The Rotting Zombie's Round-Up of Horror News for October 2025 (Late Edition)

Ah, turns out my scheduling calendar had missed a week with me, so I've literally only just realised as I type this that I didn't actually release my monthly news round-up last month. I have been slacking a bit with my blog lately; I must do better! Onwards to some late October horror news, with this month's cover-star; Scream 7.

The official trailer, poster and first images of Scream 7 are now available. I am hideously behind in the series, so this will be the third new one in a row that I haven't been able to get too excited about. From a distance I do always think the art design for the posters is great. As a series this will always hold a special place in my heart, I still remember the night me, my sister, and friend watched the brand new release of Scream on VHS; the film that really cemented my love for the horror genre.
Enough about me...Directed by Kevin Williamson, Scream 7 story has a new Ghostface killer appearing in the quiet town where series icon - Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) has built a new life. She discovers her daughter (Isabel May) is the next target of the demented slasher.

Supernatural thriller; Borley Rectory: The Awakening has had a trailer released. Coming from Greenway Entertainment, this stars Julian Glover (For Your Eyes Only) and Patsy Kensit (Lethal Weapon 2), and is said to be based on true events of a haunting in the titular rectory in the early 1900's. The film was shot in just 12 days, with the director stating it had "...heart pounding jump scares and suspense".

Simon Says came to Tubi, Amazon, and Fandango last month. This comes from director Steven M. Smith (Sweeny Todd: Slice & Dice). The story has a group of lonely hearts all catfished by the same person, arriving at his remote Scottish castle thinking they will be there for a romantic weekend. Inside, they find themselves trapped and forced to play an ancient board game, with the losers dying most likely. The cast includes Eleanor McMahon (Gerbil), Julia Quayle (Mountain Shark), and Leila Kotori (Human).

Scarred is a traditional sounding horror about a photo shoot at an abandoned house once owned by a notorious family, one of whom is still in the area and none too happy about the intruders. Directed by Eddie Lengyel, and starring Ari Lehman, Don Kilrain, Lisa Neeld, Mark Cray, Carl Ferrara and Bart Flynn, this is now available to watch on Tubi.

The official trailer and poster for the Johannes Roberts directed Primate is out now. The first I heard of this was me and my friend having the trailer pop up about it, we both agreed it did look like it could be entertaining. From what I recall of it, the film is about a group of friends whose pet chimpanzee has gone murderous, something like that. Primate comes to UK cinemas on January 30th next year.

Amityville Chupacabra is now streaming exclusively on Cinema Epoch's official YouTube channel. The story has a group of people travel to a remote property linked to the Amityville legend to do some investigations. Instead, they discover a feral Chupacabra has escaped from captivity and is hungry for their blood. The film was directed by Will Collazo Jr., and stars Julie Anne Prescott, Misty Wagner, Michael Ochotorena and Evan Jacobs among others.

Next up, the November line-up for found footage streaming site Found TV. Out today (6th November) is the exclusive premiere of Taped Up Families, November 14th sees the North American release of Fey, and the world releases of The Black Eyed Children and The Final Frame come on 25th and 26th November respectively.

Sci-fi comedy - Asteroid Vixens is now available On Demand, VHS, and DVD. Directed and written by Felicity Yeung (White Slaves of K-Town), this B-movie inspired flick sees embots from a far away galaxy scouting Earth for humanity's most beautiful woman, in order to create a new race of hybrid humanoids.

Norm has had an official trailer released for it. It is a found footage zombie comedy that comes from experimental UK-based filmmaker, Zak Ferguson. The tagline states the titular Norm is a zombie in a world where zombies are illegal.

Finally for today, Nahualli came to digital services for rent or purchase on 28th October from BayView Entertainment. The film draws on Mexican folklore, the story sees two friends; Alex and Mark, who are searching in the forest of Arteaga, Coahuila for Mark's missing sister. It turns out she has been possessed by the ancient spirit of the Nahualli - a witch that enslaves all intruders to her realm.

Someone Dies! (2024) - Comedy Sci-fi Film Review

It has taken me a little while to get around to it, but I have finally had a chance to explore the mind-bending comedy sci-fi time travel film - Someone Dies! Directed and co-written by Justin Petty (Nothing Really Happens), this might be low budget and geared towards humour, but it doesn't skimp on making the time travel aspect a little bit satisfyingly convoluted.

An apparent detective (Joseph Graham - Nothing Really Happens) turns up at an apartment complex with a desperate quest in mind. He has received a letter in the post stating his young daughter has been kidnapped, and that to get her back he needs to go to this apartment address to do something or other. Pretending to be a police detective, he gets access to the place where he discovers a small but assertive young woman - Jane (Amy Anderson who also co-wrote this), she had gone to the flat to purchase a small Japanese sword from the owner; dim but kind hearted Glenn (John Wessling - Coming Out). The detective assumes they are not to be trusted and so goes a bit manic, threatening the pair with a gun. Things calm down enough to the point where the trio form a uneasy truce, and together they discover that under the sink in the kitchen, for whatever reason, is a time machine, and that this has to be linked to the kidnapper's letter.

