What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[nosferatu42]

I guess this really belongs in the "what are you listening to" thread but seeing as it's an unfilmed Hammer script i thought i should put it here.
Besides i watched it all in my head.

The Unquenchable Thirst Of Dracula

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Suddenly remembered this was on BBC radio at Halloween so thought i'd see if it was still on BBC iplayer.

This would have made a really interesting Hammer film but it was never to be so instead Mark Gatiss has produced it as a radioplay, Gatiss certainly knows his Hammer stuff and his affection shows because this recalls many moments of Hammer.

There is some nice scene setting music that recalls the Hammer style and he made a good choice for the voice actor of Dracula who's voice resembled Christopher Lee in many instances.

The story is set in India in the 1930's and we follow the arrival of a young woman who is in search of her sister, the last letter she received placed her in the vicinity of a ancient cave before she disappeared.
On arrival she makes friends with some locals who kindly allow her to stay with them. Later she makes her way to the caves and into the lair of Count Dracula.

I found this to be a really interesting premise, relocating the count to India, and i also found the actual play to be really well made and involving, all the voice artists are very good and the fact that many of the locals are played by Indian actors adds to the realism greatly. It is narrated very well as well with a nice air of creepy authority and pace by Michael Sheen.

The main woman is very self sufficient and strong willed, and the atmosphere is heavy as she investigates the caves and underground passages below a local Maharaja's palace. The story weaves in a dancing girl, a King Cobra, a blood cult and a group of Dracula's brides, there is a set piece with a large crowd of locals that would have stretched Hammer's budget somewhat, and it all climaxes in a satisfying ending.

I for one was totally caught up in the story and would love to have seen this filmed.

It's still available on the iplayer for another few weeks, so if you are a Hammer fan i would urge you to give it a go.

[bleakshaun]

Originally Posted by bleakshaun

Invasion USA
Cannon action flick about an army of terrorists invading good old 'Murica and only one man able to stop them - that man is Chuck Norris; a man who is poor at saying one liners. it takes a while to get into this film, the opening scenes are good, especially when our evil german villain kills a drug dealer and his sherbet snorting girlfriend; shot in the crotch and thrown out of a window respectively. once all the terrorists leave their boats and get on the trucks (amazing but laughable set piece). then it starts to pick up. the action is great and the final 15-20 minutes or so is fantastic.
7/10

Showed my friend this last night and I'm going to change it from a 7 to an 8/10 because of Richard Lynch; who steals the show from the beginning to the end. Even though he likes to shoot men in the dick, probably penis envy I suppose.

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[Demdike@Cult Labs]

The Sadistic Baron Von Klaus (1962)

This dreary Jess Franco film concerns an Austrian legend about a ghostly Baron who supposedly rises from the swamps and murders women. When real murders are discovered, the local police immediately suspect Baron Von Klaus's relative (Howard Vernon) who resides in a spooky old mansion on the edge of the swamp.

A film saved only by it's last half hour. This early Franco Gothic is downright boring during it's first two thirds, he clearly had no eye for atmosphere at this stage in his career unlike Bava, someone should have told him that easy jazz does not add anything to a stalk and slash scene, although to give him his due i think it was the Spanish maestro's first attempt at the horror genre.

The final reels do redeem the film though as we finally get some horror and sleaze in the form of the brutal whipping of a naked woman as well as knife slaying galore. Although the end result is enjoyable (The final scene resembles Hammer's first Mummy film of three years previous to the point of plagiarism) i wouldn't recommend this to non-Francophiles.

[nosferatu42]

Ganja and Hess

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A rich black anthropologist Hess lives alone with his servant, his house holds many tribal artifacts from his work, he has an assistant who is unstable and suicidal. He manages to talk the guy out of suicide but is rewarded by being stabbed later that night by the man using an ancient artifact that bestows Hess with the curse of vampirism.
Afterwards the guy kills himself anyway.
Awakening Hess finds the corpse and is drawn to drink his spilled blood, he is then plunged into an addictive lifestyle in his search for blood.
Later the assistants wife shows up and the two fall in love, complicating matters as he still has the corpse in his freezer.

There's not a lot of story here to be honest, the film is more of a character study, but instead we get a lot of arty/experimental photography with images being overlaid and blending into each other.

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Duane Jones from 'Night of the living dead' stars and gives a sedate, reserved but strong performance as Hess, the female role of Ganja is also unusually played, at first she comes across as a cynical bitch but seems to mellow as she reveals more about herself.

There's not a lot of horror here, there are a few blood drinking scenes but they are subdued, this seems more concerned with relationships and an examination of the black culture's spiritual division between tribal and adopted christian faith.

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The film has more in relation to 'Martin' i felt although this predated that film, it is interesting to wonder whether Romero saw this, seeing as it has one of his associates in a lead role he very well could have.
This is also very late 60's/early 70's in it's style, reminding me also of 'Easy Rider' in it's experimental approach and low key delivery of dialogue, but also the direction felt like Nicholas Roeg in the way it was disjointed and arty.

Apparently this was mean't to be a Blaxploitation film but the producers were disappointed when they saw the film that was delivered, they recut it and tinkered, the original version went undistributed.
This version is back to the director's vision.

At first i was unsure of how i felt about the film, i found it admirable and interesting but not particularly enjoyable.
I read the liner notes and some background on the film and let it rattle about in my head for the next day.
It's difficult to recommend to a horror fan who wants the norm, but interesting enough to not be dismissable. I liked it and am sure i will appreciate it more on rewatch.

The Eureka Blu ray is good but the picture is very grainy and flawed, and has a washed out look at times. This is obviously due to the history of the film and is acceptable as it's probably the best print available.

