Festival of Fear Day 2...

Ok, ok, I know it's over... just too much to do, and too little wireless to make it all happen during the weekend! So in the theory of better late than never, here's the continuation of our adventures...

Day 2 opened well - the lines seemed to be moving quickly, more so than in years past, and after yesterday's wonderful lineup, all seemed well, but looks can be deceiving...

I started the day with the Sneak Preview of "Tron Legacy". Yeah, yeah, not horror I know... but I'm still a geek at heart! Right after that, I headed back upstairs to the Exhibitor floor to find the latest and greatest. And that's when the fun began. First I noticed a line-up a mile long at the escalator and no one being let up.  The official reason given was "crowd control". Turning around I notice a very long line of folks with deluxe wristbands lined up outside t he main door. As it turns out the Fan Expo was hopelessly over capacity, and they were unable to let any more people inside! I finally managed to find my way up to the floor, just in time to have to run back down to catch the Q&A session with David Cronenberg.

The Cronenberg session was simply amazing. Receiving, a standing ovation upon entering, he spent the next 60 minutes, discussing everything from Jungian psychology to existentialism in view of his films. The finale was the great Ken Russell presenting Cronenberg with a lifetime achievement award. Hopefully we'll be able to post some video from this session in the near future.

From there it was straight to the showing of "Long Pigs". I was so glad to see the screening absolutely packed - standing room only! Chris Powers and company are great folks and have made a cool little film, and we wish them all the best!

With the crowds, thinning out by this point, we were able to get up to the floor, to check out some of the very cool vendors on the floor, including the folks from ToeTag Pictures, Alliance, Anchor Bay and Maple, who all have some great films coming down the pike.

Finally it was off to Rue Morgue Party at Revival. The band was the excellent "Unsettlers" - very different from the psycho-billy rock shows we usually see -think a demented Acadian roots band, crossed with the Cabaret band from Hell. Following that, was the annual costume contest with Heather "Nightmare on Elm St." Langenkamp, and the one and only Bill "Choptop" Mosley.

Coming up... Day 3 and the folks from Rue Morgue Radio.

Festival Of Fear Day 1...

So braving the wilds of the 401, we travelled to the Big Smoke to bring you all the latest and greatest from this year's Festival of Fear.

First thing we noticed was the line-up outside the Convention Center, which was somewhat odd... In previous years everything had happened inside. After a little wandering we found the right line (all the way down Front Street almost to Blue Jays Way), and discovered that the convention this year had been moved to the North Hall, due to a medical convention in the South Hall. Once we found the right spot, things moved reasonably quickly, although this years organization of the massive quantity of people left a little to be desired.

Once inside it was time to track down old friends, see some new stuff and generally get a "lay of the land". This year's Fest lineup looks good, with lot's of vendors, and all the studios showing off their latest and greatest.

Finally we were off the the "Horror in The Hammer" party with the some great live "Zombification" going on.

Day two awaits, and we fearlessly trek in to bring you all the latest and greatest!

Our Annual trip to the Morgue.

Rue Morgue Festival of Fear that is...

Once again, we'll brave the wilds of Fan Expo in Toronto to bring you all the latest and greatest news from The Rue Morgue Festival of Fear. We'll be doing daily postings, assuming the hotel's have Wi-Fi. Stay tuned!

Trailer for Exorcismus

Here's a cool little trailer for an English language Spanish film by director Manuel Carballo. It's actually produced by the same people who brought us the [rec] movies, and stars Doug Bradley (Pinhead from Hellraiser).

"Fifteen-year-old Emma Evans is like any other teenage girl; she thinks that her parents don't understand her. She longs for independence and a life free of family ties and responsibilities and she is prepared to do anything to achieve it. But one day she will be forced to face up to the consequences of her actions.

Life seems to be carrying on as normal, until one day Emma starts experiencing frightening fits. Her parents are convinced that her problems are either medical or psychological, but when doctors´ tests are unable to draw any conclusions, the family is forced to look elsewhere for answers.

It all started off as a bit of fun, Emma never really believed it, but the truth is there is something dark and sinister within her, and it won't take long to surface."

Trailer source: Twitch

Exorcismus is just prepping for the festival circuit, so we probably won't be seeing it until the new year.

Different Views...

