Monthly Archives: August 2026

Gross Movie Reviews #715

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After the Millenium (Blu-ray) – This is an excellent 2 ½ hour deep dive documentary into Chris Carter’s creation that changed television in 1996. With X-files slowly becoming a huge hit on Fox, the network turned to Chris to do it again as we got a very dark show about groups within the government that work outside of the lines preparing for the oncoming millennium that some believed would be the end of mankind? The show centered on a retired profiler in Frank Black (Lance Henriksen) who has a talent unlike most profilers to get in the killer’s mind. This dark departure from the X-files is something I think people at the time claimed to be ready for but were not as this show went to places that wasn’t seen before on networks. This documentary is such a nerd thing but great thing if you were a fan of the show as it has interviews with everyone (except Terry O’Quinn which I am not sure why as they all spoke well of him). The doc breaks down many episodes, how they were getting on television, to the reason the show was getting canceled as most behind the scenes blame television watching habits were already starting to change in 1999. I loved how deep this gets into the Frank Black character but it was really cool to see Lance Henriksen just relish the idea of speaking about the character again. If you were a big nerd for the show in the 90s like I was this will satisfy the hunger to know more as I give it 4 stars.

Second Chance (YouTube) – Grey Valley is a location where it seems there is a struggle between God and the Devil or who actually believes in them? This 2020 film is about a christian community dealing with a cult that has shown up to revive Satan as the cult believes in the second coming. Many in the town ignore or ignorant to the fact that bodies are beginning to pile up and this cult is going to take over. Kudos to the filmmaker for taking on some cool old school horror that I believe with a tweak here or there would get the independent film in fun creepy territory. I enjoyed the concept but the one thing that kept bothering me was the music as from beginning to end if there was different music that more fits the theme of this feature I believe there would be more eyes on this project as I give it 2 out of 4 stars.

Scribbles from the Crypt (DVD) – This anthology comes in different with its August Underground/Nekromantik imagery to begin the project with its four stories that hit more like a lost 80s SOV film. First story has a man reflecting on his madness and murder, the second story tackles a man’s obsession with death, as the third story is about a woman who has always felt she had more in common with the dead than the living, and the last story deals with a young woman seeing it through to become a witch.  Surprisingly this anthology kept my interest and succeeded where some others failed because of it embracing its low budget, knowing the idea of an anthology flow and connection, the passion behind this felt genuine, understanding of editing, but also its play with colors and being a little abstract at times. This was quite a piece of entertainment that I haven’t heard much on so take a chance and check this independent project out as I give it 3 out of 4 stars.

Popeye Resurrection (Tubi) – Another sequel into ITN Entertainment’s franchise that I am not sure why I am still paying attention to as a survivor (Cassie) from the last entry is trying to get over the horror of the Popeye experiment. Cassie having nightmares long after and isolating herself mostly except for the roommate she has to cope with the problem. Cassie’s roommate convinces Cassie to take a trip to her cabin with her just to get away? But they don’t mind the cult members already hanging out in the cabin as they wait for nightfall to plan bringing order to chaos as they want to have a ritual to bring Popeye back. Popeye comes back for ten minutes, the slaughter is on, Cassie must confront her nightmare, and this feels completely lazy and boring as I can only give this terrible sequel a ½ star.

Water Park Shark (Tubi) – Same person that gave us “Sharknado” gives us a new fun shark terror flick in which sharks have entered a water park. Wicked Waves water park has a celebrated football player come back home to work at the water park for a second chance. As Austin Dillard finds his way around, sharks are finding their way through the park’s drain system to attack unexpecting humans. Of course the mayor/owner of the park doesn’t want word to get out as the park is not as popular as it once was so of course he is trying to use all the electricity from the park to help mine for crypto in his park basement bunker. The high current is what makes the sharks search out the park to feed! It’s hilarious and fun but it lacks one thing and that would have been a premiere of SyFy Channel during “Shark Week”. It was a yearly fun thing that made it an event for horror movie fans to get killer shark movies every year. But now it just doesn’t feel right and actually feels it takes a little something away from watching something this fun as I give it 2 ½ stars.

