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Post by commond on Oct 27, 2024 16:37:12 GMT -5
Who Can Kill a Child? (Narciso Ibáñez Serrador, 1976)
This was an excellent film. A British couple's trip to an idyllic Spanish island turns into a nightmare when they discover that the children on the island are killing all of the adults. The film opens with real life documentary footage of atrocities committed against children, which, while designed to make the viewer feel uncomfortable, isn't the most entertaining way to begin a film, and there's a ton of exposition in the first act, but once they arrive on the island, the film is fantastic and all of that set up you sat through in Act One is paid off. The wife may seem annoying at first, but later on she gets to cut loose with a hell of a performance. Evil children was a thing in 70s horror. What I liked about this film is that they never explained why the children suddenly began attacking the adults. I thought it was an excellent decision to keep it a mystery instead of providing some sort of hokey explanation. A warning though -- the film is violent and several children die, so give it a wide berth if that bothers you.
Sleepaway Camp (Robert Hiltzik, 1983)
This was trash. Pure trash! It's developed a cult following over the years and rightfully so. The acting and music are so bad it's difficult to tell at times whether it's a slasher or a black comedy. The twist ending was predictable, but the execution was amazing. If nothing else, that scene will stay long in the mind. Children of the 80s will dig the Stranger Things vibes.
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Post by jtrw2024 on Oct 27, 2024 18:29:51 GMT -5
Week 3-4
Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986)
Poltergeist III (1988)
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
I probably won't get too much of a chance to watch any more movies before the end of the month, but I've got the remaining episodes of Agatha All Along, which I think finishes off this week. I've still got a few movies which I expect I'll get around to in November. I've added a few more to why my watch list, inspired by some of the ones mentioned in this thread, which I hope to get to as well.
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Post by Jeddak on Oct 27, 2024 19:59:44 GMT -5
Night of the Seagulls - 1975 - IMBD lists H. P. Lovecraft under writing credits, though he's uncredited in the film.
We open with another flashback, to the living Templars doing their human sacrifice thing. No origin this time. Then, in the present, a young doctor and his wife move to a little seaside village, where it soon becomes clear that they are not wanted. The villagers have a Dark Secret, you see. (I don't get why these guys always make it so obvious that there is a secret at all. You'd think they'd want to be more subtle about it.) It turns out the Templars have a castle nearby, and the village has to sacrifice 7 girls, over 7 nights, every 7 years, or the Templars will destroy them. Well, our heroes aren't going to put up with that.
This may be my favorite of the four main Blind Dead films. There's a nice sense of place, with exteriors shot in a lovely rustic seaside village and the constant sound of the surf and the seagulls. The Templars pop up throughout the movie, and still look cool. The crabs are legitimately creepy. The characters are more likable than usual, and they actually have something to do other than weak soap opera sub-plots. They have real agency, figuring out what's going on and standing against it. And that makes for a much better movie. Too bad it took them this long to figure that out. And the Templars are defeated, for only the 2nd time in the series. Unlike back in the second film, it's even due to the actions of our heroes.
Continuity notes - This time around, the Dead aren't Satanists, but instead worship a squat, ugly idol, what one character calls 'a beast of the sea, a god belonging to some unknown culture.' There's our Lovecraft influence.
Okay, so obviously Amando de Ossorio, who wrote and directed all 4 of these films, was taking an anthology approach, without worrying about maintaining an internal continuity. As a long-time superhero fan, I struggle with this a bit, but I can adapt.
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Post by Jeddak on Oct 27, 2024 20:00:42 GMT -5
Footnote - Paul Naschy wrote, directed and starred in a lot of horror films, including at least a dozen playing a werewolf named Waldemar Daninsky. Apparently at one point Ossorio wanted to do a fifth Blind Dead movie, crossing over with Naschy. It would have seen Daninsky, seeking a cure for his curse, trying to get a copy of the Necronomicon owned by the Templars. It never happened, and honestly I never developed a taste for Naschy's movies. But I'd've paid money to see that movie.
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Post by berkley on Oct 28, 2024 10:58:12 GMT -5
The Old Dark House (1932) with Boris Karloff and Charles Laughton, among others. No supernatural element, and it's not even scary; I actually found it charming, despite a thunderstorm that lasts for the whole of the film and a crazed relative locked up in the attic. Two sets of strangers must find refuge in a very spooky house lost somewhere in Wales, because of a very bad thunderstorm. Their hosts are an elderly brother and sister who seem to be straight out of an Addams family episode, with their Cro-Magnon-like servant. The sister is something of a bigot, but I found her hilarious (she's quite deaf, leading to many misunderstandings). Something I really liked is how colourful each member of the cast is, without requiring the presence of such stereotypes as the jealous spouse, the narcissistic, the coward or the traitor. It's adapted from a novel but felt like a play; lots of dialogue in there (but none of it superfluous).
I saw that one a year or two ago and really liked it. A true classic - and reportedly one of the first of its kind in the movies, though of course there are antecedents. The novel was by JB Priestley, a writer I've started to become interested in lately but haven't yet read much.
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Post by berkley on Oct 28, 2024 11:04:12 GMT -5
Last night I saw another Mexican luchador film Las Momias de (The Mummies of) Guanajuato (1970). I pcked this one because it featured all three of the biggest Mexican wrestling movie stars/characters: Santo, Mil Mascaras, and Blue Demon - although, as it turned out, Santo only came in towards the end and it was Mil Mascaras and Blue Demon who were the protagonists. Lots of fun, as usual, and nice sets and colour photography - Blue Demon's house or apartment looks like somewhere I'd like to live.
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Post by Jeddak on Oct 28, 2024 14:17:44 GMT -5
Curse of the Blind Dead - 2020 - Stumbled on this one by accident, and couldn't believe somebody had finally, after 45 years, made a new Blind Dead film. So let's see how they did, eh?
We start, as is the fashion, with a flashback to the still-living Templars, as they're about to sacrifice a newborn baby in some ritual. The villagers show up to blind and kill them, also killing the baby for some reason. Then we skip ahead. In a post-apocalyptic future, we meet
wait a minute
double checks
huh
Okay. In a post-apocalyptic future, we meet a father and daughter looking for some outpost of civilization. They run into a religious group living in the old Templar place. Turns out these guys want to revive the Templars and complete that ritual with the newborn. Did I mention that the daughter is pregnant?
The Templars aren't as skeletal and don't look as cool. They move at normal speed, so they're less otherworldly. Also, they growl and roar. They're just not as eerie and intimidating as the old school ones. Once they do finally show up half-way through the film and go on a killing spree, there is a lot of gore. But they feel secondary to the cult, which really takes away from their power; they're like guest stars in what should be their movie. And of course, when we think the story's over, they have to go for an unsatisfying twist ending.
I really disliked this movie. Sometimes, we should just let the dead lie.
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Post by Jeddak on Oct 28, 2024 17:15:01 GMT -5
Scream of the Blind Dead - 2021 - A short independent film derived from the opening half hour or so of the first Blind Dead movie. With its long, lingering shots of a woman walking through a field, buildings, and weeds, and its minimal dialogue, it's clearly trying more for atmosphere than anything else. When the Blind Knight appears, it looks good, creepy and menacing. But there's no tension to the knight chasing our main character; it doesn't seem to really be trying that hard to kill her. And there's a twist which comes out of nowhere; if I get it, then the Blind Knight isn't a Templar, but something else, more personal. Okay, I actually kind of like that writer/director Chris Alexander went in a new direction. This still comes off as an affectionate homage to the original films, and feels a little like Jean Rollin as well, which isn't a bad thing.
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Oct 28, 2024 17:48:51 GMT -5
Haven't had a lot of free time and am a bit burnt out on horror (not my preferred genre at all. But I found time for It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. This is easily my favorite Peanuts special. And it gives all the warm fuzzies from when I was a kid and you had ONE chance to see it each year.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Oct 28, 2024 20:12:34 GMT -5
Who Can Kill a Child? (Narciso Ibáñez Serrador, 1976) This was an excellent film. A British couple's trip to an idyllic Spanish island turns into a nightmare when they discover that the children on the island are killing all of the adults. The film opens with real life documentary footage of atrocities committed against children, which, while designed to make the viewer feel uncomfortable, isn't the most entertaining way to begin a film, and there's a ton of exposition in the first act, but once they arrive on the island, the film is fantastic and all of that set up you sat through in Act One is paid off. The wife may seem annoying at first, but later on she gets to cut loose with a hell of a performance. Evil children was a thing in 70s horror. What I liked about this film is that they never explained why the children suddenly began attacking the adults. I thought it was an excellent decision to keep it a mystery instead of providing some sort of hokey explanation. A warning though -- the film is violent and several children die, so give it a wide berth if that bothers you. I hadn't seen that one since the early '80s, but you got me to watch it again! I fully agree with your review. It's available on Youtube, and is definitely spooky. My only gripe is how the characters don't always act sensibly. Had I been Mr. Moustache, I'd have fled the island with my wife the very second I understood what was going on. And of course, it's a pretty stupid idea to throw away a machine gun. Props to the director for not coming up with a half-baked explanation for what's going on. The mystery is fine as it is. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Oct 28, 2024 23:34:29 GMT -5
I've kind of tapped out on this project. I more of an adventure and comedy film kind of guy, rather than horror and while I like many horror films, a steady diet of it was just a bit too much. My likely Halloween viewings, from this point, are likely to be It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown! and some Treehouse of Horror. Maybe a Groovie Goolies clip or two....
