Movie News: What is up with the casting of Lords of Salem?

News on Rob Zombie's The Lords of Salem has been pretty slow in coming, but over the past couple of weeks, we've gotten a few casting announcements.  Sheri Moon Zombie has been on the IMDB page for months...I guess we just assume now that she will be in all of Rob Zombie's movies.  But she's never been officially cast, as far as I can tell.

So who else?  A whole bunch of fuckin' randomness is who else.  We've got Torsten Voges, who is listed as being "famous" for starring in The Big Lebowski and 8MM.  Now I love both of these movies, and I vaguely remember this dude from The Big Lebowski as a Nihlist, but I can't place him in 8MM at all.  Well anyway, he's going to be the lead singer of the death metal band.

Next, Ernest Thomas from What's Happening?  I mean, seriously.  And Jeffrey Daniel Phillips, who plays Uncle Seymour Coffins in Halloween II and also one of the cavemen in the Geico commercials.  And finally, Bruce Dern.  Which Rob Zombie lists as being in tons of movies, but I only know from Big Love and Monster.  Also, I will be seeing him at Chiller Theatre in October.   I mean, literally, this casting could not get more random.

Thoughts, anyone?  I mean, I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around this project, just because the plot doesn't seem too interesting.  Maybe a trailer or some clips would whet my appetite a bit, but right now I'm very meh about the whole thing.

Movie News: Human Centipede II gets banned in Britain

Ohhhhh, Britain.  While you think you're protecting your citizens from this "real risk" of a movie, you've just given Tom Six all the publicity he could have possibly dreamed of.  The British Board of Film has banned Human Centipede II from the country, effectively making all of us want to see it even more.  Here's what they have to say:

"There is little attempt to portray any of the victims in the film as anything other than objects to be brutalised, degraded and mutilated for the amusement and arousal of the central character, as well as for the pleasure of the audience."

Well, sign me up!  They also release some spoilers to back up their point, and although I read them out of curiousity, I won't post them here.  I mean, I'm sure none of us thought this movie would be anything else than as sick and disgusting as possible, and God Bless America that we'll be able to see it here.  I understand that these types of movies have zero cinematic value, but to me they're like a roller coaster.  You know they're going to make you sick to your stomach, but you want to ride anyway ;)

photo source

Movie News: The Lords of Salem official synopsis

I really want to like this movie and get excited about it.  I'm such a Rob Zombie fanatic and I'm usually so psyched for what he has coming out.  But I just can't get into this movie for some reason.  It just seems...sort of lame.

Here's the synopsis from Dread Central:

"Heidi, a blonde rock chick, DJs as a local radio station, and together with the two Hermans (Whitey and Munster) forms part of the "Big H Radio Team".


A myserious wooden box containing a vinyl record arrives for Heidi, "a gift from the Lords". She assumes it's a rock band on a mission to spread their word. As Heidi and Whitey play the Lords' record, it starts to play backwards, and Heidi experiences a flashback to a past trauma.

Later, Whitey plays the Lords' record, dubbing them the Lords of Salem, and to his surprise, the record plays normally and is a massive hit with listeners.


The arrival of another wooden box from the Lords presents the Big H team with free tickets, posters and records to host a gig in Salem. Soon Heidi and her cohorts find that the gig is far from the rock spectacle they're expecting: the original Lords of Salem are returning, and they're out for BLOOD."

Maybe it's because I can't get into the story, which sort of sounds like The Gate gone awry.  Maybe it's because I know that Sheri Moon Zombie has probably already been wrongly cast as the star of this movie.  Maybe it just seems sort of out of touch with the times.  Who sends records?  Who even listens to the radio anymore?  I haven't heard the radio since I was riding in my mom's SUV around Christmastime.  I'm just feeling kinda meh about the whole thing.
photo source

Movie News: Rob Zombie releases an image from The Lords of Salem

....and I stifle a yawn.  This sort of reminds me of Hollow Man when Kevin Bacon puts the clothes and mask and stuff on so he can go outside.  Also, what the fuck does this picture have to do with anything.

With the release of this photo, we get no additional info on the plot or casting, although Zombie's twitter feed says that he's been busy scouting locations.  IMDB still lists the only cast member as Sheri Moon Zombie [shakes fist] but apparently filming begins this May in Massachusetts.

Stay tuned.

