For lovers of movies from the silent era to modern day with an emphasis on horror, sci-fi, exploitation, WIP, westerns and anything of the fantastic and bizarre. THIS SITE IS DEDICATED TO BOB WILKINS, GEORGE ROMERO, ALAN FREED, ROGER CORMAN, HELGA LINE, CAROLINE MUNRO, JOHN FREDRIKSEN, JOHN ZACHERLE, CLEO MOORE , ROSALBA NERI, ERIKA BLANC, FEMI BENUSSI, SHIRLEY CORRIGAN, ROSANNA YANNI, MIRTA MILLER, KARIN DOR, BARBARA BOUCHET, MAMIE VAN DOREN, BARBARA STEELE and, of course, CASEY KASEM.
Sunday, October 29, 2023
Saturday, October 28, 2023
GIANT GILA MONSTER 1959 (FILM MASTERS) BLU-RAY
It is about time this little gem received a 4k blu-ray release.
One of my favorites from childhood, this little shot in Texas sci-fi film never fils to entertain.
In a small town in Texas several mysterious car crashes have been reported and soon people start vanishing without a trace. A young man named Chase Winstead (Don Sullivan) helps the local sheriff (Fred Graham) investigate.
It is soon discoverd that a giant lizard is roaming the back country. This becomes clear after is causes a major train wreck in which many people are killed.
This was directed by Ray Kellogg and features a cast mostly out of Texas and it's always fun to hear the accents and know you are watching a non hollywood film.
This has been a staple of both VHS and DVD for years and while some of the prints have been pretty good, this restoration is the best it will ever be.
Fans of this film should pick this up quickly and see the movie as it was meant to be seen. The Blu-ray also includes a disc wit a restored version of "The Killer Shrews" which I will discuss later.
The rest of the cast includes Lisa Simone, Shug Fisher and Ken Knox.
Now, my one and only comlplaint about this is the inclusion of liner notes by Don Stradley. This is one of the most poorly written and sick things I have ever read. If you're gonna write about a movie, then stick to the movie. People don't need to hear you liberal thoughts about the makers of the films or sick, perverted references about the script from some weirdo who needs mental help.
I hope you all pick this up, watch both films and throw away the worthless booklet.
Friday, October 27, 2023
THE BLACK DOLL 1938 (BETAMAX TV)
A somewhat rare Universal "Crime Club" mystery.
Nelson Rood ( C. Henry Gordon) is a very dishonest man who finds a black voodoo doll in his desk. He knows he has been marked for death and before you know it he has been killed.
Nick Halstead (Donald Woods) is a private detective who is called into the case by his girlfriend. He has to find the killer as well as fight a bumbling sheriff.
This is your standard early crime film, and it moves along at a good pace. I think the film would have been even better than I think it already is if it didn't have so much comedy thrown in.
The peerformances are good and the direction is fine. If you're a fan of early murder mysteries, you'll like this film. It runs just under one hour.
The rest of the cast includes Nan Grey, Edgar Kennedy, Doris Lloyd, John Wray and Willian Lundigan. If you get a chance to see this, do so. You might be entertained for an hours.
Thursday, October 26, 2023
THE POWER 1968 (TUBI)
I really enjoyed this film.
Byron Haskin directed this film produced by George Pal. The story concerns members of a research team being killed one by one with telekinesis. A very interesting concept.
George Hamilton stars as Jim Tanner, the head of a research team that tests endurance of people in physical and mental pain. Suddenly people start dying and Jim is framed for the crimes.
Tanner and his girlfriend Margery Lansing (Suzanne Pleashette) find their lives in danger from someone they cannot see, but has the ability to move and change things with their mind.
Tanner must find the killer before everyone on the team is killed, including him. This is a very well told story, and it moves along quite well. It runs a little long, but if you get involved in the story it flies right by.
There are a lot of familiar faces in this film including Yvonne DeCarlo, Arthur O'Connell, Richard Carlson, Michael Rennie, Earl Holliman, Gary Merrill, Barbara Nichols, Beverly Hills, Nehemiah Persoff, Aldo Ray, Vaughn Taylor, Celia Lovsky and Miiko Taka.
I'm not going to give anything away, but with such a great cast and story this works well. The climax is a very interesting one and the closing line by Tanner is and always has been very true.
If you ever get a chance to see this, you should. It's a wonderful trip into the land of mind control and dark conspiracy.
Wednesday, October 25, 2023
RIP RICHARD ROUNDTREE 1942-2023
Shaft has passed away.
Richard Roundtree started acting in 1956 but became a household name when he starred in the 1971 crime film "Shaft".
He starred in 2 other "Shaft" films and many, many other movies including "Earthquake", "Portrait Of A Hitman", "Q" just to name a few.
He passed away on Oct. 24th, 2023 from pancreatic cancer at the age of 81.
Sunday, October 22, 2023
THE MIST 2007 (LIONSGATE) BLU-RAY
A very good film indeed.
This is how one makes a great horror film. The story is very simple. After a storm batters a small town in Maine, a mysterious mist descends on the community and traps people in a grocery store.
The mist contains a lot of bizarre monsters that kill people and seem to be all over the place. Those trapped inside the market fight for their lives from the monsters and each other as the event brings out the worst in some of the people.
This is one of the most suspenseful films I have seen in a very long time and it is a highly recommended film from me to you. The cast is very good in their roles and the creature effects are very well done.
I think what most people remember most about the movie is it's very dark, and I mean dark ending. Never has a film had such a shocking ending and it makes most people cringe when they see it. The story gets the viewer wrapped up in the goings on and you really like some of the people and others you really dislike...a lot.
The Blu-ray presentation is excellent and the disc I have contains over two hours of very interesting extras on how the film was made. I am no fan of Stephen King, but he did write a great story and Frank Darabont does a top notch directing job.
<If you haven't ever seen this film, you should, and soon. It is a classic example of what cinema used to be, even in the early 2000's.
Saturday, October 21, 2023
GUN FEVER 1958 (TUBI)
Boy have I read a lot of bad press about this movie.
Mark Stevens is Luke Rand, a man whose parents were killed in an Indian raid by a white man who stole some furs.
He teams with Simon (John Lupton) and they set off to find the killer or killers. Several times they get close to the end of their search and Simon seems kind of hesitant to continue.
We discover that Simon was part of the gang that killed Lukes' parents, but he didn't actually take part in the killing. In fact, he has been looking for his old partners as well as he also has a score to settle.
This has a more complex plot than most of the people who tear this film apart realise. There are many twists and turns and the final showdown isn't too bad at all. I think this film should please western fans.
It was shot on a very low budget, but that doesn't make it bad, and the actors handle their roles very well. Stevens handled the directing chores as well and gets the job done.
The rest of the cast includes Larry Storch, Maureen Hingert, Dean Fredericks, Cyril Delevanti, Eddie Little Sky and Iron Eyes Cody. Check it out. It's not as bad as people say.
Friday, October 20, 2023
COUNTERPLOT 1959 (TUBI)
Another undiscovered film I liked on streaming TUBI.
This filmed in Puerto Rico crime drama is really nothing original, but it moves along at a good pace and I had to see it because of the cast, which is very good in my opinion.
Forrest Tucker stars as Brock Miller, a man accused of murder and on the lam in San Juan from both the US justice system and his crooked attorney. He has a girlfriend namwed Connie (Allison Hayes) who has been helping to prove his innocents while not letting anyone know where he is.
The double crossing attorney played by Gerald Milton is slimy as they come and involved in many criminal activities. Milton always did a great job in roles like this, and he doesn't fail here.
These three leads are the main reason to watch the movie. They are all familiar faces to movie buffs and all do their parts very well. The standout is, of course, Allison Hayes.
I will watch Hayes in anything and she looks hotter than hell in this movie. What a babe. She steals the show without even trying. Ok, back to the movie...the final confrontation between Miller and Bergmann the attorney ends in an interesting twist that I wasn't expecting.
I recommend this film for any Allison Hayes fan. This is a rare film that hasn't been seen in a while.
Thursday, October 19, 2023
ASSIGNMENT REDHEAD 1955 (TUBI)
This is also known as "Million Dollar Mystery".
Richard Denning stars as Major Gregory Keen, a military detective who is called in to investigate a biarre killing.
A master criminal called Dumetrius (Ronald Adam) flies from post war Berlin to London to continue his crime spree that consists of false travel documents and counterfeit money.
In order to do this he has a military man murdered and frames another for the crime. Keen finds the trail of following Dumetrius to be a very wild and twisted one. Keen trails the killer to a young woman named Hedy Bergner (Carole Mathews) with whom he has been staying.
Keen falls for the lovely entertainer as he closes in on Dumetrius. This is a fun little mystery film and I had never heard of it until I saw it on TUBI.
It moves along at a good pace and has a lot of good characters and plenty of twists and turns. I have only seen Mathews in this and the Roger Corman film "Swamp Women", and she does a good job here as well. She looks great too.
The film ends on a dour note for Keen, but that is what film noir is all about. The rest of the cast for this British production includes Danny Green, Jan Holden, Brian Worth and Bill Nagy.
Tuesday, October 17, 2023
RIP LARA PARKER 1938-2023
Angelique has passed away.
Lara Parker whose portrayal of Angelique on Dark Shadows passed away on Oct. 12th, 2023 at the age of 84.
I always considered her one of the most beautiful women I had ever seen on TV and in the movies. She appeared in several genre films including "Race With The Devil", "Night Of Dark Shadows" and and great episode of "The Night Stalker" entitled "The Trevi Collection" in which she played a very beautiful model that turned out to be a witch.
Parker was also the opening voice on many episodes of "Dark Shadows" and she was the reason I watched the show.
Lara left and lifelong imprint on me that will never fade, and I for one will miss her charming personality and kindness.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)