This is a bizarre and crazy indie film that delights in its eccentric cast and zany situation. For the majority of the movie it is just the three characters, each unique and memorable in their own way. The detective is like a bull in a china shop, his over the top and outlandish behaviour made him very appealing, even if his character is meant to be not the best person. He really reminded me of Saul from Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad, but in a detective form. I enjoyed how extreme his behaviour is from the get-go, how he seems to effortlessly draw people into his mad plans and theories. Glenn was a close second favourite, this mild mannered loveable idiot had some of the best dialogue within the film. Then there is Jane, someone whose personality isn't as extreme, but plays the 'straight man' archetype, pointing out flaws in the other characters reasoning, and acting as a mediator, attempting to understand the detective while not being shy to point out his many flaws. In general terms, the dialogue was Someone Dies! strongest point. For all the plots of time travelling cupboards and kidnapped daughters, the meat of the story is the three characters talking with each other.

I found the core story to be a little too confusing, of course with time travel stories that is often the case. I always felt like there were some core parts of the plot that I just didn't clock, something that isn't always helped by the way it is presented to the viewer. The detective arrives in the story due to the letter about kidnapping he receives. This letter seems to have a lot to it, but is never shown on screen for long enough a time to be able to be read. This led to blind spots for me, I wasn't entirely sure why he had gone to the apartment, nor what he was meant to be doing while there. At some point the carrying storyline moves from rescuing his daughter, to wanting to travel back in time so that he can be a better father to her. I didn't really understand why the other characters get so caught up in this with him, as a lot of the threat is perceived and not actually real. Time travel doesn't feature too much, but there are some parts to it. Early on for instance, the detective shoots Glenn. Later in the film his arm is suddenly fine, but instead the man has a missing eye. I liked how unexplained the time travel part was, characters never really understand where exactly things are sent in time to.

In addition to the clever dialogue there are visual gags, including a recurring idea that I loved. Much of the film is silent in terms of soundtrack, but music does appear for dramatic moments. In a genius move, this music is always manually initiated by characters, due to a music deck they have. So for instance, after the detective is shot at while in his car, tense music begins as he flees back to the apartment. Heading in, he sees Jane and Glenn dancing to the soundtrack, which is shown to be playing on the tape deck. This recurring joke of the music being actually within the movie was wonderful, I never got sick of that. As clever as the plot seemed to be though, the core carrying line never clicked with me, I always felt a bit bemused and confused as to what was going on, that did get in the way of my complete enjoyment.

Someone Dies! had an undeniable charm to it. It did get exhausting at times playing catch-up to the characters who seemed like they knew what is going on, I wish some parts of this had been explained better. This indie comedy sci-fi film was entertaining, great characters and fun moments led to something that was neat to watch. Someone Dies! had it's digital release on Amazon on October 21st.

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Poppy Playtime: Chapter 1 'A Tight Squeeze' (2021-22) - Horror Video Game Review

My desire to buy so many horror themed skins for video game Fortnite during it's recent 'Fortnitemares' event at least had a somewhat positive aspect. With 'The Grabber' skin I finally got around to watching The Black Phone, and with the Huggy Wuggy skin, I finally got around to trying Poppy Playtime. My knowledge of this game was slight, so there were a few unexpected surprises to discover. I had heard that Poppy Playtime was a poor man's Five Nights at Freddy's, and due to not really liking that game that didn't really incentivise me to try this one either. I needed to see where the great character Huggy Wuggy came from, something I recognised through popular media alone. It turns out Poppy Playtime isn't a single game, but instead is an episodic one. It seems that each of the four chapters released so far (a fifth and possibly final one has recently had a teaser trailer released) has you encounter a different terrifying toy. From what I can gather (not having played the others), Huggy Wuggy only appears in first chapter 'A Tight Squeeze'.

The game takes place in 2005, ten years after the majority of the employees of a toy company known as Playtime Co. mysteriously vanished without a trace. You play as an unnamed former employee who was possibly the only one to survive the event. You receive a package in the post, inside is a VHS tape advertising a tour of the toy factory you used to work in, as well as a cryptic letter that suggests the missing employees are actually still trapped in the place. This results in the silent protagonist deciding to head back to the factory, with the hopes of finding his missing colleagues. 

Chapter 1 of Poppy Playtime was free to download and play. I'm not sure how long the other chapters are, but this one clocks in at roughly 45 minutes to an hour to complete. I had expected this would be a single room game like Five Nights, or that it would feature a wandering antagonist who would randomly kill you. Both of those didn't sound appealing. I was pleasantly surprised to discover a much more video game like experience. The chapter has you exploring the first floors of the factory, solving simple puzzles as you go. The goal of this first chapter is to discover a certain graffitied door that had been spliced into the VHS tour tape. Along the way you obtain a device known as a 'GrabPack'. This allows you to grab distant objects, and to lift objects you normally wouldn't be able to. In the process of doing this, you inadvertently awaken the towering Huggy Wuggy; a blue furred lanky toy creature that wants nothing more than to give you a hug...and then bite your head off with its huge mouth that features multiple lines of sharp teeth within.

The first two thirds of the chapter have you exploring the factory and solving small puzzles. It is the final part where the horror ramps up. In a section that reminded me of the laser disc Dragon's Lair games (but with actual direct control), you ascend down a series of maze-like narrow passageways as you are pursued by Huggy Wuggy. It becomes a process of elimination to discover the sole path that will bring you to chapter's end. Despite dying many times on this part, I didn't find it frustrating as I felt like I was making more progress each time.

I came to Poppy Playtime: Chapter 1 'A Tight Squeeze' expecting I would not enjoy the game. It was a delight to see how much more traditional this felt to what I had expected. Geared more towards children or teenagers, this wasn't a scary game, but you cannot say that the excellent Huggy Wuggy doesn't have a very iconic design to it, was great to see the character in its natural setting. The short runtime can't really be called an issue when this first chapter is free. As a taster it has really made me want to continue the story and see where things head next.

