Let's face it, fans like their horror R rated. It's not that we're a bunch of bloodthirsty psychos (well, not all of us), but if you're going to make a scary movie, we don't want your vision compromised in any way. This is especially true in the indie-film world. We're not just talking gore here either. The Conjuring films were R rated because of how scary they were. Yes, these are studio films. Just trying to make a point. Marketing these R-rated films is another beast entirely. Often trailers are cut for as wide an audience as possible, which can hurt the vision of the finished film. Well, the Slasher app has put out a call for "Red Band trailers and beyond" in order to help filmmakers market their films honestly. Slasher considers themselves a true alternative media solution for horror filmmakers, and wants to support those R-rated movies that sometimes get lost in the shuffle. "When filmmakers are out marketing their films and get ro...

We're back to 1987 with this edition of the Retro Review, a year that produced a lot of horror movies. Note, I didn't say good horror movies. Just a lot of horror movies. Blood Rage, AKA Slasher, AKA Nightmare at Shadow Woods is a rare thing for the genre in that it takes place during Thanksgiving. Yup, this is a Thanksgiving slasher movie. Not Halloween. Not Christmas. Thanksgiving. We get very few of these, so rejoice... ish. The plot focuses on twin brothers, one of whom commits a brutal murder as a boy and frames the other. What a dick! Years later, the innocent brother escapes from a mental institution on -- all together now -- THANKSGIVING and heads for home, prompting the dick of a twin to begin killing again. Why? Why not! There'd be no movie otherwise. All the cliches are here. We get the jock, the slut and the final girl. The acting is either over the top or lazy. And, like many Halloween and Friday the 13th ripoffs, it's strictly amateur night in term...

Joel McHale surprised me when she showed up in Scott Derrickson's Deliver Us From Evil. I knew the actor from his hilarious work in the brilliant TV show Community, and was pleased at how bad ass he could be in a horror movie. Now McHale joins Jessica Sipos (TV's Slasher) in the thriller Dark Harbor, which comes by way of a former Basement guest, director Joe Raffa. Sipos stars as Olivia, who returns to her Maine hometown for her father's funeral. While there, she uncovers family secrets that threaten her life, and the life of her unborn child. Surprisingly, McHale doesn't turn up in the trailer, which we present for you below. This makes me question how much the man is actually in Dark Harbor, but we'll let you give it a watch before continuing: This doesn't look like a bad movie. There seem to be many sinister twists and turns at play here. But why highlight a star in your marketing, and not feature him in your trailer? This is the question I ask...

The first season of Slasher was a great bit of TV horror exploitation that didn't get the credit it deserved, with titles like American Horror Story and Channel Zero hogging the spotlight. But I dug it, and dug it a lot. Season two was kinda a bore. There were some decent kills, but nothing like the first run of episodes. And everything moved so slowly, with boring and unlikable characters. I yawned a lot. Now we've got a third season with another new storyline (yup, the cast remains the same, but each season is a new story with a new killer). Is the third time the charm? Let's find out.

How to describe Hell Fest, a Halloween-themed horror flick that harkens back to 80s slasher like Hell Night, Funhouse, The Prowler and countless others? It would be a lot easier if I remembered it well. And no, it wasn't the rum and beer that made me forget much of Hell Fest (well, OK. Maybe a little bit). It's more how generic the flick is, offering little new to the horror subgenera other than its unique setting.

When I buy my horror box sets, I expect plenty of low budget horror movies.  I expect a fair number of bad ones.  I expect fewer decent ones.  I expect even fewer jewels. " Death on Demand " definitely wasn't one of those jewels.

Hey Basementites! Remember Emily DiPrimio? She's the now 14-year-old girl who launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund her first feature film, a loving tribute to 80s slasher movies called Carver. Here's the story we wrote a year ago . Guess what? Emily raised the money and made her movie, which makes Shawn and I feel kinda like proud parents. Wanna scope out the trailer? Then check it:

There's few things cooler than watching a movie made by or starring a past Basement guest. It's the cat's ass really. Last season we interviewed director Steven C. Miller about his brilliant slasher flick Silent Night, and he dropped some deets about an earlier effort, Under the Bed, that had yet to be released. Well, it's out now bitches. And I've seen it! The premise is shit simple: two brothers team up to battle a creature that lives under the bed. Sound corny? Well, the final product sure isn't. It's like an R-rated Amblin Entertainment flick from the 80s, only sombre. Steven does a lot here with very little. The cast is limited, as are the locations. And sadly not enough of Eric Stolze's script is developed for my liking. This is a slow burn that burns a little too slow, in my opinion. Fortunately the final act really delivers the goods. We get gore, scares, a couple of laughs and even some suspense that would make John Carpenter proud. An...

