Happy Halloween!

Hopefully everyone had a nice day today despite it being different from the rest. This wasn't the plan but the only thing I have watched or will watch for the day... a 1933 Betty Boop cartoon called Betty Boop's Hallowe'en Party. The review of it is below, along w/ a link to the video on YouTube:

While this was not how I was expecting to end this spooky season of movie-watching, I have felt listless the past few days and waking up to a famous actor's death means that I only feel like checking out then reviewing a 6 1/2 minute cartoon. At least it is perfect for today and also remind me that I should view more Max Fleischer cartoons; I've only seen a few in my life and they're right up my alley between the old jazz music and its wonky style. Besides, Betty Boop is still a famous cartoon character in 2020, a caricature of a Jazz Age flapper of a century prior, and before the Hays Code became a thing, she was a sexual character who-in other cartoons-was lusted after and some even wanted to take her virginity away!

This party does not get that wild (and it's not the craziest Fleischer cartoon by any means) but it's still a fun time... not to mention, this year it does make me a little wistful to the time when people could officially have Halloween get-togethers. Turns out, there ain't no party like a Betty Boop party, because a Betty Boop party won't even stop if a mean old gorilla shows up uninvited... hopefully there is zero subtext to that character. Various spirits show up to drive him away, one of many examples in the cartoon of various Halloween accoutrements showing up: pumpkins, a scarecrow, a dark windy night, bobbing for apples, etc. The quality animation and nice jazz score (including Betty singing a tune) meant this was a pleasant diversion, even if only for a brief bit.

The rest of the day I'll revisit various things, none of which I'll talk about here; hopefully everyone has a nice day today, even if this year has been a real horrorshow for everyone.

 

Tenebrae

Tenebrae (1982)

Runtime: 101 minutes

Directed by: Dario Argento

Starring: Anthony Franciosa, John Saxon, Daria Nicolodi, Giuliano Gemma, Christian Borromeo

From: Sigma Cinematografico Roma

As I mentioned recently, not everything I wanted to watch this season will be done so by the time that Halloween arrives in a few days. At least I am able to fulfill the promise I made early last month (in my review of the 1966 horror/sci-fi picture Queen of Blood) that I would see two movies featuring the late John Saxon. He was nice in Blood but was definitely memorable here in this famed giallo, even if he did not have the most screentime... at least he-as the lead's agent-was unforgettable both in performance and the interesting character quirk of him loving his new felt black hat.

Argento went meta as a reaction to the real-life double whammy of experiening both a stalker and a few senseless murders that occurred in Los Angeles when he was staying in Los Angeles a few years prior. A popular horror author named Peter Neal is in Rome; while there, several kills occur that were based on his new-and eponymous-novel. Of course, it's investigated by a pair of detectives... but what's up with the odd dreamlike sequences? Don't worry, that's explained by the end. There is criticism over the Neal's novels consisting of women in peril and their degradation... such things are not a recent “outraged Twitter user" phenomenon.

I know it's Wikpiedia but this film's page has a lot to say about a variety of topics... all the subtext (meta or not), duality, its influences not being devoted to the genre, the references to famous mystery novels, etc. It's all an interesting read and it demonstrates that Tenebrae is more than just a wild giallo which has various trademarks you'd expect and one rather gory scene. It having a futuristic look was by design; why Argento said that he set the movie “a few years in the future after a disaster which is never explained or elaborated upon” is odd, especially considering it is so subtle many may miss it; they'd of course notice it has the 1982 version of Skype and some austere sets (along with its bright look) but for me, I'll have my personal canon that the setting is a few years from now after COVID-19 is finally eradicated... oh, and in this world, it becomes clear that no woman wears a bra...

For some people, they first heard the Goblin theme song not from Tenebrae but rather the French electronic duo Justice sampling it for their tune Phantom. BTW, for the past 15 or so years I presumed they were a one album wonder to the point that their Cross album was the last one they did. Imagine my surprise when Wiki told me they've always been around since 2005 and have released a few subsequent albums. Who knew? Anyhow, the entire soundtrack is pretty dope.

It is a relief that this is one of Argento's good films rather than the ones he's made in (at least) the past twenty or so years, when he was apparently replaced by a far-inferior pod person. His 2009 movie Giallo... shudders.

Shaun Of The Dead

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

Runtime: 100 minutes

Directed by: Edgar Wright

Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield, Lucy Davis, Dylan Moran

From: Several companies

What I thought was humorously absurd in the past... suddenly doesn't seem as much so in 2020.

Last night was the perfect time to finally revisit this slice of horror/comedy; I did not love Baby Driver like most did but I hoped my enjoyment of this film had not diminished all those years later. Thankfully, it hasn't; while at times it was “try too hard”, it was far more excessive in Baby Driver.

It was also a relief that I was not annoyed by slackers Shaun & Eric, who are directionless fools that sometimes are rather buffoonish. At least with both, they experience character growth as the plot progresses. At the time, how oblivious they were to the zombie apocalypse seemed a little far-fetched... after what's happened this year, I do not feel that way any longer! The fact that all this chaos is happening due to what is in essence an infectious disease whose impact is lessened if you stay at home and isolate... that is a big reason why seeing this in this hellscape of a year was highly appropriate, at least for me.

Anyhow, the movie is still pretty funny between all the jokes (often set up for the purpose of its payoff later in the movie), visual humor, insults, quips, and the one really graphically gory moment being done for laughs. Yet it also has its poignant moments and those were done well; even the romantic aspect is not tiresome... whether it's the romance or the bromance. The core group of characters were all interesting in their separate ways. Another big asset-not surprisingly-is the music you hear throughout. Some popular songs are mixed in with various genres-and also musical cues from the original Dawn of the Dead. Hearing Zombie Nation, Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, Chicago AND Goblin... hell yeah.

Even w/ the glut of zombies we've gotten in entertainment since this came out, this still feels fresh... actually, perhaps because of this glut containing mostly mediocre (or worse; this is mostly based on hearsay on my part) product, that makes this original story which does not disrespect zombies... that makes this still a grand old time for fans of the genre.

Now It Is Time To Catch Up

Late Sunday night I revisited Diabolique for reasons I won't get into here... but I did not mind seeing that French classic again as it's great. I reviewed that back in 2017 and nothing has changed. Last night on Disney + I saw the 1952 cartoon Trick or Treat, starring Donald Duck and his three nephews. That review is below: 

Pro tp: don't troll an actual witch.

After this month I will be taking what I suspect will be a short break from Disney +; no doubt many have the issue that there's too many services out there to subscribe to all at once and some are best only to be a member of in fits & spurts. While I understand HBO Max has put up a bunch of old-school Looney Tunes cartoons since I was last a member there, + only has a small scattering of offerings; at least this was put up for the Halloween season.

Huey, Dewey & Louie are out on Halloween, trick or treating and they get trolled hard by their uncle Donald-it involves both firecrackers and a bucket of water. A kind witch (appropriately named Witch Hazel) wants to help as she thinks it's BS they did not even get any candy. Donald acts like an ass to her too... and the s*** is on. Hazel uses a potion involving “double double toil and trouble” & she gets her revenge despite Donald's best efforts.

It is a charming 8 minute cartoon filled with lovely animation that has its colorful moments, humorous gags, a small appearance from a trio of ghosts, and a quality musical score which mixes in several different genres-depending on the scene-and a boss-ass title song sung by Thurl Ravenscroft, a man who has a legendary birth name. A nice watch for this time of year.

Just Before Dawn

Just Before Dawn (1981)

Runtime: 90 minutes

Directed by: Jeff Lieberman

Starring: Gregg Henry, Deborah Benson, Chris Lemmon, Ralph Seymour, Jamie Rose, George Kennedy

From: Hollywood West Entertainment

The middle of the woods is the best place to have a dance party.

Last night was finally the night for me to check out this cult slasher; to clarify as there is more than one cut available on disc, I saw the far more common 90 minute version. Now, this is not something to see if you desire a gore-soaked bloodbath which has inventive kills; rather-to steal a phrase-this is more reminiscent of The Hills Have Eyes with some Deliverance sprinkled in.

The plot is not innovative: a quintet of young adults drive in a SWEET 1970's GMC motorhome to a rural area in Oregon as one in the group just inherited some land. Despite the protests of park ranger George Kennedy, they continue on to their destination... only to discover they are all fish out of water. I mentioned that this is not gory.... at least the movie is bookended by unforgettable kills. Instead, the movie all about the mood and ambiance. Just Before Dawn was filmed in Silver Park State Falls in Oregon-it is a great endorsement of that area as it has gorgeous scenery between the hills, all the giant trees, the rivers, the waterfalls... it'd be a marvelous time to camp out there if it wasn't for the menacing villain.

None of the characters being an irritant is always a bonus, but a key component is the movie's soundtrack. Often it uses the natural sounds of the woods to set the mood... the cicadas, crickets, water rushing by, etc. The score is from Brad Fiedel & is synth-based; a whistle is often heard because a plot point is someone blowing that instrument. The movie takes its time and the end result is something that should have been viewed by me much earlier than last night. Oh, and besides it always being a treat to see George Kennedy, it was amusing to see Mike Kellin in a small role... i.e. Mel from Sleepaway Camp.

I Discuss The 1956 Winter Olympics

Or rather, its official Olympic film, White Vertigo: 

This review (which will be lengthier than usual) will spend some time discussing the sports I watch, including the niche in the United States.

As a tonic to both the horror movies I've mostly been devoted to since September and all those reviews of the Borat sequel (no offense to anyone reading this... personally, the “bothering people” genre has never been of interest to me so that's why I have avoided all of Mr. Cohen's characters that harass real life individuals... the same goes for that asshat Tom Green and the repulsive show he had) I decided to see another one of these Olympics films they have currently on the Criterion Channel, as I do enjoy watching sports-even though I am not an irrational fanatic about them like too many sports fans are.

In the United States I have seen the major ones (basketball, hockey, baseball, and what is known around the world as “gridiron football”) and attended various games in person, both amateur and professional. Association football, MMA and kickboxing are the other ones of note. Some niche sports are on television over here which are interesting to watch... both versions of rugby, cricket (well, highlights of games, anyhow; those events are even longer than Lav Diaz's films!) and Australian rules football are chief examples there. In fact, the last two nights were spent with an altered sleeping schedule so I could see a pair of events from the Land Down Under: the Grand Final games of both the Australian Football League and the National Rugby League. A recent revelation to me: thanks to YouTube, I realize that it's a shame neither Gaelic football or hurling can be seen on the boob tube in the U.S.; both are a lot of fun and I am glad those unique Irish sports have been pushed hard over there so they can theoretically exist forever. As for having sports during a pandemic... 

Anyhow, I chose this as it has a nice rating on Letterboxd, as fair as Olympics films go. For something directed by a guy-Giorgio Ferroni-who helmed various Italian genre pictures (including one shown on MST3K, Secret Agent Super Dragon) this was pretty good. The opening 15 minutes or so is “arty”, spent on showing some of the residents and the area of Cortina d'Ampezzo, in the northern part of Italy-and the change of season from fall to winter. That area has stunning beauty & this showed it off rather well. Finally, the Olympic Torch is shown and we see a few minutes of the opening ceremonies. After that, it was at first fast-paced w/ some quick cross-cutting between different sports if they something in common. Thankfully, after awhile that mostly calms down so it isn't as frenetic. It was a nice recap of action in what was not a long piece of time (less than 90 minutes after the opening & opening ceremonies).

It was filmed well (believe it or not, the cinematographer had few notable credits to his name but Aldo Scavarda was the director of photography for L'Avventura) and did portray the various events in a satisfactory fashion-for example, how grueling a 50 kilometers cross-country event is. The score was varied and at times was inspired-such as hearing free jazz during the hockey segment. Finally, the narration had some great lines of dialogue... note that I am NOT referring to the casual sexism that is sometimes presented. Two interesting notes is that Cortina is scheduled to co-host the 2026 Winter Olympics (w/ Milan) and several of the sights seen here (like the ski jump area and the bobsled track) appeared in the Bond movie For Your Eyes Only, which of course has a section which was set & filmed in Cortina.

If nothing else, if anyone cared to know they got a snapshot at the sorts of sports I like to watch.

Carry On Screaming!

Carry on Screaming! (1966)

Runtime: 96 minutes

Directed by: Gerald Thomas

Starring: Several of the usual crew, plus Harry H. Corbett and Peter Butterworth

From: Anglo-Amalagated Film Distributors

As I haven't seen any film from this franchise in a few months and multiple people have told me that this was one of the better entries, it was the perfect time to check this out. I'll be seeing another horror-comedy within the next week but this did provide plenty of laughs while taking the piss out of a Hammer movie... in a loving way. There's a dark forest (named Hokum Woods!), a creepy mansion, a buxom lady-then again, both that studio and this franchise had a fascination with that-and several ghastly creations; there's no scares to be had unless you don't like large snakes... then one scene will get to you.

Two detectives-named Bung and Slobotham-investigate the disappearance of several women; their ultimate fate is rather daffy... admittedly I've seen more than one Hammer movie that had a rather far-out plot. This can't be called high-brow (several of the puns are real groaners, even if they all made me laugh; furthermore, a key plot point involves cross-dressing) yet that is OK. Besides knowing what you should get from a Carry On movie, this was a successful spoof of a particular topic which should be amusing to you if that particular studio is something you fancy in general; it did capture the look of it rather well.

I mean, it's not the bawdiest of the franchise that I've seen so far (I can only imagine what the films from the late 60's through the 70's were like) and the highlight of the non-regulars was Fenella Fielding as the buxom lady, an attractive and sultry lady who still looked ghoulish as the actual head of the entire evil operation. There is also an evil Dr. Watt, which does lead to a nice variation of the Who's on First routine. That is an example of all the funny jokes and one-liners which are present throughout. Heck, I was quite surprised there was a title song, sung by a guy doing a half-assed Elvis impersonation.

The Funhouse

The Funhouse (1981)

Runtime: 95 minutes

Directed by: Tobe Hooper

Starring: Elizabeth Berridge, Cooper Huckabee, Kevin Conway, Largo Woodruff, Miles Chapin

From: Universal

Pro tip: Never go on a date with a guy named Buzz who works at the filling station.

As the official October deal of watching horror movies on Letterboxd is named after Tobe Hooper, I might as well see one of his pictures even if I have never officially participated in that. The premise sounded interested (something I have thought for all the years I have known of this) so this is what I went with.

After an opening that pays blatant homage to both Halloween and Psycho (it's not a cheap ripoff due to what they were going for) we see that a quartet of young adults go to a skeevy carnival in town. I've been to county fairs before but nothing like this... along with the food stands, carnival games and rides are freakshow attractions-including deformed animals & a burlesque act-and the titular funhouse, which is a dark ride. The carnies (more than one played by Kevin Conway, believe it or not) are all as peculiar as you'd expect-I don't want to paint them all w/ the same brush but they do not have the best reputation-and trouble starts with a mysterious figure that wears a Boris Karloff Frankenstein's monster mask, for good reason.

The various negative reviews I've seen for The Funhouse... I get it. The first half is setup and time spent with characters that are not terribly complex. Furthermore, this is not to be seen if you want inventive gore and unforgettable kills-then again, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was not about the kills either. Personally, this gets by due to the setting & atmosphere. That carnival was brought to life pretty well & the funhouse itself is a ghoulish delight filled with plenty of fun and appealing bric-a-brac. It was fine seeing the movie take its time and let the audience experience this distinctive setting, where there is plenty of different activities.

While not the boldest or strongest heroine, Elizabeth Berridge at least did a pretty good job bringing her character Amy to life. Some things did amuse me, not all that I can reveal due to spoiler reasons. Amy has a younger brother-Joey-whose presence always amused me. This included his room (their parents must be rather liberal if they allow a boy to be a horror fan and possess all those items in his room) and what he does in the opening. Also, I did crack wise at the Buzz character and him smoking weed while driving his muscle car isn't the most prudent thing to do... at least he was not a lout or a detestable character. While not my favorite Tobe Hooper by any means, I had enough of a good time with this to apply a nice rating.

The Nightmare Before Christmas

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Runtime: 76 minutes

Directed by: Henry Selick

Starring the voices of: Chris Sarandon, Danny Elfman, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix

From: Disney

This was only my second time visiting Halloween Town.

Back in 2008, a lady I talked to online at the time was APPALLED at how at the time I had never seen this movie. Shortly after that I was able to check it out on the big screen, and in a 3D post-conversion. While I haven't chatted w/ this lady for years (long story) it was a film I enjoyed; yet is it only just yesterday that I saw the movie again, which was also theatrically courtesy of AMC. When I do these spooky lists each September and October it's not just horror movies-at times it is other genres that are appropriate for the season... cartoons and educational shorts concerning trick or treating, for example. What better movie to discuss days before Halloween than a dark Gothic fantasy tale set in a German Expressionistic land known as Halloween Town?

Based on a poem that Tim Burton wrote in the early 80's, this concerns... actually, I am sure most are familiar with how The Pumpkin King Jack Skellington stumbles upon Christmas Town and becomes enchanted w/ the place, wishing to bring it to his home area then take over Santa Claus's job-to disastrous results. Thankfully, the movie is still a delight between the incredible stop-motion animation that has beauty which will remain evergreen, a charming story w/ interesting characters and a way to celebrate a pair of holidays that are a polar opposite to each other-IMO, it is both a Halloween and Christmas movie-and wonderful songs from Danny Elfman.

In hindsight, this is something I should have viewed far more often than just twice in my life; not only did it help bring the spirit of Halloween to me even if this year has been bizarre for a number of reasons, but was a reminder that there was a time when I did not groan whenever I hear that Tim Burton was attached to a project...

Fade To Black

Fade to Black (1980)

Runtime: 102 minutes

Directed by: Vernon Zimmerman

Starring: Dennis Christopher, Tim Thomerson, Gwynne Gilford, Linda Kerridge.. and Mickey Rourke!

From: Movie Ventures 

This will be a surprisingly topical review.

To be honest I already have a shortlist of what horror movies will be seen at the end of the month and naturally, not everything from that will be watched. Choosing what to and not view is always a difficult one; in this case, I have known of the movie for at least a few years now as it has a unique hook. What gave me the push was that I can reference two things which trended on Twitter in the past few days. For some reason, last afternoon Marilyn Monroe was trending and I never discovered why-at least it gave random people the opportunity to sing her praises and post some photos. A key plot point here is the lead's obsession with the iconic star of yesteryear and a young platinum blonde from Australia who is a struggling actress and of course has a faint resemblance to Marilyn. The second... more lewd but I'll get to that at the end.

This movie follows Eric, a guy who at first I am sure nerds like us will appreciate as he is a superfan of cinema... posters and photos all over the place, constant viewings of movies, and so forth. However, it isn't long before it is clear that this guy is not well mentally-he is incredibly awkward, weird, looks quite disheveled, and is a foul-up-as others have noted, think along the lines of Travis Bickle. With any luck, everyone reading this has it more together than this poor schmuck, although some random “film fans” on Twitter do give me pause... anyway, this is even before he snaps and starts killing people in deaths inspired by scenes from movies of yesteryear. One is based on a famous film noir moment and another is a blatant copy is a spoof of a legendary character death but those setpieces are all at least inspired by old-time pictures.

Fade to Black is unfortunately quite uneven and it isn't as great as you might suspect for a plot that sounded so golden. Be that as it may, while the execution is perhaps lacking at times, overall I can still say this was fine. Dennis Christopher definitely portrayed a character that became increasingly unhinged. For people like us it will be fun to see all the film clips used, all the references, all the posters, all the photos-in addition, it will help if you are familiar w/ the likes of White Heat and the original Kiss of Death; Eric loves both Cody Jarrett and Tommy Udo. 

There is plenty to see if you love looking at Los Angeles in the late 70's/early 80's and this has some familiar faces... Tim Thomerson is a police psychologist who does not get along with his boss (I'll call his superior Not Henry Silva) as the character is a hippie who sniffs coke while jammin' away on the harmonica while in his room at the police station! There's also Peter Horton in a scene and a supporting role is played by Mickey Rourke, whose character was a real bully. The kill scenes are all at least interesting and different setpieces that are different from the norm.

I can also reference disgraced legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin in this review; before seeing this I had heard that there was a scene where Eric “flogged the dolphin” while looking at a photo of Monroe; this is true. He does pull a Toobin and engages in some self-gratification while looking at that picture... and Halloween happens to be on TV at the time. In another moment that tickled me pink, a key segment happens at a premiere at Grauman's Chinese Theatre and of all movies, it's of Coal Miner's Daughter. No celebrities are shown but I'll chuckle thinking of Sissy Spasek and Tommy Lee Jones watching on as those events transpire, and that premiere inevitably gets canceled.

The Hound Of The Baskervilles

The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)

Runtime: 87 minutes

Directed by: Terence Fisher

Starring: Peter Cushing, Andre Morell, Christopher Lee, Marla Landi, David Oxley

From: Hammer

While brusque, at least this version of Sherlock Holmes wasn't insufferable like what RDJ did with the character.

This was a movie I remembered watching on VHS way back when I was a kid; as that was literally decades ago and TCM showed it last night, what better time than now to check it out? While more mystery than horror there's still a family curse, an ancient mansion out in the countryside, a creepy moor, spooky caves, and a hellhound that's a key component of said curse. Christopher Lee is the last living decedent of the haunted Baskerville family and the duo of Holmes & Watson are asked to determine if his life is in imminent danger.

Aside from it being an intriguing story from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that takes some turns, of course this was a delight as a Hammer production, having the hallmarks you'd expect from the company. Naturally, it's always great seeing Lee and Peter Cushing together... and as others have noted, subtext can be read into what the titular hound represents due to the actions perpetrated against the louse responsible for the genesis of the curse. From what I've heard, on page Holmes was rather distant and haughty, so I can't fault those qualities being present in this adaptation. This was a wise revisit as the movie is pretty good.

Ring (Sometimes Referred To As Ringu)

Ring (1998)

Runtime: 96 minutes

Directed by: Hideo Nakata

Starring: Nanako Matsushima, Miki Nakatani, Hiroyuki Sanada, Yuko Takeuchi, Hitomi Sato

From: Toho

Believe it or not, the first time I had ever seen any Ring movie. That goes for either timeline in the Japanese series, the American series or anything else. As this helped popularize J-Horror in the West and lead to all those American remakes of Asian horror-to varying degrees of success-about time I gave Ring a shot. Before I continue on, YEARS ago on a podcast I heard a huge Asian horror fan bemoan how this was known in the West as Ringu as in Japan it was just known as Ring. As bad as this sounds, I presume “Ringu” was used because that's what it sounded like to English ears when they heard the Japanese say the movie's title. Due to all that and the subtitles on the stream that Arrow has call it Ring...

All that out of the way, Ring is not about jump scares, scary creatures seen lurking about, loud noises or graphic carnage. Rather, it's all about tone and the creepy nature of why there is a girl named Sadako who is on a cursed videotape that causes those who view it to die within seven days, unless... then again I am sure most are familiar with the basics (even I was from cultural osmosis throughout the past two decades) so I won't dwell on that. Personally, it was very nice to get the backstory of why there is this cursed tape; the movie slowly unfurled as a reporter and her psychic professor ex-husband investigate and not only is it always compelling, it is always rather chilling.

Heck, the couple even have a young son and that character/performance was fine... although at one point he wore uncomfortably short shorts! I thought that trend involving young Japanese boys died out in Nippon cinema once the 70's hit. Anyway, I was relieved that the movie was still effective as a first time watch in 2020; it does get some bonus points for its impact on cinema and moviegoers around the world but if you are a horror fan like me and are also like me (up to last night) and hadn't viewed this yet...

Black Sabbath

Black Sabbath (1963)

Runtime: 93 minutes

Directed by: Mario Bava

Starring: Boris Karloff, Michele Mercier, Lidia Alfonsi, Jacqueline Pierraux, Mark Damon

From: Several different companies that spanned a few different countries

Co-starring the fly that landed on Mike Pence's head.

Note that while this played last night on Turner Classic Movies, that is NOT the version I am reviewing here. This is because what TCM presented was the American International Pictures edit of the film, which made some changes. The intro/outro is different, one segment was edited into something else because of content concerns, and the order of these stories was even changed. I found the original Italian version, subtitled in English. How I did this... that will remain a mystery.

A trio of tales is told and all are pretty spooky. One involves a lady receiving telephone calls; that has reminded some of Scream's legendary opening. The biggest changes were made here for the United States release as edits were made due to people being concerned about American audiences seeing a tale involving prostitutes and lesbian overtones. The second concerns a wurdulak; if you are like me then you would not have heard of that Slavic folklore creature before and that is a shame as it (a bloodsucker which needs the claret of family/friends to survive) is rather fascinating. The last involves a corpse and the torments that befall upon someone who thinks it a good idea to steal something from the corpse's body. Also in this parable was a housefly that was a constant pest.

Of course, this being a Mario Bava product, the movie was literally colorful and was a delight visually. All the tales were different and in their own ways offered up plenty of chilling moments & scares. My personal favorite was the wurdulak segment and not just because it featured Boris Karloff; it also had the best mood & atmosphere although the three stories were effective. This movie is much more than just the inspiration for the name of a legendary heavy metal act... notwithstanding, that is still an awesome bit of trivia.

Honest Thief

Honest Thief (2020)

Runtime: 99 minutes

Directed by: Mark Williams

Starring: Liam Neeson, Kate Walsh, Jai Courtney, Jeffrey Donovan, Robert Patrick

From: So many production companies, there were TWENTY FIVE producers/executive producers

Remember when Liam Neeson said years ago that he was going to stop making movies like these?

It was only last month when I saw a trailer for this film that I knew of its existence. As it seems like the End of Days in the United States, who knows how much longer any cineplex will be open and I have an AMC A-List app that is still being paid for, might as well watch something I figured would be generic... and was that. Maybe it's the circumstances or perhaps it is that the Taken sequels were examples of how something like this can go horribly wrong, but Honest Thief was fine.

The movie goes out of its way to make the lead an honest thief even though he is a bank robber so good he has stolen 9 million dollars. He never spent a dime of it and he decides to come clean after he-of course-meets a lady, Kate Walsh. The thief (Tom) decides to turn himself in at the FBI but naturally that goes awry so he's on the run, then is looking for revenge. It is generic and nothing about the movie is spectacular-that said, nothing about this is bad either. There was nothing embarrassing or groan-inducing. This includes the action, which at least isn't the shaky-cam and over-edited crap that was one of the reasons why the Taken sequels were so bad.

