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Honest horror reviews of films, series, games and books — no hype, no spoilers, just whether it is worth your time and your nerves.

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Horror Fuel

Movie Review – ALIEN: COVENANT Isn’t ALIEN Yet, But It Doesn’t Have To Be

It’s been ten years since Peter Weyland financed the ill fated Prometheus expedition, intent on finding and meeting the supposed creators of the human race or “engineers”. Now Weyland Corp. has become Weyland Yutani, and their focus is now that of “building better worlds”. To that end the company has sought out other habitable distant planets for the purpose of colonization. The crew of a Colony Ship named Covenant are charged with transporting over 2,000 cryo-slumbering colonists and over 1,000 frozen embryos to their destination on the planet Origae-6. During the voyage, an energy flare from an exploding star causes damage to the ship, causes the death of a few colonists and the ship’s captain, who becomes trapped in his cryo-stasis pod as it encounters a catastrophic malfunction. The rest of the crew having been awakened by the mission’s synthetic crew member, Walter, assess the damage and begin repairs. As they complete the necessary repairs to Covenant, they receive transmission

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 19, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: BESETMENT Is A Good Film That Had The Potential To Be Better

One would be hard pressed to determine which of the following Amanda needs worse: a break from her mother or gainful employment. A case could be made that both are equally important. So imagine Amanda’s surprise when she is offered a job at a hotel located in the small Oregon town of Mitchell. It seems ideal, since it puts a fair bit of distance between Amanda and her mother while not only providing her a source of much needed income, but also providing her with room and board. Her new boss Mildred is a quirky, eccentric, no-nonsense kind of old gal, who has a meek and simple middle aged son named Billy. As Amanda tries to acclimate herself to her new job and surroundings, she will come to find out too late that her sparkling resume and previous experience had no bearing on putting her in the position where she now finds herself. In such a small town with very

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 17, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: THE RIZEN Delivers Sci-Fi Horror With Vintage Style

A decade has passed since the Allies achieved victory over the Axis Powers in World War II, but now a new arms race beginning to take shape. NATO and Allied Forces come together in a joint effort to win or at the very least stay ahead of said arms race. Taking a cue from Hitler’s playbook, these combined forces delve into the occult. With little or no true understanding of the otherworldly power they seek to utilize, there could literally be hell to pay for their meddling. And with Pandora’s Box now open, so to speak, the world faces a greater threat than it has ever known. This is where Frances comes in. She is an enigmatic woman, who awakens in a bunker complex, with no prior memory as to who she is or why she is there. As she traverses the endless series of corridors in search of escape, she encounters a scientist named Baughman and a soldier named

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 13, 2017
Horror Fuel

AMERICAN GODS Renewed After A Fantastic Start

Neil Gaiman’s American Gods, based on his books by the same title, has only been on the air for two weeks and is already getting a lot of attention, so much that it has just been renewed for season 2, thank god(s). I can only describe the series as brilliant, bold, beautiful, and nothing like we have ever seen before. The story lines keep you hanging on every line of the character’s dialogue. Even the violence, and there is a lot of it, is executed as if it were art. The cinematography, at the hands of Darren Tiernan, Jo Williams, and Aaron Morton, is simply elegant. There is sex, brutality, war, love, passion and mystery. What more could you want? In a world filled with gods, both old and new, we have been introduced to our central character, Shadow Moon (Ricky Whittle), who is fresh out of prison and mourning the death of his wife Laura (Emily Browning). He is

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 11, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: CHUPACABRA TERRITORY Is Territory Best Undiscovered

The Chupacabra (that’s “goat sucker” to you and me, Rusty) has been a cryptozoological legend for decades with some of the first reported attacks occurring in Puerto Rico in the spring of 1995. Since then, there have been dozens of sightings of this cryptid creature. It’s that king of curiosity that will motivate a group of four friends to journey out in search of the elusive sanguine sucker. They meet with resistance, as a park ranger initially tries to shoo them away from their intended destination. But they will not be denied and find their way back into the off limits wilderness area. Along the way they encounter another group of folks, as well as a creepy gas masked biologist. But will they discover their intended quarry – the chupacabra? And if they do, will they live to tell the tale or at least have the footage to prove it? Found footage has become an increasingly popular method of movie

