A couple months ago, I gave you the rundown of the first wave of titles for what is slowly becoming one of my favorite horror/genre-themed festivals that I cover, and suddently the Third Annual incarnation of Bruce Campbell's Horror Film Festival is happening in less than a week, and I’m ridiculously excited. The festival takes place August 18-21 at the Carmike Muvico Rosemont 18 in Rosemont, IL, and it runs concurrent with Chicago Wizard World Comic-Con at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, just down the street from the theater.
The festivities will kick off on Thursday, August 18, with the incredibly scary and shocking opening night film DON’T BREATHE, from director-producer-writer Fede Alvarez (EVIL DEAD) and produced by Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert. Alvarez and the film’s star Stephen Lang will be in attendance. I caught this film at SXSW this year, and it’s a genuinely solid, close-quarters horror experience.
The inaugural "Groovy as Hell" Award will be presented to writer/director Fred Dekker (star of the upcoming THE PREDATOR). The awards ceremony will consist of a 30th anniversary screening of the cult classic NIGHT OF THE CREEPS (followed by a Q&A with Dekker) and a very special screening of THE MONSTER SQUAD with Dekker, and actors Andre Gower (Sean) & Ryan Lambert (Rudy) also in attendance.
Festival favorite and noted movie lover Doug Benson (“Doug Loves Movies” CHRONCCON, SUPER HIGH ME) will be in town for a very special “Doug Benson Movie Interruption” of ARMY OF DARKNESS, with guest interrupter Bruce Campbell. The two will sit in the front row together with a selection of mystery comedy guests, and say whatever hilarious stuff pops into their head.
The Benson Interruption will be followed immediately by the festival premiere of “Ash vs Evil Dead” Season 2, Episode 1. The screening will be exclusive to festival badge holders and those who have purchased a ticket for the movie interruption.
The festival also will offer Bruce Campbell’s all-new game show, “Last Fan Standing”—a quiz show based on sci-fi, horror, fantasy, and superheroes—the ultimate test of pop-culture knowledge. Four fans are put through their paces by host Bruce Campbell, battling through devilish speed rounds and a nerve-wracking Final Confrontation until only one remains, and a Last Fan Standing is crowned. The game show will take place at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center on Friday at 3 PM and Saturday at 11 AM.
Festival badges are $100 and are on sale now at www.bchff.com, where you can also purchase a limited number single tickets for screenings. I’ll be there; hope you will be too. So here’s the full lineup:
THURSDAY, AUGUST 18
7:30 PM: DON’T BREATHE (Chicago Premiere) Fede Alvarez & Stephen Lang in attendance A trio of friends break into the house of a wealthy blind man, thinking they’ll get away with the perfect heist. They’re wrong!
10:15 PM: NIGHT OF THE CREEPS (30th Anniversary Screening) Writer-director Fred Dekker in attendance
FRIDAY, AUGUST 19
6:00 PM: PET (Chicago Premiere) Seth (Dominic Monaghan) works at an animal shelter, and for years has been secretly in love with a waitress named Holly (Ksenia Solo). When he repeatedly fails in his attempts to woo her, he naturally decides to lock her in a cage at the shelter where he works. And that’s just the beginning…
8:00 PM: DOUG BENSON MOVIE INTERRUPTION Popular stand-up comic Benson will host a very special “Doug Benson Movie Interruption” of ARMY OF DARKNESS, with guest interrupter Bruce Campbell, along with mystery comedians, all of whom will riff on the film live from the front row and say whatever hilarious thoughts pop into their heads. Single tickets for this show are SOLD OUT, but you can still guarantee a seat with the purchase of a festival badge.
This event will be followed by the festival premiere of “Ash vs Evil Dead” Season 2, Episode 1. The screening will be exclusive to festival badge holders and those who have purchased a ticket for the Movie Interruption.
10:00 PM: SHOW YOURSELF (World Premiere) Cast & crew in attendance When his friend dies unexpectedly, Travis heads into the woods with his ashes to say goodbye. But as he deals with his grief, and the way it has affected the relationships in his life, he starts to realize that he actually might not be alone.
MIDNIGHT: FROM BEYOND (30th Anniversary Screening) Barbara Crampton in attendance
SATURDAY, AUGUST 20
1:00 PM: ABATTOIR (Chicago Premiere) Director Darren Lynn Bousman in attendance How do you build a haunted house? Ask the enigmatic Jebediah Crone, the main suspect in a case of stolen rooms where horrific tragedies have occurred.
3:30 PM: BEYOND THE GATES (Chicago Premiere) Director Jackson Stewart, Barbara Crampton, Chase Williamson & Brea Grant in attendance Seven months after their father’s disappearance, two brothers reunite to liquidate the family video store. Unfortunately, things go from bad to worse when they find an old VHS boardgame with evil powers, and all hell breaks loose.
5:45 PM: I AM NOT A SERIAL KILLER (Chicago Premiere) Christopher Lloyd in attendance In a small Midwestern town, a troubled teen with homicidal tendencies must hunt down and destroy a supernatural killer whilst keeping his own inner demons at bay.
8:00 PM: THE MONSTER SQUAD Fred Dekker, Andre Gower, & Ryan Lambert in attendance Prior to the screening, the festival will present director Fred Dekker with the inaugural “Groovy as Hell” award.
10:00 PM: FOUND FOOTAGE 3D (World Premiere) Cast & Crew in attendance A group of low-budget filmmakers sets out to make “the first 3D found footage horror film,” but find themselves in the first 3D found footage horror film when the evil entity from their movie escapes into their behind-the-scenes footage.
Midnight: THE GREASY STRANGLER (Chicago Premiere) The Los Angeles-set tale follows Ronnie, a man who runs a Disco Walking tour along with his browbeaten son, Brayden. When a sexy, alluring woman comes to take the tour, it begins a competition between father and son for her attentions. It also signals the appearance of an oily, slimy inhuman maniac who stalks the streets at night and strangles the innocent, soon dubbed “The Greasy Strangler.”
SUNDAY, AUGUST 21
12:00 PM: SHORT TRIP TO HELL (Shorts Block)
2:00 PM: BILL & TED’S BOGUS JOURNEY (25th anniversary screening) Director Peter Hewitt and William Sadler in attendance
4:00 PM: HERE ALONE HERE ALONE (Chicago Premiere) A young woman struggles to survive on her own in the wake of a mysterious epidemic that has decimated society and forced her deep into the unforgiving wilderness.
6:00 PM: ANTIBIRTH (Chicago Premiere) Hard-drinking, pill-popping, bong-ripping Lou (Natasha Lyonne) and her best friend Sadie (Chloë Sevigny) spend their days adrift in a druggy haze. But one wild night out becomes a bad trip that never ends when Lou wakes up with symptoms of an unexplained, highly abnormal pregnancy. Spiked with blasts of hallucinatory color, surreal shocks, and subversive comedy, this audacious feature debut is a no-holds-barred descent into delirium.
8:00 PM: SIREN (Chicago Premiere) Director Gregg Bishop and Chase Williamson in attendance A bachelor party becomes a savage fight for survival when the groomsmen unwittingly unleash a fabled predator upon the festivities. A feature adaptation of the segment “Amateur Night” from the 2012 horror anthology V/H/S.
And as an added bonus, here are a few exclusive images from one of the films getting its World Premiere at Bruce Campbell's Horror Film Festival—FOUND FOOTAGE 3D. Enjoy…
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