From Far & Wide, From High & Low Vol 25
100 varied titles from my eclectic collection
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- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsJessica HarperStefania CasiniFlavio BucciAn American newcomer to a prestigious German ballet academy comes to realize that the school is a front for something sinister amid a series of grisly murders.Dario Argento who's been dubbed Italy's answer to Alfred Hitchcock meticulously crafted this gaudy, gruesome and wildly over-the-top tale of witchcraft along with frequent writing partners Thomas CONFESSIONS OF AN OPIUM EATER De Quincey & lover (at the time) Daria DEEP RED Nicolodi. SUSPIRIA concerns the arrival of an American student (Jessica PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE Harper) to an exclusive ballet academy in Germany run by an unseen benefactor named Helana Markos. As a series of violent murders shock the community young Suzy Banyon begins to suspect Markos is actually one of the Three Mothers! An architect named Valli constructed three homes for the sorceresses. Mater Lachymarum held residence in Rome while her sister Mater Tenebranum corrupted the air in New York. Mater Suspiriorum was in fact Helana Markos and Suzy's intrusion into her evil affairs leave the girl marked for death unless she can solve the mystery of the blue iris. Famed European actress Alida LISA AND THE DEVIL Valli is the sinister headmistress Mrs Tanner and Joan DARK SHADOWS Bennett is the sadistic ballet instructor Madam Blanc. Rudolf THE EXORCIST Schundler & Udo MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO Kier have brief supporting roles. Germano YETI: GIANT OF THE 20TH CENTURY Natali provided the blood and gore while rock musicians Goblin provided the vivid and unsettling score. I'm giving SUSPIRIA an extra star for cinematographer Luciano LA CAGE AUX FOLLES 3: THE WEDDING Tovoli and the lighting department who worked overtime to flood every terrifying moment with violently clashing palettes of primary colors. Entertainment Weekly rated SUSPIRIA as the 18th on their list of scariest movies ever made and you won't wonder why if you have the guts to sit through this masterpiece of hardcore giallo. Less successful sequels followed with 1980s INFERNO and 2007s MOTHER OF TEARS although Argento has hinted at the possibility of a fourth film. A noticeably interior remake made the rounds on streaming services in 2018.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsLeigh McCloskeyIrene MiracleEleonora GiorgiAn American student investigates the disappearance of his sister and the death of a friend, both connected from New York to Rome by an old alchemy book.Italy's master of suspense & horror Dario Argento wrote/directed this not-quite-as-good sequel to his trend-setting giallo SUSPIRIA. This would be the 2nd film in 'The Three Mothers' trilogy and was co-authored by Argento's wife Daria BEYOND THE DOOR II Nicolodi & Thomas THE BLACK CAT De Quincey. It's not as ferocious a film as the original but in all fairness; few are. Goblin did not provide a powerful soundtrack this time out although the operatic score by Keith GODZILLA: FINAL WARS Emerson isn't bad. Cinematographer Luciano Tovoli was replaced by Romano TROLL Albara and suddenly the visual impact of INFERNO is noticeably reduced so you'll have to make do with Argento's considerable talent as a director. Our story begins with the revelation that a Manhattan apartment is the home of one of The Three Mothers; a trio of witches powerful enough to influence the fate of the world. A young woman (Irene WATCHERS II Miracle) discovers she lives in the witch's lair by reading a book sold to her by a sinister shop keep (Sacha PATRICK STILL LIVES! Piteoff) placing everyone's life in danger. Her bland brother boringly essayed by Leigh ALEXANDER: THE OTHER SIDE OF DAWN McCloskey comes to the rescue only to be drawn into the murderous mystery of Mater Tenebrarum and her tenants who are suddenly dropping like flies. Germano WARRIORS OF THE WASTELAND Natali provided the bloody garrottings & slashings which are suitably gross and the cast is a lot of fun (Alida THE HOUSE OF EXORCISM Valli, Gabriele BEYOND THE DOOR Lavia, Veronica THE STENDAL SYNDROME Lazar, etc) but there's something missing. The mythology of Helena Markos/Mater Suspiriorum was cleverly built up to a hysterical degree whereas the villain of the sequel is only briefly revealed in the final act and her selection felt arbitrary. I liked this flawed but fondly remembered pic a little more than most even among Argento's substantial fanbase. Followed by MOTHER OF TEARS and a pedestrian franchise reboot in 2018.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsAsia ArgentoCristian SolimenoAdam JamesAn American art student in Rome accidentally triggers the return of Mater Lachrymarum - the Third Mother - and must use her latent magical powers to end the witch's reign of terror.A trigger warning for my dainty readers; MOTHER OF TEARS stars child rapist Asia Argento. Back in 2003 the actress (now 48) raped a 17 year old boy. Steamy hotel room pics emerged with underage Jimmy Bennett grinning like the cat who ate the canary so Argento's CNN employed lover at the time Anthony Bourdain came up with some hush money. It all blew up in Asia's face anyway further undermining the credibility of the metoo movement. Argento and coke-head actress Rose McGowan played instrumental parts in the character assassination of Jewish movie producer Harvey Weinstein. The exposure of Asia as a child-rapist so close on the heels of McGowan's airport narcotics bust cost the hashtag org millions in lost revenue. Bourdain hanged himself soon before his shameful role was revealed publicly. The unappealing Argento plays the part of a latent witch who experiences visions while a growing coven of sorceresses converge on Rome. The discovery of an artifact releases Matre Lachrymum (Moran 24/LEGACY Atias) bringing with her a toxic cloud of insanity which descends upon the population turning them into a murderous mob. Demons are prowling the streets looking for the artifact now in the hands of the fledgling witch. This long-anticipated third film in horror maestro Dario Argento's 3 Mothers trilogy released to tepid reviews and minimal box office although I'd also say it's his strongest horror film since 1993s TRAUMA. Frederic GIALLO Fasano and the art/lighting departments have cone up with striking visual compositions which compare favorably to 1977s SUSPIRIA. Claudio THE CARD PLAYER Simonetti composed the occasionally operatic score which unfortunately doesn't even stand up well to 1980s INFERNO. It's forgivable as is the imperfect script which Argento passed over to Adam Gierasch & his partner Jace Anderson. The pair had previously collaborated with cult director Tobe Hooper on cable tv movies like MORTUARY, TOOLBOX MURDERS and CROCODILE. Asia is so unappealing an actress she needed a few names in the cast to shoulder the burden but all she got was a hammy cameo from Udo BLADE Keir and her real-life mother Daria THE SECT Nicolodi playing the angelic spirit of the good witch who once challenged the mothers. Plentiful old school FX gore from Len LEPRECHAUN ORIGIN Wilson, Mtaden THE LAST DAYS OF PLANET EARTH Mihojoic & Sergio DO YOU LIKE HITCHCOCK? Stivoletti help keep this marginally successful sequel's boat afloat. Not worth the wait if you want my opinion. Hardcore fans will appreciate it more than most. Dario had the bad taste and poor judgment to 'uncancel' his disgraced sex-predator daughter by offering her the lead in 2022's flop BLACK GLASSES. Followed by a 2017 remake of SUSPERIA.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsChristopher RydellAsia ArgentoPiper LaurieA young man tries to help a teenage girl find the serial killer who murdered her parents before the killer comes after them.A psychotic is garroting anyone present during the birth of a baby who died during a terrible storm including the child's mother. A mentally ill woman played by disgraced metoo activist/child rapist Asia BLACK GLASSES Argento witnesses the decapitation of the dead infant's mother (Piper CARRIE Laurie) and finds herself drawn into the violent mystery. This okay American Giallo from Dario THE BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMMAGE Argento should be much better than it is considering the talent involved. Christopher ON GOLDEN POND Rydell, Frederic APOCALYPSE NOW Forest, James DJANGO UNCHAINED Russo, Laura FALCON CREST Johnson & Brad THE EXORCIST III Dourif all strut their stuff but where's the payoff? Where are the money shots? Infamous/iconic make up special effects artist Tom Savini who shot to cult movie superstardom for DAWN OF THE DEAD says he was hired to produce some sickeningly gratuitous decapitations but many of the killings were slashed because of budgetary cuts while the studio also caved to pressure from the censors. It's a very polished looking film right down to the solid score from Pino THE FAN Pinaggio but without the gore to punctuate the suspenseful set pieces TRAUMA languishes. Argento concocted the story with novelist T.E.D. Klein and worked on the absorbing screenplay with Gianni CEMETARY MAN Ramoli & Franco ONCE UPONA TIME IN AMERICA Farrini.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsJennifer ConnellyDonald PleasenceDaria NicolodiA young girl who has an amazing ability to communicate with insects is transferred to an exclusive Swiss boarding school, where her unusual capability might help solve a string of murders.Italy's Master of Horror & Suspense Dario DEEP RED Argento concocted this insane Giallo mini masterpiece which spins wildly into the realm of grand guignol with shameless abandon. The legendary director's frequent collaborator Franco ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA Ferrini co-authored the bizarre screenplay which rips off everything from CARRIE to RED DRAGON at a dellerious pace while always affording Argento the opportunity to shine. Jennifer Connolly (who made her film debut in Ferrini's gangster masterpiece) plays Jennifer Corvino; a lovely American student at an exclusive all girl boarding school who's sleep walking makes her a witness to murder! The pretty students are being slashed to pieces by someone or something stalking the academy with Inspector Geiger (Patrick CARNIVALE Bouchau) hot on the psycho's trail. A wheelchair bound Professor (Donald ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK Pleasence) believes Jennifer's only hope is to utilise her unnatural telepathic ability to communicate with insects to discover the killers identity. Daria TENEBRAE Nicolodi & Dalila FRANKENSTEIN '80 Di Lazzaro appear as viable suspects. Argento is at his best thanks to some impressive directorial flourishes and a unusually strong score from Goblin and a sampling of 80s metal hits. Cinematographer Romano TROLL Albus, Makeup artist Sergio THE CHURCH Stivetti and visual effects artist Antonio PIRANHA PART II: THE SPAWNING Corridelori are at their most competent as is the infamous grade z movie director Luigi ALIEN CONTAMINATION Cozzi who provided the opticals. Highly recommended. A sequel is scheduled for release in late 2023.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsJames FranciscusKarl MaldenCatherine SpaakTwo journalists try to solve a series of murders connected to a pharmaceutical company's secret experiments, becoming targets of the killer themselves.Iconic horror film director Dario SUSPIRIA Argento was the mastermind behind this lurid Italian shocker and made no bones about claiming sole writing credit for the screenplay despite a significant contribution by Dardano THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETARY Sacchetti. The story was by provided by the cultish Luigi STARCRASH Cozzi but the movie was built around a 1965 paper published by cytogeneticist Patricia Jacobs which proposed that individuals born with xxy chromosomes tend to be violent criminals. Her work has since been discredited but it served as a terrific plot device for this highly regarded Giallo. James BENEATH THE PLANET OF THE APES Franciscus plays a reporter investigating the murder of a scientist at a genetic research lab who was blackmailing a colleague because of his incriminating DNA. Witnesses to the crime include a blind man (Karl NUTS Malden) & his young niece all of whom become targets of the serial killer. Argento has gone on record as saying THE CAT O'NINE TAILS was his least favorite film but seeing it in 1971 gave me a trauma for life and left me a devoted fan of his work and the Giallo genre to this day. Ennio EXORCIST II: THE HERETIC Morricone effectively scored this grisly slasher.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsAdrien BrodyEmmanuelle SeignerElsa PatakyIn Italy, a woman fears her sister has been kidnapped; Inspector Enzo Avolfi fears it's worse. They team up to rescue her from a sadistic killer known only as Yellow.The master of Giallo Dario Argento delivers one of his most unexciting horror/mysteries within the genre. Adrien PREDATORS Brody plays the part of a policeman on the hunt for a demented killer who snips the lips of his intended victims with a pair of scissors. Major contributors to the cable TV style screenplay include Sean KRAKEN: TENTACLES OF THE DEEP Keller & Ben GAME OF DEATH Agnew so Argento doesn't shoulder all the blame. It's an antiseptic, visually uninteresting film & not at all gratuitous with nudity or gore despite the subject matter. It's all too pedestrian for my tastes although I didn't hate it. The problem is the crime is instantly solvable. The killer has quite the nose and unless Karl Malden, Barbra Streisand or Tucan Sam are secreted among the cast Brody's your man. Emmanuelle THE NINTH GATE Seigner, Elsa BEYOND REANIMATOR Patakey & Robert CHAINED HEAT Miano co-star. GIALLO gained some notoriety when the producers stiffed the actor on his paycheque. Brody sued to have his name and likeness removed from all promotional materials unless he was paid in full. The director hasn't formally disowned GIALLO but insists those same producers drastically altered his film before it's poorly received debut.
- DirectorRobert AldrichStarsBette DavisJoan CrawfordVictor BuonoA former child star torments her paraplegic sister in their decaying Hollywood mansion.In 2021 the Library of Congress selected WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? for preservation with the National Film Registry because of it's cultural, historic & aesthetic importance. It's also the grandest of Grand Guignol entertainments thanks to Robert THE DIRTY DOZEN Aldrich's masterful skill as a director and producer. This ESSENTIAL pop culture, cult classic earned a whopping FIVE Oscar nominations in a genre usually left to starve on Awards Night. The film scored nomination for Best Supporting Actor (Victor Buonno), Best Sound, Best Cinematography, Best Actress (Bette Davis) and Best Costume Design for which it took home the Statuette. In recent years WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? has endured a retcon of sorts by novelists like Shawn Casidine who wrote the gossipy best-seller Bette and Joan: The Divine Feud and show-runner Ryan AMERICAN HORROR STORIES Murphy who produced the popular mini-series FEUD. At the time of it's release we were all just blown away by the black & white spectacle of Henry Farrell's classic novel of suspense unfolding before our eyes with iconic leading ladies Bette WICKED STEPMOTHER Davis & Joan TROG! Crawford cast as Blanche & Jane Hudson respectively. There's no question these women despised each other off camera but these salivating stories that have popped up in recent decades are mostly campfire tales to frighten the kids over at Lake Ru Paul. Davis is utterly unforgettable as the faded and fractured child star stewing in mental illness & alcoholism while her dependent, wheelchair bound sister languished as a prisoner upstairs. Debbie Burton lent her voice as a 9 year old Baby Jane singing; "I've Written a Letter to Daddy" which became an unexpected chart-topper in 1962. This masterpiece of the macabre revitalized the careers of both actresses and created a decade long spate of rip-offs known as 'hag horror' within the genre. Look for Davis' estranged daughter D.B. Hyman as a nosy teenage neighbor. At the time she (at 16) was sleeping with a Warner Brothers/Seven Arts producer twice her age but she didn't fall from her family's favor until she accused both her mother and stepfather (Gary ALL ABOUT EVE Merrill) of abuse in Mommie Dearest-style corpse-kickers. An immediate follow-up with Davis & Crawford was ordered into production based on Farrell's story Whatever Happened To Cousin Charlotte? however Crawford bowed out citing a health crisis. In 1991 the film was remade poorly as a TV movie starring real life sisters Lynn & Vanessa Redgrave.
- DirectorDavid GreeneStarsVanessa RedgraveLynn RedgraveBruce A. YoungAn elderly, bedridden former movie star is "cared for" by her sister, who hates her and keeps her a virtual prisoner in the family mansion.I really wanted to love this ABC TV movie remake of the classic horror film from 1962. It seemed like a sure thing casting world class actresses Lynn & Vanessa Redgrave. Both were perfectly fine in re-imaginings like THE BAD SEED or DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS. Their characters were imaginatively defined by author Henry Farrell in his unforgettable best-seller so what went wrong? Lynn unwisely chose to play Jane as a mentally ill Raggedy Ann doll come to life. It's light years behind Bette Davis' Oscar nominated performance and while I didn't dislike Vanessa as Blanche there's strangely no dramatic tension between the real life sisters. Network censorship at the time was far less permissive when it came to overt violence and sexuality and WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO...? suffers terribly because of the restrictions. Suspense is at a minimal. There's no bloodshed to speak of. John SMALLVILLE Glover is the only bright spot subbing for Victor Bruno as a shifty con-man who woos the insane former child star for cash. Brian OMEN IV: THE AWAKENING Taggert wrote the bland screenplay for director Davis A SEASON IN PURGATORY Greene. Tolerable but disappointing.
- DirectorRobert AldrichStarsBette DavisOlivia de HavillandJoseph CottenAn aging, reclusive Southern belle plagued by a horrifying family secret descends into madness after the arrival of a lost relative.Producer Robert Aldrich intended this follow up to 1962s WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? to feature returning actresses Bette THE WATCHER IN THE WOODS Davis & Joan STRAIGHT-JACKET Crawford but the latter bailed early into production permitting Olivia THE SWARM de Havilland to assume the role of Cousin Charlotte's concerned relative Miranda Deering. Charlotte (who's been unhinged since the axe-murder of her lover) is slipping further into the realm of stark raving insanity since the government has foreclosed on her family's antebellum mansion. The killer's identity was never solved however Charlotte was the prime suspect. A socialite (Mary A KISS BEFORE DYING Astor) and a crusty maid named Velma (Agnes BEWITCHED Moorehead in a Golden Globe winning performance) may hold the key to solving the mystery while Dr. Bayliss (Joseph LADY FRANKENSTEIN Cotten) tries to keep the outrageous Charlotte out of the lunatic asylum. Famed novelist Henry HOW AWFUL ABOUT ALLAN Farrell composed the screenplay with Lukas DAMNATION ALLEY Keller based on his short story Whatever Happened to Cousin Charlotte. George THE CONCORDE: AIRPORT '79 Kennedy, Victor MAN FROM ATLANTIS Bouno & Bruce SWAMP DEVIL Dern have memorable supporting roles. Pop star Patti Page scored a top ten billboard hit with the haunting theme song while this B&W classic earned an astonishing seven Oscar nominations making it the most honored genre film at the time besting WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? which earned 5. The movie was nominated for Best Song, Best Original Score, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction and Best Supporting Actress for Moorehead. Campy Grand Guignol & Essential are words that spring immediately to mind when describing this powerfully acted gothic thriller.
- DirectorCurtis HarringtonPavel KlushantsevStarsBasil RathboneFaith DomergueMarc ShannonIn 2020, after the colonization of the moon, the spaceships Vega, Sirius and Capella are launched from Lunar Station 7. They are to explore Venus under the command of Professor Hartman, but an asteroid collides and explodes Capella.PLANETA BUR was a reasonably well made Eastern European sci fi pic based on the 1962 novel by conspiracy theorist Alekandr Karsantsev & directed by Pavel Klushantson. Indie icon Roger Corman acquired US distribution rights and hired the too often over-looked Curtis DEVIL DOG: THE HOUND OF HELL Harrington to Americanise it for syndicated television. Harrington hired 2 time Oscar nominee Basil HILLBILLIES IN A HAUNTED HOUSE Rathbone to film additional scenes with former 1950s scream queen Faith THIS ISLAND EARTH Domergue. The pair shot their scenes during a break on the set where they were making QUEEN OF BLOOD for A.I.P. The action centers on a robot (Boris Prudkovsky) & 3 astronauts (Georga Zhzhorov, Vladimir Yemelyanov & Gennadi Vernov) facing dangerous prehistoric monsters and volcanic terrain while exploring our sister world for signs of intelligent life. This cult classic that's credited to John Sebastian in the scroll was re-edited again the next year (less successfully) by Peter Bogdanovich under the alias Derek Thomas. The musical score was recycled by Ronald Stein from his B-movie hit DINOSAURUS! Gary Katz who's famously worked with Coppola on THE GODFATHER PART II and Lucas on STAR WARS served as the production manager on Corman's cut.
- DirectorPeter BogdanovichStarsMamie Van DorenMary MarrPaige LeeAstronauts landing on Venus encounter dangerous creatures and almost meet some sexy Venusian women who like to sun-bathe in hip-hugging skin-tight pants and seashell brassieres.In 1968 Peter Bogdanovich made his Hollywood debut with two cult classics commissioned by legendary producer Roger Corman. The two were Boris Karloff's TARGETS and this 2nd re-imagining of the 1962 Russian sci-fi pic PLANETA BUR. The well produced Eastern European movie's distribution rights were acquired by the thrifty film-maker who hired gay film historian Curtis RUBY Harrington to re-edit and Americanize the footage. Harrington's version titled VOYAGE TO THE PREHISTORIC PLANET featuring new material casting has-been Basil Rathbone is more favorably remembered than VOYAGE TO THE PLANET OF PREHISTORIC WOMEN. Bogdanovich released this a year later under the alias; Derek Thomas for American International Television. This not-terrible cult classic slipped into syndication with newly shot material of Mamie THE NAVY VERSUS THE NIGHT MONSTERS Van Doren sporting a sea shell brassiere. The Venusian Queen is enraged after a trio of astronauts (George Zhzhonov, Vladimir Yemelyanov & Gennadi Vernov) and their Android (Boris Prudkovsky) kill a flying alien reptile who attacks them while exploring the volcanic world. The dinosaur was worshipped by the Venusian amazon women who vow to use their telepathic super-powers to destroy the invading earthmen. Bogdanovich downplays his involvement with 'Voyage...' preferring folks remember instead 1971's THE LAST PICTURE SHOW which is arguably one of the greatest movies ever made. I adore them both. The controversial public figure also provides voice over narration to help smooth over the bumpier patches which became painfully apparent while adapting Henry Dey's unimaginative bastardisation.
- DirectorSam RaimiStarsTobey MaguireKirsten DunstWillem DafoeAfter being bitten by a genetically-modified spider, a shy teenager gains spider-like abilities that he uses to fight injustice as a masked superhero and face a vengeful enemy.Screenwriter David WAR OF THE WORLDS Koepp & director Sam ARMY OF DARKNESS Raimi teamed up for this 2nd live-action adaption of the Marvel comic book following the short lived CBS series from 1978. Tobey THE GREAT GATSBY McGuire is fantastic as the amazing SPIDER-MAN and his less imposing alter ego Peter Parker whose life is thrown into chaos after being bitten by a radioactive spider imbuing him with super powers beyond belief. Kirsten INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE Dunst makes for a sweet love interest as Mary Jane while Willem THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU Dafoe offers yet another remarkable performance as the psychotic Green Goblin who terrorizes the citizens after injecting himself with a dangerous vaccine. The me too besieged James DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES Franco (who recently paid out over 2 million dollars in settlements to women he allegedly abused) plays Norman Osborn/Green Goblin's son Harry who's heart-broken and furious over Mary Jane's love for Peter. Parker, I mean. Rosemary HOLOCAUST Harris & Cliff FALCON CREST Robertson play Aunt May & Uncle Ben and the wonderful J.K. Simmonds also appears as the angry J. Jonah Jameson. He'd reprise the part across several spin-offs & sequels including the recent VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE. The light-fingered Danny BEETLEJUICE Elfman provided the exhilarating score and a list of FX artists a mile long provided the (at the time) state of the art visuals. Those effects were nominated for an Oscar but are showing their age of late. Fans flocked to this international crowd pleaser in droves making it one of the top grossing films of 2002. Steve Ditko received a co-creator credit for his work while the publisher (Stan Lee) scored a cameo. Followed by enormously popular SPIDER-MAN 2
- DirectorSam RaimiStarsTobey MaguireKirsten DunstAlfred MolinaPeter Parker is beset with troubles in his failing personal life as he battles a former brilliant scientist named Otto Octavius.Alfred Gough & Mike Miller who provided scripts for the DC hit; SMALLVILLE along with Alvin NUTS Sergent are in top form with this breath taking blockbuster. Their story (based on characters created by Steve Ditko & Stan Lee for Marvel Comics) seemlessly blends larger than life heroes and villains with over-the-moon action sequences while never letting you forget there are real people behind the masks. Sam DRAG ME TO HELL Raimi fills the screen with his free-wheeling set pieces meticulously designed to knock your socks off. The hospital sequence has to be one of the most bravura moments in his thick resume. All your favourites are back including Toby THE CIDER HOUSE RULES McGuire as Peter Parker/SPIDER-MAN, the metoo besieged James OZ THE GREAT AND POWERFUL Franco as Harry/son of the Green Goblin and Kirsten ETERNAL SUNSET OF THE SPOTLESS MIND Dunst as the object of their mutual affection; Mary Jane. Harry is funding a dangerous fusion experiment for Doctor Otto Octavius which goes awry killing his wife and leaving him fused to living, metallic tentacles who subjugate his will. Alfred THE PINK PANTHER 2 Molinal steals the show as the diabolical Doc Oc thanks to those exhilarating special effects from John STAR WARS Dykstra. The outstanding visual FX more than deserved the Oscar they received. J. K. GHOST BUSTERS: AFTERLIFE Simmons is back as the hilariously cranky J. Jonah Jameson as is the delightful Rosemary THE BOYS FROM BRAZIL Harris as Aunt May. A couple of departed characters famously played by Cliff OBSESSION Robertson & Willem SHADOW OF THE VAMPIRE Dafoe return in the form of apparitions to offer some closure for Peter while setting up SPIDER-MAN 3 for Sony who produced this excellent trilogy.
- DirectorSam RaimiStarsTobey MaguireKirsten DunstTopher GraceA strange black entity from another world bonds with Peter Parker and causes inner turmoil as he contends with new villains, temptations, and revenge.Despite raking in 900 million in international ticket sales SPIDER-MAN 3 attracted a negative reaction from the fanboys online and didn't fare as well at the domestic box office. It grossed about 350 million in theaters in the United States forcing Sony to cancel plans for SPIDER-MAN 4 and a stand-alone spin-off featuring the character of VENOM (played unimpressively by Topher PREDATORS Grace). Director Sam DRAG ME TO HELL Raimi blamed the perceived failure of SPIDER-MAN 3 on the inclusion of VENOM in the screenplay which was at the insistence of the producers. He, Ivan DARKMAN Raimi & Alvin ORDINARY PEOPLE Sargent did an okay job but the script also included starring villainous roles for both James PINEAPPLE EXPRESS Franco as a newly transformed Green Goblin and Thomas GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE 2 Haden Church as The Sandman. Of the three Church fared best in a surprisingly poignant sub-plot concerning the death of Ben Parker (Cliff FALCON CREST Robertson) and the tragic circumstances of his own family after his exposure to beams from a particle accelerator. 3 villains was a bit more than the film could handle especially with the alien parasite 1st possessing Peter Parker (Toby SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME McGuire) for an hour to shake things up between him and Mary Jane (Kirsten THE BONFIRES OF THE VANITIES Dunst). The breathlessly paced action was saturated with terrific CG by Oscar winner Scott HOLLOW MAN Stokdyk and scores of effects artists which alone would make SPIDER-MAN 3 worth watching even if you weren't a fan of the classic superhero created by Steve THE BLUE BEETLE Ditko for Stan Lee's Marvel comics. The unusually large supporting cast featured Willem JOHN WICK Dafoe, Theresa WHORE Russell, Bryce JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM Dallas Howard & James AMERICAN HORROR STORY: ASYLUM Cromwell to name a few. This may not be my favorite spidey pic but I do like it a lot and will take a moment to single out composer Christopher GHOST RIDER Young and cinematographer Bill THE SPIRIT Pope for their outstanding contributions. Many of the main cast of Raimi's trilogy would return for 2021's SPIDER MAN: NO WAY HOME within the context of the greater Marvel cinematic universe. Followed by the 2012 reboot THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN.
- DirectorCurtis HarringtonStarsAnthony PerkinsJulie HarrisJoan HackettAfter an eight-month stay in a mental hospital, a tormented man comes home to live with his sister; but a mysterious boarder may be trying to kill him.Television producer extraordinaire Aaron DYNASTY Spelling commissioned this 2nd season opener for the ABC MOVIE OF THE WEEK starring Anthony PSYCHO Perkins. Allan is a traumatised man suffering from mental illness and hysterical blindness after accidentally setting a fire in the family home that killed his abusive father & left his sister Katherine disfigured. Katherine (Julie THE HAUNTING Harris) & her brother's patient fiancée (Joan DEAD OF NIGHT Hackett) fear Allan is losing his mind as whispering voices begin pushing him back over the edge. Minor horror icon Curtis THE DEAD DON'T DIE! Harrington directed this involving film based on the excellent 1963 novel by Henry Farrell who is also known for the classic best-seller WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? Harrington went on to adapt Farrell's entertaining hag-horror WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH HELEN? in 1971. HOW AWFUL ABOUT ALLAN was previously produced as 1969s not-as-good, German gas-lighter; HORROR.
- DirectorCurtis HarringtonStarsAnn SothernJohn SavageRuth RomanA young Terry Lambert returns home after serving a prison sentence for a gang rape he was forced to participate in. He seeks revenge on his lawyer and the girl who framed him.Curtis DEVIL DOG: THE HOUND OF HELL Harrington was a gay, indie maker of nifty horror films. His earliest success was with Roger Corman and American International on cult classics like VOYAGE TO THE PREHISTORIC PLANET and QUEEN OF BLOOD. His excellent track record within the hag horror genre following the release of WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? eventually paid off with stints on the campy prime time soaps DYNASTY and DYNASTY II: THE COLBYS but he never really received the recognition he most certainly deserved especially for THE KILLING KIND. Ann THE MANITOU Sothern plays the devoted mother of a psychotic man-child recently released from prison for a sex crime he did not commit. The incarceration has left her son blood-thirsty for revenge and dangerously unstable. John ALL THE KIND STRANGERS Savage is terrifying when he snaps which is frequently and shares a genuinely unsettling rapport with the aging Sothern. The curiously compelling screenplay by George RUBY Edwards and Crown International scribe Tony BLOOD MANIA Crechales gives the cast much to work with including Cindy Williams who shot THE KILLING KIND between BEWARE! THE BLOB & AMERICAN GRAFITTI. Williams is excellent as a lodger drawn into the murderously dysfunctional family dynamic. Sue FASTER, PUSSYCAT! KILL!, KILL! Bernard, Peter THE THREE STOOGES IN ORBIT Brocco & Helene WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH HELEN? Winston also guested in this absorbing & obscure suspense pic.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsStefania RoccaLiam CunninghamSilvio MuccinoA Rome policewoman teams up with a British Interpol agent to find a crafty serial killer who plays a taunting game of cat-and-mouse with the police by abducting and killing young women and showing it over an Internet web cam.Fans of Italian horror film-maker Dario SLEEPLESS Argento who have followed his career over the decades have expressed dismay over the quality of his most recent offerings including THE CARD PLAYER. To them I say; He's not making these movies for grindhouses or drive-in theatres. He's making these films for cable television & direct to video markets to the satisfaction of his distributors. I'm more forgiving than most and rate this crime drama higher because it's part of a greater body of work. It shouldn't be dismissed off-hand because it's really not bad...especially on a budget of a little over a hundred grand U.S. Stefania LOVE'S LABOUR LOST Rocca & Liam THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE JADE EMPEROR Cunninghan investigate the kidnapping of the police chief's daughter (the director's RL child Fiore Argento) by a serial killer known as; THE CARD PLAYER. The maniac compels the police to play poker with the lives of his victims at stake should they lose. Yes, you'll spot the killer's identity from a mile away but I still didn't hate it. Argento and long-time collaborator Franco ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA Ferrini handed the formulaic screenplay while Claudio DEMONS Simonelli delivered an adequate soundtrack. Minimal FX were crafted by Sergio DEMONS 2 Stivaletti. Above average in spite of it's limitations.
- DirectorBill CondonStarsEric StoltzJennifer Jason LeighJudith IveyTwo sisters turn their family mansion in Louisiana into a guest house. One of their guests is an aide to a congressman, and turns their lives inside out.SISTER, SISTER is one of the most under-rated horror movies of the 80s and was the directorial debut of Bill Condon who you just knew was going to be a major player after laying your eyes on this prize. He's known to movie-goers today for his top grossing TWILIGHT films or Disney's live-action smash-hit BEAUTY AND THE BEAST but for this nifty gothic thriller he channels Brian de Palma every step of the way. Judith DESIGNING WOMEN Ivy plays the devoted older sister to a mentally ill sibling haunted by a trauma. The tragedy involves a boy who disappeared in the swamp fragile Lucy (Jennifer THE HATEFUL EIGHT Jason Leigh) believes is filled with ghosts. One dark and stormy night the secret the women thought they left buried in the bayou comes back for bloody revenge! Eric THE FLY II Stoltz, Dennis PENITENTIARY II Lipscomb & Benjamin WHORE Mouton are each uniformly excellent as suspects in this breath-taking, beautiful thriller. The cinematography by Stephen MESSIAH OF EVIL Katz is Oscar worthy as is the original score by classical composer Richard SHOCK WAVES Einhorn. SISTER, SISTER is so good at being an erotic mystery you forget it's first and foremost a ghost story. As the film draws to it's riveting conclusion you are rather rudely reminded of the supernatural forces at play and by then the haunting angle doesn't quite work. I didn't hate it but you'll agree the ending held back this otherwise commendable production. I'd compare it favourably to Neil Jordan's THE COMPANY OF WOLVES. Condon, Joel TOY STORY Cohen & Ginny TAINTED BLOOD Cerrella prepared the forgivable imperfect script which I highly recommend without reservation.
- DirectorHarvey HartStarsKaren BlackChristopher PlummerDonald PilonA police detective uncovers a sinister occult explanation behind the mysterious death of a heroin-addicted prostitute.Oscar winning actor Christopher MURDER BY DECREE Plummer starred as Sargent Henderson of the Montreal police investigating the homicide of a prostitute who died under mysterious circumstances. Oscar nominee Karen AIRPORT 1975 Black who has never shied away from a part in anything ever delivers the usual fine performance you expect but you have to wonder what attracted her to the project? The young woman was a heroin addict who was lured into a satanic cult by her madam. As Henderson retraces the last days of Elizabeth's tragic life he begins to suspect the leader of the cult (Jean-Louis THE HOTEL NEW HAMPSHIRE Roux) may be The Devil! THE PYX was quite the big deal back in the day. The legendary Plummer (although Canadian) had never actually worked on a Canadian theatrical production so his casting so soon after THE SOUND OF MUSIC was considered a coup. Likewise Black was on the cusp of Hollywood royalty after making a name for herself in FIVE EASY PIECES and EASY RIDER. This is an exceptionally well cast film loaded with Montreal's finest character actors. Nobody you'd know, but their collective resume is impressive. I'm giving THE PYX an additional star for the firepower in front of the camera. The acting cannot be faulted. Everything else however...For starters; it's not scary which is always a deal-breaker when you're making a horror movie. The supernatural elements slowly emerge towards the end but you'll be lucky if you're still awake by then. Juxtapose that with a drab police procedural with dashes of ROSEMARY'S BABY and you can see why nobody went to see it. Director Harvey Hart took a break filming episodes of the atrocious CTV sci-fi series THE STARLOST to make this largely forgotten, pretentious & ponderous mystery. It was based on the 1959 French novel of the same name by John Buell and adapted for the screen by Robert BEEN DOWN SO LONG IT LOOKS UP TO ME Schlitt. James Mason was originally set to produce/star in THE PYX when it was announced a decade before.
- DirectorJames C. WassonStarsMichael CuttJoy AllenBob CollinsAn anthropologist and his students attempt to track down a Bigfoot responsible for a rash of violent murders, only to uncover something even more sinister.Gay porn director B. Jay Champion (aka: James Wasson) & gay porn writers Mike Williams & Jim Bali churned out this rather notorious bigfoot movie just as the sub genre was falling from public interest. This is one of the better yeti movies floating around not that it's anything to brag about. Relatively unknown Michael Cutt who may be best remembered for the short-lived 1992 series CALIFORNIA DREAMS stars as a college professor who leads his students on an expedition to uncover the origins of the beast & a sinister swamp hag rumored to be it's mother. Writer Bali cut in the gory but low end practical FX after the film's completion to compete with slasher movies which had flooded the horror market. The castrations and dismemberments may not have been convincing but were plentiful enough to have NIGHT OF THE DEMON (aka THE REVENGE OF BIGFOOT) branded a video nasty & banned in England till the mid 90s.
- DirectorIgnatius FischerStarsKaterina FischerBobbye Louise AmesIvan BorntragerAll families have problems, but some problems are scarier than others.This low-budget, indie horror film was rather engaging for about 2/3s of the way through. We're quickly introduced to a young family of 3 mourning the loss of an adventurous grandfather. Writer/director Ignatius Fischer cast his charmless daughter as the quizzical girl who becomes intrigued with the singing stones her grandfather brought back from the jungles. The stones summon a spidery creature called a Lorlok who poisons the minds of the child's parents. LISL AND THE LORLOK never bothers to explain the creature's actions and the cheesy resolution is a cop out as far as I'm concerned. It's not all bad for something made by an entire cast and crew you've never heard of before or since. It's too kid friendly for my tastes yet at the same time something you wouldn't necessarily want to recommend to younger audiences...mostly because it's dull Below average CG but better than I thought it would be overall.
- DirectorJohn AllardiceStarsDaniel CosgroveTamara DaviesDennis BoutsikarisAfter a terrifying incident of man, a policewoman detective needs to find a way to stop the creepy horde of roaches before it can kill more people.Lion's Gate distributed this cheap, Italian TV movie to North America. The story concerns a large species of man-eating Madagascar cockroaches which invade a city populated by Daniel SATAN'S SCHOOL FOR GIRLS Cosgrove, Tamara SCORCHER Davies, Dennis LOVE AND BETRAYAL: THE MIA FARROW STORY Boutsikaris, Tim EVIL BONG Tomerson and Micky HARLEY DAVIDSON & THE MARLBORO MAN Rourke. Special FX man John BATTLESTAR GALACTICA: RAZOR Allerdice chose to direct this (his first and last) creature feature based on a screenplay by Curtis PROJECT: VIPER Joseph & David HARRY DODD Mason. It may have worked with better special effects but they're quite inferior except for footage swiped from marginally better films like THE LAST ACTION HERO and RED DAWN. Albert BLUE LAGOON: THE AWAKENING Larriotti & Frank MACON COUNTY JAIL Pope (mis)handled the visuals which were upstaged at every turn by the live roaches although none of it's especially scary. Below average.
- DirectorBernard L. KowalskiStarsKen ClarkYvette VickersJan ShepardA backwoods game warden and a local doctor discover that giant leeches are responsible for disappearances and deaths in a local swamp, but the local police don't believe them.Gene & Roger Corman produced this minor B&W cult classic for American International Pictures double featured with A BUCKET OF BLOOD or THE HOUSE OF USHER. It was directed by the reliable Bernard Kowalski who may be best remembered within the horror genre for 1973s SSSSSSS. The script was provided by actor Leo V. Gordon who also furnished the Cormans with screenplays for THE TERROR, THE TOWER OF LONDON, THE WASP WOMAN, etc. The film opens with a scorned husband (Bruno CREATURE OF THE WALKING DEAD DeSota) getting revenge on his adulterous wife ((Yvette ATTACK OF THE FIFTY FOOT WOMAN Vickers) & her lover (Michael NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST Emmet) by feeding them to a pair of giant leached turned man-eaters because of radiation leaking into the swamp from nearby Cape Canaveral. The local sheriff (Ken HERCULES AGAINST THE BARBARIANS Clark) and a few hot-rodding teens hope to save their town from the cheaply designed monstrosities. Below average but it's got some charm unlike the backyard remake nobody bothered to see in 2008.
