Posts Tagged ‘film’

My Own Honmoon

Posted: August 27, 2025 in real life
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If your algorithm overlaps mine at all, KPOP Demon Hunters has taken over the internet. If your children are anything like mine, KPOP Demon Hunters has also taken over your house. It’s on Netflix all the time. The songs are playing in the car. There is choreography in the kitchen.

What is unexpected, however, is that is has taken over ME.

Wait, this is a horror writing blog. Why are we talking about KPOP Demon Hunters? you might be asking. It may not be horror, but stick with me…

I’ve seen about a thousand animated kids movies in the past decade plus. I mean, I get the surface appeal of KPOP Demon Hunters. The soundtrack is catchy as shit. The animation is cool. The main trio are a badass girl group who slay demons without breaking a sweat.

But what makes this movie more? What makes it actually hit? What makes it reach across the generations in our house and get under my skin?

***SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS AHEAD ***

They say KPOP Demon Hunters in Netflix’s Frozen. You could compare them on success but also on story. Like Elsa in Frozen, Rumi has something fundamental about who she is that her family and friends tell her is wrong or broken and that she needs to hide. I don’t think it’s an accident that movies on this thematic foundation are wildly popular. Something in the message resonates with the kids. And with the parents that are paying for it.

Like me. I’m sure people are out there dissecting this moving in articles and videos (believe me, I could think of several dissertation level topics), but this blog is, selfishly, about me.

The story of a woman trying to hide and fix some perceived defect to get people to love and accept her treads on braids of scar tissue in me. When I was younger, I was never what my family wanted (at times, still am not). When I was a mess, a lot of people left, whether I pushed them away or they abandoned me. That era of my life also contains some of my more lingering traumas.

So Rumi’s experience resonates with me. I know what it feels like to be rejected (or fear rejection) by those you love, feel like you have to choose between who you are and being accepted. Apparently, that wound in me is still quite tender. As an animated Netflix movie can consistently unravel me.

When Rumi’s demon nature surfaces, she confronts Celine, the woman who raised her. She asks her to kill her because she has always been a mistake. Then she begs Celine to love her–all of her.

BAM. This was me. I lived this scene when I was a teenager (minus the kill me part). More than once. And to be honest, decades later, the same scenario still plays out. People close to me love me–but not all of me. We have to not talk about parts of me or my life. And in that silence, their judgement is still loud.

I tell myself I don’t care anymore. I do care. And all that care just pours out of my eyes when I watch this movie.

I didn’t know my seventeenth year would echo across eternity, would be the base point I always return to, would be the version of me layers deep at my core. It’s all still there, even now that I’m the parent of the teenager. Over and over just this year, I have said to myself, why is this just like when I was 17? Things don’t seem to change; I just get older.

Did I mention the soundtrack? Bangers, bops, infectious tracks all around. Music is always a shortcut straight to my feels, but the lyrics in these songs hit me right in the chest.

“Golden” is not my favorite track (I dance to a metal cover of “Your Idol”), but these lines harmonize with my past.

Called a problem child ’cause I got too wild
But now that’s how I’m getting paid

Oof if that doesn’t sum up my adolescence to adult success. I may not be a pop star, but my horror writing and metal fusion belly dancing have never been universally accepted in my life. Good enough to get published. Good enough to be invited to perform. Yet all of that is somehow negated by the type of art I create. If only it was a different genre. If only it was a different style.

If only I wasn’t me.

I cannot make it through “What It Sounds Like” without dissolving into a blubbering mess. Tell me you have unresolved trauma without telling me you have unresolved trauma.

I broke into a million pieces, and I can’t go back
But now I’m seeing all the beauty in the broken glass
The scars are part of me, darkness and harmony
My voice without the lies, this is what it sounds like
Why did I cover up the colors stuck inside my head?
I should’ve let the jagged edges meet the light instead

I spent a lifetime thinking there was something wrong with me. I spent a lifetime hating myself. I tried to kill myself. I used to hurt myself. I lost myself in self-destructive behaviors. I punished myself so hard that I very likely triggered the alopecia flare that took my hair. I turned on myself enough that my immune system identified me as the enemy. *(don’t take that as science, but it feels right and sound poetic)

So, when Rumi sings about finding beauty in what’s broken in her and accepting her scars and when her friends return to “dive in the fire, and I’ll be right here by your side“, I’m done for. It’s what I wanted most back then and, sometimes, what I still want now.

So, yes, KPOP Demon Hunters is some animated kids movie on Netflix, but it feeds the damaged kid still in me. Even though I’m weeping through the scenes, it feels like healing. I’m processing something repressed, bandaging old wounds to a dance-worthy beat. Could we be sealing my own honmoon against my own demons? Maybe… Go ahead, children, play it again! 😭😭😭

Christina Bergling

https://linktr.ee/chrstnabergling

Like my writing? Check out my books!

  • Red Walls – When Talia’s parents go after the monsters who hurt her, they never expected real monsters.
  • Followers – You never know who is on the other side of the screen. Followers is a mystery and thriller that blends women’s fiction with horror.
  • The Rest Will Come – Online dating would drive anyone to murder, especially Emma.
  • Savages – Two survivors search the ruins for the last strain of humanity. Until the discovery of a baby changes everything.
  • The Waning – Locked in a cage, Beatrix must survive to escape or be broken completely.
  • Screechers – Mutant monsters and humans collide in the apocalyptic fallout of a burned world. Co-authored with Kevin J. Kennedy.
  • Horror Anthologies

Horror and Trauma

Posted: November 13, 2024 in horror, real life, writing
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Horror is a genre about trauma. Whether it is the fictional trauma being inflicted on the characters or the zeitgeist of fear it confronts for us.

At Colorado Festival of Horror 2024, I participated in two panels on the horror genre and trauma. Both sessions were so compelling and cathartic for me that I needed to share some thoughts here.

Horror can be a way of coping with trauma both by ingesting it and by creating it. In both cases, horror allows you to interact with or process something scary or hurtful in a “safe” environment. You are on your couch; you know the screen or the page cannot really hurt you. You can experience all those emotions knowing how it will safely end. Not unlike exposure therapy.

For me, it is definitely that, but it is also more. The awful things I see in horror help normalize how I am feeling, make me feel less alone in my pain. Horror also provides a worse-er scenario, which helps me keep my reality in perspective.

People often have “comfort horror”, stories they revisit in times of stress or pain. From the outside, it may seem odd to find solace in something terrible. However, when you unpack the movie and discover what resonates with you, you will often find it hits on something personal. Maybe it lets you control the situation. Maybe it lets you re-experience things knowing how it ends. Maybe it shows you a character like you surviving or being vindicated. But something in that horror is a salve to your wound.

For the panel, I had to think about my comfort horror movies. And why they are therapeutic to me. I came up with:

  • Scream: Aside from this being my first horror movie and introduction to the genre, Scream definitely hits something for me. When I stopped to actually consider it, I realized it is the deceit, the betrayal. Sidney’s friends lie to her, work against her, try to hurt her, but once she figures it out, she survives. And kills them all.
  • You’re Next: The same as Scream, You’re Next introduces a final girl who is being lied to and used. Yet when she fights for her life, it is her intelligence that keeps her alive.
  • Revenge: Rape revenge is pretty self-explanatory. I usually find this subgenre very triggering (Irreversible, Last House on the Left, etc.). Yet this one was different. I attribute the distinction to the female filmmaker (Coralie Fargeat). After Jen is assaulted and left for dead, she returns almost supernaturally in her vengeance.
  • A Nightmare on Elm Street: Nightmares and night terrors brought me to the horror genre. Seeing scary things outside my mind made me feel more normal. There was comfort in not being alone, in seeing what my mind mapped every night on external landscape. Watching Nancy confront her nightmares and ultimately defeat them in a way I never have soothes me.

Reading horror hits me even harder. In the past few months, I have been crying my eyes out over multiple books. American Rapture by CJ Leede, I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones, Lone Women by Victor Lavalle, The Angel of Indian Lake (the entire trilogy) by Stephen Graham Jones, The Reformatory by Tananarive Due, Maeve Fly by CJ Leede… to name a few.

More than watching or reading, more than anything, creating horror is how I deal with my trauma. I have always written about my pain from journaling to blogging to essays to stories and books. It is more effective for me than any therapy I have tried (and I have tried many). Sometimes, the trauma is the inspiration, sometimes the thread, sometimes the whole damn story.

Tour my horror library with me:

  • How to Kill Yourself Slowly: The first thing I ever published. I wrote this satirical essay for a nonfiction class in college. All my trauma packaged up into one catty rant.
  • Savages: My first and perhaps my best book. Going to Iraq as a contractor deeply affected me. It changed how I saw humanity. I worked that out in this book.
  • “The Last Christmas Dinner” in Collected Christmas: A character based on my mother and maybe what she should have done one unappreciated holiday.
  • “After the Screaming Stopped” in Graveyard Girls: My post-partum story. This one was hard to find a home for. No one wants to look at how ugly and scary those new mother emotions can be.
  • “Personas” in Colorado’s Emerging Writers nonfiction: A deep dive into the many faces and roles of me.
  • “Under the Rapids”, Ink and Sword, Issue 4: I almost drown white water rafting when I was in my 20s. This story covers what I can remember.
  • “Awake” in America’s Emerging Horror Writers: West Region: I had hip surgery to repair a torn labrum. This story confronts how helpless I felt under anesthesia and after the operation.
  • “Hairs”, 96th of October, Autumn 2023: I lost my hair to Alopecia multiple times in recent years. In this story, I start there and make it oh so much worse.
  • Followers: Questioning how safe we are on the internet. This book has roots in online stalkers and one I briefly had in Iraq.

Not included on this list are works where I borrowed other people’s traumas. Their experiences served as inspiration for me, but hopefully my resulting work can be therapy for them.

“Hairs” and “After the Screaming Stopped” are the most literal examples of me writing out my trauma (aside from maybe Savages where I put myself in a story to change my mind about the world). In both, I took the literal trauma–severe hair loss and post partum depression–as the premise. Then I stretched it, elongated it into something grotesque and horrendous.

And at the end of both (of them all), I felt better. The trauma felt processed and exorcised.

I understand that horror is not for everyone. It is full of terrible things that can be triggering or make people uncomfortable. Even people who do enjoy the genre may not interact with it the same way. However, for me, I have found a way to make it therapeutic. It speaks to my traumas in their native tongue, soothing and hushing them so that I can claim more of myself.

Christina Bergling

https://linktr.ee/chrstnabergling

Like my writing? Check out my books!

  • Followers – You never know who is on the other side of the screen. Followers is a mystery and thriller that blends women’s fiction with horror.
  • The Rest Will Come – Online dating would drive anyone to murder, especially Emma.
  • Savages – Two survivors search the ruins for the last strain of humanity. Until the discovery of a baby changes everything.
  • The Waning – Locked in a cage, Beatrix must survive to escape or be broken completely.
  • Screechers – Mutant monsters and humans collide in the apocalyptic fallout of a burned world. Co-authored with Kevin J. Kennedy.
  • Horror Anthologies

Telluride Horror Show 2024

Posted: October 16, 2024 in film festivals, horror movies
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Telluride was different for me this year.

The week before the Telluride Horror Show, my dog bit my son in the face. My son was hospitalized and had surgery, and I had to surrender the dog. Then my son’s wounds got infected, and he spent the weekend in the hospital again.

I was supposed to leave for Telluride a couple days after his release, yet after coming so close to losing him, I could not travel without him so soon. So, I didn’t. I brought him with me.

The Horror Show is not family friendly, not a place for children, so my experience was a bit different. And that’s OK. It was still a great weekend. It was what it needed to be this year.

Surprise Aurora

Unbeknownst to me, the Aurora Borealis descended in the southern night skies after we arrived and got settled.

Once we knew about it, we scurried outside and then up the gondola. The lights were faint and barely visible with the naked eye, but they showed up great on smartphone camera.

Obligatory Hike

To earn our sloth-like three days bound in movie screenings, we began our weekend on a hike. This year, we went to the other side of the town and did the Jud Wiebe trail.

After all my health challenges, I was embarrassingly out of shape, and we missed fall foliage peak, but it was gorgeous and glorious. The mental health boost I needed.

Horror Education

This year, the Horror Show offered the delightful treat of the Horror Vault. Over the course of the weekend, Jon Davison screened six classic horror movies on 16mm. Additionally, there was a screening of Night of the Living Dead (1968) colorized. It was the perfect opportunity to provide some horror education. Plus, the sound of the running projector is so soothing and nostalgic.

I was lucky enough to see:

  • Blood and Black Lace (1964): Touted as the first Giallo and possibly the first slasher movie, this film is a fascinating look back at where the tropes began. Peek-a-boo killer and oops I fell and my top came off are highlights.
  • Night of the Living Dead (1968): This was the first time I have watched the classic colorized. It gains some things but loses others. I have recently been watching The Walking Dead for a writing project, and this is the granddaddy of the zombie genre.
  • The Mummy (1959): I have always loved ancient Egypt and mummy stories from Goosebumps to my bisexual awakening movie The Mummy (1999). It was fun to see how my beloved 1999 version had modernized this story. Plus the set work is exquisite.

The Movies

Eight or so fests ago, I spent every moment in the theaters and saw as many movies as possible. Age, experience, and circumstance has changed my priorities. Particularly this year, I caught less screenings. But the ones I did see were fantastic.