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 10, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review – Unspeakable Horrors:The Plan 9 Conspiracy Is A Zany And Campy Mockumentary

In 1956, Edward D. Wood Jr. began production on a film called Grave Robbers from Space. And even though it had been screened privately at the Carlton Theatre in Los Angeles in March 0f 1957, it wouldn’t be released until July of 1959 under it’s new title, Plan 9 from Outer Space. Over the years it has clawed its way to becoming a cult classic while still being saddled with the dubious honor(?) of being the worst film ever made. Of course over the years it has faced tough competition from films that threaten to overthrow the film from its throne of utter mediocrity. Such films vying for the lowest rung are Ishtar, Gigli, From Justin to Kelly, Grease 2, Glitter and Troll 2. The list could seriously go on and on, but these are these movies are knocking hard at the doors and windows trying to grab that crown. Now what was it that made Plan 9 so bad?

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 5, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: DEEP IN THE WOOD There Lies A Deeper, Darker Secret

In an Alpine Valley town of Northern Italy there is a yearly festival held on December 5th. Many of the townsfolk take to the streets, disguised as a mythical (?) demonic creature known as Krampus. According to legend, the real Krampus walks hidden among them during this annual brouhaha, with the intent of stealing away with naughty and disobedient children. Throughout the years many children have vanished with no trace, and have never been seen or heard from again. On one such night a man named Manuel joins others from the town, who regale in this traditional celebration. After the festivities have died down, Manuel joins some of his fellow Krampus impersonators to imbibe and unwind. His very young son, Tommi, has just witnessed the frightening spectacle and pleads for his father’s attention. However, Manuel is having too good a time boozing it up to care. Tommi, having just been rebuffed by his father runs off on his own, finding

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 2, 2017
Horror Fuel

CREEPY Review: Long, Repeititve J-Horror

REVIEW BY KELLI MARKSMAN MCNEELY Takakura is a former detective. He receives a request from his ex-colleague, Nogami, to examine a missing family case that occurred 6 years earlier. Takakura follows Saki’s memory. She is the only surviving family member from the case. Meanwhile, Takakura and his wife Yasuko recently moved into a new home. Their neighbor, Nishino, has a sick wife and a young teen daughter. One day, the daughter, Mio, tells him that the man is not her father and she doesn’t know him at all. That is what the official synopsis of the movie says.. I also read some appreciating reviews about the movie. But according to me, It seems like Kurosawa lost his magic. This is a very average movie, nothing you haven’t seen before. The camera-work and acting is great but the movie and the whole plot was a huge letdown to me. The first half is something like the vein of ‘Cure’ (Kurusawa’s 1997

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
Apr 25, 2017
Horror Fuel

Short Film Review: AGATHA Is A Terrifying Secret Well Worth Discovering

The place is Pennsylvania, and the time period is the late 1800’s. On a daily basis, trains teeming with orphaned children would arrive unleashing these urchins onto the city streets. One of these children, a solitary and destitute seven year old girl, is entrusted by an older woman to carry out a simple task on a nightly basis – deliver a plate of food to someone residing in the attic of the woman’s residence. However, there is one important rule she MUST follow, and that is for her to NEVER pass beyond the serving table in the attic. Albeit mundane and repetitive, this chore proves to be a simple enough way for the young waif to make some much needed money. But children are naturally curious and eventually it may get the better of this young girl. Who is the person living in this attic, and why are they being secretly confined? These maybe questions this young orphan girl won’t

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
Apr 18, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ASYLUM OF DARKNESS Is A Convoluted Tale Of Madness

Dwight Shroud has awakened to find himself in an asylum, but he doesn’t intend to stick around to find out how hospitable his hosts are. He is plagued by the horrific imagery that his madness projects upon everything and everyone he encounters during his confinement. During a session, Dwight subdues his doctor and makes his escape. As he tries to put distance between the asylum and himself, Dwight attempts to flag down an approaching car. The driver swerves and crash the car, in a fiery wreck. As Dwight tries to pull the badly burned driver from the car, and during the brief encounter each man assumes the other’s consciousness. Dwight begins to live under his newly assumed identity, but quickly learns that the madness which plagued his previous existence still remains. Furthermore, supernatural forces existing in the world outside the asylum begin to amass and torment him. What possible fate could be in store for an insane man, bedeviled by

