Severed

Synopsis: The movie opens with a group of loggers and environmentalists butting against each other near an isolated logging camp. When one of the loggers cuts into a spiked tree, injuring himself. With in seconds he begins attacking everyone around him. The film then cuts to the CEO of the logging company and his son. The father is telling his son that he needs to leave the boardroom and see how the business really works. Thus he should be the one to investigate why the company has lost contact with an isolated logging camp. Soon the young man is off to check the camp. When he arrives he finds the survivors of both the loggers and environmentalists huddled in a cabin. The rest of the movie follows the shrinking group of survivors as they attempt to flee.

The Good: There really isn’t a whole lot to recommend this film. I was impressed with the locations that they shot the movie at. Also the actors do a fairly decent job with a weak script and no budget.

The Bad: The effects are very rough. The film was shot so that the zombie attacks and gore shots are difficult to see. The film gets grainy and the camera starts to jerk around making it very difficult to watch. The film also gets off to a very slow start, picks up for a bit then slows down again. I imagine that the slower parts of the film were intended to work on the character development, but the script doesn’t allow it to happen. In addition to the poor pacing the script there are also several really terrible lapses of logic that are very distracting.

The Score: .5 out of 4

This is a waste of 93 minutes. Avoid this movie.

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Thought that I would post a special review for Christmas.



Silent Night, Bloody Night

Synopsis: The movie tells the story of a young man who decides to sell a house that he has inherited from his grandfather. The citizens of the nearby town do everything in their power to keep him away from the house while they arrange to purchase it. Soon the bodies start to pile up as an unseen killer begins luring people to the home and killing them.

The Good: For a film from the early 1970’s there is a decent amount of gore. The effects, while crude, are effective. Also there are a couple of scenes in the movie that build up a good amount of tension. Also this was an interesting movie for me because it was a very early attempt at what would later be defined as a slasher film.

The Bad: The film is very dark, and I don’t mean in tone. There are times that you simply can’t tell what is going on in the movie. In addition to that the script is very weak. The characters are very poorly defined and make some very strange decisions. Which is a shame because they managed to cast a pretty good cast that includes genre favorites John Carradine and a young Mary Woronov. Also the ending of the film is flawed, and really makes no sense at all.

The Score: 1.5 out of 4

This isn’t a great film and I can’t recommend it unless you have a real interest in horror films. Even then the movie is only interesting because it is a very early attempt at a slasher type of film.

Merry Christmas

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The House that Dripped Blood

Note: This is the final of my Amicus reviews (at least for now). I’ve saved the best for last.

Synopsis: This is a collection of 4 short horror films that take place in the same house and covers four different tenants. The first story introduces us to a horror writer who is haunted by one of his fictional creations. It starts Denholm Eliot (Indiana Jones series) as the writer and is the weakest of the shorts. The second and far more enjoyable entry stars Peter Cushing as a man obsessed with a wax figure that bears an uncanny resemblance to a woman he was once involved with. The third entry stars Christopher Lee as the father to a little girl that is up to no good. The final entry is a departure from the first three. It tells the story of an actor who specializes in playing characters in bad horror films. Unlike the first three entries this one is clearly played for laughs. Ironically enough I kind of felt that they were poking a bit of fun at Christopher Lee’s portrayal of Dracula in the Hammer films.

The Good: Like every other movie I’ve seen from Amicus the cast for this film is top notch. Genre favorites like Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee do bang up jobs in their roles, as one would expect from them. I was especially interested in Christopher Lee’s portrayal, as I believe that this is the first time I’ve seen him in a role other than a villain. Sci-fi geeks may be interested to know that Dr. Who veteran John Pertwee portrays the actor in the final entry and is really good in his comedic role. Combine these actors with a great script from Robert Bloch and you have pure magic. The script is tight, with excellent dialog and pacing. Not only are the individual stories great but also all four of the entries are brought together rather brilliantly with the “evil” house wraparound story. Finally the production values are top notch for a film from the early 70s.

The Bad: This is a great film that has no flaws.

The Score: 4 out of 4

I’ll tell you right now that I love this movie. You can’t go wrong with this classic.

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And Now the Screaming Starts

Note: This is the second of the Amicus movies that I’ll be reviewing.

Synopsis: The year is 1795 and a newlywed couple returns to the groom’s ancestral home to start their lives together. Almost from the moment that they arrive the bride starts to have visions and dreams about a mysterious man and a severed hand that moves around the house. On the advice of his local doctor the groom calls on Dr. Pope, portrayed by Peter Cushing, who specializes in mental disorders. As Dr. Pope begins his investigation people begin to die and he soon comes to the conclusion that something more than a mere mental disorder is going on.

The Good: The cast is really great in this film. From Peter Cushing, who delivers an excellent performance as usual, to Stephanie Becham portraying the tortured bride the cast is top notch. Herbert Lom is also quite good as the groom’s sinister grandfather in the flashbacks that are used to setup the plot. In addition to a great cast the film looks and sounds great. The lighting and musical score are excellent, as I’ve come to expect from an Amicus production, which really add to the atmosphere that they are trying to create.

The Bad: The movie has several very slow spots during its 90-minute runtime. It appears to me that the filmmakers were very proud of the house and grounds they were using for the movie. We get many very nice shots of the house, interior and exterior, as well as a fairly nice look at the grounds but this only serves to slow the film down. In addition to that the script fails to generate any real sense of dread. The conclusion is fairly obvious and somewhat of a disappointment.

