Day 31: The Gate 2

The Gate was a special effects/stop motion showcase that had some really impressive sequences. The Gate 2 continues the legacy of great stop motion and special effects, but this time adds much more entertaining characters and dialogue. The results are a movie that's much easier to follow leading into a great finale.

5 years have passed since Terrence and his friend Glenn first opened the gate. Glenn and his family have moved away and Terrence's father has lost his job due to his alcoholism. Terrence now wishes to use the gate to grant wishes that will help his father get his life back. When performing the ritual though, he is interrupted by a group of delinquents. Interested in the ritual John, his girlfriend Liz, and Moe join in and each make their own wishes. The wishes seem to be granted at first, but all is not as it seems with the gate.

Louise Tripp returns to the role of Terrence Chandler. He does a fantastic job portraying the nerdy teen with a vast knowledge of demonology. The rest of the cast does a respectable job with their acting. It's really an entertaining script that helps their characters stand out. The film is full of entertaining  dialogue  and it's characters are just more developed and interesting than in the original.

The real reason anyone is going to give The Gate 2 a watch is for the special effects. It has a lot to live up to since its predecessor has some of the best stop motion animation I've ever seen. The Gate 2 doesn't disappoint. It doesn't really surprise either. As expected, the stop motion remains crisp and impressive here. There are also some great creature effects in the finale. However if I were to compare the sequel to it's predecessor I'd have to give the slight edge to the original in regards to it's animation. Where The Gate 2 makes improvement is in it's set pieces. The finale is nothing short of awesome in it's display of creature effects, stop motion, and set pieces.

The Gate 2 makes improvements in it's characters and plot.  It's final scenes, while impressive, fail to meet up the chaos of the original. The ending is much more coherent, but not more entertaining. But with it's improvements to story and dialogue, they pretty much break even. If you enjoyed the first one, I don't see any reason why you wouldn't like the sequel. This is a great sequel.

Body Count: 0

Side Note: The alcoholic dad sub plot is surprisingly dark. Seeing the dad coming home hammered at least had an effect on me. Happy Halloween!!

Day 30: The 13th Floor

The 13th Floor is an Australian production filmed in 1988 by Chris Roache. Roache was apparently fresh out of film school and shot this in 24 days. The production was troubled, and the film ultimately went straight to video. It's got intriguing cover art but so does every other movie from this era. And like those most of those films, The 13th Floor is mostly a bore.

The film follows a young girl who witnesses her father murder a young boy by electrocution. 12 years later, the girl runs away from her family to live in an abandoned office space with her two friends. The space is on the 13th floor of the building where her father murdered the young boy 12 years ago. Unknown to her and her friends, the ghost of the boy still haunts the floor. Learning of his daughter's runaway, her father sends hitmen on her trail to make sure she doesn't reveal any details of his crime.

As boring as the plot and overall movie is, there are some redeeming qualities. There is a good atmosphere during the very rare ghost scenes. Some of the kill scenes have some surprising makeup effects for aftermath gore. The acting is all around passable and the direction shows some promise for a first outing. The first hitman character even stands out with his over the top cursing and sadistic remarks.

These are all really brief flashes of promise though as the rest of the film is really just a drag to sit through. There are far too many scenes that have nothing to do with what this movie is really about, a ghost. By the end of the film the supernatural element feels like an afterthought. Isn't that what we paid to see?

Body Count:6

Side Note: Apparently this did really well in rental store in the UK. A silver sales award? The cover art is alright...but not THAT good.

Day 29: The Last Horror Film

Some people consider The Last Horror Film to be Maniac 2. This isn't true though. Maniac 2 was actually in production but couldn't be completed before Joe Spinell unfortunately passed away. You can actually see a scene made for Maniac 2 on The Last Horror Film's DVD extras. But we don't talk about DVD's here. It's an interesting assumption, since The Last Horror film is much more lighthearted than Maniac.

Joe Spinell plays a disturbed aspiring film director who is obsessed with actress Jana Bates (Could be a nod to Psycho). Jana is a scream queen with A-Lister popularity. Joe packs his bags and informs his mother that he is traveling to Cannes Film Festival in France. Upon arrival he embarks upon a mission to make a horror film starring Bates. Directors, Producers, and Agents all turn him down and begin mysteriously disappearing.

The Last Horror Film has decent gore. Nothing spectacular, but definitely enough to keep you satisfied. Scenes of films being screened at the festival are particularly great. There's a hilarious scene where Jana Bates has her face completely burned off. Judges at the festival are impressed with it and unanimously vote Bates for an award.

The plot is an interesting take on the slasher genre. Having the killer film all the murders (At fantastic, un-achievable angles in most cases) as he commits them is a unique touch for the time. There is even a decent plot twist that is completely unexpected. A lot of slasher films have you expecting a twist for the entire film, by the end you can usually figure it out. The best twists are executed when you don't expect it and that's whats done here.

Joe Spinell does an excellent job in the role he's pretty much typecasted as. A sweat covered Spinell always looks sleazy and creepy. He's perfectly suited for such a role. He does a great job lightening the character up a bit to fit the tone of the film. Fans of Spinell will be pleased with his work here and slightly different approach to a mentally disturbed character.

The Last Horror Film is a fun slasher film that is sure to please genre fans.  There's plenty of nudity, decent gore, quality performances (as good as you can ask for a movie like this), and tons of comedic moments. You can't outdo Maniac, so The Last Horror Film became self aware and added some funny moments. It's not too comedic though that it ruins the good atmospheric horror scenes.

Body Count:5

Side Note:  Vinny's( Joe Spinell) mother is played by Joe Spinell's actual mother. You can tell they're having a blast working with each other on camera. Their dialogue exchanges are some of the most comical parts of the film.

Day 28: Fade To Black

Fade To Black is a little slasher film that pays tribute to more films than you can shake a stick at. Not just horror films, but a healthy dosage of crime thrillers and dramas too. This film is literally packed full of posters, stock scenes, sound clips, and spoofed classic scenes. It's pretty fun comedy horror for fans of classic film.

Eric Binford is an outcast who is obsessed classic films. He deals with ridicule everywhere from home  to his job at a film distributers warehouse. He meets with a young woman named Marilyn, whom he notices has a striking resemblance to Marilyn Monroe. Believing her to actually be Monroe, he asks her on a date which she accepts. But when she unintentionally stands him up, Eric becomes an unstable homicidal maniac dressing as characters from classic films when preying on his victims.

The biggest knock that I have on Fade To Black is the extensive use of guns for death scenes. I'm always of the opinion that guns have no place in a killers hand in a slasher movie. It sort of fits here since Eric is obviously a big fan of old gangster films. I would have rather seen Eric dress as more classic horror villains for his kills. We only get two horror themed costumes throughout that make up the best parts of the film.

All the nods to various  classic films are sure to get a laugh from movie buffs. The obvious spoof of the Psycho shower scene is a standout. The acting isn't bad, but it's not fantastic either. The lead does a decent job until he does his over the top villain laugh. His laugh isn't so over the top that it's funny, it's pretty cringe worthy.

All in all, Fade To Black is an entertaining slasher film. Without much gore or many actual creepy moments it doesn't really separate itself from the pack. It's interesting concept and constant spoofing are what make it worth at least one watch.  Fans of classic film may enjoy it enough for a couple more viewings. Slightly above average.

Body Count:6

Side Note: Be on the lookout for a young Mickie Rourke as a bully coworker of Eric. He's seen Casablanca over 50 times.

Day 27: Alien Predators

It's kind of shocking to me that this film is as underappreciated by those who have seen it as it is. Let's take a look at the box: Fantastic cover, cool title, not so clever tag line. It's pretty obvious that you aren't going to get some sort of James Cameron masterpiece when you throw this tape in. Anyone with experience in the genre knows that these are usually signs of a bad movie. What are you trying to cover up? To my surprise however, Alien Predators is surprisingly good campy fun.

Two friends invite an attractive girl to come with them on their trip through Spain. There's a pretty comical love triangle brewing between them as the two lifelong buddies start to compete for her attention. Unbeknownst to them, an alien race that uses humans as a host has spread like an epidemic through a Spanish village. This village, of course, happens to be the next stop on our bizarre love triangle's (See what I did there?) journey.

The plot is about as basic as it gets. But what do you expect from a movie of this level? It's all been done before in better films, like Night Of The Creeps. While that film is definitely self aware, Alien Predators had to amp up the comedy even more since they probably didn't have the budget for a spectacle like Night of The Creeps. It all works out with the main characters constantly delivering cheesy one liners and a healthy dosage of slap stick.

There isn't too much gore to be seen here but when it's done it's done very well. Most of the effects are aftermath gore that is actually really good. My biggest knock on this movie is that you don't really see much of the actual aliens.  That's a pretty big knock since this movie is called "Alien Predators" and is a horror/comedy not exactly built for suspense. The ending scene is an absolute blast that gives you one of the best gore scenes in the whole film and a very clear look at the alien creature effects. So that kinda makes up for it.

Nobody that watches B Horror films on VHS should ever expect a clinic in filmmaking when they slip in a film like this. Understand what you're watching. Alien Predators is a campy B horror film that IS unfortunately a little short on the actual aliens. But while it doesn't make up for it, the film's wacky sense of humor make it easy to get through. It's a lot of fun and should be checked out by anyone who likes to laugh at these things.

Body Count: 4

Side Note: This movie is apparently to sequel to a film called "Mutant" which I also own. I hate watching things out of order but I didn't realize until I started the movie. I'll probably watch Mutant at some point before the month is over.

Day 26: Night Monster

It's pretty common practice in the film industry to tout the most well known actor in the film even if they don't have a major role. Bela Lugosi dominates the cover of this tape! But Lugosi fans should beware that his role in the film is not major. He plays the minor part of a butler who is all but forgotten by the end of the film. But of course Universal had to make it seem like Lugosi was the lead actor.

A wealthy paralyzed man invites 3 doctors who cared for him to his creepy mansion. There he reveals that he has been working with an Eastern mystic to learn new ways to cure his paralysis. Also arriving on the scene is a Psychiatrist summoned by his sister to prove her own sanity. As the night continues the doctors are murdered one by one and a dark secret slowly comes to light.

Apparently this film was mentioned by Alfred Hitchcock himself as having an important influence on his own work. It's not hard to see. The film is filled with suspense that carries through all the way to the closing minutes. The mystery of the killers identity isn't too hard to figure out or anything, but they add a few wrinkles that make you second guess it.

I've heard some high praise for the acting in this film. I can't say I really agree. I don't watch too many classic horror films often so I'm not sure if it's the style of the period or what. The characters in the film didn't sell me on the terror of being trapped in a creepy house with a murderer. No character seems to express any sort of fear what so ever until they are actually confronted by the killer. Quite the contrary, everybody seems to remain absolutely calm as they continue to discover more bodies. I'd think there would be all sorts of emotional chaos, but hey! I guess I've never been stuck in a house with a homicidal maniac before so what do I know?

Night Monster was a let down to me in multiple categories. While not exactly a terrible film, the final reveal didn't nearly measure up to the suspense. It's also always awful to see a talented actor like Bela Lugosi barely utilized at all. Such seems to be the case in many of his films and it's just mind blowing to me that DRACULA himself didn't get more lead roles in his time.

Body Count:5

Side Note: I'm assuming the Police Captain is a comic relief character? He is absolutely useless! His crime solving techniques could only be described as primitive at best. He's regularly made to look like an idiot.

Day 25: Night School

Night School follows the exploits of possibly one of the most bad ass slasher villains to ever grace the screen. A motorcycle riding, suicide diving, girl decapitating killer that the police call "The Headhunter". That's about as bad ass as it gets if you ask me. Unfortunately, an abundance of long dialogue stretches slows the momentum of the film until a decent plot twist resurrects it in the closing minutes.

Students of an all girl college are being found decapitated. All the girls seem to be connected to a college professor who is known for having affairs with his students. A detective struggles to put together the clues as the body count continues to grow. It all culminates in a car/motorcycle chase scene that leads to the capture of the killer. Or does it?

