Author Archives: Jon Kitley

Discover the Horror Podcast – Episode 51: Universal Mummies

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The Mummy (1932), The Mummy’s Hand (1940), The Mummy’s Tomb (1942), The Mummy’s Ghost (1944), and The Mummy’s Curse (1944).

In this episode, we go back the Universal Classics and take on one of the most unusual of the classic monsters, the Mummy. It’s probably one of the best costumes and memorable character, but never seems to reach the same level of notoriety as his fellow monsters. But strangely enough, it is the one Universal monster to have more films devoted to his character alone, without going into the Monster Rally films where they had more than one monster in the picture.

Here we dig up some facts as well as our own thoughts on the original 1932 film starring the one and only Boris Karloff, as well as the 4 other Mummy films that came out almost a decade later, but with much smaller budgets. These sequels started with a different mummy character and had a continuing storyline between the 4 films, or at least tried.

Films mentioned in this episode:

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Giant Gila Monster & Killer Shrews

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There are a lot of films that were made in the ‘50s & early ‘60s, specifically made for the market of that time, aimed at the teenage market, that us fans today had discovered in our youth from late night screenings on TV, or maybe hitting the video store aisles in the ‘80s. Unfortunately, we tended to put them on the same level of critiquing as we would a brand-new movie, without considering the time they were made, or especially their budget.

While some would say that a film should stand on its own merits, no matter what went into it, when it was made, how much it cost, which I do agree with to a degree. But it comes down to those elements that make the film what it is, and to know more about that, such as the budget or when it was made, might not make the film better, but it does let you see it differently.

These two films are a perfect example of that.

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Mystery Photo 9-4

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Welcome to not being Summer anymore! Sure, it’s not official fall yet, but we all know that once August is over, it is definitely Halloween season! The time us horror fans seem almost normal for a couple of months! So, let’s get started! Our photo from last week was a tricky one, I don’t believe it had gotten any sort of video or DVD release over here in the states. The title is Orlak, el infierno de Frankenstein (1960), but was also known simply as The Hell of Frankenstein. It’s one of those many horror films from Mexico made in the late ’50s and early ’60s, that are more than worth checking out. Maybe we’ll see it in the next Mexican Horrors box set??? Kudos to the following for sending in the correct answer: Hoby Abernathy, Jason Lane, Erik Martin, and Alan Tromp. Well done!

Now on to this week’s photo, which might be pretty easy, or not. But there is a reason for this particular film. Take a peek and see what you can come up with. Just remember to send in your guess to me in an email to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

Super Horror Rama at Facets!

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House of Movie Monsters is having a 3-day event at Facets in Chicago, on October 13th-15th, with vendors and movies screening all 3 days! If we weren’t going to be at Monster Bash in PA that weekend, we definitely would be there for all 3 days, so we are very bummed about that. But even though we can’t be there, we wanted to help get the word out because horror fans need to help promote each other!

Here’s is what is playing:

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Black Mold Trailer

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I think it was back in the mid to late 2000s when I first met John Pata, who had recently made a short film called Better Off Undead (2007). Even after I told him that I usually didn’t like low budget films, he wanted me to see his anyway, which I actually ended up really enjoying. And we’ve been friends ever since. In fact, Mr. Pata was the guy who laid out my book, Discover the Horror. But he’s also continued on as a filmmaker, co-directing the 2012 film Dead Weight, an intense short film called Pity (2014), but has now completed his first feature film as a stand-alone director for the film Black Mold. Pata also wrote and edited the film as well.

Years ago, Pata owned and operated his own printing shop and business was good, but he that wasn’t what he wanted to do with his life. I remember a few conversations with him saying that he’s got a good gig now, one that many people his age (at the time) would love to have. But he wanted to get into film and didn’t take my advice. And I’m so glad he didn’t.

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Fun at the Skyline Drive-In

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This last Saturday, we ventured back to the Indianapolis area, twice in the last two weeks, for this year’s Super Monster Movie Fest at the Skyline Drive-In in Shelbyville, IN. Normally, we are there for both nights of fun, but due to some work issues, we couldn’t make it for the Friday night screenings, but did come out for Saturday. We got to see The Invisible Man (1933), John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982), 30 Days of Night (2007), Dead Snow (2009), and The Crawling Eye (1958).

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Mystery Photo 8-28

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Here it is, our last photo for the Summer. How time flies when you’re sweating your butt off! But now that it is almost over, that means Halloween is just around the corner. Well, at least for everyone else because we all know that every day is Halloween!!!

Our photo from last week was from The Blood Drinkers (1964), also released as The Vampire People, from our good friends at Hemisphere Pictures. Kudos out to Bob Hartman, Ken Johnson, Erik Martin, and Alan Tromp for sending in the correct answer. Well done!

Now on to this week’s photo. Might be a little tougher, but I think if you’ve seen this image before, you might remember it! Just remember to send your guess to me in an email, to jon@kitleyskrypt.com. Good Luck!

Arrow Unleashes Coffin Joe Box Set

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The number of box sets that are coming out lately, specializing on specific filmmakers is nothing short of amazing these days. And now, Arrow has announced Inside the Mind of Coffin Joe, a 6-disc set, featuring 10 films from this strange and bizarre filmmaker, that includes a TON of extras, as well as 4K restorations for all of the films! See below for all the details and then head over to our buddies at Diabolik DVD and pre-order your copy now! It is due out at the end of November.

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New Film from Terrified Director

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In February of 2022, I watched a film that blew me away so much, that I ended up watching 3 times within a couple of weeks. I first saw it on streaming service, then ordered the Blu-ray, watched it again when I got it, and then watched it a third time with my wife to see if she liked it as much as I did. That film was Terrified that came out in 2017. I was so impressed with it that it made my Best Viewings list for last year. It has been a very long time for a film to creep me out as much as this one did. And it was pretty damn original, and never even bothered with explaining what the hell was going on! Just loved it.

The writer / director is a guy named Demián Rugna and the news of his latest film, When Evil Lurks, is coming out this October. It will be in theaters starting October 6th, but then will be available for streaming on Shudder on October 27th. According to IMDB, the film is about “two brothers find a demon-infected man just about to give birth to evil itself. They decide to get rid of the man but merely succeed in helping him to deliver the inferno.”

I think one of the key things about Rugna that might be really helping him to be able to create these highly effective films, is working with Shudder. According to Rugna, “Working with Shudder has been an incredible and seamless experience. They allowed me the creative space to direct freely with the same goal in mind – identify new ways to shock and scare audiences with an innovative approach and a fresh story.”

I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to this!