By MICHAEL GINGOLD
Four kinds of fear are coming in the next couple of months.
• Lionsgate will release THE DREADFUL (pictured above) to theaters and VOD/digital platforms February 20. Written and directed by Natasha Kermani (LUCKY, ABRAHAM’S BOYS), it stars GAME OF THRONES’ Sophie Turner and Kit Harington, Marcia Gay Harden and Laurence O’Fuarain. The synopsis: “Set in medieval England, Anne and her domineering mother-in-law Morwen struggle to survive on the outskirts of society. But when a man from Anne’s past returns from war, a curse begins to take shape through a mysterious knight and threatens to destroy them all.”
• TWISTED, the latest film from director Darren Lynn Bousman (the SAW franchise, REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA) starring the TERRIFIER films’ Lauren LaVera, will be available on digital platforms February 6 from Paramount Movies. Written by Jonathan Bernstein and James Greer, it also features Djimon Hounsou, Mia Healey, Neal McDonough and Alicia Witt. The synopsis: “A con artist’s real estate scam unravels into a nightmare when she’s captured by a surgeon with a terrifying plan.”
• DIABOLIC is coming to select theaters and VOD platforms February 20 from Brainstorm Media. Daniel J. Phillips directed from a screenplay he wrote with Mike Harding; Elizabeth Cullen, John Kim, Mia Challis, Robin Goldsworthy and Genevieve Mooy star. The synopsis: “A woman must return to the fundamentalist compound where she was raised after she is haunted by the vengeful spirit of a cursed witch.”
• Atlas Distribution Company releases the horror/comedy SCARED TO DEATH to theaters nationwide on Friday, March 13. Written and directed by Scottish filmmaker Paul Boyd, it stars genre veterans Lin Shaye (also an executive producer) and Bill Moseley, Olivier Paris, Victoria Konefal, B.J. Minor, Jade Chynoweth, Rae Dawn Chong, Lucinda Jenney, and introducing rock and roll frontman Kurt Deimer “as the scene-stealer The Grog.” The synopsis: “In SCARED TO DEATH, a group of filmmakers attend a séance at an abandoned children’s orphanage to do research for a horror movie. Soon, supernatural events begin to manifest, in both horrific and darkly comical fashion. That’s their first mistake.”
“The comedy came naturally from the conflict,” Boyd says. “Genre parody, with humor and horror closely linked. We wanted to deliver an enjoyable feast for audiences.”
“To be honest, I never thought about shooting a horror film specifically,” says Eric Barrett, who produced with Todd Slater. “I’m drawn to excellent storytelling, no matter the genre. What I like about this film is that it does cross into comedy, which is a fine line with horror.”
