Entertainment

From ‘Psycho’ To A New Crop Of Horror Movies in 2023

Published

2 years ago

2023-05-12

Kiara Grace

(LOS ANGELES) –Horror If you’re stuck for ideas on how to spend Mother’s Day, consider enjoying a good scare. Since the beginning of the genre, horror films have delved into the psychological anguish and terror that can only come from a mother, and several contemporary films are carrying on that time-honored legacy.

Consider Brandon Cronenberg’s “Infinity Pool,” one of the most talked-about pictures to emerge from this year’s Sundance Film Festival.

It’s not surprising that there were frightening moments. After all, the director has undoubtedly learned a thing or two from his filmmaker father and genre titan, David Cronenberg.

Gabi (Mia Goth) exposes her bare chest to James (Alexander Skarsgrd) in an invitation to breastfeed in one memorable scene, indicating a delicate tension between his original mother and his understanding of Gabi as his new one.

While the genre has been derided as low-brow, Adam Lowenstein, a cinema and media studies professor at the University of Pittsburgh specializing in horror, believes it is well-suited for dealing with such deep-seated psychological difficulties.

“Horror is, at its core, a very primal genre,” he explained. “It makes perfect sense that family, sex, and death are all things that the horror film is constantly mining because those are primal fascinations and experiences.”

Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho” (1960) is perhaps the definitive example of mommy concerns in a horror film.

In it, Norman Bates of the Bates Motel develops a dual personality after murdering his tyrannical mother and her lover out of jealousy. His anguish and shame force him to hide her body and adopt her personality when he conducts violence against women he is drawn to.

How horror films investigate motherhood difficulties and psychological trauma

According to Lowenstein, one of the reasons the maternal bond is particularly fertile for investigating psychological trauma is that it is so ubiquitous and loaded.

Since the beginning of the genre, horror films have delved into the psychological anguish and terror that can only come from a mother.

“We all have real mothers, just as we all subscribe to real constructs about motherhood.” And these things are quite difficult to separate,” he explained. The gap between expectation and reality is fertile ground for a good scare.

“Barbarian” (2022) by Zach Cregger similarly makes breastfeeding a spectacle, but this time from a hideous parental creature rather than an inviting yet twisted sexual partner, as in “Infinity Pool.”

Other films let the mother-child interaction carry the drama. The terrifying extreme of a mother being possessed by a demon is explored in ” Evil Dead Rise,” which is now available to rent on streaming sites.

“I think it’s very terrifying to imagine somebody so familiar to you in your world becoming a subversion of that, and becoming something really dangerous and evil,” filmmaker Lee Cronin said. “It just lent itself to this exploration of maternal fears and what it might mean if your mother was to turn on you.”

The major premise of Ari Aster’s latest film, “Beau is Afraid,” is the anxiety and pain that can result from the mother-child bond. The film, about a guy seeking to reach his mother’s house, is both a surrealist epic and a horror film.

While Aster’s third picture is admittedly less frightening than his previous two, “Midsommar” and “Hereditary,” all of which exploit the terrors of family relations and mother-induced trauma, it is reasonable to infer by the conclusion that Beau’s fear of his guilt-inducing mother was justified.

“When I left ‘Beau Is Afraid,’ I heard a teenage woman leaving out of the theatre ahead of me saying to her friends, ‘That just made me want to call my mum and say I’m sorry for everything,” Lowenstein recalled. “We think horror, fear, dread, and haunting, but not necessarily guilt, shame, or humiliation.” And Ari Aster clearly sees the link between these things.”

It’s no coincidence that almost all of these frightening films about protagonists’ relationships with their moms are directed by men.

But, according to Lowenstein, the genre’s mommy issues began with a woman and long before the film: Mary Shelley’s classic 1818 horror novel, “Frankenstein,” is widely regarded as the origin of contemporary horror.

“Her story is about a man who wants to be God but also a mother.” “He truly wishes to create life without the intervention of women,” he stated. “What Mary Shelley shows us is how bad this idea is, and how male hubris really does monstrous things with motherhood.”

horror

SOURCE – (AP)

Entertainment

Gladiator II Rakes in $87 Million in Weekend Debut

Published

6 days ago

2024-11-18

Geoff Brown

Despite not playing in theaters in the United States, Canada, and China until this coming Friday, Gladiator II earned $87 million over the weekend, which is the best foreign opening for a Ridley Scott film to date.

Last week, the picture premiered in 63 countries, including the UK, and grossed $11.4 million from 722 theatres. Particularly impressive was its performance in France, where it raised $10.3 million from 729 outlets.

But this one is a little weaker compared to February’s smash hit sequel, Dune: Part Two, which grossed $97 million worldwide in its opening weekend. At the same time, Deadpool & Wolverine made $233 million for Disney, while Inside Out 2 for Pixar grossed $140 million.

The Fall Guy, an action comedy starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, earned $36.7 million in its opening weekend worldwide, while Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga earned $30 million.

Last Monday, King Charles III attended a screening of Gladiator II in London, capping off a weeks-long worldwide press tour for the film’s cast and production. A Mexican biscuit brand, Rome’s public transportation system, and a German bank VR are just a few multinational brands it has teamed up with to boost its visibility.

In Australia, dessert merchant Oliver Brown offered a special edition of pistachio-heavy puds and drinks dubbed the Emperor’s Collection. The Gladiator II salted caramel latte is available at French Coffee Shop, a business in Paris.

After poor statistics for Venom: The Last Dance and The Rock’s comedy Red One, which premiered worldwide last week, fans hope that Scott’s delayed sequel can lift the global box office for the last month and a half of the year.

