No Hope November - Day 30 - "Night of The Living Dead"

As I write my final No Hope November for 2014 on December 1st, I felt it would be proper to end with a true classic film of no hope, and one of the things that hooked me into the world of horror. George Romero's 1968 Night of The Living Dead is one bleak frickin' movie. Romero, the Godfather of the modern zombie, was making a living shooting local commercials and such in Pennsylvania before he made his big time debut on the scene. With little money and local actors and friends, he created a movie that was a mainstay at drive-ins and midnight movie houses throughout the 70's. Countless people first experienced the shambling ghouls from the comfort of their station wagon or from a stinky, seedy Grindhouse. From the opening scene of terror until the final scene of hope crushing despair, Night of The Living Dead is what No Hope November is all about. The dead are now walking the earth and they are coming after the living. A group of strangers through a series of various incidents wind up together at a remote farmhouse. This is the telling of their gradual descent into hopelessness. No matter what they do or try, the end seems inevitable. Is there hope for salvation? Is the terrifying end of mankind imminent? If you insist on happy endings in your horror movies look elsewhere, because in Night of The Living Dead there are none to be found. If you have never seen this, slap yourself across the face. If you have seen it, watch it again for the social commentary and subtext. Good on you Romero, you No Hope sonofabitch. Thanks for reading the 30 day peek into my movies. Stay tuned for more merriment and creepiness. They're coming for you! They're coming for us all!

No Hope November - Day 29 - "Pumpkinhead"

"Pumpkinhead" is the choice for today's No Hope November. Released in 1988 and directed by special effects guru Stan Winston, I have always had a soft spot for this one. Here's the scoop, bikers from the big city are passing through a backwoods community, and recklessly/accidentally kill a young local boy named Billy. Billy's dad, Ed Harley, played by one of my favorite actors ever, Lance Henricksen, is of course completely devastated by the loss of his son. Ed visits a witch that he believes can resurrect Billy, but discovers it is too late. In his grief he has the witch perform a ritual to summon a demon spirit of vengeance known as The Pumpkinhead. The demon is controlled by Ed's lust for revenge, and as the body count rises, Ed begins to question himself. Now Ed must find a way to stop the evil that he has unleashed before it is too late. Pumpkinhead is a fun and powerful movie with a classic rubber monster wearing Nikes under his costume. It's great fun and Lance Henricksen is the man.

No Hope November - Day 28 - "Creature From Black Lake"

As I try to catch up on No Hope November before it ends, I want to spotlight another extremely obscure movie and genre that I greatly enjoy. After "The Legend of Boggy Creek" proved to be so successful, there was a huge rush of low budget Bigfoot movies that followed, and "Creature From Black Lake" was released in 1976, at the zenith of this. A definite B-movie in all its glory. Set in the swamps of Louisiana and filmed with a grainy look that was common as well as effective for this type of movie at the time, Creature From Black Lake features an outstanding score that sets the tone well. Spooky and suspenseful, this is a well acted film. The gloriously bug eyed Jack Elam turns in a great performance as Trapper Joe, a character that would fit right in on Swamp People. He was born for parts such as this. Basically what happens is two students from Chicago head to the swamp to research Bigfoot for thesis papers they are writing. The locals deny that the Cryptid exists, but the guys continue their research and head deep into the swamp. Enter Trapper Joe, and tons of atmosphere and mosquitoes. Do the guys find Bigfoot? Or does Bigfoot find them? Watch Creature From Black Lake to discover the answers for yourself.

No Hope November - Day 27 - "Slither"

Every once in a while someone makes a movie that is a straight up homage to times past and to certain genres of the past. Many of them fail to deliver on their promise, but on occasion you discover gold. "Slither" is today's No Hope November gold. When you start with a director like James Gunn, the guy that brought us the 2004 remake of Dawn of The Dead, and a little old thing called Guardians of The Galaxy, you may be on to something. Add in a cast including the irrepressible Nathan Fillion, the effervescent Elizabeth Banks, and the erudite Michael Rooker, and it is beginning to look like magic. Slither was released in 2006, but it feels like it could be 1986. An over the top plot mixed with a wacky and talented cast make this a real winner in my eyes. In true 80's honoring the 50's fashion, a meteor crashes and an alien parasite crawls into a dudes brain, slowly mutating him into a ridiculous looking monster. His wife and the local cop try to help him as more and more people begin to transform into zombie like mutants. Filled with great monsters, dark humor, and fun. This movie will not change your life but it will make it better for an hour and a half that you are watching. Slither is much fun and worth your time. Seek it out and pop some popcorn.

No Hope November - Day 26 - "Salem's Lot"

After remarking that I was done doing movies based upon Stephen King books for No Hope November, I decided to go back to the well one more time. "Salem's Lot" was a two part made for TV movie that aired in 1979 on CBS. They stuck the two parts together on this dvd to create a film that lasts for just over 3 hours. Brilliantly directed by Tobe Hooper, Salem's Lot is a story about a writer (David Soul), that returns to his hometown to write a book about a supposed haunted house that sits on a big hill on the edge of town. The writer is named "Ben" and he wants to rent the big old house and stay there while he writes his book. Unfortunately for Ben, a mysterious man named Straker beats him to the punch and buys the house, and also opens an antique store in town. Ben rents a room at a boarding house and begins to settle in to life in the small Maine town, befriending some of the locals and researches for his book. As time goes by people start disappearing and Ben starts to believe it has something to do with the haunted house and the mysterious Mr. Straker. Then the meat of the story really gets going and Salem's Lot develops into a fabulously atmospheric and ever increasingly spooky as a Mo Fo kind of movie. It is creepy and moody. There are vampires that are extremely well done and frightening. These ghouls don't glitter in the sunshine, they are mean and ugly killing machines. Nosferatu style vampires. This is a super movie and anyone that enjoys suspense is sure to get a kick out of it. Well written, well acted and directed, Salem's Lot conveys feelings of fear and dread without any big scenes of blood or gore. A finely crafted story that accomplished everything it set out to do, establishing interesting characters and settings, creating a mood, and scaring the crap out of the viewer. Salem's Lot is a champ.

No Hope November - Day 25 - "Shock Waves"

No Hope November is featuring an amazingly overlooked sub genre of horror, the underwater Nazi zombie. "Shock Waves" is a 1977 film in which a luxury boat is out for a three hour tour, no wait, that's Gilligans Island. Shock Waves is about a boat that crashes onto a reef and the passengers make it to an island that has a big old abandoned hotel on it. Except, it's not abandoned, but rather it is occupied by an old Nazi officer, played brilliantly by Peter Cushing. Come to find out the island is also the home to a leftover experiment from World War 2. Seems that the Nazis were creating undead super soldiers and this is where the last 8 of them are located. These suckers look so cool, they walk around on the ocean floor and do all kinds of crazy stuff. They make for great foes for our bumbling group to deal with. This is a totally odd movie that sounds so ridiculous yet plays out rather interestingly. Not a lot of blood and gore to be found, mainly atmosphere and creepy zombies making sure no one survives their island experience .You must have specific tastes to enjoy this one, and I enjoy it a lot. I feel it is the cream of the crop when it comes to underwater Nazi zombie movies. Check out Shock Waves.

No Hope November - Day 24 - "Pet Semetary"

The past few days we have been focusing on some rather obscure films, so for today's edition of No Hope November we steer our ship back toward the mainstream. A 1989 gem that is based on a Stephen King book, "Pet Semetary." A family relocates from the big city to a small town in Maine. Their new neighbor, played by Herman Munster, shows them a place out behind their house called Pet Semetary. The dad is later told/warned about the realities of Pet Semetary, but he doesn't believe what he hears. It does make an impression on him however. As the story progresses tragedy strikes and the true nature of the Pet Semetary's power is revealed. This is a powerful chronicling of a snowball rolling downhill straight into madness and despair. As you watch you become increasingly aware of a feeling of dread creeping up on you. You can tell what's going to happen but can't look away as the poop hits the proverbial fan. This is a good movie that makes you feel bad. Seek it out.

No Hope November - Day 23 - "Happy Hell Night"

Quickie No Hope November today. An obscure slasher by any standard, "Happy Hell Night" is a story about a scary looking priest that ritually murders seven frat boys in the 1960's and is locked away. Years later in a prank gone wrong he escapes and heads back to the college to continue his killing spree. Very bloody with a creepy killer carrying out some decent kills, including decapitation, ice picks, crucifixion, and several other fun concepts. Jorja Fox (Sara Sidle from CSI) even gets into the fun with an ice pick to the head. Not one of the top tier of slashers to ever be released, Happy Hell Night is still enjoyable and a worthwhile viewing experience for all of you demented horror sickos out there. Or for anyone interested in a low budget, stiffly acted, derivative film. Who isn't?

