Greasepaint and Gore (2004)
Directed by Russell Wall
Tom Savini. Rick Baker. Rob Bottin. Steve Johnson. All of these names are pretty well known to most horror fans. What about Phil Leakey and Roy Ashton? I’m sure you’re familiar with the films put out by Hammer Studios throughout the 50’s to the 70’s, right? If so, then even if you might not know their names, you know the work of Leakey and Ashton. Continue reading
Viy (1967)
Directed by Konstanitin Ershov & Georgiy Kropachyov
Starring Leonid Kuravlyov, Natalya Varley, Aleksei Glazyrin, Vadim Zahkarchenko, Nikolai Jutuzov.
There are films in out there that are extremely important in our horror history, ones that make such an impact that they can change the genre itself. George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead (1968) or Mario Bava’s Black Sunday (1960) are two examples that can create a whole new sub-genre of films and/or inspire new generations of filmmakers from that point on. Continue reading
New York Ripper (1982)
Directed by Lucio Fulci
Starring Jack Hedley, Almanta Suska, Howard Ross, Andrea Occhipinti, Alexandra Delli Colli, Paolo Malco, Barbara Cupisti, Zora Kerova, Daniela Doria
Back in my early days, when searching out the video store shelves looking for the latest and greatest gore film, it didn’t take long to become familiar with Lucio Fulci. Starting with Zombie, which was always pretty accessible, you’d move to unknowingly cut versions of Gates of Hell (1980) and House by the Cemetery (1981), but still were damn happy to find them. Then you came across New York Ripper. This wasn’t any zombie chomping into their victim, no supernatural elements here but a sick and twisted serial killer that quacked like a duck!?!?! W-T-F? But at that time, who cared if it was crazy or just plain weird, Fulci delivered the goods with plenty of gore and exposed flesh. Continue reading
Shrew’s Nest aka Musarañas (2014)
Directed by Juanfer Andrés & Esteban Roel
Starring Macarena Gómez, Nadia de Santiago, Hugo Silva, Luis Tosar, Gracia Olayo, Carolina Bang
Okay first of all, why the hell aren’t more people talking about this movie??? Maybe because it came out five years ago and it still hasn’t gotten a DVD or Blu-ray release over here in the states? I finally found it on Shudder, and then quickly ordered an import Blu-ray. Yes, that is how much I liked it. I’m pretty sure this is going to be in my Top Ten for this year’s viewing too. Okay, okay, I’ll try not to hype it up any more. Let me say that I am a huge fan of Macarena Gómez so that could possibly be swaying my feelings towards this movie, but I really think this can totally stand on its own. Don’t worry, I won’t be giving any spoilers away here, and you really don’t want to know much about this before watching it. Which now that I write that, it might be a little tough reviewing this…
Seeding of a Ghost (1983)
Directed by Yang Chuan
Starring Man Biu Baak, Jaime Mei Chun Chik, Norman Chu, San Nam Hung, Maria Jo, Philip Ko, Sha-fei Ouyang, Mat Tin
Back in the late 90’s, Hong Kong films started to make their way into the American cult market, while it would be a few more years before Hollywood took notice of the likes of Jackie Chan and John Woo. At that time, while I was diving head first into the action stuff, I was also discovering the horror flicks coming from there as well. Just like they did with their action titles, some of their horror titles were like nothing we’d seen here in the states. For those who might not be familiar with Hong Kong horror, some may be more fantasy based, and even had some strange humor about, there were more than a few titles that you better have a strong stomach! When you get to hear about a sub-sub-genre of films referred simply as “bug-barfing movies”, you kind of know what you’re getting into.
The Sadist (1963)
Directed by James Landis
Starring Arch Hall Jr., Richard Alden, Marilyn Manning, Don Russell, Helen Hovey
One of the things that always set low budget filmmakers apart from the big studios is that they were always willing to take risks and tackle subjects the bigwigs wouldn’t touch. In 1958, Charles Starkweather went on a killing spree, taking his 15-year-old girlfriend Caril Fugate along for the fun. When it was over, they had murdered 11 people, including Fugate’s own 2-year-old step-sister. At that time, Hollywood wouldn’t dare touch a subject like this one. It wouldn’t be until 1973, when Terrence Malick would direct the film Badlands. But in 1963, only after 5 years since those tragic crimes, James Landis wrote and directed a film inspired by this murderous rampage. The film was called The Sadist.
The Ruins (2008)
Directed by Carter Smith
Starring Jonathan Tucker, Jena Malone, Laura Ramsey, Shawn Ashmore, Joe Anderson
When this movie first came out, just by watching the trailer, it didn’t do much for me, other than to make me think it was another lackluster attempt from Hollywood at making a cheap horror movie. So I never bothered with it while it was at the theater. But by the time it hit DVD, I had already been hearing that it was actually pretty good. So against our better judgement, we took that journey to The Ruins. And now I regret not seeing it in the theater, even better with a packed house. Continue reading
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939)
Directed by William Dieterl
Starring Charles Laughton, Cedric Hardwicke, Thomas Mitchell, Maureen O’Hara, Edmond O’Brien, Alan Marshal, Walter Hampden, Harry Davenport
It’s amazing how a movie can change over the years. Or does it? As the saying goes, a movie never changes, but the viewer does. The more movies that we watch, the more we learn about films. And the more we learn, the more we learn to appreciate them. So watching something at an older age, compared to watching something younger, can result in quite a different of effect, and opinion. This film is proof of that theory.
Rogue (2007)
Directed by Greg McLean
Starring Radha Mitchell, Michael Vartan, Sam Worthington, Caroline Brazier, Stephen Curry, Celia Ireland, John Jarratt
Ever since Jaws, I’m not too fond of movies where there is some underwater beast making meals out of people. It is the one sub-genre that can still under my skin. I don’t completely avoid them, but I’m usually not in a hurry to run out and watch them. But I made an exception for Greg McLean’s Rogue when it first came out over here in the states. This film is about a very large crocodile that doesn’t like the fact that a boat tour has come into its territory and decides to make sure they don’t leave.
The Unnamable (1988)
Director Jean-Paul Ouellette
Starring Mark Kinsey Stephenson, Charles Klausmeyer, Alexandra Durrell, Laura Albert, Eben Ham, Blane Wheatley, Mark Parra, Delbert Spain, Katrin Alexandre
The first feature films to be based on the works of H.P. Lovecraft (at least officially credited to him) started in the ’60s with Roger Corman’s The Haunted Palace (1963), based on the story “The Case of Charles Dexter Ward” (even though they billed it as a Edgar Allan Poe movie!). Then we had Die Monster Die! (1965), The Shuttered Room (1967), and The Dunwich Horror (1970). We did see some adaptations in different series like The Night Gallery, but for the most part, it never really brought a lot of attention to the author and his work. Then in the mid ’80s, there was a slight resurgence of his work, starting with Stuart Gordon’s Re-Animator (1985), followed by From Beyond (1986), each based on stories of the same name. Granted, these versions were probably a little more intense than what the author intended, it still got the ball rolling and brought attention to Lovecraft’s name and his work. The following year we got David Keith’s The Curse, based on the story “The Colour Out of Space”, and soon more were to follow.
kitleyskrypt.com 