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With a title that translates as Neighbourhood of Ill Repute, and featuring a bisexual love triangle, the 1971 film wowed festivals – before disappearing without trace. Now it’s been rediscovered – by accident

Nobody used the phrase “having a moment” back in 1971. Had they done, it could have been applied without contradiction to developments in queer cinema. It was four years after the Sexual Offences Act 1967 had partially decriminalised sex between consenting men over 21 in England and Wales, and two years after the Stonewall uprising in New York City. Queer desire was everywhere: in Sunday Bloody Sunday, Death in Venice, Pink Narcissus, the trans classic Women in Revolt, the lesbian horror Daughters of Darkness, the gay porn landmark Boys in the Sand and Rosa von Praunheim’s droll and provocative It Is Not the Homosexual Who is Perverse, But the Society in Which He Lives. Fassbinder, who could cough out movies in his sleep,...

Ghosts are ubiquitous and zombies have had their moments of dominance, but of all the classic horror monsters, vampires have the strongest claim for the greatest film legacy. The vampire genre is nearly as old as cinema itself, with F.W. Murnau’s “Nosferatu” scaring up audiences in 1922, followed by the countless iterations that came in its shadow. Every era and every filmmaking country has since taken up its own spins on the myth of the vampire, from Universal Studios’ “Dracula” series beginning with Tod Browning’s Bram Stoker adaptation in 1931, all the way up to Iranian-American director Ana Lily Amirpour’s indie feminist twist “A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night” in 2014.

2024 has not exactly been a banner time for brilliant takes on the horror genre’s most iconic creatures of the night, with the most notable bloodsucking project to come out this calendar year being the fun but ultra-silly “Abigail.

“Love is stronger than death… even than life.”

Twenty-five years before Bram Stoker revolutionized the world of horror with his iconic novel Dracula, another sensual vampire was drifting into the moonlit bedchambers of society’s upper crust. First appearing in a 1871 edition of the literary magazine The Dark Blue, Carmilla, a.k.a. Mircalla, Countess Karnstein, preys upon unsuspecting young women in the crumbling castles of the Austrian countryside. Despite never gaining the ubiquity of Stoker’s dark antagonist, Sheridan Le Fanu’s gothic novella Carmilla is one of the world’s first examples of vampiric literature and helped to establish the archetype of the lesbian vampire. Belgian director Harry Kümel combines this foundational text with the true story of Hungarian serial killer Elizabeth Báthory to create another sinister seductress in his 1971 erotic horror film Daughters of Darkness.

Newlyweds Stefan (John Karlen) and Valerie (Danielle Ouimet) are still enjoying the...

NYC Weekend Watch is our weekly round-up of repertory offerings.

Lincoln Center

A restoration of Jacques Rivette’s long-rare L’amour fou is now playing.

Anthology Film Archives

Work by John Carpenter, Stuart Gordon, and more play in a series of films inspired by H.P. Lovecraft.

IFC Center

An extensive William Friedkin series is now underway, while Friday the 13th: Part VI and The Garbage Pail Kids Movie play late.

Bam

The first U.S. retrospective of Afro-French filmmaker Julius-Amédée Laou has begun.

Museum of Modern Art

A series on pre-revolution Iranian cinema is underway.

Roxy Cinema

Prints of Little Man and White Chicks screen as part of a Wayans brothers retrospective; horror features The Wolf Knife and Daughters of Darkness show on 35mm.

Museum of the Moving Image

Reverse Shot celebrates its 20th anniversary with a months-long programming run, continuing this weekend with Inside Llewyn Davis and a 35mm...

Clockwise from top left: Bram Stoker’s Dracula (Sony), Dracula (Universal), Only Lovers Left Alive (Sony), The Hunger (MGM/UA), Nosferatu The Vampyre (Shout Factory), Nosferatu (Kino Lorber) Graphic: AVClub

The vampire is cinema’s favorite monster. Ever since Nosferatu more than a century ago, bloodsuckers of every conceivable persuasion...

No two ways about it: April’s a great month for the Criterion Channel, which (among other things; more in a second) adds two recent favorites. We’re thrilled at the SVOD premiere of Hamaguchi’s entrancing Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy, our #3 of 2021, and Bruno Dumont’s lacerating France, featuring Léa Seydoux’s finest performance yet.

Ethan Hawke’s Adventures in Moviegoing runs the gamut from Eagle Pennell’s Last Night at the Alamo to 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, while a 14-film John Ford retro (mostly) skips westerns altogether. And no notes on the Delphine Seyrig retro—multiple by Akerman, Ulrike Ottinger, Duras, a smattering of Buñuel, and Seyrig’s own film Be Pretty and Shut Up! That of all things might be the crown jewl.

See the full list of April titles below and more on the Criterion Channel.

—

3 Bad Men, John Ford, 1926

Aar paar, Guru Dutt,...