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Post by Jeddak on Oct 29, 2024 17:26:43 GMT -5
She-Wolf of London was a syndicated supernatural series from 1990 that sadly only lasted one season. Even more sadly, for the last 6 episodes of the season they revamped the show, moving from London to LA, dumping the supporting cast, losing the will-they-or-won't-they sexual tension of the relationship between the leads, and changing the title to Love and Curses. Bad moves, all. But I really enjoyed the show. My favorite episode actually has no supernatural element at all. But this one, despite being from the LA period, is also a lot of fun.
Bride of the Wolfman - 1991 - Randi the titular she-wolf and Ian are now living together in LA. (I was going to say they're lovers, but sex triggers her transformation.) Ian takes her to her favorite movie theater from her childhood, which is about to be demolished. They break in for one last look around. The doors close behind them, a never-released Universal monster movie somehow starts, and Ian and Randi find themselves trapped in the movie, with less than an hour before the theater is coming down. Turns out the ending of the movie was lost, and Randi & Ian must bring it to a conclusion to escape.
'What is life without consciousness, without intelligence?'
'Network television?'
The black and white movie segments are classic, complete with melodramatic dialogue, timely lightning and thunder, creepy servant, mad doctor, a secret passage, bad continuity, mislabeled brains, Michael Berryman, and even a cheesy werewolf transformation (Randi is unimpressed).
The series had always had a light touch to it, but the change in direction led to a more comedic approach. I didn't appreciate the new emphasis, but in this episode it worked.
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Post by berkley on Oct 29, 2024 22:18:03 GMT -5
Tonight I watched another Hammer film, The Vampire Lovers (1970). Like almost all the Hammer Horror movies this one looks fantastic, great sets with the old castles, graveyards, and late 18-century mansions. The story is a very loose adaptation of Sheridan Le Fanu's famous novella Carmilla - which reminds me, I should check to see if there have been any other film versions of that seminal vampire story. The always welcome Peter Cushing has a good supporting part as "the General" the father of Laura, one of Carmilla's main victims, and George Cole is the father of the other, Emma. But of course it's the female characters who take precedence in this movie and they're all great, not only Ingrid Pitt as Carmilla/Mircalla, but Pippa Steele, Madeleine Smith, and Kate O'Mara as well. I might try to see the sequel, Lust for a Vampire, if I can find time before the month's out.
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Oct 30, 2024 15:45:01 GMT -5
The Old Dark House (1932) with Boris Karloff and Charles Laughton, among others. No supernatural element, and it's not even scary; I actually found it charming, despite a thunderstorm that lasts for the whole of the film and a crazed relative locked up in the attic. Two sets of strangers must find refuge in a very spooky house lost somewhere in Wales, because of a very bad thunderstorm. Their hosts are an elderly brother and sister who seem to be straight out of an Addams family episode, with their Cro-Magnon-like servant. The sister is something of a bigot, but I found her hilarious (she's quite deaf, leading to many misunderstandings). Something I really liked is how colourful each member of the cast is, without requiring the presence of such stereotypes as the jealous spouse, the narcissistic, the coward or the traitor. It's adapted from a novel but felt like a play; lots of dialogue in there (but none of it superfluous). I saw that one a year or two ago and really liked it. A true classic - and reportedly one of the first of its kind in the movies, though of course there are antecedents. Curious what you mean by this? The dark humor aspect? The Old Dark House trope was already done to death by this point, and I kind of love how this film bites its thumb at that fact with its choice of title. |
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Post by commond on Oct 30, 2024 16:18:56 GMT -5
Cemetery Man (Michele Soavi, 1994) This is an Italian black comedy about a cemetery caretaker who has to ward off the undead each night. Extremely quirky. It followed the 90s trend of trying to make every shot a fancy one, but it's a decent production. It's really a story about the young caretaker's search for love and fulfillment that just happens to have zombies in it. Martin Scorsese was a fan. This Night I'll Possess Your Corpse (José Mojica Marins, 1967) I really wanted Coffin Joe to be the best thing I watched this Halloween, but the character spends far too long spouting off about his immortality and superiority to other men. The action scenes are well done, especially for such a low budget film, they're just few and far between. There's a color sequence halfway through the film where Joe travels to Hell that's a wild scene. Fans of cult classics will get a kick out of this. If you prefer a solid narrative, you'll find it tiresome. Coffin Joe has a cool look: 
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