No Hope November - Day 22 - "The Video Dead"

No Hope November continues with a movie typical of its time. In 1987 there were so many corny and silly horror movies being released, and "The Video Dead" was one of them. It is not the greatest thing ever, or necessarily even good, but it represents an era and type of film that I have a lot of love for. Light horror with some dark humor. Basic plot is a delivery truck is suppose to deliver a TV set to the Institute for Paranormal Research, but mistakenly take it to a guys house. He plugs it in and finds it only works on one channel and continually plays the same movie over and over, "Zombie Blood Nightmare." A black and white zombie flick. Somehow, zombies escape from the movie and come out of the television and kill the dude. Months later a new family moves into the home and finds the TV in the attic. When the family plugs the TV in more zombie madness and mayhem ensues. The rest of the story is trying to stop the horrors that are happening. It's actually a pretty cool movie and like I said, a real product of its time. As an example, at one point Zoe, the teenage daughter that moved into the house, is asked what she plans to study in college. She responds that she is planning on studying aerobics. It doesn't
get much more 1987 than that. These are the small touches that cause me to feel nostalgic and truly enjoy movies like The Video Dead.

No Hope November - Day 21 - "Evil Dead"

If you know me just a little bit then No Hope November for today will come as no shock. "Evil Dead" is my favorite movie of all time. The story behind the movie is so awesome, the way these college kids went about putting this whole thing together. From the funding to the filming itself it is a great story. As for the film, of course, it is fantastic. The way Sam Raimi came up with camera angles and innovative ways of film making. I don't need to go any further. So many people involved went on to careers in the industry, from Sam Raimi to Rob Tapert, and even the Coen brothers. (And Bruce Campbell). Legendary stuff.

No Hope November - Day 20 - "Bubba Ho-Tep"

This choice for No Hope November is a rather obvious one. "Bubba Ho-Tep" was written and directed by Don Coscarelli, known for his tremendous work on Phantasm. He has a twisted mind that I greatly appreciate. My main man Bruce Campbell stars as a resident of an old folks home and he dresses like Elvis, cape and all, and tells everyone that he is the king. Of course everyone knows he's just a crazy old man (except he really is Elvis!). Elvis has a friend at the home, a black man (Ossie Davis) that believes he is John F. Kennedy. Funny thing is, he really is! You'll have to watch this movie for the details. John F Kennedy is in a wheelchair and Elvis uses a walker, but they can't let that slow them down. There are mysterious deaths happening at the home, and our two intrepid heroes aim to get to the bottom of it. Come to find out there is an Egyptian mummy that wears cowboy boots killing the people. Can Jfk and Elvis save the day? Does this plot sound completely bonkers? Tune in to Bubba Ho-Tep and enrich your life beyond measure.

No Hope November - Day 19 - "They Live"

Another film by John Carpenter for today's No Hope November. From 1988, it's the cult classic "They Live." Written and Directed by carpenter and starring famed wrestler Rowdy Roddy Piper. Roddy plays a drifter that blows into town looking for work. He gets a job as a construction worker and befriends Keith David (from The Thing). He starts hanging out at a soup kitchen with homeless people and eventually Roddy starts noticing some odd things happening around him. He comes across a box that contains sunglasses and when he puts the glasses on everything is in black and white. He also sees a lot more weird things, such as subliminal messages on every billboard and sign. Messages stating "obey, conform, consume," and similar mind control propaganda. The biggest surprise is that most of the authority figures, politicians, and cops, are actually skull faced aliens in disguise. Roddy begins a quest to figure out how to stop the alien race that is controlling the world, and trying to get other people to believe him. Mind control, propaganda, and commercialism are a large theme in this flick. Plus, a one of a kind fight scene between Roddy and Keith David that is an absolute classic and lasts for over 5 minutes. Rowdy Roddy Piper is aces in this role just going around talking smack and smacking aliens left and right. Campy, corny, and silly, is there truth hidden in "They Live?" Maybe more than we would care to know. Everyone should she this film at least once in their life. Take this quote from They Live with you wherever you may travel, "I came here to chew bubblegum and kick ass, and I'm all out of bubblegum." It doesn't get any better.

No Hope November - Day 18 - "The Exorcism of Emily Rose"

No Hope November. "The Exorcism of Emily Rose." A very spooky movie. Emily Rose, played by Jennifer Carpenter of Dexter fame, who is a terrific actress, is a teenager that is demonically possessed...or is she? Tom Wilkinson is the Priest that performs the exorcism, and Laura Linney is the attorney defending the Priest in court. That's right, court. This film is one half The Exorcist and one half courtroom drama. It works better than you might think. Is she possessed? Is she mentally ill? Are you rushing right out to get this movie? The answer to the last question should be yes! Well acted by a great cast. Scary in a give you the chills kind of way. This movie will freak you out! I love it!

No Hope November - Day 17 - "JAWS"

Other than The Little Mermaid, Lion King, and Free Willy, today's pick for No Hope November may be the movie I've seen more times than any other ever made. "Jaws". I read the novel by Peter Benchley way back in the 70's, and loved it. Then we got HBO when it first came
out and what they did then was to repeat movies over and over again for a month. I watched Jaws about 15 times in 2 weeks over summer vacation. It was so amazing. I have seen this movie countless times. The chemistry between Richard Dreyfuss, Roy Scheider, and Robert Shaw was incredible. The suspense so unsettling. The musical score was perfect. Everyone knows the music that signifies there is a giant shark nearby.This movie made an entire generation of people leery of going into the water. It was so effective at what it attempted to do. Just a great movie. "You're gonna need a bigger boat."

No Hope November - Day 16 - "Scooby Doo on Zombie Island"

 The 16th entry for No Hope November is a movie I love and have watched many times. "Scooby Doo on Zombie Island" was released in the fall of 1998 and turned the world of Scooby on its ear. As this film begins we find that the gang is now a little older and are doing their own thing. Daphne has a Paranormal TV show that Fred helps with, Velma owns an occult bookstore, and Shaggy and Scooby are slackers (of course). Fred gets the gang back together to travel to the swamps of Louisiana to investigate what he believes to be a real haunting for Daphne's TV show, rather than a dude in a rubber mask like their mysteries have always turned out to be. Here's where this movie changed things in the Scoobyverse, the place they investigate actually IS haunted. Bam! Game changer. Scooby Doo on Zombie Island has a darker, more mature tone than the previous iterations, yet maintains all of the charm and fun that made Scooby Doo Where Are You so wonderful. This film was very popular and successful and was the beginning of a worthwhile string of movies that has continued to this day. The follow up to Zombie Island was Scooby Doo and The Witch's Ghost, which is equally incredible. If you have never seen this movie you should rectify that immediately! There are ghosts, skeletons, zombies, voodoo, Pirates,were-creatures, and tons of fun for the entire family.

No Hope November - Day 15 - "Dark Night of The Scarecrow"

1981 TV movie"Dark Night of The Scarecrow" is today's pick for No Hope November. They don't make made for TV flicks like this anymore! Larry Drake plays a mentally challenged man named Bubba that is friends with a little girl. She gets violently attacked by a dog but Bubba saves her. The town postman, played by Charles Durning, thinks Bubba hurt the girl, and he forms a lynch mob to go after him. Bubba hides inside a scarecrow, they find him and kill him. Then they discover that Bubba didn't hurt the girl. Uh oh. Then a spooky scarecrow begins roaming around going after the no good sons of bitches. Very clean, non blood and gore movie. Just old school atmosphere. Enjoy!

No Hope November - Day 14 - "John Carpenter's Vampires"

John Carpenter's "Vampires" is today's choice for No Hope November. Carpenter has made so many stellar movies, I may have more of his work featured before the end of the month.Vampires stars James Woods, in what I feel is his best role ever, as Jack Crow Vampire Slayer. He leads a team of mercenaries that travel around killing vampires for the Vatican. The one he really needs to kill is Valek, played brilliantly by one of my favorite actors, Thomas Ian Griffith. Valek is trying to obtain a relic that will allow all vampires to walk in the daylight. This movie has a serious coolness factor going for it. James Woods swaggers through like a Billy Badass with his leather jacket and shades. Also featuring Daniel Baldwin and Sheryl Lee (Laura Palmer from Twin Peaks). There is tons of violence and blood, extremely moody filming, like a modern day western feel to the whole thing. I cannot recommend this movie any higher. It is cool.