Movie News: Kane Hodder talks Hatchet 3, choking people out, and wrestling Danielle Harris

I took a video at the monsters panel at Monster Mania.  It's mostly Kane Hodder talking (he tends to dominate the conversation) and he says some pretty hysterical things.  John Amplas and Doug Bradley also chime in.  Enjoy :o)

Movie News: Javier Bardem to play the Gunslinger?

I have a confession.  As much as I love Stephen King, I've just never been able to get into the Dark Tower series.  I read the first one, and re-read it.  I was still meh, so I tried the second one.  I couldn't get through it.  I know, I'm a horrible person! 

I've heard people say that Dark Tower is sort of akin to Lord of the Rings so if you like one, you'll like the other.  My feelings towards Lord of the Rings can be summed up by Randall in Clerks 2 so I guess you can figure out that I don't like those movies/books either.


But the moral of this story is Javier Bardem is hot.  And a great actor.  And he may very well be playing the Gunslinger in the Dark Tower franchise, which currently have a tentative release date of May 17, 2013.  This is currently being envisioned as three films and a television series, which will encompasses all seven books.  At least the first part would be directed by Ron Howard, but he plans on having his hands in the whole deal.

So what says Javier?  According to Shock Til You Drop, he is "psychologically locked" for the Dark Tower series and it seems only his schedule will decide his fate at this point.  From what I know of the series, it seems that Bardem would be a great choice.  This is obviously a massive undertaking, and I'm interested to see how it goes from here.  Unfortunately, so many King projects have been dropped over the last few years (especially Talisman, wtf?!) so I would like to see this one come to fruition.  Stay tuned.

Movie News: Rob Zombie's T-Rex is pretty much dead in the water

This week, Rob Zombie has been in the UK, and he has been talking movie projects, both failed and upcoming.  He's moving full speed ahead with Lords of Salem and he has completely dropped H3 and The Blob remake.  Unfortunately, this also seems to be the demise of Tyrannosaurus Rex.  

Originally slated to be released in 2009, here was what the plot was supposed to be, based loosely on a Zombie/Steve Niles comic collaboration, The Nail.

"Hunted in one of the most desolate regions of America, preyed upon by an evil that does not sleep, Rex Hauser is The Nail - and it's time he took a stand. A semi-pro wrestler, Hauser has been touring the country performing at small-time arenas until the fateful night he and his family run afoul of a bloodthirsty gang of Satanic bikers stalking the North Dakota Badlands. Now he's a lone man fighting for the survival of his loved ones in a no-holds-barred standoff against the forces of Hell itself! Co-written by the newly formed CREEP International writing team of modern horror masters Rob Zombie and Steve Niles, The Nail is a relentless, unflinching portrait of the heart of darkness, and what one man will sacrifice to hold it at bay." (source)

In a recent interview, Rob stated that "Tyrannosaurus Rex is another project he'd still like to do as well." (source)  However, rumor has it that Rob was supposed to do The Blob in order to get the backing he needed for T-Rex.  Although the script seems to be nearly complete (or actually complete), it looks like this one isn't happening anytime soon.

Movie News: Rob Zombie Gives Us a Minor Update on "The Lords of Salem"

So The Lords of Salem is starting to sound like a remake of The Gate.  "Demonic minions are released by a DJ after playing a haunted record?"  Come on now.  Well I'm picturing minions in terms of those little claymation dudes, but it looks like it's going to be the spirits of a coven of 300 year old witches.  Rob is interested in doing a Salem Witch Trials-based movie because he grew up in Massachusetts, and I guess that's all the reason he needs.

Apparently, Zombie originally intended to create a Lords of Salem band (random) or a comic book with Steve Niles.  Neither of these ideas came to fruition and now we have this movie. Shooting is expected to start in the spring/summer, and IMDB has no info except listing Sheri Moon Zombie as the only actor/actress.  Please Rob do not wedge my beloved Baby Firefly into another role that is clearly not suited for her.  I just can't take it.  I hope her casting is just an assumption on IMDB's part.

Unlike his previous movies, apparently Rob will have all the say on the final cut of the movie.  Which could be a good or bad thing, depending on whether you're thinking of House of 1000 Corpses or Halloween 2.

Definitely more to come on this as casting gets underway!

Movie News: Rob Zombie Starts a Film Blog

I follow Rob Zombie's blog...kinda.  Honestly, it's a pain to load because of the 23048904 huge pictures at the top before you even get to the latest post.  And typically the posts are just pictures from his latest concert or whatever, which is cool, but does not affect me in the realm of horror movies.

