Day 13: (He Kills) Night After Night After Night

   

 The 70's and 80's was a pretty misogynistic time for horror films. There was a near constant theme of men killing women for being promiscuous. There was also a great deal of transphobia in these decades as well. As far as the horror genre was concerned, if you were a man who dressed as a woman you were a psychotic killer. Simple as that. Night After Night After Night fits right in.

     A string of murders is terrorizing London. The victims are all exclusively women. When the lead detective's wife is added to the list of victims, the case becomes personal. He has one suspect in particular who he believes to be the killer. But the murderer might be closer than anyone expects.

     He Kills Night After Night After Night, huh? Should have been called He Kills Maybe Once Or Twice A Week. There isn't very much stalk and slash going on in this early proto slasher. The murder scenes that do end up taking place end up being devoid of any tension, suspense, or lighting. It's all pretty basic stuff. Stabbing with minimal gore. Maybe a splash of blood here and there.

    Most of the film deals with the investigation and the sleazy going ons of the London night life. Fans of sleaze might be pleased. There is plenty of nudity, promiscuous sex, and striptease. The majority of the film is fairly boring. These scenes didn't really do much to spark my interest either.

     There isn't much else to say about this film. It's boring, tensionless, and goreless. There is a whole slew of trashy exploitative slashers out there.This isn't one of the good ones. If you like a little trash with your slash, I recommend sticking to New York Ripper.

Body count:5
Side Note: There is one cool part of the film. The highlight takes place when the camera keeps switching and zooming in and out of the killers face and his nude photos on the wall. I love cheesy/trippy cinematography like that.

Day 12: Demon Of Paradise

 

  I have an unusual opinion when it comes to Universal Monster Films. My absolute favorite Universal monster is The Creature From The Black Lagoon by a mile. It's not even close. For a long time I've watched as all the other Universal Monsters have seen updates and remakes while The Creature watched from the sidelines. He gets an updated look in The Monster Squad (and looks incredible!) but has never been the focus of a film since his initial run in the 50's. Demon Of Paradise's cover seems to promise a sort of Creature From The Black Lagoon rip off. It sort of is.

       When Islander's begin an illegal dynamite trade the explosions awaken an ancient Lizard Man Creature. Angered by the disturbance, the creature begins to attack Islanders and seemingly causes explosions literally everywhere he goes. A reptile expert and the local sheriff team up to investigate while a desperate resort owner uses the attention to draw tourists.

      There are two things to take away from this film. An absolutely awful creature suit and explosions. Lots of explosions. Practically every scene ends with an explosion. There is literally a scene where the creature leaps from the water, grabs a helicopter, PULLS IT INTO THE WATER, and then of course it explodes. There are other kills, but they aren't memorable at all. The explosions steal the show and are the only entertainment value the film has.

      It's claimed that you can easily see the zipper on the Creature From The Black Lagoon's suit. I've never seen it, and to me that is one of the best creature suits ever. Even still, seeing how it was brought to the next level in Monster Squad, I've always wanted to see what an update creature suit would be like. The creature on the cover of this tape looks awesome. The creature seen in the film? Well to say it looks crappy would be an understatement. It only has redeeming value for it's comedic appearance.

      There isn't much reason to go out of your way to watch Demon Of Paradise. There's pretty much no gore, the creature appearances are mostly short and spread out, and there's a lot of bad dialogue. There's a goofy monster egg hunt, one nude scene, and explosions. Did I mention that there are explosions? If you need to see a ton of explosions, look away from your action films and check out Demon Of Paradise.

Body Count: 13
Side note: Guess how the creature dies. You guessed it! Explosion!

Day 11: Zombie High

   

 I haven't reviewed a zombie movie yet this month. So I decided to slide ol' Zombie High into the VCR. Of course, Zombie High doesn't have the type of zombies we've come to expect since the release of Night Of The Living Dead. Instead of flesh eating corpses we see people still very much alive, but under the control of others. So since they aren't dead I guess they aren't zombies at all. They just kind of act like zombies at times. Also, the film appears to take place in college. Pretty deceitful title.

    Andrea has just been accepted into a prestigious college attended mostly by rich preppies. Her boyfriend, who appears to still be in high school, isn't too happy about his girlfriends college venture. Not helping matters is the professor that seemingly has the hots for young Andrea. Amidst all of this, Andrea begins to notice that the student's are all behaving strangely. The professors seem to be brainwashing and controlling all of their students.

    There seems to be some sort of message about conformity to this film. One of the main male characters is a rebellious punk rocker being forced into the Academy by his politician father. Early on into the film he is captured and brain washed to become just like the other "preppies". There is a sub plot about how all the brain washed graduates go on to have successful careers as judges, lawyers, or politicians. So these brainwashed kids would actually effect society. They're being controlled by radio wave that constantly loops classical music. Not to fear! The power of Rock N' Roll prevails when the classical tape is replaced by "Kiss My Butt"! A rock smash hit that sounds all too familiar (It's a carbon copy of Fight For Your Right by Beastie Boys).

   There are large dull patches in this generally goreless and completely clothed film. Even still, Zombie High manages a couple of stand out entertaining moments. There is a hilarious scene with a Funk band playing the school dance. The zombies are attempting to dance but they can't because they're quite emotionless and have no apparent rhythm. Also worth checking out is the professors rapidly aging and dying at the films climax.

    Aside from a few moments and some campy dialogue, Zombie High is still pretty forgettable. It moves kind of slowly and the finale seems rushed. We don't even know the fate of certain major characters and other's just aren't explained. This is good for a laugh or two, but don't go out of your way to see it.

Body Count:2
Side Note: One of the supporting female characters is played by Sherilyn Fenn, who played Audrey Horne on Twin Peaks.

Day 10: Slashdance

   

 Ah, the 80's! When most people look back it's hard not to think of dancing in spandex and sweatbands. Films like Flashdance really popularized this cheesy 80's style of dancing. Just like anything else that was the least bit relevant in pop-culture, it was only a matter of time before the slasher genre tried to cash in.

      Young beautiful women who audition at a small Hollywood theater are going missing. Tori Raines (played by Cindy Maranne/Ferda. She actually was a professional wrestler for the GLOW promotion under the ring name Americana.) is a tough as nails police officer known for her undercover work. After busting steroid dealers and some skinheads who mug the homeless, she is called onto the missing dancers case. Going undercover once again, she poses as a dancer in the play to get closer to her suspect.

      You can't expect much terror from a film titled "Slashdance". You don't get much either, this slasher is as campy as they come. Everything is literally dripping with cheese. The police captain is a complete narcissist, steroid dealers act like female pro wrestlers (They probably were), and Tori has no probably drop kicking any criminal she crosses paths with. Detective Raines even has a tragic backstory that haunts her throughout the film but has absolutely no significance to the plot. And when I say tragic, I mean literally everything bad that could happen to her family has happened. Her audio only flashbacks are as eyeball rolling yet hysterical as it gets.

     So all of this sounds like a lot of fun. Hey I'm a fan of some camp with my horror. The main problem is that there is very little horror. We get two scenes of stalk and slash, one accidental suicide, a shooting, and a pathetic excuse for a final chase scene. Meanwhile, the killer becomes all but forgotten in the middle portion of the film while Raines dances away with her fellow cast members over and over and over again. The plus side to all of this is that all the girls are beautiful. Most of the supporting cast were roster members of GLOW and they look incredible in spandex.

      Slashdance has all the makings for a fantastic SOV slasher flick: An awesomely terrible CGI Knife title card, over the top acting, more awful dialogue than actual slashing, and minor celebrities in starring roles. It however, is not SOV. The production value appears pretty decent actually. This film can be a ton of fun with a few friends. Just don't expect much tension or suspense.

Body count:5
Side Note: GLOW stands for Gorgeous Ladies Of Wrestling and began in 1986. It has been revived and continues to this day. This film could be fun for fans of the promotion.

Day 9: Terror On Tour

 

  In the early 80's the slasher genre was in full swing. Several sub-genres of the already sub-genre were born. One of the most beloved is the Rock n' Roll/Heavy Metal Slasher. Though short lived, this sub genre brought us the much sought after Rocktober Blood. Unfortunately it also brought us Terror On Tour.

     The Clowns are a rock group (portrayed by actual rock band, The Names) that dress in ridiculous leotards, clown makeup, and giant afro wigs. Their stage show involves fake stabbings and mannequin mutilation. While on tour, a series of murders begins to follow the band where ever they go. Someone is dressing up like one of the clowns and using their obvious afro driven sex appeal to lure groupies to their death.

      The weakest point of Terror on Tour is the characters. The Clowns themselves are party animal sex fiends when in full makeup. But by day they turn into some of the most boring unrecognizable characters in slasher history. Not that they're recognizable in makeup since they all do it completely identical (Which helps the murder mystery, but hinders the band mates from standing out.) The supporting cast isn't much better. I'm not joking when I say I had to look through several reviews post-viewing to even find out who the killer was. Even most of the reviews had no idea who the killer was despite him being revealed in the films climax. The light was so poor and the characters all look so similar that it was hard to tell. They're also so bland that it's hard to care. (SPOILER:I guess it's the band manager played by Larry Thomas, the Seinfeld "Soup Nazi")

       From a gore standpoint there isn't much to see here. Pretty much all the kills are your ordinary stabbings. There is one throat slit with a passable wound effect. But other than that we have your average trick knife and buckets of blood thrown at the wall type of thing. There are a couple of reasons to MAYBE subject yourself to this movie but the bloodshed isn't one of them.

     While this sounds like it's the synopsis of perhaps one of the most entertaining slasher films ever, it's not. Could it have been? Perhaps. But lack of decent gore, poor dialogue, bland characters, bad lighting, and a slow pace keep these clowns from delivering the goods. There is some entertainment here though. The acting is so bad that it's good and some of the lines are pretty hilarious. This would probably be fun viewing with a few friends.

Body Count:8
Side Note: The music by The Names isn't bad. It's catchy but pretty unmemorable. Also watch out for the absurd ending to the film, it just kinda....ends.

Day 8: Misery

     It's embarrassing to me that I'm running a blog where I predominantly talk about horror films and that I'm just getting around to seeing this. Needless to say, after watching B movie after B movie it's pretty easy to invest emotionally into a major production that many consider a classic. Misery did not disappoint.

     Paul Sheldon is the author of a series of romance novels focused on a female character named Misery. Wanting to move on to different work, Paul has written a draft for a brand new novel. When taking a trip back to his home, Paul is caught in a blizzard and drives his car off the road. Paul is discovered by Annie Wilkes, who brings him back to her home and nurses him back to health though both of his legs are severely broken. Annie claims to be Paul's number 1 fan, but she shows signs of instability. Annie reads Paul's latest book and discovers that he has killed off the Misery character. Enraged, Annie forces the crippled Paul to write a new book keeping Misery alive. Paul must now play along in order to stay alive.

     Misery is as deliberately paced as you would expect any film about a crippled man trapped in a house would be. But the slow pacing does nothing to take away from the tension. Each scene slowly builds and builds the tension within the house until everything explodes in one of the better climactic confrontations you can expect from these types of thrillers.

    The acting is exceptional across the board. Kathy Bates' (who I recognize from The Office) performance launches Annie Wilkes into the stratosphere of most frightening horror characters ever in cinema. She deservedly won an Oscar for her work on this film. James Caan's portrayal of the talented author is very believable. Because of how well the two play off of each other it becomes near impossible not to empathize with Caan. The final scene revealing that he may never escape the fear of Annie is perhaps more haunting than his actual predicament.

    Misery is an extremely effective horror-thriller boosted by strong performances and great direction. There are even surprising scenes of gore so even the gorehounds can quench their thirst as well. Most people reading this review have probably already seen it. But if you haven't, make sure you look into this one.

Body Count: 2
Side note: Will I ever be able to look at Jo Bennett the same again?

Day 7: Curse Of The Demon

 
 Originally titled Night Of The Demon(Not to be confused with the Sasquatch film), when originally released in the US this film was edited down to 83 minutes and re-titled Curse of The Demon. The version I've viewed is the original 96 minute runtime, but maintains the US title. Even though it was plagued with production and creative issues, Curse is still renowned as a highly influential cult film.

    Dr. John Holden arrives in England to attend a convention held by his colleague Dr.Harrington to expose a Satanic cult leader. Upon his arrival, he is informed of Harrington's mysterious passing the night before. Intent on continuing with Harrington's convention, Holden soon comes face to face with the cult leader, Dr.Julian Karswell. Karswell informs Holden that he will die in 3 days. Skeptical of anything the cult leader says, Holden stubbornly continues plans to expose the cult.

     One of the big controversies during the production of this film was inclusion of an actual demon. The original director and the writer both wanted it to be left to the viewer whether or not the demon actually existed. The producer shot scenes after principal shooting had concluded to include an actual demon. The demon appears at the very beginning and at the end of the film. I have no problem with the demon actually appearing, and it enhances the finished product. The creature effects are incredible for the time and the demon's overall design looks awesome. I would prefer that the demon isn't actually seen in the beginning, but rather saved for the end to build more suspense.

     I'm not entirely sure the origin of the Jump Scare. The earliest example I've traced back is in 1942's Cat People. Even still, the Jump Scare wasn't heavily used until horror films started beating it to death in the 70's and 80's. Curse Of The Demon is the earliest example I have found of a film that utilizes jump scares multiple times. These jump scares are especially effective due to their crude execution. You never expect the jumps because the director seldom does anything to prepare you for them. It works.

    The acting and direction are exceptional. Dana Andrews does a fantastic job as the skeptical Dr. Holden. Despite seeing everything that he sees, he doesn't believe in black magic or curses. What Dana excels in though is the subtle changes where he slowly begins to buy into the fact that he is in great danger. Niall MacGinnis is superb as the films antagonist, Dr. Karswell. He always remains calm and confident, but manages to exude a sinister aura.

    Curse of The Demon is a horror film that has a reputation in the horror community. But it seems as though many people still haven't seen it. It's a shame since even though it isn't perfect, it's definitely an effective and engaging piece of cinema history. If you're a fan of classic horror or just horror in general, this one is worth a look.

Bodycount: 3
Side Note:  Martin Scorsese placed this on his 11 scariest films ever list. I can imagine this film really scaring the hell out of people at the time of it's release.