No Hope November - Day 13 - "Silver Bullet"

Feeling hopeful today? Well I'm here to snatch that feeling away from you and leave you in a state of mind called No Hope November. Let's travel to the magical year 1985. From the twisted mind of the magi of the the east coast I bring you "Silver Bullet." Based on a story called Cycle of The Werewolf by Stephen King, Silver Bullet is about a kid in a wheelchair (Corey Haim) who begins noticing things may not be copacetic in his small Maine hometown. As a matter of fact, there just may be a stinkin' werewolf running around town killing folk. The boys no good drunken uncle (with a secret heart of gold), played brilliantly by that no good drunken Gary Busey (with a secret heart of gold), builds him a hot rod wheelchair that rolls down the road about 35 mph. Armed only with his wheelchair and his wits, and with the help of his sister and the aforementioned no good drunken uncle (with a secret heart of gold),can our young hero solve the mystery and save the town of Tarker's Mills from the bloodlust of the evil lycanthrope before it's too late? Watch Silver Bullet and find out! Great movie!

No Hope November - Day 12 - "The Prowler"

Today No Hope November takes us back to that very special place in my heart called obscure early 80's slashers. "The Prowler" is a little known 1981 film about a soldier that retuned from World War 2 to find his girlfriend with another guy and killed them at a school dance. Now, 30 years later, they are holding the dance for the first time since the tragedy. Guess what? Bad news for the dance goers. Outstanding gory effects by Tom Savini and a rather original script for a movie of this type highlight The Prowler. This is a dark slasher with suspense and original kills that I recommend highly.

No Hope November - Day 11 - "Night of The Creeps"

If you want a perfect example of a movie that appeals to horror/sci-fi geeks, look no further than today's entry of No Hope November. "Night of The Creeps" is a 1986 release by Fred Dekker, a hero to the aforementioned movie geeks. Dekker was also responsible for the cult classic "Monster Squad." Night of The Creeps is about an alien that crashed to earth in the 50's and infected a college student. Then in the 80's his cryogenically frozen body is thawed out by pledges to a fraternity and all of a sudden these little alien critters are taking over everyone and pretty much turning them into zombies. Horror legend Tom Atkins plays a police detective in the middle of the mayhem. Atkins is amazing as usual, and the rest of the cast is solid as well. This flick has all of the cliche elements that make 80's era B movies wonderful. A college setting, parties, zombies, campiness, cool creatures, gory effects, and overall ridiculousness. It's just swell. So if you want insight into what makes a horror junkie smile, watch Night of The Creeps and discover for yourself. It's loaded with goodness.

No Hope November - Day 10 - "Stigmata"

Today's No Hope November is gonna be short and sweet. "Stigmata" was released in 1999 and no one noticed. They should have. This is the type of movie that has the potential to frighten me. It starts with an investigator from the Vatican going to Brazil to look into a sighting of the Virgin Mary and a statue that has bleeding eyes. Then, in the states, a woman (Patricia Arquette) starts showing signs of Stigmata, randomly bleeding from the places where Jesus was wounded during the crucifixion. The investigating Priest heads to New York to see what's up with this chick, and is extremely surprised at what he discovers. I found this movie to be well done, creepy, and frightening. The religious aspects scared the poop out me. I very much enjoy these types of movies, with the heavy religious overtones. They have a different feel than a normal horror film, if done well. There may be a few more of these that pop up this month, so stay tuned. Stigmata is well worth your time.

No Hope November - Day 9 - "Helter Skelter"

No Hope November. Helter Skelter. When I was a kid my mom had her own ideas about what was appropriate for a kid to read. She basically was of the mind that if you were interested in reading a book, and you were capable of reading it, then read it. Boy did we take advantage of this! Luckily I had a decent reading capability and poured through many books that most 10 year olds weren't reading at the time. Books written by Stephen King, John Saul, VC Andrews, and the like. One ...of the things that I read at an early age that truly affected me was Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi. A brutal telling of the Manson Family murders written by the attorney that prosecuted the case. This book had tales of murder, cults, sex, drugs, ritualistic magic, mind control, courtroom drama, and everything else under the sun. I was totally fascinated and horrified by the book. Then they released a two part TV movie based on the book, and my mind was blown. Steve Railsback portrayed Charles Manson so perfectly, it was amazing. Railsback has had a long and successful career in the horror genre, but nothing that compares, in my eyes, to his performance as Manson. When I met him a few years ago I told him there was no better choice to play Uncle Charlie. I felt uneasy in this tiny little dudes presence. I didn't sleep soundly for weeks after viewing this movie. As with many things from a different time in life, you must look at things within a certain context. In other words, when I watch Helter Skelter now it is still enjoyable, but doesn't mesmerize me as it did when I was a kid. I actually have a totally different perspective and belief about the subject nowadays, but the impact of this book and movie on my life has been significant. And I have my mom and her willingness to let me read whatever the Hell I wanted to thank for that.
Let your kids read. Don't shelter them from scary stuff. Life is scary, get used to it. Expand your mind and think for yourself.

No Hope November - Day 8 - "The Wicker Man"

It's that time boys and girls. Time for day 8 of No Hope November. A few lines of hope and inspiration to help you make it through the day. For this entry we head over the big pond, to the UK. I have a fondness for many diverse styles of movies from various foreign lands, and British movies are no exception. So let's take a quick look at one such movie, a true cult and occult favorite, the 1973 version of "The Wicker Man." This sucker is so bizarre. So esoteric. So freaky. Ed...ward Woodward from The Equalizer plays a staunch Christian detective that is sent to a small island near Scotland to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. The inhabitants of the island are some seriously spooky pagan cult members that practice weird rituals and do some messed up crap. The leader of the island is named Lord Summerisle and is played superbly by the legendary Christopher Lee. He is intense and disturbing and brilliant as usual. As the investigation deepens we are led into a spiraling nightmare of madness. The detective begins to discover that things are not how they seem on the surface. I don't want to spoil too much of this movie, but I will say it is truly odd and bothersome. If you enjoy that British sensibility and feel of things like "The Prisoner," then Wicker Man is something you would enjoy. Strange, spooky, eerie, foreboding. Watching this makes me uneasy and sick to my stomach. What a treat! I hope you enjoy The Wicker Man as much as I do.

No Hope November - Day 7 - "Humanoids From The Deep"

Episode 7 of No Hope November. Let's take a trip to a great time in horror history. The year, 1980. The mastermind, Roger Corman. The movie, "Humanoids From The Deep," also known as "Monster." Set in a small ocean side fishing village where scientists are performing secret experiments in growth hormones and gene splicing with DNA from men and salmon. You read that right, salmon. Now there are super sweet looking sea monsters coming out of the water with two missions on their ...mind. To kill men, and rape women, in order to advance their bizarro creature race. There are so many interesting elements in this film. The little village, the village's annual "Salmon Festival," the amazing monsters, tits and ass, disturbing fishman rape, the ridiculous political incorrectness at every turn, nonsensical science and conspiracy, great atmosphere, and a killer score. It's a veritable smorgasbord of awesomeness. All hail Roger Corman! This is what early 80's horror/sci fi is all about.

No Hope November - Day 6 - "Don't Be Afraid of The Dark"

No Hope November Day 6 takes us back to the familiar grounds of the 1970's era made for TV movie. "Don't Be Afraid of The Dark" is a slow burning thriller in which a young couple move into a big old house. The woman keeps hearing things and discovers a fireplace that has been closed in. Despite warnings to leave well enough alone, she opens up the old fireplace. Not a good move, as we are introduced to some of the creepiest looking miniature little demonic creatures ever seen on film. Truly frightening, this film has an outstanding slow buildup to a satisfying conclusion. A very well made film, it is hard to believe the number of TV movies from this time period that were done with such high quality. Good stuff. I purchased this Dvd directly from Warner Brothers as part of their Archive Collection.

No Hope November - Day 5 - "The Burning"

No Hope November Day 5 takes us once again to that special time known as the 80's. Today featuring "The Burning." One of my favorite slasher movies of all time, The Burning tells the tale of a summer camp caretaker named Cropsy, who, at the hands of a group of campers, in a prank gone horribly wrong, is severely burned. After several years of a life of pain and torment, Cropsy returns to his old stomping grounds to take revenge on the current batch of campers. One by one he b...rutally maims and kills the unfortunate and unsuspecting teens. This film has amazing kills, many of which are done in broad daylight, which is a cool variation that sets The Burning apart from many similar movies. Jason Alexander (George Costanza) from Seinfeld appears as a camper, as does Leah Ayers, who later starred with Jean Claude Van Damme in Bloodsport. As I said, one of my personal favorite slashers. If you are a fan of the genre, or 80's horror in general, you should give The Burning a look. Maybe it will "spark" your interest.

