TUCKER’S MONSTER I admit that when I hear the term “young adult fiction” I am forced to assume the worst. I think sparkly vampires with an addiction to Dido music sitting around stalking teenagers. Tucker’s Monster by S.S. Wilson is, thankfully, not that kind of book. It is, at its heart, an adventure story that reminds me of things I …

Each episode of this TV series depicts a short, strange tale…with a twist! With eerie stories vaguely reminiscent of ‘The Twilight Zone,’ viewers learn to appreciate that things are often not as they seem. The usual plot formula is comprised of an initial normal, mundane situation that gradually begins to get off-kilter, with suspense building up to the final, chilling, …

OFF THE RAILS AND OTHER TALES By Jason L. Liquori A collection of delightfully depraved bone chilling terror is summarized by title as follows: BANKER’S HOURS: A band of retired bank robbers plot one last heist and tend not to lichen they get more than what they’d bargained for. NIGHT CRAWL: Walter, Harry and Rachel roam the dense brush in …

SYNOPSIS: The Embryo Hunts In Secret, released in July 1966, is the first film made by Japanese director Kōji Wakamatsu independently of any movie studio REVIEW: There are folks who can make nasty, sleazy movies, and there are folks who can make artsy movies, but rare is it that you can find a director who can make a movie that …

SYNOPSIS: A wealthy married couple decide to ignore strict laws banning zombies in private homes and takes in a female zombie to groom as their housekeeper. When the zombie arrives, they also receive a note warning against feeding her any type of meat and also a loaded handgun. Meanwhile, the scarred zombie named Sara (Ayaka Komatsu) endures horrors, while longing …

SYNOPSIS: Horror maven Wes Craven — paying homage to teen horror classics such as Halloween and Prom Night — turns the genre on its head with this tale of a murderer who terrorizes hapless high schooler Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) by offing everyone she knows. Not your average slasher flick, Scream distinguishes itself with a self-parodying sense of humor. Courteney …

SYNOPSIS: As the light fades and the city goes to sleep, two forces emerge. They are invisible to us except for the power they exert over us in our sleep. These two groups battle for our souls through our dreams. One force supports our hopes and gives us strength through good dreams. The other force leads us toward desperation through …

SYNOPSIS: In the future Earth is a much different place. There has been a nuclear holy war, an economic crash and to top it all off alien races have now began to populate the planet. The harshness of the planet has made it difficult to obtain fresh organs for much needed surgeries resulting in prostitutes becoming organ thieves. A young …

SYNOPSIS: When a mortician discovers that a girl’s mutilated corpse grows prodigious amounts of hair, he sells the locks to a beauty salon for use as hair extensions. But the dead girl’s spirit has cursed the hair, which begin to attack the women who wear it. How many must die before the hirsute rampage relents? Genuinely horrific, this captivating film …

SYNOPSIS: A rich actress who has gotten too old for leading roles employs a scientist who is working on a formula for eternal youth. The formula involves withdrawing certain fluids from the human brain. She takes the serum, but its unforseen side effects turn her into a murderous monster REVIEW: The Rejuvenator is a mad scientist film about trying to …

SYNOPSIS: Open on gorgeous swamplands of the Atchafalaya Basin in the summer. Lots of beautiful teens are at the beach the weekend before Gator Fest. That night an animal smuggling deal goes wrong and a large sea creature escapes into a swampy backwoods river. At the McDaniel’s “Gator Shack” restaurant, a local, Jackson is drunk, and gets mangled to bits. …

SYNOPSIS: Eerie tales about a levitating boy, an endlessly ringing phone, an undead grandpa, a vengeful genie and a bookie whose life depends on a bet populate the premiere season of this macabre 1980s anthology series. The episodes — adapted from stories by Stephen King, Clive Barker and other horror writers — include guest appearances by Danny Aiello, Tippi Hedren, …

SYNOPSIS: A family moves to a suburban town only to be coerced into joining a suspicious club. REVIEW: Less than five minutes into Invitation to Hell, we see a distracted limousine driver cruising through the parking lot of a posh country club where he accidentally runs over a glamorously attired and dramatically coiffed woman. Has she been killed? Hardly. Director …

SYNOPSIS: It’s her worst nightmare come true when Tonya (Ailsa Marshall) finds herself stranded in an unfamiliar room with 13 naked prisoners, each held hostage by an electronic collar and left to agonize about what horrible fate may await. As it turns out, they’re slated to die, and as the clock ticks down, the terrified strangers go toes up one …

SYNOPSIS: Five “city boys” travel to the country to relax by doing some hunting, drinking Bud, and generally having good time. However, the local inbred backwoods psychos turn the hunters to be the hunted, and they need all the ammo and wits they have to get out of the woods alive. REVIEW: Ever see “Deliverance”? “Southern Comfort”? “Rituals” maybe? More …

SYNOPSIS: A woman and her childhood friend seek out revenge on those who victimized and abused them. REVIEW: The film Martyrs written by and originally presented in 2008 was an important film for the genre. Pascal Laugier managed to walk away from this one with many referring to him as a “visionary”. In the same respect, it became an instant …