Asylum UK Distribution Deal Hints at Another New Title...

So today this article came out in which it was revealed that The Asylum has struck a deal with Starz/Anchor Bay Entertainment UK to distribute at least 10 films abroad in the next year. While this is awesome, spectacular news - The Asylum's going worldwide! - the juiciest morsel here comes at the end of the article, when they say that The Asylum next goes into production in July, on a film called...wait for it...

AGE OF THE HOBBITS.

I don't even know how this is possible, licensing-wise, and frankly I don't care. Asylum's mockbusting Peter Jackson (for the second time, counting King of the Lost World) and the results should be assuredly spectacular. No word on who's involved, but as soon as I know (i.e. as soon as The Asylum posts something somewhere) you'll know...

observation notes: ADOPTING TERROR

This past Saturday night marked the second time The Asylum premiered a film on the Lifetime network; last year it was Jared Cohn's Born Bad, and this time around it was Adopting Terror from writer - along with Nik Frank-Lehrer - and director Micho Rutare (Meteor Apocalypse). Like Born Bad, Adopting Terror was a thriller without creatures, aliens, natural disasters or pending global cataclysms, just a straight-up look at the evil men can do when properly motivated.

The film centers around Tim and Cheryl Broadbent, played by Sean Astin (Goonies, Lord of the Rings) and Samaire Armstrong (The O.C., Entourage) respectively - and their adoption of a lovely little baby girl, Mona. Only trouble is, Mona's biological father has just been released from prison and now he'll stop at nothing to be reunited with his daughter. What follows is a psychological game of cat-and-mouse, manipulations and intimidation, violence and the different degrees different people will go to in order to preserve and protect their families.

Adopting Terror is laden with powerful performances that elevate the film. The seemingly ageless Sean Astin is a loving father and husband, a sensible protector who as the film progresses, struggles to keep himself together amid the mounting strain to his family. Astin is a perfect Everyfather - if you'll allow the term - and thus when he finds himself pushed to the brink, the experience is tangible and resonant.

Samaire Armstrong also turns in a convincing performance as a first-time mother already a little unsure of her own abilities, an emotional subplot that only compounds once the real trouble starts popping off. Actress Monet Mazur plays the sleek yet wary, helpful but watchful social worker in charge of the Broadbent's case, and Michael Gross (Family Ties, Tremors 1-4) plays her boss. This marks Mr. Gross's second outing with The Asylum, 100 Million B.C. being the first time. This go-round, he brought his sister Mary Gross (Saturday Night Live, Troop Beverly Hills, FEDS), who has a one-scene cameo early on.

But for my money, the real scene-stealer here is Brendan Fehr (Final Destination, Ice Quake) as Mona's birth father, Kevin. He's the scariest kind of sociopath - the coolly vicious, stoically sadistic, stone-faced type. Fehr is a pure menace, a vibrant and brutally focused man blind to everything beyond his own agenda. Dude's got real chops, and they're on full display here. I want to see Fehr as Adopting Terror's Kevin fight Michael Welch as Born Bad's Denny; now there's a mega match-up.


Bottom line, Adopting Terror is a taut, well-paced, uncomfortably realistic thriller from set-up to payoff. It comes across simultaneously heartfelt, vicious, tense and suspenseful, and manages to mix in a few awesome, totally unexpected twists along the way to its pulse-pounding conclusion.

As of now, there is only one remaining scheduled broadcast of Adopting Terror on Lifetime: Saturday, April 28th at 6pm. After that, you might have to wait until the film's official DVD release on September 11th of this year.

Super Cyclone Just Got a Lot More SUPER!!! Casting News!!!

While there's nothing up on their site as of yet, according to The Asylum's Facebook and Twitter feed, there's a bit of news about their upcoming disaster flick, Super Cyclone, and believe me when I tell you guys, you're gonna love this.

Cast as one of the two female leads is the lovely and talented AnnaMaria Demara, the very same lovely and talented actress you voted as last year's Best Supporting Actress in the 2011 Loonies for her star-making turn in 200MPH. No word on who the other lead will be, or what exactly the plot is, but does it matter? This one's already made it's money back. 

More info, as always, when it becomes available...

Enter to Win an One-of-a-Kind 2 Headed Shark Print

So, my fellow-faithfully Committed Asylum fan Tromeric, originator and administrator of the lovely horror blog Guts and Grog, is sponsoring a contest where someone's gonna win a completely original, one-of-a-kind print inspired by The Asylum classic 2 Headed Shark Attack,  which I wrote the screenplay for.

Pretty rad, if you ask me, it's got a real Jaws vibe going on, which you guys know I love. So if you want this gorgeous monstrosity for your very own, click through to the link above to enter. The winner is drawn on April 17th, and if it's you, send me a pic of where you put it and I'll publish it here for all the world - and by "world" I mean the limited population of my blogosphere - to see and envy. 

Thanks to Tromeric, Guts and Grog and artist Jeremy Gaulkenstein for a truly rad contest!

Adopting Terror Premieres on Lifetime THIS SATURDAY NIGHT!!!

Don't forget, Asylum fans, that this Saturday night marks the next release from our favorite independent studio, as the thriller Adopting Terror makes its world premiere on the Lifetime network.

The films stars Sean Astin (Goonies, Lord of the Rings, Toy Soldiers) and Samaire Armstrong (The O.C., Entourage) as a married couple longing to adopt. When their prayers are answered in the form of a beautiful baby girl, they think their lives are complete. Wrong. Because that beautiful baby girl comes with a psycho biological father, Brendan Fehr (Roswell, Ice Quake, The Forsaken) who wants his baby back (insert your own Chili's joke here, if you like.). As if all this wasn't a draw, the cast also boast Michael Gross (I shouldn't have to tell you). 

So the time is 8 p.m., the place is the Lifetime network, and the event is the world premiere of the latest Asylum offering, Adopting Terror, from writer/director Micho Rutare and writer Nik Frank-Lehrer. Catch it now, because the DVD release doesn't come until September, and you don't want to be the last one of your block to see it!

Asylum Bits and Pieces

It's been a newsworthy week for everyone's favorite independent studio, as they've turned up a couple of times in popular media. Check out these links:

CNN's Outfront Blog spoke with Asylum producer Paul Bales on mockbuster moviemaking.

Then there was this list of the Greatest Shark Attacks in Film as compiled by Complex Magazine. Not only does Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus occupy two of the 31 spots, number 29, 30, 31, come courtesy of The Asylum and yours truly, from 2 Headed Shark Attack. 


And last but certainly not least, here's Asylum producer David Michael Latt conversing with American Airlines' American Way Magazine about, you guessed it, making these wild and wonderful movies.

HAUNTING OF WHALEY HOUSE Details, Courtesy of Fangoria

The next Asylum ghostly-feature, The Haunting of Whaley House, has been shrouded in mystery until now, thanks to the most venerable of horror publications, the mighty Fangoria. In this recent post, they spill all the juicy exclusive details.
 

And while I'll let Fangoria break most of it to you, I do want to give mention of the film's writer/director Jose Prendes. Whaley House will mark Mr. Prendes' fourth script for The Asylum, and the second with "Haunting of" in the title: Haunting of Winchester House, The Terminators, Countdown: Jerusalem, and now The Haunting of Whaley House. Mr. Prendes also wrote and directed the films The Monster Man with Tom Savini and Linnea Quigley, and Corpses Are Forever with Richard Lynch, Debbie Rochon and Ms. Quigley. 

Bottom line, this one is in good, skilled hands. No release date as yet on this one, but I'm thinking somewhere closer to Halloween...

BIKINI SPRING BREAK Gets a Poster! PLUS 3 New Titles Listed!!!

From something so spectacularly titled as Bikini Spring Break, one should be able to expect a scintillatingly straight-forward poster; thank god the guys at The Asylum always deliver...

