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The cinematic influence of legendary B-movie producer and director Roger Corman cannot be overstated. The original "King of Cult" was a shrewd and thrifty operator who identified a gap in the market during the 1950s, namely among a young demographic of movie-goers who wanted cheap thrills when they went to their local fleapit or drive-in theater. And he gave them what they wanted in abundance, producing over 300 pictures and directing around 50 himself, often low-budget flicks full of sex, violence, rocket ships, monsters, hot rods, and plenty of rebellious attitude. The other side of Corman was a mogul of good taste, who distributed three Best Foreign Language Oscar-winners and brought the likes of Akira Kurosawa, Federico Fellini, and Ingmar Bergman to wider U.S. audiences. Not only that, his films served as a launchpad for many future directors and actors such as Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Jonathan Demme, Robert De Niro,...

I Will Never Leave You Alone

Stars: Ken Trujillo, Katerina Eichenberger, Emma Anne Wedemeyer, Chris Genovese | Directed by D.W. Medoff

I Will Never Leave You Alone, directed by D.W. Medoff, is a haunting and emotionally intense horror film that premiered at this year’s FrightFest. The film centres on Richard, portrayed by Kenneth Trujillo, an ex-convict haunted by his dark past. Upon his release from prison, Richard is forced to stay in a haunted house for six days as part of an unusual arrangement; if he leaves, he will be sent back to prison. As he endures the horrors within, both supernatural and personal, Richard’s past trauma resurfaces, creating a chilling and deeply unsettling atmosphere.

The film is held together by Trujillo’s performance, and his fantastic ability to convey a wide range of emotions through silence and subtle expressions, which adds depth to the character and makes his suffering palpable.

It’s time for a new episode of the Awfully Good Horror Movies video series, and in this one we’re looking back at a personal favorite of mine. A movie that I feel fits the description of “awfully good” perfectly. That movie is the 1987 release Slumber Party Massacre II (watch it Here), and you can hear all about it by checking out the video embedded above!

Written and directed by Deborah Brock, Slumber Party Massacre II has the following synopsis: The only sane survivor of Slumber Party Massacre, Courtney dreams of the drill murderer returning. She can’t shake the horrible feeling that she and her friends will be viciously tormented and brutally butchered. Again and again the nightmare returns. Dazed, Courtney loses control. And her nightmare crosses into reality. No one believes her, until it’s too late. The driller killer returns, reincarnated as an evil rocker. He...

As was first reported by Variety, the Emmy-nominated director, producer, and writer, Catherine Cyran, passed away at the age of 59 on December 24, 2022, another tragic loss too soon from cancer.

Cyran's name may not be easily recognizable, but her legacy will live on in a varied career spanning multiple mediums and genres. After graduating from Harvard and working for the Royal Shakespeare Company for two years, Cyran got her start in the world of cinema under the tutelage of legendary B-movie producer Roger Corman, having gotten her start as an executive assistant. She would later go on to produce and write the screenplay for "Slumber Party Massacre III," "Dead Space" starring Bryan Cranston, "Uncaged" starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, "Fire on the Amazon" with Sandra Bullock, the Independent Spirit Award-nominated "Kiss Me A Killer," and ghost-wrote "Frankenstein Unbound," Corman's last feature as a director.

Cyran's career path led her to develop the...

Scream Factory has announced that they will be giving the 1982 slasher classic The Slumber Party Massacre (watch it Here) and its bonkers 1987 sequel Slumber Party Massacre II (watch that one Here) – which I enjoy even more than the first movie – a double feature 4K Uhd release on February 21st. And copies are already available for pre-order at This Link!

Directed by Amy Holden Jones from a screenplay by Rita Mae Brown, The Slumber Party Massacre has the following synopsis: When Trish decides to invite her high school girls’ basketball teammates over for a slumber party, she has no idea the night is going to end with an unexpected guest – an escaped mental patient and his portable power drill – crashing the party.

