Olympus Has Fallen

Olympus Has Fallen (2013)

Runtime: 119 minutes

Directed by: Antoine Fuqua

Starring: Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Rick Yune, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett

From: Several different companies

Most assuredly a better usage of my time than last night's Presidential Debate.

From popular opinion it was a wise decision to completely ignore last night's debates... not that I ever watch them anyhow. Instead, I finally saw this Die Hard clone; sure, it is rather dopey and for certain jingoistic. However, it was still better than the last two Die Hard pictures.

It's a typical story where disgraced Secret Service Agent Mike Banning gets to redeem himself after those damned North Koreans invade the White House (the Olympus referred to in the title) and one crazed A-hole really wants to get revenge on the USA for how terrible his country is... as if the USA was the sole reason for his country's issues. It is a silly movie which has some ropey CG and also a few mean-spirited moments.

All this being said, this does deliver bloody R-rated action featuring a hero easy to root for, a cast full of famous faces-which does help elevate this material-and Mike Banning killing many SOB's. It's not the sort of movie I'll write an extensive review for; instead I'll note the hilarity of this being an instance where it is one of two quite similar pictures coming out at the same time. Perhaps White House Down should be viewed in the future for comparison's sake.

I Discuss A... Dario Argento TV Show From The 70's?

Yes it is true; entitled Dork Into Darkness, it lasted only 4 episodes in 1973. It was a definite change of pace for this time of year.

Until Shudder recently added it to their service, it was a mystery to me that none other than Argento briefly had an Italian television show. Lasting for only four episodes, each was produced and hosted by Dario himself. Judging by this entry, each time he briefly interjected himself into the story as a way to deliver an info dump. To be more specific, Argento's car broke down (insert your own jokes concerning Italian vehicles, motorheads) so he hitches a ride with our two leads, a young couple w/ an infant. He does get out after a short while, but not before we discover the couple are moving to what is described as an apartment out right by the beach.

To be more specific, I would describe it as more of a duplex as there are only two units in the building, but that's just semantics. What rotten luck and misfortune then that Luca and Stefania arrive right after their new neighbor just killed his wife in a fit of rage. What subsequently happens isn't too terribly surprising yet for my tastes it was never dull... even if a few times scenes seemed to be stretched out to fill the 59 minute runtime. Note that this was treated rather seriously and had quality scenes filled with ever-rising tension... that may be a little astonishing once I reveal that the director of this episode was... Luigi Cozzi, the guy who gave us the grand experience known as Star Crash. Overall I'll rule that this was fine, something I was glad to view when time-or a lack thereof-was an issue Monday night.

This is more thriller or suspense than outright horror, but it'll still go on my list of the genre efforts I saw this spooky season. As Argento himself directed two of the episodes, perhaps one or both will be viewed in the upcoming month. For certain, October I expect to see an Argento picture, amongst other Italian horror.

Emelie

Emelie (2015)

Runtime: 82 minutes

Directed by: Michael Thelin

Starring: Sarah Bolger, Joshua Rush, Carly Adams, Thomas Bair, Susan Pourfar, Chris Beetem

From: Dark Sky Films

I can't in this all-ages forum disclose what was referred to as “a China hole.”

This is one of those movies that I've known of for quite a while mainly due to it being on Netflix for years. Finally, (Sunday) night I took the plunge and while the front half was better than the back half and it is unsure whether I was supposed to guffaw a few times during the final act, overall it was a good time, despite the serious subject matter.

A young lady named Emilie and a partner kidnap a teen named Anna-this is the opening scene so it's not so much a spoiler-so she could impersonate Anna as she babysits a trio of pre-teen children. I'll just say that at times those children reminded me of my nephews, even including the bratty moments. At first “Anna” seems normal and in fact lets the kids have a lot of freedom but her behavior becomes increasingly disturbing and erratic... then she reveals why she is so mentally disturbed & what her endgame is-”real life horror” is the term I'll use. As many others have stated, perhaps the explanation for her behavior shouldn't have been delivered until much later, in a different fashion or perhaps even not at all.

Admittedly preposterous at times, this was effective at being creepy due to all those things happening to children, not to mention Emelie's psychotic behavior. A big asset is that all three child performances were at least fine; a bad one would have done irreparable harm. However, it was Sarah Bolger as the title girl who was the best aspect as she was great in the role. With the caveat that it does not end as strongly as it began, it's at least a movie which wastes no time, is less than 90 minutes & has a few moments I'll never forget.

Shortcut

Shortcut (2020)

Runtime: 80 minutes

Directed by: Alessio Ligouri

Starring: British actors that no one would have heard of before

From: Several Italian companies

Believe it or not, I saw this random-ass movie theatrically last night; this poor film is actually playing on over 600 screens this weekend: 

I feel REALLY bad for cinema chains right now.

Late last night while viewing Box Office Mojo, an article stated that because people are not returning to American cinemas quickly enough for their tastes-not that I can blame Americans-many big releases that were supposed to come out soon got pushed back either until December or all the way to sometime in 2021. To fill screens in the meanwhile-and this is presuming they stay open rather than shutting down again-I would greatly prefer more classic releases rather than this dreck, which is a real oddity that somehow got put on more than 600 screens with zero advertising and zero knowledge by me that this existed until this past Tuesday, when I looked up what in the hell was even coming out this weekend.

Get this, Shortcut (not to be confused with the Scary Madison production The Shortcut from a little more than a decade ago) is a “horror” movie which is an Italian production obviously filmed in Italy-among other things, the characters are on an old Fiat bus-but the cast is clearly from the UK. The plot: five teens that know each other are on a bus... and that's all the setup we get. Where in the hell are they going is one of many questions that arise; they are driving out in the woods. Debris is in the road so... a shortcut is not taken! Rather, it's a detour on a rural road. Even the title of this movie is F-ed up. They run into a serial killer who is just not an enjoyable or believable character at all; at least I did chuckle that he looked like a British Chris Elliott if he was playing a Rob Zombie character. I wish this doofus would have been dispatched far sooner... the big bad is some sort of bipedal creature which someone on Letterboxd described as resembling the alien that burst from John Hurt's chest in Spaceballs-and that is not inaccurate!

Someone else on Letterboxd proclaimed (to paraphrase) this is like if John Hughes directed Jeepers Creepers 2, only it sucked. I've never seen any of the Jeepers Creepers pictures-yes, the director is one reason why-but they all have to be better than this, and I am sure The Creeper would kick the ass of this movie's villain! It is tied in some way to lunar eclipses in one of the many plot threads not fully explored. There are many problems with this movie: the characters are one-note stereotypes I could not care about... it's not scary at all... you see the creature too often... and there is hardly any gore. The insanity and over the top graphic moments from the old Italian genre pictures, this ain't it. If it wasn't for all the F-bombs, this would have easily been a PG-13. Then again even teens probably would think this was a stupid movie filled with stupid characters and stupid situations... oh, and a stupid way to dispatch a big bad that makes the big bad look like a giant wimp. Heck, this even has a sound mix which is sometimes so putrid, it was like I was viewing a Chris Nolan joint.

What the point of the movie was, that is uncertain. What a waste of what could have been a fine idea: teenagers having to work together in what looks like old underground military barracks. To not be entirely vituperative, the setting itself looked fine-it was just the story and execution that stunk. I imagine the young cast would have done better w/ better material, but alas... a halfway-decent synth score and practical effects are two drops in the bucket when compared to all the problems this movie had. If cinemas can still keep going for the next few months and the odds increase of them being forced to show dreadful new movies like this that popped up out of nowhere, might as well shut the whole thing down for awhile again!

