Missed the Bloody Cut: 2026 (Part 1)

With a horror-rock tinged twist, this year’s CAPE – Cornwall and Area Pop Expo (the fourth iteration), was a huge success. Uniting aficionados of motion pictures, comics, collectables, costumes and music (everything under the pop culture umbrella) together, the Benson Centre, usually a chilly ice rink, was hot with bodies, eager event goers, ranging from wide-eyed children to decades long collectors, exploring the varied booths, finding treasures for their homes, meeting friends old and new. Gracing the floor were three horror related actors: Ari Lehman, Jayson Warner Smith, and Randy Havens. Ari Lehman can be best described as the “First Jason”, Voorhees, that is. . . playing the small but integral part in the first feature of the franchise, 1980's Friday the 13th, directed by Sean S. Cunningham. He is part of one of the greatest jump scare moments ever caught on film (the genesis of a character that would become, by the third motion picture, the masked murderer that has been ingrained in the minds of countless generations of movie watchers). He has also frequented many Indie horror flicks, The Barn, Pi Day Die Day, Terror Tales and this year’s yet unreleased Rock Paper Dead (co-written by original Friday the 13th scribe Victor Miller and directed by Fright Night and Child’s Play director Tom Holland), to name but a few.

A few nights ago, I had a rather interesting brainstorm: for a change of pace (as most of my reviews are more seriously constructed), I would, from time to time, post completely fabricated facts revolving around the movie world. Some will poke fun at silly aspects found (or ignored) in films, while others will satirize the supposedly real happenings of the movie world behind the scenes. Just in case you haven’t seen the films joked at below, a very short synopsis has been added next to its bolded/italicized title. So, this is my first go at it. . . feel free to let me know what you think in the comments section below (and why not try your hand at creating something fun revolving around a feature you’ve recently seen).

I generally do not write about television. . . not because I do not like it (I have spent hours upon hours watching sports, Seinfeld reruns, American Pickers, and everything in-between), but rather, have not found the time to build a new area on my website that would pay tribute to the different, though no less entertaining, artistic medium in the proper way. Though today, I cannot help myself. For thirteen years, heading all the way back to September 13th, 2005, I have tuned in to the adventures of Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) on the television series Supernatural. I was seventeen years old at the time, and its alluring combination of demons of the week, hitting the road in Dean’s 67 Chevy Impala, the classic rock tunes, and the dynamic relationship between the brothers, drew me in.

Predicted winners, who should win, and my favourites from this year's Oscars (the 90th Academy Awards). Catch up on all of the buzz before the big event.

Though most will immediately connect the name John Carpenter with iconic director, many do not know that the legendary filmmaker is also the composer of most of his works – think The Fog, Escape from New York, Halloween (considered one of the greatest horror scores of all-time) and so many others. So, when it was announced that Carpenter would be doing a North American concert tour called “Anthology” – the title of his new album, needless to say, it was on my radar. Carpenter visited the M Telus ampitheatre (formerly the Metropolis) in Montreal this past Monday, the 13th of November, and, as you likely guessed, I was there. Fusing horror motifs, synthesizers, and stadium-sized rock n roll together, it was a powerful, emotive night led by the maestro himself. Rearranging each of his memorable scores into approximately four minute segments, the music alone brought the sold out, movie-crazy crowd back to the first time they experienced one of his films – though a montage of each movie’s greatest hits was projected onto a multi-angled screen behind the band. His son, Cody Carpenter (playing lead synthesizer), and lead guitarist/godson Daniel Davies (son of The Kinks’ rock legend Dave Davies), accompanied him both on the album and live, while, also on stage was drummer Scott Seiver, rhythm guitarist John Konesky and bassist John Spiker (all three also played a part in the making of the album).

As you can likely imagine, I go through quite a few horror movies every October. . . and not every one I watch meets my strict criteria and earns a review. But, that is not to say that these films may not interest you, so, instead of letting them fall behind in the forest for the proverbial psychopathic serial killer, I’ve decided to start this new blog feature in which I will provide you with the good, the bad and the ugly on those horror flicks that just missed the bloody cut. 2017's A Ghost Story, written and directed by David Lowery, is arguably one of the more creative and unique iterations on a spectre in some time. A deep philosophical rumination on love, life, death, loneliness, time and ghosts, it takes the rare position of showing the ghost’s point of view. Less a typical horror story and more along the lines of a fantasy drama, the movie stars Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara as the two leads. Kind of a spoiler, but not really, Affleck dies early on, and, instead of moving on, he feels like he has unfinished business, and returns to live a pale existence of what life once was.