Halloween is just around the corner, and here in Manchester, spooky season starts early. Along with the beloved inflatable monsters and pumpkin lanterns that turn up every year, one of the city’s favourite independent cinemas is getting in on the action. 2022 at Cultplex saw the birth of STAB, a weekend long celebration of horror movies, and it was such a wild success that they’re doing it all again.
This time, it won’t just be a weekend worth of Halloween treats but a whole month of some of cinema’s best horrific output. Kicking off with the local horror classic Living Dead at Manchester Morgue on Wednesday 2 October, the season is set to be broader than ever, with absolute classics like The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari, right up to the double bill of the recent Shiva Baby and Bodies Bodies Bodies.
The now synonymous Scream marathon will screen at Cultplex on October 6, with a mammoth four Scream films – buckle in. Things of course continue to get scarier, climaxing with horror classics The Exorcist and Alien on Halloween night, continuing past the big night into November with The Slumber Party Massacre double bill and the iconic Death Becomes Her on the first and second of the month resepctively.
More classic horror films coming to Cultplex this October include screenings of The Mummy, Suspiria (1977), The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Bride of Frankenstein, A Nightmare on Elm Street and so many more.
What’s more, for the living dead fans, there’ll be yet another zombie all-nighter as in previous years. As part of the STAB season, Cultplex will hold the scare-a-thon on the night of October 12 to the wee hours of October 13, kicking off with the adrenaline-pumping modern classic Train to Busan − brace yourself for an emotional rollercoaster through a zombie-infested train.
After that, the rosters shifts gears to the punk-fueled chaos of Return of the Living Dead, packed with dark humor and fast-moving ghouls. As you move into the blackness of night, the claustrophobic terror of REC will have you gripping your seat, and finally the night closes with the visceral, gut-munching horror of Fulci’s Zombie Flesh Eaters. Can you survive the entire night?
Not only are there films galore (and full of gore) but there will also be a few special STAB events thrown in for good measure, with regular Cultplex favourites Quiz Show and MAGL (renamed Maghoul) getting a Halloween makeover, and A Lovely Time’s Simpsons Pub Quiz Down With Homework will be focusing exclusively on the Treehouse of Horror episodes.
You can snap up said tickets for the entire STAB season at Cultplex here, if you dare!