Review: Horror Anthology ‘Terror Tales’ Brings the Gore

Many horror filmmakers opt to make anthology films because of the appeal of the short story format and the variety of styles they can tackle within one feature film. They come in all shapes and sizes from found footage (V/H/S), to urban horror (Tales from the Hood), to 1950’s horror comic-style (Creepshow), to the dark and outrageous (The Offspring), but one thing ties them together, the fans love them. Terror Tales is an example of independent anthology horror film that, despite its minor missteps, is a fun and memorable watch.

The wraparound story in Terror Tales follows a mysterious criminal (Christopher Showerman) who has kidnapped a vacationing family and is forcing them to listen to horrible tales of the macabre on their trip towards certain doom. The first story concerns a horror author dealing with the trauma of her son’s unexpected death, ushered through her past by a demon. The second (and best) tale is an ’80s-set slasher story about a demented killer brutalizing customers of a mom and pop video store. The third story is a saga of faith and demonic possession featuring a preacher who’s wife and daughter fall victim to evil forces.

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Terror Tales features some very fun appearances by actors known for iconic roles in horror. Both Felissa Rose and Jonathan Tiersten from Sleepaway Camp turn in memorably acted roles in this film, albeit in different segments. Lynn Lowry of The Crazies and I Drink Your Blood leads the cast of the first segment. Ari Lehman (Friday the 13th)  pops up in the third segment, as well with a fun role that puts him in the 1600’s. These and other quirky performances give Terror Tales a fun independent horror tone that’s happy to embrace its camp factor.

The FX in Terror Tales give it an edge over many independent horror films. Director Jimmy Lee Combs enlists the help of frequent collaborator Kevon Ward for the FX on this film. Kevon notably worked on Combs’ previous film Hans Crippleton: Talk to the Hans as well as competing on SyFy Channel’s Face Off. Terror Tales features primarily practical FX with a small amount of digital FX as well. The first and third segments have very fun creature make-ups and the second segment has some truly repulsive gore gags. Fans of splatter are sure to relish in the over-the-top kills in the second segment.

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My only real complaint with the film is its runtime. Terror Tales clocks in at two hours long, but could have easily landed at close to an hour and a half to an hour forty five minutes. Segments seem to drag at times and many sequences and scenes could have been left on the cutting room floor. A shorter runtime could have tightened up a couple of the segments and kicked up the pace a bit. This complaint is minor though, as the film still does a good job of capturing viewers’ attention. Anthology films are wonderful for that reason, typically no story runs long enough for viewers to completely check out.

Fans owe it to themselves to check out Terror Tales. It’s fun, gory, doesn’t take itself too seriously, and is a great example of an independent film with its heart in the right place. The inclusion of veteran horror actors is fun for die-hard fans of the genre and the anthology format makes its only downfall (lengthy segments) very forgivable.

Terror Tales will be on VOD January 8th and DVD February 5th.

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