Horror Columns

Top Ten Women of Hammer Films Ah, Hammer Film Productions. Any truly devoted horror fan thinks of those beautifully lavish studio sets and smiles. Alright, very few of you readers remember the sets quite so well as the buxom beauties that pranced across them, in glorious Technicolor no less. To […]

Overlooked & Underrated: Highwaymen (2004) I feel fortunate that I grew up in the 80s – for me it was one of the best decades to be a horror fan and some of the most important works of the genre emerged in the “Decade of Decadence” – movies that might […]

Taking No Prisoners: The Horrors of New French Extremism The genre of “New Extremism” is deeply routed in horror’s history and a sub-genre of that, recently dubbed “New French Extremism” is a version I find particularly interesting.  New French Extremism lingers in those moral grey areas that litter our world, […]

4 Reasons Horror Has the Best Directors in Hollywood Horror gets a bad rap.  As a fan of the genre, you probably already realize this.  Non-aficionados throw out wild accusations like “It doesn’t take any talent to make a horror movie.  Anyone can do it!” or “All you care about […]

Woman Power in Horror Movies: Top 10 Female Horror Roles Ever since horror movies, a certain label has existed: The women play the damsel in distress and the men typically are the heroes of the day. But as the years pass, horror has changed. This mantra that once existed has […]

Zombie Zeitgeist: The Influences & Culture of Zombie Movies From its humble beginnings in 1968, the zombie film has flourished into an international phenomenon. In the hands of its inventor George A. Romero, the films were full of social commentary. Whether those themes were racism, consumerism, military infiltration, terrorism, or […]

10 Indie Horror Films Every Horror Fan Should See! There was a bit of noise out of the Independent Spirit Awards recently surrounding the idea of ‘independent’ or ‘low budget’ and what that means. A twenty million dollar budget and a huge promotional machine behind a film seems, to me […]

The Evolution of Children in Horror Films Now is as good a time as any to consider the role that kids have played in the horror genre. Other groups have fairly consistent, even ritualized roles in films. Men as antagonists are usually the threat of aggressive male sexuality, wielding phallic […]