31 Days of Horror Movie 18

American Scary
2006
Netflix rental

Growing up the only horror host I knew was the short lived Sgt Graves. I heard about Elvira. But her show never aired in my area. It wasn't until 1990 and we got cable and TMC that I got to see another host. That was Joe Bob Briggs. I see people all the time talking about how great Monstervision was. But it sucked , the films were edited and packed full of commercials. His TMC show was so much better. No editing no commercials.

This documentary is about a huge amount of horror hosts. Going from the beginning of the fad till modern day. There is lots of archival footage and interviews with the hosts. And I really enjoyed learning so much about this American phenomenon. But they don't just interview the hosts. They talk to lots of fans. People like Neil Gaiman,Patricia Tallman and Curtis "Booger" Armstrong.

The DVD has a fun commentary on it too. Plus a few additional interviews. So it is worth checking out all the extras.

American Scary gets a B.

Asshat Podcast Episode 15

Asshat Podcast Episode 15

In a very special episode of Asshat,Nadia,Merc,John and Bat32 join me to talk about how we each got into the horror genre. So sit back and relax and enjoy this extra long episode of Asshat.

31 Days of Horror Movie 17

31 Days of Horror Movie 16

Ice Cream Man
1995
Mill Creek double feature DVD


Clint Howard plays the ice cream man in this film. As a young kid he watched his neighborhood Ice cream man get killed. After getting out of the mental hospital Clint becomes the new ice cream man. And he goes around killing people. In some pretty brutal ways.

This is a fun mid 90s comedy/horror hybrid. Clint Howard is always entertaining. And Olivia Hussy is really good as the nurse that still keeps an eye on Clint. I really loved the scene where Clint is serving ice cream to a cop and there is an eye ball in it. Clint has been mixing the people he has killed bodies in with the ice cream for years.

The DVD is bare bones. It just has this film and Jack Frost II on it. But it was cheap. I think I paid $3 for it. Ice Cream Man is worth tracking down. This is a film I point out to all the people that tell me no good horror came out in the 90s.

Ice Cream Man gets a B-.

31 Days of Horror Movie 15

Phantasm Oblivion
1998
Anchor Bay DVD

After waiting for years I finally got to see what is currently the final Phantasm film. I don't think this entry played any theaters. But Christmas of 98 I did a Phantasm marathon. And loved part 4 almost as much the original.

We start off right where part 3 ended. And in this film get a somewhat origin of the Tallman. Turns out he was known as Jebediah Morningside. And somehow invented the spacegates that have appeared in the various Phantasm films. Now this film won't make much sense if you haven't seen the previous 3. And even then it might take a few viewings to really understand what is going on. The ending is a little confusing. But still part IV is a major improvement of that shitty 3rd film. I am biased because the Phantasm franchise is one of my favorites in the horror genre. I love how the films are a weird mixture of horror and science fiction. Plus they have this dream logic feel to them.

Phantasm Oblivion gets a A-.

31 Days of Horror Movie 14

Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
1986
MGM Gruesome Edition DVD

I was lucky enough to see this in a theater during it's first run. My favorite Uncle took me. And I was blown away with how gory it was compared to the original. I wasn't so happy with all the comedy in the film. That is one reason why when the first DVD release of this came out I skipped it.

Starting over 10 years after the last film, we find out that the Sawyer cannibal clan is still around. And a local radio DJ gets wrapped up in their craziness. Sadly the only returning cast member from the original is Jim Siedow as the Cook. He has been going all over Texas winning chili contest. What the judges don't know is that the secret ingredient is human flesh. Dennis Hopper shows up as the uncle of Sally and Franklin. He is a wacked out Texas Ranger. And Hopper chews the scenery anytime he is on camera.

The Gruesome edition dvd is packed. We get a really fun commentary. And loads of deleted scenes. I think this same edition is out on Blu ray now.More than worth tracking down.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 gets  a A-. 

Asshat Podcast Episode 14

Asshat Podcast episode 14


Stefan AKA Lord Fanboy makes his first appearance. We talk about the 90s Vertigo comic Preacher. Then dive into the 1974 horror classic Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Then talk about the media we have been consuming recently. Plus we get to hear another great cover from Merc and Stefan's noise punk song "We all come from Cum!".

31 Days of Horror Movie 13

Cabin Fever
2002
Lionsgate DVD

Weirdly I see a lot of online horror fans hating on this film. Most of them seem to hate it because they don't like Eli Roth. I really enjoyed it. And go back and watch it every few years.

We got a group of 5 teens going to a cabin way out in the country. They get infected by a skin eating bacteria. And end up turning on each other. Some of the country folk in town find out about the virus and go and kill off the surviving teens. There is plenty of just plain strange scenes. Like the kid who screams pancakes while doing windmill kicks.

The gore FX in the film are the real stars. There is plenty of well done FX work. Like when Jordan Ladd has half of her face rotted off.  Roth's love of the horror genre shines in this film. It is full of homages to older horror films. And in some scenes has a very 70's Euro Horror feel.

The DVD is loaded with extras. There is at least 5 commentaries. All of them are fairly entertaining. Plus we get a bunch of short stop motion shorts Roth did years ago.

Cabin Fever gets a B+.

31 Days of Horror Movie 12

Visitor Q
2001
Media Blasters DVD

Originally saw this many years ago. And since one of my co hosts on Asshat is wanting to cover Asian Cinema we talked about watching it again,

We start off with a reporter hooking up with a very young looking hooker. We find out that this is his daughter. It seems Dad has an issue with finishing too fast. So the daughter doubles her fee. The next scene is the father waiting on the train and some strange guy clubs him in the head with a rock. For an unknown reason the father brings this man home. Where we discover the entire family is 10 shades of fucked up. The mother is covered with scars and walks with a limp. But she also has a heroin habit and works as a hooker to afford her smack. The young teen son is being bullied and takes this out on the mom. He has a closet full of rug beaters that he uses to beat his mother. What is strange is how dysfunctional this family is. But an event near the end brings them all together. With the daughter finally coming home.

Out of all the Takashi Miike films I have seen this is the best. Some of his films have a very slow pace. But Visitor Q moves quickly. Now a quick warning this is a somewhat disturbing film. So if you can't handle shocking stuff skip it.

Visitor Q gets a A-.

31 Days of Horror Movie 11

The Greenskeeper
2002
Echo Bridge 20 film Multipack DVD

Back in the early 2000s when most videos stores were clearing out all their VHS, I was hitting them and buying up any cheap horror VHS I found. Hollywood Video had a deal 10 VHS for 10 bucks. So I dug around and found 10. This one I grabbed because it was from Roger Corman's production company. Plus it looked like a comedy/slasher.

Allen is the assistant greenskeeper at a huge golf course. His father died years ago. And now his mom has remarried. Allen has a very annoying girlfriend and all he really wants to do is become an author. But there is someone killing members of the golf club.

Sure this is low budget. And very cheesy. But the comedy in the film makes up for the flaws. Plus there is some inventive kills. One guy gets killed by having his testicles placed in a ball washer. A couple gets killed using the tool they use to make the holes on the golf course.

Only two things make this film stand out. First former Atlanta Braves pitcher John Rocker plays the killer. And Kip Winger,from Winger, does all the music.

The Greenskeeper gets a C+.