What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Assault (1971)

After one schoolgirl is raped while taking a short cut through the local woods, and another is murdered in the same spot, a teacher from the school (Suzy Kendall) with the help of a local reporter (Freddie Jones) and policeman Frank Finlay, uses herself as bait to lure the perpetrator out. The idea than Kendall saw the devil in the woods adds an additional layer of creepiness

This British Giallo is great. It's full of possible suspects and red herrings as well as a couple of seedy point of view attacks on school girls in classic Giallo style. Suzy Kendall was an obvious choice for the lead having just come off Dario Argento's The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970) - Martino's Torso (1973) and Lenzi's Spasmo (1974) were still to come - and this lurid whodunit from Sydney Hayers is up there with the best of them.

There's an excellent supporting cast with Tony Beckley (It must be him, he's always done something wrong) and Anthony Ainley (Who comes across all charming and warm until he snarls and we understand why he got the gig as the Master in Doctor Who) among them.

The Blu-ray has been beautifully restored by Network and looks stunning.

Recommended.

[Demoncrat]

Noted. A film which I came to late, but now will defend til my last breath. See also Revenge

[MrBarlow]

The Carrier. 2014.

As a virus hits Britain, a small group of people try to escape by means of a passenger plane but soon realise one person on board is infected.

Its never really mentioned what the virus is or how it managed to escape into the atmosphere but can be quite tense at times at the start of the small people panicking. Just when you think its safe the shit hits the fan, but nobody turns into a zombie all what happens is big patchy boils emerge then their face is covered. This did have a big budget but obviously people wanted part of the budget for a pay check. The acting isn't the best at times, some CGI effects are in use and not the best. Second time seeing this and never got any better.

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[MrBarlow]

The Cassandra Crossing. 1976.

A terrorist stowaway on a train bound for Stockholm carrying a unknown pathogen exposes the passengers to the virus. Army Central Intelligence decide to quarantine the train and send it to a isolation facility in Poland but have to cross a derelict railway bridge.

This has a good star cast of Sophia Loren, Richard Harris, Burt Lancaster, Martin Sheen, Ava Gardner, Ingrid Thulin, this is a entertaining disaster flick, we see how the terrorist is exposed to the virus and people from different walks of life can be potential casualties. Half way through we see the intended bridge and know for a fact everyone will never make it, yet for some reason the train seems have more carriages than what it did before or did I miss count. The acting is good from everyone and in a confined space tempers flare and everyone does but heads alot with others around them.

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[MrBarlow]

City On Fire. 1979.

A ex employee of a City Oil Refinery creates a explosion at the plant that spreads through a small city.

This was a blind watch for me and to be honest it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, you got a employee who wanted a promotion but gets shafted then goes on a vendetta rampage of causing a big fire. A City mayor looking to be governor and tries to help to keep his public image alive, a wealthy heiress who becomes a good midwife. A alcoholic newscaster looking to have another big break and a doctor trying to keep everyone alive.

The acting in this isn't the best at times but certainly not the worst, Leslie Nielsen does deliver his lines well as the corrupt City Mayor and Ava Gardner as the newscaster. The effects for this is actually decent especially at the start of the big major fire. One certainly to watch.

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[trebor8273]

1963 and Baby is on holiday with her family at a holiday camp and soon comes too the attention of predator Johnny Castle, the film ends with Johnny being arrested for statutory rape and going to prison and sharing a cell with buba who loves to dirty dance.


All joking aside this is a enjoyable and uplifting tale with some great dance scenes and cracking soundtrack .

Now watching



Followed by

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

The Castle of Fu Manchu (1969)

The final film in the Indicator Fu Manchu box set, and you know what it's just like the other four. You can barely tell them apart other than Jess Franco (who also directed) kept popping up as a fez wearing police inspector (Matt Smith's Doctor Who would be very impressed) and the fact Franco used the sinking of the Titanic from Roy Ward Baker's classic A Night to Remember (1958) as stock footage at the start of the film to show Fu Manchu sinking a ship with a diabolical new creation.

So the questions i ask myself are thus.

Did i enjoy the set? - Well kind of, they are all much of a muchness.

Having seen them would you buy the box set all over again? - *Shakes head in bemusement* Yes.

Will you watch the films again? - I've already seen this and The Blood of Fu Manchu multiple times over the years so even though i may think i won't i know i will. It's Christopher Lee after all.

Would you recommend the films to others? - Probably not.

[Justin101]

Yes to all the questions

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Justin101

Yes to all the questions

You'd recommend them to others?

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

Don Siegel's chilling science fiction horror film about large alien seed pods that land in the small Californian town of Santa Mira and start replicating the inhabitants with beings grown from the pods. Only a local doctor (Kevin McCarthy) and his ex (Dana Wynter) seem baffled by the goings on when people come to him saying their relations are no longer the same people anymore.

This is a classic of Cold War paranoia with metaphors everywhere but ignoring all that it's a damn good and fairly scary slice of fifties sci-fi which eases you in until we get to the last half hour which is utterly gripping with a pay off involving Wynter that was, shall we be kind and say borrowed, for Halloween III Season of the Witch.