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Nightmare Nostalgia’s Best Horror Movies of 2024- And Biggest Letdowns

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Well, here we are, nuggets. The end of another trip around the sun, and 2024 has seen some shit. Some great. Some, eh, not so great. And then some utterly shitastic fails that I think we’ll never let developers live down. But there were also some unexpected surprises to make up for it. 2024 was one HELL of a year for the horror genre and I personally, haven’t seen as many great films in one year for some time. So, in true NN fashion, Let’s go over to be, what is solely my own opinions here, the very best of 2024 in the genre, along with some well-polished turds to mix things up a bit. To be frank, I HATE saying anything negative about any horror movie. The genre is something I hold precious, which in all honesty here, is why I choose to turn down a lot of horror movie review opportunities because being such a negative bitch is too exhausting. I firmly believe people should just go to the movies and form their own opinions, and never rely on some over-glorified asshat’s opinions on the internet that are no better than your own. Which is primarily why I do this only once a year for people that genuinely hold my opinions to some regard. That’s still wild to me. Sure, it’s a great way to spread the word on movies you may or may not have heard of. But, you can always do that without the smug notion that a film like LISA FRANKENSTEIN wasn’t up to your standards as a movie.

I’M TALKING TO YOU, VARIETY. Also, with all due respect, FUCK YOU.

Probably gonna catch some heat for that last statement from a couple of reviewers who rely on those clicks, But, all my fucks ran out a long time ago. For complete transparency, I haven’t seen EVERY horror movie this year, but I’ve seen a good chock; including the very recently released NOSFERATU, which by itself is a goddamn Gothic masterpiece. But some that I haven’t gotten in my eyeballs yet are: STRANGE DARLING, HERETIC, and TERRIFIER 3. So if they should be somewhere on here but not, that’s why.

More transparency: I’m really in no rush to actually (maybe ever) watch TERRIFIER 3 as I’m not on that bandwagon of fandom. I could barely get through the first two with the unnecessary length of the second paired with the awful acting. SEE?! Got me talking negative here. But, hey. Transparency is good, friends.

Anyway, let’s start with some positive!

BEST INDIE HORROR

“LATE NIGHT WITH THE DEVIL“

LATE NIGHT WITH THE DEVIL brings a refreshing take on found footage horror. BLESS THEM FOR THAT.

PLOT: In 1977 a live television broadcast goes horribly wrong, unleashing evil into the nation’s living rooms. David Dastmalchian plays Jack Delroy, a late night host who went from Late Night King to in the slumps with ratings, and here’s hoping the Halloween special he brings puts him over the hill again. Directed by Cameron and Colin Cairnes.

MY TAKE: LATE NIGHT WITH THE DEVIL takes the essence of found footage paired with the formula of a simple plot and dial it up to a level that I’ve been waiting for someone to do for a long time. Even with being an active member in the horror community, I’m pretty damn good at avoiding spoilers and being able to go in blind on a lot of films. I just know what groups and people to avoid as far as the internet goes. So going in blind on this one probably made me like it even more so.

I’m an avid fan of the WNUF HALLOWEEN SPECIAL and this, while it is obviously much more polished out, gave me those same tingly nostalgic feelers while being truly engaged in the story at the same time. It FELT like I was watching a 70s program and not some new modern film. Effectively so, making what I was watching seem all the more sinister. Also, did anyone else while watching the movie swear up and down the skeleton in the audience was positively key to the plot? I would have bet money on that one, but alas, it was just a distraction.

The 70s aesthetic is absolutely nailed and while I DO get tired of the cliché of a little girl being “possessed” in a horror movie, at the very least they did something different with it all being a facade and not really the demon wreaking havoc, but Jack’s vengeful spirit of a wife instead possessing HIM and fucking ruining his life. Now that’s showmanship. Some of the last images, which I felt were beautifully executed, left an impression on me that this movie did something so right. And the journey to get there, was a wild ride.

BEST PSYCHOPATH

NICOLAS CAGE AS LONGLEGS in “LONGLEGS”

“MOMMYYYYY!!! DADDDYYYY! UNMAKE MEEEEEE!” will forever live rent-free in my head.

PLOT: FBI Agent Lee Harker is assigned to an unsolved serial killer case that takes an unexpected turn, revealing evidence of the occult. Harker discovers a personal connection to the killer and must stop him before he strikes again. Directed by Oz Perkins.

MY TAKE: I love the SHIT out of LONGLEGS and it etched an infinity love for Oz Perkins as a director for most likely, the rest of my life. The fact I really think that Nicolas Cage was just free to dial up his wild ass in this movie into a nightmarishly creepy serial killer that might haunt my dreams for the nest five years, begs to have some recognition here. Cage as Longlegs didn’t exactly have a ton of screen time, but the time he did have, he used well and it was memorable to say the least. However, it was also the right move because it just added to the tension and mystery of the character until we got the full scope reveal of just how insane this character actually is. He could eat a peach for hours, and I could praise his supporting role as 2024’s best psychopath for years.

BIGGEST LETDOWN

“MAXXXINE“

Oh, Maxine Minx. What an unsatisfying ending to this trilogy. But like all stars, ya’ gotta deal with not all of your films being winners.

THE PLOT: In 1980s Hollywood, adult film star and aspiring actress Maxine Minx finally gets her big break. However, as a mysterious killer stalks the starlets of Los Angeles, a trail of blood threatens to reveal her sinister past. Directed by Ti West.

MY TAKE: Man, I really wanted to love this movie. But unlike it’s predecessors, “X” and “PEARL“, MAXXXINE was the biggest letdown of 2024 for me. It was boring. predictable, and just… not good to put it simply. The whole movie seemed poorly paced. The filmmaking and aesthetic was beautiful enough, but it didn’t make up the fact I felt Maxine/ Mia Goth feels a little wasted here. She starts off confident and able to hold her own, yet the rest of the movie has her being very passive and practically having her desired fame handed to her instead of earned. It felt like a step backwards for the character.

The reveal of her father being behind everything might’ve worked on paper, but holy hell it didn’t translate well onscreen. The entire ending sequence is a mess,  and I just felt like the story needed more time in the oven before putting it to screen. Such a shame.

BIGGEST SURPRISE OF 2024

“THE FIRST OMEN“

I truly ate my own words when I decided to judge a film before I saw it. Which, normally, I NEVER do. But considering The Omen legacy and it being a prequel, can I be blamed, really?

THE PLOT: A woman starts to question her own faith when she uncovers a terrifying conspiracy to bring about the birth of evil incarnate in Rome. Directed by Arkasha Stevenson.

MY TAKE: When I heard they were doing a prequel to 1976’s THE OMEN, I rolled my eyes so hard they damn near fell out my skull. I immediately just thought “what a shameless cash grab” and never really gave it another thought until the movie came out, and the circle began really praising this film as something superb. Including one of my writer colleagues here on NN, Manic Exorcism who shared the same skeptism as myself but urged me to go see it as his mind was competely changed. I did. And it was.

Seeing as how so many prequels can be a miss especially when they’re leaning in on a beloved classic and our nostalgia for it, THE FIRST OMEN brings the vibe of the original haunting ambiance of the 70s along with some love for POSSESSION (1981) and origami’s it into a tidy love letter that was a nice surprise for me, personally. It didn’t rely on jump scares, it relied more on atmosphere and story. I can understand the newer generation thinking it’s boring considering what they grew up with, but for an older horror fan like myself, I really enjoyed and appreciated it.

WORST HORROR OF 2024

“NIGHT SWIM”

Coming soon to the Wal-Mart dollar bin, Amityville: The Swimming Pool

THE PLOT: Forced into early retirement by a degenerative illness, former baseball player Ray Waller moves into a new house with his wife and two children. He hopes that the backyard swimming pool will be fun for the kids and provide physical therapy for himself. However, a dark secret from the home’s past soon unleashes a malevolent force that drags the family into the depths of inescapable terror. Directed by Bryce McGuire.

MY TAKE: This was a random watch on HULU one night when nothing else seemed to be catching my eye and I should have just used that 90 minutes to sleep instead. The premise was interesting enough with the family pool acting out as some evil wishing well, so props to the writers for something unique here. But as intriguing as that is, it couldn’t save the film from the goofy CGI, the paper thin characters I never once gave a shit about, and a pool just doing whatever the fuck was convenient for the plot. The fact they tried to make the game, ‘Marco Polo’ scary was laughable enough. My advice, just skip it altogether and watch “Are You Afraid of the Dark‘s “The Tale of the Dead Man’s Float“. If you want a scary pool monster, that’s the way to go.

MOVIE I THOUGHT I WOULD LOVE BUT ENDED UP HATING

“ALIEN: ROMULUS“

Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like it’s really hard to fuck up an ALIEN movie. And yet, here we are.

THE PLOT: Space colonizers come face to face with the most terrifying life-form in the universe while scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station. Directed by Fede Álvarez.

MY TAKE: I guess I should have seen this one coming. I’m also not a fan at all of Fede’s 2013 EVIL DEAD, because I’m sorry, that franchise doesn’t work without Bruce Campbell and I just couldn’t enjoy the thing. However, it’s an ALIEN movie that ties into the universe so what could go wrong? A lot, actually. While visually pleasing, I felt it had nothing new to say in the franchise.  It felt like they just put all the best parts of the other ALIEN films into a single movie and called it a day; hoping that fans wouldn’t notice or just choke on the fan service nostalgia. That was too lazy for me. Also, Deep Fake Ian Holm REALLY took me out of the film whenever he was on screen. It just didn’t match the rest of the movie’s great aesthetic, because, well, it was pretty bad. The movie felt like an ALIEN fan-fiction film rather than something cannon to the legacy of movies we’ve seen before. I’ll just say it, the last GREAT ALIEN movie was PROMETHEUS and I just haven’t seen that kind of love and care taken into the franchise since then.

THE INSTANT CULT CLASSIC AND FAVORITE FILM OF THE YEAR

“LISA FRANKENSTEIN”

Because it begs to be said once more: FUCK YOU, VARIETY.

THE PLOT: A misunderstood teenager and a reanimated Victorian corpse embark on a murderous journey together to find love, happiness, and a few missing body parts. Directed by Zelda Williams.

MY TAKE: LISA FRANKENSTEIN is everything I could want in a cult horror comedy and more. A coming of RAGE love story about a teenager and her crush, who happens to be a corpse is a Gothic romance fairy tale for the ages with some great comedy moments spliced with scenes that will hit you in the feels. Not to mention all the nostalgia and love of the late 80s surrounding it and the EDWARD SCISSORHANDS and HEATHERS vibes were felt hard- but the story was entirely its own and a fresh take on the FRANKENSTEIN lore that’s been done to death in the last 100 years.

It exceeded my expectations in a big way. Funnier, dirtier, sweeter, and grosser than I thought it would be. The style is cohesive, consistent and as much a character as anyone else! Like Rocky Horror it will very much be a cult classic Dammit (Janet)!  And not to mention Cole Sprouse does so much with so few lines. He took a page from Nicholas Holt and ran with it. Kathryn Newton does such an excellent job of tossing off Diablo Cody’s dialogue and selling it all the more as a true teenage stream of consciousness. I truly don’t even see any flaws in this movie at all and will watch this movie over, and over again with a smile on every time.

BEST OVERALL HORROR FILM OF 2024

THE SUBSTANCE

Coralie Fargeat, who wrote, edited, produced, and directed this modern body-horror Mona Lisa, is by far the best thing I’ve seen come out of the genre in some time.

PLOT: Elisabeth Sparkle, renowned for an aerobics show, faces a devastating blow on her 50th birthday as her boss fires her. Amid her distress, a laboratory offers her a substance which promises to transform her into an enhanced version of herself.

MY TAKE: Perhaps not since PET SEMATARY (1989) has a horror movie made me cry a blubbering mess. However, with THE SUBSTANCE it was for very different reasons. As a 42-year-old woman I felt all the things Elisabeth (Demi Moore) felt prior and during her wild journey. I’ve stood in that mirror for hours, obsessing over every flaw until I just walloped myself into a sad state of depression. All my life, I’ve suffered from body dysmorphia and an eating disorder that almost took me out as a teenager. I got down to 69 pounds and I probably should be dead, but I’m here instead bringing nostalgic and weird joy to the masses with the one thing that has always just been accepting of me for me- the horror community. *Just to be clear, I’ve been healthy for the last 14 years in terms of body weight and have gone through, and continue therapy on the matter to pull myself out of that. So, yay for me.

So yes, this movie hit me hard in the feels on a relatable matter. However, I feel like every goddamn woman on the planet can relate to the atrocities of being a woman in the social media age. Where filters make you feel more self-conscious than you already are along with, as always, setting unrealistic standards for what a woman should look like along with selling us Botox and dermal fillers up the ass so that we may achieve that glorious unpolished Instagram filter on our own faces. Then there was the younger, more perfect version, Margaret Qualley, beating the ever-loving shit out of Elisabeth- a nice metaphor for we, as women, beat the crap out of yourselves on a daily basis with harsh words. It wasn’t until it was too late that Elisabeth could see her own beauty and realize that she was always enough. And it had me thinking for DAYS on end what a powerful message that was. I mean, bonus that it’s a body horror with a TON of Easter Egg homages to a variety of great horror movies like THE FLY, THE SHINING, RE-ANIMATOR and so forth along with a bloody finale that rivals that of EVIL DEAD 2. It’s just everything I could ever want in a horror movie and more. It’s the absolute GOAT of 2024.

With all that being said, I wanted to point out that 2024 was not only a great year for horror, but also a fantastic year for women in horror. It truly felt like women horror directors and writers just dominated the fuck out of the genre this year and being a female in the game as long as I have, it makes me extremely proud to be a minuscule part of it in my own little corner of the horror community.

Or something like that…

What were your favorite horror movies of 2024? How about your most hated? Comment below and let’s have our last horror movie discussion of the year!

Lists

A Thanksgiving Marathon of Muscle: Ranking All Six Original “Rocky” Films!

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One might not at first think to associate the ROCKY films with November. Still, incidentally, the movies have become a month-long tradition for many to help usher in Thanksgiving and the holidays as part of an annual custom alongside things like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, or the faithful viewing of a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. As an Italian-American, films like ROCKY, GOODFELLAS, and THE GODFATHER, were absolute staples around Turkey Day- I can’t explain the latter two for anything other than it’s just a weird Italian thing. However, with ROCKY, the holiday showcased in the first half of the 1976 film which begat the Italian Stallion’s journey toward his future boxing career and most importantly, the love of his life Adrian, is of course, Thanksgiving. The bulk of the films in the series, with the exception of ROCKY III and ROCKY BALBOA, were released theatrically around the Thanksgiving holiday, along with two of three CREED films.

So, yeah. It’s just not Thanksgiving in my mind until I see Paulie being a total dickwad and throwing a cooked bird into an alleyway.

Apart from being a huge horror nerd my whole life, the ROCKY films have served as an old friend of comfort for as long as I can remember. And the answer is yes, I even like the 5th movie. Contrary to a weird stigma, horror fans also like other films, and this is hands down my favorite movie series outside the horror genre. I’m a BALBOA connoisseur if you will, and I’ve been asked several times to rank the films personally but have never done, so. Well, as hard as this genuinely is for me, because I find all the flicks to be pretty balanced in their own way and love them all, mostly, equally- I’ve had to remedy that. As a true fan of the franchise through and through, this was stupidly impossible.

So here we go! Eye of the tiger, baby. Eye of the tiger. From my least favorite to the all-time champ, my definitive ranking of the ROCKY franchise!

NOTE: I’ve chosen to exclude the CREED films. While they are indeed canon and serve as an important continuation, Balboa is utilized as a side character. Hence, I feel like they are their own set of movies.

ROCKY V

To the surprise of probably no one, ROCKY V comes in dead last on the list; but that’s not to say I hate the movie at any level. Sure, it has plenty of flaws, but it also has its share of memorable moments. I mean, if you don’t cry during the flashback of Mickey and his angelic speech, you just may very well be a sociopath. And to be frank, I cry every single time I hear it. Don’t judge me and my soft ass.

As a matter of fact, here’s some cut up onions for you if you need a refresher. Tissues not included.

ROCKY V was made and released five years after the last film, and I am of the belief that was a major issue in itself. The previous films only had about, at the most, a two-year gap, making for a smoother transition into the next chapter without it looking off. Here, it’s all off. Both Rocky and Adrian look considerably older, and with no explanation at all, Rocky Jr aged from a seven-year-old, to a prepubescent teenager making naked drawings of his French teacher. Paulie always looked like he was 50, so there are no issues with that. There’s also the huge change of the time era, as let’s face it: 1990 looks absolutely nothing like 1985, so the shift is really quite difficult to swallow here as the beginning of the movie picks up immediately where ROCKY IV left off. It’s a hard sell to say the least.

What I do appreciate here, is how they attempted to do something different. There’s only so many times we can rehash the same Rocky story without it becoming stale, so they were on the right track. It just kind of fell flat on its face-sort of like Tommy Morrison’s asshole character in the movie after getting the crap kicked out of him. I really hated that son of a bitch Tommy Gunn, so I really have to praise the late Morrison for his acting chops here. It’s no Academy performance, but he really made me want to punch him myself. So, the man did his job well. As with Richard Gant’s portrayal of Duke, the obvious play on the infamous scumbag of boxing promoter, Don King.

Rocky going back to his roots wasn’t a bad thing. However, the way it happened was very abrupt. It angered me. I hate seeing him and Adrian struggle. It’s really depressing to watch, especially the relationship with his son (Sage Stallone). The original ending had the former champion dying from his injuries with his love Adrian at his side. However, Stallone found writing this scene highly emotional, and reportedly cried while finishing it. As the movie began filming, director Avildsen received a call from the head of production at United Artists. The head argued that Rocky Balboa was too beloved and iconic to kill off. They demanded the tearjerker ending be changed. And I fucking agree. I would have died a little inside along with his character had that ended up being the final product. So kudos for that change at least.

ROCKY III

It almost kills me to put the third film second to last, but here we are. It’s gotta go somewhere.

Rocky has gone from the struggling boxer living in the slums of Philadelphia, to a “civilized” athlete with tons of endorsements, making him wealthy and powerful. Along with successfully, or so he thinks anyway, defending the world title numerous times. Not to go unnoticed by the number one contender, Clubber Lang (Mister T).

It’s more lighthearted while still being serious in the same breath. ROCKY III, the love child of parts 2 and 4, is the best description as it stays somewhere down the middle as it goes from that fucking massive banger of an intro, to the ever problematic Paulie-envious of his brother-in-law’s new notoriety. It can get a tad cartoonish at times. Which I’m totally on board with.

Speaking of which… how about the ultimate male vs the ultimate meatball. HA HA HA.

The movie should be higher on the list solely because of this, but I’ll stand by my ranking.

Mister T is over the top and a total scumbag for just about everything he does in this movie. This guy has absolutely no redeeming qualities. He is dissimilar from his predecessor Apollo, who was just fighting for his ego. Not because he’s a psycho maniac who DARE to lay a hand on Mick. That’s like kicking a damn baby. The death of Mick is heartbreaking, but it’s nice to see Apollo step up and get behind Rocky; even if there are some ulterior motives behind it to begin with. Their friendship is pretty cute, to say the least. DING. DING.

ROCKY BALBOA

2006 brought the simply titled, ROCKY BALBOA. Simple itself, however, it was anything but. The first Rocky movie in sixteen whole years came in fucking HOT with the emotions. Upon my first viewing, I started crying immediately as it plunges straight into the untimely death of Adrian. Adrian was the woman who kept Rocky going for as long as he did. Now, we see Balboa, past his prime, living in days gone by with his memories and not much else. Just basking in the nostalgia of yesterday while ignoring much of the present.

That doesn’t sound like anyone I know…

ROCKY BALBOA is a gut punch to our emotions. It evokes our nostalgia for the first movie, and really embraces what made the original so endearing in the first place. My only complaint really is there is some stuff that could be better fleshed out, such as Rocky’s relationship with his son (Milo Ventimiglia). But the core of the story is the same that we came to love, which is rooting for Rocky as the underdog rather than emphasizing the boxing match.

There’s also this incredible monologue that not only is fucking CHURCH, but should be microchipped into every human being’s skull on the planet. When Sly is gone, and trust me I dread that day when it comes, this speech will live on for eternity.

