PURE TERROR - 50 MOVIE COLLECTION (12-Disc Set) (2010)
OVER 70 HOURS OF TERROR TO TICKLE YOUR SLASHER BONE!
Your most frightening nightmares come true in this incomparable collection of 50 spine-tingling films. Never before has such a diverse collection of movies been culminated together for horror freaks to feast upon, filled with psychotic serial killers (Don't Answer the Phone), horrifying creatures (Monstroid), haunted mansions (House By the Cemetery) and blood-thirsty vampires (Fangs of the Living Dead). Also featuring big-screen horror legends (Scared to Death with Bela Lugosi) and adaptations of literary classics (Edgar Allan Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart), this collection is sure to scare the wits out of horror fans! A rare blend of cinematic classics and rare movies making their DVD debut. Including some exclusively licensed films ONLY available in this incredible collection. (from MillCreekEnt.Com)
One of the most recent genre budget-collections from Mill Creek Entertainment is the PURE TERROR 50 Movie Collection. 50 films spanning 51 years of schlock, slashers, supernatural thriller, occult terror, b-movie and sci-fi titles culled from public domain obscurity and the recently acquired Crown International Pictures library. Let's have a brief look at each of the films in this set, shall we?
THE AMAZING TRANSPARENT MAN (1960) “Invisible and Deadly” Directed by Edgar G. Ulmer/Starring Marguerite Chapman, Douglass Kennedy, James Griffin/B+W/Unrated/57 Min./USA A crazed scientist invents an invisibility formula. He plans to use the formula to create an army of invisible zombies. He breaks a convict from prison and renders him invisible in an effort to procure radioactive materials to further his diabolical plan, what could possible go wrong? You'll be asleep long before you find out.
Your most frightening nightmares come true in this incomparable collection of 50 spine-tingling films. Never before has such a diverse collection of movies been culminated together for horror freaks to feast upon, filled with psychotic serial killers (Don't Answer the Phone), horrifying creatures (Monstroid), haunted mansions (House By the Cemetery) and blood-thirsty vampires (Fangs of the Living Dead). Also featuring big-screen horror legends (Scared to Death with Bela Lugosi) and adaptations of literary classics (Edgar Allan Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart), this collection is sure to scare the wits out of horror fans! A rare blend of cinematic classics and rare movies making their DVD debut. Including some exclusively licensed films ONLY available in this incredible collection. (from MillCreekEnt.Com)
One of the most recent genre budget-collections from Mill Creek Entertainment is the PURE TERROR 50 Movie Collection. 50 films spanning 51 years of schlock, slashers, supernatural thriller, occult terror, b-movie and sci-fi titles culled from public domain obscurity and the recently acquired Crown International Pictures library. Let's have a brief look at each of the films in this set, shall we?
THE AMAZING TRANSPARENT MAN (1960) “Invisible and Deadly” Directed by Edgar G. Ulmer/Starring Marguerite Chapman, Douglass Kennedy, James Griffin/B+W/Unrated/57 Min./USA A crazed scientist invents an invisibility formula. He plans to use the formula to create an army of invisible zombies. He breaks a convict from prison and renders him invisible in an effort to procure radioactive materials to further his diabolical plan, what could possible go wrong? You'll be asleep long before you find out.
RATING * (1 out of 5 stars)
ANATOMY OF A PSYCHO (1961) Directed by Boris Petroff/Starring Ronnie Burns, Pamela Lincoln, Daryl Howe, Judy Howard/B+W/Unrated/75 Min./USA
Driven to the edge of insanity by the execution of his older brother, Chet is boiling over with hatred. After getting his face slashed in a senseless alley-way brawl, his paranoia begins to paint everyone around him as an enemy. He turns to his sweet younger sister, his slutty girlfriend, and even his old poker buddies for solace, but all of them have real or imagined links back to the ill-fated trial that condemned his brother, thus aggravating Chet's psychosis. After viciously assaulting the prosecuting attorney's son, the troubled youth draws the relentless attention of detective Lt. Mac. Spiraling out of control, Chet commits an arson and then a senseless murder. With Lt. Mac ratcheting up the pressure, Chet sinks deeper and deeper into the bottomless pit of his own psychotic delusions. This film was Ronnie Burns final performance, he being the adopted son of George Burns and Gracie Allen. RATING *1/2 (1.5 out of 5 stars)
Driven to the edge of insanity by the execution of his older brother, Chet is boiling over with hatred. After getting his face slashed in a senseless alley-way brawl, his paranoia begins to paint everyone around him as an enemy. He turns to his sweet younger sister, his slutty girlfriend, and even his old poker buddies for solace, but all of them have real or imagined links back to the ill-fated trial that condemned his brother, thus aggravating Chet's psychosis. After viciously assaulting the prosecuting attorney's son, the troubled youth draws the relentless attention of detective Lt. Mac. Spiraling out of control, Chet commits an arson and then a senseless murder. With Lt. Mac ratcheting up the pressure, Chet sinks deeper and deeper into the bottomless pit of his own psychotic delusions. This film was Ronnie Burns final performance, he being the adopted son of George Burns and Gracie Allen. RATING *1/2 (1.5 out of 5 stars)
BLOOD SABBATH (1972) "They were evil. They were sadistic... And drop dead GORGEOUS!!" Directed by Brianne Murphy/Starring Anthony Geary, Susan Damato, Sam Gilman, Steve Gravers/Color/R/57 Min./USA
A young war scarred Vietnam vet is travelling through the wilderness when he happen upon a water-nymph ...insert punchline here. The nymph Yyalah (Susan Damante) and Tony (Anthony Geary) fall in love but she tells him she cannot be with him because he has a soul. Oddly, a coven of witches led by priestess Alotta (Dyanne Thorne, ILSA: SHE WOLF OF THE SS) call the very same woods home and are only too happy to extricate his soul. What a strange little erotic witchcraft film, lots of naked beauties, campy gore effects, and the worst kind of b-movie atmosphere imaginable. The film score is by none other than Les Baxter, so it's got that going for it, but naked beauty aside this film had nothing to offer.
A young war scarred Vietnam vet is travelling through the wilderness when he happen upon a water-nymph ...insert punchline here. The nymph Yyalah (Susan Damante) and Tony (Anthony Geary) fall in love but she tells him she cannot be with him because he has a soul. Oddly, a coven of witches led by priestess Alotta (Dyanne Thorne, ILSA: SHE WOLF OF THE SS) call the very same woods home and are only too happy to extricate his soul. What a strange little erotic witchcraft film, lots of naked beauties, campy gore effects, and the worst kind of b-movie atmosphere imaginable. The film score is by none other than Les Baxter, so it's got that going for it, but naked beauty aside this film had nothing to offer.
