Backwoods Horror

Due to unforeseen circumstances, I couldn’t properly wish Uncle George a very happy 70th Birthday on Wednesday.  So, for George, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!  Here’s some video Q&A Footage from the Rue Morgue Festival Of Fear (and some viddy at the bottom from my brief introduction to the man).  We here at BACKWOODS HORROR LOVE ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK AND DETERMINATION.  He is not only a pioneer in horror filmmaking, or zombie filmmaking, but filmmaking in general.  He is a credit to the independent soul of the true filmmaking artist.  Cheers!

George A. Romero Q&A

Dario Argento and George A. Romero Q&A

Meeting him myself at a local comic shop HEROES.  Friggin’ awesome!

Those tea-drinking, queen loving bastards are at it again with their awesome editions of shit we in America would OBVIOUSLY appreciate more (though, more than likely, we’ll eventually get it…but I want it NOOOOOOOOOOOOOW).  What am I ranting about?  Oh, well, only a new special edition of DAY OF THE DEAD on Blue-Ray (with an added DVD for more special features).  That’s right, the love that has been shown only to NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and DAWN OF THE DEAD (I still drool over my Ultimate Edition black case of zombie lovin’), is finally coming to the classic DAY OF THE DEAD.  This new edition for the 25th Anniversary (which Brits can pick up March 29th) is going to kick some major f-ing ass, and, once we in the STATES get it, well, it’s BLU-RAY time for the shack.  Check out the article at Shoot For The Head for an in-depth look at what this sweet, sweet edition has packin’!  LUCKY BASTARDS!

From SHOCK TILL YOU DROP:

Camelot Entertainment Group, Inc. announced today that Camelot Distribution Group has added two horror documentaries to its lineup: Unearthed: The Hellraiser Saga and Zombie Culture: Documentary of the Living Dead.

Both will be distributed through Camelot’s DarKnight Pictures, a division of Camelot Distribution Group. Anthony Masi (Halloween: 25 Years Later, His Name Was Jason) will produce.

“Hellraiser is one of the most recognizable horror franchises and with the studio reboot in 2011, this is great time to produce and release a behind the story feature,” commented Camelot’s Jaime Thompson. “Zombie Culture capitalizes on how zombies have become the most popular movie monster. The film will document zombies from their humble beginnings to their seemingly unstoppable universal appeal.”

Unearthed steps behind the scenes and explores every facet and theme of Clive Barker’s two decades of Cenobites in the Hellraiser series. Zombie Culture, meanwhile, is a retrospective on an eight-decade international obsession with cinematic zombies.

First off, yes, I thought of the new Resident Evil game when I saw this.  In the upcoming flick THE DEAD (Official Site), we have ZOMBIES IN AFRICA!  Pretty cool.  Maybe it’ll be a plague or some Zulu Hoodoo Voodoo action, who knows, the trailer is really more of a teaser.  Here the trailer and the scoop from Shock Till You Drop:

British filmmakers Howard and Jonathan Ford collaborated on a zombie film (yes, another one for the genre fire) called The Dead.

Set in the big city? Nope. Suburbia? Nada. A mall? Try again. The Fords have crafted an undead picture for Africa and it looks…pretty damn interesting. Can’t vouch for the performances yet, but I love the look and the possibilities. Rob Freeman stars.

Synopsis: After crashing off the coast, Lt. Brian Murphy battles for survival across the vast terrrains of Africa in search for a way to get back to his beloved family. Joined by local military man Daniel Dembele who is also searching for his son, together both men join forces all the while battling against the ever present threat of the living dead!

We’ll keep an eye out for distribution news…

Magnet is going to be releasing George A. Romero’s SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD on Video on Demand this April 30th, to be followed with a limited (of course) theatrical release on May 28th.  Magnet Releasing is a division of Magnolia Pictures.

I wish they’d show Romero a little more love.  Hell, I wish they’d show ME a little more love.  Limited theatrical run means I probably won’t get to feast my bloodshot, horror-lovin’ eyes on the flick in theaters.  DAMNIT!!!

Check out more SOTD news HERE.

Thanks to ShockTillYouDrop, all you good boils ‘n ghouls out there get to see the international trailer for ZOMBIELAND (set for release October 2nd).  Check it out below!

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has pushed the former October 20th Release date for the NIGHT OF THE CREEPS dvd back to October 27th.  Not a big push, but I guess we’ll just have to wait a bit longer for our alien slug/zombie goodness.  Once again, here are the features:

• Commentary with Writer / Director Fred Dekker
• Cast Commentary
• Birth of the Creeps
• Cast of the Creeps
• Creating the Creeps
• Escape of the Creeps
• Legend of the Creeps
• Tom Atkins: Man of Action
• Original Theatrical Ending
• Trivia Track
• Deleted Scenes

As soon as we get some DVD art, we’ll be sure to post it here at BACKWOODSHORROR.com

Frank Darabont (THE MIST, SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION) will be writing and directing the mini-series version of the Image Comics hit ‘THE WALKING DEAD’ created by Robert Kirkman for AMC.

This from Shock Till You Drop:

AMC and Frank Darabont (The Mist) are inching ever so close to teaming up to adapt the Image Comics graphic novel series “The Walking Dead,” written by Robert Kirkman.

Darabont will write and direct! Incredible. It’s been rumored that the series would go to Showtime  or HBO, however, Darabont could make this work for AMC.

Variety says that Gale Anne Hurd of Valhalla Motion Pictures and David Alpert of Circle of Confusion are also on board to executive produce.

The story is set among a group of zombie survivors of an apocalypse who are led by a police officer, Rick Grimes, in search of a safe place to live.

AMC Senior Vice President of Programming Joel Stillerman said the series will stay faithful to the tone of the original novels. “This is not about zombies popping out of closets. This is a story about survival, and the dynamics of what happens when a group is forced to survive under these circumstances. The world (in ‘Walking Dead’) is portrayed in a smart, sophisticated way.”

I know I’ll sure as hell be looking forward to this one!  It’ll be fuckin’ awesome.  Forget the shitty CGI in THE MIST, Frank Darabont is one of the few directors who could really breathe life into this comic and make it a badass fuckin’ flick!

George A. Romero’s new zombie epic, formerly titled …OF THE DEAD, has now received the title SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD.  The film will be premiering at the TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL.  For pics from the flick, check out TIFF’s page for the film HERE!

This from SHOCK TILL YOU DROP:

Survival of the Dead follows a war-weary band of soldiers who are lured to a remote island that promises to be the last paradise on earth, only to discover that even here there is no escape from the appetites of either the living or the dead.

Says Romero, “We’re in the final stages of post-production and it’s great to come up for air and find out the film’s been chosen to appear at the Festival. It’s just a terrific honor.”

So…I’m not exactly sure how this film is being marketed.  It seems like a pandemic flick, a mass plague wiping out mankind; chaos, brutality, and hilarious hijinks ensue.  But then, towards the end of the trailer, it almost seems like an American 28 DAYS LATER as it looks like the infected, or, “Carriers” can still move around like crazy, rabid zombies.  Because Chris Pine’s in it, the film will more than likely hit the big screen as opposed to a direct-to-DVD route.  Here’s hoping it’s more 28 DAYS LATER than DISEASE FLICK.  CARRIERS may be one to watch.  Here’s the Trailer: