The Phantasman Review collection

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To celebrate Halloween, Here’s a collection of video shorts courtesy of that armchair amateur film critic from da grave; El Phantasman!









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It's Hammer Time: Frankenstein Created Woman

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It’s Hammer Time! Frankenstein created Woman “Good evening”,I am the Phantasman and welcome to this segment of articles based on a few of my favorite fright flicks from that infamous British Film Production company known to most Horror enthusiasts - Hammer Films. October is frequently known as the Month of Halloween however, it’s also Anti Bullying Month as well. Soooo, I took it upon my righteous self to feature Frankenstein created Woman. When it comes to certain Horror films, I find myself at times, rooting for the “Monster” protagonist who through mistreatment from society in turn enacts vengeance against his/her oppressors. Take Carrie for instance in which the titular character gets pushed around in high school until she started pushing back, literally via the powers of telekinesis!! To me, it was one of the best revenge films of cinema despite its roots in Horror. However, before Brian De palma’s classic tale, there was another revenge film tha...
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Blacula (1973) Review and retrospective!

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In honor of Black History Month, what better way to review  one of the forebears of Black Horror? I curse thee with thy name; Blacula! Director: William Crain Writers: Joan Torres (screenplay), Raymond Koenig (screenplay) Stars: William Marshall, Vonetta McGee, Denise Nicholas , Thalmus Rasula Synopsis African Prince Mamuwalde along with his wife Luva was dispatched to Transylvania as ambassadors of the Ubani tribe for the sole purpose of having Dracula put an end to the barbaric slave trade. unfortunately for them, the count himself refused to play ball as demonstrated in his nonchalant manner, believes it has "merit”! Too add insult to injury, he makes a very condescending remark to the African Princess. Mamu (For short) abruptly ends the meeting as he finds Dracula's manners as distasteful as his cognac.  Dracula refuses to allow them to leave and immediately dispatches his henchmen. Despite fighting the good fight, Mamu is knocked unconsc...
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Five recommended Resident Evil games you SHOULD be playing! (Other than Resident Evil 2 REmake)

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 Good news everyone!  the Government Shutdown has not ended, and now that Federal workers are getting paid retroactively, why not indulge on these recommended picks before or after you the luxury pay off your bills and of course, purchase Capcom's highly anticipated remake of the classic Resident Evil 2 game? And here's the list! 5. Resident Evil 5 This is placed on the lower end for obvious reasons. Despite being a half-baked game with justified criticisms such as broken co-op, dumb a.i., questionable racist caricatures and of course, Chris punching a boulder, there is a bit of fun to be had with this successor to RE4 which both games place more emphasis on action than survival horror.  The voice acting is stellar, (Gotta love Wesker's impersonation of the great David Bowie) killer soundtrack with an emotionally driven ending theme, a multiplayer mode called "Versus", the metaphorical plot that offers speculation of how pandemic disea...
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Suspiria (1977)

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A long time ago, in an era far from today... The Year was 1977: One of the significant years that ushered in Popular Culture that we know and love, to the masses be it blockbuster films, innovative music, trends and of course Television. Let’s look back at what is cool or not so cool milestones of pop culture 40 years ago shall we? In a mood for a High concept spine tingling thriller imported from Italy? Well, look no further! Released on August 12, 1977 and directed by Italian horror legend, Dario Argento, Suspiria is a suspense fright fest about an American ballet student, Suzy Bannon (Jessica Harper) who travels to Germany to attend some prestigious ballet academy. When arriving late on a stormy night, no one lets her enter the crimson colored building, suddenly she sees Pat Hingle(Eva Axén), another student, fleeing from the school and into the woods. As the frantic Pat reaches her apartment, she begins to see bizarre images and is brutally murdered. ...
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It's Hammer Time: Twins of Evil

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Welcome back to “Its Hammer time where I pick a few of my favorite films from that Haunted House of Horror fondly known as Hammer Films. Here's yet another recommendation- Twins of Evil! Tagline: “ One Uses Her Beauty For Love! One Uses Her Lure For Blood! Which is the Virgin? Which is the Vampire?” What happens when a thrill seeker gets more than what she bargained for? Well, Hammer's Twins of Evil has the answer! Loosely based on the vampire tale Carmilla   and part of Hammer’s Karnstein Trilogy, (And often seen as the prequel despite its release after the previous Films: The Vampire Lovers and Lust for a Vampire.)  Twins of Evil, is set within nineteenth century middle-Europe, where orphaned teenage twins Maria and Frieda go to live with their uncle Gustav Weil, (Played by the legendary actor and Hammer staple, Peter Cushing) who heads the Brotherhood, a vigilante religious sect whose holy crusade is to stamp out vampirism. ...
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Blade (1998)

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Starring Wesley Snipes, N'Bushe Wright, Stephen Dorff and Kris Kristofferson Written by David S. Goyer: Directed by Stephen Norrignton Need I say more? I saw this movie in the cinema and the sheer badassness in the opening scene will never ever be trumped. I will never ever see something like that in the  cinema again. Not only that, the movie was very enjoyable and it has been said a lot of times and I will repeat it. Marvel should thank Wesley Snipes on their hands and knees  for showing you can make a good comic adaptation and for saving Marvel's ass. Too bad Marvel let its ass get fucked by the mouse. -Bop's review of Blade (Greatest Heroes of Black Cinema, The Supernaughts-2016) With all this talk about the Black Panther film being the first Black Superhero or character based from a comicbook, I thought I’d shine some light on this sudden “revisionist’s history”. Although Black Panther is a major film backed by Disney, there was this one somew...
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Devilman Crybaby

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As with many popular Amines that have received the reboot treatment in the past and present ( Guyver, Space Battleship Yamato, Cyborg 009 and Berserk ) now it’s Devilman's turn! Based on the iconic Manga and Anime series and created by the father of Mecha-Go Nagai, Devilman Crybaby is an all-out assault on the senses. It's brutal, extremely violent, gratuitous and many of the uninitiated (Those who aren't familiar with Nagai's previous work i.e. Violence Jack.) are in for a shock! As with many reboots, the overall narrative is a retelling of the classic Manga issues and to a lesser extent, the OVAs. Akira Fudo is a young, naive and kind-hearted adolescent who has the penchant to feel compassion and sympathy suffering individuals be they human or animals to the extent of crying profusely. That is, until his childhood friend, Ryo Asuka brings out the devil in him, literally! You see, legend tells that prior to extinction, the demons were the very ...
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This is Dystopia!! (John Carpenter's Escape From New York)

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 If there was one movie that  made me a fan of  both John Carpenter and the Anti-Hero protagonist of modern cinema, it has to be 1981's Escape From New York, a dystopian adventure film that is at its very core, a Western. What started off as an idea inspired by the film Death Wish, a modicum of cynicism from Nixon's Watergate scandal and a trip to the seedy side of Manhattan, Director John Carpenter has created one of the most iconic films in a pop culture history!   What's it all about? In what's referred as "John Carpenter's Escape from New York" it's 1997 and the crime rate within the United States has risen to an overwhelming percentage. During a flight to an International "bargaining" summit, the Air Force One plane makes an unexpected detour thanks to an extremist. The plane's most valuable passenger, President John Harker suddenly finds himself captured and used as a bargaining tool by the inhabitants of what was once Ne...
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Beating a dead horse: Night of The Living Dead gets an actual sequel?

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With the seminal Zombie classic, Night of the Living Dead reaching its 50 th anniversary milestone, Living Dead Media, the company who is responsible for the rights to the original Intellectual Property, has stated that there are actual *gasps* plans to produce an official sequel billed as “Night of the Living Dead Part II” slated to arrive the following year. In an official statement from LDM goes like this: “Night of the Living Dead’s place on the Mt. Rushmore of horror films is known by most horror fans and people all over the world. But, unknown to most is that in the 1970’s, the original writers and producers of Night of the Living Dead penned a sequel to their masterpiece. A sequel that inexplicably has gone unproduced for over forty years – until now. Living Dead Media has brushed away the dirt from this amazing follow up to a classic and brought together a great team to produce the new film.” Obviously, if there’s any indication due to Halloween’s Box Office ...
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