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Daniel Kurland Apr 18, 2019

The ‘80s Twilight Zone had overlooked classics from some of horror's most prolific directors. We dive into the series' best episodes.

The premiere of Jordan Peele's modern take on Rod Serling's classic anthology series has put The Twilight Zone back on everybody's minds.

The two reboots of The Twilight Zone that predate Peele's current version don't have as sterling of a reputation as their predecessor, but the ‘80s Twilight Zone remains a fascinating anomaly because some pivotal horror directors like William Friedkin, Joe Dante, and Tommy Lee Wallace all helm installments. Wes Craven even leads the pack and directs a whopping seven episodes, and George R.R. Martin penned five episodes!

The series debuted on CBS in 1985 and ran for two seasons before being canceled due to lackluster ratings. A third season was commissioned with a new creative team, though it was solely for syndication purposes.

Stars: Sarah Jurgens, Nick Baillie, Adam Tomlinson, Rebecca Amzallag, Celest Chong, Alison Louder, Manuela Casinha | Written by Adam Tomlinson | Directed by Joshua Fraiman

Rachel Darwin (Sarah Jurgens) is a young, mother-to-be, haunted by nightmares. When she wakes, looming over her is the shadowy image of a dark man with a brimmed hat. Her hotshot lawyer of a husband, Scott (Nick Baillie), doesn’t believe in any of that supernatural nonsense. It’s sleep paralysis. It’s stress. It’s hallucinations. Rachel seeks group therapy, but she’s too weird, even for them. But she’s not too weird for William (Adam Tomlinson), who knows exactly what she’s going through and is even weirder than her. What is the shadow man? Is he the manifestations of a confused and troubled woman? Or is he an extra-dimensional cattle rustler looking to fatten up and eat human souls?

First off, let’s...

The phenomenon of sleep paralysis and possible associated horrors is slipping into genre film more often of late. In 2011 we had Filip Tegstedt's excellent horror laced family drama, Marianne, and last year we were introduced to Rodney Ascher's haunting documentary The Nightmare. It was only a matter of time before someone went all Elm Street with the premise and made a straight up horror film about it. Cue The Man In The Shadows from Canadian filmmaker Joshua Fraiman. Rachel Darwin (Sarah Louise Jurgens, "Covert Affairs") is pregnant, shackled, giving birth to something terrible, attended to by a dark man in a brimmed hat. She struggles to wake, opens her eyes and he is there. The next day she finds out she's not alone, many others...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

After a theatrical run in February Da Sweet Blood of Jesus, directed by Spike Lee, will be released on Blu-ray and DVD on May 26th, 2015. Also in this round-up: release details on a Fright Rags shirt for The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and a trailer for The Man in the Shadows.

Da Sweet Blood of Jesus: Press Release -- "Anchor Bay Entertainment and Gravitas Ventures will release the Spike Lee thriller Da Sweet Blood Of Jesus on Blu-ray™ and DVD on May 26, 2015. The film previously hit theaters on February 13th after a successful Kickstarter campaign to fund the production. It’s a reinterpretation of Bill Gunn’s horror cult film “Ganja & Hess”, which played as a Critics Choice at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival; Spike Lee’s stylized thriller features an Original Score by Bruce Hornsby.

A Spike Lee Joint, Da Sweet Blood Of Jesus is directed by Spike Lee,...