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Horror Fuel

DVD Review: Dragon Soldiers (2020)

In a story ripped from today’s headlines, a gaggle of folks turn up missing in the dense woods surrounding a small mountain town which ends up being the fault of a dragon. To combat this rather large pain-in-the-ass, the town’s mayor calls in an elite military squad who proceed to trek into those wicked woods and hopefully put an end to all of this legendary creature bullshit. So, these folks walk around, gettin’ their Predator on, while also dealing with a headstrong forest ranger (Arielle Brachfeld) and a death cult that worships the titular beastie. They also fight the dragon… eventually. With that synopsis you can guess what you are in for with Dragon Soldiers… and if you can’t I’ll tell ya! This is a well done, low-budget creature feature that knows damn well it’s Predator with Dragons and it doesn’t give a singular fuck… and you just know that everyone in front of and behind the camera was having

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Dec 29, 2020
Horror Fuel

DVD Reviews: Moon of the Blood Beast (2019) and Tales for the Campfire 3 (2020)

One unexpected side effect of writing fright flicks for scads of years, and actually working in the horror biz, is that sometimes I’m called on to review something only to discover that folks are involved that I’ve worked with in one capacity or another. I always try and throw a disclaimer of some sort on those types of things, but honestly it’s becoming a lil’ too frequent, so soon I’ll begin to severely limit these types of reviews just to keep things square. To that end let me state, my reviews are always honest and upfront; but my scale of quality truly is unique. Let’s do a numbered list type of thing where I walk you through this shit… Yes, everything I review is sent to me for free in exchange for my honest thoughts. Yes, my thoughts are given with 100% honesty… but know this; I LOVE ultra-low budget horror (and exploitation), and if I feel something was made

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Dec 29, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ‘Shadow In The Cloud’ Is A Must See Action Filled Flick

Right off to bat in the WWII set Shadow in the Cloud kicks off the action when Chloë Grace Moretz boards a plane of unhappy and misogynistic crew members in this flick filled with insane action. Her character is carrying a top-secret mysterious package the must be kept safe. Unfortunately, the assholes aboard lock her in the turret below the plane, basically a glass bubble with a gun. That’s when all hell breaks loose as she spots a winged creature out for blood and destruction, a gremlin, something that’s long been discussed amongst pilots and airmen and blamed for many plane crashes. Mortez’s Maude is treated like a piece of meat as she silently listens to the conversation over the radio about what the men want to do to her in appalling detail. But she keeps her cool, even as they treat her like a crazy woman who knows nothing. But she’s carrying a secret. She is a total badass

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 28, 2020
Horror Fuel

Netflix Series Review: “Sweet Home” Is A Monster Hit!

Netflix has released several series this year including “The Haunting of Bly Manor,” which didn’t quite live up to its predecessor. But if you are looking for a horror series on the streaming giant there is one, in particular, I highly recommend, “Sweet Home.” While the title “Sweet Home” may not sound like the name of a horror series I promise you that it is in every sense of the word. This South Korean show is the most insane thing I’ve watched in a long time. And I mean that as a compliment. Directed by Lee EungBok, the series is actually an adaptation of the webtoon by the same name. In the series, Hyunsoo, a loner high school student who lost his entire family in a terrible accident, moves to an old apartment complex called Green Home. Not long after, all hell breaks loose as some people begin to turn into monsters throughout the city. The residents of Green Home

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 27, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ’13 Slays Till X-Mas’ Is The Only Holiday Horror Film You Need

It’s that time of year again, time to celebrate Christmas the best way horror fans can, with a bloody good holiday horror-themed movie. Let’s be honest, there are a ton of Christmas horror movies out there, but there’s a new movie that you should be watching, Blood Moon Picture’s 13 Slays Till-Xmas, the only horror anthology you need this season. The film is from writer-producer P.J. Starks, the creator of Volumes of Blood, and producer Eric Huskisson (The Confession of Fred Krueger, VOB: Horror Stories). HorrorFuel’s Kelli Marchman McNeely executive produced. It features thirteen Christmas themed stories of merry mayhem connected by a wrap-around. The massive anthology is set on December 24th, Christmas Eve, with five seemingly random men who are invited to a dive bar by a mysterious e-mail. They decide to pass the time by resurrecting the old tradition of telling scary stories on Christmas Eve. As each takes turns spinning yarns of yuletide terror it becomes evident,

Continue reading →
Ella Rebecca Horton
Dec 26, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: PG: Psycho Goreman Is Absolutely Insane