Bambi: The Reckoning (Tubi) – Now I am not expecting a whole lot from this CG garbage as I just wanted to see a deer fuck shit up! And to their credit they gave me a mutant deer fucking people up. Anyway, deer and a few other animals drink the toxic waste that has been spilled in the forest, they mutate, now the animals are pissed. As Bambi stalks a family living out in the middle of the woods, a small group is trying to contain the mutant animals to dispose of them so there is no evidence of what has been done. You got a whiny kid, a crazy grandma, and a mutated deer that just fucks humans up… yep I enjoyed as I give it 2 stars.

Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare (Tubi) – This is an odd but interesting tale of a dude calling himself Peter Pan who is looking for boys to take them to Neverland, shooting up Pixie dust, and has a strung out woman living with him named Tinkerbell. A bizarre and somewhat brutal tale of a serial killer who snatches up his latest victim Michael but whose sister Wendy refuses to give up trying to find who snatched up her brother. But this isn’t any regular kidnapping as Peter Pan goes on an oddity of killing spree of a school bus and Michael’s friends’ family. For whatever reason this delusional serial killer believes Michael is his chance to be young again in Neverland but it soon becomes an unsuspecting bloodbath of a feature that I was glad I watched as I give it 2 ½ stars.

DARK SYMPHONIC PIONEERS MIDNIGHT SYNDICATE RETURN WITH ‘PLANKETT’S GROVE’, A CINEMATIC AUDIO JOURNEY INTO GOTHIC HORROR AND DARK FANTASY

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CLEVELAND, Ohio — August 21, 2026 — Trailblazing dark symphonic composers Midnight Syndicate have officially released their new studio album, Plankett’s Grove, available today on physical media and all major streaming platforms. Celebrated as foundational audio architects of the haunt, Halloween, and tabletop gaming industries, duo Edward Douglas and Gavin Goszka return with an 18-track immersive orchestral work designed to transport listeners into a shadowy realm of gothic mystery and dark fantasy. Building on nearly three decades of pioneering “soundtracks to imaginary films,” Plankett’s Grove delivers the signature blend of orchestral composition, haunting melodies, and immersive sound design that has defined the group’s legacy.

When Midnight Syndicate emerged in the late 1990s, Halloween music was largely limited to novelty pop tracks, basic sound-effects tapes, hard-to-find movie soundtracks, or vocal-driven darkwave. Douglas and Goszka broke new ground by blending full-scale cinematic orchestration with immersive ambient soundscapes—offering a level of production quality previously unheard in the niche genre. This distinct instrumental approach quickly established Midnight Syndicate as the premier music supplier for the professional haunted attraction, amusement park, and Halloween retail industries, while simultaneously filling a crucial void for board and tabletop role-playing gamers seeking pure atmospheric soundtracks for their sessions.

“Our last full-length release was inspired by a themed 19th-century European nightclub, so we thought we’d take things in the opposite direction for this one and set it in a world that is far more rural and secluded,” said Gavin Goszka.

“We asked our fan community, Legions of the Night, where they’d like to see us go next, and that definitely helped make the decision. Folk horror is a treasure trove of creative inspiration with so many directions you can go,” added Douglas. “It made exploring this new section of the Midnight Syndicate world both rewarding and exciting.”

“Plankett’s Grove is set near the town of Illswich. Rather than making the town abandoned, where the listener’s task would be to uncover the mysteries of what once was, we decided it might be interesting to keep this location very much active and alive, although not without its own share of dark secrets,” said Goszka.

Listen to or purchase Plankett’s Grove:

Plankett’s Grove

Join the Midnight Syndicate Legions of the Night Fan Community:

https://legions.midnightsyndicate.com/join-legions-of-the-night

Midnight Syndicate official website:

www.MidnightSyndicate.com

ABOUT MIDNIGHT SYNDICATE

For nearly three decades, Cleveland-based composers Edward Douglas and Gavin Goszka—known collectively as Midnight Syndicate—have been world-renowned pioneers in dark symphonic music, gothic ambient soundscapes, and cinematic world-building. Known as foundational audio architects of the haunted house, Halloween, and TTRPG music genres, Douglas and Goszka revolutionized the concept of a band that creates “soundtracks to imaginary films” by blending full-scale orchestral compositions with film-quality ambient sound design beginning in the 1990s.

