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Kidulthood director heads for horror with COMEDOWN

Menhaj Huda director of the acclaimed British street gang thriller Kidulthood is back with a new film…Comedown. Again set in London, his latest work is a tale of urban horror set against a contemporary London backdrop, of abandonment and decay. Six tearaway teenagers setting up a relay aerial for a local pirate radio station at the top of a condemned tower block, are targeted by a resident psychopath intent on exterminating the 'vermin' he perceives are besieging his home. Sounds a lot like a slasher horror to us! Currently in pre-production, the film is set to star up and coming actor Martin Compston (Freakdog, The Damned United).

 

 

Kidulthood official site

Detailed plotline for Tsui Hark’s DETECTIVE D

OK let’s be honest here, Tsui Hark is a good director, but not since his 2005 action epic “Seven Swords” has he really come with the goods on a feature length film. So it’s high hopes that his latest work, the martial arts, fantasy, action movie Detective D and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame, marks a welcome return to form. It certainly has all the right ingredients for a hit. Mega star Andy Lau plays the lead as the aforementioned detective, whilst art direction and fight choreography are being handled by none other than Hong Kong Veteran Sammo Hung. Surely a recipe for success?! Early indications say that’s a big fat yes and we for one are excited to see it. Now here’s that detailed summary of the plotline for your consideration….

Synopsis: In the city of Luoyang, when the building of a giant temple is nearly drawing to completion, Jia yi, the construction chief is mysteriously burned to death. Rumours spread through the city that it is punishment from heaven for sacrilegious behaviour. Believing him the only person capable to solve the mystery, Empress Wu calls on genius detective Dee Renjie and appoints him as the chief of judges of the empire, to solve the case of burnt corpse. He accepts the challenge and partners up with gung-ho commander Bei and royal officer Jing. In order to find out the murder weapon, Dee and his allies make a visit to ghost doctor Wong in the dark ancient city where they stumble into the middle of an assassination attempt. However chasing after the assassin surprisingly leads them into the royal sorcerer's palace, the forbidden pavilion. As things goes more bizarre, when all the evidences are related to royal sorcerer Lu Li, the answer Dee finds put both him and everyone who comes in contact with him in grave danger...

Detective D stills

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY gets more midnight screenings

A rare win for horror film fans! After the tremendous buzz generated for the supernatural thriller Paranormal Activity, Paramount has announced that they will be expanding the number of cities and length of screening runs. Make sure and check out the website for details on when and where the screenings will be held.

After picking up over $77,000 in midnight-only screenings last weekend, over 200,000 demands to expand the number of cities screening the film and whole bunches of glowing reviews from horror film fan sites, the choice for Paramount seemed obvious. We all know that big studios are frequently oblivious to things like this, though, especially when it comes to low budget, original horror. No doubt, if the film was a poorly written remake of a foreign or 80's horror film (or one of their sequels), it'd be in every multiplex in America and you'd see commercials for it before every other similarly inane waste of time and money. So it's nice to see Paranormal Activity isn't just going to sit it in the studio vaults (any longer) and then toss it out on DVD without any promotion. Like Sony did with [Rec]. Or Warner's kind of doing with Trick 'R Treat.

Official Website

Watch the trailer

DEMAND IT in your town

HORROR UNLEASHED website now live

From the creepiest, the campiest, black and white oldies (13 Ghosts) to undead porn stars (Zombie Strippers) to rampaging automobiles (Christine) to Japanese remakes (The Grudge), there’s something for everyone on Sony Entertainments newly live Horror Unleashed website. As well as classic movie clips to see, and games to play, you can enter the Horror Unleashed Blu-ray sweepstakes, where you can have a chance to win an HDTV, a PS3 Slim and 10 of the best creep and camp films on Blu-ray! Check out www.HorrorUnleashed.com for more information.

Teaser trailer for Thai horror HAUNTED UNIVERSITIES

Based on some of the gruesome folk tales and ghost stories told through the years by college students in Thailand, the first trailer has appeared for new Thai horror…Haunted Universities. Though atmospheric, it’s quite text heavy and has obviously been designed to set the scene for a more a graphic full trailer yet to come. Keep a close eye out at the end though, it gives a hint of the gory fun to come. Haunted Universities opens in Thailand October 22nd.

