Dollar Bin Horror Spotlight - Monster Cops

Monster Cops is a Web Series that takes a mockumentary look into the world of Shadow Company, a secret government agency dedicated to investigating and protecting the world from Monsters. Each episode is shot in a style thats a mix of COPS and Blair Witch. It ranges from serious and dramatic, to light hearted and funny. The acting ain't too bad and the story is pretty entertaining. I love how each episode seems to have something for everyone, whether it be the tone or the type of monster being dealt with that episode. Currently, the creators are working on making a dvd of the episodes and are asking for your donations to help. If you would like to help out, or simply check out the episodes, head on over to www.monstercops.com and read the blog and check out the vids. Heres a little preview of their newest episode, Monsters vs. Cops!

Winners Winners Chicken Dinners!

*Drum roll please* It's time to announce the winners of the Sherlock Holmes vs Jack The Ripper video games!

Cal M. sent this awesome rendition of his comic character, Ted, as Mr Holmes!

Hawk sent use a bit of evidence from Sherlock's viewing glass.

And Rashed sent in a little graphic art!

Congrats to all the winners, your prizes will be shipped next week. In all honesty, these were all the entries. I'm a little sad more people didn't enter and I'd like some feedback from the readers. Was it because you had to make artwork? Was it because you don't have an Xbox? Or were you just not interested in the game? Let me know! I'm working on getting more contests going and I wanna know what to do differently for the next one.

Favorite Zombie Books pt.1: Guides

In this multi part posting, I'll give you my favorite books to help you read up on some zombie literature. The first post will show you three indispensable books for when the shit really hits the fan: guides.


The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brookes
This is the Holy Grail of zombie survival guides. This book tells you everything you need to know to survive through the apocalypse. What weapon should I use? Where should I hide out? Can zombies swim? All these questions and more will be answered by this book. It goes into great detail in order for you to understand everything you need to survive. It reads like a real manual, is easy to comprehend, and in the event of a zombie attack, I wouldn't be caught dead without a gun in on hand and this book in the other.


The Zombie Survival Guide: How To Live Like A King After The Outbreak by Etienne DeForest
Ok, so we know exactly how to survive an apocalypse...but what fun is that if you spend the rest of your life running, hiding, and fighting? Wouldn't it be great to have a trained zombie to all your work for you? Well my friends, this is the book for you! But no only does it teach you how to train a zombie, it gives you all the information you'll need to rule your new found post-apocalyptic playhouse. Plus it's full of more survival tips, so be sure to carry this one too!


The Zen of Zombie by Scott Kenemore
"Wait this isn't a survival guide at all!" you may be thinking to yourself. But what do all the action movie heroes always say? You gotta THINK like you enemy to BEAT your enemy! This book will teach you everything you'll need to know to get into the mindset of the undead. How to act, think, talk, and care (or lack there of) like a zombie would. And once you can get into the head of these undead fiends, theres no stopping you! Plus, if your not facing a zombie apocalypse at this very point in time, the tips in this book can make your day to day life more bearable!

Keep these three books close to you at all time when the shit hits the fan, cause we all know we tend to forget important shit in times of stress.

Dollar Bin Film - "The Bat"

A crazed killer known as "The Bat" is on the loose in a mansion full of people.

As we all know already, if Vincent Price is in it, I love it. But this time, we not only get the master, but the lovely Agnes Moorehead plays the co-staring role of the novelist who turns out to be the hero of the film! The story of the film has actually been made twice before this one was made, but Price adds his fresh flair to the story through his acting. And it's a great story, full of mystery and suspense. Is the killer a man, or a beast with wings? If you've seen it, you know the answer. If you haven't, it will keep you guessing till the end.
P.S. if your REALLY broke, This film has fallen into the public domain and can be freely downloaded from http://www.archive.org/details/The_Bat.mpeg

Five Dolla Holla: Pumpkinhead

A man conjures up a gigantic vengeance demon called Pumpkinhead to destroy the teenagers who accidentally killed his son.

This film is multi-faceted for me. Not only is it scary as all hell, but it's emotional. As soon as the little boy gets hit with the dirt bike by the asshole drunk who thinks it's perfectly fine to push around his girlfriend, I was both angry and sad. Hell I was rooting for Pumpkinhead most of the movie! It's like the movie intentionally wanted to get you pissed off at the dude just so you felt great when he got fucked up (am I going to hell for rooting for a demon? oh well)! The acting was pretty good for an 80's film and yes the effects were a bit cheesy, but the whole film is just so fun to watch, I don't think anyone will care about a bit of cheese. I now know why so many horror fans love this movie, and I'm on board the love train for Pumpkinhead!

Dollar Bin Horror Spotlight - Redmoon Features

I was recently emailed about an inde comic company called Redmoon Features. Now I love comics, so whats better than some indie zombie comics! The site is full of comic previews, cool features to read, and while the site store is currently under construction, I hope you all can take the time to check out the hard work of the folks over at Redmoon! And because talking about killer comics just ain't fun unless your sharing, here a preview of the upcoming comic "Montague"!

Check out my New Blog!

If you were following my Rhonny Reaper's Rants blog, then you may have noticed it has miraculously changed into an entirely different blog. I really didn't use it anyways, so I thought why not turn it into something useful, something interesting, something lovely. So now, Rhonny's Rants is now Monster Beauty, a blog dedicated to women of classic horror. I's a picture blog showcasing the most beautiful and graceful women to hit the silver screen of terror. It is my ode to women in horror and I hope you all take the time to check it out, and follow it!
http://monster-beauty.blogspot.com/

***IMPORTANT NOTE***

If you were following this blog at it's old URL (ravingreaper.blogspot.com), unfollow then refollow to receive blog updates in your blogger followed blog feeds! Sorry for any inconvenience :(

Dollar Bin Horror Spotlight - Mando Franco

Mando Franco is a multi-talented man. Not only is he a stand up comic and writer, but he's starting to make his mark on the indie horror scene. He's the creator of Evil Panda Films, the director of the new horror web series 8.13, and he even has a great short film on Facebook called Lunar. Mando was kind enough to take the time out of his busy schedule to answer a few questions about these projects.

Q: Could you explain how you got into making short films and a little bit about Evil Panda Films?

A: I'd always been a movie lover, but wasn't too fond of the horror genre for years, because I was
one of those kids that grew up scared of everything. I was an actor before I was anything else, at 16, I was in a creative writing class and had to make a short film. I started getting back into the Horror Genre at that time. I fell in love with the movie making process and felt I may have found my calling. I kept making films and thought I needed a production company and Evil Panda Films was born. You never hear about Panda attacks or them being anything but playful. But I think they are just underestimated.

Q: You have an amazing short on Facebook called "Lunar", could you tell the readers about the production and what went into making it?

A: LUNAR was basically made for fun, but the making of it was soley to have a blast while still making a picture that someone could enjoy. After a stint gone bad with a project, all the fun got sucked out of movie making for me. So I wanted to do something on my own that wouldn't give me any outside interference and have no producer breathing down my neck and no pain in the ass DP telling me what I couldn't shoot. So I wrote the script, grabbed some friends and shot at a buddy's house. I was behind the camera the whole time, got 2 actors, one big house, and a cheesy lookin' mask and monster gloves... Threw it all together and made a cat and mouse, B Monster movie. And it was fun. It was made for fun and shot quickly. It felt like I was in High School making movies again and that's what it was all about for me. Making a flick with my friends and loving what I'm doing. I don't do this for the money, I do it because I love doing it. When money and suits get involved, you have less control and a lot of headaches. I'd rather work with people I loved with pennies than a fat budget and be miserable. It was a tiny lil production just made to show people online. And I wanted to make an entertaining lil popcorn flick, and so far I've gotten the best reviews on that flick than I've gotten on any of my other shorts.

Q: You directed the teaser for the web series 8.13, which looks exciting and fun. What can expect from the series?

A: 8.13 will scare the shit out of you. That's what you can expect... Um, it's pretty much a series
set in Los Angeles, on a particular date, I'll let you guess what it is... And pretty much it is the
dawn of a zombie uprising. When I first signed on, there wasn't really a story, so I helped develop the
story with the shows Producers, Traycee King and Beau Ryan as well as the series writer, Melissa Kay, and we came up with the characters and outline. And I made it clear, as much as I love zombie flicks... If we make this a 'horror' show, it's going to come off as campy, lets go a different direction and make it about survival. This is a survival drama, with zombies. It's very grounded and very much a... what would you do? If this really happened. So the fact that it's a grounded series with a small ensemble of characters makes it more intimate and scary as hell. So, keep an eye out, the show Launches Friday, August 13th.

Q: What are your future plans for Evil Panda Films?

A: Tons! I have a lot in store. I'm pretty much am focusing on the series right now. But in between I'm always writing. I've got a feature that supposed to hit DVD later this year at some point, and I have some screenplays I'm shopping around. But as of right now, it's 813 that is taking up all my time.
I'm thinking of maybe doing a super low low budget supernatural feature at the very end of the year, I think I'm in the place I need to be to do another feature, which will be my 5th, but I don't want to plan
too far ahead with another project. There is a good shot the series may get picked up, so that will take my career a different direction, one I wouldn't mind going. I love the show and would love to do another season, but we'll have to wait and see.

Dollar Bin Horror Spotlight - Scared Stiff TV

Douglas A. Plomitallo is a filmmaker from Connecticut. He graduated from Quinnipiac University in 2003 with a degree in Communications. He is a life-long horror fan and is happy to finally give back to the genre that has given him so many great hours of entertainment. He's the creator of the fantastic web series Scared Stiff and took the time to site down and answer a few questions for the DBH readers.

Q: How did you get started with Scared Stiff?

A: Well throughout my education and during my career in video production, my goal has always been to make movies. I did anything I could to learn the different aspects of the industry. I was constantly writing scripts, taking classes and learning different techniques in filmmaking. I started working part time in New York as an extra in film and television just so I could get on the set and learn what it was really like in the industry. I was on shows like "Law and Order" and "Hope and Faith" and just trying to soak in as much as I could. I really was a student of the craft.

I taught myself how to edit and do special effects with the hope of one day working closely with a director on a film and seeing where that would lead. I worked hard at it but realized that what I was doing just wasn't paying the bills. So I took my editing and compositing knowledge and began working in the corporate field. A few years went by and I was getting further away from the industry that was my passion. At that point, I was 28 and was working at a job that I wasn't particularly happy with. I was doing corporate videos for a company that I really felt disrespected at and I was pretty miserable coming to work everyday. I started to feel trapped in the corporate field and began to think my filmmaking career would never happen. One day it just came to me that if I didn't make a move on my career, then nothing would ever come of it, and the dream would end. So I came up with the idea to take my knowledge of film, video and web design and put it to good use.

So I wrote a few scripts, bought some equipment, grabbed a friend and started shooting a few episodes with whoever was willing to help me out. I figured that if the product was good, and people believed in it, they would want to join the team to help bring the show to the next level. So we just came making them with the goal of raising the bar with each episode.

Q: How long does it take to make an episode and what goes into the making of it?

A: It all starts with an idea. Sometimes I brainstorm for an ideas, sometimes something cool will just pop into my head. I usually develop the story in my head before writing it down. Once I have it all together, I put it all on paper. If I like the idea and think that it is worth moving ahead with, I will start developing the characters. I find that if the characters are fully developed, the dialogue will right itself. I give myself a couple weeks of re-reading it and fine-tuning it.

Once the script is set, we pick the actors who would best fit the role. The actual shooting time depends on the episode. The amount of locations, complexity of the script and the length of the episode really play a factor. For instance "Tiny's Halloween" needed four separate locations so it was filmed in four really cold nights in October. While "A Whisper in the Wind" was shot in two days with an extra day for voiceovers. The still photos for "The Camera" were all shot in a day, but there were several days of prepping the pictures for the edit. So it really depends on the script.

After everything is shot, we have several weeks of editing, color correction, sound editing, getting the soundtrack together and then the episode is ready!

Q: What made you get into the Horror genre? Any particular films, actors, or directors?

A: I have been a fan of the horror genre since I was very young. I remember being competely fascinated with "Tales From the Darkside" when I was about four or five years old. It was completely different from anything I had ever watched before. In sixth grade, my teacher gave us an assignment to write a fictional story based on anything we wanted. Since it was October, naturally I wrote a scary story. It only had to be a page or two, but I kept writing and writing and pretty much wrote a novel. That's really where I got the "horror itch." Early in high school, my friend had a video camera and we used it to make short movies, most of them horror.

Although, there was a defining moment where I decided I wanted to make horror movies for a living. I always watched scary movies when I was younger and I knew that there must be other people who were into them as much as I was. Very few of my friends were into horror, so I didn't have many people to talk to about the genre. Well one day, I was taking a train home from visiting my older sister at her college in Rhode Island and I picked up a Fangoria magazine for the ride. I was completely shocked! I didn't realize that there was such an incredible fan-base that were devoted completely to the genre. That Fangoria magazine really opened my eyes and from that moment, I decided that I was going to become a horror filmmaker.

As far as movies that inspired me, I have always been a huge fan of the "Halloween" and "Friday the 13th" movies. Like most other horror fans, I have lost count on how many times I have seen those movies. The original "Halloween" probably had the most effect on me. The use of music, lighting, atmosphere, and really awesome characters really had an impact on me. As a matter of fact,"Tiny's Halloween" has a lot of homage to the original "Halloween." Some obvious, some a little more subtle.

Q: Where can we watch the episodes and learn more about Scared Stiff?

A: Scared Stiff can be seen on the official website: www.ScaredStiff.tv or they can be seen in High Definition on our YouTube channel YouTube.com/ScaredStiffTV.

Five Dolla Holla: Dolls

A group of people stop by a mansion during a storm and discover two magical toy makers, and their haunted collection of dolls.

If there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I have a thing for creepy dolls. So it doesn't really matter if the film is good or bad, as long as it got creepy dolls in it, I'm gonna love it. Luckily, this film wasn't bad at all. In fact, it was pretty flippin awesome! It has characters you love to hate and cheer for when the little dollies finally take em out. The acting wasn't too bad at all, the effects were great for an 80's film, and the story is just so much damn fun! Of course it has some 80's cheese, but it just makes it that much more enjoyable. I'm not sure it will scare any of the big kids anymore, but I bet if you have a doll in your house, you might walk past is a little quicker than you used to. If you think Chucky is bad ass, check out Dolls!

Dollar Bin Film - "Gothic"

The story of the night Mary Shelley conceived the story of Frankenstein.

This has got to be the most confusing film that I have ever seen. Sure, the film has stunning visuals and two great actors in the leading roles, but if you don't understand what the hell is going on, who cares? The whole story is a very fictitious account of the night Mary Shelley thought up her classic tale Frankenstein. Now I'm all for imaginative story telling, but the whole drug induced visions and the over the top story telling is just way to much. I would have liked it a lot more if they would have just stuck to what actually happened that night. In reality, everyone told scary stories and Mary Shelley dreamed the story which the film makers could have easily turned into stunningly visual mini stories throughout the film, instead they twisted it into drug induced hallucinations that were on the borderline of stupid. The closest thing I can compare the film to is a hot bimbo, sure it's pretty to look at, but there ain't much else to it.

Top 5 Weapons to use incase of a Zombie Outbreak

My Last Zombie Awareness Month post went over the basic anatomy of the undead. Now that we know you must destroy the brain and/ or sever the spinal column, here are the best weapon choices in combat with the zombies.

