Really Awful Movies: Ep 75b – Ryan M. Andrews, Director of Save Yourself

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We said this about Save Yourself: “If Save Yourself comes to your town, do yourself a favor and drop everything right away to go see it.”

The film, which stars Jessica Cameron, Tristan Risk, Ryan Barrett and Tianna Nori, is about budding filmmakers who become unlikely subjects in a nefarious experiment. Save Yourself recently screened in New York City and as part of the Blood in the Snow Festival here in Toronto.

Director Ryan M. Andrews is a guy who’s worth watching. Andrews attended Niagara College and Trebas Institute in Toronto for film production and came upon our radar with his movie Sick.

On this episode of the Really Awful Movies Podcast, he talked about independent film-making, the Canadian horror scene renaissance photography, movies that influenced him and casting. He’s a big fan of ensemble casting and eschews tried-and-true horror tropes.

With Save Yourself, he wanted to set out having viewers not know who’ll live or die. He’s always looking to defy expectations with his projects.

Save Yourself was a worthy entry in our list of the Top Horror Films of 2015.

 

 

Really Awful Movies: Ep 75 – Howling 2

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There are few sequels that managed to instantly erode/negate the goodwill generated by their superior, classic predecessors. Howling 2 is one such film. However it’s an interesting and unintentionally hilarious failure.

Featuring the unlikely bizarro casting of the legendary Christopher Lee alongside bumbleheaded naif Reb Brown, Howling 2 asks the question, where’s Joe Dante when you need him? The original director didn’t want anything to do with this one and rightly so.

The subtitle is Your Sister is a Werewolf and that comes into play as Ben (Brown) loses his sister to one of the savage beasts, and she becomes one. He seeks the help of the awesome Stefan Crosscoe (Lee) to explain the lycanthrope mystery.

Reel Film says this about the sequel: “virtually nothing here works, and it does become increasingly difficult to sustain any interest in the protagonists’ tedious exploits…”

C’mon!

There’s much to be said about Howling 2 and said exploits. There’s a hairy menage-a-trois (luckily not involving the aforementioned stars), and a glorious exploitation strip tease involving the incredibly hot Sybil Danning, who plays Stirba, Queen of the Werewolves. There’s a hunchback Romanian innkeeper, some switchblade-wielding punks and a terrific score.

So while this isn’t Godfather 2 territory sequel wise, it’s at times a hoot. Join us.

Find more reviews www.reallyawfulmovies.com, and be sure and subscribe to weekly episodes of the Really Awful Movies Podcast.

Really Awful Movies: Ep 74b – Black Christmas

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Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to everyone. In the spirit of giving, we at the Really Awful Movies Podcast, are giving our listeners a holiday treat — what is arguably the first slasher ever, Black Christmas.

Featuring a POV killer, pre-Carpenter’s Halloween, and a whole lot of mouth- breathing dirty phone calls, Black Christmas is a lovely film which still has the ability to shock. It’s well worth a look, especially as an alternative to the ubiquitous ELF or It’s a Wonderful Life.

On this episode of the show, we delve into Canadian horror…and the impact of Black Christmas.

In the mid-70s, director Bob Clark (Porky’s/Murder by Decree) gave us this, a film which features tropes later beaten like a dead horse and requiring dental identification in the slasher boom: you’ve got the threatening phone calls, the sorority sisters trapped in a house, disbelieving authority figures, a killer with a murky backstory and of course, blood.

To heck with Bing Crosby, we’re dreaming of a Black Christmas. This one may haunt your nightmares, although it’s been usurped by later films and somewhat stripped of its influence as years have gone by. However, its place in the horror pantheon is undeniable.

Don’t forget to check out new episodes of the Really Awful Movies Podcast every Friday.