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The Lighthouse (2019) - Horror Film Review

Oh boy. Due to not sleeping well last night (at the time of typing), I decided to watch a film of my own choosing for review. Seeing that the Robert Eggers (The Witch) directed and co-written folk horror The Lighthouse was soon to be leaving Prime Video, I thought I would check it out as have heard people speak highly of it. I feel this is going to be a hard film to review. Experimental and abstract and arthouse at times, this was fantastically made, but I'm not sure it's for me.

In 1890, an old lighthouse keeper (Willem Dafoe - Beetlejuice Beetlejuice) and his new assistant (Robert Pattinson - The Batman) have arrived at the remote island where the lighthouse they are due to work at is located. The keeper tells the young man that he is exclusively going to tend to the light during night shifts during the four weeks they are stationed there. This is seen as strange as it goes against regulations not to split the shifts, but it soon becomes clear that the old man sees the light as something almost religious, and jealously guards the entrance to it. After a terrible storm prevents the boat from the mainland coming to collect them at the end of their allotted time, the two men's sanity slowly erodes over being stranded on the small barren island.

I was enthralled with The Lighthouse from the beginning. The small non-wide screen view, the black and white footage, and the serious acting had me drawn in to this world. The film mainly features just the two characters, this becomes the most fascinating part of the movie as both iconic actors nail their roles, easily able to carry much of the film on their own shoulders. Dafoe as the wonderfully stereotypical sounding former sailor shone throughout. Pattinson was as good in different ways, but neither character was likeable or even intended to be. There became a feeling of all this being part of some metaphor with the increasingly surreal and hallucinogenic images, such as the assistant discovering a mermaid out on the rocks, or the keeper's strange worship of the lighthouse light. This increasingly descent into madness is reflective of the characters who both go very off the rails. The meat of the movie seemed to be the complex relationship they had with each other, almost like a dysfunctional father and son one. Vast chunks of the film felt a bit like a multi-episode Dragonball Z fight, instead of fists, the two adversaries taking it in turns to verbally decimate the other.

From the strong start I had high hopes for this, but the horror I desired never really came. I actually found the first part prior to the breakdown in sanity to be the more enjoyable part. The crazed later scenes ended up going on for so long that they felt a little stretched out past my particular patience. I get it wasn't the point of The Lighthouse, but I wish there had been more of a storyline that reached some sort of conclusion. The mystery of what the deal with the light is, is never revealed, nor more major plot points.
On the flipside of the plot, the actual filmmaking was very impressive. At times this gave me a real vibe of old black and white drama films from the 1950s. This is much more a drama than a horror, but the absurdist characters give plenty of moments to put some humour in, even if that is always tinged with an element of malice. The manic binge drinking scenes were a real delight.

The Lighthouse was obviously a very impressive film, something that the filmmaking and acting combine to make happen. Personally, while it never got anywhere near as terrible as Mother!, this still ended up going on for longer than I desired it to be, the last half hour in particular where it became more abstract. The Lighthouse can currently be streamed on Prime Video, though it is due to leave the service in about a week.

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The Black Phone (2021) - Horror Film Review

This won't make much sense as I am writing blog posts out of order, but the Scott Derrickson (Sinister, Hellraiser: Inferno) directed and co-written 2021 horror The Black Phone is the first film I have reviewed since kind of taking a week off the blog (due to being very hungover after a work night out). Despite Ethan Hawke (The Purge, Daybreakers) being one of my favourite actors, I never got around to watching this either when it first came out, or when it got added to Netflix. With 'The Grabber' (Hawke) being added to video game Fortnite as part of its 'Fortnitemares' event, I thought it was about time I finally checked out this neat horror.

Based on a Joe Hill story of the same name (Stephen King's son), this creepy horror takes place in a small American town in 1978. There has been a spate of kidnappings of local children in the area which the police have been powerless to stop. The press have came to call the perpetrator 'The Grabber' due to the method they have of abducting their victims off the street in broad daylight. Finney (Mason Thames - How to Train Your Dragon) is a shy young boy who has been hearing about the rumours of the abductor, but has just been getting on with life. One day while walking home he encounters a magician struggling to get supplies into his van. Really not showing much common sense, Finny goes to help the man, only to get abducted - for this is the notorious 'Grabber'! He awakes in a soundproofed basement, his abductor promising he won't hurt the boy. There is a black phone in the basement, and despite being disconnected, occasionally it rings. For reasons unknown, this phone has supernatural abilities, allowing Finney to converse with previous victims, and by talking to these shadows, he begins to use their combined knowledge to try and find a way to escape. 
Meanwhile, his younger sister - Gwen (Madeline McGraw - Toy Story 4 voicework, Ant-Man and the Wasp), begins to have disturbing dreams that seem to hint as to the location of her kidnapped brother.

Much like with Nicolas Cage in Longlegs, the antagonist here is someone who is rarely featured, and becomes a more powerful and intimidating villain as a result. Hawke is on fine form here, short on dialogue, but big on creeps with the expertly designed demon mask he wears. I loved how the mask had interchangeable parts to it, when he is in a bad mood for instance, the mask is reflected by the lower half having an angry scowl to it. The Grabber was an interesting character, seeming to have almost split personalities going on with the way he acts differently based on his look. Little is revealed about this movie maniac, not any kind of explanation for who he is, or why he is doing what he is. This just makes him more compelling. The wrench in the works to change this from being another movie about a deranged murderous kidnapper is the supernatural element. Rather than have this be something only Finney experiences, it is made clear that the killer also hears it's unexplainable rings, but in his derangement has convinced himself it is all a trick of his mind. A large part of Finney's story takes place in the basement, the phone calls he has to prior victims represented by them standing around near him in a ghost form, bloodied and beaten as they were when they were murdered.

