ONCE UPON A TIME IN SPAIN'S DARKEST DAYS Guillermo del Toro speaks about his exquisitely violent fairy tale masterpiece, Pan's Labyrinth. Plus: An interview with star Ivana Baquero and a look at the rise of the horrific children's fable. by Jovanka Vuckovic BLACK TIDINGS Bob Clark looks back on a career in horror that culminated with his seminal Canadian slasher film, Black Christmas. Plus: Interviews with John Saxon, Andrea Martin and more! by Paul Corupe, Jovanka Vuckovic, John W. Bowen and Dave Alexander A GRIM FAIRY TALE Acclaimed painter Camille Rose Garcia envisions a dark universe in her new illustrated picto-novellette, The Magic Bottle. by Kirsten Anderson DIARY OF A GHOST HUNTER Award-winning British journalist Will Storr discusses his extensive investigation into the plausibility of ghosts, with some surprising results. by Monica S. Kuebler

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NOTE FROM UNDERGROUND: Christmastime. DREADLINES: Romero returns to indie roots for new Dead film, British company launches first horror serial for cellphones, Stoker Awards and World Horror Convention combine forces in Toronto. THE CORONER'S REPORT: Weird stats and morbid facts. The Rue Morgue Sick Top Six Instances of Saw's Cruelest Crimes. NEEDFUL THINGS: Simon Marsden's The Haunted Realm calendar, Monster Guitar Picks, Vampire Condoms, Ghastly Greeings Holiday Cards. CINEMACABRE: Reviews of Saw III, Tideland, City of Rott, Tomie: Revenge, Headspace, Dead Waves, The Plague, The Curse of Lizzie Borden, Ax 'Em, Axe, and The Grudge: Ju-on 2 goes head-to-head with The Grudge 2. Reissues presents Richard Stanley's Dust Devil and two films from Teruo Iishii, Japan's king of cult. Reviews of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, Street Trash: Meltdown Edition and The Other. CINEMARQUEE: The Inner Sanctum Mysteries (1943-45). SCHIZOID CINEPHILE: Alice, Sweet Alice. BLOOD IN FOUR COLOURS: Featuring four reissued modern classics, plus reviews of Blessed Thistle, Beowulf the Legend (Convention Edition), '68, The Dark Horse Book of Monsters, Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall. THE NINTH CIRCLE: Spotlight: Two new collections of haunting photography. Plus! Reviews of Creepy Crawls: A Horror Fiend's Travel Guide, Black Sabbath Doom Let Loose: An Illustrated History, Read By Dawn Vol. 1, Dark Shadows: The Salem Branch, Jeff Strand's Pressure, and more! TRAVELOGUE OF TERROR: The Screaming Heads - Burk's Falls, Ontario. THE GORE-MET: Menu: Bagman. AUDIO DROME: Spotlight: DigitMovies Italo-horror soundtracks. Reviews of Rock `n' Roll Nightmare OST, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning OST, Monster Genocide, The Uniquiet Void, Super Heroines, Headspace, Zombina and the Skeletones, Diabolos, Necrophagia, Fatal Thir13en, and more! PLAY DEAD: Betrayal at the House on the Hill, Ultimate Ghosts `n' Goblins, F.E.A.R. CLASSIC CUT: Roman Polanski's Repulsion.