“Evil Ed” (1995) – Throwback Review By Mrs. Horror Boom, Simply Titled “No”

11 September 2016

So, ole Mrs. Horror Boom here had insomnia last night, and started searching Amazon Prime Video in hopes of finding free, newly released horror movies I hadn’t seen yet that were worth seeing (with very little hope, but it has been known to happen). I saw a review for a movie titled “Evil Ed,” which claimed to have the recent release date in 2016. I initially figured it was a new movie, though it had the same title of a really disappointing horror flick from the 1990s. Perhaps a remake? This review contained the one-word title, “No.” That rang a bell. The more I read, the more familiar it sounded. Ever written a horror movie review fifteen years ago, started thinking you and the reviewer had a lot in common and would probably hit it off, then eventually something clicked and you realized it sounded familiar because you WERE that reviewer? No? Well, okay, but it has happened to me before. Not often, because I have used the same reviewer handle on Amazon and IMDB since I first got internet access in the mid-late 90s (drop me a line privately and I will share it with you; I built up quite a library which I am finally going to get off my ass and start recycling here), but it does happen. I was only thrown here–as I have been in the other rare cases–because for some reason my alias did not appear, and I was instead referred to as “a customer”. I actually find this concerning, since my reviews on both sites contain (or did, I’ll have to look into it) a way to privately contact me, which resulted in some great networking with other horror fans, many offers of free review copies, and even a couple of job offers, but I digress.

This cover art was actually kind of edgy at rental chains in the late 1990s.

I found that I still stand by this fifteen-year-old (yikes)* review. The only information I might add is that I literally just this moment realized that the movie is titled Evil Ed not as an homage to the beloved Fright Night character as portrayed by Stephen Geoffries, but because it rhymes with “Evil Dead”. Also, they manage to rip off American Werewolf in London in the end credits, another reason to be pissed off. I guess I could be more kind and say it was inspired by AWIL rather than calling it a rip-off, but I am not in a generous mood. Finally, keep it mind that I went into the movie with only mediocre expectations and was still let down. Below, therefore, is my review of the 1995 horror flick that I still do not recommend, Evil Ed. The header/title of my piece is simply, “No”.

…and not in a good way.

Actually I feel like having my review be that one word. My friend, whose opinions I almost always trust about movies, especially horror movies, warned me NOT to rent this no matter how tempted or bored or desperate to see a new horror movie I was, because it was a complete waste of time. Unfortunately I haven’t talked to him in a while, and I was in a hurry to pick a movie, and thought, ‘what the heck, how bad could it be?’ WHY don’t I learn? What was I thinking? Did I think it would magically turn into a better movie while sitting there on the shelf for years waiting to be rented?

The ‘plot’ concerns a guy who edits films for some company. His boss is a jerk. The guy who had the job before him went insane and blew himself up in the pre-credits sequence, so for some reason the boss picks nerdy ‘Ed’ for the special project of editing “Loose Limbs” splatter movies. He never says what Ed is supposed to edit, but I guess that doesn’t matter. Ed is upset by some of the clips, working on them up at this house all by himself that the boss has decided to relocate him to for no apparent reason. He asks his boss if he can stop or do another project, but his boss doesn’t care. He starts to slowly go insane, supposedly from watching the clips, and wants to carry out the gory murders in real life. Or has he been this way all along? Please note that I am making this plot sound much more deep, interesting, and coherent than it actually is.

We don’t care about the characters at all, or have any sympathy for them, or even hate the bad guys. The plot is really, really boring and predictable. The splatter isn’t even that gruesome or creative-this is NOT worth renting just to see the gore, because what there is isn’t interesting or original.

All the ‘tributes’ to Sam Raimi just come off like really bad rip-offs, and no-one in the movie is anywhere near good-looking enough as Bruce Campbell, so you can’t distract yourself with that. I think an “Evil Dead II-Dead by Dawn” poster is only prominently displayed in one scene in the hopes that Sam Raimi will be flattered and not consider any sort of legal action. A trained chimp could have written a better screenplay. Every time I hear lines like “Are we having fun…yet?” (which even Bride of Re-Animator couldn’t pull off without making me wince) I start feeling like picking up some sort of deadly weapon myself. Characters just appear out of nowhere with no explanation, wandering in only to get killed. This might be okay if the movie was even remotely amusing or entertaining, but it was all I could do to keep from fast-forwarding through most of it. Fortunately I chose to pay some bills and balance my checkbook at the same time the movie was playing. Trust me, it did not require my full attention-I still felt like 90+ minutes of my life were wasted just by having this on in the background.

