THE SHINING Prequel THE OVERLOOK HOTEL Trudges Onward...

Header courtesy of NabundaNada @ DeviantArt

As a horror fan, it's hard to report news like this without any bias. You guys know my stance on The Shining, and the place that it holds in my personal life, and as happy as I am to know that this isn't a remake I am still a bit uncertain about the news that The Overlook Hotel, a prequel to Kubrick's masterpiece, is in the works and has secured a director. 

I think that out of all the remakes/reboots/what-have-you that the horror world has seen in the past decade, this will draw some of the heaviest speculation simply because Kubrick's work is regarded as some of the best in the film world, not only the horror world. 

Rumors of this project began circulating sometime ago and it appears that they were more than just rumors. Mark Romanek (One Hour Photo) has laid claim to the directors chair with a draft written by Greg Mazzara (The Walking Dead). James Vanderbilt (The Amazing Spider Man), Brad Fischer (Zodiac) and Laeta Kalogridis (Shutter Island) will be producing. In May, Alfonso Cuaron (Gravity) was heavily rumored to have first rights in terms of directing the flick, and in all honesty, I would be much more interested in he were the one helming the project. His use of atmosphere in Gravity was mesmorizing, and while Romanek's One Hour Photo was plenty chilling, that film came out twelve years ago. That's a pretty big gap between major productions, minus the slew of music videos he's directed over the years. 

King's original prologue (which was later cut before the book went to print in '77) stands as the basis for the film, which "will tell the origin story of the Overlook Hotel through the eyes of its first owner, Bob T. Watson. A robber baron at the turn of the 20th century, Watson scaled the remote peaks of the Colorado Rockies to build the grandest resort in America, and a place he and his family would also call home“.

For now, as always, we wait and we see what's going to come of this new project.  No word has come of yet as to whether or not King will be involved, but seeing as this is one of the novels that hit's closest to home for him, I can't imagine that he won't. Hopefully Romanek won't Kubrick him and effectively shut him out of production on this one, as my hope for this project lies in whether or not King is involved. 

Either way, speculation is fun and there is going to be a ton of that going on until we get more details. Will they recreate the same look for the Overlook? Will they use the original source material and film at the Stanley, as King's mid-90's mini-series did, in Estes Park? Will we see Dan Lloyd return for a cameo in this installment? And what about getting backstory from the original? Will we see the massacre of the Grady twins, or the demise of the woman in room 217 (although it will probably remain 237 for continuity's sake)? 

What do you all think? Are you ready for another jaunt in the halls of the Overlook? 

Kate Beckinsale Stars in New Thriller THE DISAPPOINTMENTS ROOM

Courtesy of Deadline, news has broken that Relativity has closed a deal to fully finance The Disappointments Room. Kate Beckinsale (Underworld) has signed on to star in the film that will be directed by D.J. Caruso (Disturbia).

"Inspired by a true event, The Disappointments Room tells the story of one family’s terror-filled encounter within their own home. Looking for a fresh start, Dana (Kate Beckinsale) and David, together with their 5-year-old son Jeremy, move into their dream house, a beautiful old rural home. Hidden within the attic was a secret room. When frightening and unexplainable events lead Dana to discover the long lost key to this room, she accidentally unlocks a host of unimaginable horrors that reveal the house’s past is terrifyingly tied with her own."

The film is being described as a "Shining-esque" thriller which, of course, piqued my interest from the get go, but it gets better from there in that Wentworth Miller (writer; Stoker) has penned the script, and I absolutely loved Stoker. 

The Disappointments Room will be begin shooting in August. 

10 Facts You May Not Have Known About THE SHINING

Back on October 30^th, I had the opportunity to see my personal favorite film on the big screen for the first time, and what an experience it was. To experience The Exorcist in that fashion was a beautiful experience, but The Shining… that was borderline religious. I spent All Hallows Eve with a packed house of eager faced people, some who had never seen the film, others just as big a fan as I am, and the Torrance family, and it could not have been more perfect. 

I had yet to see it in this format, it’s true format, and after seeing The Exorcist, I couldn’t wait. In honor of that, let’s take a look at the iconic film by Stanley Kurbick and some facts about the film that may surprise you.

Now, I’ve been wanting to write a series about King for a while. I’m sure a few of you may remember me discussing this a while back, but it’s been a daunting task. I mean, I have so many thoughts about his work, that’s it’s hard to express in a length that would be tolerable to read. You can absolutely expect a very in depth analysis of this film in the future, but for now, let’s celebrate it with this list of facts and trivia about the 1980 classic.

DOCTOR SLEEP - A Literary Review by Rg Lovecraft

Oooooh Stephen King. How's it been goin', old friend? I feel like we haven't sat down and had a good adventure together in quite sometime. 

It should come as no surprise to you guys that I love me some Stephen King. He's one of those guys over whom I would squeal like a little girl if I was to see him in a grocery store, or pumping gas at the local Chevron. The sad thing about King is that his novels are never properly adapted for the big screen, it's something I've grown to accept. I don't believe that King's writing style can ever properly be conveyed in a visual format, he has such a personal, internalized writing style. Being that the Moretz fronted Carrie remake is hits theaters today (and the reviews are far from flattering) I thought today is a good day to focus on the man himself, the man behind the scenes, and his latest novel Doctor Sleep. 

I have been hotly anticipating this one for a little over a year, when I first heard that it was happening. A sequel to The Shining, and thank the heavens that it was Stephen King doing so and not Warner Bros. It says a lot about the faith and trust that I have in King that I can hear something like this, and not have a second thought. Just pure and complete excitement. I mean, we finally get to see what happens to Danny Torrance (now simply Dan), and how he copes with the aftermath of the tragedy in Sidewinder, Colorado. 

Now, if you're not familiar with the The Shining in it's true, original state, there will be some spoilers. If you don't care, or have read the novel, just highlight over those blank portions. 

The novel picks up after those terrible events, The Overlook has burned down and Danny and Wendy have escaped it's wraith, but Danny is still haunted by Mrs. Mackey and Horace Derwent. Not only have they followed him halfway across the country, but after some help from Dick Hallorann, Danny has found a way to use the shining to his advantage and lock them up in mental lockboxes for safe keeping. From here on out, we are taken many years into the future. Dan Torrance is now an adult, leading a life addled by alcoholism and poor decisions. He drinks to block the shining, which has haunted him his entire life. 

After a terrible encounter involving copious amounts of alcohol, cocaine and a curious toddler, Dan hops a train and heads north where he eventually ends up in a small sleepy town in New Hampshire where he not only finds work, but he begins his path to sobriety and finally finds some semblance of normalcy and purpose in life. He gets a job working for a local hospice in which he uses his talents to help the elderly guests (they are not patients in the Helen Rivington Home, but guests) pass onto their next spiritual journey. This is when he meets Abra, a girl who shines even harder than he did as a child, and the group of vampiric immortals who feed off of children who shine as a form of sustenance, but only after it's been purified through their pain and torment. What follows is a suspense trip unlike any other I've read in a King novel.

Something that a lot of people might find disappointing about this novel is the drastic stylistic differences between it and it's predecessor. It reads nothing like The Shining, and aside from the main characters name, you might never guess that it's a sequel to the supernatural novel. While The Shining was a tortured read of psychological terror and horror, this was more a suspense crime novel, wrought with psychic battles, telekinesis and telepathy. Does this make Doctor Sleep  a bad read? Absolutely not. Stephen King still has his touch, and it's just as much a page turner as anything else of his that I've read.

While I will say, The Shining is still the better of the two, King's character development is still spot on, especially in the case of young Abra Stone. One aspect of King's writing that has always amazed me is his ability to write children. He captures childlike innocence in such an amazing way. I am in no way a "children person", I steer clear of them and vice versa, however he is able to evoke emotions in me that I am sure are the very same that parents feel when staring at their beautiful little creations. King has definitely always had an affinity towards writing about children as well. The Shining, Pet Sematary, IT, etc. all prominently feature children, or the dynamic between child and father. Doctor Sleep is no different. 

I could go on for a while longer, but I'm bordering on analyzing King's writing as a whole (but that's for another post), but I will start to wrap things up now. Doctor Sleep is a great read, it's fun, it's engaging and as always, a page turner. While it does not compare to it's predecessor, it is important to keep in mind when reading this that not only is King in a different head space (it's been 30 years, and he's sober) the book is different. It is beautiful in it's own right though, there is the surface story, but the true underlying current is that of Dan Torrance and whether or not he will be able to finally let the grip that his father, and The Overlook has had on him all these years go. In that sense, it's a beautiful novel.

OVERALL RATING: 7/10

- Rg Lovecraft

Fan Art Find: The Overlook Gets Touristy

Fan art, especially in the horror world, is fucking awesome. I just stumbled across this poster inspired by The Shining. I have to have it.

Weekend Recap - What's New?

Hello all! I hope everyone had a delightfully terrifying weekend. Mine was very nice; relaxing and peaceful, which is exactly what I needed. I am sad to report, however, that due to traffic I was unable to make it to the screening of The Omen on time. I was so excited about getting to hear Richard Donner share his thoughts about the film that converted me to the world of horror at the rip age of 12, but if any of you have ever driven in Los Angeles before, you know how hard it can be to get into Hollywood on a Friday night. I was more excited about recording it so that I could share it with all of you. C'est la vie, I ended up catching Gravity (the latest Sandra Bullock/George Clooney suspense flick) down the street at the Chinese Theater, and while it's not a horror movie, it impacted me so much that I have to review it and share it with you guys. So be expecting that sometime this afternoon!

I also finished reading Stephen King's latest novel, Doctor Sleep, the sequel to his 1977 horror powerhouse The Shining. I was beyond excited to get started on it, and while I had to wait a week to start it, I savored every minute of it. While very different tonally from The Shining, it's still a phenomenal book that follows the later-in-life pursuits of the once young and poweful shiner Danny Torrance, after he's escaped the perils of The Overlook Hotel (physically, atleast). SO, there will be the first ever book review on Lovecraft Reviews. 

Speaking of book reviews, I have to extend an apology to Matthew Blake, the author of the amazing horror novel Awake. While it was set up in my queue for over a month ago, something went wrong and my review never got posted so that will be going up, as well as a Q&A with Mr. Blake discussing some of the finer points of his novel. 

SO, those were some of my weekend's festivities. What were yours? Sound off below!

- Rg Lovecraft

How You Know When Your Horror Obsession Has Reached New Heights

My extremely religious mother is a sweet heart. She thinks of nobody but herself, is widely considered a saint by my friends and has nightmares when she watches an episode of Law and Order. But she still knows to send her beloved son a picture of The Stanley Hotel when she's visiting Estes Park with my father (if you don't know what this is, you best be leavin' these parts). 
 

And that's when you know that horror culture has become one of the defining aspects of your life. Love you mom!

- Rg

Angelenos! Spend Your Halloween Season Cozying Up To The Classics on the Big Screen - Courtesy of ArcLight!

Arclight Cinemas in Los Angeles and San Diego will be showing a whole slew of classic horror flicks this year, in the weeks leading up to the hallowed day! This is probably always my favorite part of Halloween, getting to see this wonderful films in all of their glory on the big screen, and I have to say, this years selection is already proving to be wonderful. 

Here's the full list for ArcLight's special month long event called ArcLight Presents... Scary Stories. If you're in the LA area I hope to see you there! I bet you'll never guess which one's I'll be attending:   

GHOSTBUSTERS 

Sunday, October 13th at 5:00 PM: Beach Cities, La Jolla and Sherman Oaks locations

FRIDAY THE 13th

Thursday, October 17th at 8:00 PM: La Jolla and Pasadena locations

ARMY OF DARKNESS

 Sunday, October 20th at 8:00 PM: Beach Cities, La Jolla and Pasadena locations

THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETARY (Hand picked by Eli Roth)

Tuesday, October 22nd at 8:00 PM: Hollywood location

THE EXORCIST

Sunday, October 27th at 8:00 PM: Beach Cities, La Jolla, Pasadena and Sherman Oaks locations 

ALFRED HITCHCOCK'S PSYCHO

Monday, October 28th at 8:00 PM: Sherman Oaks location

EVIL DEAD 2: DEAD BY DAWN

Tuesday, October 29th at 8:00 PM: Pasadena location

THE SHINING

Wednesday, October 30th at 8:00 PM: Hollywood and La Jolla locations

You don't wanna miss this so make sure that you get your seats reserved ASAP and see you there! 

- Rg Lovecraft
 

HORROR IN PRINT - Stephen King Calls Out Kubrick's Vision of THE SHINING

 
Those who know me know that I am a very devout Shining fan. It's my favorite book, it's my favorite film, I've dressed as Torrance for Halloween, carved Shining inspired pumpkins, decorated my house with a variety of memorabilia and spent an 2 hours crying over that particular section at the Kubrick exhibit this year at LACMA. You get the point. 

Yet, I am still the first to admit that in terms of an book to screen adaptation, The Shining is a fucking horrible movie. Just about the only thing that the book and film have in common are the names of the characters, Kubrick had his own vision and while it was stunning, he completely shut King out of the production. Low blow, bro. 

King has never kept it a secret that he is not a fan of Kubrick's interpretation of the book. However, with Dr. Sleep looming over us now of course his views of the film are starting to come out in interviews. He recently shared some more insights that I had never heard before and I thought it was interesting enough to share on here.

In a recent interview with BBC: “[It's] cold, I’m not a cold guy. I think one of the things people relate to in my books is there’s a warmth, there’s a reaching out and saying to the reader, ‘I want you to be a part of this.’ And with Kubrick’s ‘The Shining’ I felt that it was very cold, very ‘We’re looking at these people, but they’re like ants in an anthill, aren’t they doing interesting things, these little insects.’”

When the subject of the two main characters was brought up: “Jack Torrence, in the movie, seems crazy from the jump. Jack Nicholson, I’d seen all his biker pictures in the 50s and 60s and I thought, ‘He’s just channeling The Wild Angels here,’” he said, “Shelley Duvall as Wendy is really one of the most misogynistic characters ever put on film, she’s basically just there to scream and be stupid and that’s not the woman that I wrote about.”

While right now isn't the right time for me to spew off my thoughts about the film (trust me, it'll take a while and that post is coming soon anyway) I've always said these things about the film, so it's nice to see the man himself reinforce my sentiments. 

More importantly, have you read the book and what do YOU think about the translation from book to film? Share those thoughts!

Get Dr. Sleep in a bookstore near you next Tuesday, September 24th. 

- Rg Lovecraft

HORROR IN PRINT: TV Ad for Stephen King's Sequel to The Shining: DOCTOR SLEEP

I am a huge Stephen King fan, in case you hadn't already noticed, and my favorite novel/film of all time is getting the sequel treatment (in the only way it should). In case you hadn't heard, King has written a sequel to The Shining entitled Doctor Sleep. It follows Danny Torrance in his more formative years and how he is using his mental abilities as he grows older. Below you can find the synopsis and a brand spankin' new TV ad for the book which will be released on September 24th, wherever books are sold.

The synopsis, per Amazon.com:

"Stephen King returns to the characters and territory of one of his most popular novels ever, The Shining, in this instantly riveting novel about the now middle-aged Dan Torrance (the boy protagonist of The Shining) and the very special twelve-year-old girl he must save from a tribe of murderous paranormals.

On highways across America, a tribe of people called The True Knot travel in search of sustenance. They look harmless—mostly old, lots of polyester, and married to their RVs. But as Dan Torrance knows, and spunky twelve-year-old Abra Stone learns, The True Knot are quasi-immortal, living off the “steam” that children with the “shining” produce when they are slowly tortured to death.


Haunted by the inhabitants of the Overlook Hotel where he spent one horrific childhood year, Dan has been drifting for decades, desperate to shed his father’s legacy of despair, alcoholism, and violence. Finally, he settles in a New Hampshire town, an AA community that sustains him, and a job at a nursing home where his remnant “shining” power provides the crucial final comfort to the dying. Aided by a prescient cat, he becomes “Doctor Sleep.”


Then Dan meets the evanescent Abra Stone, and it is her spectacular gift, the brightest shining ever seen, that reignites Dan’s own demons and summons him to a battle for Abra’s soul and survival. This is an epic war between good and evil, a gory, glorious story that will thrill the millions of devoted readers of The Shining and satisfy anyone new to the territory of this icon in the King canon"

Spooky Tunes: Lovecraft's Top 10 Horror Theme Songs

I’ve said it many times before, music (or lack there-of) makes a horror film. Over the past 50 years, the horror genre has pumped out some of the most iconic film scores of all time. Songs that send chills down your spine and make you think of impending doom every time you hear their ghastly melody.

I love a good horror soundtrack, it’s a big appeal for me and something that I think modern horror has lost a sense of. In this here article, I’m going to list some of the most iconic (as well as some of my favorite) horror theme songs that you may, or may not, have heard of.

10. The Shining – Wendy Carlos & Rachel Elkind

What a beautifully haunting main title. As the Torrance’s little VW Bug winds its way through the jagged Rocky Mountains, we’re subjected to a collection of sounds that sound both human and supernatural. It is a perfect indication of the fear and trepidation that the film instills on its viewers as it progresses to its rocky finale.

9. The Twilight Zone – Marius Constant

This is probably the most iconic television theme song of all time. It was composed for the second season of Rod Serling’s seminal hit television show by Marius Constant and it has become a staple of many lives, mine included. Every time I hear that fantastic little jingle I get excited about whatever strange and wonderful journey I may be going on, even if seen the episode a hundred times already. You can almost see the swirling, hypnotic background when you hear it.

8. A Nightmare on Elm Street – Charles Bernstein

Considered by Rotten Tomatoes to be one of the best films of 1984, Wes Craven’s Freddy Krueger sliced his way into horror fan’s hearts forever as one of the crudest, rudest and generally hilarious slasher villains out there. The theme is another great, haunting and melodic, and funnily enough, heavily inspired by Gary Wright’s Dreamweaver (seriously, check it out here).

7. Poltergeist (Carol Anne’s Theme) – Jerry Goldsmith

This is one of my absolute favorite themes in the horror world, because it’s the exact opposite of what you would expect with the theme for a horror film. It’s a beautiful song, and it perfectly exemplifies the sweet innocence of our protagonist, Carol Anne. It’s sweet melody, sung by a choir of children, soothes the heart in the oddest of ways and helps you realize that maybe, just maybe, everything will be alright.

6. The Omen (Ave Satani) – Jerry Goldsmith

A double-whammy for Jerry Goldsmith, then again he’s one of my favorite horror composers, this being my favorite of his compositions (however, on the complete opposite end of the spectrum). This is the theme for Damian, the son of Satan, in the amazing occult film The Omen. “Ave Satani” features a choir singing a Latin chant that translates to “We drink the blood, we eat the body, raise the body of Satan. Hail! Hail, Hail Anti-Christ! Hail Satan!” It’s dark shit, and it’s exactly what The Omen needed. I remember being immediately taken with this score when I first watched the film some 12 years ago. It played a huge part in my future fascination, and borderline (who am I even kidding) obsession with the horror genre.

5. Hellraiser – Christopher Young

Clive Barker had original commissioned a the soundtrack from his breakthrough film from the industrial band Coil, however he later rejected it. The job then fell upon the shoulders of Christopher Young, who created the eponymous theme song, and Lemarchand’s Lullaby that makes us all immediately imagine chains flying at us from all directions. I fucking LOVE this whole soundtrack, it sets up the film with a grandiose feeling of dread and wonder.  

4. Suspiria – Goblin

Suspiria is one of the most talked about horror films of all time. I feel as if I’ve always heard people referencing this film, in some way or another. It’s a fantastic film, more art house than anything, that tells the story of a young American girl who attends a prestigious dance school in Italy only to discover that it’s no mere dance school (forgive the cliché ridden summary). The reason I find this theme so intriguing (aside from the fact that it’s really just pretty damn awesome) is that it is so regularly used in pop culture references that most people probably don’t even realize they’ve heard it, and would recognize it almost immediately. Finnish rock band HIM, used it as intro music for their American tours for years, as an example.

Who made the final 3? Head inside to find out. 

FUN FIND: Terrifying Treats - For the Sweet Tooth in Every Horror Fan

I love the horror community. You find some of the most creative and fun things on the internet, all based on the universal love of murder, death and gore. Some may say that sounds a bit dark, and yes. It does. But that’s what makes us awesome.

This morning, I found a blog on Reddit called Terrifying Treats. Reddit user bulgelover posted saying:
“Hi Dreadit, for the last 8 months I’ve been making horror movie themed desserts for my blog, Terrifying Treats. I thought you might find it interesting.”

Her recipes and treat concoctions are AWESOME. You can check out her full blog here, and here are some of my favorites:


The Apple Crisp Has Eyes (The Hills Have Eyes) 


Evil Dead Devil’s Food Cake 


Excision Lungcakes (Excision)


Misery Loves Cupcakes (Misery) 


The Shining Cakes 

Head on over to her blog and take a peek, it’s entirely possible that you may find your favorite horror film inspired your favorite sugar laden treat. It’s also become apparent that I’m going to have to learn how to bake before this next Halloween…

-Rg Lovecraft

Yesterday a couple friends and I had the opportunity to visit LACMA for the Stanley Kubrick exhibit where they had an immense display of props and artifacts from the set of The Shining. I had an amazing time, took pictures of everything I could and there will most definitely be a post coming tonight giving a full recap of all the amazing things they had on display.

For now I’ll leave you with, what I consider, to be the greatest horror prop of all time, Jack’s typewriter. 

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