- DirectorStewart RaffillStarsMichael MadsenPeter TuinstraSherry EdwardsA huge man-eating crocodile terrorizes people near Krabi, Thailand. A hunter stalks the beast, while a local tries to blame a foreign crocodile-farm owner for the crocodile's rampage.CROC was the 5th of 28 MANEATER tv movies produced in Canada for the American SyFy network between 2008-2016. To slash production costs this was shot in Taiwan with guest star Michael KILL BILL VOL. II Madsen the only name in the bunch. Peter SNIPER 3 Tuinstra plays the harassed owner of a crocodile farm. His family business is threatened by unscrupulous goons and corrupt local politicians. When a 20 foot long saltwater CROC attacks the community he stands to lose everything unless a crusty bounty-hunter (Madsen) and an animal rights activist can catch the beast.The special effects were sloppily applied by Kevin MAD MISSION 4: YOU NEVER DIE TWICE Chisnall & Brynley MARLEY & ME 2: THE PUPPY YEARS Cadman. Ken RELENTLESS: THE MIND OF A KILLER Solarz wrote this under-achiever for director Stewart MAC AND ME Ralfill. Followed by EYE OF THE BEAST.
- DirectorRalph NelsonStarsRock HudsonBarbara CarreraDiane LaddA scientist (Rock Hudson) doing experiments on a human fetus discovers a method to accelerate the fetus into a mature adult in just a few days. All is not well though as the child begins to exhibit some horrific tendencies.Sandy Howard was a B-movie producer who famously partnered with American International Pictures from the time he was hired to Americanize the Japanese Gamera movies. This was his 2nd film with all three top billed actors...in a way. Barbara Carrera worked with Sandy on his far superior sci-fi film THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU while Roddy McDowall had a supporting role in ANGEL 4: UNDERCOVER. Rock Hudson who became the face of AIDS in Hollywood during his stint on DYNASTY made the dreadful 1978 disaster movie AVALANCHE for Roger Corman. Portions of it were cut into Howard's METEOR so there is some tenuous, technical connection. Co-star Diane Ladd who plays the scientist's endangered lover went on to appear in the 1990 TV movie bio-pic ROCK HUDSON. Hudson stars as a scientist who creates a human clone. The soul-less creature played by the lovely Carrera is cursed with rapid aging disorder so engages her maker in an unexciting game of wits to ensure he finds a way to keep her alive. World class special effects artist Roy Arborgast who has worked on everything from CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND and the original STAR WARS has precious little to do in this low-key thriller which couldn't decide if it wanted to be horror or science fiction and doesn't amount to much as either. The forgettable screenplay was provided by James Cagney's son in law Jack Thomas and Anita Dodson who also botched the cable TV adaption of Dean R. Koontz' WHISPERS. Directed by Ralph CHRISTMAS LILIES OF THE FIELD Nelson.
- DirectorFritz BöttgerStarsHarald MareschHelga FranckAlexander D'ArcySurvivors of a plane crash on a remote island find it is covered by spiders. When bitten, the survivors start turning into spiders!THE HORRORS OF SPIDER ISLAND is a German film shot in Yugoslavia under the title A CORPSE HUNG IN THE WEB. For it's initial U.S. release it was marketed as the European art house nudie; IT'S HOT IN PARADISE with a run time of 86 minutes. In 1965 it was heavily censored of nudity & double featured with the British horror pic THE FLESH & THE DEVIL. Fritz THE BACHELOR TRAP Bottger wrote/directed the B&W DOG based on a script by Eldon Howard & Albert Miller who were responsible for THE SPIDER'S WEB around the same time. A group of underwear models crash land on a deserted pacific island where spiders from the uranium mine have become mutated. When one bites the ladies agent (Alexander THE BLOOD FROM DRACULA'S CASTLE D'Arcy) he's transformed into a murderous were-spider with extra pipe cleaner legs sticking from the side of his furry head. The ladies (Dorothee SATAN TEMPTS WITH LOVE Parker, Barbara THERE'S STILL ROOM IN HELL Valentin, etc) are lovely cat-fighting or running for their lives from the Grade Z monster until a couple of hunky sailors come to their rescue. Georg THE HEAD Krause as cinematographer made the most of his frolicking cast and Serbian locations. Easily on the short list of The Worst Movies Ever Made.
- DirectorShane Van DykeStarsErin Marie HoganFia PereraNorman SaleetPrepare to see what is allegedly the "actual footage" of the supernatural events leading up to the 2008 murder of Samantha Finley. Released against the wishes of the authorities, this D.V.D. proves that nothing human caused Samantha's death.Shane TITANIC II Van Dyke borrowed a few grand from his legendary Grandfather Dick to finance this rock bottom rip-off of PARANORMAL ACTIVITY for that scourge on the entertainment industry known as The Asylum. In addition to writing/directing this dismal mockbuster Shane also plays a young man named Tim Finley who was convicted of raping & murdering his sister; Samantha (Erin SPACEBONG BEACH BABES Marie Hogan).The crime was actually committed by an incubus but can a psychic investigating the haunting prevent another tragedy? This found footage fiasco is about as much fun as watching an epileptic hobo sh!t himself. Like the worthless original that inspired it PARANORMAL ENTITY was too cheap not to turn a minimal profit on global streaming services so we've been plagued with sequels ever since starting with 8213: GACY HOUSE.
- DirectorAnthony FankhauserStarsSally ElbertMichael GaglioJames Arthur LewisA group of investigators enter the former property of depraved serial killer John Wayne Gacy, hoping to find evidence of paranormal activity. Upon entering the place they set-up cameras throughout the abandoned house while going room to room with hand-held cameras, performing séances and asking for John Wayne Gacy to come forward. As the evening progresses it seems the investigators are not prepared for the horror still within the house.8213 GACY HOUSE was released as a rip off of PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2 by mockbuster studio The Asylum. PARANORMAL ENTITY 2 (it's alternate title) was written/directed by Anthony JURASSIC ATTACK Fankhausen who has assembly lined scores of awful videos as a producer for this backyard sweatshop. 8213 GACY HOUSE isn't his worst but I'm knocking a star of for the distasteful subject matter. A group of psychics enter a house haunted by notorious serial killer John Wayne Gacy & are picked off found footage style during the night.Michael THE AMITYVILLE MOON Gaglio, James EVIL OFFSPRING Lewis & Rachel MEGA SHARK VS CROCOSAURUS Riley headlined the instantly forgettable cast. Sooooo boring!! Followed by ANNELIESE: THE EXORCIST TAPES.
- DirectorJude Gerard PrestStarsYaz CanliKai CoferChristopher Karl JohnsonIn the tradition of PARANORMAL ACTIVITY, found footage documents the real life exorcisms of Anneliese Michel, history's most notorious victim of demonic possession.It's hard to gauge whether Nikki Muller is any good or not as Anneliese Michels because her part's so far removed from reality and so informally written no screen credit's given for the script. You may also attribute that to The Asylum's marketing for this 3rd entry in their mockbuster PARANORMAL ENTITY franchise. The conceit of ANNELIESE: THE EXORCIST TAPES is that this video was taken back in 1976 when the real 26 year old 'possessed' woman died. Michels suffered from violent epileptic episodes and mental illness but was subjected to 67 exorcisms by her family believing her to be possessed by the devil. This drastically inferior and hopelessly inaccurate case was told before with 2004's THE POSSESSION OF EMILY ROSE and for the German film REQUIEM although it mainly deceptively promoted itself as a PARANORMAL ACTIVITY clone in 2011. Muller hisses and spits and licks her own urine off the floor convincingly enough but she's not in the same ballpark as Linda Blair's THE EXORCIST. She's not even in the same ballpark as Elke Sommer's THE HOUSE OF EXORCISM! Muller can't be good because nothing about this worthless pile of found footage clichés rises to that level. Her real life family who were convicted of her murder are nothing like the cardboard heroes Annette Renter and David LEGEND OF THE SANDSQUATCH Reynolds play. The priest and physician present during the exorcisms which killed Michels also received 6 month sentences for their crime. They were ultimately reduced to 3 years terms of probation. Here they were sketched out unconvincingly by Kia DINOSAUR DOOMSDAY Kofer and Christopher NAZIS AT THE CENTER OF THE EARTH Karl Johnson as Father Renz. The dollar store special effects leave a lot to be desired as does the sloppy retcon of a real life tragedy. I hate found footage as a genre. Most of them should come with a bottle of Dramamine but to his credit Jude Gerard Prest makes some effort to present the uninvolving clips from a stationary position. The 4th movie in the lowly series was 2012's 100 GHOST STREET: THE RETURN OF RICHARD SPECK. A 5th instalment from director Prest called PARANORMAL 2020 stars returning Muller in the role that didn't make her famous.
- DirectorMartin Wichmann AndersenStarsSteve BencichTony BessonHayley DerryberryIn 2010, paranormal investigators tried to film Richard Speck's ghost at the site of his heinous killing spree. The victims' families have finally released the footage that documents their last days.A who's who of who cares actors play paranormal investigators who fall victim to the evil spirit of Richard Speck in this lousy found footage rip-off of PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4. PARANORMAL ENTITY 4: THE AWAKENING (aka: 100 GHOST STREET: THE RETURN OF RICHARD SPECK) was based on the notorious mass murderer who slaughtered several nurses in Chicago during the 60s. His crimes were previously recounted in 2002's SPECK, 1967's Japanese production VIOLENT ANGELS, 2007's CHICAGO MASSACRE and 1976's Irish murder-drama NAKED MASSACRE and I'd recommend you watch any of them over this mockbuster from The Asylum. The actors (Hayley 500 MPH STORM Derryberry, Jennifer AGE OF DINOSAURS Jacobs, Steve AE: APOCALYPSE EARTH Bencich, etc) spend most of their time running up and down deserted corridors screaming at bloodstains on the walls. Very occasionally a severed arm or head pops up to remind folks this is a horror movie even though there's not a scare to be had. This was the 1st and only time Harry Tjan designed the visual FX for a movie and after seeing this trash you won't wonder why. This was also the 1st and only film directed (uncredited) by Martin Anderson based on a script from Nancy NANNY CAM Leopardi. Followed by PARANORMAL 2020
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsBarbra StreisandOmar SharifKay MedfordThe life of Fanny Brice, famed comedienne and entertainer of the early 1900s. We see her rise to fame as a Ziegfeld girl, subsequent career, and her personal life, particularly her relationship with Nick Arnstein.The National Film Registry preserved FUNNY GIRL in 1976 for it's historic, aesthetic & cultural importance at the request of the Library of Congress. It's simply one of the greatest musicals to come out of Hollywood and was based on the smash hit Broadway show which also starred Barbra Streisand in the role of Fanny Brice. Streisand has had many 'roles of a lifetime' including YENTL, THE WAY WE WERE and A STAR IS BORN is at her most unforgettable as the innocent comic actress who rises to the top as a Ziegfeld Follies showgirl. She won an Oscar and the top-grossing film itself was nominated for 8 additional statuettes including Best Director, Best Sound, Best Film Editing, Best Score, Best Cinematography, Best Song & Best Picture of 1968. Omar MEMORIES OF MIDNIGHT Shariff offers considerable continental charm as Ms. Brice's hard gambling love interest Nicky Arnstein although his singing voice leaves much to be desired. They're still electric together onscreen as are the supporting cast; Kay WINDOWS Medford (Best Supporting Actress nominee) as Fanny's wry mom & actors Anne Francis & Walter Pidgeon both of whom worked together before on the science fiction classic FORBIDDEN PLANET. The soundtrack alone gives this ESSENTIAL musical endless replay value. Second Hand Rose, My Man, I'd Rather Be Blue, People & Sadie are just a few of the hits guaranteed to have you singing along from start to sensational finish. William MRS. MINIVER Wyler (who reportedly clashed frequently with the relatively unknown Streisand on set) directed this masterpiece based on a screenplay by Isobel THE SUNDOWNERS Lennart who rather infamously avoided the Blacklist by naming names despite having herself been a member of the Young Communist League in tinsel town. The legendary Ray Stark (the real life son in law of Fanny Brice) produced this mammoth entertainment which spawned a less successful sequel in 1975; FUNNY LADY.
- DirectorHerbert RossStarsBarbra StreisandJames CaanOmar SharifStory of singer Fanny Brice's stormy relationship with showman Billy Rose.Despite her meteoric rise to superstardom thanks to her signature role of Fanny Brice in 1968s classic FUNNY GIRL, Barbra Streisand was reluctant to appear in a sequel. Her contractual obligation to do the film coupled with the less than stellar reception of box office duds like HELLO, DOLLY! and UP THE SANDBOX eventually changed her mind as did I'm sure the decision to hire Herbert WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? Ross as director. The two previously worked on the moderately successful THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT. Also on board was producer Ray Stark (the real life son-in-law of the famous Ziegfeld showgirl) and actor Omar GREEN ICE Shariff as the recently sprung gambler Nicky Arnstein. James THE GODFATHER Caan as Fanny's love interest Billy Rose round out this love triangle which clashed badly with the performers' real life. Despite the retcon of events FUNNY LADY went on to score a dozen Oscar/Golden Globe award nomination & shot to the top of the box office. The soundtrack charted on Billboards top 10 and was certified gold although it pales to the original as does the film in almost every way. It's not as funny nor dramatic despite earning Golden Globe nominations for Streisand, Caan & co-star Ben ROOTS Vereen. The film also received Oscar nods for cinematographer James Wong Howe, Best Costume Design, Best Original Score, Best Song (How Lucky Can You Get?) & Best Sound. but it's heartbreakingly inferior to FUNNY GIRL despite the ton of money the studio threw at it. Look for Roddy THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE McDowall in a memorable supporting role.
- DirectorTeddy ChanStarsJackie ChanMin KimEric TsangAt a Hong Kong shopping center, Buck Yuen's (Jackie Chan's) intuition warns him. He saves a robbery's loot and gets on television, ends up in Istanbul via South Korea, and accidentally becomes a spy. Fortunately, he knows Kung Fu.Communist action movie superstar Jackie Chan plays a sporting goods clerk who becomes drawn into a complicated web of espionage after foiling a bank robbery. A mobster (Hsing-Ko ROCK 'N' ROLL COP Wu) pursues the amiable secret agent believing him to be in possession of a weaponized bacterium. Chan (who teaches at the Wuhan Institute IRL) leaps, dives, rolls and flies into action to prevent a biological sneak attack and to save the life of a young woman taken hostage (Vivian THE SORCERER & THE WHITE SNAKE Hsu). Ivy DIVERGENCE Ho provided the too-serious script for director Teddy KUNG FU KILLER Chen (listed everywhere as Chan but the opening credits). THE ACCIDENTAL SPY was the top grossing Chinese film of the year and took home 2 Hong Kong Film Awards in 2002 for Best Film Editing & Best Fight Choreography as well as receiving nominations in the categories Best Sound Editing and Best Special Effects. The American cut isn't very good. It's badly dubbed, confusingly re-edited and blandly re-scored. Rod Dean (who also attacked Miramax's cuts of THE TWIN DRAGONS and THE LEGEND OF THE DRUNKEN MASTER) unwisely dropped the bio-weapon angle. Strange to contrast Chan's boot-licking today in the age of plandemic. Accused rapist Eric KUNG FU CYBORG Tsang co-stars as Jackie's C.I.A. contact. Distributed in North America by Bob Weinstein but look for the Hong Kong print which is a noticeable improvement.
- DirectorEric RedStarsFamke JanssenBobby CannavaleEd WestwickAfter Marnie Watson kills her abusive husband in self-defense, she is condemned to house arrest... only to discover that the house is possessed by the enraged and violent spirit of her dead husband.Eric Red distinguished himself within the horror genre for the classic & influential films THE HITCHER and NEAR DARK both of which enjoy a substantial cult of admirers. His concept for 100 FEET is about as polished I've ever seen in an original The Asylum home video. A battered wife (Famke X-MEN: THE LAST STAND Jansson) who murdered her abusive husband (Michael THE RESONATOR: MISKATONIC U Pare) is sentenced to house arrest. Her ankle monitor doesn't permit her to be more than 100 FEET from the home which has been possessed by the violent spirit of her ex. A frenemy on the police force (Bobby ANT MAN AND THE WASP Cannavale) better acquainted with her spouse may or not be cruising outside her residence with intentions to help. Her only hope may be a cute delivery boy (Ed ROMEO + JULIET Westwick) who knows better than most the supernatural threat infesting his lover's prison. With this cast and a man like Red steering the ship you'd expect smooth sailing however there's a problem...The Asylum has never once made a good movie. 100 FEET, as promising as it is, is ultimately crippled by it's tiny budget. The IMDB incorrectly states the budget was an estimated 10 million but that can't be true. The Asylum wouldn't pay 10 million for 15 movies about flying nazi dinosaurs. They certainly didn't shell out any more than they had to for this unsatisfying supernatural drama. It's an intriguing failure.
- DirectorShane Van DykeStarsBill Oberst Jr.Courtney AbbiatiJenna StoneIn this spine-chilling indie horror flick, a sheriff relocates to Salem, Mass., with his family - only to discover that the house they've moved into is plagued by an ancient curse and haunted by malicious spirits.Barry GALACTICA 1980 Van Dyke's son Shane directed this mockbuster for The Asylum between DOGS like TITANIC II and TRANSMORPHERS: THE FALL OF MAN. This shameless rip off of A HAUNTING IN CONNECTICUT and THE AMITYVILLE HORROR isn't nearly as bad as the poverty row studio's usual output but it's nothing I'd ever recommend either. Not even in 3D. The new sheriff in town (Bill ABRAHAM LINCOLN VS ZOMBIES Oberst, Jr.) relocates his much younger wife and teen kids to a haunted house in Salem. Witches who were executed in the late 1600s & buried in the backyard still creep about with their ping pong ball eyes peeled for folks to possess or murder. The barely glimpsed ghosts are ridiculous rather than scary however to his credit Van Dyke is able to craft a few suspenseful sequences despite the painfully inadequate visual effects you've come to expect from Sasha BATTLE STAR WARS Burrows. While I didn't hate this slightly pitiful pic I thought the acting was atrocious especially by Oberst, Jr. who looks more like a senior wearing a cheap wig. It's got some polish but not nearly enough to sell the overripe clichés writer H. Perry MEGA SHARK VS MECHA Horton's served up.
- DirectorReginald Le BorgStarsLon Chaney Jr.Patricia MorisonJ. Carrol NaishA doctor is not sure if he murdered his beautiful but wicked wife, and has his attractive nurse try to find the truth by hypnotizing him.CALLING DR. DEATH was the 1st of 6 slightly turgid B-movies released by Universal based on the popular INNER SANCTUM MYSTERY series created by Himon Brown in 1930. The B&W films starred the cheap & available Lon Chaney, Jr. as a wholly unsuitable heroic leading man. Here, he plays an amnesiac neurosurgeon who awakens from a blackout only to be told his wife (Ramsay THE MUMMY'S GHOST Ames) has been murdered! To get to the truth the confused doctor enlists his loyal and loving secretary (Patricia WON TON TON: THE DOG WHO SAVED HOLLYWOOD Morison) to perform an emergency hypnotic procedure to find out if he really killed his adulterous wife. He better hurry because the run-time is a scant 63 minutes with Inspector Gregg (J. Carrol HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN Naish) and the REAL killer (I'll never tell!) closing in fast! I'm giving this forgettable mystery an extra star for that spooky introductory scene featuring the Keeper of the Inner Sanctum. An uncredited David THE BEAST WITH FIVE FINGERS Hoffman played the disembodied head floating inside a crystal ball straight on through 1945s STRANGE CONFESSION. Followed by WEIRD WOMAN.