Don’t watch it, no matter HOW tempted you are- you’ll hate yourself for wasting your time and money. Horror fans will be completely disgusted by how incompetent it is. Even those who haven’t seen too many splatter movies should stay away, as there are so, so many movies out there you could rent that are much more well worth your while. If you want something brainless, low-budget and fun, rent something else. Complete waste of time with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Be smarter than I was at the time and don’t be fooled by the “Warning-Not For the Faint of Heart” on the box. You have been warned!

Here’s the NSFW (technically, I guess) trailer for the 1995 movie (appears to be the unedited version; read more on that here), which contains much of the gore (and big Raimi horror fans can count the references) contained in the flick. Please just watch the trailer rather than the movie; you will do yourself a favor.

Also, this You Tube reviewer seemed to find it more entertaining than I did (in a “so bad it’s good” way-more power to him, I guess). Still curious? Then here is another way to avoid sitting through the movie, as the rest of the gore and practical effects more or less appear in this short “Monster Madness” review below.

*After hitting the age of forty, you will often make the unpleasant discovery that what occurred fifteen years ago seems more like a five-to-seven year old memory than something that apparently happened THREE TIMES LONGER AGO THAN THAT. Beware, millennials, this could very well be in your future… take it from a Gen-X’er.

Don’t Miss “The Little Witch” – Horror Boom’s Scariest Short Horror Film of The Week!

10 December 2014

3 Comments

We were holding this back, but for some reason, multiple versions of this same tale/concept have been popping up. Two of them appear to be by the same team (same guy playing the dad), only the gender of the kid is different. We found this one to be the most effective, by far. No gore, no violence at all (the artistic team lets your imagination do all the freaky work), but still the stuff of nightmares, and clocking in at two minutes. That is not an easy task. Watch it below… lights off, of course!

The reason that more than one film-maker has used this theme, we discovered a couple of days ago, is that it was based on a very creepy and raved-about Reddit post. If you’re in even a little bit of an unstable mood, and are having trouble sleeping, we recommend that you save the creepy sub-reddits for the daytime. The disturbing, creepy threads are clearly indicated by the name of the category (such as “letsnotmeet), so there’s no danger of you suddenly getting the shit scared out of you if you’re paying attention to the topics. When it comes to reading some of them alone at night, you have been warned…

“The Little Witch” was produced, directed, and filmed by Alasdair McBroom – ‪check out his official site right here. The story was adapted from a version by Reddit user who goes by the name of “justanothermuffledvo”.

Don’t forget: if you know of a really good short horror film we haven’t featured yet, please share it with us so we can give it a gander and (if it’s creepy enough) post it! You can put a link, or the title, in the comments section.

31 Horror Movies In 31 Days – Check Out What We Saw, Including Best and Worst! (Part One of Three)

3 November 2014

Leave a comment

This is going to have to be split up into three posts, since we already needed to take a month to watch the movies and don’t want to take another month writing this.

Even with the number of horror movies ole Mrs. Horror Boom sees being more in a month that the average movie-goer sees in a year, you’d think finding 31 I hadn’t seen yet would be a cinch, right? Wrong! Fortunately, there was a huge number of new releases for the month of October 2014. I actually saw more than 31, but some were so shitty I don’t even want to add them to the list. A couple of them literally put me to sleep, and there were a couple of others that were so bad I blew a mental fuse just sitting through and trying to tolerate the goddamned things, and either picked up my iPad for some task/game that required most of my attention, or just said the hell with it and turned it off, then re-watched something I knew was a sure thing and would not disappoint me (thus, the few re-watches on the list).

However, let’s just start with the list. I could put them in the order I saw them, but then I would have to look at a detail of our Amazon Instant Video and the VOD cable bill, which I am too nervous to look at and see how fast the charges added up (I’ve seen enough scary movies, I don’t need scary real-life). Let’s try alphabetical order. An asterisk means that the movie was a fairly new release, say available on VOD less than six weeks.