Joseph Zito's The Prowler is one of those cult film's of the early 1980s that has garnered a reputation as must-see cinema for horror aficionados. It's got a reputation as a violent, gory entry in the slasher genre, with primo effects by the one and only Tom Savini. Was it worth coming down off the mountain for? Stick with me! A masked killer, wearing World War II U.S. Army fatigues, stalks a small New Jersey town bent on reliving a 35-year-old double murder by focusing on a group of college kids holding an annual Spring Dance. Let's cut to the chase -- this is good shit. Sure, it's derivative of other slasher movies. But, looking back, it was one of the first of its kind. Calling The Prowler derivative is like calling John Carpenter's Halloween derivative -- stupid! This flick helped set the bar in terms of formula and graphic kills. I respect it for that. About those kills; they're pretty damn realistic. Effects genius Tom Savini makes the murder...

A slasher picture about a happy faced killer and a martial arts movie made by a rap star. It doesn't get any more diverse than that, does it! First on the chopping block tonight is Smiley, a psychological slasher film directed by Michael Gallagher. What's it about? After discovering an urban legend of a demented serial killer , who has nothing but a carved 'smiley' on his face, a mentally fragile teen must decide whether she is going insane -- or will be the next victim. Cue creepy music. Then Jason and Shawn take on the RZA in the martial arts flick The Man with the Iron Fists . On the hunt for a fabled treasure of gold, a band of warriors, assassins, and a rogue British soldier descend upon a village in feudal China , where a humble blacksmith looks to defend himself and his fellow villagers. RZA plays the humble blacksmith and he directs. The man has more than just iron fists, I'd say. Plus, Mike S returns for a rant, there's the latest movie...

Listen up you primitive screwheads, we've got a treat for your horror-movie -loving asses on this Friday night. A film we've been pimping for quite some time. Back at the start of Season Two we introduced you to writer/director Ryan Shovey and his passion project, the slasher movie Hunter. Since then we've followed Ryan as he put together enough dough to make a short film with the intention of using it to raise money for a full-fledged feature. Well, he's done that. The Hunter short has screened at two festivals, been accepted into a third, and Ryan and his crew are awaiting word from four more. We've talked about it before, and now we're going to show it to you. And if you'll recall, we found it awesome. Hopefully, you do to. Here it is: Wanna help get this movie made? All Ryan needs is $50,000 to do it. Get on over to his Kickstart page and do your part to make this film happen. We're confident he can make this bad to the ass short in...

That's the one starring Elijah Wood and written by Alexandre Aja, not the notorious 1981 slasher pic from William Lustig, because that would be oh so retro. All involved seem to be fans of first-person slasher movies, as the entire sequence pretty much focuses on Wood's stalk and kill of a victim from his point of view. It's good. Nothing new, but I dig this kind of thing. Can't say it's sold me on the whole movie, but I mind not posting it here. What's it all about? The owner of a mannequin shop (Wood) develops a dangerous obsession with a young artist . . . one that sends him on a killing spree. No word yet on when Maniac hits our shores, but it's scheduled for release some time next year. Thanks to Arrow in the Head for digging up the video.

A bad-to-the-ass bootlegged clip from the upcoming slasher sequel Hatchet III has made its way online! Why is it bad to the ass, you ask? Because it's got a bunch of dude's with guns -- including Derek Mears and Zach Galligan -- attempting to put the smackdown on swamp ghoul Victor Crowley, once again played by Kane Hodder. And Crowley will have none of that. The clip is rough, but awesome. Shawn and I loved the shit out of the first two Hatchet movies, and this will be one to watch when it hits some time next year. This time around a search and recovery team heads into the haunted swamp to pick up the pieces and Marybeth (Danielle Harris) learns the secret to ending the voodoo curse that has left Victor Crowley haunting and terrorizing Honey Island Swamp for decades. Now watch the clip, bitches!