We are pleased to announced that our newest poster for “Don’t Go to the Reunion” is now available for purchase! A glossy 11 x 17 print, you decide whether or not you want it signed by the filmmakers or not. Show your gory support for 80’s slashers and pick up a poster today. Only $12 each with free shipping for a limited time only.
Some exciting news for you slasher fans, we have a brand new poster for Slasher Studios first ever feature film, Don’t Go to the Reunion. We hope you like it and would love to hear your feedback! Remember, there is less than 10 days to become a backer and we need all the help we can get. Some amazing new rewards that you will definitely want to check out! If you aren’t yet ready for Don’t Go to the Reunion, we have some drive-in totals to whet your horror appetite! Two breasts, two gratuitous male butt shots, several dead bodies, an unstoppable killer, shards of glass to the throat, multiple decapitations, 14 80’s slasher films mentioned, fire poker fu, abandoned mansion in the middle of woods fu, slasher sex scene to end all slasher sex scenes fu, and one hell of a final line.
Are you a backer yet? To become one:
Don’t Go to the Reunion Kickstarter
Over the last few months I have been moaning and groaning about the lack of quality slashers in the marketplace. With the exception of Texas Chainsaw 3D (which just barely qualifies as a slasher), can you name the last slasher to receive a nationwide theatrical release? You would have to go back to the release of Scream 4 back in April 2011. That’s right, there hasn’t been a quality slasher to hit screens in 20 months. Back in the 80’s, you couldn’t go 20 DAYS without a brand new slasher hitting the marketplace. The times are changing and slashers are being released straight to dvd. Last year saw the release of two high-quality slashers, Justin Russell’s The Sleeper and Steven Miller’s Silent Night remake both of which, with the exception of a small theatrical run, shuttled unfairly to dvd. The point of this all? The best slashers are going straight to dvd and the indie horror world needs to stand up and take notice. Today’s slasher tale, Adam Dunning’s Laughter is such a slasher.
Laughter tells the tale of Joey, an angry and seriously depressed teenager with a love of clowns and the masks thereof, who has an abusive father and a lot on his mind. Joey along with friends Chris and Brian decide to play a brand on a group of students celebrating the end of the school year. Just as they huddle around the campfire to share their scary stories, Joey pops out, clown mask and all, to scare the hell out of them. Sadly for Joey, the joke backfires. It backfires big time actually as he is attacked by resident bully Mike beats Joey to death. The team decide to band together to bury Joey in a hole vowing to never, ever speak of the horror night again. A few months later, someone is harassing the group with strange calls and texts. One by one, the original campfire teens begin to disappear. Has Joey come back for revenge or is someone else getting the revenge that Joey deserves?
Laughter is the kind of slasher that would fit right in with some of the best SOV horror movies of the 1980’s. It has a low budget that it wears with a badge of pride. Sure the acting is a little on the stilted side and some of the performances are a bit forced but it all tends to be part of the charm of this film. Writer/director Adam Dunning knows the genre and every inch of this film is filled with a joy and kinetic energy that is simply missing from most of the horror today. It is fun from beginning to end and I gotta love and appreciate the practical effects that were applied in this film. No CGI here and the film is better for it. The love of horror as displayed in this film is simply refreshing and it makes me wonder what Dunning could do with a larger budget and a slightly more experienced cast. Either way, this is a must see for fans of indie horror (the clown mask is truly terrifying and the deaths are a lot of fun). It looks like they had a blast making this film and I was right there with them watching it.
Like the Laughter Facebook page below for updates on the film:
Laughter (Facebook)
We are honored to announce that our very own TEDDY has been nominated for Best Horror Short of the year by Horror Society. Slasher Studios fans, we need your help! Vote for TEDDY as many times as you’d like at either the link below or by clicking the picture above. Let’s see the beary scary slasher with Best Horror Short. A big thank you to all of you! We couldn’t have done this without you.
Sequels are both the best and worst thing to happen to the horror genre. Loved the original? We’ve got more of that for you! Really love the original? We have ten more installments exactly the same as the original for you. Some horror sequels are lazy, some are outright bad (Jason Goes to Hell), I’m looking directly at you. Below are five horror sequels that we recommend for a lot of reasons. One of the key reasons is that they remain faithful to their predecessor while, at the same time, adding something new and original to the story. Now THAT is the key formula to making a successful horror sequel.
Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever (2009)
“Cabin Fever 2″ is a messy, gory, bloody cherry on top of a demented sundae. From the opening (poor Rider Strong) to the blood bath of an ending, nearly everything about this sequel works. This is one of those slasher movies where I just don’t understand the hate. Had this movie been made in the 1980′s and directed by Sam Raimi, horror fans would be praising this as the next second coming of horror. The gore is demented, the kills are extremely disgusting, and the central love story is actually quite sweet. I was actually touched at the sacrifice that one friend gave so another could live. So the epilogue doesn’t really work (poor Ti West got his movie taken away from him and had his ending completely butchered just to go in some producer cameos) but this is splatstick at its very best. If John Waters directed a horror film in the 1980’s, it would look something like this. Bloody
recommended!
Final Destination 2 (2003)
“Final Destination 2″ is wittier, smarter, and bloodier than its original. It is clever in the way that it ties our characters from this film with characters from the previous installments. The deaths are incredibly inventive and stand as the best deaths of the entire series. The ending in particular is a black comedy miracle that shouldn’t work but does. Granted some of the acting can be a bit over-the-top and melodramatic and some of the effects don’t hold up as well as others. Nonetheless, this is still the rare sequel that takes everything that works about the original film and adds to it. A definite must see for fans of the original.
Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
“Friday the 13th Part 2″ is the kind of sequel that takes a lot of chances and most of them work. The film is well paced, well acted (big props to Amy Steel who does an incredible job as Ginny), and the deaths are effectively gruesome. Also, for what its worth, I’ll take potato head Jason over hockey mask Jason any day. This is a fun sequel that doesn’t exactly advance the series (the godawful Part 3 actually does more to define Jason than this one does) but doesn’t destroy its legacy either. The characters aren’t particularly memorable but they aren’t particularly annoying either. This is really the last point in the series were you actually still feel some affection for the characters. They aren’t quite stereotypes…yet. Furthermore, it contains the two best “jump scares†of the series and the ending is pretty damn scary. Sure the middle act drags a bit but don’t let that stop you, “Part 2″ is a fine slasher film that does the series proud.
A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
“Dream Warriors” is just all around a great sequel. I love that Nancy’s back for one last final battle with Freddy. A new addition too is the fact that Freddy is now able to target the teen’s fears and use it against them in their dreams. This makes the deaths more frightening and some of the use of special effects (the puppet scene, the television scene, etc) are just ingenious. Everything about the sequel works and when Freddy and Nancy have the one last showdown there is a bit of sadness at the end. It’s ***SPOILER ALERT**** always sad to see your hero die in the arms of the villain but it’s nice to see that Nancy isn’t willing to go down without a fight. In all honesty, the series should have ended with this installment.
Scream 2 (1997)
Although at times I feel as though I am in the minority, I truly believe that “Scream 2″ is the best film in the Scream franchise. This is that rare sequel that takes everything that works about its predecessor and manages to take it to another level. The deaths are suspenseful, the characters are charming and likable, and the twist ending works better than it has any right to. I also truly believe that this is some of Craven’s finest directing and the “cop car†scene is a hide-your-eyes-behind-your-fingers chiller of a scene. More than that, this film is just a hell of a lot of fun from beginning to end.
Kevin: Prom Night III: The Last Kiss continues that story of Mary Lou Maloney (the very beautiful and quite voluptuous Courtney Taylor), the vengeful spirit from Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II, who is still haunting the halls of Hamilton High. She is a lonely ghost who is looking for a little bit of love and romance. Into her life walks Alex Grey (the bland but quite likeable (Tim Conlon), the painfully average high school junior who is looking for a little bit of excitement in his life. Little does Mary Lou know that Alex already has a girlfriend, Sara (played by underrated Scream Queen Cyndy Preston), and will do whatever it takes to get her our of his life.
Steve: The story if nothing too unique or too convoluted that would cause the audience to lose interest in the film. We are given the classic love triangle and some jealous girls that help make this film into and interesting watch. Prom Night III set out to be a comedic horror movie and succeeded all around. Nothing too pretentious here.
Kevin: Prom Night III: The Last Kiss is an interesting blend of comedy (very broad Student Bodies style splatstick) and horror, slasher and supernatural, and tongue-in-cheek and clever. It is mostly a lot of fun to watch and Taylor delivers some great zingers as Mary Lou. At 97 minutes,
the film is a bit on the long side. At least ten minutes could have been cut from the final act within losing anything storywise. That said, it is consistently funny and quite often very entertaining. The production values are solid throughout and the script is helped out immensely by a game cast that appears to be having just as much fun as we are.
Steve: The comedy found within Prom Night III may not suit every movie-goer, but I found the silly, yet oh so clever jokes to hit each and every time. There are some fun shots as well, like when Alex uses the pay phone to call his parents. He doesn’t necessarily address the audience, but he does look directly into the camera and while you have this on your mind, you then here the Charlie Brown like voices come from the phone. A great sequence to say the least.
Kevin: Please note, if you choose to watch this film (and it is indeed recommended), the DVD version released in a double feature DVD along with Prom Night IV: Deliver Us from Evil is a cut TV broadcast version. Most of the gore, swearing, and nudity is all but removed. However in the VHS version it is uncut, with all gore, profanity and nude scenes left intact.
Steve: Please, if you have not seen this, I urge you to do so. Like I said, the comedy may be hit or miss depending on your taste, but it is a must for the true horror fans in the world! So, search for that elusive VHS tape today and have some go wild with Prom Night III.
To purchase Prom Night 3: The Last Kiss from Amazon: Prom Night III: The Last Kiss [VHS]
The 1982 film, Humongous definitely has its fun moments, and then it also has its dark moments. That’s what is so great about the two posters shown here. The first one is very light-hearted with a cartoonish drawing and baby blocks spelling out the title. A fun poster, but does not really tell you what you will be in for as you begin to watch the film.
The second poster featured here has a much darker feel to it. The emotions are deep and the colors are rich. This version really lets the viewers in on a little more of what is to come. The addition of the dog was a nice touch. Overall, both posters are drastically different, but both great additions to any horror poster collection.
On this week’s episode of Slasher Studios, our hosts Kevin Sommerfield and Steve Goltz will be discussing their favorite horror movie clichés. Clichés that are used in just about every horror movie and yet still continue to work today. Show starts Monday January 14th at 10PM central. Click on the link below to listen in live or to check out an archive of a previous show.
