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The Wishmaster episode of Wtf Happened to This Horror Movie? was Written by Emilie Black, Narrated by Jason Hewlett, Edited by Juan Jimenez, Produced by Lance Vlcek and John Fallon, and Executive Produced by Berge Garabedian.

Horror has had many periods and the late 1990s were very much for self-referential films, dark humor, and cameos. Wishmaster, or Wes Craven’s Wishmaster (watch it Here) as it was marketed at the time, is more on the dark humor side of things than self-referential. Still, it does have plenty of cameos and references to other movies to be found by those paying attention.

While the film was marketed as Wes Craven’s Wishmaster, the film was in fact, written by Peter Adkins and directed by Robert Kurtzman, two creators the world of horror already knew. Craven was an executive producer here, but his name put butts in seats back in the day,...

“Be careful what you wish for” is the appropriate tag line for this Wes Craven-produced mix of fairy tales and slasher films, at the very least a unique twist on the horror genre. Andrew Divoff plays an evil genie let loose to terrorize antiquarian Tammy Lauren and a supporting cast of beloved B-movie stars including Robert Englund, Ted Raimi, and Angus Scrimm.

The post Wishmaster appeared first on Trailers From Hell.

1981: Texas' Justin learned Ashley wasn't pregnant.

1981: General Hospital's Rick walked Laura down the aisle.

1995: Days of our Lives' Sami gave birth to Will.

1995: One Life to Live's Todd left for Ireland."The best prophet of the future is the past."

― Lord Byron

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1964: On Another World, Ken Baxter (William Prince) agreed to give up his relationship with Janet Matthews (Liza Chapman) and make his marriage to Laura (Augusta Dabney) work, following the murder of their son, Tom.

1966: On Dark Shadows, a mysterious person tried to enter Victoria Winters' (Alexandra Moltke) room, but her screams scared the intruder away.

Before the advent of cell phones, communication was so limited; you either had to telephone someone (on a landline no less), or god forbid, talk to them in person (brrr). Phones were also trotted out as a very effective trope for horror; the calls started coming from inside the house, pay phone booths were firing up, and prank calls led to all kinds of mayhem. That last ditty is where we’re headed today with I Saw What You Did (1988), an effective TV teen horror that is a remake of a same-named William Castle joint from ’65, this time co-headlined by a very young Shawnee Smith and Tammy Lauren.

Originally shown on May 20th as a CBS Friday Movie, I Saw was up against Mr. Belvedere on ABC and Miami Vice on NBC, but it held a unique appeal for teenage girls (or anyone else for that matter) looking for some thrills on a Friday night.

Stars: Andrew Divoff, Tammy Lauren, Robert Englund, Ted Raimi, George “Buck” Flower, Reggie Bannister, Tony Todd, Kane Hodder, Chris Lemmon, Wendy Benson-Landes, Tony Crane, Jenny O’Hara, Ricco Ross, John Byner, Gretchen Palmer, Angus Scrimm | Written by Peter Atkins | Directed by Robert Kurtzman

Special makeup supremo Robert Kurtzman directs this 1997 homage to 1980s horror, and while its gross-out effects are impressive, the plot, characters and script leave much to be desired.

Wishmaster opens in 12th century Persia, and a royal party in chaos: people are mutating, skinning themselves, turning inside out, that sort of thing. It seems the king has made a deal with a Djinn, a mythical demon who will grant three wishes. On the third wish, a portal will open and the Djinn (plural) will be unleashed and take over the world of men. Or something. Thankfully, this Djinn is banished thanks to an opal made of blood.

Stars: Andrew Divoff, Tammy Lauren, Robert Englund, Ted Raimi, George “Buck” Flower, Reggie Bannister, Tony Todd, Kane Hodder, Chris Lemmon, Wendy Benson-Landes, Tony Crane, Jenny O’Hara, Ricco Ross, John Byner, Gretchen Palmer, Angus Scrimm | Written by Peter Atkins | Directed by Robert Kurtzman

Wishmaster is one of those movies that is a treat for horror geeks. Featuring some of the genre’s most iconic actors part of the fun is hunting out all the Easter eggs that are so easy to spot. The question is, on revisiting the film, does The Djinn (Andrew Divoff) still have what it takes to make your dreams come true?

When a Persian statue of Ahura Mazda is broken, a red jewel is discovered within. Given to Alexandra Amberson (Tammy Lauren) to evaluate for auction, she accidentally awakens the Djinn inside. While capturing more souls inside the jewel, he chases down Alexandra with the aim...

Lionsgate UK have announced the next three classic horrors to join their ongoing Vestron Collector’s Series. The Gate, The Lair of the White Worm and Wishmaster come to Blu-ray in restored and remastered editions with stacks of great additional content; and all three are available to pre-order now ahead of their February 26th release.

