It’s a plot that you can’t help but like. A mission to another planet with a spaceship crewed by a collection of forgotteable TV actors! But something goes wrong and these people start to die! Continue reading “Star Quest (1994)”
Category: Horror
The Monster That Challenged the World (1957)
Since The Monster That Challenged The World was made in the 1950s, the titular monster is an enlarged beast in the tradition of every other supersized household pest of the era (spiders, ants, grasshoppers, women) and is after gals in bathing suits.
That isn’t strictly its plan, but that’s how it kind of plays out in this remarkably unremarkable monster rampage movie starring a washed up star of grade Z cowboy movies and a monster that alternately looks like a caterpillar with pincers or a big lumpy piece of dog turd, depending on the angle. At least it didn’t look like a snail since, you know, that’s what it really was. Continue reading “The Monster That Challenged the World (1957)”
Absurd (1981)
There’s no question that Halloween is a cherished American movie, occupying a place in our hearts alongside such classics as Gone With the Wind, The Wizard of Oz and Bad Boys II. It’s a pretty much perfect melding of suspense, violence, atmosphere, music and floating Steadicam shots. And how many of us haven’t caught ourselves at one time or other uttering such famous Dr. Loomis quotes as “Death has come to your little town, sheriff.” and “This isn’t a man.”
But what if someone could take all that was rad about Halloween and add the only thing missing to it? That guy would be a freaking genius, right? That guy would be freaking Joe D’Amato! Continue reading “Absurd (1981)”
Demons 2 (1986)
When we last saw the demons, they had begun their plot to take over the world by overrunning a free showing of a cheesy Italian horror movie at one of the local theaters in Berlin. The movie ended with the city beset by all sorts of demons-related violence and the survivors of the movie theater assault were headed off in a jeep to find safety in the country.
It would be safe to assume then that Demons 2 would turn it up a notch and depict the epic clash between man and demon as they battled for control of the entire world, right? Uh, no, but would you settle for a bunch of demons overrunning an apartment building? What if I told you that the apartment building had a weight room? Continue reading “Demons 2 (1986)”
Night Hunter (1996)
I’ve never seen any of the Blade movies. It’s a toss up as to which I’m less interested in – vampires or Wesley Snipes.
These vampires are always swishing their romance novel cover long hair around, resplendent in their European finery and prone to mucking about with goblets and come hither looks any normal woman would laugh off.
There’s also usually talk about vampire families that date back hundreds of years and how powerful they all are. If they’re really so powerful, why are they generally unknown to the world at large and getting killed by vampire hunters who couldn’t possibly have all the resources that these supposedly old, well-connected families have had centuries to build up? Continue reading “Night Hunter (1996)”
A Blade in the Dark (1983)
Director Lamberto Bava (Demons) supposedly emulates some of father Mario Bava‘s most famous films and tries to incorporate some of their themes into this movie. I know this because I read the liner notes by Tim Lucas, not because I was able to discern any of that from the film itself. The best thing in this movie though turns out not to be something he cribbed from his daddy, but from Lucio Fulci! Continue reading “A Blade in the Dark (1983)”
Demons (1985)
I’m not sure what’s scarier: the fact that Demons is often hailed as Lamberto Bava‘s masterpiece or the fact that Lamberto Bava has a masterpiece at all. Continue reading “Demons (1985)”