October Horror Movie Marathon

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by platostotal

In all the versions of BR I've seen he certainly IS a replicant IMHO (which is why the 'narration' in the original version seemed so daft) the origami clue is a blatant pointer as is the final "She won't live, But then again who does?" line at the end...

And ponder on this, as I recall you never see any children in the film either, so maybe all but the very, very wealthy have been replaced by replicants so the workforce of the world is now just robots who's 4 year lifespan is short enough that they expire before gaining awareness and are simply replaced, which is why a rouge like Batty is so dangerous and could bring the whole scheme and what's left of the human race to an end. Even if that's tosh I still prefer Deckard as a replicant...

Except the original release of course where he clearly isn't a replicant.

You misinterpret my post possibly. The commentary in question was referring to pre-production not the various versions since.

Besides both Harrison Ford and author Philip K Dick said he was human.

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

Ring of Darkness (Un ombra nell'ombra) (1979)



Parenting 101: You only really have yourself to blame when your once loving, polite, well-mannered offspring starts showing signs of being possessed if you, yourself have engaged in a tryst with Lucifer.

Still, that doesn't prevent Carlotta Rhodes expressing shock and surprise when her daughter starts upsetting the status quo at home and at school, having frequent strops, throwing stuff about and maiming her class-mates and killing her teachers.

Perhaps a victim of the dubbing, but our dear little Daria is a far cry from The Omen's Damien or The Exorcist's Reagan (which are the film's main reference points); there's no big evil dogs, soiling of carpets, head-swivelling projectile-vomiting madness or cross-masturbation. She is instead, to be quite frank, a bit of an annoying brat (she'll surely be going to hell for knocking all those things off tables all the time though!...). She does channel a Damien vibe on occasions, exhibiting a cold, calculated calmness and driving people to madness, fear and suicide with her penetrating gaze and good manners - more of a case of "your mother sups tea in hell" than "sucks cocks". She is also someone you don’t want to get too close to as evidenced when she burns her hand-print into a class-mates chest.

The main pluses for me here were the sumptuous Stelvio Cipriani/Claudio Simonetti score and a final act that builds in some delightful witchiness, chanting, and choppy editing, which together kind of make up for some of the (at times) sluggish nature and teenage angst of the preceding events. You also can't fail to escape the vein of icy menace which runs throughout this one, which only aids to captivate.

57/100

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

The Purge: Anarchy (2014)



Having only recently watched the first installment in The Purge franchise (I guess I can call it a franchise now we have three films with a talked about potential fourth on the way...) my body and mind were indeed purged and gleefully ready for this more mayhem filled open-environment based sequel what with having enjoyed the original one a great deal.

Whilst the budget was a step up on this one I'm still torn as to whether I actually prefer the sequel or the original, as whilst the original was bound by the constraints of the environment and therefore didn't really show a great deal of 'purging' taking place, in some ways I feel like this was it's strength as it not only provided for a slicker, more polished film in many respects, but also a more tense, suspense driven one too. However, the sequel does provide us with a broader cross-section of characters, government agendas, articulated trucks with mini-gun attachments, and all manner of creatures of the night sporting various garb and equipped with a multitude of weaponry, as well as rich white people clubs who auction off civilians to 'hunt' during The Purge... and whilst there's indeed a lot going on it still manages to stay fairly lean and on-point despite wobbling a little towards the end.

Now all that there is to say is bring on 'Election Year' - my body and mind have been purged and are ready!

66/100

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989)

A title and concept which is probably works far better in your head than what we actually get on screen.

Yes the 8th Friday the 13th film is a bit of a let down. The idea of our favourite masked serial killer stalking the folks of Times Square is an idea of pure genius but we only get to see it for a minute at most, in fact Jason Vorhees only reaches the city that never sleeps in the final half hour and even then spends his time skulking round the docks. The only memorable sequences involve Jason and some punk kids with their ghetto blaster and the maniac on a subway train.

I'm sure you've all seen this a number of times and don't need me to go into much detail, only that Jason spends the majority of the film stalking high school graduates on a ship on passage to New York. One or two of the kills are nicely done - shower girl for one - but the rest are largely tame and uninspired.

I do like the film but in the long running series it surely ranks quite low down in the thrills stakes due to it's by the number direction which fails to create much suspense and the lack of the 'chi chi chi ka ka ka' motif as Jason stalks his victims.

Average at best but still quite watchable.

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

The Wormwood Star (1956)



Experimental short film from Curtis Harrington on occultist and painter Marjorie 'Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome' Cameron.

Watch it here.

[platostotal]

This needs no introduction, tho that cover is appalling
ABUKtober weekend kicks off...

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Witchcraft (1964)

When her grave is disturbed by land developers, a 300-year-old witch is accidentally resurrected and terrorizes the descendants of those who destroyed her coven and buried her alive.

Starring the great Lon Chaney Jr as modern day warlock Morgan Whitlock and Colditz star Jack Hedley as the head of the development company, the film has a lot of potential, however a less than legendary performance from Chaney, who director Don Sharp says could only film in a morning due to his daily consumption of a bottle or two of vodka whilst filming, means it's all a bit of a minor piece when it could have been so much better.

Yvette Rees who plays the resurrected witch, Vanessa Whitlock, gives quite a memorable if wordless performance, her icy presence giving her scenes a lovely tinge of Gothic horror especially when appearing in the bedroom of Hedley's daughter. The film has a couple of terrific set pieces including a couple of possessed or spellbound car journeys that result in tragedy but overall Witchcraft is let down by the script and Sharpe's direction that generates little in the way of overall suspense.

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

Midnight Offerings (1981)



Kind of like an odd precursor to The Craft in many ways, Midnight Offerings pitches actresses from The Little House on the Prairie and The Waltons of all things against each other in the form of two dueling high-school witches, who just happen to be involved with the same guy.

More of a curio than anything, and despite its premise, the film comes across as more serious than you'd expect with some grisly deaths, including a teacher getting killed in a car explosion.

55/100

[MacBlayne]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

Except the original release of course where he clearly isn't a replicant.

You misinterpret my post possibly. The commentary in question was referring to pre-production not the various versions since.

Besides both Harrison Ford and author Philip K Dick said he was human.

Ridley Scott said he's a replicant.

But, I do think Blade Runner is a film that asks you to draw your own conclusions. I think he's a replicant myself as it suits the paranoia theme of the story.

[Inspector Abberline]

Godzilla vs Biollante (1989)

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Im putting the MONSTER back into Halloween... See ghosts and the supernatural are all well and good but I mean what's the worst a ghost can do? slam a door, wave a bedsheet at you. And as for masked serial killers, PAH when was the last time you heard of anyone being murdered wearing a hockey mask and waving a machete around. But I am more than happy to believe that one day , we will unearth a prehistoric monster from its ice age tomb or perhaps a volcano may erupt and spew out a Diplodocus who will rampage threw granddads allotment to chew on his prize marrow, these are feasible things that could happen, never global warning the monsters are coming.!!! Any how there's lots of talk about saving the semen of all the brainiest (um I thought this was a kids film) and managing to save some cells from Godzilla ( who is imprisoned inside Mount Mihara ) .There is also a subplot in there some where as well, involving genetics and saving the Sahara desert ??? but who the hell cares just bring on the fighting monsters. When the action does get under way its pure old school kick ass monster wrestling, Biollante in some respects looks quite a lot like some of the incarnations of the alien from the The Thing, tentacles with snapping jaws on the end and a rose for a head? But its no match for radiation loving Godzilla. Plot wise there is so much going on I felt my brain was hurting from radiation emitting monster's, but I really loved the effects and Godzilla was looking pretty good here especially his heat emitting eyes and mouth shooting radiation everywhere. And we have the usual city stomping as Osaka gets a damn good flatening,while the military run around a lot seemingly looking lost,but what's this is that a Thunderbird I can see in the sky? no someone better phone lawyers, anyhow its pretty useless against Godzilla. But lets not right off Biollante just yet , as it is an ever evolving creature, and in round two he looks like a fat crocodile crossed with some broccoli .Overall a very enjoyable film,. Maybe a bit over long, there certainly was some dialogue that could of been easily trimmed.


Bride Of Frankenstein. (1935)

Poster - Bride of Frankenstein, The_09.jpgPoster - Bride of Frankenstein, The_03.jpg
Out of all the Universal Monster movies BRIDE is my up-most favourite. When Boris Karloff first appears out of the walls of the underground chamber he had fallen into (as opposed to being burnt alive) , its such a marvellous reveal, Karloff looks fantastic as the monster. The other major character in Bride is the wonderfully camp Doctor Septimus Pretorius ( played by the rather flamboyant Ernest Thesiger ),who with his rather blasphemous experiments, can create life by growing as nature does with seeds. Pretourius convinces Dr Frankenstein (Colin Clive) that they must create a mate for the monster. Of course no Universal monster movie is without its baying crowds of villager's brandishing pitchforks and torches, and when the villagers finally capture the monster, you do feel pity for him as he looks mightily sorry for himself all trussed up. But they can not hold him for long, as he breaks free from his chains and starts throwing the locals around like rag dolls. What Karloff manages to achieve under that make-up is sympathy for his character,with no dialogue as such,( Alone Bad, friend good) he creates a simple but child like character just through some rather marvellous acting, and the odd growl. If the segment between Karloff and the blind man does not warm the cockles of your heart then your probably a moderator on a forum some where. The monster's longing for a mate and his pitiful plight is only exasperated by the two creatures encountering each other and what must class as the worlds worst first date ever. That said Elsa Lanchester as the Bride looks absolutely stunning, if a little on the electrified side. A firm favourite of mine although i am not to keen on the prologue with all that Mary Shelley and Byron nonsense, its all acted out so stiffly that it looks ridicously old fashioned compared to the rest of the film. . I think Bride is one of Karloff's greatest performance's, he manages to convey huge amount of different emotions, in what must of been at the time some heavy duty makeup effects work, yet he breaks through all that and still gives us a memorable performance that stay's with you. Still the course of true love never runs straight "We Belong Dead".