A Cronenberg masterpiece!

"The Fly" 1986

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BzwxJ-M_M0

Last years remake of "Fright Night" was excellent, but as good as it was, it's not the film the original is!

5 Stars = Masterpiece

My second favorite Vampire film of all time! "Fright Night" (the original) is the perfect blend of scares & laughs, as Charlie (William Ragsdale) believes his new neighbor, Jerry Dandrige (Chris Sarandon) is a Vampire, after seeing Jerry & his roommate, Billy, carrying a coffin in to the cellar, through an outside cellar door. Murders have been happing around town with the victims head cut off, & Charlie is determined to prove he knows who the killer is, his neighbor.

Chris Sarandon puts on a marvelous performance as the Vampire, Jerry Dandrige. He is smooth, intelligent, aristocratic, has a sense of humor, & exudes loads of sexuality, like most great Vampires, male or female. There is an underlying aura of menace, to his demeanor, very subtle, but all the more powerful for it . He is a cat silently stalking it's prey, sleek, graceful, & lethal.

Charley is perfect for his role, as the prying, upstanding, though slightly inept high school boy, trying to convince everyone that Jerry is a Vampire. His friend, the scene stealing, Evil Ed, (Stephen Geoffreys, who pursued a porno star career afterwards) tells Charley all he needs to know about Vampires, for $8.00, LOL. He tells Charley his best protection right now is not to invite a Vampire in to his house, as a Vampire can not enter another's home, unless invited, so Charley feels relatively safe until his mothers calls him downstairs to meet his new neighbor, Jerry Dandrige, to Charley's horror! The tension of this scene is so real it's almost physical.

Charley finally goes to horror movie host/actor Peter Vincent, "Vampire Killer," in desperation of someone to believe him, & is met with the same skepticism as all the others. Peter Vincent, played by Roddy McDowall, is the complete opposite of Chris Sarandon's, Jerry Dandrige. Bumbling, inept, cowardice, played with all the conviction of non-conviction this fine actor can muster! Peter Vincent is a major ingredient to why this film works so well, as he is finally bribed by Charley's girlfriend to help prove that Charley is wrong about Jerry Dandrige being a Vampire, in another tense scene.

Peter Vincent adds the comedic element to this film, along with Evil Ed, & it is quite the performance, as Peter Vincent finds out Jerry is a Vampire, turns tail & runs, then later finds the courage within himself to help Charley in trying to destroy Jerry Dandrige.

"Fright Night," easily has some of the best make up & special effects for any horror film of the 80's, especially a female Vampire with a gaping maw, filled with razor sharp teeth. It helped set a standard for Vampire's appearances to this day. Not just blood shot eyes & fangs, but a metamorphosis, not unlike land mark Werewolf film's, "An American Werewolf in London" & "the Howling. "Fright Night" can make a pretty air tight claim to the Vampire sub-genre, that those films did for the Werewolf sub-genre. It can also stand along with those films as one of the best examples of it's ilk, a modern updating of the Vampire film legacy, even though we have "the Boy Who Cried Wolf" plot, seldom has it been done so convincingly well! Scary, & funny, all at once!

For Vampire lovers with a sense of humor, you can't go wrong with "Fright Night," it's laughs & scares are one seamless perfection! Truly, a landmark film for the horror genre!

"Fright Night" 1985

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnRDxEE3PEI

Here is a twisted, incestuous, mind fuck deformity of a film, from the producer of "the Re-Animator, Brian Yunza.

"Society" 1989

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDHzfyiZE_A

4 Stars = Classic

I've read some pretty good things about this film, so I thought it was time to see what all the hubbub was about for myself! I mean, a film about the true Santa Claus, who is not jolly in the least bit, & serves as an age old European boogeyman! Now that's got my curiosity sky high, & my expectations are red lining!

Though not quite the film I had envisioned in my mind's eye, "Rare Exports" was indeed worth the watch. Here we have a film that is truly original, if nothing else, but that "nothing else," does not apply here. We also get a goodly amount of atmospheric dread as this movie builds up to it's conclusion. We get a few good red herrings along the way. The movie is handsomely filmed, directed, scripted, acted, & the plot is, to say the least, original. We also get to see the baser side of the human condition, when large sums of money are at stake. A true metaphor to "naughty or nice."

My biggest problem is the climax is anti-climatic, at least for me, but maybe not for you? I won't give it away. The epilogue is very clever though, & again, I won't give it away.

All & all, "Rare Exports" is a film that will pay the viewer well with repeated viewings, especially in the "Yuletide" season!

"Rare Exports" 2010

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RQlikX4vvw

Here is a classic 50's Sci-Fi film that begs a remake!

"It Came From Outerspace" 1953

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErFsW4-FDWw

4 Stars = Classic

Filled with some good chills & great black comedy, "Shadow of the Vampire," is not for everyone, but for those of you it is for, you'll know it, right of the bat!

William Dafoe plays "Max Schreck," playing "Count Orlock, in the filming of "Nosferatu." The rub here is, Dafoe is a vampire playing an actor, playing a Vampire, & things get a little out of hand as Dafoe starts feeding off the cast & crew, with a the zeal of a fat wiggly leech, swimming in a blood bank! Dafoe is obliviously having great fun with this role, & it is almost startling how he has re-created "Count Orlock!"

"Shadow of the Vampire" spouts, fine cinematography, sure handed direction, & it's casting is perfection. Of course it's always fun to watch John Malkovick fly off the deep end as the misunderstood genius. A role he knows well.

A ghoulish delight that flew under everyone's radar, & another masterful performance from Dafoe, that shows why he is one of the best actors of his generation!

"Shadow of the Vampire" 2000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8YyC1PhVLs

Great fantasy film for children & children in adult bodies!

Great puppet effects!

"The Never Ending Story" 1984

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3DcWtkKeIY

5 Stars = Masterpiece

Not a horror movie, though there is hilarious horrible deeds done in this film. Not a fantasy, though there is fantastical funny happenings here.

A true black & blue, black comedy, with enough devious wit for 10 movies. Right on the mark acting, especially Christian Slater as the manically black hearted, funny J.D., whom killing people to him is like playing 18 holes of golf on a sunny 80 degree day, while skipping school! J.D. offs half the high school with the glee of a 13 year old boy who has just got his first kiss!

Winona Ryder as Veronica, is perfect as one of four girls (the only one who is not named Heather & the only one with black hair) who rule their high school like the wicked witches of the west, but she wants out, anyway she can, or so she thinks. So J.D. comes in like her knight in shining black armor, & they both plot to do the three Heathers (hence the name "Heathers) in! But along the way, other popular kids get the Heather treatment too, & Veronica is having second thoughts about J.D.

"Heathers" is definitely a twisted film for those with a twisted sense of humor, the more twisted the better! Truly an original break through black comedy that has a rabid cult following, but never got excepted to college.
"Heathers" 1988

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTmpKgocyYg

4 Stars = Classic

Half of the film is a great comedy/black comedy spoof on the "Torture Porn" sub-genre, & the other half, a dead serious, white knuckled affair! Especially the last third of the film!

A group of employees go out together for a weekend of fun & management improvement skills, but they get more than just fun, & learn how to manage to survive. We have the inept manager, the bookworm woman in glasses, the stoner guy, the black guy, the arrogant, sarcastic, good looking white corporate yuppie guy, the, I get along with everyone guy, & the out of character intelligent & resourceful good looking blonde. Their all going out to spend a weekend in the European redneck equivalent of the S.E. United States, Central Europe, Romania, where the seed of evil torture porn lies!

"Severance is filled with great acting, especially the inept manager, & much kudus goes to the good looking blonde in the strong character role. She's an actress to watch! The others are no slouches either. The stoner is particularly funny & cowardly, as they usually are, but finds courage. The director has to be commended for making what should've of been just another forgettable everyone getting massacred film, into a classic of giggles & thrills! The script is sharp, intelligent, & witty, & the actors all make it come to fruition! You got to love the ending, as it looks like something straight out of a Quinton Taratino film. As a matter of fact, if Taratino was to make a semi spoof/serious torture porn flick, it would be a lot like "Severance." You could also throw in the English version of Quinton Tarantino, director, Guy Ritchie.

"Severance" is well worth the watch, for the person who like just more than ketchup on their torture porn!

"Severance" 2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVwBVm7yVE4

This epilogue sequel to "Pitch BlacK' got shit on by the critics. While no masterpiece, this is a entertaining film with good effects & a good story.

"The Chronicles of Riddick" 2004

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHva0-ckVMw

I love the original, but this is one remake I would pick over the original in a heart beat.

Yes the original was a classic, still is! Great effects for back in that day.

Followed by a inferior sequel, "The Return of the Fly," 1959.

Here is the trailer for the original "The Fly," 1958.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Tfao0uV_zM

5 Stars = Masterpiece

Man, this film is as a about white knuckled, high tensioned, as you can get. It's a thrill ride to end all thrill rides for movies about evil kids! This film is every parents with their own children, who adopts an outside older child, worse nightmare, & then some! It's a hair raising back of you neck horror film, yes, horror film, & has a ending that is just as explosive as it's mind blowing. You get some clues along the way, but even so, it blows your mind!

Actress, Isabelle Fuhrman, as the adopted child, "Esther, is just the personification of a twisted, sick mind. Pure unadulterated evil! Soulless black doll eyes, that penetrates you to your bone marrow, & makes you realize with crstal clear horror, that a child can be a very dangerous creature! Why she did not get an Oscar nomination for her portrayal as Esther, is beyond comprehension! She is this film!

Many critics dismissed this film as just anothe "Bad Seed" clone, & not a great one at that. I don't know what film they were watching, but surely not this one! If you like sitting on the edge of your seat, with your hands clenched hard, wondering what is going to happen next, than "Orphan," is your ticket to a parent's hell. Enjoy the ride & hope it never happens to you!

"Orphan" 2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ywOPNNii9w

The blonde was one of my favourite people in that tv show "Dead Like Me". She played Daisy Adair.

This used to scare the hell out of me as a child. Though the special effects (moving man eating rubber plants) are hokey by today's standards, the story remains sharp & focused. Killer plants from outer space hunting human & other prey, almost all the humans have been blinded by a meteor shower, that in it's self is a good story line to base a movie on. The few that can see, our fighting for their lives.

There are still some remarkably effect scenes in this film, that is if you can find it.

"Day of the Triffids" 1962

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaWvgYYtyU8

I don't have much time now, so I'm going to paste up one of my Amazon reviews for "An American Werewolf in London. One of my three fave horror films of all time. If you have not seen it, where have you been!

5 Stars = Masterpiece

I First saw "An American Werewolf in London" in the theater, way back in 1981. 1981 was the greatest year for Lycanthrope films, not producing one or two masterpieces, but three! "An American Werewolf in London," "the Howling," & ""Wolfen," all different, but all masterpieces in horror, let alone the Werewolf sub-genre, & I loved it, as Werewolves were always my favorite monster, other than giant monster films.

"An American Werewolf in London" stands as my third favorite horror film of all time, behind "Hellraiser" & "the Exorcist" historically, but I find myself enjoying "An American Werewolf in London," now more than "Hellraiser." That is really saying something for me & this film, as I've watched the film probably fifty times in the thirty years it has been out. This is what truly makes a great horror film, or any great movie for that matter, one that repays the watcher with great entertainment, viewing after viewing, year after year. A movie that you can probably almost recite every line of dialog, & you find your self sometimes spouting off lines from it in a conversation. That is what "An American Werewolf in London" means to me.

"An American Werewolf in London" is without a doubt in my opinion, the greatest comedy/horror movie ever made. It has terrifying moments of dread & suspense, it has great jump out of your seat scenes, & it has comedic scenes that match the terror & horror of this film, a relief from the tension it builds. It is filled with pathos, comedy & creepiness all at the same time in scenes with David & Jack. Jack was killed by a Werewolf in the first part of the movie (that in it's self is one of the greatest scenes in horror) & rises back from the dead to tell David who was also attacked, but survived, that he will become a Werewolf in two days, the start of the full moon. David does not know whether he is hallucinating or dreaming Jack at first, & questions his own sanity. These scenes are some of the best in the movie, they truly make you jump when you first see Jack appear. They make you laugh with their delicious black comedy. They make you shudder with their eeriness as Jack talks straight to David about becoming a Werewolf, killing people, making others, & that he is the last in line of the Werewolves & should take his own life, so all the victims from previous Werewolf attacks can move on from being bound to walking the earth. There is such pathos in these scenes, that it causes sadness, as the two actors are truly superb in their performances, there is great chemistry here. I really can't understand why David Naughton, who plays David, fell into obscurity after this film, his sad, funny, & terrifying performance as the man doomed to be a werewolf is one of the greatest performances in horror. You really feel empathy for this person. You care what happens to him. You feel his pain. Also a special mention for David's dream's sequences, truly disturbing dreams.

All of the actors in this movie give top flight performances, from the men & a woman at the Slaughtered Lamb, to the doctor who cares for David, to the beautiful, truly talented actress, Jenny Agutter, the nurse who falls in love with David. The end scene is a real heart wrencher. I'm not ashamed to say, even after all these years, it gets me every time.

The make-up & transformation scene in this film was & still is a landmark, & 30 years latter, it has not been matched, though "the Howling" came close. Speaking of "the Howling," Rick Baker started doing make up for that film, but then left for "An American Werewolf in London," because this was his & John Landis's dream movie. Rob Bottin then took over the reins for the make up of "the Howling" & did a wonderful job, as he has many times since. I've always liked two legged Werewolves over four, but it is a great tribute to Rick Baker, that he has made the most terrifying Werewolf ever, one with four legs. A hound straight from hell, right in to your worse nightmare!

A special mention has to be made about the soundtrack to this film, one of the greatest in horror! "Blue Moon," "Moon Dance, & "Bad Moon Rising," really add atmosphere to this film. The original music is great too, especially during the scenes with Jack & David. All of sound track first rate, which is so important to making a film more successful!

Anyone who has even a remote interest in horror films must see "An American Werewolf in London, not only because it is the greatest Werewolf film ever made, or for that matter, one of the greatest horror films ever made, but it's more than that, it is a masterpiece of movie making! Long destined to be a film remembered for decades to come!

The Blu ray was great! Though there is some grain in some of the scenes shot at a distance, but the close ups are crisp. The colors are vivid. The sound is great for a film this age. Well worth the upgrade!

"An American Werewolf in London" 1981

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESh4t57L4Xs

The sleeper Sci-Fi movie of 2009! If you've not seen it, do!

"District 9" 2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHihFA8q8xI

Like a lot of Italian horror films, this movie does not make a whole lot of sense, but then again, fans of Italian horror films like it that way.

Worth a watch.

"Demons" 1985

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZT7jOmxqBQI

Classic 1970's horror anthology!

"Tales from the Crypt." 1972

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnxFio89IU0

4 Stars = Classic

Slow, but fascinating, "Nosferatu the Vampyre," is basically an expanded remake of the German expressionist art film, "Nosferatu," 1922.

"Nosferatu the Vampyre" recreates the original faithfully, while filling in the intentionally left blank spaces of the original to keep Bram Stoker's widow from suing for copyright infringement of the book, which she did sue, & won. For years the original film was thought lost.

Beautifully filmed, & with breath taking scenery & grim locations all in one, "Nosferatu the Vampyre" makes for an ethereal cinematic experience. Of huge note is the make up for Klause Kinski as "Count Orlock," or I should say "Count Dracula," as he is named in this English version. It is if Max Shreck has been reincarnated! Resurrected from the grave to once again perform his classic role! The resemblance is uncanny!

"Nosferatu the Vampyre," achieves the same eerie expressionism of it's predecessor, but in color & sound, due to director Werner Herzog's great eye for detail & the atmospheric spirit of the original, which is a major feat in it's self!

If your looking for the typical Dracula film, then look somewhere else, as this is a tribute to an era long gone, but still essential for the horror film enthusiasts of today.

"Nosferatu the Vampyre" 1979

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZeYpGsEdEZU

The definitive version of "Salem's Lot." From TNT - 2004

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MEC-TYORoo

Visually & sonicly a beautiful film. The plot is a bit cryptic, but for me, that's it's charm.

A love it or hate it film. Very hard to find on DVD, though it is on streaming Netflix!

"The Keep" 1983

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7t0B2URcT8

Childhood favorite!! Shit I still love it. Holds up really well today imo. Parts 2 and 3 on the other hand......

5 Stars = Masterpiece

5 Stars = Masterpiece

The Granddaddy of all insane slasher movies. It also inspired several excellent like themed (called Grand Guignol period) insane horror films of the 60's, which are classic unto their selves! "Hush...Hush Sweet Charlotte," & "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane." Well worth you time to watch!

My mother-in law would never took a shower again, after seeing this film! I myself, when I hear something in the shower, guess what pops in my mind???

An incredible film, all the more if you saw it in it's day!

"Pyscho" 1960

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NG3-GlvKPcg

A very good fantasy for all ages!

"Labyrinth" 1986

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WT_xpFZe20A