FATHOM EVENTS PRESENTS HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES 20TH ANNIVERSARY RE-RELEASE

Writer/director Rob Zombie's theatrical breakthrough, the terrifying House of 1000 Corpses, returns courtesy of Fathom Events, to commemorate its 20th anniversary, led by (of all ghoulish things) a special intro from its devil-may-care creator.

For this initial chapter in what became a blood-curdling trilogy, Zombie recalls such grindhouse chillers as Tobe Hooper's The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Jack Hill's Spider Baby and Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes and The Last House on the Left.

For 1000 Corpses, unassuming travelers on Halloween Eve, intent on documenting roadside attractions, picks up a perky hitchhiker, whose family welcomes them to dinner and a saucy, Vaudevillian show: not a bad deal per se, except that the inhabitants are mad as hatters and eager to torture their guests. Matters only continue to worsen for the unwitting captives (at least those who "survive"), leading to an inescapable climax.

1000 Corpses holds a huge, powerhouse cast, including Sheri Moon (Lords of Salem) Zombie as the sexy but sadistic Baby; Bill (Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2) Moseley as the deadly Otis B. Driftwood; Dennis (Creature from Black Lake) Fimple as Grandpa Hugo; Karen (Trilogy of Terror) Black as Mama Firefly; Matthew (The Dead Hate the Living) McGory as Tiny; Michael J. (Bonnie and Clyde) Pollard as Stucky; Walter (Wishmaster) Phelan as Dr. Satan; Jake (Ginger Snaps 2/Ginger Snaps Back) McKinnon as Earl Firefly ("The Professor"); Chris (The Talking Dead) Hardwick as Jerry Goldsmith; Rainn (The Office) Wilson as Bill Hudley; William H. (Soulkeeper) Bassett as Sheriff Frank Huston; Tom (Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer) Towles as Deputy George Wydell; Walton (Invincible) Goggins as Deputy Steve Naish; Irwin (The Warriors) Keyes as Ravelli; Greg (The Hillside Strangler) Gibbs as Dr. Wolfenstein; Erin (One Hour Photo) Daniels as Denise Willis; Harrison (The Game) Young as Donald Willis; Jennifer (Omega Cop) Jostyn as Mary Knowles; and the peerless Sid (Spider Baby) Haig as the loveable (ahem) Captain Spaulding. Yep, quite a staggering who's who for quite an unsettling ninety minutes, but that's just part of what makes this sadistic, genre-pleasing novelty such uncompromising fun. 

The film's prime locale was, in fact, used in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, but for this sickly sojourn, only gut-wrenching terror occupies the rooms, along with colorful, monster murals. It's a bizarre, dual deal all right, but then Zombie's artistic approach is revered for such nostalgic juxtaposing. 

Celebrate this disturbing masterpiece as it once more splatters the big screen October 8 & 11. 

Collection Recommendation: Mr. Lobo's Cinema Insomnia (Set 5) on Alpha DVD

Alpha Video presents another set of "Mr. Lobo's Cinema Insomnia" discs!!!

First up is the ghostly-dare/skeleton-hoisted favorite, William Castle's "House on Haunted Hill", starring the super-sinister Vincent Price.

This 1959, nightmarish hit never grows old. In fact, it seems to get better with each view. Now with Mr. Lobo on board, it becomes all the more enjoyable, since our sardonic host interjects it with related tongue-in-cheek tidbits and bodacious bridges, including a handy, jack-o'-lantern decorating seminar and a nice and snooty Ben Cooper fashion show. (Also, as an informative bonus, this special DVD release contains a historic, tip-top exchange between Mr. Lobo and the late, great Sid Haig!!! Whoa!!!)

In addition to the "Haunted Hill" release, Mr. Lobo pays a comedic, live-audience, guest-jammed tribute to Tom Graeff's "Teenagers from Outer Space": a low-budget labor of love that's heavy on character, not to mention flesh-disintegrating death rays.

In this instance, Earth is visited by young, intergalactic aliens on a mission to pepper the planet with colossal lobsters as a food supply. One of their crew, the compassionate Derek (David Love), becomes smitten with a pretty earthling named Betty (Dawn Anderson) and from there, the fiendish invasion can't help but go awry. 

Mr. Lobo supplements the film's intrigue with dry jest and fantastic fillers, making this 1959 drive-in classic all the classier. 

Purchase these magnificent "Mr. Lobo's Cinema Insomnia" selections at oldies.com:

https://www.oldies.com/product-view/1141D.html

https://www.oldies.com/product-view/1142D.html.

I saw 3 From Hell...

I'm sick and tired of the nicety-nice bull that's shoveled my way, whether it's fluff stuff like "The Polar Express" or dastardly drool like the tap-into-your-feminine-side "Maleficent: the Misunderstood". As a general rule of thumb, I prefer real-deal horror films. Sometimes I like 'em real rough and if the opportunity is there, on the big screen, which is why I'm miffed that writer/director Rob Zombie's latest, "3 From Hell" bypassed me on the theatrical route, not to mention that Neflix has yet to send me the DVD. I had to tap Amazon for an anxious view, but do appreciate the unrated opportunity, even if it did cost me a few dollars more. 

