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Movie Review: ‘Pinocchio: Unstrung’ Splinters the Fable into a Blood-Soaked Triumph

The Twisted Childhood Universe is carving out another nightmare. This time, it brings a conscience made of a wooden boy. Hitting cinemas nationwide today (July 24, 2026) via Altitude is Pinocchio: Unstrung. It arrives fresh off its UK premiere at the Raindance Film Festival, where it locked down four major award nominations. Steered by director Rhys Frake-Waterfield and producer Scott Chambers, this isn’t just another bargain-bin cash-in on public-domain IP. It is easily the best, most wildly entertaining entry in the franchise that already gave us dark takes on Winnie-the-Pooh and Bambi. A Grandfather to Fear The narrative kicks off when Geppetto gifts a handcrafted wooden doll to his grandson. Clearly having never seen a single horror movie in his life, the kid introduces his new puppet to the real world. Naturally, things go horribly off the rails. Pinocchio decides that the quickest path to moral purity and becoming a “real, good boy” is by violently butchering anyone he deems

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Jul 24, 2026

Spoiler-Free Book Review: Don’t Go There (2026) 

Author J.W. Ocker’s Don’t Go There (subtitled A Tour of the World’s Most Sinister Spots) is much more than a mere travel book. It is that, certainly, although its aim is to warn readers about places to avoid more than ones to recommend — although some readers will certainly take the writer’s warnings as challenges. It is also a captivating chronicle of paranormal places and eldritch events. Ocker divides his book into the sections Fearsome Forests, Wretched Waters, Insane Islands, Deadly Deserts, Risky Ruins, and Spooky Snowscapes. High strangeness abounds in famously familiar areas such as The Bermuda Triangle, Dyatlov Pass, and Skinwalker Ranch, of course, but along with these places, Ocker also discusses less headline-grabbing — but no less fascinating — locales like Mexico’s Isla de las muñecas, the reputed island of haunted dolls; Louisiana’s allegedly cursed Manchac Swamp, alleged home of the werewolf-like rougarou and human murderers; and the family-cursed settlement of Dudleytown, Connecticut, now a ghost town

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Jul 23, 2026

Spoiler-Free Reviews: Suzuki=Bakudan and Junk World (Japan Cuts)

Suzuki = Bakudan (Japan, 2026) Official Synopsis from https://japansociety.org/events/suzukibakudan/ Based on the bestselling novel by Go Katsuhiro, SUZUKI=BAKUDAN is a big-budget blockbuster centered on Tagosaku Suzuki (Jiro Sato), a mysterious drunk who claims he can see the future. After successfully predicting a bomb will go off in Tokyo, Suzuki leads the police in a game of wits — they must solve his riddles to stop further explosions. While police fan out over the city to defuse these bombs, a young detective (Yuki Yamada) challenges Suzuki to uncover the truth behind his predictions. Is he psychic, is he lucky, is he a criminal mastermind, is he a con man? Or is he something worse? Jiro Sato delivers a tour-de-force performance and was honored with Best Supporting Actor at this year’s Japanese Academy Awards for his role in SUZUKI=BAKUDAN. Review I had just seen Suzuuki=Bakudan’s star Jirō Satō as the antagonist of the thriller Nameless at another festival just a week before

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Jul 22, 2026

Checking out Gunnar’s MILITECH Gaming Glasses inspired by ‘Cyberpunk 2077’

Our friends at Gunnar are back with their latest collaboration with Cyberpunk 2077. This time, we’re stepping out of Night City’s underworld with glasses inspired by the game’s nefarious weapons-manufacturing megacorporation, MILITECH. For those not familiar with our friends at Gunnar, they specialize in making glasses that have anti-blue light tech. Screens give off blue light that’s invisible to the eyes but can cause strain and fatigue for them. Gunnar’s glasses help block this light to allow those who look at screens all day to work in comfort. Gunnar’s glasses are used by pro e-sport players, gamers, the military, and even animators at DreamWorks. The Cyberpunk 2077 Militech glasses take on the look of range glasses, befitting a corporate merc. The polymer frame wraps around the face to offer a wide view with flexible hinges to ensure comfort for long periods of wear. The lenses will protect your eyes from harmful blue-light coming from your screen (not bullets). You can

