Joey Warren February 11, 2020 All genres including horror have the ability not only to show what the world thinks of a subject, but also to influence the minds of those who consume it. While horror movies are adored and can reveal interesting things about what the world was scared of at the time it [...]

Crystal Love: 'Queer Elders' Video Series Making a Monster: The Creation of Queer Horror Horror is queer. The genre's obsession with otherness; the questioning of a monster's humanity; the flamboyance and detail and danger by which its villains live their lives; and the threat they represent to the living, decent society, and decency itself, is absolutely a queer representation of the world and what it means to exist differently.

Celebrating its 100th birthday this year, F.W. Murnau's "Nosferatu" is the first widely-known vampire film. The unauthorized retelling of Bram Stoker's 1896 novel "Dracula," Murnau's "Nosferatu" is one of the most celebrated works of German expressionist cinema.

At a recent panel on queer horror last month, I was struck by a comment from co-panelists Katie Connell and Joshua Dare about the current state of queer female-identifying horror directors. The discussion began with a definition and brief historical overview of queer horror, then shifted into a survey of the current state of representation.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show not only supported Tim curry queer individuals who were closeted or harassed. It made people question their identity, orientation, and lifestyles that they never had before. The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) is a musical comedy horror (a genre that also encompasses the beloved Little Shop of Horrors (1986)) directed by Jim Sharman and written by Richard O'Brien.

Seattle-based writer and cultural critic Matt Baume has a very personal connection to " The Rocky Horror Picture Show," as the movie musical was pivotal in his decision to come out as queer. Baume, of course, is not alone. When "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" was released in 1975, it was a critical and commercial failure.

Sleepaway Camp. 1983. Directed & Written by Robert Hiltzik. Starring Felissa Rose, Jonathan Tiersten, Karen Fields, Christopher Collet, Mike Kellin, Katherine Kamhi, Paul DeAngelo, Thomas E. van Dell, Loris Diran, John E. Dunn, Willy Kuskin, & Desiree Gould. ★★★★The opinion on Sleepaway Camp was always divided.

There's a moment in Thomas Harris' 1981 novel Red Dragon when, shortly after having his first encounter with Will Graham since the man put him away, Dr. Hannibal Lecter lies on his bed with the cell lights down, ruminating on odors. Harris juxtaposes the mundane realities of Lecter's incarcerated life (the smell of Clorox in [...]

Not only was Season Four of FX's hit comedy What We Do in the Shadows a wild ride for audiences, but it was a turning point for fan-favorite character Guillermo de la Cruz.

What We Do in the Shadows Star Harvey Guillén Is Not That Innocent It's an unusually warm September day in Los Angeles and actor Harvey Guillén is supine on a hot pink background, sporting dainty boy shorts, a black bra, and a classic white button-down that's unbuttoned and falling around him, framing him in the pink.

For queer viewers, comedy lovers, and those looking for something not too spooky, this HBO series makes for a great Halloween season watch

A young man floats in an ethereal void, a demon looming above him. It tells him, in a haunting voice, that it has lurked within him his entire life. That it knows the dark secrets of the mysterious origins that eat away at him, even as he questions his forward path in life.

This "Astrid & Lilly Save the World" review covers the first three episodes. Lilly (Samantha Aucoin) and Astrid (Jana Morrison) may not have it all that easy, but they at least have each other. Though the two are at the brunt of many jokes made by bullies at school, they have a powerful bond and [...]

When I was younger, I wanted nothing more than to be just like Buffy Summers. She was cool, she was funny, she had a great group of friends, she had romantic autonomy, and she spent every week saving the world from monsters.

Suffice to say, some of my deepest anxieties, traumas, and insecurities are intrinsically linked to horror despite not really having anything to do with the scares in the movies themselves. Somehow, I find the most comfort from horror of all things. Lately, I've been thinking more about exactly why that is.

If horror-film monsters mirror society's deepest anxieties, embracing them draws attention to who or what is deemed worthy of fear. Monsters in horror films aren't just scary, or dangerous. They also "make one's skin creep," the philosopher Noël Carroll wrote: "Characters regard them not only with fear but with loathing, with a combination of terror and disgust."

There are few filmmakers who have had as big an impact on the wider world of cinema than the British director, Alfred Hitchcock. Considered for quite some time to be the greatest filmmaker of the 20th century, Hitchcock was able to create some of the finest films of the time, including Psycho, Rear Window and North by Northwest, working with the likes of Anthony Perkins, James Stewart and Cary Grant.

October has a lot going for it. For one, it's spooky season -time for all the ghostly decorations, haunted houses, and creepy movies. It's also LGBTQ+ History Month. These two things are not unrelated. Listen: In art-house cinemas across the country this month, you'll find horror-movie film festivals of all types.

If you're still wondering about those homoerotic undertones 25 years after Billy Loomis and Stu Macher terrorized Woodsboro in Wes Craven's "Scream," you've been on the right track all along.

Looking back with a laugh. Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard played the dynamic duo - and psycho killers - in 1996's Scream, and even though it's been 25 years, the men both can remember what a blast they had on set. "I think it's super symbolic of our youth.

Who said an old doll can't learn new tricks? Chucky, the pint-sized plastic star of the Child's Play franchise, has been a beloved horror movie boogeyman for two decades and counting. But his latest role on the TV series Chucky - which continues the story and elaborate continuity that began in the original 1988 film - is perhaps his most unexpected: LGBTQ ally.

