SECRET PROJECT #4 -- THE MUGGING

This week we're talking with Ziggy Blumenthal, artist on the Will Swyer penned THE MUGGING, the 4th installment of SECRET PROJECT. But not only did Ziggy contribute to the anthology but also played a key role in the production of the comic. Check out the interview below and don't forget to check www.secretprojectcomic.com on Monday February 22nd!

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Mary E. Brickthrower: How long have you been reading comics?

Ziggy Blumenthal: Give or take about 20 years now. The first comic I really collected was POWER PACK. Between the ages of 11 and 13 my biggest goal was to get every issue and every appearance of the team (mission accomplished, by the way). Other than that I was really into AMAZING SPIDER-MAN,

NEW WARRIORS, ROBIN and I got every issue of the BILL & TED comic by Evan Dorkin. It wasn't until the comic store opened down the street from me when I was 13 that I really branched out, thanks to the recommendations of the owner. SIN CITY, WATC

HMEN, Miller's DAREDEVIL run, the early Jim Shooter / Barry Windsor Smith Valiant books and of course I continued to get everything I could by Evan Dorkin (or as I called him back then, The BILL & TED Guy).

MEB: When did you decide to become an creator?

ZB: It was really all I ever wanted to do. My motivation and how serious I took the thought went up and down over the years, but if asked the question I don't think i ever had a different answer. Looking back, I wish I took the thought more seriously more constantly back when I was 13 and throughout high school. I never really stopped drawing but there were definite misses opportunities in getting some good training early on. The aforementioned comic store that opened down the street from me was owned by Amanda Conner with her husband at the time. She's certainly helped me out and shown me a thing or two, but with a little more motivation on my part what an opportunity for a high quality mentor there. I really didn't know what I was missing.

In addition to that, with my family in the printing business I had the chance, and the intention, of trying the whole self publishing thing while still in high school. It would've been nice to have learned all those lessons so early on. But unfortunately, while I started many projects, I didn't have the discipline to finish them. On the bright side looking back at them they were all atrocious and we should all be thankful they never saw the light of day, but it would've been nice to get the experience.

It wasn't till I was 21 and working in a warehouse that I really decided to take making comics seriously and enrolled in the Savannah College of Art and Design's sequential art program. Now all I need is a genius idea I can make one issue of then sell to Hollywood, cause let me tell you, those student loans aren't gonna pay themselves!

MEB: How did you become involved with SECRET PROJECT?

ZB: I'll give the short version for those who didn't read Tommie's interview (Hey! Go read Tommie's interview!). Out on the town with Sean McManus and Tommie Kelly. In an Irish pub, showing the two of them how much more Irish I am than them both put together. Tommie mentions with all great talent on the Oeming board that we should all do an anthology. Everyone agrees, a legend is born. From there, with my experience self publishing, I decided to join Mary and Sean on the editorial side of things and help how I can putting the book together.

As for the birth of my story with Will, that was a case of us both being lucky enough to have bad luck at the same time. I originally paired with another writer and he originally teamed with Scotty Law to draw THE MUGGING. At the same time my writer and Scotty both had to drop out, so I was more than happy to pick up Will's story. Scotty did do layouts before having to drop out, so wanting as many people from the board involved in the book as possible I chose do my finished pencils off of Scotty's layouts.

The most interesting part of working on this story for me was it's the first thing I've drawn that I didn't ink myself. Tom Shloendorn did a fantastic job making my chicken scratch look good, but I definitely learned a few lessons about collaborative drawing. One of the reasons i decided to graytone the story was after getting the inked pages back I felt the pages looked too white. For a story that took place in an alley at night there was definitely not enough shadow work in it, and I realized it was completely my fault. The shortcuts I take penciling when I do my own inking aren't gonna fly when someone else is finishing the pages. Tom can't read my mind, and I know to pay attention to just how finished the pencils are before I send them out to someone to ink.

MEB: What else are you working on right now?

ZB: My main project is my weekly web comic, Chris Wnuk: Secret Jew, about a man who for reason not yet explained has to keep the fact that he's Jewish a secret. He goes out of his way to throw people off his Jewish scent while still adhering to his religious guidelines as best he can. Well, most guidelines. There's one pretty important Commandment that he's seemed to have missed. Let's just say it's in your best interests to NOT figure out he's Jewish.

Then there's my print comic, Sidekicked!/Operation Pajama Pants, with writer Cory Harris. What started as two separate comics has now been combined into a single flip-book (old Marvel Comics Presents style). The latest issue was released at the Baltimore Comic-Con, and we're making the con rounds with that. And as soon as I find a new apartment and get all my drawing equipment out of storage we'll be starting on the next issue. Anything you ever wanted to know about any of this can be found at fakemccoy.com

MEB: Thanks Zig!

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SECRET PROJECT #3 - The Power of Negative Thinking + Catching up with Attila...

This week we'll talk with artist Pat Loika and letterer Thomas Mauer of THE POWER OF NEGATIVE THINKING, the 3rd installment of SECRET PROJECT. TPONT will premiere on www.secretprojectcomic.com on Monday February 8th !
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MARY E BRICKTHROWER: How long have you been reading comics?
PAT LOIKA: I've been into comics for about 20 years, and Transformers and GI Joe were my gateway books.

THOMAS MAUER: While I read comics as a kid, there were long stretches in my teens and early 20s where I didn't even think about print comics. Web comics was where it was at and I followed tons of them.

It was around 2002 and Marvel's silent issue month that I started getting interested in the print medium again. Mainly, I read Star Wars comics though. It wasn't until 2004 that I started reading comics in earnest, not discriminating between genres. There are so many good stories out there, I couldn't imagine limiting myself to just one type of genre or storytelling.


MEB: Conversely, when did you decide to become an artist / creator?
TM: Toward the end of 2004, I had a few ideas for short stories and approached Noble Larimer and Ronin Studios about them. This led to editing a short World War II anthology. I couldn't find a letterer for my own stories and decided to give it a try. Lettering turned out to be fun, and shortly after Rich Johnston and X-Force's Chris Yost approached me about lettering their respective comics. It was a great challenge to improve my skills, and since they offered to pay me, you can blame them for leading me down the dark path of comic creation.

PL: I've always been into drawing, even before I discovered comics. I think I was 15 when I realized that I'd really, really love to draw comics...regardless of the pay.


MEB: How did you become involved with SECRET PROJECT?
PL: I frequented Mike Oeming's board, and I saw the open invitation to submit entries for Secret Project, and signed up. I paired up with writer Thommy Melanson and we worked on our story.

TM: Thommy and I have been working on short stories since 2005, so when he asked if I'd letter his story (drawn by Pat to boot--one of my favorite people in comics), I was on board.


MEB: What else are you working on right now?
TM: Right now I'm working on the web comics http://www.contropussy.com and http://wwww.gunsofshadowvalley.com as well as Dark Horse's upcoming NUMBER 13 mini series, the second volume of Image's OUTLAW TERRITORY, Image's BAD DOG, SULLIVAN'S SLUGGERS and SHUDDERTOWN, Atomic Pop Art's OCTOBRIANA, Disney's SHRINK, Archaia's AWAKENING, Desperado's STORM DAMAGE by Phil Hester, and a whole lot of other books.

Stuff that's already in stores includes Oni Press' LOVE BUZZ by Len Wallace, Dark Horse's RAPTURE by Mike Oeming and Taki Soma (the trade collection is in stores soon), Image's KILLER OF DEMONS by Chris Yost and Scott Wegener, all volumes of the POPGUN anthology (volume 4 is in stores February 24, 2010), STARSHIP TROOPERS, THE BOY WHO MADE SILENCE, and tons more.

It might be best to follow this link for a comprehensive overview:

http://thomasmauer.blogspot.com/2006/12/comics-portfolio-in-chronological_11.html

PL: I just finished up a 112 page graphic novel with writer Adam Witt. It's called Blacklisted, and it will debut at the Emerald City Comicon in March. I'm working on finishing up the first storyarc of The Villain with writer Steve Earnhart, and I'm working on a few other short stories.


MB: Thanks guys ! Best of luck to both of you !
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Also I recently spoke with Attila Adorjany and caught up with him and what's he's been working on:
ATTILA: Hope all's well and the New Year is getting off to a good start! I've recently re-launched my website with several focused galleries.
Here is the link: http://www.600poundgorilla.com

In addition I've been working on a Graphic Novel that I am
posting on the web as I complete pages.

MEB: Awesome Attila ! Thanks!
===========================
~Till next time Kittlings!

SECRET PROJECT #2 - Tommie Kelly's ROAD CREW plus a MICE TEMPLAR trailer!

I've never met Tommie Kelly in person but I imagine we'll get along famously. After all we've been Jinxworld chums for years and he's offered to let Sean and myself crash at his house in Ireland next time we're around that way. And without him, who knows if SECRET PROJECT would've ever been conceived?

Tommie Kelly is the creator of ROAD CREW, a online comic about a wayward rock'n'roll roadie. Based partly on Kelly's life, the reality of this story is only outweighed by it's sheer hilarity. I talked to Tommie about Road Crew as well as his contribution to SECRET PROJECT.
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Mary E. Brickthrower: How long have you been reading comics?

Tommie Kelly: I started reading comics when I was about eight. I use to sneak into my cousin's room and read his books. He had WATCHMEN, DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN, loads of 2000ADs, all the WARRIOR issues with V for Vendetta. I loved it. Being eight i didn't get all of the nuances of watchmen but I got enough to get hooked. I actually have a first edition soft cover of the DARK KNIGHT returns signed by my parents in 1988 which I treasure.

Later I got into comics like CEREBUS and LOVE AND ROCKETS, but I still kept in with Batman and the Justice league and more mainstream stuff. I came back to comics a few years ago and caught up on a lot of things I missed. Promethea is probably the greatest comic ever created, followed by V for Vendetta. But Cerebus will always be my favorite. I am so fond of so many comics that it seems wrong to grade them, but there you go.


Brickthrower: Conversely, when did you decide to become an artist / creator?

Kelly: I did a comic called Justice League Ireland when i was about 14, got it all photocopied and sold it in the local shops. I was all set on spending the rest of my life doing comics but i had a really shitty Art teacher at school and he put me off doing art all together. He had a very low opinion of comics and kept trying to get me into doing Graphics. So instead of encouraging me with life drawing or whatever he would make me do designs for washing up bottles. It turned me right off and I lost complete interest in art. I stopped going to class and didn't draw anymore. In the end I managed to get in the top 5% in the country in my final Art exams that year. I did the Art exams totally in comic style and going against everything my teacher had said. That was a nice victory, but the interest was gone.

This was also around the time that every comic had 18 covers and 400 sealed bags around them, ya know THE DARK AGES in the 90's. So, like everyone else I stopped reading comics.

I spent the next ten years of so in the music business. I was in original bands, cover bands, recorded critically ignored albums, went on tours and finally ended up a soundman. About four years ago I started getting back into drawing. Just messing at first. Then I started doing more and more. I got it together and started doing a comic called THE END, which I published on the web for over a year or so. THE END was the first time that I had drawn since I was 18 or so. It took me awhile to get back into. THE END was a great learning curve, looking back I took on way more than I could handle with a first attempt.

SO i stopped doing THE END, and took a breather. I was still working away as a Sound Engineer, and was beginning to really hate it. It wasn't something I ever wanted to do and it was killing me a little inside everyday. The result of all that was that I ended up hating music. I couldn't listen to it. Any music was instantly put me in a bad mood. I needed out. So I quit.

It probably wasn't the best time to do that as myself and my partner Venessa had just started to build our house and money wasn't growing on any of the trees on our site. But V was very supportive and told me that I was right to quit. I decided that I would give doing comics a serious go. I previously had done a few strips about a soundman called Jim, I added a few more and launched roadcrewcomic.com

It's nearly two years later, the house is built and last year I made more money doing art than I had as a musician or sound engineer. So I guess we made the right decision.


Brickthrower: ROAD CREW is an ongoing series but AS ABOVE, SO BELOW is a decidedly different turn than strip-style. In addition, you draw yourself into the comic. I have seen this device used before (ANIMAL MAN, EX MACHINA, AUTOMATIC KAFKA, ASM); what were you trying to achieve with this?

Kelly: AS ABOVE, SO BELOW is the prologue to the third ROAD CREW book called FOR SALE, after the Beatles album.The previous two books are also named after famous albums, Hendrix's ELECTRIC LADYLAND and JANE'S ADDICTION's NOTHING'S SHOCKING, but I choose this title because, for me, it was at this point that The Beatles started to become something that the world had never seen before. They just moved into a completely different league than everyone else. So i was trying to steal some of that energy.

The raison d'etre for FOR SALE is that I wanted to write a magick book that wasn't about magick. I read an awful lot of self-help/new age/spiritual books and what i notice is that 99% of those are written by people who became successful by writing self help books. Most fiction books on magick are about magick, but i wanted to do something different. I wanted to use all the principles of magick, the law of attraction, the secret, paganism, NLP, Buddhism, wicca but not have the story be about any of them. I wanted to do a magickal working using the story of a sound engineer and his life in the music business. The great magickal comics such as PROMETHEA or the INVISIBLES are essential stories about magick, which is great and they're exceptional works but I wanted to take it one step in a new direction.

In Chaos magick there comes an idea that you can use an image to represent an idea that you want to form in the real or physical world. It's called a SIGIL and practically the whole of MORRISON's INVISIBLES is a sigil. Morrison himself says that he had to start going easier on the characters in the book because events in the book where happening in his daily life. FOR SALE is also a sigil, there are things in it, sometimes obvious, sometimes occult, that are meant to affect my own life. I am 32 pages into the book and already I have seen things coming to life. It's weird and exciting and I don't understand exactly why it works but it does. I want to point out that some of the things are symbols and mean different things to me than they do to the main character JIM. So as my character points out to Jim, I don't wish for my Mother to die because Jim's has.

As to why I put myself into the story. Road Crew up to that point had been a cheeky funny strip about cartoon characters that had adventures and were safe. I wanted FOR SALE to not be safe, I wanted it to be more real but esoteric. I wanted the readers to know that something new and different was going on. I was aware that Morrison had put himself in ANIMALMAN, ALAN MOORE was in Promethea, DAVE SIM pops up in CEREBUS in a scene similar to mine. I love that Idea. I really enjoy when writers start taking themselves seriously and bend the format. I didn't read the Animal Man storyline until after I had my scene done, but I was very aware of it; I was interested to see how similar or dis-similar mine would be. I think I did something different but the comparison is obvious.

