The movie begins with a few murders. We don’t know the people who are being slaughtered and we do not care about them, there is no attempt to give these people a character they are just used as a chance to get some gore into the movie, because of course that’s horror right? Gore, blood, violence! It is…right?

So after that we jump ahead in time a little to a couple moving into a big house in the country, which I’d guess must be around where these murders took place? We aren’t told this but I think we have to guess it. The couple seem happy enough, but we are hinted to that the wife (played very woodenly by Charisma Carpenter) has had mental issues in the past. This leads of course to a movie where strange things are taking place around the house and we as the watcher have to wonder if the wife is going crazy or are these people really as strange as they seem? One who is definitely strange is the grounds keeper who is blatantly just a weirdo. In fact we have to put up with him way too much in the story even if he has no use to the plot at all really.

The acting in this movie just sucks. This is a disappointment as Carpenter has been a good actor in the past and more believable. Her character in this movie just comes across as unfeeling and bland, there is no depth to the acting which makes me think it was just another pay check. It can also be said that an actor is only as good as the script they are given, and this one is just bad. The other actors are even worse, with this movie coming across as a very cheap and badly thought out mess.

So, can I get any good out of this movie? Well I can if I really try, and that will be that it ends. This is a badly directed movie and badly written. It has no coherent plot structure and as it gets closer and closer to the end it falls apart into just random scenes of unexplainable violence. I know it could be argued that these are “visions” in the wife’s head but the fact is it was TOO random. It’s as if somebody wanted to make a quick buck from making a horror movie with a known American star in it to catch people’s interest and the end result was this.

If a stronger director and a better script writer got hold of this and managed to give some scenes more meaning this may have been watchable but as it is all we are left with is a confusing mess of badly filmed death scenes and failed plot strands that never make it to the conclusion of the movie. Just a mess…

Rating: 1 out of 10 (for the fact it ended)

Any erotic novel is difficult to review, not because they’re badly written or have bad plots, in fact “Lucky Stiff: Memoirs of an Undead Lover” is very well written and has a good plot. However what makes erotica difficult to review is your personal taste in sexual fantasies and preferences in reading about sexual encounters… Unfortunately “Lucky Stiff: Memoirs of an Undead Lover” did not really ‘do’ it for me. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that Tonia Brown did not write a good horror erotica, I just can’t bear the necrophilia aspect that always seemed to linger in the back of my mind as I read the novel. That said, in my personal opinion, the lack of Peter (the protagonist) being able to ejaculate also did little to comfort my imagination. Surely a zombie lover that cannot release himself wouldn’t fall into most people’s tastes, but those who fantasise about it will find great pleasure in this horror erotica, laced with magic, tantric-voodoo and some steamy sex scenes. There were some funny parts that I laughed out loud to, and some very random things that would bring a smile to my face that kept me reading though.

Taking the technical aspects into account, I should praise Tonia Brown on her sub-plots. It complimented the story arch and made for an exciting read regardless about sexual preferences. Brown’s research is evident of a well explored and exciting zombie tale that will keep your imagination open to the sexy possibilities with the living, the dead or the undead. Her characters are memorable, especially Madam Sangrail, which I would love to hear more about in the future, be it a spin-off or a prequel to “Lucky Stiff: Memoirs of an Undead Lover”. That tantric-voodoo-priestess just stuck with me (albeit her ability to fuck the dead back to life and her dirty mouth that could make a sailor blush would be memorable to most).

As opinionated as I am, I would suggest “Lucky Stiff: Memoirs of an Undead Lover” to only hard-core erotica readers. This is not a book for those ‘romance’ seekers, even if there is a certain longing in Peter for someone who would love him even if he is undead…

Horror has many styles, but it’s easy to say that psychological horror can be the creepiest kind. If it’s done intelligently and with a good plot the watcher can be pulled into the horror and feel they are playing a part in the story. They are not just about gore and violence but about the things we fear in the dark, and the unknown.

The Torment is one of those movies that manages to pull you in and feel for the characters. It all starts off calm enough; Alex and Kate are relaxing together in scenes very remnant of scenes in Paranormal Activity. It almost pulls you in thinking that they will be the main characters. This is when David appears at their door. Having broken up with his girlfriend Alex offers to let him stay there for a while until he sorts himself out. That is of course when things start getting weird.

