“We got this going with Dark Sky Films, which is to say they gave us some money to make three movies and it was kind of up to me and my guys, Peter and Greg, to choose them,” says New York horror fixture and head of Glass Eye Pix, Larry Fessenden. “The budgets are microscopic, so my thinking was, ‘Who do I know who’s resourceful and can make a movie for no money?’ I thought of Joe Maggio, and the funny thing is, he’s an indie filmmaker who’s not known for horror or any of that stuff. But I just thought that Joe maybe had a dark side, so the fun thing was inviting him to make a genre movie—a scary movie.”

In the 1960s and ’70s, Hollywood studios and movie palaces struggled to redefine themselves in the age of television. Moviegoing was at an all-time low in Canada and the United States, and the old movie theaters were becoming rundown and second-run. Gone were the days of vaudeville, friendly interaction in the lobby and a full experience at the movies.

To anyone who thinks that Japanese horror began with 1998’s RINGU, think again. The Far East was making spooky movies as far back as the late 1940s, and many of these early spinetinglers are seeing the light of day in the U.S., thanks to DVD, theatrical reissues and festivals. Following their successful rerelease of HOUSE (a.k.a. HAUSU from 1977; see article in FANGORIA #298) last January, Janus Films has dug up 1968’s KURONEKO (original title: YABU NO NAKA NO KURONEKO), which will make its New York theatrical premiere at the Film Forum (209 West Houston; [212] 727-8110) from October 22-28 with a gorgeous new 35mm black & white Scope print. Written and directed by the prolific Kaneto Shindo, who has helmed nearly 50 films since 1951, KURONEKO seems to have been overshadowed by the more famous 1964 Japanese horror classics KWAIDAN and ONIBABA (both screening, by the way, at New York City’s Japan Society; Shindo also directed ONIBABA). So the movie—a Japanese folk tale of ghostly revenge—is ripe for rediscovery.

In the last few years, horror fans would be hard-pressed to find another film that came under as much scrutiny as Matt Reeves’ LET ME IN. It was yet another remake (needless, some said), coming close on the heels of the original, the Swedish masterpiece LET THE RIGHT ONE IN—one of the best slow-burn horror films of the last decade.

With David Fincher’s THE SOCIAL NETWORK now a hit in theaters, the time is right to take a look back at his 1995 serial-killer thriller SE7EN. There have been countless films with similar subject matter in the past two decades, but to this day, SE7EN continues to shock with its jaw-dropping ending.

Rabid horror fans (and lifelong fear of clown sufferers) need no introduction to the colorful Chiodo Brothers. The trio, consisting of graphics expert Stephen, chief designer Charles and executive producer (and youngest brother) Edward, grew up making homemade creature features together in Bronx, New York before helping Tim Burton establish his empire by working on the short, VINCENT, in 1982. They received rare critical pundits for their seminal KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE collaboration in 1988 and confirmed their bid as twisted auteurs by designing the puppets for Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s TEAM AMERICA: WORLD POLICE in 2004. With nonstop projects (including an upcoming 1950’s style monster movie in the works), the gregarious siblings recently took a moment to talk with FANGORIA about past and future projects and their first Midwest appearance at Chicago’s 24 hour Music Box Massacre 6 on October 9.

In considering the true “masters of horror,” it would be foolish if the name Wes Craven wasn’t immediately mentioned. Making films since the early 1970s, the director has managed to craft three landmark films of terror in three consecutive decades, amidst a lengthy filmography of other works that are often frightening, witty, intelligent and surprising. This Friday, the first feature he has both written and directed in over 10 years, MY SOUL TO TAKE, hits theaters, and the legendary filmmaker sat with Fango to discuss recurring themes, coming of age and his own life and beliefs—and how they shaped his newest offering.