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Psychological thrillers, dark crime and slow-burn suspense — films and series that get under your skin without a single monster.

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Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ‘Undergods’

Chino Moya makes his directorial debut with Undergods, an anthology with a unique style of its own, is out this May from Gravitas Ventures. The official synopsis goes like this, “in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic world, K and Z roam the streets on the lookout for corpses and something even more valuable – fresh meat.” Several families linked by common elements. Undergods is laid out as stories told either by the two men or a father weaving a tale for his daughter at bedtime. While we learn much about the families, we only get glimpses into the post-apocalyptic world which I wish we would have learned more about. The bleak film is about family more than anything but not as you would expect. Most of the families are in turmoil and have elements of oppression, depression, and infidelity. Each segment comes off a bit strange, slow, and we are given no reason to feel empathy for the characters, they’re just unlikeable,

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Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 6, 2021
Horror Fuel

Trailer For Action Thriller ‘Rogue Hostage’ Starring Tyrese Gibson And John Malkovich

Tyrese Gibson fights to save his daughter during a hostage situation in the trailer for the crime thriller Rogue Hostage, also starring John Malkovich. Directed by Jon Keeyes (The Harrowing), Rouge Hostage also stars Michael Jai White, Christopher Backus, Luna Lauren Velez, and Holly Taylor. In this action-packed film, “single father and former Marine Kyle Snowden (Tyrese Gibson) must save his daughter and other hostages from a dangerous criminal who has trapped them inside a neighborhood store owned by Kyle’s polarizing stepfather, Congressman Sam Nelson (John Malkovich). Written by Mickey Solis and produced by Jordan Yale Levine, Jordan Beckerman, Tyrese Gibson, Jon Keeyes, Rogue Hostage is out in select theaters and arrives On Demand on June 11, 2021, from Vertical Entertainment.

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Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 5, 2021
Horror Fuel

Shudder Announces Summer Premiere Of Irish Horror Thriller ‘Caveat’

SHUDDER, the premium streaming service for horror, thrillers, and the supernatural, has now announced the summer premiere date for Irish director Damian McCarthy’s feature debut, the unnerving cat and mouse thriller Caveat, starring Ben Caplan (Band of Brothers, Call the Midwife), Jonathan French (A Solider’s Voice), and Leila Sykes (Missing Something). In the film “lone drifter Isaac (Jonathan French) accepts a job to look after his landlord’s niece, Olga (Leila Sykes), for a few days in an isolated house on a remote island. It seems like easy money, but there’s a catch: he must wear a leather harness and chain that restricts his movements to certain rooms. Once Olga’s uncle, Barrett (Ben Caplan) leaves the two of them alone, a game of cat and mouse ensues as Olga displays increasingly erratic behavior as a trapped Isaac makes a series of horrific discoveries in the house.” With slow-building tension, Caveat balances creepy interiors with the beauty of Cork’s countryside and stunning

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 5, 2021
Horror Fuel

Murder & Mystery Fill The Trailer For Topic’s New True Crime Inspired Series “Dark Woods”

Murder, suspicion, and a missing police officer fuel Sven Bohse‘s (“Ku’damm 56”) true-crime miniseries “Dark Woods“. Written by Stefan Kolditz, the story is set “in the summer of 1989, Barbara Neder, the sister of high-ranking Hamburg police officer Thomas Bethge, disappears from her home without a trace. Shortly before this, two couples had been cruelly murdered in nearby woodlands. Suspicion quickly falls on artist Hans Lingner, who is living on the edge of the forest and is a gun enthusiast. However, the links between the earlier murder cases, the “Killer Forest” and Barbara’s disappearance are not initially picked up by the investigators. Instead, the police begin to suspect Barbara’s husband Robert who was in the process of divorcing his wife. Their daughter Theresa has been hit hard by her mother’s disappearance and the suspicions surrounding her father, making her too, believe that her father may be her mother’s murderer.” Inspired by real-life events that took place in the late 1980s,

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Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 4, 2021
Horror Fuel

A Father Turns Vigilante In The Thriller ‘Painkiller’

After a man loses his daughter to an overdose, he turns vigilante in the thriller Painkiller, out this May on DVD and On Demand. Starring Michael Parè (Eddie & the Cruisers, Gangster Land) and horror mainstay Bill Oberst Jr. (‘Scream Queens’ ‘Criminal Minds’), takes an unapologetic look at a crisis facing countless American families. In Painkiller, Bill Johnson (Oberst Jr.) has suffered the kind of loss that no parent should ever have to; watching his daughter fall victim to the opioid epidemic, which too long went unnoticed. Conversely, Dr. Alan Rhodes (Parè), has been leading a lavish lifestyle, thanks to the profits he’s been making from his prescription business. Seeing that no one is being held accountable, Bill sets out on a campaign targeting those made rich by the suffering of so many. Teaming up with a rogue cop, they set out to dismantle this network of doctors and pharmaceutical executives that continue to devastate families across the country Directed

