SOUND OFF: Halloween Dreams & Screams - HANNIBAL, SPACE STATION 76, DISCOPATH, STAGE FRIGHT, Etc.

By: Oct. 30, 2014
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Today we are taking a look at the very best newly available offerings most likely to inspire the desired seasonal fear and provide some spooky fun for theatre enthusiasts this Halloween.

HANNIBAL: Season Two

Blu-ray, DVD & VOD

Packed with a plethora of theatre talent, the second season of NBC's brilliant and bloody dramatic thriller series based on the iconic HANNIBAL Lector book and film series by Thomas Harris is even better than the first. Once again featuring thespians and frequent Broadway players Hugh Dancy, Laurence Fishburne and Raul Esparza in pivotal roles, the visually stunning and emotionally complex Bryan Fuller-created series amps up the horror and suspense following the tense, dense and moody first season. Of special note to theatre fans, Cynthia Nixon and Amanda Plummer make memorable appearances in this season of the series, while Gillian Anderson continues to excel in her fascinating role as Hannibal's own mysterious psychiatrist. Additionally, Michael Pitt as Mason Verger - perhaps the most distasteful and evil of all the characters in Harris's dark universe - is, in a word, perfection. Besides boasting a peerless video and audio presentation, the new Blu-ray is packed with bonus features, as well, including exhaustive behind the scenes footage and multiple commentary tracks featuring creator Bryan Fuller as well as Dancy, Esparza and many more.

SPACE STATION 76

DVD & VOD

A true cinematic anomaly. What precisely is SPACE STATION 76? A comedy? A drama? High camp? Sci-fi? A wildly, wonderfully unique, witty and frequently hilarious homage to space-themed films as well as a surprisingly dynamic treatise on marital strife in the sexually liberated 1970s, the screen adaptation of the cult stage play directed by Jack Plotnick is as intriguing as it is idiosyncratic. Featuring Broadway leading man and Hollywood star Patrick Wilson along with THE NORMAL HEART standout Matt Bomer, SPACE STATION 76 sends up sci-fi films of the 1970s and presents a series of guffaw-inducing visual gags relating to the future as viewed through that funky lens - absurdly oversized 8-track cartridges, dashboards populated with countless knobs and switches (console cigarette lighters included), fruity cocktail-serving robots, an onboard atrium of pot plants and beyond. At its heart, though, it is a touching story of a lonely little girl and the foxy new female scientist onboard the ship - the latter played by none other than Liv Tyler - which forms the foundation of the heart-tugging tale that is ultimately told, giving new meaning to "lost in space". Special mention also must be made of the sleazy lothario vividly portrayed by Jerry O'Connell, as well as the killer soundtrack showcasing a handful of vivid vintage Todd Rundgren classics.

THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN

In Theaters Now & VOD

Produced by GLEE and AMERICAN HORROR STORY mastermind Ryan Murphy, written and directed by two creative talents also associated with both entities - SPIDER-MAN: TURN OFF THE DARK scribe Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa as well as director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon - THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN provides a chilling and absorbing update to the classic 1976 cult horror film. Both a sequel and a reboot, the less said about the story the better since there are more surprises and scares than corn in a cornfield in this surprisingly effective new indie. In addition to a cast of fresh-faced teens, veteran actress Veronica Cartwright offers a memorable performance as a protective paternal figure, while Denis O'Hare re-teams with Murphy and company once again to give us yet another sinister character turn that we won't likely soon forget. A worthwhile twist on the slasher genre, the exceptional cinematography, taut storyline and pervasively eerie tone make this a fitting footnote to the AMERICAN HORROR STORY franchise and the film is sure to please fans of that super-successful horror hit looking for something more in the slasher genre this Halloween.

DISCOPATH

VOD

Tackling a trope heretofore unseen and unheard in horror films, the French film DISCOPATH by Renaud Gauthier explores the crumbling psyche of a disturbed young man who is propelled to commit heinous acts of murder whenever he hears disco music, which, being set at the height of the international dance craze in 1976 and 1980, respectively, is quite often. Needless to say, this regularly poses a serious problem for those unfortunate individuals around him - relatively few as they may be - especially when the beat kicks in, whenever that may be. Strikingly original in its tone - traversing the drama and comedy landscape from high camp to grand guignol - this is certainly not a film for everyone, especially given the ample amounts of gore and strange overall spirit, but provides a singular experience for those searching out something off the beaten path this Halloween. Most of all, though, the spate original disco songs penned by Bruce Cameron are consistently effective and occasionally outright brilliant in their thematic and dramatic utilization, continually punctuating the grisly and bizarre onscreen happenings with a wink, a nudge and a toe-tapping syncopation, too. Plus, the 11 o'clock disco-set murder portrayed almost entirely using a striking strobe effect is one of the most visually arresting sequences in any horror film this century.

STAGE FRIGHT

Blu-ray, DVD & VOD

Meat Loaf. Minnie Driver. A murderer. Musical theatre camp. What's not to like? Showcasing a familiar horror set-up - a SUMMER CAMP slasher - but twisting it to reflect the post-GLEE era, complete with a wholly original score boasting more than a dozen new tunes, the wacky and unusually potent STAGE FRIGHT has nearly all the elements necessary to please Broadway babies looking for a good fun scare along with a laugh or two this All Hallow's Eve with some outrageous production numbers to go with them. It's THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA writ large with a generous dose of GLEE and touches of Dario Argento, HALLOWEEN and FRIDAY THE 13th on top, plus a generous dose of Brian De Palma's PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE. Additionally, any horror movie that prominently features a showstopping musical sequence containing a quatrain such as this one should at least be under consideration for a Halloween viewing for the particularly diehard Broadway babies and movie musical fans among us: "All of us have heard these names of hate / But let me get one thing straight: / I'm gay, I'm gay, but not in that way / Musicals move me and touch me in ways I can't say."



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