Behold:

Ta-da! One guaranteed hit, courtesy of writer/director Jared Cohn (Born Bad), The Asylum, and whoever the marketing genius is who designs their posters. I work in a really large independent video store, and with two dozen or more direct-to-DVD flicks clogging the New Release section every week, I know a standout when I see it, and believe me, this baby's gonna move.

Lead the pack yourself when Bikini Spring Break, starring Robert "Revenge of the Nerds" Carradine and a bevy of beautiful actresses, hits DVD shelves both actual and virtual on June 26th. 

But wait, there's just a little bit more. Though there's no real information on them as yet, in the Coming Soon bar in the bottom right corner of The Asylum's homepage, three new titles have been mentioned, and this only days after learning about Alien Origin and Adopting Terror: Haunting of Whaley House, Super Cyclone and Golden Winter. 

Haunting, I know, involves a real haunted location in San Diego; Super Cyclone I can hazard a guess as to what it's about, but Golden Winter has me stumped. A global-warming disaster flick? Treasure-hunting holiday fare? A truly raunchy sexcapade? Only time and The Asylum will tell, and when they do, rest assured I'll share it here. Either way, though, 2012 is really shaping up to be a massive year for everyone's favorite independent studio.

First Details on ADOPTING TERROR!

Out of nowhere comes news of the next Asylum-Lifetime Movie, Adopting Terror, set to premiere Saturday, April 7th at 9p.m. on the cable network (with a DVD release set for September 11th), and man, is this one star-studded. 

But first things first, the synopsis: "Tim and Cheryl Broadbent are excited to finally adopt Mona, a beautiful baby girl. But when the baby’s biological father starts stalking them, their world turns upside down: through intimidation, manipulation, and violence, he is determined to take his daughter back."

Sounds pretty perfect for a Lifetime movie. Now let's get to that cast: Tim and Cheryl are played by Sean Astin (ummm...Lord of the Rings, Goonies, duh!) and Samaire Armstrong (The O.C., Entourage, Dirty Sexy Money), and rounding out the ensemble are Monet Mazur (Austin Powers, Torque), Brendan Fehr (Roswell, The Forsaken) and the one and only Michael Gross (Family Ties, Tremors, 100 Million B.C.). If that ain't a powerhouse cast, I don't know what is.

Adopting Terror is written and directed by Micho Rutare, who previously wrote and directed Meteor Apocalypse and also wrote Dragonquest, the story for Mega Shark vs Crocosaurus and the upcoming Bigfoot. Co-writing credits on the script go to Nik Frank-Lehrer. 


Check out the film's page on The Asylum site here, then dig the production stills over here. And once that whets your appetite, tune in to the Lifetime Network Saturday night, April 7th at 9p.m. when Adopting Terror makes its world television premiere.

MEGA SHARK VS MECHA SHARK!!! MEGA SHARK VS MECHA SHARK!!!

Oh such a glorious day, oh how the sky is bluer, the birds singing sweeter, how every atom of my being is twitching with electrical impulses of pure happiness, for today is the day that The Asylum announced to the world the greenlighting of the most stupendous, most amazing, most anticipated trilogy capper in all of cinema history: a third Mega Shark movie!!!

But this isn't even the greatest thing about this story, no, that would be the title:

Mega Shark vs. Mecha Shark

You can't tell because you're only reading this, but I fainted for like 3 minutes after typing that title; that's how awesome this is going to be. No further details as of yet, but for now, this is more than enough. Mega Shark 3!!! 

New Asylum Tidbits

Couple new things coming out of The Asylum camp today, including the poster for Abraham Lincoln vs Zombies and the title and description of a new found-footage film.

Let's start with the poster:

That there folks is a pretty fine poster. Bill Oberst Jr. (A Haunting in Salem, Princess and the Pony, Born Bad) plays the President in question. The film is out May 29th.

Then, continuing their string of found-footage hits - The Amityville Haunting, Anneliese: The Exorcist Tapes, 8213 Gacy House, Paranormal Entity - The Asylum brings us Alien Origin this summer. These are the only details provided: "Recently discovered footage from a lost military expedition exposes a horrifying truth about the genesis of life on earth. "

The film is set to street on June 12, and should be at least a thousand times better than the second X-Files movie...

Trailer for AMERICAN BATTLESHIP Now on You Tube

The Asylum's next sci-fi outing, American Battleship, at last has a trailer posted on You Tube. Behold:

The film - written and directed by 200MPH scripter Thunder Levin - stars powerhouses Mario Van Peebles and Carl Weathers, hits DVD, Blu-Ray and VOD on May 22nd. Enjoy!

ABE LINCOLN VS ZOMBIES Teaser Trailer!!!

Just like the headline says, the teaser trailer for Abraham Lincoln vs Zombies has risen over at You Tube, and this shizzle looks AWESOME. Check it out:

That's Bill Oberst Jr (A Haunting in Salem) playing Honest Abe in a film written and directed by Richard Schenkman. May 29th...that's the day your perspective on American History shifts forever...

2-Headed Shark Attack (kinda) on SyFy Tonight!

First of all, let me state that the above is an intentionally misleading headline. 2-Headed Shark Attack, the movie, is NOT on SyFy tonight. The 2-headed shark from 2-Headed Shark Attack, however, is. Allow me to explain.

Tonight at 11pm wherever in the States you live, SyFy is premiering its new reality show, "Monster Man," in which it follows the life and work of Cleve Hall, movie-monster-builder extraordinaire. And in the very first episode, the one airing tonight, ol' Cleve builds himself a 2-headed shark for the fine folks at The Asylum.

There are not words for how excited I am to see this, but if you're on the West Coast, and you're on Twitter, you can follow my live and probably somewhat inebriated tweets during the show.

Can't wait to see how the big guy came together!

GRIMM'S SNOW WHITE on DVD Today!!!

Mirror mirror, on the wall, what the most awesome film on DVD today of all? 

A cumbersome opening, to be sure, but the long and short of it is, today, The Asylum's latest production introduces itself to the world via DVD/Blu-Ray/VOD: Grimm's Snow White.

Simply scroll down a few inches to find my notes on the film, which overall I thoroughly enjoyed as an intelligent, thrilling, fantastical twist on the fairy tale. GSW stars the lovely and talented Eliza Bennett as the titular princess, Jane March as her wicked and vain stepmother, and Jamie Thomas King as the charming Prince. 

Written by Naomi Selfman (Mega Python vs Gatoroid, 18 Year Old Virgin) and directed by Rachel Goldenberg (Sherlock Holmes, Princess and the Pony) - two of the Asylum's best, in my humble opinion - this one's a guaranteed good time, but don't take my word for it, I'm biased as hell, go see for yourself then spread the word!

observation notes: GRIMM'S SNOW WHITE

For their next release - Grimm's Snow White, on DVD this coming Tuesday - The Asylum has gotten their fingers on the classic fairy tale and given it their own personal twist, which naturally includes murder, mayhem and tremendous monsters. Dig the plot: 

When the King is killed by ferocious reptile beasts, his Queen takes control of the kingdom. She tries to kill her beautiful stepdaughter SNOW, but she escapes into the enchanted forest...

In my continuing effort to not spoil films when I review them, I won't go much deeper into the plot except to say that this ain't your little sister's Snow White, not by a long shot.

The film is anchored with vibrant performances from its leads, including Eliza Bennett as the titular princess, who tackles the role as potent yet naive, as beautiful and elegant as a princess should be, but with the hidden soul of a warrior. Jane March as the Wicked Queen is delightfully deceitful and eloquently two-faced; this lady enters a room, it goes stone cold. And Jamie Thomas in the role of the Prince is indeed charming, but more than that he is steadfast and honest, a true prince among knaves, not blinded by his privileged existence but rather impassioned by it, and eager to serve the world. 


The script, from Asylum vet Naomi Selfman, retains all the classic elements of the original story, only now with utterly-Asylum updates, most notably the inclusion of said ferocious reptile beasts, and an interesting take on the dwarfs. The result is an epic yet intimate fairy tale on steroids, its more horrifying points amped to the Nth degree. This is Snow White like you never imagined it, the antithesis to the raven-haired, doe-eyed heroine of your childhood; this is dark, brutal, and awesome.

The direction from Rachel Goldenberg, another Asylum vet, is sweeping and elegiac, as Goldenberg makes wonderful use of the beauty and inherent spookiness of the British countryside, formulating the perfect fairy tale setting. Her work, teamed with that of the VFX department - who have hit it out of the park yet again, as far as I'm concerned - creates a film perhaps best described as a period-piece creature-feature, a Merchant-Ivory flick with work from Ray Harryhausen, or The Princess Bride as written by H.P. Lovecraft.

Overall then, if you're looking for a fantastical, frightening twist on a beloved childhood treasure, this is the version for you. Check it out for yourself this coming Tuesday, the 13th, when Grimm's Snow White hits DVD.

First Stills From BIKINI SPRING BREAK!!!

The Asylum's next saucy comedy, Bikini Spring Break, written and directed by the uber-talented Jared Cohn (Born Bad), may still be months away from its June 26 release date, but as of this afternoon, we got the first production stills, and it seems the title is no tease, because there are hella-bikini-clad young ladies in this one.

Bikini Spring Break stars the great Robert Carradine (Revenge of the Nerds, The Long Riders) and a plethora of nubile actresses. Mark your calenders now, gentlemen, and pray summer comes quickly...

Behold the Teaser Trailer for NAZIS AT THE CENTER OF THE EARTH

With only six weeks or so until the release of The Asylum's next impeding classic - and candidate for best title ever - Nazis at the Center of the Earth, the film's teaser trailer has at last hit You Tube this week, for all the world to relish:

Dominique Swain, Josh Allen, Christopher Karl Johnson, and Jake Busey star for first-time director (and long-time Asylum VFX maestro) Joseph J. Lawson, from a script by writer and producer Paul Bales.


April 24th is when it all goes down, so enjoy the trailer then spread the word; this one has the wings to become the biggest Asylum hit yet!

Bikini Spring Break Details

The first few details of Bikini Spring Break went up over at The Asylum site today, and it sounds like we got a scorcher on our hands. (you know, hot, bikinis...eh.)

First and foremost, the film is written and directed by Jared Cohn, the mad genius behind Born Bad, which KILLED at this year's Looney Award, becoming the first flick to win the big 5: director, actor, actress, script and picture.

Check out the plot: A group of coeds from a small conservative college break out of their shells when their marching band bus breaks down in Ft. Lauderdale during Spring Break.

Sounds like the perfect set-up for raunchy hilarity to ensue. Also has tinges of one of my favorite flicks, Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise, which has something else in common with Bikini Spring Break...

Robert fucking Carradine.

Oh yeah, people, this is real, happening, and in production as we speak. June 26th is all goes down...be there!

inmate profile: Jamie Thomas King

In Committed's final spotlight celebrating the creative talent behind The Asylum's next DVD release - Grimm's Snow White on March 13th - we look at actor Jamie Thomas King, who will be playing the role of Prince Alexander.

King started his career, as do many UK actors, with the illustrious BBC, before landing his first movie role in Tristan and Isolde, co-starring the lovely and talented Sophia Myles, and Shakespeare's worst nightmare, James Franco. 

From there King landed a 14-episode gig on the steamy historical Showtime series The Tudors, which lead to a trip across the pond and appearances in such notable American TV shows such as "Private Practice," "Mad Men" and "CSI: Miami."

King was most recently seen in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, and can next be seen (after Grimm's Snow White of course) in Storage 24, a British horror/sci-fi film.

Dude looks princely to me, but let's find out for sure on March 13th, when Grimm's Snow White comes to town...