So talking with a few folks from the screening of "The Last Exorcism" has shown me that, if nothing else, it's gotten a wide range of opinion. You can read the review by our own Ralph, here... but I thought this take by our typicallydia might present an interesting counterpoint. Chantal and Angie of Cinema Obsessed have their review here. So how about you? What were your thoughts. We've even got a neat little poll happening on the side of the blog here.

Seance

One of the good/bad things about having this site is that everyone with a film wants you to review it. Bad, because, well, many of them are just that - bad. Good, because every now and again something like this comes across your path.

From Director Robin Kasparik comes "Seance":

Seance – A Short Horror with Real Blood

Seance is an award winning horror film about three people, who are trying to find the fortune of a deceased baroness through a spiritualist seance. But things will end up going a bit differently than they planned.

Ten days of shooting in a 16th-century palace in the Czech Republic included a brief scare when the Production Designer cut her hand and made the red circle in the book of spells with her own blood. "To all of us, it was pretty chilling but I love these crazies on the set!", director Robin Kasparik says.

Seance was screened at more than 20 international horror film festivals last year (Screamfest LA, Rue Morgue Festival of Fear, NYC Horror Film Festival, etc.) and won Best Short Film at the Dark Carnival Film Festival and the South African Horrorfest. The film also has had positive reactions from several masters of horror:

"I think it is really first rate work - direction, designed, acting, all worked."

Tony Randel, director - Hellraiser II

"Terrific job.“

William Malone, director – House on Haunted Hill

"Creepy throughout. Everything about it, from the technical to the artistic sides, highly professional and first-rate."

Jack Ketchum, writer – Offspring

„I think we can say that here is a very talented director in the making, and I for one look forward to his new films.“

Stephen Weeks, director - I Monster and Ghost Story

The director of Seance, Robin Kasparik (24), is currently attending the Film Director course at the Tomas Bata University in Zlín, Czech Republic. He has been interested in horror movies since his childhood. "I shot short films on my parents' camera, and, thanks to my father’s video rental store, I had unlimited access to movies of all genres," Kasparik says. "My bedtime stories soon became The Exorcist and A Nightmare on Elm Street."

Kasparik wants to continue his work in the horror genre field, and he is now preparing his next short film I Am the Doorway which will be an adaptation of Stephen King's short story. "It is a wonderful feeling that Mr. King kindly gave me permission to adapt from his work. His books are a great inspiration to me". I Am the Doorway tells the story of an astronaut who returns from space mission and realizes he has been infected with a strange virus with the ability to control his actions.

At the moment Kasparik's interpretation of I Am the Doorway is in its early stages. He is working on the screenplay and searching for financing. "Since childhood, my dream was always to be a director," Kasparik says.

"Seance" is a Czech short film with English subtitles, but don't let the language barrier stop you - this is worth the watch!


Seance from Robin Kasparik on Vimeo.

The Last Exorcism - Review

I had the pleasure of attending an advance screening of The Last Exorcism last night thanks to Ottawa Horror & Alliance Pictures. I'll be honest, I didn't expect much... just another formulaic hand held POV film capitalizing on the current trend of hauntings and possessions. Maybe it was this pre-conceived feeling that saved the film for me, but I actually quite enjoyed it.

"When he arrives on the rural Louisiana farm of Louis Sweetzer, the Reverend Cotton Marcus expects to perform just another routine 'exorcism' on a disturbed religious fanatic. An earnest fundamentalist, Sweetzer has contacted the charismatic preacher as a last resort, certain his teenage daughter Nell is possessed by a demon who must be exorcised before their terrifying ordeal ends in unimaginable tragedy."

"Buckling under the weight of his conscience after years of parting desperate believers with their money, Cotton and his crew plan to film a confessionary documentary of this, his last exorcism. But upon arriving at the already blood-drenched family farm, it is soon clear that nothing could have prepared him for the true evil he encounters there. Now, too late to turn back, Reverend Marcus' own beliefs are shaken to the core when he and his crew must find a way to save Nell - and themselves - before it is too late."