ROCKY II

Stallone slips on both hats as writer and director for the highly anticipated Superfight II that is equally good as its predecessor. Picking up right where we left off at fight night, we follow the aftermath of Rocky’s new-found slight celebrity and the burdens it carries. Especially for someone who wasn’t completely ready for the responsibility that comes with it. Mentally or financially. And with a promise to Adrian he would quit fighting as he did what he set out to, which was to go the distance, Rocky is confronted with the fact he doesn’t fare too well outside the ring.

In fact, he smeels mainly at it.

It’s truly admirable the lengths he goes to try and have what most people consider a “normal life”, But with Creed up his ass taunting him for a rematch as his ego was seriously bruised the first time around, pride eventually succumbs and with Adrian’s blessing after a massive life and death scare, its fucking GO TIME. This is where we truly first witness, what becomes, THE ITALIAN STALLION because Rocky really whales on Creed’s ass this time around and the fight alone is everything the movie builds it up to be. A perfect ballet of back and forth that keeps you guessing which way it’s going to go to the very end, with absolutely stunning cinematography shots that I could endlessly watch on a loop. Only to be rivaled by the fight in the first CREED film.

Oh, and then there’s this. In the first film, no one believed in this guy. This time around, the whole city is behind him. Also, I gotta love the little shit that totally tries to outrun him. Respect, little man. But not today.

ROCKY IV

Listen, it took every ounce of my inner 80s montage-loving ass not to put this at number one. But I have to respect what I know deep down to be true- and that is that it’s only second to the one and only.

I BARELY remember it, but my dad and uncle took me to see this when I was three-fucking- years old at a Drive-In. I had actually forgotten about this long-lost memory until my father recently brought it up when I told him I was ranking the Rocky movies. And all of I sudden, I got a flash of a giant screen and seeing Drago’s face with that haunting music- standing over a dead Apollo (basically the image above, which is why I chose it.) And I instantly remembered being scared shitless of the guy. It was a pretty wild and jolting, albeit a faded memory that I guess was stuck way deep in my thought banks. But it would also explain the reason why I always viewed Ivan Drago as THEE horror icon of the franchise. That’s a whole other story- but you can read about it here.

ROCKY IV is the sequel that just embodies the 80s in its entirety- and does it goddamn well. While many view it as a 90-minute epic montage, and it kind of is with a kickass intermission from James Brown that is about as American as it gets. I mean, it basically tells their Russian guests to lick their assholes. Because, ‘MURICA.

But, It really is so much more than that. ROCKY IV delivers some powerful messages that still resonates to the world almost 40 years after the fact. The theme of change and staying true to your roots. As Rocky and Apollo are getting older in the athletic world, a young and GIANT fresh face flies in from Russia (Dolph Lungren) and his handlers and issue a challenge to Balboa in an exhibition match- stating there is no one else that could match Drago’s strength or endurance. That really bruises the ego of Creed, which as the movies have shown, is his one fatal flaw. And in this case, it really was fatal.

In regards to the final fight, the immanent theme of change begins as our American hero is booed all the way to the ring. The entrance is dark, dank, and smells of uncertainty. Whereas Drago’s entrance tells the same tale only with favorable crowd and a WAY more sinister feeling- we will definitely attribute Dicola’s Drago Suite to the anxiety in the room as we prepare for war. As the fight progresses and the pair of soldiers are beating the ever-loving shit out of each other, the change begins. As Rocky our series underdog keeps taking the licks and getting back up, the communist crowd begins to favor the Italian Stallion and his perseverance.

And then… the speech. A speech just as relevant now as it was then and will forever be so in this insane world that we live in under constant threat and fears of the unknown. That if we can band together to come to a consensus, regardless of our background, we can live peacefully and without regret.

NOW HIT ME WITH THOSE FRESH BEATS, AND A BEARDED SLY, DiCOLA!

ROCKY

Well here we are; the one that started it all and without it, we wouldn’t have these amazing legacy of films that I’ve been blabbering on about.

This rawdog of an indie film written by an almost homeless Stallone with his puppers beside him, is a film written into reality as both the movie and Sly himself went from rags to riches overnight. Makes sense since Sly basically wrote the character as himself, and wouldn’t sign off on the script unless he was starring. A down-on-his-luck club fighter, Rocky receives a once-in-a-lifetime shot when the heavyweight champion of the world, Apollo Creed, decides to make him his next opponent simply because he likes Rocky’s nickname.