However, Twitter notified me today that Rob Zombie has a blog specifically for movies.  Yay!  The address is http://rzfilms.blogspot.com/ and right now there are only three posts, all of which I believe are video.  The design is still a pain in the ass though.  Who the F is rob's web designer?  I'm viewing it on IE on a PC right, now so I'll hold my tongue a bit until I can get home and check it out on Firefox on my MacBook Pro.

No cool content yet, but I'll definitely be following this one, especially for updates on Lords of Salem.

Update: I viewed this website on Firefox and it is still no bueno.  The layout sucks, in my opinion, but I'll be looking forward to some good posts :o)

Movie News: Night of the Little Dead

This isn't even on IMDB yet, and the website says "coming soon" but luckily for us, Bill Moseley is an avid Twitterer.  This has been filming outside of LA for about a week now, and boy does it have a hodge-podge cast. 

This flick stars Bill Moseley, Erica Taylor, Gary Morgan, Adam Savage, Penn Jillette, Martin Klebba, and James Hurley.  There's not much on the plot yet, but the tag line is "It's the little things that getcha."

This movie is coming to us from Ghost Works and you can follow them on Twitter @NgtofLtlDed and like them on Facebook at Night of the Little Dead.  I'm excited for more to come on this one!

Movie News: Everyone looking sexxxxayyyy on the poster for The Victim

Is that Danielle Harris on the right?  Meeeeeoowwwww.  If they were looking for sex appeal on this poster, they got it.  Not sure why my fave scream queen doesn't get her name in the bright lights, but I love ya, girl.

We've got an updated synopsis that's a little clearer about the plot than the previous one I posted.  From BeyondHollywood.com:

"Good time girls ANNIE (Jennifer Blanc) and MARY (Danielle Harris) went into the wilderness looking for a good time. But when Annie witnesses a violent act at the hands of two Sheriff’s Deputies, she is forced on the run and stumbles across KYLE (Michael Biehn), a recluse living in the woods. Two worlds collide in this psychological thriller that will make you question your trust in mankind. WHO IS THE VICTIM?"

The trailer is all over the net, and let me tell you, I love the Grindhouse-y 80s vibe they're going for with this one.  We've got the B-movie deep voice announcer, and 2 minutes chock full of doggy-style sex, requests to see penis, and crow bar package burning.  I'm still not entirely sure what this movie is going for, but I can't wait to find out.

No official release date on this one yet, but let's cross our fingers for at least a small theatrical release and not straight-to-DVD.  

Movie News: Inkubus and Infected

I was lucky enough to attend a panel at the New York Comic Con, featuring up and coming director Glenn Ciano, as he discussed his two upcoming projects, Inkubus and Infected.  I was really unfamiliar with both of these movies, which is crazy considering how many popular horror actors are in them.  It just seems the buzz hasn't really been too heavy around these two flicks, but let's get some started.  First off, Inkubus.

Inkubus stars Robert Englund, and also features William Forsythe, Joey Fatone (seriously) and Tom DeNucci.

Here's the plot summary from IMDB:

"Inkubus tells the story of a skeleton crew, including officers Caretti and Cole, working the final shift of a closing police station. This night takes a gruesome turn when a demon named Inkubus calmly walks in with the severed head of a murdered girl. He allows himself to be restrained and begins to confess his litany of crimes. Why? Inkubus wants his one phone call to contact the single detective who almost caught him some thirteen years ago. They have unfinished business that will reopen a haunting unsolved murder. The cops unlucky enough to be present are fated to participate in, and witness, Inkubus' crowning achievement of murder, gore, and mayhem."

We saw the preview for this (there's a crappy recorded version available here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYUEBFdDlMM) and this thing looks pretty freakin' badass.  Robert Englund is doing his best to play the super creeper and I'd say he's still got it.  Glenn Ciano said that they're hoping to premiere it at the NYC Horror Film Festival, which is taking place November 10-14. 

Next up, Infected.  Now I would say there's even less information available on this flick, as they only started filming it last Monday.  However, we were able to get an inside scoop at the panel.  This isn't going to be the typical zombie movie.  It's going to be kind of a lyme disease gone wild type of deal, where some crazy strain of the sickness makes people go all kinds of bananas.  There's an awesome cast featuring Michael Madsen, William Forsythe, Christy Carlson Romano, Tom DeNucci, and Joey Fatone.