Coming from the director of Sinister (one of the scariest films I have seen in my humble opinion), I had hoped this would be equally scary. It isn't, but that isn't to downplay the atmosphere and lovely seventies vibe of the film. Dream sequences are often shown with blurry footage, as if they were being recorded on a Super 8 camera, and there are some arthouse style moments of the killer standing around looking suitably disturbing. The story, split between Finney's imprisonment and his sister's journey of her own, kept things from getting dull. For Finney, it is a journey of learning to finally stick up for himself, for Gwen, it is about accepting the powers she seems to have acquired from her late mother.
Violence crops up throughout the movie, though the actual on-screen body count is surprisingly low. It culminates in a satisfying and apparently conclusive finale.

I like Hawke in pretty much anything, so seeing him play a bad guy here was a treat. Sure, I understand why he doesn't get too much screentime, but his scene stealing scenes were a little too much few and far between. A sequel has recently released that appears to double down on the supernatural element, turning the Grabber into more of a Freddy Kruger type dream-invader. I will have to check that out, but for The Black Phone, I felt the blend of crazed killer and ghosts made for a unique feeling blend.

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Dr. Fright's Halloween Nights Presents Horrorfest (2025) - Horror Scare Maze Review

It is the beautiful month of Halloween once again and I find myself returning once again to Dr. Fright's Halloween Nights, this time under the Horrorfest banner. I first went two years ago for Route 666 and loved it, but heading back last year for Route 666 Vol. 2 I felt a little disappointed as it really was quite similar. As in previous years, for 2025 it is split into seven different horror mazes, the only difference being the seven mazes were split between four differently named tents. Was this third time the charm, and was there any innovation in the format?

With a 19:00 slot on Saturday 25th October we seem to have picked a great time. There was the shortest queue yet to getting into the maze, and throughout the queues were minimal. By the time we were leaving, the entry line had really gotten quite deep, so lucky us! The flipside if you can call it that is that this was the quickest we have gotten through the mazes yet, my friend estimated it was roughly half an hour from starting to coming out the end into the glorious food area. Ticket prices had definitely gone up, under £20 on our first visit, this time I believe tickets were around £30 each, similar to last year.

I was prepared for a lot of ideas to be re-used, and so I wasn't disappointed to see returning ideas from previous years. Even with the general themes being used the mazes are completely different to traverse each time. For a change things didn't begin with a forest setting, instead the first two mazes take place in 'Demonic Tent', opening with 'Death Metal Manor'. This was very dark and full of the lighting flashing on and off in a way that hurt my eyes (not in a bad way), I appreciated the cultist décor, such as a table with a goat's skull on it, and there was one neat part where you have to walk down a corridor past robed demonic cultist figures. Next was 'Rave From the Grave' which had some great music to it. It promised UV lighting and it had it in droves, messages flashing up on the walls. The route took you through an old graveyard, and there was one corridor where zombie hands were sticking through the walls.

After a brief journey into the outside world, we came back in to continue our journey in 'Gore Tent'. The third maze was the ambitious 'El Sangriento'. It took the form of heading through a Mayan jungle to arrive at a mythic hidden dive bar. The first part of this used a hedge type display, with reptile people popping out of doors and walls to try and scare you. It culminated in the bar area itself that was full of dead bodies slumped over the various tables. I made a joke at one point of trying to order a drink from the bar, only for one of the reptile people to pop out from behind it. Fourth maze was once more a return to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre inspired 'Grindhouse', this year under the title 'The Grindhouse - Blood Country'. The actors appeared to have a lot of time on their hands to mess with me and my friend, a couple of them following us around parts of the maze, talking about how their family would be pleased to see us. For me it culminated around halfway through where a large man wearing a mask made out of human flesh pulled me aside and made me go and stand in a walk-in cooker. He then said I had to count to thirty out loud, that being the time it would take to cook me. Eventually, after an extra ten seconds he said I was crispy enough and let me out, with the promise he would be eating me later! Certainly a memorable part of the night, one that my friend found hilarious.

Another year and another intermission area, though The Evil Dead cardboard cut-out was not there this year, instead, I had a very bad photo taken of me next to a zombie. I of course had my eyes shut as I seem to do in the majority of photos taken of me, I also noticed how much of a 'big boi' I am turning into. I really need to make more effort to eat healthier and exercise more for darn sure. We zoomed through the intermission, not even stopping for a drink or a breather this year, maybe adding to our shorter runtime.
Yet again the second half begins with a maze themed around horror movie maniacs, in a tent area named 'Slasher Tent'. 'Summer Camp Massacre' had surprisingly a summer camp aesthetic. There were a few great parts of this one. In one room there was an old horror film playing on a large screen, as we walked past, a very cool looking Jason Vorhees leant out through a hole in the screen, swinging his machete at us. Later, the legendary Michael Myers appeared at several points, and I just about glimpsed Freddy Kruger attacking my friend. My favourite part had a room set up to seem as if we were wading through green water (due to smoke machines), looked so cool.
Penultimate maze was 'Play Me and Die!' which had a somewhat ambitious idea, even if it was pretty much another The Purge type experience of maniacs walking around with lit-up masks and armed with metal baseball bats. This had a lot of empty areas, but it was varied, with the route taking us through a classroom of madly grinning children, and a barbershop with madly grinning customers. The whole idea was that a radio station had played a record that had caused insanity, so of course there was a decent radio station area as well. My one real complaint with this one was the lack of many actors, though I did like that one of the mirrors in the barbershop wasn't actually a mirror and instead had an actor standing behind where the mirror would have been instead.

