Masters of Horror on showtime

Shouldn't that thread be moved over here to the Creature Corner forum anyway? One would think so.

I think the Corner deserves it's own thread for this one. Being stuck in the UK, I can only read about these shows and yearn for the R2 DVD release in 2006.

New Lovecraft from Stuart Gordon? Oh man. And there's still new stuff from Carpenter and Landis to come.

I hope this thing is a success. It'd be cool for it to be an annual event.

Since I don't have Showtime I can't watch these. I'm with you Dan and I'll be giving these a rent when they come out.

I thought the opposite -- Coscarelli's was pretty decent, especially acting and production design, but Gordon's left me pretty flat.

Gordon's was great, but Coscarelli's was totally sublime. I love the format, the individuality of the episodes, the extreme nature of the stories so far. Love it all. Can't wait for Carpenter's!

I really want to see this, but I'm kind of/sort of/not really in Dan's boat. This day and age and I don't have TV reception, let alone cable or satellite. Pretty sad, I know. Luckily I've got a big DVD collection, which is most likely where this show will end up at some point.
Sounds good so far though. Is it comparable to a host-less "Takes From the Crypt" in any way? Are the episodes film quality?

Hmm, well in terms of having a somewhat constant feel and style throughout the series, then no they are not like Tales from the Crypt. Coscarelli's felt like a Coscarelli film; Gordon's like a Gordon one, etc. They do play like mini-movies and are filmed in what some refer to as "TV widescreen", though I don't know the specific aspect ratio.

The show continues to be great, but overall I have enjoyed Gordon's the least so far. I'm not sure which I like better though, Coscarelli's or Hooper's. Anyway, definitely looking forward to Argento's episode next week (as well as the other 9 episodes beyond it).

I was bored, so I thought I might be helpful to those that haven't completely kept up to speed on this series.....


Masters of Horror: Season One

1. "Incident On And Off A Mountain Road"
Directed by Don Coscarelli
Adapted by Don Coscarelli & Stephen Romano
Based on the short story by Joe R. Lansdale
Starring Bree Turner, John De Santis, Angus Scrimm, & Ethan Embry
Airdate: October 28, 2005

2. "Dreams In The Witch-House"
Directed by Stuart Gordon
Adapted by Stuart Gordon & Dennis Paoli
Based on the short story by H.P. Lovecraft
Starring Ezra Godden, Chelah Horsdal, Campbell Lane, & Jay Brazeau
Music by Richard Band
Airdate: November 4, 2005

3. "Dance of the Dead"
Directed by Tobe Hooper
Adapted by Richard Christian Matheson
Based on the short story by Richard Matheson
Starring Jessice Lowndes, Jonathan Tucker, & Robert Englund
Music by Billy Corgan
Airdate: November 11, 2005

4. "Jenifer"
Directed by Dario Argento
Adapted by Steven Weber
Based on the comic by Bruce Jones & Bernie Wrightson
Starring Steven Weber, Carrie Anne Fleming, Brenda James, & Beau Starr
Music by Goblin
Airdate: November 18, 2005

5. "Chocolate"
Directed by Mick Garris
Written by Mick Garris
Starring Henry Thomas, Lucie Laurier, & Matt Frewer
Music by Nicholas Pike
Airdate: November 25, 2005

6. "Homecoming"
Directed by Joe Dante
Adapted by Sam Hamm
Based on the short story "Death & Suffrage" by Dale Bailey
Starring Robert Picardo
Airdate: December 2, 2005

7. "Deer Woman"
Directed by John Landis
Written by John & Max Landis
Starring Brian Benben, Anthony Griffith, & Cynthia Mora
Music by Peter Bernstein
Airdate: December 9, 2005

8. "Cigarette Burns"
Directed by John Carpenter
Written by Drew McWeeny & Scott Swan
Starring Norman Reedus & Udo Kier
Music by John & Cody Carpenter
Airdate: December 16, 2005


The rest will supposedly air in January/February in an as yet undetermined order.....

"Fair-Haired Child"
Directed by William Malone
Written by Matt Greenberg
Starring Lori Petty & Lindsay Pulsipher
Music by Nicholas Pike
Airdate: TBA

"Sick Girl"
Directed by Lucky McKee
Written by Sean Hood
Starring Angela Bettis & Erin Brown
Airdate: TBA

"Pick Me Up"
Directed by Larry Cohen
Written by David J. Schow
Starring Fairuza Balk, Michael Moriarty, & Warren Kole
Airdate: TBA

"Imprint"
Directed by Takashi Miike
Adapted by Daisuke Tengan
Based on the novel "Bokkee Kyotee" by Shimako Iwai
Starring Billy Drago
Airdate: TBA

"Haeckel's Tale"
Directed by John McNaughton
Adapted by Mick Garris
Based on the short story by Clive Barker
Starring ?
Airdate: TBA


The tentative DVD release is set for February/March. I suspect it will be a full season set. There is supposedly documentary footage for each episode, as well as a bunch of other special features.

I thought Coscarelli's was the best execution, not the most original material, but great shocks and nastiness. Plus it felt just like a movie.

Gordon's entry was very 'Hammer House of Horror' cheesy. A let-down after the coolness of the first episode.

Hooper's 'Dance of the Dead' was a very cool premise let down by those damned annoying camera effects and a total failiure to clearly set up the world the characters live in.

It's all good though.

The recurring visual flicker in Hooper's story got grating, and I thought the actor playing Boxx was pretty terrible, but I dug it a lot. The original short story by Matheson (which was quite different) was equally vague as to the post-WWIII depiction of the world. I actually liked that aspect. And Englund was obviously made for that sorta role.

Was Boxx the guy who looked like the unholy love child of Joss Whedon and Jack Black?

That's an accurate description.

I loved the birthday party chemical attack, kinda reminiscent of the playground attack in Terminator 2. Englund shooting up dead chicks to service him was both disturbing and hilarious. I dig Matheson, I'll have to try and check out the original story.

Looking forward to Argento's segment, I've heard it's a big improvement on his recent efforts.

I hope it is an improvement over Trauma, The Phantom of the Opera, and Sleepless at least. I haven't seen The Card Player yet, but I haven't heard many good things either. Still, I am looking forward to it.

I don't know--I'm really disappointed with this series so far. Argento's episode was so bad that it hurt. I know that he hasn't been doing too well recently, but this could have been a real showcase for him. Instead, it was like a third rate effort by an unknown director with a couple of ill-conceived Argento hommages tossed in. I felt like I was watching an uncensored version of some late night crappy Canadian/Euro TV series on the old USA network. I thought that the pace was brutally slow, and the cyclic structure of the story was obvious from the very beginning. Instead of something worthy of the director of Suspiria, we get Cop Land of the Dead. Ugh.

Has anyone seen any of the upcoming episodes? Are things going to get any better? I'm tempted just to cancel Showtime now and pick through it on DVD.

Kids were eaten. Slowly eaten. Cat was destroyed. Crazy-faced woman got her groove on with Weber a ton. Episode was pretty twisted. I thought it was pretty fun, actually. I like the series so far, but not one of the episodes has been amazing. I always liked Weber, so it was good seeing him onscreen again.

Upcoming:
Joe Dante's HOMECOMING : 4 stars. Along with Gordon's, the best so far.
John Carpenter's CIGARETTE BURNS: 3 stars. Solid, but missing that extra little bit from the true Master of Horror.

I think Mick Garris' CHOCOLATE is next, screening day after Thanksgiving.

I have seen three on Showtime ON Demand. I have liked all three, The first was probably the best, but I enjoyed Robert England in "Dance of the Dead" as far as individual performance.

For some reason the ON Demand skips right over "Dreams In The Witch-House".

well you didn't miss much. i though it was a total snooze feast. the rat was beyond ridiculous.

Argento's fucked me up! I love my horror and ever since Scream came alone I've just felt horror has been in decline for the past decade with this pretty boy, jump scare shit (yes I know this went down in the late 70's and 80's but it also had a bit of charm).

None have had the atmosphere Horror flicks used to build up, that horrible sense of dread that Romero could conjure up (although it appears he has lost it with Land of...) or Carpenter. Films like the 70's remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers are true horrors for me. Not one jump scare in sight but they live with you long after, they truly disturb you.

So far Argento's is the only one that has lived up to this and the only one that actually gave me nightmares that night (Jenifer's face fucked up my dreams, nothing has had an effect like that on me in years), although Stuart Gordon's episode certainly came close and actually tried to go for real.

Unfortunately Incident on and off Mountain Road is the only one that fell into that shit/easy trap I talked about so far, a bitter disappoinment. What I want from 'Masters' is to be disturbed, not to go for cheap jump scares every 2 minutes. I cringed when we got the typical spunky chick of the last decade quipping "take that you mother fucker!".

Tobe Hooper's Dance of the Dead didn't really do either unfortunately, it was a unfortunate waste. I guess that guy's just lost it, or has compromised so much his entire career he didn't know what to do with the freedom he had. There were good moments in the episode though.

Dario Argento really has just set the standard for the rest of the series, not something that just jumps out at you but something that slowly crawls into that darkest corner of the brain and wont leave, making you feel very uncomfortable by the end.

I'd love to know how people saw the depiction of sex in the episode. How did you mind handle accepting Jenifer's beautiful body only to look up and see that horrifying face? It was great emotional minipulation I thought. Discuss...

Roll on Dante and Carpenter!!! Dante should never be in the rut he has been in, it's not like he actually ever stopped making good movies.

I started to watch Jennifer last night before bed. Maybe it was because I was tired but the first time they showed her huge black eyes I had to shut it off. They freaked me out horribly. Then I tried not to be a pussy about it and watched some more only to have to stop after the detective brought her to his house and put her on the couch and the cat came in. There was just something about those eyes. I'll try it again tonight.

The second installment in its Masters of Horror series, Stuart Gordon's Dreams in the Witch House, finds Gordon (Re-Animator) adapting a lesser H.P. Lovecraft short story. This tale follows a physics grad student who takes up residence in a creepy boarding house. Once there, he is haunted by dreams of an evil witch and her "familiar," a human-faced talking rat (with an unnerving penchant for gnawing through flesh). This episode was better than Coscarelli's Incident On and Off a Mountain Road, but still felt pretty much like an average episode of Tales from the Crypt (albeit with some extra gore and a bit of full-frontal nudity). If I were rating these things on a scale of 1 to 10 (and keeping in mind the context and format of the program), I'd give Incident a 3, and Dreams a 5.

Tobe Hooper's vision of Richard Matheson's Dance of the Dead had some interesting ideas and imagery, but I'm beyond bored with jumpy music-video editing. Ultimately, this one didn't have enough going for it to really scare or inspire. Robert Englund turns in the kind of over-the-top performance that I loathe. It would be easy to blame it on the character he plays, but he's just chewing scenery. I'll give it a 4.

I was looking forward to Dario Argento's installment, Jenifer, because it stars Steven Weber (Wings), who also wrote the teleplay. This chapter is the most gruesome and disturbing so far, but being difficult to watch doesn't necessarily make for a good horror tale. The story focuses on Weber's police officer, who rescues a young woman from a would-be killer. After being shot by Weber, the killer (a formerly successful businessman who has lost everything) warns: "You don't know her. You don't know what she's capable of." The woman appears gorgeous, with long blond hair and a nice body, but it soon becomes apparent that she has a hideously deformed face. Nonetheless, Weber falls under her spell, has some disgusting sex scenes with her, and loses his job and family because of her (all of this despite her mutilation of the family cat and subsequent, more gruesome acts). The conclusion is predictable. I'm tempted to give this a 3, but it did have a high cringe-inducing factor (unfortunately revulsion, not fear), so I'll allow it a 4. So far the series has pretty much been a bust, leaving one to long for the days when Tales from the Crypt was pretty much guaranteed to provide a few chills and a predictable but satisfying twist. I'm still holding out hope for entries by John Carpenter and Takashi Miike, but this is definitely TiVo material at best, and nothing worth staying in on Friday night to watch.

Well, Garris' episode was an utter turkey. As series creator I'd have thought he could have come up with a HORROR story, rather than a poorly plotted imitation of an episode of The Dead Zone. It can (surely) only get better from here...

The Jennifer episode was disturbing but not scary. The next one looks like a Twilight Zone episode, with dead war veterans coming back to vote against the Iraq War. I thought only Mayor Daley could get the dead to vote.

So far, it's been hit or miss with me.

I loved An Incident On And Off A Mountain Road, and Jenifer.

Gordon's episode was okay.

I hated Tobe Hooper's episode.

Haven't seen Mick Garris' episode yet.

Looks like the next three might be damn good though.

Chocolate. Another "Hot Blood" series short story, and again incorrectly presented. This had the look and feel of an old HBO "Hitchhiker" episode. Hardly worthy of the title "Masters of Horror".

I'm starting to lose hope here.

"Jennifer" was the best thing that Dante Argento has done in a while, but, sadly, consdiering what his films have been like for a long time that is not saying much. "Jennifer" was pretty good,but certainly nothing like what Argento could have done with it before his career jumped the shark.
All in all, "Masters of Horror" has had a lot more misses then hits. Too many of the "Masters of Horror" seem to just be showing that they are really,really, past their prime.

Tonight's episode was kind of fun, but still unfortunately just not particularly good. It felt more like a Twilight Zone B-Side than a "horror" story, and I kind of wish Dante hadn't reigned himself in quite as much.

The Deer Woman. Two Words:

Nice Rack

Otherwise, another horror-comedy (horomedy?) that seemed a complete waste of the oppurtunity the series presents. This wasn't even a respectably interesting short story for basis, and seemed completly phoned in. I'd love to see someone in this series make a serious attempt ("Jennifer" not withstanding) at delivering something that could be construed as an actual horror story. Do all the Masters of Horror now live in Asia?

I have to disagree. This is the kind of horror Landis shoots - horror mixed with comedy. And I thought it was an excellent installment - possibly the best entry thus far. Reminded me of a lost X-Files episode. The dream sequence - about what might have happened to the slaughtered trucker - was worth the price of admission. Sure, it was funnier than scary. But I'm just happy that it was good.

I really loved Landis' episode... until it abruptly ended. Did they run out of film or something?

Maybe it was a tribute to An American Werewolf in London's abrupt ending. I don't know, you silly Dave Davis.

No idea why I felt compelled to do that.

Boredom?

But American Werewolf had a sense of resolution. This literally just ends.

No, Dave Davis!

It was a textbook "Deer Woman wildly shakes her head around and disappears, Brian Benben Laughs" Ending.

Bastards.

I don't know why you are making such a big deal about the a-typical ending. We all know that Landis likes to Benben the rules.

Deer Woman was funny and a really good episode. I agree with Kevin Matchstick about the fact that it could've easily been an X-Files episode.

http://www.creature-corner.com/?type=news&id=1034

Greg got to it before I could.... heh.

I'm glad they're starting to announce plans for release, but I don't like this single release shit. Unless the discs are packed with extras.

But dammit, I only want to hear the plans for the big box set. Not all of us can afford Showtime, after all.

Connigit, remember this is Anchor Bay we're talking about. While we do rely on them to bring us quality releases of the stuff we love (including 'Thomas the Train' and 'Fat Burning Workout for Dummies') you just know that right after they release the last 'MoH' installment on DVD they'll announce the 'MoH: Season One - Collector's Edition Box Set'. So until that time I'll just keep the flicks on my DVR until I get some extras.

And, sorry I scooped ya.

You forgot something though. A few months after the Collector's Edition they'll come out with the Special Halloween Edition, follwed by the 1 Year Anniversary edtion, to be followed by the Director's cut versions and then of course, the Boomstick edition.

Actually, maybe single installments are the way to go. So far, I'd really only want to own the last two.

See, but the problem is that I haven't been able to see any of them yet. Unless I download them there's no way for me to check'm out without getting the dvds. Or paying for showtime. And i'd rather just pick up the set. Hell, I don't care if they're not all that great- I own the Carnosaur box set for chrissakes.