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Isn't The Lodge that Hammer co-production that did decent business for one week in America then Covid struck and the rest is history? |
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPosLpgMtTY From the best Spiderman movie to the worst , it's just a little too silly at times and we probably had one too many villains for one movie, maybe would of been better too leave Venom too next movie. Watched the directors cut which is a little shorter, so long since I've seen the film don't know if this version makes any difference, probably not as it still has Peter strutting around like a demented emo. Venom was just terrible especially when you compare him to Tom Hardy's version All 3 of the movies have cameos by Bruce Campbell, first a wrestling announcer, second a theatre usher and lastly a restaurant matradee. Next up which will be the first Christmas themed movie and one I've not seen before. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfWIfwKJ7vA |
1 Attachment(s) Silent Night (2012) I enjoyed this one. Yet again the past impinges on the present in this festive little bundle. McDowell perseveres with dat murican accent he's so lovingly crafted all dese years :lol: whilst the claret in decent amounts. Yes, it clunks a fair bit but tis the season .... Festive Demon !!! :laugh: |
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Decemberdike # 2 1 Attachment(s) Tales from the Crypt (1972) What better way to begin the weekend (Friday night) than with Tales From the Crypt. Sir Ralph Richardson plays the crypt keeper who traps five individuals in his crypt and tells them a narrative that foreshadows his or her destiny. There's Ian Hendry who can't grasp that he's dead, Peter Cushing as old Grimsdyke who returns from the grave to seek out his sadistic neighbours in what is a really sad tale, Richard Greene and his variation on The Monkey's Paw and Patrick Magee as a blind man victimised by those who allegedly look after him and the murderous Joan Collins who offs her husband on Christmas Eve before falling victim to a psycho Santa which is my personal pick of the bunch and the reason i love watching the film over the Christmas period. The famous comic book panels produced by E.C. Comics have been faithfully recreated and there are several moments which make me shudder. In particular Nigel Patrick and the tight corridor of razor blades. Thanks to Milton Subotsky's script and Freddie Francis' direction this comes across as a fun filled, occasionally creepy film and probably the best of Amicus portmanteau horror films. In fact for me it's the only one in which every story is a 7+ out of ten. Of course i've seen this before but not on Blu-ray. I'm delighted to say it looks a damn sight better than Vault of Horror does from the same Final Cut Blu-ray double bill. |
Decemberdike # 3 1 Attachment(s) Saint Maud (2019) Unsettling and ambiguous are two words that describe director Rose Glass' debut feature Saint Maud. It's a psychological slow burner that tells the story of a young woman, Maud (Morfydd Clark) who gives up on her former promiscuous life, finds God and becomes a palliative care nurse. When she is assigned to look after a former dancer from the US (Jennifer Ehle) she sees something of her old self in her and vows to save her soul before she dies. I know this probably doesn't sound like the most enthralling idea for a horror film but under the assured direction of Glass and a superb performance from Clark it's utterly gripping. Saint Maud is probably a religious tale of redemption and extreme Catholic beliefs instead of a straight forward middle of the road horror film and it's all the better for it. Clark brings a sense of joy as well as sheer despair to her role and the more unstable she becomes the more engrossing her performance is as she goes from softly spoken nurse to obsessed fanatic as her mental health disintegrates into disturbing spiritual ecstasy. Saint Maud is no feel good film. It's gloomy as hell and it's Scarborough setting of creaking apartments and the even more hellish sea front amusement arcades brings so much to the desperation of the film, much like Hastings did in the equally excellent Byzantium (2012). The languid pacing of the film makes the shocks when they come even harder to watch. The sex on show is degrading rather than erotic whilst the horror and violence bring real gut punches. I'd love to mention the 'F*ck Me!' final scene but won't. Spoilers are not fun for those like me who hadn't seen this before. Although fairly straightforward in it's narrative there's a real ambiguity about Maud and what happens and has happened to her. Her former life is hinted at but we never see it whilst her new religious zest for living is more than likely simply in her head as is the possible possession of Ehle's dancer. Come the end of my regular Christmas new to me horror marathon there's a good chance Saint Maud will be the best film i watch, perhaps not the most entertaining or fun but probably the best. Watched via the Studio Canal dvd which looked good despite the Scarborough gloom. |