Oh, and if there is an R-Rated and an Unrated version available for a flick, assume I watched the Unrated (such as the very torture porn-y Carver. Also if they ever tried to make an R-Rated version of The ABCs of Death 2,* it would probably cut the running time by a good 10 minutes, depending how much of a prude the ratings board members were for that project. For PG-13, there would be about 200 words that you cannot say in a PG-13 movie cut out, and some of the shorts (they usually average 3-4 minutes) would last maybe 30 seconds and you would not definitely know what the fuck was going on with most of them. So thank you, Magnet Releasing!

I also added links to the IMDB pages (or pieces Horror Boom did on the fright flick in question previously), and stuck in a few of the better trailers to keep things interesting. Turns out roughly a third of the horror movies on the list are found footage, and while at least a couple will end up on the “worst” list, there were some nice surprises (including the “mockumentary” The Gerber Syndrome).

The list, and links:

*The ABCs of Death 2 (2014)

(Here’s the gory Red Band trailer, NSFW–enjoy!)

Alyce Kills (2011)

American Mary (re-watch, 2012)

Any Minute Now (2013)

Antisocial (2013)

Bad Kids Go to Hell (2012)

Black Death (re-watch, 2010)

Here’s the Black Death HD trailer (and yeah, it’s as grim and bleak as it looks)

*Cabin Fever – Patient Zero (2014)

*The Canal (2014)

Carver (2008)

Chasing The Devil (2014)

*Chemical Peel (2014)

Dark Mountain (2013)

*Dead Snow 2 – Red VS Dead (2014)

*Deliver Us From Evil (2014)

Evil Things (2009)

*Found (completed in 2012, but not released on VOD till Fall 2014). Trailer is below, and it earned every blurb and award)

The Gerber Syndrome (2011)

*Horns (2013, but only released recently)

*Housebound (2014)

*The Houses October Built (2014)

Here’s a clip for you from the above movie (yep, more found footage).

*Inner Demons (2014)

The Monkey’s Paw (2013) (quit laughing! I was scraping the bottom of the barrel by this point, I believe Day 29.)

Open Grave (2013)

The Possession of Michael King (2014)

Here’s the trailer for the latter:

*See No Evil 2 (2014)

Sleepy Hollow (1999, re-watch…on Halloween, Day 31)

*The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014 – sale rental on Amazon, free on Netflix streaming)

*V/H/S Viral (2014)

Witching and Bitching (2013)

*Wrong Turn Six- The Last Resort (2014)

Up next? The ten worst films on the list; after that we’ll get to the ten best.

* We will have a review of ABCs of Death 2 coming up where we name the top ten entries. This will actually take some work, because the shorts were so much better it’d be faster just to name the few stupid or lazy ones. In the first ABCs of Death, I couldn’t even get a list of the top ten together; after “X is for XXL”, “L is for Libido”, “T is For Toilet”, “Young Buck”, and “Dog Fight”, picking five more would be a stretch. A list of the ten worst for the same movie, however, would pretty much write itself. I was happy to discover after the sequel roared to a finish that I could barely list the five worst. But I digress…

Variety Review of ‘[REC] 4: Apocalypse’ Says The [REC] Franchise Has “Largely Bounced Back”

1 November 2014

Leave a comment

Well, after we just spent over an hour combing the net, trying to find out if Javier Botet is back to appear as The Medieros Girl (AKA the ‘attic monster’) in this “final” installment, we only succeeded in scaring the shit out of ourselves, especially with some of the horrifying galleries that Tumbler has put together. So we’ll let you know when we know. By the way, if you’re wondering why the word ‘final’ is in quotes when we use it referring to [REC] 4: Apocalypse, that’s because this review from Variety.com states that the door is more or less left wide open for a sequel. That’s just fine with us!

Click “View Original” is the lower left to read the entire review.

