Charles Band Movies

Cult horror producer-director Charles Band presents another round of his patented, low-budget weirdness with the campy horror flick Skull Heads. When an eccentric clan living in virtual isolation in an Italian castle finds their family togetherness threatened by the arrival of three mysterious strangers, they summon up some supernatural protectors to fend off the barbarian invasions. ~ All Movie Guide

The horror rises like baker's yeast in this sequel to the fully baked frightener about a murderous cookie man with a true taste for terror. After inheriting his father's fledgling film studio, ambitious young producer Kelvin Cheatam announces an outrageous slate of genre films that will have horror hounds drooling and hopefully save the studio from bankruptcy. "Hamburger Time Traveler Detective" and "Space Spankers 2015" are sure to be big hits, but Cheatam's most personal project is "Tiny Terrors 9: Purgatory of the Petite." The "Tiny Terrors" series was his father's most infamous film series, and Cheatam is determined to carry on the twisted family tradition. As production on "Tiny Terrors 9" gets underway, however, a crusty killer shows up on lend an air of authenticity to all of the cinematic slaughter currently unfolding before the cameras. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A deranged psychopath returns from the grave in the form of a delicious but deadly treat in B-movie specialist Charles Band's bloody tale of baked goods gone bad. When psychotic killer Millard Findlemeyer (Gary Busey) entered a small-town diner and rained a shower of lead upon the Leigh family, the only family member to survive the horrifying ordeal was devoted daughter Sara Leigh (Robin Sydney). It was Sara's heartfelt testimony that sent Findlemeyer to fry in the electric chair, and also caused the killer's vengeful mother to cook up a diabolical plot for the ultimate revenge. After placing an ancient curse on her son's ashes, Mrs. Findlemeyer mixes the remains into a secret gingerbread cookie recipe and has the malicious mix sent to Sara Leigh's bakery. When bakery employee Brick Fields (Jonathon Chase) cuts himself while preparing the cookies and a drop of his blood spills into the mix, a twelve-inch tall terror emerges from the oven determined to finish the job that he failed to complete the first time around. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

An evil vampire princess and her bloodsucking stripper sidekicks incur the wrath of a horny half human/half reptile hybrid and his evil spawn in genre stalwart Charles Band's sexy tale of terror. It's been a lifetime since Marvin and Morella were lovers, but Marvin has understandably held a hearty grudge against his old flame ever since she turned him into a Homunculous (lizard/human hybrid) after finding out that Marvin had been unfaithful. These days Morella (Debra Mayer) runs a strip club with the aid of her two fanged helpers Sugar and Spyce -- the trio subsisting on the blood of their unsuspecting male clientele. As Morella prepares for the kill that will transform her into the most powerful vampire the world has ever known, Marvin's three-foot-tall son Ivan (Phil Fondacaro) schemes to release his caged father so that he may finally extract revenge on the lusty bloodsucker. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

This made-for-cable shocker was the evil alien spawn of two separate Full Moon film series, Puppet Master and The Demonic Toys. The grandson of original puppet master Andre Toulon, Robert Toulon (Corey Feldman) has inherited grandpa's secret formula whereby Robert and his daughter, Alexandra (Danielle Keaton), can bring puppets to life. This places the Toulons in the crosshairs of Sharpe Industries, led by evil Erica Sharpe (Vanessa Angel), who has entered into a pact with a Satan-like character to create an army of demonic dolls, to be unleashed on the helpless public on Christmas Eve. Marshalling her mechanical forces, Erica prepares to kill Robert and get her lunchooks on his animation formula. It is up to Robert's "reformed" band of puppets to fend off the attack of demonic toys Baby-Doll, Jack-in-the-Box, and Teddy-Bear. The Freddy vs. Jason of cheap cable horror flicks, Puppet Master vs. Demonic Toys debuted over the Sci-Fi Channel on December 18, 2004. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Former USS Enterprise captain William Shatner takes the helm as director and star of this sci-fi adventure following a young couple who travel to a small-town near the notorious Area-51 military base in search of extraterrestrial life. Deep in the heart of the Nevada desert, not far from Area-51, Commander Gossner (Shatner) has been conducting highly classified experiments on captured extraterrestrials. But the government is about to shut him down, and two wandering truth-seekers are about to make his life miserable. When his alien test subject is kidnapped, the vengeful Commander Gossner resorts to extreme measures in tracking down the otherworldly visitor. Dick Van Patten, Duane Whitaker, Tom Towles, and Dan Gauthier co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The psychological film Deathbed concerns a possessed bed that ruins the life of an illustrator. When Karen and her significant other move into a new apartment, they discover an antique bed. Karen adores it and it soon inspires her art. However, a series of disturbing dreams begin to haunt Karen. Eventually she begins to become unhinged and her paranoia overtakes every aspect of her life. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

The demonic spirit of a crazed madman isn't about to let a little thing like being dead for 20 centuries get in the way of world conquest in this tale of terror. Gina (Venesa Talor) is a college professor leading a group of students on a hike through the mountains. The group happens upon a cave, where they discover a cache of ancient weapons and armor dating back to the days of the gladiators. James (Gregory Lee Kenyon), one of the students, decides to try a helmet on for size, but he's in for an unpleasant surprise -- the headgear is possessed by the ghost of Tyrannus, an evil and unscrupulous warrior of centuries past, and as James finds Tyrannus taking over his body, he attempts to murder his friends in a bid to bring the gladiator back to life. Demonicus also stars Jennifer Capo and Brannon Gould. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this low-budget horror film, an arrogant young reprobate fakes his own funeral in order to lure friends to a remote location that once housed a prison. Note: The onscreen title for this film is The Prison of the Dead. Some promotional material lists the title as Prison of the Dead, while other pre-release information indicates that the working title was Prison of the Damned. ~ All Movie Guide

Despite the efforts of her sleazy attorney, Mr. Butz (David Alan Grier), teen drug dealer/car thief Crystal (Natasha Lyonne) is sentenced to a 25-year prison term, the first segment of which will be served in a youth correctional facility where she will be treated for her rampant bulimia. There, in-between binge/purge marathons with her fellow eating-disordered inmates and relentless harassment of the hapless authorities, she fends off the lesbian advances of her psychotic cellmate, Cyclona (Maria Celedonio), a serial killer who's just received a life sentence. The two escape together and embark on a cross-country road trip in search of Sister Gomez (Vincent Gallo), the beneficent nun who protected Cyclona from the sexual predations of her family during her troubled childhood south of the border. Where writer/director Matthew Bright's original Freeway was a modern retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, Freeway 2 riffs on Hansel and Gretel; it borrows only the trailer-park trappings of the earlier film, making the titular allusion to automobiles somewhat tenuous. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide