Thursday, September 3, 2026
I SAW ONSLAUGHT
Imagine a divorced, PTSD, Army sniper, living with her daughter in a trailer park, only to face a trio of Frankenstein-ish super soldiers, who flee a military facility to kill, kill, kill. This is the premise of Adam (Godzilla x Kong/You're Next/The Guest) Wingard's thunderous, IMAX offering, Onslaught.
Celeste is the downtrodden protagonist, played by Adria (Morbius/Man of Tomorrow) Arjona, and her daughter is Daisy, played Blake Kennedy. The larger-than-life (and death) leader of the mutated soldiers is the Butcher, played by Alex "Poatan" Periera, who's accompanied by Crybaby, played by Tyler Hall, and Cockroach, played by Dave Campbell. (They invoke an unrelenting, Jason/Michael/Leatherface trios-team dynamic.) Dan Stevens is their mad geneticist/creator, Dr. Hans Kammler (a grandson of a WWII, National Socialist honcho), whose wife, Rebecca Hall's Hanna, acts like a kinky Lady MacBeth/ersatz Eva Braun. Michael Biehn's Baylor adds to the mayhem as an enigmatic bureaucrat and is joined by Drew Starkey's Cyrus, a quirky, clean-up man; Reginal VelJohnson's Josiah, a resolute, Vietnam vet; Eric Wareheim's quarrelsome but decent Kovacks; and Jacob Scipio's Griffin, Celeste's steady-headed, ex-spouse. All in all, the ensemble is agreeable, even when disagreeable, making the over-the-top scenario feel grounded (more or less).
Simon Barrett's screenplay does right by the premise (bolstered by Wingard's Carpenter-esque, The Fog/Assault on Precinct 13-inspired emulations and offbeat, pop-song seasonings). The structure is tight and unpretentious, relying on a survivalist thread, which references George A. Romero's zombie flicks, plus the Jurassic, Terminator and Alien sagas.
In this respect, Celeste is reminiscent of Lori Cardille's Sarah Bowman from Day of the Dead, Scarlett Johansson's Zora Bennett from Jurassic World Rebirth, Linda Hamilton's Sarah Connor from the Terminator movies, and Sigourney Weaver's perennial Ellen Ripley of Alien fame.
Arjona's Celeste is also beautiful and even though she's never dolled up, she remains magnetic throughout the madness, which may diminish her character's gritty, heroic endeavors, but hey, in my book, glamour (even if bloodied up) is always welcome. If Arjona is there to resume a little, old-time, easy-on-the-eyes charm, I endorse the move a hundredfold. (I also suspect Arjona wouldn't appreciate the compliment, but that's another story for another time.)
On the arguable, negative end, Onslaught, is quite derivative, borrowing blaring nuggets from the Outpost franchise, Overlord, Shock Waves, Frankenstein's Army, They Saved Hitler's Brain and The Frozen Dead. It's Nazi horror, even if it bypasses the label, and like the aforementioned examples, the premise at least conveys evil's extremes, though all the while slanted like a Brightburn-ish Captain America redux or more so, The Winter Soldier. And then there's that obvious-as-hell Universal Soldier nod, joined by similar, conceptional elements evident in Haley HeavyMetal's Friday the 13th-meets-Blade Runner, fan feature, Neon Fear, and well, I could go on and on.
I don't know if early September was the best time for A24 to release this one. I think it would have secured a bigger audience closer to Halloween, but there's nothing wrong with it being an early-bird enticer to get audiences set for the autumnal chill. Besides, if one digs bullet-blasting, action-monster movies, this one should please, no matter the day, night, month or season.
Wednesday, September 2, 2026
R.I.P. VICTOR MILLER
For writing Friday the 13th, you became horror royalty, with your grisly effort bestowing Betsy Palmer her most memorable role as the demented Pamela Voorhees. You also gave us the young, dream-invading Jason (Ari Lehman), who'd evolve into a relentless killer in a slew of successful sequels.