Final area as always featured killer clowns, taking place in the 'Clown Tent' and titled 'Killer Clowns - Greatest Hits'. As always some great music going on here, plenty of chain-link fences (at one point I got lost enough that I walked into one thinking it was the route), and plenty of crazed clowns taunting us. One, seeing Homer Simpson on my shirt commented that he looked just like me. This great hits was neat, taking us through a sci-fi spaceship area, a supermarket, and a dance area, with lovely music playing throughout and lasers spinning everywhere. Leaving this, we had our annual burger and doughnuts as we discussed the evening.

It was more of the same, but I enjoyed it a lot more this year. Some of the mazes were a little too dark at times, but I liked the heavy use of lights that were constantly going on and off as it created a dizzying feel. I also liked that the actors kept bursting out of the ceilings this year as well as walls, made for some unexpected moments. I don't know what was up with me, but I jumped out my skin on a few occasions with the jump scares, losing some of my 'cool' points, but it was funny. I know what to expect with these mazes now, so found Dr. Fright's Halloween Nights Presents Horrorfest to be a real fun time, the highlight of my weekend.

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Abattoir (2016) - Horror Film Review

It is one of those glorious weeks where I get to pick a film of my own choosing for review. For today's film I picked out the Darren Lynn Bousman (Spiral: From the Book of Saw, Saw II - IV) directed Abattoir, a film from my pile of horrors I own but have yet to watch. I enjoyed this, didn't quite live up to its potential but it had some interesting ideas.

After her sister and nephew are brutally murdered in their home, investigative reporter Julia Talben (Jessica Lowndes - 90210 TV series) becomes obsessed with trying to find an explanation for it. She discovers that quickly after the tragedy took place, someone purchased the house and removed the room of the crime from it. This leads her down a rabbit hole where she first discovers that a mysterious person named Jebediah Crane (Dayton Callie - Fear the Walking Dead TV series, Halloween II) has spent the past fifty years or so purchasing the buildings where murders took place and removing the room that was the crime scene. She then learns an even stranger fact; each of the victims had originally lived in a small town called New English. With the hat-trick of surprises culminating in Julia discovering her birth mother (who she never knew) also happened to come from New English, she decides to travel to the remote town, with her ex-boyfriend - detective Declan Grady (Joe Anderson - Horns, The Crazies) hot on her heels. There she discovers a town-wide conspiracy spreading back decades, the elusive Jebediah Crane, and a huge mansion made entirely out of murder rooms.

I didn't expect much from this horror, but it was actually a lot different to what I expected it to be. I had thought this would be a Seven clone, taking place in a city with a serial killer on the loose. Instead, it was something entirely different. While not Lovecraftian in nature, this does include a unique and strange town that holds a terrible secret, so there was some crossover.
Immediately apparent was the sometimes terrible script. Some characters fare better than others, and some manage to make their cheesy lines work and some struggle with them. The worst character for me was Grady, he comes across as the most stereotypical hard-boiled detective imaginable, all of his lines just sounded so artificial and corny, a feeling that Julia seems to mimic in every scene she is with the man. Some characters seemed to be given life by the script. A mid-movie highlight was the eccentric Allie (Lin Shaye - Ouija: Origin of Evil, Insidious), and for a time I thought she was going to be the stand-out actor in the movie. She effortlessly stole every scene she was in, but there was a second character who came to be the most interesting to me. I thought Callie was fantastic as the antagonist. There was a slight feeling of Needful Things to him, and the backstory that he had apparently been to Hell and managed to return was decent. He doesn't appear a huge amount, but when he does it always made for some enjoyable scenes.

This had elements of a mystery, a thriller, and a horror to it, with each act feeling like a slightly different genre of movie. Things really got interesting in the short third act, in which the house of murder finally makes its appearance for the final twenty minutes of the roughly 100 minute horror. A feeling of Thir13en Ghosts to this part, and despite some CG that wasn't the best, I had also seen far far worse. I loved the set design for this. Truth be told, I did really enjoy this part of the movie. There is a decent amount of horror here, but it was often diluted by that aforementioned weak script. Some parts did stand-out, such as a videotape Julia receives of her sister's murder, and an old projector that shows Jebediah back in his glory days.

A film about a mansion made up of stolen rooms where people have been murdered was a really cool idea. It was a shame that the movie took so darn long to actually get to that part, I wish the third act had lasted longer than the scant twenty minutes we are given. I did enjoy the whole mystery aspect from before that bit, but I felt that the story was never really explained too well. I didn't look too closely, but I had the feeling I would be able to pick holes in things if I had done so. Abattoir was a better film than I had expected, and certainly had its moments, but the weak script and some odd story decisions meant this just missed out on being a classic.

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Fortnitemares 2025 - Thoughts on the Halloween event

It is that time of year again when my favourite game of all time; Fortnite (for better or for worse) becomes spooky. Last year's event was a return to form after a series of years in which the effort seemed to get less and less, and I am glad to report that this year's event once again makes an effort, as well as has the most amount of cool Halloween themed skins yet.