 

 

 

Haunted teaser trail

More details about Tartan’s VENGEANCE TRILOGY box

Palisades Tartan sent out the official press release today for their upcoming 8 disc Vengeance Trilogy box set, previously reported on here. You can see the official artwork to the left. The set, collecting Chan-wook Park's three similarly themed films Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy and Lady Vengeance, will be released November 24th. According to the press release, the special features included in the set will include, but are not limited to:

An essay on each film by celebrated filmmakers, actors and writers, including Eli Roth... Additional features include but are not limited to Audio commentary by Park Chan-Wook and actor Ryoo Seung-wan (SYMPATHY FOR MR. VENGEANCE), Behind the Scenes, The Process of Mr. Vengeance, My Boksu Story, Storyboards, Photo Gallery, Filmographies, Film Notes, Crew Interviews, Three Audio Commentaries (OLDBOY), 5 Behind the Scene featurettes, Le Grand Prix at Cannes, Deleted Scenes with commentary, Regular and Fade-To-White versions (LADY VENGEANCE), Character Interviews – Lee Geum Ja, Prof. Baek, Prisoners, Families, Lady Vengeance at the 62nd Venice Film Festival, Trailer, Film Notes, Making of, Deleted Scenes as well as a few surprises.

Suggested Retail Price for the box set is $49.99, but you can pre-order it on Amazon for a few bucks less. This is the big one folks. More discs than any other previously released set. Shame there's not a Blu-Ray version, though.

Anton Corbijn announces next project: THE AMERICAN with Clooney

Photographer, director and all around visual genius Anton Corbijn is set to begin production this week on his second feature length film, The American, in Italy with George Clooney starring in the title role, according to press release from Focus Features, who will be handling distribution of the film worldwide. Corbijn, whose previous feature was the Joy Division biography Control is probably best know for having directed a ton of music videos and for being an incredibly gifted and stylish photographer. The new film, previously known under the name A Very Serious Gentleman, is an adaptation of the 2005 novel by Martin Booth with a screenplay by Rowan Joffe whose lone feature film credit is the screenplay for 28 Weeks Later.

Any news about Corbijn working is good news, if you ask me.

Synopsis: Alone among assassins, Jack (played by Mr. Clooney) is a master craftsman. When a job in Sweden ends more harshly than expected for this American abroad, he vows to his contact Larry (Bruce Altman of this fall’s Peter and Vandy) that his next assignment will be his last. Jack reports to the Italian countryside, where he holes up in a small town and relishes being away from death for a spell. The assignment, as specified by a Belgian woman, Mathilde (Thekla Reuten of Focus’ award-winning In Bruges), is in the offing as a weapon is constructed. Surprising himself, Jack seeks out the friendship of local priest Father Benedetto (Italian screen and stage veteran Paolo Bonacelli) and pursues romance with local woman Clara (Italian leading lady Violante Placido). But by stepping out of the shadows, Jack may be tempting fate.

Via: In Contention

Anton Corbijn's Official Website

GHOST IN THE SHELL 2.0 coming to R1 Blu-Ray

YES! FINALLY! Anchor Bay Entertainment has announced plans to release Mamoru Oshii's Ghost In The Shell 2.0 on DVD in the US! The 2.0 edition includes a completely new remastered version of Oshii's seminal anime masterpiece. Oshii himself oversaw the process of reproducing all of the original animations with the latest digital film and animation technologies, including 3-D CGI, and the film was re-scored by original composer Kenji Kawai.

Extras on the Blu-Ray include a commentary by Oshii and animation director Toshihiko Nishikubo with subtitles, a Making of Ghost in the Shell 2.0 featurette, and an exclusive face to face interview with the director. The disc is schedlued for release on November 24th with a suggested retail price of $29.97, but can be pre-ordered from Amazon for $19.99.

I don't know about you, but I'm pre-ordering this right now.

New poster for reboot of THE CRAZIES

Overture Films dropped us a line today with a first look at the brand new poster for their upcoming film, The Crazies, so we thought we share (we’re good like that) it with you. The Crazies is a reinvention loosely based upon the George Romero classic about the inhabitants of a small Iowa town beset by insanity and then death after a mysterious toxin contaminates their water supply. Directed by Breck Eisner and produced by Rob Cowan, THE CRAZIES stars Timothy Olyphant, Radha Mitchell, Danielle Panabaker and Joe Anderson and will hit theaters on February 26th, 2010. More as we get it.