Beyond the blood-splattered Camp Crystal Lake, you cowrote (with Earl Mac Rauch) the cult favorite, A Stranger Is Watching, based on Mary Higgins Clark's novel, and directed by Friday's Sean S. Cunningham.
In addition, you scripted Rock, Paper, Scissors, aka Rock Paper Dead (with Kerry Fleming); The Black Pearl (with Tony Record, based on Scott O'Dell's novel); Manny's Orphans (with Steve Minor, fellow Friday collaborator); and Eden Falls (with Martin Rogers and director Michael Coulombe).
To accompany your screenwriting pursuist, you composed many books, nine of which were based on Telly Savalas' Kojak, accompanied by The Book of Worries: Hundreds of Horrible Things That Can Happen to You; Giving in to Get Your Way; Aikido in Everyday Life (with Terry Dobson); Fernanda; Windborne; Toga Party; The Glory Sharer; Hide the Children; Angel's Blood; and the Ancient Rome and American Dynasty trilogies.
On television, you struck gold of a whole other sort, supplying acclaimed and award-winning storylines for The Guiding Light, All My Children, Another World and One Life to Live.
You were exceptional in so many ways, with so many genres, Mr. Miller, possessing a talent that could make one shiver, laugh and scrutinize everyday life. Because of that, your contributions will be recalled and cherished, keeping your legacy forever fastened, forever venerated.
Tuesday, September 1, 2026
VIDEODROME DARK FICTION ANTHOLOGY ANNOUNCEMENT
The next, Eighth Tower Dark Fiction curation (after the in-the-pipeline, Blind Dead anthology) will be based on the alternate-reality concepts of David Cronenberg's Videodrome.
My story is entitled "Anomaly Drome," and deals with two alternate realities (loose variants of what's featured in the film) and a strange, animated formation that resembles a hand, a blue hand, to be precise. The anomaly "befriends" a gent named Robert "Bob" Riddance, and all seems cool and comfy between them, but then ... well, I don't wish to spoil the outcome, but it gets bizarre, damn bizarre.
There's no release date set on this Videodrome derivative, but what's brewing does show enormous potential and should more than hold its own with Dark Fiction's best and strangest offerings.
Stay tuned ...✋
(HORROR OF) DRACULA: A CLASSIC MONSTERS OF THE MOVIES TRIBUTE (REVISED)
Classic Monsters of the Movies writers/researchers Nige Burton & Jamie Jones have mastered a new ("from-the-ground-up"), 36-pg edition for Hammer's breakthrough re-imagining of Bram Stoker's Dracula.
With Classic Monsters' Dracula (1958), aka Horror of Dracula (as it's known in America), we're dealing with a preluding, magazine release for the upcoming, restored version of the movie, which is said to feature once-presumed-lost footage.
However, for what fans already know and adore, there's much to bite with this "ultimate edition." Burton & Jones not only cover the extensive construction of Hammer's classic, but delve into the geniuses who ensured it would be one to remember. Such includes director Terence Fisher, producer Anthony Hinds, screenwriter Jimmy Sangster, cinematographer Jack Asher, makeup artist Philip Leaky and composer James Bernard.
The cast also receives deserved reverence, with affectionate bios on Christopher Lee (the titular Count), Peter Cushing (Professor Van Helsing), Michael Gough (Arthur Homewood), Melissa Stribling (Mina Homewood), Carol Marsh (Lucy Homewood), John Van Eyssen (Jonathan Harker), Charles Lloyd-Peck (Dr. Seward), Olga Dickie (Gerda), Janina Faye (Tani) ... and Valerie Gaunt (a succulent, vampire bride).
The contents are packed with trivia, quotes and above all, exquisite photos, which capture the adaptation's amazing ambiance.
There's no question that (Horror of) Dracula is not only one of the best horror movies ever made, but one of the best, all-around movies ever made. Burton & Jones deserve enormous credit for putting this edition together. Like the movie upon which it's based, this Classic Monsters edition is, without any dispute, one to savor and praise.
Stake your copy before the sun ascends!
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