Yep, it's up there with Ferrara's comm for The Driller Killer for sure :laugh:

I was thinking more like the cast commentary on This Is Spinal Tap, but whatever floats your boat!

I likes a challenge me :lol:

I used to own it, but sold it when I was "financially challenged!":lol:

I recently bought the Arrow Blu-Ray of TDK, even though I am not a fan of the film at all. If the commentary you are speaking of is on it, I might give it a listen,

THE UNDERTAKER – Joe Spinell’s last gasp. He was a wonderful actor – what would ‘Maniac’ be without his sweaty, bug eyed presence? He seemed to bring that to a lot of the stuff he appeared in, and that’s certainly true here. ‘The Undertaker’ has a chequered history and exists in different versions, one of which was put out by Code Red a few years ago and played like a bizarre, lo-fi meta-movie. The one available from VS is more like a straight horror flick, where an undertaker with trademark JS mannerisms lives with his mother or aunt or something and murders pretty co-eds. There’s a smattering of gore, but it’s really disjointed. In fact, it reminded me somewhat of the kind of thing H G Lewis would be doing if he still made movies in the late eighties. Again, the presence of twitchy Spinell takes it up a couple of levels and makes it seem twice as strange. What can I say? See it if you like bad, old, weird movies (don’t I always say that?)

ANNIHLIATION – Alex Garland / Jeff VanderMeer’s trip into the subconscious, in which a party of (significantly, all female) military-tech-operatives venture into a strange area where flora and fauna both seem to be running rampant. Despite its pastel hues, there’s a bio-horror aspect about it that’s quite ‘The Thing’-like, and, although it dumps the machismo, a creeping paranoia runs through proceedings up to and including the slightly psychedelic conclusion. Definitely recommended.

THE LORELY’S GRASP – A great flick from the director of ‘The Blind Dead’ series. It’s about a security guard who’s hired to protect a German girl’s school against a murderer with scaly hands and a connection to local legend. It blends myth, exploitation and straight horror, but is a strange film in some ways as its gory killings, prevalent from the outset, do give way to something more like a gothic romance (then back again). If that’s not enough, a scientist shows us via seventies special fx how a severed human hand can regress to its reptilian evolutionary predecessor, then gets his face messed up with acid. Euro horror high point for sure.

THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER – From the guy behind ‘Dogtooth’ and ‘The Lobster’. If you liked those, you’ll probably like this, although it’s a much darker film than either in many ways. Colin Firth is a surgeon stuck in a strange but probably solicited relationship with a former patient of his, a young boy who seems very keen to court the possibility of a paternal surrogate, or something way more warped. Mind games and desperate acts ensue as a scalpel is taken to the necrotic tissue of upper middle-class family life and a ghastly tumour laid bare. An ominous film, exquisitely stylised to the extent that, to me, it evokes the landscape of late period J G Ballard or D Cronenberg – an austere, arid milieu where something horrendous is lurking behind the frost of suburban alienation. It feels full of horror that always seems on the brink of crystallising out… then does. A chilly, disturbing downer that is absolutely recommended.

LEATHERFACE – Seemed to attract a lot of negativity from fans and critics. I really liked it though, what’s the problem? TCM, sacred cow, so what. On the other hand, the filmmakers have ‘disappointed’ everyone since ‘Inside’, which surely shouldn’t be taken as the yardstick to measure a filmography by. No, I liked it. It’s fast paced, trashy, violent – you don’t have to wait long before some bad taste moment or other flashes up onscreen, whether that be coyly rendered necrosex or free flowing gore. Does it succeed in getting to grips with the genesis of Leatherface? Well, we’re talking about a made-up entity who was never very well drawn in the first place so who knows, but dramatically, not really, but who cares? It’s just not that kid of film. It does get really disjointed in its latter half, but to me it seemed to be trying to capture something quite EC-comics like, which I appreciated. And it avoids falling into the same trap as the putrid ‘Halloween’ remake, which was so po-faced in its attempts to humanise. Go on, give it chance, it’s better than people say.

I totally agree, Frankie.

You've completely sold this one to me. Everyone else has seemingly slated it for it's characterisation of Leatherface, a character that was never well drawn in the first place, just as you say. As for TCM being a sacred cow. Aren't sacred cows usually slaughtered? The other TCM films following the original film are complete bollocks that ruin any sacred values the first one held.

Great work, Frankie.

Exactly. The key to something like 'Leatherface' is, just go into it expecting a fast paced, fairly violent movie without all that much stylisation about people on the lam from a psyche ward and it works well. Expect something momentous that reinvents something that's just a faraway idea anyway, and it fails to be any kind of holy grail. I mean, it's possibly the least of the directors' films - I happen to like them a lot anyway, others don't, but again I think that's just because they were bigged up so much after 'Inside'.

Bravo, Frankie you have probably created the post of the day! I'm surprised I haven't seen this because I like Joe Spinell in everything I've seen in, so I'm going to investigate that right now.

I think Alex Garland is a wonderful writer who seems to have a problem with the third act of films as everything he has written suffers at the end, with Ex Machina being the sole exception. I'll investigate this one as well!

Absolutely no idea why I haven't seen this film either, so another for the watchlist!

I've been meaning to rewatch The Lobster and have had this in my wish list since it was released (it was never in the cinema near me) so I hope it's on Netflix soon. If not, I'll get it as a blind buy because you have really sold it with the comparisons to Ballard and Cronenberg. Fortunately, it's available to watch on Prime Video, so that might be something for this evening.

This is a film in which I had no interest until I read your review. I don't think there's anything intrinsic the wrong with exploring the background of the 'monster' – Bates Motel is a prime example of that as I thought delving into Norman Bates' childhood/teenage years would be a mixture of sacrilege, boring and diminish Psycho, so I was surprised about how much I liked the TV show and how it had no impact on Hitchcock's great movie when I saw it subsequently.

Everything I have seen in the rebooted Texas Chainsaw Massacre film series has irritated or somehow annoyed me, but Leatherface (I actually like the 1990 film of that name) might be something I enjoy as a stand-alone fast-paced horror flick.

I really like Inside (The best of the Euro shock films from the 00's) and also enjoyed Livid. I wasn't sure what to expect from Among the Living. Should i seek it out?

I was going to order some dvd's from HMV's 5 for £20 offer so will go with Leatherface instead of the latest Chucky film i think.

I really liked 'Among The Living' - shades of 'Stand By Me' type coming of age stuff with something more horrific in the background. An interesting third film after the other two they did, though not as graphic or, re 'Livide', as over-the-top surreal.

As for a solid 'fourth'... I do prefer 'Leatherface' to the latest Chucky film on balance. Both are by-the numbers potboilers in essence, but I was definitely more entertained by 'Leatherface', which seemed a bit nastier but also felt like it maybe had a bit more going on with it. I might be wrong, but I don't think at £4 you'll be too disappointed.

Very kind! Were you talking about 'Killing of a Sacred Deer' or 'The Lobster'? Both are great. If you check out the former, I think you'll definitely find that it's a keeper. The references to Ballard and Cronenberg in my review are meant to index tone / atmosphere... it's a cold, detached movie full of people who seem depersonalised to the point of seeming like renditions of humans... same was true of 'The Lobster' in a way, although that film was a bit warmer / funnier. KOASD gets a lot of comparisons to 'Funny Games', not unreasonably, although it's treading different territory really.

I was talking about The Killing of a Secret Deer; I've seen The Lobster once and it made quite an impression on me, so it's something I want to own. Fortunately, TKoaSD is currently available to watch on Prime Video (as is The Undertaker; Annihilation is on Netflix) so I don't need to immediately order the physical media of everything you recommended!

Wow, funny that a film as obscure and 'niche' as 'The Undertaker' is on Prime. Then again, they have shitloads of stuff I haven't even begun to explore yet, partly because I'm fairly sure the ratio of 'trash gold' to 'mediocre rubbish' probably won't justify time spent for me nowadays. As enjoyable as 'The Undertaker' is, I probably would've settled for streaming it rather than shelling out twenty odd quid for the disc... naughty, drunken Frankie (again). Let me and everyone else know your thoughts when you see it (Sacred Deer, too). Yeah, good job that my recommends don't automatically result in you buying physical media as generally I don't have the best track record for that kind of thing!

You do with me. Sure there's the odd missfire but generally i'm on your wavelength.

Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988)

The last 20 minutes is full of cheesy awesomeness, but it sure is a slog getting there.

**1/2 out of *****

Ha ha, I still remember mis-selling 'The Vault'! Wasn't I fairly avid about 'The Void', too? It's weird, one reason I rarely go back to the same film twice is that I'm worried I just won't see the good stuff that I thought was there, if you know what I mean.

I'll do my best to a) remember to watch the films and b) write something about them and post it here.

Ha,ha. I'm exactly the same.

Other things i think 'Damn i'm sure i should have enjoyed that more than i did'. Blade Runner 2049 for example.

I haven't got rid of The Vault. I do intend to give it another go.

Prevenge (2017)

Written and directed by Alice Lowe, someone perhaps best known for her lead role in Ben Wheatley's Sightseers, Prevenge follows Ruth, a heavily pregnant single woman with some tragedy in her past and a very real line of communication to her foetus.

This occasionally draws on films like Rosemary's Baby, Repulsion, and even Possession as the voice in Ruth's head, apparently from her womb, urges her to commit murder. Some of these are seemingly random, others linked to a historical event which only becomes clear later in the film and I won't go into here. All the while, Ruth has routine meetings with her midwife, someone who tiptoes a fine line between comforting and condescending.

The death scenes – all of which are carried out with a knife – are very bloody and realistic, and vary from throat slitting to castration. Like the rest of the film, they also vary dramatically in tone with strong elements of both humour and horror, sometimes lurching from one to the other and leaving me feeling disorientated.

The film was made when Alice Lowe was really heavily pregnant and the 'bump' is not a prosthetic, so there is a sense that what is happening is in some part influenced by her own understanding of the prepartum state of mind and the different emotions, urges and understanding of reality someone experiences during pregnancy. Since sightseers, I've admired Lowe as an actress and writer, but this firmly establish is her as a real talent behind the camera and someone who can direct with a sense of style and give the audience a sense of discomfort.

The BD isn't packed with extra features, containing a 10 minute behind-the-scenes featurette and commentary with Alice Lowe, a producer, the editor and DP. I watched/listened to those last night and they are quite informative. Apparently people react to the film very differently on a second viewing, so that's something I endeavour to do this month.

I don't think everyone will quite embrace the blend of extreme violence and absurdist comedy, but if those two things appeal to you, then this is recommended.

But there a dark vein that runs through everything that Lowe is involved with I find. It's some film. Will look forward to that comm ;)

ghost stories.

A professional sceptic is contacted by one of his peers long considered missing and given three paranormal cases that he claims defy description. The sceptic (played by Andy Nyman) begins investigating and discovers not everything is as it appears.
Rare to see a Brit horror in theatres these days. The last one I recall on general release was the ritual which I really liked. I enjoyed this one well enough as well. It's got a few jump scares to it and it's a bit thin in places but it's mostly entertaining. It's got a run down shabiness to it's locations that firmly sell the piece as a film with a real sense of its nationality. There's a twist to it about a third of the way through that will decide if your ultimately a fan of not but I liked it. It reminded me of films like vault of horror, asylum, tales from the crypt et al. Give it a go. Especially if you have an unlimited pass or live near a £4.99 vue.

I HAVE to see this now. People get really defensive over franchises, but I'm willing to give anything a go.

Separate it from anything relating to the original, and see it for what it is - an entertaining B-flick about a guy who ends up being a cannibalistic serial killer with a chainsaw. As a film in itself, it's no great shakes, but I found it enjoyable enough - and that's kind of all I ask for sometimes. It didn't deserve the opprobrium heaped on it by terminally disappointed 'fans'.

Scream 4. Ten years after Scream 3, Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) is finally moving on, and achieving success as a self-help author off the back of her own traumas. But when the book promotional tour lands her back in her home town of Woodsboro, it doesn't take long for some psycho to get inspired to start it all over again... The 4th and, so far, final film in the iconic horror series is actually one of the best of the sequels in spite of seeming a tad belated, and good wholesome naughty family fun.:nod:

The Barbarians (1987, Ruggero Deodato)

A Golan/Globus production. I'll let that sink in, will I? :lol:
Starring Richard Lynch, Eva La Rue, Michael Berryman ... and a pair of sibling sides of beefcake :laugh:. Sword & Sorcery flick that is the epitome of Cannon, slightly too violent for the Willow audience, not violent enough for the Conan lot :lol:. Recommended nonetheless. Lynch's wig worth the price of admission alone .... :nod:



The Commuter (Jaume Colett-Serra)
Liam Neeson continues to work through his grief through extreme catharsis. More or less Non Stop on a train. Some mention of Hitchcock in the reviews intrigued me. Where it was I'm not sure ... what I am sure of is that it is very easy to rifle Google for references nowaways. Risible ending. Nice to see Wilson not chasing ghosts though :lol:

Well, it was set on a train and i presume not everyone knew each other. ;)

Bounty Killer (2013)

A manic thrill ride about celebrity bounty hunters (Don't ask) out to kill the bankers and other high rollers who caused an apocalypse.

Post apocalyptic B-movie action fest with comically dark elements. Fast paced with great characters (Christian Pitrie's gorgeous Mary Deth is something else) and fun performances from the likes of Gary Busey, Kristanna Loken, Beverly D'Angelo and rapper Eve, this is more akin to the revamped Death Race series than Mad Max but it's a hell of a lot of fun.

Fans of 80's and 90's exploitative tat like Battle Truck, Cherry 2000 and Nemesis should get some enjoyment out of this gory, bullet strewn, slaughterfest.

Downhill (2016)

Chilean horror film directed by Patricio Valladares, the fella behind both versions of brutality fest Hidden in the Woods.

Despite being terrifically filmed Downhill is one hell of a mess. Beginning as an off road cycling event the film tumbles head first into some sort of backwoods redneck romp with added virus like body horror traumas- think Cabin Fever gone Lovecraftian here - before finally ending up as some sort of goat ****ing satanic free for all.

Had it encapsulated just one of these horror motifs then it would have bordered on being something special but sadly Downhill not so much goes downhill fast but doesn't seem to know in exactly what direction it wants to take.

I really need to watch this 'Everything but the kitchen sink' horror again.

Attachment 203099

Halloween night has come and tonight a new attraction opens in town a funhouse run by the actual killers that the funhouse is based on.

This is some of the usual run of the mill bullshit with a group of teens head to the funhouse consisting of two stoners a slut the jock the nice guy and the virgin with a crush on the nice guy and a token Mexican guy just to pad it out. The acting is terrible and the characters are annoying as hell. The sex scenes are completely pointless and seemed to be only there as comic relief lots of stupid shouting out stupid one liners. Something that drives me crazy with these films is constant talk about Twitter and trending instagram hashtags and vines not sure what the last one is but I'm pretty sure its another stupid social media thing but anyway this theme continues the whole way through while filming what's going on are taking pictures on their phones. I understand how big social media is but its so forced and felt like they were trying their best to fit in as many advertisements for these outlets as possible . The deputy sheriff is another character just put in for comic relief but along the lines of a Jack Whitehall stand up as in its not F***ING FUNNY just annoying and makes me want to go on a murderous rampage.

There is a plus side to this film the gore looks really good and is all practical but they still managed to mess that up a few times with cgi sky shots :lol: Why are there so many bad films based around funhouse and theme parks when its just a great theme and setup.

3/10 just for the gore.

Solid review there Duke!

Any film that inspires such sentiments :laugh:


No Man's Land (1987, Peter Werner)
Only mentioning this rather run of the mill thriller for it's UBER80s main theme by the ubiquitous Basil Poledouris. It's a keeper !!! What a pity it is saddled to such a crumbly pile of cliches ....

House of Mortal Sin (1976)

One of director Pete Walker's more underrated efforts. Starring Anthony Sharp in an extraordinary performance as a Catholic priest who gets off on his own desires by violating the trust of the confession booth and torturing those he is supposed to help across the other side of the curtain with guilt. Naturally anyone who decides his methods are less than ethical are murdered in a diverse series of kill sequences, be it poisoned holy water or battered and burned to death with an incense burner. Lovely Susan Penhaligon soon becomes Sharp's victim and Stephanie Beacham and Norman Eshley give good support.

Walker stalwart Sheila Keith is of course on hand and gives another clever performance, this time with a sting in the tail of this warped parable of morality.

House of Mortal Sin may not be as well known as other Walker efforts like Frightmare and House of Whipcord but in it's own way it's just as good.

I couldn't find a good image of the original theatrical poster so decided to go with the US poster under it's alternate title of The Confessional.

Film! Kudos D!! :clap:

Curse of chucky

I'm glad they kept a storyline in this of why chucky turned up there instead of him terrorising someone without good reason, and it kept more to the serious side (if there was one ) of the originals and not going down the comedy \ humour route, I thought this was a decent effort of rebooting chuck franchise only one bit of the film wasn't thought through.
The bloke who was checking the camera on laptop to see his wife cheating with the nanny why did he not think why is the camera moving around the house or why the doll its attached to moving .
Overall a good effort and a welcomed back for chucky it could of been a hell of a lot worse like vast majority of reboots seem to do, and lose the concept of the original films now to check last years chucky out .

Liked Cult Of Chucky. Enjoy!!

Insidious: The Last Key

People got paid for this shit? A series of sound effects duel with a disparate band of lighting effects whilst the script sits at the side partaking in 'the wacky baccy' . Great for inducing heart attacks in ailing unwanted relatives ... but that's about it. :whip:

If ever there was someone I'd love to sit and have a chat with its Guillermo del Toro. The guy seems fascinating.

Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones 2014

After the death of his neighbour Anna, Jesse who joked that she was a witch is starting to believe he is targeted by a melevolent force, and tries to figure what it is before it takes a hold on him.

This one differs from the previous 3 movies in a way, there is bout 10 seconds of seeing Katie from the first two movies also its more like a spin off rather than a sequel.

Unlike the previous films, this does have a bit more tension and suspense with better jump scenes and unexpected turns.

It does start off like a home movie, end of school and fooling around and mischief with spying on a old neighbour then things take a dark turn, there is hardly any shaky camera scenes which does help and wont make you feel sick, this was enjoyable flick. 7 out of 10

Did like The Marked Ones. Apart from the bit with the cat :nono:

Frankenfish (2004)

A surprisingly good monster on the loose flick that deals with a genetically engineered killer Snakehead fish tearing things up in the bayou.

It's nothing particularly new but it's superbly photographed and the Alabama swamps make a brilliant and nicely atmospheric setting. It's a film with good characterisation, decent dialogue and reasonable suspense. Imagine Anaconda but without the 'Look at me' performances and you've got a decent hour and a half's entertainment. Lamberto Bava's 'go-to' guy Tomas Arana is among the cast. The Frankenfish itself looked great, not like some CGI monstrosity, and was happy to chomp limbs and heads off everyone in delightfully bloody fashion. All very enjoyable.

A welcome addition to the collection.