The Outlaw Josey Wales

The Outlaw Josey Wales(1976)

Runtime: 135 minutes

Directed by: Clint Eastwood

Starring: Eastwood, Chief Dan George, Sondra Locke, John Vernon, Bill McKinney

From: Warner Bros.

This was viewed last night on TCM; as it had been many years for me, it was time to finally revisit this Revisionist Western which wasn't too radical but still wasn't the type of film you saw in decades past.

The plot (based on a novel by Forrest Carter... more on that at the end of the review) is simple enough: Eastwood plays a farmer in Missouri during the Civil War who is minding his own business, plowing the fields... when his house is burned down by Jayhawkers-militant guerillas who were so pro-Union, they were happy to destroy anything connected to individuals that were not pro-Union themselves-inspiring the natural reaction of Eastwood getting pissed and wanting revenge. First, he joins up with Confederate guerillas; one day, that goes horribly awry. After that, he wishes to go it alone but he meets up with a motley crew of different people, including Native Americans. Their relationship is reciprocated as they all help each other, especially during the finale.

It is an interesting movie which takes its time telling the story, yet is never dull as there are plenty of confrontations with not so friendly people, who are typically gunned down. There is lovely cinematography from Bruce Surtees throughout; the scenic and sometimes colorful locations are a definite asset. There are also some nice usage of color... the opening credits having footage tainted blue is a harbinger for later moments in the film. A nice cast (for once it wasn't John Vernon that was the main or even a side villain... rather, it is Bill McKinney-best known for wanting Ned Beatty to squeal like a pig in Deliverance-who fills that role), Eastwood's gal at the time Sondra Locke of course showing up-thankfully she was a talented lady-and some levity being provided by Chief Dan George who still manages to deliver some of the movie's best moments of dialogue.

This was a happy revisit... even after realizing a fact that was unbeknownst to me until last night. It's based on a novel by Forrest Carter, a man with supposed Cherokee blood running through his veins... which was the pen name of Asa Earl Carter, a segregationist and a member of the KKK! The reader can go to Wikipedia to read the whole sordid tale-including how Asa claimed in public he was Forrest instead of Asa-but the movie and apparently everything he wrote was a 180 from his bigoted views. For certain, the film portrays Native Americans rather favorably. Henceforth, do not let this sordid detail dissuade you from giving this movie a shot.

I Saw Tremors Theatrically On Wednesday Night

And that was awesome. I've seen it many times in my life-and reviewed here years ago-but that night was the first theatrical experience. I am glad the Cinemark at City Walk at Universal Studios played it.

Captain Clegg

Captain Clegg (1962)

Runtime: 82 minutes

Directed by: Peter Graham Scott

Starring: Peter Cushing, Patrick Allen, Yvonne Romain, Oliver Reed, Michael Ripper

From: Hammer

Obviously, Rob Zombie is a fan of this picture.

A few days ago, I looked at the profile page of a mutual on Letterboxd, in order to return the favor and like one of their reviews. Their current favorites list has four Hammer horror movies with great poster art... at least I presume that's what they were going for there. This was one of those movies; as the film has quite a few bitchin' posters and somehow I never saw any Hammer during the last spooky season, this was a problem that needed to be rectified. In addition, this movie's existence was somehow a mystery to me until a few days ago.

Turns out, there isn't much horror in this film; no problem with me, though-it is still a tale that is a lot of fun. The setting is late 18th century England, in the real-life Romney Marsh area in the southeastern area of the country. A legendary pirate-the titular Clegg-is buried in a small village; many of the residents in the town are actually smugglers, a fact that has attracted the attention of the British government. Peter Cushing is the town's parson, leading everyone in church... yes he is part of the smuggling also; in fact, he says he knew Clegg right before he was hung for his crimes. There is also an aspect that attracted my attention even before I pressed play on Amazon: marsh phantoms! They resemble skeletons and even ride on skeleton horses. The few times they do appear, their visage is pretty incredible, and those moments are full of atmosphere.

Thank heavens that the crux of the movie is always intriguing even if it is not horror-related. Oliver Reed has a key role, not to mention a great head of hair... it doesn't compare to the hilarious wig that Cushing dons throughout. In addition, Hammer films typically have random beauties in the cast, and Yvonne Romain definitely filled that role. It is a rather enjoyable adventure picture which has the village attempting to thwart the efforts of the government to stop their smuggling of French booze, a romance involving Reed and Romain, & there's even a “mulatto mute” character that was formerly an underling of Clegg.

While some moments were obvious, overall this was a pretty good time. I referenced Rob Zombie as the shoe dropped last night when I streamed this on Amazon under its American release title of Night Creatures. This is why in Zombie's Halloween II, there is that psychobilly band which is named Captain Clegg & The Night Creatures.

Color Me Blood Red

Color Me Blood Red (1965)

Runtime: A surprisingly long 79 minutes

Directed by: Herschell Gordon Lewis

Starring: A bunch of amateurs, most of whom definitely can't act

From: Box Office Spectaculars... which I am sure is not true in any way here

When a piece of trivia connected to the movie is far more interesting than the movie itself...

In the past I have viewed both Blood Feast and Two Thousand Maniacs on multiple occasions, yet this film was a first time watch for me. About time I did this... even if I found the movie to be utterly tiresome. The first two in the unofficial Blood Trilogy are filled with flaws yet Blood Feast was at least historic in the amount of graphic gore it had and Maniacs was legit fun due to its premise and death scenes. This... what a waste of an interesting premise. The fact that blood outside the body dries out and turns brown instead of red... that is the least of this movie's problems.

There isn't much to the plot of a crazed painter (at least played by a random amateur who looks half-insane and acts rather daffy) who accidentally discovers that blood makes for great paint, and this leads to a few random people being killed. Note that of the Blood Trilogy, this has by far the least amount of gore. The biggest issue isn't even that or some of the acting being straight out of an adult movie in terms of “quality.” No, it is the fact that this d-r-a-g-s due to everything being stretched out to fill just 79 minutes of runtime. This is even worse filmmaking than in the first two movies.

A shame this wasn't better as the general idea is at least amusing, and at least there are some intentional laughs. However, the biggest one came from a truly absurd moment. In one of the many scenes involving water cycles, a random guy is on one and our villain is in a boat, heading straight towards him w/ a harpoon. This guy never jumps off the cycle into the water! He is just frozen there, yelling like an A-hole; it reminded me of the streamroller scene in the first Austin Powers. The aforementioned piece of trivia I learned last night: in the opening credits, Robert Sinise was listed as the editor; he edited every movie in the Blood Trilogy, something I somehow never noticed until going to IMDb to see if the obvious thought was true... yes, his son actually IS who you think it is. It is amazing to me this interesting piece of trivia never crossed my path until yesterday.

The Chain Reaction

The Chain Reaction (1980)

Runtime: 93 minutes

Directed by: Ian Barry

Starring: Steve Bisley, Arna-Maria Winchester, Ross Thompson, Ralph Cotterill, Hugh Keays-Byrne

From: Several Australian companies

My referencing several people from Max Max recently inspired me to finally track down this Ozploitation picture (nevermind how) which I have been familiar with for a few years via messageboard discussion, as it has more Mad Max ties than you'd expect. It also gives me a chance to plug an awesome score that the synthwave fans will love.

It has an interesting plot: an earthquake happens at a nuclear power plant that appears to be many kilometers away from civilization aside from dingoes and kangaroos. A leak happens and a scientist gets a fatal dose attempting to fix the problem. He escapes as his superiors want to cover it up... despite the fact that it has leaked to the outside. What makes this different is that this scientist hits and head and gets amnesia (I know, convenient) and runs into auto mechanic/race car driver Steve Bisley-Goose from Mad Max-& his girlfriend as they are spending the weekend in the middle of nowhere. This does mean that we get some car chases and as they were ghost-directed by associate producer George Miller, they were pretty rad. The director on record (Ian Barry) did a fine job but it was a wise idea to have Miller do those scenes.

The movie is unfortunately pretty uneven; at times things grind to a halt. You also don't want to scrutinize this thriller with too fine a comb. That said, I can still give this three stars. The outback scenery was nice to look at... there is suspense as the guys in hazmat suits meet up with the main characters, along with the main heel of course being a German... and it was nice that this has some familiar faces. Besides Bisley, in a key supporting role was Hugh Keays-Byrne and an early scene was a Mad Max reunion as appearing in cameo form was Roger Ward and... an uncredited Mel Gibson. As I do understand those that would skip a movie featuring him after what's been revealed in recent years... I will reiterate that he's heard and seen on screen for like 30 seconds total.

One last thing: a huge assist for this was that this has an AWESOME synth score from Andrew Thomas Wilson. All the synthwave fans should track it down (at the moment the entire soundtrack can easily be found on YouTube) as it's quite boss... especially when our hero's souped-up Holden One Tonner (that's their car-based pickup, sometimes referred to as a Ute) is going real fast. It was an odd mix that managed to work well-enough for me overall.

Boar

Boar (2017)

Runtime: 96 minutes

Directed by: Chris Sun

Starring: John Jarratt, Simone Buchanan, Bill Moseley, Nathan Jones, Roger Ward

From: A few Australian companies... and Universal?!

Featuring Australian Jennifer Love Hewitt.

This is the second of two movies that I saw last night in a natural double bill of “killer boar pictures which are not Razorback.” Comparisons with that Russell Mulcahy picture which concerns the title creature killing people out in the Outback is especially apt here as it is also from The Land Down Under. 1984's Razorback was a surprisingly arty take on what was a blatant Jaws riff, filled with the sort of curious characters I'd expect in an Ozploitation picture. In fact, posting this second was for any Aussie readers to see the review while they are awake.

This was quite a bit different from that Ozploitation classic, which is fine as I'd prefer it do its own thing. In this case, a giant killer boar that for unexplained reasons is bigger than a Mini Cooper starts raising hell in a rural area, which includes the woods. Then, the creature from hell makes its way to the ranch owned by Nathan Jones (the enormous human being who was a poor pro wrestler than became an actor who was a character I don't even remember from Fury Road... rather, I remember him from the Tony Jaa The Protector) and his family just happens to be visiting at the time.

For me it was a gas seeing Jones as a family man rather than a bodyguard or another sort of hulking brute. Some other familiar faces show up: Bill Moseley as an American who married into the family, an Australian actress who is best described as Australian Jennifer Love Hewitt, and as old buddies who love consuming XXXX beer, John Jarratt and Roger Ward... best known to me as Fifi from Mad Max. Unfortunately, he does not appear wearing only leather pants and a black ascot as he waters plants! Steve Bisley (Jim Goose from Max Max) is also in this... for like 15 seconds.

It was a mystery to me how I would feel about Boar just based on the description. Thankfully, for my tastes it was fine. The setting did amuse me; indeed there were colorful Australians present. Plenty of “mate” and “bloody” and one “Sheila” was uttered. Many of the horror scenes were set at night out in the woods or on the grassy hills by the woods; between that and sound being used instead of image to express horrifying moments... those are ideas I generally approve of and that was presented decently-enough in the film. It was gorier than I expected, so that has to be noted for the gorehounds out there. And I was greatly amused by the pairing of Jarratt & Ward as friends who constantly bickered w/ each other.

My personal tastes and my amusement at Australian life in general does have an impact on how I rate this; many being “meh” is understandable... me, the amount of entertainment I garnered from the movie and it not being a pile of pig crap means I thought this was fine. A bore this was not. Plus, via an anecdote from a minor character, I learned of the old Aborigine legend of Yara-ma-yha-who. Perhaps it hasn't been made into a creature feature in deference to the Aborigine people, but wait until you hear about this creature: a reddish frog-like creature that lives in trees and not only attacks humans and sucks their blood, but swallows them... for the purpose of regurgitating them for later meals! Talk about wild.

Chaw

Chaw (Chawu) (2009)

Runtime: A way too long 122 minutes

Directed by: Shin-Jung Won

Starring: Uhm Tae-Woong, Jung Yu-Mi, Jeong Yu-Min, Josiah D. Lee, Yoon Je-Moon

From: A few South Korean companies

This is the first of two reviews I'll be posting today, I had a natural double feature yesterday. First was a South Korean picture I have on DVD via someone I know on a messageboard mailing it to me a few years ago-long story I won't get into here. The fact that he did not want it anymore was a sign, along with several private comments he said to me at the time. Still, I went into it with an open mind.

Alas, this film-which was put on disc in the United States as Chawz because this blatantly riffs on Jaws-was not that much fun for me. Sure, it is a comedy which did make me laugh a few times. Be that as it may, there was plenty of “comedy” and much of it was more irritating than inspired any sort of mirth or joy in me. Buffoon stereotypical characters, slapstick that annoyed-and this is coming from a slapstick fan-a distinct lack of gore, and me not giving a damn about a dope and his dopey family meant that this was not too enjoyable for me. The 122 minute runtime did it no favors, either.

There isn't too much else to say about a picture which has people constantly falling down, the lead having a senile mother, contains too much comedy, and too often looked cheap-a criticism I don't usually make. Stick with The Host instead if you want a Korean movie involving a killer creature that is a humorous take on the genre.

Wild At Heart

Wild at Heart (1990)

Runtime: 125 minutes 

Directed by: David Lynch

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Laura Dern, Willem Dafoe, Diane Ladd,

From: PolyGram

The Wizard of Oz, fire, putting lipstick all over your face, buffalo hunting, Nicolas Cage doing an Elvis impersonation... yep, must be a David Lynch movie.

This played late last night on TCM Underground and as I know people who love this, I figured it was time to check this out, soon after revisiting Blue Velvet. “Wild” is a good descriptive term to use here... and not just for all the sex and topless women present. The plot sounds simple enough: Sailor and Lulu are two young adults who have a red-hot passionate love for one another, but Lulu's mentally unstable mom does not approve so she asks several shady characters to retrieve her as the star-crossed lovers decide to drive to California on a whim. Of course, it's much more complicated than that and MANY peculiar characters are seen throughout.

In addition, several themes are shown throughout. The color red is a common motif until circumstances change and it fades away. Fire is shown in the opening credits and through the use of copious flashbacks, the purpose of that is revealed. Apparently, Lynch is a huge fan of The Wizard of Oz, thus it is a prevalent theme throughout. In hindsight, perhaps I shouldn't be gobsmacked that he would love a tale featuring flying monkeys, killer trees, poppy fields and houses falling on people.

Anyhow, it's no surprise to me that then & now, opinion is divided on this movie. Some are not fans of the story or how it's presented; a fair criticism although it was not an issue with me. I was greatly entertained by this bizarre fable where things are romanticized at first before reality hits and our couple get a dose of reality... so to speak. They experience death and tragedy, along with someone that is terrifying not just for his awful teeth (Willem Dafoe as Bobby Peru).