ONG BAK: THE BEGINNING (aka ONG BAK 2): Review

Director: Tony Jaa, Panna Rittikrai. Review: Adam Wing.

After what feels like an eternity, Tony Jaa has left the confines of his murky cave to deliver a follow up to break out movie Ong Bak. It's worth mentioning at this point however that Ong Bak 2 bares no relation to the original smash hit, this is a sequel in name alone. Talk about troubled shoots. After going way over budget, the first time director and star abandoned production and escaped to a secluded hideaway until his mentor (Ong Bak director Panna Rittikrai) stepped in to save the film. As a result Ong Bak 2 feels like it’s only telling half of the story, which it most probably is, Ong Bak 3 is scheduled for release later this year. Probably. Depends on what kind of mood Tony is in, do you really want to argue with him? Continue reading review.

Ong Bak 2 trailers

BLOOD: THE LAST VAMPIRE on R1/R2 DVD

My Sassy Girl's Jeon Ji Hyun makes her English-language debut in the fantasy action horror Blood: The Last Vampire, directed by Chris Nahon. Based on the same-titled 2000 animated feature, Blood revolves around a mysterious female slayer Saya who battles hordes of vampires in postwar Japan. Under her English name Gianna, Jeon Ji Hyun dons the trademark school uniform for a tough-as-nails turn as the katakana-wielding death dealer…Saya. Yes purists might be right when they say they’ve mucked around with the storyline, and perhaps the CG blood was a slight disappointment, but on the action front Blood delivers the goods in spades. BTLV goes on sale in the U.S and U.K, mid October.

Synopsis: On the surface, Saya is a stunning 16-year old, but that youthful exterior hides the tormented soul of a 400 year-old halfling. Born to a human father and a vampire mother, she has for centuries been a loner obsessed with using her fighting skills to rid the world of vampires, all the while knowing that she herself can survive only on blood like those she hunts. When she is sent onto an American military base in Tokyo by the clandestine organization she works for, Saya immediately senses that this may be her opportunity to finally destroy Onigen, the evil patriarch of all vampires. Using her superhuman strength and her sword, she begins to rid the base of its evil infestation in a series of spectacular and elaborate showdowns. However, it is not until she forms her first human friendship in centuries with the young daughter of the bases general that Saya learns her greatest power over Onigen may well be her ability for human connection.

Blood official site

ZOMBIE SELF-DEFENSE FORCE: Review

Director: Naoyuki Tomomatsu. Review: Tim Irwin.

I suppose this film is everything you would expect from it, since it’s from Japan and called Zombie Self-Defence Force. It’s a low-budget homage to Romero infused with the recent Japanese shock style. And I do mean low budget. The opening sequence involving the UFO that dooms Japan is hilarious in its awfulness. But before the opening sequence we are treated to an announcement. In it the narrator decries the US for war crimes, from the nuclear bombs during World War II to the invasion of Iraq. But then he notes a few things that he likes about America: “Hamburgers, Rock, Hollywood movies - especially George A. Romero - a genius.”

The political point of the opening (which isn’t subtle, just like all the rest of the commentary that the film makes a point to add) is that Japan shouldn’t send any sort of armed forces to help the US in a pointless war that doesn’t involve them. Instead, they should have a self-defence force that protects Japan. Especially from Zombies. We then watch as a UFO crash lands in the forests surrounding Mt. Fuji. There are several groups of people going about their business in the forest at the time. We meet a pop singer out for a photo shoot. There’s also a small army group out on manoeuvres, who are dealing with the dead body of someone who hanged herself. There are a couple gangsters, out in the woods to carry out a hit. Finally, there’s a hotel owner and his pregnant mistress, who are bickering. Unfortunately for them, their lives are all about to change....Continue review here.

Zombie Force trailer

ONG BAK 2 is heading to the U.K to kick some ass!

Yes Brit fight fans, it’s what you have all been waiting for - Tony Jaa’s Ong Bak 2 is finally due to be released UK - under the title: ”Ong Bak: The Beginning”? Quite why the number has been dropped from the name is a bit of a mystery. When we asked why the “2” had to be removed, all the distributor would say was that the title had to be changed due to “legal reasons.” Minor niggles and questions over title aside, the main thing is Jaa fans in the U.K will finally get to see some class-A martial arts ass kickin mayhem, on the big screen. Ong Bak: The Beginning opens in UK theatres from October 16th.

