Over the summer I caught a screening of Chris Moore‘s Triggered and I absolutely loved it. The film is currently running the festival circuit and is scheduled to come out in wide release next year. Moore’s first horror film Blessed are the Children was just picked up by Wild Eye Releasing and is available today on Amazon and Amazon Instant Video. His films are slashers with a taboos twists. Blessed are the Children is about a woman who terminates a pregnancy is stalked by masked maniacs who protest outside abortion clinics, while Triggered takes a unique turn at portraying social justice warriors. One thing for sure, the young filmmaker has a flair all his own. I got a chance to speak with about his upcoming films, his influences and aspirations.

Check out the interview below (with some spoilers!).

Blessed are the Children
Directed by Chris Moore
Written by Chris Moore and Chris Wesley
Starring Kaley Ball, Keni Bounds, Arian Thigpen, Jordan Boyd, Michael Kinslow, David Moncrief
Not Rated
98 Minutes
Macabre Films
Released October 23, 2018

Blessed are the Children is the kind of horror film that can and likely will offend someone in 2018. Despite that… or maybe in spite of that, it feels right at home amongst the popular 70s and 80s slashers it gleefully pays homage to. Co-writer and director Chris Moore stretches the film’s low budget to its extremes and ends up with a film with shockingly good gore effects, that tackles a taboo subject in a way only a horror film could.

Triggered
Written and Directed by Chris Moore
Starring Meredith Mohler, Jesse Dalton, Amanda Wyss, Keni Bounds, Sam Furman, Arian Thigpen, Caitlyn Driscoll
CWM Entertainment
Release date: July 12, 2018 (MS Premiere); Wide Release: 2019

With snowflake aggression on both the left and right sides of the political spectrum at its peak these days, Chris Moore‘s Triggered could not be coming out at a better time. While the premise is familiar, Triggered is a throwback ’80s style slasher for a new generation, capturing the vibes of the movies it pays homage to while evoking real questions about social justice warriors and the culture of being so easily offended. In an era where the horror genre is full of social and political commentary, Triggered fits in quite nicely.

The story is simple: 30 years ago, a string of murders ripped through Jackson, Mississippi. Suddenly, the “Jackson Ripper” is back. We meet Callee Bishop (Meredith Mohler), a high school senior and crusader with too many causes. She has a video blog where she attacks cultural appropriation by her classmates. Her constant complaining has led to the mirrors being covered in the bathrooms, the removal of fried chicken from the lunchroom menus, and god forbid you’re wearing chopsticks in your hair! Mohler is hilarious as the hyper-offended Callee. And her relationship with openly gay best friend Ian (Jesse Dalton) is the best part of the film.

Kill Theory
DVD
DIRECTOR: Chris Moore
STARRING: Agnes Bruckner, Patrick John Flueger, Taryn Manning, Daniel Franzese, Teddy Dunn, Ryanne Duzich, Steffi Wickens, Theo Rossi, Kevin Gage
Lionsgate Home Entertainment
RELEASE DATE: March 23, 2010

For four straight years now, After Dark Horrorfest: 8 Films to Die For has been unleashed. Eight original horror films to quench your thirst for blood and gore and screams galore. Last year I was able to check out and review their third collection of horrors (Read: DVD Review: After Dark Horrorfest III: 8 Films To Die For), and was rather excited to check out their new slate this year! Instead of cramming every review into one mammoth review, this year we’ll take it one flick at a time, with this little opener stuck at the top of each one.

Picture yourself at a party with all of your closest friends. You’re drinking, laughing, and having an all-around great time. Suddenly, you awake to the sounds of screaming and realize one of your friends is dead, and if you don’t kill the rest of your closest friends, you all die. This is the dilemma facing the characters of Kill Theory.

This particular group of close friends are celebrating their upcoming college graduation before intoxication lures them into sleep. Horrific screams wake them up, and they make the gruesome discovery that one of them has been murdered. The body has a message on it prompting them to turn on the TV, and they are informed that a psychotic killer is now holding them hostage. The house is surrounded by deadly traps and there’s no way out. The only option? Kill each other. If one of them is alive when the clock hits 6:00am, that person goes free. If more than one is still alive, they all die.