A great cast-whether or not they are Lynch regulars-definitely helps. Nicolas Cage-who acts like Elvis throughout and usually wears a snakeskin jacket-was of course unforgettable; I am amazed I haven't seen several moments from this film in .gif form anywhere, especially on Twitter. Laura Dern was great too, and not just for her 80's hair/outfits. Her and Cage made for quite the duo. Diane Ladd as her mother was quite crazy; for those not in the know, they are real life mother and daughter. But the best aspect for me was the tremendous score and soundtrack. Eclectic and varied-everything from speed metal to Koko Taylor-it always fit the different settings, whether it be North Carolina, New Orleans or jerkwater towns in Texas.

For certain, this was more romantic than what I was expecting from the director. It has quite the ending also; I was not expecting that to be so earnest either. One aspect that thankfully has not aged poorly was when Sailor used a certain homophobic slur; he was immediately punished for that action and that literally made him apologize for his usage of such a word. As for Wild at Heart as a whole, I was happy it was a journey I enjoyed being on, not too surreal or illogical for my tastes.

Southbound

Southbound (2015)

Runtime: 89 long minutes

Directed by: Radio Silence/Roxanne Benjamin/David Bruckner/Patrick Horvath

Starring: A bunch of nondescript actors, most of whom I hadn't heard of before

From: Some random companies

Why it is so hard to make a GOOD horror anthology in the 21st century?

I realize many will vehemently disagree with the very low rating I am applying to something I found to be confused nonsense but plenty of film fans seemed to dig. I'll explain in a moment why this did not work for me and only one segment was even passable. In the past I have bemoaned all the crappy 21st century horror anthologies I have seen... every bad V/H/S movie, The ABC's of Death, Chillerama... those are the “highlights” that come to mind when I think of examples. The only one I've enjoyed was Trick 'r Treat and that is very good in general, something that all horror fans should check out if they haven't done so already. Time and time again I've waited to see another anthology made after the 90's which can even be classified by me as being fine. I thought this could be one...

Sadly, this effort from a variety of directors was not it.

It got off to the worst possible start as an utter nonsense segment was shown which was just laughable all around, including awful CG skeletal creations that were some sort of wraith creatures-which unfortunately are seen throughout all the segments-and plenty of groan-worthy moments. And this was from Radio Silence, a trio of directors who made one of the few decent segments in any of the V/H/S films and Ready or Not was a fun time. This, though... it just sucked. The rest of the segments except for one were either utterly illogical and/or just dopey wastes of time that weren't scary & I couldn't have given less of an F about most of the characters. The only one that I didn't hate was Siren; no, it's not because it starred a female rock band. Rather, it was straightforward and even with a daffy ending, it did not make me hate life like the rest did in something that unfortunately had the stories intertwined w/ each other.

A shame that the desert setting got wasted; a barren landscape, isolation, brutally hot temperatures... of course various flicks have used it to nice effect-such as The Hitcher or The Hills Have Eyes... at least the original versions did. It is a shame that I got far less out of this than most people did-yet I won't BS you people by being dishonest. The rest of the spooky season at least one further anthology will be witnessed, and with any luck I'll have more favorable opinions on those.

An Update

The past two nights I have revisited movies seen in 2014. The first was Girls Nite Out, an obscure slasher which should have been better and has a doofy-looking bear mascot killer. The second was Son of the White Mare; that was a rental to support my local arthouse joint, the Enzian. As it's a cult favorite animated feature from Hungary which has an amazing style, it was great to see that remastered in 4K. My opinions on both have not been altered.

Amityville II: The Possession

Amityville II: The Possession (1982)

Runtime: 104 minutes

Directed by: Damiano Damiani

Starring: James Olson, Burt Young, Rutanya Alda, Jack Magner, Diane Franklin

From: Several American and Mexican companies

Note that also yesterday I revisited the first movie in this LONG unofficial franchise. My opinion on it hasn't changed (it's still enjoyable).

The entire movie is like Rod Steiger's performance in the first Amityville Horror!

Until last night the only sequel I had seen (at least in full) was the dire Awakening from 2017, starring the Internet's current least-favorite woman, Bella Thorne. In college someone I know had on one of the movies from the 90's in their dorm room. I barely even recall it, let alone am able to identify which one it was. A few years ago I heard some things about The Possession, including that it has an incest angle. Thus, I knew this would be wildin' out... but I had no idea how over the top this would be.

Subtlety is thrown out the window early on as we see this thinly veiled version of the real life DeFeo family. The dad (Burt Young) is such a loud that he makes Paulie look like a saint in comparison... abusive, vulgar, openly against the church. The family argues with each other often and on the very first night, loud and fantastical events happen. The director was an Italian who did genre fare (Damiano Damiani, who just by his name was perfect to direct this picture) so of course it was unsubtle and sleazy, but I ended up laughing at how outrageous and implausible it got. This includes some gross effects, fire appearing out of nowhere a few times, an amazing vehicle used by the demon to communicate with Sonny-the movie's version of Ronald Jr.-and near-constant yelling.

It was more funny-unintentinally so-than scary, although it does have some chilling moments. Mainly, this was enjoyed due to the bravura filmmaking that was present, where everything but the kitchen sink was thrown at the screen. The big killing scene which mirrored the real life Ronald DeFeo Jr. murders does not even happen at the end. Rather, other things occur; there is indeed a possession so you don't even need two guesses to figure out which legendary horror film from almost a decade previous they were “heavily inspired” by. Hell, there is even a priest who has his struggles & disagreements with his fellow members of the cloth.

To think that the script is from Tommy Lee Wallace, a genre favorite best known for directing both the TV movie version of it and Halloween III: Season of the Witch. Lalo Schifrin returning with his score was an added bonus. If you love those wacky 80's Italian horror pictures, the gonzo energy this possesses will be right up your alley.

Blue Velvet

Blue Velvet (1986)

Runtime: 120 minutes

Directed by: David Lynch

Starring: Kyle MacLachlan, Isabella Rossellini, Laura Dern, Dennis Hopper, Dean Stockwell

From: De Laurentiis Entertainment Group

It's a Strange World.

Blue Velvet is a film I first saw in college; it had to be around 17 years ago or so. I enjoyed it yet most of the movie had left my memory banks by the time this was finally seen for the second time, which was last night on MGMHD. Thankfully this is something I found to be great despite its dark seedy nature and general unsettling tone.

The opening sets the tone: an older man in a small bucolic town has a stroke while in his backyard; it then zooms in on insects crawling on the ground. The film pulls back the curtain on this hamlet and exposes it for having some terrible human beings and horrible crimes take place. In this case, that man's son-college kid Kyle MacLachlan- is forced to return home and what a world he stumbles in after discovering a severed ear in a field. Then again he is to blame for the troubles he experiences, as he becomes so obsessed with the case that he does some illegal things to break into the apartment of Isabella Rossellini, who was connected to the case. From there he discovers that this lady has problems of her own-including some perversions-and what a ride this ends up being.

Thankfully Kyle's character wasn't portrayed as always being in the right for his rash actions. I do laugh that he got high school girl Laura Dern involved in this dilemma as among his dalliances w/ a girl who (hopefully) was 18 years old was them going to a club where somehow she was able to drink Heineken beer with him despite the legal drinking age being 21. The chuckles do go away once Frank Booth enters the picture... what a scummy, sleazy awful human being he is. Sadistic, psychotic, abusive-what a role for Dennis Hopper. He is quite the terrifying villain.