Since 1997, Midnight Syndicate has earned an international reputation as premier audio suppliers for the haunted attraction and amusement park industries. Industry analysts estimate that at peak adoption, 75% to 90% of commercial haunted attractions globally utilized Midnight Syndicate’s music. Their compositions have been featured extensively across major global entertainment brands and international theme parks—including Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights (spanning multi-decade collaborations and custom vinyl releases), Cedar Point’s HalloWeekends, Busch Gardens, Six Flags, Ripley Entertainment, Europe’s Alton Towers and PortAventura, Spirit Halloween, and Hot Topic. They have been featured on broadcast programming from SiriusXM’s Scream Radio, NBC, CBS, ABC, SyFy, and ESPN, as well as live stage shows by horror music icons The Misfits and King Diamond.

In 2003, Midnight Syndicate broke ground in the tabletop gaming community by collaborating with Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro to produce the first official soundtrack to the legendary role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. The album pioneered the use of atmospheric music tailored specifically for tabletop gaming sessions, establishing a precedent that influenced the modern TTRPG music genre. The band’s cultural legacy has been recognized with multiple Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards, as well as ENNIE and Origins gaming awards. Their album Out of the Darkness was included in Rue Morgue Magazine’s list of “50 Essential Horror Albums” that defined genre music over the decades.

The world of Midnight Syndicate encapsulates a dark ambient discography spanning over sixteen studio albums, multimedia live theater productions, original motion picture projects—including the feature film The Dead Matter (produced by Midnight Syndicate Films, directed and co-written by Douglas)—and scores to films like The Rage and Axe Giant: The Wrath of Paul Bunyan. Midnight Syndicate operates independently under Entity Productions and Linfaldia Records. Maintaining total creative control over their catalog, Douglas and Goszka continue to produce fine-art conceptual pressings and immersive album universes that captivate fans of horror, fantasy, and classical crossover music worldwide.

Gross Movie Reviews #714

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Gross Movie Reviews #714

Venus Die Trap (Tubi) – This independent project attempts to be an intentional B-movie old school style as it mixes old stock film footage with new stuff shot to fill in certain scenes. The story is pretty basic as it centers on a small town in North Carolina where a meteor has fallen to earth in the nearby woods. The residents quickly see weird things happening and blame the meteor out in the woods as venus fly traps have mutated then attack people! The fate of the community rests in the hands of an innocent botanist named Sally. The film has its moments, it doesn’t overstay its welcome on screen, it is a fun homage to movie stuff that if old enough your parents witness these projects at the drive-in as I give is a solid 2 out of 4 stars.

Blood and Rust (Tubi) – In small town Ohio a young man named Lamont believes he is doing the right thing by running his father’s diner and taking care of the transit homeless that wander through from time to time. But Lamont when alone believes he is just a hamster on a hamster wheel running to nowhere especially after he loses his father to a strange animal attack. Enter our other main character Belko the vampire hunter as Lamont learns the hard way vampires are in town to feed and take over. Lamont is all about helping to save this town as long as it helps the homeless and the sheriff doesn’t get involved as the sheriff gives Lamont a hard time. Little that Lamont knows this life changing event can finally help him get off that so-called hamster wheel of life? The concept and how I explain it makes the film sound a lot better than it is… I mean there is a great idea in there I just felt it wasn’t executed well as I give this project 1 ½ out of 2 stars.

