Saturday Nightmares Returns To New Jersey

It seems like it has been entirely too long since New Jersey had itself an amazing and awesome horror convention. For years many of us have been wondering when we'd be getting something back towards the scale of the Monster-Mania and Chiller Theater conventions of old. Well, it looks like we've finally got a contender.

Originally at the Landmark Loew's in my hometown of Jersey City, NJ, the Saturday Nightmares convention in NJ is moving to a bigger location and has an even more impressive lineup.

Running from June 3rd through the 5th this year, at the Sheraton Meadowlands Hotel in East Rutherford, NJ, the show already has a boastful lineup of some classic names in horror and sci-fi, from The Birds and Dawn Of The Dead to the man responsible for the voice of Roger Rabbit. Fucking awesome! Check out the website at http://www.saturdaynightmares.com/ and look below for just a sampling of some of the guests to be expected at the show.

Tippi Hedren
Bruce Dern
Karen Black
Sid Haig
Barbara Steele
Julian Sands
Doug Bradley
Lisa Marie
The cast of "Dawn of the Dead" - (Ken Foree, Gaylen Ross, Scott Reiniger, David Emge, all lead zombies)

The cast of "The Return of the Living Dead" (Beverly Randolph, Don Calfa, Jewel Shepard, Thom Mathews, Allan Trautman, Linnea Quigley, Brian Peck, John Philbin)

The Ladies of "The Evil Dead"
Brenda Bakke
Charles Fleischer
Terry Alexander
Claudia Wells
Belinda Balaski
Kelli Maroney
Lynne Griffin
Lesleh Donaldson
Michael Baldwin
and many, many more!

Win A Prize Pack From The Wolfman

If you're anything like me then you can't wait to "The Wolfman" on 2/12. Rick Baker's return to making werewolves, the R-rated treatment of a classic Universal Monster, and it being the new film from the director of "The Rocketeer" and the future director of "The First Avenger: Captain America" are more than enough reasons to get my ass in the seat.

Universal has gifted me with some items to give away to you fine fan folks and I saw this as a great opportunity to have a blast with it.

So I bring to you, the "Wolfman Haiku Contest." The what? Yeah, I know it sounds easy, but difficult at the same time. You know what a haiku is, right?

Ok, it is simple. Make a poem about "The Wolfman" that is three sentences long, with the first sentence being 5 syllables, the second setence 7 syllables, and the final sentence being 5 again. Post it RIGHT HERE in the comments section. Need an example? Ok, I have one for you:

He has hairy toes.

He has a leathery nose.

The Wolfman has nards.

Yeah, I expect you to do better than that... MUCH better than that. Here are the prizes and stipulations.

The Wolfman Prize Pack Includes:

(1) THE WOLFMAN Poster

(1) Hat - Black, 100% Cotton hat with brass fastener. THE WOLFMAN title treatment is embroidered in white glow-in-the-dark thread on the front panel

(1) T-Shirt - 100% Cotton t-shirt with THE WOLFMAN teaser face image screened large on the front of the shirt and THE WOLFMAN title treatment screened large across the back

(1) Coaster - 4" round disposable drink coaster with full moon image, title, release date, and web address printed in black

(1) Cup - Disposable plastic 22oz cup with custom full color WOLFMAN art

**Winner must be in the US and must have a non PO - Shipping address
**Winner will be chosen on 2/13 so get your entries in ASAP!


Good luck, and I can't wait to see your poems!

Zombieland Video Review

Being that this is a video review for Zombieland, I guess I don't really have to write that much here, right?

Anyhow, this review focuses mostly on the vague comparisons that some folks have made to another zombie comedy out there... and how those accusations are totally off base. Enjoy! This is the first of many new videos I will be putting up from now on.

Giveaway: Rob Zombie's Halloween II Unrated Director's Cut Blu-Ray

What? You mean you never got to see Rob Zombies Halloween II in the theater? You mean you've been waiting for it to come out on Blu-ray so you can see all the gore in hi-definition, with all the extra footage that was put back in it? You also want to see all the deleted scenes and extra features in pristine 5.1 HD audio?

Wait, you want it for free too? Ok, so I can do that for you. You see, I've been given the task of providing this film to you, free of charge, from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. Being that they have said that I am allowed to ask what I want from you to win the thing, however, I will in fact do just that.