Today, I’ll be reviewing writer-director Steven Kostanski’s absolutely insane 2020 movie PG: Psycho Goreman. Matthew Ninaber, Kristen MacCulloch, and Rick Amsbury star in the film whose synopsis goes like this: “After unearthing a gem that controls an evil monster looking to destroy the Universe, a young girl and her brother use it to make him do their bidding.” Right off to bat, and with both stars being kids, it did make me question who the target audience is meant to be. The dialogue comes across like it’s meant for an 8 to 12 years old demographic but is filled with people being brutally killed and turned into monstrous creatures. It’s too violent to be a children’s movie and is a bit immature for the adult crowd, in my opinion, leaving it in a kind of no man’s land. Writer-director Steven Kostanski keeps things interesting from beginning to end with all types of craziness going on. And the plot was something

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 26, 2020
Horror Fuel

Short Film Review: Day of the Pigs (2020)

A trio of lethal luchadores, El Apache (Tino Zamora), Manny (Manuel Ramirez), and Guero (Art Paul) by name, botch a robbery and find themselves well and truly on the lam. Their numbers soon reduced by one due to misadventure; our deadly duo find themselves in the home of a couple of lovely ladies, Starletta (Sparkle Soojian) and Violet (Nikki Curtis Jones) to be precise, that seem more than accommodating to our protagonists… that is until some supernatural shit hits the fan right quick! Full of grindhouse bravura, bad dudes, strange transformations, and femme fatales; Day of the Pigs does a hell of a lot to satisfy the ol’ terror tooth in it’s brief twelve minute runtime. Writer/Director Michael S. Rodriguez (along with Raul Cantu on story assist) brings quite the fully fleshed out concept to life in this one boils n’ ghouls and presents a world of larcenous masked madmen, southern belle witches, body horror, and most importantly… bacon, and

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Dec 22, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: Smiley Face Killers: Moodiness And Man Butt Win Out Over Horror

Director Tim Hunter’s true story inspired horror Smiley Face Killers has just been released, and I’ve always found the true crimes interesting, so I decided to check it out. What I found wasn’t good. The synopsis reads as followed: “a handsome young soccer player Jake Graham who believes he is going insane, unable to shake the feeling of being stalked by something, by someone.” The film takes its inspiration from a series of mysterious deaths linked by the smiley face graffiti found near the crime scenes. The victims are all killed by mysteriously being drowned and have been deemed nonaccidental. Unfortunately, the movie treats the killings as a secondary theme with Jake’s depression and body exploitation at the forefront. The majority of the movie is just watching Ronen Rubinstein go from scene to scene shedding his clothes and acting moody as hell. Sure, Ronen Rubinstein is a handsome guy but I was there to watch a horror movie, not a

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 20, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: Archenemy

Writer-director Adam Egypt Mortimer (Daniel Isn’t Real, Some Kind of Hate) has now unleashed his superhero film Archenemy starring Joe Manganiello (Magic Mike franchise, “True Blood”) as Max Fist, an alcoholic homeless man who claims to be a superhero from another dimension, who has none of his powers on earth. Max meets a young man named Hamster who may be the only person on earth who believes his story. When Hamster (Skylan Brooks, The Darkest Minds, Southpaw) is in trouble Max puts his life on the line to protect the kid. Max’s story plays out in a combination of the gritty real world and in gorgeous animated flashbacks filled with psychedelic pinks and blues. The styles are a nice combination that reveals his superhero past in such a way that you don’t know if it is real or simply a delusion in Max’s mind. The casting was a great choice. Manganiello and Brooks are perfect for their roles. You can

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

Movie Review: Grizzly II: Revenge

After 37 years in the making Grizzly II: Revenge is finally about to be released on January 8, 2021. Grizzly II, directed by André Szöts, is the sequel to William Girdler‘s 1976 movie Grizzly. The movie follows a bear out for revenge after a hunter kills its cub. During its rampage a huge concert is taking place, I’m sure you know the rest. George Clooney, Laura Dern, Charlie Sheen are featured in the original footage with Louise Fletcher, John Rhys-Davies, and Steve Inwood also starring, but the three main stars advertised are only in the film for around five minutes. I am trying to put this politely, but this movie is a mess. The scenes a patched together in what may very well be the roughest and sloppiest way I’ve ever seen. It’s a perfect example of what happens when editing goes wrong. It looks like it was just thrown together. There’s no transition from scene to scene, the music

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 14, 2020

More from #review

Horror Fuel

DVD Review: Dragon Soldiers (2020)