For a film which uses decapitation as it's primary kill there aren't many on screen decapitations. In fact, there are none! We see a couple of decapitated heads here and there but we never actually see the heads get severed. Each time the killer goes for the final slash we're treated to the dreaded cutaway. As huge fan of decapitations this was a major letdown for me personally. As you can probably guess from all this, there is very little gore at all in the film.

The characters in Night School are all pretty unlikable. The detective is kind of a dick, the professor  is definitely a dick, and his assistant is pretty boring for the majority of the film. Most of the victims have very little screen time before they're beheaded by our motorcycle helmet wearing badass of a killer. The film isn't effected at all by their deaths, they're literally all just more bodies for the detective to derive clues from.

Despite its lack of gore and long stretches of dialogue, Night School still doesn't come off as a complete waste of time. The twist at the end isn't too hard to figure out but it works. There are still some entertaining moments to be found in the relatively bloodless kills. And of course, there is "The Headhunter"! A representation of all things badass! Night School passes off as an average slasher film from an era flooded with slashers. Worth watching at least once for hardcore slasher geeks.

Body Count: 6

Side Note: Eleanor's shower has to have the heaviest water pressure of any shower on the planet. It sounds like a fucking typhoon.

Day 24: Ghoulies

Charles Band's Ghoulies was made in an attempt to cash in on the success of Gremlins, which was released the previous year. Surprisingly, the film bears little to no resemblance to it's inspiration. This is both a good and bad thing in this case. Nobody wants to see a complete ripoff but with a lower budget. Nobody really wants to a series of boring satanic rituals either.

Johnathon inherits an old mansion when he learns that his estranged father has died. Upon moving into the mansion John informs his girlfriend that he plans to quit school in order restore the old home. Johnathon begins acting strangely and begins performing black magic rituals out of instinct. His dead father is seemingly using Johnathon from beyond the grave to resurrect him.

The consensus states that Ghoulies is actually a horror comedy more than a straight forward horror film. I don't really see it. Most of the actors try to play their roles seriously. Sure the dialogue is cheesy and the actors aren't as talented as they probably believe. But there aren't any moments where the film seems self aware. It just mostly plays out as a bad horror film that's actually trying to be good.

Are you a fan of demon summoning and black magic rituals? If yes, this movie is probably for you. The pacing here is absolutely dreadful. We're given ritual after ritual after ritual for what seems like 3/4 of the movie. The only thing we're given to break up the monotony is a very short but entertaining party scene and an almost sex scene (That ends up being another damn ritual!!) Once the film actually gets going, its pretty good. It just takes what seems like an eternity of ritual scenes to get there.

The Ghoulies themselves don't have much to do for most of the movie. Once they do actually get some action, it's pretty straightforward killing. If Band was planning to cash in on Gremlins couldn't he have at least ripped off the wackiness of the Gremlins? The Ghoulies just kinda wander around awaiting orders from Johnathon. Sure, they look kinda stupid and funny but that doesn't compare to how off the wall the Gremlins are.

The final act of the film is where all the action is. I'm not entirely sure that it warrants an entire watch just to see these scenes. Sure they're good fun and all, but nothing that really separates from any other horror movie out there. If you're in the mood for a good Gremlins inspired small monster film, just stick with Critters.

Body Count:0?

Side Note: The giant Jack in The Box scenes are actually kinda creepy. One of the better things about this time waster. I'm a sucker for a good party scene and this movie has one. It's short, but the dancing is priceless.

Day 23: The Prey

"It's not human. And it has an axe!" How can you resist a tag line like that? I couldn't. I first stumbled upon this film on a bootleg dvd table at a horror convention. I ended up buying a Halloween 6:Producers Cut bootleg (Terrible decision, it's awful and now I own an official release on Bluray). But The Prey caught my eye and I've been on it's trail ever since. Now that I've seen it, it's not great. But not bad either. When you are disappointed by highly anticipated movies as often as I am, even something as sub par as this comes off as very satisfying.

A group of teenagers head to the woods for some camping fun. They're having a great time with their scary campfire stories, sex, and swimming. But unbeknownst to them, they're obviously be watched by something unseen in the woods. This mysterious figure begins killing off the teens one by one.

The Prey could have ended in approximately 45 minutes. The producers must have thought that they needed to fill some major space, since almost half of the movie is stock footage of wildlife. This is a common trademark of backwoods slasher movies, but it's unfortunate here since the actual movie is actually quite good (by genre standards). There are even parts where things are meaninglessly in slow motion. I'm honestly convinced that it was all just to stretch the movie out since there wasn't enough material to fill an hour and 20 minutes. Couldn't they have just added more disposable teen characters and filled time with their death scenes?

Speaking of death scenes, this film has a couple of goodies. Nothing is outstanding, but most of the kills are either gory enough or something a bit different from the norm. You don't see too many tripwire trap kills in these early 80's slashers. So you can only imagine my delight seeing a young lady get scooped up by a rope and have her face smashed by swinging into a tree. There is also a really impressive scene where a guy's throat is ripped wide open. I dig it!

The Prey has cool makeup effects, nice kills, an awesome horror score, some decent jump scares, and characters so dumb that you can't wait for them to die. It's just such a damn shame that you have to endure what I can only assume is a combined 35 minutes of stock footage to get through it all. I'd say it's worth it just to see it just once. There really is a lost gem hidden between all the snakes, bears, insects, and owls.

Body Count:8

Side Note: This is a spoiler. The producers must be extremely prejudiced against burn victims. So much so that they consider them not human anymore. Yeah, it's sort of a ripoff of The Burning. Damn tag lines...

Day 22: Anguish

Anguish is a movie within a movie (within a movie?).  It's an interesting idea that's been toyed with in some of other films (See Demons if you haven't already. It rips). But with a lot of cool ideas, sometimes the execution isn't all there. Such is the disappointing case of Anguish.

The film opens with scenes of a crazy mother figure played by Zelda Rubinstein (Poltergeist) hypnotizing her son(These scenes are dragged out for a painfully long duration) and having him commit murders for her. This goes on for approximately 20 minutes before we even realize that it's all just a movie being watched in a theater. The film is having an odd effect on some of the audience members watching. Suddenly a psychopath rambling about his mother begins murdering people in the theater.

One of the biggest disappointments I had with Anguish is how incredibly lame the real life killer is compared to the one in the movie. The killer in the movie is armed to the teeth with scalpels that he uses to mercilessly murder his victims before he proceeds to cut out their eyes! Awesome! Meanwhile, in the real world, our killer just goes around mumbling about his mother and shooting people. There is nothing lamer than a killer who only uses a gun in a horror film. Couldn't they have just given him a kitchen knife or something?

There are some plot elements that never get explained. The film that is being screened in the theater obviously has some sort of power over those who view it. But it's never explained how or why that happens. It's mentioned that the real life killer has seen the film several times. Is he under the influence of the movies power? There is definitely something supernatural about this damn movie! But they never explain it.

I've had the gore in this movie hyped to me before, which is initially why I was interested in viewing it. The gore is decent at best. Everything stays grounded and realistic but nothing truly impressive happens (aside from the infamous eye stab scene, which was really cool). There is some gore here but it's nothing for gore hounds to try and seek this movie out for.

I enjoyed Anguish and it's concept. There are some seriously brutal looking and creepy scenes. The acting for the most part is acceptable. There are a few cool shots that utilize the "movie within a movie" idea. Unfortunately I found myself really wanting to just watch the scalpel movie and not really caring what was happening in the theater. It's really a shame to see all the potential this movie had be squandered on needlessly.

Body Count:16

Side Note: I think a lot of people find Zelda Rubinstein's performance to be creepy here. I think her voice is incredibly annoying. The ending credits are pretty cool.

Day 21: The Attic

If I recall correctly, the most I ever spent on a single tape was for The Attic. Either that or The Silent Scream. I can't really remember! I just remember being sucked in by the beautiful big box and insanely creepy cover art. I knew the movie couldn't possibly match the greatness that was the cover but I had to have it anyway. I was right. But that doesn't necessarily mean this was a bad movie.

Carrie Snodgress plays Louise, a depressed librarian who spends most of her time caring for her cold wheelchair bound father (Ray Milland). 19 years earlier Louise was supposed to marry a man named Robert. However, he mysteriously disappeared the day of the wedding. After 19 years of torturing herself over the loss, Louise finally begins to move on. But there is a dark secret in her house and with each step towards personal salvation she comes closer to finding it.

The Attic has a major identity crisis. There are parts of the film that are suspenseful and parts that are just character driven drama. It only flashes it's horror elements briefly throughout the film before finally going full horror during the last 5 minutes. As a result, horror fanatics will find themselves very disappointed. The film has so much potential as a horror film, thriller, or even a drama. But it never really goes full on into any genre and unfortunately it slows the plot to an almost complete halt at one point.

Snodgress and Milland are both excellent in their roles here. Snodgress in particular shines playing the unstable Louise. She portrays a wide array of emotions to the point where we don't whether to fear her or pity her. Milland is very believable as the asshole father. He never comes across as likable in the least and he isn't supposed to. Great work by the actors involved.

There almost seems to have been some conflict in the production of the film. It's so odd to have a movie with so much potential lose it's way somewhere along the line. It comes across as though they were writing the damn thing as they were filming once they got halfway in. A lot of suspense is built up for a rather anticlimactic reveal at the end. It's a damn shame, but the art still looks badass on my shelf.

Body Count:1

Side Note: If this movie were marketed more as a drama I feel like Horror fans would appreciate it more. It has the exact opposite effect now where it seems as though drama fans take to it more than horror fans do. But there is a cool monkey in it which makes it enjoyable for everyone at least while he's on screen.

Day 20: Videodrome

Videodrome is one of the strangest films I've ever seen. So strange in fact, that I'm having trouble finding the words to review it. I'm not entirely sure what I just watched. Who was the real antagonist? What was real? What does it mean? Expect these questions to linger with you long after the credits  start scrolling up the screen.

Max Renn (James Woods) is the CEO of a small local television station that apparently airs nothing but softcore porn and extreme violence. Renn wants something more cutting edge for his audience. One of his employees introduces him to Videodrome, a show produced in Pittsburgh that depicts extremely violent torture and death with absolutely no plot. After watching Videodrome Max begins having increasingly violent hallucinations. As he tries to uncover the mystery of Videodrome he falls deeper and deeper into a scheme hatched by it's creators.

To call the plot of Videodrome convoluted would be a massive understatement. I'm not even 100% sure what Videodrome actually is! One second, its a show. Next thing you know, it's a collection of tapes. It's never clearly defined and the more we learn about it the more confusing it gets. The only thing I know for certain is that you don't want to watch it or your brain will get all sorts of fucked up.

James Woods and the rest of the cast do an outstanding job. The film has a very grim tone and the actors really contribute to that. Each character is presented as very serious. Nobody is really cracking any jokes or one liners here. Woods expertly transforms Renn from a man apparently numb to the sex and violence he promotes to a man on the brink of insanity when confronted with those same images in his own mind.

The special effects are the true highlight of Videodrome. Rick Baker (An American Werewolf In London) handles the effects and really shows off his talent. There are a wide array of effects to be seen here. We aren't just dealing with awesome gore, but we're also seeing objects bend and move in ways they shouldn't, and body parts transforming. It really is a special effects showcase and any aspiring practical effects artist should give this one a look.

Videodrome  isn't David Cronenberg's best entry into the Body Horror genre. He would really come into form 3 years later for the remake of The Fly. But as confusing as Videodrome is, it has an art house sort of appeal. As a fan of David Lynch films I have a really hard time hating on a film just for making my head hurt a little bit. Videodrome has great special effects and great performances from it's cast. Check it out.

Body Count:5

Side Note: I'm still not sure who the fuck is supposed to be the antagonist! Everybody just seems so damn cold blooded.

Day 19: Zombie Island Massacre

When people watch a zombie film there are usually a few things that they are watching it for. Gore, Flesh Eating, and last but not least, Zombies. Zombie Island Massacre doesn't really deliver in any of these categories. It's possible that one zombie appears, but it is never really explained if it's just a show or not. It's a film that just falls flat, it's not so bad that you have to watch nor good in any sense of the word.