No Hope November - Day 4 - "Gargoyles"

No Hope November continues with a day four feature that takes us into a category that brought many outstanding movies. The category is 1970's era made for television movies, and the movie is "Gargoyles." Starring Cornel Wilde as an anthropologist that stumbles across a tribe of living Gargoyles in a cave, this flick is totally awesome. With a great cast including Jennifer Salt from Soap as the anthropologists daughter, Scott Glenn, Grayson Hall from Dark Shadows fame, and Ber...nie Casey as the freaky lead Gargoyle.You may remember this film being shown often on Saturday afternoons years ago on cable. It was on all the time. If it has been a while since you have seen it I would recommend checking it out once again. Not actually scary, but there is a definite creepy atmosphere running throughout Gargoyles. The monsters look super weird,with designs by Stan Winston, and I love the flying scenes where they make barely any effort at all to hide the wires that they use for the special effects. Classic 70's stuff. There were so many cool made for TV horror movies during that time. Some genuinely good, scary movies. Maybe more of them will get a mention before No Hope November reaches its conclusion. Enjoy Gargoyles.

No Hope November - Day 3 - "From Beyond"

Day 3 of No Hope November takes us back once more to Lovecraft Land. If it's a movie with HP Lovecraft themes, directed by Stuart Gordon, and featuring Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton, and Ken Foree (from Dawn of The Dead for the old schoolers or Kenan's dad from Kenan and Kel for the young whippersnappers), well you can surely count me in. "From Beyond" is a twisted mess of a mind freak, with gore, sex, and bizarre creatures that feed on brains. Not to mention experiments in reaching into a parallel universe and pulling things back to ours.This flick starts out screwed up and then dials the disturbo meter up to 11. Sick, deviant, and bothersome. Doesn't get much better than this.

No Hope November - Day 2 - "Just Before Dawn"

Episode 2 of No Hope November features one of my favorite slasher movies from the early 80's, "Just Before Dawn." The plot is basic slasher. Young dude inherits land out in wilderness. He and his friends go to check it out. They are warned by local sheriff to stay away. They ignore warning and head into the mountains for camping and debauchery. Very bad things begin to happen. The plot is basic but effective. The movie is well acted and worthwhile. An outstanding killer and all the typical elements for a movie of this type. I absolutely love this movie!

No Hope November - Day 1 - "In The Mouth of Madness"

For the month of November 2014 I thought I would undertake a fun little project. Welcome to "No Hope November," where each day will feature a movie from my collection. Look some of these up and check them out. Day 1 is John Carpenter's "In The Mouth of Madness." Based on HP Lovecraft's writings and starring Sam Neill as a Stephen King-like horror writer descending into a nightmare world of madness in which the veil between realities is getting thinner by the minute. Watch this under rated classic, and when you figure out what the hell happened, let me know, cuz I'm still not sure. I am sure it's a great movie though.

MOVIE MUSINGS - Annabelle

So the good Captain made it out to see Annabelle. I wanted to see this since I first heard of its production. Let's not dilly dally, but jump right into it.
Annabelle is a sort of prequel to last years best horror movie, "The Conjuring." The Conjuring was a haunted house story that I truly enjoyed. It featured fictionalized versions of the demon hunters Ed and Lorraine Warren. Annabelle mentions the Warrens without them appearing, and it is done in a nice manner.
This film is not the most original ever produced, but if you are up for a somewhat formulaic romp through numerous tried and true horror conventions, with many jump scares and some decent atmosphere, then this is for you. It's well acted, has interesting cinematography, and a decent, although familiar, story. The musical score is also well done, and adds a feel of foreboding to many scenes.
Imagine a mix of The Omen, with parts of Rosemary's Baby, and Child's Play, and you have the ingredients that were used for Annabelle. Oh,throw in a pinch of Helter Skelter as well, and let it simmer in the back of your mind.  I'm not complaining, I love all of those movies, and I also don't mind formulaic. If it works, it works. 80's style slasher movies are a personal favorite of the Captain, and let's face it, they mostly follow a pretty similar pattern.
When a movie has a plot involving a Satanic cult named The Disciples of The Ram, you can go ahead and count me in. I don't want to give away spoilers to the story itself, so I will mention a few themes. A new born baby, satanic cult, used bookstore, a caring Priest, a possessed doll, and possibly Satan himself (maybe just a demon and not the head guy from the deep south). Plus a young traumatized new mother with emotional problems who is left on her own with her baby for long periods of time. A sewing machine that runs on its own and a record player that plays on its own. Also, upstairs neighbors that make a lot of noise even though the people live on the top floor. Not even sure if that was suppose to happen or if it was a blooper.
Don't go into this expecting Gone With The Wind. Instead, go into it expecting a cross between The Conjuring and Paranormal Activity as far as scares go. I do recommend seeing this movie in a theatre if possible, as the discomfort of the other movie goers around you adds significantly to the experience. You hear people fidgeting in their seats during certain parts and you also hear the occasional editorial comment along the lines of  "aw HELL NO" as things creep up on the unsuspecting victims.
That is enough info for now. Go see Annabelle. Captain Creepy enjoyed the "Hell" out of it. Bwahahahaha. 5 stars.
Next up in the hopper, Ouija. Can't wait!

MOVIE MUSINGS - Amazing Spiderman 2

Captain America The Winter Soldier is a huge, epic, world changing movie. Amazing Spiderman 2 is more local, staying in New York. As with most Spidey stories, this is chocked full of the teenage angst of Peter Parker and all of the problems he has to deal with. Peter can never quite seem to get over the hump. It's a personal story of the tragedies and triumphs of your friendly neighborhood 30 year old high school senior.
 Andrew Garfield is fine as Spiderman. I'm just glad they finally had him graduate high school since Garfield is 30 years old, and looks it. It is quite a reach to see him as a high school kid. My suspension of disbelief can only take me so far. Spiderman looks Amazing in costume, and the effects of him swinging through the city are tremendous.
A great thing about sequels of this type is that normally during the first film in a series the majority of the time is spent on the origin of the character, and at this point, who really needs to spend 3/4 of a movie seeing the origin that we all have known our entire lives. At the start of this movie, our protagonist is already a seasoned and confident hero, and this is how I prefer to watch him. A confident and competent Spidey is fun.
Dane DeHaan plays Harry Osborn and he is a super actor that dominates most of the scenes in which he appears. Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy is also good. Sally Field is cast as Aunt May and I didn't care for her in this role. Hard to define exactly why, she is a fine actress, but just isn't Aunt May to me.
One of my favorite things in the entire show is during the climactic scene as an incredible event happens, the face of a giant clock is shown and the time displayed is 1:22.  When this event happened in the comic book back in the 1970's, it was in Amazing Spiderman number 122. Nice little Easter egg for those paying attention.
There were a few things that bother me pretty bad about this movie. Jamie Foxx character is absolutely ridiculous. Not Electro, but the scientist he portrays before becoming a super villain. His hair is just dumb, and his motivation for hating Spidey borders on embarrassing. The fact that Gwen shows up in the big final scene is also silly and doesn't feel right. Finally, the transformation by Harry Osborn into the Goblin happens so fast and nonsensically that it is hard to overlook.  "I need Spiderman's blood. No! You can't have it! I hate you, you are Peter Parker, you aren't my friend, you suck and I'm gonna kill you." That is about how quick all that happened. Immediately transforms into Goblin and is a master on his flying jet ski.  Not good.
Overall, I have to overlook some big holes in the script and some serious pacing problems and accept the film for what it is. A fun, action packed popcorn movie with heart and good acting.
Captain Creepy rates Amazing Spiderman 2 a low 4 out of 5 radioactive spiders.
Oh, and Rhino is pretty stupid in that dumb suit.

Tribute To A Friend

We use to sit in a tent in his backyard reading comics. We read books about the Bermuda Triangle and Bigfoot. We played tag and Monster Around the Garage. We would spin around in circles until we were too dizzy to stand. We laid on our backs in the grass on hot summer nights looking at the stars and picking out constellations. We rode bikes and chased down the ice cream truck when it came through our neighborhood. We listened to 45's on the record player. We played baseball in the field next to the cemetery. We talked about the Six Million Dollar Man and Logan's Run. We played Hot Wheels, Army, and Cowboys and Indians. We went to Cedar Point and ran as fast as we could to get in line for The Blue Streak and The Mine Ride. We watched people throw up on the Rotor and we laughed.When I got home from the Army we would go to the Silver Dollar Saloon and listen to bands and talk to chicks. We drove around our Trans Ams and thought we were hot stuff. We got an apartment and were roommates. When I got married he was my best man. When we got older we lost touch, but every once in a while we would talk on the phone about work, and family, and both of our favorite team, the Miami Dolphins. Memories of you are scattered through my life. May you rest in peace Kerry. Thank you for being my friend. 

