Author Archives: Jon Kitley

Mystery Photo 9-30

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Our last photo before Halloween season, so what better way to get an early start with something that at least looks a little creepy, right? But wait . . . let’s review last week’s photo first. It was from Apostle (2018), which has one of the hardest to watch sequences, not because of the gore, but because of we don’t see and the story, and to think things like this happened in our history. Sad really. But it is a very powerful film, if you haven’t seen it. Congrats to Hoby Abernathy, Aaron AuBuchon, Aaron Christensen, and Chris Dyer for sending in the correct answer.

Now on to this week’s photo. A little older title, and nowhere near as gory, but still a fun romp with some creepy little elements. Take a peek and then send your guess to me in an email, to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

Night of Fun and Horror at the Midway Drive-In

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This last Saturday, we were at the Midway Drive-in, located in Dixon, IL, for their From Dusk-To-Dawn show, where they screened Wes Craven’s A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) from a 35mm print, then Don Coscarelli’s Phantasm (1979), Joe Dante’s Piranha (1978), and then ending the night (or morning) with Terror Train (1980). We’ve been coming to the Midway for well more than a decade, seeing so many incredible films there on their huge 90ft. screen. And yesterday was no different.

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Mystery Photo 9-23

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Now that we’re official in the fall season, and it seems the temps are finally dropping (after hitting 92 degrees on Saturday!), making it even easier to enjoy the Halloween season! Make sure you make the most of it, while you can! But before we start planning on that fun, let’s get down to a little business. Our photo from last week was from Creepshow 2 (1987). Sure, it might not be as good as the first, but it is still a fun little movie. This shot was from “The Raft” segment, which was based on one of my favorite Stephen King short stories. Congrats to the following for sending in the correct answer: Hoby Abernathy, Steve Archacki, Dada Debaser, Steve Kennedy, Tim Palace, Michael Pniewski, William Wilson, and Neil Wright. Well done!

For this week, I’m not asking you to dig inside your brain, much like in the photo, but see if you can ponder it a bit and see if you can recognize where this photo is from. Just remember to send your answer to me in an email, to jon@kitleykrypt.com. Good Luck!

DtH Episode 79 -Gordon, Yuzna & Paoli

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Re-Animator (1985), From Beyond (1986), and Dagon (2001)

Bringing the works of Howard Phillips Lovecraft to the screen is not an easy task. Much of the horrors Lovecraft talked about wasn’t described or explained too much, leaving it up to the reader. But when director Stuart Gordon, producer Brian Yuzna, and writer Dennis Paoli got together to adapt Lovecraft’s 1922 story “Herbert West – Re-Animator” for a movie, they changed cinema forever. Not only did they show us more than Lovecraft would ever dream of, they created a perfect blend of outrageous horror, gore, and bizarre imagery that would immediately put them in the horror history books.

The following year, they took another short story, “From Beyond”, first published in 1934, and showed even more strange, bizarre, and gooey things we’d seen before, going beyond then what the short story told us.

Then 15 years later, these three deranged creators returned to Lovecraft to take us to a fishing village filled with very unusual citizens, in 2001’s Dagon.

While Gordon’s filmography might not be filled with classic after classic, when he hit a home run, usually when he’s working with Yuzna and Paoli, they knock the cover off the ball.

Films mentioned in this episode:

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Super-Horror-Rama Celebrates William Castle

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Continuing their film series at the Sideshow Gelato, next month they will be celebrating one of the best movie showmen ever to direct a film, William Castle. They will be screening 3 of his features on Wednesdays in October, all programmed by Matt Carr of the Music Box Theatre. Sideshow Gelato is located at 4819 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL 60625.

Oct. 2nd – House on Haunted Hill (1959) – presented in EMERGO!
Oct. 16th – Mr. Sardonicus (1961) – Presented with The Punishment Poll
Oct. 23rd – The Tingler (1959) – Presented in PERCEPTO

There are only 40 seats per show, so get there early! From 6pm to 7pm, there is a Social Hour with a Live DJ. Then at 7pm, there is a short feature and giveaways, then followed by a video intro by Drive-in Asylum, with the feature starting at 7:30pm.

For all the latest info, head over to Super-Horror-Rama’s Facebook page HERE.

Naschy in 3D!!!

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I know, you’re probably amazed that it has taken me this long to post something about this amazing news. But it’s here at last. Over the weekend, Kino Lober had announced that they would be releasing Paul Naschy’s debut Waldemar Daninsky film, Frankenstein’s Bloody Terror (1968) not only a 4K scan of the 35mm composite internegative, but there apparently it will be in 3D! Now there is no details on if there will be 2 separate versions on the release or what, but I would guess that is what they will do.

For those that don’t know the whole story, this film was originally made and released in 1968, under the title La marca del Hombre Lobo, and it was filmed in 3D. Here in the states, producer Sam Sherman needed a Frankenstein picture to fulfill a contract he had, so he acquired this Naschy film, created an animated prologue that told the story of a Wolf-Stein, and called it Frankenstein’s Bloody Terror. Therefore, it could fit in with a Frankenstein release that he had promised. Even though it had 2 vampires, and 2 werewolves, but not 1 Frankenstein creature! But no matter what, it did bring Naschy here to the states. And while Sherman wanted to release it in the 3D format, it was just too costly to try and make it work, so they pulled the 3D print after a few screenings and just distributed the “flat” version.

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Mystery Photo 9-16

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A little late posting this today, mainly because we were in Cincinnati for the HorrorHound Weekend convention and got back a little late last night. Great to see our usual customers and the new ones we met. And a special thanks to all of those that picked up a copy of my book! But let’s get down to business, right? Last week’s photo was from The Bad Seed (1956) and boy what a shot, huh? If you haven’t seen the film, I highly urge you to. While Patty McCormick is amazing as little Rhonda, I need to give a shout out to Henry Jones as the handyman Leroy. The look on his face when he realizes what is going on . . . just incredible acting job there. Congrats to the following for sending in the correct answer: Gregory Avery, Christopher Dyer, Dave Friedman, Dave Fronto, Kevin Hart, Bob Hartman, Christopher Highland, Doug Lamoreux, Lee Nattrass, and Jennifer Pike-Cruz. Well done!

Okay, this one might be pretty easy, or maybe just an obscure enough shot where it won’t come to mind. We’ll just have to wait and see. So, take a peek and see what you can come up with. Just remember, send your guess to me in an email, to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

Soundtrack Review: Night of the Devils

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Night of the Devils
Released by Digitmovies, 2004
24 Tracks with a Total Running Time of 45 min.
Music Composed and Conducted by Giorgio Gaslini

Haunting is the main word that comes to mind when I listen to this score. From the very first track, Sdenka’s Theme – Main Title, the woman’s vocals immediately work their way into your psyche, giving you a feeling of calmness, peace, and just a relaxing melody. It does have a feel of some giallo films, how they are not always overly mysterious or tension building.

But when you get to the second track, Terrible Echoes, that is when the calmness stops, and the tension begins. When you get to the third track, the harpsicord comes in and does something I’m not used to. Usually, the instrument is loud and boisterous, but here it is played softly and just adds to the mystery. When you get to track 10, Voices in the Wood, it’s like a soundtrack from a nightmare!

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Music Box of Horrors: The Dream Child

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The Music Box Theatre in Chicago continues to show their support for the horror genre, each and every year. They still have their 24-hour marathon, taking place this year on Oct. 19th, which I hear is already sold out and they haven’t even finishing announcing the complete lineup!?!?! But they are once again celebrating the entire month of October with some amazing screenings. For the complete and updated list, just click HERE. But I wanted to highlight a few titles here.

On Oct. 1st, they are screening Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), celebrating its 50th anniversary. Now I know most horror fans have seen this film, mostly likely multiple times. But if you haven’t seen . . . I mean experienced this film on the big screen, then you haven’t really seen it. Sure, that may sound a little pompous, but seeing this on the huge screen in front of you just amplifies the terror coming off the screen. Especially once you get to the dinner sequence and going on from there. It came be understated how effective this movie can still be a half century later. I urge you to take this opportunity to see it the way it was meant to be seen and heard.

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Mystery Photo 9-9

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Another week done; another week closer to Halloween! Then again, we all know that the Halloween season is just when most of us appear normal, or at least the same as the regular folks. And that really, we celebrate the Halloween season all year round! For me, I’m honestly more excited about the cooler weather coming on! Yes, I am not a fan of summer, with the blazing sun and extreme heat. Sorry, but I’ll take 50-degree weather all the time! But you didn’t come here to hear that, did you! Our last photo was from Hammer Films, under the original title of Fanatic, but also known as Die! Die! My Darling (1965). It always amazes me on how the color palette in this film is close to something like Bava would have done. Just incredible. And of course, nobody is scarier than Tallulah Bankhead! Congrats to the following for sending in the correct answer: Hoby Abernathy, Steve Archacki, Kevin Hart, Christopher Highland, Troy Howarth, Jeff Owens, and Mike Shields. Well done!

Now on to this week’s photo. This one does not have the same color scheme, but it still a great film! Take a look and see what you think. Just remember to send me your answer in an email to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!