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 4, 2021
Horror Fuel

Post-Apocalyptic Horror Thriller ‘Undergods’ Coming To Theaters And On Demand

Director Chino Moya makes his feature directorial debut with the award-winning post-apocalypse film Undergods is about to be released. The film is set, “in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic world, K and Z roam the streets on the lookout for corpses and something even more valuable – fresh meat.” Kate Dickie (The Witch, Game of Thrones”) and Ned Dennehy (“Good Omens,” “Peaky Blinders”) star in Undergods along with Burn Gorman (Pacific Rim, Enola Holmes), Geza Rohrig (Resistance, Son of Saul), and Tanya Reynolds (Emma., Sex Education). Witness Undergods in select theaters and On Demand on May 7, 2021, from Gravitas Ventures, a Red Arrow Studio Company.

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Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 2, 2021
Horror Fuel

Glenn Payne’s Micro Budget Horror-Comedy ‘Killer Concept’ Out This May

From director Glenn Payne (Driven, Earthrise) and writer Casey Dillard (Driven, As I Lay Dying) comes Killer Concept, a horror-comedy starring Payne, Dillard, and Coley Bryant (Driven, Stargrassle Paranormal). The film “explores what happens when three creatives team up to write a screenplay about a string of murders in their town, not knowing that one of the three may be closer to the story than the others realize. Mark (Glenn Payne), a voyeuristic photographer with a secret, is at first reluctant when aspiring cut-throat producer Seth (Coley Bryant) and true crime writer Holly (Casey Dillard) want him to help them make a movie about a local serial killer: after all, they might figure out that he is the murderer, but he figures it could be interesting. However, when rivalries, crushes, and outside influences begin to cloud his twisted mind it’s harder to tell if he’s in his own story or theirs.” With a primary cast and crew of five people,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 2, 2021
Horror Fuel

New Documentary And Book Delve Into The Mystery That Inspired “Twin Peaks”

Everyone has heard of and likely seen David Lynch and Mark Frost‘s classic series “Twin Peaks,” which revolves around the mysterious murder of homecoming queen Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee). But, what many people don’t know is that the series and the character’s murder are inspired by a true story, the mysterious death of Hazel Drew, which has interested Frost since he heard about the case from his grandmother when he was just a kid. A new documentary and companion book that delves into the unsolved death of Hazel Drew is on their way, Indie Wire reports. The documentary is from director Benjamin Alfonsi and the book, titled Blonde, Beautiful, and Dead: The Murder Mystery That Inspired Twin Peaks, was penned by David Bushman and Mark Given with a foreword by Frost. The two will delve into the case in hopes of unraveling the mystery of the young woman whose body was found washed up on the shore of Sand Lake,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 1, 2021
Horror Fuel

New “Dexter” Trailer Teases The Killer Doesn’t Want To Be Misunderstood

A new teaser trailer, the second for the show, is here Showtime’s ninth season of “Dexter.” In it, Michael C. Hall gives a giant grin as ‘I Don’t Want To Be Misunderstood’ playing in the background. Hall returns to his role as Dexter for the 10-episode new season that picks up ten years after the events of the season eight finale when Dexter faked his own death during Hurricane Laura. This season, Dexter will face a new villain, the unofficial mayor of Iron Lake, played by the talented actor Clancy Brown. The cast includes Julia Jones (“The Mandalorian”), Johnny Sequoyah (Belive), Oscar Wahlberg (“NOS4A2”), Jamie Chung (“Lovecraft Country”), Michael Cyril Creighton (Spotlight), and Jack Alcott (“The Good Lord Bird”). The original series’ showrunner Clyde Phillips is also returning along with Marcos Siega, director of nine episodes of the original series, who will direct six of the new episodes as well as executive produce. The new season will premiere sometime this

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Apr 30, 2021
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ‘Sweet Water’ (2021)

From director Justin McMillan comes Sweet River, out in theaters and on VOD on April 23, 2021, from Gravitas Ventures. The film centers on Hanna (Lisa Kay), a grieving mother whose son was killed by a serial killer, however, the boy’s body was never found, and she never found acceptance. At the beginning of the film, Hanna rents the cottage on the property where the serial killer lived in hopes that she might find her son’s body in the nearby field, not knowing that the land holds many dark secrets. A bit of slow-burn, Sweet River is a thriller at heart, exploring death, grief, acceptance, regret, and how far a parent would go for their child. While there are paranormal aspects of the film, the death of the child takes more of the focus in the story. Lisa Kay did great with the role she was given, which was an emotional one. She was believable, which is always great. Eddie

