Horror Cache is back again this year and just in time for Halloween!

I've hidden a 2 page horror story in the woods of Hanwell, New Brunswick and everyone is invited to come find it. The creepy tale is inside a weather proof canister along with a log book and a Tim Horton's gift card to go to the person who gets there first! It's like a geocache except with added horror.

For more details, including coordinates and video hints of where to find it, please check out the YouTube video below.

It's October and that means that it's time for #TwoSentenceHorrorStory here at the Dark Opera! 

You can find one such entry every day over on the Facebook page. Here's one example: 

Walking up the basement stairs I reached to click off the light. My heart froze when I heard the creak on the step behind me.

and others:

I waited and watched the gnarled apple trees slowly lose every feature in the dying light of day. When their trunks became jet black, they began to move like twisted beasts, apples like tiny hearts, pulsating gently in an autumn breeze.
​

Back in July I was inspired by the woods in Odell Park here in Fredericton. I ended up creating a horror story that I designed to be read in a special spot in that park. The product was the first entry about a story of three witches. I am excited to be able to share it with everyone now. 

Click Here to read:
She, Who Lost Her Body

October has arrived! You can look forward to an increase in activity here on the site and on the Facebook/Twitter outlets so please keep an eye out on all of  them. Here are some things you can look forward to:

• The return of the "Two Sentence Horror Stories." Contributor Kevin and I will be hard at work at churning out the creepiest two sentences you'll read this October. They'll appear on the social media feeds daily.
• Five new Short Stories! You can expect one to drop every weekend here on the website. This will include the "Horror Cache" experience short stories. Get ready for some scary new entries.
•  Two new Youtube animations! These chilling new animations will appear as a surprise throughout the month.

I hope you're as excited about this time of year as we are! 
​

Looking for something to do and you're in the Fredericton area? I have crafted three new horror short stories that I have hid in the woods. One in New Maryland, one in Lincoln and one in Odell park. They are stories about how three witches haunt the places where they died. It's up to you to find these stories using the footage and coordinates I've provided in the Youtube video below. Did I mention that each horror cache has a Tim Horton's gift card to go to whoever gets there first! 

The August "Three Witches" Horror Cache experience is officially over for this year. Thanks everyone who participated!

So be warned: There’s no action. There’s no real gore. No one-liners... 


It’s only even a drama in a loose sense as there’s barely any drama. It’s like we’re coming to the story after everything’s happened and everyone’s just – dealing. It’s a slow moving, heavy, tragic, black cloud. Does that sound like fun? Depressing? Sure is. It’s a Zombie movie, sure, I guess, but especially in the sense that many works in the genre can be seen as commentary on our world and experience. In this instance, it might help to view it as commentary on how dark it gets in the face of terminal illness.

It’s a story about a father being with his daughter through the final stages of turning into a zombie. He wrestles with his role in those final stages; she comes to terms with the impending loss of control and end of her conscious life. The underlying themes here are of choices, control and consequences.

Is it rainy outside? Yes? Do you feel a little like the sky? That might be a good test as to if you’re in the mood for this. If you are, get ready for some artsy cinematography, and some surprising performances. Schwarzenegger pulls off an emotional roll well (Here’s hoping it’s the first of many more), but the real star is Breslin, who really shines. What keeps the movie going is well told stories of how people and families were infected and affected by the outbreak. It keeps you thinking after the end credits have rolled. It was a surprising and impressive watch and it gets an 8/10. It was rainy outside… and now it’ll be rainy inside. *points to heart, “Inside here”.

(SPOILER WARNING) Seriously though, casting Arnold as the father in Maggie, in my opinion was pretty damn smart. Not because Arnold ended up pulling through, and turning out a subtle but effective performance, but because of who he is as an icon. There’s no escaping that tough man, Arnold Schwarzenegger is a pegged action hero. He’s every bit what we imagine a competent protector might be. That’s the appeal for a great part of the movie. It is heartbreaking to watch someone as strong as Arnold struggle to keep his daughter from harm, when really there's little he can do.There's weight in the realization that he must protect her from herself, and eventually others from his own daughter. The twist here is that the movie is more about the person being protected. Because Arnold’s has such a screen presence, it forces a perspective that’s turned on its head in an abrupt ending when we realize that it wasn't about Arnold’s character’s choice and his struggle, but that of his daughter. 

The Innkeepers is a 2011 horror movie directed by Ti West (The House of the Devil), and starring Sara Paxton, Pat Healy, and Kelly McGillis.

The Setup: It's old hotel's last weekend open and two of the staffers decide to try and document the presence of longtime ghost, Madeline O'Malley.

I'm a big fan of a slow burning, atmospheric and completely creepy movie. Mmmm, so good, right?. I got to The Innkeepers as a recommendation in line with those interests.

Good news. Slow burning is true in this case. It's a little heavy in the character development area, but the dialogue is an entertaining enough mix of awkward and witty that it carries the movie up until and in between injections of creepy.

Sara Paxton's character here is one of the most offbeat leads I've seen in a horror movie. Kinda refreshing.

The Innkeepers soundtrack is great and surprising. In the beginning, it takes on a very low key approach to tension and gives it an almost made for TV feel. But when the onscreen tension mounts, it delivers in a big way.

The movie has atmosphere. It takes a back seat to character in the first half, slowing the thing down, but when it's there, it's great. The real scary set pieces are here too - mostly - which include a genuinely unsettling old man who checks in to the hotel last minute for a final stay in an old honey moon sweet.

But (...There's a but) there's one fatal flaw that stops this movie from becoming an awesome hidden gem. It's the ghost of Madeline O'Malley herself. In a day and age of CG added effects, it's nice to see filmmakers go for something more practical, but the end result here, was for me, the telltale eye holes cut out of a white bed sheet ghost - The fact that it looked fake took away from the horror. Was the scare factor still there? sure, but not what it could have been. Luckily, at the end, there's one awesomely creepy piece of imagery sandwiched between two shaky ones, so there's that for those who aren't easily spooked.

It's still a good watch, if you like the pacing slow and are in for something different. The Innkeepers gets a 6.8/10.

- Josh

Welcome to the new Dark Opera!

I recently added another year of service for the domain and decided to give the site an update. Main focus here was a big clean up of the menu options. Don't worry, everything is still here, it's just hidden better.

Also, there are more Youtube videos and even some fan fiction on the way to help draw new followers. If you're here because of that, Welcome. If you're a longtime follower, welcome back! Drop me a line in the comments below.

Please don't forget that if you write stories, you can send them to me to be potentially published here. Also, if you have some cool black and white photographs you think would look awesome in the top banner, please send them in, I am hoping to switch it up from time to time.

What do you think of the new site? I can't wait to dig in on another year of creativity!

- Josh

So Japan made a video about car breaks. It's got all sorts of hidden meaning too. Supposedly the girl they narrowly avoid hitting is signing "Listen for the..." and then, supposedly, the audio fills in the rest via a small mumble. I couldn't make it out. em Japanese folk for ye.

Wasn't that great? 

Now don't forget to show your friends.

- Josh