Welcome back, dear readers! For today’s Holiday Gift Guide installment, I’m shining the spotlight on some amazing horror-inspired artwork that you can currently find online. Artwork makes for a great gift any time of the year, but especially during the holidays, so check out some of the killer art selections that were created by so many amazing artists below, and consider supporting the arts in your own horror-fied way!

Cheers!

Mondo:

"Possessor" by Akiko Stehrenberger

"The Omen" by Mark McCoy

“A Quiet Place” by Tomer Hanuka

“The Babadook” by Greg Ruth

Hero Complex Gallery:

You can currently save 20% off everything on Hero Complex Gallery’s site, just use the code Kevin! at checkout to receive your discount.

“Phone Home” by Barret Chapman

“The Real Ghostbusters” by Mainger

“Greetings, Starfighter” by Casey Callender

“You’Re Goin’ Down” by Sam Mayle

“Repo Man” by Rheem Davis

“This Shark, Swallow...

In “The Time of Indifference,” Italian filmmaker Leonardo Guerra Seràgnoli adapts the 1929 novel by renowned author Alberto Moravia about a once wealthy family in decline but unable to give up the pretenses of appearance.

Transposed to modern-day Rome, the film retains the novel’s timeless story of a hapless widow whose devious and manipulative lover comes between her and her two increasingly wary children.

For Seràgnoli, the film was a return to the work of a writer he first read in high school. “I think since then Moravia has been with me throughout my life.”

Indeed, in his first film, “Last Summer,” Seràgnoli borrowed elements of Moravia’s 1945 novel “Agostino,” about a 13-year-old boy spending the summer at a seaside resort with his beautiful widowed mother. The film caught the attention of Carmen Llera, the late author’s wife. “She really loved my first film. She contacted me and said,...

With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options—not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves–each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit platforms. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.

Happiest Season (Clea DuVall)

Happiest Season, Hollywood’s first major lesbian Christmas rom-com, has everything you’d expect from a Christmas movie: snow; sweaters; mismatched family members coming together under one roof; characters saying they hate Christmas and then succumbing to holiday cheer; conflict; satisfying resolution. Director and co-writer Clea DuVall embraces cliches, but filtering them through a lesbian perspective allows old tropes to gain new context. Family dysfunction carries extra weight when viewed through the lens of heteronormativity. The happy couple’s falling-out hits deeper because it’s wrought with the anxiety of coming out. Their fairytale ending feels all the more precious because it’s hard won,...

Finally, a horror shocker that needs to make no excuses! Harry Kümel’s interpretation of the Elizabeth Báthory legend excels in all departments and succeeds in each of its aims. Erotic Eurohorror meets Sternbergian visual decadence, making a vivid (and bloody) statement about classic screen exoticism. Given the full glamour treatment, silky Delphine Seyrig is striking as the deceptively congenial vampire queen. It’s a rare throwback to the beginnings of erotic Eurohorror — sex and death, together again! Blue Underground takes the leap to 4K Ultra HD and stacks the extras with key interview content, and a soundtrack CD.

Daughters of Darkness

Ultra-hd + Blu-ray + CD

Blue Underground

1971 / Color / 1:66 widescreen / 100 min. / Le Rouge aux Lèvres, Les Lèvres Rouges Street Date October 27, 2020 / 59.95

Starring: Delphine Seyrig, John Karlen, Danielle Ouimet, Andrea Rau, Paul Esser.

Cinematography: Eduard van der Enden

Film Editors: Denis Bonan, Gust Verschueren

Original Music: François de Roubaix

Written by Pierre Drouot,...

With Halloween approaching quickly, we have one final round of home media releases headed our way this week in case you’re looking to pick up some last-minute films to check out this spooky season. Blue Underground is releasing Daughters of Darkness in 4K this Tuesday, and Severin Films is keeping busy with an array of titles, including The Black Cat, Patrick Still Lives, and Shock Treatment.

Vinegar Syndrome also has quite the lineup of films coming home this week, including Grave Robbers, Memorial Valley Massacre, Zombie 5: Killing Birds, and several Amityville sequels. Arrow Video is also showing some love to both Cold Light of Day and The Last Starfighter, and if you’re a big fan of The Monster Squad, you’ll definitely want to check out the Wolfman’s Got Nards documentary.

Other releases for October 27th include Scary Tales, Spine Chiller, Weedjies: Halloweed Night, Attack of the Unknown,...

Daughters Of Darkness 50th Anniversary 4K restoration on 3-Disc Limited Edition 4K Uhd Blu-ray and DVD on October 27th Limited Collector’s Edition includes 4K Uhd Blu-ray, Blu-ray, Soundtrack CD, collectable booklet, reversible sleeve, and 3D lenticular slipcover (First Pressing) Blu-ray features 1080p HD Resolution and DTS-hd Master Audio Uhd features 2160p Ultra HD Resolution and Dolby …

The post Blue Underground’s “Daughters Of Darkness” on 4K Uhd 10/27 appeared first on Horror News | Hnn.

