Twelve Days of Axe-mas / The Cohen Case Files: Maniac Cop 2 (1990)

Written and Produced by Larry Cohen Note: This review will contain spoilers concerning the first Maniac Cop. I urge you to watch the first film before reading this review. I am taking part in The Chicago Creepout’s Twelve Days of Axe-mas holiday viewing event. This is my day twelve. Admittedly, Maniac Cop 2, like the […]

Twelve Days of Axe-mas: The Day of the Beast (1995)

I am taking part in The Chicago Creepout’s Twelve Days of Axe-mas holiday viewing event. This is my day eleven. Álex de la Iglesia is one of those directors whose ideas have always been just a little too clever for the films he builds around them. With The Day of the Beast, he couched an […]

Twelve Days of Axe-mas: Scrooged (1988)

I am taking part in The Chicago Creepout’s Twelve Days of Axe-mas holiday viewing event. This is my day ten. Has a movie star had a more schizophrenic career than Bill Murray? At first glance, there seems to be a massive disconnect between his comedic roles and his sudden jump into melancholy, dramatic turns in […]

Twelve Days of Axe-mas: Maniac (1980)

I am taking part in The Chicago Creepout’s Twelve Days of Axe-mas holiday viewing event. This is my day nine. It only happens on rare occasions, but I can be wrong about a film. Such is the case with Maniac. I first saw Maniac around ten years ago. That first viewing left me with the […]

Twelve Days of Axe-mas: Black Christmas (1974)

I am taking part in The Chicago Creepout’s Twelve Days of Axe-mas holiday viewing event. This is my day eight. The legacy of Bob Clark as a director is largely based on his two Christmas films. While Black Christmas and A Christmas Story can’t possibly be more different in terms of plot and tone, they […]

Twelve Days of Axe-mas: Inside (2007)

I am taking part in The Chicago Creepout’s Twelve Days of Axe-mas holiday viewing event. This is my day seven. I have never been able to get on board with the brand of extreme horror films that have been coming out of France over the last ten or so years. Inside is a prime example […]

Twelve Days of Axe-mas: Don’t Open Till Christmas (1984)

I am taking part in The Chicago Creepout’s Twelve Days of Axe-mas holiday viewing event. This is my day six. While watching the execrable excuse for a movie that is Don’t Open Till Christmas, I had a feeling similar to a moment that happened a little over four years ago. Let me set the scene. […]

Twelve Days of Axe-mas: Sheitan (2006)

I am taking part in The Chicago Creepout’s Twelve Days of Axe-mas holiday viewing event. This is my day five. Sheitan is a film that is nearly impossible to describe without spoiling the plot and perverse scenes and surprises that it unleashes on the viewer. To write a review of such a movie would be […]

Twelve Days of Axe-mas: Christmas Evil [aka You Better Watch Out] (1980)

I am taking part in The Chicago Creepout’s Twelve Days of Axe-mas holiday viewing event. This is my day four. The idea of the killer in a horror/slasher film having murderous tendencies because of mental illness is so ingrained in the genre that it has become an acceptable cliché. Even in this age of hyper-political […]

The Cohen Case Files: Maniac Cop (1988)

Written and Produced by Larry Cohen If you are attacked, fear for your safety, or witness a crime, who do you call? The answer, of course, is the police. Unless you’re a criminal engaged in illegal activity, any rational person would see a policeman as someone who will help, someone who is safe, and someone […]