An exploration of terror and the fantastic from Northern Manhattan.  “Dimensions of Darkness” is a four-part series exploring the horror, science fiction and the fantastic, with a focus on filmmakers, writers and performers from or associated with the northern Manhattan and surrounding areas.  Curated and hosted by production and screening collective KHLOARIS and Inwood Art Works.

Kiss  had Marvel comics, action figures and all sorts of merchandising targeted to kids and teenagers. Their science fiction and horror-fueled costumes and imagery made Kiss appear as if they were really from another world. A movie seemed the natural next step, so Kiss teamed with kids’ animation powerhouse Hanna-Barbera for one of the strangest rock band vehicle movies ever made. Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park plays very much like a live action episode of “Scooby-Doo,” with songs by Kiss. Kiss founder Paul Stanley was born Stanley Bert Eisen, and was raised in Inwood,  The feature will preceded by “Supaidâman” (“Spider-Man,” Koîchi Takemoto, 1978), a Japanese theatrical short with a very unusual take on Spider-Man. Spider-Man co-creator Stan Lee spent his formative years on Fort Washington Ave. in Washington Heights. He could often be found watching adventure films at the Loew’s 175th Street Theater (now known as the United Palace), This Japanese production is one of the first theatrical presentations of one of Lee’s creations.

From Edgar Allan Poe’s explorations of undeveloped northern Manhattan wilderness to H.P. Lovecraft’s documented walking tours of then-Inwood Forest (which Lovecraft described as “…a forest primeval, with winding paths, gigantic trees, and not a mortal in sight.”), the northern Manhattan area has been home to countless famous and unusual imaginations. The beginnings of the film industry were right across the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee, where luminaries like famed magician Harry Houdini hung from the Palisades cliffs in early film serials; the origin of the term “cliffhanger”.

(Doors at 7:00pm) The Stuff and Dust Devil are both R-rated, and not suitable for children. Dracula and Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park are either unrated or PG-rated. After each screening, we’ll hang out to connect and talk about the films.

An exploration of terror and the fantastic from Northern Manhattan.  “Dimensions of Darkness” is a four-part series exploring the horror, science fiction and the fantastic, with a focus on filmmakers, writers and performers from or associated with the northern Manhattan and surrounding areas.  Curated and hosted by production and screening collective KHLOARIS and Inwood Art Works.

Dust Devil is equal parts sexy, gory and metaphysical, with themes exploring the region’s fraught racial politics of the time. A surreal, violent horror-western from South Africa about a murderous demonic shapeshifter, hunting lonely travelers in the desert. The film was purchased by Miramax for American distribution, but released in a cut that director Richard Stanley was unhappy with. We’ll be presenting the “final cut,” approved by the director. Titular Dust Devil star Robert John Burke was born in Washington Heights and appeared in a number of other horror and science-fiction films, including Nightmare Weekend, Robocop 3, Thinner and No Such Thing. Mr. Burke remains a busy working character actor on the small and large screens, and is a certified and active New York State firefighter, a certification he earned after his rescue work during and after 9/11.

From Edgar Allan Poe’s explorations of undeveloped northern Manhattan wilderness to H.P. Lovecraft’s documented walking tours of then-Inwood Forest (which Lovecraft described as “…a forest primeval, with winding paths, gigantic trees, and not a mortal in sight.”), the northern Manhattan area has been home to countless famous and unusual imaginations. The beginnings of the film industry were right across the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee, where luminaries like famed magician Harry Houdini hung from the Palisades cliffs in early film serials; the origin of the term “cliffhanger”.

(Doors at 7:00pm) The Stuff and Dust Devil are both R-rated, and not suitable for children. Dracula and Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park are either unrated or PG-rated. After each screening, we’ll hang out to connect and talk about the films.

An exploration of terror and the fantastic from Northern Manhattan.  “Dimensions of Darkness” is a four-part series exploring the horror, science fiction and the fantastic, with a focus on filmmakers, writers and performers from or associated with the northern Manhattan and surrounding areas.  Curated and hosted by production and screening collective KHLOARIS and Inwood Art Works.

“The Stuff”(1985)  Genre filmmaker Larry Cohen was born in Washington Heights in 1941, and later relocated to nearby Riverdale. He was the writer-director of the horror films It’s Alive, God Told Me To, Full Moon High, Q, A Return to Salem’s Lot, among others. The Stuff is Cohen’s satirical sci-fi-horror-comedy about an organic dessert sensation, sold after it bubbles up from the ground, and later causes havok. We are pairing The Stuff with the short subject “The Haunted Mouth,” for an entire night of dental and dessert horror. In “The Haunted Mouth,” plaque is the evil spirit haunting a haunted house, meant to scare children into brushing and flossing. The short film is narrated by Cesar Romero of “Batman” fame. (Mr. Romero also did some of his schooling in Riverdale.)

From Edgar Allan Poe’s explorations of undeveloped northern Manhattan wilderness to H.P. Lovecraft’s documented walking tours of then-Inwood Forest (which Lovecraft described as “…a forest primeval, with winding paths, gigantic trees, and not a mortal in sight.”), the northern Manhattan area has been home to countless famous and unusual imaginations. The beginnings of the film industry were right across the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee, where luminaries like famed magician Harry Houdini hung from the Palisades cliffs in early film serials; the origin of the term “cliffhanger”.

(Doors at 7:00pm) The Stuff and Dust Devil are both R-rated, and not suitable for children. Dracula and Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park are either unrated or PG-rated. After each screening, we’ll hang out to connect and talk about the films.

An exploration of terror and the fantastic from Northern Manhattan.  “Dimensions of Darkness” is a four-part series exploring the horror, science fiction and the fantastic, with a focus on filmmakers, writers and performers from or associated with the northern Manhattan and surrounding areas.  Curated and hosted by production and screening collective KHLOARIS and Inwood Art Works.

Director Tod Browning’s adaptation of Bram Stoker’s famous novel, starring the iconic Bela Lugosi, is one the most famous horror movies ever made. It kick-started Universal Studio’s horror cycle, and helped turn Dracula into one of the most famous names in horror, cinema and pop culture. In the role of vampire hunter Van Helsing was one Edward Van Sloan. Van Sloan lived for a time on 215th Street and Seaman Avenue in Inwood, while performing on Broadway. He was one of the most prolific character actors in horror films from the golden age, also appearing in Frankenstein, The Mummy, Dracula’s Daughter, Behind the Mask, Before I Hang and others. Preceding Dracula will be the 1931 short horror-comedy “Boo,” made up of clips from Universal’s horror output and incredibly dated jokes. Directly following the feature will be an exclusive screening of the rare 1-minute epilogue to Dracula. Hosted by Van Sloan, censors objected to this epilogue’s playful assertion that vampires are indeed real. It was removed from the film and was, until recently, considered lost.

From Edgar Allan Poe’s explorations of undeveloped northern Manhattan wilderness to H.P. Lovecraft’s documented walking tours of then-Inwood Forest (which Lovecraft described as “…a forest primeval, with winding paths, gigantic trees, and not a mortal in sight.”), the northern Manhattan area has been home to countless famous and unusual imaginations. The beginnings of the film industry were right across the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee, where luminaries like famed magician Harry Houdini hung from the Palisades cliffs in early film serials; the origin of the term “cliffhanger”.

(Doors at 7:00pm) The Stuff and Dust Devil are both R-rated, and not suitable for children. Dracula and Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park are either unrated or PG-rated. After each screening, we’ll hang out to connect and talk about the films.