“Love is stronger than death… even than life.”

Limited Collector’s Edition of Daughters Of Darkness includes 4K Uhd Blu-ray, Blu-ray, Soundtrack CD, collectable booklet, reversible sleeve, and 3D lenticular slipcover (First Pressing). Blu-ray features 1080p HD Resolution and DTS-hd Master Audio Uhd features 2160p Ultra HD Resolution and Dolby Vision Hdr, with Dolby Atmos and DTS-hd Master Audio. Check out this trailer for the restoration:

International screen icon Delphine Seyrig (Last Year At Marienbad) stars as Elizabeth Bathory, an ageless Countess with a beautiful young ‘companion’ (Goth goddess Andrea Rau) and a legendary legacy of perversion. But when the two women seduce a troubled newlywed couple (Canadian beauty Danielle Ouimet and John Karlen of Dark Shadows and Cagney & Lacey), they unleash a frenzy of sudden violence and depraved desire that shocked both art house audiences and grindhouse crowds worldwide.

Co-written and directed by Harry Kümel, Daughters Of Darkness remains...

It’s a great time to be a horror fan. Not only are Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and Shudder awash with all kinds of horror movies old and new, but the Criterion Channel is getting in on the gruesome action with a month’s worth of horror titles from the 1970s.

The subscription service is the digital offshoot of the Criterion Collection, which for more than 35 years has been providing definitive archival home video versions of classic and contemporary films from around the world. Criterion launched its streaming service last year as a way to offer a curated cross-section of its library of films online.

Horror has always had a respectful home at Criterion, with the company publishing definitive editions of a number of the genre’s landmark films. The October rollout of horror movies for the Halloween season is similar to what other companies are doing, but the focus is the difference here.

August’s home media offerings are wrapping up in a big way this week, and I hope you’ve got your wallets ready because there are a ton of releases that genre fans are going to want to add to their collections. Fulci fans should be excited for the arrival of both The House by the Cemetery and The New York Ripper in 4K, courtesy of Blue Underground, and Severin is having their own Fulci fiesta this week, too, with their releases of Aenigma, Demonia as well as the recent documentary Fulci for Fake.

Scream Factory also has a killer lineup of titles headed home on Tuesday, including the Collector’s Edition of Tales from the Darkside: The Movie and the Universal Horror Collection: Volume 6.

Other Blu-ray and DVD releases for August 25th include Dead Pit, The Beast Must Die, The Last Victim, Live Feed, Gemini, Hallucinations, and Alien Scum.

The new film from the director of Children of the Night is a teen drama with touches of horror shot in Alto Adige, produced by Warner Bros. Entertainment Italia and Vivo Film. Andrea De Sica is filming a new teen drama. Following his feature debut Children of the Night and having directed the Netflix series Baby (whose third season is expected online in September), the 38-year-old director, grandson of the great Vittorio De Sica, returns to set for Non mi uccidere, a film produced by Warner Bros. Entertainment Italia and Vivo Film (Marta Donzelli and Gregorio Paonessa) and which has begun filming in Alto Adige. Written by Gianni Romoli, the collective Grams and De Sica himself, and freely inspired by Chiara Palazzolo’s novel of the same name, Non mi uccidere is an intense love story with touches of horror: Mirta loves Robin like crazy, and he promises to love her.

“Cockeyed philosophies of life, ugly sex situations, cheap jokes, and dirty dialogue are not wanted. Decent people don’t like this sort of stuff, and it is our job to see to it that they get none of it.” The words of American film censor Joseph Breen reverberated through Hollywood, changing the cinematic landscape for decades. Established in 1934, the Motion Picture Production Code (or Hays Code) enforced by Breen was given the power to approve films prior to release. They created strict guidelines as to what they considered moral and immoral behavior. Chief among the code’s list of “Don’ts” and “Be Carefuls,” and henceforth banned in films, was “any inference of sex perversion.” In Horror Film: An Introduction, author Rick Worland remarks that “Hollywood has a long history of equating homosexuality with criminality, perversion, and morose self-destruction.” However, Hollywood’s new standards did not achieve what they set out to do.

Italian movies are taking a sharper turn towards genre storytelling, though classic auteur titles remain a strong component of the country’s cinematic output. Below is a compendium of standout cinema Italiano projects in various stages.

“Non Mi Uccidere” (“Don’t Kill Me”) Young director Andrea De Sica, who helmed the bulk of teen series “Baby” for Netflix, is set to shoot a horror film geared towards the same youth demographic as the show. It’s based on a bestselling Gothic novel about a 19-year-old named Mirta who, with her older lover, Robin, dies of a drug overdose. She then reanimates alone to find out that in order to continue living, and cherishing the memory of Robin’s love, she must eat living humans. Shooting is expected to start soon. Cast is being contractualized. Pic is the director’s sophomore feature after “Children of the Night,” a coming-of-age story set...

