UNTIL DAWN on Playstation 5 Out Oct 3
Face your fears and determine who survives in this enhanced version of the horror classic.
Rebuilt from the ground up for PS5® consoles and PC, Until Dawn™ invites you to immerse yourself in a gripping slasher horror where every decision can make the difference between life and death.
When eight friends return to the isolated mountain lodge where two of their group vanished a year prior, things quickly take a sinister turn. As fear tightens its icy grip on the group, their remote retreat becomes an inescapable nightmare.
Your actions and choices will determine who survives Until Dawn in this definitive version of the seminal horror classic.
written by Graham Reznick and Larry Fessenden and featuring Fessenden as “Flame Thrower Guy”
BLACKOUT unspools at Film Noir Cinema in Williamsburg, NY OCT 18 8PM
Fessenden’s Werewolf Drama unspools
at the Film Noir Cinema
October 18 at 8PM followed by a Q&A with Fessenden
Part of the Shock A Go-Go Film Festival
Screen Connections BLACKOUT Blu-ray review: 9/10
by Kevin Lovell
Capsule review: ‘Blackout’ is an entertaining and often fairly bloody werewolf tale that’s quite different than many of your average werewolf films, exploring the psychological struggle of our lead as he tries to piece together the reality of his situation while trying to find a way to stop it before things grow further out of hand and those he cares about suffer the consequences. It’s a generally solid, entertaining and at times quite emotional werewolf film that changes things up from the standard formula in some intriguing ways.
DISC REVIEW
The Blu-ray release of ‘Blackout’ features a full 1080p High Definition presentation with the film’s original 1.85:1 Aspect Ratio. The video presentation looks wonderful as a whole and delivers a clean, sharp and richly detailed presentation from start to finish that never suffers from any notable troubles or faults along the way. Detail is impressive throughout with everything from character specifics and vehicles, city streets and trees, along with the forest and werewolf details looking spectacular, while colors are bright and clean and nicely balanced by capable black levels and shadowing that hold up splendidly throughout. Overall, this is a great high definition presentation that looks quite gorgeous at every turn and it should easily please fans of the film as well as first time viewers.
AUDIO:
The Blu-ray release features a 5.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. This multichannel soundtrack offers a clean, crisp and at times nicely immersive audio presentation throughout. It takes advantage of all five available channels in order to send music, nature, action and vehicle effects, along with more whipping throughout the various speakers when appropriate, all while making certain that all dialogue and other audio elements that might be occurring simultaneously with one another remain clean and fully audible. Overall, this is a solid 5.1 DTS-HD MA soundtrack that makes a great complement to the film and shouldn’t disappoint in the slightest.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
The Darky Sky Selects Limited Edition Blu-ray release of ‘Blackout’ features a nice collection of bonus content that fans of the film should enjoy. Included on the release is an ‘Audio Commentary with Writer/Director/Editor/Producer Larry Fessenden’, in addition to an in depth look at the making of the film in ‘Blackout: Behind the Scenes’ (running approximately 77 minutes in length), plus a look at clips from Fessenden’s monster-like outings in ‘Larry Fessenden’s Monsterverse’ (running approximately 6 minutes), a ‘Monster Mash Photoshoot Timelapse by Beck Underwood’ (4 minutes) and the ‘Blackout Audio Drama’ (26 minutes). Also included is the film’s ‘Teaser Trailer’ (2 minutes), ‘Theatrical Trailer’ (2 minutes) and a physical 12-page booklet with an introduction by Fangoria’s Phil Nobile Jr.
Film Rating: 7/10
Disc Rating: 9/10
NEW in the CINEZONE: Rigo Garay’s SIZE UP
SIZE UP
(2020, Dir. Rigo Garay, 15 mins, SONY A7S)
cinematography by James Siewert.
featuring Jesse Schratz, Rigo Garay, Jose Useche,
Sean Mana, Matt Liqouri, Tatiana Montes.
After the senseless murder of this older brother,
an 11-year-old boy will discover what kind of a person he will grow to be.
watch the teaser below
and join us in the CineZone to see the film
SIZE UP is the directorial debut from Rigo Garay, Glass Eye Pix Filmworker
and actor in GEP’s CRUMB CATCHER, BLACKOUT and MISS MILLIE.
