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Going for at least 31.  Actually started a week ago in anticipation (due to my birthday), plus I really intend to clean up my physical media backlog. I'll post reviews later, but my tally so far: The Tingler (1959, William Castle) 13 Ghosts (1960, William Castle) [In Illusion-O] Phantom of the Opera (1925, Rupert Julian) [Beautiful Photoplay 2K restoration with tints and Technicolor scenes and orchestral score] Homicidal (1961, William Castle) Mr. Sardonicus (1961, William Castle) So far what's on my first-time watch list: Innocent Blood (John Landis) Body Snatchers (Abel Ferrera) The Addiction (Abel Ferrera) The Old Dark House (William Castle/Hammer) The Haunted Castle (F.W. Murnau) The Last Warning (Paul Leni) Dead of Night (Ealing spooky anthology) Night of the Demon (1957) Viy The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (Argento) Horror of Party Beach 10 Rillington Place Sisters (DePalma) Dressed to Kill (DePalma) The Ghost of Sierra de Corbre The Maze (3-D by William Cameron Menzies) The Mask (1961 Canadian horror) and rewatches: As much of the Universal classic monsters on Blu-ray as I can (at least the two 3-D Creatures, and some of the sequels I haven't seen in forever) Alien series on Blu-ray (and 4K for the first) The Picture of Dorian Grey (1940s adaptation) House on Haunted Hill (my usual Halloween night tradition)
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Sep 27, 2019 22:52
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1. Sept. 21, 2019 The Tingler (1959, William Castle) Indicator Blu-ray (with "stereo scream" audio mix) plus the short Three Stooges comedy Spooks! (1953, Jules White) [Blu-ray 3D] This has everything - a silly monster, gimmicks, and Vincent Price. It's also inventive in some ways like showing acid trips and the idea of a mute woman running a silent movie theater. (Also, anyone wanting to see this NEEDS to see the Indicator edition in their first William Castle box set since it's the only way to see the film as it was originally shown in 1959 - even the US Blu-ray uses a poor quality source for a critical scene that's perfect here). 4/5 2. Sept. 22, 2019  13 Ghosts (1960, William Castle) Indicator Blu-ray (Illusion-O Version) plus the UPA cartoon The Tell-Tale Heart (1953, Ted Parmelee) and the Three Stooges comedy Spook Louder (1943, Del Lord) I never saw the remake, but this was pretty fun. Especially with the gimmick of ghost sequences being in a red/blue tinted process where looking through either lens either makes ghosts disappear or appear. There's also a lovely role for Margaret Hamilton. 3/5 3. Sept. 23, 2019  The Phantom of the Opera (1925, Rupert Julian) BFI Blu-ray ("1929" Version) I've always had issues with the silent Phantom of the Opera. It doesn't help that it only survives in compromised states - either a mostly original cut in 16mm or a beautiful 35mm version of an odd recut version prepared years later. But the first half is fantastic, with great timing. It sort of falls apart in the third act. But it still has that great Bal Masque scene (in Technicolor) and Lon Chaney's performance is the true highlight. 3.5/5 4. Sept. 24, 2019  Mr. Sardonicus (1961, William Castle) Indicator Blu-ray plus the UPA cartoon Magoo's Masquerade (1957, Rudy Larriva) and the Three Stooges comedy If a Body Meets a Body (1945, Jules White) A pretty hosed up movie for 1961 - a peasant gains a rictus grin after digging up his father's corpse for a lottery ticket. The highlight here is Oskar Homolka in a wonderfully disgusting role. It's also quite lovely in terms of camera work and the score. 4/5 5. Sept. 25, 2019  Homicidal (1961, William Castle) Indicator Blu-ray Pretty obviously a variant on Psycho, but I will admit that the big twist at the end completely caught me off-guard. I'm guessing DePalma saw this prior to making Dressed to Kill. 6/7. Sept 27, 2019   Sisters (1973, Brian DePalma) Dressed to Kill (1980, Brian DePalma) Criterion Blu-ray Thought I'd go for a DePalma double feature. Sisters is incredibly creepy, headlined by a terrific performance(s) by Margot Kidder, but it also has William Finley as a creep. The hard left turn the film takes halfway really makes this disturbing. On the other hand, Dressed to Kill is a really uncomfortable film. I can't help but think DePalma typed the screenplay entirely with one hand. But it does have some interesting stuff and the dream-like look works. 3.5/5 and 2/5 respectively.
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Sep 28, 2019 05:15
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Darthemed posted:
I watched the restored Blu at night and it gave me this feeling of unease like a David Lynch film. Just something about the ineptness, but startling clarity makes one feel like it's not something you're supposed to see. Sort of the same reason why I find stuff like less-than-seamless effects to sometimes be unnerving because it breaks the fourth wall in a sense.
