Horror Fuel
☰ Browse the Crypt
Category

Indie

Independent horror: micro-budget features, short films and first-time filmmakers doing more with less — and often doing it better.

2,261 stories
Horror Fuel

A Group Of Teens Find Terror In The ‘Backwoods’ Trailer

This December, a terrifying legend turns out to be very real in director Thomas Smith’s Backwoods. In the film, “High school cheerleader Molly woke bound and gagged in the trunk of her boyfriend’s car. That was the high point of her night. After escaping and fleeing into the nearby forest, she comes face-to-face with the town urban legend: The Hangman, a deformed zealot said to lynch male trespassers and keep the women as “brides”. Now, Molly, along with her best friend and would-be rescuer Noah must work together to avoid becoming his latest victims.” Jeremy Sande, Tahj Vaughans, Isabella Alberti, Micahel Anthony Bagozzi, Erin Liley, and Scott Alan Warner star. Backwoods arrives on VOD on December 1, 2020, from Gravitas Ventures. Check out the trailer!

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 24, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: Flay (2019)

Patricia (Peggy Schott) is one of those long sufferin’ artist types, but her problems are going to expand 666-fold as she acquires a cursed chain (which has been around since those days of covered wagons and rampant dysentery) which ends up resulting in a serious case of the deaths for anyone unlucky enough to come in possession of those loathsome links! Can Pat get her shit together and end the curse? Special effects wizard turned director Eric Pham and screenwriter Matthew Daley, aren’t exactly re-inventing the wicked wheel with Flay; this is your typical ancient curse causes mayhem in the modern day yarn at it’s heart… but goddamn do they manage to keep things fresh! To wit: the way the curse spreads here is rather inventive, as the links of the chain (which were given that ol’ wild whammy by an imprisoned Native American shaman) give anyone that touches them a permanent bad day, and since our heroine has utilized

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Nov 23, 2020
Horror Fuel

Enter ‘The Wicked Woods’ – Out Now On DVD And VOD

Enter The Wicked Woods – now out on DVD and VOD from Bayview Entertainment. A haunting, cryptic, ethereal mood piece that skillfully sustains an aura of dread and tension throughout. An unhappily married woman and her lover take a weekend retreat at a cabin in the woods to discuss their future. Soon, they find themselves besieged by forces outside the cabin, rushing past windows, making strange noises, appearing and then disappearing within the house; in the fog outside, they make themselves visible as a strange old man in trapper’s garb, a nude woman, and little children in cloaks. Only the sacrifice of one of them can save the other on a night when the portals of another dimension have opened to take their souls and punish them for their actions in life. Unconventional and enigmatic. In Spanish with English subtitles. Directed by Lucio A. Rojas, The Wicked Woods (aka Perfidy) starring Catherine Mazoyer, Iñigo Urrutia, and Daniel Antivilo, the film

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 23, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ‘Girl’ Starring Bella Thorne Is A Must See

Writer-director Chad Faust’s new thriller Girl is set to arrive later this month. Ahead of the release, I got my hands on a copy and I’d like to share my thoughts with you. Bella Thorne stars as a young woman seeking out the father that assaulted her mother when she was a kid. She’s learned that he’s threatening her mother and she’s begun a journey to put an end to it. But things may not be as they seem. When she arrives she discovers something disturbing and becomes the target of two brothers who desperately want the cash her father has hidden somewhere on his property. WARNING: mild spoilers ahead. Thorne’s character arrives on a bus in the backwater hell hole of a town where her father lives. The town is mostly shuttered. It’s the type of place where people are born into struggle and suffering and rarely are able to escape. A place where everyone is broken and the

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 16, 2020
Horror Fuel

Indiegogo Campaign Begins For Short Horror Film ‘The Elsewhere’

333 Productions has kicked off their campaign for the short horror film The Elsewhere. The Elsewhere tells the story of Emma (Shanda Renee), a struggling writer who begins her day by receiving incredible news about her latest story. Upon hearing the incredible news, her sister Sharon throws an impromptu celebration party for her later that night. Soon after arriving, Emma runs into an ex-boyfriend, Brad, who shows up uninvited and reminding her why they are no longer dating. At the height of the party, Emma is approached by a suave film executive, Steven, who appears to have ulterior motives for attending, but before his true intentions are known, their conversation is interrupted by a mysterious young woman named Jasmine. The party lasts well into the night with Emma being the center of attention for each of these individuals. The next morning finds Emma alone in her bedroom unable to speak or hear. Anxiety, fear, and hysteria build as we learn

