David S. Greathouse Movies
Mankind faces extinction at the hands of the ultimate biological weapon in this thriller starring Johnathon Schaech (The Doom Generation) and Erica Leerhsen (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre). His whole life, Frank Sears (Schaech) has wondered about the mysterious scars covering his body. Now, those scars have led him to discover a derelict Army base housing a highly classified Cold War experiment. When the Organizm is awakened and unleashed into the outside world, it begins absorbing light and energy while growing at an astonish rate. Can Army hazmat specialist Carrie Freeborn (Leerhsen) help Sears to stop this diabolical entity from annihilating the entire human race? With only a few hours to unlock the Organizm's complex genetic code before it becomes unstoppable, the pair must race to figure out the mysteries of the military's best-kept secret. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnathon Schaech, Erica Leerhsen, (more)
Forest Whitaker, Kim Basinger, Jay Mohr, Danny DeVito, Nick Cannon, and Carla Gugino star in director Mark Rydell's ensemble addiction drama detailing the manner in which gambling and drugs affect a variety of people's lives during the weeks leading up to a championship college basketball game. Carolyn (Basinger) is a struggling novelist whose addiction to the slots drives her to deceive her husband Tom (Liotta). Though Carloyn claims to be working on her latest manuscript at a nearby coffee shop, the reality of her situation is decidedly more desperate. Meanwhile, local maintenance worker Clyde (Whitaker) stands at the sidelines of the basketball court cheering for his little brother Godfrey (Cannon) while keeping his lingering gambling debts a well-guarded secret. In another part of town, the ageing Detective Bruner (Kelsey Grammer) methodically trails malevolent bookie Victor (Tim Roth) as Victor's small-time counterpart Augie (Mohr) patiently waits for his ship to come in. As the big game draws near and casino magician Walter (DeVito) befriends gambling-addicted novelist Carolyn, all of these disparate characters slowly come together on a tragic collision course. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kim Basinger, Nick Cannon, (more)
Director and visual effects artist Robert Kurtzman (Wishmaster) helms this supernaturally-charged frightener concerning a sorority hazing ritual involving an abandoned house, an empty coffin, an ancient curse, and a vengeful ghost. Saw series star Tobin Bell headlines a Dimension Films release which also stars Green Street Holligans' Terence Jay. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tobin Bell, Terence Jay, (more)
A soldier on the run from the union army and a lovelorn cowboy (Chris Kattan) find their flight from a corrupt old west sheriff complicated by the onslaught of a stammering horde of cannibalistic zombies in a hybrid horror comedy western from director Glasgow Phillips. Elmer Winslow (James Denton) and Luke Budd (Chris Kattan) are two misfits with no place in society. After fleecing a crooked lawman for all he's worth, these two lawless drifters discover that a mysterious plague is turning upstanding everyday people into mindless ghouls with an insatiable appetite for human flesh. As the dead begin to rise from the earth and all hope of escape from this barren wasteland begins to look as bleak as the landscape itself, the appearance of Geronimo's beautiful niece provides the pair with just the motivation needed to break free from the cold wet grip of the living dead. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Denton, Chris Kattan, (more)
A couple running a rideshow discover the find of a lifetime, only to realize it could well be the death of them in this horror story. Angus Shaw (Rufus Sewell) and his wife, Lillian (Carla Gugino), run a travelling carnival which barnstorms the countryside in the early 1900s. The Shaws' circus includes a sideshow which promises much in the way of monsters and human oddities, but for the most part delivers second-rate actors dressed up in costumes or using smoke-and-mirrors effects to fool the customers. Lillian herself offers the most spectacular illusion, posing as a fake mermaid. One night, Angus offers a helping hand to an aging sailor (Aubrey Morris), and the old salt offers to show Angus and Lillian something truly amazing -- a real, honest-to-Pete mermaid (Rya Kihlstedt). Astounded by what he's seen, Angus decides the fortune he could make exhibiting a real mermaid is too great to resist, and he steals the creature from the sailor. Angus and Lillian waste no time booking passage to the United States with their find, but en route to America they discover this mermaid is hardly a benign creature -- she has a taste for human blood, and soon the ship's crew is shrinking at an alarming rate. Lillian also finds herself developing a strange psychological bond with the mermaid, a connection more powerful than her vows to her husband. She Creature was produced for the Cinemax premium cable service as part of a series of "Creature Features" produced by special effects wizard Stan Winston and former American International Pictures head Samuel Z. Arkoff, most of which were inspired by horror films AIP made in the 1950s. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rufus Sewell, Carla Gugino, (more)
Another made-for-cable horror story from the "Creature Features" series of in-name-only remakes of classic American International Pictures scare flicks, How to Make a Monster concerns a new video game, "Evil-ution," which is being designed by a top virtual reality firm headed by Faye Clayton (Colleen Camp). Clayton is determined "Evil-ution" will be the most terrifying video game ever, and so far her programmers are right on track, except for one thing -- the bad-guy character in the game looks simply ridiculous. Drummond (Steven Culp) is ordered to come up with a better monster for the game, so he adds Laura Wheeler (Clea Duvall), a promising new programmer, to the staff to work alongside veteran designers Bug (Jason Marsden), Hardcore (Tyler Mane), and Sol (Karim Prince). The foursome are given a special incentive program: whoever thinks up the right scary monster for the game will get a bonus of one million dollars. However, a power surge during a powerful lightning storm has an unexpected effect on the group's work and a motion-capture suit that was hooked into the computer network suddenly comes to life, becoming the dangerous and bloodthirsty monster the designers were trying to conjure. How to Make a Monster also features notorious scream queen Julie Strain in a cameo as herself. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clea Duvall, Steven Culp, (more)
- 1994
- R
In the tradition of Mel Brooks, this Italian comedy offers an episodic parody of classic thrillers and horror movies. Film includes cameos from several stars including Mel Brooks, John Astin, Larry Storch, Phyllis Diller, John Carpenter, and John Landis. The story begins as director Ezio Greggio is being stabbed ala Psycho in his shower. Before he dies he recaps the events leading to his death. The scene was L.A. and FBI rookie Jo Dee Fostar has been assigned to interview psycho inmate Dr. Animal Cannibal Pizza. Meanwhile Fostar's girlfriend swipes $400,000 bucks from her boss and ends up hiding in the Cemetery Hotel, run by Antonio Motel. Inspector Balsam investigates cases of dead hotel victims. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dom DeLuise, Ezio Greggio, (more)