IMO, this was not a waste of time and it did help that there were some other familiar faces which also added their charms, such as Jai Courtney (who at least was far better than his role as Bruce Willis' son in that bad generic action movie filmed in Russia which claimed to be a Die Hard sequel), Jeffrey Donovan, Anthony Ramos and even Robert Patrick. Perhaps this should be seen at home rather than on the big screen unless you have an AMC A-List membership or something similar from another chain, but if you like the genre known as Liam Neeson Old Man Action Thrillers...

I Watched Something Called The Merry Frolics Of Satan

It is a 1906 French silent from the legendary Georges Meiles. I'll even post a link to this macabre delight at the end of this review:

The past 24 hours I've been busy; thus, my brief review of this 21:44 short (at least that was the length of the video on YouTube which had this in restored quality... be warned that other copies are rather horrid in appearance) is going up later in the night than usual. While more comedy than horror, this Georges Melies short is still a macabre delight.

While this does not have any intertitles, this is based on the Faust story so it's not too hard to follow; still, there's always Wikipedia. A scientist wishes to travel around the world in a high-speed contraption. A mysterious entity grants him those powers, and signs a contract... unfortunately for him he did not read the terms & conditions as he sold his soul to the Devil, played by the director himself. Various misadventures happen-this poor SOB gets trolled by Satan to the point that he can't even have a meal-and yes, he does end up in Hell.

What made this so appealing was the unique world that Melies created-it along with all the trick effects-still looks impressive 114 years later. Plus, the literal translation of its original French title is pretty badass: The Four Hundred Tricks of the Devil.

 

Cemetery Of Terror

Cemetery of Terror (Cemetario Del Terror) (1985)

Runtime: 91 minutes

Directed by: Ruben Galindo, Jr.

Starring: Hugo Stiglitz, Jose Gomez Parcero, Bety Robles, Leo Villanueva, Raul Meraz

From: Dynamic Films/Producciones Torrente S.A.

With gore, children, Pepsi Free, Hugo Stiglitz & an airbrushed Michael Jackson kids jacket.

For years now I've heard of this wacky 80's horror picture from Mexico. I have a copy of this film w/ subtitles (nevermind how I did so) and who knows if I would get the upcoming release of the movie on Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome in time for Halloween-thus, I saw a not so great print of this wacky Mexican horror picture starring cult favorite Hugo Stiglitz.

This concerns some medical students dragging their significant others to a spooky old abandoned house on Halloween. If that wasn't bad enough, they happen to steal a corpse from the morgue in order to... do a Satanic ritual to bring him back to life?! In several ways, this is just like an old Italian genre picture, including “illogical moments.” I mean, they do this because the girls are “fussy” due to their men being dumb putzes and lying about their destination, then they somehow think that “scaring them some more” will make them “fall into their arms”? Oh, the patriarchy. Then again, the joke's on me, as somehow this scheme worked and all three couples were able to make out w/ each other!

Anyhow, woe is them that they happened to pilfer the corpse of a crazed serial killer, Devlon. Stiglitz is there as the Dr. Loomis of the film, telling disbelieving authority figures that Devlon is “a demon.” After that things get REALLY wild. There are also a quintet of children who appear and thankfully they weren't as irritating as they could have been. Furthermore, I can't get mad at them for doing dumb things like visiting a graveyard on Halloween night as a dare to test their mettle or hitching a ride to said graveyard in an early 80's van that might as well have said “free candy” on the side. Speaking of that decade, the characters drank Marty McFly's favorite beverage, Pepsi Free.

It is easy to criticize this motion picture as it's silly nonsense which liberally borrows from a number of famous films. Personally, once this gets going it's a blast... fast-paced, a few gory moments, plenty of wild moments in the graveyard and kids who actually were all tolerable. Of course I laughed that one of them wore a shoddy-looking airbrushed Michael Jackson jacket. Your mileage definitely will vary but Cemetery of Terror was more fun than expected.

I Saw Psycho Theatrically... Uncut

I'll explain what I mean by that.

Getting to see the “uncut” version theatrically: awesome.

Of course this has been seen by me plenty of times in my life...in fact I reviewed it here in 2013 and on Letterboxd in 2015. Heck, this wasn't even my first theatrical experience w/ this classic. However, I had to see this Fathom Event not just because it's a legendary film... also, it was the “uncut” version not seen since 1960. It was alluded to in the TCM opening and closing, yet for some reason never elaborated upon. After '60, some snippets (probably not even a minute total) were taken out for fears of it being “too much”. I'm not sure why, as it was such things as "someone has blood on their hands after the first big kill" and "the other big death scene is longer." I don't know why that was never added back until the upcoming UHD release but it was nice to see and the movie is still legendary whether those snippets are in it or not.

Other than that, I will not reiterate what I wrote back five years ago as my opinion has not changed between then and now. It's still an incredible movie which “subverts expectations” in an actual good way, has some stunning performances, and Bernard Herrmann's score strings-only score has to be one of the best of all time both heard on its own and its impact on making the film so chilling and unforgettable.

Possessed (The 1931 Joan Crawford Movie)

Possessed (1931)

Runtime: 76 minutes

Directed by: Clarence Brown

Starring: Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, Wallace Ford, Frank Conroy, & the tremendously named Skeets Gallagher

From: MGM

I had my subscription to the Criterion Channel paused for a month-now I am subscribed again and I figured it would be wise to take advantage of their current tribute to Joan Crawford. Despite her being a huge star from the Golden Age of Hollywood, someone who was white-hot for a few years in the 30's and despite having some down periods she would reinvent herself a few times and act until the early 70's. Of course there's the elephant in the room concerning Mommie Dearest and how two of her adopted children claimed she was an absolute terror who-among other things-flipped her gourd over wire hangers. Then again, her other adopted children refuted those claims and plenty of her pals did the same... at least for my sake I'll presume she wasn't an abusive human being with a possible undiagnosed mental illness as portrayed in the book and-camp classic-film starring Faye Dunaway.

Anyhow, I chose this as it was an early talkie in the Pre-Code era where she starred w/ Clark Gable, something that happened 8 times in the decade. It was a simple romantic drama where Joan played Marian, a lady working in a small town's factory and has a schlub boyfriend who usually acted like a heel. She meets a drunk rich guy on a train at its stop in town and she gets invited to New York City. From there, she is not only a bold independent lady but she is an admitted gold-digger... and the movie does not demonize her for her views. She meets Clark Gable whose character does fulfill the money requirements but because he's divorced he does not want to put a ring on it for a second time, causing the expected issues. As I saw someone else say on Letterboxd, he was rather clean cut here rather than a womanizing rascal.

It is not the most spectacular Pre-Code drama I have ever seen by any means-that said, it was a fine 76 minutes which has some other familiar faces (Wallace Ford and a guy whose name I'll never not snicker at, Skeets Gallagher), some lovely outfits worn by Joan and she even sings in English, French and German in one scene... the two big stars are the highlight and it was a treat to see them separately & on screen together. The last five minutes or so were quite stirring so this at least ended on a high note. Now, I'll happily examine more of Crawford's filmography in the future.

I Saw Total Recall Theatrically

and it was awesome. I reviewed it here twice before (here and here) before but here's the new one I posted on Letterboxd earlier in the day: 

Getting my ass to Mars and seeing this theatrically: awesome.

Cinemas in the United States are still not doing too well... in fact, I was the only person in attendance at this screening and I felt bad for the cineplex I was at-although for me, being there alone was fine. Fathom Events presented this and as I have thought the movie awesome for a number of years, why not see it on the big screen? In essence it was done as an advertisement for the movie being released on UHD in two months time; it did look really nice even on a 2K projector.

My opinion has not changed during all this time. It's still a blast seeing those practical futuristic worlds and Arnold in a wild R-rated big-budget adventure which has some Arnold trademarks but is for certain smarter than a typical Schwarzenegger adventure. What is real and what is a dream is left up to the viewer and no matter what you think is “correct”, the movie still works. It doesn't even really matter if everything that happened to Quaid after he got those memory implants at Recall was “real” or part of the fantasy he paid for or even some off the wall theory... it's easy to root for Arnold as he fights against corporate A-holes and tries to liberate the marginalized people on The Red Planet.

I am glad the movie is still incredibly effective 30 years later; of course, theatrically some of the optical effects were more noticeable, but that was no issue for me. Before the film, they played a brief featurette where Verhoeven gave some basic details, like how he and Arnold met with each other over dinner and that's all it took for this long in gestation project to finally come into fruition. Looking at Wikipedia, none other than Cronenberg was attached in the past, only to leave it due to “creative differences”. In what is really not a surprise, he was the one who came up with the mutant Martian angle. For comedy's sake, I'll presume he also had the idea for the lady w/ three breasts!

On a real life absurd note, remember a few years ago how there was a woman in Florida who claimed she had plastic surgery to add an additional boob, only for it later to be proven that like in Total Recall, it was a prosthetic chest? Who knows what it says about me or Florida but I knew more than one person that knew her personally! No, I never met her... nor would I want to meet someone that appears to be a trainwreck.

Mark Of The Vampire

Mark of the Vampire (1935)

Runtime: 60 minutes

Directed by: Tod Browning

Starring: Lionel Barrymore, Elizabeth Allan, Bela Lugosi, Lionel Atwill, Jean Hersholt

From: MGM

In vampire lore, a possum and saluki dog are as terrifying as an armadillo.

This played on TCM late last night and as it is only an hour long, I figured it would be an easy watch. Besides, this season there needed to be more very old horror pictures to view. While being lighter in tone than I expected, it was still fine and besides the intentionally funny moments like one minor character being hysterical on a near-constant basis, this movie was like the Lugosi Dracula in presenting mundane animals as somehow spooky enough to reside either in his castle or nearby. There, it was an armadillo-something that even “the youth” on Tumblr laugh about-and here it was both a possum and a saluki dog.

The plot: two guys believe that a nobleman was killed by a vampire; naturally, they suspect Bela Lugosi, and not just because he dresses like a monarch of the dark, or has a goth-looking daughter who should be loved by all the goth girls of today. They go after the nobleman's daughter, only this has at least one surprise I dare not spoil. Admittedly uneven-likely due to this being cut down to an hour-it still had nice atmosphere (especially at Bela's lair and a graveyard) and the amusing moments at least made me laugh-which is more than what I can say for some of the pictures I've seen in the past month. Plus, it was nice to see Lugosi as a vampire once again.

One odd note concerning Carroll Borland as the uber-goth Luna: she only made a few films in the 30's and this was her last credited role... before doing 1983's Scalps and 1985's Biohazard, both from FRED OLEN RAY. There has to be a good story behind that happening.

30 Miles From Nowhere

30 Miles from Nowhere (2018)

Runtime: 84 long minutes

Directed by: Caitlin Koller

Starring: Rob Benedict, Carrie Preston, Cathy Shim, Seana Kofoed, William Smillie

From: Film Camp Productions

This was some indie movie BS.

I am not referring to the pretentious twaddle that has become prevalent in the horror genre with the baffling designation of “heightened horror”; rather, it's the sort of indie movie of any genre which acts like it is OH so clever and smarter than the audience. This movie wasn't too good due to its characters and situations but it soiled the bed in the final act. The explanation for the strange events the viewer witnessed was so baffling and stupefying, it turned my mood rather sour. THEN, the final few minutes were insulting and insufferable.

I did not want to loathe a woman-directed film where apparently half the crew was women, the cast had some diversity and the characters were all middle-aged. That said, I have to be real here-the idea of old college friends reuniting at the funeral for one of the buddies only to experience weird events at the guest house of the guy's widow... it seemed fine. However, most of the people you see were rather unpleasant; cursing (there were too many F-bombs), yelling at each other, alcohol issues, and an eagerness to cheat on their significant others w/ each other... for some reason, this quickly grew tiresome. It was more “comedy” than horror-I say comedy somewhat sarcastically as only occasionally did I laugh... otherwise, I was annoyed rather than amused with the attempt at the naturalistic dialogue. I think they were going for satire but totally missed the mark.

The presence of several “that guy” actors was far from being enough for me for this to be tolerable. There are many better “cabin in the woods” pictures that are more worthy of your attention... or, there are quite a few movies from the past decade on Shudder that deserve a view far more than this missed opportunity.

Lake Of Death

Lake of Death (De DodesTjern) (2019)

Runtime: 94 minutes

Directed by: Nini Bull Robsahm

Starring: Iben Akerlie, Ulric Von Der Esch, Jonathan Harboe, Elias Munk, Patrick Walshe McBride

From: Canopy Film

Featuring a spirit that not only prepares breakfast, but even sets the table.

This was the first of two movies I viewed on Shudder last night-the second review will probably debut in around 8 hours time-that had plenty in common: they were horror films set at a cabin in the woods, where both deal w/ characters getting together after a death but spooky events happen... both even were directed by women. This was seen first, and I presume the 1958 Norwegian film it's based on was more exciting than this dull flaccid piece of work.