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 15, 2020
Horror Fuel

1974’s Controversial Film ‘The Night Porter’ Getting A 4K Restoration Release

CultFilms has now announced the 4K restoration of Liliana Cavani‘s highly controversial 1974 thriller The Night Porter. In the film, “former SS Officer Max (Dirk Bogarde) is a night porter in a Vienna hotel in the 1950s, and a member of a group of covert Nazis who is ruthlessly covering up the atrocities they committed. When beautiful Lucia (Charlotte Rampling) checks in with her husband, she recognizes the night porter from her traumatic past: Max was an officer in the concentration camp who had abused and tortured her when she was his teenage prisoner. Soon Lucia’s husband leaves the hotel for work and Lucia stays behind, finding herself compelled to re-ignite the sadomasochistic relationship she had with her vicious captor.” The Night Porter has been controversial since its initial release in 1974, with Roger Ebert describing the film as ‘a despicable attempt to titillate us by exploiting memories of persecution and suffering’. Now, over 45 years later, Liliana Cavani‘s story

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 14, 2020
Horror Fuel

A Blogger Becomes A Doctor’s Obsession In The ‘Incision’ Trailer

One blogger learns that the obsession with beauty can be dangerous when she’s kidnapped by a deranged doctor in Incision, starring Costas Mandylor (the Saw franchise) and Korrina Rico (“Ray Donavan”). “Beauty Blogger Alexa Landry (Rico) only had one fear, plastic surgery. She ultimately had to face this fear when she was kidnapped with her friends by Dr. Cunningham (James Allen Brewer), a deranged plastic surgeon who is obsessed with beautifying his victims.” Lee Kholafai, Caylee Cowan, Kev Adams, Tristan Tales, James Allen Brewer, Jonathan McDaniel, Olga Safari, Marik Knight, John Wallbank, Elaine Partnow, Hailee Lautenbach, Olivia Day, Madison Bontempo, Kyler Fisher, Josefin Nilsson, Amanda Paris, Courtney Paige, Kristen Solis, Gary Daniel Mosher, Malia Maquera, & Tohi co-star in a film directed by Az and was written by Chris Kato. Incision is out now out On Demand, from Eleven Seven Productions.

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 13, 2020
Horror Fuel

WWII Set Horror Film ‘Werewolf’ Soon To Be Unleashed

This December writer-director Adrian Panek is taking us back to World War II where we will encounter monstrous beasts in Werewolf. In Werewolf, a group of Jewish and Gypsie children is liberated from a Nazi concentration only to be left at a crumbling mansion surrounded by a forest. They must not only survive soldiers and vicious dogs on the attack but hunger and thirst as well in this tale of terror, and prejudice. Can they survive the dogs of war? Kamil Polnisiak, Nicolas Przygoda, Sonia Mietielica, Danuta Stenka, and Werner Daehn star. The Polish award-winning and fourteen-time nominated festival hit is headed to Blu-ray, DVD, Digital, and VOD in the U.S. on December 1, 2020, from Indiecan Entertainment.

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 13, 2020
Horror Fuel

Blu-ray Review: Lake Michigan Monster (2018)

Lake Michigan Monster concerns the adventures of Captain Seafield (Ryland Brickson Cole Tews, who also co-wrote/directed the picture); a man obsessed with the monster he believes killed his father in the shallow depths of Lake Michigan… though the details of said event are rather mutable in our hero’s constantly shifting narrative. Anyhow, that slap-happy seaman assembles a crack team to find and dispatch the beast… a team who’s ranks include: sonar expert Nedge Pepsi (Beulah Peters), weapons master Sean Shaughnessy (Erick West), and former N.A.V.Y. (Nautical Athletes and Venture Yunit) man Dick Flynn (Daniel Long). Of course Seafield is pretty much a complete moron, and his epic plans, which feature such grandiose titles as ‘Operation Master Baiters’ and ‘Operation Naughty Lady’, are pretty much a complete bust from the get-go; but still he soldiers on no matter how many monsters and madmen (besides himself) stand in his way! Lake Michigan Monster is an insane love letter to late ’50s/early ’60s

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Nov 13, 2020
Horror Fuel

‘Return To Splatter Farm’ This November

30 years after the infamous Death Farm murders, the killer is back in Return to Splatter Farm, directed by Jeff Kirkendall who co-wrote the film with Mark Polonia. A young woman and her friends descend upon the farm to party after discovering that she has inherited the land. But soon after, the strange occurrences and brutal murders begin again in the shocking sequel to the 1987 cult classic Splatter Farm. Danielle Donahue, Nico Bryant, Mel Heflin, Marie DeLorenzo, James Kelly, and Jeff Kirkendall star in Return to Splatter Farm out now on DVD and Digital from Wild Eye Releasing!

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 12, 2020

More from Indie

Horror Fuel

A Group Of Teens Find Terror In The ‘Backwoods’ Trailer

This December, a terrifying legend turns out to be very real in director Thomas Smith’s Backwoods. In the film, “High school cheerleader Molly woke bound and gagged in the trunk of her boyfriend’s car. That was the high point of her night. After escaping and fleeing into the nearby forest, she comes face-to-face with the town urban legend: The Hangman, a deformed zealot said to lynch male trespassers and keep the women as “brides”. Now, Molly, along with her best friend and would-be rescuer Noah must work together to avoid becoming his latest victims.” Jeremy Sande, Tahj Vaughans, Isabella Alberti, Micahel Anthony Bagozzi, Erin Liley, and Scott Alan Warner star. Backwoods arrives on VOD on December 1, 2020, from Gravitas Ventures. Check out the trailer!

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 24, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: Flay (2019)

Patricia (Peggy Schott) is one of those long sufferin’ artist types, but her problems are going to expand 666-fold as she acquires a cursed chain (which has been around since those days of covered wagons and rampant dysentery) which ends up resulting in a serious case of the deaths for anyone unlucky enough to come in possession of those loathsome links! Can Pat get her shit together and end the curse? Special effects wizard turned director Eric Pham and screenwriter Matthew Daley, aren’t exactly re-inventing the wicked wheel with Flay; this is your typical ancient curse causes mayhem in the modern day yarn at it’s heart… but goddamn do they manage to keep things fresh! To wit: the way the curse spreads here is rather inventive, as the links of the chain (which were given that ol’ wild whammy by an imprisoned Native American shaman) give anyone that touches them a permanent bad day, and since our heroine has utilized

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Nov 23, 2020
Horror Fuel

Enter ‘The Wicked Woods’ – Out Now On DVD And VOD

Enter The Wicked Woods – now out on DVD and VOD from Bayview Entertainment. A haunting, cryptic, ethereal mood piece that skillfully sustains an aura of dread and tension throughout. An unhappily married woman and her lover take a weekend retreat at a cabin in the woods to discuss their future. Soon, they find themselves besieged by forces outside the cabin, rushing past windows, making strange noises, appearing and then disappearing within the house; in the fog outside, they make themselves visible as a strange old man in trapper’s garb, a nude woman, and little children in cloaks. Only the sacrifice of one of them can save the other on a night when the portals of another dimension have opened to take their souls and punish them for their actions in life. Unconventional and enigmatic. In Spanish with English subtitles. Directed by Lucio A. Rojas, The Wicked Woods (aka Perfidy) starring Catherine Mazoyer, Iñigo Urrutia, and Daniel Antivilo, the film

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 23, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ‘Girl’ Starring Bella Thorne Is A Must See

Writer-director Chad Faust’s new thriller Girl is set to arrive later this month. Ahead of the release, I got my hands on a copy and I’d like to share my thoughts with you. Bella Thorne stars as a young woman seeking out the father that assaulted her mother when she was a kid. She’s learned that he’s threatening her mother and she’s begun a journey to put an end to it. But things may not be as they seem. When she arrives she discovers something disturbing and becomes the target of two brothers who desperately want the cash her father has hidden somewhere on his property. WARNING: mild spoilers ahead. Thorne’s character arrives on a bus in the backwater hell hole of a town where her father lives. The town is mostly shuttered. It’s the type of place where people are born into struggle and suffering and rarely are able to escape. A place where everyone is broken and the

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 16, 2020
Horror Fuel

Indiegogo Campaign Begins For Short Horror Film ‘The Elsewhere’

333 Productions has kicked off their campaign for the short horror film The Elsewhere. The Elsewhere tells the story of Emma (Shanda Renee), a struggling writer who begins her day by receiving incredible news about her latest story. Upon hearing the incredible news, her sister Sharon throws an impromptu celebration party for her later that night. Soon after arriving, Emma runs into an ex-boyfriend, Brad, who shows up uninvited and reminding her why they are no longer dating. At the height of the party, Emma is approached by a suave film executive, Steven, who appears to have ulterior motives for attending, but before his true intentions are known, their conversation is interrupted by a mysterious young woman named Jasmine. The party lasts well into the night with Emma being the center of attention for each of these individuals. The next morning finds Emma alone in her bedroom unable to speak or hear. Anxiety, fear, and hysteria build as we learn