Looks like Glenn Ciano is fixing to be the next Rob Zombie, using repeat actors in his movies.  Not that I have a problem with that ;o)  However, if you want my honest opinion, the title could use a little work.  There have been three "Infected"s in the last 5 years and I really think this movie can stand out due to it's premise.  Just my two cents.

This is filming in Rhode Island as we speak, and Ciano promises it will be bloody, gory, and exciting.  He also hinted to the fact that this could be part of a trilogy, 28 Days/Weeks/Months-style.  I'm looking forward to it.

Movie News: Human Centipede Full Sequence Teaser Trailer

[Spoiler Alert: Don't read this if you haven't seen the first Human Centipede!]

There's no pictures of it yet, but Human Centipede: Full Sequence is coming.  Although the first billed itself as 100% medically accurate, this one is going to be 100% medically inaccurate.  I think Tom Six said there's going to be 12 (!) involved this time.   Seriously, props to this guy.  It's hard to get tongues wagging in the horror world these days and Centipede certainly did it.  I personally liked the movie, and I did not think it was as disgusting as advertised.  But I'm sure this second one is going to knock down some walls.

So, they have a teaser trailer out.  This trailer is pretty lameee.  It's just Tom Six talking about how the first sequence was soooo tame compared to what the second one is going to be.  He walks through some sort of parking garage while he waxes poetic on what a badass he is.  But he does reveal in the end that Dr. Heiter is not going to rise from the dead or anything like that.  They've found a new villian, pictured with a bag on his head, and he will be taking over in the ass-to-mouth department.

Call me a sicko, but I'm excited to see this nonsense.  C'mon with all the lame remakes and vampire bullshit floating around, I think we can all appreciate a psycho sewing twelve people together.  No official release date yet, but it will be sometime in 2011.  The Human Centipede: First Sequence drops on DVD and Blu-Ray next week.

Movie News: Rob Zombie movie announcement and he drops "The Blob"

Finally, the Rob Zombie movie announcement.  RZ is teaming up with Haunted Films (of Paranormal Activity fame) to bring us The Lords of Salem. 

Deadline New York has the (very) short sypnosis:

"The thriller is set in contemporary Salem, where the inhabitants receive a demonic visit from a 300-year old coven of witches."

Apparently Rob has been thinking about this idea for a few years, but he picked it up again after he decided to step away from the remake of The Blob.  Wait, he's stepping away from the remake of The Blob?  Thank God.  I love ya, Rob, but that was a dumb idea if I've ever heard one.  His rationalization?

"I wanted to break away from anything related to preexisting material,” he said. “The remake train is getting pretty tired now and when I made Halloween, everybody complained, either that it was too much like the original or too different. I like that people either love or hate what I do because it’s better than being in the middle, which means forgettable. But when you do an original premise, they take it on face value and after three years of not being able to win on Halloween, I just couldn't go through that again.”

Well, that's good news.  Now back to Lords of Salem.  RZ will be working on the script while on his upcoming tour, and will start shooting next year.  Apparently the production company has given him total control over script and casting, which we all know could be a bittersweet thing.  He could assemble an awesome cast a la Rejects or forced a lot of things that don't belong (ahem*ghost Myers family*ahem) like Halloween 2.

I'm not a huge fan of supernatural/haunting movies, but I'm going to try to keep a positive outlook for this one.  This is original Zombie material, which has succeeded wonderfully in the past.  Pictured above is the very first artwork from the movie, which is obviously very vague as a script has not even been written yet.

Movie News: Sid Haig to Recieve Lifetime Achievement Award

Sid Haig is absolutely one of my favorite horror movie actors.  Not only has he starred in two of my very favorite horror movies, but he has appeared in over 60 movies and 350 television episodes, spending a staggering 50 years in the acting biz.

At this year's Universal Eyegore Awards, Rob Zombie and Sheri Moon Zombie will present the man himself with the Lifetime Achievement Award, which he can put on the mantle next to his Fangoria Chainsaw and Spike TV Scream Awards for his role in Zombie's movies. 

Haig said the following, "After almost 50 years in this business, it is an amazing feeling to be honored at such a prestigious genre event as the Eyegore Awards. Thank you to everyone who has made this possible."

