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, CARMEN ELECTRA, VELVET SKY, CAROLINE MUNRO, JOHN FREDRIKSEN, JOHN ZACHERLE, DONNA SUMMER, JUDY PACE, CLEO MOORE and, of course, CASEY KASEM.
Wednesday, June 30, 2021
Tuesday, June 29, 2021
FRANKENSTEIN ISLAND 1981 (SINISTER CINEMA)
Wow!! A Jerry Warren film I had never seen, and well you know,,,it's a Warren film.
Best I can figure out is that four men whose hot air balloon has crashed into the ocean get into a life raft and find their way to a strange island.
Once there the dog of one of the men takes a piss on some seaweed and then we know exactly what to expect. The four men stumble upon a race os young women in leopard print bikinis and then soon find a lab lived and worked in by Sheila Von Helsing AKA Sheila Frankenstein (Katherine Victor).
Once inside they also discover a prisoner named Jason (Cameron Mitchell) who babbles most of the time and really says nothing. The plot goes on and on headway into absolute confusion. In watching this film I realized that nothing happens in the entire film!! It just sort of rambles.
Top billed John Carradine only appears as a talking head at varous times and there is even a Frankenstein monster that makes an appearance, but it's very lame.
The final showdown between, the four men, frankenstein's monster, the bikini clad woman and the strange eyeless men who protect Sheila is really something to see. I would call it the WORST fight in movie history.
The rest of the cast for this "epic" include Robert Clarke, Andrew Duggan, Steve Brodie, Tain Bodkin, and Marla Conner. I cannot even figure out why this film was made, but here it is in all it's sub-par glory.
Monday, June 28, 2021
THE DOLL SQUAD 1973 (TUBI)
A very good Ted V. Mikels film.
The explosion special effects may not be too good what with the limited bidget they had to make this film, but everything else is just fine.
Someone is attempting to destroy the US rocket project and the government wants to know who it is. So, they call in Sabrina Kincade (Francine York). Sabrina is a special agent who knows her job well.
She sets to work hiring the agents she wants to work with her on the case, thus forming "The Doll Squad" which is a highky trained organization of women who work very secretly for the US government.
The women manage to infiltrate a secret encampment on an island. The place is run by Eamon O'Reilly (Michael Ansara) who is attempting to mess with our missile program as well as kill most people in the world with bubonic plague!
Sabrina and her band of women must stop him before it's too late.
This is a very fun little film that I hadn't seen in sometime. Almost 15 years actually. The action sequences are handled well and, of course, all of the women look fantastic, especially when in bikinis on their boat.
The rest of the cast includes Anthony Eisley, John Carter, Lisa Todd, Rafael Campos, Lillian Garrett, William Bagdad, Tura Satana, Gustaf Unger, Judith McConnell and Sherri Vernon.
It's quite a cast indeed and it's always nice to see the time in america when women were women and not a bunch of freaks. A fun film I can really recommend.
Saturday, June 26, 2021
CASTLE OF THE LIVING DEAD 1964 (SEVERIN) BLU-RAY
Another excellent presentation from Severin.
This is included on the spectacular Eurocrypt Collection of Christopher Lee and is simply a MUST for any horror fan.
Lee stars as Count Drago who invites a group of actors to come to his castle and put on a private performance for a considerable sum of money. They agree to this quickly.
Tey arrive at the castle fter a long trip but along the way they are warned by an old witch that some of them will live, and some will die. They ignore this warning and proceed anyway.
When they arrive they find Drago very kind, but somewhat odd. He has his castle full of dead animals that seem to be in some sort of suspended animation. We soon learn that the Count has an entire room of people he has injected with a new drug he has discovered and he keeps the bodies around for company, and he intends to do the same with the acting troupe.
This is a fun little thriller that I have seen a few times, but it has never looked better than it does in a beautiful crisp 4K presentation. It's not a fast paced film, but it is a damned interesting one.
The Blu-ray has a lot of extras including an interview with director Paul Maslansky. I can't recommend this enough and I can't wait to dig into the rest of this wonderful collection. The rest of the cast includes Donald Sutherland in 3 roles, Gaia Germani, Philippe Leroy, Mirko Valentin and Antonio De Martino.
This set is easily one of the best of 2021 and I hope you get a chance to pick it up. I'll have more from this set coming soon.
Friday, June 25, 2021
RAY HARRYHAUSEN: SPECIAL EFFECTS TITAN 2012 (TUBI)
A great documentary on the life of the special effects wizard.
We all know Ray Harryhausen for his stop motion work in so many classic motion pictures. This is a wonderful look at his life and career.
It starts with Ray telling us about his love for movies and how it began after he went to see KING KONG in 1933. There are many, many film clips and trailers from Ray's movies as well as comments from many people including James Cameron, Dennis Muren and others on how Rays work affected their lives as well.
This is a wonderful piece of story telling...true story telling, not fantasy and I can't see and Harryhausen fan not wanting to see this gem of a presentation.
Ray was born in 1920 and died in 2013 and he has a lasting legacy which will live on as long as film lives on. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!
Thursday, June 24, 2021
WEREWOLF OF WOODSTOCK 1975
WOW..it has been 46 years since I saw this little gem.
I may be the only human being alive who doesn't rip this movie to shreds, but I have to admit it isn't too good.
Made in 1975 the story takes place in 1969 right after Woodstock. A farmer named Bert (Tige Andrews) who hates everything goes out in an electrical storm and tries to destroy a stage where some of the bands performed at Woodstock. He is struck by lightning and then the trouble begins.
Somehow the lightning hasn't killed Bert, but now he changes into a werewolf at night and kills people. His wife Dora (Ann Doran) sees him transform on one night and tries to call a doctor named Marlow (Richard Webb), but Bert takes care of her as well.
Los Angeles police detectives Moody (Michael Parks) and Kendy ( Meredith MacRae) are visiting and decide to help local officer Martino (Harold J. Stone) investgate some mysterious deaths.
They all discover Bert is a werewolf and start to track him down. This movie has some of the most unforgettable scenes in monster movie history including the werewolf and his female captive played by Belinda Belaski escape from the police in a Dune Buggy!!
This was a "Wide World Of Mystery" presentation on ABC and was produced by Dick Clark. This shot on video movie is really a once in a lifetime experience and now I have done it twice!
The cast is made up of many veterans of these kinds of movies, but I can only imagine what was going thru their minds. I admit it was good to see this again after 46 years and I still think everyone should see it at least once. I stumbled on this somewhere on ther internet, and I can't remember where, but a search should bring you the results you want.
Wednesday, June 23, 2021
Tuesday, June 22, 2021
IN SEARCH OF BIGFOOT 1977 (TUBI)
This kind of stuff has always interested me.
This is a documentary about a group of researchers looking for the elusive Bigfoot in the mountains of Washington state.
We get to hear interviews with some people who have seen the creature, see evidence of it in the woods, but the group never actually find any Bigfoot.
They do howeve capture some beautiful footage of the wilderness, which by now I am sure is all gone. The film ends with a forest fire that stops their summer investigation and they are forced to stop for another year.
If you're in to this kind of stuff as I am, you'll find this a great little way to kill 74 minutes. Some say it is boring but I thought it was a great way to escape for a while and go back to a much better time.
Lots of interesting and not so interesting people populate the film, but that is what real life is all about. Not too shabby.
Monday, June 21, 2021
RIP JOANNA LINVILLE 1928-2021
The very busy character actress has died.
Linville started acting in movies in the 1950 western COPPER CANYON and then moved right into television where she made a great career out of apprearing in many, many shows.
Some of those shows were HAWAII FIVE-O, DECOY, STUDIO ONE, ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS, TWILIGHT ZONE, BEN CASEY, just to name a few. Her most famous role came in 1968 when she starred in the original series episode of STAR TREK as a female Romulan commander who proves to be an equel match for Capt. James T. Kirk.
Linville passed away on June 20th, 2021 at the age of 93.
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE RING 2020 (TUBI)
This debuted on TUBI March 19th, 2021 and that is when I caught this look at womens wrestling.
This came to my attention thru a news story believe it or not. This show deals with women's wrestling and speaks to four women who have made names for themselves in the business.
There is Delilah Doom aka Sarah Jean Greaves, Shelly Martinez, Keta Meggett and Katarina Leigh Waters.
The women all have very interesting stories to tell and we see how they came to be interested in wreslting and how they have entered the business and managed to survive it. Delilah Doom has only been around about 6 or 7 years but has made a name for herself in small companies like SHIMMER and she was once featured for a brief time in TNA.
Keta Meggett aka keta Rush is a featured wrestler in WOMEN OF WRESTLING and she has been with them for a short time, but does have some great career goals. I do like her style and down to earth attitude.
One of my favorites is featured and that is Katarina Leigh Waters. This gorgeous woman has been everywhere including WOMEN OF WRESTLING, TNA, and a few other organizations. She is extremely talented, beautiful and most of all she knows tons about horror movies. She has been the hostess for many horror films I have reviewed here.
Waters is very into her wrestling and listening to her speak about it is great. I could listen to her all day.
Lastly we have the stunning Shelly Martinez. She has wrestled in WWE/F, TNA, WOMEN OF WRESTLING,ECW and many more small companies. She is retired now and does she ever have some stories to tell.
Pro wrestling has become a laughing stock over the years and I have given up watching it at all, but this is a very iteresting look at the business and how it used to be. Sarah Jean and Keta are still active in small companies and Waters as well, but they have all left their mark somewhere.
If you like this kind of thing, I suggest you check it out and you might be suprised.
Friday, June 18, 2021
BLACK SCORPION THE SERIES 2001 (TUBI)
A very fun and over the top Roger Corman produvced TV series for the Sci-Fi channel back in 2001.
The series ran for only 22 episodes, but they are a wild ride indeed. There were lots of stars that appeared in this show and, in my opinion, some of the sexiest women ever to be in movies such as Lana Clarkson and Lisa Boyle, not to mention a very hot star to play the title role, Michell Lintel.
The series reminded me of the old Batman show from the 1960's and of couse I can get into that really easy. Here is a rundown of every episode.
1. ARMED AND DANGEROUS 1/5/2001... Detective Darcy Walker (Michell Lintel) is also known as The Black Scorpion. Her partner Det. Steve Rafferty (Scott Valentine) is unaware of the double life Darcy leads. However they work together to catch a criminal known as Firearm (Martin Kove).2. WAVE GOODBYE 1/12/2001... A very sexy marine biologist (Athena Massey) is turned into a super fiend called Hurricane after being exposed to chemicals dumped into the water of the City Of Angels. Black Scorpion must stop her from drowning the entire city.
3. BLINDED BY THE LIGHT 1/19/2001... A photographer (Allen Scotti) if blinded when attempting to get a picture of Black Scorpion without her mask on. He is then made into a vengeful supervillian known as Flashpoint who threatens to blind the entire city.
4. HOME SWEET HOMELESS 1/26/2001... The female known as AFTERSHOCK joins forces with the homless to take over the City Of Angels and it;s up to Black Scorpion to stop her. Sherrie Rose stars.
5. LOVE BURNS 2/2/2001...A fireman become a deadly killer known as Inferno who attempts to burn the entire city to to ground.
6. OUT OF THIN AIR 2/9/2001... The Breathtaker (Adam West) is revived by a scientist and then plots to take over the world with a strange gas.
7. NO STONE UNTURNED 2/16/2001... Gorgeous Lisa Boyle stars as Medusa, who is going thru the City Of Angels and turning men to stone with the use of a special weapon. Black Scorpion must try and stop her before it's too late.
8. CRIME TIME 2/23/2001... Frank Gorshin stars as Clockwise, a master criminal who controls time. Stunning Victoria Silvstedt is his sidekick, Hourglass.
9. NO SWEAT 3/2/2001... Aerobicide (Renee Allman) is a sexy but deadly aerobics instructor who is killing overweight millionaires in the City Of Angels. She also targets the Mayor (Robert Pine).
10. AN OFFICER AND AN PRANKSTER 3/9/2001... Dr. Phoenix brings a criminal known as Gangster Prankster (Stoney Jackson) back to life and alters him to become a model citizen. Something goes wrong and Gangster gets his old gang together and tries to destroy City Of Angels with a laughing gas.
11.LIFE'S A GAS 3/24/2001... Julie McCullough stars as Dr. Ariel Haze, who due to and accident becomes Pollutia, a supercriminal intent on killing off all of mankind. She is aided by The Breathtaker (Adam West). Stacy Bingham and Amber Newman also star.
12. ROSES ARE RED YOU'RE DEAD 3/31/2001... A crazed florist called Greenthumb (David Lander) tries to take over the City Of Angels with a deadly pollen.
13. FIRE AND BRIMESTONE 4/7/2001... Darcy and Steve (Scott Valentine) are reunited with old flames Inferno (Brent Huff) and Medusa (Lisa Boyle). The super villains try to create a volcano right in the middle of City Of Angels.
14. VIRTUAL VICE 4/14/2001... This is my favorite episode of the entire series. Dr. Sarah Bellum (Lana Clarkson) becomes a super Villain called Mindebender when the Mayor (Robert Pine) refuses to go along with her plan to create a virtual home for the homeless. Clarkson is easily the sexiest female to ever appear on the show.
15. BAD SPORT 4/21/2001...An injured hockey player becomes Slapshot and seeks revenge on those who put him out of the business.
16. KISS OF DEATH 4/28/2001... Nancy Valen stars as a policewoman who is suspended for her brutal tactics. She becomes a villain called Angel Of Death and kills criminals with kisses.
17. HE WHO LAUGHS LAST 5/5/2001... Gangster Prankster escapes from jail and forces Argyle (JT) to create a machine that punishes anyone who laughs. A very odd but interesting episode.
18. POWER PLAY 5/12/2001... Alison Armitage stars as the Deputy Mayor of City of Angels. After being insulted by the Mayor she is accidentally electrocuted and become a super villain called Stunner who releases Breathtaker (Adam West), Medusa (Lisa Boyle) and Slapshot (Greg kean) from jail to help her take over the city.
19. PHOTO FINISH 5/19/2001... Flashpoint (Allen Scotti) escapes from jail and gets a picture of Black Scorpion unmasked causing Darcy to have to get Dr. Phoenix to clone her.
20. FACE THE MUSIC 6/16/2001... Shannon Whirry stars as Vox Populi the leader of a terrible rock band that decides to destroy the City of Angels.
21. ZODIAK ATTACK PART 1 6/23/2001... Prof. Prophet (Soupy Sales) grows tired of bad rating on his late night show and decides to help some supervillains escape jail and help make his new crime predictions come true. Breathtaker (Adam West), Inferno (Brent Huff) and Hurricane (Athena Massey) start destroying the city.
22. ZODIAK ATTACK PART 2 6/30/2001... Four super villains, Breathtaker, Hurricane, Inferno and Aftershock (Sherrie Rose) join Prof. Prophet in trying to destroy City Of Angels and Black Scorpion. Darcy has Dr. Phoenix (Raye Birk) clone her late father so he can help her save the city.
After 22 episodes the series ended and wasn't renewed for the Sci-Fi channel. I really enjoyed the series and it's bevy of beautiful guest stars and old favorites from my past. But that's it and if you get a chance to see it I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Thursday, June 17, 2021
RIP FRANK BONNER 1942-2021
Herb Tarlek has died.
Bonner was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. He was 25 when he starred in the classic horror film Equinox which was a student film which has gone on to cult status.
He appeared in many TV shows such as EMERGENCY, THE YOUNG LAWYERS, and MANNIX until he got the role he is best known for, that of Herb Tarlek on WKRP IN CINCINNATI. His character was a sleazy advertising man who could never get a good account.
After that 4 year run he went on to do more TV and his acting career lasted until 2014. Bonner passed away on June 17th, 2021 from Lewy Body Dementia. He was 79.
Wednesday, June 16, 2021
VAMPIRA AND ME 2012 (TUBI)
A great documentary I have missed until now.
This is the story of Maila Nurmi who rose to fame in 1954 when she created the character of Vampira and hosted late night horror and mystery movies. But the fame ended quickly.
We hear in her own words about her career and her extraordinary life. Director Ray Greene takes us on an eye opening tour of how Vampira came to be and he has even dug up a few kinescopes of her for us to watch. All VERY interesting stuff indeed.
Maila also tells us of her love for actor James Dean and the relationship they had back in the mid 50's before his untimely death. This movie is just chock full of information I never knew.
They also talk about her personal troubles and how Maila survived when she was pennieless. It's a typical Hollywood story where they chew you up, spit you out and forget about you, which is very sad.
A finely crafted documentary that no horror fan should miss, and the Vampira footage is priceless!! Director Greene should be commended for doing such a stunning and touching job and giving us a great story within a 2 hour time slot.
Tuesday, June 15, 2021
SEYTAN 1974 (TUBI)
Took me a while to finally see this Turkish gem.
This is almost a scene for scene rip off of "The Exorcist" and I did enjoy the movie.
It's subtitled but even some of those don't make too much sense. A young girl named Gul (Canan Perver) starts acting strange after an amulet is dug up in the desert.
Soon she and her mother played by Meral Taygun experience weird noises, the childs bed starts bouncing up and down and Gul begins to spew profanity. Yes, these are indeed the signs of possession.
After doctors fail to help her the mother calls in an exorcist and an almost verbatim exorcism from the US film takes place. I find it interesting that they played "Tubular Bells" many, many times durung this movie including over the opening credits.
These kinds of films always interest me as I consider them to be time capsules from another time and country that we really never get to see anyway. I wish I knew what the people of Turkey who saw the film at the time actually thought.
I enjoyed watching this and I would recommend it if you have some time to kill.
Sunday, June 13, 2021
GOING ATTRACTIONS: THE DEFINATIVE STORY OF THE AMERICAN DRIVE-IN MOVIE 2013 (TUBI)
A well put together look at a lost part of American culture.
This documentary looks at the rapid rise of the drive-in theater, especially during the 1950's and then it also looks at the slow decline during the late 1960's and 70's.
Many local drive-in owners are interviewed as well as film maker Roger Corman. These people all provide a great insight into how the Drive-in became a part of the American culture.
BY 1958 there were about 5000 drive-ins in America and now there are only a few hundred. It was interesting to note that a lot of the land that these drive-ins used to sit on is now occupied by the likes of Wal Mart, Lowes and Home Depot.
It is also brought out that in the 50's thru the 70's American had a passion for going to the movies and now all we have is a passion to shop. That to me is a very sad commentary on what has happened to American culture.
All in all not too bad of a film and one that is most enjoyable.
Saturday, June 12, 2021
PLANETS AGAINST US 1961 (TUBI)
A strange little film indeed.
I caught this on Tubi under the name "Planets Around Us" yet on the film print is the title I have listed above...oh well.
The son of a famous scientist is killed in a plane crash in the African desert. His is the only body not found when the crash is discovered.
Soon someone who looks just like he did is seen at the scene of three major sabotage efforts around the wotrld at almost the same exact time. The authorities wonder...could this be the late Robert Landerson (Michel Lemoine).
The police and major governments soon begin tracking the mysterious man and their investigation leads to Rome. It seems an alien race has created many cyborgs who look like the late Landerson and sent them to Earth to pave the way for an invasion.
It's an interesting plot which also has some romance thrown in as Robert who now as a cyborg has taken the name of Bronco is wanted by a lot of ladies including one sex starved woman named Audrey (Jany Clair). Her meeting and romancing Bronco only leads to a shocking death.
It's an interesting film that sometimes slows down, but picks right back up again and had an ending that will not disappoint any sci-fi fan.
Friday, June 11, 2021
Wednesday, June 9, 2021
Tuesday, June 8, 2021
RIP CLAUDIA BARRETT 1929-2021
Alice has died.
Claudia has a short film career that ran from 1949 until 1964 but she appeared in a lot of great TV shows such as SHOTGUN SLADE, MAN WITH A CAMERA, PETER GUN and DEATH VALLEY DAYS just to name a few.
She gained her greatest popularity however with genre fans for her role as Alice in the 1953 Phil Tucker film ROBOT MONSTER. This is really the role she will be remembered for.
She retired from acting in 1964 and went into art. Claudia Barrett passed away on April 30th, 2021 at the age of 91.
CURSE OF THE FULL MOON 1973 (SEVERIN) BLU-RAY
This is a very rare little treat from Andy Milligan.
This is the never before released directors cut of the film better known as "The Rats Are Coming Ther Werewolves Are Here".
Severin brings us this little gem and it is great to finally see it. There is also no music score in this edition. A young woman named Diana (Jackie Skarvellis) arrives at her family's castle estate with her new husband.
The family is quite a mixture of strange people. Diana's father is bed ridden and claims to be 199 years old. He has been working many years to break what he calls the "family curse".
What is the family curse? Well we find out in the end that they are all werewolves and they are let loose and kill one another off in a very bizarre finale.
Diana and her husband survive the slaughter, but then Diana surprises her husband by telling him she is expecting a child and she is also a werewolf that can change at will.
She kills her husband since he has served his purpose and so the curse begins anew. Yes, this is a bizarre film and it does move along a little slow but it is still required viewing.
This is the better version to watch as the other version includes a lot of scenes with rats and were placed there by orders of producer William Mishkin to cash in on the then popular film "Willard".
The Milligan set from Severin presents this film in as good of quality as can be expected and it isn't too damn bad at all. Check it out if you so desire and see something really off the wall.
Monday, June 7, 2021
THE WEBSITE
Due to circumstances beyond my control, I have had to close down my website permanently. I will still be on this blog, but no more sales of DVDs and Blu rays.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...
Pamela Susan Shoop is 73, Mick Foley is 56, Anna Kournikova is 40, and Sally Todd is 87.
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