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 15, 2020
Horror Fuel

1974’s Controversial Film ‘The Night Porter’ Getting A 4K Restoration Release

CultFilms has now announced the 4K restoration of Liliana Cavani‘s highly controversial 1974 thriller The Night Porter. In the film, “former SS Officer Max (Dirk Bogarde) is a night porter in a Vienna hotel in the 1950s, and a member of a group of covert Nazis who is ruthlessly covering up the atrocities they committed. When beautiful Lucia (Charlotte Rampling) checks in with her husband, she recognizes the night porter from her traumatic past: Max was an officer in the concentration camp who had abused and tortured her when she was his teenage prisoner. Soon Lucia’s husband leaves the hotel for work and Lucia stays behind, finding herself compelled to re-ignite the sadomasochistic relationship she had with her vicious captor.” The Night Porter has been controversial since its initial release in 1974, with Roger Ebert describing the film as ‘a despicable attempt to titillate us by exploiting memories of persecution and suffering’. Now, over 45 years later, Liliana Cavani‘s story

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 14, 2020
Horror Fuel

A Blogger Becomes A Doctor’s Obsession In The ‘Incision’ Trailer

One blogger learns that the obsession with beauty can be dangerous when she’s kidnapped by a deranged doctor in Incision, starring Costas Mandylor (the Saw franchise) and Korrina Rico (“Ray Donavan”). “Beauty Blogger Alexa Landry (Rico) only had one fear, plastic surgery. She ultimately had to face this fear when she was kidnapped with her friends by Dr. Cunningham (James Allen Brewer), a deranged plastic surgeon who is obsessed with beautifying his victims.” Lee Kholafai, Caylee Cowan, Kev Adams, Tristan Tales, James Allen Brewer, Jonathan McDaniel, Olga Safari, Marik Knight, John Wallbank, Elaine Partnow, Hailee Lautenbach, Olivia Day, Madison Bontempo, Kyler Fisher, Josefin Nilsson, Amanda Paris, Courtney Paige, Kristen Solis, Gary Daniel Mosher, Malia Maquera, & Tohi co-star in a film directed by Az and was written by Chris Kato. Incision is out now out On Demand, from Eleven Seven Productions.

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 13, 2020
Horror Fuel

WWII Set Horror Film ‘Werewolf’ Soon To Be Unleashed

This December writer-director Adrian Panek is taking us back to World War II where we will encounter monstrous beasts in Werewolf. In Werewolf, a group of Jewish and Gypsie children is liberated from a Nazi concentration only to be left at a crumbling mansion surrounded by a forest. They must not only survive soldiers and vicious dogs on the attack but hunger and thirst as well in this tale of terror, and prejudice. Can they survive the dogs of war? Kamil Polnisiak, Nicolas Przygoda, Sonia Mietielica, Danuta Stenka, and Werner Daehn star. The Polish award-winning and fourteen-time nominated festival hit is headed to Blu-ray, DVD, Digital, and VOD in the U.S. on December 1, 2020, from Indiecan Entertainment.

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 13, 2020
Horror Fuel

Blu-ray Review: Lake Michigan Monster (2018)

Lake Michigan Monster concerns the adventures of Captain Seafield (Ryland Brickson Cole Tews, who also co-wrote/directed the picture); a man obsessed with the monster he believes killed his father in the shallow depths of Lake Michigan… though the details of said event are rather mutable in our hero’s constantly shifting narrative. Anyhow, that slap-happy seaman assembles a crack team to find and dispatch the beast… a team who’s ranks include: sonar expert Nedge Pepsi (Beulah Peters), weapons master Sean Shaughnessy (Erick West), and former N.A.V.Y. (Nautical Athletes and Venture Yunit) man Dick Flynn (Daniel Long). Of course Seafield is pretty much a complete moron, and his epic plans, which feature such grandiose titles as ‘Operation Master Baiters’ and ‘Operation Naughty Lady’, are pretty much a complete bust from the get-go; but still he soldiers on no matter how many monsters and madmen (besides himself) stand in his way! Lake Michigan Monster is an insane love letter to late ’50s/early ’60s

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Nov 13, 2020
Horror Fuel

‘Return To Splatter Farm’ This November

30 years after the infamous Death Farm murders, the killer is back in Return to Splatter Farm, directed by Jeff Kirkendall who co-wrote the film with Mark Polonia. A young woman and her friends descend upon the farm to party after discovering that she has inherited the land. But soon after, the strange occurrences and brutal murders begin again in the shocking sequel to the 1987 cult classic Splatter Farm. Danielle Donahue, Nico Bryant, Mel Heflin, Marie DeLorenzo, James Kelly, and Jeff Kirkendall star in Return to Splatter Farm out now on DVD and Digital from Wild Eye Releasing!

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Nov 12, 2020
Next →