- DirectorReginald Le BorgStarsLon Chaney Jr.Anne GwynneEvelyn AnkersWhile on a South Seas trip, a professor falls in love and marries an exotic native woman. What he doesn't know is that she was raised by superstitious natives who believe her to be some kind of supernatural being.WEIRD WOMAN was adapted from the Fritz Leiber novel Conjure Wife by Jennifer JUNIOR G-MEN OFTHE AIR Weinsbery and Scott THE GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN Darling for director Reginald THEMUMMY'S GHOST Le Borge. This was the 2nd of 6 Universal B-Movies based on the classic INNER SANCTUM radio broadcasts that began in 1930. Himon Brown created the series and each theatrical installment featured the uncharismatic Lon Chaney, Jr as a recurring lead. Of the 6 B&W pictures produced an uncredited David TROUBLE MAKERS Hoffman stole the show as the spooky Keeper of the Inner Sanctum who manifested itself as a disembodied head floating within a crystal ball. Here, the befuddled newlywed (Chaney) finds his happy home targeted by gossip when the neighbors believe Mrs. Reed (Anne FLASH GORDON CONQUERS THE UNIVERSE Gwynne) is a practitioner of black magic. Familiar character actors Ralph THE MONSTER AND THE APE Morgan & Evelyn THE INVISIBLE MAN'S REVENGE Ankers help shine some light on this simple supernatural mystery. The legendary Vera West who led the studios costume department for nearly 2 decades provided the gowns worn by these lovely actresses. Followed by DEAD MAN'S EYES
- DirectorReginald Le BorgStarsLon Chaney Jr.Jean ParkerPaul KellyWhen an artist is blinded, his fiancée's father offers an operation to restore his sight. When the benefactor suddenly dies, the artist becomes a suspect.Lon Chaney's less talented son; Jr. starred in this third INNER SANCTUM MYSTERY under contract to Universal. The minor classic opened with the floating head of the genetically damaged horror film actor David THE BEAST WITH FIVE FINGERS Hoffman warning viewers they too might commit acts of murder without having been aware of their crime. The crime in question involves an organ donor who is found dead and the recipient (Lon THE DEVIL'S MESSENGER Chaney, Jr.)) left holding the bag. His girlfriend (Monogram's DETECTIVE KITTY O'DAY Jean Parker) stands by her man and helps crack the case of the blind artist standing falsely accused. Paul ZIEGFELD GIRL Kelly, The Venezuelian Volcano Acquanetta of TARZAN AND THE LEOPARD WOMAN co-starred in this vintage B&W B-movie opposite Thomas BENEATHTHE PLANET OF THE APES Gomez & George THE INVISIBLE MONSTER Meekes. The not-very-popular film series was based on the hugely successful radio drama & was created as pulpy entertainment by Himon Brown back in 1930. Followed by THE FROZEN GHOST.
- DirectorHarold YoungStarsLon Chaney Jr.Evelyn AnkersMilburn StoneA stage mentalist involved in a mysterious death and a discredited plastic surgeon are among the assorted characters involved in mysterious goings-on in an eerie wax museum.THE FROZEN GHOST was the 4th of 6 Universal B-movies based on the INNER SANCTUM MYSTERY series created by Himon Brown in 1930. The unappealing Lon Chaney, Jr. headlined these supernaturally flavoured B&W mysteries playing opposite 'The Queen of the Universal B's' Evelyn WEIRD WOMAN Ankers twice. Ankers and Chaney shared a volatile off screen contempt but paired rather comfortably on camera. Uncredited character actor David THE CREEPER Hoffman appeared as the Keeper of the Inner Sanctum (a foreboding, ghostly head inside a crystal ball) during a memorable prologue beginning with CALLING DOCTOR DEATH straight on through 1945's STRANGE CONFESSION. Chaney plays a self pitying hypnotist riddled with guilt after a radio performance ends in tragedy. Gregor the Great breaks off his engagement to Ankers and gets a job at a wax museum on the advise of his agent (Milburn SHERLOCK HOLMES FACES DEATH Stone) where he meets a potential suitor in the curator's niece Valorie (Talla PHILO VANCE'S SECRET MISSION Birell). Elana THE HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN Verdugo as Valorie's aunt and gay actor Martin SHE-WOLF OF LONDON Kosleck as a disbarred plastic surgeon pick up the dramatic slack by scowling in disapproval at their quickie romance. No one is especially surprised when the traumatised psychic's new girlfriend goes missing or when his ex arrives to save the life of the man she loves even if it costs her own! This unnecessarily over complicated melodrama is sluggish to sit through even at 61 minutes. Harold Young who just wrapped THE MUMMY'S TOMB with Chaney directed based on a screenplay by Bernard THE MUMMY'S CURSE Schubert and Luci DICK TRACY VS CUEBALL Ward. Ward was a feminist pioneer & Hollywood insider who famously testified to the National Labour Relations Board that she earned less writing screenplays at Warner Brothers than she did as a stenographer! This bizarre entry was immediately sequeled by STRANGE CONFESSION.
- DirectorJohn HoffmanStarsLon Chaney Jr.Brenda JoyceJ. Carrol NaishA scientist who is working on a cure for influenza is victimized by his unscrupulous boss, who releases the vaccine before it's ready, resulting in tragedy.Simon & Schuster began publishing the INNER SANCTUM in 1930. The pulpy mystery series created by Himon Brown spawned a smash hit radio drama that ran from 1941-1952. Universal purchased the rights and produced 6 pictures umbrellaed by the brand starring the flavorless, occasional leading man Lon THE ALLIGATOR PEOPLE Chaney, Jr. For additional continuity the character of The Keeper of the Inner Sanctum was created to introduce each film. The disembodied head of deformed actor David Hoffman was shown floating inside a crystal ball for all but the last in the mon-descript franchise. Chaney, Jr. plays the vengeful father of a son who lost his life to an outbreak of influenza. The chemist feels betrayed by his employer at the pharmaceutical plant (J. Carrol THE BEAST WITH FIVE FINGERS Nash) & slighted by his seemingly unfaithful wife (Brenda THE SPIDER LADY STRIKES BACK Joyce). This predictable black and white crime drama drags even at only 62 minutes in length! The director (John I KILLED GERONIMO Hoffman) & screenwriters (Jean THE MAN WHO RECLAIMED HIS HEAD Bart & M. Coates KLONDYKE KATE Webster) didn't appear to have wasted much effort for this forgettable B-movie. Columbia Pictures attempted a one-shot INNER SANCTUM revival in 1948 and NBC again attempted to relaunch the franchise with a weekly anthology for the 1953-1954 television season. Most recently the disreputable Fred Olen Ray utilized the classic logo for his trashy erotic- thrillers INNER SANCTUM (1991) & INNER SANCTUM II (1994).
- DirectorWallace FoxStarsLon Chaney Jr.Brenda JoyceJ. Edward BrombergAn unfaithful attorney is suspected of murdering his wife.Simon & Schuster began publishing the INNER SANCTUM in 1930. The pulpy mystery series created by Himon Brown spawned a smash hit radio drama that ran from 1941 through 1952. Universal purchased the rights and produced 6 films umbrellaed by the brand name with the flavourless Lon BRIDE OF THE GORILLA Chaney, Jr. cast as the recurring lead. For additional continuity an introduction featuring the disembodied head of actor David Hoffman floating in a crystal ball was included as a prologue. The Keeper of the INNER SANCTUM ominously warned audiences they too could commit acts of murder without having consciously been aware. PILLOW OF DEATH was the final film in the B&W B movies and the 1st to omit that popular intro. This was also the 1st to pad it's short run-time with comedic sidekick characters brought in to help brighten the drab tone. Vivian Kincaid Fletcher was suffocated and her husband (Chaney) is considered the prime suspect since he was having a secret romance with the victim's sister! Cap'n McCracken (William BLOODLUST! Graff) has him pegged as does that old busybody Belle (Clara THE WIZARD OF OZ Blandick) but his lover Donna (Brenda TARZAN AND THE MAGIC FOUNTAIN Joyce) believes he's being railroaded for a crime he did not commit. The desperate suspect begins to crack when the ghostly voice of his dead wife calls out to him from beyond the grave. The hard drinking Chaney was closely identified with the classic Universal monster franchises so the studio flirted with horror when cranking these out but WEIRD WOMAN was the only one with supernatural forces at play. THE OLD DARK HOUSE style creaking doors in PILLOW OF DEATH were provided by as suspicious psychic who appeared shortly before the Kincaid family became the targets of a cold blooded killer. J. Edward SON OF DRACULA Bloomberg played the sinister medium. The actor was called before the House of Un-American Activities Committee in 1951 after being accused of being a communist. Bloomberg remained in defiance of the witch hunt but was blacklisted and died in '52 from a massive heart attack many attribute to the stress of the ordeal. He was one of 7 artists accused of communism by famed director Elia Kazan. In 1954 Kazan's informant drama ON THE WATERFRONT swept the Oscars but no matter how great he was making movies for the rest of his life Kazan was a widely considered to be a real scumbag. But I digress...Wallace THE CORPSE VANISHES Fox flatly directed this turgid mystery based on a story/screenplay by Dwight HOUSE OF DRACULA Babock/George THE DEVIL BAT Bricker. Although this was the last film contracted to Universal, Columbia Pictures released INNER SANCTUM in 1948 and NBC launched a half hour anthology for the 1953-54 TV season. Grade Z movie hack Fred Olen Ray last utilised the classic logo for the cheesy 1991 erotic thriller INNER SANCTUM and it's 1994 sequel.
- DirectorAllan ArkushNicholas NiciphorRoger CormanStarsDavid CarradineClaudia JenningsRichard LynchFuturistic Science Fiction about a sport to the death, using "destructocycles".Legendary independent film-maker Roger Corman produced this unpopular follow-up to his instant 1975 cult classic DEATH RACE 2000 with Nicolas BUS 152 Nicipher (aka: Henry Suso) attached to write and direct. He wouldn't get around to a formal sequel until 2017s DEATH RACE 2050. The inexperienced director quickly fell from favor with returning actor David KUNG FU: THE LEGEND CONTINUES Carradine who motioned to have him replaced. Corman himself assumed control until Allan HEARTBEEPS Arkush took over for the departed Nicipher. His own relationship with the drug addled actor was no less combative but he did manage to get the reshoots & action scenes in the can on a tight budget. Kaz (Carradine) is a diapered Range Guide galloping on horseback across the radioactive plains after the great neutron wars. On orders from Lord Zirpola (David KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS McClean) of Helix City Kaz & his busty barbarian GF Claudia 'GATOR BAIT Jennings are captured and forced to compete in DEATHSPORT! I've seen this movie 3 times and I still couldn't tell you what exactly the rules of the game are unlike the very sharply written DEATH RACE 2000 which many can still quote verbatim. Between contributions from Nicipher, Arkush, Donald JACKSON COUNTY JAIL Stewart & Frances BIG BAD MAMA II Doel someone forget. All I can say is that contestants are forced into motorcycle combat armed with zap rays and they were probably better off outside the civilized world left to fight for their lives against mutant cannibals. The always entertaining Richard MIL MASCARAS VS THE AZTEC MUMMY Lynch co-stars as the villainous Ankar Moor as does Jesse FORBIDDEN WORLD Vint. Look quick for a young Linea THE RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD Quigley in a unbilled cameo. Pyrotechnics specialist Roger CHOPPING MALL George is as busy as can be while the woefully inadequate special effects were designed by Phil SUPERMAN IV: THE QUEST FOR PEACE Huff.
- DirectorJohn CarrPhillip MarshakTom McGowanStarsBarbara WylerJamie ScogginStacey Lyons"Night Train to Terror" is a 1985 horror anthology movie where God and Satan are on a train discussing the fate of three individuals.Three incomprehensible tales are told in meaningless conversation between God (Ferdy HOWLING II: YOUR SISTER IS A WEREWOLF Mayne) and the Devil (Tony THE STING II Giorgio) who are on an eternal commute aboard the NIGHT TRAIN TO TERROR! Gregg PREHISTORIC WOMEN Tallas is the man to blame for the amusingly awful wrap-around footage set on a train. He also originally filmed one of the tales as the THE OMEN rip-off CATACLYSM along with writer Phillip SAVAGE JOURNEY Yordan for washed up Cameron FRANKENSTEIN ISLAND Mitchell back in 1980. The instantly forgotten Grade Z pic fell immediately into public domain. It was butchered down to segment size and paired with a whittled remnant of an unfinished Richard GHOST SHARK Moll project called SCREAM YOUR HEAD OFF that was abandoned in 1984. Yordan and director John Carr would eventually get around to releasing their unfathomable segment as the even worse 1992 indie horror MARILYN ALIVE AND BEHIND BARS. Non sequitur footage borrowed from Carr's own THE DARK SIDE TO LOVE padded this DOG to feature length. Of the embarrassed cast I probably felt the most empathy for John Phillip Law coming so close on the heels of his other contender for the worst movie ever made; SPACE MUTINY. There are a few amateurish moments of nudity and gore in this DOG but nothing that would warrant the X rating the MPAA initially insisted it deserved. ESSENTIAL viewing for connoisseurs of cult cinema.
- DirectorLee FrostStarsRod PerryCharles RobinsonPhil HooverGeneral Ahmed has started an inner-city People's Army to try and relieve the misery of the citizens of Watts. When the locals are put under increasing pressure by Mafia thugs, Ahmed's second-in-command Colonel Kojah asks for permission to start a protection squad to take more direct action. Ahmed fears this protection squad will just turn into a vigilante mob, and his prediction soon proves correct. Will Ahmed be able to wrest control back from the power-mad Kojah, or will he be the mob's next victim?Lee Frost was a wildly controversial exploitation film-maker/pornographer who left behind some truly great grindhouse features including RACE WITH THE DEVIL, CHANG GANG WOMEN and THE THING WITH TWO HEADS. THE BLACK GESTAPO is a perfect example of his rough style and a cult classic of early 70s blaxploitation cinema. NAACP Image Award winning actor Charles NIGHT COURT Robinson plays a black rights activist who hopes to improve the living conditions of his community which has been over-run by super-duper racist white mobsters. The director (who reminds me of Joe Dante) has a fun cameo as the Godfather of the million dollar criminal syndicate but the real threat's a militant vigilante who forms THE BLACK GESTAPO based on the principals of Nazi Germany. Kojah (Rod THE BACK GODFATHER Perry) soon turns the city into a no go zone with himself set up as it's dictatorial king. The citizens are forced to buy drugs that ultimately turn them into dependant slaves while Kojan uses the extorted cash to establish his terrorist cell in the heart of California. Ahmed must infiltrate the heavily armed compound single-handedly to take down his former protege who's tyranny is 1000 times more evil than the white trash goons shaking the citizenry down before. It plays out better than you'd expect thanks to Frost's gutsy script (co-written by Ronald BROTHERHOOD OF DEATH Goldman and Wes CHROME & LEATHER Bishop). Bishop served in the US army and sets up the finale beautifully obviously drawing on his military experience. Sensitive viewers will cringe at the endless sexual violence & ridiculously overt, ugly stereotypes while others will marvel how THE BLACK GESTAPO rhymes uncomfortably with today's BLM & it's socialist agenda. Look for Uschi ILSA: SHE WOLF OF THE S.S. Digard as Kojah's personal-use sex slave. Highly recommended.
- DirectorWilliam CastleStarsDennis MorganPaula RaymondRichard DenningIn the late 1860s, Colonel Carrington and his command are assigned the job of constructing a chain of forts in the Sioux Indian territory - of Wyoming. Carrington recruits former cavalry scouts Jim Bridger and "Dakota Jack" Gaines to lead the project. Bridger and Gaines are friendly with Sioux Chief Red Cloud, and they feel a peace treaty with the Indians can be made. If an Indian war breaks out, the cavalry is depending on getting a new type of Springfield rifle. Bridger, Gaines and Gaines wife, Maxine, arrive at the fort for the conference. Gaines, in a drunken fit, tries to intimidate the Indians into signing a treaty. Chief Red Cloud threatens war if his territory is invaded by any troops building forts.William Castle was a gifted film-maker who never lacked for work having toiled on B movies like this engaging western for iconic producer Sam Katzman and Columbia Pictures for more than a decade. His career took a dramatic turn with the release of 1956's MACABRE which packed houses with a clever marketing ploy wherein patrons were issued $1000.00 life insurance policies should they happen to die of fright during the show. By the mid 1960's Castle rivalled Alfred Hitchcock in self promotion and achieved the kind of success he most certainly deserved. THE GUN THAT SAVED THE WEST was among his last dramatic efforts before reinventing himself as a master of the horror genre and it's not bad considering the historical inaccuracies peppered throughout Robert DRUMS OF TAHITI's screenplay. Dennis URANIUM BOOM Morgan & Richard TARGET: HONG KONG Denning play retired scouts called back into action by the US government who want to build a railway across Sioux territory. The men were selected because of the prior dealing with Chief Red Cloud (Robert INVASION U.S.A Bice). The Indians are threatening war and it's up to Jim Bridges (Morgan) to convince them of the futility by demonstrating the fire power a new rifle developed by the military. Jim's alcoholism may scuttle the negotiations just as his addiction has endangered his marriage. The lovely Paula THE BLOOD FROM DRACULA'S CASTLE Raymond co-starred as the long suffering wife in this horse opera which padded it's 70 minute run time with borrowed footage from 1944's BUFFALO BILL and 1953's BATTLE OF THE COMANCHES.
- DirectorTim VigilStarsJin N. TonicMiranda MelhadoAnthony DeArceAfter telling tales of a legendary local vampire, a man and his fiancée encounter their own terror while camping in the woods.Sterling Entertainment is so wretched they make The Asylum look like Disney by comparison. They crank out $5000 videos shot in their backyard and sell distribution rights to streaming services starved for anything new to lure subscribers. Some of their releases include CAMP BLOOD 8 and INVASION OF THE EMPIRE OF THE APES. There were more producers credited than technical staff. Joe THE AMITYVILLE HARVEST Castro opened a couple of cans of tomato soup by way of special effects and it's got a stock soundtrack. There's not even a washed up has-been to blow the funk off the unknown cast. This was the 1st (and hopefully last) video for 'writer/director' Tim Vigil with a pointless script assist from Carlos DON'T LOOK IN THE CELLAR Perez. I love bad movies and proudly promote myself as a cinematic masochist but this isn't really a movie. It's 90 minutes of wasted time. Even by the subterranean standard of THE AMITYVILLE HORROR mockbusters this DOG stinks. Save your money. The talent-less parasites who made this poison don't deserve a dime.