The new screenings I attended:

  • The Creep Tapes 💀💀💀💀 A mini series in the Creep franchise. I saw Creep 2 at Telluride and love the killer in the franchise. We watched three episodes. The first is brilliant, fifth is entertaining, and sixth is just weird. I can’t wait to watch the entire series on Shudder.
  • Trizombie 💀💀💀 A Belgian film about a zombie outbreak where people with Down’s Syndrome are immune to the virus. When I read the synopsis, I admit I cringed. However, the film is funny, gory, and ultimately quite wholesome.
  • Daddy’s Head 💀💀💀💀 A creepy meditation on grief. Packed with jump scares, this movie is exceptionally unnerving with an emotional heart. The ending, to me, is perfect.
  • Presence 💀💀💀 POV piece with a ghost. This clever take on a haunting story feels almost found footage. While a slow burn, the plot is compelling and the approach interesting.

Final Girl Support Group

Admittedly, this year, my favorite event was not a movie. Instead, it was horror author Grady Hendrix’s Final Girl Support Group presentation. Having read some of his books, I knew Hendrix is a talented author. Even better, he is also a gifted performer with humor, voices, and even singing.

For Final Girl Support Group, Hendrix toured us through the history of horror and slashers. He framed the presentation in “how to stay alive” bullet points, citing friends and school as things to avoid then listing all the horror books and movies where those things get you killed.

He then double-clicked into several topics, including the origin of transphobia in horror, the blaming of the mother in both horror and pop psychology, the urban legends that started the slasher. This goldmine of information was delivered cleverly and with razor-sharp humor.

Until the end, when he punched us in the face with feelings, drawing parallels to the faceless killers of all those books and movies to the global COVID pandemic and the inevitable death of everyone in the room.

I laughed. Then I cried. And I loved every minute of it.

Fright or Wrong Trivia

As per tradition, we participated in Fright or Wrong’s horror trivia. Despite a strong Scream round, our team was bested once again. However, my Sidney Prescott with travel-sized Ghostface did at least win the final girl/boy costume contest.

In the past eight years, the Horror Show has grown and changed and evolved. In 2020, we did a fest from home then returned post pandemic. However, this year, it seemed to be the consensus that things felt different. While none of us could really articulate the cause, the intimacy seemed lost. The pace felt rushed.

Maybe it was an off year for us all. The awkward year we expected after quarantine a few years late. Maybe these are growing pains as things continue to change around us. Maybe we’re all just a little older. Or maybe my kid almost died and everything just looked different afterward.

Nonetheless, it was a great weekend of horror in the autumn mountains. Until next year, Telluride! Find me with my kids healthy and happy at home next year 👻

Christina Bergling

https://linktr.ee/chrstnabergling

Like my writing? Check out my books!

  • Followers – You never know who is on the other side of the screen. Followers is a mystery and thriller that blends women’s fiction with horror.
  • The Rest Will Come – Online dating would drive anyone to murder, especially Emma.
  • Savages – Two survivors search the ruins for the last strain of humanity. Until the discovery of a baby changes everything.
  • The Waning – Locked in a cage, Beatrix must survive to escape or be broken completely.
  • Screechers – Mutant monsters and humans collide in the apocalyptic fallout of a burned world. Co-authored with Kevin J. Kennedy.
  • Horror Anthologies

Telluride Horror Show 2023

Posted: October 18, 2023 in film festivals
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I just got home from my 7th Telluride Horror Show (yes, I’m counting the 2020 fest streamed from home during the pandemic). A younger, drunker Christina used to cram in every possible screening and skid out of the weekend on her face the shell of a human. This old, post-illness, recovering Christina took an more moderate approach. But even with uncharacteristic rest and self-care, I did manage nine movies over three days.

And I had a great time.

The Movies

Favorite of the Fest

I attended my first Telluride Horror Show in 2017, and Never Hike Alone premiered there on that Friday the 13th. I loved the movie and started following and backing Womp Stomp Films. I had been watching hoping to see the sequel grace Telluride again. When another Friday the 13th premiere was announced, I was ecstatic.

It did not disappoint.

Never Hike Alone 2 takes threads from Never Hike Alone and Never Hike in the Snow and ties them up in a gruesome little bow, delivering the splatter we want with added depth. Never Hike Alone is a narrow narrative that brings us back to Camp Crystal Lake with foolish solo hiker, Kyle. In Kyle’s misadventure, Tommy Jarvis reenters the scene. Then in Never Hike in the Snow, the world expands, stepping back to before Kyle and an earlier murder, painting a picture of what serial loss does to families and the community over decades. Never Hike Alone 2 then hands the narrative baton from Kyle to Tommy. We see a chunk of the events in Never Hike Alone from Tommy’s perspective, weave in the grieving mother from Never Hike in the Snow, then jam on for a bloody climax.

Loved

If this year’s films had common theme, it could easily be “bad shit happening to children”. I don’t know what the fact that two of my favorites were the worst offenders says about me. But the Horror Show came hard for one of the remaining taboos in horror.

When Evil Lurks

In 2018, I saw Terrified at Telluride Horror Show. Loved it. This year, Demián Rugna returned with When Evil Lurks. Like Terrified, this is another story involving demonic possession. However, the manifestation and the world it happens in are different, unique. The movie starts twisted and depraved before punching the audience right in the throat. It got a touch shaky toward the end but not enough to unravel the story.

The Coffee Table

THE talk of the fest.

The Coffee Table is billed as a black comedy. NOPE. It is just black. Black, oppressive discomfort that captivates you in every frame. I kept waiting for the tilt, the turn into comedy, but it never came. However, the film is so well made, so compelling that I ultimately did not need it. I was unpacking it through my nightmares and into the next morning.

Infested (Vermines)

Arachnophobia traumatized me as a child. Scenes of spiders under toilets and in bowls of popcorn still live in my mind rent-free. Which is why I had to go see Infested. While the ending got a little loose and the commentary a little clunky, it is a fun watch. I jumped; I cringed; I imagined my earrings were little spider legs.

Liked

Not every movie punched me right in the feels (or stomach). Plenty of them were entertaining without being perfect.

Where the Devil Roams

I have been following Adams Family Pictures since The Deeper You Dig and Hellbender at previous Telluride Horror Shows and again at Six Feet Under Horror Film Festival. I adore their dark, quirky style and adorable family. Yet Where the Devil Roams didn’t land as well for me. While the filmmaking and effects have evolved, the storytelling is a bit convoluted. I spent too much time being confused.

Frogman

Frogman is wild. It is apparent that the filmmakers are new to found footage in the amount of shaking and static applied. While the movie could benefit from an aggressive edit, the characters have great chemistry, and it is a super entertaining watch. When you can keep your eyes onscreen.

Suitable Flesh

There is nothing like a Lovecraftian body swapping tale. I forgave a lot of ridiculousness because the events happen in Arkham. Suitable Flesh is not a watch for quality but instead for wild, spinning sex scenes and gratuitous violence.

Eh

While every movie was not a hit for me, none where a total miss either. I didn’t see anything I hated. However, there were some for which I had critiques.

If the fest had a secondary film theme (besides child trauma), it would have been continuity issues. Multiple films came to wobbling conclusion violating their own rules or leaving something unexplained or just ending.

It’s a Wonderful Knife

Christmas for Halloween is always rough, but there is often a holiday movie at the fest. It’s a Wonderful Knife plays off (surprise, surprise) It’s a Wonderful Life with a slasher twist. However, the movie comes across a bit sloppy and Hallmark-y. It is a bit disappointing after seeing Tragedy Girls from director Tyler MacIntyre.

Vincent Must Die

Vincent Must Die has a great premise. People just start randomly assaulting Vincent with building violence. However, it seems like the filmmakers didn’t know how to consummate that idea. By the end, I felt like they were trying to say something significant and I had just missed it.

The Fest

Telluride is GORGEOUS! The weather year to year is really roulette, but this year, we landed on perfect, idyllic autumn. Abundant sunshine (according to my weather app), aspen leaves so bright they looked on fire, even temperate nights.

We went on our annual hike, this time selecting a loop around Mountain Village. For being a “popular” trail, it was horribly marked, and it took three apps to navigate us successfully. Since we started at the mid-point of the gondola, it included a bizarre trek through the village, shops, construction zones. However, it was gentle and beautiful. I feel more intimately familiar with Telluride now that I have hiked up grassy blue runs and over frozen snow machines. Like being behind the scenes of the resort.

At this point, this pilgrimage is steeped in tradition with our “family”. I have been going to the Horror Show long enough that our annual trip feels like home. We know the places. We have tips and tricks. I have friends and connections who I look forward to seeing each year.

With explosive growth over the years and post-COVID, the culture of the Telluride Horror Show is changing. Everyone is still super nice. Filmmakers are still very accessible. It is just less rowdy. Gone is the wall-to-wall mass of humans at Last Call, fogging up the bar windows. Tamed are the late night screenings, cheers and whoops exchanged for more pious observation.

