The Tomb of Ligeia (1964)
Roger Corman is often celebrated for his economies, but nobody ever told me that he was also a wonderful cinematic craftsman. ‘The Tomb of Ligeia (1964)’ is my second Corman film (after the throwaway cheapie ‘The Little Shop of Horrors…
Gas! -Or- It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It. (1970)
Roger Corman’s Gas-s-s-s, his final film as director for AIP, is dated (and probably even was for the period it got released), but somehow it’s almost part of its charm. It’s an irreverent comedy about a noxious gas that wipes…
The Phantom of the Opera (1962)
This version of “The Phantom of the Opera” was the second remake of the oft filmed classic tale was produced by England’s Hammer Studios who remade most of the old Universal B&W classics of the 30s and 40s. An Opera…
The Plague of the Zombies (1966)
In 1860, a rural Cornish village has been struck by a mysterious sickness which is killing off members of the community at an alarming rate. Baffled, the local GP Peter Thompson (Brook Williams) calls in his old university mentor Sir…
The Mummy (1959)
After their first successes with takes on famous stories, hammer’s finest trio teamed up again to make this delightful take on the legend of an Egyptian mummy, imaginatively titled ‘The Mummy’. Peter Cushing is an actor that needs no introduction…
Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972)
Where to begin?? Well, going against the grain, I actually enjoy this film a great deal and have watched it several times. Not because it’s a great film by any means, but just because there is something hugely enjoyable about…
Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972)
Dr Phibes Rises Again is the sequel to the magnificent ‘The Abominable Dr Phibes’. The original film achieved cult classic status through a magnificent performance from Vincent Price as the vengeful doctor of the title, and an over the top,…
The Gorgon (1964)
The Gorgon ranks among Hammer’s very best. Its premise is daring and imaginative – a female spectre so hideous that all who gaze on her are turned to stone, a power even more unnerving than the physical ferocity of lycanthropy…
Raw Deal (1948)
Gunplay is for Westerns (of which Raw Deal’s director, Anthony Mann, went on to direct several). Film noir prefers more baroque outbursts of malice, ideally illuminating, however briefly, the dark crevasses of human psychopathology. Crime kingpin Raymond Burr, shot from…
Reign of Terror (1949)
This exciting and very interesting period drama makes very good use of its setting in the French Revolution, blending history and fiction together in a believable fashion. The atmosphere is particularly effective, with the dark photography and claustrophobic settings helping…
Rage (1972)
This directorial debut of George C. Scott is not a disappointment in his direction of actors and himself; he conducts some effective dramatic sequences, some interesting thrilling scenes and almost creates a relevant story. In simple words: he plays Dan…
Carnosaur
It’s hard to overstate how much Jurassic Park conquered the box office — and much of the rest of pop culture — when it stomped into theaters in 1993. The movie was a massive hit, topping the yearly box office…
Wes Craven Passes At 76
Wes Craven, the famed writer-director of horror films known for the Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream movies, died Sunday after a battle with brain cancer. He was 76. Craven, whose iconic Freddy Krueger character horrified viewers for years, died…
Bloody Mama (1970)
Fun movie about a gun toting Ozark clan that rebels against their Depression-era poverty by stealing, threatening, robbing banks, kidnapping, and killing their way into infamy. The clan’s leader is colorful Ma (Kate) Barker (Shelley Winters), self-confident, forceful, and determined…
The Secret Invasion (1964)
Cheapie director Roger Corman brings us this low-budget, high-octane thriller. THE SECRET INVASION was shot in Yugoslavia and released by United Artists in 1964. In 1943, British intelligence sends five convicted criminals into Yugoslavia to rescue an Italian General and…
For The Love Of Small Town Theatres: A Beacon Of Cinematic Hope Rises
Hooray for Hollywood That phoney, super coney Hollywood They come from Chillicothes and Padukahs With their bazookas to get their names up in lights All armed with photos from local rotos With their hair in ribbons and legs in tights…
Creature from the Haunted Sea (1961)
So many people seem to believe that this was supposed to be a straight-up horror film. It is anything but that. Creature From the Haunted Sea is a broad farce first, a political satire second, and finally a horror film/creature…
Charles Griffith-Screenwriter
Legendary screenwriter Charles Byron Griffith was born in Chicago on September 23, 1930. His mother and grandmother starred in the famous radio show, “Myrt and Marge,” which went on to New York and became a soap opera. After a hitch…
Willow Creek (2013)
The danger with such movies is to concentrate on style over substance and what this film most definitely lacks, is substance. I must be honest this is a movie style which has never really appealed to me from Blair Witch…
Exists (2014)
Director Eduardo Sanchez broke into public consciousness in a big way back in 1999 via his collaboration with Daniel Myrick “The Blair Witch Project.” Love it or hate it, that low-budget indie film revolutionized the way horror films were done…