Monster Men Ep. 30: UFOs, Aliens and Other Close Encounters

MONSTER MEN IN SPACE: 
Join us as we discuss UFOs and aliens. Learn about Jackie Gleason's connection to extraterrestrials and hear about Hunter Shea's own close encounter. We also cover movies and TV shows that deal with aliens & space like Alien, Event Horizon and even The Brady Bunch. 



Follow the Monster Men at Facebook at www.facebook.com/monstermen13

The Halloween Fright Flick Frenzy Concludes

First of all, Happy Halloween! 

Okay, let’s wrap up the Halloween Fright Flick Frenzy with a look at what I watched in the home stretch of Terrortober.

Along with horror movies, I watched a lot of spooky TV shows like AMERICAN HORROR STORY, the Halloween episode of IT’S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA and a couple of SIMPSONS Tree House of Horror episodes. What a blast. I am sad to see the month end.

SALEM'S LOT (1979). On Halloween I watched one of my favorites vampire movies. This movie did for bedroom windows what Jaws did to the beach. "Open the window. He commands it.” Love those vampire eyes. Sure, it might be a bit dated, but this is still a classic. Evil vamps that fear crosses; that’s how you do a vampire movie... and a Stephen Kind adaptation.



HALLOWEEN (1978): The original Michael Myers in the theater. Can't think of a better way to spend Halloween eve. Amazing. The atmosphere, suspense, scares and that music!!! A true classic. I think the scenes of The Shape stalking Laurie during the day may be the creepiest part of this movie.

HOCUS POCUS (1993): If you don't like HOCUS POCUS, then hand over your Halloween card now. Lot's of fun and a great version of I Put a Spell On You.



YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974): They showed one of my all-time favorites in IMAX. Incredible! Seeing it with a crowd was a blast and I noticed things I’ve never seen before. And Teri Garr on a giant screen was amazing.

RISE OF THE ZOMBIES (2012) A better-than-usual, cheesy SyFy flick w/ all-star cast of Levar Burton, Mariel Hemingway & Danny Trejo.  If you like these kind of movies, I am sure SyFy will show it a hundred more times.

REAL FEAR: THE TRUTH BEHIND THE MOVIES (2012): A fun little documentary, to see what the real story behind some horror movies might be. Good Terrortober viewing.

MOCKINGBIRD LANE (2012): NBC’s lame attempt to reboot The Munsters. Not zany enough for me.  Did not laugh once. Herman needs his inadvertent super strength and Grandpa needs to be wacky, not sinister. But Lilly is lovely.  I think a reboot of The Munsters would work better as a cartoon, like The Simpsons or Family Guy.

THE MIST (2007): Good flick that becomes great thanks to the best "holy crap" ending ever. And a few Walking Dead pals as a bonus.  Another one of the few good Stephen King movie adaptations.

Well, now that Halloween has come and gone, it’s time to look to the skies. Stay tuned this week for a new episode of Monster Men that is truly out of this world.

Halloween Fright Flick Frenzy: Round 3

Here's an update on the Halloween Fright Flick Frenzy. I have continued to celebrate Halloween month with horror movies that run the gamut from black and white classics to brutal, modern day entries to the genre. I even included a couple of horror/comedies, one of which is a personal favorite. 

Bela Lugosi as Igor

SON OF FRANKENSTEIN (1939) with Karloff & Lugosi (as Igor). Young Frankenstein fans will recognize a lot from this movie. A little slow, a but good climax. I give it a wooden thumb up from a wooden arm.

GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN (1942) Doubled down on Frankie tonight. Igor is the brains and the brawn in this one. Fast paced fun.

TERROR IN THE AISLES (1984) The CliffsNotes of horror movies hosted by Donald Pleasence. Clips from a number of horror movies and a look at what makes a movie scary. “Remember, it's only a movie."

AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON (1981) Watched one of my all time favorites and what I think is the best werewolf movie ever. Funny, scary and incredible special effects.  ("it's still too 'eavy.")

FIDO (2006) Zombie/comedy fun. Walking Dead meets Pleasantville. Billy Connolly will melt your heart or eat it. And Carrie-Anne Moss never looked better.

THE DEVIL’S REJECTS (2005) Round two with Rob Zombie with his twisted sequel to House of 1000 Corpses, and big improvement over it. This movie is not for everyone. Let's face it, Rob Zombie is an acquired taste. A brutally violent flick peppered with lots of demented comedy, and a ton of familiar faces. Not for the squeamish. (Bonus points for the soundtrack.)

Remember to use hashtag #Terrortober to follow my picks on Twitter and to post your own.

The 2012 Monster Men Halloween Episode

It’s the Monster Men Halloween Episode and the debut of the great new Monster Men theme song by musical Monster Man, Steve Capalbo. 

  

Join us as we celebrate our favorite holiday. We discuss some off our favorite Halloween specials and TV shows like The Great Pumpkin and forgotten gems like The Paul Lynde Halloween Special.