The film also explores Rocky’s relationships. Mickey Goldmill, the crusty old trainer who at first cooks him and calls him “a bum” for wasting his potential being an enforcer for a loan shark. After Rocky gets that amazing offer, Mick (Burgess Meredith) realizes that by training Rocky, it could be the only chance at redemption for both of them.

This scene is particular, is one of the most emotionally raw moments in the series. For some behind the scenes context, Sly pictured himself talking to his overbearing father in this scene.

Then, of course, the lovely Adrian. For so long, people confused this love story as a boxing movie. The sport was merely a backdrop for this budding romance where two lost, and lonely souls find their lifemate and its the most adorable thing. From the beginning, Rocky pursues Adrian with dumb jokes and subtle flirtations, however this shy thing that has lived under her abusive brother’s thumb, takes time to come out of shell and when she does, SHE blossoms like the strong woman she always was; Rocky just had to bring it out of her. I especially love it when she stands up to prick Paulie once, and for all.

Finally, with Mickey and Adrian in his corner, Rocky trains for the fight, but his goal isn’t to win but merely “to go the distance” with Creed. Rocky goes on to shock Apollo, who took him lightly, by going the full 15 rounds with the champ, losing by split decision but proving to himself he’s not “a bum, or a tomat-ah.” And once it was all said and done, he just wanted to hold Adrian- and find her hat.

Beautiful.

News

New Documentary From “In Search Of Darkness” 1990-1994 Edition Up For Pre-Order!

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The ultimate visual guide to horror films by the decade, “IN SEARCH OF DARKNESS”, is back at it to stab our eyeballs with a 90s version. And the horror passionate campaign is underway for fans to preorder along with some goodies!

The creative minds behind the In Search of Darkness ‘ 80s horror trilogy and Aliens Expanded documentary, In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994 delves into an era of horror evolution marked by grittier, meta filmmaking, straight-to-video ingenuity, darker villains alongside franchise icons, and the birth of seismic digital-effects – leaving no shortage of terror tales on TV, at the local video store, and on multiplex screens. Landmark film favorites including Candyman , The Silence of the Lambs, Tremors , and Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Wes Craven’s New Nightmare, Stephen King’s IT miniseries, Frankenhooker and Peter Jackson’s Dead Alive are deconstructed, re-contextualized, and revered with a nostalgic, celebratory lens in In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994 , which features new interviews with legendary film icons of the ‘90s, side-by-side with genre experts and famous fans – all assembled to reframe a fascinating period in horror history and hold up a cracked
mirror to the compelling socio-political issues of the landscape.


“The ‘90s was a much more exciting time for horror filmmaking, TV programming, and bold innovation than many of us may remember,” says In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994 writer/director David Weiner. “There was an abundance of creative visions, vibrant approaches, and insane indie entries. And it was also a time of major transition, growing pains and evolution for horror filmmakers. I’m excited to present a brand-new line-up of ‘90s horror legends and contemporary voices, alongside several returning ‘80s favorites, to reframe the perspective of this oft-maligned decade of great horror entertainment and risk-taking in In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994. ”

“I’m thrilled to invite superfans on an extraordinary journey with In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994, ” says CEO of CREATORVC, Robin Block. “Together, we were able to show the world a new form of documentary with the first In Search of Darkness in 2019, expanding the film into a trilogy and subsequent books. We are excited to take on a new decade in horror and explore it with our fans.”

With new interviews and insights from the likes of John Carpenter, Heather Langenkamp, Ted Raimi, and Clancy Brown-just to name a few– it’s going to be pretty exciting to hear the perspectives from the legends on the start of a new decade of horror!

In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994 Purchase Options:

● SOD: 1990-94 BLU-RAY PACKAGE (including Blu-ray w/slipcase; 2 posters; name in credits; sew-on patch; digital copy of film; digital soundtrack; membership card; and exclusive certificate)

● THREE-DISC ISOD ‘80s TRILOGY COLLECTION (including In Search of Darkness Parts I-III Blu-rays with exclusive trilogy slipcase; digital copy of film; digital soundtrack)

Pre-orders for In Search of Darkness: 1990–1994 are available October 8 through midnight October 31, 2024 exclusively at www.90shorrordoc.com!