In addition to their 4K Ultra HD releases of movies such as Lucio Fulci's Zombie and William Lustig's Maniac, Blue Underground has announced that they're bringing Harry Kümel's 1971 vampire film Daughters of Darkness to 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray this year as well.

Special features and a specific release date have yet to be announced for the 4K Ultra HD release of Daughters of Darkness, but according to Blue Underground's Twitter account and Blu-ray.com, it is slated for a fall release.

You can view the official cover art (via Twitter) and synopsis (via Blu-ray.com) below, and stay tuned to Daily Dead for more updates.

Synopsis: " International screen icon Delphine Seyrig (Last Year at Marienbad) stars as Elizabeth Bathory, an ageless Countess with a beautiful young "companion" (Goth goddess Andrea Rau) and a legendary legacy of perversion. But when the two women seduce a troubled newlywed couple...

Trace Thurman and Joe Lipsett might not have initially set out to make such a big mark on the horror podcast landscape, but they’ve done it anyway. Started in January 2019, Horror Queers is the spinoff podcast to their Bloody Disgusting horror column of the same name. Each week, Joe and Trace deep dive into different horror-related films through their unique queer lens, often sifting through coded gay characters, homoerotic innuendo, or outright queerness.

Not only have they covered major franchise films like Scream, It, and Final Destination, but they also particularly specialize in covering lesser-known films like Ginger Snaps, Tragedy Girls, Phantom of the Paradise, Daughters of Darkness, and Swimfan. A cornerstone of Horror Queers’ objective is to broaden a horror fans’ palette, exposing them to different facets of horror they might have previously written off.

If they do cover a franchise film, it’s not the usual Friday The 13th,...

Three of these works hail from Italy, including Andrea De Sica and Alessandro Genovesi’s new films, two from Germany, one from France and one by way of Sweden. Andrea De Sica’s horror-fantasy Non mi uccidere, Alessandro Genovesi’s new Christmas comedy Dieci giorni con Babbo Natale and the German-Austrian crime-thriller TV series Il pastore are among the 7 new projects supported by the Idm Film Fund & Commission during the first round of 2020 funding, for which 72 days of filming, in total, are envisaged in the Alto Adige region. Six projects will receive funds in the production phase. Non mi uccidere, described as a love story transposed into a horror-fantasy universe, marks Andrea De Sica’s return to the Alto Adige where he shot his first work Children of the Night. Produced by Vivo Film via Marta Donzelli and Gregorio Paonessa, this new project will also, in all likelihood, involve Warner.

Mirror, mirror, on the fritz. The last few weeks on the Horror Queers Podcast have resulted in plenty of great discussions and hilarious shenanigans. We’ve considered cannibalism as a metaphor for homosexuality in Ravenous, drooled over Delphine Seyrig’s fierce queer vampire in Daughters of Darkness and been baffled by the sheer ineptitude of the slasher musical Stage Fright. In the newest episode, Joe […]...

Sing your heart out. The last few weeks on the Horror Queers Podcast have resulted in plenty of great discussions and hilarious shenanigans. We’ve questioned the problematic cross-dressing virgin-killer in Cherry Falls, considered cannibalism as a metaphor for homosexuality in Ravenous and drooled over Delphine Seyrig’s fierce queer vampire in Daughters of Darkness. Related: The Horror Queers and The Halloweenies Discuss ‘A […]...

Belgian director Harry Kumel’s most accessible film is a measured, erotic Euro horror about “The Blood Countess” Elizabeth Bathory, a Hungarian serial killer who legendarily tortured hundreds of young girls and bathed in virgins’ blood to stay eternally young. The Dietrich-like Delphine Seyrig channels her performance in Last Year at Marienbad in the similarly dreamlike setting of the Grand Hotel des Thermes. The memorable music score is by Robert Enrico regular Francois de Roubaix.

The post Daughters of Darkness appeared first on Trailers From Hell.

From their "Hammer's House of Horror" screenings to their 21-movie Mario Bava spotlight, New York's Quad Cinema has been an essential source for celebrating the horror genre's past, and they will continue to do just that this October with a massive retrospective series celebrating filmmaker Jean Rollin, as well as a complementary set of screenings highlighting some of horror's most memorable female vampires.

Read on for full details on Quad Cinema's Jean Rollin Retrospective (kicking off on October 18th) and "A Woman's Bite: Cinema’s Sapphic Vampires" (beginning October 26th) and be sure to visit their official website for more information!