Below will be stills from the film. Pick one, make a funny caption to it AND USE AN IMAGE EDITOR TO WRITE IT ON THE PICTURE (Ed.: sorry for the caps but so many people have just been sending me the captions... as text.... in an email), attach it to an E-mail to me and there, you're done. The one that makes me fall off of my chair with laughter wins the prize. Not so hard is it? Really, though, the most original and funniest will probably be the person who can make the best caption that has nothing to do with the film itself... it just usually works best that way. No matter, you want this movie, and you want it in Blu-ray and for free, so you're going to knock this one out of the park. Go ahead, do it and e-mail it to rene@entertainingevil.com by midnight next Friday, January 15th. Don't forget, this comes out next Tuesday to stores everywhere, January 12th, which also happens to be Rob Zombie's birthday! Yay!

We'll be posting the entries here until then, and announce the winner! Good luck and have fun!












Continue on below to see the entries so far:

Rob Zombie's Halloween II Unrated Director's Cut DVD Review

Oh, Rob Zombie. I have followed you blindly through the days of White Zombie, on through your solo work, looked forward to your first film, loved your second, and kind of dug the third. When it came to the music, well, your second solo effort was where it ended for me. Oddly enough, where I completely pulled the headphone plug out for you was upon your sequel to your first solo album. Now upon seeing the Halloween II Unrated Director's Cut DVD, I am puling the plug on any future anticipation of your films. Oh, how sequels wound you.

But wait, isn't this the same man that gave us The Devil's Rejects, a far better film than the predecessor it was directly connected to? Yeah, but this time around it looks as if Rob went back to his music video directing days and forgot about character development, story, plot, and entertaining the audience. How could a film that is so violent, gritty, and uncomfortable to watch wind up being so boring? For a horror fan that seems almost impossible to imagine.

Aliens Vs. Predator: Hunter Edition Announced For US

What is SEGA trying to do to me? Do I even want this game, really? I don't know. I've been burned by both franchises in games before, but they did put out a couple of good AVP games before the movies came out. Now they are throwing in a bunch of goodies as special bonuses for paying extra to get the collectors editions and they made me want to spend the damn money. Once you throw in a face-hugger I want it.

Who knows how much this damn thing is going to wind up costing, but the fact that it comes with a baby alien means it will be worth whatever price they put on it. Here is the full rundown of what comes in the package, courtesy of the SEGA blog:

Hunter Edition confirmed for US consumers! There, I can finally say it; the Hunter Edition which was announced fairly recently from our European friends is now 100% confirmed in the US with an added bonus – a hardcover graphic novel from Dark Horse Comics featuring the original Aliens vs Predator comic! Don’t worry, all the other goodies are still included, such as the four Multiplayer maps (before they release to the general public), a fully articulated and disturbingly creepy Facehugger model, Weyland Yutani sleeve badge, and a 3D lenticular postcard. To sweeten the deal, if you pre-order you can pick up some exclusive skins for all three species in multiplayer.

Yeah, I want this one bad. Check out a larger image of the packaging below the jump.

Holiday Hoarder Gift Guide 2009

Oh, the season of good tidings is upon us, earlier and earlier every year. Black Friday's significance always outweighs the actual holidays, as folks toy with the idea of getting gifts for a bunch of people that probably don't deserve it. Still, you sometimes can't help but want to show your appreciation for friends and family, and maybe even that annoying co-worker that refuses to cut the damn small talk in the mornings, if only to shut them the hell up.

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, or just give gifts in the hope of getting something good back, I figured that a concise and short list of awesome things to buy for other people, and maybe a few for yourself, might be in order. Remember, the true spirit of the holidays isn't all about good will towards mankind, but good gifts and the manual release you might get because of them.

Circle Of Eight Episode 7: Exclusive Clip and Image

Circle of Eight is slowly becoming the most complicated, mysterious, and insanely detailed Easter Egg hunt the internet has ever known. Those who are obsessing, let alone paying attention, will find number puzzles, references to old literature and head-scratching moments a-plenty. Those who don't get that involved simply dig the winding plot and weird life (or death) that our buddy Jessica seems to be leading.

We're just along for the ride, watching as this lady loses her damn mind. In fact, could this all just be a product of her going nuts? Or is she simply dead and she just doesn't know it yet? Whatever the case may be, the plot thickens tomorrow, and here is an early look at an exclusive clip for Episode 7 that you will only find here on Entertaining Evil! Sound off below and let us know what you think is going on! Oh, and click on the photo up there, cause that sucker is an exclusive too!