The Gate

When best friends Glen and Terry stumble across a mysterious crystalline rock in Glen’s backyard, they quickly dig up the newly sodden lawn searching for more precious stones. Instead, they unearth The Gate — an underground chamber of terrifying demonic evil. The teenagers soon understand what evil they’ve released as they are overcome with an assortment of horrific experiences. With fiendish followers invading suburbia, it’s now up to the kids to discover the secret that can lock The Gate forever… if it’s not too late.

Special Features: Audio Commentary with Director Tibor Takacs,...

Well, March is definitely “going out like a lamb” (as the old saying goes) when it comes to horror and sci-fi home entertainment releases, as there are only several different titles coming home this Tuesday.

Universal Studios is releasing J.A. Bayona’s heartbreaking modern fable, A Monster Calls, to both Blu-ray and DVD this week, and if you're a cult film fan, then you have a few fun movies to look forward to adding to your home collections: Witchtrap, Venom, and the four-film collection for Wishmaster, a new addition to the Vestron Video Collector’s Series.

Other notable releases for March 28th include Mortuary Massacre, The Abduction of Jennifer Grayson, Park Chan-Wook's The Handmaiden (which finally gets the Blu-ray treatment), and for the little monster fans, Monster High: Electrified.

A Monster Calls (Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Blu/DVD/Digital HD & DVD)

Liam Neeson, Felicity Jones, and Sigourney Weaver...

The films are an example of diminishing returns, but the collection is more than the franchise’s fans could have wished for.

There are rumors that Lionsgate’s fantastic Vestron Video line of remastered, supplement-filled Blu-rays celebrating horror films from the ’80s and ’90s may be closing up shop. It’s unconfirmed, and LG themselves have been mum on the subject, but it would be an unfortunate turn of events for genre fans if true. They’re only nine releases in, but already they’ve done tremendous work with fantastic new editions of fun classics like Chopping Mall, Waxwork, and The Gate.

Their most recent release, and possibly their last if the rumor proves true, is the four-film Wishmaster Collection. As someone who had never seen the first film and was utterly unaware that three sequels even existed this set offered a first-time watch across the board. So of course I binge-watched all four across a single...

“Listen to their screams, child, listen to the music of their agony!”

Your wish has come true with the Vestron Video Collector’s Series upcoming release of the Wishmaster Collection, a must-have for cult classic collectors, available for the first time on limited-edition Blu-ray™ on March 28 from Lionsgate. In the Wishmaster series, an evil djinn grants three wishes to the person who releases him, fulfilling a prophecy that will unleash his fellow djinn upon the earth. With brand-new illustration from renowned artist Thomas Hodge, the three-disc Wishmaster Collection limited-edition Blu-ray™ includes all four films, restored and remastered, plus never-before-seen special features, and will be available for the suggested retail price of $49.99.

Wishmaster Collection Official Synopsis

Magically powerful and supernaturally evil, the ancient entity known as the Djinn can grant your wildest dreams — and unleash your darkest nightmares. Follow the Wishmaster’s bloodcurdling quest to devour souls and plunge the world...

Your wish has come true with the Vestron Video Collector’s Series upcoming release of the Wishmaster Collection, a must-have for cult classic collectors, available for the first time on limited-edition Blu-ray™ on March 28 from Lionsgate. In the Wishmaster series, an evil djinn grants three wishes to the person who releases him, fulfilling a prophecy that will unleash his fellow djinn upon the earth. With brand-new illustration from renowned artist Thomas Hodge, the three-disc Wishmaster Collection limited-edition Blu-ray™ includes all four films, restored and remastered, plus never-before-seen special features, and will be available for the suggested retail price of $49.99.

Wishmaster Collection Official Synopsis

Magically powerful and supernaturally evil, the ancient entity known as the Djinn can grant your wildest dreams — and unleash your darkest nightmares. Follow the Wishmaster’s bloodcurdling quest to devour souls and plunge the world into eternal damnation in this fright-filled collection of all four horror-fantasy favorites.

When you’re making wishes with a Djinn instead of a genie, you better be careful what you wish for… Spanning four films and packed with horror genre stars, the Wishmaster franchise is coming out on a Blu-ray collection as the ninth entry in Lionsgate’s Vestron Video Collector’s Series, and the special features for the anticipated release have now been revealed.

The Wishmaster Collection Blu-ray is scheduled to come out on March 28th, and you can view the long list of the release’s bonus features below.

The Wishmaster franchise kicked off in 1997 with makeup effects legend Robert Kurtzman at the helm and Wes Craven on board as a producer, and it has featured a plethora of horror genre giants across its four-film run. Will you be adding the Wishmaster Blu-ray collection to your home media shelf?

Wishmaster Collection Blu-ray special features (via Blu-ray.com): “Wishmaster (1997)

Synopsis: Magically powerful.

