TOYS ARE NOT FOR CHILDREN 1972 (ARROW) BLU-RAY

With a title like this, you know you're in for something bizarre.

Marcia Forbes stars as a woman/child named Jamie Godard. She has an unhealthy fixation on her long absent father and she loves the toys he bought her even more.

She gets a job in a toy store and decides to marry a young clerk named Charlie Belmond (Harlan Carey Poe). Needless to say they cannot consummate their marriage because Jamie has her issues.

Things spiral out of control to where Charlie seeks attentiion elsewhere and so does Jamie. She hooks up with Pearl Valdi (Evelyn Kingsley) who is a hooker.

Jamie decides to become what Pearl is after Pearl tells her that she knows her father. Jamie is anxious to meet her father, whom she hasn't seen for years after her mother threw him out of the house.

This sometimes complex movie ends on a shocker that is expected, but not expected...if that makes any sense. I recommend you see this little movie and decide for yourself.

Believe me, this movie is not what you'd expect. Check it out.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Gail Thackray is 60.

BEATRIZ 1975 (TUBI)

This was a very strange movie.

This is a tale of a friar who is attacked by a group of wandering thugs. He manages to kill 2 of them and then finds his way to a home where a girl named Beatriz lives.

Beatriz (Sandra Mozarowsky) becomes possessed by a demonic force and it seems everyone blames the friar.

This is a lush and well photographed movie, but the horror elements are really played down most of the time which I thought was very odd indeed.

There is not too much violence here, but the sexual tension is very high and you can see it in all of the female players. The ending is rather abrupt and I don't believe anything is resolved except that the spirit leave Beatriz.

You may like this movie much more than I did and I will say it is well worth a look just to see something different.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO..

Helen Slater is 61.

MACUMBA LOVE 1960 (SINISTER CINEMA)

It has been a very, very long time since I saw this.

Walter Reed stars as a writer named J. Peter Weils who travels to an island in the tropics in order to expose a voodoo cult as fake.

Weils is dating a beautiful woman named Venus de Viasa (Ziva Rodann) who is drawn to the cult for reasons she doesn't understand and she flirts a lot with Weils son Warren (William Wellman Jr.) much to the dislike of his wife Sara (June Wilkinson).

Weils finds a dead body washed up on the beach so he goes to see the leader of the Voodoo cult. Her name is Mama Rota-loi (Ruth de Souza) and he warns her that he is not easily manipulated and he will see her cult exposed for what it is.

The ending is very interesting and it's only then that we see what and who Mama Rota-loi really is.

I really like this film a lot. Many years ago I owned the original lobby cards for this movie. Some people find it a slow going movie, and it is, but I like time for the story to develope.

The acotrs all do well with their roles, and de Souza is very good at being evil as the Queen of the Voodoo cult. There is a lot of talk about June Wilkinson in this film, and don't get me wrong, she looks great and does a good job, but I have always been crazy for Ziva Rodann.

Rodann is my main reason for wanting to see this movie. I've seen her in a lot of stuff, and this is one of her best roles. I wish she had done more. A very lovely woman indeed. The rest of the cast includes Ricardo Campos, Clea Simoes, Pedro Paulo Hatheyer and Pedro Santos.

The print for this movie is washed out and not in the best of shape, but it is very watchable. This really needs a blu-ray release, but it's one of those movies that I don't think it will ever happen to.

This is a highly recommended, obscure horror movie.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Dee Wallace is 76, Janette Scott is 86, and Alan Ormsby is 81.

TREASURE OF THE JAMAICA REEF 1974 (DARK FORCE ENTERTAINMENT) BLU-RAY

I have read a lot of bad things about this movie and after watching it I don't understand that.

Four people, Hugo (Stephen Boyd), Josh (David Ladd), Victor (Chuck Woolery) and Zappy (Cheryl Ladd) obtain information about a vast treasure hidden inside a sunken ship off the coast of Jamaica.

The entire movie centers around their expidition to find that treasure and the many dangers they have to face. The photography is simply beautiful and Cheryl Ladd in a bikini ain't bad either.

There is flavor to this movie I really cannot describe, but for me anyway it moved along just fine and it really held my attention, unlike most people I guess.

There isn't a lot of action or suspense, but this is a good time waster and I hope you aren't turned off by all the negative reviews on the internet.

This was not Cheryl Ladd's debut film despite what the credits say, but my my does she look damn good. I can never get enough of a bikini clad Cheryl.

The rest of the cast includes Rosie Grier, Art Metrano and Darby Hinton.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Dick Van Dyke is 99, Lynn Holly Johnson is 66. and J.J. North is 60.

RIP MARIA SOCUS 1959-2024

The gorgeous actress has passed away.

The beautiful Socus wasn't well known outside of her native Argentina, but she did appear in three fulms that genre fans remember well.

Those movieds are "Warrior And The Sorceress", "Wizards Of The Lost Kingdom" and "Deathstalker 2: Dual Of The Titans". Socus had a 34 year career and I wish she had appeared in more American productions.

Maria Socus passed away on December 10, 2024 at the age of 65.

HUMANOIDS FROM ATLANTIS 1992 (TEMPE) BLU-RAY

Ultra low budget film that is its own worst enemy.

J. R. Bookwalter made this film and I admire that is was done for under 1300 dollars. The movie is about a young man who is filming a documentary about a lake when he encounters a strange being.

The monster is the last survivor of Atlantis according to a female doctor played by Christine Morrison who turns out to be something more than just a doctor.

The opening credits are self mocking and that is a major no-no in my book. This is a short 48 minute film and the ending just really let me down.

It seems the director just gave up or something. A movie should never be self deprecating no matter how bad it is. Oh well, if you're so inclined watch this film and see if you agree with me.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Wings Hauser is 77, Sarah Douglas is 74, and Sheila E is 67.

THE ITALIAN CONNECTION 1972 (KINO) BLU-RAY

What a spectacular and wonderful movie!!

A small time pimp named Luca (Mario Adorf) suddenly finds himself targeted for death by two hitmen from the United States, and he has no idea why.

The two hitmen are played by Woody Strode and Henry Silva. They make quite a team as Strodes' character of Frank Webster is a very serious man with no other interest except in killing Luca.

Silvas' David Cantania is a free wheeling man who is obsessed with women, but he is stil very cold blooded. When they arrive in Italy they are met by a gorgeous woman named Eva Lalli (Luciana Paluzzi) who is sort of a guide for them as they look for Luca.

Top crime boss Don Vito Tressoldi (Adolfo Celi) isn't pleased that thw two men are in his town. Luca them becomes hunted by both the Americans and members of the Tressoldi crime family.

Luca has a very sexy call girl as his companion. Her name is Nana (Femi Benussi) and she tries to help Luca up to a point, but then leaves him after she is beat up by Frank and David.

Things really spiral out of control when Luca's ex-wife Lucia (Sylva Koscina) and their daughter are killed by Tressoldi's men. It's a graphic and very brutal scene as are many of the latter parts of this movie.

It's a violent and brutal film that ends on a not so happy note. All of the leads are great and there is not a bad performance to be seen. This film is a great combination of fast action, brutal violence and beautiful women. Strode and Silva make a great team

Boy, they sure don't make them like this anymore. A VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED movie.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Donna Mills is 84, and Lynda Day George is 80.

SILENT MADNESS 1984 (VINEGAR SYNDROME) BLU-RAY

Odd little slasher film shot in 3-D that seems to have been forgotten in horror history.

This isn't too bad of a thriller, but I really didn't get what the point was. A mad killer is accidentally released from a mental hospital and goes on a killing spree.

His doctor, played by Belinda Montgomery tries to find him while the hospital denies it ever happened and even make a phoney death certificate to prove it!!

The hospital also sends two crazy employees to find the madman and kill him. This film is really beyond bizarre, and that may be the reason it has been forgotten.

The actors do very well with their roles, especially Montgomery and Sidney Lassick who plays a small town sheriff who refuses to believe the killer has returned. There is also an interesting twist ending.

The rest of the cast includes Viveca Lindfors, Solly Marx and Tori Hartman. You might want to check this out if you're a slasher completist, but otherwise you might feel like I did.

It's ok, but that is about it. I must also point out that I watched the 2-D version as I cannot see things in 3-D anymore.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Susan Dey is 72.