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Sep 28, 2019 05:55
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For those with The Criterion Channel, they have a lot of good stuff up: Haxan The Lodger M Vampyr Diabolique Fiend without a Face The Blob The Haunted Strangler Eyes without a Face Carnival of Souls Hour of the Wolf Night of the Living Dead Equinox Sisters The Wicker Man House Eraserhead Nosferatu (Herzog) The Brood Cronos Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me The Lure The Love Witch Plus a ton of Godzilla and other Japanese horror/sci-fi.
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Sep 28, 2019 19:09
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Flying Zamboni posted:Phantom Of The Paradise (1974) I've been watching a lot of DePalma lately and this is by far my favorite (with Blow Out a close second). It's just so delightfully weird and there isn't a weak performance in the film. Jessica Harper is especially wonderful and good god Paul Williams is great as an absolutely evil character. I really love how DePalma not only took all the good stuff from The Phantom of the Opera (particularly the somewhat mediocre 1943 musical remake of the silent), but really "got" the parallels to Goethe's Faust that really were only barely touched upon in prior films. It's mind-boggling why this wasn't a huge hit in 1974 (outside of Winnepeg, allegedly), but then again, The Rocky Horror Picture Show was a dud the following year.
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Sep 29, 2019 00:36
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8. Sept. 28, 2019   ZOTZ! (1962, William Castle) The Candy Web [aka 13 Frightened Girls] (1963, William Castle) Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story (2007, Jeffrey Schwarz) Indicator Blu-ray I'm counting all three as one because ZOTZ! is really more comedy sci-fi and 13 Frightened Girls/The Candy Web (I watched the UK cut) is a straight espionage thriller, but I think Spine Tingler! definitely counts since it's a documentary on a horror movie icon. I'll go ahead and say that the two films are actually a lot of fun. ZOTZ! has Tom Posten as an eccentric professor who discovers a magic coin from the Aztecs that gives him superpowers. The Candy Web is also a lot of fun, being a Cold War thriller with an international cast. Spine Tingler! is an excellent feature-length overview of William Castle's life and career, with lots of great interviews (especially John Waters). The UK cut of 13 Frightened Girls apparently came out before the US version and just has the different title and an extra scene before and after the film with Mr. Castle. ZOTZ! - 3.5/5 The Candy Web - 3.5/5 Spine Tingler! - 4/5 The next two Castle films will definitely count - The Old Dark House (a co-production with Hammer) and Strait-Jacket (VIVIDLY DEPICTS AXE MURDERS!)
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Sep 29, 2019 22:25
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9. Sept. 29, 2019 The Last Warning (1929, Paul Leni) Flicker Alley Blu-ray An actor mysteriously dies during a performance on stage and the rest of the cast are all suspects in the murder. The police make everyone stay in the theater so they can find the killer after the body of the actor disappears. Sounds familiar? While the story itself is kind of silly (and really just another variation on The Cat and the Canary), Paul Leni makes this fun with endless visual tricks. While it's typical of late silents to have some really nice work, this is in the same area as films like Sunrise and Lonesome with constantly moving cameras. They also re-use the opera set from The Phantom of the Opera. While it's appropriately spooky, the bodies don't exactly pile up, but I liked the atmosphere. As with many silent films, while this is from Universal's 4K restoration, the best surviving elements were a French dupe and a 16mm print, so the continuity can be a bit odd sometimes, but it's better than not existing at all. 3.5/5 10. Sept. 29, 2019  The Old Dark House (1963, William Castle) Indicator Blu-ray [uncut color version] You know you're in for a spooky movie when the opening titles begin with an evil laugh and feature illustrations by Charles Addams. While I think the James Whale film is a better film, this is a pretty fun remake that goes in a totally different direction. This time, it's William Castle and Hammer working together. So, it has Castle's sense of humor, while you have an all-British cast (except for Tom Poston). Among the cast are some of my favorite character actors like Robert Morley and Peter Bull. The murders in the film are pretty surreal and sort of remind me of the same tone as The Ladykillers. Stangulation by trumpet, stabbed in the neck with knitting needles, and a gun collector getting shot by Napoleon's rifle, plus an exploding clock. One detail I thought was amusing was that Roderick Usher is an atheist in the '32 film, while an additional Femm is added to this film that's a religious fanatic building his own Noah's ark. 4/5 Egbert Souse fucked around with this message at 13:38 on Sep 30, 2019 |
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Sep 30, 2019 13:35
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11. Sept 30, 2019 Night of the Demon (1957, Jacques Tourneur) Indicator Blu-ray [Uncut pre-release UK cut in 1.75:1] Atmospheric, smart thriller about satanists and the English countryside. This has some true frights and jump scares. And I'll be honest in saying that the creature of the title actually managed to scare me. There's some good levity at first, but this really gets under your skin. I can see this being an inspiration for The Wicker Man. Definitely want to see this again and it does work better at night. 4.25/5 12. Sept 30, 2019  Fiend Without a Face (1958, Arthur Crabtree) Criterion Channel Another British horror film, this time invisible brains strangle people. It's kind of a slog and the murders come off as silly since you don't really see anything until the end, so you're seeing actors flay around. It means a lot when The Tingler offers a more plausible premise. 2/5
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Oct 1, 2019 13:23
