Dread Reckoning

Frightful Rome

[26.Oct.09] :. Profondo Rosso, the Dario Argento store in Rome, hints at a dramatic cultural shift taking place in Italy regarding the appreciation and analysis of classic Italian horror films.

Horrifyingly Close to Reality

[21.Sep.09] :. Western culture’s perspective of torture is complex and paradoxical; it's considered immoral, illegal, primitive, and indecent, yet it's shocking to see that torture methods continue to be used in the interrogation of prisoners of war.

International d’Horreur

[30.Jul.09] :. The country that is producing high quality fear flicks these days is not in North America nor anywhere in Asia, but in Western Europe.

Fighting the Flu

[4.May.09] :. The mobilization of the military to control the spread of the current outbreak of a rare strain of the swine flu in Mexico City is right out of Stephen King’s The Stand.

By One’s Own Hand, Then

[18.Feb.09] :. On the one hand society at large relies on moral and theological arguments to ban suicide; on the other our world is plagued with destructive wars and suicidal conflicts.

Something to Do with Death

[6.Jan.09] :. By manipulating mankind’s fear of death, organized religion clearly emerges as the most ruthless and totalitarian authority institution in the history of the world.

Horrors in the Closet: Transgressing All Boundaries

[18.Sep.08] :. David Cronenberg and Clive Barker constantly pushed the boundaries of representations of sexual identities, yet their films feel not condemning, paranoid, or xenophobic -- but alluring and fascinating.

Horrors in the Closet: Horrifying Heteronormative Scapegoating

[22.Aug.08] :. The artificial connection between homosexuality and communism created the popular myth of evil and undetectable gay subversives living inside 1950s American society.

Horrors in the Closet: A Closet Full of Monsters

[23.Jun.08] :. A closet full of monsters is a scary place where "straight people" can safely negotiate and articulate their fascination and/or dread of "difference" in sexual preferences.

The Demise of Horror Culture?

[13.May.08] :. While the horror classics of 1968 may have indeed revitalized the genre, few today are aware of these movies' impact on the canon...if they acknowledge them at all.

A Terrifying Ruby Jubilee

[15.Apr.08] :. As a pivotal year of social change and as a cultural stepping stone, 1968 saw the radicalization of American society, and an accompanying revolution in the realm of horror genre filmmaking.

American Gothic

[19.Feb.08] :. Grant Wood's 'American Gothic' is an elegant representation of the American nightmare: the horrors and monsters that constantly lurk behind the face of normality.

Horror Cinema By the Numbers

[26.Nov.07] :. Technology is not the only reason for the recent worldwide glut in horror films. Ease of access and influence also contribute to their continuing creation.

Bringing Home the Horror

[1.Nov.07] :. Fright film fans have an innate desire to "own" that which they obsess over. Thanks to the ever changing face of home theater technology, and the genre's link to same, they can easily satisfy their creepshow cravings.

The Year of the Wolf

[5.Oct.07] :. Leave it to the geniuses running the Hollywood studios to offset each other by delivering three legendary lycanthrope movies, 'The Howling', 'An American Werewolf in London' and 'Wolfen' during the same seminal genre year: 1981.

A Matter of Morbid Elegance

[25.Jun.07] :. While it may be hard to believe, horror imagery has its direct links in the visual variances of classic painting. It's all a matter of melancholic grace.

The Unseen Masters of Horror

[16.May.07] :. Fright fans love to praise the visionary efforts of their favorite horror directors. But behind every great terror auteur is usually an unsung macabre master.

Fear Factoring: Part 2

[7.Nov.06] :. In this second of a two-part examination on the roles that fan appreciation, critical consideration, and subject matter play on categorizing horror film, our resident macabre master argues that unlike other cinematic genres, the basic tenets of the terror experience can change from year-to-year, generation-to-generation.

Fear Factoring: Part I

[28.Sep.06] :. What elements categorize a horror film? Monsters? Murders? Mood and atmosphere? In this first of a two part examination on the subject, our resident macabre master argues that unlike other cinematic genres, the basic tenets of the terror experience can be difficult to clearly delineate.

The Gruesome Gazettes Part 2: Fangoria and Beyond

[17.Aug.06] :. Horror fandom finds its gruesome, gory touchstone in this second half of our look at genre publications, and its arrival signals a real renaissance in the power and influence of motion picture macabre.

The Gruesome Gazettes

[27.Jul.06] :. In the first of a two part examination on the subject, our scholar of scares looks back at the role genre magazines played in the creation of the rabid macabre movie fanbase we see today.

Legends of the Fang

[16.Jun.06] :. Want to know why Richard Matheson's I am Legend is one of the most important horror novels of all time? Our resident scare scholar offers up this comprehensive overview of the man, the book, and the enduring legacy.

Trilogy of (T)errors

[4.May.06] :. What do murderous Halloween masks, a monster enclosed in a Carpathian fortress, and a legion of interstellar soul suckers have in common? According to our resident scare scholar, they are part of a trio of '80s horror films that have been unfairly maligned by critics and fans alike.

A New Kind of Magic: Part III: Cinematic Symbiosis

[23.Mar.06] :. In the final installment of his three-part look at the evolution of special effects in movie macabre, our horror historian looks at Fritz Lang, Lon Chaney, and a certain oversized ape's place in the dynamic of dread.

A New Kind of Magic: Part II: The Modern Prometheus

[22.Feb.06] :. In the second of a three-part look at the symbiotic relationship between the horror film and special effects, our Dread specialist shows how Mary Shelley's mythical monster, and a unique approach to art design, forever changed the horror film.

A New Kind of Magic: Part I: The Power of Prestidigitation

[24.Jan.06] :. In the first of a three-part look at the symbiotic relationship between the horror film and special effects, our Dread specialist argues for magician George Melies' place as the father of all F/X-based fright flicks.

One Wedding and Lots of Funerals

[30.Nov.05] :. While many consider it a horror classic, Lanzagorta reveals the sensationally subversive underbelly -- thanks to director James Whale -- of 1935's Bride of Frankenstein.

Not Just Zombies

[26.Oct.05] :. Even though George Romero is famous for his zombie flicks, he has directed a variety of other equally interesting fright films that are usually overlooked by the casual fan.

A Fistful of Maggots

[28.Sep.05] :. In his second column, Lanzagorta focuses his attention on a ferocious Italian filmmaker whose gore-laden lunacy redefined the zombie horror genre.

A Horror Renaissance

[2.Sep.05] :. Horror is hot again. In his new column, Lanzagorta explains how the current scary movie revival is but a regurgitation of the fears and paranoias of the 1970s, and quite apropos for these times.