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
Apr 12, 2017

More from Reviews

Horror Fuel

Movie Review – ALIEN: COVENANT Isn’t ALIEN Yet, But It Doesn’t Have To Be

It’s been ten years since Peter Weyland financed the ill fated Prometheus expedition, intent on finding and meeting the supposed creators of the human race or “engineers”. Now Weyland Corp. has become Weyland Yutani, and their focus is now that of “building better worlds”. To that end the company has sought out other habitable distant planets for the purpose of colonization. The crew of a Colony Ship named Covenant are charged with transporting over 2,000 cryo-slumbering colonists and over 1,000 frozen embryos to their destination on the planet Origae-6. During the voyage, an energy flare from an exploding star causes damage to the ship, causes the death of a few colonists and the ship’s captain, who becomes trapped in his cryo-stasis pod as it encounters a catastrophic malfunction. The rest of the crew having been awakened by the mission’s synthetic crew member, Walter, assess the damage and begin repairs. As they complete the necessary repairs to Covenant, they receive transmission

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 19, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: BESETMENT Is A Good Film That Had The Potential To Be Better

One would be hard pressed to determine which of the following Amanda needs worse: a break from her mother or gainful employment. A case could be made that both are equally important. So imagine Amanda’s surprise when she is offered a job at a hotel located in the small Oregon town of Mitchell. It seems ideal, since it puts a fair bit of distance between Amanda and her mother while not only providing her a source of much needed income, but also providing her with room and board. Her new boss Mildred is a quirky, eccentric, no-nonsense kind of old gal, who has a meek and simple middle aged son named Billy. As Amanda tries to acclimate herself to her new job and surroundings, she will come to find out too late that her sparkling resume and previous experience had no bearing on putting her in the position where she now finds herself. In such a small town with very

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 17, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: THE RIZEN Delivers Sci-Fi Horror With Vintage Style

A decade has passed since the Allies achieved victory over the Axis Powers in World War II, but now a new arms race beginning to take shape. NATO and Allied Forces come together in a joint effort to win or at the very least stay ahead of said arms race. Taking a cue from Hitler’s playbook, these combined forces delve into the occult. With little or no true understanding of the otherworldly power they seek to utilize, there could literally be hell to pay for their meddling. And with Pandora’s Box now open, so to speak, the world faces a greater threat than it has ever known. This is where Frances comes in. She is an enigmatic woman, who awakens in a bunker complex, with no prior memory as to who she is or why she is there. As she traverses the endless series of corridors in search of escape, she encounters a scientist named Baughman and a soldier named

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 13, 2017
Horror Fuel

AMERICAN GODS Renewed After A Fantastic Start

Neil Gaiman’s American Gods, based on his books by the same title, has only been on the air for two weeks and is already getting a lot of attention, so much that it has just been renewed for season 2, thank god(s). I can only describe the series as brilliant, bold, beautiful, and nothing like we have ever seen before. The story lines keep you hanging on every line of the character’s dialogue. Even the violence, and there is a lot of it, is executed as if it were art. The cinematography, at the hands of Darren Tiernan, Jo Williams, and Aaron Morton, is simply elegant. There is sex, brutality, war, love, passion and mystery. What more could you want? In a world filled with gods, both old and new, we have been introduced to our central character, Shadow Moon (Ricky Whittle), who is fresh out of prison and mourning the death of his wife Laura (Emily Browning). He is

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 11, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: CHUPACABRA TERRITORY Is Territory Best Undiscovered

The Chupacabra (that’s “goat sucker” to you and me, Rusty) has been a cryptozoological legend for decades with some of the first reported attacks occurring in Puerto Rico in the spring of 1995. Since then, there have been dozens of sightings of this cryptid creature. It’s that king of curiosity that will motivate a group of four friends to journey out in search of the elusive sanguine sucker. They meet with resistance, as a park ranger initially tries to shoo them away from their intended destination. But they will not be denied and find their way back into the off limits wilderness area. Along the way they encounter another group of folks, as well as a creepy gas masked biologist. But will they discover their intended quarry – the chupacabra? And if they do, will they live to tell the tale or at least have the footage to prove it? Found footage has become an increasingly popular method of movie

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 10, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review – Unspeakable Horrors:The Plan 9 Conspiracy Is A Zany And Campy Mockumentary