"Jean Rollin Retrospective + Sapphic Vampires

October 18-November 1

This October the Quad salutes the lurid eroticism of Jean Rollin with a retrospective including Fascination, Requiem for a Vampire, and Lips of Blood

Plus a survey of sapphic vampire films indebted to his aesthetic with titles including The Hunger, Lust for a Vampire,...

Last year, Kino Lorber Studio Classics revealed that they were bringing the beloved TV movie Trilogy of Terror to Blu-ray, and now they've revealed the release date, new artwork, and full list of special features for the new Blu-ray, including a new 4K restoration that should make the movie's possessed doll even more creepy!

Check out the new artwork by Jacob Phillips and the full list of special features below, and in case you missed it, read Scott Drebit's It Came From The Tube retrospective on Trilogy of Terror, as well as Kino Lorber's previous reveal of their upcoming Kolchak Blu-rays!

From Kino Lorber: "Coming October 2nd on DVD and Blu-ray!

Just in Time for Halloween!

Trilogy of Terror (1975) with optional English subtitles

• Brand New 4K Restoration

• New Audio Commentary by Film Historian Richard Harland Smith

• New Interview with Composer Bob Cobert

• Audio Commentary with Karen Black and writer William F. Nolan...

By Tim Greaves

The year is 1962. Aggrieved when Algeria is granted independence by President Charles de Gaulle, the militant underground alliance known as the Organisation Armée Secrète botches an attempt to assassinate him. Within months many of the conspirators, including their top man, have been captured and executed. The remaining Oas leaders, bereft of funds, take refuge in Austria and warily decide to contract an outside professional to do the job for them. They settle on a British assassin (Edward Fox), who chooses to be identified as Jackal. The Oas orchestrate several bank robberies to cover his exorbitant fee of half a million dollars whilst the mechanics of the plotting are left entirely to Jackal's discretion. After capturing and interrogating another alliance member, the French authorities learn of Jackal's existence and, suspecting another attempt on de Gaulle's life may be imminent, they set their best man – Deputy Commissioner Claude Lebel (Michel Lonsdale) – on his tail.

Review by Roger Carpenter

Polish director Walerian Borowczyk, long a filmmaker of experimental shorts, became a beloved celebrity of the arthouse circuit with his first two films, Goto Island of Love and Blanche. He began to fall out of favor with that crowd after his next two films were deemed pornographic and in bad taste, those films being Immoral Tales and, perhaps his most notorious film, The Beast. Lensing each of these films in France, where he made his home, The Story of Sin was his triumphant return to his Polish homeland.

The Story of Sin tells the tale of Ewa (Grazyna Dlugolecka), a beautiful yet pious young woman who strives to maintain a life free of sin. Her aging father cannot find work so the family lets rooms to keep afloat. Enter Lukasz (Jerzy Zelnick), a handsome young man separated from his wife and in need of a room.

If you’re a cult/exploitation fan, you’re no doubt well acquainted with Harry Kümel’s 1971 cult classic Daughters of Darkness, which featured lesbian vampires aplenty! Screen Daily reports that four decades later, Kümel is finally revamping and plotting a sequel. Details… Continue Reading →

The post Daughters of Darkness Getting a Sequel! Lesbian Vampires Suck Again! appeared first on Dread Central.

Exclusive: Director revisiting his 70s cult horror.

Harry Kümel’s cult classic Daughters Of Darkness (1971) was one of the cult lesbian vampire films of the 1970s.

Now, more than 40 years later, Kümel is revamping and plotting a sequel.

Details of the new feature, Mothers Of Darkness, were revealed by producer Tomas Leyers of Brussels-based Minds Meet, the art-house company best known for such titles as Little Baby Jesus Flandr and Lost Persons Area.

“He (Kümel) came to me with several projects. I read all of them and one of them was the first draft of the script for Mothers Of Darkness… it sparked the fire immediately to work on this project,” Leyers said.

A new version of the script is now finished and the filmmakers are talking to international cast for the English-language project, which is slated to shoot in the summer of 2018.

“It’s the world of Harry, of course, gorgeous women and...

Gather your fright-loving family members, fill your cup to the brim with egg nog, and find a comfy spot around the TV (or computer) screen, because enough horror movies to fill Santa's sleigh are coming to the streaming service Shudder this December, including Rob Zombie's 31, Bob Clark's Black Christmas, and many more.

Press Release: This December, there’s oh so much under Shudder’s tree. But before you get unwrapping, let’s shake the boxes a bit… We have something special for everyone, inside.

Love clowns? Coming exclusively to Shudder is Rob Zombie’s latest, 31, a vicious and characteristically Zombie film. Which is to say it’s dirty, mean and, from the get, right up in your face.

Looking to stay in? We’ve got a very special Shudder exclusive in Shrew's Nest. Directed by Juanfer Andrés & Esteban Roel (and produced by Alex de la Iglesia), this elegant,...