You see, David see’s things in the dark, things that appear to be trying to get to him they are literally scaring the hell out of him. What we have from this quite effective start of the movie is a ride through the mind of a guy who may be losing his mind, or maybe he’s not? It’s up to us as the watcher to work this out as we watch.

The actors in this movie play their parts good, especially David. You feel for him as these creatures try to attack him, but you have to question is this all in his head or are these things real? He is the only one who can see them. The actor (Giles Alderson) really plays his role well and manages to portray the fear that David must be going through very effectively and it helps we as the watchers enjoy the movie and feel that we are a part of what’s going on. Nicholas Shaw and Zoe Richards (as Alex and Kate) also play their roles effectively as David’s friends wondering what is going on and if these things are actually real? They show the caring for David, and are willing to believe him that they are being attacked even when they can’t see what is actually going on.

One thing I also have to commend is the use of dark in the movie. This is no Blair Witch Project, but it effectively uses the dark, because of course it’s in the dark that the creatures come and it’s in the dark that most of the horror takes place. This uses the human fear we all have of the unknown in the dark, we all have it to a certain level because we all fight to protect ourselves and if we know a monster could be out there in the dark how are we going to protect ourselves against it?

So yes, I liked this movie. It does have some downfalls of course like some scenes do tend to go on a little long, but that does not damage the experience too much. When we live in a movie world of remakes though it’s about time we got a little gem that shows what can be done with a minimal cast, some atmospheric and effective lighting and a story that actually keeps your interest.

Rating: 8/10

One thing we at Pissed Off Geek like to do is highlight upcoming horror movies. This definitely looks like one to watch out for. We’ll have more information on it closer to it’s release.

Congratulations on writing such an enticing novel and thank you for giving me the opportunity to ask you a few questions that I’m sure most of your readers would have loved to ask you.

First things first, I bet everyone would like to know where you got the inspiration for “FAITH & THE UNDEAD“?

It actually stems from a conversation I had 18 years ago with my then girlfriends little sister. She looked me square in the face and told me that all Buddhists would go to Hell. That really has stuck with me over the years along with all the strife going on around the world. I just thought the time was right for something out of the ordinary for the zombie fans.

I’m sure music also played a big role during the writing process?

Oh, yes. I listened to a LOT of Nox Arcana, Midnight Syndicate and other similar dark ambient music to put me in my writing place!

Well, in my review I said that if you added some zombie gore to a Tom Clancy novel that you’d end up with “FAITH & THE UNDEAD“. Did you intend to make Frank Payens to be a ‘Jack Ryan’ character or did it just happen accidentally?

Actually I didn’t and never thought of Frank in that manner until you mentioned it. The concept of Frank, while a former Navy SEAL, was more along the lines of any person trying to understand their role in things. Frank’s journey is one of self-discovery and inner strength. Being the author I have some ‘special’ insight in Frank’s journey and his mission in life.

I know most authors read a lot of books similar to what they have in mind to write about, but others would completely stay away from reading anything that could make them lose their idea or influence them. How did you go about your research for “FAITH & THE UNDEAD“?

Much of the technical information came from my own mind. Things I’ve learned in my life whether it’s from when I was in the Navy or just reading. There were some instances of research. I actually keep a US road atlas in my desk for finding the ‘right’ place for things.

As for reading other author’s works, I do that all the time. Any chance I get. I learn from everything I read. One of the knocks I got in a review was about dialog so now I’m looking at how different authors handle dialog interaction so that I can improve my craft!

What made you decide to write a novel about a zombie apocalypse when the horror market is overrun by zombies, so to speak?

Because Zombies kickass! That simple. There is nothing more horrifying to me than the idea of looking across the blade of a machete at a loved one. Sparkly vampires suck!
Plus I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA and had met George Romero when I was a little child. Things like that stick with you!

Actually I think it’s more about the intent of the novel and not the actual zombies. The zombies are an important tool in FAITH, but the story doesn’t revolve too much around them.

I noticed that you wrote yourself into “FAITH & THE UNDEAD“, you have a small cameo role. Or did I just hallucinate again?

You were hallucinating! Not really. I do have a cameo in one of the scenes on a golf course. I’m mentioned in another part of the novel along with my siblings. The biggest cameo is my father, who passed away last December. It just seemed right to have him in the story.

The upcoming sequel to “FAITH & THE UNDEAD” will be called “CRUSADES & THE UNDEAD” according to my sources. Something tells me that it has to do with the Knights Templar again, are you going to honour us with a hint as what to expect?

The whole Trilogy of the Undead will incorporate the Knights Templar along with the FAITH motif. The title actually speaks for itself but I will say that THE HOME will be looking for meaning for something that happens at the end of FAITH. I will say that each book of the Trilogy mimics portions of Revelations from the Bible and book 3 (yet to be named) will actually mimic the story of JOB.
Other than that I can’t say too much more without spoiling it!

What else can we expect from your upcoming work?

The cover artist, David Naughton-Shires, and I are working on the side to develop Graphic Novels for the Trilogy of the Undead along with a novel called True Origins that will be illustrated. As for my own work I have multiple novels in progress right now but I’m trying to focus on surviving the fall convention season here along with completing CRUSADES because I happen to know a wonderful reviewer in South Africa who wants to get her hands on it!

Click here to visit Benjamin Rogers site and find out more about this book and more of his work.

When the world is overrun by the infected, and the zombies’ only drive is the hunger that consumes their whole being, only a handful of survivors will hopefully be able to make a stand for humanity… and the living. Governments have fallen and modern society is nothing more than a distant reminder to what the world used to be…only a month ago… Jeff who had to face and make the unbearable and unimaginable choices to survive takes a journey that starts out as revenge and slowly turns into a journey of finding hope with the help of the firecracker heroine, Megan.

“Comes the Dark” is a pretty straightforward zombie novel. There is a mysterious outbreak and the undead starts walking around and infecting people while the story follows a group of survivors on their quest. There are no tell-tale signs as to what started this zombie outbreak and no sure bet as to how to cure it, unless you have a baseball bat and can swing it like Babe Ruth. Sure that statement might seem dull, but when you read this novel, you’ll surely be drawn in by the magnificent descriptions of the scenery that portrays this apocalyptic world to such an extent that it felt as though I was seeing it in front of me. Not to mention the detailed and quite creative gore that completely blew my mind toward my happy place, namely ‘my-imaginative-horror-land’. Other than that I must admit that the character growth is exponential, but it is also subtle and only close reading would be able to reveal it. Jeff and Megan’s personalities both grow and shift at a rapid pace and I couldn’t help myself from thinking that these two characters were made for each other. Again, the romance is subtle (almost nonexistent) and there are some factors that has to be taken into account for the lack thereof, still the sparks were there.

The ending, in my opinion, was slightly dull, but it was an open ending and kept the pace for the upcoming sequels to “Comes the Dark”, which, mind you, I cannot wait to read regardless of a few rookie mistakes. Patrick D’Orazio did a good job with his first novel and I am keen to say that he has a bright future ahead of him in the writer’s world if he keeps this up.

In conclusion, I’d suggest this novel to anyone who loved the film “Dawn of the Dead”, it’s much more serious, even if it had a few witty one-liners, but all and all it’s a die-hard zombie fan novel that doesn’t need an explanation to why there is a zombie apocalypse.

For more on Comes The Dark and more of Patrick D’Orazio’s work click here

The movie starts off with a happy little American town where everything is perfect. After a strange incident that led to a well-known drunk is shot things start to get crazy. People start to act all dreamy and spaced out for no reason at all turn on the ones they love, killing them. The Sheriff David Dutton (played by Timothy Olyphant) is drawn into a mystery that questions what exactly is going on with these people? And who are the strangers hanging around town watching the population as they start to kill each other.

These questions get answered of course through the course of the movie as Dutton and a small group of people including his wife have to make it through the town as the army quarantine the area and all hell breaks loose, trying to find a way out of the city and the living hell they find themselves in.