Anyway, it's not the first time I was in Road Crew, I appeared in the storyline CROSSROADS.


Brickthrower: How did you become involved with SECRET PROJECT? Word on the street is that the whole thing was your idea

Kelly: I had been a member of the OEMING board for awhile and while on Holiday to New York I meet up with McMANUS and ZIGGY. We had a great chat all about different comicy things and I said I had an idea that we should do an anthology. Simply put, the talent that was knocking about the forum was extremely high. I felt it would be a shame not to do something together. Also at that time the forum was very vibrant and lively. It's has died a slow and painful death of late, for many reasons, but as you can attest yourself, there was something magic about it back then. The guys liked the idea and we put it to the rest of the board. People seemed to go for it and it took off.

But yes, I am taking all the credit for it :) Unless it flops... in which case, it was Ziggy's idea.


Brickthrower: What made you contribute ROAD CREW to SECRET PROJECT as opposed to a new / independent story ?

Kelly: Because I am a man on a mission!

I am totally focused on Road Crew. All my energy and attention is on my goal. I want Road Crew to make a massive impact on the comic world and I believe given half a chance it can. So at every opportunity I am going to stuff it down people's throats.

You have to remember that I come from a music background. Ego is a huge event and force in music and it desperately lacking in comics. I love ego, I love it so much that I have cultivated a massive one for myself. I think the comic industry would be a lot healthier if we had few more ROCK STAR type creators. That was one good thing about the early IMAGE era, guys with huge egos that decided to do something huge and different. It all went wrong cos they lost the interest and the hunger and let things slip. What was once all about creative control and ownership became units, units, units and no substance. The basic premise of what those guys did at Image is very sound.

So I am going to stand up and say I think what I am doing with Road Crew is important. I think what all of us working independently in comics is important. I think SECRET PROJECT is important. Webcomics/small press comics are way more exciting to me because people are doing new things, interesting things. Marvel and DC and the rest are great but they're never going to change and they aren't going to save the comic business from going under. If we want comics to survive we have to stand up and do what's in our hearts. Do something new.

We all work or belong to a field of the arts that most of us are embarrassed to talk about unless we are in safe company. Comics are an immense and beautifully complex art-form but collectively we have become meek and shy about our art.

We need more rockstar creators to get us out of this. So that what I plan to be.

Rock On!

Brickthrower: Indeed Tommie ! ROCK! Thanks so much!
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Kelly's story will appear on www.secretprojectcomic.com beginning Monday January 25th - be sure to check it out!
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NOW Please check out the animated trailer for the newest MICE TEMPLAR Hardcover coming soon!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lLWW_mE-Q0


~Till next time kittlings!

SECRET PROJECT launches JAN 11th! Get to know the creators behind our first story

It has been a long time coming. More than 2 years ago the Jinxworld.com based Michael Avon Oeming's message board (http://www.606studios.com/bendisboard/forumdisplay.php?f=9) decided collectively to produce a comic book anthology. I was nominated as the editor of what we began to call "SECRET PROJECT" and gladly took on the task of organizing and putting together the comic. We ran into some hurdles, some missed deadlines, but in the end I couldn't be happier with the finished product. And I'm especially excited to say that come next Monday, JANUARY 11th, WWW.SECRETPROJECTCOMIC.COM will be available to all of the interwebz ! Be sure to check back every 2 weeks for a new story...and check back here for a new interview with the creator(s) ! Up first is NOT THIS TIME, a story by Jeffrey C Burandt and Ronald Salas (with letters by Ben). This is not your typical super-hero story and these aren't your typical creators. Let's talk more with Jeffrey "JEF UK" Burandt and Ron Salas. ==========================================

MEB - How long has AMERICANS UK been around?

Jeffrey Burandt: The first AMERICANS UK show was on midnight, 1/1/02, Austin, TX. We played a back yard New Year's Party at our friends' place. The girls who lived there would throw these huge parties with us in their giant two story house. We'd burn through a 20 minute set, finished by the time the cops came to make us stop playing.

MEB- Conversely, how long have you been a comic book fan?

JB: I've been reading comics for as long as I've been reading.

MEB - Which makes sense, because your band borrows from the comic book genre a bit in your stage presence, i.e., costumes. Was that around from the band's inception? How did it come about?

JB: We had been working the sci-fi and horror themes into the songs since the beginning, but no, the costumes are relatively recent--they debuted July, 2007. We hadn't played in a while, and for our first show back our guitarist at the time, Bryan Bruchman, suggested we dress as super heroes. I loved the idea (and we had already begun work on the comic) and it stuck. I think we're ready to move beyond to bigger and wilder costumes and stage shows, and play up broader science fiction themes in our presence, but everybody looks hot in a domino mask, and capes work great on stage.

MEB: What about you Ron? When did you get into comic books?

Ronald Salas: I pretty much learned how to read from comic books. Comics were pretty cheap and pretty popular in the Philippines so I always had a huge supply growing up.

MEB – And when did you know you wanted to be an artist?

RLS: I've wanted to be an artist for as long as I can remember. I can't remember a time when I was holding a pencil or crayon and wasn't drawing on something: paper, the table, the walls.

MEB - What provoked you to take your band to the comic book from?

JB: Well, I found out my drummer JTR3 was a robot from the future, and the material was just there. Write what you know, Mary. It seemed to me that comics was the best medium by which to represent all the crazy shit we've been through.

MEB - Issue # 2 takes an almost "Anthology" turn; why did you decide to take that direction?

JB: There's no real impetus for me to write AM/UK in 22 page installments. I write the story in chapters as I would write a prose novel, and the page counts of those chapters fall where they may. So, the immensely talented Paul Ciaravino and I got together and figured out how many pages of comics we could make in 2009. I knew that Chapter 2 of our story was 6 pages, but I wanted to have full issues of content to sell as merch at our shows and also use to promote what we're doing in general. I wanted those issues to hit at at least 20 pages, and I wanted to publish 40 pages of AMERICANS UK comics in a 9 month period. I met cartoonist Zees as we were finishing issue 1, and we decided to make "I, Ape-Man," together, using the AM/UK song as the inspiration. "I, Ape-Man" hit at 13 pages, so I thought publishing the short story version of "The Better Head"--which also has a song equivalent--was thematically appropriate, and would knock us over the 20 page count, hurrah! Meanwhile, Paul and I could get ahead of the game on issue 3. We're doing the same thing again now, where we'll be releasing an AMERICANS UK: Mixtape issue (40 pages of AM/UK comics, with a free, previously unreleased song titled, "John Loves Wayne," as represented in comics form by Donal Delay), while Paul and I chug along on issues 4 & 5.

I'm infatuated with the idea of prose and comics and rock posters and songs sharing the same textual space. I hope we're providing unique narrative experiences by tying these several storytelling modes together. For me, there are few things better in life than sitting around and reading comics while listening to rock and roll. So, by producing content that is both comics and rock and roll, I think AMERICANS UK is providing some robust fictions with which readers can interact. It's not often you get to dance to your comic books.

MEB - So how did NOT THIS TIME (from the SECRET PROJECT anthology) come about?

JB: I had had the story's turn in my head for a bit, but I wasn't sure what narrative mode or what length would work best. Several years ago, I decided to write some 4 page comic scripts, and "Not This Time," emerged. When I was presented with the opportunity to pitch for Secret Project, I sent Ron Salas some of my short scripts, predicting that "Not This Time" was the best fit for his talents, and it's the one he wanted to do!

