Posted in: News and Opinions by Archive Authors on October 17th, 2009
Dario Argento’s film Suspiria is a pillar in the horror film genre. Argento has crafted an aesthetically disturbing film with his use of color and violence. What separates Argento’s body of work from other directors is his disregard for the normal conventions of narrative cinema. By constantly disorienting the audience with unmotivated long shots and graphic violence, Argento never lets the viewer get comfortable.
The violence that Argento uses frequently in his career makes his films stand out. In Suspiria, the score during the credits exemplifies the agitation that the viewer will endure throughout the film. This is why Argento comes back to the score over and over again. After the first murder, the audience is now cognizant of the brutality that Argento is famous for. In the book Mirrors/Broken Minds: The Dark Dreams of Dario Argento Maitland McDonagh discusses Argento’s infatuation with violence: “Argento murders and maims and splatters blood with abstract abandon, reveling in the mayhem with glorious unselfconsciousness; he is a hedonist who finds his pleasures in unacceptable places and has no compunction about letting everyone in on the fun.” What McDonagh is establishing is Argento’s awareness of the violence in his films and even though it may be construed as a crutch in the over used sense, Argento could care less. In Suspiria, each incident of violence plays an essential role in Argento’s vision. An example of this is when Sarah (Stefania Casini) is being chased throughout the dance studio and the audience gets an opportunity to see all of the lush colors and skewed camera angles that Argento uses. Once Sara has served her purpose, Argento disposes of her with a graphic zoom in of a throat being gouged open. Most directors would cut away; however, Argento zooms in and disrupts the viewer with the grotesque image. In all of Dario Argento’s works, the constant reoccurring trait is violence.
Posted in: News and Opinions, Random Fun by Michael Durr on October 16th, 2009
Scary games are kinda like that bad boyfriend or girlfriend you had in high school. You are drawn to them in the beginning, date them a few times and usually have a good time until that one captivating scenario where you are absolutely shocked out of your gourd. Then you stop seeing them but something brings you back because deep inside you actually like it. Scary games follow the same path, you keep playing and playing the game until that big scare and then you stop playing but are drawn back by that very same reason.
So, when the site owner asked me to do a special-themed video game column for the month of October, my mind immediately went to a list of scary games. But where would I start? I could simply tell you that Barbie Horse Adventures: Riding Camp is the scariest game ever and you might believe me. I mean those horses will trample you! Instead, I had to come up with a list that would not only contain some personal choices but also some universally accepted scare games that frightened even the harshest critics.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 15th, 2009
If Santa’s making a list, he won’t have to check it twice when it comes to these cheerful little tykes. Lionsgate brings back their popular Ghost House Underground series from last October. The series title likely borrows a bit from the old Grind House Theater that Quentin Tarantino brought back to fashion in the last couple of years. I assume it is intended to denote a horror film that skirts the art house scene. So, how does The Children fit into that mold?
It’s Christmas time in the English countryside. A family has gathered to share some eggnog and Christmas cheer. It’s the typical normal slightly dysfunctional family, and they’re staying in the nice little house in the woods with the children. They definitely drink a lot as the bottle count climbs higher than the bodies after a chainsaw party in Texas. There’s the uncle who wants to get into the pants of his 15 year old niece. Another guy is trying to con his relatives into joining him in a pyramid scheme to smuggle illegal Chinese medicines into the country. But at least the kids are a cheerful bunch. That is, until they appear to contract some kind of a disease that has them spitting up tons of creamy green mucus. Soon the children begin to exhibit aggressive behavior, and before you know it they’re slicin’ and dicin’ their way through the paper mulch snow.
![The Children [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-children-blu-ray-large.jpg)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 15th, 2009
Written by Adrienne Ambush
Imagination is better than knowledge – Albert Einstein
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 15th, 2009
Written by Adrienne Ambush
Imagination is better than knowledge – Albert Einstein
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 15th, 2009
Written by Alexis Quinn
If Nip/Tuck were in the dictionary, chances are you’d find the word “controversy” somewhere close by.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 14th, 2009
“What is sacrifice? What does it mean to make a real difference?”
What do Al Gore and horror films have in common? To begin with both have been making money trying to scare the crap out of you. The second is that the plot of The Thaw sounds like it could have been penned by Captain Al himself. Lionsgate brings back their popular Ghost House Underground series from last October. The series title likely borrows a bit from the old Grind House Theater that Quentin Tarantino brought back to fashion in the last couple of years. I assume it is intended to denote a horror film that skirts the art house scene. So, how does The Thaw fit into that mold?
![The Thaw [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-thaw-blu-ray-large.jpg)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 14th, 2009
“Its cold outside, There's no kind of atmosphere, I'm all alone, More or less.
Let me fly, Far away from here, Fun, fun, fun, In the sun, sun, sun.
I want to lie, Shipwrecked and comatose, Drinking fresh, Mango juice, Goldfish shoals, Nibbling at my toes, Fun, fun, fun, In the sun, sun, sun…”
![Red Dwarf: Back to Earth [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/red-dwarf-back-to-earth-blu-ray-large.jpg)
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions by Michael Durr on October 14th, 2009
Expected Sales for New Super Mario, Lego Rock Band Setlist & Road Rash HD may not see light of day? - Welcome to the column whose mind is a swirling miasma of scintillating thoughts and turgid ideas known as Dare to Play the Game.
Still recovering from my cold, flu or whatever it is that has infected my holy temple of a body. I believe I am in the last stages of that sickness as I hardly cough during the day and my only problem is the night. For some reason at night, I’m not sure if my problem is being tired or what, but my caughing comes in fits and usually leaves me restless and tired the following morning.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 13th, 2009
Mitch Fatel gained a lot of his credentials in stand up comedy by touring clubs around New York City since he was 15. His genre of perverted sexual comedy is a guilty pleasure of the late night hosts: Jay Leno, David Letterman and Conan O'Brien have him on regularly to perform and act as a correspondent. Mitch has released two comedy CD's (Miniskirts and Muffins and Super Retardo) that were very successful prior to this Comedy Central special. To say that his style of comedy is low-brow is the understatement of the year. However, I found myself laughing at some of his material and needing some time to reflect on myself shortly thereafter.
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