Let’s face it folks the horror genre is well and truly made a comeback on the big and small screens, I recently had the chance to preview the new horror anthology Video Shop Tales of Terror, a collection of horror-based short films by some of the cream of the crop of UK’s best indie horror filmmakers including; Alex Churchyard of TIS Films (I Scream on the Beach!/ Mosiac), Thomas lee Rutter of Carnie Films (Day of the Stranger / The Pocket Film of Superstitions), Mj Dixon of Myhco Entertainment (PandaMonium / The Haunting of Molly Bannister), Sam Mason Bell of Trash Arts (Millennial Killer/ Acting), Michael Fausti of Fausti Films (Exit /Dead Celebrities) and Andrew Elias of Ciao Handy (The Numbers / Tales From the Great War).
I settled down with my popcorn (which may have been a mistake with the gory scenes) to check out this new product and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by the passion that the directors and the teams involved with the shorts have put into this shocking but entertaining trip back to an 80s style horror-fest that will shock.
Not only does this film include a great selection of directors, but it also includes some familiar faces from the UK Indie scene including Dani Thompson, Martin W. Payne, Hannah Paterson, Andrea Rose and Tony Mardon.
Video Shop Tales of Terror has been conceived by Singh Lall, who is the Curator of the Horror on Sea Video Club. Lall had the following to say about the film. “I have handpicked the best indie horror film directors out there to recreate and refresh the anthology genre. Horror fans will be in for a treat!”
For those of us old enough to remember those days back in the 80s of the video nasties and checking out the video store for those films that you wouldn’t usually get to see, Video Shop Tales of Terror certainly gives us some of those moments of the video nasties of yesteryear. There are even those cheap-looking video adverts for future presentations of horrors and adverts that are done in such a way that they look like you are watching a videotape, something that some Gen Z’s have probably never used (damn I feel old now).
The various “tales of terror” are brought to us via the video dungeon and the strange introductions with various people popping into the shop, but there is something far more sinister and horrible going on in the dungeon.
All the short films are well made on the budget that has been made available and I have to say that it’s great to see so many physical effects in the film, yes CGI looks great in those big-budget movies, but it’s the old-school physical effects that I’ve always enjoyed so much more, think back to Sam Raimi’s original Evil Dead and how we all loved the effects in that, well Video Shop Tales of Terror is very much down that route of storytelling and for me, it’s great to see films taking this route when it comes to giving us some fantastic looking gory scenes.
Each of the “tales” has its own style and all bring the collection together nicely with stories that will have you intrigued, disgusted and shocked by the way that they bring horror to the screen. This is a film that will appeal to many horror fans and to those that appreciate the effort that goes into filmmaking, it’s also great to see so many indie filmmakers coming together to produce something that will hopefully inspire other upcoming indie horror filmmakers to bring their work to the screen.
I’m not going into too much depth about the stories that build up the film but they all work great as a collection of horror tales and if you are a fan of the genre and are looking for something different, then Video Shop Tales of Terror is certainly one that you will want to add to your watchlist.
The World Premiere will take place at 8 pm on the 21st of January 2023 at the Horror-on-Sea Film Festival in Southend-on-Sea, tickets are available from the website at https://www.horror-on-sea.com/shop-6.
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Are you brave enough to visit the Video Dungeon!
Movie title: Video Shop Tales of Terror (2023)
Movie description: A sinister video rental store is the portal to six tales of terror. This is an anthology horror in the classic style of horror studios from the past but with a twist.
Date published: January 10, 2023
Country: UK
Director(s): Alexander Churchyard, Max Davenport, Mj Dixon, Andrew Elias, Michael Fausti, Geoff Harmer, Pat Higgins, Mark Logan, Tony Mardon, Sam Mason-Bell, Merlyn Roberts, Thomas Lee Rutter
Actor(s): Dani Thompson, Laurence R. Harvey, Ayvianna Snow
Genre: Horror
Summary
A collection of horror tales from the Video Dungeon that will shock and entertain!
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