Besides an engrossing plot which is gripping the entire time, many different elements are top-notch... the cinematography, interesting uses of color, the sometimes brutal moments, symbolism, the obvious Oedipal themes, and important for a movie which is titled after a 50's song made famous by Bobby Vinton and Rossellini's character singing at that club... the music and score are appropriate for the setting. Besides several renditions of Blue Velvet, there is also an unforgettable scene featuring Roy Orbison's In Dreams. Also important for Lynch: the sound design. Of course that was great also.

Such an unflinching look was controversial at the time so the acclaim for this wasn't as strong at the time as it is now. Personally, this is the Lynch I prefer... certainly eccentric but not surreal to the point of confusion as I am more a logical person. That is not a diss as of course I can acknowledge his talent and him being an iconoclast for all these decades. Anyone that enjoys the pitch-black neo-noirs should check this out if you somehow haven't experienced it yet, not to mention this being a product from a legendary director.

Out Of The Past

Out of the Past (1947)

Runtime: 97 minutes

Directed by: Jacques Tourneur

Starring: Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, Kirk Douglas, Rhonda Fleming, Richard Webb

From: RKO

Last night this played on TCM and as I haven't viewed any film noir in a few months, this was a natural.... even with the thought going through my mind that my late mother was a big Robert Mitchum fan.

Mitchum plays a gas station owner in the middle of nowhere, California; it is located in a scenic area. Various figures come out of the past, revealing that he had another life; after he is found, he has to find a dame for them. He ends up in Mexico, and... various twists and turns happen in a plot that is complex but never confused or convoluted. To reveal more would be criminal. Just note that Old Robert is great, along with the ravishing Jane Greer and they have tremendous chemistry with each other. Kirk Douglas is one of the memorable supporting roles but Mitchum and Greer are the true highlights.

There are the expected noir trappings, including the lighting, tough characters, noteworthy dialogue (in particular, that was one of the standout elements of the movie) and general mood. Plus, a trend I haven't really elaborated on before: at least one scene in a jazz club. That has been witnessed plenty of times by now; jazz was “cool” back then, probably because it was Black music, to be frank and being cognizant of attitudes at the time. Out of the Past (or its badass UK title Build My Gallows High; it is based on a novel w/ that name) is pretty cool in general and if you are a fan of the genre or want to do a deep dive into it as a newbie, this is one that has to be watched.

Queen Of Blood

Queen of Blood (1966)

Runtime: 78 minutes

Directed by: Curtis Harrington

Starring: John Saxon, Basil Rathbone, Judi Meredith, Dennis Hopper, Florence Marly

From: AIP

John Saxon, Basil Rathbone, and Dennis Hopper in a sci-fi/horror tale from Roger Corman involving a green vampire alien lady that uses footage from a random Soviet science fiction picture... I'm in!

This played on MGMHD last night but I viewed it this afternoon on Prime as I viewed something true crime on TV beforehand and chilled after that. It's a break that channel can still be viewed by me (even though I am not supposed to receive the channel, as stated in another review recently) as a few days ago my cable provider dropped the El Rey Network. While it will make watching future Santo movies all that more difficult-and changes what will be on my horror list this year-the channel was otherwise not viewed by me, other providers have dropped El Rey in the past and there's always Prime to see plenty of Shaw Brothers films. There is no shortage of potential genre movies to see the rest of this month and all of October so that is of no concern.

To provide further backstory, this was directed by Curtis Harrington; he also did Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet (reviewed by me a few years ago; that movie is set in 2020, believe it or not) which was a mildly modified version of the Soviet movie Planet of Storms. Hilariously, both Voyage and this have the same opening credits background (weird abstract psychedelic paintings) and credits font. At least this time Harrington was credited with his name instead of as JOHN SEBASTIAN, as he was in Voyage. As it'd take too long to explain here, Corman did a similar thing with Battle Beyond the Sun-reviewed a few years ago-making a few changes to the Soviet Nebo Zovyot and COPPOLA was the one who added two bizarre monsters, one of which was shaped like a cucumber and had a mouth which looked a lot like something far too vulgar to mention here.

With that out of the way, onto this motion picture set in the far-flung future of... 1990. Saxon, Rathbone, Judi Meredith and Hopper all work at Not NASA; mysterious signals are retrieved from space, and just because, Rathbone is able to translate it. Aliens are going to meet them on Earth, only they crash on Mars. They get their ass to Mars, only to find a green vampire lady, who does the expected green vampire lady things. This is one of the movies that some speculate was an influence on Alien; that is possible, although Lifeforce has a stronger case in terms of what was inspired by Queen of Blood.

It is more sci-fi than horror and they are rather naive in not securing this alien right away; heck, Hopper thought it a good idea to share a water bottle with some extraterrestrial being they have no knowledge of! That is part of its campy charm; after all, how can I hate a film which had plenty of interesting visuals and the phrase “Dennis Hopper falls for a green vampire alien lady” can be used accurately? Queen of Blood uses plenty of footage from the USSR picture A Dream Come True (i.e. Mechte Navstretchu), not viewed by me before but it is on YouTube and due to to the visuals, one day that will be talked about here. Of course, the new and old footage looks noticeably different but c'est la vie. Like I just stated, campy charm.

For certain, this should not be the only John Saxon movie to be discussed in the next month and a half.

We Summon The Darkness

We Summon the Darkness(2019)

Runtime: 91 minutes

Directed by: Marc Meyers

Starring: Alexandra Daddario, Amy Forsyth, Maddie Hasson, Keean Johnson, Johnny Knoxville

From: Several international companies

Featuring Pabst Blue Ribbon, cocaine, and... T'Pau?!

Before I talk about the film itself, I'll steal a line from a mutual here: without having seen last year's Satanic Panic, that and this movie should have switched titles. I am closer to 40 than I'd like to admit and there are memories of the satanic panic that occurred in the 80's. It happened in many guises... people in general were scared that there were many cults out there, an unbelievable amount of mass hysteria-some of which was stirred up by religious figures-was connected to cases where satanic rituals were done at DAYCARES (of course that was all poppycock) and Lord knows heavy metal music received a lot of bad attention... Ozzy's Suicide Solution song was accused of inspiring people to take their own lives and poor old Judas Priest had to go to court because they were sued after two troubled teens shot themselves-one of them succeeded-and blamed one of their songs for having “backmasking”. No, I don't know either how backwards subliminal messages that are heard backwards can cause someone to do anything. Priest won the case but had to spend a lot of money to do so and the entire thing was a farce.

All that said above can be explored on Google if you so desire. It was mainly discussed to illustrate that a horror movie set in the 80's concerning Satanists and heavy metal music seems rather logical to me. The music did interest me more than this starring several pretty women, although that aspect was never lost on me. Also, note that the above was written BEFORE watching the movie. Anyway, time to crank up the Quiet Riot & Ratt and have a good old time! The plot: it is 1988 Indiana and three young ladies are attending a heavy metal concert, where they meet up with a trio of dudes in a sweet late 70's van. They hang out after the show, and... what happens won't be revealed by me, except that at least once it does take a turn.

It is understandable to me why not everyone likes the movie... in fact there are plenty of negative opinions. Me, there are nitpicks which could be made but a big asset was not just the 80's nostalgia and a score which was mostly of the electronic variety... it was also characters I never grew tired of. They were six young adults so it was well within the realm of possibility that one or more could have been utterly intolerable. Thank heavens that was not the case. The males were all fine in their roles but the females did stand out... those three carried this. This was actually my first Alexandra Daddario joint; there are no shortage of fans due to her physical appearance... she was the true highlight in terms of performance. Johnny Knoxville as a pastor was cute stunt casting; Jackass is not something I've ever enjoyed yet there are no complaints concerning his contributions to the movie.

There are also some creative moments which did make me chuckle. It is also not wall to wall 80's nostalgia; whether that is a positive or negative or you're personally tired of 80's nostalgia-that's up to you. Therefore, even with its uneven nature, “fine” is what I will classify this as. At least it does represent something from a past era that seems rather farcical with modern eyes.

The Bridge Curse

The Bridge Curse (2020)

Runtime: 88 minutes

Directed by: Lester Hsi

Starring: Ning Chang, Cheng Ko, J.C. Lin, Summer Meng, Vera Yen

From: Quite a few different Taiwanese companies

This is the first of two horror films I am reviewing here today; last night there was time to see a pair, and both were on Netflix. After over a year, I signed up for it again... only to discover my account must have been purged due to being gone for that long. That's alright, as the joke's on them... it still remembered my e-mail and password, yet the first month was still free; who knows if I'll stay on for longer than that. The whole Cuties controversy that's resulted in mass hysteria from a bunch of people that have never seen it and only have heard slanted opinions about it or seen the HORRIBLE way Netflix promoted it... it's made a lot of people (including ones I know personally) look rather foolish. Without having viewed it myself, being pissed at how the service treated the movie is likely more legitimate than the anger towards Cuties itself.

Anyhow, this movie was spotted while searching through their horror section; before viewing, only the basic plot and country of origin was known. Otherwise this was a true blind watch, as its ratings on IMDB or Letterboxd were not seen beforehand. It was possible I would be walking towards a dumpster fire, especially considering it's Netflix. It also gave me an opportunity to relay an anecdote from the past. Approximately 20 years ago, me and some pals went to a road rather close to where I grew up in the northern area of Illinois. It is a rural route known as Bloods Point Road, which does have some online infamy; it was my only time on a road that has many infamous legends... most of which I am sure are hogwash. I wish I could tell a blood-curdling tale concerning this trip which will be seared into the minds of everyone reading this, but nope. Anything paranormal was never experienced; everyone ran the hell away to one of the several cars that everyone carpooled in after headlights were seen then they vanished. Of course, that wasn't even viewed with my own eyes and the obvious explanation was that it was either the cops doing that to scare people away, or random people did that as a way to scare people away.

As for my regaling of this story, we all parked by a bridge and its legend is that a bus full of schoolchildren perished in an accident on it due to the vehicle plunging down to the train tracks below. I know for certain that story is false; of course, this story concerns a footbridge on a college campus but my point still stands. It is part traditional narrative, part documentary (a lady reporter and a cameraman filming for a news story) and part found footage, but it's all Asian Ghost as a legend concerning a death on a bridge is shown. Every four years there is a “courage challenge” revolving around this bridge; the present and past are shown concurrently as every four years-meaning every Leap Year-multiple people die attempting that challenge. Not only does it have the type of ghost you'd expect (and I expect even though I haven't viewed any of those movies) it also has some found footage cliches.

Yes you heard it right, I've never checked out such pictures as Ju-On: The Grudge and what has become known as Ringu in America but apparently it's just known as Ring in Japan; at least it is very easy to track those down and as this season is the perfect time... anyway, while this wasn't terrible, it does have some contrivances-such as this university having its student population barely seen aside from the lead characters. Be that as it may, at least it does earn an average rating as I can't say it is incompetent and at least there are some decent scares. In addition, it reminds me that Bloods Point Road-how it got that name is a mystery to me-would theoretically make for a rad horror film; the people that live in my county wouldn't agree, but as I don't live there anymore...

42

42 (2013)

Runtime: 128 minutes

Directed by: Brian Helgeland

Starring: Chadwick Boseman (RIP), Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie, Christopher Meloni, Lucas Black

From: Warner Bros.

To pay tribute to the late Chadwick Boseman, use my AMC A-List app for something and see an important real life story, this movie was viewed last night at the theatre chain as they played it at many locations for a week. Jackie Robinson becoming the first Black man to play in the modern iteration of Major League Baseball (some players donned jerseys way back in the late 1800's in the sport's infancy before an unwritten rule lasting decades was enacted) is a great story and while I've heard some of the details, I thought it would be nice to see it brought to life. Plus, I am a baseball fan, having attended many games in person through the years.

It's not a comprehensive look at Jackie Robinson's life; rather, it covers 1945 (when he played for the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues; back then Black players had their separate baseball league) 1946 (when he played minor league baseball in Montreal) and 1947, when he joined Major League Baseball as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Naturally, many fans and players-including some Dodgers-were against their owner Branch Rickey pushing this idea forward; in the third act it is revealed why Rickey took these bold steps. At the time in the United States, there were “colored” drinking fountains and bathrooms, among many measures of segregation. He had to be resolute and not let the hatred and bigotry visibly affect him as he was a trailblazer and could not crack under such immense pressure.

While a standard biopic, I was OK with that and only a small part of Robinson's life being covered; that's why there are sites like Wikipedia or perhaps those more reputable. It was a nice cast between Harrison Ford actually trying (never a guarantee in the past decade or so) as Rickey, Nicole Beharie as Jackie's wife Rachel, and of course Boseman was great in the title role. There are others that are familiar faces but I mentioned the ones that stood out the most. Doing a bit of searching, this was relatively accurate, at least by Hollywood standards. What I figured was “dramatic license” while watching the movie was proven to be correct. Unfortunately, Philadelphia manager Ben Chapman (as played by Alan Tudyk) really did unleash a nonstop torrent of horrible racial epitaphs way too vile to repeat here.

Not only do I approve of modern audiences learning such a critical story in the history of American sports, personally I was glad to see my second Chadwick Boseman movie. What a shame he could not have had a long, epic career; that said, at least he was able to shine bright for a brief amount of time and he was a big reason why 42 worked as well as it did.

The Purge

The Purge (2013)

Runtime: 86 long minutes

Directed by: James DeMonaco

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Lena Headley, Max Burkholder, Adelaide Kane, Edwin Hodge

From: Several entities which should have made a better movie than this

The opening of the movie stating that the United States has 1% unemployment and no crime in two years time... hilarious.

Last night there was an issue with my Internet for more than an hour so my streaming plans went out the window. Instead I went to one of the movies that was part of a Blumhouse horror DVD set purchased at a Big Lots mainly due to its very low price. All the bad things said about this since it released (or should it be “escaped”?) is the reason why it's taken me this long to see any of them. Regrettably, this was as lousy as advertised.

The fact that this squanders what should have been a great satirical premise is a crime. Of course it's silly that the concept of The Purge even exists; perhaps the idea of a totalitarian government taking over the United States is not so far-fetched anymore... but of course it's goofy that in only 8 years time this was a thing that happened and actually worked. As I heard someone proclaim when this was first released, imagine if this was made in the 80's and someone like Verhoeven or John Milius had written the script. That should have been a goldmine of great ideas & moments as it would savagely attack various figures or archetypes that probably needed skewering. Instead... we get a stupid home invasion movie that commits the biggest sin of all: it is boring as hell.