Telluride Horror Show is growing up. The same part of me that misses drinking misses the more rambunctious energy. But the same part of me that requires sobriety realizes this is probably for the best.

Christina Bergling

https://linktr.ee/chrstnabergling

Like my writing? Check out my books!

  • Followers – You never know who is on the other side of the screen. Followers is a mystery and thriller that blends women’s fiction with horror.
  • The Rest Will Come – Online dating would drive anyone to murder, especially Emma.
  • Savages – Two survivors search the ruins for the last strain of humanity. Until the discovery of a baby changes everything.
  • The Waning – Locked in a cage, Beatrix must survive to escape or be broken completely.
  • Screechers – Mutant monsters and humans collide in the apocalyptic fallout of a burned world. Co-authored with Kevin J. Kennedy.
  • Horror Anthologies

Telluride Horror Show 2021

Posted: October 26, 2021 in film festivals, horror, horror movies, real life
Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
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Telluride Horror Show, back in person! If I can accurately stalk my own social media posts or count my own souvenir badges correctly, this was our fifth Telluride Horror Show attendance (inclusive of last year’s virtual rendition). I was thrilled to back in Telluride this year.

For the past two years and pandemic, the festival itself managed to go on largely unchanged. There were masks indoors and wristbands to verify vaccination or negative test status. Some events were held outside. Otherwise, all the things happened.

However, this won’t be my typical Horror Show write up because this was not my typical Horror Show experience. Not due to the fest–the fest itself was as normal as it possibly could be. The call was coming from inside the house. The trip to Telluride afforded me the time to finally take a breath, and when I did, many things surfaced in my mind. Horror has always been a coping mechanism for me, so I supposed it was an apt time for some processing.

In all cases, it was much needed.

Bridal Veil Falls

Sure, three days of horror movies and events is enough to fill a weekend. However, considering we have to drive across the state to get to Telluride, we decided to cram more into the trip. Plus there is always that masochistic outdoor streak.

My father has been scolding me yearly for being in Telluride and not doing the Bridal Veil Falls hike, so this year, we finally got it together and did the thing.

The weather was amazing. My Viking heart was singing through the frigid snow contrasted with the blazing fall colors on the trees. I was euphoric and zen, in my total happy hiking place. We took the long walk through town to the trailhead to truly absorb it.

When we got to the trailhead, there was even more snow on the mountain and we were the first on the trail, so there was no trail. We had to trailblaze through the untouched powder the entire way up. It was an adventure. And a slog. Lots of slipping and sliding. For just over a mile, it was a journey.

Totally worth it. Gorgeous frozen falls times three. It was the perfect way to kick off the weekend and get the blood pumping before sitting in theaters for three days.

Author Stalking

One of the highlights of Telluride Horror Show for me this year was all the author events. Telluride always hosts an enviable set of author activities. I have seen Paul Tremblay and Jeremy Robert Johnson in previous years. Yet this year included Stephen Graham Jones.

I was introduced to Jones’s work this year when a beta reader suggested The Only Good Indians as a comparable title to my WIP novel. I read it and fell in love with that book and Jones’s style in general. I immediately devoured My Heart is a Chainsaw and Mongrels. I was hooked and so excited to see him in person.

Jones and Tremblay both read (and Johnson riffed) at the Creepy Campfire Tales. Then, prior to a book signing, the three held a Horror Summit to discuss writing and horror genre topics.

This all hit at a strange time for me. I find myself a bit lost in my writing career, and I’m not entirely sure why. I just released my fifth book (Followers) with Crystal Lake Publishing. I have wanted to work with Crystal Lake for a long time, and releasing a book is always a success, so I should feel happy and accomplished. I already have another novel drafted and ready to submit. Though it has garnered a bunch of agent rejections, I still love it.

So, why am I questioning my writing career? Why is my resolve weakening now? Listening to these professional authors speak somehow left me feeling even more conflicted, made the real dream seem even farther away. I left the events full of admiration… and increased self-doubt, which is uncharacteristic for me.

The Movies

The Telluride Horror show is really all about THE MOVIES! So what did I see?

Admittedly, I saw less this year than I usually do. My social stamina was not where it used to be, so I did not have the drive to attend every round of every day. We also had a baby in our party, so I took several child care shifts. Then I devoted a good portion of my time to the other events (authors and trivia). Plenty of horror movies still happened.

The viewing experience was somewhat off for me this year too. At first, being in a full theater was bizarre. It had been two years since I was in a packed theater. The first time I was seated directly next to a stranger, I found myself curling toward my husband, as if I was going to crawl into his lap like a cat. But I got over that quickly and reacclimated to being social.

