Psst...Carmilla & Laura can now get hitched across the street!

Quinn to sign civil union law - Chicago Sun-Times

Vampire civil union anyone?

Horrorbles Galerie des Terrors screening schedule! (2/4 - 2/6)

This weekend at Horrorbles Galerie des Terrors!
6729 W. Roosevelt Road, Berwyn, IL (708) 484-7370 (Facebook event HERE)

Friday, February 4th
Death Ship (1980) 6pm
Survivors of a tragic shipping collision are rescued by a mysterious black ship which appears out of the fog...


Saturday, February 5th
Friday The 13th (1980) 1pm
Camp counselors are stalked and murdered by an unknown assailant while trying to re-open a summer camp that was the site of a child's drowning.


Saturday, February 5th
Torso (1973) 6pm
Someone is strangling coeds in Perugia. The only clue is that the killer owns a red and black scarf


Sunday, February 6th
Creature From The Black Lagoon (1954) 1pm (In 3D!!)
A scientific expedition traveling up the Amazon River encounter a dangerous humanoid amphibious fish creature.


$3 "Popcorn Cover" per screening

*Any $25 in-store Purchase gets you a FREE Month-Long Pass for 2 to watch any of the movies playing! Plus Free Popcorn!

Only 16 seats available per showing...advance reservation suggested!

**Screenings subject to cancellation due to private parties**

14 Chilling Classics at Gene Siskel Film Center (The Mask of Sanity)

Starting next week, every Tuesday (Jan 28 through May 10), the Gene Siskel Film Center presents:

The Mask of Sanity: Psychological Horror Films, with weekly lecture/discussions by Jim Trainor, Associate Professor of Animation in the Department of Film, Video and New Media at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

(There will also be screenings of the films held on Fridays or Saturdays, which will not include Prof. Trainor's lecture.) Admission to all The Mask of Sanity programs is $4 for Film Center members; usual admission prices apply for non-members.

From the Gene Siskel Film Center website:

"The most terrifying monsters are often not supernatural or extraterrestrial but all too human. Borrowing its title from Dr. Hervey Cleckley's classic 1941 clinical study, The Mask of Sanity will downplay ghosts, vampires, and aliens in favor of psychopaths, paranoids, and perverts. Lecture/discussions will focus on close analysis of individual films, the director's history and creative vision, specific techniques and their origins, and the relationship of films to contemporary events or anxieties." --Jim Trainor

Films to be screened:

REPULSION
1965, Roman Polanski, Great Britain, 104 min.

EYES WITHOUT A FACE (LES YEUX SANS VISAGE)
1959, Georges Franju, France, 88 min.

PLAY MISTY FOR ME
1971, Clint Eastwood, USA, 102 min.

CACHÉ (aka HIDDEN)
2005, Michael Haneke, France/Austria, 117 min.

PSYCHO
1960, Alfred Hitchcock, USA, 109 min.

THE STEPFATHER
1987, Joseph Ruben, USA, 89 min.

SAFE
1995, Todd Haynes, 1995, 119 min.

BADLANDS
1973, Terrence Malick, USA, 94 min.

DIABOLIQUE
1955, Henri-Georges Clouzot, France, 114 min.

OPEN WATER
2003, Chris Kentis, USA, 79 min.

THE BIRDS
1963, Alfred Hitchcock, USA, 119 min.

THE VIRGIN SPRING
1960, Ingmar Bergman, Sweden, 89 min.

DELIVERANCE
1972, John Boorman, USA, 110 min.

May 6 and 10
TBA

For more info, visit: http://www.siskelfilmcenter.org/maskofsanity

Cult Fiction - The Dark Hunt - tonight!!

From our good friend Jude Mire over at Killer-Works:

Lucky Number Grill
1931 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL, 60647-4320
(773) 235-7761

Here it is! Our third Cult Fiction show! This one brings you more creepy goodness than you can shake a tentacle at! We've got horror stories! We've got awesome actors reading! There's a sexy mid-show burlesque! There's a not quite as sexy but still equally awesome band playing after the stories! There's freaking S'mores! Facebook event details "HERE". Spread the invite!

