Top Five Favorite Horror Films by Shane

When it comes to something or someone we love it can be hard to choose sides or pick favorites. My sister has five kids--identical twins on the way--and we know that it would not only be difficult, but absurd to pick favorites. So when I decided to compile this list of my favorite horror films weeks ago the list gradually got bigger. I'll just write a Top 10 List, I thought. But my expectations failed when ten turned to eleven which turned to twelve to thirteen, etc. Then I realized that my tastes constantly change. Years ago one of my favorite horror films was Slugs in which these gigantic slugs devour people (one scene shows a woman eating one of the creatures in her salad by accident, but it still managed to kill her), now I realize, as horror has evolved so have my tastes. Below are some of the horror films that have stuck with me and I'm not sick of 'em yet:

5. The Blair Witch Project
Terror arises from the mass hysteria of the three filmmakers: is the Blair Witch real or is the audience witnessing three college-aged documentarians going insane as they believe the folklore? 

4. Trick 'r Treat

Smartly written and visually orgasmic, writer-director Michael Dougherty weaves together a new classic in his debut.

3. The Candyman
Based on Clive Barker's short story "The Forbidden," this contemporary urban legend is accentuated by Philip Glass' haunting music box score and the raw direction of Bernard Rose.

*Spoiler Alert*

2. Scream
Like great literature,Wes Craven makes reference to pop culture and other great horror movies in his hit Scream. The film redefined the slasher flick and in doing so spawned one of the greatest horror franchises since Halloween and Friday the 13th. Craven plays with the human psyche combining suspense and humor.

1. Halloween

This Hitchcockian slasher combines the essence of Halloween and suspense with harrowing darkness that symbolizes impending doom, smooth camera moves and no gore or cheap gimmicks (save for the occasional heightened music).

Others worth mentioning: Carrie, Drag Me to Hell, Dead Snow, The Exorcist, Grace, Nightmare on Elm Street, Poltergeist, Parents, Psycho, The Shining, The Sixth Sense, The Wolf Man, Zombieland.

For more horror movie reviews, visit Tainted Tea at

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Coming Soon...Fall 2010!

Featuring...
The Sacrifice by J.C. Crumpton
My Best Side by Simon Walsgrove
A Halloween Treat by Harold Kempka
Serenading Sister Death by Joseph Rodgers
Q & A by Brian Rowe
...When the Devil Drives by Zach Black
Buyer Beware by M.C. Brody
Susannah Martin, Hanged, July 19, 1692 by Shane R. Toogood

Plus features by Tim Yockey, Kris Fossett, and Shane R. Toogood

This issue will be available for download later this week. Come celebrate one year with us. And if you can't wait for this issue, don't forget to download our first issue for free from our Web site.

Read an excerpt from Brian Rowe's story here.

Kickass Trailers: "Scream 4"

Ghostface is back this April!

For more info, sign up at the official Web site.

Kickass Trailer: "Saw 3D"

It's the final chapter and in 3D. What else do you need to know?

Popcorn Movie Review: "Let Me In"

Innocent and alluring--just as a vampire--Let Me In is not a vampire film, but a tale about the relationship of two misfits that find love and trust in a world of evil. Would it be cliche to say that the connection between Chloe Moretz and Kodi Smit-McPhee was that of Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca? The tweens' acting abilities alone are phenomenal. The twitch and whispers of the misunderstood, bullied Owen (Smit-McPhee) to the untainted yet sensual smirks and stares of Abby (Moretz), these two make the film amazing. Their characters know deep down that they should not be friends, but in this contemporary spin on Romeo and Juliet, the two confide in each other and form a bond. They rely on one another, both unable to survive (almost literally and metaphorically) without the other. The film, at times, moves a bit slow, but with it's lofty storyline and brilliant characters (much like Where the Wild Things Are) Let Me In should not to be missed.

Although this is considered romance, it's safe to say that Let Me In leans to the horror genre, too with it's tactful scenes of mutilation (oxymoron?) like that in The Wolf Man to it's frightening storyline of the commitment to a lifelong task made at such a young age before one can comprehend the audacity and consequences of said task.

This review was originally posted on Rotten Tomatoes. For more Popcorn Movie Reviews, click here. 

Excerpt from "Q & A" by Brian Rowe

“Mr. Hauser! Theo!”

The man with the briefcase skipped up to the director in a droll manner that suggested he was a child in a grown man’s body.

“I’m sorry,” the director said. “I have to go. Good night.”

“I just have one more thing for you to sign, I promise.”

He put his briefcase down and pulled up the guitar case. He started to open it when the side door of the limo unlocked.

“Good bye,” the director said.

He opened and shut his door before the man could stop him.

“No! Wait!”

“Go!” the director shouted at his driver.

As the limousine started pushing forward, the man started chasing after it. He pressed the palm of his left hand against the side window and dragged his heavy guitar case with the fingers of his right. He lost his grip when the limousine made a right on busy San Vicente and started speeding down the center lane.

The director closed his eyes and didn’t open them again until he knew he was out of Santa Monica and back on the freeway, heading toward his home in the San Fernando Valley.

Another crazy fan evaded.

About Brian Rowe
Brian Rowe is a writer and filmmaker living in Los Angeles, California. He graduated from Loyola Marymount University in 2007 with a B.A. in Film Production. He has written five feature-length screenplays, as well as over fifty short films. His short story “Kelly” was published in Mobius Magazine, and his short story “Pumpkin Milkshake” was published in Horror Bound Magazine. He has recently finished his first novel.

Editors' Note: Read the rest of "Q & A," a tale about a cult slasher film director and a fan who loves his work a little too much, like a cross between Tales from the Crypt and Joe Hill's short story "Best New Horror," in Tainted Tea's Fall 2010 issue.

Afternoon Shorts: "Chainsaw Maid"

I know we say that horror isn't just the gore, but this claymation short is good, campy fun. The title says it all. Thank you, Pes, for sharing.

And in other news, Shane and I are putting together the Fall 2010 issue. Release date coming soon!

Kickass Trailer: "The Whisper in Darkness" & Short Story

Based on H.P. Lovecraft's short story of the same name, "HPLHS Motion Picture release [this] classic tale of alien horror shot in genuine Mythoscope by the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society."

Tainted Tea in The Delaware County News Network

We have a new feature about us published in The Delaware County News Network. Read the article here.

Blood and Puppets Cabaret Seeks Performers Dec. 7

Dear Ghouls, Goblins, Reanimated Corpses and Generally Grotesque-Looking Individuals,

Have you been seeking the opportunity to recite a frightening tale, perform your dark side, inflict utter horror upon a semi-expecting audience? Blood and Puppets is seeking interest and proposals for a horror-themed cabaret (a macabaret if you will) that can include, though is not limited to, burlesque, drag, poetry, story-telling, original music and cover bands, humour, visual art, and puppet theater.

Performances should be no longer than 15 minutes in length and be in the genre of horror or have dark undertones(obviously).

Blood and Puppets will take place on Tuesday December 7th at the Rotunda in West Philadelphia.

Please spread the word like an infectious flesh eating disease (though hopefully more pleasantly).

Most(ly)Sincere
Geppetta

**This cabaret will be a benefit for the Sent(a)mental Project, a memorial to LGBTQ suicides http://sentamentalproject.weebly.com/**