MEB - How did you get in touch with Ronald Salas for NOT THIS TIME?

JB: Ron was always posting amazing pinups on the Oeming message board over at jinxworld.com. His art is brilliant, and I knew his style would fit what I was trying to achieve with "Not This Time." The very moment I heard about Secret Project, I messaged him asking if he wanted to work on something with me, and then we followed up via email. It thrills me to this day that I got the opportunity to tell this story with him. I'm a huge fan of Salas' work. I love how he rendered "Not This Time" with his high-contrast style. It's a different look than in his Image work. It's so cool to be able to walk into a comic shop and pick up Existence 3.0 and see him really let loose with a different style in that book.

MEB: So Ron, what made you decide on NOT THIS TIME?

RLS: I think it was the shortest one. I also liked his take on an archetypical character and I thought it fit what I could do pretty well.

MEB- Well your art really lended itself well to this project! Thank you both for contribution. So Jef, what's up next for AM/UK?

JB: Paul Ciaravino and I are hard at work on issue #4 of the comic book. Our 40 page anthology, Rocktronic Mixtape #1, should be out any week now, and in conjunction with that, we're releasing the single, "John Loves Wayne." Meanwhile, JTR3 and I are about to finish an EP titled Luxuria, which features some crazy ass smooth jazz renditions of some of our favorite AM/UK songs, and we're starting to demo our next LP titled, Where Giants Walk. And we'll be playing around NYC throughout 2010!

MEB- What are some links where I can check out more of your work?

JB: Please visit americans-uk.com! We have an EP titled, I, Ape-man available there for free download, as well as links to the first 3 issues of the comic, also for free. And, be sure to look up AMERICANS UK on iTunes, where you can buy our full-length album titled Rocktronic for under $9! Also, artist Dennis Culver and I are starting work on our graphic novel Odd Schnozz and the Odd Squad for Oni Press, so I hope we'll see that completed in 2010. There should be some more announcements about that project soon enough.

Thanks, Mary!

MEB: No problem Jef - thank you! What about you Ron? What else are you working on currently? Anything we can check out on the web?

RLS: I'm currently working on Existence 3.0, which is the sequel to my series, Existence 2.0 that came out in the summer.

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There you have it ! Be sure to check out WWW.SECRETPROJECTCOMIC.COM Monday January 11th for NOT THIS TIME!

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~Till Next Time Kittlings!

I hope you all are ready for SECRET PROJECT

Haunted Theater - A Review of Brat Productions HAUNTED POE

The hype was undeniably hard to ignore. First the City Paper, then The Philadelphia Inquirer and finally Philadelphia Weekly all begged me to go. How could I not read the glowing reviews of HAUNTED POE, the interactive theater experience by Brat Productions and not buy tickets for myself and 3 of my friends? I was worried that this haunted house was not going to live up to all the positive press and I would be horribly disappointed. But the truth is this: HAUNTED POE was amazing!

Our 1st experience with the show begged for repeat viewings. I joined the text message discount service that tipped me off to special tickets available and this past Sunday I was greatly rewarded with the chance to take a backstage tour after the final performance on Nov 1st. I bought 4 tickets with the idea that we could find SOMEONE that would want to go with us…and sure enough my dear friends Brian and Laura attended HAUNTED POE for the final available 9:30 viewing.

Located in the commercial area between Snyder and Oregon which was surely once an industrial warehouse-haven, you approach HAUNTED POE and find yourself almost taken aback by the desolation despite being amidst the city. Sparsely decorated stairs followed by a hallway bring you into the grand parlor. Check yourself in and let the fear begin to grow as you wait in line for your turn to be ushered into the chambers. The line has it’s own form of entertainment; windows line the walls that allow you to peer into the 1 bedroom apt of Edgar, his wife Virginia and Virginia’s mother (Edgar’s aunt) Maria. Virginia does not look well, she coughs up blood as Poe busies himself with writing and Maria entertains Virginia with piano, reading, and song. This voyeuristic view into Poe’s life turns out to play a central role in the larger experience and draws reality to all the haunted chambers to come.

From the line we entered the Puppet show, a recreation of Poe's most notable events (albeit some liberties were taken with the time line) gives the viewer a poignant overview of Poe's tumultuous life. But do not get the wrong idea as this puppet show is not for children and ends with the death of many...including the puppeteer.

A Hall of Mirrors (a reference to Poe's WILLIAM WILSON) is the next chamber and while the concept lends itself strongly to the "Haunted House" ideal I found myself the least impressed with this room. The layout of the room stifled the sound with in, but sound from the other chambers somehow carried in a bit too much so hearing our guide was rather difficult.

From the Hall of Mirrors we follow a beckoning woman into a Cellar and truthfully this is where I began to fully experience the wonderment of HAUNTED POE. For here my favorite Poe tale, THE BLACK CAT, is recreated right before my very eyes, in truth only a few steps from my face. The first person narrative of this story lends itself perfectly to the actor's monologue (delivered beautifully and drunkenly by Bruce Graham) as does the scare of a hanged black cat and a bludgeoned wife. A haunting song rings through the air and we are led by music to the next chamber.

The Graveyard is green, ominous with fog and upright coffins, and soon to be filled with amazingly-voiced women performing an Operetta which will represent 4 tales named after the female that is represented in each story. These stories as you can imagine, do not end happily. The singing combined with a single violin is entrancing, while Morella's story provides the most amount of exposition in this scene. During our tour I was able to step into the coffin that Morella enters, which was only a bit terrifying as it has a hole in the bottom I could fall through at any moment. I was very careful to stand still while taking pictures.

The Crypt is next and offers a typical haunted house scare. A small dark room, 2 statues where your central focus is of course drawn to the statue...that isn't bloody real! Ha... my hairs stood on end when the Pallas Athena came to life and draw us solmenly into the Library.

The Library is a seemingly vacant room literally LINED with books, they cover the walls like wallpaper and are stacked up on the desk. With a start, Poe appears in the room (actually a simple mirror trick on the floor of the desk) and launches into THE RAVEN. Both this room and the actor (Nathan Holt of a great little hip-hop group called ROWAN AND HASTINGS) are one of my fave's of the show. Poe is manic and totally engaging. Pallas Athena opens a high door from the crypt and plays the part of the Raven as well. Again I must reiterate the enjoyment of being amidst the acting; both the content and the superb talent propels the viewer into the heart of the story.

Now we followed a jester into a Ballroom and into the story of THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH. The party-goers include dancers and magicians in addition to the viewers. Prince Prospero is indeed happy to have such a crowd in his Mansion to avoid the plague that is ravaging his country. But you can't hide from death, but it can hide from you. The illusion known as "Pepper's Ghost" plays a key role in this scene as does a tall scary dude in a mask!

Here we are led into a Hallway. Many things are going on in this section of the show. Both a quote from THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM as well as a cryptogram likened to THE GOLD BUG are scrawled upon the walls. Vermin is present, also a reference to PIT…and then we come to the cockroaches. Brat Productions touted that 1500 cockroaches had been specially bred to take part of HAUNTED POE. Unfortunately it was soon found to be more of a hindrance than a help in the scares as the bugs continued to find their way out of their enclosure. Brat was forced to fog them out…some of the carcasses remained in the show. And the loudest scream I could muster was issued in the Hallway as a man we thought to be part of our group is suddenly overcome with the shakes and open his jacket to reveal a covering of cockroaches upon his shirt as he runs towards the group! A great moment in haunted house antics to be sure. I was left on edge the rest of the show although this was most certainly the height of scares to be sure…or is it? Also in the Hallway we are able to revisit another angle of the scene set in the Parlor, Poe’s house with Virginia and Maria. The “quiet” of Poe’s life is a great juxtaposition of the terror we are experiencing by being immersed in his fictional world.