A lady's twin brother (who uses sign language) disappears after the first scene. Honestly, a character with that disability peacing out so quickly wasn't the only issue I had with that person. Anyhow, that lady and her friends go to the cabin where she last saw her bro, and... the first 2/3 of the movie is not only cliché and had lame jump scares, not a lot happens and some of it is so obviously based on actual horror classics, the characters blatantly reference it. She has weird visions, the dog won't go into the house, there is a hidden basement, and... yawn until the third act. Once things happen, it's too little too late... not to mention it feels underwhelming once you find out what's going on. The destination was not worth the journey, in other words.

A shame this wasn't better; this even had some talent from Hollywood in the crew, chiefly composer John Debney and longtime Raimi collaborator Bob Murawski as the editor. Of course the rural Norwegian scenery was gorgeous and a few moments did make me chuckle. Aside from the fact that an apparent spirit was nice enough to make breakfast and set the table for everyone, but one of the friends is best described as “Danish Jon Bon Jovi”. Be that as it may, that is certainly not enough for me to ever recommend this.

Noroi: The Curse

Noroi: The Curse (2005)

Runtime: 115 minutes

Directed by: Koji Shiraishi

Starring: Jin Murakami, Satoru Jitsunashi, Marika Matsumoto, Rio Kanno, Tomono Kuga

From: A few different Japanese companies

Apparently, you can't say “psycho” on Japanese variety television.

This was viewed last night on Shudder; as for some reason it's never-officially-been released on disc in the United States, this seemed worth a shot due to all the positive buzz it has received over the years. For something that is akin to found footage (technically, it's a faux documentary that is shown as an unfinished product) it was quite well done.

At almost two hours, it certainly takes its time but in the end it was for certain a rewarding journey. Kobayashi is a paranormal documentary filmmaker who covers several mysterious events that surround several people who either die mysteriously or vanish, and all are connected to the titular curse. The movie burns slowly as what seems like disparate events are all tied together in a story that has a pretty terrifying villain w/ some scary lore. The final half hour or so are brutally effective and what an unforgettable ending.

The film has a character you may think at first would be an insufferable “loony”... after all, he is a proclaimed psychic who not only wears a tinfoil hat AND tinfoil jacket, but his place of residence has that same material all over. Yet, in this context it managed to work; him not having too much screentime also helped. What a tapestry that was woven with this tale that has a great mythology-the plot unfurls at the right moments. It's the type of tale where I don't want to reveal too much more concerning plot points; I have heard that the movie has a trailer which spoils everything so that should be avoided.

One last thing: I was personally tickled pink that this has a few minutes of fake Japanese variety show footage. It was so amusing to me as in the past I've seen clips of actual Japanese variety shows and without knowing the language I know they are rather peculiar with how it's presented... the cut-ins from the hosts offering random comments, a reporter on the scene also offering comments, the graphics, the editing, etc. That gave me some chuckles in what was otherwise a deadly serious film.

Blood And Black Lace

Blood and Black Lace (6 Donne Per L'assassino) (1964)

Runtime: 88 minutes

Directed by: Mario Bava

Starring: Cameron Mitchell, Eva Bartok, Thomas Reiner, Arianna Gorini, Dante DiPaolo

From: Several companies from Italy, France & West Germany

This was another picture viewed on Turner Classic Movies. As it's the first “true” giallo made and was literally the template that was typically followed by dozens of genre efforts in the years to come, it seemed important to check out the film that did the job so well, it to varying degrees inspired all those films in later years, nevermind its influence on the slasher genre.

This started off with a bang: it was an explosion of color has many were shown as the main cast was shown in the opening credits which also established the fashion house that ties together the suspects in the investigation of a young lady known as Isabella; she had a diary filled with secrets, so naturally this creates all those potential murderers.

It was an intriguing mystery which unfurled in a delightful manner as various kills punctuate the story and all are pretty thrilling in the way they were composed and shot. To steal a phrase I recently read elsewhere, Blood and Black Lace is “a masterclass in lighting” and this point is especially true during all the kill scenes. At least one of the deaths is wince-inducing by 2020 standards, let alone what it must have been like in the mid 60's. Mix in a groovy score and at least for me it is not a surprise that this is still popular almost 60 years after its release.

Sherlock Jr.

Sherlock Jr. (1924)

Runtime: 45 minutes

Directed by: Buster Keaton

Starring: Keaton, Kathryn McGuire, Joe Keaton, Erwin Connelly, Ward Crane

From: Buster Keaton Productions

A nice way to celebrate Buster Keaton being born on the 4th of October 125 years ago.

Last night Turner Classic Movies paid tribute to this event by showing Buster's most popular feature-length features. The General was also viewed; I reviewed that in 2015 and don't need to do that. However, it had been a lot longer since I saw this. As it's only 45 minutes long, it was an easy Sunday night watch along with a great one. I was even able to ignore the melancholy thought while viewing the title character as a movie theatre projectionist/budding sleuth that every cinema is likely to shut down again soon for who knows how long because not enough people have returned to see films on the big screen.

Anyhow, Jr. is a poor sap who is manipulated by a scoundrel because he wants his girl, officially known as The Girl... I guess this is along the same lines of Chris Nolan naming the protagonist in Tenet The Protagonist. But back on track... a large chunk of the film is our hero falling asleep on the job and daydreaming he is in the movies he's showing. That ends up with him as master detective Sherlock Jr., thwarting the bad guys after many great sight gags, stunts and pratfalls.

While I do prefer The General, that is no slight on Jr. and how all the fat was trimmed on this tale so the end result was 45 minutes of tremendous entertainment, along with all the creativity, billiards trick shots, and Keaton literally putting his body on the line... breaking his neck on a big stunt-a fact he did not know for a decade. I was happy to see both of those classics once more last night, in other words.

Berserker

Berserker (1987)

Runtime: 85 minutes

Directed by: Jefferson Richard

Starring: Joseph Alan Johnson, Greg Dawson, Valerie Sheldon, Buck Flower, John F. Goff

From: American Video Group

My love for you is like a truck, BERZERKER!

Of course that is what I thought more than once while watching this wacky horror picture. It was nice tracking this down after knowing of it for a few years. After all, it's a sextet of teenagers in the woods vs. the spirit of a berserker warrior of Viking culture possessing a Scandinavian decedent and kills people with bear claws while wearing a bear pelt AND a bear snout, which is only partially accurate to history as far as I know. Nice for me was that it features George “Buck” Flower w/ a Swedish accent, “that guy” actor John F. Goff... and Bear the Bear. Now Bart is a familiar animal to me from many pictures of this vintage.

It is easy to nitpick this... for something only 85 minutes long, it does drag at times. There aren't that many deaths, they aren't all that original anyhow and I know some won't be happy with what most of the victims have in common. Be that as it may, personally this did provide entertainment-even if it wasn't in the intended ways the filmmakers preferred. The teenagers were funny tools, especially Josh... he not only smoked pot while driving his truck w/ everyone jammed in it, he also slammed down a Miller Lite while doing same! Their clothing (including cut-off shorts), hair, usage of boombox... it screamed “1980's.” If that wasn't enough, there is homoeroticism! After all, two of the three males are in a musical montage seen shirtless and pouring Miller Lite on each other; what am I supposed to think?