Variety Calls Spanish Horror-Thriller ‘Shrew’s Nest’ Effective, Disturbing – Watch The Bloody Trailer

17 September 2014

Leave a comment

Click “view original” in the lower left to read Dennis Harvey’s entire review. You can check out the rather bloody, very intense trailer for Shrew’s Nest (original Spanish title: Musarañas) below…

Variety.com’s Review: Giallo Spoof ‘The Editor’ Is Over-The-Top Fun For Fans Of The Genre

13 September 2014

Leave a comment

We thought, when we first saw the trailer, that this was more of a Giallo homage than a spoof… until we saw that Paz de La Huerta was starring in it, at which point we realized it wasn’t going to take itself too seriously. As Dennis Harvey points out, it won’t reach a wide audience, but those of us horror fans who know their way around an Argento movie will definitely be seeing it!
Click “view original” in the lower left to read the entire review from Variety.com (though it’s not especially long, you’ll appreciate it). Many other raves have been popping up online.

Variety’s Rave Review For Kiwi Horror-Comedy ‘Housebound’: “Near Flawless” and “Marvelously Entertaining”

8 August 2014

1 Comment

In a hilarious opening sequence, the dislodged head of a sledgehammer spectacularly curtails an ATM smash-and-grab robbery attempt by petty criminal Kylie Bucknell (O’Reilly) and an anonymous male accomplice. A snarling ball of venom with a lengthy rap sheet, twentysomething Kylie is spared prison by a lenient judge who says home detention and regular sessions with a psychologist, Dennis (Cameron Rhodes), will provide the stable environment she needs to turn her wayward life around.

With those words still lingering, audiences will chuckle when Kylie arrives at the creepy-looking house of her childhood to begin an eight-month stretch. The dwelling is home to her stepfather, Graeme (Ross Harper), an oddball who’s seen but rarely heard, and her mother, Miriam (Rima Te Wiata), an endearing chatterbox who believes the house is haunted. Kylie’s petulant behavior and eye-rolling mockery of Miriam’s claim establishes a dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship that will eventually outgrow its comical roots and bring real heart to the story. The slow change starts when Kylie begins seeing things that make her believe “something” is indeed lurking in the basement and within the walls. Several spine-tingling incidents later, Kylie seeks help from Amos (Glen-Paul Waru), the security company guy hired to monitor her electronic ankle bracelet. Cleverly introduced as a fairly bland and functional character, Amos leaps wonderfully to life at the first mention of supernatural activity. Armed with old-school equipment, including a Polaroid camera and a microcassette recorder, this sweet-natured nerd with a passion for all things paranormal forms a splendidly eccentric detective partnership with the tough but mellowing Kylie.

-from the Variety review by Richard Kuipers

So apparently, Housebound (whose official site can be found here) played at SXSW this year and went over so well with the crowd (and critics) that it was not only picking up a buzz as ‘a comeback for New Zealand horror-comedy’, but the world sales rights were also acquired within weeks by Paris-based Films Distribution. Right now Housebound–the feature debut of Gerard Johnstone– is still making the genre circuit, but don’t worry about having to wait years to see it; XLrator Media has acquired U.S. sales rights and plans a theatrical and day-and-date VOD release [Source: Variety.com]. That ‘day-and-date’ will be October 17th, when the film will be released on VOD, iTunes, and select theaters. Here’s the trailer:

Check out the complete review below (to read the entire Variety review, click on “View original” in the lower left. This one is definitely going on our must-watch list!

Horror Boom Wants To Know : What’s The Scariest Short Horror Film You’ve Ever Seen? (Poll)

21 July 2014

Leave a comment

OK, so it’s Monday and we’re feeling a little low on energy here, but hey, you don’t have to be at the top of your game either before you take our newest poll! We inserted a few of our favorites here in this piece in case you hadn’t seen them yet, or wanted to confirm they still scared the living shit out of you before you voted (and yep, you can pick two runners-up for a total of three picks). Scroll down if you want to skip the preamble and go directly to vote.

See, we post a lot of scary short movies online. Sometimes–like this past weekend– we sit through literally dozens of ’em on the laptop looking for a gem worth posting. We do have a few sure things we’re still saving for a rainy day, but these days, we’ve already posted most of the scariest made (so far). It seems like whenever we’re combing the net and watching ten or more at a time, it’s always after midnight, which may be why we stopped having “Scariest Short Horror Film of the Week” be a regular feature for a while back there, but that’s beside the point.