* 8:00 - Doors Open, DJ 3RIC starts in with the atmosphere.

* 8:30 - Act One Begins
o The Rites of Passage: A hunter stalks strange prey at the end the world.
+ Written by Mike Martinez
+ Read by Christopher Skyles.

o Halfway to Shore: A search reveals a terrible punishment for the future.
+ Written by Michael Penkas
+ Read by C.S.E.Cooney

o Inhabitant: Some real estate is better left un-sold.
+ Written by Jude W. Mire
+ Read by Kalina "Kitten" McCreery

* Mini Intermission: S'mores and Booze!
* 9:15 - MiaMorte provides amazing transforming werewolf burlesque!
* Mini Intermission: Booze and S'mores!


* 9:30 - Act Two Begins
o Blue Eyes: A feral lust takes a dangerous turn.
+ Written by Brendan Detzner
+ Read by Kiersten Thomsen

o Menders Bounty: The cost of health care just got deadly.
+ Written by Eric Cherry
+ Read by Amanda Eaton

* Intermission: Last chance at the S'mores, Lauren pours more drinks, and DJ 3RIC sets the tone.


* 10:30 - Art Galt's Widow take the stage by force and play until their fingers bleed! Or, maybe they just go on stage and play until they finish. Be there and find out!

There you have it! All this for five measly bucks! Not even nice crisp ones. We're not picky. We're good with measly ones. See you there horror fans!

Long live the cult!

Kitley's Krypt MYSTERY PHOTO #76

Another week, another MYSTERY PHOTO!

Jon Kitley, pillar of the Chicago Horror Community and head honcho over at KITLEY'S KRYPT, wants to challenge your horror knowledge. Week in, week out, he posts a Mystery Photo - sometimes from an obscure horror title, sometimes just an unusual shot from a well-known classic. We figured our faithful Claw readers would enjoy the challenge!

We figured our last photo was going to...make a few fans lose their heads. (budump-ching) Sadly, J.S. Cardone's THE SLAYER (1982) is a rare flick these days, though it did get a video release or two back in the '80s. While not a fast paced movie by any stretch (there are myriad scenes of people wandering around looking for other people who have wandered off), it's still a fun watch. The gory death scenes and special effects, as evidenced below, are pretty interesting and well done.




Let's see how you fare with this week's selection:



If you provide the correct answer, your name will be announced next week on the Kitley's Krypt website (http://www.kitleyskrypt.com), along with a new photo. Even if you don't know the answer, we welcome any sorta-kinda educated guess! So, send in your emails today and good luck!

MANIAC at the Music Box (w/ director William Lustig in person)

There will be a special treat for Chicago horror fans this coming weekend. The Music Box Theatre will be screening a new 35mm print of MANIAC both Friday and Saturday at midnight! Even better, director William Lustig will be there in person BOTH nights!

Renowned character actor Joe Spinell (Rocky, Nighthawks) creates one of the most memorable (and certainly the sweatiest) psychopaths ever to grace the grindhouses. Constantly moaning, mumbling and crying, Spinell’s Frank Zito conducts a reign of terror on the NYC streets, murdering young women and tacking their bloody scalps onto his ever-growing collection of female mannequins. Working from a script by Spinell and C.A. Rosenberg and aided enormously by Tom Savini’s gut-churning and (literally) mind-blowing f/x, William Lustig directs this notorious bit of nastiness with the grime and degradation piled on an inch thick throughout.



This film earned quite a nasty reputation back in its heyday. Manic hoopla from angry mothers and stuffy folks alike. Very gritty and dark, but a classic in its own right. Come join us this weekend into the dirty bowels of NYC, where being a gorgeous woman is a bad thing to be - "I warned you not to go out tonight!"


MANIAC Q & A with Bill Lustig
Friday, Jan. 28 & Saturday, Jan. 29
MIDNIGHT
Music Box Theatre
3733 N. Southport, Chicago, IL

http://www.musicboxtheatre.com/midnight/

Win a FEARcation to New Orleans from FEARnet!

