
Greetings, all. Ambush Bug here with another AICN HORROR: ZOMBIES & SHARKS column. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to make it to this weekend’s Bruce Campbell’s Film Festival in Chicago which is going on during their yearly WizardWorld Chicago Convention just North of town in Rosemont at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center!
The good news is that I’ve seen quite a few of the cool films that are playing at the horror festival and as a sort of sneak preview for the event, I figured I’d throw some of my reviews of the films together in one column. So below are five very cool horror films playing the fest. They range from high concept to lowbrow and unabashedly indie to pretty top tier production, so there’s a little for everything to enjoy.
On with the horror reviews!
(Click title to go directly to the feature)
Retro-review: CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST (1980)
Advance Review: SUN CHOKE (2015)
Advance Review: BUNNY THE KILLER THING (2015)
Advance Review: DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III (2015)
Advance Review: SOME KIND OF HATE (2015)
CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST (1980)
Directed by Ruggero DeodatoWritten by Gianfranco Clerici
Starring Robert Kerman, Francesca Ciardi, Perry Pirkanen, Luca Barbareschi, Salvatore Basile, Carl Gabriel Yorke
Retro-reviewed by Ambush Bug
Man, this was a tough film to sit though. I knew I was going to be in for something pretty sick when I finally found the time to sit down and watch CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST. I know this film has been touted as one of the most horrific films of all time and it does live up to that title. Filled with animal mutilation, rape, murder, dismemberment, torture, sex, and of course,cannibalism, once you’ve seen CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST, I guarantee you’ll never forget it.

SUN CHOKE (2015)
Directed by Ben CrescimanWritten by Ben Cresciman
Starring Sarah Hagan, Barbara Crampton, Sara Malakul Lane, Evan Jones, Joe Nieves, William Nicol, Annie Read
Find out more info on this movie at Lodger Films!
Reviewed by Ambush Bug
Last year, my favorite horror film of the year was PROXY, a complex tale of madness by inches from various points of view. So to say that SUN CHOKE reminded me of PROXY, to me, is the ultimate compliment for the film as it gave me the same feelings of dread, fascination, and complete unease that PROXY did one year ago.

When done well, psychological horror can hit you harder than a million gallons of blood and gore. This is the case with SUN CHOKE which from the beginning had me by the throat and never let go. Seeing Crampton’s Irma put an electrified dog collar on Janie and force her to do Yoga to calm her nerves is absolutely riveting. Janie’s thinly sliced sanity chipping away at the slightest breeze is entrancing as well. Crampton is electric here and proves that this beautiful actress may have some of her best performances in front of her—she certainly commands every scene she is in here.

Director/writer Ben Cresciman tells an intimate tale of madness here. The film is soft and fragile one minute—pointed and harsh the next. It’ a film that defies expectations and is as dangerous as it is beautiful. Unfolding like an origami flower made of sandpaper, SUN CHOKE pulls you in and squeezes relentlessly until the twisted ending that will leave creases in your brain that will be impossible to smooth out.

BUNNY THE KILLER THING (2015)
Directed by Joonas MakkonenWritten by Joonas Makkonen (screenplay & story), Miika J. Norvanto(story)
Starring Enni Ojutkangas, Veera W. Vilo, Gareth Lawrence, Roope Olenius, Joonas Makkonen, Marcus Massey, Katja Jaskari, Jari Manninen, Olli Saarenpää, Ari Savonen, Miika J. Norvanto, Maria Kunnari, Henry Saari, Marika Pekkarinen, Juho Jaakkonen, Marko Moilanen, Vincent Tsang, Juha-Matti Halonen, Orwi Imanuel Ameh, Ari Karhunen, Erno Michelsson, Harri Korkiakoski, Hiski Hämäläinen, Harri Marttinen, Alisa Kyllönen, Simo Räsänen, Orwi Manny Ameh, Simo Räsänen, & Matti Kiviniemi as Bunny the Killer Thing!
Find out more about this film here and on Facebook here
Reviewed by Ambush Bug
Art snobs beware, BUNNY THE KILLER THING will take that upturned nose of yours and fuck it raw. But if you don’t mind guttural, potty humor to the maximum, this is going to be one hell of an experience you’re going to want to seek out asap.