Continue reading →
Daniel S. Liuzzi
Jul 20, 2026

Movie Review – Troll (1986) – MVD Rewind Blu-ray

The Potter family; Harry (Larry Cohen regular Michael Moriarty, The Stuff) and Anne (former Charlie’s Angel Shelley Hack) along with their children Harry Jr. (Noah Hathaway, Battlestar Galactica, The Neverending Story) and Wendy Anne (Jenny Beck, the ‘80s V franchise) move into their new abode; an apartment building in San Francisco (though this was filmed in Italy… though we do get a fun matte painting of the Golden Gate bridge). As most apartment buildings in films are, this domicile is filled with crazy characters (besides Moriarty) such as Eunice St. Clair… a feisty elderly witch (the original Lost in Space’s June Lockhart… played in younger form by her daughter Anne… who was also in Battlestar Galactica) and her pet mushroom creature, a yuppie couple (real-life married duo Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Seinfeld and Saturday Night Live’s Brad Hall), a swinger (Sonny Bono of all people), a military/big game obsessed health nut (WKRP in Cincinnati’s Gary Sandy)… and an evil Troll named Torok

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jul 20, 2026

Game Review: ‘The Green Light’

You hate your job and just want to quit without consequences? That’s pretty much what The Green Light is all about. Touted as a psychological horror, you take on the role of Fred, a man who wants to be an artist but is stuck working a dead-end office job. The green light of a lighthouse calls to him to just walk away from his job and answer its call, along with the voice of a mysterious man on a radio. I should say right off the bat, The Green Light is a short game, less than half an hour long depending on how you play. It’s impressive that it was all done by one dev, waleedzo, but I feel that Take It! Studio let him down with the port to console. Right away, there are issues with the game’s volume; it’s way too damn loud! The only option to adjust the volume is the Master Volume, which makes Fred’s dialogue

Continue reading →
Daniel S. Liuzzi
Jul 20, 2026

Movie Review: Fungicide (2002) – Visual Vengeance Blu-ray

Mad scientist-type Silas Purcell (David Weldon) spends all of his time playing with his beakers in the basement… so much so that his parents decide to send his ass on a li’l unscheduled vacay at a rural bed and breakfast run by a psychic hippie named Jade Moon (Mary Wascavage). Once there, Sinister Silas immediately trips and accidentally releases his latest concoction which spills on some mushrooms turning them into flesh eating, Silly String shootin’, monster fungi that can gain the abilities of anyone they consume! This becomes a serious pain in the ass to Moon and the rest of her guests… the likes of which include Pro-Wrestler Tony “Titus” Ignitus (Dave Bonavita), shady commercial real estate developer Jackson P. Jackson (Dave Wascavage… who also directed and co-wrote the picture along with the aforementioned Mary Wascavage… and while Mary’s on our minds, she sings an absolutely incredible theme song that has to be heard to be believed… I absolutely loved

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jul 17, 2026

Movie Review: The Screaming (2000) – Visual Vengeance Blu-ray

There is something seriously wrong with the followers of New Age religion Crystalnetics. For starters, the robed practitioners of said “religion” like nothing more than to chase chicks around their centrally located pyramid headquarters and then getting unreasonably stabby… there’s also a monster involved, but we’ll get to that later… Enter: room-renting, chain smoking, Gen X anthropology student Bob Martin (Vinnie Bilancio), a gruff scholar with a deep interest in ancient supernatural rites and the ass of his landlady, Crystal (Wendi Winburn). Speaking of Crystal, with a name like that you just know she’s balls deep into that crazy cult and before long she’s introduced our hero to the benefits belief in Crystalnetics can bring… but will he see the truth of the cult and it’s star-born, demonic overlord! Coming from Writer/Director Jeff Leroy (Rat Scratch Fever), The Screaming is an incredibly entertaining satire of L. Ron Hubbard’s Dianetics/Scientology biz. We get the genre author turned New Age Prophet, the

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jul 17, 2026

Game Review: ‘The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu’

In the past, I have played plenty of games by NACON and had nothing bad to say about them; unfortunately, there’s that old saying, “There’s a first time for everything”, and this is one of them. I still wish to thank NACON and ACE Team for the reviewing opportunity, and I hope my criticism will help improve this game moving forward. The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu is a Lovecraftian first-person survival horror PVE where players take on the role of Spanish explorers who are seeking the mythical “Mound” on an undiscovered island that even the Spanish crown knows nothing about, allowing you to claim the treasure found on this island for yourselves…if you survive. Now, onto the game itself! When it comes to the controls for the game, you can learn them quickly, but at the same time I feel there could still be some more features, like jumping, as the game’s environment appears to have plenty of choices of

Continue reading →
Daniel S. Liuzzi
Jul 15, 2026

Movie Review: Highway to Hell (1992) – Visual Vengeance Blu-ray

Psycho killin’ machine Toby Gilmore (Benton Jennings) springs himself from the Big House and sets off on a madcap murder spree. Along the way, Fran Tucker (Blue Thompson) witnesses Terrible Toby ventilate a dude’s skull on the open road and soon becomes Gilmore’s hostage. Hot on his heels is police chief Earl Dent (Italian peplum familiar face Richard Harrison), a lawman with a personal ax to grind with our footloose felon! Directed by Bret McCormick (Repligator), working from a script by Gary Kennamer (who we will get back to in a bit), Highway to Hell is down and dirty regional regional filmmaking that would be solid drive-in or Grindhouse material in days past, but in… well different “days past” it was one of many low budget flicks pumped out to video rental joints in the ‘80s and ‘90s. While the film certainly delivers some suspense and a bit o’ bloodshed… and a helicopter… the real stars are the Texas locales

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jul 11, 2026

More from Reviews

Movie Review: ‘Pinocchio: Unstrung’ Splinters the Fable into a Blood-Soaked Triumph

The Twisted Childhood Universe is carving out another nightmare. This time, it brings a conscience made of a wooden boy. Hitting cinemas nationwide today (July 24, 2026) via Altitude is Pinocchio: Unstrung. It arrives fresh off its UK premiere at the Raindance Film Festival, where it locked down four major award nominations. Steered by director Rhys Frake-Waterfield and producer Scott Chambers, this isn’t just another bargain-bin cash-in on public-domain IP. It is easily the best, most wildly entertaining entry in the franchise that already gave us dark takes on Winnie-the-Pooh and Bambi. A Grandfather to Fear The narrative kicks off when Geppetto gifts a handcrafted wooden doll to his grandson. Clearly having never seen a single horror movie in his life, the kid introduces his new puppet to the real world. Naturally, things go horribly off the rails. Pinocchio decides that the quickest path to moral purity and becoming a “real, good boy” is by violently butchering anyone he deems

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Jul 24, 2026

Spoiler-Free Book Review: Don’t Go There (2026) 

Author J.W. Ocker’s Don’t Go There (subtitled A Tour of the World’s Most Sinister Spots) is much more than a mere travel book. It is that, certainly, although its aim is to warn readers about places to avoid more than ones to recommend — although some readers will certainly take the writer’s warnings as challenges. It is also a captivating chronicle of paranormal places and eldritch events. Ocker divides his book into the sections Fearsome Forests, Wretched Waters, Insane Islands, Deadly Deserts, Risky Ruins, and Spooky Snowscapes. High strangeness abounds in famously familiar areas such as The Bermuda Triangle, Dyatlov Pass, and Skinwalker Ranch, of course, but along with these places, Ocker also discusses less headline-grabbing — but no less fascinating — locales like Mexico’s Isla de las muñecas, the reputed island of haunted dolls; Louisiana’s allegedly cursed Manchac Swamp, alleged home of the werewolf-like rougarou and human murderers; and the family-cursed settlement of Dudleytown, Connecticut, now a ghost town

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Jul 23, 2026

Spoiler-Free Reviews: Suzuki=Bakudan and Junk World (Japan Cuts)

Suzuki = Bakudan (Japan, 2026) Official Synopsis from https://japansociety.org/events/suzukibakudan/ Based on the bestselling novel by Go Katsuhiro, SUZUKI=BAKUDAN is a big-budget blockbuster centered on Tagosaku Suzuki (Jiro Sato), a mysterious drunk who claims he can see the future. After successfully predicting a bomb will go off in Tokyo, Suzuki leads the police in a game of wits — they must solve his riddles to stop further explosions. While police fan out over the city to defuse these bombs, a young detective (Yuki Yamada) challenges Suzuki to uncover the truth behind his predictions. Is he psychic, is he lucky, is he a criminal mastermind, is he a con man? Or is he something worse? Jiro Sato delivers a tour-de-force performance and was honored with Best Supporting Actor at this year’s Japanese Academy Awards for his role in SUZUKI=BAKUDAN. Review I had just seen Suzuuki=Bakudan’s star Jirō Satō as the antagonist of the thriller Nameless at another festival just a week before

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Jul 22, 2026

Checking out Gunnar’s MILITECH Gaming Glasses inspired by ‘Cyberpunk 2077’

Our friends at Gunnar are back with their latest collaboration with Cyberpunk 2077. This time, we’re stepping out of Night City’s underworld with glasses inspired by the game’s nefarious weapons-manufacturing megacorporation, MILITECH. For those not familiar with our friends at Gunnar, they specialize in making glasses that have anti-blue light tech. Screens give off blue light that’s invisible to the eyes but can cause strain and fatigue for them. Gunnar’s glasses help block this light to allow those who look at screens all day to work in comfort. Gunnar’s glasses are used by pro e-sport players, gamers, the military, and even animators at DreamWorks. The Cyberpunk 2077 Militech glasses take on the look of range glasses, befitting a corporate merc. The polymer frame wraps around the face to offer a wide view with flexible hinges to ensure comfort for long periods of wear. The lenses will protect your eyes from harmful blue-light coming from your screen (not bullets). You can

Continue reading →
Daniel S. Liuzzi
Jul 20, 2026

Movie Review – Troll (1986) – MVD Rewind Blu-ray

The Potter family; Harry (Larry Cohen regular Michael Moriarty, The Stuff) and Anne (former Charlie’s Angel Shelley Hack) along with their children Harry Jr. (Noah Hathaway, Battlestar Galactica, The Neverending Story) and Wendy Anne (Jenny Beck, the ‘80s V franchise) move into their new abode; an apartment building in San Francisco (though this was filmed in Italy… though we do get a fun matte painting of the Golden Gate bridge). As most apartment buildings in films are, this domicile is filled with crazy characters (besides Moriarty) such as Eunice St. Clair… a feisty elderly witch (the original Lost in Space’s June Lockhart… played in younger form by her daughter Anne… who was also in Battlestar Galactica) and her pet mushroom creature, a yuppie couple (real-life married duo Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Seinfeld and Saturday Night Live’s Brad Hall), a swinger (Sonny Bono of all people), a military/big game obsessed health nut (WKRP in Cincinnati’s Gary Sandy)… and an evil Troll named Torok

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jul 20, 2026

Game Review: ‘The Green Light’

You hate your job and just want to quit without consequences? That’s pretty much what The Green Light is all about. Touted as a psychological horror, you take on the role of Fred, a man who wants to be an artist but is stuck working a dead-end office job. The green light of a lighthouse calls to him to just walk away from his job and answer its call, along with the voice of a mysterious man on a radio. I should say right off the bat, The Green Light is a short game, less than half an hour long depending on how you play. It’s impressive that it was all done by one dev, waleedzo, but I feel that Take It! Studio let him down with the port to console. Right away, there are issues with the game’s volume; it’s way too damn loud! The only option to adjust the volume is the Master Volume, which makes Fred’s dialogue

Continue reading →
Daniel S. Liuzzi
Jul 20, 2026

Movie Review: Fungicide (2002) – Visual Vengeance Blu-ray

Mad scientist-type Silas Purcell (David Weldon) spends all of his time playing with his beakers in the basement… so much so that his parents decide to send his ass on a li’l unscheduled vacay at a rural bed and breakfast run by a psychic hippie named Jade Moon (Mary Wascavage). Once there, Sinister Silas immediately trips and accidentally releases his latest concoction which spills on some mushrooms turning them into flesh eating, Silly String shootin’, monster fungi that can gain the abilities of anyone they consume! This becomes a serious pain in the ass to Moon and the rest of her guests… the likes of which include Pro-Wrestler Tony “Titus” Ignitus (Dave Bonavita), shady commercial real estate developer Jackson P. Jackson (Dave Wascavage… who also directed and co-wrote the picture along with the aforementioned Mary Wascavage… and while Mary’s on our minds, she sings an absolutely incredible theme song that has to be heard to be believed… I absolutely loved

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jul 17, 2026

Movie Review: The Screaming (2000) – Visual Vengeance Blu-ray

There is something seriously wrong with the followers of New Age religion Crystalnetics. For starters, the robed practitioners of said “religion” like nothing more than to chase chicks around their centrally located pyramid headquarters and then getting unreasonably stabby… there’s also a monster involved, but we’ll get to that later… Enter: room-renting, chain smoking, Gen X anthropology student Bob Martin (Vinnie Bilancio), a gruff scholar with a deep interest in ancient supernatural rites and the ass of his landlady, Crystal (Wendi Winburn). Speaking of Crystal, with a name like that you just know she’s balls deep into that crazy cult and before long she’s introduced our hero to the benefits belief in Crystalnetics can bring… but will he see the truth of the cult and it’s star-born, demonic overlord! Coming from Writer/Director Jeff Leroy (Rat Scratch Fever), The Screaming is an incredibly entertaining satire of L. Ron Hubbard’s Dianetics/Scientology biz. We get the genre author turned New Age Prophet, the

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jul 17, 2026

Game Review: ‘The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu’

In the past, I have played plenty of games by NACON and had nothing bad to say about them; unfortunately, there’s that old saying, “There’s a first time for everything”, and this is one of them. I still wish to thank NACON and ACE Team for the reviewing opportunity, and I hope my criticism will help improve this game moving forward. The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu is a Lovecraftian first-person survival horror PVE where players take on the role of Spanish explorers who are seeking the mythical “Mound” on an undiscovered island that even the Spanish crown knows nothing about, allowing you to claim the treasure found on this island for yourselves…if you survive. Now, onto the game itself! When it comes to the controls for the game, you can learn them quickly, but at the same time I feel there could still be some more features, like jumping, as the game’s environment appears to have plenty of choices of

Continue reading →
Daniel S. Liuzzi
Jul 15, 2026

Movie Review: Highway to Hell (1992) – Visual Vengeance Blu-ray

Psycho killin’ machine Toby Gilmore (Benton Jennings) springs himself from the Big House and sets off on a madcap murder spree. Along the way, Fran Tucker (Blue Thompson) witnesses Terrible Toby ventilate a dude’s skull on the open road and soon becomes Gilmore’s hostage. Hot on his heels is police chief Earl Dent (Italian peplum familiar face Richard Harrison), a lawman with a personal ax to grind with our footloose felon! Directed by Bret McCormick (Repligator), working from a script by Gary Kennamer (who we will get back to in a bit), Highway to Hell is down and dirty regional regional filmmaking that would be solid drive-in or Grindhouse material in days past, but in… well different “days past” it was one of many low budget flicks pumped out to video rental joints in the ‘80s and ‘90s. While the film certainly delivers some suspense and a bit o’ bloodshed… and a helicopter… the real stars are the Texas locales

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jul 11, 2026
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