Today,
I knew it was going to be a better day at the festival, for the list of panels
to be visited was enormous. Also, I had one of my best friends with me to keep
me company in Horrorland. (She got a little star-struck about Crispin Glover;
however she handled herself quite well!)
My
first objective of the day was to meet the charismatic Ken Foree, (Dawn of
the Dead, The Devil’s Rejects) since I missed his panel the day
before. After talking to him, I came to the conclusion that he was the
friendliest guest there, and after taking five minutes of trying to convince him
that JoBlo.com was not a porno site (although some pictures of half naked girls
would probably say otherwise) he gave me some love for a picture.
All about the love with Ken Foree (Devil’s Rejects)
After
that, I walked downstairs and was amazed by how many people had shown up today.
It was hardly this packed the day before. It was then I realized that Elijah
Wood was scheduled to speak today on behalf of the SCI-FI convention. I wanted
to go see him, until I found out that I would have to shell out at LEAST eighty
bucks just to see him at his panel! HOLY CRAP! I couldn’t believe people were
willing to waste their money just to see someone talk! (Lord of the Rings fans
are officially the new “Trekkies.”) Since his security was tighter than
security at a Prince concert, Elijah was no where to be seen. I didn’t let me
get me down though; I spent the rest of the day watching panels from Horror
greats, which is why I’m here in the first place.
MARGOT KIDDER
Its a bird, its a plane, its a vulgar Lois Lane!
I was
happy to go to this panel, because not only did it belong to the first woman
guest I had seen at the Convention, but also because it belonged to a fellow
Canadian. Margot Kidder may be most famously known for her role as Lois Lane in
Superman, but to us horror geeks, she is most fondly remembered from her
roles in Brian De Palma’s Sisters, Black Christmas, and The Amityville
Horror. Despite the fact that Ms.Kidder was bombarded with endless
questions from die hard SCI-FI fans for most of the panel, it was still a very
entertaining hour, for her brutal honesty was humorous, RAW yet refreshing.
Here are a few things I got out of her panel:
-When
asked how she got the role in Brian De Palma’s Sisters, she ever so
bluntly admitted she got the role because she was sleeping with the director.
She was going out with Brian at the time, and he had given her the script as a
Christmas present.
-After
seeing Sisters, Bob Clark cast her to co-star in his Canadian horror
film, Black Christmas.
–When
filming The Amityville Horror, all the actors and crew (including Kidder)
were supposed to talk about all the terrible things that happened on the set,
when nothing really happened at all. She talked about how she had thought that
nothing really happened in the house in the first place, how it was a crock, and
was just an embellishment on supposed true events. She didn’t lie to the press,
because she thought it was too disrespectful to the fans of the horror genre.
-When
asked what she thought about this year’s remake of The Amityville Horror,
she said she hadn’t watched it, but was amazed by how many of her films were
being remade. (This year alone, Sisters, Black Christmas, and
Superman are amongst the films that are being remade.)
-She
will not make a cameo in the new Superman movie.
-Has
semi retired from acting, because her priorities have changed. When a good
script comes along, she takes the opportunity, but other than that, she spends
her time at home with her family.
CRISPIN
GLOVER
Willard
uncovered
As I
sat down and looked behind me to see the many faces of people eagerly waiting
for Crispin to appear at his panel, I was surprised to see how big of a cult
icon he really is to his fans. Most people may know him as Layne from The
River’s Edge, the silent assassin in Charlie’s Angels, or the rat
loving outcast in Willard. (In my eyes, he will always be “Mcfly.”) Many
people had come to hear what profound words he would have to say, I, on the
other hand had come to see if he was really as odd and quirky as his roles he
portrays on screen. I was half expecting him to karate kick the moderator in
the head like he had almost done to Letterman years ago, but when he came to the
panel, I realized my perception of the man was dead wrong. This soft spoken,
friendly, and extremely articulate man spent the hour telling us about his
upcoming projects and much more. SPEAK, Mcfly, SPEAK!
-Glover
spoke about the ever growing rumors about him being cast as the Joker in the
next Batman film directed by Christopher Nolan. He verified that it only is a
rumor at this stage, but he’s hoping that the rumors become true, because he
loved the first film and knows he would do a good job of playing the Joker.
(Cross your fingers!)
-He has
just been cast in Beowulf, a film based on the Olde English epic poem. He
is set to play Grendel, and will co-star with Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich,
Brendan Gleeson and Anthony Hopkins. The film also will be directed by Robert
Zemeckis. He mentioned how he finds it quite ironic to be working with Zemeckis
again, because after he had sued the producers from Back to the Future Part
2, for using footage of him from the first film without asking permission,
he thought he would never even see the man ever again.
-He
also talked about a horror movie he stars in called Simon Says, which is
slated to come out early next 2006. In the movie, Glover plays two different
roles as identical twins named Simon and Stanley. He talked about his “juicy”
role as the killer and said the movie fits structurally with other slashers such
as the Friday the 13th series and The Texas Chainsaw
Massacre. He couldn’t talk too much about his involvement in the movie, but
he did say he doesn’t wear a mask.
-Glover
talked about his film What is it?, a film that has taken nine and a half
years to make. (Patience is definitely one of his virtues) He told the audience
that most of the actors in the film have Down’s syndrome, and the movie has a
lot of provocative elements and deals in taboo areas. When asked why he had
chosen to make a film with primarily people with Down’s syndrome, he responded
by saying he wanted the film to feel outside the culture because people with
Down’s syndrome live outside the culture.
To get
funding for his film projects, Glover accepted the part in Charlie’s Angels.
The character originally had dialogue, but because it was such BAD dialogue,
Glover had suggested to director McG to not have him speak. After doing
Charlie’s Angels, he started getting offers for starring roles, such as
Willard.
down waiting this for this woman to arrive, and realized I had little knowledge
on Elvira. Sure, I have seen her in a few 3-D movies and commercials, but I
have never seen any of her feature films such as Haunted Hills or Mistress of
The Dark. I also never seen Elvira’s movie Macabre; where she would host cheesy
late night movies. (I was a kid and in bed by the time the show would start)
To be quite honest, the main reason why I went
to her panel was just to see if she would be wearing the infamous costume. I
was shocked to see a very beautiful red head woman take the panel.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t in her costume, but it didn’t really matter because
she was extremely funny and entertaining, and she made her fans very happy. Here
is what I got of her panel:
Elvira first got
started in comedic acting by joining a satirical improvisational group called
“The Groundlings.” People in this group included Phil Hartman, Paul Reubens,
and, Jon Lovitz.
-In 1981, she auditioned for a late night horror
show to replace the previous host who passed away. That is when Elvira was born.
-She told everyone the name Elvira was picked
out of a can.
-She talked about how much she loved the fame
that Elvira has brought, yet she has had an incredible collection of scary
fanatics and stalkers.
-While working on Allan Quatermain and the Lost
City of Gold, she and the majority of the cast and crew had peed in Sharon
Stone’s bathtub, because Sharon had treated them very poorly. ( Looks like
Ms.Stone isn’t really acting in those bitchy roles of hers)
-Peterson had talked about how she turned down a
role as a reporter in the upcoming slasher flick, Vendetta. She had turned down
the role due to the fact she doe not like slasher movies, and also because she
had a horrible experience with a man with a knife. She prefers staying in the
fantasy/horror genre.
-She has three television projects lined up.
They include an animated series, a reality show from the people who did American
Idol, and a show for a gay channel in L.A (hmm…very ecletic list there!) She
also may be hosting horror films for a Canadian station. (WOO-Hoo!)
-When asked about making another full length
movie, she disappointed her fans by saying she most likely will not make another
Elvira film, due to the fact that she hardly sees any profit from the films, but
that fans haven’t seen the last of Elvira.
SATANICO PANDEMONIUM:
OFFICIAL HORROR EXPO PARTY
With the kool Johnny Butane and
Ryan Rotten of Dread Central
After all the work was done for the day, my
friend and I headed down to the Vatikan, a rock club downtown Toronto where they
were holding the official after party for the festival. Even though the music
and setting were not my scene, I still managed to have fun, because there were
many interesting people at the club. At midnight, Clive Barker showed up and
judged the costume contest, and he introduced a rock band by the name of “The
Matadors.”
This is when I jetted upstairs to escape the
noise, and found out it was a much more chilling atmosphere up there. Tony Todd
and his son were sitting in one corner, a Buffy-verse vampire was sitting in the
next, and a bunch of Goths were mingling with one another. (Something you don’t
see everyday!) I had spent the rest of the night chatting and joking with Johnny
Butane and Ryan Rotten from Dread Central who were the coolest cats you’ll ever
meet! Overall, the party was a scream!!
READ PART 1 OF THIS REPORT HERE
STAY TUNED FOR PART 3!