Sonny Boy (Blu-ray) – What if I told you there is this bizarre project released in 1989 that stars Paul Smith, David Carradine, and Brad Dourif you would most likely say “I’m in!” To top it off let me just point out David Carradine does the main song and plays a woman in the film. Plus, Paul Smith owns a cannon that he uses to shit people with if they cross him? Those who have seen this understand and respect the bizarre beauty of this film. This oddity of a story begins in 1970 at a remote hotel where Weasel (Brad Dourif) steals a car unknowingly with a baby in back as he brings it to Slue and Pearl as they are a couple criminals who run a desert town with their wheeling and dealing ways. The couple, mostly Slue, raise the child in their bizarre wicked way to help them take down people who don’t agree with their antics. Years go by until the baby is a full grown adult and the small town has had enough of these criminals. This was a film that you would only hear stories of existing for years as I was lucky enough to get my hands on a bootleg tape many moons ago but now has a great cleaned up physical media copy that needs to be seen in order to understand anybody that has described this wild project! If you are a big movie buff and have not witnessed this you need to fix it right now as I give this project 3 ½ stars.

Invisible Shark (DVD-R) – Independent filmmaker Douglas Waltz is at it again with this wild idea that would make you think old school SyFy channel would have made three of these? No they didn’t as Mr. Waltz makes his David “the rock” Nelson picture where a small town sheriff and deputy are forced to believe there is a shark in their waters when a mangled body washes up on the beach. No one sees the attacks but they see the aftermath as this invisible creature attacks residents of Poloniaville! It takes some time but the police figure out because of the killer animal’s invisibility it doesn’t play by the rules of a regular shark which can work to their advantage of saving the residents. This project is truly wild and insane but this rough cut proves Mr. Waltz believes in giving viewers something wildly strange that they might be missing in their movie watching as I give it 2 ½ out of 4 stars.

Bone Sickness (Blu-ray) – This somewhat forgotten Indy gem from Brian Paulin in the early 2000s may finally get the credit and kudos it deserves as the movie has found new life in this new special edition. So Alex is a young guy who is terminally ill with a wife Kristen who will do anything to extend Alex’s life or cure him of his terrible disease. Alex’s best friend Thomas comes up with an idea of feeding Alex bone marrow from the recently departed believing this could help him as Kristen is okay with this too. Alex unknowingly is being fed this and begins to go through some sick and gruesome changes that do cause him hunger for blood, nevermind this causing the dead to rise. As Kristen and Thomas believe they were doing what’s best for Alex’s hunger and health, the film slowly turns into this dream-like zombie gorefest that goes way beyond the usual independent zombie stuff we are used to. Paulin’s project is bizarre, gritty, and an absolutely exciting gooey splatterfest that needs to be cherished. Feels like a crazy combo of Meat Market meets Fulci! Rewatching this movie made me appreciate how freakin good it is and many of the filmmakers out there need to watch and rewatch ‘Bone Sickness’ to understand you can do what you do with passion and little money… It can be done! This special edition that is so worth owning has a new commentary with Brian Paulin and Rich George, another commentary from Cult Movie Obsessives, a new location tour segment, and a featurette “The Morbid History of Bone Sickness” along with some of the older extras from the previous DVD from in the early 2000s. 4 out of 4 stars from beginning to end!

Amityville Bloodlines (Blu-ray) – Oh I have tracked more down as we go with entry #83 from the young filmmaker Blaize Tudor as he brings this sequel to his ‘Amityville Bloodbath’. The 34 minute film brings in a few independent vets we all know and love to tell the story of Dr. Trevor and his experiment “Skull Face” who has been let loose in Amityville killing all big and small in the town. Because of the curse or legacy of Amityville this evil experiment cannot be killed. Also after listening to some of the commentary from Blaize Tudor it helped me understand ‘Amityville Bloodbath’ as I see this as more of a ‘Evil Dead/Evil Dead 2’ thing of its not a remake but not a true sequel also? Confusing, I know but I believe the young man Blaize has stumbled onto something that he left a lot that could be done with this idea unknowingly? I saw Skull Face as more of the curse of Amityville that could go full serial killer or supernatural killer as this got away from the Amityville house in general… Skull Face could be a ghostly entity that continues the curse of the town? Maybe to make a little more sense so yinz don’t feel like I am completely insane, think “In a Violent Nature” as I give this project 2 out of 4 stars. Also too would like to point out it was cool to hear Blaize in his commentary be somewhat critical of his past project connecting to this as some independent commentaries try to beat into you they made the perfect project. 

