Quote of the Day

"I definitely want Brooklyn to be christened, but I don't know into what religion yet."
 -David Beckham-

Scream 4 Trailer

The Scream 4 Trailer was just shown at at the Scream Awards 2010.  I am a fan of the first three scream films but am a little skeptical about this one.  The trailer is not all that exciting either.  What do you think?!?

Korean boy singing Mariah's "Hero"

October Horror Movie of the Day #17 - Scream 2

 

The Film: Scream 2

The Director: Wes Craven

The Cast: Neve Campbell, Liev Schreiber, David Arquette, Courtney Cox

Release Date: December 12, 1997.

Wes Craven's Scream is undoubtedly one of the most influential horror films for my generation, but I've always had a real soft spot for the first sequel to that film.  What could have been called "Scream: The College Year" lacks some of the novelty of its predecessor, but some interesting character moves make up for that in my mind.

Most notable is my hero, Liev Schreiber.  Despite what you know, the dude is totally the best actor ever who's not named Kurt Russell.  As the opportunistic Cotton Weary, Schreiber is awesomely snarky and all kinds of awesome.  Add in the also-mega-awesome Timothy Olyphant, the always cheesy Jerry O'Connell, and the cuteness of late 90s Sarah Michelle Gellar, and you've got a movie that wins The Mike's heart.  Is it better than the first?  Nope.  But it's AWESOMER!

(Apologies to the gorgeous Rose McGowan, who did her best to keep the original in contention.)

October Horror Movie of the Day #16 - Dawn of the Dead

The Film: Dawn of the Dead
The Director: George A. Romero
The Cast: David Emge, Ken Foree, Scott H. Reiniger, Gaylen Ross
Release Date: September 2, 1978

Few horror films are as large in scale as George Romero's sequel.  Though it's relatively minimal in setting - after a brief set-up the whole movie takes place in the now famous Monroeville Mall - Dawn of the Dead seems to have as wide a view of the human condition as any horror film.  Like Romero's other zombie films, the human reactions to a zombie outbreak is the primary focus.  The zombies are just the force that sets their story in motion.

While Romero has come back the zombie game a whopping six times now (and while I still slightly prefer the simple nightmare that is Night of the Living Dead), he's never had as much control over his film as he does in Dawn.  The result is an intelligent and moving film that survives a few too many montages of the characters' new lives in the mall (at over 130 minutes, it's one of the few horror epics).  Don't let me fool you - there's a ton of gore, especially in the final act - but that's not why I love Dawn.  This is social commentary in horror at its finest.