The acting in this movie is adequate. I can’t say there are any standout performances but for this type of movie it’s not really needed. These people are cannon fodder, all ready to be killed off at a moment’s notice. Timothy Olyphant plays his typical role, I’d think he only has one character he ever plays but again, for this movie it’s good enough. He’s playing the role he’s given which is pretty one dimensional. He’s just the hero of the tale and he’s there to save the day. Even the people who are the “crazies” are just adequate. There is no real menace to them, but we get to see pretty gory deaths from them as the unaffected few fight them off. I will admit that Russell Clank (the deputy) played by Joe Anderson is probably a more complicated character. As his demeanour changes are we move deeper into the story he does add something to the plot.

It’s not that I hate this movie, I don’t. I find it a quite entertaining attempt to remake a classic horror movie. It has plenty of gore and the acting is adequate enough to make the scenes seem believable. My problem is though that the movie is just too polished for what it should be. It’s almost paint by numbers style horror movie where you know what’s coming; there are no real shocks but “OH! That was a nice kill.” There is a certain amount of soul in the movie that’s missing. You don’t really care about the people in the movie you just want to see the next entertaining death. Some people may find this entertaining and exactly what they want, but I want my gore put into scenes of a movie with a strong storyline where you care about the people and you don’t want them to die. Instead of just not caring, and waiting until the annoying one dies soon.

Rating 6/10

BOOK REVIEW: FAITH AND THE UNDEAD by Benjamin Rogers

A zombie apocalypse has dawned on Earth and nobody was prepared for such a violent impact, Europe falls, the world suffers and Satan triumphs… only one organisation stands in the way of total world domination and it is called ‘The Home’. Run by former veterans who searched for meaning after their military careers, ‘The Home’ was a haven, but also have a deep, dark secret… it has been preparing for this day for centuries.

This very well researched novel by Benjamin Rogers, combines religion, conspiracy, government, the military and zombies into a magnificent horror novel. With a well outlined plot and intriguing sub-plots I was amazed at the intensity the author displayed toward all of these elements. Personally I found the story very intriguing, having a good message and a good basic theme, namely ‘Good VS Evil’. It is important however to regard novels such as ‘Faith and the Undead’ purely as fiction and not as an outline of how to view a particular religion, such as what Dan Brown’s ‘The Da Vinci Code’ was chastised for doing by the Catholic Church… However I do think that the overall message is one that could be used to even stop turmoil in the Middle-East.

Disregarding the religious aspect of the novel and focusing on the other issues that come into play, one could almost feel the ferocity of the characters’ will to survive, especially the ones who tries to make their way toward this haven named New Hope. It makes you wonder how you would react in such a situation. Would you stand and fight or would you take the cowardly route and hide? That said, it is quite obvious that the author wanted to display an almost ‘patriotic’ feel, such as Tom Clancy did with his military fiction series about the ever popular character, Jack Ryan (‘The Sum of all Fears’, ‘Hunt for Red October’ and ‘Patriot Games’). Just combine some zombies into a Tom Clancy novel, put in faith based survival tactics and voila, you have ‘Faith and the Undead’ by Benjamin Rogers. Granted, it wouldn’t fall into the taste of some readers, especially picky readers who doesn’t particularly have strong stomachs, which in short means that some descriptions may be a little too gruesome for the squeamish, but all in all I found it quite appetising. Thankfully the story was set up in such a way as to deliver a sequel (and word is that it will be a trilogy), so that means more undead smashing is to come our way soon.

Benjamin Rogers did a very good job in keeping me entertained, therefore I can only say: “Encore!” and leave it at that.

Click here to visit Benjamin Rogers site and find out more about this book and more of his work.

That’s how we are introduced to Alice in this re-imagining of the Alice story. Having been asked (expected) to marry her chosen partner instead of giving an answer she decides to wander off, falling into the rabbit hole we all know is waiting for her. This of course is where things differ from what we expect as it turns out that Alice has been there before, she just does not remember (or is she the right one?).

Paranoia of if she is the “right” Alice to save Wonderland prevails in this version of the story as she herself doesn’t know if she IS the Alice the strange creatures of the world are expecting. She spends most of the movie arguing against this, even though we as the viewer are very sure that she is in fact the person they are looking for.

