Beaks here...

A word of advice to all Comic Con attendees regarding Thursday: pace yourself. For reasons that have nothing to do with the fans and everything to do with taking advantage of the Friday news cycle, most of the big ticket presentations at this year's soiree have been crammed into Day One. So do whatever you've got to do to make sure you've still got something left in the tank for 10:00 PM, because you cannot afford to miss the big screening/panel for one of the best horror films in recent memory.

Michael Dougherty's supremely entertaining TRICK 'R TREAT may seem like a throwback to the anthology horror style of classics like CREEPSHOW and the Amicus TALES FROM THE CRYPT, but it's a little more cohesive than those films. I love it. And I'm really excited for the film to screen in the convention center's massive Ballroom 20 late at night with the lights out and the volume jacked up, because I can pretty much guarantee that everyone in that room is going to walk out with a new holiday classic to place alongside Carpenter's HALLOWEEN and THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS.

The Comic Con schedule has the presentation/screening listed for 9:30 PM, so while I'm being told it definitely starts at 10 PM, you might want to get there on the early side just in case. The post-film panel, which is being moderated by Gunnery Sergeant Harry Knowles (one of six AICN-ers who'll be at Comic Con this year - collect them all!!!), will include Dougherty, Anna Paquin, Brian Cox and Tahmoh Penikett. Paquin will certainly attract the TRUE BLOOD horde, so, again, GET THERE EARLY!

Also on Thursday, from 2:30 PM to 3:30 PM, there will be an autograph signing at the WB booth.

The DVD/BD will hit stores this October (exact street date TBD). The first image above will be on the cardboard cover, while the spooky second pic will be on the actual case.