Week 1 – 11th January until 18th January.

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen (or afternoon or evening depending on when you read this!), this is your host speaking. Welcome to a new regular column on the Frightfest Website; the title of the column is pretty much self-explanatory: a news column based around genre news – new films, gossip, tidbits’, trailers, exclusives and even a few reviews – all in all a handy little guide to keep you up to date every week with the horror news out there. It is not the aim of the column to be the bible of all horror news, there will be inevitably stuff that I will miss out on – however I hope to manage to catch the bulk of it and then condense it into a tidy little package for all of you fans out there.

With the introductions out the way, let’s get started.

2008 looks to be a busy year for horror. Not only are we going to be continuously inundated with crappy remakes (you know who you are), there are also more than a few independent and European horrors coming our way.

First up is Norwegian Slasher film ROVDYR. I’ve been interested in this film since day one since my eyes fell on the exquisite poster but now my excitement has doubled when I found that the film has been rated 18+ , making the it the second film to get such an honour within the last twenty years. (The first was the excellent thriller NABOER which I saw in Turkey many months ago and which is now available (and very recommend) in the U.K. on DVD) The plot concerns four youngsters on a camping trip who pick up a strange hitchhiker who after a short while demands that they stop the car. She is terrified of something out there in the woods – something hunting them all. You can watch the trailer here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=fbP3yUa0x-M

Next is crazy metal band Lordi’s long touted horror film DARK FLOORS. Although the film is going to be released in Finland within the next month, it hasn’t yet been picked up for U.K. distribution. At first the film sounded more than a little dubious: however the subsequent creature images has re-kindled my interested. Again you can watch the trailer here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=ALf--XqkRiI

Moving further east, Turkey has not one but two horror films coming up for release: The first is MUSALLAT which concerns a young couple by the name of Suat and Nurcan who find themselves the focus of a haunting by djins. However the djins in question are not the Arabian Nights, wish-granting kind but from Turkish mythology: supernatural creatures who can imitate human beings almost to a perfect level and who use their powers in order to harm them. Although the film released a somewhat lukewarm reception in Turkey, the trailer still looks worthwhile which you can watch here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=zYCpefLvH9Q

SEMUM is the title of the second film from Turkey and it is directed by Hasan Karacadag who was behind the KAIRO rip-off D@BBE which did very well in its’ home country. SEMUM concerns (once bloody again!) a young couple Canan and Volkan Karaca who have just moved into their new house. However their new-found happiness is cut short when Canan starts to slowly get possess by an unknown entity and slowly transform into something other than human. SEMUM bases its’ plot on the Islamic belief that before God created Adam and Eve out of clay, there were creatures’ roaming the Earth who were created out of a smokeless fire and poison. These creatures became jealous of mankind and now spend their time trying to harm them, possess them and if successful destroy them. SEMUM also has the honor of being Turkey’s first modern creature feature. You can access the full theatrical trailer here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=g4xbgZU1qwE&feature=related

Leaving behind Turkey, our next stop is Russia where a new teaser has been unveiled for INHABITED ISLAND. The film is of particular interest because of its’ source: a novel by the amazing Strugatsky Brothers who were not only behind Tarkovy’s mind-blowing STALKER but also the weird and wonderful DEAD MOUNTAINEER’S HOTEL. Although the teaser gives nothing away, it is still enough to create some excitement: http://youtube.com/watch?v=7ZijjCIqHIg

And finally to our last but most fruitful stop : USA.

First things first: This week the trailer for the remake of the 1980’s classic slasher PROM NIGHT was unveiled. As far as this columnist is concerned, it looks awful. The original PROM NIGHT is a thing of beauty: one of those slashers that manages to transcend its’ source material. However judging by the looks of this trailer, no one in the studio managed to grasp any of its’ charms and we are going to be given yet another PG-13 horror. You can watch the trailer here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=9BdgiIjZIjo&feature=related

Next is AMUSEMENT , a slasher flick that involves a killer dressed as a clown. Although the teaser does not give any sense of any original thought, the story of three women being stalked by a killer clown who has a grudge extending all the way back to their childhood could have some merit somewhere. (I remain dubious!). You can watch the teaser here: http://www.apple.com/trailers/picturehouse/amusement/

THE EYE remake starring Jessica Alba finally hits the theatres in American after being delayed from its’ original October 18th release date. Directed by David Moureau and Xavier Palud, the film tells the story of a young woman who upon receiving an eye transplant starts to see strange images from the supernatural world. It is going to be interesting to see what they do with this considering Pang Brothers’ original THE EYE was neither original nor very scary so fingers crossed for a remake that might perhaps surpass the original. You can watch the trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBzJJh7kBNo

Although not strictly horror, still one of the hottest tickets around, next week sees the release of JJ Abrams produced CLOVERFIELD. Sporting one of the most addictive viral advertising campaigns around CLOVERFIELD has been keeping us all enthralled all the way since July, no one still knows what exactly to expect. Advance word has been that the film is one of those rare genre-inventing films and that the monster(s) are nothing like what you have ever seen or can expect. Let’s hope no one from across the pond ruins the surprise for us until the February 1st 2008 release in the U.K. You can watch the teaser here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvNkGm8mxiM

And that’s it for this week. I hope that amongst all the titles mentioned here, you can find a few to interest, to amuse or to excite you. Until next week, I would like to leave you with my favourite video of this week: the audience reaction shots to the wonderful , the brilliant, the fantastic, the superb {REC} : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfgZlMYj_NU

Until then.

Sincerely yours

Evrim ‘The Duke’ Ersoy