We had a full June, kicking off summer with looks at summer camp, nightmares even camping nightmares. It was the second month of a focused effort to make Shock feel connective throughout the day-to-day of news and releases. In July, we continue with eyes on Horror Comics, High School Terror and much more.
Of course, the major online event of any July is the annual San Diego Comic-Con, a celebration of all things geek. Each year, a healthy dose of horror seeps in, be it comics, lit or the more major panels on upcoming film and television. In 2015, were promised looks at Ash vs. Evil Dead, Michael Doughertys long-awaited Trick r Treat follow-up Krampus, and a film festival-centric discussion on contemporary horror, to name a few. Shock will be on hand, surveying how it all looks, both on screen and on the ground in the convention center.
Shock will also be heading up to Montreal for another annual institution: the Fantasia International Film Festival. With a spectacular, stacked lineup, including the premiere of Tales of Halloween; Nigerian zombie film Ojuju; Irish occult horror Cherry Tree; and Hostile, from a 14 year-old French director, were hoping to come back with word on real deal discoveries out in international and North American genre.
Surrounding both, well be looking at the horror influences in Doctor Strange and continuing our new Best in Horror Comics column The Graveyard Shift, as well as taking cues from The Gallows and exploring horror in high school halls on film (Hello Mary Lou ahoy!). With The Vatican Tapes, well peer into the Exorcist rip-offs of the 70s and, as usual, go with whatever whims the team may have.
Below, find a look at Julys new horror releases. Get in the comments and let us know what youre most looking forward to hearing about!
July on Shock
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July on Shock #1
Stung (dir. Benni Diez)
July 3rd: Theaters and VOD (IFC Midnight)
A fancy garden party turns into upper class prey when a colony of killer wasps mutates into seven foot tall predators. First-time feature director Benni Diez brings his impressive f/x background to the table and infuses the thrills with heart and humor.
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July on Shock #2
The Gallows (dir. Chris Lofing & Travis Cluff)
July 10th: Theaters (Warner Bros / New Line)
Twenty years after an accident caused the death of the lead actor during a high school play, students at the same small town school resurrect the failed stage production in a misguided attempt to honor the anniversary of the tragedy—but ultimately find out that some things are better left alone.
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July on Shock #3
The Treatment (dir. Hans Herbot)
July 7th: Blu / DVD / VOD (Artsploitation FIlms)
Police inspector Nick Cafmeyer is investigating a case where a mother and father have been bound and beaten, and their young son is missing. An obsessive loner, Cafmeyer discovers that there are other similar cases – tragedies where the parents were forced by a psychopath to harm their own children, who then vanish. For the inspector, this triggers memories of his own brother’s abduction as a child, and the possibility that he may still be alive somewhere.
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July on Shock #4
Dark Was the Night (dir. Jack Heller)
July 24th: Theaters, VOD, iTunes (Image/RLJ)
Maiden Woods is a remote and quiet town of decent hard-working people, but something stirs in the dark woods surrounding this isolated community. After a logging company decimates an area of the forest, a rash of increasingly violent and unexplainable events transpires. Sheriff Paul Shields (Kevin Durand) and his deputy (Lukas Haas) struggle to confront their own personal demons while facing down a new breed of raw terror that is possibly older than humanity itself… And much, much hungrier.
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July on Shock #5
The Vatican Tapes (dir. Mark Neveldine)
July 24th: Theaters (Pantelion Films)
THE VATICAN TAPES follows the ultimate battle between good and evil - God versus Satan. Angela Holmes (OLIVIA TAYLOR DUDLEY) is an ordinary 27-year-old until she begins to have a devastating effect on anyone close, causing serious injury and death. Holmes is examined and possession is suspected, but when the Vatican is called upon to exorcise the demon, the possession proves to be an ancient satanic force more powerful than ever imagined. It's all up to Father Lozano (MICHAEL PEÑA) to wage war for more than just Angela's soul, but for the world as we know it.
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July on Shock #6
The Gift (dir. Joel Edgerton)
July 31: Theaters (STX Entertainment)
Simon (Jason Bateman) and Robyn (Rebecca Hall) are a young married couple whose life is going just as planned until a chance encounter with an acquaintance from Simon's high school sends their world into a harrowing tailspin. Simon doesn't recognize Gordo (Joel Edgerton) at first, but after a seemingly coincidental series of encounters proves troubling, a horrifying secret from their past is uncovered after nearly 20 years. As Robyn learns the unsettling truth about what happened between Simon and Gordo, she starts to question: how well do we really know the people closest to us, and are past bygones ever really bygones?