Like all those before it, The Last Exorcism hits the road running... no flashy intros, no opening credits. You're a minute into the film before you realize... oh shit, this is it. In this genre's infancy, dropping the opening credits "was" a way to create a feeling of authenticity, however, it's lost its original appeal and induces that "not another one of these" feeling. The documentary angle has been done to death, now its all about finding that angle that breathes a little originality into this fairly young, but somewhat abused genre. TLE fails in that capacity. The style of cinematography (if you can call it that) is but a carbon copy of those before it. Thankfully though, the camera movement is not as frenetic as other past entries... you may not need the Gravol. If you can get past the lack of originality (style), and embrace the film for what it is, there's actually a lot to like.

Daniel Stamm, best known for his other fictional documentary A Necessary Death, drums a very similar beat with TLE. To his credit though, Stamm manages to get very honest and believable performances out of his actors. Most of the cast have a strong television background and are relatively unknown to the big screen. Sticking to relatively unknown talent is a great way to help maintain that feeling of authenticity and makes it easier for the audience to suspend their disbelief. Although TLE is a by the numbers picture, it is competently directed, well acted, unpredictable, and genuinely scary at times.

The only problem I had with the film as a whole, is the ending. Although I didn't hate it, the last 10 minutes jumps off the tracks of an otherwise perfectly paced film. The ending is unpredictable, yes, but unfortunately it feels rushed and almost tacked on. Without giving too much away, it makes sense in the film's scope, but it's a tough nut to swallow, and generated a lot of groans in what seemed to be a full house.

Bottom line, although unoriginal in style, The Last Exorcism stands out with its excellent direction, solid performances, and original, sometimes comedic take on the exorcism theme. I enjoyed TLE more than last year's Paranormal Activity, and if you dig these kind of movies, I think you'll really enjoy it too!

The Last Exorcism gets a 7 out of 10!

5 More Passes to give away.

So in spite of the fact that you guys ARE a creative bunch (like there was any doubt)... We still have 5, that's right 5 more passes for "The Last Exorcism" to give away.

First things first, congrats to our winners, who all gave us interesting descriptions of their personal demons: Amanda, George, Cynthia, Jared and The Zombie Queen. All of you have won a double pass to the screening.

Secondly, let's give away these passes... We'll make it really simple. The first five people to email contests@ottawahorror.com, or DM us on Twitter (@ottawahorror) with the name of the director of "The Last Exorcism" will win a double pass to Monday's screening. How simple is that?

Piranha 3D - Review

Alexandre Aja's re-imagining of Piranha is finally here and it's here in glorious 3D... well maybe not so much glorious. Touting some pretty big names, Piranha 3D has been making some waves since its sudden removal from the Comic Con venue this year, piquing my curiosity as to how bad (read good) it realy could be. Well, if you know what you're getting into, Piranha 3D is everything you'd expect it to be.

From director Alexandre Aja (The Hills Have Eyes) comes the new action thriller PIRANHA 3D. Every year the population of sleepy Lake Victoria explodes from 5,000 to 50,000 for Spring Break, a riot of sun and drunken fun. But this year, there's something more to worry about than hangovers and complaints from local old timers; a new type of terror is about to be cut loose on Lake Victoria. After a sudden underwater tremor sets free scores of the prehistoric man-eating fish, an unlikely group of strangers must band together to stop themselves from becoming fish food for the areas new razor-toothed residents. The film stars Jessica Szohr (Gossip Girl), Steven R. McQueen (The Vampire Diaries), Elisabeth Shue, Jerry OConnell, Ving Rhames, Adam Scott, Richard Dreyfuss, Christopher Lloyd, and Kelly Brook.

Piranha 3D delivers what it promises, hungry man-eating fish, a buffet of breast flesh, and copious amounts of gore. Surprisingly, performances aren't that bad either. Jerry O'Connell gives a particular slimy, yet energetic delivery as a porn producer shooting spring break hotties. Richard Dreyfuss and Cristopher Lloyd have very small parts, so don't go in expecting titanic performances from two of the bigger names in the cast. Elizabeth Shue actually does an admirable job with her character, although really, we didn't pay to see stellar performances from anyone here... it's all about the fish and the gore... right.

But before I get to the key elements lets talk 3D. I still hate it! Piranha 3D doesn't come off half as bad as some of the upconverted shit like Clash of the Titans. It does however have an iritating inconsistency where the 3D works during some scenes, but completely ruins the picture in others. If you really want to see Pranha 3D, it's best to see it in 2D... unfortunately as far as I can tell, it's only being shown in 3D.

So, the Piranha, they looked cool, but to me they looked a little unfinshed, especially on closeups. The overall design was actually pretty awesome, but the overall execution was a little weak... and the last scene was just a little too much Mega Piranha.

The best (or worst depending on your tastes) parts of the movie were conveyed in the over the top Aja'esque gore sequences. Over the course of 30 minutes or so, there was more carnage then most slasher flics combined. The talents of Howard Berger and Greg Nicotera (of KNB Effects) were showcased in some of the most gruesome death sequences ever filmed. Hundreds upon hundreds of extras washed in blood amongst limbs, eyeballs, and half eaten corpses... hell there's even a severed penis scene, where a few bites are taken, then its swallowed whole, then its vommitted out... The effects crew really went all out on this one with some highly imaginative and pretty realistic stuff.

Piranha 3D is a great film to see with the gore hounds, but keep in mind, it's got plotholes that could sink a ship, some useless characters, and some very silly scenes that just ooze cheese... but really, no one said this is academy material, right. With all it's nudity, it's definately aimed at a male audience... you've been warned. Bottom line, I know for a fact Piranha's not gonna break any weekend records, and unfortunately there are still some relatively new and much stronger films being played... but it was the only new title to hit theaters this weekend. If you know what to expect from Piranha 3D, you might just have a good time... lots of boobs, buckets of gore, and some mean flesh eating fishies!

If I were to score this on gore alone... easily a 4 out of 5, but overall I think it rests at about a 3 out of 5!

We've extended it!

That's right folks... we're extending our contest one more day... You have till Midnight Sat. Aug 21st to send us a description of YOUR personal demon, and win tickets to a preview screening of "The Last Exorcism"
Email your entries to contests@ottawahorror.com

Correction.

It's been brought to our attention that some of the early RSS feeds for our "The Last Exorcism" may have had an incorrect email adress. If you've tried to enter and got a bounce back, please use contests@ottawahorror.com or just resend again as we've insured that both emails now work.

Win a chance to see "The Last Exorcism"

Fresh off the premiere at "Toronto After Dark", Alliance is once again, gracing Ottawa Horror with passes to Eli Roth's latest "The Last Exorcism", this coming Monday, Aug. 23rd at the Coliseum.

"When he arrives on the rural Louisiana farm of Louis Sweetzer, the Reverend Cotton Marcus expects to perform just another routine 'exorcism' on a disturbed religious fanatic. An earnest fundamentalist, Sweetzer has contacted the charismatic preacher as a last resort, certain his teenage daughter Nell is possessed by a demon who must be exorcised before their terrifying ordeal ends in unimaginable tragedy."

"Buckling under the weight of his conscience after years of parting desperate believers with their money, Cotton and his crew plan to film a confessionary documentary of this, his last exorcism. But upon arriving at the already blood-drenched family farm, it is soon clear that nothing could have prepared him for the true evil he encounters there. Now, too late to turn back, Reverend Marcus' own beliefs are shaken to the core when he and his crew must find a way to save Nell - and themselves - before it is too late." 


We've got 10 double passes to give away...and we're going to try something a little different.  Between now and Midnight Saturday, Aug. 21st, email contests@ottawahorror.com a description of YOUR personal demon... go ahead, make it creative... something like the ghost of Christmas past, or the five fanged, two horned bearded Clark Gable. On Sunday the 22nd, we'll pick our ten top entries, and those folks will win passes to the show! We'll be looking for originality and creativity here, so go nuts.

Thanks to Andie and the good folks at Alliance, for setting this all up!

Zombie Awareness!

This is usually the Zombie King's territory, but this is just too much fun to pass up... And hey, let's ALL support local film! This is a great little mock educational film, in the style of "Duck and Cover", all about surviving the inevitable Zombie Apocalypse .



Zombie Awareness - An Educational Film (HD) from Steve Savage on Vimeo.

My Soul To Take - Trailer

Wes Craven's new film hitting cinemas this October 8th. I don't know, he's been out of the director's chair for a few years, but this looks kinda good... even if it looks like a hodge podge of his past efforts rolled into one.

"In the sleepy town of Riverton, legend tells of a serial killer who swore he would return to murder the seven children born the night he died. Now, 16 years later, people are disappearing again. Has the psychopath been reincarnated as one of the seven teens, or did he survive the night he was left for dead? Only one of the kids knows the answer. Adam “Bug” Heller was supposed to die on the bloody night his father went insane. Unaware of his dad’s terrifying crimes, he has been plagued by nightmares since he was a baby. But if Bug hopes to save his friends from the monster that’s returned, he must face an evil that won’t rest… until it finishes the job it began the day he was born."

Ottawa Horror Presents...Human Centipede!

Didn't I tell you we had some exciting news? Would I lie to you?

On Friday September 17th, Ottawa Horror is very please to present the Ottawa Premiere of "Human Centipede" at the Mayfair Theatre.

"Human Centipede" is fast becoming one of the most controversial, talked about, even some say brilliant horror films of this year. The story follows two American tourists whose car breaks down while driving through Europe, and they seek help and refuge at the house of a very reclusive ex-surgeon, who has some "interesting" ideas to try out! You can find the "Caustic Critics" review of the film and an excellent interview with the director at the Rue-Morgue Radio Archives.

Stay tuned, and we'll have details about how you can win tickets to go see the film, and of course, we'll have prizes to be won at the show.

CAN-CON 2010 - Theme: Steampunk

Not sure how much horror content will be at Can-Con 2010:

"CAN•CON is a celebration of Canada’s numerous and ongoing contributions to the genres of science-fiction, fantasy, alternate histories, utopian and dystopian fiction, and speculative horror."

So far, the schedule and workshops have not been made public, but the theme is intriguing; Steampunk!

Speculative fiction is a hot topic in this day and age there are rapidly shifting choices for consumers and authors. There is an article in the Citizen detailing the event which runs next weekend August 20-22.

http://www.can-con.org/

From a horror fan perspective: Pop Life, and the National Gallery

[Ed. Note: We're very pleased to have our first post by the very talented typicallydia. Be sure to check out her own blog at typicallydia.com]

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We are now in the afterglow of a Friday the 13th with the glimmer of Halloween on the horizon. There are horror minded distractions to be found in the interim, like the National Gallery, if you have a little imagination!

I had mistakenly thought the horse cadaver on the floor belonged to Damien Hirst. This is where the placard system in the Pop Life exhibit falls flat. At times, it was not easy to tell what you were looking at by whom - especially with installation pieces. Had it been effective, I would know the horse cadaveer belonged to Maurizio Cattelan.

Pop Art is a must see for fans of the music/art/style of the age. Sadly, there was less actual art than I had thought. It felt more like a museum display than a gallery. Jeff Koons' art is largely horrific in it's depressingly banal and crude nudity so, I suggest sticking to Hirst or Murakami, but I suppose it pays to see it all. You can catch Pop Life: Art in a Material World June 11 to September 19, 2010.

Central European Drawings will be featured June 11 to August 29. Many of the great paintings from the Renaissance are in the collection in the form of line drawings in sepia, ink or chalk. Exclude the French and Italian movement, and you have an idea of what you will see here.
If you like Hieronymus Bosch you will love Durer. It was the promise of Durer that excited me, and there is a lot of it. From his Adam and Eve, the Melancholia, and a slew of other macabre religious images (think four horsemen and crucifixion), there is plenty of detail to this horror on the wall.

The Dutch artists were nice, but I became utterly distracted by one piece - not only because of size - but for novelty. Nude (for Francisco Goya), by Otto Dix is an amazingly disturbing smudge set among the finery. Sure, there are images of decay, death and destruction surrounding the room, but having the dying prostitute posed in mirror image of Goya's Nude is thrilling in all the good, wrong ways. I had never seen it before. He also has amazingly dark and scary work, but he is the newcomer in the room, creating art during WWI. Some may recall Dix's treatment of dead horses in the piece entitled Pferdekadaver...

In the Inuit and Indigenous art gallery, they are showing a film of a seal hunt. It is not for the faint of heart and it is not for those who tend to over-react to hunting as animal cruelty. Brutal, visceral and stark, they show the shooting and flaying of two seal. It is amazing footage - and just like the horse carcass, there are no signs keeping children or the sensitive at bay. All quiver as a hunter holds a long strip of seal meat in his teeth, then skins it toward his face. This is the scene after we see him sharpening it to a razor's edge.