NOTES
I was rejected from all film schools. I didn’t even know what a C-stand was until finally stepping foot on a film set for a Glass Eye Pix flick (10 years ago this April). It finally came time to make my own short, and SIZE UP was my first rodeo in many regards. By this time, I had been at GEP for 4 years as Office Coordinator and on set as a PA, boom operator, swing, assistant editor, etc (GEP was my film school) and I made many friends along the way who rallied up and helped good ‘ol Rigo make his short. Chris Skotchdopole producing and editing, James Felix McKenney producing & ADing, Jesse LoCascio as AC, Ben Duff lit it, James Siewert shot the thing and a slew of interns including 2 new hires Matt Yturralde & Santiago Saba Salem as PAs and a fresh faced Luke LeCount who was hired during post. And of course, Fessenden producing and watching over everything.
The inspo for this movie came from stories about people mugged and killed for their Galaxy Foamposites. It’s terrifying to think that you could never see your loved one ever again because of a pair of ostentatious sneakers (ugly sneakers, if I’m being honest). I had pals trading war-stories about violence befalling them from the sneaker game. Stories like surviving a knife to the gut and robbed $400 cash from a Craigslist seller, or mugged out of your True Religion jeans, Burberry Tee and Jordans at gunpoint, walk home in your undies. It was all so surreal, I had to make it a movie.
Skotchdopole and I would talk through the script a lot. He suggested that I should play the villain “Lito”, who’s such a specific character, an amalgamation of riff-raffs & yahoos I’ve encountered growing up in Long Island. L.I. is a weird place, you can commit a B&E with a Juggalo and a Central American war criminal, then go to Sunday mass with your mother the next morning. I know this type of guy too well, I had no choice but to play him. A suburban, sociopathic, bully: The Long Island Kingpin.
The flick is littered with directorial mistakes, and I wear that as a badge of honor. This was my first assignment, my tryout. And like everyone’s first, there are hiccups that I take ownership of and I’m grateful that my collaborators (who are some of the most talented folks I know) allowed me to be stubborn, allowed me to LEARN. With all that being said, the one thing I knew I got right was the HEART of SIZE UP, hopefully it touches yours.
TBT 2022
Shooting BLACKOUT September 2022 with Kevin Corrigan
Time to order your Halloween Advent Calendar!
Join Glass Eye Pix in counting down the days to our favorite night of the season: HALLOWEEN!
What better way than with our classic Shocktober Nights calendar.
Behind each of the 31 die-cut passages lurks a monstrous and ghoulish delight,
brought to life by illustrator Brahm Revel.
Warning: As it turns out, this product may be unsuitable for children!
Only $10.00 USD per calendar plus $3.00 for shipping.
Order by September 26 for delivery by October 1st!
And keep those wallets open folks;
we’ve got lots more goodies
on offer this Super Spooky Season
cbr: One of the Biggest Names in Modern Horror Directed a Surprisingly Good Western
From the article by Claire Donner:
The name Ti West has become synonymous with indie horror. He first drew serious attention with his 2009 hit House of the Devil, and the recent success of the X trilogy has firmly established his dominance in the genre. However, many fans may have missed the 2016 release of a Western called In a Valley of Violence, a Blumhouse production starring Ethan Hawke and John Travolta. Its quiet reception does not reflect its quality — In a Valley of Violence is an exciting piece of Americana that can delight established fans, and attract new ones.
The horrormeister’s first Western emerged amid a smattering of TV gigs including episodes of Scream and The Exorcist. No one on the outside would have guessed that between 2013’s found footage feature The Sacrament and the 2022 arrival of X, West would delve into a neglected genre with the help of Hollywood stars. In a Valley of Violence is a lean, mean cross between John Wick and High Plains Drifter that is as funny as it is brutaland well worth a watch for West devotees.
…
In a Valley of Violence tells a grim tale about remorseful thugs, disgraced soldiers, and ordinary folks doing what they must to survive. However, Ti West’s crackling dialog and his charming cast soften its edges with lots of comedic charm. Taissa Farmiga and Karen Gillan have terrific chemistry as a pair of bickering sisters and genre stalwart Larry Fessenden gives good death as usual. The standout, however, is second-stringer Tommy Nohilly as Tubby, who stops in the middle of an apocalyptic gun battle to deliver a righteous speech about being fat-shamed by the rest of his gang. This genre-bending Western really has a little something for everyone.