The Bite #64

The Legacy of LAND OF THE DEAD, Bruce from JAWS Gets a Makeover, and More!

June 25, 2019

In this Issue:

Horror History: The Legacy of Land of the Dead
Image of the Week: Bruce Gets a Makeover
Tiny Bites – This Week’s Best Horror Headlines
Things We Love – The Banana Splits Go Funko
Hey, That’s Us! – Shudder in the News

HORROR HISTORY: THE LEGACY OF LAND OF THE DEAD

I first met George Romero during a private party at a convention. Greg Nicotero handled the introductions, and I was nervous. But George was gracious and friendly and quickly put me at ease. I told him about growing up on his films. He asked me to sign a book for him. And then we talked shop.

I asked him what he was working on, and he told me about Land of the Dead — a movie about a group of survivors banded together inside an impregnable, high-tech skyscraper run by a megalomaniac while a horde of zombies gather outside.

George then asked me what I was working on, and I told him about City of the Dead — a novel about a group of survivors banded together inside an impregnable, high-tech skyscraper run by a megalomaniac while a horde of zombies gather outside.

We shared a good laugh over that.

Land of the Dead and City of the Dead came out around the same time, and as you might expect, there were a some who accused me of ripping off George or vice versa. In reality, we were both doing what horror has always done — taking humankind’s fears and examining them through the safety of the genre.

This was something George had been doing since the 1960s. Night of the Living Dead is a study of race relations and xenophobia. Dawn of the Dead is an indictment of consumer culture. Day of the Dead is the Cold War through a mirror darkly. And Land of the Dead is about a post-9/11 society. And me, having grown up on those films? I was doing the same thing with City of the Dead. If you were alive at that time, then you remember how scary it was.

The best horror, be it film or prose, takes the very real terrors we all face, and presents them in a safe way for further examination … and to predict the future.

Look at the world now in 2019. George Romero predicted it in 2005 with Land of the Dead. He wasn’t just a director. He was a prophet.

*Brian Keene is the author of over forty books, mostly in the horror, crime, and dark fantasy genres. He also hosts the popular podcasts The Horror Show with Brian Keene and Defenders Dialogue.

IMAGE OF THE WEEK

Bruce Gets a Makeover

Just in time for the 44th anniversary of the 1975 classic, JAWS, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures and Greg Nicotero released pictures of the OG eating machine. KNB EFX has been working closely with the Academy Museum conservation team to restore Bruce back to his former glory, and it shows.

TINY BITES

HALLOWEEN 2, SADAKO MANGA, AND MORE

Laurie Strode isn’t done with Michael Myers yet. ’s efforts didn’t pay off since David Gordon Green has reportedly finished the script for Halloween 2, and Jamie Lee Curtis will be back. It’s coming October 2020.

Chucky’s back in the latest Child’s Play with a lot less Charles Lee Ray and way more Asimovian dysfunction. To celebrate, Megan Navarro put together a killer list of deep cuts where technology’s gone awry.

Sadako’s getting her own comedy manga seriescalled Sadako-san To Sadako-chan (Ms. Sadako and Little Sadako). Sadako becomes a YouTube celebrity, a plot twist we never knew we needed.

The MTV Movie Awards had a Most Frightened Performance category, and even while it would have been cool to see Hereditary’s Alex Wolff take home the golden popcorn, Sandra Bullock’s acceptance speech for Bird Box was deeply touching.

Blumhouse’s Black Christmas remake got some new blood: Cary Elwes has joined the cast.

Want more Cary Elwes? As you wish. He makes a brief appearance in the final trailer for Stranger Thingsseason 3.

Meanwhile, the Upside Down’s favorite police chief, David Harbour, is making a mockumentary comedy special for Netflix called Frankenstein’s Monster’s Monster, Frankenstein.

Paramount is working with Blumhouse to make a newParanormal Activity installment. The studio also announced that A Quiet Place 2 started production with Emily Blunt in the lead.

As if the week weren’t already full of killer content, we got this delightfully absurd red band trailer for Ready Or Not that is giving major You’re Next vibes.

“A psychedelic fairy tale“,”a wickedly funny romp“, “Midsommar is a masterpiece“. The consensus is that Ari Aster’s sophomore flick is “gonna fuck y’all up“.

According to Jordan Peele, Us is the Easter horror flick you never knew you always needed.

In response to the Child’s Play/Toy Story 4 crossover posters, artist Jason A. Messina gave the mutant toys from the first Toy Storyan opportunity to get even. With a blender.

THINGS WE LOVE: THE BANANA SPLITS GO FUNKO

This August, we’re getting an R-rated Banana Splits horror movie. But at San Diego Comic-Con, the fun starts now! Bingo, Fleegle, Snorky, and Drooper are getting the Funko treatment, and are being made into special edition Pez dispensers as an SDCC exclusive.