Don’t take a minute of this film seriously and you’re bound to have a blast. If you’re the type who is going to cringe, be offended, and point of how politically incorrect this film is, please just move on to the next film and keep your accusatory digit to yourself. The film is masochistic. It is horrifying. It involves a giant rabbit man raping and killing everything in his path be it man, woman, or beast. And while films set to a serious tone deeply disturb me when it deals with subjects like rape, torture, animal cruelty, and death, when these subjects are dealt with such a level of cartoonish and manic lunacy as it does here, I can’t help but be impressed at the no fucks given attitude on display. Playing on stereotypes, clichés, and many other non-PC tropes, this movie will offend and if it does, then it seems like it is doing just what it set out to do. BUNNY THE KILLER THING seems proud of being inappropriate and dammit if it isn’t refreshing to see this type of brazen wrong-ness displayed for all to see whether they like it or not.

Again, this is not a film to be taken seriously. From start to finish, this is a whirlwind of a gore and wrong that’ll leave you gasping for breath by the time the credits roll. So wrong. So much fun. I loved every minute of it, but if you don’t mind an excessive amount of bodily fluids, double and triple entendre, and a healthy amount of slapstick violence that makes EVIL DEAD II look like GHANDI, BUNNY THE KILLER THING is going to entertain your freaking taint off!
BEWARE: There’s nothing in this trailer that is appropriate enough to be watched at work!

DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III (2015)
Directed by Tomm Jacobsen, Michael Rousselet, Jon SalmonWritten by Alec Owen (screenplay), Jon Salmon, Michael E. Peter, Ben Gigli, Timothy Ciancio, Michael Rousselet, Tomm Jacobsen, Joey Scoma, Mike James, & Brian Firenzi (Wrtiers)
Starring Alec Owen, Patton Oswalt, Paul Prado, Brian Firenzi, Kelsey Gunn, Joey Scoma, Olivia Taylor Dudley, Ben Gigli, Jimmy Wong, Greg Sestero, Jon Salmon, Michael Rousselet, Mike James, Maria Del Carmen, Nina Hartley, Nick Kocher, Brian McElhaney, Andrew W.K., K.C. Katsaros, Brandon White, Donan Whelan, Erik Sandoval, Skyler Rousselet, Chelsea St. John, Larry King, Rocky Collins, Jon Worley, Matt Hargreaves, Ian Ahern, Benji Dolly, Desmond Dolly, Katie Matthews, Thomas Ridgewell, Clayton LaDue, Tomm Jacobsen, Jon M. Brence, Katie Johnson
Find out more about this film here and on Facebook here
Reviewed by Ambush Bug
Filling itself from the rooter to the tooter with lowbrow fun, though sometimes surprising at how sophisticated the humor turns out, DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III is some of the dumbest fun you’re going to have while watching a horror film this year.

The humor in DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III is pretty much the WET, HOT, AMERICAN SUMMER variety as it chooses to barrage us with one inane moment after the next at rapid fire. While everyone is taking things drastically serious within the narrative, there isn’t a serious line muttered by the cast. By having everyone in the film not really playing along that there’s a farce going on around them, there’s never that annoying moment we see in the SCARY MOVIE films where the character steps out of the movie and makes a meta-comment that falls flat. In DBPM3, like many characters in the horror films we love and cherish, they have no idea they are in a horror movie, let alone a farce of a horror movie. So this makes it all the more fun and drives the point home that everyone in this film is an idiot that they are oblivious to the creeping horror picking them off one by one, mainly because it’s happened to them in two unmade movies before.

