At Trailers from Hell, Edgar Wright comments on the classic horror anthology Dr. Terror's House of Horrors (1964)--starring both Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee!
The whole film takes place on a train as Dr. Schreck (aka, "terror" in German) regales his fellow passengers with horrifying tales of their destinies. I doubt ABCs of Death has an overarching narrrative that takes place on a train, but Edgar Wright's commentary on the Dr. Terror's House of Horrors is an excellent little ride to take before watching The ABCs of Death tonight!
THE ABCS OF DEATH Fri., Sept. 14th, 11:59 PM RYERSON Sat., Sept. 15th, 3:15 PM SCOTIABANK 9 Sun., Sept. 16th, 9:00 PM SCOTIABANK 9
At Trailers from Hell, writer Josh Olsen comments on another film warning us all of the dangers of groups of children, especially children in pyjamas, The Brood. It's an excellent film to warm up for the premiere of Come Out And Play tonight!
Like many other David Cronenberg films, The Brood also warns us of the dangers of reproduction. But Mr. Olsen has another take on the film--plus, a story about dining with Cronenberg. A storylet, really.
COME OUT AND PLAY screens: Thurs., Sept. 13th, 11:59 PM RYERSON Fri., Sept. 14th, 3:15 PM CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 10 Sat., Sept. 15th, 6:45 PM SCOTIABANK 11
Midnight Madness alumnus Joe Dante comments on the trailer for Children of the Damned (1963), the movie that was made immediatelly after, Village of the Damned, but was not a sequel. It was about the same problem of children with fearsome psychic powers.
While the children of Come Out And Play appear to prefer getting their hands dirty, the Damned Children prefer to supervises the destruction of adult society.
Mr. Dante has more on why he thinks Children of the Damned is undervalued re-imagining of Village of the Damned.
COME OUT AND PLAY screens: Thurs., Sept. 13th, 11:59 PM RYERSON Fri., Sept. 14th, 3:15 PM CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 10 Sat., Sept. 15th, 6:45 PM SCOTIABANK 11
Karyn Kusama is another Midnight Madness alumna who's also a Guru on Trailers From Hell. Her movie, Jennifer's Body opened Midnight Madness 2009. At Trailers From Hell, she comments on the trailer for one of my favorite eco-horror/giant animal movies, Alligator.
I like to think Ramon the Alligator is just trying to get revenge on the people who flushed him.
Frankly, I'd much rather deal with a giant alligator attacking the city from a sewer than isopods attacking from, well, within.
THE BAY screening times: Wed., Sept. 12th, 11:59 PM RYERSON Thurs., Sept. 13th, 2:45 PM CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 6
Today's Trailers From Hell video is so appropriate to this year's Midnight Madness. John Landis comments on Horror Of Party Beach and I just know there will be resonances with Barry Levinson's The Bay. Even if The Bay is East Coast and Horror Of Party Beach is West Coast.
East Coast style it's all parasitic isopods feasting on human flesh. West Coast style it's "Weird Atomic Beasts who Live off Human Blood!!!"
So pull on your swim suit and shimmy and shake to the Del-Aires while John Landis talks about schlock and fumetti, zombies and the living dead on Party Beach.
THE BAY Wed., Sept. 12th, 11:59 PM RYERSON Thurs., Sept. 13th, 2:45 PM CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 6
Director, writer and actor Eli Roth returns to Trailers From Hell to comment on the trailer for the classic 1980s horror anthology, Creepshow. which was directed by another Midnight Madness alum, George Romero. Creepshow is an excellent movie to watch in anticipation of the horror anthology playing Midnight Madness this year, The ABCs of Death.
And if just under 2 minutes was not enough Eli Roth for you, see him beat up and bloody for almost a whole feature in Afterschock!
THE ABC'S OF DEATH screening times: World Premiere: Fri., Sept. 14th, 11:59 PM RYERSON Sat., Sept. 15th, 3:15 PM SCOTIABANK 9 Sun., Sept. 16th, 9:00 PM SCOTIABANK 9
Mario Bava's Black Sunday/ Mask of the Demon is a great dark supernatural horror movie. Black Sunday stars the queen of Italian gothic horror, Barbara Steele, as a witch tortured to death who returns to take her revenge. In short, a perfect witchy, atmostpheric film to watch before The Lords of Salem rise at Midnight Madness.
And fortunately, Trailers From Hell just happens to have a commentary on it by Larry Cohen.