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13. Oct 3, 2019 Dead of Night (1945, various) Kino Lorber Blu-ray When I first started watching this, I thought it wasn't that scary. That's exactly how this fools you. A bunch of people talk about dreams and they get progressively spookier as the film goes on. Think of it as campfire stories except it's in a posh English home. I think most people talk about the "last" segment involving Michael Redgrave as a ventriloquist, but it's after that the film goes completely off the rails. And watch through the credits. 14. Oct 4, 2019  The Ghost of Sierra de Cobre (1964, Joseph Stefano/Robert Stevens) Kino Lorber Blu-ray If you're a fan of The Outer Limits, you'll want to see this repurposed pilot for another show by Leslie Stevens and Joseph Stefano. When the pilot didn't sell, the film was re-edited into a theatrical feature. Spooky and moody, reminds me a lot of the sort of tone with episodes like Forms of Things Unknown. Martin Landau stars in this and there's some really effective ghost effects by Conrad Hall. 15. Oct 4, 2019  Tomb of Ligeia (1965, Roger Corman) Scream Factory Blu-ray [part of The Vincent Price Collection Vol. II] While all of the Corman/Poe/Price films had been shot in-studio (and mostly in California save for Masque of Red Death), this features extensive location shooting. I don't think it's quite as creepy, but it's still unsettling with plenty of corpses, burning flesh, and blasphemy. Best sight, though, is Vincent Price sporting some creepy sunglasses.
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Oct 5, 2019 04:36
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16. Oct 5, 2019 The Mask (1961, Julian Roffman) Kino Lorber Blu-ray [3-D] Considered the first Canadian horror film, this is a lot like a feature-length Twilight Zone or Outer Limits episode. A psychiatrist comes into possession of an ancient mask that pretty much instantly causes psychosis in its wearers. While it can get a little silly, the real reason to see this are three lengthy 3-D segments that are like something out of an acid trip. Pretty fun movie, but probably want to see it in 3-D to get the full effect.
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Oct 5, 2019 19:46
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17. Oct 5, 2019 The Maze (1953, William Cameron Menzies) Kino Lorber Blu-ray [3-D] One of the curious aspects of the 3-D feature boom of 1952-1954 is that a lot of these films really pushed the envelope in terms of horror - especially Dial M for Murder, House of Wax, and The Mad Magician. This is a unique sort of story that keeps you guessing whether there's a haunting, a monster, or - ? A baron in Scotland has lived since the 1700s because of a genetic abnormality that resulted him looking like a human-sized frog. There's even a lengthy Psycho-like explanation at the end that piles on the body horror making people feel guilty for the baron committing suicide after being discovered, especially since he was completely normal mentally. It also has a neat narrative device of characters addressing the audience directly through closeups. Egbert Souse fucked around with this message at 01:03 on Oct 6, 2019 |
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Oct 6, 2019 01:00
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18. Oct 5, 2019 The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970, Dario Argento) Arrow Video Blu-ray [English dub] Wow, I really wish I had seen this earlier since it's really obvious how influential this was to other filmmakers, especially on two films - Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now and Brian DePalma's Dressed to Kill. This is Argento's first feature film and it's amazing to see this sort of confidence. Everything is so smooth and stylish from the editing, Vitorrio Storaro's incredible cinematography, Ennio Morricone's score, and surprises at every corner. Even after learning the ending, I can see why this is rewatchable if just for it being so breathless. This is going on my top ten finds for the year.
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Oct 6, 2019 03:55
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19. Oct 6, 2019 Viy (1967, Georgiy Kropachyov/Konstantin Ershov) Severin Blu-ray preceded by the comedy/musical short The Devil's Cabaret (1930, Nick Grinde) Russian/Soviet films are always a treat visually, but when you mix in folk tales or legends, it's irresistible. This is a bit of a slow burn given it's only 77 minutes long, but it's worth it. Don't want to spoil anything, but if you're concerned about a lack of scary in the first half, just keep watching and you won't be let down. Egbert Souse fucked around with this message at 04:53 on Oct 7, 2019 |
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Oct 7, 2019 04:29
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Franchescanado posted:11. Island of Lost Souls It was also a big influence on Devo. The Criterion edition even has an interview with Mark Mothersbaugh and Gerald Casale (as well as the complete Truth About De-evolution short). I do think it's interesting how a lot of people assume it's a Universal horror film rather than Paramount (especially since it's now owned by Universal), but Paramount was doing some really amazing stuff in the first half of the 30s. This is a time when they had Ernst Lubitsch, Josef von Sternberg, Rouben Mamoulian, Cecil B. DeMille, Leo McCarey, the Marx Brothers, and W.C. Fields. Iron Crowned posted:3) Night of the Living Dead (1968, Blu-Ray). The first undead zombie flick, and there are tomes that have been written about it. This was my first viewing of the Criteron restoration, and it's beautiful, almost too beautiful. There's a lot of details that I'd never seen before and the muddiness is gone. It has been a few years since my last viewing, so it was definitely a treat. To be honest, I do think people get the wrong idea about public domain films. If you saw an original 1968 35mm release print, it would have looked pristine. Not to mention Romero supervised the restoration before he passed, so it's definitely how it was intended.
