Eventual Winners, Perpetual Losers, & Creepy DEADGIRL(s)

Last month I began a free book contest. We’ve still got a little time before the deadline, but I wanted to post a few periodic reminders between now and the end date, October 31st, 2011.

I’ve already gotten a number of entries, but don’t fret, your chances are still just as good as any of the other entrants. Our winner will be chosen at random. The prize? A signed, limited hardcover of my Bloodletting Books release, DEATH & DESIRE IN THE AGE OF WOMEN (a $55 value!).


(Yes, I know, you’ve seen this a million times. I can’t help it, I’m like a proud papa with a billfold full of pictures.)

The rules of the contest are monkey-simple. Just post a review of any of my material in any public forum or venue and you’re in! From Amazon.com, to goodreads, to your own blog, to Horror-Mall , just post a critical analysis of anything I’ve written (good or bad) and then send me a link at mlcalvillo@yahoo.com. I’ll respond to your e-mail confirming your eligibility.

If you’ve already written something up (old reviews count), resend me the link as a reminder and you’re good to go. If you end up winning and already have a copy of DEATH & DESIRE, then I can give you a selection of my works in its place (valued at $55 or more). The books make great gifts too!

Okay then, keep ’em coming. Your reviews, negative or positive, are a great help in spreading the word. Folks read these things and they often pin their book buying decisions upon your opinions, so stay active and keep supporting small press horror!

What else?

Michelle and I have been watching Netflix lately. We tried two movies based on some Facebook recommendations. First up, WHITE NOISE 2.

The straight-to-video sequel (not really a sequel – instead it takes the premise of the first film – the Michael Keaton suck-fest – and does its own thing with it). Nathan Fillion stars, and while I like him as an actor, and he does a good job here, I found the film incredibly boring.

The film’s director, Patrick Lussier, did decent work on MY BLOODY VALENTINE 3D (still a stinker despite good direction) and does another workman-like job here, but like VALENTINE, it’s competent and looks good, but gives us nothing to get too excited about. At least VALENTINE was goofy and gory. WHITE NOISE 2 is boring and oh, so serious. Blech!


(Nice for a nap…)

Last night, we took a chance on DEADGIRL. I’m glad we did. It was creepy, and weird, and a little hamfisted, but in the end it all came together nicely. The titular character, a woman who can’t die (she just lulls between worlds), is magnificently freaky. And the leads, high school characters played by thirty year olds, actually talk and think like real, idiot teenagers (too bad they look so old).

The movie is sick and sort of thoughtful. It goes a little too far here and there, favoring sensationalism and easy gross-outs over realism, but hey, it’s a movie about a dead girl and the disgusting things high school boys choose to do with her, not a coming-of-age character drama about adolescent growth. With a bit more restraint, the movie could have been something really special.

(Lots of Ewwww moments. I like it!)

Young directors, Marcel Sarmiento and Gadi Harel, can’t direct an action scene to save their lives (the camera shakes, and the actors shake, and props shake, and I have no idea what’s what), but they do a killer job building tension and crafting an eerie ambiance. I’m definitely interested in seeing what’s next for the duo (together or independently).

Here the DEADGIRL trailer…

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