If your ears perk up when you hear the name "Thackery Binx," or if listening to the song "I Put a Spell on You" makes you want to dance until you die, then Cavity Colors' new glow-in-the-dark Hocus Pocus enamel pin will likely have you hopping on a vacuum cleaner and flying into the night with excitement.

Shipping out on September 22nd, the enamel pin features the Sanderson sisters and the cat version of poor Thackery depicted in eye-catching artwork by Mikael Lundström and Aaron Crawford. For more information, we have official details and a look at the new pin below:

From Cavity Colors: ""Itch-it-a-cop-it-a, Mel-a-ka-mys-tic-a! Give him fur,black as black!"

A beautiful tribute to the notorious Daughters of Darkness! This is a must have pin for your collection of witchy flair!

* Limited Edition Of 350 Only! No Re-stock On This, Ever! *

- This Deluxe Enamel Pin features Two glittery...

Shock talks to French Canadian actress Danielle Ouimet about her role in 1971’s Daughters Of Darkness. Some weeks ago, I used my Shock Treatment column to discuss and appreciate a picture I have long considered a masterpiece of erotic, European fantastique cinema, the sensual 1971 vampire melodrama-cum-dark-satire Daughters Of Darkness (aka Les Levres Rouges). And…

The post Interview: Actress Danielle Ouimet Remembers 1971’s Daughters Of Darkness appeared first on Shock Till You Drop.

"Aliens" by Vance Kelly

The Hero Complex gallery in Los Angeles is hosting a new pop culture exhibition called "Quattro with a Shotgun." It features a collection of awesome art inspired by several of our favorite geeky movies. Some of the movies include Aliens, The Martian, The Lost Boys, Edge of Tomorrow, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Alien, The Blair Witch Project, Dead Alive, Tombstone, John Wick, Let the Right One In, and more.

I’ve included a few pieces for you below to check out that were created by artists such as James Rheem Davis, New Flesh, Matt Ryan Tobin, and Vance Kelly. If you like what you see and you want to buy any of these prints, click here.

"Damn Fine Custard" by Matt Ryan Tobin

"The Martian" by New Flesh

“The Bloodsucking Brady Bunch” by Matt Ryan Tobin

"John Wick" by New Flesh

“Miles To Go Before...

Special mention: Häxan

Directed by Benjamin Christensen

Denmark / Sweden, 1922

Genre: Documentary

Häxan (a.k.a The Witches or Witchcraft Through The Ages) is a 1922 silent documentary about the history of witchcraft, told in a variety of styles, from illustrated slideshows to dramatized reenactments of alleged real-life events. Written and directed by Benjamin Christensen, and based partly on Christensen’s study of the Malleus Maleficarum, Häxan is a fine examination of how superstition and the misunderstanding of mental illness could lead to the hysteria of the witch-hunts. At the time, it was the most expensive Scandinavian film ever made, costing nearly 2 million Swedish krona. Although it won acclaim in Denmark and Sweden, the film was banned in the United States and heavily censored in other countries for what were considered, at that time, graphic depictions of torture, nudity, and sexual perversion. Depending on which version you’re watching, the commentary is...

In this ongoing Shock column, editor Chris Alexander muses on classic and contemporary films and music worthy of a deeper discussion. Ever since Gloria Holden first made ghoulish goo-goo eyes at her girl victims in 1936’s Dracula’S Daughter, horror films have been fascinated by the lesbian vampire. Blame J. Sheridan LeFanu, the Irish writer whose…

The post “Chris Alexander’s Shock Treatment”: In Praise of 1971’s Daughters Of Darkness appeared first on Shock Till You Drop.

After premiering at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, Peter Strickland‘s third feature The Duke of Burgundy went on to a limited theatrical release in January, 2015, though it ended up being a poor quarter chosen to unleash the film. Like Strickland’s previous features, Katalin Varga (still without distribution in the Us) and Berberian Sound Studio, his latest was in need of more innovative marketing strategies in order to reach an appreciative audience, though it should hopefully amass a growing field of devotees now that it’s available for home viewing.

Beginning like something that should have been called Exploits of a Chambermaid, replete with a fantastically sumptuous rendering of a vintage title sequence lifted right out of the 1970s, The Duke of Burgundy seduces us immediately. Much like his last film, the incredibly underrated Berberian Sound Studio, which was an homage to the giallo genre, his latest is a reconsideration of erotic exploitation cinema,...

Roundly dismissed upon its release by critics in 1983, Tony Scott’s classy, stylish art-house vampire film The Hunger arrives on Blu-ray as a demure addition to the Warner Bros. Archive Collection. A notable cult item still lacking of a deserving reappraisal for its significant merits, the film has long languished in obscurity with the exception of its references to the explicit lesbian sex scene shared between Catherine Deneuve and Susan Sarandon (featured in a first-wave resurgence of interest in Lgbt cinematic themes with the documentary version of Vito Russo’s The Celluloid Closet, 1991). It represents one of three cinematic adaptations from horror writer Whitley Streiber, following the also forgotten Wolfen (1981), starring Albert Finney.

