I've got to give it to SHOUT FACTORY.  These folks know how to put out a DVD.  A perfect example is the recent release of KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS.  Those of us old to enough to remember the film remember it as a creepy crawly shriek fest that had us itching and scratching ourselves as we were certain that a black widow had climbed up on us as we were watching.

Watching it now we of course recognize it for what it is, an early precursor to films like ARACHNOPHOBIA and EIGHT LEGGED FREAKS who did the similar story line only with multi-million dollar effects.  It follows the formula that films of that era invented.  All the money shots were saved for the end of the film.  The first two thirds are all innuendo and character development with all the creature action taking place in the last 25 minutes or so.  I guess the easiest way to describe it is that it's like watching a TV movie.

The 70's of course had more then its fair share of "nature run amok" films and KINGDOM fits right in there.  It is actually a very enjoyable view and William Shatner is at his best as RACK HANSEN a rural veterinarian who gets called to a farmers ranch when the farmers prize calf gets mysteriously sick.  After consulting with a entomologist it is determined that the calf died from a huge dose of spider venom.  After a series of events a giant "spider dome" is discovered in the field of the farm where the calf died.  Literally thousands of tarantula's are creeping and crawling around and they seem to have developed a taste for blood.

A plan is concocted to spray a pesticide from an airplane to kill the creepy crawlers but of course the spiders attack the plane causing it to crash.  After that it is all out spider mayhem as our eight legged friends turn on us and start hunting our heros down.

I won't give away the ending as if you haven't seen it, it's a classic and if you have, you know you want to see it again.

Make no mistakes, KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS is not a great film abut it is one fun film and SHOUT FACTORY'S release is top notch.  The film looks great and there are a bunch of really nice special features.  I enjoyed the new interview with Shatner and the behind the scenes footage of which there was quite a bit and it was entertaining to watch.

A nice commentary track with the director, producer, the spider wrangler and the cinematographer.

I would highly recommend picking this one up.  Just remember you're watching a film that is over 30 years old.  They actually used live spiders and there is no way that CGI can beat that.

KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS is available now from SHOUT FACTORY.  You can CLICK HERE to head on over to their website and pick it up.

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As I was watching 2012 I was thinking how director Roland Emmerich has really become the modern day Irwin Allen.  To you younger readers it should be noted that back in the day (70's) Irwin Allen was the master of disaster.  His films THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE and THE TOWERING INFERNO were the disaster masterpieces of their time and actually pretty much set the standard for disaster/thriller pics. 

Someone in the special features of 2012 actually makes the same comparison and hopefully it makes Emmerich proud to be compared to the legendary film maker.  And it is a comparison that he has certainly worked hard to deserve.

Between his films INDEPENDENCE DAY, GODZILLA, THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW and now 2012 he has pretty much destroyed everything. 

He takes the destruction world wide with 2012 which ties the end of the world with the end of the Mayan calendar and a huge solar flare that basically boils the core of the earth and causes the earths crust to destabilize.

As anticipated this event lends itself to scenes of complete and total destruction the likes of which have never been seen.  Make no beans about it, the star of this film is the magnificent special effects.  They are breath-taking and for a disaster film lover like myself they are the ultimate fix.

As kind of the case with most of Emmerich's works he loves to layer multiple story lines with a slew of characters and 2012 is no different.  The main focus in this film is John Cusack who plays Jackson Curtis a struggling author who works part time as a limo driver.  He is recently separated from his wife played by Amanda Peet who has a new man in her life.  Jackson is around quite a bit as he wants to remain a part of his kids lives and as the film opens he is picking up the kids to go out on a weekend camping trip.  Of course while on the trip that is when all hell breaks loose.  The kind of complicated storyline about why the world is ending plays out quickly and you have to pay attention to make any sense out of it but once all that is past the destruction begins and it is way over the top fun.  We get massive earthquakes, tidal waves, volcanic eruptions, explosions, just about anything you can think of.

The extended scene where Curtis and his family escape the city, first by car and then by plane is pretty much the most intense and breath taking disaster scene ever put to film.  While completely over the top and implausible it is just way to much fun to miss.

A lot of big money stars make small appearances.  We get Woody Harrelson as the kooky mountain man / pirate radio host who knows the truth, Danny Glover as The President, Oliver Platt as the asshole Washing ton bureaucrat and the stupidly attractive Thandie Newton as the Presidents daughter.  Lots of other small cameos so keep your eyes open.