RATING *1/2 (1.5 out of 5 stars)
BLOODY PIT OF HORROR (1965) "He was a homicidal maniac who LIVED TO KILL!" Directed by Staring Mickey Hagerty, Walter Brandi, Luisa Baratto, Rita Klein/Color/R/ 87 Min./USA
A photographer and his sexy models go to an old, gothic castle to shoot some sexy covers for horror novels. Unbeknownst to them, the castle is inhabited by an actor/lunatic who believes himself to be the reincarnated spirit of a 17th-century executioner. He calls himself the Crimson Executioner. It's not an original idea my any stretch of the imagination, but it'll do. This film is a bit odd but a lot of fun. Some great torture scenes with lots of gimmicks and gorgeous ladies in minimal clothing. RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
CRUCIBLE OF HORROR AKA THE CORPSE (1970)
CRUCIBLE OF HORROR AKA THE CORPSE (1970)
"The nightmare never ends?" Directed by Viktors Ritelis/Starring Michael Gough, Yvonne Mitchell, Sharon Gurney, Simon Gough/Color/PG/91 Min./UK
This film paints a demented portrait of an English family torn asunder by the cruelty of a father. Mother and daughter are driven to murder by the mental torments of tyrannical patriarch Walter Eastwood played by Michael Gough whom most will recall as Alfred from Tim Burton's BATMAN (1989). Walter spoils his son Rupert but hesitates not to mentally abuse both his daughter Jane and wife Edith, at one point caning his daughter with a reed as punishment for theft. Mother and daughter stage a suicide and off the father in a plot line highly reminiscent of Henri-Georges Clouzot's DIABOLIQUE (1954). But before they can stage the discovery of his suicide the body disappears and then reappears in the most startling places, haunting the two femme fatales. The film is too melodramatic and the twist ending is baffling, and unrewarding. Do yourself a favor and check out Diabolique if you haven't and skip this pale imitation. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
This film paints a demented portrait of an English family torn asunder by the cruelty of a father. Mother and daughter are driven to murder by the mental torments of tyrannical patriarch Walter Eastwood played by Michael Gough whom most will recall as Alfred from Tim Burton's BATMAN (1989). Walter spoils his son Rupert but hesitates not to mentally abuse both his daughter Jane and wife Edith, at one point caning his daughter with a reed as punishment for theft. Mother and daughter stage a suicide and off the father in a plot line highly reminiscent of Henri-Georges Clouzot's DIABOLIQUE (1954). But before they can stage the discovery of his suicide the body disappears and then reappears in the most startling places, haunting the two femme fatales. The film is too melodramatic and the twist ending is baffling, and unrewarding. Do yourself a favor and check out Diabolique if you haven't and skip this pale imitation. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
CURSE OF BIGFOOT (1978) Directed by Dave Flocker/Starring Bob Clymire, Jan Swihart, Bill Simonsen
A group of high school students on an archaeological dig discover a centuries old mummified body of a Native American in a sealed cave. Removing the mummy, it soon comes back to life, revealing itself to be an inhuman beast that terrorizes a small California town. Wow, you will rarely watch a film as bad a Curse of Bigfoot. A terrible full screen print of the film marred by almost every conceivable flaw you could imagine. I don't think I've ever seen a creature design as poorly conceived as this. Looks like a dude bandaged head-to-toe in toilet paper and the rolled in shit. Brain-numbingly bad. RATING * (1 out of 5 stars)
DEATH IN THE SHADOWS aka DE PROOI(1985) Directed by Vivian Peters/Starring Maayke Bouten, Marlous Fluitsma, Johan Leysen, Erik de Vries/Color/R/97 Min./ Netherlands When 18-year old Valerie (Maayke Bouten) mother is killed after being viciously run over by a car while walking home the autopsy reveals she has never bore a child. Soon after more strange facts begin to surface. While police inspector Mellema hunts down the car driver, Valerie starts searching for her real parents, both leading to the same sad truth. This Danish film holds little intrigue. Star Maayke Bouten is a gorgeous woman but the pacing is dreary and the story a bit confusing. Add to that a murky full frame VHS transfer and I couldn't make heads or tails of the final act. I must say I enjoyed the quirky synthesizer film core by Henry Vrientan whom also did the score for THE VANISHING (1988), but the film just couldn't hold my attention.
RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
DEATH WARMED UP (1984) "I'll get you, I'll get you all." Directed by David Blyth/Starring Michael Hurst, Margaret Umbers, William Upjohn/Color/R/78 Min./Australia
At the start of the film teenager Michael Tucker (Michael Hurst) is brainwashed by the evil Dr. Howell (Gary Day), who's hell bent on defeating death itself and creating a army of the living dead ...I think, it's a bit confusing to be honest. The plot and narrative are not this films greatest strength. That night Michael goes home and bloodily shotgun blasts his mum and dad to death under the direction of Dr. Howell's reprogramming. Afterwards he is sent to an asylum for the criminally insane. Seven years later he is released and sets out to exact revenge on Dr. Howell. Along with three friends he returns to the remote island where the evil doctor has continued his pursuit of creating a zombie army using corpses from the psychiatric brain-surgery center he runs. This low-budget export from New Zealand has the distinction of being the first NZ-horror film, it would be several years before Peter Jackson's BAD TASTE (1987), and I have to imagine this would have been a major influence on the young director. David Blyth makes great use of existing locations, fun set pieces and garish lighting to give us something cheap, fun and interesting while not altogether coherent. What struck me 1st about the film was the great use of colored lighting reminiscent of 80's films like DEMONS (1985) that were influenced by Dario Argento and master of the macabre Mario Bava before him. We get a lot of great gore and splatter, including several awesome exploding heads, brutal impalement, and power drills to the head. Definitely a splatstick comedy with a bit of zaniness that will appeal to fans of Peter Jackson's 1st two films or the more recent BLACK SHEEP (2006). The finale, much like the rest of the film, is disjointed and a bit ambiguous, but a fun watch nonetheless. If you enjoy madcap b-movie splatter films in the vein of Peter Jackson's early stuff I think you'll find a bunch to enjoy here, just don't expect the Citizen Kane of splatter films, this is a strictly lo-budget affair with on-the-cheap effects and a visible boom mic, but it's fun, fast and wonderfully demented.
**1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
**1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
THE DEVIL'S NIGHTMARE (1971)
"Can You Be Possessed By The Devil?" Directed by Jean Brismee/Starring Erika Blanc, Shirley Corrigan, Daniel Emilfork, Colette Emmanuelle, Frederique Hender/Color/R/88 Min./Belgium
THE DEVIL'S NIGHTMARE begins in Nazi Germany 1945 as the wife of a Nazi is giving birth to a daughter, the woman loses her life during childbirth. The father takes the child's life by plunging a dagger into its body. Two decades later a group of tourists are the stranded in the Italian countryside when former Nazi Baron Von Rhomeburg offers them lodging in his gothic castle. As Hans the butler shows each of the guests to their rooms he goes into great detail how people have died in the very same rooms over the centuries, it's very creepy and a nice touch. That very day a reporter doing a story on the castle dies mysteriously after being chased by an unseen pursuer. The groundsmen surmise she's died of fright, and she bears the mark of the Devil. As the guests are gathered for dinner the Baron reveals that the eldest daughter in each generation of his bloodline is destined to become the handmaiden of Satan, a Succubus. During dinner an 8th guest arrives, the mysterious red-haired beauty Lisa (Erika Blanc, KILL, BABY...KILL!). The guests are comprised of a priest, Father Alvin, two bombshell lesbians, a troubled couple, a seductress (Ivanna Novak, SEVEN BLOODSTAINED ORCHIDS), elderly chap Mr. Foster and a gluttonous man with an unhealthy appetite. Similarly to the film SE7EN the guests are representations of the 7 deadly sins and are damned for their sins as Lisa exploits their weaknesses. We get several varied and fun deaths throughout the film; guillotine, iron maiden, snake bite, suffocation, impalement, poisoning ...none of it's overly gory but it's effective stuff. Particularly effective is Lisa is transformations from fire-crotch beauty to a ghoulish demon with mottled gray flesh. We also get some of that infamous Euro-horror nudity. Some of these euro films of the 70's were pretty schlocky but there never seemed to be a shortage of gorgeous European beauties willing to flaunt their natural gifts on film. There's also no shortage of b-movie shtick: dripping blood, doors opening and closing on their own, books falling off shelves, a laboratory. Good stuff. After the other guests have met their fates at the hand of Lisa Father Alvin is the sole-survivor having resisted the temptations of Lisa's sexual advances. When she finally exposes her true self to him he is horrified and slashes at her face with his crucifix leading to a hilarious and protracted string of facial contortions that goes on for far too long. The priest runs from the castle and is greeted by a dark stranger having just arrived in horse drawn carriage, its Old Scratch himself played by none other than Daniel Emilfork - Krank from one of my most treasured films - THE CITY OF THE LOST CHILDREN (1995) - just brilliant! Father Alvin offers his soul in exchange for the lives and souls of his seven companions. Satan agrees, and the priest signs a contract in his own blood, dipping a quill into his opened vein to do so. The contract immediately burst into flames, but is Satan willing to spare their souls? Is any deal with the Devil ever so cut and dried? I really enjoyed this film. Great story, gorgeous scenery, beautiful women. These 1970's Euro-Horror films are all over the place in regards to quality, but this one is a winner. Definitely worth a look if you love b-movie schlock, obscure classics and especially Euro-Horror as this set is chock full of it.
RATING: *** (3 Out of 5 Stars)
"Can You Be Possessed By The Devil?" Directed by Jean Brismee/Starring Erika Blanc, Shirley Corrigan, Daniel Emilfork, Colette Emmanuelle, Frederique Hender/Color/R/88 Min./Belgium
THE DEVIL'S NIGHTMARE begins in Nazi Germany 1945 as the wife of a Nazi is giving birth to a daughter, the woman loses her life during childbirth. The father takes the child's life by plunging a dagger into its body. Two decades later a group of tourists are the stranded in the Italian countryside when former Nazi Baron Von Rhomeburg offers them lodging in his gothic castle. As Hans the butler shows each of the guests to their rooms he goes into great detail how people have died in the very same rooms over the centuries, it's very creepy and a nice touch. That very day a reporter doing a story on the castle dies mysteriously after being chased by an unseen pursuer. The groundsmen surmise she's died of fright, and she bears the mark of the Devil. As the guests are gathered for dinner the Baron reveals that the eldest daughter in each generation of his bloodline is destined to become the handmaiden of Satan, a Succubus. During dinner an 8th guest arrives, the mysterious red-haired beauty Lisa (Erika Blanc, KILL, BABY...KILL!). The guests are comprised of a priest, Father Alvin, two bombshell lesbians, a troubled couple, a seductress (Ivanna Novak, SEVEN BLOODSTAINED ORCHIDS), elderly chap Mr. Foster and a gluttonous man with an unhealthy appetite. Similarly to the film SE7EN the guests are representations of the 7 deadly sins and are damned for their sins as Lisa exploits their weaknesses. We get several varied and fun deaths throughout the film; guillotine, iron maiden, snake bite, suffocation, impalement, poisoning ...none of it's overly gory but it's effective stuff. Particularly effective is Lisa is transformations from fire-crotch beauty to a ghoulish demon with mottled gray flesh. We also get some of that infamous Euro-horror nudity. Some of these euro films of the 70's were pretty schlocky but there never seemed to be a shortage of gorgeous European beauties willing to flaunt their natural gifts on film. There's also no shortage of b-movie shtick: dripping blood, doors opening and closing on their own, books falling off shelves, a laboratory. Good stuff. After the other guests have met their fates at the hand of Lisa Father Alvin is the sole-survivor having resisted the temptations of Lisa's sexual advances. When she finally exposes her true self to him he is horrified and slashes at her face with his crucifix leading to a hilarious and protracted string of facial contortions that goes on for far too long. The priest runs from the castle and is greeted by a dark stranger having just arrived in horse drawn carriage, its Old Scratch himself played by none other than Daniel Emilfork - Krank from one of my most treasured films - THE CITY OF THE LOST CHILDREN (1995) - just brilliant! Father Alvin offers his soul in exchange for the lives and souls of his seven companions. Satan agrees, and the priest signs a contract in his own blood, dipping a quill into his opened vein to do so. The contract immediately burst into flames, but is Satan willing to spare their souls? Is any deal with the Devil ever so cut and dried? I really enjoyed this film. Great story, gorgeous scenery, beautiful women. These 1970's Euro-Horror films are all over the place in regards to quality, but this one is a winner. Definitely worth a look if you love b-movie schlock, obscure classics and especially Euro-Horror as this set is chock full of it.
RATING: *** (3 Out of 5 Stars)
THE DEVIL'S POSSESSED (1974) Directed by Leon Klimovsky/Starring Paul Naschy, Norman Sebre, Guillermo Bredeston, Mariano Vidal Molina/Color/R/95 Min./Spain
In this snoozer directed by Leon Klimovsky (THE VAMPIRES NIGHT ORGY) Paul Naschy stars as Barón Gilles de Lancré whom uses black magic and ritual sacrifice to stay in power until the people rise up and revolt against his evil ways. I'd heard of this film described as MARK OF THE DEVIL meets ROBIN HOOD and that's not too far off the mark except there's no gore, no nudity and the swordplay is completely terrible. This is a bland medieval drama. Definitely my least favorite of the Leon Klimovsky/Naschy collaborations on this set. RATING *1/2 (1.5 out of 5 stars)
DR. JECKYLL AND THE WEREWOLF (1972) Directed by Leon Klimovsky/Starring Paul Naschy, Shirley Corrigan, Jack Taylor, Mirta Miller/Color/R/73 Min./Spain Paul Naschy returns as El Hombre Lobo for the sixth time as he searches for a cure to his full moon madness by visiting the grandson of the infamous Dr. Jekyll. What ensues next is a lover's triangle, and a savage sadistic Mr. Hyde who roams modern London and transforms into a werewolf on the disco floor. Yikes! Sounds pretty terrible, right? It's not great, but Paul Naschy brings a lot to the role, he's just an interesting guy. It's all very bizarre and falls into exploitation territory. A pretty terrible dub doesn't help either. A pretty damn good werewolf transformation towards the end of the film is fun. This entry doesn't make me want to see the previous five installments of the El Lobo series, but I didn't want to shoot myself either. RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
DON'T ANSWER THE PHONE! (1980) "He'll Know You're Alone!" Directed by Robert Hammer/Starring James Wetmoreland, Ben Frank, Flo Lawrence, Nicholas Worth /Color/R/85 Min./USA
A deeply disturbed photographer and Vietnam veteran, named Kirk Smith, terrorizes Los Angeles by going around strangling lingerie-clad young women in their homes while taunting Lindsay Gale, a young psychologist, by calling her on a radio call-in show to describe his sexual hang-ups and misogynistic ways, while a local police detective, Lt. McCable, is always two steps behind in trying to catch the psycho. Now here's an exploitation gem. Don't Answer the Phone stars James Westmoreland as Kirk, our deranged serial killer and boy is he ever a character. I love this film. My second favorite character is the film is a wisecracking coroner who always says the most inappropriate things, good stuff. RATING *** (3 out of 5 stars)
DOUBLE EXPOSURE (1984) "A classic portrait in terror!" Directed by William Byron Hillman / Starring Michael Calian, Joanna Pettet, James Stacy, Pamela Hensley/Color/R/94 Min./USA
Adrian Wilde (Michael Callan) , a photographer for a men's magazine is disturbed by a recurring dreams that he is killing models by various gruesome means. These same women end up murdered exactly as in his dreams. Could he be the killer? The daydream death scenes are a lotta fun. They run the gamut from drowning a woman in the pool to an elaborate set-up wherein a model sticks her head in a garbage bag that contains a rattlesnake - it's twisted and demented and a bit humorous as well. My favorite scene involves the strangulation of a hooker who inquires, a bit too late "Are you giving me a neck massage?" ...priceless stuff! The film is well-acted, well paced, and decent cinematography. Overall a really decent thriller.
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
THE DUNGEONS OF HARROW (1962) Directed by Pat Boyette/Starring Russ Harvey, Aaron Hogan, William McNutty, Michelle Buquor/Color/Unrated/86 Min./USA
An evil, sadistic count lives in a waterfront castle with his insane family members. One day the survivor of a shipwreck washes ashore near the castle and finds himself a captive there. This film is amateurish on all levels: it's a pretty sad state of affairs. Once I spotted the toy ship in a bathtub that stood in for a ship at sea I lost interest. On the other hand you have to admire the efforts of comic artist Pat Boyette who worked on Warren Publications titles like Eerie and Creepy who single handedly wrote, directed, edited, scored and created the set pieces and miniatures for this travesty, a true passion project. Passion aside this film that will truly make you admire the shoestring budgeted efforts of Roger Corman, Andy Milligan, Ed Wood and Harold P. Warren. If you love bad films you will LOVE The Dungeons of Harrow. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
THE EERIE MIDNIGHT HORROR SHOW aka ENTER THE DEVIL (1974) "Ravished! Violated! Possessed by Satan!" Directed by Mario Gariazzo/Starring Stella Carnacina, Chris Avram, Lucretia Love, Ican Rassimoc/Color/R/92 Min./Italy
The story in this horror movie revolves around a strange religious icon and the demonic sexual influence it exerts on a young art student. After a gory dream sequence in which the woman imagines herself being nailed to a cross herself, the statue eventually comes to life, rapes her and possesses her. As far as Italian EXORCIST knock-offs go this one is not terribly awful, that's a compliment. The scenes of rape, possession, crucifixion and odd goings ons are unfortunately punctuated by a rather banal storyline.
