Normally Channel 4 or 5 put both "Condor" and "Needle" on at 1.30pm!
Farcical.

"Needle" loses all it's violence (bye bye train throat slitting) and nudity (bye bye a big chunk of the second half).

But yeah..."Needle" is a wonderful little thriller.

Available on Paramount. Mine is the UK release though all DVD's are the same.

ooh cheers for the info vince. Next payday im getting on that.

Thought "Infested" was just 'meh'. Wants to be "Tremors"...but no, no no.
And the end was just awful and perhaps the least satisfying ending seen for a long long time.

I have "Colin" on the old 'To Watch' list. Nice to hear some good things from you 'DeadAlive'. I must get around to it.

just watched THE FOURTH KIND, you know when a film says it's based on actual events and when you see it you realise that its just a load of bullshit, well this is that kind of movie. worth a rent but i wouldn't recommend buying it, for a good Alien abduction film check out the excellent Fire In The Sky or if you can find it the shockingly real The McPherson Tape, the latter also scared the living shit outta me, or Christopher Walken's Communion based on the book by Whitley Strieber.

I watched THE DEPARTED on Blu Ray last night.
Although it was based on Infernal Affairs,Scorsese really made it his own.
Cracking tale,and knockout punch finale.
Terrific performances from all concerned,and Marty boy deserved his well overdue gong....:nod:

totally agree with you on the Departed although Marty's oscar wasn't really for this film but for his entire career, this is nowhere near as good as taxi driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas or Casino, although it's much better that Aviator and Gangs of new york, but i know what you mean about the finale, didn't expect it to be that harsh.

Children Of The Corn (1984 version)

Been years since I saw this last and I hadn't remembered it very fondly, but on watching it again it wasn't quite as awful as I recalled. The acting is mostly pretty shoddy, but passable, the film is technically workmanlike, and the story is a thin one stretched too far. It is a shame the utter desperation and darkness of its source story (from Stephen King's golden era of the 70s, before his talent dissipated and blew away) is mostly absent, but I think that would have taken a better, more experienced director with a bigger budget to achieve. But having said that, it's an enjoyable enough romp for when you don't want to think too much.

Crowhaven Farm (1970, made for American television)

If you can imagine Rosemary's Baby reworked by Nigel Kneale in a New England setting, then you will get the jist of Crowhaven Farm. The plot is not quite Rosemary's Baby, but large chunks of it are recycled for this tale of diabolical vengeance from across the centuries. It's a very atmospheric piece with some excellent locations and sets and a fine performance from Hope Lange at the centre of matters. John Carradine pops up briefly a few times as a sinister handyman which is always a good thing. Top notch TV terror. These things need releasing!!! [/stuck record]

just watched 2012, waaahhhhh, what a steaming pile of cliche'd turd, the first 3rd is independence day without the aliens, the 2nd 3rd is the day after tomorrow and the final act is a rip off of deep impact...utter wank and its over 2 1/2 hours long....

Children Of The Corn II Final Sacrifice

In some technical ways this is better made than the first film in the series, with more polished camerawork, more energetic acting and a superb opening couple of sequences showing the uncovering and reporting of the mass murder of Gatlin's adults. But then the story loses its way. There is no real focus, just another creepy kid preaching, some clunky insertion of Native American mythology, an unnecessarily protracted sex scene and some toe-curling teen romance. The scenes of the kids rising up against the adults are pretty well handled (though there is an absurd "death by house" that seems to be there just because they could) and there are some nice tongue-in-cheek moments with stock characters (mental priest, patronising doctor, mad old women etc).

Not a very good film, but not the complete disaster it might have been, I certainly found myself enjoying as at least as much as berating it! Anchor Bay's disk is superb, offering the original 4:3 print and the matted 16:9 (anamorphic) that ended up in the cinemas (presumably to the surprise of the film-makers!) with great picture and sound quality. There is a commentary track too and a few other odds and sods.