What do we look for before deciding to post? A good jump scare–or two–is usually a sure thing, as long as it’s earned and not a cheap, lazy one. “Lights Out” sure has that:

A fridge scare (AKA a chilling and/or horrifying reveal), done well is also a sure bet. Here’s an example of the latter, in the very short, simple, but hair-raisingly effective “Mockingbird” (from Drew Daywalt):

A spooky, especially creepy atmosphere is a big plus, as in Bloody Cut’s “Who’s There?” Film Contest Grand Prize Winner “Play Time” (which isn’t exactly a slow-burn, but you’ll get the idea):

Of course, some really disturbing make-up effects and gore aren’t required (none of the films listed so far really have much blood), and gore for the sake of gore isn’t scary, but here’s an example of it working well in the exorcism shocker “Deus Irae”.

Then you get a film that has all of the above (except the gore) but you don’t really break down intellectually what aspects scare you until after you’ve calmed down from watching it (whenever the hell THAT is), because you’re too busy for anything besides being fucking terrified. If we had to pick just one “Scariest Short Film We’ve Ever Seen,” it’d be the absolute nightmare that is Mama, below.

We know you’ve seen others, so we listed the ones here that got the most positive feedback and left a space for a write-in. Tell us, we’re seriously curious! Here we go.

If you feel like watching a bunch more, go to the “category cloud” on the sidebar and pick “Scariest Short Horror Film of the Week”. “Horror Short Films” will work too. Here’s a few links to ones we highly recommend if you missed them the first time around: Bloody Cut’s gothic folktale of the “Suckablood,” and their gory masterpiece “Don’t Move” that gives you another reason who you should never even be in the same house as a Ouija Board, let alone play with one. There’s also two other Drew Daywalt films that we watched in the middle of the night and instantly regretted our decision; “Spoon”, starring Christa Campbell showing some acting chops, and “Cleansed,” which we regretted watching after dark less than a minute in. Actually, anything we’ve posted associated with Bloody Cuts UK or The Daywalt Fear Factory could give you nightmares…

fffffffffuuuuuuccck…

Do Clowns Scare You? Then You Might Want to Skip “Stitches,” Our Scariest Short Horror Film of the Week

12 July 2014

Leave a comment

Well surprise surprise, it’s another heart-pounder of a short horror film by Bloody Cuts UK! We posted another short horror film a couple of years ago with the same basic plot, but this one was different–and frightening enough–that we didn’t let that stop us from picking this creeper for scariest of the week.

Check out “Stitches,” the second (out of thirteen) short Bloody Cuts released, right here… and don’t forget to stick around until after the credits have finished rolling. Oh, unless clowns creep you the hell out, in which case consider yourself warned:

In case you’re interested in being terrified some more, here’s a link to the similar film I was talking about. It’s longer and does a different take, but is still “12 Minutes of Must-See Terror!” as we titled the post when we first published it a little over two years ago. We’re leaving out the title so as not to spoil you, just in case you haven’t watched the above short yet. Again, be warned: you WILL jump!

OK, what is the LAST kind of “urgent newsbreak” you want to see while you’re babysitting?

Also, as usual, Bloody Cuts put up a “Making-Of” video for the short. I don’t know about you, but usually I watch these to remind me the short that just actively frightened me was only make-believe. Though they are also very informative, and it’s so cool to see what a team of creative, talented people can create with a low-budget when they really throw their hearts into making the best short they can. Interested (or need to be reminded what you just saw was fiction)? Watch the behind-the-scenes featurette below.

Pleasant dreams!

Scariest Short Horror Film Of The Week: “Dare” (2013, HD) Bloody Cuts Final Short: 96, 97, 98, 99…

5 July 2014

Leave a comment

Hope y’all had a safe and sane Independence Day, and are planning on seeing some insane, unsafe movies over the holiday weekend! We just want the goddamned illegal fireworks to STOP ALREADY. They started two days early on July 2nd, and we’ll probably be hearing them tonight as well. Our two cat’s nerves are all shot to hell.

