Scott Derrickson Seminar on “Transcendent Darkness”
Scott Derrickson is a film director and writer with a love for horror films. This has been demonstrated in his work on Hellraiser: Inferno (2000), Urban Legends: Final Cut (2000), The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005), as well as his work in science fiction with The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008). Scott is leading […]
TheoFantastique Nominated for a Rondo Award
I received notification this morning that the ballot for the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards is now available online. The Rondo is going on ten years, and it was created for “recognizing the best in monster research, creativity and film preservation.” As I scrolled down the list through the various categories, I was very surprised […]
Super Bowl XLVI Commercials of the Fantastic
The intersection of the fantastic and popular culture was evident at the Super Bowl with the following commercials:
Wetmore on Romero Zombies as Markers of Their Times
Zombies are more than the monsters of the moment. While their popularity is at an all time high in popular culture, they have been with us decades, and their meaning changes as our cultural fears evolve. In the following interview, Kevin Wetmore discusses his exploration of the shifting meanings related to Romero’s zombies that he […]
Psychology Today: What is it That Fascinates Us About Exorcism and Demonic Possession?
A series of bad reviews by film critics, echoed by many rank and file moviegoers, didn’t stop The Devil Inside from doing extremely well at the box office. The film is but the latest in a string of films with the theme of demonic possession, forming a horror subgenre in their own right. This includes […]
Regina Hansen: Roman Catholicism in Fantastic Film
Some recent research for new sources of material led me to the volume Roman Catholicism in Fantastic Film: Essays on Belief, Spectacle, Ritual and Imagery (McFarland, 2011), edited by Regina Hansen. Hansen is is a senior lecturer at Boston University College of General Studies. This volume provides a helpful consideration of the important influences and […]
The Walking Dead Continues to Wrestle with Darabont’s Ethical Concerns
After Frank Darabont’s unexpected and sudden departure from The Walking Dead at the beginning of production for Season 2 many fans wondered and worried whether the quality of the writing for the program would be compromised. Although some have expressed concerns about the allegedly slow pacing of this season in contrast with the first (a […]
Interview with Robin R. Means Coleman on Horror Noire: Blacks in American Horror Films from the 1890s to Present
It is a great privilege to read and reflect on horror in its multiple manifestations and layers of meaning. Not all of this is pleasant, but it is nevertheless enjoyable. This is the case with the book Horror Noire: Blacks in American Horror Films from the 1890s to Present (Routledge, 2011) by Robin R. Means […]
John Carpenter’s “The Thing” and Childs: Forced Readings of Racism in Horror
One of the books I’m reading and enjoying in preparation for an interview in the near future is Horror Noire: Blacks in American Horror Films from the 1890s to Present (Routledge, 2011), by Robin R. Means Coleman. As the title indicates, the book looks at how blacks are represented in horror films, and how their […]