Children Of The Corn III Urban Harvest

Another mixed bag. A more promising story involving the adoption of one of the Children Of The Corn by an urban Chicago family. The change in setting from rural Nebraska is a fine idea and from this fine idea the film-makers chose to make one of the most ridiculous films I have seen in a while!

Preposterousness is the name of the game here, a truly riotous tale of often hilarious proportions. There are times when you wonder if they were intentionally trying to get this film on Mystery Science Theater or something! Within this cheesiness there are a few moments of genuine horror - helped no end by some sincere performances - but you end up a bit dizzy wondering which way the film is going to go...well...it goes the only way it could...full-on nonsense with a plastic model and doll laden effects finale the like of which Ed Wood could only dream of!

Yes, we finally come face to face with He Who Walks Behind The Rows, eschewing the red clouds and lightning of the previous films we get a full on rubber monster! It's...well....a mess! There seems to have been no coherent design put into it, just a half corn plant half toothy thing with all kinds of appendages. It's like something Lovecraft might have come up with on a Friday afternoon after a lunchtime piss-up.

This absurd ending changes the film from "meh" to "oh my God did they really do that". It becomes an instant camp classic and you immediately start planning when you can show your friends this wonder of cinematic absurdity.

Once again, Anchor Bay have presented this odd film brilliantly with matted and unmatted, commentary etc etc.

A terrible film but with moments, then an ending that everyone should see. I recommend this heartily but with my tongue squirming in my cheek!

Mother's Day

Frenetic and the very definition of exploitation (complete with terrible acting) but still entertaining in a visceral way. The ending is exceptionally manic.

Hasn't seen an official light of day in the UK since its cinema rejection. Long overdue for one.

Definitely. Watched this again a few months back and remained impressed by it. Some of it is a bit vicious, but it would surely be let through uncut now? It's one of those films that I feel accomplished more than they even intended to accomplish. It just works.

Yes it's absolutely daft as a brush but it still has an impact (a bit like the bedroom pillow really). :lol:

Wouldn't have any BBFC problems today.

Yeah, the ending is surprisingly hard and deadly serious as well. Some of the more goofy 'Troma' type humour works less well than the times this plays it straight.

A remake is on the way too I think....meh.

Comes completely out of centre field too. Much of the film is almost bordering on (the blackest of the) black comedy, which lessens the film for me.

A remake is about as necessary and useful as a chocolate teapot. :ack:

Watched The Card Player last night and really enjoyed it. Not as gory as I was hoping but featured some very nice suspense moments.

Manhattan Baby

First off, congratulations to Shameless for their presentation of this film. It was barely recognisable as the same picture I owned on VHS as The Possessed.

In many ways this is Fulci doing what Fulci did best: dream-like surrealism, broken logic, the pressing in of a powerful, fear-inducing outer evil (which he borrowed wholesale from HP Lovecraft, as many others have!)- all photographed beautifully with a Fabio Frizzi soundtrack...

...but this is all achieved to a lesser degree than in The Beyond or City Of The Living Dead, say. The Frizzi score is mostly recycled from previous Frizzi scores for Fulci's preceeding films, there is no real sense of focus to the evil and its intents and the performances are not up to the standard seen in the prior films ("Martha Taylor" is no Catriona MacColl and "Laurence Welles" mugs and feasts on scenery until you can barely bear his scenes).

Yet, the beautiful cinematography is there and the scenes of oneiric weirdness and horror are pulled off with aplomb, and the Egyptology angle makes a nice change from the Roman Catholic view of possession and Good vs Evil and so it is all worth seeing as "nearly but not quite" Fulci. If nothing else it looks fantastic, and I suppose Lucio Fulci's take on The Exorcist is always going to be interesting!

It's also interesting to see how often New York looks just like New Orleans...hmmmm...:lol:

So, I hope I haven't sounded too harsh on a film that I really did quite like. It's just it had a lot to live up to. And when it comes down to it, my main issue it not the film itself but that horrible, horrible, hateful title! Why "Manhattan Baby"? OK, so it is presumably meant to evoke Rosemary's Baby (along with the naming of a character "Adrian Marcato"), but it is a clumsy, ugly way of doing so. It is a ghastly title that has nothing to do with the film and was - in my opinion - a huge mistake. I don't know what the film was originally written as in Italian, but most of the alternative release titles are to do with the ancient concept of the Evil Eye or Malocchio, which makes far more sense!

I have just noticed that I have been rather overdoing the "Evil Kids" subgenre lately! :lol:

watched Dead End Drive-In last night, wow that was a fun film. Reminded me of Class of 1984 and Def-con 4, very cool, i can't believe that Brian Tremchard Smith made this and Turkey Shoot and BMX Bandits, random.

Ironmaster

Well this was a surprise! I was expecting this to be a dreadful but fun sword'n'sorcery thing kind of Umberto Lenzi's version of Conan The Barbarian or Conquest or something. But in some ways it is more like Quest For Fire...if a tacky, pulp version thereof!

It tells of advanced Stone Age tribes whose universe changes when the evil banished member (George Eastman) accidentally discovers iron in the form of a roughly sword shaped slab of the metal formed by a volcanic eruption. With this new wonder weapon he sets about conquering the lands and tribes therein, This advance in materials technology has profound effects until the brain of the protagonist comes up with a riposte...missile technology (ie the bow and arrow!)...

Anyhow, it is really very well done for '80s Lenzi and remains gripping throughout. It is not going to win any awards for anthropological correctness which is good as it means there are ape-men also involved - with quite astonishly excellent make-up/costume design. Some cave dwellers carrying leprosy or similar provide Lenzi with an opportunity to indulge in his favoured "zombies that aren't really zombies" schtick. Again the make-up on these folk is very good, indeed gore and wound effects are pretty fine throughout.

So, I liked this film, Indeed, I think it may well be my favourite '80s Lenzi flick - that I have yet seen, of course. I am fairly sure that this is not available on DVD (I watched a copy of a panned and scanned VHS print), which is a shame. The depiction and treatment of animals during the film might also mean that any UK release would have to be cut...that is, in the unlikely event of a revival of interest in musclebound sword-waving epics!

Seen this, but don't remember much at all.
I have the UK pre-cert with that GREAT wraparound cover that looks like a Frazetta fantasy painting.

No idea if that's cut.

This weekend I are been mostly watching.....

Broken Embraces - Penelope Cruz stars yet again in a great Pedro Almodovar flick. It's slow paced but still an effective film. It's his longest film to date and to be honest it did feel like it but it didn't deter me (Kelly fell asleep half way through, she's not good with subtitles.) It's about a blind scriptwriter (who was a film director previously when he had his vision) who's past gets explained in flashbacks. Can't say much else but the story has lot's of layers that eventually unravel at the end for it's satisfying conclusion. Cruz is as enchanting as ever and channels images of actresses from Monroe to Audrey Hepburn through her various masks of hair, clothes and make-up. Not my favourite of his but glad I saw it. I'd give it 3 and a half stars.

Survival of the Dead - You all know the premise I'm sure so i won't waste your time. I thought it was good, not great by any means but good enough to keep me smiling throughout. Way better than Diary, although that's not too hard to achieve. Had lot's of gore throughout and some comical zombie kills too. It all seemed a little tongue in cheek though. It had a comical side which I didn't expect George to start doing as his previous 'Dead' films have been relatively serious in their matter. Acting was mediocre, some good and some bad I guess. Overall then it get's 3 stars.

Cat O'Nine Tails - I liked it, kept me guessing throughout trying to figure who was the killer. Wasn't predictable like most modern thrillers. Acting was brilliant by all and it had a cool car chase scene which I wish went on a lot longer (my can that girl drive or what?) It had some comical elements in it which seem to be a recurrence for Dario's early work. Overall thoroughly enjoyed. Looking forward to seeing 'Flies' now to complete the trilogy. 3 and a half stars.

Can't say I'm a fan of Penelope cruz and probably in the minority but I just don't see her "beauty".

im with you stevo, she's got an odd face. not a fan

Phew! That's good to here that it's better than Diary! Would you say its worse than Land though Ant? I'll have to check this one out.

Nice call on Cat O'Nine Tails - it's a great little movie. I really need to get a better DVD of this - mine is utter crap.

Watched the international version of Opera (Arrow Video) and it was better than I remembered it was - been a while since I last saw it. The rock music is great!

The Beyond and City of the Living Dead last night. Seeing them side by side, City came across as the better film, but The Beyond's ending is one of my all time favourites. Catriona MacColl, mmm. :)

Then watched The Fog last night, really nothing to be said - classic Carpenter.

Finally, saw Green Zone at the cinema. It was good, nothing more. Enjoyable war movie, better than Body of Lies, not as good as The Hurt Locker, to draw comparisons with recent similar films.

Green Zone, today.

im gonna be watching The Road in 20 minutes, have heard it's a bit of downer, but what the hey. To anyone thinking of watching 2012, don't bother, utter wank, 2 1/2 hours of it.

The Oasis Of Fear

Second Lenzi film of the day and it's a stormer. Back in 1971 Umberto seemed still to give a shit about film itself rather than bill paying hackwork (not that some of his hackwork of the '80s is not entertainnig in its own way!). This is one of the best films of his I have yet seen. A superb story, brilliant performances and stylishly shot. A total winner.

Popcorn

A pretty darned decent comedy horror from the early '90s. Nicely played with some familiar faces and a bunch of "teens" who you don't necessarily want dead yourself! A nice little discovery - apparently Alan Ormsby was an uncredited co-director and writer.

The Optimists

Possibly my all-time favourite Peter Sellers film. Deliberately grungy filming (mostly in Battersea) and with two brilliant performances from John Chaffey and especially Donna Mullane.

"Dracula's Daughter"

You know the film has problems when Dracula suddenly turns into Richard Nixon!
I kid you not...At the start the close-up of the dead Dracula in the coffin (with no Lugosi to use) was obviously some guy in a bad plastic mask that some blind creature thought looked like Lugosi. But no, it's the spitting image of Nixon!
Go look...Go on...See? Yeah!
NIXON!
Not a good start.

Thankfully things improve with the introduction of Drac's Daughter (not literally we assume unless Drac did the dirty) who is actually a haunted individual who is desperately trying to get rid (!??) of the Vampyric curse she is under.
A nice stately turn by the striking Gloria Holden.

Otto Kruger as the friend of, the now arrested for murder, Van Helsing (nice touch!) is another plus.
At least when he spars with his female assistant. Their scenes play like something from a 40's comedy thriller.
He's less impressive as a hero though and when not bouncing off his assistant.

Some good scenes here of course, especially the startlingly erotic seduction scene when Drac's Daughter invites a young woman to her house to be painted.
This is surprisingly explicit in its allusions to lesbianism and it works wonderfully...and the lack of fangs (I assume for censorship reasons) means the sexual aspect is actually increased as the bite looks more like a kiss.

But sadly the film is hampered by lack of real incident. It sort of just hangs around for a while not doing much and repeating similar scenes until all of a sudden we move all the leads from London to Transylvania so suddenly and quick that it seems "Star Trek" transporters have already been invented.

The finale is also a damp splat of nothingness as all is suddenly wrapped up out of nowhere (film running out guys?) with an act that is never even explained as purposeful or accident despite being the big ending to it all.

Great in parts, weak as hell in others...so we only scrape into average overall here.
Certainly not a patch on the Lugosi film.




"Pontypool"

Meh...
Always liked Stephen McHattie since he went nuts in the sadly neglected "Death Valley" and he is very good at times here but the film has no idea what it wants to be.
Is it serious? Is it funny? And if so what kind of funny? Bleak funny? Comic funny?
This film has no idea.

The screenplay has an utterly absurd main idea that even in the 'suspend belief' world of Zombie films (though why this is being touted as a Zombie film anyway is a mystery to me) pushes the boundaries of supernatural and barking mad science to breaking point.
But that's okay...I can live with that. It's a unique idea even if they had to go so far out they ended up in Pluto to make it a unique idea.
It's a plot that opens up many interesting ideas too.

But the tone is all wrong.
Deadly serious things are happening (even right there in front of them to someone they know) and yet the actor's reactions and some of the dialogue plays it all up as a joke...But nothing remotely funny is actually happening.
The comedy (and yet not...exactly!) Doctor is the silly schizophrenic cherry on top.

And don't do a scene where a young girl is kicked to death in a sequence again not played for laughs in the build-up...and make it look like the 'snooker cue/Queen song' scene from "Shaun of the Dead"!
"Shaun" could do this as it had set the agenda already that it was a comedy, even if a black one with a sometimes serious dramatic edge.
"Pontypool" has not (even with the schizo comedy, and yet not, reactions and attitudes of the actors) built up a comic foundation at all to treat the scene this way so what should be a deeply affecting and effective moment of tragic violence is reduced to an emotional void that neither works as comedy or the harrowing event it should have been. It plays more like a deleted scene.

And as for the final two scenes.
Some good ideas here, but they are reduced to a (Intentionally funny? Maybe, and yet other times obviously not) deeply annoying verbal barrage (that we think is going to move the plot on but ultimately does not) which also renders what should be an emotional part of the film into a rather embarrassing bit of over-acting as actors, director and writer all try to make some kind of sensible narrative use out of their initial unique, but completely unmanageable, basic idea as endlessly shouted words are used as the irritating replacement for firearms as the weapon of choice to save the day is not a machine gun...but wildly overwrought dialogue and acting it seems.

So we have some good ideas, an at least unique set-up, some unexpected and effective creep moments to enjoy here.
But the unfocused execution utterly lets the film down and the finale is such a deafening white noise of babbled dialogue and overacting that "Pontypool" ends up just being a tiring and annoying joke at the audiences expense.

Children Of The Living Dead

Awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful, awful.

Awful.

What, even Tom Savini's Rambo impression at the beginning? ;)

Yesterday I watched on Blu-Ray.....

GOODFELLAS-A film I never tire of watching.

PAYBACK-The BR features both the Dir cut and theatrical cuts....both are entirely different films...:confused:

SHAUN OF THE DEAD-Still hilarious,no matter how many viewings....:lol:

AMERICAN GOTHIC-Solid little maniacs in the woods film.

Quite under-rated, I'd say. A fave of mine.

Better than Diary but not as good as Land. It has a completely different feel to it, I can't explain it. It might be the slapstick humourous zombie kills or...... oh I don't know it was just different. Check it out though :nod:

As for Cat O'Nine Tails, I'll check in my local poundland (which is where I got a copy a month or so ago) and I'll see if they have copies still. If they have would you like me to get one? The picture quality is great, was really impressed :biggrin:

Just seen The Final.
Its about these outcast kids that get bullied and create a party and get revenge on the bullies.
I kinda understood how they felt, so know what they been through and that made me have a emotional connection with the movie.
Not very often that you get that with a horror title.
Its one of this years After Dark Horror titles, and surprisingly I thought it was really good.
Had its bad points but overall its a awesome lil movie with solid acting and a good story.
Not gory at all so would have been a lil better with more gore.
8/10 overall
recommended to everyone on here!!!

Payback is a fantastic film and i hear The directors cut is even better, apparently it drops Kris Kristofferson.

Just bought American Gothic, looks cool. I like a bit of rod steiger, The illustrated man is a Good steiger film too.

Ick. I have to say I disliked "American Gothic" a great deal.

How did director John "Twins of Evil" Hough sink to this dull, ponderous, by the numbers fluff?

Low gore, rushed deaths and ending, tired direction, overly slow build-up and annoying acting (Michael J. Pollard is only slightly less awful than he was in "Sleepaway Camp 3").
Sorry guys I though it a passionless splodge. :ohwell:

watched The Road last night, absolutely brilliant, possibly my fav film of last year. Bleak, Harsh and totally not Mad Max.
You guys need to check this out when it's released in may.