The story in recent years has really began to suffer in Fortnite, with it relegated to just an excuse for the new season to exist. It shouldn't be a surprise then that the introduction of 'Fortnitemares' was quite jarring. Elsewhere we had been in the middle of a season about battling a giant bug invasion, but that was swiftly punted out the window with zero fanfare in order to bring horror to the chapter 6 island. The changes much as last year, are vast, lots and lots of giant pumpkin decorations and Halloween decorations in general popping up over the map. There are also a variety of new P.O.I's that have appeared. The 'Fortnitemares' challenges result in you earning a cool original skin of a killer wearing a pig mask.

First with the main Battle Royale mode. What little story there is links the invasion of horror to Doja Cat of all people! For some reason, Epic have decided she is the face of 'Fortnitemares' 2025, with her appearing in the game as a boss character under the name 'Mother of Thorns'. She isn't the only new boss on the map however, she is joined by the returning original creation Ultima Carver (basically a pumpkin knight), as well as the iconic Jason Vorhees from Friday the 13th films! There is also a camp based location added that you might encounter the hockey-mask wearing maniac at. Classic Halloween items such as the pumpkin launcher and witches broomstick return, but these pale in comparison to the new Scream weapon added to the game. Head into a phone box and you emerge dressed as Ghost Face, complete with large knife and a phone with which you can use to highlight any enemies in the area.
Over in OG Battle Royale things are more muted, the map gets a Halloween makeover and some classic weapons, but that's about it. Horde Mode once again returns. In this mode you usually battle hordes of zombies, culminating in a large boss fight. There is a crossover this year with K-Pop Demon Hunters, with you able to hire them to fight alongside you, as well as use their unique powers. The zombies have been swapped out for surprisingly bland looking demons, but there is the addition of extra boss fights, including a neat one against a giant ghostly banana character.
Most interesting for me was with Reload. A brand new island has been released; Nitemare Island. As the name suggests, this is pure horror based, with locations such as 'Spooky Suburbs', 'Creepy Cabins', and 'Retail Ruin'. I really don't enjoy Reload as a game mode, but it was very cool to have a whole map dedicated to horror.

As always, the changes and new modes are just one half of the coin, with horror themed skins being the other. This year has been the most expensive yet if you wish to get all the crossovers and unique creations. There has been so many this year. Crossovers include Friday the 13th, Poppy Playtime, Wednesday, Terrifier, The Black Phone, Scream, and even the cast of Scooby-Doo have appeared, complete with the Mystery Mobile as a vehicle type you could buy. Original skins have also been strong - a magma version of Ultima Carver, werewolves, vampires, and my personal favourite original skin - a monstrous knight with a huge mouth in its stomach area.

I realise it is quite sad to spend money on digital skins in a video game, but I see 'Fortnitemares' as my version of Christmas. It really makes the month of October feel more special. I might not agree with many of the extortionate costs of the skins and accessories, but I have really enjoyed this year's 'Fortnitemares', would recommend.

Paranormal Investigations (2025) - Horror Film Review

There is nothing particularly original about found footage/mockumentary Paranormal Investigations. The set-up of a goofy cast of characters exploring a haunted house has been done many times before to varying degrees of success, with the 2021 films Infrared and Paranormal Prison coming to mind straight away. Having said that, this Raymond Wallace written and directed horror delighted due to a mix of darkly comedic goings on, and the presentation style chosen to show the events of the movie.

The whole film is presented as if it was a TV episode that someone unseen is watching. The synopsis is that the cast and crew of a popular paranormal investigation show visited a reputably haunted old plantation building; the Hennesy House, as it had been chosen as the location for the first episode of their new season of the show. Their plan was to spend the night there. The next morning they were found all dead, having been brutally torn apart. The footage taken that night had been confiscated by the police, but after a court battle, the TV network the show belonged to have managed to get a hold of it. Under the pretence of honouring their memory, the TV network have created a special episode of 'Paranormal Investigations', the crew's footage edited together as if it was a proper episode, with behind the scenes footage included, and additional commentary from the network boss.

So, the idea wasn't anything original, but I loved the way this was presented. What I loved most was the way the film is edited together. The crew were joyfully fake, appearing in their filmed scenes as a tight unit of friends, and off camera the inevitable bickering and infighting that gave a comedic contrast. You have Matt (David J. Rivera); the smarmy host who in the background has discovered one of the fans he sent a dick pic to was a fifteen year old girl. This has caused a lot of the conflict as various members are concerned if this gets out the show will be cancelled, especially the sound technician; Fran (Tatiana Robledo). Kelsey (Jamie Bernadette - Ash and Bone, The Bone Box) is the writer and director of the show, also happening to be married to Matt and obviously angry at the man. Then there is cameraman Logan (Nick Oprea in his film debut), who is the most friendly with Matt, and the computer guy; the very nerdy Steve (Logan Stem) who is often bullied by the others. The on and off screen dialogue was wonderful between these, I never tired of the transitions between these moments, and how cheesy and fake they all acted when the camera was rolling. The over the top dramatic music, stylish scene transitions, and the over exaggerated way the characters spoke was mainly so great as it felt so authentic to the type of show they were creating within the film world. Without the behind the scenes stuff (and of course later horror), this could have almost passed for a legitimate cheesy American ghost investigation show. I found the characters interesting for who they were, the behind the scenes dynamics showing tensions between various members leading to amusing moments. I loved the recurring complaint from Kelsey of Logan not having covered up the logo on his baseball cap. Later, the love affair that Steve has with his brand new capture system comes to an almost laugh out loud moment when in the height of the chaos, he makes a pathetic attempt to rescue his heavy equipment before giving up and apologising to it that he has to leave it behind! Amusing stuff. The press release states this is a comedy horror, but it does verge far more on the horror side of things than humour, but it certainly plays a strong role in terms of the dialogue between the cast. As a final point, loved the trailer that plays after the film finishes proper, a great moment.

The icing on the cake was the wraparound for this show. I found it hilarious that the network had edited together their found footage to be in line with a typical 'Paranormal Investigations' show, and I adored how sensationalised the 'episode' was shown. When the horror is in full force, it was amusing to notice the dramatic music playing over the scenes of violence and terror. The schlocky in your face over the top presentation was just perfect. Funny the similarities between the exaggerated performance of the original show itself, and then being eulogised for viewers by an equally fake feeling and dumbed down presentation style for the memorial show.

Being an edited together show, there are various camera feeds around the house often all shown on screen at the same time, it was neat seeing things happen in rooms the characters were not in, though sometimes the smaller images made it a tiny bit hard to see things. The kill scenes were all tremendous, often happening just off screen, but with plenty of enthusiastic screaming, and a nice amount of blood spurts. A mix of practical effects and CG, these mostly looked great, especially one character whose head is crushed on camera! It wasn't all so good for the antagonistic force, the CG for the shadowy being just about looked good, but the thing itself when revealed looked a bit cheesy and fake, enough that I began to think it would all be revealed to be a hoax within the story. Not the most scary looking thing out there, but the panicked actions of the characters sold the scenes. The final twenty five minutes when the mud finally hits the fan made for a thrilling third act, characters running around the large house in total disarray.

From the start Paranormal Investigations felt very familiar, but it was a great example of one of these types of mockumentary found footage movies. At times it played things a little too on the nose. Obviously inspired by the classics, the scene that plays most homage to The Blair Witch Project (in which a character leaves a snivelling apology message to their parents) was such an obvious steal that it almost ripped me out the film entirely. Of course the scene was done that way purposely, but was the most derivative and over-used found footage moment.

This has turned out to be a lengthy review. I thought Paranormal Investigations was a great film despite some little missteps. It would have been nicer to have a little more variety during the third act, and it would have worked better with a more authentic looking antagonist, but I enjoyed the flawed characters and their internal bickering, and I really did adore the way the movie was presented and edited together, quietly amusing. Director Raymond Wallace said of his film:

"We wanted to capture the absurdity of reality television colliding with genuine horror."
I think it is safe to say he was successful in that endeavour.

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Jacker 3: Road to Hell (2025) - Thriller Film Review

Unsurprisingly, Jacker 3: Road to Hell is the third film in a series. What I found interesting was that the previous two films were both released in the 90s; Jacker in 1993, and sequel - Jacker 2: Road to Hell in 1996. This third entry makes use of the thirty year gap for one of its plot points, as well as brings back a host of the original actors to reprise their roles. Having never seen the first two films I did feel l was playing catch-up a bit, so my synopsis might not be entirely correct as there were parts of the movie that left me a little confused, my fault entirely for joining the series with the third film. This new entry is directed by James Panetta (Phil Herman's Unearthed, Doomsday Stories), and once again written by Phil Herman, the writer of the previous films, as well as the person who plays the titular villainous role.

Thirty years previously, a serial killer known as 'the Jacker' (Herman) went on a notorious killing spree, his modus operandi typically being to murder his victims during carjackings. Despite his large amount of victims, the police were never able to capture him due to the killer seemingly striking at random, before one day vanishing without a trace. Now, with no explanation other than possibly due to it being the anniversary of the original killings, the Jacker is back, once again creating a large kill-count. This causes Gloria (Debbie D - Phil Herman's Unearthed, Doomsday Stories) to reappear; a survivor of the original Jacker killing spree who went into hiding after he failed to kill her. Now she begins to have troubling nightmares about the man, seeming to have some type of psychic connection with the killer, and realising he is back she desperately tries to alert people.

Did I have much of an idea what was going on? No. Did I have a fun time watching this very low budget thriller? Hell yes. It begins with a prologue sequence in which a man shoots his wife dead, before being killed in turn by a policeman. Before he goes however, he is able to transfer his essence into his young son. I wasn't sure of the importance of this scene, but it does set up the murky possibility that the Jacker is supernatural in nature. This supernatural element doesn't appear heavily, but it is referenced again later in the film, and you could argue the many nightmare sequences characters have are also a cause of this.
The story is split between a multitude of characters, some of which only appear in order to become more victims for the serial killer, some who have their own little subplots going on, such as journalist Chris (Christopher Kahler - Phil Herman's Unearthed, He Sees You When You're Sleeping), and of course Gloria; the main protagonist but whose story mainly takes place away from the new killings. Jacker's storyline has him back on a meandering murder-spree, he of course kills people whose cars he has stolen from them, but also his fair share of home invasions, and happenstance while out walking the streets of the city. He makes for an entertaining villain, seeming to get pleasure out of his motive-less killings, and he talks a fair bit. It was also amusing that many people seem to recognise who he is before they are dispatched by him; the event from the past having left a scar on the city.

