Wow, I’m up early this morning. Have a pretty busy day. Need to post my mate’s birthday present, return some ill-fitting jeggings to a popular low-cost fashion store, meet a friend I haven’t seen in ages for a gossip, and go to a meeting in uni. I’m chocca! So I figured I’d get up handy and get going on this newsletter for all you Cult Labbers!

It’s nearly Halloween, that time of year when we can curl up with a good scary movie (courtesy of the Labs), some popcorn, perhaps a few beers… And then scare the bejeezus out of any children foolhardy enough to disturb us by trick-or-treating! So what’s your scary movie of choice for Halloween? Mine is going to be either Cronos, The Devil’s Backbone or Pan’s Labyrinth, picked from the Guillermo Del Toro Collection, out now on Blu-ray from Optimum Releasing. The stunning set is worth it for the pop-up packaging alone, but since these are some of the best intelligent horror films ever made, you perhaps want to do more than just stare at the box! If you fancy this set for Halloween viewing too, then check out the blog or the official thread.

So now on with the rest of the newsletter, before I begin to require a nap!

Sarah@Cult Labs.

ALSO OUT NOW

This week has seen some fantastic new releases on DVD. From Shameless Screen Entertainment, we have Fulci’s Box of Terror: a brilliant collection of Fulci’s US and UK based films, New York Ripper, Manhattan Baby and The Black Cat. You can check out more details on the official thread – why not let us know what you think about that stunning Graham Humphrey’s artwork?

Also from Shameless is Escape From the Bronx, part two of The Bronx Warriors Trilogy. If you’ve not seen this great action film, or you want to keep your tin box in pristine condition, then you should pick up a copy straight away. For the trailer, cover art and to let us know what you think, head on over to the official thread.

Last, but not least, we have Not Like Others from Chelsea Films. An intelligent and atmospheric vampire flick, this blows recent vampire rubbish (Twilight, anyone?) out of the water. For all the details, make sure you head on over to Sam’s blog. If you’ve seen this fab little film already, why not let us know your thoughts on the official thread?

SHAMELESS SCREENINGS IN LONDON

If you can make it to the Bread & Roses in Clapham on Thursday 28th October (that’s tomorrow if you’re reading this as I post it, tonight if you’re reading this as an email!) then get there for 7pm and settle in to watch a screening of New York Ripper courtesy of videotapeswapshop and Shameless Screen Entertainment. The screening is in celebration of the release of Fulci’s Box of Terror and is absolutely free. There will be prizes to give away on the night and it promises to be a great evening. Check out more details on the videotapeswapshop website and Facebook page.

On 1 November there is also a screening of The Bronx Warriors (out now on DVD) at The Mucky Pup in Islington, courtesy of Shameless and Cigarette Burns Cinema. The film starts at 7:30pm and, once again, is absolutely free, with prizes being given away throughout the evening! You can check out more details for this event at the Cigarette Burns website!

ARTWORK AND SPECS GALORE!

This has been a week of wicked reveals over at Cult Labs. First up is the packaging reveal for Arrow’s Battle Royale Blu-ray and DVD release, which is set to go out on 29 November 2010. You can see the exploded Blu-ray pack shot here but for more images than you can shake a stick at, head over to the official thread where you can also tell us what you think. The specs have also been released for Arrow’s Deep Red (out late November/early December 2010) which is looking to be a mammoth package with two versions of the film (in 1080p if you get the Blu-ray) and a wealth of special features. For full details, take a peek here. Finally, the specs are also out for Bay of Blood, which is also looking like a must-have release. Out on 22 November 2010, Bay of Blood will also feature two cuts of the film and an array of special features. Check out the details and let us know what you think here.

THERE’S SOMETHING GOING ON AT THE LABORATORY

It’s been a busy old week over at the labs. Seems like there’s been lots of discussion going on – especially with all of the artwork and specs being revealed. But I will try, nonetheless, to pick out my favourites for the week. Right after I’ve made a nice lemon and ginger tea…

Rick Melton’s Artwork

Rick’s artwork has always produced strong reactions on Cult Labs, with people loving or loathing it. But, since art is largely down to personal taste, it’s sometimes good to just look at these covers in the context of art and not the films themselves. This thread allows you to do just that and discuss what you like, don’t like and why. bizarre_eye has even been kind enough to post a gallery of Rick’s images for easy reference. Art should always provoke (and deserve) discussion, so head on over to this thread to get your opinion on!

Any Fans of Troll 2?

Well, as hard as it is to believe, the answer to that question is yes! frosty did some work on the Troll 2 documentary, Best Worst Movie and wants to find out if there are any more Nilbog fans lurking on the forums and apparently there are. bitchslicer, Stephen@Cult Labs, Gigantor and Philleh all count themselves as lovers of the films and are all excited for its forthcoming Blu-ray release. I, personally, am among the uninitiated and take heed from Stephen@Cult Labs‘s word of caution: “One of two things will happen, either you wonder why you waited so long to see it, or you’ll wonder why you even bothered seeing it at all.”

Well… I just watched The Beast in Heat

You kind of know what what to expect when a thread title starts with “Well…” and RoXX0rz‘s OP is no disappointment. In fact, none of the posts in this thread disappoint. One of them is even going to be my quote of the week in a few minute’s time. I’ve not seen this film yet, or many of the other films mentioned in the thread, but surely any film that makes Love Camp 7 look good is worth discussing?

A History of Horror

Well, this great little BBC4 series is now over so what did you think? I enjoyed it immensely and hope Mark Gatiss gets the chance to do a follow up on Euro horror as he’s said he would like to. I also enjoyed seeing some classic horror shown on TV. So did you like this docu? Are you hoping for a follow up? And is BBC4 the new home of classic horror on British TV? Let us all know your thoughts here!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I was expecting this nasty shocker but it’s just poo, sleazy poo.” – While the thought of sleazy poo makes me feel a tad nauseous, mbv‘s comment on The Beast in Heat made me laugh so hard some of my tea came out my nose!

MODS & ROCKERS

Actually not much to put in this section this week as the forums have been so peaceful the mods haven’t had anything to do bar enjoying chatting about films. Hopefully this isn’t speaking too soon, but we would all like to extend our thanks to you all for making Cult Labs such a great place to be this week. So, just on behalf on the moderators, a big “thank you” to everyone who has helped (and continues to help) make this the friendly and constructive place to chat about all things horror and cult that it is and hope you all have a happy Halloween! (Thanks to Nosferatu@Cult Labs for co-writing this bit!)

Any new members who haven’t checked out the forum rules yet can do so here. If any of the mods (forum, technical, competitions, etc.) want me to include anything in this section next week then just let me know!

KYLE’S COMP CORNER

This week, Kyle has got another stonkingly brilliant prize for you: a copy of Not Like Others on DVD. With Halloween fast approaching, what could be better than winning a copy of a brilliant vampire flick? If you agree, head on over to the Comp Corner to enter. Good luck!

WELCOME NEWBIES!

This week I’m saying a big hello there to wtfFILM and Mr. Sarah@Cult Labs himself, rossco396 (hello, sweetie). I’m sure we have more new members than that though, so remember to introduce yourselves in the new members thread when you sign up!

AND FINALLY…

Before I go, here’s a little reminder that if you haven’t already signed up to receive this newsletter in your inbox each week, you can do so using this link. All this means is that every Thursday you get a little bit of me in your inbox. Not literally though. That’d be a bit gross.

Remember, if you have any comments, feedback or anything you’d like to see featured in the newsletter, PM me at Sarah@Cult Labs or drop me a line on the newsletter thread!

Until next week,

Sarah@Cult Labs.