Author Archives: Jon Kitley

Clive Revill – Rest in Peace

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Actor Clive Revill has passed away earlier this month, at the age of 94. While he has appeared in a few horror films in his long career, such as The Headless Ghost (1959), Bunny Lake is Missing (1965), and even C.H.U.D. II: Bud the Chud (1989), he did appear in a film that think is one of the greatest haunted house movies ever made. While it doesn’t top Robert Wise’s The Haunting (1963), John Hough’s 1973 film The Legend of Hell House, based on the novel from Richard Matheson, comes damn close. Revill played the condescending Dr. Barrett, so sure of himself that he doesn’t even entertain any notion or idea that disagrees with his theories. Working alongside Roddy McDowall and Pamela Franklin, they create such tension between their characters, even though they all have the same goal. But it is their performances that make the film so special. And Revill was very much a part of that.

Our thoughts go out to his friends and family during this difficult time. But I know that, like the ghosts wandering around the Belasco House, he will live on in his wonderful performances that he left us. In Hell House, as well as the countless others in his 200 appearances. Rest in Peace.

New Critters Book Now Out!

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The Krites have escaped! Harker Press, who has released an amazing array of books on some of our favorite movies, now have a brand new one! It’s called We’re Here for the Krites: The Making of Critters, by Matthew DuPée. I can remember seeing Critters at our local drive-in, after reading about it in the pages of Fangoria and was very excited about it. Absolutely loved it. A great mixture of humor and horror, which as we all know, is not easy to do. And believe it or not, Critters 2: The Main Course was pretty entertaining too! So, I’m very excited to dig into this latest volume from Harker Press which I’m sure is going to make me want to revisit these films.

This book will have “new insights and rare photos” from the Critters franchise, including interviews with over 40 people involved, as well as over a hundred of rare photos from the series. You’ll learn about the creation process in creating these little eating machines, learning about alternate and deleted scenes, set design, and prop fabrications. There are call sheets, film schedules, and premiere invites, as well as reading about some “harrowing stories of on-set mishaps and follies!”

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Mystery Photo 3-24

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A little late in the day, but it’s still Monday so it still counts! Didn’t get back from HorrorHound Weekend until the wee hours of the morning, so running on a very little energy right now! But I did have a great time and got to talk about horror movies with a lot of people, so that is always a good thing! But let’s get to business! Last week’s photo was from the very strange film called The Driver’s Seat aka Identikit from 1974, starring Elizabeth Taylor, in probably one of the strangest roles she’s ever had! Only got one correct answer and that was from Erik Martin! Well done, Erik!

This week’s photo might be a head scratcher, but don’t ponder too long or you just may look like the guy in the photo! Just remember to send your guess to me in an email, to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. And most of all, Good Luck!

DtH Episode 92 – H.P. Lovecraft Movies

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Die, Monster, Die! (1965), Necronomicon (1993), and Gods of the Deep (2023)

While Stephen King may reign supreme when it comes to movies based on his work, good or bad, one would think that with the impact that the words of H.P. Lovecraft has had on the literary world, that filmmakers would be jumping at the chance to bring his horrors to the screen. But while there are a quite a few films, not as many as you’d expect. Could it be that since Lovecraft wrote not in details of what his characters witnessed in his stories, but what it did to them, usually driving them into some kind of madness. But yet, that was the beauty of his work.

In this episode we tackle three very different films, from three different decades, almost three decades apart from each other, all based on the works of this strange author from Providence, Rhoade Island. If not you’re not too familiar with the works of Lovecraft, then here is your chance to watch three adaptations, loose as they may or may not be, but at least will give you a slight peek into his demented stories.

Films Mentioned in this Episode:

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Book Review: The Cinema Coven

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The Cinema Coven: Witches, Witchcraft and Women’s Filmmaking
Published by McFarland, 2024. 208 pages
By Alexandra Heller-Nicholas

Do we need another book on female filmmakers? Honestly, yes, we do. It goes back to my thoughts when I saw The Substance (2024) in the theater last year. Did we need another movie showing us how shitty women are treated in the film industry? Then you realize it is still going on, and that we obviously still haven’t learned enough, so that message must continue on.

So yes, we definitely need another book on women filmmakers!

As a life-long cinephile, at any point when we can learn more about a sub-genre, or subject, that we might not be familiar with, it just opens doors. It opens up more titles that we might not have heard about. It opens up more filmmakers that we might not have known. Or we knew their work, but not who it came from, or who made it. It also opens up, and this is probably the most important part, a new or different way of thinking about and looking at a specific story or subject that might have been lost on us. The beauty of any art form is being able to see something different once we’ve learned more about it. It’s inevitable. And it is one of the things I just love about cinema and more importantly, reading about it.

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Mystery Photo 3-17

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Sitting here in Chicagoland, having the temps hit way over 70 degrees on Friday, but as I look out my window now to see it snowing. Gotta love the Midwest, where we can get all 4 seasons inside of a few days! Anyway, back to why we are here. Our photo from last week was from the 2021 film She Will, starring the incredibly talented Alice Krige, giving yet again, a very powerful performance. Kudos to the two of you that sent in the correct photo: Hoby Abernathy and Erik Martin. Well done!

Our photo from this week is strange one, and that’s all I’m going to say. Take a peek below and see if you can identify where this shot is from. It might be a tough one, so think hard! Just remember to send your answer to me in an email, to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. And most of all, Good Luck!

Grindhouse Releasing Goes into The Beyond 4K!

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“Woe be unto him who opens one of the seven gateways to Hell,
because through that gateway, evil will invade the world.”

It looks like Grindhouse Releasing will be opening that gateway once again, with their new special edition of Lucio Fulci’s The Beyond (1981). And this looks to be one amazing release that all Fulci fans are going to want to have.

This new “Super-Deluxe” collector’s edition will come with 6 discs: 1 UHD, 3 Blu-Rays, 1 DVD, and 1 CD. The UHD is from a new 4K scan from the original Techniscope camera negative. Besides that, there will be The Beyond: The Composer’s Cut, featuring a new 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio Surround sound remix and an all-new reimagined score created by original composer Fabio Frizzi, mixed Jussi Tegelman.

This will have 3 different audio commentaries, 1 from cinematographer Sergio Salvati, 1 from makeup artist Giannetto De Rossi, and then 1 from actors David Warbeck and Catriona MacColl. Some of these have already left us, so it is so great to be able to keep their memories of working on the film alive.

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Movie Review: Monster from the Ocean Floor

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(1954)
Directed by Wyott Ordung
Starring Anne Kimbell, Stuart Wade, Dick Pinner, Wyott Ordung, Inez Palange,
Jonathan Haze, David Garcia, Roger Corman

While this isn’t directed by Roger Corman, it is his first film as sole producer, and it was really a sign of things to come. While a lot of Corman’s earlier work might have involved cheesy monsters here and there, they were still entertaining. Watching them now, it gives me that nostalgic feeling of watching these as a kid, catching them on TV some Saturday afternoon. But watching them now, as an adult and a life-long student of movies, while I still get that same feeling as a kid, it also makes me appreciate the people involved a lot more. And Monster is a perfect example of that.

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Classic Monsters Modern Art Book

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Anthony Taylor, a celebrated writer whose work has appeared in Famous Monsters of Filmland, Fangoria, Screem, HorrorHound, Filmfax, and several books on a variety of genre subjects, as well as being the organizer of Atlanta’s Monsterama retro horror and sci-fi convention, now has a new book coming out. It is called Classic Monsters Modern Art: 20th Century Horror in 21st Century Illustrations, coming this September from Insight Editions.

According to the description, the book explores “the groundbreaking (and terrifying) pantheon of monsters from the 20th century’s greatest films and fiction interpreted by the world’s most exciting contemporary artists and illustrators in Classic Monsters, Modern Art!” With over 65 artists, taking on subjects like Frankenstein’s creature, Count Dracula, Elvira, Godzilla, King Kong, to more modern-day monsters like Freddy Kruger, this book will feature some amazing artwork of our favorite monsters, in full color, with Taylor giving us all the info needed about them!

Priced at $39.99, these 160 pages will be something you will find yourself paging through over and over, looking at the amazing work that went into each and every illustration. Definitely one for the library!

HorrorHound Next Weekend!

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That’s right, kiddies! Next weekend we will be heading to Cincinnati for our first show of 2025, and it feels like forever since we’ve been able to hang out with so many other like-minded deviants! They have a damn good guest lineup with some horror royalty appearing, such as the one and only Barbara Steele, star of classics like Mario Bava’s Black Sunday (1960), Roger Corman’s The Pit and the Pendulum (1961), David Cronenberg’s Shivers (1975), Joe Dante’s Piranha (1978), and so many more. Also attending is Linda Blair, a reunion from Evil Dead (2013) with Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, and Lou Taylor Pucci, Christina Lindberg from Thriller: A Cruel Picture aka They Call Her One Eye (1973), 11 guests from the Terrifier films, Henry Winkler, and many more. You can find all the latest and full guest lineup by clicking HERE.

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