This movie is as the Alice movies before it an exploration in becoming the woman that Alice wants to be. When exploring Wonderland (or Underland as it is actually known) she is finding who she really is, and who as a woman she will become. Unlike the stuffy and snobbish real world in the dream world of Underland she is allowed to flourish and become the hero of her own future, even though she may fight against it.

If we went deeper into the meaning of the movie there is quite a feminist tone to it (and this is not a bad thing). In the real world women are expected to do as they are told, to not talk back where in Underland Alice does speak out, the two Queens at war over the world are just as strong and there are no men figures to try and control them (in fact the Red Queen appears to have got rid of her husband. The male characters if anything are subservient to the females who are central to the plot. This to me is not a bad thing, and makes sense as of course this story is taking place in an independent 19 year old woman’s mind, she is living her fantasy.

The characters that we all know and love from the story are all here. The caterpillar who gets stoned and talks loads of crap, the mat hatter and his tea party and even the white rabbit (can’t do without him now can we?). They all have a new role in the world of Alice and all push Alice along. Some question Alice as they don’t believe she’s the right one, but that in itself is a tool to push her to become the person she does by the end of the movie.

The actors all seem to work well for me; although Johnny Depp seems to be confused as to if he’s a strange Englishman or a crazy Irish bloke. I think this is more of a tool for him to have two sides to him as the Englishman is fairly stable at times and the Irishman becomes violent as he rants about bringing down the Red Queen. As unbalanced as he is I can’t say he’s my favourite version of the Hatter though, that would be the Disney’s cartoon version, and there is no beating him. Stephen Fry is perfect as the Cheshire Cat though, even if he seems just to want to cause trouble instead of actually helping Alice as much as he does. I also found Barbra Windsor as the dormouse to be quite annoying but tolerable.

I think I would say that I did like this movie. At times it felt like it was trying to be more Lord of the Rings than Alice in Wonderland but I think that may have been down to the score which I found to be very similar in style. I’m not sure about the big action scenes and if they were required for the story but as this was really a continuation of the original idea and not an interpretation of what we expected I found it acceptable. Having watched it in 2D I would be interested in how the 3D changed things but I doubt it made such a difference really, which would make me wonder why bother making it 3D at all?

7/10

It got me thinking though, why did Dawn of the Dead become the victim when Zombies clearly ran in the past? It’s not like Dawn of the Dead was a bad movie. Yes, it’s not as loved as the original and arguably not as good but it’s a damn fine horror movie. It’s got blood, it’s got zombies, hell it’s even got cameos from people who were in the original. Face it, in these “horror” times Dawn of the Dead is a sparkling diamond compared to some.

If we look at what zombies represent in the horror movie it’s easy to argue that there is nothing wrong with zombies running. Zombies are the out of control crowd that want to devour we the “normal” human beings and make us become one of them. We fear them because they just desire to eat us, to consume us and to take away our individuality. It’s the metaphor of losing freedom, for if we are human beings it’s our right to be free, is that not correct?

When a Zombie runs, it’s just another danger. In Night of the Living Dead it’s arguable that it makes sense that the zombie did not run, that it was the slow clumsy beast that it was. That’s how the young viewed the older members of society. Younger people wanted to be free from that, to express their energy in things like dance (and of course drugs). So the younger people (most of the survivors) were of course faster than the older zombies who were part of the society that was taking over the world.

Dawn of the Dead (the remake) is based in a world were everything is faster, the world is hectic. Everybody lives a job that has them running around 24/7 to make money and be a success. So when the zombies take over who are they representative of? The fast rat race that surrounds us, the sheep that make their way to the stores and still look at the things that they once wanted as living people. These zombies are the consumers that Romero was commenting on in the original; they are zombies to the consumer society. What they see they want, and they have to get it quickly. Just watch the chaos on the first days of the big sales to see a representation of this, The chaos of the crowd running through the shop doors to get that bargain. Suddenly it makes sense right?

So next time you question if Zombies should run or not, think of the society on which they are based on. When it’s representative of the time it was made, yes maybe they should be a little quicker than those “square” zombies we originally saw in black and white. I guess it’s a matter of taste but I’ve never been bothered by a running zombie. Maybe one day I will.