You can check out excepts from the awards on the Universal Halloween Horror Nights website. 

Movie News: Cold Prey 3

While we're still waiting to get Cold Prey 2 here in the US, they're already full steam ahead with Cold Prey 3 in Norway.  This one will be a prequel, focusing on the killer's childhood and how he came to be a psycho killer.

Now come on, let's get Cold Prey 2 on DVD!

Movie News: Rob Zombie will spill the beans this week!

So Rob teased us last week with the announcement that he's going to have some movie news coming out soon.  He stayed quiet for several days but he's broken his silence...briefly.

Seems he was on some radio show in Boston recently and the movie news is looking good.  Apparently the announcement is going to be about something completely original that's he has never spoken of before.  Seemingly that means no remakes (thank God) but that also kind of squashes my dreams for a Devil's Reject sequel/House prequel. 

Oh well, let's take what we can get.  RZ assures us that he'll be making the announcement this week so stay tuned.

Movie News: Did anyone want to see a feature-length Marilyn Manson video anyway?

Who knew?  Apparently Marilyn Manson has been working on a biopic about the life of Lewis Carroll.  It was supposed to be called Phantasmagoria, and apparently has been in the works for quite some time.  Not suprisingly, it was to star Manson himself, his current gal pal Evan Rachel Wood, Lily Cole, and Tilda Swinton. 

However, a bunch of people peeped the trailer and were like no. freakin. way. dude.  I saw it myself, and I don't know what sort of movie it was supposed to be.  It just looked like a mash-up of a bunch of Marilyn Manson videos.  Apparently, he was looking for an Alice in Wonderland vibe, but the whole thing just looked like shitshow to me.

Anyway, after the extremely negative reaction to all the violence and sex in the trailer, the production company was just not having it.  They shut the whole thing down, and it's likely to never see the light of day.  I say, good riddance.  Marilyn Manson annoys the crap out of me.

Movie News: Demand Paranormal Activity 2....you know you want to.

I'll admit it....despite all the hype, I liked Paranormal Activity.  I saw it in the theaters and was literally scared.  That doesn't typically happen to me since I'm jaded from seeing hundreds of horror movies over the years.

Anyway, what we all have anticipated has finally come.  Paranormal Activity 2 is hitting theaters on October 22, but the good peeps at the production company are giving everyone the chance to demand to see it first. 

Just go to their website: http://www.paranormalmovie.com/ and click on "demand it."   The city that gets the most demands gets to see it a couple day early.

I think one of the most brilliant things about Paranormal Activity was their awesome marketing strategy. (I'm an ex-Comm student so let me wax poetic for a second)  I mean, show a scary movie to a bunch of college students for free (brilliant), stick videos of them freaking out all over the internet (horror fans love a good challenge) and then let people vote to bring the movie to their city.  There was so much freakin' word of mouth about this thing that the production company never actually had to DO anything.  The rumors that sold the movie (it's real, she really died, it's so scary you'll wet your pants) got started on their own with no one lifting a finger.  Genius.


So go ahead and vote for your city so that you can check this movie out ahead of the screaming masses :o)

Movie News: Poster/Still from Rogue River

Oooh, I've been looking forward to seeing something about this movie.  Bill Moseley has been posting about it on his Twitter (his girlfriend Lucinda Jenney also stars) but overall, this flick has been flying under the radar.  Until now, of course. 

Dread Central has the scoop:

Director Jourdan McClure's Rogue River follows a young girl named Mara (Michelle Page) who while struggling with the recent death of her father, sets off on a solitary journey to Oregon’s Rogue River to scatter his remains.
When Mara’s car gets towed, she accepts a ride from Jon Wall (Bill Moseley), an affable redneck type, mourning the death of his young daughter. A quick detour leads them to Jon’s beautiful cabin deep in the woods where his wife Lea (Lucinda Jenney) quickly captivates Mara as they find solace in the shared grief of their own personal tragedies. But all is not as it seems on the picturesque Rogue River.
Mara's world soon devolves into a harrowing nightmare as she fights for survival in the dark and violent world of Jon and Lea. A nightmare shockingly unfolds into a spine-tingling crescendo of terror that will drag Mara into the most twisted recesses of the human psyche.

Woohoo!  I'm always excited to see Bill Moseley in something and it's pretty awesome that his girlfriend is playing his wife.  This one sounds pretty good and I'm looking forward to checking it out.  Here's the first still: