In 1984, a film was released that would defy the boundaries of comedy and horror to become one of the most popular film franchises of the 1980's; that film was Ghostbusters! "Who ya gonna call?"To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Ghostbusters, the original film has been restored and remastered in 4K resolution and will be returning to the big screen for a limited engagement starting on August 29th, in theaters during Labor Day weekend. Ghostbusters was one of those movies that defined the 1980's and of course my childhood. When I first saw it when I was young, (possibly too young) it stuck with me for the rest of my life. I enjoyed the animated series ("The Real Ghostbusters") from 1986 to 1991, along with the action figure line from Kenner, several video games, and ultimately the release of Ghostbusters II in 1989. Although the movie is often categorized as a comedy, it's really hard to label its genre. It has elements of intellectual comedy, romance, science-fiction and of course horror. The film's story even borders on "Lovecraftian"-style with elements of ancient supernatural forces such as Zuul and Gozer. I've always loved the character of 'Slimer', who although he was featured i a short sequence in the movie gained a considerable fan following along with his constant presence as the comic relief on the animated series. A little bit of trivia: Dan Aykroyd always referred to Slimer as the ghost of John Belushi. While the Ghostbusters have stayed alive over the last 30 years, uunfortunately, writer and actor Harold Ramis didn't live to see the 30th anniversary, but the rest of the Ghostbusters including Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson are still around to celebrate. For years, there had been rumors that Ghostbusters 3 was in development, but for now, it is still in the works. Directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis, Ghostbusters was a truly original, frightening and hilarious movie experience!
With the popularity of current paranormal primetime TV dramas on the rise like the CW's ongoing series Supernatural, The Vampire Diaries and The Originals, the unlikely channel WGN America begins airing new original programming beginning with SALEM. Salem is in fact a Supernatural hour-long TV drama focusing on witches and witchcraft and drawing its inspiration from the historical events occurring in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. However, the show is not without it's own dramatic license in perpetrating the widely-held belief that there were in fact witches in Salem and as it does so through the very graphic depiction of witch-like activities, not to mention it's overuse of nudity, sexuality and violence on level with Game of Thrones to increase their ratings. The show stars Shane West as John Alden Jr., having returned to Salem long after being thought killed during the French and Indian Wars having learned that Salem is suffering a witch hysteria led by the Reverend Cotton Mather (Seth Gabel) and his once beloved Mary (Janet Montgomery) is now married to the wealthy landowner George Sibley (Michael Mulheren). With her servant/confidant Tituba (Ashley Madekwe) they have concealed the fact from John that she was pregnant and in a bizarre ritual aided by Tituba, "got rid of" the baby. As conspiracy, panic and fear spread through the town John tries to find out the dark truth behind these witch hunts! While the shows' premise holds some fascination within the genre of horror/supernatural/witchcraft, the flagrant historical inaccuracies of the characters and events only further add to the false history and myth of one of early America's darkest and most mysterious periods in history and is a mockery to those 20 real people who died because of it. I have always held a great fascination with Salem and the Witch Trials and have even visited the site myself and while the story still resonates within popular culture from the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller which is also a fictionalization of those events holds more truths than this new TV show from the writers of Terra Nova and the director of Girls.
Back in 1981, now successful director Sam Raimi (The Spider-Man Trilogy, Oz the Great and Powerful), produced and directed his first independent horror film The Evil Dead, based on his 1978 short film Within The Woods. Although the film had a somewhat mild success in it's theatrical release as a cult film, the movie prospered in the then fledgling home video/VHS market and still lives on today as a modern horror classic. Along with it's campy remake/sequel Evil Dead 2 (1987), and final chapter Army of Darkness (1993), the Evil Dead Trilogy remains a fan favorite with many horror movie aficionados and made it's B-movie star Bruce Campbell, a horror icon, it even inspired the popular Evil Dead: The Musical, now playing in Las Vegas! Now, over 30 years later, rookie, Uruguay-born, director Fede Alvarez (Panic Attack! (2009)), along with the help of producers Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell and Robert Tapert (the original Evil Dead Trilogy), brings us the ultra-bloody remake simply titled Evil Dead! When five friends come to a secluded cabin in the woods, they discover an ominous book and inadvertently unleash a demonic force that threatens to kill them and steal their very souls!
Mia (Jane Levy) is a recovering drug addict, who, along with her estranged brother David (Shiloh Fernandez) and friends: Eric (Lou Taylor Pucci), Olivia (Jessica Lucas) and Natalie (Elizabeth Blackmore) come to their old family cabin in the woods, long neglected after the death of Mia and David's mother, to attempt an intervention. While Mia has sworn to quit "cold-turkey", suffering through "DTs", to make matters worse, during the night, a peculiar smell and blood stains draws them to the basement. Beneath them they find the horrific remnants of a bizarre ritual and a mysterious book wrapped in barbed-wire. While David and his friends are trying to help Mia make it through the night, Eric curiously opens the "Book of the Dead" and unknowingly summons an evil presence in the woods that takes possession of Mia and the others, killing them off one-by-one in the most horrific manner!
Cover of Fangoria #322
As a devoted fan of the original trilogy (and proud owner of the Limited Edition "Book of the Dead" DVD, signed by none other than Bruce 'Ash' Campbell himself!) I was reluctant to accept yet another '80's horror remake and risk being disappointed like so many others in the past few years (i.e. Friday the 13th (2009), A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010), Fright Night (2011)). Despite my reservations, I knew from the first 5-minutes that there was something that seemed very original and yet altogether unsettling about this movie. Very rarely does a horror movie really scare me, other than those original horror masterpieces like The Shining (1980), Poltergeist (1982) and of course, the original Evil Dead (1981). I must admit, even for me, there were a few scenes that were so intense, I could feel my heart pounding (and that's rare). From the very beginning, with it's unexpected and rather violent prologue, audiences are thrown head-first into what critics are calling: "The most terrifying film you will ever experience!" Overall, the movie is essentially the same as the original, even the story and plot. As we first lay our eyes on that infamous cabin, we feel like we are returning to someplace familiar. There's even a nod to the original movie when we first meet Mia, she's actually sitting on the hood of what appears to be Ash's (or Sam's) 1973 Oldsmobile Delta 88 "Classic" from the original movie, although now completely rusted and derelict. Despite it's differences, which are obvious as the film progresses, there are many similarities which director Fede Alvarez admitted: "Story wise, it's a remake with the same house and the same idea, but with new characters, and technically it's not intended as a sequel or a prequel." (Fangoria #322, April 2013)
As for the main "object of interest" in the movie, that being the evil tome known as "The Book of the Dead" (a.k.a. The Necronomicon ex mortis) although similar, is never really mentioned by name and it lacks the face-like features on the cover and the insides are covered with various scribbles and bloodstains, (no doubt added by other unwary readers). The character of Eric, although seemingly the smartest of the bunch and apparently a high school teacher at that, is actually the most foolish as he proceeds to read the book and even speaks the very same words that summoned the demons in the original movie. While the characters seem more real and believable, as does their seemingly justifiable reason for being at the cabin, the movie tends to focus especially on Mia. Despite being a drug-addicted, artist with issues, it presents her as the ultimate victim and with the character of David, her brother as the savior trying to save her mind, body and eventually, soul from the things that "possess" her, whether it be drugs or "deadites". For all intents and purposes, the whole experience could merely be seen as some kind of drug-induced withdrawal hallucination! There are also some very deep emotional and psychological aspects to the movie, however they are somewhat overpowered by the gore. As for the sheer intensity and overall gory-ness of the movie, it is completely over-the-top (although not necessarily a bad thing!)! So much so, that many consider Evil Dead to have broken the R-rating! ThisEvil Dead does seem to do everything possible to push the limits of horror violence, particularly when it comes to the blood and gore. Then of course there is the infamous "tree rape scene" which does appear in this version, is just as disturbing, if not more so. The violence is especially brutal and bloody in many horrifying and gut-wrenching scenes. (And yes there are chainsaws involved!) For an audience that has already experienced the gory, "torture-porn" trend like with the recent Saw (2004) or Hostel (2005) movies. Evil Dead's gore seems much on the same level, however with a more supernatural element to it that goes far beyond the campy mayhem of Evil Dead 2. Evil Dead is insanely intense and quite possibly the BLOODIEST movie I have ever seen! The reaction from movie goers and horror fan's alike have been overwhelmingly positive and encouraging. Following it's strong Internet promotion including the "Dare To Share Your Scare" on YouTube which included the explicit "Red Band" Trailer, audiences were given a much anticipated preview of the sheer terror and gore that was to be expected with this movie. For those horror fans that may dismiss the hype and doubters like I was, given that Evil Dead is in fact a "remake", it proves itself to those expecting just another remake. I'm actually quite impressed as to the level at which director Fede Alvarez has gone to present us with this truly terrifying and amazing experience without disrespecting the original film (and especially NOT replacing the iconic 'Ash' character!). Some of that may come from the fact that both the original producers and director of the original Evil Dead as well as Bruce "Ash" Campbell himself not only co-produced this remake, but fully endorsed it as well. With all the success that Sam Raimi has had over the years, he could have easily just remade the movie himself with a big-budget and lavish special effects. But, no! The fact that the film-makers relied heavily on practical special effects and make-up is a testament to the legacy of horror filmmakers such as Sam Raimi, Peter Jackson and Guillermo Del Toro who have let the new generation of film-makers like Fede Alvarez take up the cause and give us "true horror"! By the way, be sure to stay after the credits for a "groovy" surprise!
"With any good remake, it's not about taking shortcuts. You don't want to do a strict copy of those who know and love the original...For the fans who really know the story, it's about giving them something new and showing them fresh ideas, because they know the old ones. For the new audience that has no idea about the original, or heard about it but haven't seen it, or claim they saw it a long time ago, which means they never saw it [laughs]...For them, it's not relevant that you use ideas from a movie they haven't seen, but as a filmmaker you feel like you want to bring those things back..." Fede Alvarez (Fangoria #322, April 2013)
With the resurgence of stop-motion animation we are seeing a new age of family entertainment where both stop-motion and computer generated animation merge into a new wonderful film experience! In the tradition of Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), Focus Features and Laika Studios present us with ParaNorman, a hysterically chilling story about how being different and special may not always be an easy thing to live with.
Take Norman Babcck (Kodi Smit-McPhee), a seemingly normal middle-school student who is obsessed with horror/zombie movies. Aside from being socially awkward and a misunderstood misfit, Norman has the ability to speak to ghosts, and of course...nobody believes him. Norman lives in Blithe Hollow, Massachusetts, a small town very similar to Salem, Massachusetts. And like Salem, Blithe Hollow also has a colorful, yet cursed history.
300 years ago, Agatha Pendergast (Jodelle Ferland) was accused of witchcraft and sentenced to death by seven of her fellow villagers including Judge Hopkins (Bernard Hill). Still today, the whole town is witch crazy with witch themed tourist attractions and a solid-bronze statue of a caricature of the Blithe Hollow Witch herself! Even Norman's school, Blithe Hollow Middle School is putting on a play called "The Witch's Curse" to mark the anniversary of the witch's death. While Norman tries to lead a normal life despite constant tormenting by a bully named Alvin (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), he has only one friend, the peculiar and chubby Neil Down (Tucker Albrizzi).
While Norman's family life is no different: his father Perry Babcock (Jeff Garlin) doesn't understand him, his mother Sandra Babcock (Leslie Mann) tries to ignore his eccentricities, and as for his older sister Courtney (Anna Kendrick), who thinks he's a freak! The only relatives who really understand him are his grandmother (Elaine Stritch) who is of course dead and an estranged and "crazy" uncle, Mr. Pendergast (John Goodman). On his way home from school, he encounters his supposedly crazy uncle who tells him that he also sees the dead and tells Norman he must perform a ritual with a special book at the witch's grave by sundown or the dead will rise from the grave. Although Norman is sceptical at first, he finds the book and the graves of the witch's seven accusers, but something goes wrong and they rise from their graves as zombies. As the witch's curse is about to come true Norman, along with a group of unlikely allies including Courtney, Alvin, Neil, and his muscular brother Mitch (Casey Affleck) must find away to end the curse and send the zombies back to the grave! ParaNorman comes from the same animation studio who brought us the adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Coraline (2009), directed by Henry Selick. With highly detailed stop-motion animation combined with computer animation, ParaNorman, like Coraline is both visually stunning and has an entertaining story with an element of horror. Although highly original, ParaNorman can be compared to The Sixth Sense (1999) meets The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993). The character of Norman especially, reminds me of Haley Joel Osment in The Sixth Sense, although less tragic as Norman has come to terms with his "gift" as he often makes frequent pleasant conversations with the multitude of apparitions who inhabit his town, including his grandmother who sits on the couch and knits as if she were still alive.
Directors Chris Butler and Sam Fell have a great deal of experience in both stop-motion and computer animation as writer/director Chris Butler worked on Coraline and Tim Burton's Corpse Bride (2005) as Sam Fell was the director of Flushed Away (2006) and The Tale of Despereaux (2008). I found ParaNorman to be delightfully entertaining and "relateable", particularly with the themes of being different and bullying which resonate heavily with the increasing problem in our schools today. As a fan of zombie movies I was surprised to see zombies along with references to death, ghosts, the occult and witchcraft/black magic included heavily in a PG rated family movie, as zombies have become more accepted in mainstream entertainment with AMC's The Walking Dead. Also there is quite a lot of adult-related humor in the movie which separates it from the typical animated "family movie" which is a refreshing change. While I feel that this may not do as well as I hoped in the theaters, this would have probably done better if it was released closer to Halloween like the new Tim Burton's Frankenweenie (2012).
The most fascinating aspect to this movie is the setting of Blithe Hollow, Massachusetts, as I said before, being so similar to Salem, Massachusetts in many ways. For anyone who has ever been to Salem as I have, you will understand the similarities in how Salem is so mired in the tragic events that occurred during the Salem Witch Trials in 1692, (which happens to be of personal interest to me) in which twenty people were accused of witchcraft and sentenced to death. The whole city is literally obsessed with witches as it has become a haven for the Wiccan population and is always a popular location during Halloween. The city was even dubbed "Witch City" and proudly displays the witch logo on everything from local shops and even on their police cars, they even have life-size bronze statue of Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery) from the 1960s TV show "Bewitched"! (If you ever visit Salem, be sure to check out the Salem Witch Museum for a truly enlightening experience on the whole history of the event.) Like Salem, Blithe Hollow is also "witch crazy" and the population is perfectly content in continuing to perpetrate the lies and misinformation of myth and legend in order to cater to the tourist trade. ParaNorman is a highly entertaining and visually stunning animated film, with an impressive and socially relevant subtext. If you enjoyed The Nightmare Before Christmas or Coraline, then you are in for a frighteningly fun experience! See it now before it returns to the grave!