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Oct 7, 2019 15:21
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Butch Cassidy posted:
The Blu-ray not only includes a 4K restoration in 3-D of House of Wax, it also has a good SD encode of Mystery of the Wax Museum as an extra.
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Oct 7, 2019 16:57
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20. Oct 6, 2019 The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945, Albert Lewin) Warner Archive Blu-ray preceded by the cartoon short Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Mouse (1947) I had seen this on TCM years ago, but this was pretty fresh to me. An adaptation of the Oscar Wilde novel that dwells in the corruption of the soul. As Mr. Gray lives a life of sin, he retains his youthful looks indefinitely while his portrait becomes ever more grotesque over time. This is a creepy film and it's a surprise something this dark came out of MGM. Hurd Hatfield stars as Gray. At first, he seems almost miscast, coming off as bland. Except the blank, emotionless facade becomes an unnerving mask to his character. This also has George Sanders as a quite unlikable character (such miscasting). This also has good parts for Angela Lansbury and Donna Reed. There's also a surprise to some of the shots of the painting, but I dare not spoil it.
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Oct 8, 2019 04:11
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21. Oct 10, 2019 Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972, Robert Fuest) Scream Factory Blu-ray [part of The Vincent Price Collection II] While falling short of the original, this is still just silly enough to be enjoyable. Good murders, Vincent Price hamming it up to the nth degree, and some amusing signs of AIP having zero money to actually make the film (lots of stock footage and literally reversed footage starting off the film). 3.5/5 22. Oct 11, 2019  Kiki's Delivery Service (1989, Hayao Miyazaki) GKIDS Blu-ray [subtitled] Amidst all the murders and mayhem in the horror slate, I thought a sweeter movie would break up things a bit. I don't think it's quite as good as Miyazaki's masterpieces like Nausicaa, Totoro, Mononoke, or Spirited Away. This might have the cutest cat in cinema, Jiji. 4/5 23. Oct 11, 2019  10 Rillington Place (1971, Richard Fleischer) Indicator Blu-ray One of the more disturbing films I've seen. Based on actual court documents, the murders of John Christie. Richard Attenburough is absolutely chilling. This also has John Hurt in a brilliant role that might be the heart of the film. Shot mostly in dark surroundings, it's such an unnerving, creepy film. Apparently, it was actually shot in the house where Christie murdered at least a dozen and a half people. 5/5
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Oct 12, 2019 02:46
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24. Oct 11, 2019 Psychos in Love (1987, Gorman Berchard) Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray Clearly with heavy improvisation and not much money, but often funny and silly. I'm not big on slashers, but this being a romcom about serial killers makes it more than trash. It does have plenty of sleaze to it, which makes me believe there's only a thin line between slashers and porno. It's also a surprisingly sweet film, between all the dismemberment and blood. 3/5 25. Oct 12, 2019  Blood Feast (1963, Herschell Gordon Lewis) Criterion Channel This is my first HGL film and it's a lot of fun. There's something both hilarious and unsettling about Lewis' industrial film aesthetic. I'd imagine audiences in 1963 really got a surprise with such a film. I love how phony all the gore looks - just lots of red paint and raw meat, but it only adds to the "mental hygiene film from hell" feel. 3.5/5
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Oct 12, 2019 17:51
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26. The Addiction (1995, Abel Ferrara) Arrow Blu-ray This is the first Ferrara film I've seen and now I want to see everything he's made. A brilliant meshing of vampires, actual life horror, and addiction. Lily Taylor is brilliant in the lead. There's also a great scene where Christopher Walken shows up. It's also in high contrast black and white. I especially found fascinating the religious aspect (one of the behind-the-scenes bits shows Ferrara's apartment where he's editing has photos of Mother Theresa and Orson Welles on the wall). 4.5/5
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Oct 13, 2019 02:28
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27.  The Last Man on Earth (1964, Ubaldo Ragona/Sidney Salkow) Scream Factory Blu-ray [part of The Vincent Price Collection II] While it's been a while since I've seen The Omega Man and haven't bothered with I Am Legend, this is a decent 60s horror film. It sort of anticipates Night of the Living Dead while also having its roots in stuff like Black Sunday (it was an Italian co-production anyways). Vincent Price is interesting because he's not exactly heroic, which makes the ending that much better. 3/5