“The thousand injuries of Forturnato” is avenged by Montresor in the next chamber – a Room in the Catacombs of the Montresor Estate. The Fortunato of this story is reminiscent of the Jester in the Ballroom of The Masque of the Red Death and I did think they were the same person until I researched the cast of HAUNTED POE. This air of confusion permeates this entire scene for me, I have walked twice through the HAUNTED POE house as it was being performed plus once through on a tour and I still couldn’t tell you exactly what took place in this chamber…to me and my memory it seems an extension of the Hallway so therein my confusion may lie. I may have received such a tremendous cockroach startle that I was not fully aware of my surroundings directly after.

A Manor Wall is next and represents another popular Poe tale, THE TELL-TALE HEART. The exposition is told using technology not previously seen in this haunted theater: video of prerecorded scene is acted out as the viewer watches through glass in the wall. While I enjoyed the scene immensely, I was also taken out of the interactive part that I so previously enjoyed. To think of HAUNTED POE as not only a haunted experience but also a journey through Poe’s life and times – the introduction of “moving pictures” simply continues that story.

A pounding on a door leads us to an Alley and a Street in Paris or Philadelphia. This chamber references both THE FALL OF HOUSE OF USHER as well as MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE. A female narrator stands outside of a house and delivers a frenzied performance then heads indoors where the viewer will both hears a terrific beast as well as sees the damage it delivers with the house shaking and shutters shuddering. All at once these senses cease and our female narrator comes out hurling out of the house, dead. A sad ending to this scene…but perhaps a bit foreboding.

The last chamber is a Train Car and is the climax of HAUNTED POE. We enter a train car and either take a seat or stand and peer out the window where we watch the scenery go by. Music, sound effects of the train and visual representations of every previous chamber are swept past us on the large projection screen. A male narrator provides a voice over, a conclusion, a man afraid of both death and the recollections of his past – his demons. Behind the viewer is the Poe apartment, once again we can see the scene that we have visited upon before. The images and the train seem to speed up, the appearance of a runaway train becomes a rather real fear. It as if we are about to go off the tracks…and then from behind us Poe bursts through a hidden door and dies at our feet! We are left to leave the train at our own volition while Poe must remain.

HAUNTED POE is both theater and a Halloween mainstay – the haunted house. But the combination of both is done so artfully, so epically that it surpasses any idea you might have of either medium. If you are looking for something out of the ordinary to celebrate this spooky holiday then HAUNTED POE is your answer. BRAT has rumored to continue HAUNTED POE next year with a new experience but I still hope to see some of these same scenes that worked so well and beg for repeat viewings. You will do good to mark your calendar now…and anticipate a great homage to a Philadelphia legend.

Be sure to check out the web site for HAUNTED POE – http://www.hauntedpoe.com

Photography by M. Sean McManus.
Additional photography by Laura Viera Quinn and Mary E. Brickthrower.
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HORROR: THE LIST (OUR Top 20 Horror Movies of the last 20 Years)

By MARY E BRICKTHROWER, JD LOMBARDI, KAYODE KENDALL, HEATHER BUZBY and ERIC BLAIR.

A couple months ago the all things media rag Entertainment Weekly composed a list of the “20 Top Horror Films of the Past 20 Years” (http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20284496_20284497_20295591,00.html)

And my friends and I found ourselves…unimpressed. After collectively slightly cocking our heads we decided to produce our own definitive list. Our process was thorough, paring down individual lists into 1 master list. While you will see some similarities between our list and EW you will note that movies that aren’t really “horror” are omitted (Shaun of the Dead is a great movie but it is primarily a comedy; Silence of the Lambs is primarily a psychological thriller, same with From Hell). Finally the 5 of us sat down together to discuss our Top 20; both our similar picks and perhaps a random barb tossed in for glaring differences. We give you OUR Top 20 Horror Films of the Last 20 Years!

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1.The Ring

KEN: I honestly think the American remake is better than the original from Japan. The mundane, quiet moments in the film are far more unsettling thanks to the cinematography, music, and old, musty locales. The film also benefits from its performances, including Naomi Watts, Brian Cox, and Daveigh Chase as Samara, the demon/ghost/whatever child in question. The few lines she does have in the film are just haunting.

MARY: Totally agree with ya Ken; one of the few remakes of my adored “J-Horror” genre that I actually like more than the original. From the twisted images of the urban legend-esque “tape” that will kill you 7 days later upon viewing it, to the creepy face-mangling that signifies a victim, to the terrifying confrontation between Samara and Martin Henderson (Naomi Watts’ love interest), this movie is pretty much perfect. Could’ve been a little shorter at the end though.

HEATHER: This was pretty much a straightforward thriller – no monsters, no gore – just a scary urban legend apparently come true. While I understand the purpose of a videotape being at the center of the story, for me it makes the terror a little less effective in this age of DVD media. The clips of what originally seem to be random and unrelated scenes are creepy, even before the audience is clued in to what they mean. The horror is only intensified as the story behind the tape is revealed.

ERIC: I love seeing the twisted faces of the victims after the girl comes out TV in this movie…I loved it so much!

JD: Yeah, those faces are what creeped me out the most. I’ll never forget when you see that first girl’s twisted face…yikes! Then there is the one photo where a guy’s face is all warped; yeah I just don’t ever wanna accidentally see that in one of my photos like ever.

Seriously, I think this is pretty close to being a perfect horror film for me. It doesn’t really go for the cheap pops, but tells an interesting, creepy story about normal people screwing each other over in order to not die due to their own curiosity. Samara doesn’t really scare me though the locations and scratchy cinematography did wonders.

2. The Sixth Sense

MARY: I didn’t see this until maybe 2 months after it came out and I was well aware of the “surprise” ending but that didn’t cease any fear that I felt as Haley Joel Osment encounters dead people of young and old. By far M. Night Shyamalan’s best film and most creepy at that.

JD: I agree. M. Night hasn’t come close to a complete film since this one and I still get a jump or two out of this even after repeated viewing. Sixth Sense really worked for me because I got sucked in to caring about Haley’s character. He wasn’t a douche like the people you hope will die in a Friday The 13^th and other horror flicks. Between the tugging at my emotional strings and the overall originality of the story, I paid such close attention that when it was time for a scare I really got it big time.

KEN: I didn’t see it coming and I don’t believe anyone who says they did! It almost feels like something Hitchcock would have done.

HEATHER: This is another flick that when first watched, has an unexpected ending that changes the entire feel of the movie…though I still feel it is more of a thriller than out-and-out horror. I immediately wanted to re-watch it to put all the pieces together that were so obviously there, but the audience didn’t know to look for them. This film wouldn’t have been nearly as successful had Osment’s character been an adult instead of a child. I also agree that this movie is infinitely better than any of Shymalan’s other creations.

MARY: You’re right in a sense Heather that is not straight-up horror but I think the dead people concept does lend itself to the horror genre.