New Criminal Minds season 9,episode 18 official spoilers,plotline & clips hit the net. Recently, CBS released the new,official,synopsis/spoilers and promo/spoiler clip (below) for their upcoming "Criminal Minds" episode 18 of season 9. The episode is entitled, "Rabid," and it appears to be majorly insane as people are turning stark raving mad, and more! In the new,18th episode press release: when victims are found in a shallow grave in Milwaukee, the Bau is going to get challenged to explain the condition of the bodies. Press release number 2: When three bodies are found with animal and human bite marks in a shallow grave near Milwaukee, the Bau will have puzzling questions to answer. Meanwhile, Reid and Garcia will work out for a company fitness test, but will attempt to hide their preparation from Morgan. Guest stars will feature: Steve Monroe (David Wade Cunningham), Dana Melanie (Gloria Wilson), Chris Coy...

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 star Guri Weinberg (who portrays "Stefan" of the Romanian Coven in the film) and his wife Tammy Lauren are jointly organizing a new sort of television festival event - Telefast, the Viral Television Festival, which'll take place in L.A. in March, 2013. Weinberg's getting a little help from his fellow Twilight Saga castmates for the venture, too. Already announced judges for the fest include Michael Sheen ("Aro" - Volturi), Peter Facinelli ("Carlisle Cullen"), Christian Camargo ("Eleazar" - Denali Coven), and, of course, Weinberg hi ....

Patricia Barry (ex-Sally, Guiding Light; ex-Addie, Days Of Our Lives; ex-Carla, As The World Turns; ex-Peg, All My Children; ex-Isabella, Loving) - 89

Marg Helgenberger (ex-Siobhan, Ryan's Hope) - 52

Maeve Quinlan (ex-Megan, The Bold And The Beautiful; ex-Betsy, General Hospital) - 46

Tricia Cast (Nina, The Young And The Restless; ex-Christy, Santa Barbara) - 42

Tammy Lauren (ex-Maggie, The Young And The Restless) - 42

Alexa Havins (ex-Babe, All My Children) - 30

Kimberly J. Brown (ex-Marah, Guiding Light) - 26...

It's a safe rule of thumb for genre movies that the longer the scroll of explanatory text that appears before the action begins, the more unendurable the film is likely to be (okay, "Star Wars" is an exception). At the beginning of "Wes Craven Presents Wishmaster" -- which is executive produced by Craven -- the latest horror opus to open sans press screenings, we are greeted with verbiage telling us about the villain to whom we will shortly be introduced. He is the Djinn (it's the same for singular or plural, in case you were wondering), a particularly malevolent genie, not exactly, as one character later advises, Barbara Eden or Mork. If the Djinn is able to grant three wishes, the legend goes, all hell will break loose. Needless to say, it does.

A short prologue set in 12th century provides the first glimpse of the ultraviolent mayhem that the evil genie can produce. The Djinn, as charismatically personified in both human and creature form by actor Andrew Divoff, makes his way to our shores after being unleashed via the accidental destruction of an ancient statue. Soon, he is wandering through the streets of Los Angeles, inducing hapless victims to make wishes so he can turn the tables on them and wreak havoc. His chief object of attention is perky young Alexandra Amberson (Tammy Lauren), who unwittingly awoke him from his centuries-long slumber.

"Wishmaster", like most horror efforts these days, mainly relies on sudden jolts of sound to awaken the audience from its otherwise peaceful slumber, but Peter Atkins' screenplay does contain the occasional bon mot, as the Djinn turns out to be a rather witty raconteur of destruction. But the setups here are not nearly as clever as those in say, the "Nightmare on Elm Street" series, despite Craven's involvement. It does not appear likely that a similar franchise will be born.

To increase the film's marquee value, the cast has been beefed up with several horror stalwarts in supporting roles, including Robert Englund ("Nightmare on Elm Street" films), Tony Todd ("Candyman") and Kane Hodder ("Jason Goes to Hell"). Unfortunately, none of them has much of anything to do, and their presence is mostly wasted. It's too bad, considering that it's been years since horror films have benefited from an all-star stock company.

The chief value to "Wishmaster" is the overtime and bonus pay provided to the legions of makeup and special effects artists, who no doubt rejoice whenever the trade papers announce a new Wes Craven effort. Their hard work here has produced an impressive array of gory dismemberments and horrific-looking creatures, which should easily satisfy the standards of their acne-scarred target audience.

Wes Craven PRESENTS WISHMASTER

LIVE Entertainment

Director:Robert Kurtzman

Screenplay:Peter Atkins

Executive producer:Wes Craven

Producers:Pierre David, Clark Peterson, Noel A. Zanitsch

Director of photography:Jacques Haitkin

Editor:David Handman

Music:Harry Manfredini

Color/stereo

Cast:

Alexandra Amberson:Tammy Lauren

Djinn:Andrew Divoff

Anthony Beaumont:Robert Englund

Johnny Valentine:Tony Todd

Shannon Amberson:Wendy Benson

Josh:Tony Crane

Nick Merritt:Chris Lemmon

Running time -- 90 minutes

MPAA rating: R...