Unfortunately the blu does not include alternative takes and deleted scenes that exist because they are on youtube.
Spike Lee remade this recently as 'Da sweet blood of Jesus' which isn't released in the U.K, looking at the trailer it seems a more linear retelling, but it looks a bit bland.

I liked it. 7/10

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[Cinematic Shocks]

I haven't been watching many films lately, as I've mostly been revisiting It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, but here's what I've seen since my last post...

Leatherface (2017)

*** out of *****

Flatliners (2017)

* out of *****

Wheelman (2017)

A very good neo-noir action crime thriller. Frank Grillo is as awesome as always.

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

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Easily one of my top 3 MCU movies. I don’t know if I can say it’s better than Captain America: The Winter Soldier and the first Guardians of the Galaxy, but it at least comes mighty close.

**** out of *****

[Demoncrat]

Doctor Faustus (1967, Richard Burton/ Nevill Coghill)

From the striking opening image, you would be forgiven (HA!) in believing that you were in for a fairly standard 60s Gothic pile. But hold on isn't that Dickie Burton exclaiming for all he's worth centre stage?? It bloody is, you know....

Where? What? WHY???
As films go, what audience this was created for surely hath the ranking of a lowly serf in a puddle. The Freudians would have a veritable field week with this as 'er indoors plays all the female parts. The beautifully crisp image in some scenes a joy to behold. This being based on Chrissy Marlowe's play about a geezer what gains the 'ole world (HA!!)
but loses 'is soul proper like. Some wacky 60s stuff mingled in here as well. Free love! But no combs it seems ....
I recommend this highly ... to any Doctor Who fans. See Ian Marter!
Plus it makes the whole sacrifice bit look a bit shit tbh ...... a genuine oddity.

[nosferatu42]

Torture chamber of Dr Sadism ( Castle of the walking dead / Snakepit and the pendulum)

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There's a few different titles for this film, but whatever you want to call it or know it as it's a really entertaining gothic romp.

The story concerns the sadistic Count Regula (Christopher Lee) who kills 12 virgins to use their blood to make a potion that will give him immortality, his final intended victim escapes so his potion is incomplete.
Regula is captured, has a mask with spikes put on his face and is pulled apart by horses...nice.

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Years pass and we meet the descendants of his intended victim and the man who sentenced him to death, both of which are unaware of their relatives actions.
They both receive an invitation to a castle and on their journey cross paths, along for the ride is the woman's friend and a monk who they meet.

This is a hodge podge of gothic idea's nicked from tradition and mixed with Corman's Pit and the Pendulum then laced with a pinch of Bava, topped off with a soundtrack that seems to channel early Scooby doo at points.

We get cobwebbed corridors, skeletons, standing suits of armour, spiders, scorpions, snakes, mist, an iron maiden and other devices of death and even a row of smoking test tubes.
The walls of the castle bear Hieronymus Bosch inspired murals that are straight out of Corman's film as is the pendulum.

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It shouldn't work but i really enjoyed it, two scenes really stand out to me, a carriage ride through the night where all the trees they pass have dead bodies hanging from them. Also the scene where the heroine is on a ledge above a pit of snakes that is slowly being pulled from under her feet.

The female lead is Karin Dor who has sadly just passed away and inspired me to give this a rewatch tonight.

I really like this film, it may not be particularly scary but it has a lot of entertaining moments and nice touches that make it an enjoyable watch.

Recommended 8/10

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The problem with this film is many of the dvd releases are sub-par, it was released in the U.K as 'Castle of the walking dead' a few years back, this release is full of scratches to such an extent that it's barely watchable.
Because of this i ended up getting this release -

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This release is non anamorphic but is widescreen with very slight black bars at either side, but setting it to 16:9 solves this problem.
There are no scratches on this print but the picture is a bit soft and lacking sharpness, also the blacks aren't dark enough.
I adjusted the brightness levels on my T.V slightly and it looked a lot better.
After adjustments i found it perfectly watchable, so i am fairly happy with my copy (as a bonus 'Death smiles on a murderer' is on this disc too, but that is also a bit washed out, but i doesn't look like this is available elsewhere.)
There is also a German disc but i haven't seen that so i don't know what the P.Q on that is like.

Someone really needs to give this a decent properly restored release.

[Cinematic Shocks]

Deadbeat at Dawn (1988)

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

[troggi]

Mrs. t. won a bunch o' blu's the other day including the rather silly "Mindhorn". I put it to one side and watched "Wonder Woman" instead! Great fun, now why couldn't they do something similar with "Suicide Squad"? (I did watch too).

"Wonder Woman"... 18/10
"Mindhorn"... 12/10

[keirarts]

Savage dog

After being pleasantly surprised by Hard Target 2 I decided to give this Scott Adkins action fest a go. Its not as 'fluid' as Hard Target 2 but if your looking for a hyper violent action flick in the mold of some of Cannon films more demented output this is worth a punt.
Adkins is an Irish fighter in late 50's indo-china. He's fighting tournaments run by local warlords and European war criminals. Eventually things go wrong and he decides to go on a killing spree when his friend (played by Keith David no less) and his lady are murdered.
Squibs are deployed liberally, limbs are hacked off, at one point Adkins goes for a drink carrying a severed head and the blood stained machete he used to do the deed. He even cuts someones heart out and eats it in front of them!
Technically its fairly generic, and its not winning any awards. However if you'd rented this back in the day from the video store with an eight pack of lager you'd be left fairly satisfied. I dug this a lot.
**I should add the version on Netflix, I stongly suspect its been cut. There's some scope for shotgun decapitations, given how bloody the rest of the film is its strange that it seems to cut away at these points***