The Australian-made SLAUGHTERED is the sort of movie that shouldn’t get overlooked in the current resurgence of slasher films, which includes all the franchise remakes/reimaginings like HALLOWEEN/FRIDAY THE 13TH, new attempts to establish unstoppable killers such as HATCHET and LAID TO REST or its low-budget, comical Aussie contemporary I KNOW HOW MANY RUNS YOU SCORED LAST SUMMER. To put it simply, SLAUGHTERED has been made by someone with more than a clue, and who has been as relentless as any disfigured maniac to get her movie across the finish line without sacrificing the entertainment experience.

NEVER SLEEP AGAIN; THE ELM STREET LEGACY certainly has an apt title; at a total of eight hours, this two-DVD set from 1428 Films (released via CAV) will keep you up all night. How appropriate given the subject matter: Wes Craven’s 1984 classic A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET and its big- and small-screen follow-ups, and this survey from the people behind the FRIDAY THE 13TH documentary HIS NAME WAS JASON does it full justice.

If you’re looking for some entertainment down East Texas way, something a little spicier than fishing derbies or church revivals, The Orbit Drive-in theater is the place you want to be. Every Friday, the Orbit presents an all-night horror show starting at dusk, and it won’t be boring you with any refried Hollywood remakes or bloodless teenybopper fare up on its 60-foot screen, rest assured.  If there’s one place you can always count on to get nasty, it’s the Orbit.

On this glorious day of celebratory drinking, there may be no comic-book character whom superhero geeks and horror fans alike would want to hang with more than Hellboy. He’s funny, outspoken and highly appreciative of Tecate, and thus the concept of a special “Hellboy heads to Mexico” issue (from Dark Horse) released on Cinco de Mayo sounds like a pretty sweet treat—and thanks to the ever-reliable Mike Mignola, it is. What’s more, it wonderfully goes above and beyond being simply just gimmicky and fun (not that there’s anything wrong with that).

PORNOGRAPHY: A THRILLER, written and directed by David Kittredge (and produced by Fango blogger Sean Abley) is a nightmarish journey into the surreal—and, yes, the gay-adult-film industry. How the two genres were going to mesh, this critic was initially unsure. Don’t worry, they do, but not in the ways you might expect.

Now that the horrible winter of 2009-10 has passed into the record books to become fodder for future stories, it’s safe to look at a recently released title that captures all the things wrong with the season: large amounts of snow, spotty electricity and no escape route. Oh yeah, and another group of stupid young people waiting to get killed in horrible, nasty ways.

This is how the meetings go around FANGORIA’s office: “Hey, guys,” says the big boss, “I’ve got a new title that features naked men in it. Any takers?” When nobody goes for it, the consensus is, “Give it to the new girl.” I don’t know how long I’m going to be “the new girl,” but I get the distinct feeling I’m going to continue to get most, if not all, of the titles with serious male nudity and bisexuality involved.

Bring it on, suckers.