MOVIE MUSINGS - Son of Batman - DC Animated Movie

Son of Batman is the latest DC Universe straight to dvd animated movie. The basic premise is that years ago Batman was drugged and date raped by Talia Al Ghul, the daughter of the demon, Ra's Al Ghul. She got pregnant and had a son named Damien. Damien is raised and trained by the League of Assassins (aka League of Shadows), trained from birth to be a killer, and eventually to rule the world.
Batman doesn't even know that Damien exists until Talia presents him to Bruce at age 10. Due to circumstances that happened in the opening sequences of the movie, Talia now believes Damien should go live with his father and continue his training with him.
The remainder of the movie consists of Bruce/Batman attempting to be a father to an extremely intelligent, highly skilled, 10 year old killer. Damien isn't all bad, he was just brought up this way and Bruce tries to correct the twisted nature of his son.

The Good - David McCallum (Ducky from NCIS) is great as the voice of Alfred Pennyworth. I would love to see him in that role in a live action movie. Nightwing also appears and adds a lot during his limited screen time. A full length Nightwing animated movie would be sweet. He is a truly outstanding and undervalued character in the DC Universe. His relationship to Damien is also a very important one, especially in the comics that this movie was based on. Overall the animation is wonderful. The backgrounds look great, and the League of Assassins are rendered nicely. The helicopters are drawn amazingly well, and the Batmobile is cool as well. The colors are done well. There is a lot of blood in this movie, a surprising amount of blood. Damien has a true talent for making people bleed, which is a bit of a departure for these movies.

The Head Scratcher -  Joseph Lansdale and James Robinson were involved in the writing, and this is a bit of a head scratcher for me. Lansdale has been a favorite author of mine for 20 years. He writes many southern fried weird novels that cross somewhere between Stephen King and Quentin Tarantino. As an example, he penned the short story that later became the cult classic movie Bubba Ho-Tep. He is great. James Robinson is a tremendous comic book writer, one of the top writers over the last 20 years. The story is based on comics written by Grant Morrison, well known for his over the top wild and mind blowing storytelling. The slightly head scratching part to me is that with this ridiculous amount of creative talent involved, the script should be brain meltingly good, but it isn't. It's not bad, but it could have been much much better. Slightly disappointing in this regard.

The Bad - Talia admitting to Bats that she drugged him and raped him to get pregnant is pretty harsh for a cartoon movie. Then she says to him, "it wasn't all bad, was it?", as she attempts to seduce him once again. That is some pretty twisted stuff, and if the roles were reversed in that scene people would be having a heart attack over it. What makes that scene even more disturbing is that during that exchange, Damien is standing in the shadows in the corner of the room watching, and Talia knows he is there. WTF is up with these weirdos?
Another thing that didn't work for me was during a huge scene near the end, Damien is engaged in one on one combat with Deathstroke the Terminator. You know, Deathstroke, one of the deadliest and most vicious killers in the world? Anyway, when Damien is dueling with Deathstroke, Batman is sitting a few rooms over next to the Lazarus Pit with Talia. Making out with her! Yes, their 10 year old son is in mortal combat with a legendary killer, but Batman would rather get his freak on than go help out. Batman would not do that. Just doesn't mesh with the character of the character. Not well done.
A couple other problems for me. Why is Ra's Al Ghul depicted as a samurai or something? Strange.
Voice acting was good in some areas but Batman had no emotion ever. No matter what was happening he maintained the stoic "I am Batman" monotone. I know he is a badass but it is possible to have a slight variance in his speaking tone from time to time.
Also, Deathstroke is one of my favorite DC characters, but why is he in this movie? I just didn't get that at all. Seems he was there cuz he looks cool and people like him, but he didn't really have a need to be there. Maybe it's just me.

Conclusion - I enjoyed Son of Batman.There are some problems with the story and some odd stuff happens that doesn't make a lot of sense to me, but still it was pretty good. Pretty good, but should have been better. It never moved me emotionally like a top shelf movie does (ie Captain America). Still worth a watch for dedicated Batman fans.
I give Son of Batman a 3.5 out of 5 rating. Stay creepy my friends.

MOVIE MUSINGS - Captain America : The Winter Soldier Review (short and sweet)

Captain America : The Winter Soldier is one of the best movies I have seen in a long time. Maybe in several years. For me, this movie succeeds on so many different levels. The script is well written, the special effects are jaw dropping (I saw it in 3d and it was incredible). The acting is top notch. Characterization is spot one. The villains are crazy cool. It is also filled with little hidden nuggets for long time fans. I teared up 4 times during this film and I can't even blame the 3d glasses. I don't even feel the need to go any deeper with a review. This is a great movie. Don't miss it. I give this one 5 out of 5 stars. Keep it Creepy.  

COMIC CHAOS - Creepy Comic Review - V Wars

As I was looking through the stacks of free comic books during Free Comic Book Day at my local store, there were a few that caught my eye. One of these books featured a cover by Kevin Eastman, co-creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and its title was V Wars issue #0. Published by IDW Publishing. I scooped it up and did a quick flip through and deemed it worthy enough to read.
 When I go to Free Comic Book Day I always purchase a few items so as not to look like a troll just grabbing free stuff and hauling ass out the door. I had nothing in mind to purchase so I perused the racks for something that looked good to try. I noticed a copy of V Wars #1 and bought it on an impulse, figuring that between the free issue 0 and the $3.99 issue 1, I may get a decent idea of what this title was all about.
The writer for V Wars is Jonathan Maberry. He is a veteran comics writer and also has authored numerous prose novels, many in the horror genre. I have heard him interviewed on several radio programs about folklore and legendary creatures. He is a knowledgeable dude in these areas.
As you may decipher by the title of this series, the V in the name is for Vampire Wars. The plot of the story is pretty much a rip off of World War Z, only substituting vampires for the zombies. VERY similar story.
The story is that sometime in the last year as polar ice was melting, a disease was released from the formerly frozen water. This triggered something in certain peoples dna that activated a gene that caused them to become vampires. Evidently everyone carries this gene and it could activate at any time.
Luther Swann is the protagonist in our story. He is a professor of folklore and the worlds foremost expert on vampires. He begins as a police consultant brought in to help because of his background in folklore and is later moved up to assist the federal government and actually becomes a presidential advisor for vampires.
Over a period of time many different types of vampires begin to appear. Some look human, some look like monsters, some just like to party and get drunk, some want to be left alone, and some are bloodthirsty killers. The normal humans are at war with the vampires and Luther Swann is attached to a special ops unit that is in the middle of the action, and he doesn't like it. Luther believes there can be a peaceful resolution to the war if the parties involved would be willing to talk things out and come up with alternatives to killing each other.
As the 0 issue winds down Luther experiences a personal tragedy that really was not that surprising. I saw it coming from a mile away, but it did still advance the story along. Issue 1 starts out with Luther meeting with the speaker of the house. The speaker is having a press conference where he is going to announce the pursuit of peace. He feels that human and vampire alike are all citizens of this world, and deserve a chance to live. These words aren't even all the way out of his mouth when a bullet goes through his eye and ends his life. Vampires are blamed for the assassination, but did they do the deed? You will have to read the book to discover this for yourself. All out war is declared on the vampires and the poop really hits the fan.
The plot of the series is of course very derivative, and the stories contained in these two issues are rather formulaic. I was able to guess much of what would happen before it happened.Yet, that doesn't mean it's all bad. I actually enjoyed the story. It was executed and written in fine fashion. Maberry knows what he is doing. The script was tight and kept me engaged throughout. There are prose pages included at the rear of the book along with maps detailing the areas of the world where the outbreaks are located. These are nice extras that add an epic feel to the whole package.
The art is by Alan Robinson and he does a fine job. Workable art with good storytelling. Nothing fancy or jaw dropping, just good solid artwork. The only part of the art that didn't do it for me was the coloring. The colors seemed rather flat to me. I'm sure this was done on purpose due to the post catastrophic setting of the story, but I personally would have preferred a little color pop.
Overall these 2 issues lay a nice groundwork for the V Wars series. This was announced as an ongoing series from IDW and I think it has the potential to be very good. I plan on continuing to follow this series for the next few issues to see where it goes. Nice work, Free Comic Book Day, you got me interested in a new book!
Captain Creepy gives V Wars issues #0 and #1 a rating of 8 out of 10. Cool stuff. Creepy out.

