3. John Dies At The End
A hilarious mash-up of sci-fi and horror, David Wong’s debut novel emerged as a web serial and landed a publisher after its success online. The story involves mysterious black goo dubbed “soy sauce” which triggers the ability for users to see into another dimension. Protagonist David Wong and his best friend, John must use their visions to help save the world from the clutches of Korrok.
In 2007, Don Coscarelli, director of Bubba Ho-Tep and Phantasm optioned the rights to the novel and drafted a script. After acquiring financial backing and assembling a cast featuring Chase Williamson, Rob Mayes, Paul Giamatti and Clancy Brown, the film went into production in late 2010. By the start of 2011 the shoot was completed and the finished film debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2012.
For a novel which handles gory horror via the quirky manipulation of sci-fi devices, it’ll be exciting to witness how Coscarelli and co. deliver the goods. The first teaser trailer oozes along in an ominous manner with a foreboding score. Let’s hope that voiceover makes the final cut, as David’s inner monologue was the source of the novel’s humour.
The film finally attained a distribution deal through Magnet Releasing and is set for a video-on-demand premier on December 27th, 2012. The first poster for the film was revealed earlier this month as a retro-themed homage to classic genre pics, and the teaser trailer can be viewed below.
John Dies At The End hits theatres January 25th, 2013.
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