OPENING NIGHT w. Kathy Najimy
Salem Horror Fest kicks off with a special opening night ceremony at the Peabody Essex Museum featuring Kathy Najimy (Hocus Pocus, Sister Act) in a moderated discussion with Andrea Subissati, editor of Rue Morgue Magazine.
The program opens with a keynote speech from Alexandra West, author of the new book Gore-Geous: Personal Essays on Beauty and Horror, followed by remarks from Suzanne Romero-Desrocher (George A. Romero Foundation), legendary scream queen Linnea Quigley, festival director Kay Lynch, and drag performances by Miz Diamond. The evening will conclude with a screening of Hocus Pocus.
ALL THAT YOU LOVE WILL BE CARRIED AWAY
Directed by Bolen Miller
Based on the Stephen King short story: A middle-aged traveling salesman contemplates his life choices at a a shitty motel in Nebraska.
United States | 10:22
BLACK LAKE : DIRECTOR’S CUT
Directed by K/XI
Whilst house-sitting in a secluded home in Scotland, Aarya, an expressionist painter, is gifted a red scarf sent by her aunt from Pakistan, and becomes haunted by a Churail - a demonic and malevolent South-Asian Witch.
United Kingdom | 90 minutes
CAT PEOPLE (1942)
w. Faculty of Horror
Directed by Jacques Tourneau
Irena Dubrovna, a New York City--based fashion designer who hails from Serbia, begins a romance with marine engineer Oliver Reed. After the couple gets married, Oliver becomes concerned about Irena's notion that she is cursed and may transform into a large cat in the heat of passion. Confiding in his beautiful assistant, Alice Moore, about his marital issues, Oliver unwittingly triggers Irena's curse, with tragic results.
United States | 73 minutes
Followed by Faculty of Horror
SECRET SCREENING
w. Cinematic Void
From out of the mouth of cinemadness comes Cinematic Void Up All Night. Originating as the online extension of the Los Angeles based film screening series, the Cinemandess Movie is hosted by James Branscome and features Deanna Rooney (Mystery Science Theater 3000). Harkening back to gonzo late night TV of the 80s and 90s, this cult film odyssey features a mystery movie with vintage commercial breaks and host segments and sketches.
For this exclusive Salem Horror Fest presentation, the featured mystery film not only has ties to not only the city of Salem but its very history.
Salem MA | 88 minutes
Followed by Cinematic Void
GEORGE A. ROMERO’S RESIDENT EVIL
Directed by Brandon Salisbury
A documentary that brings to light the vision that director George A. Romero had for an adaptation of Resident Evil, using newly filmed interviews with those who were there, and unravels the secrets behind why it was never produced.
United States | Special Presentation
THE GRUDGE (2004)
w. Horror Queers
Directed by Takashi Shimizu
Matthew Williams, his wife, Jennifer, and mother, Emma, are Americans making a new life in Tokyo. Together they move into a house that has been the site of supernatural occurrences in the past, and it isn't long before their new home begins terrorizing the Williams family as well. The house, as it turns out, is the site of a curse that lingers in a specific place and claims the lives of anyone that comes near.
United States | 100 minutes
Followed by Horror Queers
HOCUS POCUS (1993)
Directed by Kenny Ortega
After moving to Salem, Mass., teenager Max Dennison explores an abandoned house with his sister Dani and their new friend, Allison. After dismissing a story Allison tells as superstitious, Max accidentally frees a coven of evil witches who used to live in the house. Now, with the help of a magical cat, the kids must steal the witches' book of spells to stop them from becoming immortal.
United States | 96 minutes
I KNOW WHAT YOU NEED
Directed by Julia Marchese
It's 1976, and popular college co-ed Elizabeth meets an unusual boy, Edward, who knows what she needs. But who is Edward really, and what secrets is he hiding? It's a love story, but a Stephen King love story, so things aren't always what they seem. Elizabeth doesn't know what she wants, but Edward knows what she needs
United States | 45:00
THE MONKEY
Directed by Spencer Sherry
After a near-fatal accident, soon-to-be father Pete Shelburn begins to suspect that his past has come back to haunt him. With his own father at death's door and his brother refusing to make amends with him, he's forced to save his family by confronting a nightmare from his childhood: a cursed cymbal-clapping toy monkey.
United States | 60:00
THE JUDGMENT
Directed by Marwan Mokbel
An Egyptian gay couple return from the U.S. to Egypt for a family emergency and have to force themselves back into the closet and pretend to be just friends. When they fall prey to witchcraft as punishment for their “homosexual sins,” one of them falls into religious terror and exposes his unhealed past.
Egypt | 110 minutes
ONE FOR THE ROAD
Directed by David Jester
A family traveling from out of state breaks down in the most unfortunate place, Salem's Lot. Going for help, Gerard Lumley leaves his wife and daughter behind, unaware of the dangers awaiting them. Reaching a bar in the town next door, he finds nothing but reluctant assistance, everybody but him knowing the danger his family is in.
United States | 24:00
THE PEOPLE’S JOKER
Directed by Vera Drew
A law-breaking comedian who is grappling with her gender identity forms a new anti-comedy troupe with a friend and finds herself battling a fascistic caped crusader.
92 minutes
Peabody Essex Museum • Weekend II
Sunday, May 5 • 4:00 pm • Tickets
STAY
Directed by Gene Blair Jr.
A troubled teenage girl winds her way through a park that she has traversed many times on her way home. This time, however, not everything is as it seems and she is quickly confronted with Dickensian ghosts who attempt to guide her as she wrestles with a life-threatening decision.
United States | 22:53
TALES FROM THE CRYPT :
DEMON KNIGHT (1995)
w. Girl, That’s a Massacre
Directed by Ernest Dickerson
Ex-soldier Frank Brayker is the guardian of an ancient key that can unlock tremendous evil; the sinister but charming Collector is a demon who wants the key so he can initiate the apocalypse. On the run from wicked mercenaries for almost 90 years, Brayker finally stops in at a boarding house in New Mexico where -- with the help of its quirky residents -- he plans to face off against the Collector and his band of ghouls, preventing them from ever seizing the key.
United States | 92 minutes
Followed by Girl, That’s a Massacre
May 3 - May 5, 2024
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