More than that, my triggers were misaligned. Movies that were hyped up to upset me passed over my mind smoothly, while others that seemed inane stirred unexpected responses. Ghosts were moving beneath the surface of my mind that I could not identify. The horror called to them.

The Sadness

HOLY SHIT this movie. The Sadness gets every trigger warning. Graphic, gory, disturbing, fucked… but brilliant.

The movie is unsettling enough with its COVID parallels. The news reports sound all too familiar. Then it takes a swan dive off into horrific. Yet it is not splatter or shock gore. While traumatizing, it is all calculated. The despicable things depicted contribute to the story, drive the plot points.

The movie is about showing what terrible things are right below our surface, right under our thin veil of control or civilization. The Sadness renders a sublimely sickening vision of what is behind that veil. Yet it maintains lines where the camera pulls away and leaves even worse things for the imagination of the audience. That control made what is deliberate on screen all the more effective.

While a challenging and one-time watch, The Sadness is my favorite from the fest and a movie I needed to see.

Sinister Stories Shorts

The “Sinister Stories” shorts block included some creepy and interesting offerings.

Koreatown Ghost Story was my favorite short of the fest. Extremely succinct and unnerving, it offers just enough to draw you in and deliver the right impact. I loved it.

Face Not Recognized. Try Again has an interesting concept that left me with numerous questions. You’re Family Now delivered a creepy interpretation of grief.

Let the Wrong One In

Horror comedy is always a solid bet for our group. We love it, and even when it goes wrong, it is usually ridiculous enough to keep us entertained. Let the Wrong One In brings Irish vampires. One junkie brother shows up bitten instead of strung out, and things unravel from there. The movie is funny and entertaining as long as the brothers fumble in their own house. Once the story left that structure, it sort of lost cohesion.

Antlers

The big budget, mainstream closing night movie. I have very mixed feelings on Antlers. On the surface, it is a formulaic, highly produced, entertaining horror movie with a very good monster.

Yet the formula is also a bit tired. As the story borrowed the wendigo from Native culture, it felt like another instance of white characters telling a not white story. It could have been more interesting with a couple steps out of the typical box.

The ending is also pretty weak.

When the Screaming Starts

More horror comedy. When the Screaming Starts is a pseudo mockumentary about an aspiring serial killer starting a cult. The story has a lot of potential, yet much of the comedy does not land as strong as it should.

Broadcast Signal Intrusion

To be honest, I slept through part of this movie, so I’m not sure how inclusive my opinion can be. I was well schooled on the inspirations for the movie, which definitely made it more interesting. I found the first half very intriguing, a solid mystery. Then the movie lost steam. When I woke up for the ending, I was left confused and wanting (more so than from being unconscious).

Black Friday

I was potentially the most excited about Black Friday. Holiday horror comedy with Bruce Campbell? Yes please! I was expecting something in the vein of perhaps Krampus. I’m not sure what the fuck I got. I don’t know that the movie knew what it was.

I think I was expecting the commercial commentary to be foundational, a la Dawn of the Dead. Instead, it was more sprinkled like salt as random references. Then the threat shifts from zombie-like shoppers to some sort of amalgamation monster, and that transition is poorly portrayed. All the characters are extremely cliché, but it is not pushed far enough to be caricature. Ultimately, just so disappointing.

“Folked Up Horror” Shorts

Folk horror is not my preferred genre. I definitely have selections I enjoy, but I am in no way an expert. The shorts in the “Folked Up Horror” block were bizarre. The musical taxidermist in Stuffed is fantastic and more entertaining than I usually find musicals. Then The Wet Nurse personally traumatized me with breastfeeding flashbacks and horrifying potential. The others fell relatively flat or outright confusing.

Trivia

We always attend Fright or Wrong trivia and muddle our way through. By some miracle of betting on the right question last (in person) year, we won. We managed to pull it off again this year. This time, the feat was accomplished by the combination of having two experts in 80s horror combined with two strangers joining us more fluent in filmmakers and modern horror.

Win or lose, it is always a fun time. And ridiculously hard questions.

In the End

Despite whatever cycles or processing I had percolating under my surface, the breath this trip afforded me to acknowledge them was so needed. Vacations or breaks of any kind have been scarce since the pandemic, and I am glad that we used it for Telluride Horror Show. The fest managed to preserve itself and return post lockdown with the same level of horror, community, and events.

Can’t wait until next year!