The film stars Michele Michaels, Robin Stille, Michael Villella, Debra Deliso, Andree Honore, Gina Mari, Jennifer Meyers, Pamela Roylance, and Brinke Stevens.

Written and directed by Deborah Brock, Slumber...

Horror fans have been shelling out a pretty penny to get the out of print Blu-ray set these last several years, and today we’ve learned that Scream Factory is now giving a 4K Uhd upgrade to their The Slumber Party Massacre and Slumber Party Massacre II double feature set.

The 3-disc 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray set will be available on February 21, 2023.

Bonus Features include…

The Slumber Party Massacre (1982)

New 4K Scan Of The Original Camera Negative 2.0 Mono DTS-hd Master Audio Audio Commentary With Director Amy Holden And Actors Michel Villella And Debra De Liso Sleepless Nights: The Making Of The Slumber Party Massacre Interview With Actor Riggs Kennedy Alternate Title Sequence Theatrical Trailer K. Teaser Trailer Still Gallery

The Slumber Party Massacre II (1987)

New 4K Scan Of The Original Camera Negative 2.0 Stereo DTS-hd Master Audio Audio Commentary With Writer/Director/Producer Deborah Brock, Producer Don Daniel And Story Editor...

What’s the sign of a good horror sequel? Is it adherence to the things that made the original work? Is it branching off in a new direction while still paying respect? Or is it having a rockabilly-quoting Greaser (big G) with a drill attached to the end of his guitar killing every pastel wearing teen in his wake? The answer is possibly all three, but today we’ll focus on the last one with Slumber Party Massacre II (1987), Deborah Brock’s ridiculously fun (and delightfully odd) follow up to Amy Holden Jones’ cult classic.

Released by Roger Corman’s then imprint Concorde Pictures in March followed by a video release in September, Spm II is essentially an updated Beach Blanket Bingo movie dipped in A Nightmare on Elm Street and rolled around in sprinkles of Saved by the Bell. You know same old, same old.

Remember little Courtney from the original film?...

Nearly three years after releasing the original Slumber Party Massacre as a special edition Blu-ray, Scream Factory has finally put a double feature disc of its two sequels: 1987’s Slumber Party Massacre II and 1990’s Slumber Party Massacre III. It’s something of a good news/bad news situation.

The good news is that Slumber Party Massacre II is really crazy and really fun. The bad news is that part 3 is not. Picking up the subversive campiness of where Amy Holden Jones’ original left off, Slumber Party Massacre II writer/director Deborah Brock dials up the weirdness and adds an abstract, hallucinatory bent to the first sequel. It’s bigger and stranger, more colorful and experimental; I’m reminded of the leap from Prom Night to Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II, except that the original Slumber Party Massacre is a better movie than Prom Night.

Crystal Bernard (TV’s Wings) plays Courtney,...

Scream Factory invites horror fans to ominous overnights with their new double feature Blu-ray release of Slumber Party Massacre II and Slumber Party Massacre III, and we've been provided with three Blu-ray copies to give away to lucky Daily Dead readers.

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Prize Details: (3) Winners will receive (1) Blu-ray copy of the Slumber Party Massacre II / Slumber Party Massacre III double feature.

How to Enter: For a chance to win, email contest@dailydead.com with the subject “Slumber Party Massacre Double Feature Contest”. Be sure to include your name and mailing address.

Entry Details: The contest will end at 12:01am Est on January 23rd. This contest is only open to those who are eighteen years of age or older that live in the United States. Only one entry per household will be accepted.

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Slumber Party Massacre II and Slumber Party Massacre III Double Feature Blu-ray: "Get ready for a killer,...

Heat up a bowl of popcorn, fluff up some pillows, and grab a comfy seat for clips and trailers from Scream Factory's double feature Blu-ray of the Slumber Party sequels, drilling into shelves on January 17th.

Slumber Party Massacre II and Slumber Party Massacre III Double Feature Blu-ray: "Get ready for a killer, driller double thriller!