Left 4 Dead 2 Redband Trailer

I don't know what it is about them, but we sure love zombies. Sure, everyone thinks that vampires are the hot topic right now, but that has only been the last couple of years. The last decade or so, however, has had a hell of a lot more zombie going around. Tomorrow the second phase of one of the hottest zombie video games ever is hitting the streets. Technically, anyone who lives in Jersey City, New Jersey like I do could have had their four player zombie killing fix this weekend, but that isn't all of you. For the rest of you out there who want this game, you probably are going to be waiting on a line tonight at 11:30pm, or you are waiting for your Steam pre-order to unlock. No matter what, you're excited and probably a bit too trigger happy. Do us a favor and settle down. Okay, now that you've settled down I'm going to try to amp you up again with the latest redband trailer for Left 4 Dead 2. Let us just hope that there is as much ass kicking in this game as there is in this trailer.

Video Games | Left 4 Dead 2 | E3 09: Debut Teaser

Circle Of Eight Episode 6: Exclusive Image - Stay Out Of The File Room

If you didn't already know, I'm hopelessly addicted to Paramount Digital Entertainment's MySpace series, Circle of Eight. With all the red herrings, clues, quirky characters, and seemingly inescapable hallways within The Dante, the one room we all want to see is the file room. Why? Well, when you're told to stay out of the file room from the very first episode you couldn't really care less about any other room in the place. Now we are heading into the 6th episode and we still haven't seen the damn room!

I shouldn't say "we," because as of this morning, I've actually seen it. Yes, the fabled room filled with files is about to be unveiled to you. We've got an exclusive look at the next episode of Circle of Eight and it just so happens to take you straight to the dreaded room, complete with files and a pretty serious looking Ed. Check below for the fully expandable image, as well as a little spoiler laden synopsis of what else you are going to see tomorrow!

Circle of Eight Preview/Review - It Should Seem Confusing Because It Is

Chances are that if you use MySpace, you've seen the trailer or ads for Circle of Eight. Instantly, this being on MySpace makes you think of a few things. First of all, the Top 8 of MySpace profiles a was a fairly significant thing way back when. Secondly, why is this on MySpace? Third, does this have anything to do with the eight circle of hell, "Malebolge?" Well, all of these things come together in one neat and interesting package. I was lucky enough to be able to preview the first few episodes, play the mini-games and clue hunt before it goes live this week. Keep reading if you want to know what I think so far, and how the whole thing works. Oh, and if you think this has anything to do with the Dungeons & Dragons "Circle of Eight" you are totally mistaken.

Circle of Eight is a supernatural murder mystery that is full of WTF moments. Each episode is about 5 minutes long, and they will be served out piece by piece, like a sweet little pie of murder and paranoia. When you first start watching an episode of Circle of Eight it seems like you're just watching any other video online. However, at some point during an episode you'll see a little tool-tip pop up that says something like "Click to go to interactive frame." Doing so will pause the video on a certain image, and this is where the fun begins. As you hunt through the image with your mouse cursor, you'll notice a slightly highlighted area. Once you find it, click, and you'll be shown a stylized image with a call to action to play a little game.

Horror Unleashed Giveaway - Halloween Costume Idea Contest

The time for dressing up like masked vigilantes, werewolves, sparkling vampires, and incredibly slutty fairytale characters is almost here. There is no holiday more fun than Halloween to us horror fans, and no better time to watch tons of horror movies, listen to the Misfits, and drink wine from a black goblet with the word "Arsenic" on it.

Sony Home Entertainment knows this and they have put together a fun site for us gore hounds called Horror Unleashed. To celebrate the launch of their online horror hotel, we're putting a little bit of a contest on. They have donated some "Baghead Masks" (from the film Baghead, of course) as well as some potentially life threatening Quarantine glow-sticks. Too win them, you have to do something very simple: come up with a good, original Halloween costume. Hell, you don't even have to dress up and get the job done this Halloween. Just write your idea down there in the comments. Be sure that whatever you use has a real e-mail address attached. We need to contact you if you've won!

We just want to see what insane, funny, disgusting, terrifying and original things you guys can come up with. We're tired of people dressing up like The Crow, and last year had way more Jokers than anyone ever needed. So give us your best idea, down there in the comments section, and as long as you're one of our favorite two costumes and live in the USA, you will get these little prize packages and a whole lot of admiration from millions of potential internet readers. Some might even ask and beg to be your friend, and who can't use more friends?

Get your ideas in the comments section by midnight of Wednesday, Oct. 27th 2009 and we'll let you know if you've won!

And of course, don't forget to visit www.horrorunleashed.com for all things HORROR!

Become a part of movie history and share it with your friends by using the "Poster Creator" picture upload application. (You could tell that wasn't Jenna Jameson's face up there at the top, right?)

Vote for your favorite Horror Unleashed titles - YOU DECIDE whether they're "Creepy" or "Campy!"

Also, browse the site for more contests and your chance to win a BOO-Ray player, PS3 and an HD TV! Yay!

Night Of The Creeps DVD Review

Hide your cats and dogs and shield your girlfriend's mouth (sorry). The creeps are here! Fred Dekker's directorial debut hit the theaters back in 1986 to a lukewarm reception, but it has grown a reputation and following in its out-of-print afterlife. Rights issues marred any chance of DVD release for years, and now finally, here in the age of HD, a Blu-ray and DVD special edition are finally seeing the light of day on Oct 27th. We've been waiting for this one for a long time. I can finally say that I've watched Night of the Creeps on DVD and didn't do anything illegal to do so. The days of watching this on Sunday morning on WPIX are over, as are sitting through a beaten up VHS dub. To top that off, poor Fred Dekker finally got his way.

Night of the Creeps is a throw back to the "radioactive cinema" days of b-movie sci-fi and horror. As a post-modern horror love letter to the '50s and '60s, it stands the truest test of time: an '80s horror movie that doesn't look or sound completely like it should be left in the '80s. It also predates the rush of the post-modern horror movement by about 10 years. When you've got places and people named after Roger Corman, Sam Raimi, Tobe Hooper, John Carpenter, Steve Miner, James Cameron, John Landis, and David Cronenberg you know you're dealing with a self-referential, tongue-in-cheek script. Thankfully, 1986 doesn't show up too much on screen, even when it shows up in the soundtrack.

Blood: The Last Vampire DVD Review

I confess. As much as I have been a fanboy of all forms of geek-fringe entertainment that this world has to offer, I would always rather watch Transformers or The Tick over just about any Anime. While Vampire  Hunter D, Prokect A-Ko and a few others may have made the cut for me, I've never been the biggest fan of most Japanese  animation, especially their TV shows. While I've always been familiar with the Blood: The Last Vampire property of manga, Anime, and anything else related to it, I had never experienced any of it till watching the live action film that hits DVD on Oct. 20th. Now that I've finally seen it, I'm not sure that I'll be re-visiting Saya's world anytime soon.

The American/French/Japanese/Chinese hybrid production with a Korean lead star is a cinematic soup of too many ingredients without enough broth. In the battle of style vs. substance, usually style comes out the winner and we loose, but I only wish I could say that about this film. When you feel like you've seen everything that could be done in the live-action world to imitate Anime, you expect some form of innovation or dedication to the medium that the property originates from. In that case, you know that the script will be 10 pages of actual story and 75 pages of blood, guts, and gory glory. Well, the delivery comes pretty close to that, but even that would be an overestimation of Blood.

The House Of The Devil Review

Nostalgia is a strange and cruel beast. The fondest recollections one may have about their youth, or any particular portion of the past, are clouded in the fog and cobwebs of old memories. Some details are hidden, distorted, or even completely fabricated. With The House of the Devil all of these things apply. A film that has courted the favor of horror fans, like myself, simply based on a handful of spectacular posters inspired by the 80s, has a tough act to follow. If you set yourself to live up to some kind of imagery and expectation, you're almost always bound to disappoint on some level. The weird thing about The House of The Devil is just how much one can like the film and still be grossly disappointed.

There are a few prerequisites that a film must follow if they are trying to emulate an 80s horror film. Some might call them clichés, while others chalk them up to atmosphere. Cheesy synthesizer soundtracks, jump scares, teenage excess, deformed demonic children and loose women are always the first to come to mind. The House of the Devil has all of that and a few things we may have forgotten about. Do you remember elongated credits sequences with nothing more than a girl taking the longest walk back from her new apartment to her college dorm? I don't, but apparently writer/director Ti West does. In fact, he must remember all the 80s horror films being long, drawn out, and mostly eventless.

Paranormal Activity Director To Visit Area 51

Everyone keeps talking about Paranormal Activity and the phenomenon that it has become. The movie will be expanding it's small clutch on the world to a total of about 40 cities this weekend. Since the film hasn't really been completely released yet, it would almost seem premature for Oren Peli, Paranormal Activity's writer/director, to announce his next film. When you realize that PA was made in 2007 it becomes clear that it ain't that premature after all.

Area 51 is his next film, and it will follow the Paranormal, Blair Witch, and Cloverfield mold of being filmed using that tried and true "found footage" premise. Since it is in pre-production, I guess that means it will be more like Cloverfield and less like any of the films that people swear are real. The budget will be greater than the $11,000 used to make Paranormal Activity, but Oren insists on still using unknown actors. So, can breaking into a secret government facility used to hide alien paraphernalia be as creepy as a haunted house? What do you think?

Check out the full press release below and chime in on the comments field.

NIghtmare: Vampires NYC - Review

I'm old. 30 may not seem like the new 80, but haunted houses, horror movies, and unemployment haven't terrified me since I was able to wipe my own ass. Still, I love horror movies, horror imagery, and just about anything that reminds us to live life to its fullest, as our expiration date may be a terribly grizzly day away. Upon being invited by my buddy, The Jaded Viewer, to attend the Nightmare: Vampires Halloween attraction, I most definitely had to accept.

I went to the Nightmare attraction last year, and while it was fun, it was most definitely not scary. Still, it was a decent way to celebrate my favorite holiday. I expected pretty much the same experience, but was intrigued by the new location and the fact that they were covering one of my least favorite horror subjects. Vampires have become almost as tired as my fat asthmatic ass, after walking up 3 flights of stairs. What could they do to make them fun and interesting again? More importantly, how could they make a bunch of Goth kids with fake fangs scary? I've been used to laughing at them at nightclubs for years.

Zombieland Review - This Land Ain't Your Land Anymore

Zombies are about damn near everywhere. Sure, vampires have seemingly taken over as the go-to trendy monster, but the re-emergence that zombies have been experiencing in pop culture for the last few years is larger, more widespread and hitting a much bigger demographic than the vamps could possibly handle. My guess is that zombies are in unlimited supply since people die everyday. The one thing we haven't had from mainstream zombie fetishism is the road-trip comedy. Well, Zombieland definitely fills that void as well as the one necessitating zombie action-movies.

Originally planned as a TV show, Zombieland introduces us to four characters trying to survive the zombified wasteland that the USA has become. After an amazing credits sequence, Jesse Eisenberg is the first character you are introduced to. Through a little narrating he explains how he has setup a bunch of rules for himself on how to survive the new world. Cardio is important because you need to be able to run away from these mindless eaters. As the film states, "the fat ones were first to go." Putting on your seatbelt is also equally important. That one is illustrated for you quite well, so I won't spoil it. In fact, as you watch you'll see many examples of the rules being pointed out to you, even when the characters aren't talking or narrating. This film wants to be watched by an audience. It isn't just a recording of events taken place, and it knows that.

Zombie Apocalypse Review - For Xbox 360 Or PS3

Z-Day is definitely coming soon. If it wasn't we wouldn't have all this training material released in succession. Last week Konami's Zombie Apocalypse was unleashed upon the Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network inhabitants. This week Zombieland  will be taking a bite out of the box office. In fact, this Saturday the dead will walk the Earth in Asbury Park, NJ. This is all too much at once. I'm going to sharpen my swords right now.

All right, I'm back. If you haven't touched the demo, seen screenshots, or heard anything about the game yet, Zombie Apocalypse is the dual-joystick shooter answer to the seemingly tireless obsession that mankind has for the walking dead. Played much like Robotron, Geometry Wars, or Smash TV, one stick controls where you are going and the other controls the direction your weapons do their damage. Once you wrap your fingers and head around that idea, there isn't much left to the imagination. Your main objective is to shoot, incinerate, blow up, and chainsaw the shit out of those zombies so that you can survive till the end of the level. Each level is considered a day, and there are 55 of them in total.

A Nightmare On Elm Street Teaser Trailer

In another life I was lucky enough to spend some time on the set of this movie and it definitely seems like they wanted to stress atmosphere and the acting prowess of Jackie Earle Haley for the role, over his looks or stature. I'm looking forward to this movie more than most other remakes or reboots, probably because I never liked the original series much to begin with. Expect it to have way less goofy shit being said, and way more screwed up allusions to Freddy being a pedophile. Yeah. It goes there this time around.

After seeing this, I can't wait for it. Leave me some comments and feedback and tell me your thoughts after you watch the new teaser trailer.