Good morning fellow film fiends! What a week has just gone by, with both TERMINATOR: DARK FATE and DOCTOR SLEEP both underperforming at the box office. I’m not massively surprised over the former’s poor performance given it’s mix of tired plot recycling and Hollywood virtue signalling. I’ll admit to being a TERMINATOR purist (I detest the happy ending of T2) but now even the Austrian Oak has gone woke and served up a ‘domesticated’ time travelling killer cyborg, audiences turned out to be predictably non-plussed. Maybe the studios may wake up and smell the non fairtrade coffee now the box office receipts are in. DOCTOR SLEEP on the other hand seems to have been welcomed by critics but largely ignored by audiences, perhaps being crushed by being released in the shadow of the JOKER movie juggernaut. I suspect Mike Flanagan’s SHINING sequel may find more appreciation once it hits the home viewing market. He’s a talented director who deserves to go far.

But never fear, The Stricken Land is here to cheer you up by bringing you all the lowdown on all the best new celluloid schlock newly populating the bottom shelf of the virtual video emporium! This week we’ve got a bumper crop, with creature features, survival horror, high concept sf, fantasy epics and a creepy killer kid flick thrown in for good measure –  

Emiliano Ranzani’s BLOOD BAGS, a modern take on classic Italian horror cinema, premieres on DVD and Digital this December.A creature stalks the corridors of an abandoned mansion. Two friends break in and discover that all exits have been sealed off and the creature that hunts them is growing hungry for their blood; there is no escape.From director Emiliano Ranzani, and starring Makenna Guyler (THE BARGE PEOPLE), Emanuele Turetta, and Marta Tananyan, BLOOD BAGS premieres December 3 on DVD and Digital from High Octane Pictures.

Jerome Pikwane’s bloodcurdling ode to the mythological creature THE TOKOLOSHE set to spook audiences this December.

 Uncork’d Entertainment will release THE TOKOLOSHE, director Jerome Pikwane’s frightening fictional account of the mythological creature, on digital platforms and disc 3rd December 2019.

Busi, a young destitute woman with dangerously repressed emotions, lands a job as a cleaner at a rundown hospital in the heart of Johannesburg. Desperate for the money so she can bring her younger sister to Johannesburg, she must cope despite the predatory and corrupt hospital manager. When Busi discovers an abandoned young girl in the hospital, who believes she is tormented by a supernatural force, Busi must face her own demons from her past in order to save the child from the abusive monster that pursues them both relentlessly.

In the tradition of THE DARK TOWER, and from the studio that brought you THE JURASSIC GAMES,  open the book one the most thrilling fantasy adventure of the year!

From visionary filmmaker Erik Flynn Patton (producer, THE LEGEND OF BEN HALL), an adventure-laden pre-holiday treat that plays like a fantastical, dazzling love letter to THE PRINCESS BRIDE and Stephen King’s THE DARK TOWER.

When the great sorceress Kaeis captured by a mysterious enemy, her young followers devise a plan to rescue her. Jenny Sterlin, Brandon Tyler Harris, and Taylor Rose star.

TOWER OF SILENCE on DVD and Digital December 3rd from High Octane Pictures.

Omri Dorani’s caravan of suspense THIS IS OUR HOME premieres on DVD and Demand this December from Uncork’d Entertainment.

Jeff Ayars and Simone Policano star in the chilling account of a struggling couple who, during a weekend getaway, are greeted in the middle of the night by a child claiming to be their son.Scripted by Robert Harmon, THIS IS OUR HOME is a “measured piece of psychological horror that will follow you home” (Horror Buzz), hitting disc and digital December 3.

Some of today’s biggest names unite with a selection of today’s most visually-gifted filmmakers for a unique cinematic experience that crosses 5 GALAXIES

An assemblage of futuristic, high concept stories about artificial intelligence, 5 Galaxies features Pom Klementieff (GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY), Eric Roberts (THE DARK KNIGHT) and Neil Jackson (SLEEPY HOLLOW) in in a powerful profusion of science-fiction, featuring segments from such visionary filmmakers as Nelson Lee, Kristen Hilkert, Amir Reichart, Vitaly Verlov and Marc-Henri Boulier.Whether its love found in time of over-population or exploration of the unknown and space-travel, 5 GALAXIES has a bit of something for every fan of the genre.Available on DVD and Digital December 10th from Uncork’d Entertainment.

From the director of CLOWNTERGEIST, and from the studio that brought you THE JURASSIC GAMES and ESCAPE FROM CANNIBAL FARM, comes the most controversial horror release of 2019.

A group of friends is torn apart when they become part of two human hunter’s sick game. The men give them ten minutes to hide, and then the real hunt begins.Written and directed by Aaron Mirtes, and starring Lacy Hartselle, Taylor Novak, and Allison Shrum, AMERICAN HUNT begins December 3 on DVD and Digital from High Octane Pictures.

Sandi Somers’ award-winning frozen-frightfest ICE BLUE premieres this November On Demand.

Michelle Morgan (DIARY OF THE DEAD, BATWOMAN), Sophia Lauchlin Hirt (BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE) and Billy MacLellan (STAR TREK : DISCOVERY) star in an atmospheric chiller that will rattle audiences to the core.When home-schooled Arielle’s long-estranged mother mysteriously returns to their isolated family farm, it drives a wedge into her seemingly-perfect relationship with her father and reveals a chilling, dark past.ICE BLUE, scripted by Jason Long, is available now On Demand.

A camping trip goes horribly wrong in writer/director Paul Anthony Rogers’ unnerving CRYPSIS, available On Demand and on DVD December 17 from Uncork’d Entertainment.

A group of friends make a bet to survive on an island. Unbeknownst to them, a mysterious old creature begins hunting them throughout the night. What began as an innocent bet quickly turns into a fight for survival. As night falls, this becomes a fight to the death that no one had anticipated.Rogers co-stars alongside Michael Armata, Anthony Hoang, Jordan Mitchell-Love and Eddie Nason in a pulse-racing profusion of STRANGER THINGS and PREDATOR.

This November, Christian Oliver (SENSE8, HOUSE OF GOOD & EVIL) and Larisa Oleynik (MAD MEN, 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU) come face to face with hirsute terror in John Woodruff’s highly-anticipated horror throwback, ANIMAL AMONG US.

Fifteen years ago, two teenage girls were murdered at Merrymaker Campgrounds. The case was filed as an animal attack, the camp was condemned, and the killer never found. But something horrific still waits in those woods, ready to kill again.
Don Frye, Christine Donlon, Jonathan Murphy, Erin Daniels, Heather Tom, Jasmine Dustin, and Whitney Davis star in a film by John Woodruff.Written by Jonathan Murphy. Produced by Murphy and Woodruff. FRIDAY THE 13TH meets DOG SOLDIERS in ANIMAL AMONG US, available on VOD and DVD November 19 from Uncork’d Entertainment..

On a final note –  to any aspiring independent filmmakers, podcasters or film related writers out there out there reading this, let me know if you’d like me to publicize and/or review your projects, The Stricken Land is always happy to promote new talent and ideas! And please feel free to share this post and any others on here that you like, far and wide.

Spread the Word!

Ian