Speaking of music, when it isn't a synth drone, it is... bad hair metal created for the movie. As I dig hair metal, I could chuckle at the goofy examples produced by a bunch of no-names. More unexpected was what can be best described as a Yacht Rock instrumental. I know this won't tickle many people like it did me, but at least it does have some decent (if not groundbreaking) ideas-such as having the wilderness be foggy at night, or having the movie's big sex scene intercut w/ one of the film's kills. Although, the moment that made me laugh the loudest: a digetic sexy saxophone while two characters were making out! Josh stuck in a tape into a boom box which happened to have a sexy sax solo; I don't recall such a cliché being introduced into a movie that way before.

Children Of The Corn

Children of the Corn (1984)

Runtime: 92 minutes

Directed by: Fritz Kiersch

Starring: Peter Horton, Linda Hamilton, R.G. Armstrong, and a bunch of child actors, some of whom were pretty terrible

From: Hal Roach Studios/New World

Featuring gasohol, corn demons, and... 50's oldies?

This is another picture available on the brand new Arrow streaming service and believe it or not, this was the first time it was viewed in full. It was a popular 80's horror film which somehow spawned a franchise that soon will comprise of ten (!) films. Now if only I would have liked this better. While I grew up in a city that had a population of around 15,000 people, I grew up in a neighborhood that was in a rural area. No kidding, corn fields could be seen in the distance if you looked out of more than one window in my house. I never saw any kids dressed in 18th century clothing walking around those fields, let alone demons.

Just judging by the film versions of Stephen King stories, this is not one of my favorites from him. The idea of tiny towns that used to be prosperous but now have fallen on hard times will generally be creepy and sad (as I know from driving through some in the past several years), along with the ideas of false prophets & religious extremists. If only this wouldn't have gotten so silly, especially with the goofy supernatural elements and an effect or two that is quite laughable now. Peter Horton and Linda Hamilton are stuck in a podunk Nebraska town that is entirely ran by children, because they killed their parents to appease “He Who Walks Behind the Rows.”

A shame that this isn't always that terribly exciting and has a goofy story. It usually does have a disturbing undercurrent flowing through the plot; the same goes for the chilling score. It's nice seeing Horton, Hamilton, and (especially) R.G. Armstrong; as a counterpart, some of the child acting is rather putrid, to be blunt. Also, to say that this has an abrupt ending is being awfully kind to the movie. If this had been first viewed when I was a little kid, it is likely my opinion would be different-I am sure I would have liked it better now and nostalgia would have an impact on my rating. As is, an average score is what this will get.

Malatesta's Carnival Of Blood

Malatesta's Carnival of Blood (1973)

Runtime: 74 minutes

Directed by: Christopher Speeth

Starring: Janine Carazo, Jerome Dempsey, Daniel Dietrich, Lenny Baker... and Herve Villechaize!

From: Windmill Films

I discuss Arrow's new streaming service... and whatever the heck this movie was.

Just a few days prior I saw on Bloody Disgusting that starting on the 1st of this month, Arrow Video would be launching their own streaming platform. As the first month is free, it was only logical to give it a shot, especially considering its lineup so far is mainly horror-centric. Its look and layout: quite similar to Shudder; in fact, they share several titles. This cult movie was selected first mainly due to its brief 74 minute length. There was no issue concerning my streaming of it last night. As for Carnival of Blood... even stranger than I expected.

The plot was ostensibly about a mom, dad and teen daughter joining a run-down amusement because the son disappeared after he started employment there... how this is presented is rather off the wall. Carnival of Souls has been mentioned multiple times as an obvious inspiration... so has Night of the Living Dead. Much of this comes off as a nightmare, between the overall tone, all the surreal moments, the bizarre characters that populate this, the unique visuals, the early 70's electronic score, and the ability to film at a real life rundown amusement park-Willow Grove Amusement Park, to be exact... a few years later it was torn down and replaced by a shopping mall, where Muzak probably did fill the air-that naturally presented a creepy atmosphere in the day, nevermind how strange it was at night.

It is easy to nitpick this strange piece of cinema... I won't as I was perversely entertained, entranced by all the bizarre happenings and the few moments of graphic gore. There was more than one “that guy” in the cast but the most famous face was Herve Villechaize. Not only was it a gas seeing him point a full-sized gun at someone, The Man with the Golden Gun was not his only picture which featured a sequence in a Hall of Mirrors setting.

It was a real struggle trying to reason a rating for this. Ultimately it will receive a pretty favorable one; the filmmakers seemingly wanted a strange movie and that they did accomplish here. It featured cannibals moving about as they view silent horror films on a giant screen... there are other moments from Malatesta I will never forget.

The Haunting (The Original)

The Haunting (1963)

Runtime: 112 minutes

Directed by: Robert Wise

Starring: Julie Harris, Claire Bloom, Richard Johnson, Russ Tamblyn, Fay Compton

From: MGM

As The Haunting of Hill House was popular and well-received on Netflix and The Haunting of Bly Manor (based on another famous horror novel) will debut on the platform in about a week, this seemed like an opportune time to discuss what I hear is a loose adaptation of the novel by Shirley Jackson. I have seen some negative reviews for this and those can't be faulted. It isn't a purely haunted house movie like The Conjuring where it's solely some demonic force raising hell and scaring the pants off of both its inhabitants & any interlopers. Plus, there is plenty of narration from one character done as internal monologues.

Rather, this story surrounding a researcher who selects several people to join him to chronicle the events of a house that's always been haunted... it is more psychological and the focus is on a troubled young lady whose mind is further fractured by being at Hill House. It is rather frightening to see someone be in the midst of a mental breakdown, not to mention the implication that the creepy mansion also drove its previous residents mad.

The Haunting manages to be effective for several reasons. It has a quality cast who all perform well, but Julie Harris as Eleanor-commonly referred to as Nell-was the standout as the mentally troubled lady. Personally it was nice to see Lois Maxwell in a small role as someone besides Miss Moneypenny. It was filmed in an off-kilter oft-unnerving fashion, which only heightened the eerie feeling of the mansion we spend most of the movie's runtime in. Finally, both the usage of music-or lack thereof-and sound was important. To be frank, the evil in the house makes its presence known chiefly from such acts as slamming doors or pounding on doors.

Thankfully this movie was a fun ride even with its methodical pace and it subverting expectations somewhat (thankfully not like in The Last Jedi!). I haven't seen any other adaptation of the story... yes I do realize it's likely fortunate that not even a minute of the 1999 remake has been seen with my own eyes!