News Roundup!

A few things to cover while we've been busy lately.  First and foremost, a heartfelt congratulations to Adam Barnick, who, besides being an all-around badass, was nominated for a Reaper Award for his extras on the Frozen home video release.  Frozen is also nominated for best Limited release/Direct-to-Video title, so show the Adams some love by voting for them here.

Now, how about some trailers?  First up, The Thing has a new red band trailer.

Okay, so let's discuss.  Some obvious CGI here, but if it works, is that a bad thing?  I like practical effects, too, but I have to admit the dude with the skittering fingers looks creepy.  Which leads me to another issue... the jump scare in the trailer.  The Thing is not about surprises.  It's about a mood, an atmosphere, and the growing paranoia surrounding which humans may not be what they seem.  Here, we have some guy making a crazy-face because he's the Thing, I guess?  Don't like it.  No sir, not one bit.  Still, these are moments meant to sell the film, not indicate the overall tone, so I'll play wait-and-see until the release next month.

Also, [REC]3: Genesis has a trailer...

Looks like they're giving up the hand-held model of the first two films.  Good.  [REC] is one of my favorite horror films, and the sequel is pretty good, but it's time for the series to evolve if it's going to continue to be relevant.

Lastly, a quick word on the performance of horror films lately.  As you know if you read the review, I loved Fright Night 3D, and was disappointed that it didn't do better box office-wise, but I think it'll find some success on home video.  An audience will get there with this one.  But Straw Dogs?  I know, I know, not precisely horror, but the trailers would have you believe it's a Texas Chainsaw Massacre-style film.  I don't wish poor fortune on anyone, but maybe this will convince Hollywood of one thing - don't fuck with Peckinpah.  Leave his movies alone.  The original Straw Dogs is a nasty little film about extreme violence buried within us all.  This update looks like a slasher.  Stop it.