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Oct 13, 2019 05:23
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28.  Innocent Blood (1992, John Landis) Warner Archive Blu-ray [unrated cut] One of my favorite directors is John Landis. It's kind of amusing how he made one of my all-time favorite comedies, The Blues Brothers, as well as one of my favorite horror films, An American Werewolf in London. In this film, he's blending both without skimping on either aspect. Robert Loggia is magnificent in this, as a sadistic mob boss bitten by a vampire, played by Anne Parillaud. She has this sort of ethereal thing around her character, between her thick accent and perfect body. Anthony LaPaglia doesn't get as much to work with (given he's pretty much the only "straight man" character in the film). Also some great parts with Chazz Palmenteri, Angela Bassett, Luis Guzman, plus bit parts for Frank Oz and Sam Raimi (and quick cameos from Dario Argento, Forrest J. Ackerman, and a few surprises). Oh yeah, Don Rickles gets what's probably the best vampire death ever. While I think it could have been tightened a bit, this is a fun movie. The version Warner Archive released on Blu-ray is apparently the international cut with extra gore and nudity (it's definitely on the level of The Evil Dead). 4/5
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Oct 13, 2019 20:00
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29. Oct 15, 2019 Body Snatchers (1993, Abel Ferrara) Warner Archive Blu-ray It's rare that I'd even consider a remake superior to the original, but this is easily the scariest and most tense. While it's been a while since I've seen the '78 Phillip Kaufman film, the '56 Don Siegel film is a lot of fun. But Ferrara and his team (with writers like Stuart Gordon and Larry Cohen!) swap the anti-communist witch hunts of the 50s for a depiction of the military industrial complex. Brillianty shot, tense from the first scene. Some of the scenes are just disturbing like the preschool painting class - at first, I didn't really notice what the deal was, but when I did, it creeped me out. This is only the second Ferrara movie I've seen and while I suspect he might have been a hired gun, this had the same sort of visual spark and surreal dread The Addiction had. 4.5/5 Bonus: Herschell Gordon Lewis: The Godfather of Gore (2009, Frank Henenlotter/Jimmy Maslon) Criterion Channel I've only seen Blood Feast so far, but I really want to see the rest of his films. This documentary has lots of clips from his work, including industrial films and nudie-cuties he made. He's such a fun speaker, talking about his life like he's in the same room as you. Also worth seeing if you want to hear John Waters say "cumshot"
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Oct 16, 2019 01:58
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30. Oct 18, 2019 A Bucket of Blood (1959, Roger Corman) Olive Films Signature Blu-ray What if you were a failed artist and could create great art if only some bodies were to come into your apartment? A fine dose of black humor and beat culture satire in this film by Mr. Corman and starring the wonderful Dick Miller. While I think it's a little silly, it's still fun for the proto-grand guginol stuff. Just have one more to meet my quota, but I'm really hoping to fit in the complete classic Universal monsters cycle in somehow. Even if not, I have the original House on Haunted Hill, Night of the Living Dead, The Shining, and maybe a few surprises.
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Oct 19, 2019 04:36
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31. Oct 19, 2019. Dracula (1931, Tod Browning) Universal Blu-ray Over the years, I've grown to enjoy this way more. I think some of it is that it's still a relatively early sound film from one of the lowest budget studios. I'll go ahead and say that Universal's restoration used for DCP and Blu-ray looks and sounds incredible, as if it's had decades of grime removed without losing its gothic patina. For that matter, I think the somewhat rickety quality to the pacing and continuity adds something of a layer of surrealism. And of course, Bela Lugosi is magnificent, always coming off as both suave and creepy in every shot he's in. But I think Edward van Sloan deserves a lot of praise, as he's one of the best Van Helsings of cinema. Though, it always seems like it attracts actors who can really make the most of it. And it's a pity Dwight Frye was so quickly typecast, but his Renfield is just as iconic, almost anticipating the sort of method acting you'd start to see in the 50s. As most know, there was a Spanish language version shot concurrently (as was the norm from 1929-1932 for many productions) with more inventive camera work and better plot resolution (almost 30 minutes longer), but this is still worth revisiting. Just check out the newer restoration.
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Oct 20, 2019 14:36
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32. Häxan (1922, Benjamin Christensen) Criterion Blu-ray It's been about ten years since I've seen this, but I remembered mostly the surreal (and sadistic) depictions of witchcraft and witch hunts. This time around, I'm more impressed with how it's almost a self-reflexive sort of documentary-essay. W for Witch, perhaps (Haxan does literally translate to "The Witch" in Swedish). The production values are exquisite, with great effects and a bizarre sense of humor. Director/writer/producer Benjamin Christensen even stars as the devil, wearing ash and hair, sticking his tongue out, and occasionally churning butter. This was also an inspiration to Carl Th. Dreyer (who cast Christensen in his film Michael), as well as the animators at Disney who deliberately homaged it for the Night on Bald Mountain segment of Fantasia. (Note: Criterion just put out the Blu to this and it's loving gorgeous)
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Oct 21, 2019 03:14
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33. The Thing from Another World (1951, Christian Nyby) Warner Archive Blu-ray I finally saw John Carpenter's remake last year (and loved it), but it's been at least 15 years since I've seen the original produced by Howard Hawks. This has some meaty science fiction (with more real science than most of the 50s), but it's more about how characters are reacting to an alien spacecraft and visitor. There's actually a few good scares and it's really easy to see how Carpenter reworked this into something more terrifying. "An intellectual carrot, the mind boggles!" 4/5
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Oct 23, 2019 03:55
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Alfred P. Pseudonym posted:
Universal did a real hatchet job on the film prior to release, cutting a lot of scenes with the Monster because he had dialogue. Apparently, preview audiences didn't appreciate the Hungarian accent, even though it's consistent with the end of Ghost of Frankenstein. But that's why there's a lot of continuity issues.
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Oct 23, 2019 15:06
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Super Samhain Challenge #7: Monster Mash-up
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Basebf555 posted:I've come to really respect Lon Chaney Jr.'s work but I still find it kinda ridiculous that he was like the go-to monster guy for Universal to the point that he played Frankenstein's monster, Dracula, Wolfman AND the Mummy. Sounds like contract bullshit and he was also battling alcoholism. Apparently, Universal would only have him under contract if he took his father's name when he wanted to go by his real name (Creighton).
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Oct 23, 2019 18:38
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34. Oct 23, 2019 Frankenstein (1931, James Whale) Blu-ray When you're a movie buff, there's a point where some films are more important than great. While there's no question about how iconic the original '31 Frankenstein is, it's unfortunately a bit flat. Karloff is indeed fantastic in this and it's quite beautiful, but it pales in comparison to the rest of the 30s films. I'd even say Dracula has an edge. Not to say it's bad, but I was surprised how much less I enjoyed the film this time. 3.5/5 35. Oct 23, 2019  The Mummy (1932, Karl Freund) Blu-ray And this time, I'm surprised how much more fun I found this when it was a weaker one in the past. Great plot (even if sort of ripping off Dracula), amazing main role by Karloff, and some really gorgeous lighting and camera work. Also has a great flashback scene and score. 4/5 36. Oct 24, 2019  The Invisible Man (1933, James Whale) Blu-ray "'Eeh's all eaten away!" As with The Old Dark House, James Whale gets to go for a fun, campy tone. Claude Rains is magnificent (good god, that voice) and the effects still look amazing even after all these years. Can I also mention how much I adore Una O'Connor? One interesting reading of this is how the act of becoming invisible ultimately allows Dr. Griffin to become pure id, now his external self has dissolved. 4.5/5 37. Oct 24, 2019  The Bride of Frankenstein (1935, James Whale) Blu-ray THE MONSTER DEMANDS A MATE. This is such a fun follow-up and surpasses the original in every way. Ernest Thesiger steals this entire movie out from everyone else. And even with Young Frankenstein sending up so much, the blind man scene is actually really touching (even if I get the sense it's slightly mocking). Oh yeah, more Una O'Connor screaming! 4.5/5 Egbert Souse fucked around with this message at 05:35 on Oct 25, 2019 |
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Oct 25, 2019 05:29
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STAC Goat posted:So get this. I legitimately can’t find a horror movie from 1930. Wikipedia has none listed. IMDB basically only lists The Cat Creeps which is apparently a lost film. There’s an ape film called Ingagi that gives me racist vibes but seems lost as well. There’s something called Bat Whispers that was my choice most of the month but doesn’t sound like a horror at all (and kind of sounds like Batman). Its not even terribly easy to search for horrors from 1930 because it keeps getting movies from “the 1930s”. So I’ve debated this all month but I just did one last search and found this odd choice. I’m not sure its horror but I think its honestly the best I’m gonna do. It's only about 30 minutes long, but there's The Laurel-Hardy Murder Case that is absolutely appropriate Halloween viewing. Could double it up with the 15 min short film The Devil's Cabaret.
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Oct 25, 2019 21:39
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38. Dracula's Daughter (1936, Lambert Hillyer) Blu-ray As I'm watching the classic Universal monster cycle in chronological order, it only makes sense that after a sequel to Frankenstein, they'd do one for Dracula. How does one follow that up five years later and within Bela Lugosi? While I don't think this comes close to the greatness of Bride, this has some neat themes in itself. This literally begins minutes after the '31 films ends, though with the oddness that none of the surviving characters except for Edward Van Sloan as Van Helsing (called Von Helsing here for whatever reason) appear. The police show up (one of them played by E.E. Clive, of course) and arrest Von Helsing for murder. Of course, his argument is how could he have killed Dracula when he died 500 years ago? The other main plot thread has to do with the titular character. There's a pretty clear homosexual subtext to this - the Countess preys mostly on women, with the occasional man, plus her aversion to carrying out her vampiric urges. This is magnificently shot and the dialogue seems right out of a radio play, with nary a wasted moment. 3.5/5
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Oct 26, 2019 15:18
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39. Son of Frankenstein (1939, Rowland V. Lee) Blu-ray While this doesn't reach the heights of Bride, this is easily the second best classic Frankenstein movie. Again with dialogue right out of a radio play (screenwriter Wyllis Cooper primarily wrote for radio) and slick production values. Karloff doesn't get a lot to do, though, but Lugosi gets to chew the scenery as Ygor. It's also funny to see how this pretty much served as a foundation for Young Frankenstein. 4/5 40.  The Invisible Man's Revenge (1940, Joe May) Blu-ray Nothing can top the original Whale film, but this goes in an interesting direction with an English aristocrat being scheduled to be hanged for a murder he didn't commit. So, Dr. Griffin's brother comes up with a certain serum. Vincent Price is quite good in this, even if you don't see him and oddly enough, he's deliberately masking his accent, but without being any less commanding. Some really neat setpieces and camera work (Joe May was Germany's "Griffith" in terms of pioneering cinema there). The special effects are particularly amazing with way more complicated tricks than the first film. It also has some interesting stuff like murders being carried out to take over a coal mine and Price's character realizing he's losing his mind. 4/5 41.  The Mummy's Hand (1940, Christy Cabanne) Blu-ray I had heard about the Mummy sequels being kind of bland and I can see why. It's a decent film, but at only 67 minutes long, the first ten minutes are a re-cap of the '32 film with a weird blend of original footage and reshoots to hide any bits of Karloff. Here, the mummy is Kharis, played by Tom Tyler (a year before his turn as Captain Marvel). There's some odd comic relief and really nice lighting, but probably the least of the films I've seen so far. 2.5/5
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Oct 27, 2019 16:06
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42.  The Ghost of Frankenstein (1942, Erle C. Kenton) Blu-ray While it has some interesting bits and a good cast (Lionel Atwill, Cedric Hardwicke, Lon Chaney, Bela Lugosi, Ralph Bellamy), starting to get a bit tired. Though, I did appreciate the body horror like the Monster 2.0 going blind. 3/5 43.  The Mummy's Tomb (1942, Harold Young) Blu-ray You know there's trouble when a 61 minute movie spends the first 10 minutes re-using footage from its previous film. While not awful, it's forgettable. Actually kind of missed the bits of comic relief in The Mummy's Hand. 2/5 44.  Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943, Roy William Neill) Blu-ray While it has a fairly dumb plot, it's nice to see Lon Chaney Jr get some really good material to work with. Also, this has to be the most Nazi-like the townspeople have been. Also nice to see Dwight Frye get a supporting part instead of just a brief appearance in a crowd or just one line. Though, too bad this was hacked to pieces in post since all of Bela Lugosi's dialogue (as the monster) was inexplicably deleted. 3.5/5
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Oct 28, 2019 00:33
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 45. Color Me Blood Red (1965, Herschell Gordon Lewis) Criterion Channel  46. Two Thousand Maniacs! (1964, Herschell Gordon Lewis) Criterion Channel I've said it before with Blood Feast, but I like HGL's "hygiene film from hell" aesthetic. There's something both unsettling and hilarious about it. Here, you have him do a riff on Corman's A Bucket of Blood that goes even farther. Though, while it's missing the satire, it does end up being even more silly. Two Thousand Maniacs! reminds me a bit much of living in North Georgia. Actually really like the music for this, it adds some real authenticity. Excellent murders, too. Going to do four more to get to an even 50. Definitely finishing with Night of the Living Dead and House on Haunted Hill, but might do a double of Alien and Predator in 4K.
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Oct 29, 2019 04:22
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Oct 29-30, 2019      47. Son of Dracula (1943, Robert Siodmak) - 2/5 48. The Invisible Man's Revenge (1944, Ford Beebe) - 2/5 49. The Mummy's Ghost (1944, Reginald Le Borg) - 2.5/5 50. The Mummy's Curse (1944, Leslie Goodwin) - 2.5/5 51. House of Frankenstein (1944, Erle C. Kenton) - 2.5/5 52. House of Dracula (1945, Erle C. Kenton) - 2/5 All Blu-ray Was going to abandon the Universal monsters, but decided to push along anyways, though I'll be saving the Creature trilogy for a day I can watch the first two in 3-D, a triple feature of Werewolf of London, She-Wolf of London, and An American Werewolf in London, then figure out if the Abbott & Costello movies are worth it (one has Marie Windsor, so I might have to watch). This is definitely a franchise teetering out by now. Son of Dracula is easily the worst. Lon Chaney is hilariously miscast as Count Alucard (lol), there's baffling plot holes, but some decent effects. Still a dud. Kind of a pity since it's a Siodmak film. The Invisible Man's Revenge is also pretty bad, with Jon Hall is a completely unlikable role and too much padding. There isn't even any juicy effects stuff until at least halfway through. There is a great role for John Carradine and the effects are actually incredible in this, just too bad it was for a lovely story. The Mummy's Ghost and The Mummy's Curse aren't terrible, but still padded. You know it's bad when an hour-long film spends 1/5 of its running time recapping the exact same stuff the last two films did. It does have a surprising ending. Curse is a little better, but still has too much baffling plot holes (and another time filler of stock footage from the last few Mummys, even as far to accidentally use a shot of Karloff instead of Tom Tyler). There's also bizarre time issues like there being 25 years between the last two Mummy films, except that would either mean Ghost takes place in the 30s (it doesn't) and Curse takes place in the 60s (obviously doesn't). Lon Chaney is at least creepy as the mummy, but obviously not the same as Karloff in the original. One major issue with Ghost, though, is some really cringey racial stereotypes. House of Frankenstein isn't great, but it does have the novelty of having Boris Karloff and Lon Chaney, plus John Carradine as Drac! It's a bit nicer in tone and Larry Talbot gets a nice sendoff. House of Dracula, though, starts off weird - no explanation why Drac's back and it's like the previous film didn't exist. Though, there's some interesting body horror ideas (still hilarious how they seemed dead set on stuff with blood transfusions like a cartoon for the last few films, even if The Ghost of Frankenstein clearly shows what happens if you don't match blood types). Alright, House on Haunted Hill and Night of the Living Dead tomorrow, then finishing off Halloween night with some short films. Egbert Souse fucked around with this message at 17:51 on Oct 30, 2019 |
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Oct 30, 2019 17:42
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Oct 30, 2019: 53. Night of the Living Dead (1968, George A. Romero) Criterion Blu-ray One of the most iconic horror movies, but still remains fresh. Despite being made by people who had never made a real narrative feature before and with only the slimmest resources, the rawness actually make it what it is. Relentless, nihilistic, and nightmarish. 4.5/5 Oct 31, 2019:   54. The Haunted Strangler (1958, Robert Day) 55. Corridors of Blood (1958, Robert Day) Criterion Channel Decided to finish up with two "madmen" films starring Boris Karloff, made in England. The Haunted Strangler has a hell of a twist, then it goes into some bizarre directions. Karloff is great in this, doing some amazing work just with his face and body. Kind of reminded me of the weird noir So Dark the Night. Corridors of Blood is a better film and sort of a horror take on similar themes Preston Sturges covered in his sole non-comedy The Great Moment. Except it's about addiction and aging. There's also a few scenes where Karloff shares the screen with Christopher Lee (who has the best character name I've seen in a while - Resurrection Jim). 3/5, 3.5/5 And that's it until next here. Here's a recap of this season... The Tingler - rewatch 13 Ghosts The Phantom of the Opera (1925) - rewatch Homicidal Mr. Sardonicus Sisters Dressed to Kill The Old Dark House (1963) Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story (plus ZOTZ! and The Candy Web) The Last Warning Night of the Demon (1958) Fiend Without a Face Dead of Night The Tomb of Ligiea The Ghost of Sierra de Cobre The Mask (1961) The Maze (1953) The Bird with the Crystal Plumage Viy The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945) - rewatch Dr. Phibes Rises Again Kiki's Delivery Service 10 Rillington Place Psychos in Love Blood Feast The Addiction Innocent Blood The Last Man on Earth Shutter Island [didn't count since it's not really horror] Herschell Gordon Lewis: Godfather of Gore Body Snatchers A Bucket of Blood The Thing from Another World - rewatch Haxan - rewatch Color Me Blood Red Two Thousand Maniacs! Night of the Living Dead The Haunted Strangler Corridors of Blood and also made it through most of the main classic Universal monsters films... Dracula (1931) - rewatch Frankenstein (1931) - rewatch The Mummy (1932) - rewatch The Invisible Man (1933) - rewatch The Bride of Frankenstein (1935) - rewatch Dracula's Daughter - rewatch Son of Frankenstein - rewatch The Invisible Man Returns The Mummy's Hand The Wolf Man - rewatch The Ghost of Frankenstein - rewatch The Mummy's Tomb Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man - rewatch Son of Dracula - rewatch The Invisible Man's Revenge The Mummy's Ghost The Mummy's Curse House of Frankenstein - rewatch House of Dracula - rewatch (Omitted: Werewolf of London, The Invisible Woman, Invisible Agent, Phantom of the Opera '43, She-Wolf of London, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Revenge of the Creature, and The Creature Walks Among Us - planning to watch the Creature trilogy as part of a franchise catchup before the year is out) Managed to watch 30 Blu-rays I had been sitting on plus most of the Universal big box, plus seven Criterion Channel films. Was hoping more non-English titles (only Kiki's Delivery Service, Haxan, and Viy) and at least one theatrical, but that's how it goes.
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Nov 1, 2019 05:37
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