Jaume Balaguero

Like most, I too got fooled by the news announcing [REC]3 and, most importantly, that the film's creators, Jaume Balaguero and Paco Plaza would not be behind the camera for the third installment, but would instead be producing it. In addition, the Facebook page and website were apparently deemed fake, which should have been obvious considering [REC]2 was released in its native Spain just two months ago.

But now we have some REAL news, courtesy of Dread Central. After a screening of [REC]2, Balaguero apparently informed them that he and Plaza will indeed be directing the third installment in the popular cinema verite series. This, of course, does not mean the film has begun filming. Balaguero is currently working on another film, but has several ideas concerning a plot for the third film.

Whatever the plot may be, with Balaguero and Plaza behind the camera it's pretty much guaranteed it will be an amazing movie.

Encounters of the Spooky Kind, directed by Sammo Hung, 1980
Even though I am slightly obsessed with Takashi Miike, my experience with Asian horror has been somewhat limited and often disappointing. I was pleasantly surprised to come across Encounters of the Spooky Kind which was my favorite film of the three mentioned in this post. This film is a near perfect blend of horror, comedy and kung fu--a seriously fun combination. Director Sammo Hung is credited as one of the directors who spearheaded the Hong Kong New Wave genre in the 80's. He also started the vampire-like (more zombie, really) Jiang Shi genre which consists of reanimated corpses that hop (literally) around and cause trouble. Hung also stars in the lead role of Bold Cheung and his performance is brilliant mix of physical comedy and goofball appeal.

In Encounters of the Spooky Kind, Bold Cheung suspects his wife of having an affair but what he doesn't suspect is that the other man is Master Tam , a powerful government official. When Tam is almost caught in Cheung's bed, he decides having Cheung around is too risky and hires a nasty Taoist priest to kill him. Meanwhile the cocky and bold Cheung accepts a bet to spend the night at a temple where he encounters strange, undead creatures and battles the evil magic being thwarted against him at every turn by the men set out to kill him.

Encounters is heavier on the horror elements and comedy than it is on the kung fu but that just made the fight scenes more worth it for me. Though the pace lags in part, stick with it because this highly entertaining, kick-butt-combo of a film has enough laughs and charm to make it a commendable addition to your horror queue.

Fantastic Fest may be in its fifth year as one of the World's Coolest Film Festivals, but as far as I'm concerned this is year one. That's because this is my first crack at the geek mecca held annually in Austin, TX, and since the entire world revolves around me, I think we can all agree to reset the counter. No? Fine. At least indulge these picks for my Top 5 Most Anticipated Films at Fantastic Fest Five.

5. Rampage, Directed by Uwe Boll (Canada)
That's right, out of the 100+ films at Fantastic Fest, one of my top 5 is the latest from House of the Dead and Bloodrayne mastermind Uwe Boll. Never mind the fact that the notorious German is going to be present to do a Rampage Q&A (his appearances are, as legend tells, phenomenal, hilarious, maddening insights into his, uh, talents), I've actually heard very good things about the film.

Programming Description: "Fed up with his dead-end life, Bill constructs a full-body kevlar armor suit and rampages through the streets of his hometown killing everyone in sight, particularly the barista that failed to make him a proper macchiato."

Extent of Exposure: I've only read the description, seen the poster and heard a detail-less thumbs up.