Slumber Party Massacre II

The only sane survivor of Slumber Party Massacre, Courtney (Crystal Bernard) dreams of the drill murderer returning. She can't shake the horrible feeling that she and her friends will be viciously tormented and brutally butchered. Again and again the nightmare returns. Dazed, Courtney loses control. And her nightmare crosses into reality. No one believes her, until it's too late. The driller killer returns, reincarnated as an evil rocker. He methodically stalks them; then violently gores them to death...one by one.

Slumber Party Massacre III

Seven California co-eds are dresses to kill.

Heat up a bowl of popcorn, fluff up some pillows, and find a spot on the floor with a good view of the TV screen, because Scream Factory has revealed the full list of bonus features for their anticipated double feature Blu-ray release of Slumber Party Massacre II and III.

From Scream Factory: "Terror drills its way January 17th on our double feature Blu-ray release! Read on for the final list of extras:

Slumber Party Massacre II

• Original 76 minute R-Rated Version (HD) and Extended 85 minute Unrated Cut (Standard Definition)

• Audio Commentary with writer/director/producer Deborah Brock, producer Don Daniel and story editor Beverly Gray

• Sleepless Nights: Revisiting the Slumber Party Massacres – a three-part documentary

• Theatrical Trailer and Video Trailer

• Still Gallery

Slumber Party Massacre III

• Original 75 minute R-Rated Version (HD) and Extended 87 minute Unrated Cut (HD with standard definition inserts)

• Audio Commentary with director Sally Mattison, actress Hope Marie Carlton,...

By Jonathan Weichsel

MoreHorror.com

On February 27th Dark Delicacies and Etheria Film Night joined forces for Women in Horror Month to raise money for Reel Grrls and Celeste Yarnell through a charity signing.

In attendance to sign posters and merchandise were Deborah Brock, Rae Dawn Chong, Jackie Kong, Rena Riffel, Jace Anderson, Kristina Klebe, Jennifer Blanc-Biehn, Anna Biller, Esther Goodstein, Jane Clark, Guinevere Turner, and Celeste Yarnell.

Reel Grrls is a nonprofit that "empowers young women from diverse communities to realize their power, talent, and influence through media production." You can learn more about Reel Grrls at their website.

Celeste Yarnell is a legendary actress and scream queen with over fifty years of experience in front of the camera. Some of her most popular roles include Beast of Blood , The Velvet Vampire, and the original Star Trek series. Yarnell is currently battling stage three ovarian cancer, which is not covered by her health insurance.

Today's spotlight falls on a belated sequel to the early slasher film The Slumber Party Massacre. The 1982 original is a lower-profile affair, but does have its share of fans, and is one of very few entries the slasher field to be directed by a woman (Amy Holden Jones), which is noteworthy for a genre often accused of misogynistic tendencies. Based on a screenplay by feminist author Rita Mae Brown, the film was originally intended to parody the slasher formula, playing with the idea of the murder weapon as a phallic object – very phallic, in fact, as the killer opted for an extremely large power drill – but most of the satire was removed by the producers. The drill whirs to life again in this 1987 follow-up, produced by genre icon Roger Corman and once again helmed by a female director (Deborah Brock). For this outing, the producers were obviously more influenced by...

The Flicks:

Slumber Party Massacre (1982)

In the glorious ’80s the slasher killers were the kings of the silver screen. Buxom young starlets were getting hacked up by the dozens. Usually the flicks were helmed by men, but The Slumber Party Massacre trilogy was led by three talented ladies with very different styles, and each of them brought something unique to the horror genre.

Amy Jones directed the The Slumber Party Massacre, which held its own agains other films in this popular genre. Looking back at this classic horror flick put a smile on my face, and made me realize why I loved the ’80s so much. Jones created an atmospheric thriller that follows many of the staples of its predecessors (Halloween, Friday the 13th), but made the villain a psychopathic driller killer with a penchant for nubile young ladies.

The characters are solid and the scares are genuine. In my opinion The Slumber Party Massacre,...

Let’s go back to the 1980′s. Ronald Reagan was president. Our economy was in the shitter. AIDS was making news as a real threat to society. And the slasher film was making tons of money in the box office and at home with a new fangled contraption called a VHS player. Halloween. Friday the 13th. Nightmare on Elm Street. Those are but a few names that get thrown around when people speak about the slasher genre. But one series that tends to get forgotten or mixed up in the mess is The Slumber Party Massacre Trilogy. And that’s a sad fact, considering these films are loved by many horror fans and thanks to Shout! Factory, they are newly remastered and available for the world to buy now. But do they still match up to their brethren in the genre?

In 1982, Roger Corman wanted to cash in on the slasher craze,...

Next Tuesday Shout! Factory unleashes yet another winning package that we never thought we'd see. That's right, kids. The Slumber Party Massacre collection is heading our way, and we have a look at it for you!

From the Press Release:

Stay up all night with the films that put a new twist on the slasher genre. Along with Halloween (1978), Friday the 13th (1980) and Prom Night (1980), Slumber Party Massacre (1982) helped define the slasher film ethos of the 1980s. Put together by first-time director Amy Holden from a script, titled “Don’t Open the Door," by feminist author Rita Mae Brown (Rubyfruit Jungle), the film was an immediate hit for Roger Corman's New World Pictures, eventually spawning two sequels.

Here, for the first time, all three Slumber Party Massacres are brought together in one DVD set, due to drill its way into your heart on October 5, 2010 from Shout! Factory, in association with New Horizons Picture Corporation.

The Slumber Party Massacre films, all three directed by women, will now finally be available on re-release with killer bonus features. You can also get a cool Spm pillow case, too!

Don’t Open the Door was a script written by feminist author Rita Mae Brown (she wrote Rubyfruit Jungle, which appears in Tish's bedroom in the first film) as a response to the recent slasher films that created modern slasher stereotypes like Halloween (1978), and parodied the obvious cliches by setting a slumber party in the path of a deranged lunatic killer wielding a phallic electric drill. Roger Corman, who gave many women horror directors their first shot, allowed first-time director Amy Holden to have a go at it. The film was an immediate hit for Roger Corman's New World Pictures, eventually spawning two sequels that were subsequently more ridiculous. It also spawned the career of actress Brinke Stevens,...

October 5th is looking so sweet! In what's going to be a banner day for Roger Corman fans, Shout! Factory (god bless its soul) is releasing several of Corman's craziest titles as part of its stellar Cult Classics Collection, and we've got all the details!

From the Press Release:

Stay up all night with the films that put a new twist on the slasher genre. Along with Halloween (1978), Friday the 13th(1980) and Prom Night (1980), Slumber Party Massacre (1982) helped define the slasher film ethos of the 1980s. Put together by first-time director Amy Holden from a script, titled “Don’t Open the Door," by feminist author Rita Mae Brown (Rubyfruit Jungle), the film was an immediate hit for Roger Corman's New World Pictures, eventually spawning two sequels.

Here, for the first time, all three Slumber Party Massacres are brought together in one DVD set, due to drill its way into...

Talk about a perfect story to follow up our "death of video rental stores" article below. The Slumber Party Massacre was a VHS box that this Bidite glanced at more than a few times as a youngster walking the rental isles praying for legal age to come. According to the guys at the Shout Factory we are getting all 3 movies in one collectible set...

Below is the description per the Shout Factory where you can place your order.

All three films in one Complete Collection for the first time! This 2-disc Special Edition features new DVD extras including an in-depth, 3-part Documentary revisiting all films.

The ultimate driller-killer-thrillers are back!! In the terrifying original Slumber Party Massacre, a high school girl’s basketball team is stalked by an escaped mental patient with a portable drill. In Part 2, the killer returns this time as a physical manifestation of a young girl’s nightmares,...