A rich family where the parents support The Purge and the two teen kids are more doubtful about it... why is it focused on just them instead of getting to see all the chaos of this insane premise? Even worse, this family is astoundingly asinine, making dumb decisions throughout. The parents are rich fools, the son is a major weirdo who lets in someone asking for help (which is a Black man; what happens to him is even more uncomfortable now than it was in 2013) and was so creepy he might as well have a 666 birthmark on his scalp. By process of elimination, the daughter Zoey was the least insufferable... at least she made some relatively reasonable decisions and her biggest sin was being moody because dad wouldn't allow her to date an older boy who's a tool.

The gang of “Purgers” that want to kill the Black man, they are all lame... there is no noteworthy moments of violence, a lot of it is in the dark and there's hardly even any scares or frights in this alleged “horror” picture. To reiterate, what a dumbass movie this is. Yet the general idea of the premise became popular enough where “the kids” like to dress up like Purgers for Halloween and I understand the sequels and TV series are all superior to this; heck, a few times in the past “The Purge” went viral due to hoaxes that 14 year old girls believed and freaked out about. I should at least check out Anarchy and discover why many thought at the time Frank Grillo should play The Punisher on that Netflix show I never saw a second of. Those had to be more creative and insightful than this flaccid waste of time.

Project A 2

Project A 2 (A Gai Wak 2) (1987)

Runtime: 102 minutes

Directed by: Jackie Chan

Starring: Chan, Maggie Cheung, Rosamund Kwan, David Lam, Bill Tung

From:Golden Harvest

Recently I've realized that I haven't watched as much Jackie Chan as I really should; thus, viewing one of the four movies I have on Blu in a set from Echo Bridge was in order. Of course it's from Echo Bridge so that meant the quartet of films were all on one disc and it was only the Miramax dubs but that's what I had on hand. Remember the halcyon days of yore when our biggest complaints w/ Miramax was how they treated the foreign pictures they released in the United States?

In the past I've seen and reviewed Project A, which I really enjoyed. It is set in late 19th century Hong Kong and Chan played Sergeant Dragon Ma (not to be confused w/ the villainess from Super Inframan); in the first he was in the Marine Police and here, due to his heroics he is in charge of trying to clean up corruption in law enforcement. Besides that aspect having more resonance in 2020, a major plot point here is... unrest in Hong Kong against the government. That is a huge deal now in the film world as one of the (many) issues people have with the live-action Mulan is that its star is pro-Chinese government against the rebellions in the region. To avoid controversy, let me move on...

The plot is busy and perhaps there are a few too many characters-pirates, bad cops, pro-government forces, anti-government forces, etc.; at least it wasn't too difficult to follow. The original movie I do prefer when it comes to plot, characters (I missed Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao's presence) and even the action-which is still fine... the finale was at least impressive. If only there wouldn't have been a plot contrivance or two... at least unlike in Project A, Jackie did not fall head-first from a few stories up-although, there were still some brutal stunts.

Santo And The Revenge Of La Llorona

Santo and the Revenge of La Llorona (Santo Y Mantequilla Napoles En La Venganza De La Llorona) (1974)

Runtime: 87 minutes

Directed by: Miguel M. Delgado

Starring: El Santo, Jose Napoles, Kikis Herrera Calles, Alonso Castano, Ana Lilia Tovar, Sonia Cavazos

From: Cinematografica Calderon S.A

Yes, this is El Santo vs. LA LLORONA

Because of the Blumhouse movie from early last year that apparently was terrible-at least judging by general consensus-many more people are familiar with that Hispanic legend. To be brief, while there are variations the basics are that a woman drowns her children as revenge against her cheating partner, then she drowns herself due to grief. Subsequently, she roams around looking for her children... she drowns children that cross her path because they aren't her progeny. As the story has been around for hundreds of years, it shouldn't be a surprise that it would be used for a Santo movie... yet I still was when this was recently discovered. As typical for the past month or so, this was viewed on the El Rey Network last night.

A spin on the typical is that our man w/ the silver mask teams up with a boxer, Jose Napoles (who I understand is a legendary Welterweight pugalist) to assist a professor in finding a medallion that's around the neck of a lady who lived almost 300 years ago and is the titular La Llorona; this is done for family reasons... his bloodline is cursed, in other words. It's found but the actual villains are ruthless gangsters that want the huge treasure of doubloons also attached to the legend. Llorona is portrayed with at least a little sympathy as she had kids w/ a Spanish nobleman and due to circumstances she felt like she had to kill her children. For certain, the gangsters are seen more often than the walking corpse. This does not rise above average in most respects. At least there's some action and spooky settings; for some reason, the wrestling and boxing scenes were filmed in a TV studio that was supposed to have fans... but obviously didn't as they were never shown. What a visual to see fights with only a mauve background.

However, the music and fashion were most noteworthy to me. At times the score reminded me of The Harlem Shuffle-the original from Bob & Earl as heard in Baby Driver, not The Rolling Stones cover from the 80's during their lean years. Some of the clothing was hilarious: one of the two young ladies they managed to shoehorn in wore quite the set of duds for awhile: bright yellow pants pulled up almost to her boobs, a blue shirt with a giant frog on front, and a dark blue jacket. Santo and Napoles usually dressed like they were old men; some of their clothing might as well come from my late grandfather's closet. What was worn in the finale was incredible: Jose had on a proto-disco purple outfit and the man in the silver mask wore a peach-colored argyle sweater... hilarious clothing to have on when you're whooping ass on a phalanx of tough hoods.

The Abominable Dr. Phibes

The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971)

Runtime: 94 minutes

Directed by: Robert Fuest

Starring: Vincent Price, Joseph Cotten, Peter Jeffrey, Norman Jones, Virginia North

From: AIP

Not what I was expecting... but that is not a negative.

Last night this played on MGMHD and as this shamefully hadn't been seen by me before, it was a must-watch for this time of year... not just because Vincent Price should be viewed each Halloween season. The opening was amazing: a figure wearing a black cloak is playing a giant red organ (phrasing...) as it rises up into a spooky backdrop as bright blue credits are shown. It then gets even more incredible from there: the camera pulls out and this figure dances with a rather fetching young brunette-Virginia North, a dame I wish would have done more than a few movies-as a house band then plays. It isn't until later that you realize it is a mechanical band a la The Rock-afire Explosion you saw at Showbiz Pizza Place way back when. Rather wild, and then there is a few deaths shown right away until the setup is explained.

The opening for certain sets the tone; there is an undercurrent of humor throughout... thankfully much of it was pretty funny to me. The titular Dr. Phibes was presumed dead in an accident but that was a ruse; he gets revenge on those surgeons who were unable to save his wife's life during surgery. Via photos you see the wife was none other than Caroline Munro; personally, I'd be upset too if I was married to her and she died! Anyhow, he literally brings down Biblical plagues upon those men (and women) of medicine... this means locusts, frogs, rats, etc. Some of the deaths seemed straight out of a Saw sequel; this is not something to take that seriously yet that tone works for the film. So do all the strange touches... the period music-this is set in the 1920's-sometimes colorful sets, North always accompanying Phibes and sometimes playing a cello (?!) during the death scenes, etc.

Besides Price being awesome in his role without having to say a lot, the detectives were pretty amusing and it's always nice seeing Joseph Cotten in a big role. Plus, there are moments that may only tickle me pink, such as Terry-Thomas getting his jollies from watching stag films where a woman is writhing around w/ a snake. The Abominable Dr. Phibes is pretty wild and it is a blessing that it was not too weird or idiosyncratic for my tastes.