In a story ripped from today’s headlines, a gaggle of folks turn up missing in the dense woods surrounding a small mountain town which ends up being the fault of a dragon. To combat this rather large pain-in-the-ass, the town’s mayor calls in an elite military squad who proceed to trek into those wicked woods and hopefully put an end to all of this legendary creature bullshit. So, these folks walk around, gettin’ their Predator on, while also dealing with a headstrong forest ranger (Arielle Brachfeld) and a death cult that worships the titular beastie. They also fight the dragon… eventually. With that synopsis you can guess what you are in for with Dragon Soldiers… and if you can’t I’ll tell ya! This is a well done, low-budget creature feature that knows damn well it’s Predator with Dragons and it doesn’t give a singular fuck… and you just know that everyone in front of and behind the camera was having

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Dec 29, 2020
Horror Fuel

DVD Reviews: Moon of the Blood Beast (2019) and Tales for the Campfire 3 (2020)

One unexpected side effect of writing fright flicks for scads of years, and actually working in the horror biz, is that sometimes I’m called on to review something only to discover that folks are involved that I’ve worked with in one capacity or another. I always try and throw a disclaimer of some sort on those types of things, but honestly it’s becoming a lil’ too frequent, so soon I’ll begin to severely limit these types of reviews just to keep things square. To that end let me state, my reviews are always honest and upfront; but my scale of quality truly is unique. Let’s do a numbered list type of thing where I walk you through this shit… Yes, everything I review is sent to me for free in exchange for my honest thoughts. Yes, my thoughts are given with 100% honesty… but know this; I LOVE ultra-low budget horror (and exploitation), and if I feel something was made

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Dec 29, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ‘Shadow In The Cloud’ Is A Must See Action Filled Flick

Right off to bat in the WWII set Shadow in the Cloud kicks off the action when Chloë Grace Moretz boards a plane of unhappy and misogynistic crew members in this flick filled with insane action. Her character is carrying a top-secret mysterious package the must be kept safe. Unfortunately, the assholes aboard lock her in the turret below the plane, basically a glass bubble with a gun. That’s when all hell breaks loose as she spots a winged creature out for blood and destruction, a gremlin, something that’s long been discussed amongst pilots and airmen and blamed for many plane crashes. Mortez’s Maude is treated like a piece of meat as she silently listens to the conversation over the radio about what the men want to do to her in appalling detail. But she keeps her cool, even as they treat her like a crazy woman who knows nothing. But she’s carrying a secret. She is a total badass

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 28, 2020
Horror Fuel

Netflix Series Review: “Sweet Home” Is A Monster Hit!

Netflix has released several series this year including “The Haunting of Bly Manor,” which didn’t quite live up to its predecessor. But if you are looking for a horror series on the streaming giant there is one, in particular, I highly recommend, “Sweet Home.” While the title “Sweet Home” may not sound like the name of a horror series I promise you that it is in every sense of the word. This South Korean show is the most insane thing I’ve watched in a long time. And I mean that as a compliment. Directed by Lee EungBok, the series is actually an adaptation of the webtoon by the same name. In the series, Hyunsoo, a loner high school student who lost his entire family in a terrible accident, moves to an old apartment complex called Green Home. Not long after, all hell breaks loose as some people begin to turn into monsters throughout the city. The residents of Green Home

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 27, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: ’13 Slays Till X-Mas’ Is The Only Holiday Horror Film You Need

It’s that time of year again, time to celebrate Christmas the best way horror fans can, with a bloody good holiday horror-themed movie. Let’s be honest, there are a ton of Christmas horror movies out there, but there’s a new movie that you should be watching, Blood Moon Picture’s 13 Slays Till-Xmas, the only horror anthology you need this season. The film is from writer-producer P.J. Starks, the creator of Volumes of Blood, and producer Eric Huskisson (The Confession of Fred Krueger, VOB: Horror Stories). HorrorFuel’s Kelli Marchman McNeely executive produced. It features thirteen Christmas themed stories of merry mayhem connected by a wrap-around. The massive anthology is set on December 24th, Christmas Eve, with five seemingly random men who are invited to a dive bar by a mysterious e-mail. They decide to pass the time by resurrecting the old tradition of telling scary stories on Christmas Eve. As each takes turns spinning yarns of yuletide terror it becomes evident,

Continue reading →
Ella Rebecca Horton
Dec 26, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: PG: Psycho Goreman Is Absolutely Insane