Synopsis: Orphaned when the treacherous Lord Rajasena kills his parents, young Tien is saved from slavery and raised by Chernang, leader of a renowned band of guerrillas. Growing to adulthood, Tien (Jaa) becomes proficient in a variety of martial arts styles including boxing, kung fu, and Muay Thai, as well as numerous forms of exotic weaponry. With his training behind him, Tien begins his journey towards his ultimate goal: revenge against Lord Rajasena for his parents' death. However, infiltrating the enemy brings Tien in contact once again with childhood sweetheart Pim, who has become Rajasena's top dancer. Inflicting an initial blow on Rajasena, Tien makes his return to the jungle, only to find his enemies - and a shocking revelation - waiting for him.

Ong Bak: The Beginning UK trailer 

 

Japanese superhero spoof BIG MAN JAPAN: Review

Director: Matsumoto Hitoshi. Review: Adam Wing.

Don’t you just love Japanese cinema, if you like your movies left of centre then look no further, Big Man Japan isn’t even on the same page. Popular manzai comedian Matsumoto Hitoshi directs and stars in this bizarre mockumentary about regular guy Dai Saito, he may look like your average Joe but he's actually a superhero. When electrocuted, Dai Saito transforms into the gigantic, purple boxer-wearing Dai Nipponjin (Big Man Japan), doing battle against super-sized monsters like Jumpy Baddie, Baby Baddie, and of course Smelly Baddie. There’s a link there somewhere. Saving Japan over and over again is all well and good, but Dai Saito doesn't get much in return. His ex-wife and daughter can only bare to see him twice a year, he lives out a boring life with a stray cat in a rundown house, just waiting for the Department of Defence to call him into superhero action (the pay isn’t too hot either). All his battles are broadcast on television, but the public couldn't care less about his exploits and his neighbours hate him. His heroics fill the late night slot on TV but the glory days of being a superhero are long gone, in fact, even the monsters stay away these days. So it’s a cross between The Office, Hancock and Godzilla then, and even though I use the word quirky way too often, Big Man Japan could never be described as anything else. It’s also deliriously entertaining if you’re in the right frame of mind...Continue reading review here.

Big Man Japan trailer

Cronenberg remaking THE FLY

The Hollywood Reporter's Risky Business blog is reporting that director David Cronenberg is in talks to develop a reboot/remake of his insane 1986 sci-fi flick The Fly, starring Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis. Cronenberg will write the film and is in talks to direct it. Just recently, he produced an opera adaptation of it, itself a remake of the 1958 cult classic, so he's probably got a bit of a head start.

The director also currently has an adaptation of author Don de Lillo's Cosmopolis currently set to start filming next year and Robert Ludlum's The Matarese Circle, as well.

Guess he's going to be busy for a while. Good. Cronenberg hasn't released a film since 2007's Eastern Promises.

First stills from live-action HIGANJIMA

Some first stills have finally surfaced for the live action film version of the Vampire horror story Higanjima. Directed by KIM Tae Kyun the film is set to premiere at this years Pusan Film Festival on October 9th. Based on the Manga by by Koji Matsumoto, Higanjima tells the tale of an eerie island occupied by vampires, from where its told, none has ever come back alive. When teenager Akira hears that his missing brother has been seen in the island, he decides to investigate with several friends. Whats the betting after events, its "several" of the friends that dont make it back alive. Higanjima is due for release by Warner Japan, in January.

Higanjima stills 1 2 3

Via: Nipponcinema

GHOST IN THE SHELL 2.0 gets UK theatrical release

Mamoru Oshii’s Ghost in the Shell wowed us all with its seamlessly merging of traditional animation with the latest CG imagery to create an intelligent and artistic sci-fi spectacle unlike anything seen before. The film enjoyed both critical and popular acclaim at the international box office before going on to reach even greater success on DVD. Now, director Oshii (The Sky Crawlers; Avalon) has revisited his classic masterpiece to create a newly enhanced "director's cut" for cinemas in the form of Ghost in the Shell 2.0.

Containing over 90 altered and enhanced scenes and an all-new soundtrack that includes dialogue re-recorded by the original actors (with the exception of one new voice cast member who adds a unique spin to the plot), this new release represents the perfect opportunity for fans to see the film as originally intended – on the big screen. Ghost in the Shell 2.0 will get a limited theatrical release in the UK - by Manga Entertainment - on October 2nd, with the DVD and Blu-ray arriving on October 27th.