Thanks to the folks at FEARnet, there is a chance to win a 3-night, 4 day stay for two in the mother of all spooky U.S. places, NEW ORLEANS!

Enter the sweepstakes for a chance to win this trip with a guest of your choice to this "New Orleans Nightmare." Extra bonus, you can enter DAILY!

Includes an official tour of the city's historic haunts, and sampling Bourbon Street's spirits with $200 in gift cards. The sweepstakes runs from now through March 24th, so get crackin'!

http://www.fearnet.com/winafearcation/index.html

Spooky stuff and the Oscars

So rarely do the Oscars acknowledge horror films...but horror in the guise of 'art film' often slips by those stuffy academy geezers.  This year's nominees are once again slim pickings for the bloodthirsty among us.  Here is a tiny crib sheet for oscar gore and/or spooky boots.

Leading Role Dude- James Franco in “127 Hours” (the dude cuts off his own arm...give him some props)
Leading Role Lady- Natalie Portman in “Black Swan” (she sprouts feathers...freaky body horror)
Cinematography- “Black Swan” Matthew Libatique
Directing-“Black Swan” Darren Aronofsky

Film Editing- “Black Swan” Andrew Weisblum
Makeup- “The Wolfman” Rick Baker and Dave Elsey
****Personally...it's a friggin travesty that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows did not get nominated...
Music Score- “The Social Network” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (because trent is a spooky dude)
Best Picture- Black Swan & 127 hours both got noms

Other horror-esque nominees in year's past....
Dr. Jekkyl and Mr. Hyde
Phantom of the Opera
Picture of Dorian Gray
Rosemary's Baby
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (scariest film on this list)
Psycho
Exorcist
Omen
The Fly
American Werewolf in London
Jaws
Alien
Aliens
Beetlejuice
Silence of the Lambs
Misery
Amityville Horror
Poltergeist
Ghostbusters
Bram Stoker's Dracula
Death Becomes Her
Sweeney Todd
Sleepy Hollow

George Stover meets Count Gore! (Adventures of Louanna Lee)

It’s a funny thing being a horror fan, because the deeper you climb into the pit, the more fellow fiends you come across. While we are fans first, we’re all involved in our various “real life” jobs and projects which keep us busy between film festivals and horror cons. However, it’s great when we can also manage to slip a little monstrous fun into our daily routine.

Such is the case with good pal and filmmaker Jeff Herberger, whom I first met five years ago while shooting segments for Midnight Marquee’s Fanex Files: Hammer Films and Midnight Madness documentaries, which he directed and co-produced. Jeff’s latest project is a young adults program called The Adventures of Louanna Lee, which currently airs every Monday afternoon on Maryland’s AACT Channel 98. The engaging and entertaining show – which follows the intrigues of a teenage detective (Lee) as she solves mysteries and problems around her community – fits the bill for anyone looking for solid homegrown family fare not branded and packaged by the Mighty Mouse Machine.

But Jeff, being the fan that he is, can’t help injecting a little mad scientist serum into the goings-on.



Cast as the young sleuth’s grandfather is none other than George Stover, one of indie filmmaker Don Dohler’s repertory company members. The legendary Stover appeared in numerous Dohler creature features, all of which were shot in and around the Baltimore area, including Alien Factor, Nightbeast, Fiend and Galaxy Invader. Cult film aficionados will also recognize him from several of John Waters’ early efforts, such as Female Trouble, Desperate Living, Polyester and Hairspray. Meanwhile, Baltimore staple Leanna Chamish, the sexy and fetching star of such “classics” as Stakes, Vampire Sisters and Terror in the Pharaoh’s Tomb, is cast as Louanna’s mom.



But the fun doesn’t stop there. Recently, Herberger and his Louanna Lee crew decided to set an entire story arc around Chamish’s past relationship with a late night TV horror host. And who should they find to play said prince of darkness? None other than Count Gore Devol (aka Dick Dyszel), longtime “main-stake” of Baltimore’s Creature Feature. Dyszel, whose on-air show ran from 1973 to 1987, also lays claim to being the “First Horror Host of the Internet” and was awarded the 2010 Rondo Award for Favorite Horror Host.