- DirectorGregory HatanakaStarsJason TolerNicole D'AngeloChris SpinelliA city haunted by a bloody past has led to the emergence of some serious police brutality. As bodies pile up, two detectives seek to stop a demonic force that is terrorizing the neighborhood.As a producer you know him for AMERICAN PORN STAR KILLER III: THE FINAL CHAPTER, as a writer you know him for MAD COWGIRL and as a director you've smelled him before watching SAMURAI COP II: DEADLY VENGEANCE. I'm talking of course about the unnecessarily prolific Gregory Hataka who has laid another egg with this backyard mashup of THE AMITYVILLE HORROR & MANIAC COP courtesy of writer Geno AMITYVILLE: THE FINAL CHAPTER McGahee. Hataka and his frequent entourage of stock actors cobbled this together in the age of lockdowns, endless political correctness and tyranny. The characters spend more time apologising for harsh language and unmasked behaviour than they do mining the overly familiar genre movie clichés for scares. Miller (Jason CRACK HOUSE OF THE DEAD Toler) and Val (Nicole AMERICAN NUDIST D'Angelo) are cops investigating brutal murders seemingly tied to their commanding officer (Jeffrey A WISEGUY CHRISTMAS Bloom) and a new member on the force (Craijece BODY OF NIGHT Danielle). The captain's former partner Damien (Lovie FRIGHT NIGHT Johnson) was sacrificed by Satanists who offered his body for possession. Johnson is terrible as the zombified cop stalking criminals but part of the problem's the amateurish make-up designs. What little gore there is during AMITYVILLE COP's 68 minute run time is pitiful. Failed 80s sex kitten Laurene MANIAC COP II Landon clocks in a few depressing moments very late in her career as a devil worshipper. How ravaged she looked was the only jump scare to be had in this 'cute' but not clever mockbuster
- DirectorJack Peter MundyStarsBarbara DabsonChelsea GreenwoodSofia LaceyAfter their mother passes away, two sisters find themselves the owners of a shut-down summer camp. Soon, the sisters will learn the dark and deadly secrets that happened at the summer camp many years ago. And the legend of The Scarecrow.The Scarecrows are a couple of store bought Halloween costumes in case you were wondering. That's it for special effects besides a few discreet dribbles of ketchup. This talky backyard slasher was shot in England by Jack DINOSAUR HOTEL Mundy based on a bad idea from Sharron BRIDE OF THE SCARECROW Holiday. A family attempting to open a campground where the hoax house once stood are being killed by a pair of scarecrows. Dave THE CURSE OF HUMPTY DUMPTY Foley spent less than an hour's work on the makeup. Most of the deaths occur off camera and the sad fact is there's not one moment of suspense in it's brief run time. Barbara THE WITCHES OF AMITYVILLE Dobson took top billing. Waaaay below average.
- StarsRobert VaughnNyree Dawn PorterTony AnholtChallenges abound for worldwide crime-fighting team The Protectors. Organised into a global secret society, their mission is to protect the innocent and apprehend the guilty. Starring Emmy winner Robert Vaughn "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.".Lew 'Low' Grade produced this cult classic half hour action series for British television & international distribution over the course of 52 episodes filmed between 1972-1974. Gerry Anderson who's fabulous career included 'supermarionation' hits THUNDERBIRDS and CAPTAIN SCARLET AND THE MYSTERONS created this rare 'live action' adventure series; his 2nd following the abrupt cancellation of U.F.O. in 1971. Also setting it apart from his greater body of work was placing the characters in modern times without the usual science fiction elements. Anderson's business/marriage partner Sylvia Anderson who Gerry was planning to divorce was shut out of development and participation. THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.'s Robert Vaughn was cast as the leader of a team of private eyes known as THE PROTECTORS who have bases around the world including Paris where the elite secret agent Paul Buschet designs high tech gadgets while prepping dangerous missions. The always reliable Tony SPACE:1999 Anholt was joined by actress Nyree Dawn Porter who became a starlet for 1967's THE FORSYTHE SAGA. The fashionable Contesa Caroline di Contini ran her special investigations office from a private villa in Italy. Harry Rule's central London bachelor pad permitted the writers the opportunity to set these fast-paced stories in exotic locations scattered throughout Europe. The iconic Brian Clemens wrote 12 of THE PROTECTORS which reminded me of his own THE NEW AVENGERS. Quite a few notable actors turned up in the credits including Michael BIRDS OF PREY Gough, Stephanie DYNASTY II: THE COLBYS Beacham & Jeremy THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES Brett hitting their marks for talented film-makers like John THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE Hough, Charles A FISH CALLED WANDA Crichton and Roy THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD Ward Baker. Vaughn, who reportedly behaved contemptuously towards cast and crew even directed one notoriously bad episode before the surprisingly successful program was unexpectedly axed at the end of the second season. The show's sponsor bailed at the 11th hour scuttling the brand which also scored a chart topping hit over the closing credits. Avenues and Alleyways proved so big a hit for Tony Christie it charted twice!
- StarsTony CurtisRoger MooreLaurence NaismithTwo worlds collide when Lord Brett Sinclair, a titled British man, and Danny Wilde, a Bronx-raised, self-made American, reluctantly join forces to right wrongs and protect the innocent.British producer Sir Lew Grade & Robert Baker created THE PERSUADERS as a follow up to co-star Roger Moore's earlier hit; THE SAINT which was also made by ITV for international syndication. Hoping to tap into the American market aging Hollywood heart-throb Tony OPPERATION PETTICOAT Curtis his hired to play opposite Moore. The premise of the show was that these two jet-setting millionaire playboys traveled to exotic locals around the world solving crimes assigned to them by a rogue judge played by DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER actor Laurence Naismith. Oscar winner John Barry composed the evocative musical score rivaling his work on 11 of the earliest films in the James Bond franchise. While this cheesy caper/comedy was embraced by an enormous overseas fanbase it wasn't a hit airing against MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE. There was confidence in a second season despite the disappointing US ratings however Moore himself pulled the plug when he agreed to star in 1973s LIVE AND LET DIE. It's a campy mix of fast cars and faster women that coasts by on the endless charisma of the iconic leads. It also marked the end of the genre which began with English series like DANDER MAN & THE PRISONER. 4 TV movies were cobbled together using 8 episodes of this ambitious series for syndication.
- CreatorBrian ClemensAnthony SkeneMichael ZagorStarsDonna MillsGary CollinsDerek Francis"Thriller" was an anthology series of self-contained episodes, with genres ranging from murder mystery to suspense to psychological and supernatural horror.Brian Clemens is a name associated with British entertainment like GODZILLA is with Japan. He was furiously writing throughout the 1950s before finding international success with classic series like DANGER MAN and THE AVENGERS. In the 70s while the prolific Clemens' THE PERSUADERS was making a buzz in syndication he concurrently churned out 2 B-movies (AND SOON THE DARKNESS and SEE NO EVIL) that served as a template for the stories he wrote in his subsequent anthology series. He also contributed to HAMMER'S HOUSE OF HORRORS and 1991s short-lived THE DARKROOM but will always be most identified within the genre for THRILLER. THRILLER ran for 6 abbreviated seasons in an awkward time slot between 1973-1976 and enjoyed a huge audience around the world throughout the decade and well into the next thanks to home video and cable television. In Canada the episodes aired intact on the CBC whereas the ABC affiliate later broadcast the show as late night tv movies. Because of minor fluctuations in it's Saturday evening time slot all 43 episodes clocked in between 61-68 minutes and were either padded or trimmed at the discretion of those who purchased the rights. ABC for example drastically altered the opening credits & always gave the American actors top billing. Sometimes the titles were changed and every one of them were gently padded with stock footage to the minimum 70 minutes required to fill an hour and a half on the schedule. Do yourself a favor and look for the restored prints of this neglected and abused suspense/horror classic which were compiled by the British Film Institute in 2004 and transferred to digital for new generations to (hopefully) enjoy. THRILLER famously opened with peep-hole still-shots devoid of life. The stark and somber images were enhanced by the moody score provided by Clemens long-time collaborator Laurie Johnson whose diverse credits include DR. STRANGELOVE and IT'S ALIVE III: ISLAND OF THE ALIVE. NBC copied the look for their similar 1977 anthology QUINN MARTIN'S TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED. There's not much by way of bloodshed by today's standards and there's no nudity whatsoever. These are mostly clever murder mysteries playing out rather theatrically with tastefully dressed English parlors serving as backdrop for the drama. Psychological suspense was the draw of THRILLER even in the half dozen tales which were supernatural in origin with an emphasis on achieving a sinister, ironic twist at the finale. The entire run of the frugal ATV hit was shot on videotape giving it a distinctive, crisp look. Much of the heavy lifting was carried out by a time-capsule assemblage of the nations finest stage actors along side a memorable mix of guest stars. Donna THE STEPFORD HUSBANDS Mills & Gary Collins appeared in 3 installments each although never as the same character twice. Collin's own supernatural detective series THE SIXTH SENSE was just canceled and repackaged with the syndicated version of Rod Serlings' NIGHT GALLERY. Dinsdale RASPUTIN: THE MAD MONK Landen was the only actor to reoccur in multiple episodes. The rogue's Gallery of respected thesps included such notable names as Helen RED 2 Mirren, Jenny LOGAN'S RUN Agutter, Richard DEYOND THE DOOR Johnson, Richard CURTAINS Vernon, Linda TINTORERA: KING OF BLOODY WATERS Day George, Stephen THE CRYING GAME Rae & Patrick THE NEW AVENGERS Macnee to give you some idea of the talent on proud display. Despite it's initial popularity and generally solid reviews THRILLER never rose to the heights of pop culture prominence William Castle's CIRCLE OF FEAR or ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS aspired to on a weekly basis. Much of that had to do with the inconsistent run-time of the plays that ultimately crippled it's shelf-life in syndication. THRILLER is a treasure trove of vintage suspense that makes a refreshing change of pace from the nerve-jangling carnage and perversion riddling the new millennium anthologies AMERICAN HORROR STORIES, CREEPSHOW, etc.
- DirectorJohn LandisStarsJohn BelushiDan AykroydCab CallowayJake Blues rejoins with his brother Elwood after being released from prison, but the duo has just days to reunite their old R&B band and save the Catholic home where the two were raised, outrunning the police as they tear through Chicago.In 2020 the Library of Congress had THE BLUES BROTHERS preserved with the National Film Registry because of it's historic, aesthetic and cultural significance but it's really not that good. I suspect the depiction of white Americans as Nazis and the police as incompetents may have played a factor. Fresh off the snowstorm that was 1941 John Belushi jumped into his 2nd of 4 consecutive BOMBs leading up to his death from a drug overdose in 1982 at the age of 33. THE BLUES BROTHERS was a blizzard of coke with narcotics worked into the 27 million dollar budget like Kraft Services. Dan NEIGHBOURS Aykroyd and Belushi reprised the characters they created for SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE for this big screen spin off written by Elwood himself and director John AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON Landis. Jake gets out of jail to help his brother save the orphanage run by Sister Stigmata (Kathleen GREMLINS 2: THE NEW BATCH Freeman). The pair decide to reform the band as a favour to God but run afoul of socialists who want the Christian school closed. Henry BOSTON LEGAL Gibson as the Hitler wannabe is just one of the bright spots in a film brimming with star power and sensational musical numbers. It also held the record up till that time for the most cars demolished during the making of a film (103). Legendary performers like Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Chaka Khan & Cab Calloway, etc help distract from the chaos unfolding around their terrific performances. Aykroyd's fiancé Carrie STAR WARS: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK Fisher pops up as an assassin as did another doomed coke-head; Canadian John THE CLOWN MURDERS Candy. I love the music and there's no denying the comedic talent of the principles but overall I spent far more time smiling than laughing. Followed by a 1997 animated series that was cancelled before the 8 episodes could make it to UPN air and the 1998 box office catastrophe BLUES BROTHERS 2000.
- DirectorJohn LandisStarsDan AykroydJohn GoodmanWalter LevineElwood must reunite the old band, with a few new members, and go on another "Mission from God."BLUES BROTHERS 2000 was the unexpected sequel to the cultish 1980 SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE spin-off THE BLUES BROTHERS. Dan GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE Aykroyd returns to polite society after a prison stint and decides to reform the band along with John KONG: SKULL ISLAND Goodman subbing for the late John Belushi. The pair take in an orphan (J. Evan 3 NINJAS STRIKE BACK Bonifant) while on the run from the Russian mob and local authorities. John INNOCENT BLOOD Landis wrote/directed this all-time box office BOMB with an assist by producer/star Aykroyd. Entertainment Weekly lists it as one of the 25 Worst Sequels Ever Made but if you want my opinion BLUES BROTHERS 2000 is one of the best musicals of the 90s. The always engaging Goodman took a lot of criticism for trying to fill the cinematic boots of the over-dosed comedian but he's a far better performer than Belushi even when he's high as a kite. The cameo laden cast includes such popular names as Frank Oz and a host of legendary musical artists assembled for the lavishly produced show-stopping tunes GHOST RIDERS IN THE SKY and THE LOUISIANA GATOR BOYS. Aretha Franklyn, Travis Tritt, B.B. King, Paul Shaffer & Isaac Hayes are but a few of the dozens gathered in a monumental feat of casting. Every penny of it's 40 million dollar budget is on screen including enough for one of Landis' trademark pile-ups. Over 100+ cars were totaled for the smash-up near this breathlessly paced adventure's rousing conclusion. Undaunted by the film's failure, Aykroyd is currently developing a BLUES BROTHERS television series for Amazon.
- DirectorJeremy M. InmanStarsJohnny Rey DiazChristina LicciardiLindsay SawyerWhen a supernatural cult threatens Earth, Alice must assemble a team of fairy tale villains to face the literal forces of Death.This mockbuster rip-off of SUICIDE SQUAD bills itself as being in 'The Tradition of DARK KNIGHT and THE WATCHMEN' but as a costume entertainment falls closer in tone to the old Fruit of the Loom commercials without any intellectual pretention. This abysmal spin-off of writer/director Jeremy Inman's AVENGERS GRIMM starred John INDEPENDENT'S DAY Rey Diaz & Christina APOCALYPSE OF ICE Licciardi as cross-over characters Rumpelstiltskin & Alice. The sweet-natured characters imprison the evil ones like Trae 11/11/11 III: 13/13/13 Ireland who pretends to be Bluebeard or The Big Bad Wolf played by the vaguely hot Joseph SAN FRAN SISCO MEGA QUAKE Michael Harris. Their release is contingent on their willingness to team up against the villainous Death (Nick ALL SUPERHEROES MUST DIE 2: THE LAST HERO Principe). Sasha Barrow has provided the special effects for over one hundred videos produced by The Asylum's co-founder David Michael Latt and none of them have been any good. Most of it looks as though it was shot on the side of the road with cell phones. Designer Backyard Film-making at it's most pungent. Followed by AVENGERS GRIMM: TIME WARS.
- DirectorWilliam ButlerStarsAmanda WyssMichael ParéAmanda JonesSet in the fictional college campus "Miskatonic University" in Arkham, Massachusetts where all sorts of fantastic and unworldly events have been known to unfold in Lovecraft lore, THE RESONATOR: MISKATONIC U follows six gifted students as they navigate life after one of them, Crawford Tillinghast, builds a machine known as the "Resonator". The machine allows one to experience multiple dimensions while navigating the unsavory beasts that dwell within them. But things get complicated when Tillinghast realizes that the prototype of his creation has not only released murderous and deadly creatures into his world, but also has affected his own reality.I'm a huge fan of the 1986 cult classic FROM BEYOND but this crowd funded reboot from the faded and disreputable Full Moon Entertaiment and producer Charles Band is a total wipe-out. The video was filmed as two half hour episodes of a proposed series by writer/director/make-up artist William BUNKER OF BLOOD CHAPTER 8: BUTCHER BAKER HELL'S KITCHEN Butler featuring an young cast of unappealing, unknown actors. Dana Oliver is especially bad as Crawford Tillinghast who's determined to recreate his father's experiments with The Resonator. The device permits us to experience the dangers and sexual thrills of another dimension. The digital fx were cartoon-ish and rock bottom cheap just like you're used to seeing from effects man Dave GINGERDEAD MAN 3: SATURDAY NIGHT CLEAVER Matherly. The inferior practical effects were provided by 1st timers Immortal masks. Seniors will spot veteran actors Michael STREETS OF FIRE Pare, Amanda A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET Wyss and Jeff METALSTORM THE DESTRUCTION OF JARED SYN Bryon who appear briefly as Miskatonic University professors. Elements from other Lovecrafted Band films including LURKING FEAR and the RE-ANIMATER trilogy are randomly thrown into the flavourless mix. Richard Band provided the recycled and derivative score. Folks who loved FROM BEYOND should never watch this impoverished knock-off. Dedicated to socialist director Stuart Gordon who's probably still spinning in his grave.
- DirectorAntonio MargheritiStarsGiacomo Rossi StuartOmbretta ColliEnzo FiermonteScientists try to prevent a collision between Earth and a planet that is heading for it.MGM contracted hack director Antonio YOR: THE HUNTER FROM THE FUTURE Margheriti to shoot 4 tv movies back-to-back over a 3 month period in 1965 utilising the same sets/props/cast/writers etc. The movies which were set aboard space station Gamma One are stand alone adventures and although many in the cast popped up in WILD, WILD PLANET, WAR OF THE PLANETS & SNOW DEVILS they rarely played the same characters they did in this 3rd instalment. Earth is being rocked with natural disasters when a flatulent, living asteroid enters the solar system on a collision course. The astronauts (Giocomo WAR OF THE ROBOTS Rossi, Ombiertta BATTTLE OF THE GLADIATORS Colli, Halina TRIUMPH OF THE TEN GLADIATORS Zalewska and Goffredo HERCULES AGAINST THE MOON MEN Unger) are embroiled in a time consuming love quadrangle that bogs this pic down terribly. The junk science is laughably bad but that didn't stop distributors from re-releasing PLANET ON THE PROWL to cash in on the STAR WARS phenomenon a decade later. The 5th film in the loosely connected franchise was the 1968 US/Japanese co-production GREEN SLIME.
- DirectorAntonio MargheritiStarsTony RusselLisa GastoniFranco NeroIn the 21st century, aliens invade the solar system.WAR OF THE PLANETS was the 2nd of 4 Gamma One Italian space operas originally ordered up for syndicated tv by MGM. The B-movies were shot back to back utilising most of the same production team, sets and cast in Rome over the span of 3 months. A 5th US/Japanese adventure called GREEN SLIME was released 2 years later. All 5 of the minor cult classics were written by Ivan Reiner with Renato Morettti sharing the credit only on the 1st 3. Anthony Dawson (Antonio BATTLE OF THE WORLDS Margheriti) directed WILD, WILD PLANET, THE DIAPHANOIDS COME FROM MARS (aka: WAR OF THE PLANETS), WAR BETWEEN THE PLANETS and SNOW DEVILS. The film begins with the alien takeover of the United Democracy and an attack on their space stations scattered across the solar system in the 25th century. The aliens from Andromeda need emotionless, human hosts as they exist in the form of energy. To conquer our world they establish a base on Mars. The game cast includes handsome Tony BEHIND THE MASK OF ZORRO Russel (misspelled Russell in the scroll) as Captain of Gamma One, Italy's answer to Ann Margaret; Lisa MESSALINA VERSUS THE SON OF HERCULES Gastoni as the damsel in need of rescue and the always entertaining Franco DJANGO Nero as an astronaut possessed by the glowing balls of green light. Retro genre addicts will be more forgiving of the laughable junk science. Surprisingly strong production design from Pierro VENUS MEETS THE SON OF HERCULES Poletto. Average.
- DirectorAlex NicolStarsPeter CarpenterDyanne ThorneLory HansenA nightclub singer has nightmares about being involved in adultery and murder, only to wake up and find that they may not be nightmares.Peter Carpenter was my 1st crush. I couldn't have been 10! Aside from the semi-softcore
obscurity LOVE ME LIKE I DO he only ever made BLOOD MANIA and this European flavoured melodrama from director Alex THE SCREAMING SKULL Nicoli. Shortly after the fondly remembered thriller was released as a double feature with HOUSE OF HORROR the ambitious actor vanished from the spotlight and today is presumed dead. Just when and how remains a mystery. Carpenter plays a sleazy Tom Jones-esque lounge singer who bangs every woman in sight including a record mogul's slightly insane & frustrated wife. Grindhouse fans will recognise Dylan Thorne for her iconic role as ILSA: SHE WOLF OF THE S.S. and it's numerous sequels and she's almost as much twisted fun in this American Giallo. Driven mad with lust Andrea murders her husband so she can marry the hunky gigolo only to find he's hopped into the bed of the step-daughter and rightful heir. Neither of the women is especially pleased with the Motown singer but the knocked up stripper back at the Lobster House Hotel's probably the most P.O.ed. How do you suppose these circumstances relate to the prophetic nightmare Tony experiences after the opening credits? Even by the age of 10 I could spot the ending from a mile away. Many of the production team re-occurred from BLOOD MANIA including Carpenter's business partner Chris Marconia who wrote POINT OF TERROR with the actor and Tony Crecholes who also handled the screenplay for Curtis Harrington's THE KILLING KIND. I'm giving this very average murder mystery an extra star for Peter who I still kinda' love and would thank for introducing me to distributor Crown International. Still a fan 50 years later! - DirectorCalvin Morie McCarthyStarsConor AustinParris BatesAirisa DurandThe terrifying tale of Amityville is Back. When a young man encounters a weekend of horrors after taking a house sitting job from a spooky old woman.I sifted through the closing credits looking for some connection to the rest of the film world. Some name or movie title tied to AN AMITYVILLE POLTERGEIST to help trigger your interest but came up blank. The unknown writer/director/producer is no one you've ever heard of and everyone and think in his cast is equally obscure. Almost nothing was spend on this tired retread of J-horror hits like THE GRUDGE & THE RING and there's not so much as a scare to be had. A young man seeking alternative employment options in the age of forced vaccinations & loss of freedom hopes to avoid the genocidal global polices by taking a job in Amityville house-sitting for a disturbed and possibly senile woman. The unappealing actors are then stalked by a hunched over chick with long greasy hair with no explanations offered. One monotonous scene slumps listlessly against the next as the actors and awkward special effects try to keep up with the 'pace'. Another tragic backyard Amityville HooHah parasitic mockbuster for you to skip.
- DirectorTim MillerStarsRyan ReynoldsMorena BaccarinT.J. MillerA wisecracking mercenary gets experimented on and becomes immortal yet hideously scarred, and sets out to track down the man who ruined his looks.Hunky Ryan Reynolds finally hit his super-hero stride after appearing in the forgettable GREEN LANTERN & BLADE:TRINITY. DEADPOOL is a sexy but disfigured mutant with a bi-sexual vibe created as an assassin/slave. The derivative character was patterned closely after the George Perez TEEN TITAN; DEATHSTROKE but credited to Fabian Nicieca and Robert Liefeld, Reynold's (who's name appears to be Wade Williams) is granted near immortality to go along with his far morality by a psychopathic torturer named Ajax. Ed MIDWAY Skrein targets Deadpool's fiance for assassination after our quippy hero escapes to shut down the factory of death he emerged from. This spin off from the successful X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE was the top grossing genre pic of the year despite an unexpected 'R' rating for violence and sexual content. A revised version of Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) and a recast Colossus (Stefan Kapicic) help save DEADPOOL from the always explosive & entertaining consequences of his outrageous behavior while Morena GOTHAM Baccarin plays Wilson's lover Vanessa Carlysle. It's a surprisingly witty film from writers Rhett G.I. JOE RETALLIATION Reece & David ZOMBIELAND DOUBLETAP Wernick. Tim TERMINATOR: DARK FATE Miller staged the non-sequitur screenplay to perfection with as much CG action & licensed pop tunes as 50 million could buy. This crowd pleasing smash hit was awarded 8 MTV statuettes and followed by a direct sequel in 2018.
- DirectorDavid LeitchStarsRyan ReynoldsJosh BrolinMorena BaccarinFoul-mouthed mutant mercenary Wade Wilson (a.k.a. Deadpool) assembles a team of fellow mutant rogues to protect a young boy with abilities from the brutal, time-traveling cyborg Cable.DEADPOOL 2 would become the top grossing film in the X-MEN extended universe raking in 3/4 of a billion dollars. It's a 'fresher' crop of superheroes than I'm used to and nothing that would have appealed to me as a kid although it's origins reminded me of Jack Kirby's Mister Miracle, Granny Goodness & Darkseid story arcs circa 1975. Ryan GREEN LANTERN Reynolds returns as the masochistic, death obsessed mutant Wade Wilson aka DEADPOOL. Our disfigured, sexually ambidextrous hero is drawn into a TERMINATOR-style assassination plot involving Marvel's bad-ass anti-hero Cable (Josh JONAH HEX Brolin) and a fat kid named Firefist (Julian GODZILLA VS KONG Dennison) in present day. Because the young mutant was abused (allegedly) by the evil containment facility staff he later becomes a super villain responsible for killing Cable's family. DEADPOOL's solution is to kill the pedos with an assist from returning actors Brianna LUCIFER Hildebrand as Negasonic Teenage Warhead & the voice of Stefan BETTER CALL SAUL Kapicic as Colossus. The R rated violence coupled with DEADPOOL's self mutilation dampens the tone a little with almost three times the carnage. There's about twice as many jokes and half of them are funny so what's not to love? Reynold (who also wrote & produced) is a hoot and the lovely Morena V Buccorin is radiant as his mistress; Lady Death. Brolin makes a strong impression as the time travelling Cable and a number of minor characters like Domino (Zazie JOKER Beetz) flesh out what appears to be a potential X-Force spin-off. DEADPOOL 2 was tritely scripted by Rhett CLIFFORD'S REALLY BIG MOVIE Reno & Paul G.I. JOE: RETALIATION Wernick for director David FAST & FURIOUS PRESENTS: HOBBS & SHAW. Look for a new DEADPOOL solo adventure tied directly the the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the near future.
- DirectorChloé ZhaoStarsGemma ChanRichard MaddenAngelina JolieThe saga of the Eternals, a race of immortal beings who lived on Earth and shaped its history and civilizations.The ETERNALS are a niche Marvel super-team created by the legendary comic artist Jack Kirby very late in his extraordinary career as arthritis and senility were setting in. The ETERNALS were a flagrant recycling of the classic DC flop The New Gods which also struggled to find a mainstream audience. This Disney made 26th film in the 'mcu' celebrates that global giant's stated politics rather than remaining true to who these characters were on paper. The end result is a slop bucket of nationalities and gender politics posing in padded suits against a constant stream of spotty cg. Standing/flying between us and a cartoon celestial named Arishem are the agents of planet Olympia; Richard GAME OF THRONES Madden as Ikaris, Gemma CAPTAIN MARVEL Chan as Serci, Angeline MR & MRS MITH Jolie as Thena, Lia THE LODGE McHugh as Sprite, Lauren THE WALKING DEAD Ritloff as Makkari, Kumail DOLITTLE Nanjiani as Kimo, Barry THE BATMAN Keagan as Druig, Don TRAIN TO BUSAN Lee as Gilgamesh and Brian GODZILLA VS KONG Henry as Phastos. The ETERNALS, we're told in a STAR WARS style scroll; were dispatched by the Celestial to eliminate a rejected species terrorising the citizens of earth. The deviants who were essential to the Marvel comics are reduced to a pack of poorly designed, smallish dino-whatzits briefly voice acted by Bill IT CHAPTER TWO Skarsgard. The extreme reimagining of Jack Kirby's comic series by writers Ryan LUNCHBOXES Firpo, Patrick PETER RABBIT 2: THE RUNAWAY Burleigh and Chinese writer/director Chloe SONGS MY BROTHER TOLD ME Zhan left me disappointed and confused. This heavily promoted event picture bombed in north america against it's completely unnecessary 200 million dollar budget earning back only 160 mil. ETERNALS managed to turn a profit internationally like Tom Cruise's THE MUMMY did a few years back. Not as much but ETERNALS isn't as good. Ramin DRACULA UNTOLD Djawadi provided the grand but forgettable score while Ben HANNIBAL RISING Davis handled the cinematography in predictable fashion. The characters were padded and sculpted to within an inch of their lives by costume designer Sammy Sheldon who also worked on the unpopular X-MEN: FIRST CLASS. Very average.
- DirectorCate ShortlandStarsScarlett JohanssonFlorence PughDavid HarbourNatasha Romanoff confronts the darker parts of her ledger when a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past arises.BLACK WIDOW was the 1st film in Disney's 'Phase 4' (whatever the eff that is) of the MCU and the 24th overall in the brand. It was based on the rather niche super hero created by Don Rico who also was responsible for the obscure Lorna of the Jungle. Artist Don Heck who designed DC's Steel: The Indestructible Man lent an assist for publisher Stan Lee way back in 1970 in Tales to Astonish. The character of Natasha Romanoff/BLACK WIDOW has appeared sporadically in print since 2010 as a solo title and this film is based on that significantly retconned persona. Scarlett Johansson originated the role in IRON MAN 2 and went on to appear in numerous installments of the franchise including the more recent AVENGERS: ENDGAME. Here, the BLACK WIDOW is presented as another super soldier variant trained as assassins with false memory implants. Natasha and her sister Yelena were both transformed into widows by a madman named Dreykov. Florence Pugh as Yelena gave the strongest performance in this slightly better than average action pic while Ray SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN Winstone leaves a lot to be desired as the central villain. William LOST IN SPACE Hurt is also surprisingly ineffective as General Thad Ross who's been better five times before beginning with THE INCREDIBLE HULK. I blame The director (who I never heard of) Cate Shortland & inexperienced writers Jac WANDA/VISION Schaeffer & Ned Benson whose sole credit this was. Eric GODZILLA VS KONG Pearson applied as much polish as he could but couldn't overcome BLACK WIDOW's biggest drawback. If you're unfamiliar with the comic books or the 23 previous instalments you're going to be lost from opening scene to the post credits advert for a new streaming mini-series. No amount of forced, quippy dialogue and retro pop tunes can fix that. A The sleeper cell family make a break for freedom and attempt to take down the evil organization connected to project Red Room. Unless you've seen a host of other films from CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR to AVENGERS many important bits of information will pass by unnoticed. The action sequences are derivative of better movies and heavy-handedly edited by about a hundred technicians working in a Disney sweatshop in Budapest. Scores of effects artists worked on this briskly paced pic but one name that stood out was Syogy Albita who I knew from that awful television show EMERALD CITY. BLACK WIDOW which cost about 200 million to make (allegedly) earned back only 180 million in North America and made it to 380 million worldwide...about 70 million less than Tom Cruise's THE MUMMY. Just an observation. Johansson famously sued the studio for failing to release her 'stand alone' adventure in theatres thereby shutting her out her profit share. Fearing a fan-boy uprising the soul-less global entity quietly paid the actress upwards of 40 additional million to go away. I didn't hate it but I never bought into it fully either.
- DirectorVirgil W. VogelStarsBarbara WilsonSten GesterRobert BurtonAliens release a furry critter in the wilds of Lapland where it takes a woman captive and threatens a group of scientists.Infamous low-budget film-maker Jerry Warren acquired the rights to the 1959 Swedish science fiction pic SPACE INVASION OF LAPLAND to re-edit for American distribution as a double feature with his 1962 drive-in cheapie: TERROR OF THE BLOODHUNTERS. The movie which was bad enough before Warren got his talentless hands on it concerned an alien bigfoot terrorizing the ski slopes after his UFO crashes. Awful new material shot by Warren featuring John FRANKENSTEIN ISLAND Carradine further undermined the already unwatchable movie cobbled together by Virgil THE KETTLES ON OLD MACDONOLD'S FARM Vogel and based on a screenplay by Arthur THE NAVY VS THE NIGHT MONSTERS Pierce & Robert THE MONOLITH MONSTERS Fresca. Robert THE SLIME PEOPLE Burton & Barbara THE BLOOD OF DRACULA Wilson starred in this 10th rate space-yeti pic. Warren re-edited INVASION OF THE ANIMAL PEOPLE for it's debut on syndicated TV. His theatrical print which was butchered down to 55 minutes from it's original 73 minute format had to be expanded to 80 minutes in order to fit the television time-slot. Painful to watch at any length. Suitable viewing only for the most hardened cinematic masochists. This DOG was filmed in glorious B&W.
- DirectorRobert GottschalkStarsChris WarfieldSally FraserDick FooteThe crew of a fishing boat discovers a deserted luxury yacht at sea with a dead body on board. They claim the yacht as salvage, not knowing that a drug smuggling ring has hidden $500,000 worth of heroin on the boat.Gay camera man Robert Gottschalk directed this low budget action/adventure based on his own screenplay along with Paul Straight. 2 years earlier he received his 1st Oscar for developing a camera system for MGM & DANGEROUS CHARTER was made on a shoestring budget to introduce the cinematic world to the Panavision system he developed with the film's cinematographer Meredith Nicholson. Nudie film-maker Chris TEENAGE SUDUCTRESS Warfield plays a tour guide operating off the coast of California who gets his wife (Sally WAR OF THE COLOSSAL BEAST Fraser) & father-in-law (Chick BLONDIE'S REWARD Chandler) entangled in a murder mystery when the trio attempt to claim salvage rights to an abandoned vessel. This would be the final film for Fraser who retired immediately after production wrapped & the only movie directed by Gottschalk who would later be found stabbed to death by an unstable male lover. Look for John FRANKENSTEIN'S DAUGHTER Zaremba & Wright INVASION OF THE BEE GIRLS King in supporting roles. This scenic espionage drama was shot in 1959 but sat on the shelf until indie distributor Crown International picked up the rights. Below average.
- DirectorColeman FrancisStarsKevin CaseyEric TomlinAnthony CardozaA woman seeks revenge on her former lover, who owns a skydiving business.This atrocious Crown International B-movie was the 2nd of 3 collaborations between producer Tony Cardoza & writer/director Coleman Francis. The other 2 were the infamous THE BEAST OF YUCCA FLATS and the more obscure RED ZONE CUBA any of which could be considered among the worst movies ever made. Cardoza also starred as the owner of a sky diving school whose wife (Kevin Casey in her only film role) suspects him of having an affair with a vengeful woman named Suzie (Marcia MAKO: THE JAWS OF DEATH Knight). The scorned Suzie is plotting to murder Beth's husband with an assist from a former employee named Frankie (Titus THE INCREDIBLY STRANGE CREATURES WHO STOPPED LIVING AND BECAME MIXED UP ZOMBIES Moede) unless the couple's recently hired friend Joe (Eric BIGFOOT Tomlin) can make sense of the tawdry B&W DOG. Like Ed Wood, Francis never lived to see his movies find a second life as cult classics. He died at his own hands long before that mystery science thing I detest began kicking it's dead horse in the 1990s.
- DirectorRobert AndersonStarsPatricia WymerSteven StewartGary RistHot undergrad, Mindy, pulls her married professor out of his squaresville life and takes him on the road for some groovy adventures in this quintessential 70s sex farce that includes drag races, pot, hippies, and erotic encounters.This drab Crown International release starred Patricia THE BABYSITTER Wymer as a promiscuous hippy chick who spurns her lover (Gary BROTHERS ON THE RUN Rist) for a sleazy tryst with her older, married professor (Steven POLICEWOMEN Stewart) only to find herself pregnant. To clear her head she leaves for a road trip encountering several other men along the way. Utterly forgettable despite a screenplay from Oscar nominee Robert THE NUN'S STORY Anderson (who also directed) & early appearances from Bruno THE GODFATHER PART II Kirby & Dennis DJANGO UNCHAINED Christopher. This talky sexploitation pic would be Wyner's cinematic swan song. The actress who suffered from mental illness and drug addiction died in an apartment fire along with several cats she had amassed at the age of 46.
- DirectorNorman FosterStarsJohnny CrawfordJay SilverheelsPat HoganNishko is a chief's son in the Great Plains, before Europeans arrive. During his rite of passage, he's determined to tame a painted pony. He approaches manhood while his peaceful clan is set upon by a nearby tribe willing to break a treaty. He must also contend with the kidnapping of three young women from his village, his pony's illness behind enemy lines, his mother's coma after a rattlesnake bite, the medicine man's urging that he sacrifice what he loves best, the attack of a cougar and of wolves, and his own injury while alone in the woods. His kindness, bravery, and quick thinking serve him well, but rescue come from an unexpected source.Former child star Johnny Crawford who got his start as a Mouseketeer on THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB & released several popular songs into the 1960s starred in this unorthodox western adventure drama for Crown International. Crawford plays the teenage son of an Indian Chief (native Canadian actor Jay Silverheels who shot to fame as 'Tonto' in THE LONE RANGER television series) who must prove his manhood by taming a painted pony. Nishko must also deal with an uprising with another tribe, the poor health of his mother and all manner of dangers in the years before the arrival of European settlers. It's a surprisingly fresh take on the western mythos although not a great movie by any stretch of the imagination. The strong cast also included Crawford's Emmy winning brother Robert who starred in the TV's MANHUNT. This family friendly pic was written/directed by long-time Disney associate Norman Foster who older audiences may remember for his work on a string of MR. MOTO & CHARLIE CHAN adventures from the 1940s.
- DirectorHoward AvedisStarsAlejandro ReyJohn AndersonKatherine JusticeAs part of a blackmail plot, a woman is forced to seduce her new husband's son. Complications, including murder, ensue.This lurid grindhouse murder drama holds the distinction of being the only Crown International Picture to receive an Oscar nomination. Composers Sammy Fain & Paul Webster were nominated for their original song: Strange Are the Ways of Love but lost to the vastly superior The Morning After from THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE. Alejano TERRORVISION Rey stars as an insanely jealous businessman who strangles an associate (Mike RAISE THE TITANIC Kulcsar) whom he believes is having an affair with his wife. It's his teenage son (Rudy THE TEACHER Herrera) who's the object of his step-mother's sexual affection however and the killing only draws the severely dysfunctional family into even more danger. Katherine CAPTAIN AMERICA II: DEATH TOO SOON Justice co-stars as the scheming step mom in this rough thriller which is peppered with suggested incest & nudity. Larry C.H.U.D. II: BUD THE CHUD Linville & Claudia DEATHSPORT Jennings held supporting roles in this sleazy offering from writer/director Howard MORTUARY Aredis.
- DirectorDavid DobkinStarsJackie ChanOwen WilsonFann WongWhen a Chinese rebel murders Chon's estranged father and escapes to England, Chon and Roy make their way to London with revenge on their minds.SHANGHAI KNIGHTS is a real crowd-pleaser providing the crowd consists of high school drop-outs. Not that I hated this more-of-the-same sequel to 2000s western/comedy SHANGHAI NOON which was written by Miles HANNAH MONTANA: THE MOVIE Millar & Alfred HERBIE: FULLY LOADED Gough for director David FRED CLAUS Dobkin but everyone involved is capable of much better work. Returning actors Owen MARLEY & ME Wilson and Jackie AN ALAN SMITHEE FILM: BURN HOLLYWOOD BURN Chan barely manage to carry the cumbersome weigh of the recycled material on nothing more than than their on-screen rapport which is considerable. The film opens with the murder of Chon 'Chan' Wang's estranged father and the theft of a royal seal at the the hands of the villain of the piece Lord Rathbone. Aiden THE DARK KNIGHT RISES Gillen's performance as Rathbone is hamstrung by the same old DRUNKEN MASTER-style slapstick routines we've come to expect from Chan over the decades not to mention less fresh material lifted from Abbott & Costello comedies. To retrieve the seal and save the life of Queen Victoria Wang, his lovely sister (Fann JUST FOLLOW LAW Wang) and Roy O'Bannon (Wilson) travel to England (Eastern Europe filming locations). Along the way they pose as male prostitutes, have nude pillow fights and even pose as Sherlock homes and Dr. Watson. The stunt work is impressively staged but overly familiar and the pop tunes included with the banal soundtrack gracelessly break the fourth wall at inappropriate moments. A street urchin named Charlie Chaplin (Aaron AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON Taylor-Johnson) and Oliver WONDER WOMAN 1984 Cotton as Jack the Ripper failed to make an impression in supporting roles. A planned third film called SHANGHAI DAWN fell into development hell although communist superstar Chan insists it's still happening. Why bother?
- DirectorMark AtkinsStarsMichael Jai WhiteKadeem HardisonRandy WayneIn the year 2045, a L.A.P.D. detective and his new Android partner enter the Zone, which is a forbidden section of the city plagued with an unknown disease. Together, they discover the reason everyone is sick, and try to stop the illness.Mark Atkins has written/produced/directed a score of 'videos' for the backyard sweatshop known as The Asylum; from ALIEN ORIGIN to EMPIRE OF THE SHARKS. None have been good but almost all have been better than this tenth rate ROBOCOP rip-off. Michael NEVER BACK DOWN II: THE BEATDOWN White & Randy THE DUKES OF HAZAARD: THE BEGINNING Wayne starred in this dismal superhero adventure set in 2045 when Beverly Hills has been rendered a forbidden zone because of earthquakes, disease and mutant gangs. Wayne plays the ANDROID COP in a black body stocking with painted styrofoam padding subbing for armor. It's as pitiful as it sounds as is his modified nerf gun weaponry. Carl AVALANCHE SHARKS Soto is the man to blame for the garage sale suit-mation. The villain of the piece is the mayor who wants to create a new class of androids capable of hosting human minds. Actor Charles SCOOBY-DOO & THE WRESTLEMANIA MYSTERY Dutton phones in his performance as does most of the cast of unknowns. Sasha TITANIC 666 Burrow lent an unwelcome hand by way of dollar store CG. Utterly forgettable & completely skippable.
- DirectorJames KondelikStarsKelly HuAnthony MarksRobert PicardoMankind must fight to survive as Earth is invaded by hostile UFOs bent on destroying the planet. As the epic battle wages on, astronauts sneak aboard the mothership where they discover a portal to the aliens' home world.Mockbster studio The Asylum released this sci-fi stink-bomb to coincide with Tom Cruise's not-quite-epic EDGE OF TOMORROW. The story begins with the invasion of aliens who harvest organic material from humans to save the life of their queen and their species as a whole. Robert MEGASHARK VS CROCOSAURUS Picardo stars as the general who dispatched a team of soldiers to the mothership to engage the enemy on their home planet. Kelly HARLEY DAVIDSON AND THE MARLBORO MAN Hu & Anthony AIRPLANE VS VOLCANO Marks co-starred in this shameless rip-off. Josh ZOMBIE CHEERLEADER CAMP Wasylink provided most of the substandard visuals for director James JURASSIC GALAXY Kondelik. The derivative script was thrown together by Jacob FLIGHT 666 Cooney & Bill 5-HEADED SHARK ATTACK Hamstock on a 15 day shooting schedule.
- DirectorAnthony RussoJoe RussoStarsRobert Downey Jr.Chris HemsworthMark RuffaloThe Avengers and their allies must be willing to sacrifice all in an attempt to defeat the powerful Thanos before his blitz of devastation and ruin puts an end to the universe.I enjoyed AVENGERS: INFINITY WARS but it's unlikely I'll ever look at again despite having also enjoyed the original 1963 comic created by the legendary Jack Kirby for Stan Lee's Marvel Publishing. This cinematic incarnation was loosely based on Jim Starlin's The Infinity Gauntlet mini-series which proved so popular with comic book geeks it's been endlessly recycled in the decades since it's 1991 debut. This is the 19th film in Disney/Marvel's 'MCU' & a direct sequel to 2012s massively promoted THE AVENGERS & 2015s even more popular AVENGERS: THE AGE OF ULTRON, The Russo Brothers (Tony & Joe) who were mostly known for YOU, ME & DUPREE as well as a handful of low rated sitcoms shot to stardom directing/writing these cookie cutter comic book pics which soared to the top of the box office but their contributions really are minimal compared to the product-placement cast of heroes played by IRON MAN's Robert Downey Jr, THOR's Chris Hemsworth, SPIDER-MAM: FAR FROM HOME's Tom Holland, BLACK WIDOW's Scarlett Johansson, CAPTAIN AMERICA's Chris Evans, DR. STRANGE's Benedict Cumberbatch, THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER's Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan & Don Cheadel, BLACK PANTHER's Chadwick Boseman, WANDA/VISION's Elizabeth Olsen & Paul Bettany, SHE-HULK's Mark Ruffalo, JONAH HEX's Josh Brolin, CONAN's Ross Marquand, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY's Bradley Cooper, etc. This ginormous slop-bucket of celebs is packed wall to wall into a 2 1/2 hour movie affording each a few moments to shine amidst a constant stream of CGI. The cast is given endlessly pithy banter to excuse the lack of character development and super powers that come and go on the whim of the screenplay. The slack & quippy script was provided by THE CHRONICLES OF MARNIA: THE VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER's Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely. The plot concerns a genocidal despot named Thanos who intends to obliterate the universe after ruthlessly obtaining a half dozen gemstones which will give him the power of a God. The heroes put up a good fight but most of them are turned to dust anyway paving the way for AVENGERS: ENDGAME in 2019. I didn't care so much as only a handful of the players even resembled the heroes I remember from the comic books and at a run time of 149 minutes I was a little; what's the word I'm looking for?...not bored but underwhelmed. It doesn't make much sense and the special effects were frequently cut together at a lightning pace to hide their imperfections. Some of it was gorgeous and exciting but I've seen better. It may have worked better in the hands of more capable directors who understand the language of film. AVENGERS: INFINITY WARS was assembly lined by folks who know slang. Those special effects were nominated for an Oscar but deservedly lost and the costume design and musical score (rotten with badly aging pop tunes) went without. It reminded me a lot of those annual 'event' crossover series both DC & Marvel began to market to fans after Crisis on Infinite Earths. Those cash-grabs quickly drove me away from the medium as will these tedious multiverse titles. Above average but nothing special.
- DirectorLarry G. BrownStarsJohn AldermanTom BashamHenry OlekPlenty of heads turn when a group of transvestite bikers wheel their way to Los Angeles.Exploitation film-maker Larry (Silent But Deadly) G. Brown directed this well acted curio for Crown International in the wake of the hugely influential EASY RIDER. A group of gay, transvestites form a biker gang & head for a cotillion in L.A. The military are on high alert for hippies with the commander (C.J. INVASION OF THE ANIMAL PEOPLE Mitchell) itching to execute any long hairs who crash the party. Porn star John Alderman, Henry Olek (writer of the 1984 hit ALL OF ME), Bruce CHAIN GANG WOMEN Kimball, etc more than fit the bill especially in full drag. The drag queen material towards the finale is well done & ripe with authenticity for those who lived the life. Their adventures along the way (including an orgy with a rival gang led by Dan THE LIFE AND TIMES OF GRIZZLY ADAMS Haggerty) is rather engaging even 5 decades after it's release. The surprisingly deft screenplay by one-timer Margaret McPherson side-steps the problematic issue of gay sex by slipping in plenty of female nudity while offering a non-PC glimpse at the bond these men have formed. I quite liked this occasionally amusing time-capsule of gay cinema and appreciate that it pulls no punches in the end. Far too many drag queens never made it from the ball in real life either.
- DirectorHerbert J. LederStarsDana AndrewsAnna PalkPhilip GilbertA crazed scientist (Dana Andrews) keeps the heads of Nazi war criminals alive until he can find appropriate bodies on which to attach them so he can revive the Third Reich.Herbert Leder produced/wrote/directed THE FROZEN DEAD as a double feature bill with the Roddy McDowall horror pic IT. The British B-Movie was released theatrically in North America through Warner/Seven Arts in B&W. In a plot that copies 1962s THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE, Dana CURSE OF THE DEMON Andrews plays a mad scientist named Norberg who uses the telepathic, decapitated head of a young woman to control the re-animated frozen Nazis he's kept in his lab for 2 decades. Occasional actress Kathleen SPACEFLIGHT IC-1: ADVENTURES IN SPACE Breck gives good head while her recently defrosted father (Edward THE CAT AND THE CANARY Fox) strangles up a storm as Nazi Zombie No. 3. A pair of lovers (Anna THE EARTH DIES SCREAMING Palk & Philip THE TOMORROW PEOPLE Gilbert) are terrorised by the thawed reich while attempting to halt the unlikely plot to take over the world. Not bad but look for the UK color print whenever possible.
- DirectorWilliam GreféStarsSteve AlaimoWillie PastranoJohn VellaA stock car driver goes undercover as the wheel man for a motorcycle gang.THE WILD REBELS was an early crime drama from regional film-maker William Grefe who (sorta') made a name for himself with STANLEY and MAKO: JAWS OF DEATH. Grefe shot this biker pic in Florida with a rotation of his stock actors for less than 75 grand. Steve THE HOOKED GENERATION Alaimo took top billing as Rod; a race car driver recruited by Lt. Dorn (Walter BEACH BOY REBELS Philbin) to infiltrate a Californian biker gang who are planning a bank heist. William THE NAKED ZOO Pastrano, John STING OF DEATH Villa, Jeff SHE-MAN: A STORY OF FIXATION Gillen and their thrill-seeking biker-chick Bobby SAVAGES FROM HELL Byers play the gang members on the lookout for a double-cross. THE WILD REBELS was featured on that snide & detestable MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 cable series I'd never recommend. A lesser effort from the unusually prolific director for distributor Crown International.
- DirectorWilliam GreféStarsChris RobinsonAlex RoccoSteve AlaimoA young Seminole Indian uses his rattlesnake to take revenge on all those he believes have wronged him.Wiliam Grefe was to Florida what Bill THE GIANT SPIDER INVASION Rebane was to Wisconsin. Between 1963 & 1978 he made a dozen indie drive-in movies a few of which (including this one) were distributed by Crown International. STANLEY is one his better efforts & among of his best remembered following hot on the heels of the similar 1971 horror hit WILLARD. GENERAL HOSPITAL's Chris Robinson plays a Vietnam vet/Native American Indian living alone in the Everglades with his pet snakes. The most interesting snake in his collection is a rattler named STANLEY who kills on command. The rednecks and racists in town find themselves picked off one by one by the venomous snakes to avenge the death of the outcast's father. Alex Rocco co-starred in this low-budget offering while concurrently filming THE GODFATHER for director Francis Ford Coppola. Gary SUPERCHICK Crutcher (who co-scripted with Grefe) also appears in the sympathetic role of Dr. Everett.
- DirectorWilliam RieadStarsTonny TullenersDon MurrayRobert LoganAmerican spy Scorpion is forced to protect an international terrorist from harm. When things goes sideways, he goes after the real bad guys.Tonny Tulleners claim to fame was that he beat action movie star Chuck Norris in a karate tournament. With Norris turning a profit for The Cannon Group Crown International decided to market him as their own action hero billing him as; 'The Man Chuck Norris Couldn't Beat!'. This would be his 1st and only film appearance. The tall and uncharismatic martial artist is as dull as dishwater as THE SCORPION, a secret agent on the hunt for the assassins who murdered his best friend (John BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS Lazar). Along the way he falls in love with the forgettable Kathryn SUNSET BEACH Daley & saves a hijacked passenger jet. Robert SNOWBEAST Logan & Don GHOSTS CAN'T DO IT Murray rounded out the unappealing cast. This Spanish/American co-production was flavorlessly written/directed by William Riead who is mostly known for TV 'making of' featurettes. The unexciting special effects were provided by Wayne HELL COMES TO FROGTOWN Beauchamp. Stunt co-ordinator Dar KING KONG LIVES! Robinson utterly failed to stage the fight sequences with any style or grace in claustrophobic, badly lit locations. Tulleners is so awful he makes Reb Brown look like Stallone by comparison.
- DirectorAl AdamsonDon HuletteStarsJohn CarradinePaula RaymondAlexander D'ArcyCount Dracula and his wife capture beautiful young women and chain them in their dungeon, to be used when they need to satisfy their thirst for blood.Al Adamson was an iconic indie film-maker who gave Edward D. Wood, Jr. a run for his money for the title of 'Worst Director of All Time'. His amazing catalogue of Grade Z movies included SATAN'S SADISTS, PSYCHO-A-G0-GO & DRACULA VS FRANKENSTEIN but this outrageous DOG is among his most fondly remembered. It was written by Rex THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE Carlton and partially directed by composer Don THEY SAVED HITLER'S BRAIN Thulette in 1966 but sat on the shelf for 3 years until Crown International purchased the distribution rights. Alexander THE HORRORS OF SPIDER ISLAND D'Arcy & Paula THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS Raymond star as the Count & Countess Dracula living in a castle in California who discover their lease is up and the new owners are on their way to take possession. Gene HELLS BLOODY DEVILS Otis Shane & Jennifer MAKO: JAWS OF DEATH Bishop are the attractive couple who are unaware the vampires have a cellar full of beautiful young ladies who are bled nightly by the Draculas' butler; George (John SUPERCHICK Carradine) or that there's a hulking brute (Ray BIGFOOT & WILDBOY Young) waiting to kill them! Count Dracula's maniacal werewolf brother Johnny (Robert FRANKENSTEIN'S DAUGHTER Dix) is on the way to do the same. Look for B-movie director John THE DARK Cardos as a prison guard and note that famed cinematographer Laszlo EASY RIDER Kovacs lent his talent to this undeniably entertaining trash.
- DirectorKostas KaragiannisStarsDonald PleasencePeter CushingLuan PetersTourists are kidnapped by a devil-worshipping cult, and a priest tries desperately to save them. A gruesome tale of the devil and human sacrifice.The unnecessarily prolific Greek director Kostas HE MURDERED HIS WIFE Karagiannis shot this rip-off of THE DEVIL'S RAIN based on a threadbare script by Arthur Rank who was best known for episodic television series like THE BIONIC WOMAN and KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER. Donald PHENOMENON Pleasence stars as a kindly priest who suspects the villagers are satanists who have kidnapped a quartette of college kids to sacrifice to their pagan god. Peter SHOCK WAVES Cushing plays the sinister Baron Corofax conspiring to keep Father Roche from discovering the cave of the fire breathing Minotaur who owns all their souls. This Crown International release picks up a little steam towards the final reel but the unimpressive special effects finale put a nail in THE LAND OF THE MINOTAUR's dreary coffin. Also known as THE DEVIL'S MEN.
- DirectorDavid BradleyStarsWalter StockerAudrey CaireCarlos RivasHitler's Brain is saved by Nazi madmen, and is giving orders on a small tropical island!Crown International released this atrocious B&W sci-fi/horror movie written by Steve Bennett (also a producer) and Peter Miles for director David DRAGSTRIP RIOT Bradley. The movie concerns a plot to resurrect the Third Reich using the preserved and still living head of Adolf Hitler (Bill TONIGHT FOR SURE Freed). The head is being kept safe in the country of Mandoras by an insane scientist (Marshall THE NIGHT THE WORLD EXPLODED Reed)) and the presidente (Pedro KORG: 70,000 B.C. Regas). With the plot underway the despots kidnap a scientist (John THE OSCAR Holland) to obtain his formula for a secret nerve gas they'll need to conquer the world. The professor's daughter K.C. (Audrey JOE Claire) & her traveling companion (Walter LASSIE'S GREAT ADVENTURE Stocker) arrive in the dangerous foreign country seeking his whereabouts. Early into the rock-bottom production a moment of mondo footage was cut into this tiresome mess depicting an elephant having it's trunk slit open to rid it of a nest of squirming parasites. I've never been so grossed out and bored in my life! Disastrously re-released in 1973 as THEY SAVED HITLER'S BRAIN!
- DirectorDavid BradleyStarsWalter StockerAudrey CaireCarlos RivasNazi 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.Nearly a decade after it's release the Crown International flop THE MADMEN OF MANDORAS was re-released to TV movie syndication as THEY SAVED HITLER'S BRAIN! Almost 20 minutes of horrible B&W footage was hastily cut in by film school students while any objectionable material was hacked away to make it more family friendly. A new introduction featured Tari DEATHMASTER Tabakin as a female detective who's life is in danger while assigned to an assassination case clashes awkwardly with the 1963 material. Larry THE CREEPING TERROR Burrell provided voice over narration but it's basically the same plot as the 1963 cut...only worse! At 90 minutes the watered down version is excruciating to sit through. David 12 TO THE MOON Bradly is mostly responsible for this DOG which starred Audrey JOE Claire and Walter LASSIE'S GREAT ADVENTURE Stocker as a couple who journey to South America looking for a scientist caught up in a plot to revive the Third Reich with Hitler's decapitated head. The tedious score was lifted from THE DEVIL'S HAND. THEY SAVED HITLER'S BRAIN is widely considered one of the worst movies ever made but I do love it so.
- DirectorRichard KanterStarsAlex RoccoElizabeth KnowlesSherry BainPete and Stick, two juvenile delinquents just thrown out of a biker gang, break into a luxury house where they rape two women. They settle in the house, sell the valuables and kill a curious neighbor.WILD RIDERS was a rare segway into the mainstream for pornographer Richard THAR, SHE BLOWS! Kanter who wrote & directed this grindhouse biker pic. After raping and murdering a woman 2 young, homeless goons are expelled from their gang and make a break for Mexico. Obscure character actor Arell HOUSE OF TERROR Blanton took top billing as Pete; a hot psychopath who's only friend in the world is a mentally deficient drug addict named Stick played by the late, great Alex THE STUNT MAN Rocco in an early starring role. The unstable pair invade a secluded home occupied by a hot-to-trot cellist's wife (Elizabeth LADY GODIVA RIDES AGAIN Knowles) and her prim best friend Sherri THE HARD RIDE Bain. The women are held hostage, beaten & raped but (this being a rough exploitation movie) the married Laurie begins to fall in love anyway. Laurie's next-door lover (Steve DRIVE-MASSACRE Vincent) and husband (Ted SWEET SWEETBACK'S BAADASSSSS SONG Hayden) also factor into the tawdry mix. I'm giving this nasty Crown International release an extra star for the well deserving cast (especially Rocco) and for cultish cinematographer Paul Hipp who genre addicts know from a string of B-movies including GRAVE OF THE VAMPIRE, THE BOOGENS and THE INCREDIBLE TWO HEADED TRANSPLANT.
- DirectorGeorge CahanStarsJean-Pierre AumontAlix TaltonTônia CarreroA four-alarm murder mystery, this nerve-tingling story is about a dashing, prominent builder in Brazil who is mistakenly accused of killing his wife, but because of it learns the truth about the woman he thought he knew.CARNIVAL OF CRIME was based on an English mystery novel by Winston Graham best remembered for writing the 1964 Hitchcock classic MARNIE. Sadly, director George Cahan was no Hitchcock having worked mostly in American tv cranking out episodes of GILLIGAN'S ISLAND. There's not much by way of suspense or intrigue despite an attractive cast including Cahan's wife Alix THE DEADLY MANTIS Talton who plays a bored wife cheating of her wealthy husband. When she goes missing the rich engineer (Jean-Pierre THE MAN WITH THE TRANSPLANTED BRAIN Aumont) and his faithful secretary (Tonia BEST WISHES Carrero) search for clues. Luis MISSION STARDUST Davila, Jordel THE SECRET OF THE MUMMY Filho & Alberto THE EROTIC RITES OF FRANKENSTEIN Dalbes co-starred in this turgid B&W crime-drama distributed by Crown International.
- DirectorHoward AvedisStarsAngel TompkinsJay NorthAnthony JamesAn explosively tense story about a beautiful, provocative 28-year-old high school teacher whose seduction of one particular student proves fatal.Former child actor Jay DENNIS THE MENACE North tried blowing the precocious funk off himself by appearing in this unpleasant stalker drama for writer/director Howard THE STEPMOTHER Averdis. The micro-budget grindhouse feature would be his last starring role. He plays an 18 year old student who has an affair with his divorced high school teacher. Angel THE BEES Thompkins spends more time flashing her boobs than cracking the books with both aware a disturbed vietnam vet with an psychotic obsession is peeping on them night and day. The usually reliable Anthony James overacts terribly as the driver of the hearse determined to murder THE GRADUATE inspired lovers but he would fare much better as the chauffeur in 1976's BURNT OFFERINGS. Crown International released this crowd dis-pleaser to minimal fanfare and box office.
- DirectorDon HendersonStarsPatricia WymerGeorge E. CareyAnne BellamyAn Assistant District Attorney is about to prosecute members of a motorcycle gang for murder when he gets blackmailed because of an affair with a teenage babysitter.Patricia THE YOUNG GRADUATES Wyner made only 3 grindhouse features before addiction and mental health issues derailed her career. THE BABYSITTER was the 1st and the best of a bad lot. The 22 yr old played 16 yr old babysitter Candy who seduces a middle aged prosecutor named George. George Carey co-wrote the story with himself in mind as the repulsive male lead. James NOTORIOUS CONCUBINES McLarty & director Don WEEKEND WITH THE BABYSITTER Henderson also contributed to its' pandering screenplay. Photographs of the sleazy duo are taken by an extortionist accidentally. Kathy LOVE CAMP 7 Williams would have settled for pics of George's lesbian daughter (Sheeri LADY GODIVA RIDES AGAIN Jackson) to get her biker lover (Robert THE HARD RIDE Tessier) off the hook but the affair was worth far more leverage. The revelation would destroy his career and marriage. It's mostly all an excuse to show off Wyner's breasts both of which fell into obscurity soon after. This lurid B&W softcore drama was distributed by Crown International.
- DirectorWilliam R. StrombergStarsRichard CardellaGlen RobertsMark SiegelA meteor that crashed into Oregon's Crater Lake unearths a dinosaur egg. The heat from the meteor causes the egg to hatch, and the emerging dinosaur takes to snacking on the locals.THE CRATER LAKE MONSTER was an old fashioned giant monster movie crippled when distributor Crown International failed to honor the special effects budget writer/director William Stromberg initially agreed upon. The inexperienced Stromberg only ever got to make one other film: He provided stop motion animation for the infamous NIGHT TRAIN TO TERROR. Richard Cardella co-wrote the screenplay casting himself and a handful of unknown actors as lead. The only actor to distinguish himself was Mark Siegel who's visual effects graced brands like STAR WARS and Marvel. Stop motion animator David Allen and his wonderful rampaging plesiosaur were the star of the show. Allen developed an immediate cult following for 1974s FLESH GORDON and contributed special effects to dozens of Full Moon features well into the 90's. When Crown bailed THE CRATER LAKE MONSTER was left with papier mache appliances by way of FX. This could have been a decent genre pic on par with CARNOAUR 2 or DINOSAURUS but there simply wasn't enough of Allen's fine loch ness monster on screen to sustain the illusion. Not nearly as bad as you've heard and maybe even worth a peek if you're a fan of the artform.
- DirectorRobert DayStarsBoris KarloffBetta St. JohnChristopher LeeDr. Thomas Bolton fights for the use of anesthetic in surgery and uses himself as a guinea pig, but soon finds himself addicted.Boris FRANKENSTEIN '70 Karloff made dozens of terrible movies as his popularity waned but you'll at least be treated to his semi-bravura performance as the kindly surgeon who dreams of perfecting anesthetics but instead becomes an opium addict grinding corpses for the black market's Resurrection Joe (Christopher THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN Lee). The leads are true horror mainstays and professional from beginning to end. Neither goes over-the-top although the hammy script by Jean THE FLOOD Scott-Rogers would have permitted that excess. Karloff is especially restrained as the helpless Lord Bolton who's bad luck also threatens the happiness of his son (Francis THE REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN Matthews) & his betrothed (Betta TARZAN AND THE LOST SAFARI St. Jones). This unlikely mix of 18th Century science and grave-robbing was shot in 1958 by director Robert FIRST MAN INTO SPACE Day but sat on the shelf till 1962 when it finally made the drive in rounds double featured with the livelier WEREWOLF IN A GIRL'S DORMITORY. B&W
- DirectorVic SavageStarsVic SavageShannon O'NeilWilliam ThourlbyA newlywed sheriff tries to stop a shambling monster that has emerged from a spaceship to eat the citizens of an American town.Crown International released this DOG which was patterned closely after the campy 1958 hit THE BLOB. This notorious contender for the title of 'Worst Movie Ever Made' will make any serious connoisseur of cult cinema's mouth water. The monster is a pile of area rugs stitched together. After it escapes a crash landing on earth it creeps up on unsuspecting women and allows them to wriggle underneath never to be seen again. Director Vic Savage was able to swing a few grand to get THE CREEPING TERROR made but vanished like a puff of smoke when accusations surfaced of defrauding investors. Brothers Allen THE STEWARDESSES Silliphant & Robert THE INCREDIBLY STRANGE CREATURES WHO STOPPED LIVING AND BECAME MIXED UP ZOMBIES Silliphant initially drew attention to the project by way of their relationship with Stirling THE TOWERING NFERNO Silliphant. In recent years a few backyard sequels have popped up that aren't worth a moment of your time or attention. The original has just a sprinkle of movie-making magic and that's what makes it special. ESSENTIAL viewing if bad movies are your thing.
- DirectorNick LyonStarsKeesha SharpJamie BamberLydia HearstDark forces from the deep rise to the surface, terrorizing all aboard from Titanic III and threatens to repeat one of history's greatest disasters.TITANIC 666 is a mockbuster sequel to The Asylum's notorious unofficial mockbuster sequel TITANIC II. That DOG from 2010 utilised the junk science of man-made climate change to propel it's rickety disaster movie framework. Director Nick STORMAGEDDON Lyons is forced to make do with supernatural forces to derail the maiden voyage of the Titanic III. Jason SCARECROW White and Jacob FLIGHT 666 Cooney threw together this silly tale of the original victims of the 1912 disaster returning to haunt the new crew and passengers. Jamie THE CAR 2: THE ROAD TO RUIN Bamber and Keesha EMPIRE Sharp took top billing among a cast of unknowns while the usual Asylum backyard crew photoshopped their way through those depressingly bad special effects sequences. It's marginally better than TITANIC II because it's just barely smart enough to know how dumb it is and still manage the occasional self aware laugh.
- DirectorFelix E. FeistStarsPeggy ShannonLois WilsonSidney BlackmerA massive earthquake strikes the United States, which destroys the West Coast and unleashes a massive flood that threatens to destroy the East Coast as well.DELUGE fascinated me as a young disaster movie addict weened on all things Irwin Allen but I never actually got to see it in it's entirety until the new millennium. I knew of it by reputation or from having seen footage of it recycled throughout the 30s-40s in mostly Republic Pictures like; DICK TRACY VS CRIME INC, THE KING OF THE ROCKET MEN and S.O.S. TIDAL WAVE. Republic purchased the rights after distributor RKO fell on hard times mostly to get their hands on Ned H.G. WELL'S THINGS TO COME Mann's spectacular miniature effects work depicting the destruction of New York. The film became lost in the early 1950s until a print was discovered in the home of Italian director Luigi ALIEN CONTAMINATION Cozzi during the 1980s. This thrilling science fiction masterpiece rivals better known films like Fritz Lang's METROPOLIS or George Pal's WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE and was a bit like Roland Emmerich's THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW in scope despite a B movie budget of 175 grand. This 1933, B&W classic begins with a global catastrophe set off by a celestial alignment. During the eclipse earthquakes and tsunami's tear America apart leaving the coast submerged. The radiantly lovely Peggy Shannon who got her start as a Ziegfeld showgirl in the 20s stars as a swimmer named Claire who survives the DELUGE but is pursued by a brute named Jepsom (Fred BILLY THE KID RETURNS Kohler) through the ruins until she's taken in by a survivor named Martin (Sidney NAZI AGENT Blackmer). Martin's wife (Lois THE GREAT GATSBY Wilson) became separated and is staying with a heroic rescuer with no family of his own. The aftermath of the disaster and how Martin is reunited with his family makes for a fine night's entertainment under the skilled direction of Felix DONOVAN'S BRAIN Feist. The screenplay by John LIFE RETURNS Goodrich & William ANGELS WITH DIRTY FACES Duff was loosely based on the 1928 novel by S. Fowler Wright. Wright was said to be less than thrilled with the changes made from his book and it's 1929 sequel; DAWN although you won't hear any complaints from me! I totally dig this once lost treasure which enjoyed a new lease on life thanks to an art house theatre revival in 2017
- DirectorRaffaele DonatoJoe D'AmatoStarsFrank BaroniCort McCownKeith KelschSeveral young men have to stop an ancient native American evil in the form of a killer shark which is attacking a small beach community.1990 was a good year for Joe D'Amato. He directed DEEP BLOOD, ATOR: QUEST FOR THE MIGHTY SWORD, THE CRAWLERS: TROLL III, & ZOMBIE 5: KILLING BIRDS back to back. My 1990 sucked! Now you know why. The Italian hack churned out this 10th rate JAWS rip-off with an attractive cast of unknowns and stock footage lifted from nature documentaries. Portions of DEEP BLOOD were recycled from 1981's infamous unauthorized JAWS sequel GREAT WHITE while bits and pieces of D'Amato's pic would be cut into 1995's other 'JAWS 5'; CRUEL JAWS. It's a DOG eat DOG world, isn't it? There's little by way of special makeup effects other than the sight of arms and legs thrashing about in bloody water. The mechanical shark head was designed by Bryan RICHIE RICH Wood but it's about as ineffectual as the borrowed score. Carlo Cordio brazenly re-used stuff he wrote for earlier D'Amato collaborations including TROLL II. John Williams he ain't! As big a let-down as DEEP BLOOD was I would watch it again over every shark-attack mockbusters cranked out by The Asylum every time.
- DirectorDavid DeCoteauStarsLinnea QuigleyKen AbrahamMichael ArandaA group of survivors try to avoid the battles of World War III. When they try to escape to the quiet lands, they encounter something much more deadly.(LGBT2QQS1+xETC?!) director & softcore film-maker David BUNKER OF BLOOD CHAPTER 5: PSYCHO SIDESHOW DEMON FREAKS DeCoteau made CREEPOZOIDS on the cheap for stealth producer Charles Band. Borrowing the junk science of acid rain which made headlines around the world circa 1987 (same as the big, green, genocidal lies you're told today) DeCotaeu & co-author Dave HACKOLANTERN Eisenstalk threw together this post-apocalyptic ALIEN rip-off about a quintet of attractive actors who flee the ravages of man made climate change only to be picked off later by an escaped bio weapon inside an abandoned warehouse. It's a nice showcase for the dubious talents of everybody's favourite Scream Queen Linnea PUMPKINHEAD II: BLOODWINGS Quigley who also scored a production credit. Gore hounds will appreciate some of the ridiculous, old school make up effects which compared favourably with other, similar video rentals. I'd agree they're surprisingly well designed considering how little cash they had to play with. Thomas MIL MASCARAS VS THE AZTEC MUMMY Callaway handled the cheesy special effects while Thomas MOBIUS Floutz created the CREEPOZOIDS. Below average but I didn't hate it. Followed by Fred Olen Ray's inferior 1997 remake; HYBRID.
- DirectorLarry CohenStarsJohn P. RyanSharon FarrellAndrew DugganThe Davises are expecting a baby, which turns out to be a monster with a nasty habit of killing people whenever it is scared. And it is easily scared.IT'S ALIVE! failed to make much of an impression when initially released by Warner Brothers in 1974 but came roaring back to life 3 years later via a classic marketing campaign featuring the iconic tagline; "There's only one thing wrong with the Davis baby...IT'S ALIVE!". John FUTUREWORLD Ryan and Sharon THE LOVE MACHINE Farrell are uncommonly good as the demonised parents of a mutation which embarked on a killing spree upon birth. Oscar winning make-up artist Rick AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON Baker designed the fierce but rarely glimpsed monster allowing writer/director Larry GOD TOLD ME TO Cohen's character's to exist in a media firestorm for much of the time, speculating on the cause of their son's deformity. Their plight as a family is as harrowing as the hunt for the blood-thirsty mutant in the sewers of L.A. The entire cast plays the material with a consummately straight face and manage to convince much of the time. Michael THE MANITOU Ansara, Andrew A RETURN TO SALEM'S LOT Duggan and James THE STUFF Dixon as Lt. Perkins also appear. Dixon would return for both sequels; 1978's IT LIVES AGAIN! and 1987's IT'S ALIVE III: THE ISLAND OF THE ALIVE!. The surprisingly successful cult trilogy benefit's greatly from Bernard CITIZEN KANE Herrman's frightening score. Followed by 2009's poorly received IT'S ALIVE reboot from Millennium Films.
- DirectorLarry CohenStarsFrederic ForrestKathleen LloydJohn P. RyanAn epidemic of monster babies sweeps across America.Warner Brothers was so impressed with the box office take of Larry MANIAC COP 3: BADGE OF SILENCE Cohen's IT'S ALIVE! he was commissioned to write/direct this slightly improved sequel. The special effects baby created by Rick THE TRACK OF THE MOON BEAST Baker was recycled effectively in a script calling for a trio of mutants to be on the prowl. Lt Perkins (James Q: THE WINGED SERPENT Dixon), Dr. Perry (Andrew A RETURN TO SALEM'S LOT Duggan) & John DEATH WISH 4: THE CRACKDOWN Ryan as Frank Davis all returned for this satisfying follow up. Davis warns a new expecting couple that government death squads will kill their baby he moment it's born. Frederic TRAUMA Forrest & Kathleen THE CAR Lloyd fit in with Cohen's regular stable of on screen talent. They're both convincing when sometimes the low budget special effects are not. IT LIVES AGAIN! is a faster paced film than the original and slightly bloodier. Bernard PSYCHO Herrman's wonderfully evocative score lends considerable weight to this engaging cult classic. Followed by 1987's IT'S ALIVE III: ISLAND OF THE ALIVE! and a 2009 franchise reboot.
- DirectorLarry CohenStarsMichael MoriartyKaren BlackLaurene LandonThe monster babies have been placed by court order on a deserted island so that they can live out their lives as far away from normal humans as possible without killing them. Enraged by the cynicism toward, and the exploitation of, the monster babies by both the legal system and the media, the man who is responsible for them leads an expedition to the island in order to free them.Larry THE INVADERS Cohen filmed this cultish sequel to IT'S ALIVE! back-to-back with Warner Brothers' A RETURN TO SALEM'S LOT. Both starred a clearly intoxicated Michael Moriarty. I met the man twice while he was in 'political exile' here in Canada and he was as sh!t-faced then just as he is throughout this eccentric but well cast curio. Moriarty plays the father of one of the mutations now estranged from the monstrous boy's mother. Karen TRILOGY OF TERROR Black is always fun to watch in the genre she sometimes openly despised. She effortlessly hits the right notes opposite the unpredictable Moriarty as a mother grieving the loss of a child. MacDonald SUMMER OF FEAR Carey played the compassionate judge who spared the life of their boy by sentencing him to exile on a deserted island. 18 years have passed since the babies were abandoned and now an expedition has been launched to find out what exactly happened to them as a species. The cast also includes Lauren AMITYVILLE COP Landon, James THE STUFF Dixon and Garrit PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE Graham in pivotal supporting roles. Cohen's talky script is undermined by pitiful creature designs revealed during the chaotic finale. Brent TROLL Armstrong & Steve THE RETURN OF SWAMP THING Neill's grown mutants are unfortunately more laughable than scary and mar what might have been a better film. A rare mis-step for the usually reliable Cohen! This minor cult classic spelled the end of the franchise until the 2009 Millennium Films reboot; IT'S ALIVE.
- DirectorJosef RusnakStarsBijou PhillipsJames MurrayRaphaël ColemanA baby born to a human couple turns out to be a mutant monster with an appetite to kill when scared.Out of respect for the late, great Larry Cohen skip this ill-conceived rip-off. The director and writers of this drab Bulgarian production are no one I'd heard of before or since in the film industry. By deviating from Larry WICKED STEPMOTHER Cohen's screenplay this reboot lost it's heart and soul. Cohen gave his characters passionate opinions on AIDS, abortion, pollution, birth control, etc. They debated one another across three films as to the cause building a mythology viewers could latch on to. These new parents haven't been given anything believable or compelling to work with. James KROD MANDOON AND THE FLAMING SWORD OF FIRE Murray & Bijou VENOM Phillips are flavorlessly cast as the parents of a mutant (possibly alien) baby. The ridiculous CG creature stalks the family and neighborhood at night in search of blood. Hugely disappointing even if you're not a fan of the cult classic trilogy. Ivo MOSQUITO MAN Jivkov & Simeon KRAKEN: TENTACLES OF THE DEEP Asemon provided a few grand worth of CG. Don't believe the IMDB budget estimate for ITS ALIVE. There's no way on earth this Millennium Films mock-buster cost 10 million to produce!! Nap inducing & neutered.
- DirectorJack PerezStarsAdam VincentBooboo StewartSarah LievingAfter a plane crash were a boy is the only survivor, a childless couple adopts him and soon discovers he is something very powerful, something very dark. This small boy is the Beast and with him he carries the Beginning of the End.The Asylum released this bold-faced copy of THE OMEN the same day as Fox's remake of their 1976 horror classic. Writer Benjamin Heavy lifted the entire Damien Thorn mythology for this unimaginative video about a couple (Sarah THE AMITYVILLE TERROR Lieving & Adam CHILL Vincent) who adopt the spawn of Satan unaware that he and his sinister nanny are planning to kill them all. Future star Booboo THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN PART II Steward plays the stone-faced tyke without much enthusiasm. The killings are infrequent & mostly bloodless. Directed by Jack MEGA SHARK VS GIANT OCTOPUS Perez under the alias Jake Johnson. This uninvolving mock-buster was followed by 2007's 666: THE BEAST
- DirectorNick EverhartStarsChad MathewsMakinna RidgwayAlma S. GreyDonald Lawson, the devil child from "666: The Child", is now an adult and is determined to fulfill his destiny as the Antichrist.666: THE BEAST was a sequel to the 2006 mock-buster 666: THE CHILD released by the nefarious backyard studio The Asylum. The bland Chad SNIPER: DEADLIEST MISSIONS Matthews starred as Donald Lawson; the son of the Anti-Christ rising up the corporate ladder at the expense of the lives of his business enemies. This limp & predictable clone of the Keanu Reeves under-achiever; THE DEVIL'S ADVOCATE is a tiresome chore to sit through. This would be the 2nd and last screen credit for writer Benjamin Heavy who co-wrote with director Nick 2012 DOOMSDAY Everhart.