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Apr 30, 2021

More from Thriller

Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ‘Undergods’

Chino Moya makes his directorial debut with Undergods, an anthology with a unique style of its own, is out this May from Gravitas Ventures. The official synopsis goes like this, “in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic world, K and Z roam the streets on the lookout for corpses and something even more valuable – fresh meat.” Several families linked by common elements. Undergods is laid out as stories told either by the two men or a father weaving a tale for his daughter at bedtime. While we learn much about the families, we only get glimpses into the post-apocalyptic world which I wish we would have learned more about. The bleak film is about family more than anything but not as you would expect. Most of the families are in turmoil and have elements of oppression, depression, and infidelity. Each segment comes off a bit strange, slow, and we are given no reason to feel empathy for the characters, they’re just unlikeable,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 6, 2021
Horror Fuel

Trailer For Action Thriller ‘Rogue Hostage’ Starring Tyrese Gibson And John Malkovich

Tyrese Gibson fights to save his daughter during a hostage situation in the trailer for the crime thriller Rogue Hostage, also starring John Malkovich. Directed by Jon Keeyes (The Harrowing), Rouge Hostage also stars Michael Jai White, Christopher Backus, Luna Lauren Velez, and Holly Taylor. In this action-packed film, “single father and former Marine Kyle Snowden (Tyrese Gibson) must save his daughter and other hostages from a dangerous criminal who has trapped them inside a neighborhood store owned by Kyle’s polarizing stepfather, Congressman Sam Nelson (John Malkovich). Written by Mickey Solis and produced by Jordan Yale Levine, Jordan Beckerman, Tyrese Gibson, Jon Keeyes, Rogue Hostage is out in select theaters and arrives On Demand on June 11, 2021, from Vertical Entertainment.

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 5, 2021
Horror Fuel

Shudder Announces Summer Premiere Of Irish Horror Thriller ‘Caveat’

SHUDDER, the premium streaming service for horror, thrillers, and the supernatural, has now announced the summer premiere date for Irish director Damian McCarthy’s feature debut, the unnerving cat and mouse thriller Caveat, starring Ben Caplan (Band of Brothers, Call the Midwife), Jonathan French (A Solider’s Voice), and Leila Sykes (Missing Something). In the film “lone drifter Isaac (Jonathan French) accepts a job to look after his landlord’s niece, Olga (Leila Sykes), for a few days in an isolated house on a remote island. It seems like easy money, but there’s a catch: he must wear a leather harness and chain that restricts his movements to certain rooms. Once Olga’s uncle, Barrett (Ben Caplan) leaves the two of them alone, a game of cat and mouse ensues as Olga displays increasingly erratic behavior as a trapped Isaac makes a series of horrific discoveries in the house.” With slow-building tension, Caveat balances creepy interiors with the beauty of Cork’s countryside and stunning

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 5, 2021
Horror Fuel

Murder & Mystery Fill The Trailer For Topic’s New True Crime Inspired Series “Dark Woods”

Murder, suspicion, and a missing police officer fuel Sven Bohse‘s (“Ku’damm 56”) true-crime miniseries “Dark Woods“. Written by Stefan Kolditz, the story is set “in the summer of 1989, Barbara Neder, the sister of high-ranking Hamburg police officer Thomas Bethge, disappears from her home without a trace. Shortly before this, two couples had been cruelly murdered in nearby woodlands. Suspicion quickly falls on artist Hans Lingner, who is living on the edge of the forest and is a gun enthusiast. However, the links between the earlier murder cases, the “Killer Forest” and Barbara’s disappearance are not initially picked up by the investigators. Instead, the police begin to suspect Barbara’s husband Robert who was in the process of divorcing his wife. Their daughter Theresa has been hit hard by her mother’s disappearance and the suspicions surrounding her father, making her too, believe that her father may be her mother’s murderer.” Inspired by real-life events that took place in the late 1980s,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 4, 2021
Horror Fuel

A Father Turns Vigilante In The Thriller ‘Painkiller’

After a man loses his daughter to an overdose, he turns vigilante in the thriller Painkiller, out this May on DVD and On Demand. Starring Michael Parè (Eddie & the Cruisers, Gangster Land) and horror mainstay Bill Oberst Jr. (‘Scream Queens’ ‘Criminal Minds’), takes an unapologetic look at a crisis facing countless American families. In Painkiller, Bill Johnson (Oberst Jr.) has suffered the kind of loss that no parent should ever have to; watching his daughter fall victim to the opioid epidemic, which too long went unnoticed. Conversely, Dr. Alan Rhodes (Parè), has been leading a lavish lifestyle, thanks to the profits he’s been making from his prescription business. Seeing that no one is being held accountable, Bill sets out on a campaign targeting those made rich by the suffering of so many. Teaming up with a rogue cop, they set out to dismantle this network of doctors and pharmaceutical executives that continue to devastate families across the country Directed

