A movie roundup originally written in advance of the 2008 release of Cloverfield. Something very big and very angry stalks the streets of New York City in Cloverfield, being released in theaters this week. The brainchild of producer J.J. Abrams (of the TV hit Lost and the upcoming Star Trek remake), Cloverfield aims to revitalize …
Originally published on MSNBC.com October 29, 2007. It’s no longer online there, so I’ve reposted it in full here. Just as the vitality and bold style of manga has swept through the formerly American-dominated field of comic books, Asian cinema has left a lasting stamp on the horror-film genre — especially the violent and distinctively …
English expatriate Neil Gaiman has arguably received the most attention for fantasy novels like American Gods and Anansi Boys, whose success raised him from genre obscurity to a space on the bestseller lists near Stephen King and J.K. Rowling. But he’s had a knack for the short story ever since his work on the Sandman comic series–a format that rewards …
Stop-motion animation has been around since the silent-movie days, but no one has put a personal stamp on the technique like Ray Harryhausen. In 16 movies from 1949’s Mighty Joe Young to 1981’s Clash Of The Titans, Harryhausen gave life to an entire zoo’s worth of fearsome monsters, including the giant octopus which destroys the …
Horror writer H.P. Lovecraft died in poverty in 1937, mostly unknown and treated with derision by the reputable literary world, to the degree that it acknowledged him at all. But over time, he found increasing cult popularity—his works have been filmed at least 40 times—and a more grudging but genuine critical acceptance. The new Lovecraft …
Originally published on msnbc.com October 28, 2004. It’s no longer online there, so I’ve reposted it in full here. Halloween is just around the corner, and there’s no better time to settle down on the couch with some scary movies. (Especially considering that the presidential election is just around the corner, you might need some …
Let’s face it, Halloween just isn’t complete without a scary movie. A crazed killer with a chainsaw is just the thing to round out this ghoulish holiday. Here’s a few of our favorite films from the slasher genre, that knife-wielding set of horror flicks that includes the infamous Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm …