WerewolvesThe sound of Judith yelling woke Maribelle. She had at last gotten back to sleep after the Blackmane’s visit during the night, and had then slept later than usual. It was hot inside the hut and the light outside was bright. Maribelle hurried to dress, listening. “Well I hope you are not counting on me…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter 23
Light, a flicker and flash, as the screen came to life. Outside his den some hyenas laughed as if making fun of him. He growled at the sound. Let them come closer, if they wanted to tease him. Let them come into his den. He would teach them respect. The laptop hummed. It worked. The…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter 22
I caught an episode of the television series TERROR IN THE WOODS the other day that really stood out to me. Paired with yet another story of a frightening Bigfoot encounter (which is what most of the stories featured on this program involve) was a segment entitled “It Came from Hell” and described an encounter…Continue readingDogmen in the Woods
Courtesy of The Playlist, here’s an interesting passage from screenwriter Eric Heisserer regarding the failed Universal Dark Universe and the reasons *why* it failed. It’s nothing we didn’t already know, but it’s funny, so I’ll share it here. Says Heisserer: “It was a very strange experience [working on the Dark Universe]. There was certainly a…Continue readingVan Helsing Kills the Dark Universe
My favorite television show has returned to the airwaves! (I just finished up THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER, which was ah-may-zing, but it doesn’t qualify as a TV show by my definition. No livestreaming show qualifies. And even if they did, I can’t. Livestream, that is. I had to watch the program on a…Continue readingWelcome Back, Skinwalker Ranch!
I had never heard the term “airport fiction” before. It means, according to this linked article, “Hollywood adaptations of mass paperback novels”. Or maybe it’s just referring to “mass paperback novels”. That would make more sense. But the designation sure is broad. Almost anything that sells could be considered airport fiction going by this definition.…Continue readingIn Praise of THE RELIC
Why was it good news for theater-owners and cinephiles that the Oscars this past week scored their lowest ratings ev-ah? Because 2020, the year of Covid, the year when nobody (except a few brave or foolhardy souls like me) went to the theaters (nor should they have, unless they could do so safely), surely meant…Continue readingOscars Flop is a Win for Theaters
If you don’t have UNIVERSAL STUDIOS MONSTERS: A LEGACY OF HORROR already in your library, fret not. The title is being rereleased this September! The spiel: “The year 2021 is a milestone anniversary year for horror’s most iconic films—Universal Studios’ Dracula, Frankenstein, and The Wolf Man. Those landmark movies—as well as Universal’s new releases—are celebrated…Continue readingThe Book is Back
If you’re like me, you read that headline and immediately thought, hey, wait a minute, the Rougarou *is* a Cajun werewolf. And you, like me, would be correct. But as I recently heard on some television program (one of those dramatizing supposed real-life encounters with paranormal entities, Bigfoot, etc.) there are some who maintain that…Continue readingThe Rougarou and the Cajun Werewolf
I didn’t vote in this year’s Fangoria Chainsaw Awards. I could have. I received my “ballot”. But I was conflicted. Also, I hadn’t seen all the nominees in all the categories. Granted I could have simply abstained from voting in those categories, in the interest of honesty. I’ve done that before. But I was conflicted…Continue readingThe Chainsaw Awards—The Results Are In!
I don’t really feel the need to verbally eviscerate the AltRight overly much (although I do occasionally make fun of Trump trolls) mainly because it seems unnecessary. Really the only people in the world who DON’T know that the AltRight is evil are people who belong to it, and actually they know it, too, they…Continue readingDefending Hannibal
Maribelle gasped, flinched. It—he—drew his hand away. Strange how soft his hand felt. She had been lying with her feet out from beneath the covers, her leg that she hadn’t bothered shaving in several days, that still hadn’t gotten tan despite all the time she’d been spending in the sun. And the creature had touched…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter 21
When she’d first arrived in Kenya, Maribelle had found it a little disconcerting how early night came. Not even seven PM and already the world had gone dark. Now she didn’t mind it. The heat, the routine of life here wore her out. By dusk she was often ready for sleep. Tonight she was exhausted.…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter 20
John Logan, the creator of PENNY DREADFUL, is an extremely gifted writer (he wrote the scripts for GLADIATOR, THE AVIATOR, ALIEN: COVENANT, HUGO, etc.). Now he’s going to try his hand at directing. He’s going to be helming WHSTLER CAMP for Blumhouse. The movie is being called “a queer empowerment story set at a gay…Continue readingWhistler Camp in the Dark
I despise recreational drug use. Not because I’m some kind of moralist. It’s just that, when you’ve struggled for as long as I have trying to get your brain to function in something resembling normal parameters, the idea of deliberately ingesting chemicals that will alter your brain chemistry just for a short-lived transient pleasurable sensation,…Continue readingThe Stoned Age
The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men gang aft agley, as the poet said. I went to the theater this past weekend intent on seeing, in addition to a second helping of GODZILLA VS. KONG, the new Horror flick THE UNHOLY. Instead I ended up seeing NOBODY for the second time. Which was fine,…Continue readingNOBODY and the Wolfman
When it was first announced that Warner Brothers would be releasing all their 2021 movies to theaters and to livestreaming on the same day, I said that I thought it was a mistake on their part. I still say that, and I think the guys wearing suits and sitting in offices are starting to realize…Continue readingSecond Thoughts
I saw it today. It. Him. The creature. The Blackmane. BM from now one, for the sake of convenience, okay? So it wasn’t at all what I would have expected. I did expect that it would be a somewhat frightening experience. I mean, it would be like coming up on any animal in the wild,…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Nineteen
Word came out last week that Netflix has paid several hundreds of millions of dollars for the rights to the two planned sequels to KNIVES OUT. And that just plain sucks, no matter which way you look at it. Shame on the studios for selling out, and shame even more on Netflix—although we must recognize…Continue readingNetflix: The Beast Must Die
Survivor dude Bear Grylls nailed it with this quote. He was speaking about the movie GREYSTOKE: THE LEGEND OF TARZAN, LORD OF THE APES in particular, but he managed to succinctly state why it is that Edgar Rice Burroughs’s creation, Tarzan, is timeless. Yes, I said it: timeless. Yes, the setting of the stories is…Continue readingBear Growls: The Inner Beast, or Why Tarzan Will Live Forever
The Blackmane, the creature without a name, walks home. He walks on two legs, as a man would walk, though he knows that he is not a man. But he is not like the other beasts, either. Those most like him, the lions, go on four feet. Four legs. He has but two legs to…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Eighteen
David Henesy is one of the two primary actors from DARK SHADOWS (the other being Alexandra Moltke) who has, in the years since the show left the airwaves (or ceased its original run; it never really left the airwaves), mostly avoided the public eye. As a child actor on the show, he played several key…Continue readingOn DARK SHADOWS: Maggie Interviews David
“Judi!” Maribelle ran out of the thicket. Her friend stood rigid, holding up a hand. She looked at Maribelle. The native women were all screaming now. Even the men. One of them scooped up the two children. A basket of clothes toppled into the water. A woman dropped a clay pot and it broke. They…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Seventeen
This isn’t something created by those wacky cryptozoologists. No, sir! This map was created by a group of legitimate scientist types at Yale University! Their goals are laudable: “At the current pace of global environmental change, there is no doubt that many species will go extinct before we have ever learned about their existence and…Continue readingWhere the Wild Things Are
We now have a poster (it’s a nice one!) and trailer for BLOODTHIRSTY, due out on VOD on April 23rd. This one looks gooooooood! Here’s the official synopsis: “Grey, an indie singer, whose first album was a smash hit, gets an invitation to work with notorious music producer Vaughn Daniels at his remote studio in…Continue readingFeeling BLOODTHIRSTY?
This one doesn’t quite get my blood pumping the way thoughts of GODZILLA VS. KONG does, but it’s a close second. DAWN OF THE BEAST from Uncork’d Entertainment is available on DVD and video starting April 6th. And it’s from Bruce Wemple, the guy who did the pretty dang excellent MONSTROUS, so that’s another reason…Continue readingBigfoot vs. Wendigo
Where it comes to celebrity gossip, this bit about Armie Hammer is too good to be true. It all sounds like something the WEEKLY WORLD NEWS would make up (Anybody remember them? The most egregiously outrageous of the checkout aisle tabloids, no longer in print?) but it seems there might be some meat to it,…Continue readingArmie the Cannibal
Judith and Maribelle came to a wide stream of greenish brown water, the trees and undergrowth providing a natural screen along its edge. Several of the Warumbi were already there, women collecting water for their cooking and washing clothes, men and women standing in the water up to their knees, splashing and rubbing their dark…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Sixteen
Maribelle woke with a start. A nightmare, already fading in the morning light. Something about yellow eyes in the darkness and claws and teeth. Maribelle let it go. It wasn’t something she cared to remember. Blame it on Judi’s bedtime stories, she said to herself. She sat up on her blanket, pulled aside the gauzy…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Fifteen
I should tell you all right up front that the starring werewolf of the film never fully transforms. This was due both to the film’s miniscule budget—they couldn’t afford the FX to achieve the “wolfing out”—and time constraints. I know this because I watched the making-of feature that came as an extra on the DVD…Continue readingMovie Review: I AM LISA
Maribelle closed her eyes. They burned behind the lids. Trying to read the printout by the weak light of the electric lantern, putting too much strain on her eyes. She would have to turn off the lantern soon, anyway. It was drawing every bug in Africa. The DEET seemed to be keeping the mosquitoes off…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Fourteen
I have a friend now. I am not all alone in this world. My friend tells me his name is Joseph. He says that he is not afraid of me, but I can tell that he is lying, sometimes. But I would not harm this man, Joseph, unless I were very hungry or he attacked…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Thirteen
Also known as the Pope Lick Monster, named after the Pope Lick Creek near Louisville, Kentucky that it (he?) calls home, the Goatman might be a form of Sheepsquatch, a particular type of Cryptid known for being furry and having horns (sorta like the Wampa in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK). Or it might be a…Continue readingThe Kentucky Goatman
“Has science solved one of history’s greatest adventure mysteries?” So asks the headline for this linked article. (The word “Science” ought to be capitalized here, and I would expect a source as credited as National Geographic to know that.) I can answer that question for them: no. No, Science, capital S, has not solved it.…Continue readingDyatlov Solved?
I don’t want to be misunderstood. I think skepticism is a good thing. A person should be skeptical by nature. But as with everything, the extremists have given skepticism a bad name. Taken to the extreme, a person can be skeptical to a fault, to the point that the person becomes closedminded. And more often…Continue readingOccams’ Razor Shaves Monster Wolves
What started out as something good—political correctness, which really was just another way of saying show respect—metastasized. Cancers tend to do that. Nowadays it has become its own brand of fascism. Taken to its extreme, it foments division and fuels Alt-Right angst, cheapening true issues of racism and discrimination in favor of sensationalistic, casuistic virtue-signaling.…Continue readingDon’t Cancel. Elucidate.
“This animal was killed by something with hands,” Judith said. “Something that kills the way a man would kill.” “The hybrid,” Maribelle said. “He wrung its neck,” Hamm said. “Then he tore into it.” “See the claw marks?” Judith pointed. “The way the skin is torn? Five even lines, like a human hand.” “With a…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Twelve
Then the grass opened up. Maribelle recognized their path as a wide game trail. Made by elephants, maybe? They followed the trail to the left. “So how many times have you come to Africa, Mr. Hamm?” Maribelle asked. “This is my fourth extended visit,” Hamm answered. “It’s where the money is. The company’s always got…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Eleven
The hut had no door, so Phil Hamm knocked on one of the door posts. Maribelle had seen him coming out of the corner of her eye, anyway. She turned. He stooped to peer inside. “You girls up for a little hike?” he asked. “The locals say there’s something you might want to see.” “And…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Ten
Entertainment news, that is. Although certainly if anything werewolf-related pops up in the news it’s entertaining for me, and for you good folks, too, I expect. (Speaking of, we could use another appearance, Beast of Bray Road, Michigan Dogman, or Old Stinker. We miss you guys!) But these particular tidbits are all related to movies,…Continue readingWerewolves in the News: AWIL Figure and BLOODTHIRSTY
It was originally supposed to open a year ago at this time, but the ‘Rona interfered. In fact A QUIET PLACE PART II was one of the very first movies to get pulled from the release schedule. I can’t recall how many times since that initial change the movie got bumped. Its last position on…Continue readingA QUIET PLACE PART II Bumped Again—For Good!
Disney’s magnificent (yes, I went and saw it) RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON underperformed at the box office. That’s underperformed in the relative sense; all movies that have opened over the past year have underperformed, vastly underperformed, compared to how they might have been expected to do, money-wise, before the pandemic. But relative to success…Continue readingThe Theaters Strike Back
“The Warumbi still regard him as some sort of demon of the grassland,” Judith said. “But we know better, don’t we? Our creature can think!” Maribelle smiled. “I want to see him,” she said. Judith nodded. “One step at a time, darling. We have to let him get used to the idea. I’ll take you…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Nine
“I have seen the creature now on five separate occasions!” Judith said. “Twice at close range, no less!” “And?” “Oh, my dear, the Warumbi think he is just a killer and a maneater, but he has never made any attempt to harm me. I go out and I sing. Old hymns and showtunes. I just…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Eight
I should state upfront that I have not vetted the reliability of the website providing this linked article. I don’t know if its reputation passes scientific credibility muster. (Not “mustard”. Although “Scientific Credibility Mustard” would make for one gonzo name for an Alternative band, don’t you think?) It seems to, and we’ll give the benefit…Continue readingGiant Wolf, or Direwolf?
Who woulda thunk it? Seattle, of all places. The birthplace of Grunge. On the list of places I want to visit in my lifetime, Seattle would have been dang near at the bottom. Doesn’t it rain there, like, every single day? Seattle. Ugh. No thank you. No offense to anyone living there who actually likes…Continue readingHeaven is in Seattle
Is it *possible* it could be a baby Thylacine? Yes. It’s possible. Is it also possible it could be somebody’s frikkin’ housecat? Yep. Also possible. And of the two possibilities, which is the more likely? The footage is anything but conclusive. It isn’t even good enough to garner mentioning, not that this stopped Neil Waters,…Continue readingThat Thylacine Footage
The village, when they got to it, didn’t look like much. Not that Maribelle had expected it to. It had a few constructions of rusted metal and plywood hammered together into small domiciles, interspersed with more traditional native huts, all laid out in irregular circles surrounding the heart and lifeblood of the village, its well.…Continue readingBLACKMANE Chapter Seven
Bryan Bertino, the writer-slash-director of such fantabulous fare as THE STRANGERS (and its sequel THE STRANGERS: PREY AT NIGHT, for which he wrote the screenplay) and the incomparable THE MONSTER, hits another one out of the park with his latest, THE DARK AND THE WICKED, even if the old flyball doesn’t sail quite as far…Continue readingMovie Review: THE DARK AND THE WICKED
The problem with Nicolas Cage movies is that you never know ahead of time which Nicolas Cage you’re going to get. There are two, you know. It’s like Agent Dale Cooper in TWIN PEAKS. At some point several years ago, Nicolas Cage got trapped in the Black Lodge and was replaced by an evil doppelganger.…Continue readingMovie Review: PRIMAL