When Chucky pledged to be a "friend to the end" in the 1988 slasher Child's Play, who knew he was talking to the LGBTQ+ community? In the 2021 Chucky TV series, now available on Sky Max and NOW, the possessed doll falls into the hands of 14-year-old Jake Wheeler (played by the authentically teenage Zackary Arthur), a bullied aspiring artist who has a crush on his classmate Devon Evans (Björgvin Arnarson).

The cabin in the woods that Jules (Brittany Allen) and Jackie (Hannah Emily Anderson) head to for their one-year anniversary seems even more murder-y than your standard-issue cabin-in-the-woods, which is saying something.

In horror, queer women have always been subject to their own version of the virgin/whore dichotomy: predator or sex object. Colin Minihan's thriller 'What Keeps You Alive' offers not only a burst of fresh air, but hope for a new generation of queer audiences. As with any type of media depicting specific parts of the...

Hellraiser is one of those film franchises that started strong but never reached the heights of the first two films. A new revival and incarnation of the series is on the way, starring Jamie Clayton as Pinhead, becoming the fourth person and first woman to play the leader of the Cenobites.

I've enjoyed seeing Adam Faison's work ever since I saw him in the fantastic (and gone-too-soon) show Everything's Gonna Be Okay . He then popped up in Hulu's Into the Dark series episode "Midnight Kiss" and a host of other shows.

The psychological thriller drama film "Hypochondriac" deals with severe mental disorder, childhood trauma, and the sudden effects that it has on an individual even after eighteen years.

Addison Heimann, writer and director of the LGBTQ+ horror film, Hypochondriac , gets real about the story behind the film. Synopsis: Will, a young Hispanic gay potter, is one gregarious guy. His boss is terrible, but he's got a great boyfriend and a great job.

Vertical Entertainment (Welcome to The Daily Stream , an ongoing series in which the /Film team shares what they've been watching, why it's worth checking out, and where you can stream it.) The Movie: "Bit" Where You Can Stream It: Amazon Prime and Tubi The Pitch: Brad Michael Elmore is one of the most exciting independent filmmakers working today.

Editorials December 14th, 2020 | By Harmony Colangelo As we sluggishly crawl - crestfallen, exhausted, and bloodied - towards 2021, it is time to think back on the hell of a year we've lived through.

Covens of trend-following Instagram witches are officially out of style and intersectional vampire girl gangs are the new creatures of the night that should really be feared with the release of Brad Michael Elmore's BIT hitting VOD today. Laurel (Nicole Maines) is a recent high school graduate who moves to Los Angeles to spend her summer...

Horror fans tend to cite Bram Stoker's Dracula as the foundation for what we think of as the granddaddy of the modern vampire, but it's apparently Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's novella Carmilla, a work of lesbian vampire fiction (predating Stoker's by 26 years) that is clearly the grandmother of Brad Michael Elmore's Bit.

fter an uneasy foray into Hollywood film-making with their disappointing English-language ensemble picture Louder Than Bombs, Joachim Trier and his longtime screenwriter Eskil Vogt are back in a Norwegian setting for this tremendously acted, if flawed, supernatural drama-thriller about a disturbed young woman.

Director Joachim Trier doesn't elevate the supernatural phenomena for the sake of shock or thrill visual tactics. He uses the ominous developments to deeply look into the character's inner turmoil. So what seems like mere stylistic elements gradually brings the darker undercurrents to the fore.

If you're trying to describe the plot of Titane to a friend, it's a grueling task. You'll probably mention vehicular sex (not in one, as such), and perhaps a string of graphic violence involving a deadly hair accessory. But beyond that, things get gloriously murky.

Julia Ducournau's latest reimagines the trans narrative by puncturing what it means to be cis. Julia Ducournau's revelatory film Titane begins by reminding us of the rules. We're at a car show, where everyone is in their expected place: Our protagonist, Alexia (Agathe Rousselle), writhes sensually atop the hood of a flame-streaked Cadillac, while men stand around, gawking in appreciation.

The Retreat. 2021. Directed by Pat Mills. Screenplay by Alyson Richards.Starring Tommie-Amber Pirie, Sarah Allen, Aaron Ashmore, Rossif Sutherland, Celinda Sinden, Patrick Garrow, Chad Connel, Gavin Fox, & Joey Coleman. Alyson Richards Productions / Clique Pictures / Outside Line Studio Not Rated / 82 minutes Horror / Thriller ★★★★1/2 Oh, the straights will hate this one!

Every time there's a horror movie about city slickers who take an ill-fated trip to the countryside, there has to be fucked-up deer imagery. Once you see the gnarly mangled deer corpse, you can buckle up for the ride.

is an expertly crafted surreal suburban nightmare with an important social message at its center. The film manages to build a steady tension that it maintains until the final frame, and it never stops throwing surprises at the audience that actually work.

Jordan Peele's Get Out has proven itself to be an influential horror movie in a bit of a different way than influential horror movies of the past. While classics like Night of the Living Dead and John Carpenter's Halloween spawned countless imitators, the films that have come in the wake of Get Out - and [...]

Each month in Horror Queers, Joe and Trace tackle a horror film with LGBTQ+ themes, a high camp quotient or both. For lifelong queer horror fans like us, there's as much value in serious discussions about representation as there is in reading a ridiculously silly/fun horror film with a YAS KWEEN mentality.

Erlingur Thoroddsen's impressive second feature "Rift" explores the tension of a relationship through Icelandic horror. By Ben Treloar, 23 Jun 20 00:01 GMT For most of its history, the horror genre has had a predominantly heterosexual focus- from families trapped in haunted houses to horny teenagers chased through the woods by masked murderers.