**1/2 (2.5 Out of Five Stars)
THE EMBALMER aka THE MONSTER OF VENICE(1965) "Fiendish and Petrifying" Directed by Dino Tavella / Starring Maureen Brown, Luigi Martocci, Luciano Gasper, Anita Todesco/Black and White/PG-13/83 Min./ Italy
A masked-killer is on the loose in the catacombs of Venice, Italy. He stalks beautiful women, drags them to his underground lair, kills them, then stuffs them and adds them to his "collection." As the young women go missing a young newspaper reporter looks into their disappearances. His postulation that a "monster" is on the lose in Venice is ignored by the police. I really enjoyed the killer's skull-mask and robe ensemble, as well as his underground catacomb lair which featured several skeletons seated in chairs in similar robes, very creepy stuff and a definite early entry into the masked-killer sub-genre. The film was a bit of a drag, but the last 10 minutes of the film are well executed. The film falters with some odd comic interludes and groan inducing dubbing, but in the end I enjoyed it.
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
The story in this horror movie revolves around a strange religious icon and the demonic sexual influence it exerts on a young art student. After a gory dream sequence in which the woman imagines herself being nailed to a cross herself, the statue eventually comes to life, rapes her and possesses her. As far as Italian EXORCIST knock-offs go this one is not terribly awful, that's a compliment. The scenes of rape, possession, crucifixion and odd goings ons are unfortunately punctuated by a rather banal storyline.
**1/2 (2.5 Out of Five Stars)
THE EMBALMER aka THE MONSTER OF VENICE(1965) "Fiendish and Petrifying" Directed by Dino Tavella / Starring Maureen Brown, Luigi Martocci, Luciano Gasper, Anita Todesco/Black and White/PG-13/83 Min./ Italy
A masked-killer is on the loose in the catacombs of Venice, Italy. He stalks beautiful women, drags them to his underground lair, kills them, then stuffs them and adds them to his "collection." As the young women go missing a young newspaper reporter looks into their disappearances. His postulation that a "monster" is on the lose in Venice is ignored by the police. I really enjoyed the killer's skull-mask and robe ensemble, as well as his underground catacomb lair which featured several skeletons seated in chairs in similar robes, very creepy stuff and a definite early entry into the masked-killer sub-genre. The film was a bit of a drag, but the last 10 minutes of the film are well executed. The film falters with some odd comic interludes and groan inducing dubbing, but in the end I enjoyed it.
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
EVIL BRAIN FROM OUTER SPACE (1956) Directed by Koreyoshi Akasaka/Starring Ken Utsui, Junko Ikeuchi, Minouri Takada, Kami Ashita/Black and White/Unrated/68 Min./Japan
A monstrous evil brain from outer space leads his minions on a crusade to conquer the universe, and unleashes hideous monsters on Earth that spread deadly diseases. Superhero Starman must rescue Earth from the menace of the evil brain while battling armies of monsters the brain sends against him. Apparently this film is a series of scene culled from a Japanese superhero television series called "The Super Giant" that were re-edited/re-dubbed into a feature length film that was then sold to television here in the states. Starman has some obvious Superman attributes, but nowhere near as enjoyable. I just could not abide the terribly dated effects, campy presentation, laughable dubbing and the villain with an eyeball painted on his stomach. I can see the influence of this kind of show would have on Japanese fantasy and TV series like. Campy but not enjoyable.
RATING *1/2 (1.5 out of 5 stars)
FANGS OF THE LIVING DEAD (1969) Directed by Amando de Ossorio/Starring Anita Ekberg, Gianni Medici, Diana Lorys, Rosanna Yani/PG/88 Min./Spain
Sylvia, (Anita Eckberg) is beautiful young virgin who inherits a castle from lost relatives, but when she arrives at it, she finds that the inhabitants include a strange Uncle who's a bit too young and a bevy of beautiful women she suspects may be vampires. From director Armand de Ossario comes a pretty enjoyable vampire flick from Spain. Ossario would later goes on to direct the BLIND DEAD films which I still haven't caught up with. I was expecting a dark, gothic tale here and was pleased to find it a bit more comedic than I would have anticipated. That's not to say the film isn't atmospheric and haunting, it is. The set pieces and castle interiors are all well rendered and the film is well stocked with gorgeous ladies of the period. The highlight for me was a flashback to the burning of Sylvia's ancestor Malenka (also portrayed by Eckberg). The comedy in the film comes when Sylvia's boyfriend and his nervous friend come to her rescue after befriending a local doctor.
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
FRANKENSTEIN 80 (1972) "He Had a Bone to Pick." Directed y Mario Mancini/Starring John Richardson, Gordon Mitchell, Renato Romano, Xiro Papas/Color/R/85 Min./Italy A mad scientist creates a monster called "Mosaico," who breaks out of the laboratory to hunt down and kill beautiful women. Wow, never before have I seen the Frankenstein monster portrayed as such a violent rapist! This is one horny dude. Purely a D-level exploitation curiosity featuring Gordon Mitchell (EVIL SPAWN) as Dr. Otto Frankenstein. There with no rewatch value, another brain numbingly awful film.
RATING * (1 Out of Five Stars)
RATING * (1 Out of Five Stars)
GRAVE OF THE VAMPIRE (1972) "Father and son - related by BLOOD! ANYONE'S BLOOD!" Directed by John Hayes/Starring William Smith, Michael Pataki, Lyn Peters, Diane Holden/Color/PG/95 Min./USA
Kroft, a legendary vampire, returns from sleep, attacking a couple in a graveyard, killing the man and raping the woman. She births a child whom she discovers will feed only on blood in a scene not dissimilar to the recent film GRACE (2009). David Chase, the writer of HBO's THE SOPRANOS, received his first writing credit for this low-budget 70's drive-in film, he next went onto write several episodes of the fantastic KOLCHAK: THE NIGHTSTALKER TV series staring Darren McGavin. It's an interesting premise as the human/vampire hybrid sets out to exact revenge on his vampiric father for the suffering his mother endured while raising him. Also interesting, the half human vampire is a day walker, and is able to endure the sunlight.
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
Kroft, a legendary vampire, returns from sleep, attacking a couple in a graveyard, killing the man and raping the woman. She births a child whom she discovers will feed only on blood in a scene not dissimilar to the recent film GRACE (2009). David Chase, the writer of HBO's THE SOPRANOS, received his first writing credit for this low-budget 70's drive-in film, he next went onto write several episodes of the fantastic KOLCHAK: THE NIGHTSTALKER TV series staring Darren McGavin. It's an interesting premise as the human/vampire hybrid sets out to exact revenge on his vampiric father for the suffering his mother endured while raising him. Also interesting, the half human vampire is a day walker, and is able to endure the sunlight.
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
GREEN EYES (1934)"A Diabolical Tale of Mystery and Murder!" Directed by Richard Thorpe/Starring Shirley Grey, Charles Starrett, Claude Gillingwater, John Wray/B+W/Unrated/68 Min./USA
The owner of a large mansion in the country throws a costume party for some of his friends. However, the party turns sour when he is found stabbed to death in a closet. The police and a guest try to discover who committed the murder. This one is a very dry murder -mystery that lost my attention 20 minutes in. The dialogue is just to dry and the film is a bore. Director Richard Thorpe would later go onto direct Elvis in JAILHOUSE ROCK (1957)
RATING * (1 out of 5 stars)
GURU, THE MAD MONK (1970) "Death his religion blood his lust!" Directed by Andy Milligan/Starring Neil Flanagan, Jacqueline Webb, Judith Israel, Jack Spencer/Color/R/56 Min./USA
A deranged 15th Century prison colony chaplain exploits his power to get money for his church including murder and grave robbing committed by his vampire mistress and one-eyed hunchback assistant. Good lord, this is my first Andy Milligan film, and his legend is intact. Widely regarded as a runner-up to Ed Wood as the world's worst director I don't think it goes that far, I mean c'mon, check out Manos: The Hands of Fate (also on this set). Surely this is an inept endeavor in all aspects and the acting is beyond campy, but it's an interesting watch, I must say.
RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
A deranged 15th Century prison colony chaplain exploits his power to get money for his church including murder and grave robbing committed by his vampire mistress and one-eyed hunchback assistant. Good lord, this is my first Andy Milligan film, and his legend is intact. Widely regarded as a runner-up to Ed Wood as the world's worst director I don't think it goes that far, I mean c'mon, check out Manos: The Hands of Fate (also on this set). Surely this is an inept endeavor in all aspects and the acting is beyond campy, but it's an interesting watch, I must say.
RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
HANDS OF STEEL aka VENDETTA DAL FUTURA (1986) Directed by Sergio Martino/Starring Daniel Greene, Janet Agren, Claudio Cassinelli, George Eastman/Color/R/94 Min./Italy
From Sergio Martino, the director of THE MOUNTAIN OF THE CANNIBAL GOD (1978) comes HANDS OF STEEL. Martino is a director who can take a tarnished nickel and make it look like a well-worn dollar, taking a meager budget and somehow squeezing it for all it's worth. This dystopian Euro-actioner featuring Daniel Green (ELVIRA - MISTRESS OF THE DARK) as the unfortunately named Paco Queruak, a 1/2 man, 1/2 machine hybrid programmed to assassinate political targets. During a hit he develops and conscience and spares the life of a blind scientist. His handlers at The Foundation, led by Francis Turner (John Saxon, A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET) send in a clean-up team to take Paco out. This film blends together elements of TERMINATOR, OVER THE TOP, and BLADERUNNER, but on a budget that wouldn't pay a fraction of the catering cost on any of those films. Completely low-rent and bat shit insane, this is a fun film. The performances are stilted and the line readings are quite terrible, I started to think the actors were actual Terminators. A few notes, John Saxon, obviously owing someone a huge favor, carries around the biggest laser rifle I've ever seen, it's HUGE! Sadly, longtime Martino collaborator Claudio Cassinelli died in a helicopter crash during filming in Arizona. George Eastman as the vengeful Mexican arm-wrestler Raul was awesome. We also get an action sequence featuring a out and out rip-off of Pris from Bladerunner, Martino really packed this trashcan full if you know what I mean. Towards the end there are some good action moments, including Paco crushing the heads of helmeted guards. Worth mentioning, Claudio Simonetti (GOBLIN) provides a truly horrendous synth score to the film, this from the man that helped score TENEBRAE, DEEP RED and SUSPIRIA. Overall, I got the feeling that the coke was flowing freely on the set. NOT A GOOD FILM - but a fun watch nonetheless. Bad acting, cheap sets, lame action, a lotta laughs. RATING **1/2 (2 out of 5 stars)
HORROR RISES FROM THE TOMB (1973) Directed by Carlos Aured/Starring Paul Naschy, Emma Cohen, Victor Alcazar, Helga Line/Color/R/88 Min./Spain
In Medieval France the warlock Alaric de Marnac (Paul Naschy) is beheaded and his wife Elvira (Emma Cohen) is tortured and executed, but not before he can exclaim he will return to reap his revenge upon the executioner's ancestors. Three-hundred later a distant relative and a group of friends discover his head buried on their property, completely intact. After a seance the disembodied head comes back to life, possessing people and using them to commit sacrifices and to search for the rest of his body. This is one of the few Paul Naschy films I've seen and I enjoyed quit a bit, these European horror films of the 70's were pretty trashy and have a unique charm about them, and while it can be slow from time to time, it is surreal fun. We get a decent amount of b-movie macabre, including witches, zombies and vampires, a little bit of everything. Paul Naschy has been called the Lon Chaney of Spain, I don't know if I'd go that far, but I definitely would like to see more of his filmography after seeing this. RATING *** (3 out of 5 stars)
THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY (1981) "Beware the demon forces of the ...Blood Beasts" Directed by Lucio Fulci/Starring Catriona MacColl, Paolo Malco, Ania Pieroni/Color/R/82 Min./Italy
A deranged killer lives in the basement of an old mansion and pops out occasionally to commit grisly murders that include be-headings, ripped throats, and stabbings with a fireplace poker. Dr. Boyle, his wife Lucy and their son Bob (the most annoying child ever committed to film) move into the old Dr. Peterson house. Prior to moving in Bob experiences visions of a young girl named Mae who warns him not to go to the house, but who believes kids anyway, right? Soon after arriving the murders begin. Turns out the house once belonged to the evil Dr. Freudstein (FREUDSTEIN, really?) who may well be still alive and living in the basement. I've recently seen this film in all it's 35mm projected glory, I love it. What can I say? I have a real soft spot for the films of Italian gore-meister Lucio Fulci. Admittedly, the first 2/3rds of the films are a bit tedious, the dialogue is horrendous, but the gore pays off in the final 1/3rd. The dubbing for the child Bob in the film was performed by a woman, it's a classic dub-flub, check it out. Considered the 3rd installment of Lucio Fulci's Death Trilogy that includes THE CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD (1980) and THE BEYOND (1981). I'd be remiss not to mention that both Anchor Bay and Blue Underground offer House by the Cemetery with much better transfers that's fully uncut.
RATING ***1/2 (3.5 out of 5 stars)
RATING ***1/2 (3.5 out of 5 stars)
THE HOUSE THAT SCREAMED (1969) "The Suspense is sheer torture in ...The House That Screamed" Directed by Narciso Inabez Serrador/Starring Lilli Palmer, Christine/ Color/ PG/99 Min./Spain
Ms. Fourneau (Lilli Palmer, THE BOYS FROM BRAZIL) runs a boarding school for wayward girls in the south of France. She has no tolerance for disobedience and her strict policy of discipline has created a stifling environment for the girls that is flush with undertones of sex, lesbianism and torture in the form of lashings and seclusion. Her adolescent son Luis (Moulder Brown) is kept isolated from the young women by his Mother as she sees the young women as dirty and shameful. Luis is a growing lad and finds it hard to resist the temptations of the young ladies, which prompts him to spy on them in the shower PORKY's style. Meanwhile, girls are running away from the school not to be seen again, or are they? The film is well shot in a scope aspect ratio that is used to its fullest effect. At times the cinematography and set design recalled the works of Mario Bava's LISA AND THE DEVIL, its gorgeous stuff. I wouldn't be surprised if Dario Argento cited this film as inspiration, particularly on SUSPIRIA. A bit trivia, according to IMDB this film contains the first ever close-up slow-motion murder in Spanish cinema history. Sadly, this version of the film seems to be a cut to some degree as the editing and scene transitions were mighty rough in a few places. The film is accompanied by a great film score that is marred by choppy audio in parts. I high recommend from me, this is an obscure classic that should get more attention. RATING *** (3 out of 5 stars)
IT HAPPENED AT NIGHTMARE INN (1973) Directed by Eugenio Martin/Starring Judy Geeson, Aurora Bautista, Esperanza Roy, Victor Alcazar/Color/R/90 Min./Spain
Two old maid sisters are running a little hotel in Spain. They are very religious and when the young women staying at the hotel do not meet their high moral requirement they end up dead, and occasionally served with lunch. Things fall apart when the sister of one of their victims comes poking around for answers. This was a fun watch. Great acting, good character development, atmospheric mood and some actual suspense. Pretty gruesome stuff for the time, there's a definite PSYCHO inspiration pervades the films. Worth a watch for sure.
RATING *** (3 out of 5 stars)
Two old maid sisters are running a little hotel in Spain. They are very religious and when the young women staying at the hotel do not meet their high moral requirement they end up dead, and occasionally served with lunch. Things fall apart when the sister of one of their victims comes poking around for answers. This was a fun watch. Great acting, good character development, atmospheric mood and some actual suspense. Pretty gruesome stuff for the time, there's a definite PSYCHO inspiration pervades the films. Worth a watch for sure.
RATING *** (3 out of 5 stars)
KEEP MY GRAVE OPEN (1976) "Enter into the Other Side of MADNESS" Directed by S.F. Browning/Starring Camilla Carr, Gene Ross, Stephen Tobolowsky, Ann Stafford/Color/R/79 Min./USA
KEEP MY GRAVE OPEN comes to us by the way of cult/drive-in director S.F. Brownrigg the man behind DON'T LOOK IN THE BASEMENT (1973). As the film opens a tramp whose wandered off the main road and onto private property enters a home once he believes the occupants are gone. Raiding the fridge he grabs a bottle of wine and a steak for his troubles. While cooking the pilfered meat over a campfire on the outskirts of the property he's slashed to death with a sword by a shadowy figure. The next morning we meet Lesley Fontaine (Camilla Carr) an odd woman whose husband Kevin is a shut-in that we never actually we never actually see though she talks to him constantly. We also meet hired hand Robert played by character actor Stephen Tobolowsky (GROUNDHOG'S DAY) in his film debut with a full head of hair as well as Camilla's physician Dr. Emerson, he's very concerned for her health though we don't know exactly why. The mystery of who the killer might be is painfully obvious just a few minutes into the film, there's really no intrigue, and the pacing of the film is painfully slow, punctuate by clunky moments of oddball atmosphere and the occasional sword slashing. This is an acquired taste, a character study more than a slasher, and it just couldn't hold my attention for long. Top that off with a snore inducing film score and you've got a train wreck. RATING: *1/2 (1.5 Out of 5 Stars)
MANOS: THE HANDS OF FATE (1966) "It's shocking! It's Beyond your Imagination!" Directed by Harold P. Warren/Starring Ton Neyman (The Master), John Reynolds (Torgo), Diane Mahree (Margaret), Harold P. Warren (Michael)/Color/Unrated/74 Min./USA
A family gets lost on the road and stumbles upon a hidden, underground, devil-worshiping cult led by the fearsome Master and his servant Torgo. Every so often you hear of a film so bad that it threatens to dethrone Ed Wood's PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE as the worst film of all time, and this is one of 'em. Directed by then insurance salesman Harold P. Warren for the paltry sum of $19,000 I found myself saying "where'd the money go" because it's not a screen. This film is so poorly constructed, so ineptly conceived that I could not look away, I was mesmerized. Tom Newman as The Master is a creepy individual and you buy him as this cult leader, I loved his ceremonial robe, all black with two gigantic red hand prints along the front. My favorite performance by far is that of John Reynold as the Satyr-servant Torgo. He is beyond bizarre with his bad posture, erratic movements and stilted speech, "the Master would not approve", great stuff. Apparently Reynolds wore some kind of knee apparatus during filming that contributed to him suffering chronic knee pain the remainder of his life, and was addicted to pain medication until his suicide in the 1980's. By no means a good film my rating reflects my belief that you must watch Manos: The Hands of Fate at least once. RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
THE MANSTER (1962)"Half-Man, Half-Monster!" Directed by George P. Breakston and G.Crane/Starring Peter Dyneley, Jane Hylton, Tets Nakamura/B+W/R/72 Min./USA
An American reporter in Japan is sent to interview an eccentric Japanese scientist working on bizarre experiments in his mountain laboratory. When the doctor realizes that the hapless correspondent is the perfect subject for his next experiment, he drugs the unfortunate man and injects him with a serum that gradually transforms him into a hideous, two-headed monster. This was a surprisingly effective film. The effects were dated and a bit cheap but I enjoyed it quite a bit. I recall seeing it as a kid on the Sunday matinees once and I was enthralled by it. The best part is when the reporter develops an eye on his shoulder, which years later Sam Raimi paid tribute to in his film in ARMY OF DARKNESS when Ash swallows one of the tiny doppelgangers and grows an eye on his shoulder which resulted in him splitting into two separate Ash's. One good, one evil. In The Manster after the reporter is injected with the serum he develops an eye which grows into a head and later splits two being, one good one bad.
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
MONSTROID (1979) "Buried in the Mud of countless centuries - something has begun to grow..." Directed by Kenneth Hartford/Starring James Mitchum, John Carradine, Philip Carey, Anthony Eisley/Color/R/98 Min./USA
A rural Colombian village is attacked by a sea serpent that's been aroused by industrial pollution of a nearby lake. Based on a real event that took place in June of 1971 ...sure it is. As creature in the lake films go this one pales in comparison to the thoroughly enjoyable THE CRATER LAKE MONSTER. Apparently it took 9 years to films MONSTROID and Keenan Wynn was originally slated to star in the production; I cannot imagine either could possibly be true. Ow, my brain hurts.
RATING * (1 out of 5 stars)
A rural Colombian village is attacked by a sea serpent that's been aroused by industrial pollution of a nearby lake. Based on a real event that took place in June of 1971 ...sure it is. As creature in the lake films go this one pales in comparison to the thoroughly enjoyable THE CRATER LAKE MONSTER. Apparently it took 9 years to films MONSTROID and Keenan Wynn was originally slated to star in the production; I cannot imagine either could possibly be true. Ow, my brain hurts.
RATING * (1 out of 5 stars)
MUTANT (1984) "Mankind's deadliest threat will not come from the skies."
Directed by John 'Bud' Carlos/Starring Wings Hauser, Bo Hopkins, Jody Medford, Lee Montgomery/Color/R/99 Min./USA
Two brothers discover that the residents of a small Southern town are being infected by a form of toxic waste, turning them into blood-ravenous zombies. Director John "Bud" Cardos MUTANT features leading man Wings Hauser who looked so god damned familiar to me, at first I though he was Jonathan Lithgow, they're very similar. Turns out I recall him from The Young and the Restless. As I kid I was grounded a lot and as a result watched countless hours of soap operas at my mother's side, don't judge me. So it's the 80's and has happened a lot in that decade, morally corrupt folks are dumping toxic waste in a small southern town mutating the inhabitants into grey-skinned zombies that spew infected goo from slits in their palms that turn anyone they come in contact with. These aren't flesh starved Romero zombies, but the film owes Uncle Romero quite a debt visually, atmospherically and particularly the last third of the film when it turn into a zombie-siege film. If you are a fan of C.H.U.D. or zombie-siege film I recommend Mutant.
RATING *** (3 out of 5 stars)
RATING *** (3 out of 5 stars)
MY MOM'S A WEREWOLF (1989) "Jennifer's mother is having an identity crisis." Directed by Michael Fischa/Starring Susan Blakely, John Saxon, Tina Caspary, John Schuck/Color/PG/90 Min./USA
The frustrated housewife Leslie visits an animal shop to purchase a flea-collar. Unknowing that the owner is a werewolf, she accepts his invitation to lunch and later in his apartment. Through a bite in her toe he starts her slow transformation in a werewolf. Once home she desperately tries to hide the often disgusting process from her family. My Mom's a Werewolf is a b-movie knock-off of TEEN WOLF. You can't have a film as successful as that and not have a c-grade cash-in. The transformation effects are quite terrible, the comedy is pretty flat, but nonetheless it features genre-legend John Saxon as the lycanthropic owner of a pet shop. It's pure 80's oddball stuff that's not great but good fun.
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
THE NIGHT EVELYN CAME OUT OF HER GRAVE (1971)
"The worms are waiting" Directed Emiilo Miraglia/Starring Anthony Steffen, Erika Blanc, Marina Malfatti, Giacomo Rossi-Stuart/ Color/R/103 Min./Italy
Meet Lord Alan Cunningham , the wealthy playboy who lives in a mansion. Fresh out of the asylum after the sudden death of his wife during childbirth Alan now takes pleasure in picking-up prostitutes who bare a likeness to his deceased wife and torturing and killing them. On top of that he's haunted by visions of his dead wife that only get worse once he remarries. This is in the Giallo style of Italian cinema and is populated by eccentric characters, nonsensical plot twists, stunning beauties and stylish murders. The last 10 min. are filled with at least a 1/2 dozen sleazy twists and turns that more than made up for the parts of the film that dragged. I'd like to see a restored version of this film. RATING ***1/2 (3.5 out of 5 stars)
"The worms are waiting" Directed Emiilo Miraglia/Starring Anthony Steffen, Erika Blanc, Marina Malfatti, Giacomo Rossi-Stuart/ Color/R/103 Min./Italy
Meet Lord Alan Cunningham , the wealthy playboy who lives in a mansion. Fresh out of the asylum after the sudden death of his wife during childbirth Alan now takes pleasure in picking-up prostitutes who bare a likeness to his deceased wife and torturing and killing them. On top of that he's haunted by visions of his dead wife that only get worse once he remarries. This is in the Giallo style of Italian cinema and is populated by eccentric characters, nonsensical plot twists, stunning beauties and stylish murders. The last 10 min. are filled with at least a 1/2 dozen sleazy twists and turns that more than made up for the parts of the film that dragged. I'd like to see a restored version of this film. RATING ***1/2 (3.5 out of 5 stars)
NIGHT FRIGHT (1968) Directed by James A. Sullivan/Starring John Agar, Carol Gilley, Ralph Baker Jr., Dorothy Davis/Color/Unrated/75 Min./USA
A small Texas community is beset with a rash of mysterious killings involving some of the students from a local podunk college. The sheriff investigating the death discovers the startling identity of the killer responsible for the murders. A NASA experiment involving cosmic rays has mutated an ape and turned it into an unstoppable killing machine with a thirst for blood. What we have here is your basic z-level man-in-a-gorilla-suit. All I can say is ZZzzzzzzzzzzz, A total snoozer. For a man-in-a-gorilla-suit done right check out THE BLOODY APE (1997). RATING * (1 out of 5 stars)
A small Texas community is beset with a rash of mysterious killings involving some of the students from a local podunk college. The sheriff investigating the death discovers the startling identity of the killer responsible for the murders. A NASA experiment involving cosmic rays has mutated an ape and turned it into an unstoppable killing machine with a thirst for blood. What we have here is your basic z-level man-in-a-gorilla-suit. All I can say is ZZzzzzzzzzzzz, A total snoozer. For a man-in-a-gorilla-suit done right check out THE BLOODY APE (1997). RATING * (1 out of 5 stars)
NIGHT OF BLOODY HORROR (1969) "Keep telling yourself, it's only a picture!" Directed by Joy N. Houck Jr./Starring Gerald McRaney, Gaye Yellen, Michael Anthony/Color/R/89 Min./USA
Wesley goes out on a killing spree while experiencing the nightmares of his brother, who was murdered 13 years ago. The trivia of this film is a bit more interesting than the fairly standard axe-murder premise of the film itself. Trivia! It was reportedly filmed in "Violent-Vision", awesome! As a promotional gimmick families of theatre patrons were offered $1,000 if relatives died watching the film, love it! I think the ad campaign for Wes Craven's LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT ripped off the "Keep telling yourself, It's only a picture" tagline.
RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST (1958) "No girl was safe as long as this head-hunting thing roamed the land" Directed by Bernard L. Kowalski/Starring John Baer, Angela Greene, Ed Nelson/B+W/62 Min./USA
An astronaut returns from space dead. The base that recovered him is then cut off from the outside world by an alien. The revival of the dead astronaut, the death of a scientist, and the discovery of alien embryos inside the resurrected astronaut's body bodes ill for the survival of those trapped at the base and the rest of humanity. This is pure 1950's b-movie/drive-in shoddiness, and it's more enjoyable than it should be. From the low-rent rocket re-entry, the hilariously animated x-rays of alien fetuses and blood under the microscope I found it ineptly charming. The acting is uninspired, the direction is shoddy and the set pieces are laughable. Surprisingly, the creature design is effective. TRIVIA: Director Kowalski would later go on to direct ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES (1959) and the alien costume would later appear on Roger Corman's TEENAGE CAVEMAN (1958)
RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
An astronaut returns from space dead. The base that recovered him is then cut off from the outside world by an alien. The revival of the dead astronaut, the death of a scientist, and the discovery of alien embryos inside the resurrected astronaut's body bodes ill for the survival of those trapped at the base and the rest of humanity. This is pure 1950's b-movie/drive-in shoddiness, and it's more enjoyable than it should be. From the low-rent rocket re-entry, the hilariously animated x-rays of alien fetuses and blood under the microscope I found it ineptly charming. The acting is uninspired, the direction is shoddy and the set pieces are laughable. Surprisingly, the creature design is effective. TRIVIA: Director Kowalski would later go on to direct ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES (1959) and the alien costume would later appear on Roger Corman's TEENAGE CAVEMAN (1958)
RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
THE OVAL PORTRAIT aka ONE MINUTE BEFORE DEATH (1972) Directed by Rogelio A. Gonzalez/Starring Wanda Hendrix, Barry Coe, Gisele MacKenzie/Color/68 Min./USA
A woman finds herself possessed by the soul of another woman trapped inside a painting. That's what I read anyway. There was a slight blemish on my disc that made it impossible for me to view this one. NO RATING
POINT OF TERROR (1971) "Demons long locked in the depths of the mind come to destroy the weak and believing!" Directed by Alex Nicol/Starring Peter Carpenter/Dyanne Thorne, Lory Hansen/Color/ R/88 Min.
Tony Trelos (Peter Carpenter, BLOOD MANIA) is a nightclub singer at the Lobster House were he performs two shows a night to women in front of a tin foil backdrop as he swivels those hips in his best Tom Jones impersonation. He meets the Andrea Hillard (Dyanne Thorne, ILSA: SHE WOLF OF THE SS) the wife of the CEO of National Records. They carry on a torrid affair while she promises him a contract. Tony is having dreams of murder and he wakes to find they may not be nightmares at all. Wow, this seems like a real vanity project for Carpenter. He's singing shite 70's schlock and prancing around 1/2 naked for 3/4 of the film. We get some nice nudity from very attractive Thorne but otherwise this is rather uninspired mellow drama that felt like a bad soap opera with a few murders thrown in. RATING *1/2 (1.5 out of 5 stars)
THE SADIST (1963) "Never before a motion picture Rampacked with... Suspense... Terror... Sudden Shock, as The SADIST." Directed by James Landis/Starring Arch Hall, Richard Alden, Marilyn Manning, Don Russell/Color/Unrated/92 Min./USA
Three teachers on their way to Los Angeles for a Dodgers game have car trouble and pull off into an old wrecking yard where they are held at bay by a blood thirsty psycho and his crazy girlfriend. Arch Hall Jr. is pretty chilling as the baddie Charlie Tibbs in this b-movie thriller obscurity that is considered by many to me the first film based on real life serial killers Charles Starkweather and Cari Fugate, who later inspired both Terrence Malik's BADLANDS and Oliver Stone's NATURAL BORN KILLERS. TRIVIA: The film great cinematography comes courtesy of Vilmos Zsigmond whom would go onto to film Spileberg's CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND. It's uneven but a good watch, check it out. If you enjoyed KALIFORNA, BADLAND, or NATURAL BORN KILLERS I think you'll enjoy this gem that slipped through the cracks of obscurity.
RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
Three teachers on their way to Los Angeles for a Dodgers game have car trouble and pull off into an old wrecking yard where they are held at bay by a blood thirsty psycho and his crazy girlfriend. Arch Hall Jr. is pretty chilling as the baddie Charlie Tibbs in this b-movie thriller obscurity that is considered by many to me the first film based on real life serial killers Charles Starkweather and Cari Fugate, who later inspired both Terrence Malik's BADLANDS and Oliver Stone's NATURAL BORN KILLERS. TRIVIA: The film great cinematography comes courtesy of Vilmos Zsigmond whom would go onto to film Spileberg's CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND. It's uneven but a good watch, check it out. If you enjoyed KALIFORNA, BADLAND, or NATURAL BORN KILLERS I think you'll enjoy this gem that slipped through the cracks of obscurity.
RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
SATAN'S SLAVE aka EVIL HERETIGE (1976) Directed by Norman J. Warrem/Starring Michael Gough, Martin Potter, Candace Glendenning, Barbara Kellerman/Color/R/86 Min.