Then we review the many horror movies we are watching during the 31 days of Halloween, and we take a detour to Danvers State Hospital & Insane Asylum, a haunted landmark in Massachusetts and the location of the movie Session 9. 

Use hashtag #Terrortober to follow our horror picks on Twitter, and have a Happy Halloween.

Halloween Fright Flick Frenzy: Round 2

Blood of Dracula

Happy Halloween Month!

The Halloween Fright Flick Frenzy continues. Check out hashtag #Terrortober on Twitter to see what movies the Monster Men are watching this month along with other Halloween related activities. Join the fun and tell us what you are watching by tagging your tweets with #Terrortober.

Follow us on Twitter at @backinjack and @huntershea1.

Here are a few more films I’ve watched with a quick review.  (You can see more in my earlier post too.) 

• Blood of Dracula (1957) This movie does not actually feature Dracula, but a girl's school headmaster who can transform one of her students into a vampire. This movie even has a dreamy musical number. You can skip this one.
• 30 Days of Night (2007) I re-watched this one. A pretty good movie based on a good comic book. Worth watching. Great concept of vampires rampaging in Alaska. Plus, Melissa George is gorgeous.
• House of 1000 Corpses (2003) Rob Zombie trying way too hard here. A convoluted mess. Has some good visuals but no substance.  I was surprised to see Walton Goggins (Justified) and Rainn Wilson (The Office) pop up in this one.
• Evil Dead 2 (1987) The original cabin in the woods. I revisited this must see classic after a very, very long time. Still groovy after all of these years.
• Mad Monster Party (1967) The Christmas Special of Halloween shows. It’s party time with Rankin and Bass! An animated cult classic that features all of your favorite monsters in a stop-motion romp. A bit long, but worth a look. More violence and sexual innuendo than they would ever allow today on a children’s program. Every Halloween fan should watch this at least once.
  
• Walking Dead (2012) I also watched a number of season 2 episodes of the AMC marathon along with the fantastic Season 3 premiere. I highly recommend watching this show and reading the comic books too.

And if you are thinking about watching a Freddy or Jason movie, here’s a Monster Men episode dedicated to those two horror icons to help you choose wisely.

Stay tuned for more horror picks as the frenzy rolls on.  
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My favorite number from Mad Monster Party

Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn Trailer

Monster Men Ep. 28: Horror Books Not to Miss From Samhain Publishing

In this episode of Monster Men, we celebrate the release of Hunter Shea's latest novella, Swamp Monster Massacre. It's his ode to the Skunk Ape, sometimes referred to as Bigfoot's southern cousin. This one promises to be a fun ride. 

Then we review some of the other books you'll find at Samhain Horror. Samhain has an exciting and upcoming group of authors that is well worth discovering. Writers like Brian Moreland, Russell James, Frazer Lee, David Bernstein, Damien Walters Grintalis, Kristopher Rufty and W.D. Gagliani.

If you are looking for some original, quality horror instead of the usual mainstream drivel, you have come to the write place. 

Check them out at www.samhainhorror.com

Halloween Fright Flick Frenzy

It’s October and that means it’s officially Halloween season. One of the things Hunter Shea, my Monster Men podcast partner, and I like to do is watch as many horror movies as we can all month.

One of the fun aspects of this is watching a wide variety of films from the old classics to those brutally graphic slasher flicks from the seventies… and everything in between. It's amazing to see the fluctuation of tone, quality and subject matter from era to era and film to film.

Here’s a list of what I have seen so far along with a short review.

• A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors - My favorite Elm Street movie. Great kills, lots of humor and Freddy's best one liners.
• Session 9 - Filmed at the Danvers State Mental Hospital, the creepiest, real life location for a movie. A hidden gem worth finding.
• Cabin in the Woods - A love letter to horror fans and Joss Whedon fans alike. An original, humorous and incredibly entertaining movie with nods to all the great films that inspired it.
• Piranha (2010) - A silly but fun romp. Blood and bikinis. Turn off your brain and enjoy.
• The Woman in Black - Harry Potter goes horror. A great throwback to the old Hammer flicks and a genuinely creepy ghost story.
• Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated -  Over 100 hundred artists collaborate to animate George Romero's classic film. Tough to sit through the whole thing, but very interesting. 
• Dracula (1931 - Bela Lugosi) - I always make it a point to watch one of the Universal Monster Movies. This year it was the Count's turn. Was reminded just how nutty Renfield was.
• I Spit on Your Grave - The feel good movie of 1979. The classic, brutal revenge flick that has aged, but still packs a punch. Not for the squeamish.
• Cannibal Holocaust - The feel good movie of 1980. Also the mother of "found footage" movies. If you think I Spit on Your Grave is rough, wait until you see this one.
• The Mummy (1959 – Hammer) - Stalk like an Egyptian. Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing's take on the classic monster. The image of the Mummy rising from the swamp is worth the price of admission. Two mums up.
  

I’ll keep updating the site as I continue my Halloween Fright Flick Frenzy. Also, recently Hunter and I started using the hashtag #terrortober on Twitter to track and review our selections. Check it out and feel free to join in.