The plot is is your typical scenario where a group of couples goes on a trip to an exotic island. On the island they're obviously going to get separated from their driver. Obviously after they're separated they begin falling victim to an unseen killer stalking in the shadows. If this sounds more like a slasher plot to you, that's probably because this is actually kind of a slasher film. It even has a twist ending. Not a very good one, but a twist nonetheless.

The gore isn't completely nonexistent. Most of the kills are zoomed in wound shots. We do get one extremely awful decapitation scene but other than that there isn't anything to see here. This film falls completely flat on it's ass in the zombie genre and isn't really a good slasher either. It could have been mildly successful as a campy horror film. But the actors all appear to be trying to make this a serious affair. As a result we're stuck with a pretty boring deceitful excuse of a movie. Only put this one on if you have enough things to occupy your attention as it plays in the background.

Body Count: 10
Side Note: At least the body count was decent.My last few films have all had a shortage of kill scenes.

Day 18: The Silent Scream

The Silent Scream was actually an episode of Hammer's televison series, House of Horror. House of Horror was an anthology series that ran 13 episodes in 1980. The episodes were an hour long. Since yesterday was my birthday party, watching something short was completely necessary. I also had people coming in and out of the house and talking to me, so if I missed any key points I apologize.

A recently released convict goes to a pet shop to visit with Peter Cushing. It is explained that Cushing frequently visited this man during his incarceration, sympathizing with his plight due to his own imprisonment in a Concentration Camp. Cushing offers the man a job and reveals his back room filled with exotic animals (mostly dangerous jungle cats). He explains his goal is to find a new method of training and create the first no cage zoo ever. It all turns out to be a ruse however and after a botched robbery attempt the man is captured in an underground room. Now trapped in the room, the man has apparently been Cushing's target this entire time.

This film is surprisingly twisted for it's time. There is literally a scene where an adorable Boxer puppy is destroyed on screen! Peter Cushing does an excellent job playing the villain here. He is supposedly a former Nazi soldier, but he has no hint of being German at all. Despite that, it's easy to suspend your disbelief as he just does a marvelous job portraying outright creepiness. The ending reminds me a lot of horror film endings of today and is another highlight. Other than that it's pretty boring to average. Luckily it's tolerable because of the short run time.

Body Count:0 (and one super cute puppy...RIP)

Side Note: I've really wanted to get into Hammer Movies but never end up putting in my VCR. Maybe I should try to squeeze more into this month.

Day 17: From Beyond

As a huge fan of a lot of people involved with this film, it's always bothered me that I haven't seen From Beyond. Screen shots of extremely over the top creature effects have taunted me for years. Finally, I've received a shitty cut box of it today. The decision of what to watch for the day hasn't been so obvious for me since The Brain.

Jeffery Combs plays a physicist assisting in the creation of a device called the Resonator. The Resonator is supposed to stimulate the pineal gland. The theory is that the pineal gland has a dormant 6th sense that will be awoken by the Resonator. The experiments are a success, but unexpected creatures appear and attacks the physicists. Combs' superior is beheaded and he is subsequently accused of murder and institutionalized. But when a new doctor takes over his case, he may get a chance to prove his innocence and destroy the Resonator once and for all.

From Beyond is a no nonsense roller coaster of a film. The special effects are slightly dated in some portions but absolutely breathtaking in others. These effects really make you think that anything can happen in this movie.

Jeffery Combs shines as usual. This time he's joined by Ken Foree (Dawn Of The Dead) as well. Foree is hilarious in his role as a no nonsense tough guy cop. One scene in particular has him doing battle with creatures while clad in only a speedo! It's great fun!

From Beyond is a top notch addition to the body horror sub genre. The special effects really steal the show here and any fan of practical effects should consider this required viewing. Great work from the cast doesn't hurt either (Guys I'm a really big Jeffery Combs fan)!

Body Count:4

Side Note: I forgot to mention Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator) reunites with Combs in this one. She has a good topless scene and an extra good scene clad in leather bondage gear!

Day 16: Don't Open The Door

It's happened to every lover of the VHS format. Lured in by great cover art, a cheesy tag line, and even some creepy looking screenshots on the back. Lured in only to be disappointed by the actual film within. Don't Open The Door is an awesome looking Big Box release that's been staring at me
from the shelf for a long time. The worst part is the amount of potential this film actually has, but fails to realize.

A young girl finds her mother's dead body in bed and is subdued by a mysterious figure. Years later the girl, now a young adult, learns that her grandmother is ill and returns to her grandmothers house. While trying to get her grandmother admitted to a hospital she stays in the house and begins receiving strange phone calls. As the calls become more frequent the bodies begin to pile up.

Don't Open The Door has a pretty good atmosphere to it. There is certainly a dark and creepy vibe to this film. The story falls far short of being able to utilize this atmosphere. There is an extremely small cast of characters, which makes the killers identity all too obvious from the very first phone call. Worse yet, he basically reveals himself to our protagonist, yet at the end of the film she still seems to have no idea who the killer is (Seriously! Try the weird guy that made a creepy mannequin of your deceased mother and showed it to you)! The killer himself is creepy, but he gets overexposed with the dragged on phone call scenes.

The music score is a mix between some pretty creepy synth and...experimental jazz? Nothing ruins a mood more than music that doesn't fit. Why couldn't they just stick with the creepier songs? Even during scenes where nothing horrific is taking place scary music would help create more suspense, something this film is already lacking. Few things bother me more in a horror film.

For all of its dragged out scenes, bad storytelling, and odd music choices Don't Open The Door still has a few very solid moments. Unfortunately every time it shows it's muscle it goes back into hiding. Each time I would believe that the movie was going to finally pick up, only to be disappointed. Oh Big Box tapes! You lie to me so much! Why is it that I love you so?

Body Count: 4

Side Note: There was an abundance of "Don't" titles in the 70's (Don't Be Afraid of The Dark, Don't Look In The Basement, Don't Look Now). So many in fact that a fake trailer entitled "Don't!" was made for Grindhouse (And a hell of a trailer it is! I hope they make it an actual film one day).

Day 15: Home For The Holidays

 

In the 70's, before the advent of VHS, there was a lot of talk about TV taking over. There was no home video format to watch major films yet. You either saw a movie in theaters or you hoped it would eventually air on television. During this time Made For TV Movies became huge. Several great titles such as Dark Night of The Scarecrow, Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark, and The Town That Dreaded Sundown were all produced specifically for the small screen. Home For The Holidays is one of the more popular made for television horror films of it's time.

An old man has fallen ill. Believing his second wife is poisoning him, he invites his four daughters to his home and requests that they kill her. The mystery gets deeper when the daughters begin dying off one by one. It becomes a full blown whodunit slasher film as Christine (Sally Field) tries to find the culprit.

Due to the restrictions of television at the time, there is pretty much no gore. The highlight here is the acting and storytelling. Everyone here does a good job in keeping a realistic tone. Everyone except for the overly grouchy father, but his performance is so humorous and over the top that it's hard to mark it as a downfall.

Home For The Holidays is a fine little slasher film for it's time. The biggest downfall is now in a day and age where slasher films everywhere it becomes easy to spot the killer pretty early on. After you've seen so many of these plot twist endings, the reverse psychology storytelling doesn't work too well anymore. In the early 70's I'm sure this film surprised most of it's viewers, nowadays it's still good but doesn't pack as much of punch.

Body Count:2

Side Note: The grouchy old man must have wanted boys since all of his daughters have male nicknames: Chris, Fred, Alex, and Jo. Also, the director seems to have a humorous obsession with zoom in shots.

Day 14: Junior

I'm not entirely sure what to say about this movie. It's not good, but I was somehow entertained through most of it. Junior doesn't really become a full fledged horror film until the final act. It's characters, story, and atmosphere are all really inconsistent. I really had no idea what to expect when I slid this tape in. But at least the cover art doesn't really lie. Well, the tag line lies. But I mean...

Junior opens with two prostitutes being released from prison. After a pointless fight scene with their former pimp, the two girls vow to move to the country and start a new life. They move into a small abandoned marina only to discover that it is used as a party house for the local rednecks led by Junior. After a messy confrontation the girls begin an ever escalating conflict with the group.

Most of the movie depicts the feud between the girls and Junior's pack of crazy rednecks. There are only small scenes that hint that we're actually watching a horror film. The action scenes that make up the majority of the movie really entertain with their cheese. I'm also pretty certain that one of the main girls doesn't wear a real pair of pants throughout the entire movie. Oh yeah! Did I mention we get to see more than the normal share of nudity including probably the most intense sex scene I've ever seen on film.

Fans of horror will likely be pretty disappointed when they watch Junior. Yes, it is a horror film...eventually. The build up to the climactic slasher chase/showdown scene plays out more like a really raunchy comedy. Their are several scenes that indicate that something more sinister is going on. But every time the film makes you think it's going to pull the trigger and unleash it's horror, they deliver more antics instead. It's entertaining fun for when you have some friends over, but other than that you should probably ignore the tag line and stick with Leatherface and Freddy.

Body Count: 4

Side Note: The feud in this movie is insane! They go from really bad pranks to people getting the boats blown up with absolutely no repercussion!

Day 13: The Boogey Man

In the early 80's slasher films were still coming into form. Halloween was a massive success in the late 70's and other films wanted to utilize it's formula to cash in. As a result the slasher genre still took itself seriously for the most part. The Boogey Man was part of this era. This film stands out though as one of the few slasher films to incorporate very heavy supernatural elements.

The Boogey Man opens with a flashback of a brother and sister witnessing their mother perform sexual acts with her lover. The boy eventually takes a knife to their bedroom and murders his mother's lover. The scene makes no effort at all to show that it's almost a complete ripoff of Halloween's opening sequence. Flash forward 20 years later and we begin to learn of a mysterious force that may have possessed the boy to commit murder. This force is returning to haunt them and it's gonna pile some bodies while it's at it.

This film has a really good atmosphere going for it. While I don't typically enjoy overly supernatural horror films, The Boogey Man was able keep my attention with it's tone and murder sequences. The main theme, while sounding very similar to Carpenter's Halloween theme, is creepy and really helps set the mood. The acting may not be top notch, but it's not really bad either.

Before I watched this film, I had read several review that really hyped up some of the death scenes. I found myself being a bit disappointed in them. They aren't bad, actually most of them are pretty good. But I feel like I was expecting a bit more from it. Even still we have some pretty good gore and a couple of different kills that will surely grab most horror fans' attention.

Ulli Lommel is known for directing some pretty awful movies. I couldn't really tell by watching this film. Yes, the acting isn't top notch and there are a couple of questionable decisions made in the editing room. But that is standard fare for this genre and I found The Boogey Man to be a very solid supernatural slasher film. This was my first time actually watching one of my Big Box tapes so I was half expecting something god awful. I'm walking away from this one fairly surprised by just how much I actually enjoyed it.

Body Count: 7

Side Note: Halloween isn't the only victim here. Ammityville Horror and Exorcist have also been obviously plagiarized by this movie.

Day 12: I Was A Teenage Zombie

Ever wonder what would happen if you took a pretty raunchy teen sex comedy and mixed it with a zombie film? I Was A Teenage Zombie was created to answer all your questions. The results are sort of a mixed bag. Despite being sort of funny, this film falls just short.

A teenage jock and his unusual group of friends are in the market for some marijuana. A shady drug dealer rips them off and refuses to give them any sort of refund. After confronting  the dealer, the teenagers accidentally take his life! In an effort to hide their crime, they toss him into a lake that they later find is infested with radiation. The radiation brings the drug dealer back to life and he begins seeking revenge, killing the teens one by one. Their only hope is to revive their recently deceased friend in the lake and hope that he can stop the zombified version of Cheech Marin.

Despite being a comedy first and foremost, this film has surprisingly brutal murder scenes. Sure they're cheesy, but you don't really expect someone to get their face ripped off in a teen comedy. I was expecting more typical high school situations taking place with a zombie involved. But instead they go for a more straight forward gore-fest. The kills all have a Toxic Avenger feel to them. They're gruesome, but the acting involved is awkward and cheese filled. They even make a reference to Lloyd Kaufman in a radio broadcast. The influence is definitely there.

The script is where this movie really fails though. Even though this is largely a teen comedy there aren't any really good jokes. All the humor is derived from the splattery gore scenes and the intentionally awful line delivery. This formula works well for movies like Toxic Avenger because something is always happening and the bad acting only enhances the humor of the situations. However, I Was A Teenage Zombie is filled with long dialogue scenes that are sometimes tough to hear. When there isn't anything happening the bad line delivery only hurts the conversation scenes and gets boring.

I Was A Teenage Zombie isn't an absolute chore to sit through. There are enough high quality kills here to keep you around till the finale. It's just the scenes in between these kills that will have you looking for something else to pass the time. Watch it once for the full effect, but then fast forward to the highlights on subsequent watches.

Body Count: 9

Side Note: The soundtrack is pretty good. One 80's alt rock track plays early in the movie and had me headbanging for a bit. No vocals ever come in, but I wonder if I can track down the full song somewhere.

Day 11: The Disturbance

There is a whole sub genre of horror film's out there dedicated to focusing on the sadistic murderers that pile the bodies for us all to line up and see. You may have heard of movies such as Maniac and Henry:Portrait of a Serial Killer. Those are some are some of the more well known additions to this serial killer sub genre. So where does The Disturbance fall? This is a movie that has gone largely unnoticed since it's release in 1990. If it wasn't for one Quentin Tarantino saying that this film was one of his "favorites", even the small population of people who do know about this movie probably wouldn't have heard of it.

Clay seems like a normal, if not slightly introverted kind of guy. A chance meeting with a young woman named Susan sparks a relationship between the two. They seem happy at first. But after witnessing some strange behavior exhibited by Clay, Susan calls off the relationship. Little does she know how unstable Clay really is. Clay has a medical history of dealing with paranoid schizophrenia. He's all out of Thorazine, and his hallucinations probably won't help him cope with this breakup.

Most of the films I've watched this month are intended to be really over the top tongue in cheek horror  films. This one however takes itself pretty seriously. The Disturbance wastes absolutely no time in dishing out Clay's hallucinations. He's already suffering from some pretty intense imagery about 10 minutes into the film. These hallucinations make up the bulk of the films scares and are actually pretty effective. It's hard to tell if any of these have any significance or if the director was just attempting to create unsettling imagery. I'm sure it's open to interpretation, but as someone who isn't all that deep and metaphorical, I won't be able to tell.

There isn't much actual gore in this movie. However, we do have some pretty good special effects. Clay imagines all sorts things like: Demons, eyeballs, corpses, and then just plain old rape fantasies (Or are they flashbacks?). The special effects were handled by Barry Anderson (I had a friend named that growing up), an understudy of the great Tom Savini. Special effects nerds like myself should take a look at this one.

The acting is a mixed bag here. The film largely relies on Timothy Greeson (Clay) to carry the load of the film and he delivers. Greeson's performance is surprisingly convincing and he displays a very wide array of emotions here. It's the rest of the cast that come up short. Clay's parents in particular deliver lines so void of emotion or any sort of interest that it becomes kind of awkward to watch them interact with him. The actress portraying Susan isn't terrible, but she's mostly there to just look good and her performance doesn't really stand out.

I don't usually mention music in my reviews but it is such a high point in this movie that I have to. As a director that always stresses the importance of the soundtrack in his films, it's easy to see one of the reason's why Tarantino was into The Disturbance. We get an oddball mixture of 80's pop jams mixed in with an extremely creepy score. I just love how tense scenes will just transition into something playing upbeat 80's pop. It sort of creates a sense of chaos, which is what is happening in Clay's mind so it fits.

It's easy to see why, despite all being really good films, that the serial killer sub genre never really caught on. It's much easier for audiences to follow an innocent protagonist trying to escape the evil killer rather than putting them in a position to sympathize with the killer. These films really put a question mark behind the word "evil". Is this killer an evil force? Or is he just human, imperfect like all of us but in his own way. These movies are too thought provoking for a mainstream audience. Which is a shame because The Disturbance proves, despite it's obscurity, that the genre almost always delivers.

Body Count: 2

Side Note: Clay's mother is played by Carol Garlin, the mother of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star, Jeff Garlin. Small world.

Day 10: Killer Workout

Ah, the 80's! You are by far my favorite decade. An era of slashers, spandex, and...kung fu fighting? That's right! In Killer Workout, not only do you get a plethora of spandex filled workout scenes and the typical stalk and slash goodness. No! That's not enough! Killer Workout delivers a few kung fu showdowns too! What's not to love?!

The plot is pretty simple. A mysterious string of murders begins taking place at the local gym "Rhonda's Workout." An undercover cop takes a job at the gym to solve the mystery. Anyone who he suspects is subject to a karate beat down! One guy even discovers a body and after screaming in horror at his discovery, our undercover hero literally beats the piss out of him in 3 seconds! Its hilarious.

Killer Workout doesn't have a lot of gore but still manages to produce effective kill scenes. Even the cutaway shots seem brutal. I usually get disappointed in cutaways, but I was thoroughly impressed by how they are handled here. The aftermath on most of the bodies is decently done. Gorehounds shouldn't really seek out this movie but they shouldn't avoid it either. The murder scenes are violent enough in tone to keep even hardcore gore fanatics at least satisfied.

The workout scenes are a big highlight. You can find aerobic workout footage in other slasher films like Friday The 13th Part 4. They're always a ton of fun in other movies so Killer Workout decided to pack the movie full of them. What we get is a genius formula of workout scene, kill scene, repeat. And occasionally you'll get a kung fu battle thrown in for good measure. The ending is the only part of the film that leaves something to be desired. Instead of a traditional slasher chase or any sort of suspenseful climax we are given a gunfight and an extremely stale killer reveal.

This slasher manages to remain entertaining for it's entire run time despite it's very odd finale. I've always said that a slasher should never be described as "boring", otherwise it has failed. Killer Workout is never boring. With a cast that's acting contains just the right amount of cheese, an awesome 80's pop soundtrack, good kills, beautiful women, workout scenes, and KUNG FU FUCKING FIGHTING, who can turn that down?

Bodycount: 11

Side Note: Keep an eye out for the spin kicks in the kung fu fight scenes. Also, I don't know what it is, but I always laugh at guys lifting weights in movies. I hate that I have this as a cut box. Somebody hook me up with a fully in tact slipcase.

Day 9:Carnage

Carnage has moving furniture and household items. Lots of moving furniture and household items. If that's you're kind of thing, this is the movie for you. You'll see all the best: Opening cabinets, flying knives, moving carpets, floating records that start playing on their own, and so much more. Oh yeah, people die too.

The film opens with a newlywed couple embracing eachother. The groom shoots his wife in the head and then commits suicide. Some time later, a new couple moves into the house where the murder/suicide took place. After noticing some mysterious happenings around the home they eventually discover that it is being haunted by the spirits of the newlyweds. Guests that visit begin to get murdered by the spirits. Well, mostly the bride.

This movie serves as my introduction to director Andy Milligan. A director known for his unbearably bad attempts at low budget drive in features. This film lives up to his reputation in every way. It's not a good movie by any means but it can be entertaining if watched the correct way. Make sure you have someone around to make light conversation with during all the dialogue scenes. Don't worry, they don't seem to carry any sort of importance and the acting is about as bad it gets.

The gore scenes are plentiful in Carnage. We get a decapitation, a disembowlment, severed hand, and a couple more. None of these scenes are well done at all. In one part a knife literally flies into a preist's shoulder. However, after the camera angle changes, the knife is now clearly lodged into the back of the holy man's head! Literally none of the gore scenes are executed correctly! There is always something about them that is horribly wrong. So does this make the film even worse or just that much more entertaining? As someone who celebrates the the cheesiest of gore, I choose the latter.

Aside from it's gory murder sequences, I honestly can't think of any other reason to watch this travesty. I can't in good conscious reccomend that anybody watch this unless they are bad movie enthusiasts. I've seen some pretty bad films in my day. Hell! I just watched Cat In The Cage the other day. Remember? So I feel as though I've built a tolerance for trash cinema that most people don't have. To be a VHS collector, you kind of NEED that sort of tolerance. If you have a similar viewpoint on bad films, I say check this one out once to see the hilariously entertaining murder sequences.

Body Count:8

Side Note: This movie contains some of the weakest moustaches I've seen on film. Moustache heroes Burt Reynolds and Tom Selleck would be very disappointed.

Day 8: House Of Death (AKA Death Screams)

House of Death plays out as a raunchy teen sex comedy that actually forgot it was actually a slasher film. I found myself actually checking the run time on my VCR and noticing that I was 45 minutes into the film and barely anyone had been killed or stalked. Did the director actually forget what he was filming? The ending even leaves me scratching my head since the plot is never fully fleshed out.

Most of House of Death takes place at a carnival in a small southern town. It follows a group of rowdy teenagers as they go around making trouble and getting naked. Of course, all the while locals are getting killed off. Nobody seems to notice that their kids are missing though and the first act of the film drags for an unbelievable length of time. After the carnival, our crew of troublemakers take to the cemetery to camp out and tell scary stories. Its here that the film starts to pick up and actually feel like a slasher. It all results in a pretty entertaining bloodbath in the last 10 minutes of the film.

This majority of this film is pointless. The characters don't seem to have any sort of direction, the kills are few and far between, and nobody seems to notice people disappearing. It's this that really cause the slasher element to take a back seat. Luckily, the film gets by on it's entertaining dialogue and cheesy acting. It's not an absolute task to sit through but if you're someone who likes their films to cut straight to the point you'll probably want to skip this one. I'm not really sure there is a point.

When the killer is finally revealed at the end it flew right over my head. Who is this guy? I honestly have no idea. They reveal absolutely nothing about this guy. Even after his death the sheriff is even asked "Why?" To which he responds, "I don't know." Roll credits. Are you kidding me?! Nobody in this small southern town knows who the crazy guy running around in a wet suit with a machete is? I've read some other reviews that believe they've pieced it together. But they admit that they still aren't sure.

Most of the kills are off camera for the majority of the film. But after an hour and 15 minutes, the movie really picks up the pace to make up for lost time. We are suddenly hit with decapitations, hands getting chopped off, people getting pulled in half, and a pretty cool head shot. It's not the most coherent slasher, but it's got some decent nude scenes and the last 10 minutes make it worth watching at least once.

Body Count: 9

Side Note: There is a high school coach character who apparently hangs with and dates the students. Nobody really says anything about it. Weird.

Day 7: Cat In The Cage

I can hardly think of the words to describe what I just saw. This may be perhaps the most difficult review I will ever type. To call this film an anomaly would be an understatement of great magnitude. This is the kind of tape that collectors always hear about, but hope they don't ever slide into their VCR. A tape with convincing cover art and an intriguing synopsis on the back that fails to deliver in almost every conceivable way.

I usually utilize the second paragraph of my review to talk about the plot. This film's plot is such a mess that I'd rather just quote the back of the box. "Upon his release from a mental institution, a young man finds many things have changed at home. His father has remarried a younger woman, the housekeeper is practicing witchcraft in the kitchen, and the chauffeur has designs on his new mistress.  And what in god's name happened to the cat?..." There isn't a single scene of any sort of witchcraft and nothing happens to the damn cat! The rest is sorta true, you know, the least interesting part of that synopsis?

Cat In The Cage is an awful film. It's not a complete chore to sit through though. The horrible acting and script make for some entertainment. The so called "Killer Kitty" is so tame that there is literally a scene of it rubbing up against the woman it's supposed to hate and attack. There is a great scene where the cat is just walking around getting adorable closeups while terrifying music is playing in the background. Also, this movie contains possibly the worst/best car chase scene ever committed to film. Other than that you probably shouldn't watch this unless you want your head to hurt.

Body Count:5

Side  Note: Sybil Danning (Howling 2) plays the main character's mother in law and she looks pretty damn good doing it too. I wonder if there are actually any actual good killer housecat movies out there. It's such a funny/cool concept.