‘Repo’ Debuts Today

Repo! The Genetic Opera finally hits (a few) theaters today. For those who constantly lament the mind-numbing predictability of horror flicks — hell, of most films today — here’s your chance to see what it looks like to subvert the norms of cinema. Starting today, you can catch showings in:

• Los Angeles
• Pasadena
• San Francisco
• Berkeley
• Las Vegas
• Austin
• New York City
• Minneapolis

It will also go on the road to a few more cities starting Nov. 10. Check here for details.

Directed by Saw II-IV director Darren Bousman, this rock opera serves up a bizarre near-future world where expensive replacement organs are savagely repossessed by repo men when their owners miss a payment. It boasts stunning visuals, some catchy tunes, and an intriguing behind-the-scenes back story, which you can find soon in The New Horror Handbook.

Here at the Handbook we like to go to bat for films and directors who we think are not only making significant contributions to the genre, but also edging horror cinema itself forward. Bousman and company have done just that with Repo. If you get the opportunity, check it out. Whether you love it or hate it, chances are good you’ll have to say you’ve never seen anything quite like it. And in the end, isn’t that why we come to horror in the first place?

‘Repo’ Soundtrack Rocks Out Today

The next phase of Darren Bousman’s masterplan to revolutionize the horror movie clicks in to place as the soundtrack for his Repo! The Genetic Opera goes on sale today. For $12 on Amazon, it’s worth it for the album cover art and the unforgivably addictive track “At the Opera Tonight” alone. (Note, you also can preview tracks here and pick up songs in the iTunes store.)

And speaking of good ol’ Amazon, that helpful e-tailer informs us that customers who buy the Repo album also plunk down for Sarah Brightman’s “A Winter Symphony.” Now THAT’S what you call a crossover hit!

‘Repo’ on the Road in November

Darren Bousman’s Repo! The Genetic Opera hits the road in November for theaters in Portland, Seattle, Chicago, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Atlanta and Orlando. Check the Web site for details.

New Interview: Darren Lynn Bousman

I’m really psyched to be able to tell you today that The New Horror Handbook will include an interview with one of the hardest working directors in Hollywood: Darren Lynn Bousman.

Not only did he bring a new sense of depth (and it has to be said, fun) to the Saw series, but also more recently he has redefined the cinematic experience itself with the dark horse horror/sci-fi/musical Repo! The Genetic Opera.

The studio thought it was getting another flick in the Saw vein — what it got instead was that rarest of commodities in Ameircan cinema today: something new. Realizing that nothing scares Hollywood beancounters more than something original, Bousman has been knocking himself out for years trying to prepare the movie-going public for the experience.

For the first time, American audiences can get a taste of what all the buzz has been about at this month’s Fantastic Fest in Austin. So there you have it — not one but two reasons to hit Fanastic Fest: Repo! and Zombie Girl.