So, anyway, this last film from Bloody Cuts, “Dare,” wasn’t a huge production.The reason it was made? To give an example (and illustrate the guidelines) of the “Who’s There?” short film contest. You know, the one that gave us the Grand Prize Winner “Play Time,” and awarded “Lights Out” with Best Director.* So even though this film was just made as an example of what can be done in around three minutes, it really shines. If they didn’t put their usual amount of care and concern and craftsmanship into it –all hallmarks of any Bloody Cuts short– we’d be pretty surprised. Sometimes they shoot them fast, but there’s a ton of prep time. This one has a pretty simple concept… but that doesn’t mean it won’t creep you the hell out!

There’s a really impressive, creative back-story on the official Bloody Cuts page for “Dare,” and this time, you’ll get just as enjoyable–and maybe scarier–experience if you read it first. Here’s that back-story, straight from the Bloody Cuts site:

On the outskirts of Lynnsmouth, three teenage girls break into the grounds of an old crumbling property overlooking Dodman’s lake** and dare each other to enter the rotten house, it’s rumored to be haunted by the ghost of Lord Tarquin Wyrmwood IV and his mistress whom hung themselves together in the attic a hundred years past.
The two older girls bully Amy into going first… she must climb to the attic and count to a hundred, a second for each year that’s passed since the deaths of the owners, the legend promises that if you make it to a hundred you’ll see a ghost.

Amy enters the house, she didn’t believe in ghosts…

96… 97… 98… 99…

Here’s what they have to say about the making of “Dare” (do NOT read until you’ve seen the film-SPOILER ALERT otherwise):

‘Dare’ was created specifically for the first ever “Who’s There” Bloody Cuts Film Challenge. This was served up as an example of a sub three-minute short, created to the theme of “Who’s There?” and made for under a $1000 budget. A benchmark, a jumping-off point, a bar set for other filmmakers to jump over.
Which they did. Spectacularly.

Filmed over two days in a dilapidated, terrifying old farmhouse, some of the building was sealed off because the ceiling had fallen down. Nature had reclaimed half of it, and the other half was a bird graveyard. It was the least glamorous shoot Bloody Cuts ever had to endure…

Nope, not looking too glam.

Thankfully Bloody Cuts have a lot of skilled friends and family members willing to spend their weekend in a broken-down, soot-filled ruin for free. Featuring some of the more complicated practical effects Bloody Cuts have ever had to deal with, ‘Dare’ required the use of floor-drilling, wire-work, rota-spinning and hiding in cupboards! We even used one of the many bird-skeletons for set decoration.

Due to the isolated location and lack of anywhere remotely clean, Millennium FX’s make-up work had to be applied on the side of a dirt-road, which certainly surprised the locals! Thankfully it didn’t rain, otherwise this would’ve been a very different story. ‘Dare’ delivers a tight, fast, furious and horrifying twist on the haunted house genre. Not bad considering it was created as an ‘example’ of what could be achieved with a limited budget and specific theme.

Trivia: the painting which changes from being ‘normal’ into a twisted nightmare is not actually Lord Tarquin Wyrmwood IV, but Bloody Cuts writer Joel Morgan. And yes, that is his hat. And no, you can’t have it.

Going back for a repeat viewing? We sure did, and noticed a few creepy details we missed the first time. If you’d like to see the “Making Of” video (sometimes that helps us with our nightmares, for one thing), check it out!

‘Dare’ was created specifically for the first ever “Who’s There” Bloody Cuts Film Challenge. This was served up as an example of a sub three minute short, created to the theme of “Who’s There?” and made for under a $1000 budget. A benchmark, a jumping-off point, a bar set for other filmmakers to jump over. Which they did. Spectacularly.

Filmed over two days in a dilapidated, terrifying old farmhouse, some of the building was sealed off because the ceiling had fallen down. Nature had reclaimed half of it, and the other half was a bird graveyard. It was the least glamorous shoot Bloody Cuts ever had to endure…

Thankfully Bloody Cuts have a lot of skilled friends and family members willing to spend their weekend in a broken-down, soot-filled ruin for free. Featuring some of the more complicated practical effects Bloody Cuts have ever had to deal with, ‘Dare’ required the use of floor-drilling, wire-work, rota-spinning and hiding in cupboards! We even used one of the many bird-skeletons for set decoration.