HEATHER: True. I still consider this a horror flick, and actually had it on my original list of picks. The reason I consider it less conventional is that it makes you actually think some, instead of simply scaring you with visuals or “bumps in the night.”

ERIC: Another movie using the element of “not knowing what’s happening next” made the film excellent! Great movie!

3. Dawn of the Dead (Zach Snyder’s)

HEATHER: It didn’t take long to realize this was a Zack Snyder film (I saw Watchmen before ever seeing this flick) and that was a good thing. Here, the speed zombie is done right. A single shot to the head will kill them, but they’re so fast and so numerous, it’s a difficult task to take on. There’s also no “partial-zombie-ness;” the tiniest bite brings on the full fledged infection. The suspense and drama are only heightened when our survivors bicker amongst themselves…Because we all know, you’ve got to stick together to make it through a horror film.

ERIC: All I can say about this movie are three words, “Running Fucking Zombies.” Apparently, in the afterlife people are superhuman, who knew…

JD: “28 Days Later” may have started it, but this Romero-remake brought it to the masses. I remember clenching the entire first time I saw this film. It isn’t out-and-out scary in the traditional horror genre sense and that is why it works for me. Would I want this film to become reality? Hell no! That in itself puts the horror factor on another level to me. Between zombies and being forced into intimate situations with people you’ve only just met, Snyder really does make it more about characters than the potential for spectacle. Highlights for me are almost anything that Ving Rhames says and the Richard Cheese “Down with the Sickness” montage. If only Snyder would have done the other installments.

MARY: If only George Romero could actually direct a movie, it might look like this. This film is the most fully realized Zombie film, and tells an actual story not simply of survival, but of interpersonal relationships. With several well developed characters and plot lines I feel like they all point to one simple truth of the human condition.

KEN: Running zombies. It’s all about running zombies in the new millennium.

4. 28 Days Later

MARY: Why are Zombies even big culturally right now? I would say it’s because of this movie. Yes it is THAT important. Someone please check the timeline, but every NeoZombie film has drawn deeply from the ideas presented here. Most importantly 28 DAYS LATER introduced the Zoombie, a Zombie made 1000x more terrifying because it moves faster than you can.

HEATHER: I do like the newer concept of the “fast-moving zombie,” but what I didn’t like was the speed of infection. Part of the fun of zombie movies is seeing the disease slowly take over its victim. I found myself generally bored by this particular film and thought there were a good amount of holes throughout it.

ERIC: Hmmmmm…What can I say about this movie? It’s a freaking awesome movie! Just imagine waking up almost a month later and the world shot to hell. This movie is scary to me b/c I believe this could actually happen someday.

JD: Wait, you genuinely believe a zombie apocalypse is on the horizon? Anyway…this one came from one of my favorite Directors, Danny Boyle. For me he just has a really great eye for what to put on camera and all his films tend to be character-centric. This is really a small film despite the scope. In fact, the zombies are only a vehicle for Boyle to show how creepy humans can be with each other when faced with an extinction-level event.

KEN: It's relentless, visceral, and just all-around frightening. The shots of Cillian Murphy wandering around the deserted streets of London really put things into perspective. Follow that up with the immediate threat of rage-infected humans, and how quickly they would change once bitten, scratched, or bled on, and you've got some top-notch horror.

5. 30 Days of Night

JD: I was hyped for this one from the moment I finished reading the comics! 30 Days of Night was such a departure from all the “kewel” vampire films that have been coming out for years now. Stuff like “Lost Boys” and “Dracula 2000” or “Near Dark” where so many of the vampires are mouthing off cool one-liners or just showing how much we humans aren’t nearly as cool…this wasn’t like any of that. The vampires here were almost like a full-fledged alien race set on ridding the world of humans and taking the planet for themselves. What we get as a result of that is a total slaughter, the height of which is definitely highlight number one for me. Much like zombies, we’re once more dealing with a classic mode of horror so full on fear isn’t what the viewer will get; though, how these suckers (intended!) chomped down upon a victim was quite nasty.

HEATHER: What makes this particular vampire flick so appealing and scary is the idea of being stuck – not only by the confines of a tiny town in nowhere Alaska in the middle of winter, but also by the darkness. The vampires are actually characters to be feared and not a bunch of emo, whiney teenagers that you’d rather just punch in the face and shove under a sun lamp. They’re gruesome and ugly and when they attack it’s simply disgusting… I love it!

KEN: Even once you get past super-charged bloodbath of the vampires’ initial assault on the town of Barrow, Alaska, you’ve got countless moments of suspense and dread as the survivors try to make it ‘til the end of the month, when the sun finally comes back up.

6. Blair Witch

HEATHER: I can’t come to a conclusion of whether I love or hate this flick. My opinion of it changes with each viewing, depending on the mood and setting I’m in at the moment. This whole movie is what you make it. The scariness is in how much stock you put in the story and how far you let your imagination wander. You never see what is actually scary, you have to imagine it. If you’re not in the right mindset, it won’t be scary. I will say that I won’t be camping in the woods with my friends any time soon, which I guess makes the film effective to an extent.

KEN: I know I’m probably in the minority, but I just did not care for this film. I think the same way some people can hate a horror film for having too much gore, you can hate a film for having too many moments where you don’t see what’s going on. The whole “psychology” of it gets a little overbearing for me.

JD: This is an odd one for me. When I first saw it, I wasn’t all that horrified while sitting there in the theater. But once I got home and was alone? I was paranoid beyond belief! It played on me in such a subtle way that stuck with me and proceeded to haunt my mind for a good few days. Eventually I got over it, even watching the whole film alone in my home. Is this everyone’s cup of tea? Nope. But for those of us who like psychological horror over graphic this is one of the big ones.

MARY: Upon my opening viewing of this film in the theater, I spent the last hour with my head turned to the side whilst softly crying. I proceeded to sleep on the couch outside my parent’s room for the following week. I have watched BLAIR WITCH several times since but I still don’t think I have viewed the ending in its entirety. I daresay this film launched the “reality” movement in media, mixing word of mouth with fake web sites and false documentaries, inspiring other films such as CLOVERFIELD.

ERIC: The reason this movie is scary is b/c it’s from 1^st person point of view. As time went on, I grew to hate this movie b/c my last name is Blair and people use to always say, “Hey Blair Witch”

7. Final Destination

ERIC: I think this movie kind of reintroduce guts and gore to the big screen. Don’t get me wrong, there were movies before that were gory but this one was so over the top. I loved it!

KEN: The idea of death coming back for people who should have died in a horrible accident was pretty inventive. Furthermore, having the main character be male got audiences away from the "final girl" cliché.

HEATHER: I almost didn’t like this movie before I even saw it, but I’ll give almost anything a chance once and tried to keep an open mind. I simply couldn’t get into the concept, as I believe when it’s your time to go, that’s it – you can’t change it. So get on the plane or don’t get on the plane, if you’re meant to die on that day, it is going to happen regardless of what you do. I didn’t feel connected to the characters in any way and therefore didn’t care that they would be meeting their demise.

MARY: What can be scarier than a force of nature, no need for a person or demon to fight, that is just make believe bull shiv. Death is not some silly skeleton in a robe, it is all around us… dun dun duh!

8. The Mist

HEATHER: I’m a big fan of King’s written work, but am often disappointed with Hollywood’s interpretations of his writings. I was expecting more of the same with The Mist. I was pleasantly surprised, though maybe “pleasantly” isn’t the best of words. Having not read this particular story beforehand, I was not prepared for the literal gut wrenching twist to come. An ending like that is the last thing people want or expect and that’s what makes it great. Too often, even in horror films, there is some kind of happily ever after that can ruin what otherwise is (or could be) a good flick.