The scores of cameos in this film are another treat. While the main actors all seem to be a part of the same comedy troupe, genre greats like Patton Oswalt, pornstar Nina Hartley, Larry King, and of course, party-rocker Andrew W.K. show up just long enough to make you wonder why the hell they are there. In all cases, these cameos aren’t slumming it. They seem to be giving it their all to support this film
I thought DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III was a low-fi, high-guffaw masterpiece, but I’m sure there will be some who won’t. Humor being the most subjective of qualities, I’m certain there will be those sticks in the mud that will write this one off for it’s non-stop inanity. But I loved this film for that same reason. If hearing the dude-bro’s sing “Nobody Is Gonna Die” as they drive a camper to a desolate location in the middle of the woods makes you smile, this might be the type of film for you. This film turned out to have my kind of gross-out and go for broke sensibilities that I love and respect. If you can laugh at the absurdity of horror while poking fun at a subculture of men who deserve to be laughed at, then I’m sure you’re the right type of audience for DUDE BRO PARTY MASSACRE III.

SOME KIND OF HATE (2015)
Directed by Adam Egypt MortimerWritten by Brian DeLeeuw & Adam Egypt Mortimer (screenplay)
Starring Ronen Rubinstein, Grace Phipps, Spencer Breslin, Lexi Atkins, Sierra McCormick, Brando Eaton, Justin Prentice, Maestro Harrell, Michael Polish, Noah Segan, Andrew Bryniarski, Jisaura Cardinale, Audrey Ellis Fox, Jasper Polish, Matt Beene
Find out more about this film here and on Facebook here
Reviewed by Ambush Bug
Teen angst is always a good well to draw the stuff of horror from and SOME KIND OF HATE channels that angst in an often spooky, often gory manner.

What I loved about SOME KIND OF HATE was that it doesn’t really reveal itself to be a ghost story until late in the film. For the first portion, this is a film about the horrifying and damaging potential of bullying. The film does a fantastic job of capturing the teenage angst and drama without making it feel preachy; like something ripped from an after school special. The twist that this becomes about a vengeful spirit fits into the narrative, but it definitely is a twist I didn’t see coming, not knowing anything about the film before going in. Once this film tips it’s supernatural hat, it continues to tell a compelling story only through a different lens. While late in the game twists can be seen as a gimmick, this one feels organic within the story and doesn’t derail the momentum one bit. This has everything to do with director/writer Adam Egypt Mortimer’s balance of when to be stylistic with his imagery and when to play things on a more substantial level. There are scenes in this film that really capture the sense of isolation one feels as a teenager and whether it can be categorized as a tense drama or a supernatural thriller doesn’t matter because it all looks great and the script supports it however you see it.

There are a few missteps near the end of the film as some characters seem to rush through transitions rather briskly in order to bring the story to a close, but for the most part this is a top tier film from start to finish. Adding to the strengths of this film are the relative unknowns playing the parts. Rubenstein is great as Lincon, not overacting, but still able to carry most of the heavy scenes. His love interest Kaitlin (VAMPIRE DIARIES’ Grace Phipps) is gorgeous and talented as all get out. Phipps is going to be a big star soon as her performance here as a rebellious ex-cheerleader will grab you by the throat. And NORTHFORK director Michael Polish really surprised me by channeling David Cronenberg from his creepy NIGHTBREED performance as the lead counselor and delivers a chillingly cold turn. With superb acting, tons of blood spatter, and a creative and tactile way to tell a ghost story, SOME KIND OF HATE is a film that is both gripping and gorgeous to look at.
Ambush Bug is Mark L. Miller, original @$$Hole/wordslinger/writer of wrongs/reviewer/interviewer/editor of AICN COMICS for over 14 years & AICN HORROR for 5. Follow Ambush Bug on the Twitters @Mark_L_Miller.


Interested in illustrated films, fringe cinema, and other oddities?
Check out Halo-8 and challenge everything!
Look for our bi-weekly rambling about random horror films on Poptards and Ain’t It Cool on AICN HORROR’s CANNIBAL HORRORCAST Podcast every other Thursday!