The Score: 1.5 out of 4

A very talented cast does the best that they can with a very weak script, but I still can’t recommend this movie at all.

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Night of the Hell Hamsters

Note: I'm interrupting my Amicus special to post a review of a short film that I recently watched.

Synopsis: The film opens with a young woman babysitting a couple of kids when her boyfriend shows up. After letting him in she asks if he has brought it. The it being an Ouija board that she wants to try out. Well things don’t go too well and the couple manages to summon a demon that possesses the family’s hamsters.

The Good: This is a great short film. The film looks sharp and the audio is clear. The actors do a great job, and have great timing. Mostly though this short is a showcase for the writer and director. The story is silly and makes for a fun time. The direction of the film is also outstanding, with the necessary comedic timing executed to perfection.

The Bad: My only real issue with this film is that it was over too fast and left me wanting more.

The Score: 4 out of 4

If you get a chance to see this short while it plays the film festival circuit make the time. It is great fun and worth the effort.

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The Beast must Die

Note: This is the first among several Amicus studio films that I will be reviewing over the next couple of weeks.

Synopsis: A world famous hunter invites a group of people over to his estate for what they believe is a weekend holiday. He actually has another plan in mind. He believes that one of them is actually a werewolf, and he intends to hunt that most dangerous prey. As the weekend begins to pass the houseguests and staff begin to die. Who will die next, and more importantly who is the werewolf? You will just have to watch to find out!

The Good: This is a great cast for a horror film. You have the always-excellent Peter Cushing in the role of werewolf expert Dr. Lundgren. Also in the cast are standouts Michael Gambon and Tom Chadbon. I found the story line to be an extremely interesting twist on a bored hunter tracking human beings ala the short story “The Most Dangerous Game”. The film is shot with a certain seventies sensibility which works very nicely with the overall experience. Whether it is the soundtrack, clothes, or set dressing, everything seems perfect. Watch for the werewolf break that gives the viewer a chance to guess who the werewolf is. Sounds cheesy, but it is fun.

The Bad: I really don’t like how they handled the werewolf creature in this movie. They use a large black dog to stand in for the werewolf. It is pretty clear, even without the commentary, that the dog really is quite gentle. The “action” scenes involving the dog are at time laughable. Also we aren’t given any transformation sequences, which was disappointing.

The Score: 2.5 out of 4

I actually like this movie a great deal despite it’s faults. If you are a fan of werewolf films you may be a bit disappointed in the Beast must Die, but it is still a fun movie.

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The Mummy

Note: This is a review for the classic Hammer release from 1959

Synopsis: An archaeological team made up of a father, brother, and son locates the elusive tomb of an Egyptian priestess long buried and forgotten, or so they think. Before they are able to break the seal on the tomb a priest of the same ancient religion as the buried priestess appears and pleads with them not to desecrate the tomb. In their arrogance they ignore him and soon after the father is found babbling incoherently after being left inside the tomb alone. The action then moves back to England where the priest has followed the three men, intent on carrying out the curse with the aid of the priestess’ guardian, the titular mummy. The remainder of the film is the mummy wandering the English countryside taking his revenge.

The Good: To begin with the cast is top notch. First we have Christopher Lee, who does a fantastic job as the mummy, as well as playing the character as a priest in flashbacks. Peter Cushing in the lead role as the son is also very entertaining. The sets are very good, including the Egyptian sets, which were created from scratch at the studio in England. The script and direction both are crisp and move the movie along at a brisk pace. Again there is no wasted scenes or dialogue to drag the film’s pace down.

The Bad: I really like this movie a great deal. The one caveat that I will give is that it may seem a bit dated to today’s audience. This is a film from the late 50’s and feels like it.

The Score: 4 out of 4

Great film that horror film fans should really enjoy. Plus you get Cushing and Lee in their prime. Doesn’t get any better than this!

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The Island of Dr. Moreau

Synopsis: A shipwrecked survivor named Braddock washes up on the shore of a deserted island, or so he thinks. The island is actually inhabited by a Dr. Moreau and a few of his servants. They take Braddock to their home and nurse him back to health. Eventually Braddock becomes suspicious of the strange sounds and appearance of some of Dr. Moreau’s servants. It seems that the good doctor has been up to some experiments and not all is, as it seems.

The Good: If you don’t know already this movie is based upon an H.G. Wells novel. The writers do an excellent job of adapting the novel into a very fast paced and enjoyable script. There isn’t a wasted scene or slow part of the movie during its 99-minute runtime. Also of note is an excellent cast with Burt Lancaster and Michael York as the leads. Lancaster is especially good as the well meaning, but twisted Dr. Moreau. Finally I wish to point out the makeup effects on the actors who play the results of Moreau’s experiments. Each of the lead “animal men” is a work of art. These are effects that took days to create and hours to apply. The effort really pays off in the finished product.

The Bad: Then ending sequences leave a bit to be desired. The scenes involving the destruction of the doctor’s lab, and the release of his animals are pretty rough. Especially cringe worthy are the fight sequences between the freed animals and the doctor’s creations.

The Score: 3 out of 4

This is a fun monster movie from the 70’s that I really recommend. If you enjoy this movie check out the first adaptation on film the 1933 classic Island of Lost Souls with Bela Lugosi and Charles Laughton.

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