Writer, director and producer of such Midnight Madness favorites as It's Alive; The Stuff; Maniac Cop; Q: The Winged Serpent; Black Caesar; Hell Up In Harlem and the Masters of Horror episode, "Pick Me Up," Larry Cohen comments on the trailer for Bava's atmospheric classic.
THE LORDS OF SALEM Mon., Sept. 10th, 11:59 PM RYERSON Wed., Sept. 12th, 5:00 PM CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 6
Director Joe Dante is not only one of the fiendish master mind behind Trailers from Hell, he's also a Midnight Madness alumnus. He directed a segment in the horror anthology, Trapped Ashes, which screened at Midnight Madness 2006.
As the first among TFH gurus, Dante comments on a lot of films, but one film, he commented on twice: Mario Bava's classic giallo,Blood and Black Lace. and an excellent movie to watch in anticipation of Berberian Sound Studios, a movie that plays with giallo history and conventions.
James McNally has already covered giallo in depth at our Vanguard sister blog, so I'll just say that giallo is an Italian crime film genre that is generally more lurid than straight detective stories--and possibly more honest in its way. It often has weird or psychic phenomenon elements. And giallo influence the development of both slasher horror like John Carpenter's Halloween, sexy thrillers like Brian de Palma's Body Double and even artsy psychodramas like Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan.
It's somehow fitting that a giallo film would get two slightly different takes.
Here's Dante's most recent commentary:
And here is the original commentary, if you are curious to hear if he says anything different and to see the transfer quality for yourself.
Director Don Coscarelli talks about his love for Godzilla, King of the Monsters on Trailers From Hell, even noting that it was the first monster movie he ever saw and that it remains one of his favorite movies. That's right, the 1956 American version. You better believe it, baby.
See if you can catch the Honda Ishiro and Ifukube Akira's influences on Coscarelli's new movie, John Dies At The End at this year's Midnight Madness.
JOHN DIES AT THE END Sat., Sept. 15, 11:59pm: RYERSON Sun., Sept. 16, 5pm: CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 2
When last we had left director and producer Eli Roth, he had commented on 15 film trailers for the mighty Trailers From Hell. Eli Roth is returning to Midnight Madness this year as the star of Nicolás López Aftershock and he's returned to Trailers From Hell with a commentary on the trailer for the controversial, Goodbye, Uncle Tom an exploitation film that's not Blaxploitation of sexploitation, so much as slavesploitation. As it's described at Trailers From Hell:
Those Mondo Cane guys are back with an astoundingly non-P.C. farrago purporting to expose the history of black subjugation in pre-Civil War America. Gorgeously mounted but stunningly exploitative, it was rated X when first released in the States in a considerably reworked version. NSFW.
Follow the link if you're curious to see the original trailer and Roth's commentary. If not, enjoy this thoughtful and worksafe commentary on the trailer for The Birds.
Midnight Madness alumni Eli Roth might well be the most prolific commentator on the Trailers from Hell website. He's commented on 15 film trailers.
And because Roth's Cabin Fever and Hostel in 2004 both played Midnight Madness (2002 and 2004, respectively), it'd be easy to think that he only covers horror. But, instead, Roth covers a helluva a lot of genre ground.
From the Ramones and Rock'n'Roll High School
to the science fiction classic, Forbidden Planet
and a defense of Exorcist II
To Star Crash, the Italian "version" of Star Wars, starring Christopher Plummer.
Rolling Thunder
The giallo film, The House with the Laughing Windows
Previously on Midnight Madness at Trailers from Hell, we looked at MM alumni Stuart Gordon's contributions to Trailers From Hell, a site dedicated to the proposition that any movie can be great in 2 1/2 minutes. Now it's Don Coscarelli's turn.
Midnight Madness alumni Coscarelli is responsible for one of my most cherished memories: seeing Bubba Ho-Tep on the legendary Uptown Theatre's big screen, with Coscarelli, Bruce Campbell and a Madness crowd in attendance in 2002.
At Trailers from Hell, Coscarelli comments on four trailers. The first is Elvis' finest movie, King Creole, directed by Micheal Curtiz (Casablanca) featuring Walter Matthau as a rotten to the core club owner.
Coscarelli also discusses Sydney Pollack's Three Days of the Condor starring Robert Redford, Ishiro Honda's Godzilla and the evil hand classic, The Beast With Five Fingers, starring Peter Lorre. You can see them all at the Trailers from Hell website.
