As this year’s meatiest post-apocalyptic cannibal horror romance TEAR ME APART gears up for its UK Theatrical Premiere and worldwide VOD release, we spoke to the three young leads, Alfie Stewart, Jennie Eggleton and Frazer Alexander to discuss their roles.
Tuesday 31 May 2016
Interview with Stars of cannibal horror romance "Tear Me Apart" - Alfie Stewart, Jennie Eggleton and Frazer Alexander
As this year’s meatiest post-apocalyptic cannibal horror romance TEAR ME APART gears up for its UK Theatrical Premiere and worldwide VOD release, we spoke to the three young leads, Alfie Stewart, Jennie Eggleton and Frazer Alexander to discuss their roles.
Monday 30 May 2016
Competition: Win Freshwater DVD
Synopsis:
Lake Charles in Louisiana is the idyllic spot to catch some sun and enjoy the tranquil miles of freshwater. When a group of 20-somethings meet up at their island lake house for a weekend of partying, one of the friends never shows up.
As more lake visitors are yanked underwater by what seems to be some giant alligators, the screams bring the group out of the lake house. Frantically discovering their boat has drifted away, they have to watch helplessly as more of their friends are pulled under the water. Will anyone get off the island alive, in one piece? Something more sinister seems to be at play…
Win This:
Freshwater [DVD]
To enter all you have to do is answer this easy question...
Competition Closed
When the competition ends as indicated on this page, any and all entries received after this point will not count and emails blacklisted due to not checking this page first.
Winners will be chosen randomly and will be informed via email.
Thursday 26 May 2016
Film News (UK): Cannibal romantic horror TEAR ME APART gets VOD release
It will be available to buy or rent from $4.99 exclusively from; www.tearmeapartmovie.com
Other packages and platforms will be announced soon
New Trailer
Synopsis:
Living in a cave in a barren part of the Cornish landscape, two brothers turn to cannibalism to survive. Although the eldest (played by Frazer Alexander) clings to the notion that their father will reappear, bringing with him the return of the 'old world', the younger brother (Alfie Stewart) has no such moral compass and relishes the meat he can get from the bodies of nomadic wanderers who stray into his sights. Then one day, a different kind of prey appears, in the form of a beautiful teenager (played by Jennie Eggleton). She is possibly the last girl alive and her powerful presence ignites a sexual maelstrom. A dangerous game is about to be played. Animalism versus humanity. Love versus survival. Love. Kill. Eat.
Director Alex Lightman reveals: "When the idea of a post-apocalyptic world devoid of women emerged, we were adamant that the film should not explain what happened. It is essentially about three young people trying to figure out not just how to survive, but if survival is what matters most to them."
TEAR ME APART is directed by Alex Lightman, written by Tom Kerevan and produced by Alex Lightman, Tom Kerevan & Ern Herrmann, It stars Alfie Stewart, Jennie Eggleton and Frazer Alexander. all making their lead feature film debuts. Receiving its World Premiere at Austin Film Festival 2016, the film is the first project from Cannibal Films, who are already in development with their second feature, a psychological thriller, which they intend to shoot next year.
Tuesday 24 May 2016
Horror Channel and FrightFest agree three-year partnership deal
Chris Sharp, Chief Programming Officer, AMC Networks International – UK, said today: "Horror is coming home. We were FrightFest's banner sponsor in 2005 and 2006 and have maintained a very close partnership with the organisers and fans ever since. We're thrilled to further cement that 'bloody bond' and look forward to celebrating the festival with a frighteningly good season of FrightFest favourites on the channel in August."
FrightFest co-director Alan Jones said added: "FrightFest is thrilled to welcome Horror Channel on board as their new headline sponsor. Horror Channel has been a vital part of the FrightFest machinery for many years, so our on-going relationship is already built on solid foundations. Together we recognised the further potential in each other to celebrate the horror fantasy genre on an even wider canvas than before, something followers of both of our brands can appreciate".
As recently announced, Horror Channel FrightFest will relocate to the Vue Shepherd's Bush for its annual 5-day August Bank Holiday event, taking over all twelve screens between Aug 25 – 29, 2016. Under a 2 year deal with Vue Entertainment, it has the option to return to the Vue Leicester Square in 2017.
Monday 23 May 2016
Interview with Catherine Cavendish By David Kempf
Catherine Cavendish is a Welsh writer who writes Gothic horror. Her book The Devil's Serenade is getting serious attention and she continues to write tales that make the reader's blood run cold.