In 1956, Edward D. Wood Jr. began production on a film called Grave Robbers from Space. And even though it had been screened privately at the Carlton Theatre in Los Angeles in March 0f 1957, it wouldn’t be released until July of 1959 under it’s new title, Plan 9 from Outer Space. Over the years it has clawed its way to becoming a cult classic while still being saddled with the dubious honor(?) of being the worst film ever made. Of course over the years it has faced tough competition from films that threaten to overthrow the film from its throne of utter mediocrity. Such films vying for the lowest rung are Ishtar, Gigli, From Justin to Kelly, Grease 2, Glitter and Troll 2. The list could seriously go on and on, but these are these movies are knocking hard at the doors and windows trying to grab that crown. Now what was it that made Plan 9 so bad?

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 5, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: DEEP IN THE WOOD There Lies A Deeper, Darker Secret

In an Alpine Valley town of Northern Italy there is a yearly festival held on December 5th. Many of the townsfolk take to the streets, disguised as a mythical (?) demonic creature known as Krampus. According to legend, the real Krampus walks hidden among them during this annual brouhaha, with the intent of stealing away with naughty and disobedient children. Throughout the years many children have vanished with no trace, and have never been seen or heard from again. On one such night a man named Manuel joins others from the town, who regale in this traditional celebration. After the festivities have died down, Manuel joins some of his fellow Krampus impersonators to imbibe and unwind. His very young son, Tommi, has just witnessed the frightening spectacle and pleads for his father’s attention. However, Manuel is having too good a time boozing it up to care. Tommi, having just been rebuffed by his father runs off on his own, finding

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
May 2, 2017
Horror Fuel

CREEPY Review: Long, Repeititve J-Horror

REVIEW BY KELLI MARKSMAN MCNEELY Takakura is a former detective. He receives a request from his ex-colleague, Nogami, to examine a missing family case that occurred 6 years earlier. Takakura follows Saki’s memory. She is the only surviving family member from the case. Meanwhile, Takakura and his wife Yasuko recently moved into a new home. Their neighbor, Nishino, has a sick wife and a young teen daughter. One day, the daughter, Mio, tells him that the man is not her father and she doesn’t know him at all. That is what the official synopsis of the movie says.. I also read some appreciating reviews about the movie. But according to me, It seems like Kurosawa lost his magic. This is a very average movie, nothing you haven’t seen before. The camera-work and acting is great but the movie and the whole plot was a huge letdown to me. The first half is something like the vein of ‘Cure’ (Kurusawa’s 1997

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
Apr 25, 2017
Horror Fuel

Short Film Review: AGATHA Is A Terrifying Secret Well Worth Discovering

The place is Pennsylvania, and the time period is the late 1800’s. On a daily basis, trains teeming with orphaned children would arrive unleashing these urchins onto the city streets. One of these children, a solitary and destitute seven year old girl, is entrusted by an older woman to carry out a simple task on a nightly basis – deliver a plate of food to someone residing in the attic of the woman’s residence. However, there is one important rule she MUST follow, and that is for her to NEVER pass beyond the serving table in the attic. Albeit mundane and repetitive, this chore proves to be a simple enough way for the young waif to make some much needed money. But children are naturally curious and eventually it may get the better of this young girl. Who is the person living in this attic, and why are they being secretly confined? These maybe questions this young orphan girl won’t

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
Apr 18, 2017
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ASYLUM OF DARKNESS Is A Convoluted Tale Of Madness

Dwight Shroud has awakened to find himself in an asylum, but he doesn’t intend to stick around to find out how hospitable his hosts are. He is plagued by the horrific imagery that his madness projects upon everything and everyone he encounters during his confinement. During a session, Dwight subdues his doctor and makes his escape. As he tries to put distance between the asylum and himself, Dwight attempts to flag down an approaching car. The driver swerves and crash the car, in a fiery wreck. As Dwight tries to pull the badly burned driver from the car, and during the brief encounter each man assumes the other’s consciousness. Dwight begins to live under his newly assumed identity, but quickly learns that the madness which plagued his previous existence still remains. Furthermore, supernatural forces existing in the world outside the asylum begin to amass and torment him. What possible fate could be in store for an insane man, bedeviled by

Continue reading →
Capt McNeely
Apr 12, 2017
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