Naturally all of these characters lives all end up converging in the end and of course even though the world is changed forever ultimately the sun still rises and life will go on.

After the dramatic and impressive disaster scenes the last third of the movie seemed a little sluggish to me and all though attempts are made to ratchet up the action at the end it all just kind of pales in comparison to the earlier action.  I guess that a risk you run in these type of films.

Overall though I completely enjoyed my time spent in 2012 and would highly recommend you give this one your time. 

Not a ton of special features but the selection that they do have is entertaining.  I didn't have time to listen to the commentary but it is on my to do list and I think I will enjoy it as I liked the movie so much.  There is an alternate ending that I enjoyed seeing and have to agree with the choice they made.  Also some deleted scenes and a retrospective on Roland Emmerich round out the selections.  I would have like to had seen a making of feature but that was not to be.  As seems to annoyingly be the case you have to get the Blu-ray collectors edition if you want the extra goodies.  Grrrrr.....

2012 will be available Tuesday March 2nd in standard DVD, single disc Blu-ray and 2 disc Collectors Edition.

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Brian Keene's last few novels have steered him away from what had been his bread and butter tale.  He was king of the zombies but his last few have ventured into more daring waters and as always, he has succeeded.

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN is his "THE MIST" story.  He actually references KINGS tale in his own.  It also kind of mirrors KING'S latest UNDER THE DOME as these three tales all tell a similar story of average folks caught up in extraordinary circumstances and how some rise to the occasion and other sink to the depths of horrible depravity.

KEENE has always had and continues to have an uncanny ability to draw very believable and very deep characters very quickly.  Within the first few pages we meet most of the principals involved in the tale and we actually give a shit about what happens to them.  Some authors tell whole stories without me giving two shits about what happens to those in their tale, Keene manages to hook me immediately and paces the action just enough that I can't put the story down till I know their outcome.

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN is told journal style.  It is basically a memoir that our main character is leaving behind as he and those with him venture out to try and escape the unthinkable happenings that have been occurring.  He is leaving it behind as testament to their plight and also as a road map for any other survivors that might happen upon it.

Robbie is our lead character.  He's a pizza delivery driver and he lives with his girlfriend Christy in Walden, Virgina a nice little town until the day that they wake up and find the town surrounded by darkness.  Like nighttime, yet not.  Nothing works, the electric is out, the cable is out, cell phones don't work.  Confusion is the first order of the day as the town wakes up and realizes that while morning, it is still night time out.  The fact that none of utilities work and no one outside of the town can be reached quickly adds to the hysteria and shortly all hell is breaking loose.  We meet Robbie's loose circle of friends comprised mainly of those that live around him in his apartment building and the story of the DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN quickly unfolds.

It is found out that just beyond the town limits the darkness is much thicker and much deadlier.  There is something in that darkness but no one can tell what it is but it's not good.  Anyone who ventures past the town lines are swallowed up and never seen again although their screams are heard.  It's actually damn creepy.

The bulk of the story revolves around Robbie and his friends attempting to find out what the hell this darkness is and how to get away from it.  It appears that a homeless bum named DEZ holds the only answers and no one is listening to him cause he's the town nut ball.

Madness ensues, people die and the darkness remains.  As always seems to be the case in these types of stories, folks take sides and the wacko's always seem to find one another and they always make it hard on the ones trying to find a real solution.  Nothing different this time around.

While the tale my be a bit rehashed nothing is ever quite the same when it's in the hands of Keene and he certainly adds his "flair" to the proceedings with his non stop action and ability to take even the most over used cliche and make it all his own.  While the story may seem twice told you have not yet heard it till you've heard Keene tell it.

DARKNESS is a solid, tight, well written creep fest that further solidifies Keene's ranking as one of the major forces in horror literature.  If you're not reading Keene than you are a damn fool.

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN is available now anyplace you find good horror.

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Well now, isn't THE BOX just one odd little film.  I was really expecting one thing when I stuck this one in the player and got a totally different viewing experience then I could have imagined.

The Box is based on a Richard Matheson short story title BUTTON, BUTTON and it basically tells the tale of "if something looks to good to be true, it probably is."