The Human Tornado

The Human Tornado (1976)

Runtime: 96 minutes

Directed by: Cliff Roquemore

Starring: Rudy Ray Moore, Lady Reed, Jimmy Lynch, Java, ERNIE HUDSON (no kidding)

From: The original Dimension Pictures

In the past I've viewed a few Rudy Ray Moore pictures on multiple occasions; this was one I had seen only once before, long ago. Somehow I had few memories of just how daffy this was. It's not as inept as the original Dolemite-no boom mics are seen this time-but it still is rather incompetent when it comes to such things as logic and storytelling.

The opening act is Dolemite and friends (one of whom was played by a bald ERNIE HUDSON in one of his first movies) partying in what is laughably supposed to be rural southwestern Alabama-more on that later-before they leave for California due to a racist sheriff's actions-this sheriff resembling a maniacal Kenny Rogers-where they get wrapped up in a plot where Dolemite's lady pal Queen Bee has some of the girls stolen from her nightclub by a rival club owner... of course a gross old white guy who has Mob ties.

The Human Tornado is still piss-poor when you look at such aspects as editing and plot progression; in its favor is that it has some intentional laughs along with the many unintentional ones (this does NOT include the stand-up that Moore does in the opening) and the expected vulgar Dolemite rhymes. While there is a rather unsubtle homosexual man who is in a few scenes, at least that did not become homophobic... plus in a key supporting role is Java, a trans lady who was always presented as a lady and her trans status was never acknowledged. In real life, Java was a well-known dancer in the Los Angeles area. Anyway, the martial arts don't look as bad as in Dolemite, although typically when you see Moore do them, the footage is sped up, presumably to disguise how much of a fighter he is not. Also, what a baffling ending. If you love Moore in his debut picture...

While the movie was obviously entirely filmed in southern California, the opening 20 or so minutes was supposed to be southwestern Alabama. I know this as a brief shot established that initial setting as an obscure town called Citronelle... which my family and I have driven through on a few occasions before. It was done on our treks from Florida to Kansas, where one of my two sisters lives. Even in 2020 the population is less than 5,000, making me wonder how and why it was chosen for the film. I can tell you Citronelle has no hills or giant mansions, although I am sure there are more than a few bigots around.

Peninsula

Peninsula (2020)

Runtime: 116 minutes

Directed by: Yeon Sang-Ho

Starring: Kang Dong-Wan, Lee Jung-Hyun, Lee Re, Kwon Hae-Hyo, Kim Min-Jae

From: Several South Korean companies

A few years ago, I was lucky to see Train to Busan on the big screen... even if there was a bad audience experience attached to it. The movie was a blast as there was plenty of action and horror mainly set on a train. Later I saw the animated prequel Seoul Station and that was rather disappointing. Even though I also heard bad things about Peninsula (or as it's known in the United States: Train to Busan Presents: Peninsula) this is in many of the largest cineplexes in the United States so it was an obligation to give it a shot.

Regrettably, while Busan was an exciting thrill ride with engrossing characters and had heart to spare, this was like a dumb mindless modern Hollywood blockbuster-with pretty lousy CG to boot. This time around it's several random characters looking to retrieve 20 million dollars (American) from a truck in Incheon. There is a reason why: via a clumsy exposition dump, the movie is set four years after the events in Busan... most of the country is abandoned and those that escaped to other countries are looked at derisively-probably like those in other countries view Americans. As these movies are about a virus, of course everyone will think of The Black Plague we have now... and also note how some Americans would think of a zombie plague as a hoax.

Besides this being a dopey film revolving around characters I couldn't give a damn about, there's also personal opinion of fatigue over various cliches concerning Korean cinema in the 21st century. There's been plenty of movies which have a young girl and invariably she ends up crying by the end; guess what... Peninsula managed to squeeze that in! Several times while at the screening I sighed at the cliché moments or the stuff that was especially stupid. This has several driving scenes and both Fast & Furious and Fury Road are blatant inspirations... the crap CG and lower budget are but a few reasons why those don't work. In addition, the person whose driving skills would put Lewis Hamilton to shame, their identity makes their abilities utterly preposterous.

Others deriving more entertainment from this is understandable; personally, those old-hat tropes, the world not being explained at all (who is still making gasoline? That is even more egregious than some places having electricity, as there are generators... which need gas to run) and how this was a follow-up to a great action/horror picture made me quite unsatisfied with the end result.

The Fall Of The House Of Usher (The 1928 French Version)

The Fall of the House of Usher (La Chute De La Maison Usher) (1928)

Runtime: 63 minutes

Directed by: Jean Epstein

Starring: Jean Debucourt, Marguerite Gance, Charles Lamy, Fournez-Goffard, Luc Dartagnan

From: Films Jean Epstein

Not to be confused with the 1928 American short, this French 63 minute production I stumbled upon a few days ago while searching for something else. It follows the Edgar Allan Poe story-more or less-and for this Halloween season, it only seemed logical to feature at least one of his tales, right?

Presumably most at least have a basic familiarity with the story of Roderick Usher-here, they found someone who appropriately appeared to be demented throughout-his sister Madeline, the family curse and the titular house also being a recipient of the curse, so that won't be dwelled on. Instead, I will note that director Jean Epstein was not only obviously inspired by the Soviet and German cinema of the time, this was highly Impressionistic. It means that it was a visual delight as some of the sets were huge in scope and among other things, a few times there are long scenes where images are overlaid on each other. None other than Bunuel was initially involved before he left after a disagreement with Epstein.

The film manages to be rather macabre and vivid, making it a quality selection to get you in the mood for the spooky season. It was viewed in a unique way on my part due to the lack of easy availability for a clear copy w/ translated intertitles. Therefore, two streams had to run at the same time... one had a nice picture but when I needed to see what the intertitles said, I had to flip over to the lousy video that at least was subtitled. The things I sometime have to do... thankfully this silent is pretty good so it was worth that minor inconvenience.

Evil Of Dracula

Evil of Dracula (Chi O Suu Bara) (1974)

Runtime: 83 minutes

Directed by: Michio Yamamoto

Starring: Toshio Kurosawa, Shin Kishida, Mariko Mochizuki, Kunie Tanaka, Katsuhiko Sasaki

From: Toho

Before discussing this film, I'll make a statement that is uttered each early September: while I do not participate in the official Hoop-tober festivities of watching horror movies throughout Halloween based on a set series of criteria, I still create a list of my own where I view whatever the heck I find or strikes my fancy. This encompasses a wide variety of different films and sometimes includes such things as cartoons and educational shorts about trick or treating. The list will be unveiled in early November.

Finally, I saw the final movie in The Bloodthirsty Trilogy, three horror movies from Toho which have nothing in common aside from director Michio Yamamoto and them being Nippon spins on Gothic Hammer horror. The first two-The Vampire Doll and a title I'll always love, Lake of Dracula-I enjoyed and my opinion has not changed for this. A professor accepts a new job at a small rural all-girls school... while some of the girls like the professor and there are boobs seen, this is not as “horny on main” as it sounds-it's not a Jesus Franco picture, after all. Anyway, someone is a vampire, although Dracula is nowhere to be seen... to be fair, the original title does not reference this character. The origin story is rather interesting-it will remind you of... Silence. Yes, the story brought to life by Masahiro Shinoda and Scorsese in separate pictures.

It is a creepy atmospheric movie which should delight vampire fans; the rustic setting is pretty cool and while there are some dopey moments, this was not too much a detriment when there's a sometimes psychedelic score, more than one possessed girl, a character that reminded me of Renfield-several different Dracula movies were mixed in here-and a few bloody moments. Arrow did a nice Blu set of The Bloodthirsty Trilogy I am glad I picked up in the past.