Miriam Blaylock (Deneuve) is an ancient yet breathtakingly beautiful vampire. Her lover of the past three centuries, John (David Bowie) has suddenly begun to age and decay, apparently something that has eventually happened to all of her past lovers,...

An amateur psychic investigator once told a friend of mine that the way to access the other dimensions around this one was to meditate upon the works of Lewis Carroll, Aleister Crowley, or the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Or to drink a lot of whisky and smoke a lot of dope.And it's a well-attested fact that hanging around people who are drunk or high can make you feel drunk or high too, even if you're abstinent.So it follows that the boundaries between this world and the mysterious others underlying it must have been considerably thinner in the seventies, since so many people were so messed up on assorted chemicals and herbs, and so many of them were reading the right kind of material, and the rest of the populace had to hang out with those weirdos.The Coming of Joachim Stiller (De komst van Joachim Stiller, 1976) was made...

The Body and the Whip: Strickland’s Sublime Homage to Erotic Cinema

Beginning like something that should have been called Exploits of a Chambermaid, replete with a fantastically sumptuous rendering of a vintage title sequence lifted right out of the 1970s, Peter Strickland’s The Duke of Burgundy seduces us immediately. Much like his last film, the incredibly underrated Berberian Sound Studio, which was an homage to the giallo genre, his latest is a reconsideration of erotic exploitation cinema, where names like Jesus Franco and Jean Rollin garnered a notable cult following. But considering such influences, Strickland’s title is hardly cheap, though one would be remiss to deny a certain air of tawdry sentiment.

Evelyn (Chiara D’Anna) is a newly hired housekeeper. Making her way to her new employer, a strict, unfriendly woman named Cynthia (Sidse Babett Knudsen), it seems they already have a tense relationship that may...

MarVista Entertainment is on a shopping spree. TheWrap has learned that the production and distribution company has partnered with Canada's Evos Media to develop V.C. Andrews novel, “Daughters of Darkness,” for television. Additionally, TheWrap has learned that MarVista has optioned best selling novelist Alisa Valdes’ “The Dirty Girls Social Club” and “The Three Kings: A Christmas Dating Story.” The company has also bought the option to Louisa May Alcott's gothic thriller, “A Long Fatal Love Chase.” The company is currently exploring both TV and theatrical avenues for the three projects. Also read: ‘Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library’ Optioned by...

Every year, we here at Sound On Sight celebrate the month of October with 31 Days of Horror; and every year, I update the list of my favourite horror films ever made. Last year, I released a list that included 150 picks. This year, I’ll be upgrading the list, making minor alterations, changing the rankings, adding new entries, and possibly removing a few titles. I’ve also decided to publish each post backwards this time for one reason: the new additions appear lower on my list, whereas my top 50 haven’t changed much, except for maybe in ranking. Enjoy!

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Special Mention:

Shock Corridor

Written and directed by Samuel Fuller

USA, 1963

Shock Corridor stars Peter Breck as Johnny Barrett, an ambitious reporter who wants to expose the killer at the local insane asylum. To solve the case, he must pretend to be insane so they have him committed. Once in the asylum,...

Interview James Peaty 30 May 2013 - 06:44

With his new film Byzantium out this week, Neil Jordan chats to us about vampire movies, and his career to date...

In a career spanning more than three decades, Irish writer and director Neil Jordan has created some unforgettable movies. Some, such as his adaptation of Angela Carter's The Company Of Wolves, or Mona Lisa, or The Crying Game, are cult classics.

His glossy 1994 vampire movie Interview With The Vampire was his biggest box-office hit to date, with its starry cast - including Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt - and the popularity of Anne Rice's source novels behind it.

Since then, Jordan's brought a varied range of movies to the screen, from thrillers (In Dreams, The Brave One, The Good Thief) to dramas (The End Of The Affair, Breakfast On Pluto).

Just under 20 years after Interview With The Vampire, Jordan's returned to...

Kiss of the Damned is a unique film a cross between Daughters of Darkness (1970) and Interview with a Vampire (1994) with the tone and atmosphere of a eurotrash witches coven mixed in for good measure. It will not appeal to everyone. For one its a slowburn to start and doesnt quicken a great deal even during the kill scenes which although more artistic than graphic dont shy away from blood. To complicate matters further there are no scares.

Psych-Out: The Surreal Side Of Euro-Cult | Viva! Spanish And Latin American Film Festival | Kinoteka Polish Film Festival | Pan Asia Film Festival

Psych-Out: The Surreal Side Of Euro-Cult, Newcastle upon Tyne

If your definition of psychedelic cinema goes further than Peter Fonda saying "Far out", prepare to have your mind exploded. Psychedelia was always a better fit with Europe, where it found affinities with surrealism, horror and eroticism. The examples here are six of the most luridly extreme films from the 60s and 70s, with some of the grooviest soundtracks. There's high-end vampire trash such as Daughters Of Darkness and Vampyros Lesbos, but if that sounds a bit tame, try Fernando Arrabal's bizarre I Will Walk Like A Crazy Horse or Andrzej Zulawski's intense Possession.