Christina Bergling

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Telluride Horror Show #10

Posted: October 24, 2019 in film festivals, horror, horror movies, movie reviews, reviews, travel
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For the past three years, October has meant the Telluride Horror Show for me. It became our tradition when the Stanley Film Festival left Estes Park to become the Overlook Film Festival. Our tradition has now grown to include more people in our condo each year.

I could spout the same euphoric babbling I do every year. How I love the autumn drive across Colorado. How beautiful the mountain town of Telluride is. How the small festival has a fantastic community feel and atmosphere. How the films rarely disappoint. How fun it is to interact with filmmakers. BUT all of that has been true since Telluride Horror Show #8 (and remained true this year). Though I was disappointed to see no snow.

This year, in particular, the movies were particularly strong. Most years, there are some weak selections or ones that are not quite my flavor, but I was not disappointed. I did not enjoy one film, but I knew that going in from the synopsis in the programming guide.

Here is what I watched this year:

Making Monsters: A fantastic little film that felt like Hostel for the more digital age. The plot and the acting are on point. Great watch.

The creature shorts: A solid selection of short creature horror films. While one or two fall flat, none are bad. My favorites include Pathosis and It Came in Through the Window.

Mutant Blast: Stupid, stupid ridiculous movie, but it’s Troma so obviously. The main two characters are strong and engaging, but I could not get past the bullshit. Others in my party thoroughly loved it though.

Z: See my full review on Daily Dead.

1BR: THE FAVORITE! See my full review on Daily Dead.

Daniel Isn’t Real: Another movie about an imaginary friend (following Z) with a very Fight Club vibe. I love the character dynamics, but the ending wanders off a bit too far. A weak end but still a decent flick.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil: Still just as funny 10 years later!

VFW: The mindless splatterfest I needed after a cerebral day. The characters are good enough for you to care about, and the gore is strong enough to keep your attention. Entertaining as hell.

The Deeper You Dig: A solid supernatural slowburn. Though I nodded off in a couple scenes, I was quite tired. Needs to be viewed on the right mood.

Extra Ordinary: Hil Arious. My friend nearly pissed herself laughing in the screening. The lovable character are so funny, and I can’t wait to watch it again.

We didn’t really get to participate in much beyond the movies. I was too jealous to listen to other authors read their works by the fireside. We ran out of time to walk down to the pig roast. However, we absolutely did make time for trivia.

…and we won it!

Congratulations are not entirely in order though. We hovered solidly in the middle of the pack until the final Jeopardy round. One of us was the only person who knew the lost footage from Event Horizon was found in a Transylvanian salt mine, so we were the only team to gain points while every other team lost. And that launched us to #1.

I’ll take the win however it comes. Trivia has never been my strength.

Our group also decided to increase our festive participation. We dressed up as the cast from The Shining—Jack, Wendy, Danny, and the Grady sisters. I never really miss an opportunity to go all in on a theme and dress up, but this was an exceptionally good environment in which to dress up as iconic horror characters.

Having someone who can pass as my twin only made it better.

It was endlessly entertaining to creep people out, speak and move in unison, and take pictures with a whole bunch of strangers. A good costume is always an awesome icebreaker to make new friends, not that that is hard to accomplish at a fest. We dressed up during the day on Saturday then again for the Last Call party on Sunday night. The Grady sisters are much more fun intoxicated, in my opinion.

Then it was over. The weekend flew by faster than usual. It was a blur of movies; then we were packing the cars back up to drive home. We even quickly overcame car issues to get on the road. I spent the long commute reading over my new WIP novel for the first time. Since I didn’t hate my work as much as I anticipated, it helped to ease the hard drop back into regular life.

If only we could always live at the Horror Show. If only it could always be October.

 

Christina Bergling

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Farewell to a Master

Posted: September 2, 2015 in horror
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I do not usually post here or write about the happenings in Hollywood, even when particularly influential figures pass on. However, I am making an exception in the case of horror master Wes Craven.

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Wes Craven made so many masterful horror movies and greatly shaped and influenced the genre. Everyone knows that. For me, it was all about Scream and Nightmare on Elm Street.

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I have written about it before. Scream was my very first horror movie. At age 12, after my parents got divorced, this was my introduction to the genre. I loved it instantly, both the movie and the genre. Scream scared me and also made me laugh; it was fun to watch.

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Nightmare on Elm Street blew my mind. I saw it much later than its release, well into my adulthood. It filled a hole in my horror heart that I did not know was there. Again, fear perfectly edged with humor. Again, just perfect entertainment for me. I watched with my jaw on the floor and had nightmares about it for nights afterward.

Of the many contributions Wes Craven made to the horror genre, these were the two that changed me. I will greatly miss his influence.

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Christina Bergling

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