MARY: This movie had such potential. If it actually went where it was hinting at the whole time, I might have enjoyed it. Instead horrible CGI and a ridiculous ending ended up angering me more than scaring or thrilling me.

JD: I didn’t really think the effects were bad or that the ending was ridiculous. For me there was just enough CGI because that wasn’t what this film was really about. I’m starting to really see what modern horror is and that would be something to the effect of what happens between people when they’re all plopped into a totally screwed up situation. I honestly think it was worse being in the market than it was being out in the mist. At least out there you knew what you were dealing with and how to combat them. Plus, I hate insects so any time I get to kill huge ones is a plus for me. Could there have been more here? Perhaps about what went wrong to open this dimensional hole? Sure, but I think that much like “The Green Mile” Director Frank Darabont works better with less.

KEN: The horror in The Mist definitely lies in how character-driven it is. It’s truly frightening to see how quickly the people trapped in the supermarket are influenced by Marcia Gay Harden’s fanaticism, and it makes Thomas Jane’s struggle to protect his son and friends that much more immediate. Then of course, there’s the ending. It’s always nice to see an American horror film that’s willing to “go there” so to speak.

MARY: STARSHIP TROOPERS is the right way to do giant insects via CGI. And an army-based hallucinogenic fog; a test done on a small town for the benefit of our evil government would’ve gotten to me more in the end.

HEATHER: I have to agree with JD – the monsters are not what’s meant to be scary… it’s almost never that way with King’s stories. The horror is the human reaction to a situation that seems to have NO possibility of a good outcome.

9. Saw

KEN: You have to love the ingenuity of the first Saw, even if the franchise has overstayed its welcome. Nothing was scarier than the ending, as all the pieces fall into place for one of the main characters. I honestly couldn’t sleep after seeing this movie the first time.

HEATHER: Most people view this as just another gory flick, but I found it quite original. It’s not simply senseless hacking up of random victims. They are chosen for reasons, set in intricate traps and actually have a chance to escape. This being the first film of the series, the viewer has no idea what is really going on – the completely unexpected ending leaves the audience begging for sequels to answer their questions. I’m almost always in the minority in my belief that this series has NOT outrun its welcome and there are still too many unanswered questions – I already own and repeatedly watch the first five and will do the same with any and all additional films in the series.

ERIC: Saw, to me isn’t the traditional horror movie but more of a psychological horror flick. B/c the movie just fucks with you and then “Oh! This guy just gets up and leaves the room” at the end.

JD: Flat out, I’m not a fan of this series. With that said, I can still readily admit that the first Saw is the best Saw. All the others are just films that build elaborate mouse traps which have the viewers cheering for the characters do die. I don’t grasp the concept of a series where the only person you have any small connection to is the villain and even then, you don’t really care about him, you just kind of respect him for all the warped shit he does to people. That first one though, it was a gem and it was in your face. Just like Eric said, in those final moments when the film ends…you just can’t believe he was there the whole time and that makes it awesome.

MARY: The 1^st SAW was the indie one and benefits from that. But I called the dead guy being the villain! I truly did! And I like the 2^nd SAW better which might be blasphemy to the “true” original fans.

JD: Is Saw II the one with the girl in the pit of hypodermic needles? Oh my God, that nearly made me puke! I totally never want to see that again.

MARY: That’s the one JD – my queasiest moment watching a film! BLECH!!

10. White Noise

ERIC: The sounds are the key to horror for this movie. I love this movie but I refuse to own it. This just might be the scariest movie I ever seen next to the Passion of Christ.

KEN: An interesting concept, but I just didn’t find it very scary. I can’t even remember most of it now.

JD: Ken, I believe in ghosts and sometimes EVP. With how Keaton bites it at the end I just felt that this was so close to being what could actually happen in the real world. Yeah, no matter how many times I watch this it scares the holy hell out of me. The voices, those damned shadow figures and all the unheeded warnings? Ugh. I’m getting the chills just thinking about it.

HEATHER: I like it because it was a ghost story without being a typical ghost story. What makes it get to you is that if you’re a believer in the film’s concepts it could really be happening around you at any moment. Unless you’ve decided to use the technology available to capture it, you may never know just what lurks around on a regular basis. The quick flashes of apparitions and bumps in the night are things we all think we experience when we’re home alone, but do we dare let our minds wander to what they might actually be?

MARY: How many times must Michael Keaton be warned before he finally gets what’s coming to him? DON’T MEDDLE!!! That is the moral of this story! GHOST HUNTERS should take this movie to heart – watch out Grant!

11. Candy Man

KEN: I love this film for its simplicity. Not that parts of it aren’t complex, but it is rather straightforward in its themes and the story it’s trying to get across. It has an almost theatrical feel to it that I really appreciate. Not to mention Tony Todd creating a black horror icon that was further away from Blackula than we could ever hope.

ERIC: Because of Candy Man I will not look into my bathroom mirror in the pitch dark and say, “Candy Man…Candy Man…Candy Man” Yes, I am a grown man now but I still feel like this movie is too scary for my blood

MARY: I’ll take the urban myth of “Bloody Mary” over this film any day!

JD: You would, Mare!

12. Drag Me to Hell

MARY: Sam Raimi’s finest film since ARMY OF DARKNESS. Some scenes are frightening and build suspense; others are just downright disgusting- anyone have a ruler I can borrow? You don’t mind if I just put my teeth here while I write the rest of this do you? And it’s out now! So go rent / buy this movie NOW !

KEN: From the film’s opening flashback, I should have known all bets were off! Raimi brings back all his old school tricks with this one, making a film that succeeds in being equal parts horror, and slapstick humor. There’s definitely a lingering dread after seeing the film, even if said film features what is, essentially, a Looney Tunes gag.

13. Exorcist III

JD: This is my all-time favorite horror film. Satan films are my thing and this one really just stands out among the “Omens” and “Rosemary’s Baby” due to all the visual horrors. It may be simple like a suddenly evil-morphed statue in a church or that fraction of a second scene in the hospital with the huge sheers but there’ll be something to creep out anyone in Exorcist III. On top of tying into the original (and classic) Exorcist, this one brings back our favorite priest in a way we’d never expect. George C. Scott’s taking over the role of Kinderman is a vast improvement but this film wouldn’t be anything without Brad Dourif’s career-making performance. Many people haven’t seen this installment due to the immense suckage of Exorcist II and that is a shame.

HEATHER: This was an edge-of-the-seat thriller for me – always wondering what’s coming next. For those who’ve seen this movie, I think two words can sum it up: scissor scene. When one single image from a film is enough to forever haunt my dreams, the film is a success.

MARY: Exactly Heather! I dig this movie for the scissor scene alone – EEK!

ERIC: I always seen pieces of this movie and the piece I seen were always so dark and scary. I will never forget the priest’s voice. I need to buy this movie.

14. Ginger Snaps

MARY: I just saw this movie about a month ago and absolutely loved it. A great low-budget film that takes advantage of quick cuts to mask that lack of special effects. The dialogue sounds so real and the story is both scary and funny. Upon seeing previews, I feel like JENNIFER’S BODY totally aped GINGER SNAP’s style.