Star And Shadow Cinema, Sat to 28 Mar

Viva! Spanish And Latin American Film Festival, Manchester

Between the economic crisis in Spain and the explosion...

Byzantium

Written by Moira Buffini

Directed by Neil Jordan

UK/USA/Ireland, 2012

Two female vampires holed up in a seaside town hotel; for certain savvy viewers, this distilled description of Byzantium’s premise may bring to mind Harry Kümel’s strange and sensual film Daughters of Darkness from 1971. Neil Jordan’s return to both horror and the bloodsucking is a much different beast, though.

Two centuries old soucouyants, Clara (Gemma Arterton) and her daughter Eleanor (Saoirse Ronan), are on the run from men of an ancient vampiric order, though Eleanor has never been made aware of others of their kind. Clara, stuck in rotating cycles of prostitution or burlesque employment since her pre-immortal days, works for money to help them get by, feeding on those unlikely to be missed; Eleanor, meanwhile, preys on elderly people who seem willing and ready to pass on. The two are able to manoeuvre during daylight,...

Just about every horror fan knows about Chris Alexander – writer, musician, journalist, and most famously Editor-in-Chief of Fangoria magazine. Now you can add film directing, cinematography and editing to that resume, as Chris has recently completed his first feature Blood for Irina – a surreal, dreamlike and provocative experiment inspired in part by some of international cinema's most beloved auteurs. I had a very cool Q&A with Chris about the film, his creative process, and the musical score, which he composed and performed himself.

FEARnet: I'm excited that Blood for Irina is making the rounds now. How does it feel seeing it on the big screen? Chris: It is exciting, and extra special for me, considering it was made for nothing and was my “hobby” movie. A few people actually like it and some even think it's destined for cult status. Who knows? But I'm enjoying the ride. How many...

Already a winner at Buffalo Screams (Best Picture and Director, Medium Length Feature) and Pollygrind (Best Experimental Picture) and screening in Bruges at Razor Reel on November 2nd, then at Horrible Imaginings in San Diego on November 10th, Blood For Irina will also see its Canadian premiere on December 2nd at the newly minted Canadian horror film festival Blood in the Snow. Blood in the Snow is programmed by Fango contributor and Toronto-based film enthusiast Kelly Michael Stewart, an offshoot of his successful Fright Nights indie horror screening series.

Daughters Of Darkness director Harry Kumel calls Blood For Irina “"Most interesting... mood aplenty, pretty images and lots and lots of blood” and horror website Cinezilla calls "Sublime...a passionate, dedicated fervor that walks the thin line between life, death, fantasy and reality..."

For more head to Mórbido Film Fest, Fright Nights and Autonomy Pictures.

Already a winner at Buffalo Screams (Best Picture and Director, Medium Length Feature) and Pollygrind (Best Experimental Picture) and screening in Bruges at Razor Reel on November 2nd, then at Horrible Imaginings in San Diego on November 10th, Blood For Irina will also see its Canadian premiere on December 2nd at the newly minted Canadian horror film festival Blood in the Snow. Blood in the Snow is programmed by Fango contributor and Toronto-based film enthusiast Kelly Michael Stewart, an offshoot of his successful Fright Nights indie horror screening series.

Daughters Of Darkness director Harry Kumel calls Blood For Irina “"Most interesting... mood aplenty, pretty images and lots and lots of blood” and horror website Cinezilla calls "Sublime...a passionate, dedicated fervor that walks the thin line between life, death, fantasy and reality..."

For more head to Mórbido Film Fest, Fright Nights and Autonomy Pictures.

Already a winner at Buffalo Screams (Best Picture and Director, Medium Length Feature) and Pollygrind (Best Experimental Picture) and screening in Bruges at Razor Reel on November 2nd, then at Horrible Imaginings in San Diego on November 10th, Blood For Irina will also see its Canadian premiere on December 2nd at the newly minted Canadian horror film festival Blood in the Snow. Blood in the Snow is programmed by Fango contributor and Toronto-based film enthusiast Kelly Michael Stewart, an offshoot of his successful Fright Nights indie horror screening series.

Daughters Of Darkness director Harry Kumel calls Blood For Irina “"Most interesting... mood aplenty, pretty images and lots and lots of blood” and horror website Cinezilla calls "Sublime...a passionate, dedicated fervor that walks the thin line between life, death, fantasy and reality..."

For more head to Mórbido Film Fest, Fright Nights and Autonomy Pictures.