early as some great guests stop by!!!

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On the verge of our most anticipated movie to be released in a long, long time, MAD MAX: FURY ROAD Kyle and Tim are hosting a pre-post-apocalyptic Italian/Filipino boner party.  We welcome our guests JON CROSS, T-SHIRT JOE GARCIA, and RODRIGO QUAST to talk about a slew of post apocalypse MAD MAX rip-offs such as 2020 TEXAS GLADIATORS, ENDGAME, the glorious WHEELS OF FIRE, THE NEW BARBARIANS, and THE BRONX WARRIORS 2.  So sit back, relax, and let this episode waste away the time until FURY ROAD hits the screen and we all squeal with glee.

 

http://www.bloodbathspodcast.blogspot.com/

episode 161

Midnight Syndicate Christmas CD, band announces plans for 2015 and beyond

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(Go support these cool fuckers now! Awesome people!)

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio, May 12, 2015 – Midnight Syndicate has announced that their eighteenth album will have a Christmas and Winter Solstice theme. I think there’s a rule that after a band’s been around for years they are required to produce a Christmas album. So, that’s how we got here, joked Edward Douglas. “In all seriousness though, a Yuletide-themed Midnight Syndicate album is something our fans have been asking us for since we began; this album will not disappoint them. I will say that this album has been particularly challenging because we’re taking songs that are SO familiar and that have been treated in so many different ways throughout the years and trying to make them uniquely our own, added Gavin Goszka. We don’t want to make yet another Christmas album – we really want it to stand on its own as something truly original. We hope that it will evoke the spirit of the Yuletide season while also reflecting our ongoing musical style and vision. Content-wise; the album will be a mix of new material and twists on classics. I’d describe most of the covers on the album as being reinvented, rather than simply adapted, said Goszka. I’ve found myself approaching this material with a very wide palette and a limited sense of allegiance to convention. That being said, it still has to make sense in some way and stay grounded in the familiar. I think we’re stretching our creative wings more than ever here, but there’s still a consistency and overall purpose to it. The original songs have been a lot of fun to work on,  added Douglas. I think the fans are in for a lot of pleasant surprises. Fans will not have to wait until Christmas for this present. Midnight Syndicate will be exhibiting at DragonCon in Atlanta this year on Labor Day weekend (September 4-7) and plans to have the CD available at the show. Midnight Syndicate Live! Update: In October of 2014, Midnight Syndicate Live! Debuted at Cedar Point Hallo Weekends event. From the audience response to the critical reception to record-breaking attendance numbers, the show was an overwhelming success. Although the band will be using 2015 to focus on the new album, plans for a return of Midnight Syndicate Live! In 2016 are already underway. The success of the inaugural run of Midnight Syndicate Live! has ensured that live Midnight Syndicate shows will be a permanent part of our plans going forward, said Douglas.

 

Midnight Syndicate 2015

Midnight Syndicate 2015

Midnight Syndicate Live

Midnight Syndicate Live