Some are predicting a Barbenheimer-style struggle for the top spot in the US box office when Gladiator II and the highly anticipated musical Wicked premiere on the same day, even though double-bill events are unlikely to be very popular.

Gladiator Star Russell Crowe Honored in Rome

Gladiator Star Russell Crowe Honored in Rome

Entertainment

Blizzard’s Remastered Versions Of Warcraft 1 And 2 Are Now Available On PCs.

Published

2 weeks ago

2024-11-13

Salman Ahmad

Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment

(VOR News) – It has been said by Blizzard that it does not intend to remake Warcraft 1 and 2 since the company believes that these games are “just not that fun any longer.”

When the corporation first made this declaration, it has been almost exactly eight years since it was delivered.

However, the firm has only recently made the news that it will be doing precisely that, and as part of the celebrations for Warcraft’s 30th anniversary, both of the remastered versions are now available to play. The celebrations did not start until today.

The public first played Warcraft in 1994.

This game played a significant role in Blizzard’s rise to the top of the competition. In the year that followed, Warcraft 2 was hastily created in order to suit the requirements of the burgeoning fanbase that the first Warcraft had established.

Additionally, the company has just disclosed that they will be remastering the games, and these remasters will contain a variety of additions to the traditional real-time strategic action that is included in the games.

The initial stage of these enhancements to the development process consists of a new collection of hand-drawn pictures that may be toggled on and off in real time. The artistic style of the originals has been said to be completely captured by these photos, according to the assertions made.

Specifically, Blizzard has implemented “modern controls” for Warcraft 1, which include the option to move with a right click, the ability to pick bounding boxes, and a faster progression rate.

These features are all present in the Warcraft game.

The alterations that have been made include these, however they are not the only ones. It is important to note that these changes have been introduced in addition to the user interface and user experience enhancements that have been implemented throughout both games.

Tool tips, health bars, mission decision screens, and increased unit selection are some of the enhancements that have been introduced in this version of the game. As an additional feature, the multiplayer mode that was included in the first version of Warcraft 2 is still included in the remastered version of the game.

As an additional point of interest, each and every one of the legacy custom maps is entirely compatible with the new edition and may be played in the same capacity.

Despite the fact that there is currently no information regarding whether or not Warcraft 1 Remastered and Warcraft 2 Remastered will eventually be made available on other markets, both of these remastered versions of the game are currently available for purchase on Battle.net for personal computers at prices of $9.99 and $14.99, respectively.

Both of these versions of the game are remastered versions of the original game. A Battle Chest bundle is also available for purchase, and it can be purchased for the price of $39.99. All of the titles that have been remastered are included in this bundle, in addition to Blizzard’s Warcraft 3: Reforged, which has been met with a considerable deal of criticism.

Blizzard has been making continual efforts to improve the game ever since it was first made available to the public in the year 2020.

This is despite the fact that the game was met with poor reviews practically immediately after it was released. An entirely new upgrade, version 2.0, is currently being made available to all gamers without delay.

One of the numerous enhancements to the quality of life that are included in this is “much, much more,” in addition to a wide range of options for personalizing the hockey experience within the game and a new ladder.

In addition to the high-definition versions of all of the older Warcraft assets, these upgrades also include new environments and lighting, a redesigned user interface, and a variety of other enhancements.

SOURCE: EG

Entertainment

Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 Returns Without Kevin Costner

Published

2 weeks ago

2024-11-11

Geoff Brown

Yellowstone is finally returning for the second half of its fifth season without Kevin Costner

Yellowstone will finally return for the second half of its fifth season. We have a lot to speak about, such as recalling what is going on in this program, Kevin Costner’s departure, and whether or not season 5, part 2, will truly end Yellowstone.

Season 5 Part 1 ended on a cliffhanger—we could be in for a full-fledged Dutton family civil war—and we’ve been waiting for nearly two years.

A quick recap: nothing changes from how this program usually goes, except it’s a little more intense. Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) despised Jamie Dutton. Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley) despised Beth Dutton.

That has always been the case since childhood trauma, but now things have escalated. Their father, John Dutton (Kevin Costner), is now Montana’s Governor, and Jamie, who should be his top legal thinker, is played by a group of local businessmen known as Market Equities.

Anyway, Jamie and Beth are attempting to kill each other, and John appears to be leaning toward Beth’s side.

Given Kevin Costner’s public exit from the program, part 2 of season 5 will be especially noteworthy. Long story short, he departed to make his Horizon films and never returned.

So, how will Yellowstone pick up the tale without John? That much is unknown, which adds to the season’s appeal!

Of course, our other characters continue to do what they do. Rip (Cole Hauser) is doing his Rip thing. Kayce (Luke Grimes) oversees the ranch. His wife, Monica (Kelsey Asbille), is still grieving the loss of their unborn son.

But we do have some high stakes to pick up—and they will begin on Sunday, November 10th, whether Kevin Costner appears on screen or not.

Another twist: While we believed season 5 would conclude the Yellowstone story, part 2 is in the works.

There have also been suggestions that Yellowstone could return for a sixth season, starring Cole Hauser and Kelly Reilly as Rip and Beth. Hmm, certainly!

Yellowstone’s fifth season, part 2, will air each episode of the truncated half-season on Sunday nights at 8:00 PM EST.

The episodes will then be shown on linear TV, Hulu with Live TV, or the Paramount Network website and app for those with a cable subscription. The premiere will also re-air on CBS at 10:00 p.m. EST.

Yellowstone season 5, part 2, will consist of six episodes, the first of which is currently accessible to watch and stream. That implies the series might end with five more episodes of Western family drama.