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 4, 2021
Horror Fuel

Post-Apocalyptic Horror Thriller ‘Undergods’ Coming To Theaters And On Demand

Director Chino Moya makes his feature directorial debut with the award-winning post-apocalypse film Undergods is about to be released. The film is set, “in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic world, K and Z roam the streets on the lookout for corpses and something even more valuable – fresh meat.” Kate Dickie (The Witch, Game of Thrones”) and Ned Dennehy (“Good Omens,” “Peaky Blinders”) star in Undergods along with Burn Gorman (Pacific Rim, Enola Holmes), Geza Rohrig (Resistance, Son of Saul), and Tanya Reynolds (Emma., Sex Education). Witness Undergods in select theaters and On Demand on May 7, 2021, from Gravitas Ventures, a Red Arrow Studio Company.

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 2, 2021
Horror Fuel

Glenn Payne’s Micro Budget Horror-Comedy ‘Killer Concept’ Out This May

From director Glenn Payne (Driven, Earthrise) and writer Casey Dillard (Driven, As I Lay Dying) comes Killer Concept, a horror-comedy starring Payne, Dillard, and Coley Bryant (Driven, Stargrassle Paranormal). The film “explores what happens when three creatives team up to write a screenplay about a string of murders in their town, not knowing that one of the three may be closer to the story than the others realize. Mark (Glenn Payne), a voyeuristic photographer with a secret, is at first reluctant when aspiring cut-throat producer Seth (Coley Bryant) and true crime writer Holly (Casey Dillard) want him to help them make a movie about a local serial killer: after all, they might figure out that he is the murderer, but he figures it could be interesting. However, when rivalries, crushes, and outside influences begin to cloud his twisted mind it’s harder to tell if he’s in his own story or theirs.” With a primary cast and crew of five people,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 2, 2021
Horror Fuel

New Documentary And Book Delve Into The Mystery That Inspired “Twin Peaks”

Everyone has heard of and likely seen David Lynch and Mark Frost‘s classic series “Twin Peaks,” which revolves around the mysterious murder of homecoming queen Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee). But, what many people don’t know is that the series and the character’s murder are inspired by a true story, the mysterious death of Hazel Drew, which has interested Frost since he heard about the case from his grandmother when he was just a kid. A new documentary and companion book that delves into the unsolved death of Hazel Drew is on their way, Indie Wire reports. The documentary is from director Benjamin Alfonsi and the book, titled Blonde, Beautiful, and Dead: The Murder Mystery That Inspired Twin Peaks, was penned by David Bushman and Mark Given with a foreword by Frost. The two will delve into the case in hopes of unraveling the mystery of the young woman whose body was found washed up on the shore of Sand Lake,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 1, 2021
Horror Fuel

New “Dexter” Trailer Teases The Killer Doesn’t Want To Be Misunderstood

A new teaser trailer, the second for the show, is here Showtime’s ninth season of “Dexter.” In it, Michael C. Hall gives a giant grin as ‘I Don’t Want To Be Misunderstood’ playing in the background. Hall returns to his role as Dexter for the 10-episode new season that picks up ten years after the events of the season eight finale when Dexter faked his own death during Hurricane Laura. This season, Dexter will face a new villain, the unofficial mayor of Iron Lake, played by the talented actor Clancy Brown. The cast includes Julia Jones (“The Mandalorian”), Johnny Sequoyah (Belive), Oscar Wahlberg (“NOS4A2”), Jamie Chung (“Lovecraft Country”), Michael Cyril Creighton (Spotlight), and Jack Alcott (“The Good Lord Bird”). The original series’ showrunner Clyde Phillips is also returning along with Marcos Siega, director of nine episodes of the original series, who will direct six of the new episodes as well as executive produce. The new season will premiere sometime this

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Apr 30, 2021
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ‘Sweet Water’ (2021)

From director Justin McMillan comes Sweet River, out in theaters and on VOD on April 23, 2021, from Gravitas Ventures. The film centers on Hanna (Lisa Kay), a grieving mother whose son was killed by a serial killer, however, the boy’s body was never found, and she never found acceptance. At the beginning of the film, Hanna rents the cottage on the property where the serial killer lived in hopes that she might find her son’s body in the nearby field, not knowing that the land holds many dark secrets. A bit of slow-burn, Sweet River is a thriller at heart, exploring death, grief, acceptance, regret, and how far a parent would go for their child. While there are paranormal aspects of the film, the death of the child takes more of the focus in the story. Lisa Kay did great with the role she was given, which was an emotional one. She was believable, which is always great. Eddie

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Apr 30, 2021
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