I don't want to get into any real in depth story discussion here because it would be very easy to ruin this film for you with just a few short sentences.  I will set the stage for you though.

LIGHT SPOILERS AHEAD.

The film opens with a young couple finding a box wrapped in plain brown paper on their door step one morning.  There is no explanation only a note stating that a gentleman by the name of Mr. Steward will stop by at 5 PM to explain.  Mr. Steward shows up as promised and explains that should the big red button on top of the box be pushed, two things will happen.  The family will receive one million dollars and someone somewhere in the world, who the family does not know, will die.

They are told they have 24 hours to keep the box and make their choice.  Mr. Steward leaves and the family find themselves wrapped up into a huge moral dilemma.  They desperately need the money but the though of someone dying so that they can have it proves difficult for them to over come.

Needless to say, the button ends up being pushed and a series of events are set into motion that will change things forever.  I'm stopping with the play by play here as the story arcs off in a couple of really odd directions but I think the film is best enjoyed the same way I watched it, kind of starring at the screen going, WTF?

I had no idea that THE BOX was going to take a more sci-fi route but it most definitely veers strongly in that direction and in the end, at least for me, end up playing out like a long TWILIGHT ZONE episode.

The film is well acted with Diaz taking a much needed turn to the dramatic side of things.  This is not a break out performance for her but it is strong and she comes out of this one well.  I would like to see her spread her dramatic wings again, she has the chops I think.

Frank Langella is strong, he's always strong.  I've enjoyed him on many of the roles he's played from his turn as DRACULA oh so many years ago to his role as the presidents chief of staff in DAVE.  He can always be counted on for a strong believeable performance.  THE BOX is no different.  He executes his turn as Mr. Steward flawlessly even when the poor CGI face disfigurement FX tries to distract you his strong performance brings you right back.

Don't stick this one in the player expecting a high action, high body count blood and guts horror film, this isn't that kind of ride.  A slow steady build up with a lot of twists and turns is more this one's style and give it time and stick with it.  You'll have more than a few "what the hell is going on" moments but give the writers the time and all gets explained.

I cant 'give THE BOX a rousing "see it now at all costs" praising but I did find the film interesting and when the weird stuff started happening I had to hang on till the end to see just what the hell was going on.  As far as special features go the only offering is an interview with author Richard Matheson titled IN HIS OWN WORDS.

Get it on Blu-ray, DVD and Download February 23rd.

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CABIN FEVER 2 has had a troubled journey to DVD.  Those troubles have been well documented by this and every other horror resource on line.  The biggest blow came last year when director Ti West asked to have his name removed from the project, a request that has apparently gone unheard.

It's a shame too as this film is really one giant turd.  Wow, what a mess. I can see why West wanted nothing to do with this floater.  He did the right thing calling this film out and although it ended up getting released with his name attached I don't think any horror fan will hold it against him.

I wouldn't recommend wasting your time on this vile crap but if you do, be warned the rest of this article will contain major spoilers!!

CABIN FEVER 2 opens with the Rider Strong character from the original film emerging from the water and he is badly ravaged by the flesh eating virus.  Since he was in the lake, the water from the lake is now contaminated with the nasty virus.  Strong wanders around the woods for a while ends up in the middle of the street and gets hit by a school bus.  He's in the film for about a minute and half and then ends up splattered on a bus.  The only other returning character from the original is Winston played by Giuseppe Andrews who in case you don't recognize the character name is the deputy sheriff dude who seems to be in a constant state of stoned.  He shows up at the beginning and end of the film.

I'm sure he's thrilled to be attached to this stinker as well.

So, through a really horribly done animated sequence we find out that the infected lake water is being bottled by a local water plant and being sold at the local school which is gearing up for the big senior prom.  We quickly meet up with this films victims which is of course a set of annoying teens looking to hook up, get laid, get drunk or get stoned.  Really, really bad acting, painfully bad writing and well, lets just say that everything, and I do mean everything about this film pretty much sucks.  I honestly can't think of one good thing to say to you about this film.  It may just be the single worst film I've seen well, since the original Cabin Fever.

Bad, bad, bad, bad.....

I really don't have much more to say about this one.  Avoid it like it actually carries the virus that is the star of the film.

CABIN FEVER 2 hits  DVD on Feb. 16th but do yourself a favor and immediately forget I just told you that.

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