Friday 13 May 2016
The Modern Master Of Horror: The Rise Of James Wan
A Malaysian-born, Australian film director, James Wan is most known for his impact on the horror genre since debuting his short film Saw in 2003. Honing his unique style from a young age, the director won Best Guerilla Film at the Melbourne Underground Film Festival for his first film Stygian, before breaking fresh ground with the gore-filled Saw. Wan then became known as the dominating force in quality horror films with the likes of critically-acclaimed and box office hits Insidious and The Conjuring – the latter of which remains the highest grossing original horror movie of all time, second only to The Exorcist.
The director’s next project sees him returning to the case files of Ed and Lorraine Warren in The Conjuring 2 (in cinemas June 13). Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson reprise their roles as the creepy couple, who, in one of their most terrifying paranormal investigations yet, travel to Enfield, London to help a single mother raising four children alone in a house plagued by malicious spirits.
Watch the trailer here
Ahead of the release of The Conjuring 2, we take a look at James Wan’s impressive run of horror films in the 13 years since he made Saw; showing how scares can still be an art-form when they come from this modern master of horror.
Saw (2004)
Demonstrating genius early on, after James Wan initially struggled to get the script for Saw produced he decided to shoot one of the scenes from the screenplay as a short film with the same title to attract attention. This worked and the film was green lit with a small budget and shot for 18 days. Telling the dark story of two men who wake to find themselves chained in a decrepit bathroom at the mercy of a sadistic mad man’s horrifying game, 6pm is the deadline for one man to escape and the other to save his family by killing him before he does. Although critical responses were mixed, the film gained a cult following and grossed $100 million worldwide – making it the most profitable horror film since Scream.
Insidious (2011)
With the extraordinary success of Saw, James Wan felt pressure from studios to create another gory horror and therefore made Insidious independently to ensure that he had creative control. Determined to show how restraint and silence could also be used to build scares, Wan stated that he enjoyed making “a film with lots of creepy, bizarre moments that a studio might not 'get.'” The story follows a family who try to prevent evil spirits from trapping their son in a creepy realm called The Further after a mysterious incident in their attic. The film’s twisted plot and slow build of suspense was lauded by critics and attracted cinema audiences in their droves, ensuring that a sequel would be in the works soon enough.
The Conjuring (2013)
James Wan was drawn to stories of real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, a couple who have been linked to every major ghost story to hit mainstream news, including what is now known as The Amityville Horror and The Haunting In Connecticut. The Conjuring focuses on one of their most chilling cases, that of the Perron family, who become terrorized by satanic forces at their home on a remote farm. The film received positive reviews from critics and smashed the box office, grossing over 15 times its production budget and making a profit of roughly $161 million.
The Conjuring 2 (2016)
James Wan returned to make The Conjuring 2 after becoming excited at the prospect of continuing the saga of Ed and Lorraine Warren. Bringing the original cast back to scare cinema audiences once again, this time the Warrens cross the pond to investigate the notorious Enfield Poltergeist. Following the chilling case that gripped the nation back in 1977 involving the alleged haunting of two young girls in a suburban council house, the film is set to be truly terrifying.
THE CONJURING 2 COMES TO CINEMAS JUNE 13
Tuesday 10 May 2016
Interview with Jeremy Saulnier – Director of Green Room
How did you get Patrick Stewart to play a neo-Nazi psychopath?
He’s up for an adventure – he was looking for something like this, something dark and unsettling. He really responded to the opportunity to step into a role that would require a downplayed, quiet authority, to be part of an ensemble, in contrast with this very young cast… just, I think, to take a break from studio franchises or TV shows and get his hands dirty on an independent film… it didn’t take much to convince him actually.
Did you have him in mind for the role?
I’m not that presumptuous… I certainly just wrote for authenticity for characters based on research or from my youth. A lot of the band is referring to real life friends I had growing up that were in the punk rock hardcore scene, but I definitely didn’t envision someone of Sir Patrick Stewart’s stature stooping so low as to be in our movie! So I was delighted and he had a really good time playing someone so nasty.
Was it all ‘Sir’ Patrick and bowing when he turned up?