While the show is ostensibly a showcase for the rising young singer/dancer/actress, the real fun – for genre fans, at least – comes from watching these savvy veterans fill their roles with a gleam in their eye and zest in their hearts. (The scenes with Chamish, Stover and the Count contain more snap-crackle-pop than your local supermarket’s cereal aisle.) Hats off to Herberger for giving them such juicy parts to sink their fangs into – looking forward to more fun in the shadows!

Fool's Views: LET'S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH (1971)

Tonight!

LET'S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH (1971)

Wednesday, January 19, 2010
6:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Claudia Cassidy Theater
Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington Street, Chicago
ADMISSION IS FREE

WildClaw's Dr. AC, Aaron Christensen, weighs in:

This brilliant low-budget psychological chiller combines elements of ghosts, vampires and zombies, yet manages to find it’s own uniquely eerie voice. Following her release from an institution, emotionally sensitive Jessica (Zohra Lampert) leaves NYC with her husband and their like-minded hippie friend to find peace and quiet working an apple orchard in Connecticut. But when they encounter a strange, beautiful squatter residing in the farmhouse, Jessica’s unstable world begins to crumble; and like our heroine, the viewer is never sure what is reality or nightmare.



Director John Hancock allows us to enter Jessica’s fragile mind through effective use of self-doubting voice-over (“Don’t tell them, they won’t believe you.”) as well as an ongoing chorus of entreating, berating, and haunting inner voices. Lampert offers a gutsy, raw, heartbreaking performance as a woman fighting fiercely for her sanity. Barton Heywood is also quite good as her husband, sincere and loving while deeply frustrated by Jessica’s deteriorating mental state. As their compatriot, Kevin O’Connor provides a warm, steadfast presence, with Mariclare Costello capturing just the right tone as the mysterious, sexy stranger that forever changes their lives.



The evocative score by Orville Stoeber and Walter Sear remains one of the best of the early '70s, augmenting Hancock’s unsettling atmosphere. The film boasts a wealth of subtle, memorable sequences, with surprises around every corner.



Rather than trying to shock or startle, Jessica insinuates on a deeper level, creating a spell that lingers without flashy effects or gore. An underrated gem, deserving of multiple viewings.

Kitley's Krypt MYSTERY PHOTO #75

Another week, another MYSTERY PHOTO!

Jon Kitley, pillar of the Chicago Horror Community and head honcho over at KITLEY'S KRYPT, wants to challenge your horror knowledge. Week in, week out, he posts a Mystery Photo - sometimes from an obscure horror title, sometimes just an unusual shot from a well-known classic. We figured our faithful Claw readers would enjoy the challenge!

Our last photo was from one of Dario Argento's finest giallo outings, 1982's TENEBRAE (aka Unsane). All spinning cameras and spraying arteries, The Italian Hitchcock brings home a winner with his tale of a horror writer (Anthony Franciosa) stalked by a killer in Italy while on a book tour. Argento’s screenplay (one of his best) elevates the film above the standard giallo whodunnit formula. Numerous virtuoso sequences, including one where the camera exits a window, tracks all the way over the roof, then enters a different window on the other side of the house. And let's not forget the dog chase.




Let's see how you fare with this week's selection:



If you provide the correct answer, your name will be announced next week on the Kitley's Krypt website (http://www.kitleyskrypt.com), along with a new photo. Even if you don't know the answer, we welcome any sorta-kinda educated guess! So, send in your emails today and good luck!

Carmilla Reviews

(Photo by John W. Sisson, Jr.)

The following are quotes, each taken from different reviews of Carmilla -
"Exciting"
"Chilling"
"Gorgeous"
"Blood Thirsty Passionate Entertainment"
"A Wicked Wonderful Wild Beast"
"Frighteningly Entertaining"

We are looking forward to some more. http://www.wildclawtheatre.com

Testuo: The Bullet Man

Tetsuo: The Bullet Man, featuring music by Trent Reznor. You know, that guy who just won a Golden Globe. That guy.

It's On!

It is so on. Carmilla opens tonight!



Sold out, even.