Silent Screams: The House of the Devil (1896)

The House of the Devil (Le Manoir de Diable) is considered to be the first horror film ever made. Until the existence of others are verified, though, George Melies' reigns supreme as the very beginning of horror cinema. Melies is a name that film buffs may recognize. He was the pioneering writer/director that tried his hand at all types of films but is most widely known for the first filmed foray into science fiction, A Trip to the Moon. We've all seen the iconic rocket in the eye of the moon-face as representative of early genre film, but, with a little careful investigation, it is Melies' contributions to the art of horror that are truly significant.

Movie Review: The Innkeepers (Blu-ray, 2011)

Next to vampire films, the one sub-genre of horror that entertains me the least are films centering on ghosts or paranormal entities. It's not that they're bad. I've seen some enjoyable films throughout the years like The Changeling, The Shining and Poltergeist; it's just they rarely scare or hold my interest. Two years ago, Ti West surprised a lot of people with the superb House of the Devil, now his most recent project, The Innkeepers, makes its way to both Blu-ray and DVD.  Did The Innkeepers put me to sleep, or was it one of those rare supernatural features that passed the test? Let's have a look!

Claire (Sara Paxton, Shark Night, and The Last House on the Left) and Luke (Pat Healy, Ghost World) are a couple of slackers working at the soon-to-be closed Yankee Pedlar Inn. Before the inn closes these ghost enthusiasts want to perform their own ghost hunting on some supposedly haunted sections of the inn.