He was like anyone else, he just showed up on set, did his work, came prepared, asked all the right questions. Very much on the same page. I vet all my cast by enthusiasm too – I just want to make sure that everyone on set wants to be there because that creates this wonderful energy, that’s just supportive. You know, we’re all very vulnerable making movies and oftentimes it’s just exhausting, so when you’re surrounded by people who actually want to be there you feed off that collective energy – it’s great. And Patrick Stewart was one of the ensemble, and also at the same time commanded so much respect it translated to his character, and all his skinhead underlings were really sort of impacted by his presence in a perfect way - which achieved the dynamic I was looking for.
After Blue Ruin’s tremendous critical acclaim did you have actors queuing up to be in your next film?
It certainly helped having Blue Ruin as a reference, as actors can see how much I care about performance, how much weight I put on their shoulders. Blue Ruin is very bare bones, it’s so much based on Macon Blair’s central performance. They say there is a certain amount of loving care that goes into the movies I make… and you can’t do that having a toxic relationship with an actor. I guess you can but I don’t want to do that. Blue Ruin also served a very important purpose for Green Room, which is a tonal reference – because if you read Green Room on the page and you don’t quite get what I’m going for, this could be discarded as a typical horror/slasher movie. But having Blue Ruin really helped actors understand what I was going for. They felt a lot safer going in.
For me it is – I was in a hardcore band in my youth, I was around a lot of punk music, heavy metal… so these are the kids I knew growing up. The key was to not get too bogged down in punk ideology and what have you, but to pull from experiences. They’re scavengers, like kids out of a Mad Max movie – the busted van, trying to siphon gas from parking lots. It has nice on-the-road, almost Road Warrior feel to it, of course downscaled into the real world - but I thought aesthetically it would be perfect. And I wanted to archive the music, for me and my buddies growing up.
By the end of the film you feel like you’ve been put through the mill – but was it one of those films that it was great fun to make?
The cast and crew had a blast. I think it was exhausting for the cast because of the physical nature of the performances, but as soon as we called cut and wrapped our days it was a lot of fun. Everyone loved each other. Having to do twenty days of non stop crying and mayhem and action – but we all genuinely liked each other, which is very rare, from what I hear… we benefitted from having a tough shoot but with very like-minded, invested individuals who made it more an insulated comfort zone.
You’ve got Blue Ruin, Green Room… is this going to be your Three Colours trilogy?
It is not. I’ve got no more colours in me right now.
So what is next for you?
I’m waiting to hear on a project that will be an amazing step up for me, visually and tonally. It’s in the process of casting, which will trigger off the money. I’m flying to LA tomorrow to have a meeting about a studio movie, and eventually I’ll write something for myself. I think it’s good to keep writing because I need a insurance policy to have my own script that I control. Because for so many reasons films fall through at any step in the process.
Do you have any particular films you watch before you start a project to inspire you?
I certainly watch movies before I start writing movies… because it’s hard, I have three kids and a busy life and I’m always doing so many things, and it’s had to get back into that headspace where your brain and your creative juices are aligned and it’s quiet enough to actually write. I’ll definitely binge on a few movies, more to get excited about cinema, to remember why I make films, to get these feelings back circulating in my system. For Green Room I watched Straw Dogs and Robocop. I watched a bunch of cool Seventies and Eighties movies that had a lot of texture and grit to them. Some Coen brothers movies. For the next one I write, it might not start for two years, who knows… It’ll be more of an adventure movie I think.
Both your films seem very unique – often reviews just say ‘it’s this film meets this film meets this film’ – and with your films it’s not so easy to do that.
The intention is certainly not to just mash a bunch of films together. When I write there’s no intentional references – other than the atmosphere and feeling some of my favourite films create. It’s never trying to do this typical Hollywood pitch: X movie meets Y movie.
Have you got a favourite punk movie?
Ahh man – Repo Man. Because it doesn’t try too hard to be punk. It’s just in there. It’s really cool and it’s bizarre and irreverent and lovely.
By the way, the bit with the box cutter in Green Room is one of the most horrible things I’ve ever seen, in a film.
[Laughs] Well, you’re welcome.
Green Room is released in UK and Irish cinemas on Friday 13th May
Tuesday 3 May 2016
Interview with Lady Hellbat by David Kempf
Intro:
Lady Hellbat is a Canadian internet horror host and a longtime contributor to Rue Morgue Magazine. She is a talented writer with great insights into all things horror and controversial opinions on some of the idols of the genre. In just a short time she brings great promise for being a bold new critic.