Categories
Art Movies

Three Corpse Circus Hits Its Stride

This year the Three Corpse Circus really hit its stride with polish and panache and easily the best crop of short horror films they’ve screened yet. The whole evening was enjoyable… for those, of course, who enjoy an evening of gore and terror. A few touches were tasteful, like the costumed vampires who handed out programs while others were simple but greatly appreciated, like projected list of films shown between each movie that reminded viewers of the title and country of origin. The evening was preceded by a zombie walk and the lobby was filled with tables for the local chapter of Zombie Squad, The Great Lakes Association of Horror Writers and the Flint Horror Convention which rounded out the sense of an actual horror community in Michigan.

The films were the stars as it should be at a film festival. I was struck by the “freshness” of the offerings since all but one were made within the last year. Those who have read my reviews of the previous festivals (year one and year two) will remember my embarrassment that so few exceptional films came from the US. I am pleased to note with a quiver of patriotism that this year the domestic product was clearly dominant. U-S-A! U-S-A!! Overall, the movies themselves were of such a generally high quality, a loud disagreement broke out among myself, Elsa and Igor when it came time to choose our favorites.


Igor particularly enjoyed the taut Spanish short “Refuge 115,” a beautifully shot tale of mysterious disappearances in a bomb shelter. The location was spot on perfect and was exceptionally well lit, a necessity since darkness in the tale seethed with malevolence.

Elsa agreed that Refuge 115 was the most consistently scary piece, but she also quite enjoyed “Saw Misgivings” a British farce that depicted the dark hilarity resulting when a housewife discovers a torture-porn head vice and gets it stuck on her head… just as company is expected for dinner. The acting was spot on and its comic timing was immaculate. It was the kind of droll comedy we expect from the British Isles.

I, however, don’t like to laugh.

I am a purist and a snob when it comes to horror and I tolerate only the lightest touch of comedy and only when it’s used to heighten the overall tension of the piece. Otherwise, I’d be extolling the obvious virtues of “Zombie Factor,” a locally produced piece about reality TV after the zombie apocalypse. Its tone perfectly captured the feel of survivor-type television with a healthy dose of the undead. The director was on-hand and answered questions during intermission and he should be justly proud of his work. It really felt like a professionally produced product. Honestly, the only thing I can say against this film is that is was funny, quite effectively so… and with horror at least I am not amused by humor.

With that prejudice in mind, let me highlight the three films that rocked my world.


“Tarnished Gluttony” (2012), a music video, told an eerie Lovecraftian tale of sacrifice. Gorgeous visuals and convincingly bloody with good, yet tasteful gore, this short piece left just enough mystery and wonder unexplained to whet my taste for more. Igor, that grouch, couldn’t get past the soundtrack.


“Familiar” (Fatal Pictures, Canada 2012), the final piece of the night, was a well-shot and perfectly acted tale of middle-aged quiet horror that spirals downward into more Cronenbergian body terror. The effects were nicely achieved and the whole tone of domestic desperation was masterfully portrayed. Damn those Canucks and their National Film Board!

But my favorite piece, the one that I would like to watch again, was the brief gem titled “Green Glass Door,” which depicted a grisly parlor game directed by a serial killer. (It can be watched in its entirety here.) Elsa, Egor and I were talking about it as we left the theatre, puzzling it out. Pay attention to the closing credits if you’re still in the dark. It was for my money the most consistently brutal piece cramming a fist full of convincing executions into its scant seven minutes. The horrific deaths were unsettling, immaculately shot but framed so as not to show too much. And if all that wasn’t enough, I discovered that “Green Glass Door” was entirely shot and edited in 48 hours as part of a Lousiville, Kentucky project. I expect great things from Antonio Pantoja.

I could keep going since there was something interesting about each of the films this year. I left eager for more but quite satisfied. I felt that last night, Three Corpse Circus really started to its promise as a rallying point for the Michigan horror community. I can hardly wait for next year.

Categories
Events Movies

Movies: “Nosferatu” (1922) with LIVE ORGAN accompaniment


The historic Michigan Theatre in downtown Ann Arbor MI, keeps one Halloween tradition I heartily endorse: their yearly showing of Murnau’s “Nosferatu” complete with a LIVE ORGAN accompaniment. This year it happens on Thursday, October 25. If you’ve never seen a silent movie with music performed on an honest to goodness theatre organ then treat yourself to this special showing. A theatre organ has the complete range of an orchestra and I should note, they are actual instruments, not digital copies. And take a look around the place too. The Michigan theatre was restored to its ancient glory a decade or so ago and its lobby is worth a gander as well. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the butter on their popcorn is actual, REAL butter.

Nosferatu remains an enduring classic, if for no other reason than how it resolves the central problem of all vampire movies, that is, how can an undead creature of the night do something as ungainly as crawl out of a coffin without looking like an awkward scramble. Lugosi’s Dracula, as I recall, resolves the problem in a different, far less cinematic way with a demure cut-away, but Nosferatu’s full-figure, effortless rise is worth the price of admission. Sure, you’ve seen it in a hundred other movies, but this is the original and for my money the best.

http://www.michtheater.org/shows/nosferatu/

If you just want to watch the movie, however, it’s up on the You-Toob:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcyzubFvBsA

Categories
Nightmares

Nightmare #320 – Bullies who Unlock the Brain

(Male, 40’s) The whole dream was creepy with people I know who are dead and who I knew were dead even in the dream. But it didn’t turn into a nightmare until the last final moments. I was in a warehouse, a showroom with crates and merchandise stacked up several stories tall. I had been with friends — even though they were dead — but suddenly I’d turned a corner and was completely alone.

Then, there were two men there, leaning against the boxes. They didn’t seem openly hostile or theatening just vaguely up to no good, like con men. One of the men was friendly. He started chatting with me. He said something about the Wicked Witch of the West, about how she had 9 shelves full of… something, but that he had 18.

I asked if that meant his shelves were half as big as hers. He laughed.

Then the other man, the silent one moved in. He held up one of his hands and made a big show of pulling on his forefinger. He removed the flesh like it was a cap. The bone protruded an inch or two… but it wasn’t a bone: it was a key, an old-fashioned key, a skeleton key, I guess. The silent man then pointed his finger-key at me and stepped forward. He pointed at my forehead like he was going to unlock my brain. Before he touched me, though I woke up.

Categories
Nightmares

Nightmare #319 – Alien Take-Over

(Female, 40’s) Aliens had taken over the planet. Like in a well-paced monster movie, they didn’t make an appearance until the 3rd act, but we knew they were out there.

Most people had been put to sleep in these sleep-unit devices that looked like metal filing cabinets — or morgue trays, now that I think about it — in their own homes. This suspended animation mode was drastic, but it was for their own safety, especially those with children.

I wasn’t asleep, so I had to slink around carefully, avoiding the aliens who were known to come out during the daytime.

I went into the home of some friends at dusk. Something like a power-surge had caused their sleep-units to open, and the mom, dad and 2 kids were standing there, confused and rubbing their eyes. I had to break the news to them: they had been sleeping for weeks, aliens were in charge, and they’d have to go back to sleep before sunrise. So they spent this night getting cleaned up and eating dinner and playing games with their kids. In the morning, I helped them seal up and go back to sleep.

I somehow made it to the apartment building where my parents live in another city. I didn’t know how to bring up the topic of aliens with my parents. I asked my mom if she had noticed anything strange going on.

“What? Like the aliens?” replied my mom. I nodded, surprised and embarrassed for some reason.

“We just don’t go outside in the day anymore. And we have to stay away from the windows so we can’t be seen. But at night, when the aliens are sleeping, it’s safe to go out. The government told us that. We go shopping and visiting our friends.”

I went to another friend’s house. Even though it was daytime, I woke them up on purpose because I was feeling lonely and I missed them. I told them about the aliens and how they would have to stay away from the windows, but they didn’t believe me. I pointed outside to the 30 foot tall, slender metallic bodies striding through the neighborhood. The aliens eyes were like red lasers shooting from their spaceship-shaped heads and blowing up things like trees and cars.

“See? You don’t want to make those creatures angry.”

Categories
Movies

Three Corpse Circus Film Festival Saturday September 29th

What better way to start off a month of Halloween celebrations than with the third annual festival of short horror films known as Three Corpse Circus? It’s earlier than past years which I consider a plus. October gets so cramped with horror events.

This year there will be two blocks of programming which seems like a good idea. Gluttons like myself reveled in the four hour marathon but I bet more casual viewers will appreciate the segments. The list of films is already posted: http://www.threecorpsecircus.com/line-up/ and as usual there looks like there will be something for everyone.

Wanna an idea of what to expect? Check our my reviews of the First Year and of the Second Year.

Categories
Movies

Troma Movies now on YouTube

Those purveyors of premium schlock, Troma, have released a whole slew of their full length movies on YouTube. Great fun. They might not be exactly fitting with our “snob” reputation here at the DailyNightmare, but Troma has a full four decade legacy of producing authentically independant films… or at least movies. Love ’em or hate ’em, that’s an impressive track record. And they’ve released films that they distribute too like “White Zombie” with Bela Lugosi, considered the first zombie movie.

http://www.youtube.com/user/Tromamovies?feature=watch