MOVIE MUSINGS - The Oculus - You See What it Wants You To See

The Oculus is suppose to be a horror movie that may actually be more of a suspense thriller. It is based on a 32 minute short film made by writer/director Mike Flanagan. He basically reworked the story of his short film and expanded it out to create a feature length film.
The premise is that 11 years ago a family of four moved into a new house, purchased an antique mirror that they mounted in the dads home office, which began to influence him. Something along the lines of George Lutz in the Amityville Horror. A ghostly demon woman comes out of the mirror and begins haunting the family. The mom starts coming unraveled and drinking a lot. Mayhem and murder ensue. Mom and dad end up dead and the 10 year old son ends up in a loony bin. He is released on his 21st birthday and is reunited with his sister, who is now 23. She owns the old family house at this time and acquires the evil mirror. She wants her newly free brother to help her to destroy the haunted mirror, which she knows is not going to be an easy thing to accomplish. More mayhem and murder ensues.

The Good - Good cast! Karen Gillan, known for her time as a companion to Doctor Who (Amy Pond), is the lead character. Katee Sackhoff from Battlestar Galactica plays her mom, even though she is only 8 years older than the actress that plays her daughter. Rory Cochran from Dazed and Confused and CSI Miami is the dad, and they all do a fine job. The girl that plays the main character as a 12 year old is a very good actress and does a great job in her role. There is a very cool Easter Egg near the beginning of the movie. During a scene at an auction, the item that is put up for bid is said to be from "the Levesque collection." The Oculus is a WWE Entertainment Production and Triple H real name is Paul Levesque. How did I catch that? That's what I do. The story itself is pretty good and there are some creepy and atmospheric moments.

The Bad - I enjoy a nice slow burn horror movie but at times this sucker burns really slow. The pace almost comes to a standstill in places. Although I felt the story was good enough, the execution of the story was uneven and overall the movie falls short of its potential. The Oculus constantly cuts from present day to flashback and back again. Multiple times in a single scene they bounce you back and forth. It is just overdone and makes the whole thing hard to follow at times. Maybe this was the intention but it detracted from the flow, at least to this Creepy moviegoer. The start of the movie is very slow although is does pick up the pace about halfway through.

Conclusion - I found the Oculus to be an enjoyable movie just taking it for what it is. It didn't change my life, or alter the future of the horror and suspense genre, but it is a decent flick. Not overly scary, yet somewhat creepy. This is not a must see movie by any means, but is a decent diversion for a rainy Saturday.
I rate The Oculus at 3 haunted mirrors out of a possible 5.

FORTEAN FILES - Soft Kitty, Warm Kitty, Creepy Kitty, Borg

    Nick Redfern is my favorite author. He writes in the realms of cryptozoology, Ufo's, the occult, and generally weird crap. Nick's books are interesting and fun. Last year he put out a great book that I highly recommend named "Monster Files." This volume details various legitimate files he uncovered by using the Freedom of Information Act. Files that specifically have to do with our governments involvement with, or interest in, strange creatures and similar themes, such as Bigfoot, Lake Monsters, and Wolfmen.
    One of the coolest chapters in Monster Files is what I wanted to talk about today. A chapter that details a secret program instituted by the CIA during the 1960's titled "Acoustic Kitty."
    During the 60's of course we were in the midst of the cold war with Russia, and were also at the height of the spy game. The CIA involved itself in many covert programs to monitor the Red Menace, which leads us to this gem of a tale.
    They brought some domestic cats to their secret laboratory and performed Dr. Frankenstein like surgeries on the poor little felines. The doctors implanted microphones and transmitters on the tails and sides of their patients, turning them into a type of cat cyborg. The budget for this diabolical program was 10 million dollars. Now remember, this was the 60's. The 6 Million Dollar Man was 10 years later and 4 million dollars cheaper, so this was actually a big deal.
    After some attempts with various levels of success the first terminator cat was completed and ready for its maiden mission. They had to find ways to overcome many setbacks along the way. One example of a problem that had to be dealt with was when they placed the test subject in the yard the kitty was distracted by a bird or a squirrel, and would wander off the path. After a time the kinks were worked out and it was time for real action.
    When the big day finally came, the junior secret agent was placed in an unmarked van and driven down to the Soviet Embassy. The first mission plan was simple, the Acoustic Kitty would be released into the grounds of the Embassy, and would pick up random snippets of conversations that would be transmitted back to old Uncle Sam. Well, the plan did not go quite as well as the CIA had hoped. The cyborg cat was placed on the ground headed toward its destination, but never made it there. It walked about 15 feet across the road and was hit and squished by a taxi cab driving down the street. Acoustic Kitty was no more.
    A final determination was made to shelve the project, as the official documentation states, "the environmental and security factors in using this technique in a real foreign situation force us to conclude that for our (intelligence) purposes, it would not be practical."
    Nick Redfern discovered this information in a 1967 CIA document "Views of Trained Cats." If you dig this kind of bizarre nonsense you should check out Nick's books. He has a bunch of them and they are available online and at better booksellers worldwide. Creepy!

GENERAL NONSENSE - Bits and Pieces of Creepy

Big surprise. Behind on posting on this site again/as usual. Oh well, this time i am going to just write a quick bit of random thoughts and stream of consciousness. We'll call it "Bits and Pieces of Captain Creepy's Brain."

Captain America Winter Soldier will be out soon. It looks so awesome. This is one of my favorite comic book runs ever, the comics were written a few years ago by Ed Brubaker and drawn by Steve Epting. Amazing, amazing run of books. It the movie gets close to the level of goodness of the source material this may be an early contender for movie of the year.

The Guardians of The Galaxy trailer looks great as well. Rocket Raccoon and Groot the Tree have a tremendous look and it appears they are going for a little wacky sci fi goodness with this one. Absolute must see.

Amazing Spider Man 2 trailers are out. I enjoyed the first one and thought Andrew Garfield was pretty good as Peter Parker. It didn't set my hair on fire but I definitely am looking forward to checking this one out as well.

Godzilla looks huge and back to his authentic look. Can't wait. Huge fan of the Kaiju. Want to see a War of The Gargantuas remake. Hopefully Godzilla will be as good as Pacific Rim last year. That's all I ask for.

A Goosebumps movie with Jack Black? Sign me up. When do tickets go on sale?

Scooby Doo has a new animated movie out with the WWE at Wrestlemania. How can this be anything other than wonderful?

Seth Rogen is attached to a possible Preacher tv series. Could be sweet.
This fall new Constantine series. Main character looks good. I loved the Harry Dresden series that lasted for one season on SyFy. Maybe Constantine can pull it off.
Donal Logue cast as Harvey Bullock on the new Gotham series coming this fall. Great choice. He's a top notch actor.
Flash also coming to tv this fall. I dug the old series with John Wesley Shipp. Have that on dvd.

In Netflix world I finished Arrow season 1. Loved it. Can't wait to watch season two.
Working through Justice League Unlimited. Seen them all years ago but it has been nice to see them again after so long.
Still trying to catch up on Doctor Who. I enjoy the show but I am way far behind.
Also starting up a new anime series called Ghost Hunt. Looks good and the first episode was interesting.
Samurai Jack is calling loudly for a rewatch soon!

Also I have been watching the current Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cgi series on Nickelodeon. Dvr'd the entire first season and it is way better than I expected it to be.

New Moon Knight comic series by Marvel written by Warren Ellis is off to a great start. Love the character, love the writer, love the artist, love the concept of the new series. Way to go Marvel.

Interesting show Crypid The Swamp Beast. 6 episode show following an animal control company and a deputy sheriff down in the bayou as they follow up on some unusual calls they receive. It's like a faux docudrama but I am enjoying it tremendously. It's not Shakespeare, but that's ok, cuz I don't give a crap about Shakespeare. I like swamp monsters.

Walking Dead continues to blow minds. Literally.

Afterlife With Archie #4 comic brought tears to my eyes. That's right, Archie + Zombies = tears for Captain Creepy.

I'm sick and tired of snow and cold.
NCIS still rules.
Baseball season.

I want to get the new WWE Network really bad. Damn it!
The Wyatt Family are my heroes. I love those guys.
What's so funny bout peace, love, and understanding?
Creepy out.

TV TALES OF TERROR - SY FY TO RETURN TO SCI FI ROOTS?