Due to the isolated location and lack of anywhere remotely clean, Millennium FX’s make-up work had to be applied on the side of a dirt-road, which certainly surprised the locals! Thankfully it didn’t rain, otherwise this would’ve been a very different story. ‘Dare’ delivers a tight, fast, furious and horrifying twist on the haunted house genre. Not bad considering it was created as an ‘example’ of what could be achieved with a limited budget and specific theme.

Trivia: the painting which changes from being ‘normal’ into a twisted nightmare is not actually Lord Tarquin Wyrmwood IV, but Bloody Cuts writer Joel Morgan. And yes, that is his hat. And no, you can’t have it.

– See more at: http://www.bloodycuts.co.uk/films/dare-bc-horror-challenge/#sthash.wAUpRf6P.dpuf

We honestly don’t think Bloody Cuts UK could have ever made a boring short horror film–even if they tried.

*Speaking of dares, we dare you to watch either of the above contest-winning short films (note that we included helpful links) in the dark, alone, with headphones on. That is, if you weren’t planning on getting much sleep anyway…

**Sound familiar? It’s the lake from “Dead Man’s Lake,” possibly our personal favorite BC film. Or one of our favorites, it’s hard to pick… top three? Maybe.

Dare – is a 3 minute short film created as a benchmark film for the Bloody Cuts Horror Challenge of 2013.

“On the outskirts of Lynnsmouth three teenage girls break into the grounds of an old crumbling property overlooking Dodman’s lake and dare each other to enter the rotten house, it’s rumored to be haunted by the ghost of Lord Tarquin Wyrmwood IV and his mistress whom hung themselves together in the attic a hundred years past.

The two older girls bully Amy into going first… she must climb to the attic and count to a hundred, a second for each year that’s passed since the deaths of the owners, the legend promises that if you make it to a hundred you’ll see a ghost.

Amy enters the house, she didn’t believe in ghosts…

96…97…98…99…”

‘Dare’ was created specifically for the first ever “Who’s There” Bloody Cuts Film Challenge. This was served up as an example of a sub three minute short, created to the theme of “Who’s There?” and made for under a $1000 budget. A benchmark, a jumping-off point, a bar set for other filmmakers to jump over. Which they did. Spectacularly.

Filmed over two days in a dilapidated, terrifying old farmhouse, some of the building was sealed off because the ceiling had fallen down. Nature had reclaimed half of it, and the other half was a bird graveyard. It was the least glamorous shoot Bloody Cuts ever had to endure…

Thankfully Bloody Cuts have a lot of skilled friends and family members willing to spend their weekend in a broken-down, soot-filled ruin for free. Featuring some of the more complicated practical effects Bloody Cuts have ever had to deal with, ‘Dare’ required the use of floor-drilling, wire-work, rota-spinning and hiding in cupboards! We even used one of the many bird-skeletons for set decoration.

Due to the isolated location and lack of anywhere remotely clean, Millennium FX’s make-up work had to be applied on the side of a dirt-road, which certainly surprised the locals! Thankfully it didn’t rain, otherwise this would’ve been a very different story. ‘Dare’ delivers a tight, fast, furious and horrifying twist on the haunted house genre. Not bad considering it was created as an ‘example’ of what could be achieved with a limited budget and specific theme.

Trivia: the painting which changes from being ‘normal’ into a twisted nightmare is not actually Lord Tarquin Wyrmwood IV, but Bloody Cuts writer Joel Morgan. And yes, that is his hat. And no, you can’t have it.

– See more at: http://www.bloodycuts.co.uk/films/dare-bc-horror-challenge/#sthash.wAUpRf6P.dpuf

Dare – is a 3 minute short film created as a benchmark film for the Bloody Cuts Horror Challenge of 2013.

Amy enters the house, she didn’t believe in ghosts…

96…97…98…99…”

– See more at: http://www.bloodycuts.co.uk/films/dare-bc-horror-challenge/#sthash.wAUpRf6P.dpuf

Dare – is a 3 minute short film created as a benchmark film for the Bloody Cuts Horror Challenge of 2013.

Amy enters the house, she didn’t believe in ghosts…

96…97…98…99…”

– See more at: http://www.bloodycuts.co.uk/films/dare-bc-horror-challenge/#sthash.wAUpRf6P.dpuf