RIP JAMES HOUGHTON 1947-2024

I just received news of the passing of the talented writer.

James was the son of Buck Houghton who was the producer of the original "Twilight Zone" series.

Houghton wrote many screenplays for Tv shows such as "Knots Landing", "Young And The Restless and 3 episodes of "Tales From The Darkside".

He also acted in TV shows such as "Twilight Zone", "Man With A Camera", "Young And The Restless". His movie credits as an aactor include "Sweet Sugar", "I Wanna Hold Your Hand", "Superstition" and "More American Graffiti".

James Houghton passed away on August 27, 2024 at the age of 75.

RIP GENE HACKMAN 1930-2025

The iconic film star has passed away.

Hackman was an actors actor, and appeared in some of the most memorable films made in America as well as a ton ov TV shows in a career that spanned over 45 years.

Some of his most well known movies include "The Conversation", "The French Connection", "Superman", "Superman 2", "Bonnie and Clyde" , "Young Frankenstein", "The Poseidon Adventure" and "Bite The Bullet".

He also appeared in many TV shows including "The Invaders", "The F.B.I." , and "I Spy".

Gene Hackman passed away at the age of 95.

WITCHCRAFT 3: KISS OF DEATH 1991 (TROMA)

This is an average entry in the series.

Once again we have William Spanner (Charles Soloman, Jr.) a good warlock who refuses to use his powers for evil and who is just trying to get his life in order as well as his lovelife.

Spanner is an attorney and he is defending a young man in a murder case. He meets a black minister named Rev. Jondulare (William Lewis Baker) who seems to know what Spanner really is.

Spanner runs into another Warlock, an evil one named Louis (Domonic Luciana) who sucks the lifeforce out of young women to keep himself and his girlfriend alive.

Louis wants Spanner's girlfriend Charlotte (Lisa Toothman) for his own, and this sets up a battle to the end for both warlocks. The movie kind of plods along until the final battle, but it did hold my interest.

This is, of course, the third in the series and from what I have read I am going to be in for a long spell of mundane films if I get to watch them all...lol.

I have to admit Lisa Toothman made this entire film for me. I find her very, very attractive. Watch this as your descretion.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Ali Larter is 49, Stephanie Beacham is 78, Mimsy Farmer is 80, and Cristina Raines is 73.

RIP MICHELLE TRACHTENBERG 1985-2025

Buffy's sister has passed away.

Trachtenberg gained worldwide fame as Dawn Summers in 66 episodes of "Buffy The Vampire Slayer". She also had fame as Georgina Sparks in "Gossip Girl".

She had a few movie credits as well including the 2006 remake of "Black Christmas".

Michelle Trachtenberg passed away on February 26, 2025 at the very young age of 39 from complications following a liver transplant.

DEADLY DAPHNE'S REVENGE 1987 (VINEGAR SYNDROME) BLU-RAY

A strange movie indeed.

I have heard about this movie for years and finally took the plunge to watch it. I found it to be ok, for what it is.

The filmmakers couldn't make up their minds as to what the movie was about, or so that's what it appears to me. In the first five minutes we hear a radio bulletin about a crazy woman named Daphne who has escaped from a state mental in California.

Then the story switches to four guys heading for Yuma Arizona who see a sexy blonde hitchhiking. They pick her up and one of the men named Charlie Johnson (Anthony Holt) decides to rape her at a secluded cabin.

The woman named Cindy (Laurie Tait Partridge) files charges and the next hour of the film is all aboout the effects it has on the four men and their attorneys' fighting for each of them. It runs like a made for TV film.

I haven't read much good about this, but I didn't mind it at all. Daphne's revenge takes place in the final minutes of the film and all is explained towards the end as well, so it all falls into place.

I can tell you that this was made in about 1977 based on the clothes, women's hair and cars. I was around back then and remember it all very well.

The presentation on the Blu-ray is beautiful. Again, I liked this movie better than most and I haven't given away too much as I want more people to see this movie and decide for themselves.

The rest of the cast includes Richard Gardner, Candy Castillo, and James Avery.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Rosanna Yanni is 87.

WITCHCRAFT 1988 (SIMITAR)

This is the movie that started it all. Believe it or not, this film spawned 15 sequels and has 16 movies in the entire series!!

This is the first one and it's a no frills horror film with no nudity. I mention this because as the sequels progressed, the nudity factor went way up.

This is more of a low budget "Rosemary's Baby" than anything else. A young woman named Grace (Anat Topal) gives birth and her husband John (Gary Sloan) takes her and the child to live with his mother Elizabeth (Mary Shelley) until she is strong enough to return home.

The birth was a difficult one and Grace is still a little weak. Grave has a good friend named Linda (Deborah Scott) who visits her regularly. Soon Grace begins to suspect something is wrong as it seems that John and his mother ar closer than she thinks they should be.

Turns out that both of them are revived witches and they used Grace as a vehicle for having a baby. John and Elizabeth were actually man and wife many years ago and were burned at the stake for practicing witchcraft.

I first saw this many, many years ago on VHS and didn't like it too well. After all these years, I liked it a bit better, but I do have to admit it lacks a lot of character.

The best part of the move is when Deborah Scott is on screen. You might want to check this out if you're a horror fan. It's not the best, but it's not anywhere near the worst either.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Marta Kristen is 80.

RIP OLIVE STURGESS 1933-2025

The actress in many films and TV shows has died.

You may not know her by name, but anyone here will know her from some of her film and TV shows.

Sturgess appeard in TV shows such as "Studio 57", "The Millionaire", "Perry Mason", Panic", "Thriller" and "The Rebel".

Some of her wonderful movies include "Kettles In The Ozarks", and her most well known role among genre fans as the daughter of Vincent Price's character in Roger Corman's "The Raven".

Olive Sturgess passed away on February 19, 2025 at the age of 91.

JULIA X 2011 (WILD BUNCH) BLU-RAY

It's sad that this has only been released in Germany on Blu-ray, but it is streaming now on TUBI.

Now this was something very different, but not different at all...if that makes sense. The movie opens with man played by Kevin Sorbo sitting in a small coffee shop taking to a gorgeous young woman named Julia (Valerie Azlynn) that he has met online.

She gets up and leaves abruptly but we hear her tell her sister on the phone that she likes him. Before you can blink an eye the man kidnaps Julia and takes her to an abandoned warehouse. He intends on tortuing her and then killing her as he is a serial killer known as "The Branding Killer" since he brands his victims.

Julia escapes several times before he ties her in the back of a pickup truck and then brands her with an X. As he attempts to bury the body of another woman and Julia she escapes again and after much abuse she manages to subdue the man by knocking him out. Her sister, Jessica (Alicia Leigh Willis) arrives and they throw the man into the trunk of a car.

At this point the movie makes a 180 turn as we discover that these two beautiful young woman are themselves killers who kill every man they meet, especially those they meet online.

The movie gets really wild and bloody as they torture the man who is never given a name during the movie and the last 30 minutes are like nothing I have seen in a long time in a movie.

The ending will probably not surprise you, but it does work very well. I am a huge fan of 70's music and now, after watching this I will always think of this movie when I hear the sone "Close To You" by The Carpenters...lol.

I would recommend this movie for horror fans who like their horror with very, very black comedy. The two lead women are incredibly sexy.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Ric Flair is 76, and Maria Kanellis is 43.

RIP ROBERTA FLACK 1937-2025

The multi talented singer is dead.

Roberta Flack was one of the greatest singers in the world and I grew up on her great music.

She first came into the public eye with the song "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" which was featured in the Clint Eastwood movie "Play Misty For Me".

Her other great hits include "Killing Me Softly With His Song", "Where Is The Love", "The Closer I Get To You" and many more. Another one from the soundtrack of my life has been silenced, but the music lives on forever.

Roberta Flack passed away on February 24, 2025, just 14 days after her 88th birthday.

MURDERLUST 1987 (INTERVISION)

This is an ultra low budget horror film from Donald Jones.

Eli Rich stars as Steve Belmont, a Sunday School Teacher and security guard who is not what he seems.

We find out very soon her is a psycho killer who gets off on killing young women. Belmont is also a heavy drinker and unable to keep a job. He uses his masterful lying to get people to believe he is normal.

As the murders start to pile up, Steve falls for a young woman he meets at church and is even promoted to a Psychologist position within the church!!

The woman he falls for is beautiful Cheryl played by Rochelle Taylor, and she is no fool. After a very short time she knows something is very wrong with Belmont, and she proves to be his undoing and she gives him exactly what he deserves.

I found this to be a very entertaining little movie, but it seems to be panned by most people. I thought everything was handled very well with Rich doing a good job at playing the psycho.

If you get a chance to see this, I suggest you give it a try. You could do a lot worse.

COLD HEART 2001 (TUBI)

I caught this on TUBI, but I know this is available on DVD as well.

This is a by the numbers erotic thriller about a man who is released from a mental hospital after he attempted to kill the woman he was with because...well he is crazy.

The movie opens with a convict in jail telling a story. The convict is Sean (Josh Holloway) and he has some real anger and hate issues. An attorney named Phil Cross (Jeff Fahey) has been called in by Sean's father to get him out of jail.

Cross manages to pull this off and Sean is once again out and a free man. Meanwhile Cross is very cold to his beautiful wife Linda (Nastassja Kinski).

Sean manages to get a job where Linda works and he seduces her because Sean works on married, unhappy women. Linda tells Sean it was a mistake and that they cannot be together. Sean goes into a rage and seeks revenge on Linda.

There are a lot of twists nand turns in this film, and I won't spoil the ending by saying anything more about what goes on. The movie moves along at a good clip and I noticed that it gets a lot of negative press. It's no worse than any other movie like it.

The best part of the film however is Kinski. She is in her prime here and as beautiful of a woman as has ever graced the silver screen. I watched this because I saw she was in it. I liked it.

RIP GEORGE ARMITAGE 1942-2025

The producer, writer and director has died.

Armitage took on many different duties in the film business. A multi-talented man who wrote such films as "Vigilante Force", "Darktown Strutters", "Night Call Nurses" and "Private Duty Nurses".

He produced "Private Duty Nurses" and "Gas" for Roger Corman and directed several films such as the aforementioned "Private Duty Nurses", "Vigilante Force", "Hit Man" and "Grosse Pointe Blank".

George Armitage passed away on February 15, 2025 at the age of 82.

IT KNOWS YOU'RE ALONE 2021 (TUBI)

I caught this on TUBI from Full Moon Pictures.

It's only 46 minutes long and while it's an ok horror film, I just found a lot of things I didn't care for.

A young woman named Natalie (Brandy Dawley) finds an old nautical phone washed up on the shore of a lake and decides to take it home. She cleans it up and sets it on a desk. She shuld never have kept it.

Before long she is receiving calls from someone that makes no sense, and she is also haunted by a cloaked figure that seems to be slowly stalking her.

Natalie stars to lose her grip on reality and things get out of control until she ends up murdering a friend of hers tinking it was all a dream.

The ending has been done many times before, and while it's not original, it's not too bad. This is a SOV film and it looks well done, and the effects are as good as one would expect.

If you're a fan of "homegrown" SOV low budget films, I would suggest you check this out.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Jeri Ryan is 57, James Hong is 96, and Rita Calderoni is 74.

RIP TONY ISBERT 1950-2025

The Spanish actor has passed away.

Actor Tony Isbert was a regular in Spanish horror and I grew up with many of his films.

Some of Isbert's film appearances include " Rest In Pieces", "Inquisition", "The Devil's Cross", "The Dracula Saga", "Tragic Ceremony" and "House Without Frontiers".

Tony Isbert passed away in February of 2025 at the age of 74.

RIP PETER JASON 1944-2025

The very familiar character actor has passed away.

Jason was a very busy actor having appeared in over 245 films and TV shows over his 55 year career. He became a regular in John Carpenter films in the 80's and 90's.

Some of his movie roles occured in films like "Rio Lobo", "Texas Lightning", "Dreamscape", "Prince Of Darkness", "They Live", "Body Bags" and "Village Of The Damned". There are many more, as a matter of fact too many to mention here.

A brief sampling of Jason's TV roles include "Coach", "Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman", "Married...With Children", "Amazing Stories", "Hart To Heart" and "Remington Steele".

His face was and will always be welcome in movies and TV. Peter Jason passed away February 2025 at the age of 80.

OPERATION ORIENT 1978 (TUBI)

Not too bad of a film, but still a head scratcher sometimes.

Filmed in 1978 but no released in the US until 1983, this Greek crime drama is about a large amount of heroine that is stolen from a criminal organization.

The man in charge of the shipment is put under a lot of pressure to get it back. There are tons of plot twists and suspects and there are times none of it makes a lick of sense.

Gordon Mitchell stars as the head of the crime ring that has had the sipment stolen. His character is never given a name. What makes this a film I really stuck around for is the bevy of beautiful women who have no problem showing what they have.

Mitchell is the only name in the film that will ring a bell, but the rest of the cast consists of Annamarie Clementi, Gianni Gori, Anna Romanou, Rosaria della Femmina and Notis Pitsilos.

The movie moves along at an ok pace, but it is very disjointed and the ending is one of the most abrupt I have ever seen. It's like they knew they were running out of file and money so they chopped it off.

Anyway, you might want to catch this if you like crime films.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

William Petersen is 72, and Gary Lockwood is 88.

RIP MARY PEACH 1934-2025

The South African born, English actress has died.

While her name may not ring a bell, I do know most of you reading this have seen her in something.

She appeared in such TV shows as "One Step Beyond", "Dr. Who", and "The Riff Raff Element" as well as may others.

The film role that most people know her for is the beautiful scientist that fights to stop "The Projected Man". The film is a classic, but I do know that she refused to discuss it and really didn't like it I guess.

Mary Peach passed away in January of 2025 at the age of 90.

LOVE, BLOOD AND AZTEC DEMONS: THE LOST FILMS OF JUAN F. MOCTEZUMA 2024 (TUBI)

I found this by accident on TUBI, and knew I had to see it immediately.

Alaric Rocha brings us the newly restored short films from Juan Moctezuma. These movie are a joy to see. I don't know too much about the man except he was very creative and was woring on another movie that was feature length when he just up and went out of the public eye.

The short films here show great creativity and includes Demonoid from 1971 with the 3D segment included.The other short films here are Las Fieras (1969) and Una mujer sin precio (A Priceless Woman 1961) as well as the opening scenes from his final film entitled "1000 Paths Of Death".

I have not seen a documentary that is so bizarre in my life, and that is probably because the subject matter. I admit I enjoyed the hell out of it and would love to see the restored version of his "1000 Paths Of Death".

It is interesting to note that while Juan was waiting for his chance to make a feature film in Hollywood he worked on several low budget films to keep a roof over his head. Those films include "Scream Bloody Murder", "Sisters Of Death" and "End Of The World", all from 1977.

If you get a chance, check out this informative and totally entertaining documentary. These are movies that need to be seen by a much larger audience.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Jennifer O'Neill is 77, and Gail Kim is 48.

WHERE EVIL LIVES 1991 (TROMA)

When I first became aware of this movie I didn't know it was a Troma release. When I found out I should have stayed away from it.

This was actor Claude Akins final film role and the movie is dedicated to his memory. This is a really hit and miss movie consisting of three tales told by Akins to a potential buyer of a home to which he is caretaker of.

The first tale is about a mass killer who is let out of prison and is soon haunted by his former victims. The second tale is about a vampire and the teens that hunt them down. It's not too bad of a tale and it was my favorite of the three.

The final tale is about a seriel killer who cuts out women's organs for a weird doctor. The police actually hire a witch to help them solve the case.

The acting isn't very good most of the time, but that is to be expected. If you're in the mood for a ultra low budget thriller you might want to see this.

I mean, after all, there are a LOT of worse movies out there. However don't believe all the hype you read about this movie. I actually saw that it was rated one of the top horror films of the 80's.

I can't believe that for a minute.

YOLANDA MONTES 1932-2025

The very well known Mexican actress has passed away.

She was born in Spokane, Washington but became a huge dancing and acting star in Mexico. Her professional name was Tongolele, and she used that in some of her movies as well.

Her two most well knwn movies here in the USA was "The Panther Women" and "Isle Of The Snake People".

Yolanda Montes passed away on February 16, 2025 at the age of 93.

VIOLATED 1953 (SINISTER CINEMA)

Very low budget, but interesting thriller.

William Mishkin wrote and co-produced this effort shot on location in New York in the early 50's. The movie opens with an attractive woman being killed by a man we cannot see, of course.

Not only does this man kill his victims, he cuts their hair off as well. The police are trying to solve the case when another killing occurs.

Slowly they put the pieces together and come up with a suspect that you may or may not have guessed halfway thru the film. The cast is made up of unknowns, but most of the acting is good.

I especially liked Lili Dawn as Lili Damar, a stripper at a small venue in NYC. The rest of the cast includes William Holland, Mitchell Kowall, Vicki Carlson and William Martell.

I would really recommend this piece of 50's nostalgia/ It's quick, fast and will not lose your attention. I also love seeing NYC back in the good old days.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Jillian Michaels is 51, and Cristina Ferrare is 75.

RIP GENEVIEVE PAGE 1927-2025

The famous French actress has passed away.

Page made over 50 films in her career as well as hundreds of Broadway performances in various shows.

Her more famouse movie roles include "El Cid", "Belle De Jour", "Girl In His Pocket", "A Talent For Loving" and her most famous role as Gabriella Valladon in "Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes".

Genevieve Page passed away on February 14, 2025 at the age of 97.

DANGER USA 1989 (MASSACRE) BLU-RAY

I can't believe I actually watched this.

This was one weird movie that I have to clear out my head after watching it. It's also known as "Mind Trap" and that is exactly what this film is.

It centers around a young actress in B movies named Shana Beddow (Martha Hackett) who uses what she has learned by starring in low budget films to use when she fights the people who killed her father, mother and sister.

There are so many bad scenes in this film I wonder if the director even knew waht he was doing. The character do such stupid things you can't even suspend your dis-belief because it'll cause brain damage.

Dan haggerty and Lyle Waggoner are both out of place in this movie and they wouldn't be missed if they were cut out entirely. The film just rambles and come to a "what the hell?" climax.

Avoid at all costs.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Yvonne Romain is 87, Paris Hilton is 44, and Don Coscarelli is 71.

RIP NIKE ARRIGHI 1945-2025

The French actress has passed away.

Arrighi appeard in many TV shows including "The Prisoner", "The Saint", "Man In A Suitcase" and "Crime Buster".

She also starred in a few films, many of which are well known to the horror genre audience such as "The Devil Rides Out", "Countess Dracula" and "The Devils".

Her other credits include "Don't Raise The Bridge, Lower The River", "A Season In Hell" and "Perfume Of The Lady In Black".

Nike Arrighi passed away in Rome on February 12, 2025 at the age of 80.

RED MIDNIGHT 1966 (VINEGAR SYNDROME) BLU-RAY

Very odd and obscure movie.

This was a lost film for almost 55 years!! The director was an optometrist and I guess he wanted to try his hand at filmmaking.

The movie isn't really a horror film as much as it is a spy drama. A doctor played by Joseph Sheriff and his friend Web Fleming (Web Fleming) rescue a man from a water skiing accident.

The men soon discover that the man they rescued is part of an international spy ring that has planted Atomic Bombs in most major US cities. The man dies and the doctor and his friend are held captive.

The doctor tricks the spies into keeping them alive by devising another plan that will work better for the spies. This plan involves using fire bombs to burn the cities. The trick buys them time but also forces them into working for the terrorists.

This is a very odd film that has some bizarre characters, a weird musical interlude and some pretty wild set pieces. The ending is amazing when Cape Cod is hit by at Atomic Bomb.

I would recommend this movie only to people like me who feel compelled to watch every damned thing ever made. It is not for everyone, but it is unique in the annals of American Cinema.

BORN OF EARTH 2008 (TUBI)

An ok monster movie that had a lot of potential, and they dropped the ball.

The movie opens with a man named Dan Kessler (Daniel Baldwin) seeing his wife killed and his children pulled underground by a group of weird monsters.

After the credits we move to 5 years later and Kessler returns to the town where he was trying to raise his family before they were killed. Prophet Hills hasn't changed much, but it does have a dark secret.

The movie never tells us where Dan has been for the last five years, but he meets a man who wrote a book about mysterious disappearances and he decides to try and convice his late wife's sister that the creatures are real and will soon be coming back.

Nothing works out thanks to the interference of the local Mayor (Brad Dourif) and soon these monsters are running all over town eating people.

These attack scenes are well done and the creatures do look pretty damned good for a modern film. There is some, but not a lot of gore and the movie ends on an open note and an interesting twist at the end involving Kessler and his missing children.

It isn't a great film, but it did pass the time and it held my attention. You could do much worse as far as movies go. Worth seeing once anyway.

The rest of the cast includes James Russo, Shannon Zeller, Jennifer Kincer and James Arthur Lewis.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Jane Seymour is 74, Sherry Jackson is 83, Marie Leljedahl is 75, and Melissa Manchester is 74.