Today, I’ll be reviewing writer-director Steven Kostanski’s absolutely insane 2020 movie PG: Psycho Goreman. Matthew Ninaber, Kristen MacCulloch, and Rick Amsbury star in the film whose synopsis goes like this: “After unearthing a gem that controls an evil monster looking to destroy the Universe, a young girl and her brother use it to make him do their bidding.” Right off to bat, and with both stars being kids, it did make me question who the target audience is meant to be. The dialogue comes across like it’s meant for an 8 to 12 years old demographic but is filled with people being brutally killed and turned into monstrous creatures. It’s too violent to be a children’s movie and is a bit immature for the adult crowd, in my opinion, leaving it in a kind of no man’s land. Writer-director Steven Kostanski keeps things interesting from beginning to end with all types of craziness going on. And the plot was something

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 26, 2020
Horror Fuel

Short Film Review: Day of the Pigs (2020)

A trio of lethal luchadores, El Apache (Tino Zamora), Manny (Manuel Ramirez), and Guero (Art Paul) by name, botch a robbery and find themselves well and truly on the lam. Their numbers soon reduced by one due to misadventure; our deadly duo find themselves in the home of a couple of lovely ladies, Starletta (Sparkle Soojian) and Violet (Nikki Curtis Jones) to be precise, that seem more than accommodating to our protagonists… that is until some supernatural shit hits the fan right quick! Full of grindhouse bravura, bad dudes, strange transformations, and femme fatales; Day of the Pigs does a hell of a lot to satisfy the ol’ terror tooth in it’s brief twelve minute runtime. Writer/Director Michael S. Rodriguez (along with Raul Cantu on story assist) brings quite the fully fleshed out concept to life in this one boils n’ ghouls and presents a world of larcenous masked madmen, southern belle witches, body horror, and most importantly… bacon, and

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Dec 22, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: Smiley Face Killers: Moodiness And Man Butt Win Out Over Horror

Director Tim Hunter’s true story inspired horror Smiley Face Killers has just been released, and I’ve always found the true crimes interesting, so I decided to check it out. What I found wasn’t good. The synopsis reads as followed: “a handsome young soccer player Jake Graham who believes he is going insane, unable to shake the feeling of being stalked by something, by someone.” The film takes its inspiration from a series of mysterious deaths linked by the smiley face graffiti found near the crime scenes. The victims are all killed by mysteriously being drowned and have been deemed nonaccidental. Unfortunately, the movie treats the killings as a secondary theme with Jake’s depression and body exploitation at the forefront. The majority of the movie is just watching Ronen Rubinstein go from scene to scene shedding his clothes and acting moody as hell. Sure, Ronen Rubinstein is a handsome guy but I was there to watch a horror movie, not a

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 20, 2020
Horror Fuel

Movie Review: Archenemy

Writer-director Adam Egypt Mortimer (Daniel Isn’t Real, Some Kind of Hate) has now unleashed his superhero film Archenemy starring Joe Manganiello (Magic Mike franchise, “True Blood”) as Max Fist, an alcoholic homeless man who claims to be a superhero from another dimension, who has none of his powers on earth. Max meets a young man named Hamster who may be the only person on earth who believes his story. When Hamster (Skylan Brooks, The Darkest Minds, Southpaw) is in trouble Max puts his life on the line to protect the kid. Max’s story plays out in a combination of the gritty real world and in gorgeous animated flashbacks filled with psychedelic pinks and blues. The styles are a nice combination that reveals his superhero past in such a way that you don’t know if it is real or simply a delusion in Max’s mind. The casting was a great choice. Manganiello and Brooks are perfect for their roles. You can

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

Movie Review: Grizzly II: Revenge

After 37 years in the making Grizzly II: Revenge is finally about to be released on January 8, 2021. Grizzly II, directed by André Szöts, is the sequel to William Girdler‘s 1976 movie Grizzly. The movie follows a bear out for revenge after a hunter kills its cub. During its rampage a huge concert is taking place, I’m sure you know the rest. George Clooney, Laura Dern, Charlie Sheen are featured in the original footage with Louise Fletcher, John Rhys-Davies, and Steve Inwood also starring, but the three main stars advertised are only in the film for around five minutes. I am trying to put this politely, but this movie is a mess. The scenes a patched together in what may very well be the roughest and sloppiest way I’ve ever seen. It’s a perfect example of what happens when editing goes wrong. It looks like it was just thrown together. There’s no transition from scene to scene, the music

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Dec 14, 2020
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