Trailer for Curse of Chucky Released; Twisted Children of the '80s Rejoice

I don't consume alcohol or drugs or pop music or any of those other things that people get really excited about and then feel bad about later. But I imagine that the reaction people have to those intoxicants is similar to what I feel when I, as a super horror nerd, see a preview for something like Curse of Chucky.

What follows is the trailer for said film, a reboot of the Child's Play franchise that claims it will drop the self referential humor of the last two films and take the franchise back to its creepier roots. It looks the part, and I kinda dig the switch to a spooky old house setting. Will it be deep and meaningful? Do the special effects look good? Probably not on both accounts. But Brad Dourif and the change in tone actually makes me think this looks like a bunch of slashery fun.

Curse of Chucky will be released to DVD/Blu-Ray/Other-Home-Media-Formats-I-Don't-Know-Yet on October 8, so invite some friends over, get the popcorn ready, and wear ankle protection. Or don't. It's your achilles tendon.

FMWL Indie Spotlight - The Fies' Sisters present I Hate L.A.

When I first took FMWL in the direction of independent cinema, I had no clue what I was getting into.  But luck was on my side, as the first three independent films I was lucky enough to cover proved to be three of the best films I saw in 2010.  Sandwiched in the middle of this unholy trilogy - between Gregg Holtgrewe's Dawning and the Soska twins' Dead Hooker in a Trunk - was Elisabeth Fies' fantastic The Commune, a one of a kind modern tale of human terror. 

In each of these cases, the big question was "What happens next?"  For Fies and her sister/co-producer Brenda, the answer was Bleedfest, the monthly film festival that promotes films made by women.  At the same time, there was the sisters' production of their own horror anthology - with help from five other fine female filmmakers - I Hate L.A. 

Now, I Hate L.A. is set for its world premiere this Sunday, April 3rd, at Bleedfest - and the film's trailer is online for the first time.  As you can see, the film promises 11 vignettes by 7 female directors, and looks to be a twisted bit of satire about the ruthless side of Hollywood. 

Check it out below, and prepare for what looks to be another vicious dose of real world horror from The Fies sisters and company!

As for Bleedfest, here's some details about this weekend's festivities, which can be yours if you're in L.A. and have 10 bucks to spare.  That there's a heckuva idea, if you ask The Mike!  Go support Lis Fies, I Hate L.A., and all the women in horror out there!

April 3rd is ThrillHer:
Suspense films by women.
Canadian filmmaker Maude Michaud will be present for a retrospective of her shorts and two world premiers. The feature film is the world premier of the anthology I HATE L.A. The genre suspense feature includes work by filmmakers Barbara Stepansky, Maude Michaud, Heidi Hornbacher, Marichelle Daywalt, Tyrrell Sheffner, Elisabeth Fies and Brenda Fies. Drew Daywalt will be receiving the Inanna Partnership Award. Lori Bowen of Hallowscreen Film Festival will co-present the Shorts In Competition block. Schedule subject to change, appearances dependent on schedule.
BleedFest Film Festival’s Charity for the Month of April is featuring a Donation Collection Station for: American Red Cross of Greater Los Angeles-Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami Relief Fund.

Sunday April 3rd, 2011
TIME: 11am-4:00pm
Location: CAP Theatre
13752 Ventura Blvd.
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
$10 cash at door all day ticket and open bar
Photography display and book STILL LIFE by Tim Aldridge of TMA Photo.
11am-11:20am Red Carpet, Mixer

For more information on the film or the festival, head to the I Hate L.A. website or check out the April schedule at the Bleedfest site.  

FMWL Indie Spotlight - The Soska Twins' American Mary Teaser is ALIVE!!!!!

If I were listing the most exciting genre cinema experiences I had in 2010 - which I will be doing in a few weeks - one of them would certainly be that I was introduced to the work of Jen and Sylvia Soska, the Twisted Twins behind the soon-to-be cult classic Dead Hooker in a Trunk.  December 11th marks Twisted Twins Productions' second anniversary, and the diabolical duo have a gift for us today.  It's the teaser trailer for their next feature film, American Mary.  I'm not quite sure what it is, but I can start to make some guesses....and I want it now.

 

For more info on American Mary, The Soskas, and everything Twisted, head on over to their official site.  And rest assured, this isn't the last time you'll hear about them at FMWL - as I'll be reviewing one of their short films in the very near future as part of our ongoing partnership with the Bleedfest Film Festival!

FMWL Indie Spotlight - Midnight Son

As I constantly reevaluate what I'm doing with FMWL, one of the things that's popped up in my mind is that I don't do nearly enough regarding independent horror/genre cinema.  In the past several months I've been blessed to find some of the most amazing independent flicks out there - like Dawning, The Commune, and Dead Hooker in a Trunk - yet also cursed by the likes of Nightmare Alley.  I never really intended to cover indie flicks here, but a lot of opportunities to do so have presented themselves to me nonetheless.  Why fight it?

Thus, I present the Indie Spotlight section of FMWL, in which I will focus on some interesting indie projects as they come to me.  I'll start today with a trailer for a nifty looking vampire thriller, Midnight Son.  I'm a day late on this one - a lot of other blogs have already ran with the info - but a look at the trailer makes me think it should be repeated.  Check it out below!

 

Looking at this trailer, I see a few things that jump out at me.  The most obvious, of course, is that there's no damn sparkling.

Aside from the fact that it is clearly not Twilight, which is AWESOME, this looks like it could be my kind of vampire flick.  I dig the gritty urban setting, which reminds me of Larry Fessenden's cool vampire/addiction flick Habit.  Here's hoping for the best from producer Matt Compton, writer/director/producer Scott Leberecht, and everyone else involved.  I look forward to what their Midnight has to offer!

If you want more info on Midnight Son, check out the official site, the Facebook page, and/or the Twitter account for the film!