I have heard rumors that the Sy Fy Channel is under new management. The story is that the new big wigs are not fans of the glut of paranormal shows that have dominated the network for the past several years. Evidently they want to steer Sy Fy back to a more "science fiction" slant and away from the paranormal stuff.
Shows like the new Helix appear to be the style they may be heading toward. I have yet to see Helix, but it looks rather interesting and I need to check it out and see if it is my cup of tea. The new werewolf show is another one I haven't seen but plan to in the future.
Anyway, the rumor is we are going to see a noticeably reduced number of paranormal shows than we have become accustomed to from them. I have heard that Ghost Mine is done, Haunted Collector is done, Deep South Paranormal, Haunted Highway, and maybe Paranormal Witness. Supposedly this may also be the final season for the flagship title Ghost Hunters.
I have enjoyed Ghost Hunters for many years but must admit it has been losing steam for the last few years.Don't get me wrong,I still watch and enjoy many of these programs but all good things must come to an end sometime.Remember when the TAPS team would go to peoples houses and try to help families that were living in fear? Now they usually are sent to aircraft carriers, museums, or theaters. They go to businesses that want people to think they are haunted to drum up business and make money. It kind of pisses me off. That is why I really enjoy the Dead Files these days. Steve and Amy go to homes to help people. They have gone to some pretty ratty looking places. Who cares if there are strange noises on an out of commission aircraft carrier that is now a museum that you can pay money and walk through it and maybe hear a noise? A million people have walked on this ship but we think the ghost of Midshipman Jones that was stationed on here 45 years ago and sprained his ankle on the steps is haunting the place. We think it's him because the 80 year old steps squeak when you walk on them. Or an abandoned sanitarium that sits empty unless you want to pay money to walk through it.  I like to see them actually helping people that need help.
I realize that reality shows are anything but real, and they are forced to sign contracts that do not allow them to talk about what really happens when they are filming these shows, but let the buyer beware. When someone sells their soul for a paycheck they can compromise their integrity very easily. Now it's all about the jump cuts, theatrical music, and false scares. I mean really. As soon as the lights go out the disembodied voices start talking. Come on. Any semblance of reality has gone totally out the window. I still enjoy Tango and Steve walking around being silly but the shows are just not the same.
It's too bad, because I really like many of the people on these shows and they don't control the final product that hits the air waves. On a recent Ghost Hunters I believe I heard the words "What the hell was that", or some variation of those words, seven times in a one hour episode. Good grief. I think I heard an electronic voice phenomenon uttering the spooky words "jumped the shark."
So that whole thing was a huge tangent that I wasn't planning on writing but oh well. The point was that many of these shows may be starting to fade away and that may not  be a totally bad thing. Could be time for a change.

COMIC CHAOS - Favorite Comics of 2013

Okay, it's the last day of January. Last chance to write a top ten list for 2013. That's my rule anyway. In the world of comic books there are tons of really interesting titles currently being published. As someone who has read funny books for many moons, I am of the opinion that there are more good books on the market right now than ever before, which makes it hard to stay current with all of it. It used to be you could read all of the good stuff and still have room to read much of the crappy stuff. Not anymore. As a consumer, you must be choosy. So, here we go, Captain Creepy's top ten list of favorite comics of 2013.

10. Afterlife With Archie (Archie Comics) - This totally came out of left field. The Archie gang, in Riverdale, battling zombies in a serious horror comic. How weird! The setup is that Reggie accidentally runs over Jughead's dog Hot Dog, and kills him. Jughead is heartbroken and takes Hot Dog to Sabrina the Teenage Witch's house and begs her to perform some magic to bring back his beloved friend. Sabrina is so moved by Jughead and his grief, she goes against her better judgment and tries to resurrect the dog. Her magic works...kind of, Sabrina's aunts find out and banish Sabrina to another realm as punishment. Hot Dog is back, but is now an undead beast. Eventually Hot Dog bites someone, spreading the zombie virus, and let the craziness begin. This title is a serious horror comic, has wonderful artwork, and yet it still captures the personalities of all the Riverdale gang. Archie, Jughead, Moose, Betty and Veronica, Mr. Lodge, Pops, Miss Grundy, etc. They are all here. Great book that is only a few issues in, and I can't wait to see what happens in 2014.

9. Green Arrow (DC) - Early in the year Green Arrow absolutely sucked. It was deserving of being cancelled and was so bad it was almost unreadable. DC then made one of their few great moves of the year and put Jeff Lemire on writing duties and Andrea Sorrentino on art. Over just a few issues, these two guys turned this book around and made it one of the best things being published. Lemire is one of the best writers in comics and Sorrentino's art is incredible. Some people are comparing this run on Green Arrow to when Frank Miller reinvented Daredevil in his classic run. Great book.

8. All New X-Men (Marvel) - Marvel has completely killed it in the last year. They are publishing so many good books these days that even the most loyal DC readers are flocking to Marvel. Brian Michael Bendis took over writing All New X-Men and Uncanny X-Men and has returned the X-Men universe to glory after it had been struggling along for several years. The X-Men are actually fun again. If Bendis stays on X-Men for as long as he was in charge of the Avenger books, he will be going for years to come, so jump on now.

7. Lazarus (Image) - Greg Rucka is one of my favorite writers, having done great work on Gotham Central for DC, a great run on Wolverine and on the Punisher, and lots of other top notch books. Michael Lark is a tremendous artist who is truly at the top of his game on Lazarus. This may be my favorite art in any book right now. It is unbelievable. This book is set in a post cataclysmic world that is run by corporate families. Each family controls a region of the world. Each family has a "Lazarus", kind of the warlord that does what needs to be done to see that their family is in a position a power. Forever Carlyle is the Lazarus of her family. Her memories have been altered and nothing is quite like it seems in the Carlyle family. This series follows Forever as she slowly begins to uncover the truth. Again, this is a book in its first year of publication and I can't wait to see where Rucka takes the story.

6. Uncanny Avengers (Marvel) - Written by Rick Remender, probably my favorite writer at this moment. He tends to write everything with a wonky sci fi style that is very recognizable and unique in the current comic scene. Uncanny Avengers is a book about a team made up of a mix of Avengers and X-Men and led by Havok, Alex Summers. Remender seems to write traditional comic stories until you are way deep in and realize that he is going down a totally different road than the one you thought. He is a brilliant dude and weaves some serious magic on this title.

5. Cable and X-Force (Marvel) - This title is what you call a guilty pleasure. It is a small title tucked in the corner of the X-Men universe that gets very little publicity or talk. It also kicks major ass. Dennis Hopeless is the writer on this title and is, in my opinion, one of the top young up and coming talents in the industry. Much of the art is by Salvador Larroca, and he does the art in a very clean and different style. I love it. Cable is the main character and he is one of my all time faves. I have loved Cable for 20 years. His team also includes Colossus, Forge, and Dr. Nemesis. Just a fun, ridiculous, and over the top action book. This title has been cancelled, and the last issues are coming out now. It is being replaced by a new X-Force title that will also star Cable. Of course I will read that when it comes out.

4. Batman (DC) - Artist Greg Capullo is one of the top names in comics and people are loving his artwork on Batman. He is so good on this title. Writer Scott Snyder is a shining star at DC and if he were to leave their company they would be hard pressed to replace him. Snyder's run on Batman has been remarkable. It will go down as one of the best runs ever on this character. Snyder has introduced some new things to the Batman mythos like The Court of Owls. They are a behind the scenes secret society that has been operating covertly in Gotham City for a hundred years. An Illuminati type of organization that is awesome and added more coolness to an already amazing gallery of rogues for the Bat to defeat. Snyder also had a tremendous Joker story called Death of The Family that took Joker's insanity to another level.

3. The X Files (IDW) - Formally titled The X Files Season 10, this series started in 2013, and began right where the last X Files movie had left off. I wasn't sure how this was gonna go, but Chris Carter is involved in this title and is helping to steer the ship. Joe Harris is the writer and boy did they choose well when they picked him to write this book. All of the old favorite characters are back, and a new status quo is set. Mulder and Scully are investigating the strange and weird once again with the help of old friends. Old enemies abound as well. Cigarette Smoking Man plays a huge role in this series and Harris writes the characters so damn good! It really has the feel of watching an episode back in the day. So happy they brought this series out, it could rank even higher on my list next year.

2. The Walking Dead (Image) - I have read the walking dead comic since it made its debut years ago. I loved it. Then, after the tv show started, and the show went in a different direction than the book, I lost a little steam with the comic. I dug the tv show so much it was detrimental to my enjoyment of the comic. Well, not anymore. I caught up completely with the comic series, and it is safe to say that this book is still so freakin' awesome that it amazes me. Robert Kirkman writes these characters so that each one has their own voice, and you get pulled into their lives so dramatically. He has a bad guy in the series right now called Negan, and this dude makes the Governor look like a complete pussy. Carl is such a badass that it is ridiculous, and there are so many other characters that are amazing, and die at an alarming rate. Great book!