There is likely other spooky things to see at the gallery, so if you have been in or are heading there, be sure to let us know in the comments.

THIS I would go see...

Pretty much says it all....

Courtesy of boingboing.com and Greg Murphy.

Survive this!

This Friday, August 20th, Zombieinfo.com presents the latest entry in George "The Master" Romero's "Dead" series - Survival of the Dead.


OK, you guys really don't need me to tell you you should be there right? Just go... show starts at 9:15. Prizes and general fun courtesy of the one and only Zombie King!

More "Long Pigs"...

We can't help it... Those of us here at Ottawa Horror, really liked this movie!

So in that vein, here's a nice review of it by typicallydia, on her blog. If you haven't been, do go read it - a little bit of life, the Universe, and everything - there's a link to it right there on the right...

Here's hoping we see some more of her writing on this blog soon (no pressure Lydia, no pressure...).

Do you have triskaidekaphobia?

In other words, do you have an irrational fear of Friday the 13th? It's also known as paraskevidekatriaphobia and friggatriskaidekaphobia...

But how much do you actually know about the day? There's a great wikipedia article here on the origins of the superstition, but here are some fun facts about our favourite date...

•The longest period that can go without a Friday the 13th is 14 months.
•The 13th day of the month is more likely to be a Friday than any other day.
•There is at least one Friday the 13th every year (this is the only one in 2010).
•In 2029, the Asteroid 99942 will pass inside Earth orbit on Friday the 13th.
•2012 will have THREE Friday the 13th's - talk about bad luck!
•Four of the twelve Friday the 13th movies have been released on Friday the 13th - the next one is scheduled for Friday Sept. 13th, 2013...
•People with the number 13 in their Birthdate are supposed to have good luck on Friday the 13th.

Enjoy your Friday the 13th... and stay away from summer camps today!

Oh and here's a blast from the past...

"UnHalloween" at Saunders Farm this Friday!

This Friday the 13th, the good folks at Saunders Farm are having an "UnHalloween". Featuring the Original "Friday the 13th" under the stars, nighttime mazes and lotsa good food!

Long Pigs!

"Anthony McAlister" signs a DVD 

We had a wonderful night Friday seeing Long Pigs with the director (Chris Powers) and cannibal (Anthony Alviano - pictured above) in attendance! The acting was superb - it was relaxed and natural, making it seem like a real documentory. There was a lot of research that was put into the film and into the plot and it showed. The killer's expertise with his victims really made you believe he had been killing and eating people for years. All of this added up to a great film. I would highly recommend watching this film, especially if you like serial killers as it has the unique perspective of someone who kills for food and the right taste.

Thank you to those who entered the contest. Pictured is Amanda Delory and her guest who won tickets, a signed shirt, a signed poster and some of the cannibal's own beef jerky!

Be sure to come to our upcoming events as there will be more prizes and more horrifying films!

Long Pigs Review...

This is too good to pass on... I had mentioned that Rue Morgue Radio had a "lively" debate between reviewers on "Long Pigs", playing this Friday at the Mayfair... Well lo and behold, here's that review IN VIDEO! Watch Feedback and the Gore-Met go at it in the best way...



Be sure to check the film out for yourself this Friday at 11:55pm! The cast and crew will be in attendance!

And the Winner is...

Congrats to the Winner in our Long Pigs Giveaway! Amanda Delory has won tickets for herself and a guest to see the show along with a great prize pack of a signed poster, signed DVD and a package of Anthony's "Organic" Jerky.

Didn't win? That's ok... come and see the show anyway! Everyone's welcome. The show will be this Friday Aug. 6th at 11:55pm at the one, the only Mayfair Theatre, 1074 Bank St.

C'mon folks... Let's support independent films and cinema's and let's show 'em Ottawa LOVES OUR HORROR!

Killer63 V

The fifth year of Killer63 is upon us. For those not in the know, Killer63 is Ottawa's annual independent horror collective, it is a mini one day fest showcasing local filmmakers short horror work, and it will return to the Mayfair on October 16th.

Deadline for submissions is October 6th.

If anyone has any questions about the event, please feel free to contact me at: batturtle@gmail.com