Four "Animals Run Amok" movies to watch this summer

In celebration of my latest book, When Animals Attack: The 70 Best Horror Movies With Killer Animals, the B to Z summer editions at the Cinematek in Brussels, Belgium, will be dedicated to "animals run amok" movies. The screenings will be accompanied by a book signing, and I'll be giving an introduction to the films together with director Bruno Forzani (Amer, The Strange Color of Your Body's Tears).

Here's the "animals run amok" summer program...

Best gifts for Game of Thrones fans

How excited are you for the seventh season of Game of Thrones? If you're like me, you'll probably watch the show in the company of your friends. If they prepare food and take care of drinks, you'll want to bring them a special gift.

Need gift ideas?

I already did some of the work for you and compiled this gift guide containing the best gifts for Game of Thrones fans.

Interview with Alejandro Amenábar

Back in April, I had the chance to have a long chat with Alejandro Amenábar at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF). He's the director of some of the best and smartest movies Spain has ever produced, including Tesis, Abre Los Ojos, The Others, Mar Adentro, Agora, and Regression. We talked about the entirety of his career, and I tested his knowledge of Belgian cinema.

Top ten kick-ass supernatural heroines

This is a guest post by Amanda Jones.

We spend a lot of time dreaming about our favorite Hottie Mc-Hot-Hot supernatural heroes (well, I do at any rate!), but what about the kickass heroines that put the entire genre to shame? I don’t know about you, but a story with a drool worthy hero AND a confident, booty kicking leading lady is a recipe for MY list of favorites any day!

Some way, somehow, these tough as nails women find a way to beat down their rivals (both physically AND mentally) without breaking a nail. Why am I so drawn to these particular leading ladies? No matter what trials and tribulations they go through, you can’t keep a good woman down! Each and every one of them comes back swinging twice as hard. They’re tough and feminine, strong and vulnerable, beautiful and intelligent. These ladies aren’t afraid to speak their minds and don’t deign to suffer douchebaggery of any variety. I don’t know about you, but I’d be more than happy to strike fear into the realm of the supernatural for all those reasons!

Supernatural bad boys we can't help but love

This is a guest post by Amanda Jones.

I don’t know about you, but there’s something I can’t help but love about the supernatural bad boys of the celluloid world. I’m not quite sure what it is – the cockiness, the alpha possessiveness, or the complete disregard of what anyone thinks of them. They all seem to share a similar air of “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn!” Call me crazy, but in a world where we’re bombarded with images of what we “should” be, I find it alluring. Whether it’s True Blood’s Eric Northman, Buffy’s Spike, or Klaus from The Vampire Diaries – there’s something appealing about their belief in their own infallibility (justified or not!). I guess that would be a side effect of being immortal…who really cares what anybody thinks – trends, people, and behaviors will change and die over time, and you’re going to see a lot of it if you’ll be living forever!

Ocean's Twelve filming locations in Amsterdam

Where did they film Ocean's Twelve in Amsterdam?

In Ocean's Twelve, Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) locates all eleven members of Danny Ocean's gang, demanding they return the $150 million they stole from his casinos plus interest. To win back the money, Danny Ocean (George Clooney), Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) and Linus Caldwell (Matt Damon) go to Amsterdam to steal an important certificate.

Ocean's Twelve is full of stunning shots of Amsterdam. All the places you see are located in the proximity of each other, which means you can easily trace the steps of your favorite characters.

I made an itinerary for you that will help you see the filming locations of Ocean's Twelve, which are all famous places in Amsterdam.

Movie night recipe - Gourmet popcorn

This is a guest post from Katie Cross from The Health and Happiness Cookbook: Fun and Flirty Recipes Inspired by the Health and Happiness Society Series.

The Health and Happiness Cookbook was an idea that I came up with because, um, I love food! Okay, I'm obsessed. I love to skim through cookbooks and pretend like I can make everything inside. One day, I was staring at my book Bon Bons to Yoga Pants and thinking about how Lexie, the main character, loves food as much as I do. (For Lexie, it's a bit too much.) I thought . . . why not make something special?

Although I can write awesome, girl power chick lit novels, I don't have kitchen skills. So I hooked up with talented Canadian food blogger Kimberley from Prairie Winds Life. She brainstormed some recipes, and we took the project from there.

Together, we've made the Health and Happiness Cookbook. You can snag a copy on any ebook platform or in paperback across the world.

Enjoy your yummy popcorn! It's the perfect movie time snack.

BIFFF 2017 in pictures

My first BIFFF was in 1994 when I was studying at the university in Brussels and I started hosting panel discussions for them a few years later. I can't believe it's been that long already. This year, I saw 23 films to celebrate my 23 years at BIFFF.

Here are some pictures of the festival.

Eight twisted movie recommendations

I almost missed out on Norbert Keil's twisted movie Replace. I'd been seeing several films in a row already that day at BIFFF, and though Replace was on my list of movies to watch, I wasn't in the mood to jump into another screening without a break. I decided to give the film a try a second before it started, and it turned out to be one of my favorites of the 35th Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival.

Several days later, Norbert and I met over a game of Story Cubes, and I asked him if he wanted to share movie recommendations on Celluloid Diaries. This week, he emailed me with eight recommendations for a twisted night at the movies, some of which were undoubtedly influences for his own twisted little film (there's definitely a David Cronenberg/Herbert West vibe to it).

Replace tells the story of Kira, whose skin shrivels up due to extreme ageing. When she discovers she can replace her skin with somebody else's, the question arises whether she'll kill to remain her youthful look or if she'll let her body wither away.

The film was co-written with Richard Stanley and stars Rebecca Forsythe, Lucy Aron and Barbara Crampton.

10 BIFFF Movies You'll Want to Watch Right Now

The 35th Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF) took place between April 4th and April 16th. The program was an interesting mix of South African ghost stories, Albanian folklore, Turkish cat movies, Russian adventure films, French crime, Korean thrillers, and much more. Want to know which ones were the best? Here's my top 10 of BIFFF movies you'll want to watch right now.

Safe Neighborhood

It's Christmas and the kids are home alone with their babysitter when “burglars” try and enter the house. However, it won't be a normal home invasion. Entertaining and with a twist no one saw coming, Safe Neighborhood was my favorite BIFFF movie and also won the Golden Raven for best picture.