Queens of the Dead. Who Needs Drag When Zombies Are Onboard?

Who knew? Tina Romero’s Queens of the Dead is a bloody and surprisingly heartfelt mix of drag performance, splattery chaos, and one performer’s quiet journey back to the stage.

Queens of the Dead Movie PosterAvailable on Shudder

Not everyone may realize that Tina Romero, daughter of George A. Romero, is stepping into the horror-comedy arena herself. With Queens of the Dead, she blends character drama with splattery action as a zombie outbreak erupts during a packed Saturday night at a queer nightclub. For the performers and staff, the chaos at first feels like just another wild evening, until they realize they completely missed the evacuation alarm.

When the music is pounding inside Club Yam, no one is going to hear much of anything. Personal drama is already bubbling under the surface when the outbreak begins, and suddenly everyone is scrambling for safety. One storyline centres on Sam (Jaquel Spivey), who feels uneasy about returning to the stage after a traumatic past performance. When club owner Yasmine (Dominique Jackson) announces the show cannot go on as planned, someone else will have to step in. When Sam gets the call, he is forced to confront whether he is ready, emotionally and professionally, to drag.

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On Halloween, There Is No Need To Be Scared Shitless When The Loo Isn’t Clogged Up!

Packed with 80s-style effects, quirky characters, and perfectly timed laughs, Scared Shitless is a cult-worthy horror comedy that keeps viewers guessing who will be next on the “smorgasbord” of victims. #Horror #Comedy #CreatureFeature #BMovie #Canadian

Scared Shitless Fantasia PosterNow Playing on Netflix

Scared Shitless is a hilarious tribute to the Alien franchise. When a resident of an apartment complex accidentally unleashes a strange-looking leech into the sewer system, chaos erupts in ways that go beyond the typical single-location horror formula. While it recalls the frantic energy of Evil Dead: Arise, the film also channels the streetwise vibe of Attack the Block, albeit with a distinctly Canadian twist. And like most films that premiered the previous year at Fantasia Film Festival, it’s now available to stream, or should I say scream?

In tone and aesthetic, the Ghoulies influence feels stronger than The Blob. Written by Brandon Cohen and directed by Vivieno Caldinelli, the narrative reminds us that some of the scariest threats lurk just beneath our feet. Unlike creature features, where monsters simply leap out to snap at whatever’s nearby, this story also centers on a father-and-son duo attempting to save the residents from the sewer-dwelling menace.

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Steven Kostanski’s Frankie Freako Wants to Party, and We Know How to Find This Crazy Dude!

Frankie Freako is the type of guy who means well, even though at first glance, he’s all punk all the way.

Frankie Freako Canadian Poster w datesComing to VOD beginning on October 25
(iTunes and Amazon Prime)

Although four years seems long in between projects, the team of Astron-6 deserves all the credit in a Steven Kostanski led movie, simply titled Frankie Freako. This movie shows just how wonderful puppet gore movies are. As much as I like to use the word puppetcore, that’s the name of a company who produce just as equally wacked out films. Also, they make mostly all puppet productions

When this film includes live-action as part of the equation, what’s presented is very Muppet-like, especially in how they move around the screen. But in this case, instead of revelling in slapstick, the concept delivers the horrific and humour in droves. The last film I saw was Frank and Zed.

That’s because somewhere in space, hobbit-sized characters who want to be like DC Comics’ Lobo insist that they bring their party anywhere in the cosmos. There’s a broadcast where the title character (voiced by Matthew Kennedy) offers to livin up anyone’s doldrum life. When Conor (Conor Sweeny) is an office employee with no gumption to succeed, not even his fellow workers seem to be fighting for inter-office promotions to get a better job. I suspect that before becoming such a Stephen Fry (from Futurama) he had not much of a social life. As for what his wife, Kristina (Kelly Wordsworth) saw in him back when they first dated, not even her sexual advances can stir him up.

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