There are a whole bunch of death scenes, the Jacker's weapon of choice usually being a gun which he uses to single shot his victims. There are some closer kills, even one severed penis to be found here! Scenes typically have these characters begging for mercy, and occasionally even getting that mercy. Favourite of these had to be Butch Patrick (Eddie from The Munsters) playing a fictional version of himself outside a fan convention. There are a few scenes with female nudity, often feeling like these were only there for titillation. There were also various scenes that were played for comedic effect, with the indie feel of the film world these moments fitted in seamlessly with the more dramatic scenes. Perhaps part of his supernatural powers, perhaps just to make the film flow more smoothly; Jacker appears able to be exactly where he wants to be at any given point. He flits around between scenes, so one moment he will be invading a home, next scene he will be out walking in woodland, the next scene he will be meeting someone to try and buy guns, with no rhyme or reason to why he is where he is. He made for an entertaining antagonist, but he didn't make for a cohesive feeling character, a force of nature rather than anything deeper.

Despite being a bit lost as to what had come before, I enjoyed Jacker 3. I liked how the killer wasn't needlessly cruel, living to kill, not living to torture, and I liked the cheerful way he goes about things. The plot involving Gloria did feel very disconnected to his storyline, at times this slightly felt like two separate movies playing out in the same film universe. Jacker 3: Road to Hell was an entertaining indie thrill ride. Don't always expect the strongest of acting (especially during the amusingly wooden news segments), and don't expect too much plot, but this was a solid indie film which never became dull.

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The Rotting Zombie's News Anthology for Thursday 16th October 2025

This small news post is due to go up on the week I return to my day job after 10 days off. It has been pleasant not to work, though I didn't get as much blog as I had originally intended to! Onwards to the news.

Retro slasher Brute 1976 is now available on VOD and Digital platforms including Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, Vimeo On Demand, and YouTube Movies via Cinephobia Releasing. This Marcel Walz (Pretty Boy) directed slasher earned a respectable 7/10 rotted zombie heads in my August review, where I stated 'Brute 1976 wears its inspirations on its sleeve, and it benefits from not trying to pretend it is something wholly original'.

Japanese practical FX monster movie Bakemono has won a slew of awards at various festivals. It won Best Feature at the Spooky Empire Horror Film Festival, it won Best Special Effects at both the Atlanta Horror Film Festival and Motor City Nightmares Film Festival, and won Best Practical Effects at A Night of Horror Film Festival. I stated in my enthusiastic 9/10 rotted heads review back in December of last year 'I hoped for a good horror, and with Bakemono you have that, wonderfully edited, fantastic special effects, and great creature design, this was something special'.

Finally for today, horror adventure-comedy Minore was released on North American VOD platforms and DVD on September 30th. It takes place at a Greek seaside taverna where strange creatures have risen from the sea. A sailor in search of his father teams up with the eccentric locals to try and find a way to repel this threat. Director Konstantinos Koutsoliotas says of his film 'Minore is my love letter to Greece - a delirious cocktail of Lovecraftian monsters, splatter, bouzouki, awkward dinners, and unexpected song and dance.' 

Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea (2024) - Comedy Horror Film Review

Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea comes from director Tony Olmos (Continuance) and writer Brian Patrick Butler (Friend of the World). Bizarrely, Butler himself plays the part of the antagonist old woman featured here, though it helps being a comedy that his strange appearance can be brushed off. She had by far the best lines and best deliveries of the film, so I would assume that's why Butler played the part, so he could bring his lines to life in the way he envisioned here.

An epidemic has swept America in which drug users have become addicted to a dangerous new type of bath salt. The side effects cause the addicts to wander around in a stupor, attacking anyone who gets within reach, as well giving the addicts a taste for human flesh. Liz Topham-Myrtle (Butler) is the landlady of a remote housing block, knowing her tenants have nowhere else to go, she rules over them with an iron-fist. She takes advantage of them, pitting them against each other, and changing their tenancy agreements on a whim. With the police wrapped around her little finger, and with martial law close to being called due to the nationwide bath salt epidemic, Liz is making her own little empire. The tenants, angry at their treatment by her, have began to rebel, leading to a series of events that have drastic consequences.

The general idea behind this film I liked. I appreciated the zombie sub-plot, and while not literal zombies, these addicts filled the role well. It was always suggested that out on the streets is carnage, with the addicted out in force, but this never came across that strongly on screen. With a muted zombie outbreak, there was also a muted response to it, which did make the threat of them seem over-exaggerated. Butler was scene stealing in his lead role. It is really obvious it isn't an actual old lady, but this gives the character a really surreal appearance that just added to her commanding role. The quick fire matter of fact way the character speaks was often mesmerising, even if she was a detestable character. That became my core issue with much of the movie, how unlikeable virtually the entire cast are. Even characters on the more good side of things still appeared to be horrid people. Rosie (Kimberley Weinberger) was set-up to be the protagonist, but was barely better than the rest of the horrid cast. When there are no characters to like, it becomes hard to care about any of them or their fates. This is reflected within the film itself, as the cast of characters are all back stabbing and out for themselves, even with a high body count, these characters don't appear to particularly care about all the death going on around them.

Special effects delighted at times, there are more than a couple of severed limbs, a load of corpses, and one quite entertaining scene involving a chainsaw! The 'zombies' for want of a better term, do get some classic moments such as tearing open people's stomachs, and there is a bit of decent looking gunfire effects as well.
With the movie taking place near entirely at the dusty desert compound, the look fitted the downtrodden story well. It doesn't take much to see this is partly a critique against the housing situation in America, while also speaking out about corruption and racism.

The set-up for Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea was good, I liked the addition of a dangerous epidemic sweeping the country. I do wish there had been more characters to root for, this had an almost Shakespearean quality of betrayal and arrogance behind the story, but with this cast of nasty people, it was hard to care about any of it too deeply.

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