Here's an obscure and sleazy film straight outta the Satanic panic of the 1970's, this one featuring Michael Gough (BATMAN, CRUCIBLE OF HORROR) as the creepy Uncle Alex. The film opens with a nifty satanic ritual complete with a goat head mask and virginal sacrifice. Catherine (Glendenning) is a young woman who along with her mother and father are on a trip to visit her estranged Uncle Alex. En route they have a minor car accident and her parents are killed when the car inexplicably explodes with them inside. Mourning her parent's death she remains with her uncle and cousin only to discover too late that they are Satanists and wish to incorporate her into a ritual aimed at raising their deceased wife/mother. Throughout the film Catherine has psychic flashbacks to the Inquisition and satanic rituals, effective stuff. It's played for seriousness and is a decent entry into the realm of British satanic films. It's a good looking 2.35:1 transfer of the print and is relatively clean for a 34 year old grindhouse flick. It's pretty obvious where the film is headed from early on which was a bit frustrating as you awaited for the film to play out, eventually culminating in a satanic ritual at the end of the film. Of note, this appears to be the uncut version of the film as the gore is in full effect.
RATING **1/2 (2.5 out of 5 stars)
SCARED TO DEATH (1946) Directed by Christy Cabanne/Starring Bela Lugosi, George Zucco, Nat Pendleton/Color/PG/68 Min./USA
From a slab in the morgue, a dead young woman tells the bizarre tale of how she got there, through a maze of murder involving a hypnotist, a midget and a mysterious figure in a blue mask. An interesting premise here but it failed to keep my attention for long and I lost track of the plot a few times, I'm still not sure what it was. There were some attempts at humor, but not well executed at all. It was a novelty to see Lugosi in color, which was a first for me. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
From a slab in the morgue, a dead young woman tells the bizarre tale of how she got there, through a maze of murder involving a hypnotist, a midget and a mysterious figure in a blue mask. An interesting premise here but it failed to keep my attention for long and I lost track of the plot a few times, I'm still not sure what it was. There were some attempts at humor, but not well executed at all. It was a novelty to see Lugosi in color, which was a first for me. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
THE TELL-TALE HEART (1960) Directed by Ernest Morris/Starring Laurence Payne, Adrienne Corri, Dermot Walsh/B+W/68 Min./UK When Edgar sees his girlfriend Betty getting up close and personal with his best friend Carl, he murders Carl in a jealous rage and hides the corpse under the floor of his piano room. Comes the night, and Edgar begins to hear strange sounds coming from under the floor... Probably the first Edgar Allen Poe story I ever read as a kid, a classic tale. This is a decent telling of the story even though it relies on gimmicks and the expanded story does feel a bit thin in places. But it has a decent pace and good build up to the insanity. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
TERROR CREATURES FROM THE GRAVE (1965) "They rise from dank coffins in the dead of night, murdering their victims in an orgy of slaughter!" Directed by Massimi Pupillo/Starring Walter Brandi, Barbara Steele, Alfred Rizzo, Mirella Maravidi/B+W/Unrated/85 Min./Italy
An attorney arrives at a castle to settle the estate of its recently deceased owner. The owner's wife and daughter reveal that the man had dabblings in the occult and was able to summon the sprits of ancient plague spreaders and that his spirit is also roaming the castle and is out for revenge on those who killed him. Italian beauty Barbara Steele features in this revenge from the grave thriller. The film has a promising starts as a man is stomped to death by a horse and it does features some okay deaths by plague, burnings with acid and a bit of gore as well. The major failings of the film are that it never shows the zombie plague spreaders other than there hands. The scares come from the victims shock and reactions and it's just not very effective. Also, the ending is quite abrupt. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
TERROR IN THE JUNGLE (1968) "Suspense and Terror Beyond Belief!" Directed by Tom DeSimone/Starring Jimmie Angie, Joa Addis, Chuck Angie/Color/84 Min./USA
Trapped in the Jungles of the Amazon Where No Civilized Man Has Ever Been! One of the most annoying children in the history of cinema is the sole survivor of a plane crash in the Amazon where is taken in by a tribe of cannibals - all hail the golden haired God child! What a crazy film, most definitely bad cinema but also oddly fun. The characters on the plane prior to the crash are an odd bunch. The boy carries with him a stuffed tiger which ads a bit of Calvin and Hobs fantasy to the film that is expanded on towards the film finale. Weird stuff, worth a watch at least once if only to see him floating down the Amazon in a coffin. RATING * (1 out of 5 stars)
THEY SAVED HITLER'S BRAIN (1963) "The most incredible plot to conquer the world!" Directed by David Bradley/Starring Walter Stocker, Audrey Caire, Carlos Rivas, John Holland/B+W/91 Min./USA
Nazi madmen preserve Hitler's brain on a small tropical island until the time is right to resurrect him and, along with him, the Third Reich. I recall seeing this on TV as a kid and thinking it was awesome. Now, 30 years later I still thinks its one hell of a goofy good time. Apparently this film is the 1963 film THE MADMEN OF MANDORAS with some additional footage that adds a storyline involving CID agents and ta-da THEY SAVED HITLER'S BRAIN was born. Seeing Hitler's living head (not just his brain, BONUS!) encased in a glass jar just like FUTURAMA is great. Weird stuff, certainly terrible, but not without its bad movie charm. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
THE THIRSTY DEAD (1974) "They need a special liquid to stay young. It is red, thick and warm!" Directed by Terry Becker/Starring Jennifer Billingsley, Judith McConnell, John Considine, Tani Guthrie/Color/PG/88 Min./USA
Beautiful young girls are kidnapped off the streets of Manila by a death cult that needs their blood to remain immortal. A death cult that worships Raoul, a 500 year old head in a square glass jar full of blood, don't forget that part. Oh, the 1970's drive-in was chock full of silly schlock like this, no wonder teens were getting knocked-up at drive-in, what else could they do? Watch this? On the plus side we get a film knee-deep in gorgeous ladies and rapid-aging time lapse that'll make you smile and he film is presented in its original 1.66:1 non-anamorphic widescreen aspect ratio and it looks pretty decent for trashy 70's drive-in fare. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
Beautiful young girls are kidnapped off the streets of Manila by a death cult that needs their blood to remain immortal. A death cult that worships Raoul, a 500 year old head in a square glass jar full of blood, don't forget that part. Oh, the 1970's drive-in was chock full of silly schlock like this, no wonder teens were getting knocked-up at drive-in, what else could they do? Watch this? On the plus side we get a film knee-deep in gorgeous ladies and rapid-aging time lapse that'll make you smile and he film is presented in its original 1.66:1 non-anamorphic widescreen aspect ratio and it looks pretty decent for trashy 70's drive-in fare. RATING ** (2 out of 5 stars)
DVD: The PURE TERROR set contain 50 films spanning 51 years spread out over 12 one-sided discs averaging four titles per disc in blackpaper sleeves housed in a double-sized DVD case. The images run the gamut from fullscreen cropped images to non-anamorphic widescreen with varying qaulity as budget collection are known to do. The audio is mono or stereo depending on title. No special features are included, but there is a booklet included that includes a plot synopsis and cast information.
VERDICT: I'm of the mind that you cannot go wrong with a Mill Creek Entertainment 50 pack, and the PURE TERROR set is no exception. This set enabled me to take in viewings of numerous titles that have eluded my observation all these years. I was able to see several Paul Naschy films that I've never laid eyes on, I took in the infamous Manos: The Hands of Fate, bore witness to the mad genius of Andy Milligan's unique take on low-budget filmmaking. Finally, I was able to see Hand of Steel, a zany Italian actioner and took in New Zealand's first horror film - Death Warmed Up, all great stuff. This set is chock full o' shlock, sci-fi, cult-terror, slashers and drive-in chillers and thrillers. Some were great, others were decent, and still more tickled by bad cinema funny bone. Here's a short list of my favorite films on the set: DEATH WARMED UP, DON'T ANSWER THE PHONE, HANDS OF STEEL, HOUSE BY THE CEMTEREY, THE HOUSE THAT SCREAMED, MUTANT, and THE NIGHT EVELYN CAME OUT OF HER GRAVE- all great titles worth checking out. A lot of these titles are available through other sources with more pristine editions that include supplemental materials but this set will not break your wallet and for the price of two or three of those you're treated to 50 titles that surely will nclude at least a dozen titles you'll enjoy. Dig in and enjoy the adventure of obscure cinema.
OVERALL RATING: ***1/2 (3 out of 5 stars)
OVERALL RATING: ***1/2 (3 out of 5 stars)
- McBASTARD