New: The POSSESSED: The Filmmakers Video Diary Part 3 of 5

PART 3! On the Supernatural Insane road with the Filmmakers, The Booth Brothers. Behind The Scenes making of THE POSSESSED (Spooked Television Releasing). A NEW shocking documentary from "epic reality" filmmakers the Booth Brothers (Spooked, Children of the Grave (as seen on Sci Fi Channel). " The Possessed " is a paranormal investigation into the twisted world of possession!

The Possessed (DVD) Reviewed by Elaine Lamkin/ Dread Central

The Possessed (DVD) Reviewed by Elaine Lamkin/ Dread Central. Directed by The Booth Brothers. Distributed by Spooked Television Releasing. (as seen on SyFy (Sci Fi) Channel/NBC Universal)

Back in the sweltering hot summer of 2004, two decidedly eccentric (but in a good way) Brits descended on Louisville, Kentucky to shoot a horror film in our local abandoned tuberculosis sanatorium, Waverly Hills. That film, Death Tunnel, while creepy because of its setting, was rather overlooked by most horror fans. But the Booth Brothers, Philip Adrian Booth and Christopher Saint Booth, seemed to find their calling. To investigate and document ghostly happenings all over the US.
After shooting Death Tunnel, the Booth Brothers went on to shoot one more feature film, Shadow Box (2005), which was the very last film of actor Matthew McGrory (The Devil’s Rejects, House of 1000 Corpses), before they took the plunge into documentary filmmaking. First up was a documentary ON the ghosts of Waverly Hills, Spooked: The Ghosts of Waverly Hills (2006), which had some seriously creepy moments (I have been to Waverly and can attest to the…eerie-ness…of the place). This was followed by Children of the Grave (2007), which dealt with child hauntings, abandoned orphanages and cemeteries, shadow children, poltergeist, etc. It was while working on this documentary that the Booth Brothers first heard about the Watseka, Illinois haunting. This became their current film, The Possessed (2008).
I will admit that this is one of the weirder hauntings I have ever heard about: a young girl named Mary Roff, from Watseka, after years of violent behavior, “fits”, self-mutilation, etc., was committed by her family to an insane asylum in Peoria, Illinois, where she died at the age of 19 on July 5, 1865. Twelve years later a young girl, also from Watseka, Lurancy Vennum, began exhibiting the same behavior as Mary did years before. But before her family could have her committed, on January 31, 1878, Asa Roff, Mary’s father, visited the Vennum family and convinced them not to commit their daughter. He was convinced that Mary Roff had possessed young Lurancy Vennum. Interestingly, the Vennum family had no knowledge of Mary Roff and her trials as Mary had died 7 years before, when Lurancy was barely a year old, plus the Vennum family didn’t move to Watseka until Lurancy was 7 years old. But on July 11, 1877, the same violent, bizarre behavior Mary had exhibited years before started manifesting itself with Lurancy. And things got even weirder.
The Booth Brothers tell the entire story of Mary Roff and Lurancy Vennum in their documentary. They travel to Watseka, Illinois to film at the actual Roff and Vennum homes. They even interview a great-niece of Lurancy’s who remembered that no one was to talk about what happened to Aunt ‘Rancy all those years before. Various paranormal experts were brought in to assist: Rosemary Ellen Guiry, PhD in Paranormal Studies, Keith Age from the Louisville Ghost Hunters Association, John Zaffis, a demonologist who consulted on the Amityville Horror case, Kathy Reno of the fascinating Glore Psychiatric Museum in St. Joseph, Missouri (I want to check THAT place out!), the current owners of both the Vennum house and the Roff home as well as mediums, historians, and one gentleman who has created odd but apparently much-used “ghost hunter” equipment that can “talk” for the spirits.
I was fascinated by the documentary – the Booth Brothers have a wonderful knack for filming things in as creepy a way as possible and for recreating the historic events with period-correct actors. My biggest beef with The Possessed, though, was the interjection of modern-day people, mostly teenagers, who claimed they had been possessed. Just too jarring when you’re wrapped up in this 19th Century tale of possession. Plus, in my opinion, these 21st Century “victims” just didn’t seem very believable. Should have just left them out – the documentary was fascinating without them. However, there WAS some footage of the real “Emily Rose” (Anneliese Michel) that was chilling.
Believe in ghosts or not, the Booth Brothers do a terrific job researching the hauntings and finding people who can explain (or not) what happened. And they are very serious about their “ghost-hunting”. I have suggested to Philip and Christopher that they should tackle the Villisca Axe Murder House next (Google THAT one and read about it – brrrrrr!!), but they have so many projects, both together and separately, that it may be a while before we see the next haunting tale from the Booth Brothers.
So if you’re in the mood for something a bit different from your “everyday” haunting, check out The Possessed, and let’s hope the Booth Brothers do some more creepy documentaries soon.

Special Features
60 Minutes of Bonus Footage
Producer's Video Diary
Galleries
Alternate and Deleted Scenes
On Location in Watseka

Reviewed by Elaine Lamkin http://www.dreadcentral.com/reviews/possessed-the-dvd

NOW ON DVD Uncut. Order Online at www.thepossessedmovie.com or at www.spookedtv.com

DarkPlace DVD Review A feast for horror lovers.

DARKPLACE NOW ON DVD! DARKPLACE: Matthew McGrory (Devil's Rejects and Big Fish) stars in his last, terrifying film performance as a hillbilly giant. Along with the local preacher, together they exorcise their ritual of dark cleansing by locking you up inside an ancient box forcing you to face your inner demons. But when a 10 year old boy is locked up inside, his darkest fears sets loose an inferno of relentless evil. Cast: Matthew McGrory, Timothy Lee DePriest, Benjamin Bryan, Irwin Keyes, Dougald Park, Pippi. Studio: Spooked Television Releasing.Run Time: 94 minutes. DVD Format: Keep Case, Widescreen Anamorphic,1.78:1, Color. DVD Features: Subtitles: English, Dolby Digital 5.1. DVD Extras: Behind The Scenes, Gallery of Horror, Bloopers, Deleted Scenes, Special Tribute to "Matthew McGrory".

Dark Place is the perfect title for this disturbing look at a nightmare. Featuring "The Brothers" signature dark scenes, and equally dark story this film is delicious. A feast for horror lovers. "The shadow box", is where two evil hillbillies lock up people to "cleanse" them of their demons. When one particularly haunted little boy is locked inside, his demons prove to be more than the box can contain. It brings forth evil in forms that most humans couldn't imagine, however, my favorite filmmakers have no trouble showing a world that was never meant to be seen. The child who has grown to be a very crazy young man has hidden secrets. The guilt of his mother's suicide is the main horror that has been put upon him by his father.
As another character, a doctor, is summoned to this place of nightmares, both are thrown deeper into a place that seems inescapable. If you took the images from this film, as pictures, and edited them one after the other and took away the soundtrack, you would have a nightmare montage of unequaled horror. If in turn, you took just the soundtrack, without the pictures and just spliced together the sounds of the damned, you would have a nightmarish voice from hell.
This film is well done, acting is superior.

The only problem I had was finding out that the walking nightmare of the film, Matthew McGrory had passed away. This is his last film. He passed away in 2005. He was 7 feet 6 inches tall. A menacing figure on film. Actor Matthew McGrory. RIP.

You can often catch the Booth's films on SyFy (Sci Fi channel.) DARKPLACE DVD! Available Online at www.darkplacemovie.com

Full Review at http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-10191-Indie-Movie-Examiner~y2009m8d9-DVD-review-Dark-Place-The-Booth-Brothers-still-Indie-Darlings-VIDEO by Terra King

The Possessed Number One Top Ten Best Haunted Paranormal Documentary

THE TOP TEN BEST HAUNTED PARANORMAL DOCUMENTARIES - DVD's. These documentaries have been voted by the readers of Haunted America Tours as the best in the world to investigate real ghosts and hauntings. The 10 million plus of you that came to our web site voted for these haunted Paranormal Documentaries feel that these are the best of the best! And certainly we at Haunted America Tours surely agree. Haunted America Tours in each of our Top Ten Categories believe that it is the choice of you the visitor to our site to tell the world who and what you like. And applaud those that strive so hard to make what we know as being Paranormal activity, Ghost Hunting and Paranormal Investigation and research more mainstream to public acceptance. These to many are the most watched and all time To date. These are of course our favorites and of many armchair ghost hunters alike. And if you haven't seen them we hope you do and enjoy them as much as the rest of the paranormal community and the world does. Today paranormal television is a genre of popular television broadcasting.

1. The Possessed (Spooked TV/Sci Fi Channel)
2. A Haunting - Seasons 1-4 (A&E)
3. Paranormal State Season 1 (A&E)
4. Children Of The Grave (SpookedTV/Sci Fi Channel)
5. Haunted History - Haunted Histories Collection (History Channel)
6. Beyond Belief: Season One (Fox)
7. 14 Degrees - A Paranormal Documentary
8. Travel Channel: Paranormal Destinations (Travel Channel)
9. Hauntings In America
10. Ghosts Among Us

# 1. THE POSSESSED. (Spooked TV/Sci Fi Channel) Directed and Produced by Philip Adrian Booth; Christopher Saint Booth. Available Online at www.spookedtv.com

THE POSSESSED: The belief in possession by evil spirits plagued the 18th century. Madness and hysteria spread classifying the mentally ill as Being under the control of the Devil. These sad misfits became the victims of bizarre exorcisms or Casting Out Rituals. Banished from society they were locked away inside brutal asylums. Some called them Angels, others called them Devils, they all were branded, The Possessed! Based on the True Story, The Watseka Wonder, America's first documented possession of 1877. A chilling journal of a 13-year-old girl from the small town of Watseka, IL who became possessed by spirits of the insane dead!