1. Daredevil (Marvel) - Here it is, my favorite comic of 2013. Daredevil, written by Mark Waid, with pencils by Chris Samnee. This is classic comic storytelling. Nothing fancy, no bells and whistles. Just a great character written by an amazing writer, and drawn by a tremendous artist. Telling classic superhero style comic book stories with such aplomb and care. Waid fleshes out a wonderful supporting cast and delves deep into what it means to be a hero. He writes classic villains like no other. Mark Waid  has taken a book that has had some of the best writers in comics, names like Frank Miller, Kevin Smith, Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker, and Andy Diggle, and put together a run on this book that rivals anything anyone has ever done with Daredevil. The art is also remarkable, from the pencils to the colors, this book has a definite look of its own. This is old school and incredible, and my favorite book of 2013.

A few honorable mentions from Captain Creepy include Hawkeye, Deadpool, and Avengers Arena from Marvel, Suicide Squad and Nightwing from DC, and half of the stuff that Image is putting out. They have tons of great books. Books I'm looking forward to getting into in 2014 include the new Moon Knight, Iron Fist, Black Science, Velvet, and Rat Queens. Don't be surprised to see a few of those titles on next years list. It is a good time to be a comic fan, take advantage and enjoy it.

FORTEAN FILES - Computer Creepiness

There is an interesting thing that has been happening for the last several months at my work.I have a program on my work computer that is used to track purchases I make from one of our parts suppliers. In order to receive certain incentives from this company I must spend a minimum of $1000 per month from them.The way I monitor my current months spending is by using a dashboard on their website that displays my totals.What started to become interesting was that, on occasion, when I would go to the dashboard to check my spending, certain numbers would show up as my total. Numbers that were not anywhere close to what my spending actually was. The numbers were $666.66.This would appear from time to time on my monitor, and then I would check back a little later in the day and the correct total would be displayed. I really didn't think a whole heck of a lot about it to be honest. I assumed they were default numbers that would appear if there was something goofy in the system. This actually went on for several months, until one day, the salesman for this company stopped in for his weekly stop and he had a representative from the bigger company with him. As I chatted with the company rep I went to their website and clicked on the dashboard, revealing the $666.66 total that was displayed.This was nothing unusual for me to see by this point, but since the company rep was standing right there, I showed him the display. I joked to him that the person that created this program must be a Satanist or something. I said that if that wasn't the case, the computer might be haunted. Well, the rep said he personally knew the lady that created and maintains this program, and that later that day he would call her and find out what is going on.
Now comes the fun part!
The following day I received a phone call from Brenda, the computer programmer.She relays to me that the rep did indeed call her the day before and clued her in on what was going on.She is very nice to talk to, yet came across as being nervous and somewhat upset as we spoke. Brenda explained to me that she was kind of freaked out because $666.66 was NOT a default number in any way, shape, or form.She said there was no way that should be happening, and, as a matter of fact, it was not possible that these numbers were appearing in this manner. She said she knows this, because this is her program. Yet there they were. Brenda was honestly frightened and uncomfortable with the entire situation. She said she was going to investigate deeper and would call me the next day with more information. Well, the next day she did call back, and still had no explanation for the Hellish numerals that adorned my dashboard.
It still happens. To this day it still happens. Not all the time. Just once in a while. I click on my dashboard display and there they are, staring me square in the face. $666.66.
I'm not sure what it means.Probably nothing. I'm reasonably confident that it is just a glitch in the system, a "ghost in the machine." I'm not even trying to say it might be something odd, or paranormal.
But Brenda isn't so sure, and who am I to argue?

MOVIE MUSINGS - A Creepy New Year - Top Ten Movies of 2013

Well, the last quarter of 2013 was a blur. I was unable to do any posts down the stretch of the year, but it is a Creepy New Year. It's time to refocus and get this year off on the right foot.
I want to start the year off with a few looks back and some traditional top 10 lists. The first list is Captain Creepy's top 10 movies of 2013.
Normally I see quite a few movies throughout a typical year, but again, 2013 was so stinking busy that I didn't see nearly as many as usual. Therefore, there may be many top notch films that are not on my list because I haven't seen them yet. Oh well, I can only rate what I have seen, so, here we go.

10. GI JOE RETALIATION- I know, I know. Keep in mind I have been a GI Joe fan my entire life. I enjoyed this sequel to Rise of Cobra. It was just a fun movie and I liked Bruce Willis and The Rock. I love the Expendables movies and this one is in that same vein. A popcorn, silly ass action flick. Also dig Ray Stevenson who is a total bad ass as always.

9. THE LONE RANGER- See above. Ha. I have been a Lone Ranger fan my entire life. I enjoyed this movie. It was fun. Lots of action, silliness, and popcorn. Sound familiar? Look, I did like this movie. It was not as crappy and terrible as people were saying. I didn't go see The Lone Ranger to expand my mind or change the world, just to escape for a couple hours and be entertained. Johnny Depp I could not care one way or another, I actually would prefer a more serious Tonto, but it was still good fun.

8. THE WOLVERINE- This was better than the first one. I am a fan of the Japanese part of Wolverine's history in the comics, and this was a decent portrayal of a chapter of that. Good story, good action, enjoyable.

7. THOR THE DARK WORLD- I liked this Thor movie a lot more than the first one. I loved the cast including Anthony Hopkins.Christopher Eccleston as the Dark Elf Malekith was outstanding. Fun escapism. It is a cool mixture of sci fi with fantasy elements as well as our regular world.

6. LORDS OF SALEM- Rob Zombie makes movies that appeal to a very small percentage of the population. The good news is Captain Creepy falls into this very small percentage of the population. Lords of Salem is graphic, offensive, dark, bleak, and grinds along at a very slow pace. I loved it!

5. PACIFIC RIM- Larger than life monsters fighting giant robots. Right up my alley. Ridiculous and fun.

4. THE CONJURING- I enjoyed this very much. The cast was outstanding and it was a very creepy film. As someone who has followed the work of the Warrens and their family (John Zaffis) work for many years, that only added another level of enjoyment for me. Felt like an old school slow burner which I totally love. Great!

3.DJANGO UNCHAINED- Tarantino can do no wrong. Actually he does everything wrong, yet somehow it all works out incredibly to create such original, over the top, nonsensical awesomeness that it is hard to comprehend. When you sit in the theater watching Django, your jaw drops open and you can barely understand what Tarantino must have been thinking when he filmed this junk. It is incredible. Christoph Waltz is an amazing actor, and Leonardo was crazy good in this. Two thumbs up.

2. MACHETE KILLS- Robert Rodriguez falls into the same category as Tarantino of course. Machete Kills is so stupid and ridiculous, you either get it and love it, or don't really get it and hate it. I laughed so much during this movie. How do the actors keep a straight face during some of these scenes? Must have taken many takes to get some of these in the can. The cast is outrageously great. The writing is stupid and awesome. The direction is corny and dumb. The action is silly. I cannot wait for Machete Kills Again...In Space. Incredible!

And, in what should probably be a surprise to absolutely no one, Captain Creepy's number one movie of 2013...

1. EVIL DEAD- Of course when hearing they were going to make a new version of Evil Dead, which is my favorite franchise of all time, I was wary that they would mess this up and royally piss me off. Especially when they announced that Bruce Campbell would not be involved. However, I also heard Bruce give this project a thumbs up when it was nearing the release date, so I was intrigued by what this movie would be. This rates as my number one movie of the year even just for the fact that they pulled off the remake without screwing it up. Now, it's not like the original, obviously, but it was a well made, fun, and gory horror romp. There were nods and Easter eggs for the old time fans. There was Sam Raimi's Oldsmobile. It was suspenseful and fun, in a bloody chainsaw kind of way. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and was so relieved that they made a respectable new version of Evil Dead. Well done!

As I stated, I did not see a ton of movies in 2013, and a few that I still need to see that may well have made my list include Insidious2 and You're Next. World War Z is another one that I have yet to see, so I have no opinion on this yet either. Skinwalker Ranch and Willow Creek I have to see as well.Both of these look to be right up my alley.
There are a few Honorable Mentions that were very close to cracking the top 10. This list includes Hatchet 3, Star Trek Into Darkness, Iron Man 3, Dark Skies, and Man of Steel.A few of these were close, but couldn't quite crack the Creepy 10.
Be on the lookout for more Captain Creepy in 2014. Creepy out.