ERIC: I never heard of this movie or seen it before but every time I look at the name, I think of actual ginger snaps snapping in my hands.

KEN: Lycanthropy used as a metaphor for puberty is nothing new, but it’s rarely seen from a female perspective. And watching the film, you can see the parallels being drawn are somewhat more effective when it’s a female. And ultimately, a bit scarier.

MARY: The franchise is cool because it keeps the girl’s the same but takes places in different time periods / configurations of the same werewolf story.

15. House of 1000 Corpses

MARY: The most perfect and beautiful scene in modern horror comes with this film, when our main villain shoots a kneeling officer in a expansive long-shot that makes me praise Rob Zombie as both a talented musician and master filmmaker. Zombie can play homage to horror any time he wants after viewing this amazing debut.

HEATHER: I first watched this film essentially alone in the dark, around Halloween… and nearly bit through my thumb in fright. My fear of clowns was a factor, though Captain Spalding has become a favorite of mine and probably the only clown I like. The family aspect of this film makes it all that much more disturbing.

JD: So far this is as close as I’ll get to having an Alice in Wonderland-type horror film. Between the outfit that gal is in and all the freaks and distorted camera work for roughly the last half-hour of the film, it really makes me think that Zombie was on to the Alice-symbolism in terms of falling down a much more forbidden rabbit hole. Also – and maybe this is strictly because of “Deliverance” – but anytime there are backwoods baddies it just scares the crap out of me.

16. Scream

HEATHER: Scream goes back to the teen slasher genre, but does it right and is not overly cheesy. It was particularly upsetting for me because the stalker films are what really get me (and keep me looking over my shoulder and sleeping with the lights on for weeks).The characters know all of the cliché horror movie elements, but choose to ignore some of them anyway… causing me to jump on more than one occasion.

JD: I get so jealous when I watch this movie. Kevin Williamson unleashed a script that was so smart that half the filmgoers didn’t even grasp that this was deconstructing what a horror film was right in front of their eyes. It gave us so many of the plot elements we already knew of because they’d become staples of the genre and showed the audience that even if the characters in the film knew these same things…they’d still be dead. We were deliberately served the familiar but Williamson did it in a way that not only still surprised us, but left us wondering. As a writer, I dream of creating a scene like the famous “rules” when they’re all watching Halloween. It was like the photo of a man holding a photo of himself holding a photo of himself holding a photo for infinity. It was pop culture post-modernism at its best and still managed to give us a new icon in the form of that horrid mask. Now if only there were just two “Scream” films and nothing else, maybe it’d still be considered a good series.

ERIC: Scream introduced a new era of horror. Nothing supernatural, no monsters, no boogieman, just a few guys reenacting what they see on movies. The true horror of this film is the element of “not knowing what’s happening next.”

KEN: This movie came out at the perfect time, when it was cool to be so self-aware and referential. Not to mention the total fake-out of Drew Barrymore plastered big as day on movie posters, only to have her be the first victim before we even see the opening title card!

17. What Lies Beneath

HEATHER: This was a classic concept done right. There is a dark, secret past that we are discovering in bits and pieces. That secret isn’t even necessarily the scariest part. What had me jumping were the little things – the sounds in the darkness and glimpses out of the corner of our eye that we all experience and cause our minds to go to movies such as this. You get that feeling you’re being watched, that someone else is there, that you swear you closed that door but now it’s open even though no one else is around.

KEN: I had never fallen asleep in a theater, until I saw this film

JD: Really? I thought that his was pretty messed up, especially with Harrison Ford in such an unconventional role. Rare is it in the horror genre to have such huge stars in a film and still keep the story important enough for you to believe that all bets could be off. As I said earlier, I’m a believer of ghosts so when a film is done right and keeps the CGI to a bare minimum it really works for me. Believe it or not, a door shutting on it’s own with no musical accompaniment will do wonders to terrorize me.

MARY: This movie is definitely creepy.

18. Hostel

MARY: Boobies and gross torture. Not scary.

KEN: I liked that this was a very different take on slasher movies. They play with a lot of clichés and flips them into something new, and characters you’d think you’d be following throughout the entire film actually get picked off in short order. For a second, you have to really wonder how it’s going to end

HEATHER: Liked/hated at the same time (haha): Originally, I refused to even see this film. The previews and trailers alone had me terrified to the point that I didn’t think I could handle it. But I bucked up, broke down and watched it – only to be proven right. Gore does not usually bother me, but the torture techniques showcased here were so real, I was hurting just witnessing them on screen. It also made me nearly ill to recall that I had, in fact, stayed in a hostel while visiting Europe – never again!

19. Event Horizon

MARY: Ever the glutton for punishment, I saw this twice in the theater (and hid my eyes both times) and even attempted to read the novelization of the film. Couldn’t finish it though…scared me too much!

JD: I really didn’t appreciate this one enough when I originally saw it in theaters and remember leaving thinking it sucked. A viewing or two at home and now I’m in a totally opposite belief. I think this is really a difficult breed, the sci-fi horror film. There aren’t many true success stories here and even this film didn’t set the world afire considering it grossed about 20M less than the cost to make it. DVD people, watch it. What cracks me up a little bit is that Director Paul Anderson is also the guy who Produced the recently release “Pandorum” which looks just a little similar to Event Horizon.

MARY: The idea that the ship tortures each victim in a way that is catered especially to them makes fighting it off even more difficult. It is the isolation of the vessel and the horror that is inflicted that is so terrifying.

20. Devil’s Rejects

KEN: Proof that when he really focuses, Rob Zombie can make a pretty effective horror film. The look of the film is just beautiful in its grit and grime, and Zombie proves that he understands character and story development. Besides, I’m a sucker for “Highway Horror”.

MARY: Another great gem by Rob Zombie, but in my opinion not nearly as poignant as his first horror outing.

HEATHER: One of the few sequels that hasn’t fallen victim to the sequel curse. This is gore and violence but not just for the sake of gore and violence. The audience is again brought into the world of this family and just how deranged they are. The simple idea that there just might be people out there like this is frightening enough. There is no predicting what they might do, as it seems nothing is off limits in their minds.

JD: Count me as the lone dissenter here. It certainly wasn’t a horrible film, but in contrast to the high creativity factor of its predecessor this one just falls very short. There are too many generic horror movies that this one resembles and perhaps that was Zombie’s intent, to make a dirty 70’s-looking highway horror film. As a sequel it just didn’t work for me and as a horror film overall I just found it lacking in the creativity that the Director often exudes.

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Nailing down what people find scary is often a crapshoot, but it’s always interesting to see what people will connect with. Horror as a genre tends to work via the trend. One movie will unexpectedly break the bank and soon after we’ll have five variations on it’s theme to choose (or not choose) from for viewing. If the recent success of Paranormal Activity is any indication (even ending the Saw franchise’s streak of #1 box office openings), audiences may be looking towards a more back-to-basics, “less is more” approach. It’d also be nice to see a return to anthology horror films, like Trick R’ Treat, which has finally been released, albeit straight to DVD. It’s mean-spirited, effectively creepy without being needlessly gory, and even a bit funny. It’s just the movie to get you in the Halloween spirit…especially if your tastes run more hardcore than say, “A Nightmare Before Christmas.”

So in the meanwhile, lock all your doors, keep the lights on and unless the killer’s already in your house, check out some of our picks and see for yourself what’ll scare the holy hell out of you.

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