THE POSSESSED DVD Reviews: The DVD much like the documentary itself is bursting with incredible extras in the form of features and much more. Sharing everything from the raw footage, behind the scenes, galleries and even a personal filmmaker's video diary. Remember this is the unseen version not seen when televised on the Sci-Fi Channel, so in essences you get over 60 minutes more. If you are truly a fan of the paranormal, or a ghost hunter at heart this is the grand daddy of them all. Happy Haunting! --Cinema DVD Reviews

In true Booth Brothers style, this DVD is dark, both literally and content wise. They take you through the case, and also go on side trips to visit contemporary teens who were possessed; Including some discussion of the real woman from the Emily Rose case. The trip through the Watseka case shows us the Victorian age death of a teenage girl and several years later the possession of another girl also in Watseka by the girl who died. Be it true or not, this DVD is entertaining and very very creepy. It's worth watching and keeping in your collection to show for Halloween or other events that warrant the watching of scary DVDs. Sci-Fi Channel is the outlet where the Booth's films are shown. --Las Vegas Examiner Terra King

Angels to Some, Devils to others, no we're not talking about the Hellraiser films. Our journey is an investigation in the form of the recent The Possessed, a documentary covering specific cases of reported possessions. Several instances are featured though the primary one comes in the form of The Watseka Wonder. A rather bizarre case that extends not one generation but an additional possession of another in town. Mary Roff who died at the young age of 18 was a sufferer of seizure episodes and violent fits all her life. In 1877, things were different with many of these case easily dismissed as insanity without the present medial knowledge we have today. Mary Roff is explored, researched and contacted though psychic mediums. The results are startling. The Booth Brothers put together another fine documentary piece that explores this very phenomena. In the course of the film, we also hear about cases such as the Annilease Michel (Emily Rose ) case, Dewi Morgaine, Marcus Tallbull, Kelly March and Michael Jones (who dies 26 times as a primi baby). Each of these cases are documented possession cases that are still highly controversial to this day. The Possessed fits perfectly in with the level of consumer interest in all things supernatural. The product is well done and the story is equally impressive. A haunting piece indeed. --Horror New Net.

THE POSSESSED: Horror Documentary, Not Rated, WARNING: Contains disturbing images of real possession! May not be suitable for all audiences. Approx. 90 minutes, Stereo, Color, Filmed and Mastered in High Definition. NOW ON DVD www.thepossessedmovie.com





#4.CHILDREN OF THE GRAVE. (Spooked TV/Sci Fi Channel) Directed and Produced by Philip Adrian Booth; Christopher Saint Booth. Available Online at www.spookedtv.com.

This the highly anticipated follow-up to the Booth Brothers 2006 documentary Spooked: The Ghosts of Waverly Hills Sanatorium. This haunted Indie film is one of the finest that I have seen in many years. And so like its predecessor this film delivers more non-stop chills from the very first frame. Many thought the Booth's could not top Spooked The Ghosts Of Waverly Hills Sanatorium their first paranormal documentary outing, but in truth they have surely surpassed it. Many herald The Booths work as a new breed of great paranormal TV to explore. The Booth's unique camera perspective and fantastic direction, editing and score are part of the haunted magical mind's eye that they possess collectively. It is "The Must See" of all that is haunted! More then just a cut above the rest it sets a new standard that many will find hard to reach. This movie is now what I would call a Paranormal Classic Indie Film!

WARNING: GHOST CHILDREN AT PLAY! CHILDREN OF THE GRAVE (As seen on Sci Fi Channel) Look dead into the eye of fear as acclaimed documentary filmmakers, The Booth Brothers ( 'Spooked, The Ghosts Of Waverly Hills Sanatorium' as seen on the Sci Fi Channel) unearth the shocking existence of ghost children! Explore abandoned orphanages and cemeteries,uncovering the tragic history of thousands of orphan inmates buried in unmarked graves. Journey to the Devils Woods and witness the invasion of shadow children. Hunt for an evil ghost predator lurking in the tunnels of a haunted orphan castle. Utilizing the top paranormal experts and high tech gadgetry, the filmmakers capture never-before-seen evidence that Ghosts Do Exist! Are you Scared yet? You should be!

Witness what Sci Fi Channel could not air. Contains additional footage and shocking ghost evidence Gallery, NOW ON DVD www.childrenofthegrave.com.

Read the rest of the top ten reviews at; www.hauntedamericatours.com/media/ParanormalDVD.php

CHILDREN OF THE GRAVE NOW ON DVD UNCUT

NOW ON DVD (As seen on Sci Fi Channel) Look dead into the eye of fear as acclaimed documentary filmmakers, The Booth Brothers ( 'Spooked, The Ghosts Of Waverly Hills Sanatorium' as seen on the Sci Fi Channel) unearth the shocking existence of ghost children! Explore abandoned orphanages and cemeteries,uncovering the tragic history of thousands of orphan inmates buried in unmarked graves. Journey to the Devils Woods and witness the invasion of shadow children. Hunt for an evil ghost predator lurking in the tunnels of a haunted orphan castle. Utilizing the top paranormal experts and high tech gadgetry, the filmmakers capture never-before-seen evidence that Ghosts Do Exist! Are you Scared yet? You should be! NOW ON DVD www.childrenofthegrave.com