Brainsmasher... A Love Story BRAINSMASHER... A LOVE STORY (1993) Albert Pyun's bizarre romantic comedy feels like the weird step-sibling of Big Trouble in Little China and The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai. It's not as good as those classics, but like them, it blends mismatched genres together whilst throwing caution to the wind. Andrew Dice Clay plays a bouncer with the nickname of Brainsmasher (guess why) who finds himself on the run from a secret Shaolin cult ("WE ARE NOT NINJAS!") when he helps supermodel Samantha Crain (Teri Hatcher). Crain has a rare lotus flower from her sister hidden, and the cult will break every door and window to find it, but they'll need to get through Brainsmasher first. The make-or-break factor of Brainsmasher is in how it references its own lack of cohesion. It smashes more fourth walls than brains. Normally, I despise this convention, as it's used far too frequently by filmmakers too lazy to make a proper film that immerses the viewer. But Pyun's approach is a little different. Rather than constantly address the audience, it lets the scenes play out, and only later bring up how ridiculous it all was. A scene where the Diceman is arguing with somebody on the payphone has him hang up, only for the phone to ring. He answers, and it is his mother. A row erupts where Diceman is chastisted for not having a proper job or a girlfriend. Only after a minute of pleading for peace, does he ask how the hell did she know to call this phone. And that's a lot of the humour here. It's not as crude as the Diceman's routines, but rather, adopts a playful, parodic tone. It helps that the comedy is delivered with confidence and gusto by a game cast. Diceman is great (I must admit, I am a fan of him). Teri Hatcher displays fantastic comic timing, and Yuji Okumoto is having a ball as the increasingly exasperated cult leader. Even Tim Thomerson and Brion James are here for the ride, playing hard-boiled detectives that walked out of the 1950s. But what surprises the most, is how underneath all of the genre-blending and post-modernism, is a sweet love story. The title didn't lie. Crain is frequently condescended to, and preyed on by sleazeballs. But with Brainsmasher, she meets a man who, despite his abrasive humour, never mocks her, and makes salicious comments about her looks. Even though he's protecting her, he never uses it to cop a feel, nor does he show any intention of making moves on her. I know this reads obvious, but it's remarkable how many romantic films forget this - preferring to make one partner (usually the female) dependable on the other. Instead, Pyun gives us two characters who clearly enjoy being in each other's company, and then don't want to be separate from each other. I had a good time with Brainsmasher. Obviously, the humour will not be for everybody. The editing is a bit rough (it's rated PG-13, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was cut down from an R rating). But the gentle romance, the acting, and Pyun's typically stylish visuals (which includes a jaw-dropping shot of a camera pulling back from a fight, descending to an arriving cop car, and following the cops back inside) make this an essential Pyun film. |
Knocking (2021, Frida Kempff) Swedish caper. A woman returns to society after a traumatic event. Settling in to her new abode, she begins to hear noise from upstairs. Investigation proving fruitless, she delves further, using morse code as her guide. Some of this is very well done but it doesn't amount to much in the end. Wait for the inevitable remake with Naomi Watts :laugh: |
Decemberdike # 4 1 Attachment(s) La Llorona (1933) Translated as The Crying Woman and based on the Hispanic legend of a vengeful ghost who is said to roam waterfront areas mourning her children whom she drowned. La Llorona is to be congratulated as the first Mexican horror film with sound and i'd been looking forward to seeing it sine Indicator released it earlier this year. In truth i was a little disappointed with it. It's not a long film, running only 70 minutes, but a good ten minutes of the time was taken up with a children's party and then a wedding. The party kicked in after the first couple of minutes so immediately takes you out of an interesting prologue where a man is killed on the street by what appears to be a wailing woman spirit. Whilst the wedding takes place approximately half way through and again removes any interest that may have built up as do the lengthy flashbacks meaning the bulk of the film is boring melodrama. The film does have some plus points. The ghost is impressive, be it leaving bodies or briefly flying around whilst the idea of La Llorona kidnapping children and sacrificing them at an altar is impressively macabre. As is the black robed figure stalking the streets as well as the pleasingly Gothic sets and shadowy photography. More on the lines of The Vampire Bat (1933) than any classic Universal monsters film, come January i'll give this another watch along with the Stephen Jones / Kim Newman commentary track and see what i think of it then. |
Cyborg 1 Attachment(s) CYBORG (1989) In the post-apocalypse, a deadly plague has decimated the world's population. A cyborg that holds the cure in her head is kidnapped by a psychotic cult. A former mercenary (Jean Claude Van Damme) chases after them, not just to rescue the cyborg, but to claim vengeance. Cyborg is a decent apocalyptic action flick that is arguably more interesting for its behind-the-scenes. Cannon, so sure of the success of Masters of the Universe, immediately set up pre-production for the sequel. It flopped, and Cannon were left with a bunch of unfinished sets. Rather than let it go to waste, Albert Pyun concocted a story that could recycle what had been built. It sounds like Cannon should be grateful, but what Pyun pitched scared them - a black-and-white rock opera that wouldn't have any dialogue. Cannon immediately rejected the lack of colour, and demanded some dialogue to help detail exposition. They would let Pyun keep his rock soundtrack. At least, for a while. A workprint was test-screened to a very negative reaction. Audiences were bored with the relative lack of dialogue. The soundtrack had not been included yet, so the wild screaming during the climatic fight inspired laughter and ridicule. Van Damme, worried this would damage his career, offered to recut the film for free. Cannon agreed, and demanded some reshoots to allow for a new story (Pyun's original cut made no reference to a deadly plague). A new score was to be commissioned as well. Pyun, being a f*cking legend, used these reshoots to sneakily make a whole new film at Cannon's expense (Deceit). And after that, the film had to be re-edited many times to secure an R rating (it was initially rated X for violence alone). But what of the film itself? It's fine. The editing is a little rough, but it moves at a pace so relentless that it's hard to care. It's a handsome looking film too. Pyun made $500,000 look like $5 million. Some clever foreground placement makes many of the matte paintings strikingly effective. Even the music is alright, if a far cry from Pyun's original goal. The acting is alright too. Van Damme is still inexperienced as an actor, but his awkwardness fits the character, and his sad eyes convey a past of pain. Likewise, Vicent Klyn isn't the most accomplished actor, but his glare sells him as a deranged mass murderer. Cyborg is fine. If you just want to see Van Damme roundhouse cannibals in a wasteland, then it's hard to complain. It's cinematic Ronseal - it does exactly what it says on the box. |
Quick roundup then .... Antfarm Dickhole (2011, Bill Zeebub) More from this chap. Slightly less repellent than that last thing, this is a tad sillier due to ... the cast sniggering during the scenes :lol: and the ferking ant puns. I have a lot of patience, but this is beyond the pale. Not in a good way either. Fright Show (1985, Various) Lost anthology flick. I can sort of see why. Of the stories included, I liked the Alien ripoff best as it was trying really hard to be humourous whilst failing severely :crying::pound: The Man From Hong Kong (1975, Brian Trenchard-Smith) This is more like it. A HK copper arrives in Oz to extradite a scumbag but feels his job isn't quite done yet, much to the consternation of the local fuzz, one of which looks awfy like the Toecutter :lol: Highly recommended. |
Decemberdike #5 1 Attachment(s) Exeter (2015) German director Marcus Nispel has had a short but mainly successful career as a film director. None of his films have been what you would call classics but i certainly enjoyed his 2003 remake / reimagining of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre whilst the likes of Pathfinder (2007) and Friday the 13th (2009) were watchable at worst. Exeter however is poor, well not so much poor as inept. Inept yet a lotta fun. It tells the story of a group of college kids who decide to have a party in a long since abandoned, except by the church apparently not that you'd know it, psychiatric hospital for ' feeble minded children'. A building with a 'troubled' history that is supposedly haunted.... Fifteen minutes into the film the kids arrive at 'Exeter School of the Feeble Minded' and we're off. Nispel who also wrote this thing as well as directed it throws everything at the viewer with zero coherency. Okay let's get drunk and do drugs - Check...Shit! This place is haunted, let's make a Ouija Board - Check... Woah! is that guy suddenly possessed? - Check. F*ck! Tie him up and perform an exorcism found via Google - Check. Arrgh! He's loose and attacking us - Check. Throw some Holy Water on him - Check. Hang on where did we get some Holy Water? Oh yeah it was from that priest we ran over and stuffed in the car on the way here - Check. F*ck me! The dead priest has now disappeared - Check. Oh it's okay we'll be saved by this bearded dude with his shotgun. - Check. Oops! He's blown his own head off as he attacked us - Check. And so it goes. Seriously this was the first half of the film. Scenes crash landed on top of one another with ridiculous regularity but at least Nispel bothered to give reasons and explanations no matter how ludicrous they are. The dialogue was mad to say the least. I laughed out loud several times. When one idiot comes up with a way to get rid of the dead shotgun dude - "We'll dismember him, then take his guts out, mince everything into small pieces then put it all into jam jars and get rid of them across the city. Anyone got any questions?" "Where we going to get the jam jars from?" Comes the reply from another idiot. You really can't make this up, except Nispel clearly did. And for all it's hilarity and stupidity there are some great gory sequences whilst the asylum (The films name in the UK) was an effective setting. It felt like, come the end that this was a three hour film with all the shit taken out leaving set piece after set piece of chaos, comedy, more chaos and extreme violence. The strange thing is i was never remotely bored. I can't say the same for yesterday's La Llarona (1933) a much more worthy film apparently. The entertainment factor is high although perhaps for all the wrong reasons and there's definite rewatch value involved probably because if you blink you will miss something. |
SOLD!!! |
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Slinger SLINGER (1989) As mentioned in my Cyborg review, the film was pulled from writer-director Albert Pyun, and re-edited by the studio, the star, and the American censors. And just to kick him while he's down, they did a soundtrack that was completely different from the rock score Pyun intended. Cyborg developed a cult following over the years, and has even seen some slight critical reappraisal, if only for the fact that something decent came out of the disastrous production. However, in 2012, the original composer found a VHS of the workprint he was using to write the music. Pyun now how had the chance to show fans something that was closer to his vision. For starters, it's now called Slinger, after Van Damme's character profession. There is no plague, and the cyborg that was central to the theatrical cut is not as relevant to the story anymore. While the film still has a lot of the action from the previous version, it doesn't feel as action packed. There's a lot more breathing space (despite being about four minutes shorter than the theatrical cut), and a surprising religious subtext that gives the crucifixion scene a lot more relevance.T he aspect ratio has also changed, switching from 1.85:1 to 2.20:1. Maybe there's a technical reason for this, but Pyun was a fan of widescreen filmmaking. And, of course, the soundtrack. This is one of my favourite soundtracks ever. The opening credits alone had me rising to my feet to mosh to it. It even has some techno-rock, which is extraordinary for an American film from 1989. My only criticism is that there's not as much music as I expected, which may have something to do with the origins to this cut. This is not a proper director's cut. This is something Pyun has salvaged from surviving elements. He didn't have access to any deleted negatives, and as a result, the editing is a little sloppy in parts. I'm sure he didn't have the funding to produce some extra money, since this was something Pyun put together in his own time. Slinger is imperfect, and will never not be. But I strongly recommend everybody to give it a chance. It is an experience, and is far removed from the genericity that was a Cyborg. I hesitate to call Slinger an art film, but it is a film with some very artisitic ambitions. It's audience is perhaps more limited than Cyborg's, but if you're willing to open your mind, as well as your ears, you'll find something very special here. |
Noted M!!! |
1 Attachment(s) Revamped (2007, Jeff Rector) Star studded vampire caper. Just check the cast list ahem. What it doesn't have is the budget to match. So it's a tad piecemeal. The director stars as a chap who finds that even being undead has it's fair share of problems. It at least rattles along (83 min), not really delving into any characterisation beyond good vs evil sorts. Don't get me wrong, I had a ball, the stilted dialogue and "fight scenes" are a delight. Whether I recommend it, hmmm, if high grade tat is what wets your whistle .... go for it. Attachment 243752 |
Troll (2022, Roar Uthuag) No, it's not set on the internet. He looks impressive certainly. If only the story could be as such. Fun here to be sure, as spectacle is at the forefront, though some of the editing choices are ... interesting. |
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Decemberdike # 6 1 Attachment(s) Double Face (1969) Co-written by Lucio Fulci and directed by Ricardo Freda, Double Face straddles multiple genres - Giallo, German Krimi, Film Noir and psychological horror. Starring a beautifully underplaying Klaus Kinski as an industrialist whose wealthy wife is killed in a car explosion that may or may not have been an accident. It's not long after the tragedy that Kinski meets up with a young woman (Christiane Krüger) who recently made a pornographic 8mm film with a woman who looks very much like Kinski's wife. I really liked Double Face. Set in England it's not one of those Gialli that is overly convoluted. Freda keeps things ticking over nicely maintaining the mystery whilst keeping Kinski (And the viewer) involved. Kinski himself is excellent. It's not often he plays the good guy and he's 'er good at it. Subtlety isn't a word normally associated with him but you wouldn't know it judging by his affecting performance here. Freda taps into the slightly sordid London vibes of the sixties with wild psychedelic parties and even wilder fashions echoing films such as Beat Girl (1959) and Joanna (1968) or any one of Gerry O'Hara's prolific output of the era. Overall, despite some obvious model work for the car crash sequences, Double Face was a really enjoyable film to me helped no end by Arrow's sumptuous looking Blu-ray. |
Very sold then D. |
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Kind of. :xmasdrunks: |
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hDkhw5Wkas The original and still the best. A classic . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sL-9Khv7wa4 Had this for sometime and finally got around to watching it. After the death of a world famous author a famous investigator sets out to prove he was murdered and was not a suicide lik the police think. A lot better than I was expecting , it's quite cleaver with some red herrings we have a great cast. I had to agree with Chris Evens the first time Craig opens his mouth I think KFC. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FmWuCgJmxo Eddie and Venom are having relationship problems , but they better sort those problems out quick as a deranged serial killer has become symboint Carnage. Its just as enjoyable as the first but the highlight like the first is Eddie and Venom. Now watching http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgC9Q0uhX70 |
Decemberdike # 7 1 Attachment(s) The Deeper You Dig (2019) Quite an amazing film. The Deeper You Dig is a film by the Adams family. John Adams, spouse Toby Poser and teenage daughter Zelda Adams, together with their other daughter Lulu who was in college at the time of making this film, they do pretty much everything. Acting, directing, photography, sound, music, editing...the lot. John plays a guy who loves his beer and is doing up a house in the woods. One night he has too much to drink before driving home. Out of the blue he knocks down a local Goth girl (Zelda) thinks he's killed her, panics and takes her back to his house. Once there, dumped in the bath tub she awakens but John in even more of a panic kills her then decides to bury her in the woods, except the ground is frozen so she isn't buried too deep. Realising her daughter is missing, a con artist medium (Toby) begins searching for her as Zelda keeps appearing to her in dreams. Toby becomes suspicious of John, who by this time has dismembered the body as Zelda is haunting his waking life too, then things really begin to escalate. After a while the whole film becomes almost dream like, aided by some wonderfully eerie music and sound effects as well as terrific cinematography. The snowbound rural locations are very much a character in their own right here and really add to the overall ominous hugely atmospheric tone of the film. In a way a film like this shouldn't really be as good as it is but The Deeper You Dig is downright captivating viewing and truly original horror film making with it. |
Noted!!! |
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Glad you liked this one, I think you’ll like Hellbender as much if not more! I can’t wait to see what they come up with next. Did you watch the interview with the three of them on the special features? |
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I also watched The Hatred earlier this evening, but fell asleep due to it's hypnotic nature. |
Decemberdike # 8 1 Attachment(s) The Invisible Man (2020) I thought this was supposed to be good and above all scary. It's just an empty vessel of the #MeToo era. Meanwhile the scariest thing about it was the praise it garnered at the time of release. It's watchable enough with one or two nice little touches but nothing we haven't seen before in other 'invisible' films, but i couldn't ever get behind the put upon heroine. Doesn't help that i don't like Elisabeth Moss much. Didn't like her in The West Wing and didn't rate her in this. The Invisible Man is as hollow as they come which is quite apt seeing as this isn't a patch on Hollow Man. The last cinematic outing for The Invisible Man. |
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Although I haven't seen all of The West Wing, I thought Elisabeth Moss was good in that and has been brilliant in The Handmaid's Tale. |
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Miss Leslie's Dolls (1973, Joseph G. Prieto) ... and where's this one been all my life already. Double bill with Toys Are Not For Children for a fun night in. A group of city slickers come unstuck out in the weeds and ting. Foisting themselves upon an obvious recluse, who rather falteringly offers them sustenance. She then comments obliquely about one of the groups resemblance to someone in her past .... This one right here goes into the top 5 of regional horror for ... reasons :rolleyes::rolleyes::nod::nod::lol: I came expecting something akin to Don't Go In The Basement in tone, but left feeling more like the first time that I watched Calvaire Make of that what you will. Highly Recommended to the appropriate people. |
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