Is Horror the Ultimate Form of Escapism?

CatBusRuss is not a practitioner of evil, but he is a fan of the art. No one deserves to die, but what is a good story without a few casualties? And if the deaths are just the same through out like the Bond films before the MPAA gave us G, M, R, and X, the audience would soon be tired of bloodless cinema. Celebrate cinematic sins whenever you can.

No-Budget Features
Italian Horror

Horror Pictures (Sinful Cinema)

  • Robert Englund as a yankee-hating Confederate ghost.

    2001 Maniacs (2005)

    Robert Englund and Lyn Shaye are Confederate ghosts murdering Yankee spring breakers.

  • Eva the May Queen Kitty is ready for Midsummer

    A24 Elevated Horror Marathon in Alphabetical Order

    For GalaxyCon Des Moines, CatBusRuss and the Dread Pirate Syzer from Skies of Fortune are going to be guests on each others’ panels. Russ needed to quickly become an expert in A24, so he partook in a preparation binge of “Death of a Unicorn”, “Heretic”, “Men”, and “Midsummer”.

  • The logos for "I Dig Crazy Flicks" & "Skies of Fortune" logos with the top expression in A24 horror

    Skies of Fortune Presents: A24 - Horror Goes to the Arthouse

    It was CatBusRuss's pleasure to be invited to be a panelist on Jess McCord's panel at ⁠GalaxyCon Des Moines. The topic of said panel, A24's rich horror movie history and influence. But, perhaps, more importantly, is calling it "elevated horror" a good thing?

  • Promo image for Antibirth on Prime Video.

    Antibirth (2016)

    Natasha Lyonne is a hard-partying slacker who suddenly finds herself pregnant. But that is impossible since the gestation was less than a day. Is it alien? Is it a government experiment? Will her lack of patience be her DIY abortion?

  • Writer/Director David Cronenberg: Image from IMDb

    David Cronenberg and His Rabid Gangster Bugs

    It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

  • CatBusRuss attempt to draw zombie Eva attacking Skimble on Wacom

    Dance of the Dead (2008)

    CatBusRuss and Mitchell Whitt from the “Morbidly Macabre” podcast discuss an under seen zombie comedy with all it takes to be Romero approved.

  • Italian poster for "Demons 2" - Image from IMDb

    Demons 2 (1986)

    Everyone in a Berlin apartment complex seems to be entranced by a movie being broadcast about teens exploring a demon-infested wasteland. Little do they know, the watching are watching them as well. And then “The Ring” and “Videodrome” influences appear.

  • Italian promotional art for "Dark Glasses" - Image from IMDb

    Dark Glasses (2022)

    Dario Argento’s first film since “Dracula 3D”. Does this tale about a recently blinded woman and immigrant orphan evading a serial killer demonstrate that the master still has it?

  • Poster for "Daughters of Darkness" - Image from IMDb

    Daughters of Darkness (1971)

    Lesbian vampires inspired by Elizabeth Bathory attempt to steal a newly wed wife from her increasingly abusive husband.

  • Writer/Director Stuart Gordon: Image from Wikipedia

    The Brilliance of Stuart Gordon

    "Castle Freak⁠" and "⁠Dagon⁠" are all low-budget bangers. And after ⁠Russ⁠ brings up the 2013 no-budget stinker "Eternal Damn Nation⁠", you will have a greater appreciation of the man who did the most to honor H.P. Lovecraft⁠'s horrors (and, to a lesser extent, Tommy Wiseau).

  • Poster for "Gothika" - Image from Wikipedia

    Gothika (2003)

    Halle Berry is locked up in the mental institution she worked at after murdering her husband. There she is haunted and lead to believe that she must have had a just motivation.

  • Poster for John Carpenter's "In the Mouth of Madness" - Image from IMDb

    In the Mouth of Madness (1994)

    The conclusion of the “Apocalypse Trilogy” focuses on an insurance investigators task to locate an unstable horror novelist who out sells Stephen King. To succeed he must survive rabid readers and the authors insistence that everything he writes changes reality.

  • Vidmark VHS art work for "The New York Ripper". Image from IMDb

    "The New York Ripper" (1982) & "Out of the Dark" (2014)

    A brutal Lucio Fulci classic and Julia Stiles in a dull, environmental-themed ghost story.

  • Skimble the Bastard Cat embracing the demons

    Night of the Demons (1988)

    CatBusRuss and Tim Bates chat up a classic horror comedy that shows us how under-appreciated Kevin Tenney is.

  • Eva the Queen Kitty with Billy the Puppet

    Jigsaw's Games with Joe Golwitzer + Trashy TRON & Costumes with ThePoeticCritic

    A discussion about the “Saw” 1-8. A sister celebrating Disney’s failures. An opinion about a doc dedicated to cheap, licensed Halloween costumes.

  • Poster for "Spiral: From the Book of Saw" - Image from IMDb

    Spiral (2021) & Nocturne (2016)

    Chris Rock provides “Saw” fans with a worthwhile fix. It beats the no-budget confusion of the “award-winning” 2016 possession movie.

  • Torso (1973) - Image from IMDb

    Torso (1973)

    A serial killer has started murdering women at an Italian university. Surely, the safest thing is to run off to the countryside where the killer would not follow. Obviously, our cavalcade of lasses do not understand how stalkers operate.

  • A still from "You're Next" - Image from IMDb

    You're Next (2011)

    A family reunion is ambushed by a duo of animal-masked killers. Too bad they didn’t plan of an Australian survivalist being a family member’s plus one.