Explore the Lore
The best part of the horror genre is its ability to seize the social anxieties of the day and to mortar and pestle them into a grotesque pill that does not go down easily. With an internal struggle against “illegals” crossing the Mexico-U.S. border and a president who seems mulish […]
Victoria’s Most Haunted: Ghost Stories from BC’s Historic Capital City by Ian Gibbs Touchwood Editions, Canada, 2017 3.5/5 As I dipped my mental toe into the waters of Ian Gibbs’ Victoria’s Most Haunted, I realized the opening vignette was very familiar. Back in 2013, my wife and I had stayed […]
The Prodigy Director: Nicholas McCarthy Cast: Taylor Schilling, Brittany Allen, Jackson Robert Scott Studio: Orion Pictures 4/5 Much like Dr. Elaine Stasser (Paula Boudreau) and Arthur Jacobson (Colm Feore) explain in the film, The Prodigy, reincarnation has been around for quite some time either through Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism. But it’s not just […]
Velvet Buzzsaw Director: Dan Gilroy Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, Zawe Ashton and John Malkovich Studio: Netflix 3.5/5 There is a painting called “The Anguished Man” that allegedly has the blood of its artist used within its own acrylics. Of course, it could be that it’s part of a creepypasta that is continuously drumming up more believers affixed to the […]
Great Canadian Ghost Stories by Barbara Smith Touchwood Editions, Canada, 2018 4/5 Each page turn of Barbara Smith’s Great Canadian Ghost Stories was a finger pull on a View-Master’s lever. Rife with viewports into Canada’s supernatural tales, Smith refrains from her traditional provincial campfire tales and cups her hand over her eyes to view for miles nationwide. […]
Smallfoot Director: Karey Kirkpatrick, Jason Reisig Cast: Channing Tatum, James Corden, Zendaya Studio: Warner Brothers 3.5/5 As warm and fuzzy as the Yeti is in Smallfoot appear, there is a very sobering message about organized belief systems and human nature snuggled into the narrative. The Yeti, a.k.a. Abominable Snowman, a.k.a. […]
“The Haunting of Hill House” Creator: Mike Flanagan Cast: Carla Gugino, Michiel Huisman, Timothy Hutton and Elizabeth Reaser Network: Netflix 4.5/5 If there’s a lesson to be learned from the recent interpretation of Shirley Jackson’s highly influential novel, The Haunting of Hill House, it’s don’t have more than two kids. […]
The most wonderful time of the year is upon us and it doesn’t involve Andy Williams singing. That abomination of corporate-buy ethos begins even before Halloween’s corpse is placed six-feet-under. And that should never be. Let those who don’t celebrate dressing a pine tree in drag, enjoy their own holiday: […]
Ghost Hunter by Hans Holzer Tarcher Supernatural Series New York, 1963 2.5/5 To most paranormal aficionados, the name Hans Holzer conjures up the image of a German émigré who worked alongside the most receptive of clairvoyants to communicate with the other side. He first compiled his investigations with psychic Ethel […]
The Meg Director: Jon Turtletaub Cast: Jason Statham, Bingbing Li, Rainn Wilson, Ruby Rose Studio: Gravity Pictures 2.5/5 We are fascinated with animals that can put us right back in our place on the food chain. But that brief moment of humility is typically bypassed when virility comes into […]