#5. Crowbar
Pros: Heavy enough to fracture skull yet light enough to carry around, no ammo required
Cons: May take multiple hits for a kill, Closed Combat weapon

#4 Shovel
Pros: Effecting in decapitation and skull fracturing if aimed right, no ammo required
Cons: May be vary heavy to carry around all day, may get dull, close combat weapon

#3 Axe
Pros: Effective in decapitation and killing the undead, no ammo required
Cons: Must keep sharp, close combat weapon

#2 Machete
Pros: Effective in decapitation and killing the undead, very lightweight, no ammo required
Cons: Must keep sharp, close combat weapon

#1 Guns
Pros: Effective in killing the undead, does not require you to be in close quarters with the enemy
Cons: Having enough ammo, must be able to aim

So next time you come face to face with a face that wants to eat yours, have these on hand and kick some undead ass!

Dollar Bin Horror Spotlight - Dead Set: A Zombie Anthology

A collection of stories from numerous authors all pertaining to the Undead.

This book is amazing. Editors Michelle McCrary and Joe McKinney bring together twenty stories by twenty authors (two of which are themselves) to tell delightfully dreadful stories of zombies, survival, and sometimes just crazy ass folk fighting zombies. Each story has it's own unique voice and it's own way of grabbing the readers attention and keeping you hooked. None of the stories are longer that 20-30 pages, so It's easy to read in intervals if you don't like to read a lot all at once (which I know a lot of my friends don't). The stories vary in style, from heart wrenching, to violent, to just plain funny and bizarre at times. Theres even a story called Zombies on a Plane (I have to admit, as soon as I saw the title, it was the first story I read, and loved). It's hard to choose a favorite because they're all so amazing, but I must say my personal favorite was the story Recess by Rob Fox. It was written in amazing detail for a story less that ten pages long and had all the action of the best horror films...with elementary students as the zombie fighters. This book is a must read for zombie fans, horror fans, and hell I'll even go as far as to say anyone who reads, because there's a story for everyone's taste in here. Pick up your own copy HERE.

Dollar Bin Horror Spotlight - Dead Road

Dead Road is a web series that takes place two years after the zombie apocalypse has broken out. It mainly follows two survivors of the terror on there quest to find more survivors. Created by Corrado Gadaleta, this web series is made on almost no budget at all and is free to watch. The episodes are short (only four to eight minutes each) but in each of these short time frames, wee see how well thought out each story is. The acting isn't too bad and the writing is pretty good for a little web series. Even with such a low budget, the zombies look pretty good and the episodes are overall entertaining to watch. You can just tell that Gadaleta loves and knows his horror. I love watching little low budget gems online like this because the people who make them don't do it for the money, fame, or attention, they do it because they love horror and it shows throughout each episode. So if you have just a few minutes to spare today, check out Dead Road. In fact, watch the first episode right here right now! Then head over to Deadroad.net to view the rest!

Dead Road Episode 1 from CORRADO on Vimeo.

Dollar Bin Horror Spotlight - The Bloody Ape (Screener Review)

A carnival barker foolishly releases his 400 pound gorilla, who goes bananas on a rampage pf raw rape and boffo butchery - leaving the low rent population of Long Island either sexually violated, slaughtered, or both!

I'm love the throwback grainy style of shooting and the grindhouse shock value, but it suffered from the same downfall I've seen in so many low budget indie productions, the first half of the film is dull. There was so much unnecessarily long dialog and it took forever to get into the film. But when the action finally started, it was shocking and really got into the 70's grindhouse style. Hot naked women, blood and gore, bestiality between an ape and his victim, yeah this film has em all (just not in the first half)! The film itself was well shot and the acting was mediocre at best but it added to the 70's grindhouse feel in a strange way. The whole film is somewhat of a depraved, disturbed version of Edgar Allen Poe's Murders in the Rue Morgue. Even with the dull opening, if you give the film time to get into the good parts, it's a great and shocking ode to 70's trash. So check it out HERE!

Dollar Bin Film - "Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla"

Two goofy entertainers meet a mad scientist on a jungle island.

I got this film a while back from Bill over at Radiation-Scarred Reviews and have been saying I'll review it for the longest time...well here it is! I loved this film. It's just so funny and entertaining that you can't not enjoy yourself while watching it! Bela Lugosi is brilliantly funny as the wacky mad doctor who wants to find the link between man and ape by experimenting on the new visitors to the island. Charlita plays the beautiful Nona, who keeps distracting the doc with her beauty and charm, and makes him very jealous of Duke, played by Duke Mitchell. Sammy Petrillo's imitation of Jerry Lewis had me rolling on the floor it was so spot on! (Lewis actually threatened to sued him for breach of copyright, yeah it was that good!). The reason I loved this movie so much is it never took itself seriously and Bela Lugosi looked as if he really enjoyed acting every minute of this film. Plus, if you know anything about the pair of Duke and Sammy and their live stand-up performances they used to do, you'll adore it even more. It's a well made, well written, and pretty well acted horror comedy that will keep you laughing and hooked for the whole ride. It is genuinely funny and lighthearted and I think that if you give it a view, you'll fall in love too.

A Zombie's Anatomy: What You Need to know to Survive

Today for my First Zombie Awareness Month post, I wanna go over the basics of the zombie's inner working so you know what to expect when facing one of theses man eating creatures face to face.

1.) Muscular System: A zombie is a person who has died and been reanimated, therefore there muscles will not get stronger, hence there are no fast zombies in real life, just the movies. They are decaying just like the rest of him, so you can use speed to your advantage.

2.) Respiratory System: Again a zombie is dead, so it does not need to stop for a breather when the horde is moving in on you. He can go on forever with his mission to get your brains as long as he hasn't decayed to much so when on the move, pace yourself. It would really blow if the reason you got ate was because you were out of breath!

3.) Digestive System: The dead cannot digest food, but because of the zombie virus, the hunger pains never stop. A zombie will eat until his stomach bursts open...and if enough of his body hasn't been destroyed by that, he'll keep eating till you kill it. They don't need nutrition, so you'll be eaten whether you love salads or twinkies.

4.)Skeletal System: The bones of a zombie really don't get weak because of death. It takes thousands of years for a mummy's bones to turn to dust, so don't expect a broken bone to affect a zombie's course straight to your tasty brain.

5.) Nervous System: This is the most important system of them all. The virus that turns the dead into flesh eating monsters rely on the brain. It infects it and brings it back to life, even though the rest of the body is dead. It has only the most basic of functions and craves food constantly. Since it is the only part of a zombie that is actually working, this is where you must get it. Shoot them in the head, decapitate them, just whatever you do, destroy the brain!

These are the basics of what you'll need to know when the shit hits the fan. Learn it. Study it. And learn how to aim toward the head!

It's Zombie Awareness Month, Are You Ready?

May is the official Zombie Awareness Month. It's the time to get educated and get prepared for the imminent zombie apocalypse. It is headed by the Zombie Research Society, and organization dedicated to researching and reporting on the zombie epidemic. But not only are the reporting the facts this month, but everyday on there official blog, they'll be having some killer sweet giveaways for all the readers! So head over to the blog, check out the awesomeness, and don't forget to sport your gray ribbons in support of Zombie Awareness Month!
Here on DBH, I'll be doing a few zombie related posts getting you prepared, educated, and hopefully entertained enough that you absorb enough of the crucial information about these flesh eating creatures so that when the come, you'll be as ready as you can be. So stay tuned this month, the first Zombie post will be tomorrow!

Sending Deadly Kisses,
Rhonny Reaper

Enter The "Play Till You Drop" Contest!

Dreamcatcher Inc. has giving Dollar Bin Horror three copies (yes three!!!) of their killer new game for the Xbox 360, Sherlock Holmes vs Jack the Ripper, for the readers of DBH to win (that's a $40 value, free)! Here's a game description:

A murderous mystery masterpiece featuring the greatest sleuth and infamous killer!

A horrible series of murders are uncovered in the eastern district of London and the police have no serious leads. Take on the role of master sleuth Sherlock Holmes as you venture into the dark, grim streets of London searching for the macabre trail of… Jack the Ripper. During this terrifying adventure, Sherlock will attempt to shed some light on the mystery that shrouds the identity and motive of the infamous killer.

FEATURES

• From the award-winning developers of Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened
• Scour eerie environments and interrogate mysterious suspects
• Search carefully for clues in first-person, or zoom-out to third-person and observe the incredible surroundings
• An original system that allows you to piece together individual crimes and test your hypothesis as the investigation unfolds

The contest will run from now through May 17th (2 weeks) and the winners will be announced that Friday (May 21).
To enter, I wanna see your artsy side! It can be a drawing, photoshop, painting, photography, a costume, something along those lines. The only catch? It has to be about Sherlock Holmes and/or Jack the Ripper! The three most unique, interesting, or funny artworks will win a free video game!
There are two ways to submit your pics:
1. Send an email to RhonnyReaper@yahoo.com with the title "Sherlock Ripper Contest Entry" with your art attached (please remember to title your emails or they may get lost!).
2. Post the picture on the DBH Facebook page with the caption "Sherlock Ripper Contest Entry"
One entry per person, multiples will be disqualified! If you are entering through Facebook you must be a fan to enter.

To check the game out, head HERE for more info! Good luck!

Sending Deadly Kisses,
Rhonny Reaper

Dollar Bin Horror Spotlight - Carthage & The Stitcher (Screener Reviews)

The reason I'm reviewing these two films together is because they go together. Carthage is a short film that was later turned into the feature length film The Stitcher, both of wich are from Next Money Horror Films.

Carthage:

When Ted and Stacy travel to the town of Carthage to find out if there is any truth to the legend of a bloody murderer known as Mr. Buttons, they soon discover that small towns have their own way of keeping secrets.

Carthage is an entertaining low budget short film that has a unique and interesting story to tell. It was based on a true story of a serial killer from the 1800's who would keep the buttons of his victims as trophies. But the story in the film isn't that simple. The killer in this film likes to sew the buttons to himself due to events from his insane childhood (I don't wanna give the whole story away). I will say that the short is well made and does a great job of capturing a believable horror atmosphere in such a short time. The only thing I didn't like was the look of the killer in the short, it was a bit cheap looking but It's super low budget so I understand. This takes use to the feature length film that would come out of this short....

The Stitcher:


Something strange is happening in this eerie backwoods town. Inspired by true events, a group of friends must survive the weekend in order to escape the terror that is beyond their imagination. This blood curdling story is a shock a minute horror rush.... You’ve been warned!

This film left me a bit more mixed than the short did. The first half of the film was more comical that scary. It was full of weed and alcohol humor, which in some films works, but I felt this film would have been better off without it. It took away from the atmosphere of the film. The first half had a few scatter murders throughout it, but I felt it took a bit too long to get into the real action of the film. The second half of the film though was great! The acting is definitely better the second half, the action picks up immensely, and the small twists in the film were exciting and fun for a horror fan to watch. Plus, the killer gets a killer face lift from the short film (he looks friggin cool!) The gore was effective and some of it was really good for such a low budget film. The bonus features on the dvd are pretty cool too. The behind the scenes feature shows how the whole film was made with pretty much two women as the whole crew (how they did it boggles my mind, I would have gone nuts!) and includes some great music videos (this film has amazing music by indie band Radio Radio, my new musical obsession thanks to this film). Overall, I liked it but I wished the action picked up sooner. I think it's worth a look and makes me want to see what else Next Monkey Horror has to offer!