Backwoods Horror

Well before I began writing for BackwoodsHorror.com, I had heard through the wire, then watched, a small, independent slasher flick in the vein of HALLOWEEN entitled MALEVOLENCE, written and directed by Stevan Mena.  Put together on half a shoestring budget, Mena created something very special…a GREAT flick full of suspense and terror, a film lauded by many within the horror community.  Upon watching the film, I found myself agreeing with nearly EVERYONE in the positive.  MALEVOLENCE is a very competent piece of horror filmmaking.  But, well, then what happened?  Shock Till You Drop got the news that a prequel is on the way, the second part in what is intended to be a trilogy of terror.  Here’s the scoop:

It’s been a while since we’ve heard anything about Malevolence: Bereavement, the prequel and first part of the intended trilogy to Malevolence from filmmaker Stevan Mena. Fangoria caught up with the filmmaker to get a status update on the movie, which wrapped principle photography over two years ago.

“The film is in final post-production, so we’re just working on the final touches of the sound mix,” Mena tells Fango.

One the reasons for the delay? “There’s a tremendous amount of plot that I’m trying to get into a two-hour movie, so certain things couldn’t make it in, and it was a long process for me to decide what should and shouldn’t be in the final picture. The initial cut was about three hours long, so it has been a laborious process to kind of kill my babies and figure out what the final film’s gonna be. It has taken me a while to really get my head wrapped around that, and now I’ve finally done it.”

While the prequel depicts the backstory of how little Martin Bristol is kidnapped by serial killer Graham Sutter and himself turned into the killer that we meet in the first Malevolence, Mena has opted to drop the “Malevolence” moniker and simply title it “Bereavement”.

“We wanted this film to be its own entity,” explains Mena. “There are certain things which will be obvious if you’ve seen the original. And if you haven’t, it certainly stands on its own. I’d say that you should see this, and then watch Malevolence.”

Bereavement also boasts an interesting cast including fan fave Michael Biehn (Planet Terror), John Savage (Carnivàle), Brett Rickaby who plays Graham Sutter and can be seen later this month in The Crazies remake. Lead actress Alexandra Daddario will next be seen in The Lightening Thief. Spencer List, Jennifer Blanc and Kathryn Meisle (Basket Case 2) round out the rest of the cast.

Here’s a little look at some behind-the-scenes action on BEREAVEMENT:

Wow, THE CRAZIES is really getting some momentum behind it.  It seems like there’s a new TV spot or news story being released every day.  Below is the spot that’ll be airing at the SuperBowl this Sunday.  Check it out!

Actually looks like a good ‘un!  Check out the Trailer for the upcoming CRAZIES remake below!

An official trailer for the upcoming February 26, 2010 release of THE CRAZIES remake has hit the web.  Check it out below!

Here’s a synopsis if you haven’t seen the Romero original (in which case, do so immediately).

A husband and wife in a small Midwestern town find themselves battling for survival as their friends and family descend into madness in The Crazies. A mysterious toxin in the water supply turns everyone exposed to it into mindless killers and the authorities leave the uninfected to their certain doom in this terrifying reinvention of the George Romero horror classic. Directed by Breck Eisner (Sahara), The Crazies is written by Ray Wright (Pulse, Case 39) and Scott Kosar (The Amityville Horror, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre). The American Dream goes horribly wrong when the residents of this picture-perfect town begin to succumb to an uncontrollable urge for violence and the horrific bloodshed escalates into anarchy. In an attempt to contain the epidemic, the military uses deadly force to close off access into or out of town, abandoning the few healthy citizens to the growing mayhem as depraved killers lurk in the shadows. Sheriff David Dutton (Timothy Olyphant); his pregnant wife, Judy (Radha Mitchell); Becca (Danielle Panabaker), an assistant at the medical center; and Russell (Joe Anderson), Dutton’s deputy and right-hand man, find themselves trapped in a once idyllic town they can no longer recognize. Unable to trust former neighbors and friends, deserted by the authorities and terrified of contracting the illness themselves, they are forced to band together in a nightmarish struggle for survival.

Check out the Teaser Poster for the upcoming CRAZIES remake below.  A trailer will be along soon and I’ll have it up as soon as I get it!

How could I have missed this?  Check out the poster for the upcoming remake to THE CRAZIES:

I don’t really believe THE CRAZIES needs a remake necessarily, but the film DOES lend itself to that idea more than any other flick that’s been remade.  Of course, saying that, this remake trend HAS TO FUCKING STOP!  That is a pretty damn neat poster though.  If it had the original font style from the original flick, I’d buy it and just pretend it was intended for the original.  I wish it was Uncle George who was going behind the pen and the lens on this one.  It’s probably going to blow.

Ok, so, this is my first ever video review, so be kind.  I’m tired as hell and I’m not entirely iMovie literate, but I think I caught the basics.  Just watched a VHS of THE CRAZIES, so here’s the review.  Oh, that reminds me.  The place where I get 5 old VHS horror flicks for $5 for 5 days, VSI, is shutting its doors.  MOTHER…FUCK!  So I’ll probably take a camera in there, get some vid, and sort of memorialize the closing of the last mom ‘n pop video store I know of around here.  Goddamnit!  On with the review!