Plotline: The year is 2029 and a female government cyber agent and the Internal Bureau of Investigations are hot on the trail of a "The Puppet Master", a computer virus capable of invading cybernetic brains and altering the memories of its victims. Created by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and codenamed "Project 2501", this "hacker" is actually a prototype virtual agent which has now defied its makers by seeking asylum within a new host body outside of the electronic net. Now the two agencies must manoeuvre against each another in a violent, high-tech race to capture the omnipresent entity.

2.0 trailer

Francis Ng’s martial arts fest TRACING SHADOW on DVD

Francis Ng’s big budget wire-fu, wuxia extravaganza...Tracing Shadow is due for release on English subtitled DVD this week! As well as directing the martial arts mayhem, Ng also takes the leading role in this rowdy kung-fu sendup about a group of fighting masters converging on a village to find a lost map. Pre-orders to automatic there then! Tracing Shadows goes on sale, on R3 English subbed DVD this Friday.

Synopsis: It is the Ming Dynasty and Chaos reigns. There are many Kung-fu masters from different regions that are fighting ruthlessly for a mysterious treasure map hidden inside the Ming palace. Amidst such combat, the map unexpectedly disappeared. Five of the Kung-fu masters trace the map’s location to a small village and there they disguise themselves as ‘ordinary’ people among the villagers in hope of finding the map. Among them are a Mongolian Warrior and a Japanese Ninja, posing as a married couple in the village. On the surface, the five masters are friendly loving neighbours however they are actually very cunning and competitive trying to outdo each other to be the first to locate the map. One day their wealthy landlord reveals that he possesses the map which sparks an explosive chain of events in this once small and ordinary village.

Tracing Shadow website

Pre-order the disc here

20TH CENTURY BOYS CHAPTER 2: A NEW HOPE review

Director: Yukihiko Tsutsumi. Review: Adam Wing.

So here it is then, the terrifying second act. The first part of any story is child’s play compared to part two, characters are introduced, the scene is set and viewers are reeled in. Act three is the big finish so that’s a piece of cake too; everything comes together in a rousing and crowd pleasing fashion. Or at least, that’s the general idea. The second film however, well that would be the tough sell I guess, there’s no beginning and no end with chapter two, but you’ve got to do enough to keep the viewer engrossed if you want them back for part three. The Last Hope kicks off 15 years after the events of the first film, introducing us to a country that has fallen under the spell of cult leader ‘Friend’.

Kenji (Karasawa Toshiaki), who you’ll recall is presumed dead at the end of the original, has been missing since the bloody New Year's Eve showdown, and is branded a terrorist along with his classmates. Kenji's niece Kanna (Taira Airi), the cute kid in the baseball cap from part one, has grown up into a spunky high school student who still looks cute in a baseball cap. For her rebellious behaviour, Kanna gets sent to ‘Friend Land’ for indoctrination, and earns the chance to enter a virtual reality world that holds the secret to Friend's identity. Which basically amounts to a bunch of girls playing light gun games, blasting the life out of computer generated sprites of her uncle and his friends, a challenge that doesn’t go down too well with her at first. With Kanna's life in danger, faces from the past emerge from the shadows, but can they save the world from oblivion once more? Who exactly is Friend, and what does his New Book of Prophecy have in store for the world? Also, is this in any way related to the smoke monster from Lost? Guess I’m just clutching at straws now…Continue reading review here.

20thCB chapter 2 trailer

SCREAMFEST LA announces line-up

Los Angeles' trademark horror festival is coming back in October and Screamfest LA has finally announced it's line-up. The festival takes place October 16-25 at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood and for the last few years has been THE place to catch the next great horror films from around the world. This year, the festival will open with Scott Mann's The Tournament and close with Olatunde Osunsanmi's The Fourth Kind, starring Milla Jovovich. Other films screening include Singapore's Macabre, Japan's Vampire Girl Vs. Frankenstein Girl, Tom Six's The Human Centipede, Ti West's The House Of The Devil and many, many more.

If you live near LA or are going to be in town, you need to be there. Check out the official website for screening times and details on each movie playing.

Full Screamfest line-up

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