Now that I've seen the film, I'm fulfilled, not that it's necessarily the best chapter in Zombie's "devil's rejects" saga (to be honest, I don't know where I'd place it at this point), but at least it doesn't screw around trying to be something it's not. It's Tobe Hooper "Chainsaw"/Jack Hill "Spider Baby" nightmare sludge with weird-western trimmings, "Desperate Hours" allusions and characters I don't mind visitin' but wouldn't want to hang around for the long haul. These are scary individuals and the sort that any quality, new horror film should feature. Incidentally, this modern thriller commences in '78 and rolls no farther than the '80s, but its sick scenarios are every ounce as relevant today.

Even with that said, "3 From Hell" doesn't rely just on shock (like many lesser horror films do), though there's plenty of it to spare. The act of killing for the sake of killing takes a backseat to the twisted traits of Bill Moseley's Otis Driftwood, Sheri Moon Zombie's Baby Firefly and later down the line (replacing Sid Haig's Captain Spaulding), Richard Brake's Foxy Coltrane (the Midnight Wolfman). Through their wacky, docu-styled interludes (and among high-quality supporting thespians and their nuanced personas, led by Jeff Daniel Phillips' Warden Virgil Harper), they flaunt their insane, self-pitying agenda, trekking into skull-faced Mexico, after deterring death (the original trio having endured "twenty bullets a piece") and fleeing prison, as the jackass public cheers 'em on.  

Along the sojourn, Sheri Moon's Baby becomes the thrust: a Harley Quinn-ish vixen who gets to shake her crazy derriere even more than in the previous chapters, igniting a stream of steamy, sexual tension. Watch out! She's a veritable mantis, eager and proud to kill. What a wild, fetish-fueled angle!

Alas, Sid Haig presence in "3 From Hell" is brief. He was obviously sickly during filming, which I imagine may have sliced his screen time, but even a smidgen of Haig goes a long way. I savored Spaulding's gritty cameo for all it was worth and will do so whenever I revisit this decadent chapter.

You heard right. I'll re-watch this one and make no apologies to any snotnose who scoffs at the notion. This one wasn't made for those sorts, anyway. For all I care, they can skip on out and watch "National Socialist Beasts" a few more times and wear nice, frilly dresses while they're at it. That oughta suit 'em just fine.  I, on the other hand, will take huge pleasure holding "3 From Hell" close to my bruised heart, with my middle finger hoisted high for all to scorn. 

SO LONG, SID HAIG...

You were the living blueprint for any character actor to follow, with a list of varied roles to make one's head spin.

There was good ol' "Spider Baby" (with good ol' Lon Chaney Jr); "Blood Bath"; "The Host"; "Pit Stop"; "Foxy Brown"; "Coffy"; "The Big Bird Cage"; "The Big Doll House"; (all of the latter for director Jack Hill); "Black Mama, White Mama"; "Savage Sisters"; "Beyond Atlantis" (the latter three for Eddie Romero); "THX 1138"; "Diamonds are Forever"; "Galaxy of Terror"; "The Hell with Heroes"; "C.C. and Company"; "The Firebrand"; "It's a Bikini World"; "Beach Ball"; "Point Blank '67"; "Emperor of the North Pole"; "The No Mercy Man"; "The Don is Dead"; "Swashbuckler"; "Return of the World's Greatest Detective"; "Boris and Natasha"; "Death Car on the Freeway"; "Death House"; "Dead Man's Hand"; "Dark Moon Rising"; "Bone Tomahawk"; "Hatchet 3"; "The Aftermath"; "Wizards of the Lost Kingdom II"; "Warlords"; "Creature '11"; "Beware! The Blob"; "Kill Bill, Vol 2"; "Jackie Brown"; "House of the Dead 2"; "Night of the Living Dead 3D"; "Mimesis: Night of the Living Dead"; "Devil in My Ride"; "Wonder Woman '73"; "Brotherhood of Blood"; "Lords of Salem" and "Halloween '07" (the latter two for Rob Zombie).  

On television, you were a ongoing presence as Dragos on "Jason of Star Command", but also took time to visit "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century"; "Star Trek"; "Batman '66"; "Automan"; "Get Smart"; "Charlie's Angels"; "The Fall Guy"; "The A-Team"; "MacGyver"; "Gunsmoke"; and for eight, special appearances as eight different villains, "Mission: Impossible". 

However, for fans of modern horror, you redefined it all as Captain Spaulding  in Rob Zombie's "House of 1000 Corpses"; "The Devil's Rejects"; "3 From Hell"; and "The Haunted World of El Superbeasto", giving us a "clown" who was as dangerous as he was...well (despite the immense carnage), funny. 

Your best role (and again, in greasepaint) remains Seymour Smiles in Ward Roberts' "Little Big Top": an underrated gem that demands (re)discovery. (You should have earned an Oscar for that one, if only such matters were done fairly.)

You gave gave an enormity of entertainment for fans to relish, Mr. Haig, and impacted our lives through pathos, fear and just being an all-around, good guy. We'll dearly miss you, my friend, and won't soon forget your giddy and idiosyncratic, one-of-a-kind ways.