Critter Collection Volume One (DVD) – Matthew Mark Hunter digs deep to give audiences eight short films of terror that deal with a boy being bitten by a cricket, a man being haunted by a roach in his motel room, a story about a giant centipede or Dinopede, a man collecting bugs and regrets the aftermath, two segments that were made nine years apart about a rat terrorizing a man, puppet bunnies fearing for their lives as one wants to leave the forest. So if you are not a fan of killer animals or bugs this no budget fun may haunt you as I give the project 2 ½ out of 4 stars.

Amityville Webcam (Blu-ray) – Welcome to entry #84 that has been floating around for a bit of time but getting to watch it on streaming or physical media form has only been made available recently. Premise of this entry into the series is about demons webcamming in their time off to play a role playing game where they are humans and deal with a possessed webcam. I give it credit for doing something different for sure but I believe it tells its story in 60 minutes and then just repeats for the next 40 minutes after. Again a solid different concept for the series but goes way too long. Don’t get me wrong this isn’t a ‘Mt. Misery Rd.’ mess as I can only give this entry 1 ½ out of 4 stars.

Last + Last After All (DVD) – An animated 16 minute short film broken into two segments of a possible post-apocalyptic Pittsburgh. The first one is about a person who just recently woke up in this new wasteland only to find out they might be the last human alive. The second segment is an odd pair wandering the wasteland. I would love to say I enjoyed it but to me it felt incomplete? But also I am not a huge animation guy so I could be missing something as I give this 1 out of 4 stars.

Amityville Bed & Breakfast (Blu-ray) – Entry #85 literally goes in a direction I am surprised it took this long to get too? This entry into the series has two brothers buying the haunted property cheap because of unpaid taxes. Their challenge for their streaming house flipping show is to fix up the property to make it a bed and breakfast to help the community get rid of the so-called bad PR the house has had since the original murders. As the Beaver brothers progress into the project and weird things begin to happen immediately they learn through some documents that everything might not be supernatural? The Beaver brothers struggle to deal with the so-called fixer upper as the crew keeps disappearing and cash runs low but they get through it all to accomplish their task in this very entertaining entry into the series as I give it 3 out of 4 stars.

Amityville Easter (Blu-ray) – Oh entry #86 into the Amityville series goes in the weird but not totally unexpected direction as a group of influencers head to the Amityville estate at the edge of the Amityville community for an interview with a famous widow that could mean more subscribers and money for them. The property besides being owned by a widow was also the site of a famous murder by a deranged half bunny/half human killer. The influencers were only allowed to be present on the property if they would agree to the widow’s terms and all their equipment was turned over to the butler when they arrived but this group is desperate for content. As they spend the night there things immediately get weird for the influencers from seeing the widow looking very sexual (best way to describe it) and the female influencers made to do an easter egg hunt? All this just for an interview that is believed to be a big pay day unless the half bunny/half human can stop killing them all. This project has its moments and I give it kudos for just being odd from the start so if you need to see a rather weird entry into the series? Look no further as I believe this would be way better to watch with a group as I give it 2 ½ out of 4 stars.

Any comments or questions you can send to grossmoviereview@verizon.net 

Next event you can find me at!!!

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Grossfest returns for this fun event where we have seen everything from 8-tracks, board games, betamax machines, VHS, laserdiscs, DVDs, and so much more sell there. A lot of cool vendors you may never see at any other event so worth checking out as you know us we always got something going on as we pull things out of my magical basement!

This will be our “almost everything we are selling is $1”! (there will be a few items for $5 of course or more) We will be bringing some music CDs for only a dollar, a bunch of non-horror movie titles on DVD, Blu-ray, and VHS for a dollar, some comic books for only a dollar, and you never what we will bring to mark down to… $5! Yes folks, it is our one time “almost everything is a dollar sale”, come visit us and many other cool vendors at the famous Monroeville Mall.

Also two other events we will be at: