Ghoulish Grin Films

 I came into investing by accident.  As a retail worker, I would randomly come across a customer asking me if our store was going out of business (funny enough, this would happen more than once, at at more than one business). Not knowing if these questions were true or not I would head over to finance channels on television, like Bloomberg or CNBC, and get the financials of the stores I was working at. And usually our stores would be fine. A store I worked at long ago, Mervyn's, did end up going out of business, but the Great Financial Crisis of 2008 was the one event that eventually took a bankrupt and limping business to the edge. Later on in life as major news networks like CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC featured warring, partisan bickering and profited from it with the ratings, I returned to business news. They covered the important events going on in the world but through the lens of finance. I could see how these events affected my personal and work life and the best part was ...

 I'm a huge fan of horror, as some may have picked up on. Classic horror has always been my jam. From the great Universal Monsters era of the 1930's and '40's to the Hammer Studios horror of the late '50's. And, of course the movie monster giants like King Kong and Godzilla. The films never really frightened me but I was riveted by the characters and spooky ambience. And even though modern moviemakers don't seem to know what to do with these legendary characters, they still seem to have some juice in them. Which is impressive in this social media led, short attention span generation that consumes content these days. But with current releases like "The Last Voyage of the Demeter," which I thought was fantastic but didn't light the box office on fire, I was wondering if these classic properties had the same kind of relevance that they had back in the day. They've been trying for years now to resurrect the Universal Monsters Universe to no ava...

 2024 is a fantastic year for new possibilities.  The pandemic is lingering, but it's more of a potent cold these days. The masses have come out to shop, drop, and pop as we all return to normality. Even with a stubborn bout of inflation and high interest rates, the consumer still came out to consume. So if they came out during these restrictive conditions, what's stopping them from an all out boom of activity this year when rates will get cut and people can afford goods and services? The Roaring '20's I thought would arrive earlier but got the Spanish Flu pandemic instead may just actually happen... And with a new year comes new public domain works ready to be reused and reimagined by artists. The most notable being Walt Disney's legendary "Steamboat Willie" featuring the first appearance of the iconic Mickey Mouse. We've already seen a drop of a trailer for a horror game called "Infestation." It really doesn't take long with these talen...

  As a fan of the classic Universal Monsters horror films of the '30's and '40's, I was absolutely THRILLED to go into the theaters to see a Dracula film based on the source material from Bram Stoker and distributed by Universal Studios. Not only was I pleased with the outcome, I was overjoyed to see the immortal character of Dracula repackaged as a truly frightening and evil entity. An old character that's been through countless interpretations given a ghastly new look and presence that rivals any new movie monster yet still is faithful to the source material.  The Last Voyage Of The Demeter Based on the 'Captains Log' chapter of the Bram Stoker novel, the film mainly takes place at sea, with the captain and crew of The Demeter trapped onboard with the infamous vampire himself. The film is a slow burn but not a boring slow burn that has no payoff. It truly creates tension and makes the great Dracula truly frightening. I've been a fan of this character a...

  1995's "Mortal Kombat" was widely considered for many years to be the best video game ever made. Which wasn't saying much since just about every video game made during that time and previously ranged from bleh to hot garbage. Not to downplay the nostalgia that some of these bad films give to people, but it was a genre of film that was never given respect.  Preorder Gran Turismo Later on film adaptations of "Tomb Raider," "Resident Evil," and "Silent Hill" tried to remove this stigma, to little effect. They were better films, but nothing truly remarkable. These films were fun popcorn films, for sure...but forgettable. Well...I do remember that Angelina Jolie towel scene. But is that saying much? In 2016 Michael Fassbender produced and starred in a film adaptation of "Assassin's Creed," giving much hope that the streak of junk video game films was about to end. It only added to the pile, to the disappointment of fans. Fans o...

  The Monster: Ghoulish Edition "The Monster: Ghoulish Edition" starring Lon Chaney, is now streaming on Amazon Instant Video! The 1925 silent film which recently fell into the public domain directed by Roland West and starring the great 'Man Of A Thousand Faces' Lon Chaney, has been given the trademark 'Ghoulish' new soundtrack to play along as you watch. This is addition to the other Lon Chaney 'Ghoulish Editions,' "The Unholy Three" and "He Who Gets Slapped." Watch them all now at the Ghoulish Grin Films Amazon Video page! Ghoulish Grin Films Amazon Page Many thanks to all who have viewed the films on Amazon, whether through rental, purchase, or free on Prime. Check out other classic horror options on Amazon Freevee! Amazon Freevee

 For about 25 years or so, pop music has had a stranglehold on the mainstream. With Korean bands entering the scene, it seems to continue with much strength. Musical trends, so I've been told, go in cycles. This cycle, however, seems to have been unusually long. But I'm too old now to get upset over such things. I've grown to not care so much about what other musical genres take over the mainstream. It was a fools game to even care at all. People are going to like what they like. They aren't wrong about what they like either. Music is subjective. And who am I to deprive anyone of something that gives them joy? Having said that, every now and then during this time of pop dominance a rock or metal album comes out and gets the mainstream spotlight again. And this time it comes from The Might Metallica.  On November 28th of 2022, I woke up to an unexpected music video drop. For a brand new Metallica song called "Lux Aeterna." With no warning or announcement. And s...