By MICHAEL GINGOLD
The sci-fi/religious horror film will start scaring its way across the country next month.
Following a festival tour including London’s FrightFest and Spain’s Sitges, writer/director Douglas Schulze’s THORNS will be exclusively released to theaters by Dark Planet Releasing, in partnership with MetaMedia, Emagine Entertainment, B&B Theatres and Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas. Jon Bennett, Cassandra Schomer, Bo Shumaker, Elly Schulze and fright veteran Doug Bradley star; the synopsis: “An ex-priest working for NASA is sent to investigate a remote observatory that went silent after receiving a mysterious radio signal from deep space. Upon arrival, he discovers the signal has opened a portal unleashing a thorned monster. The former priest must now summon his lost faith to stop the signal from jumpstarting the end of the world.”
“From our use of practical effects to its fueled music score,” Schulze says, “THORNS is meant as a homage to 1980s-era monster movies like THE THING, HELLRAISER and ALIEN. For me, the best horror cinema steers away from the computer realm when pursuing all things visceral. THORNS is meant as a visceral experience.”
Emagine Entertainment will host THORNS’ North American red carpet premiere on Saturday, February 17 at its Royal Oak, Michigan theater, with Schulze and cast including Bradley on hand. Beginning Friday, February 23, the first wave of the film’s theatrical play will begin:
- Emagine Royal Oak (Royal Oak, MI)
- Emagine Canton (Canton, MI)
- Emagine Novi (Novi, MI)
- Emagine Rochester Hills (Rochester Hills, MI)
- B&B Lee’s Summit 16 (Lee’s Summit, MO)
- B&B Overland Park 16 (Overland Park, KS)
- B&B Shawnee 18 (Shawnee, KS)
- Cinepolis Cinemas Vista Village (Vista, CA)
A wider release is scheduled for later this year. You can see more pics from THORNS here and here.