Murder In The Dark - 2024 - UK

Murder In The Dark - 2024 - 6/10

 
An accident in a rural road leaves five passengers stranded in an isolated farm.
The aging, has-been pop star and his 20 year old girlfriend.
His brother, his ex, and his son, who he has ignored, only now junior is climbing the pop charts.
The new generation rocking the old.
Stuck inside, no WiFi, spotty electricity, the members begin raking up past sins.
Oh, yes, there is also the farmer owner, dotty perhaps, perhaps not.
The disjointed narrative goes from mystery, to possible supernatural, to recriminations.

Tilbury - 1987 - Iceland

Tilbury - 1987 - 6/10

 
Audun leaves the small village for Reyjavik, to swim in larger pools and help the British Army.
Reason, it’s 1940 and the Brits have set up fortifications around Iceland.
Audun is also on a mission to find his priest’s daughter, Gudrun, who disappeared in Reyjavik.
What he discovers, however, is that the beautiful Gudrun has a host of military admirers.
Among them, a strange character, almost misshapen that others seem oblivious to.
Strange folk horror of the tilberi, similar to a demon, suckled by a witch from a hidden teat.
The war setting adds incongruous humor, while Audun remains a back row student.

Session 9 - 2001 - USA

Session 9 - 2001 - 6/10

 
Deemed “historic”, the sprawling mental hospital, closed for decades, is permeated with asbestos.
The five-man crew bids low, and promises they can be finished in one week.
From day one, the men are arguing and tensions simmering.
Memories begin to surface, too.  Buried, or seeping in from the haunted compound.
There are hints of the supernatural, along with suggestions of abuse.
Several of the men seem to have agendas, and increasingly unlock the hidden.
For better or for worse, the shift to psychological terror gains traction midway.

Susie Q, Where Are You! - 2022 - USA

Susie Q, Where Are You! - 2022 - 6/10

 
Susie disappears during a midnight swim in the swamp.
Straight off, I’m thinking gators, but I’m Southern.
Two months later, dating couples Deb and Russ, and Kim and Danny, are returning home from the drive-in.
Hey, lets swing by the swamp and Crazy Old Man Coombs, and find Susie.
Few scares, comedy is labored and mostly dumb jokes.
May work better depending on how many Scooby Snacks you chomp, or how many huffs.
Possibly good opener before the slasher feature.

The Black Vampire - 1953 - Argentina

The Black Vampire - 1953 - 6/10
AKA - El Vampiro Negro

 
No bats, no bloodsuckers in this imaginatively shot Argentinian Noir.
Another child victim surfaces, and the police arrest the man who finds the body and notifies them.
The cops know he is innocent, yet public panic surges as more children are killed.
Innovative retelling of M, adds a low-life nightclub, possibly dealing narcotics.
Chief prosecutor is inflexible and self-righteous, not one for leniency or compassion.
The Underworld in this outing is the Subterranean world: homeless, castoffs, scavengers, beggars.
One cam view this for the cinematography alone.

Candy Stripe Nurses - 1974 - USA

Candy Stripe Nurses - 1974 - 5/10

 
“Oh, you mean the Sex Clinic.  To your left.”
The girls are not nurses, they are volunteers who seem to specialize in pleasing select patients.
One deals with a college jock taking amphetamines.
One tries to bag a has-been rock star.
The third plays a dangerous game of detective, trying to clear a patient’s name.
Roger Corman production exposes lots of skin, and adds plots akin to TV of the day.
This ain’t much, although the ladies are attractive.
Interesting moment during the basketball game when I recognized the Matadors.
My, God, my alma mater, I realized.  Odd moment.

The Fatal Glass Of Beer - 1933 - USA

The Fatal Glass Of Beer - 1933 - 6/10

“And it ain’t a fit night out for man or beast.”
Boosh!

 
Ma and Pa endure harsh winters in the Yukon.
On occasion, Pa ventures out of their rough cabin to milk the elk.
The tragedy of the family, is son Chester, in the Canadian prison.
Extremely funny Bill Fields satire on Vaudeville melodramas, popular a generation earlier, and outdoor adventures.

The Dentist - 1932 - USA

The Dentist - 1932 - 7/10

 
Over-protective father vents his anger and frustration upon his patients.
The girl desires to marry the man who delvers ice – certainly a long term career.
Patients who arrive in anxiety find their worst fears confirmed.
Those more laissez faire, do better.  The Bolshevik and long-legged contortionist stand out.
In the middle of treatment, he takes off to play golf.
For those who have sat for hours in a medical waiting room – wondering – this has your name on it.

The Vikings - 1958 - USA

The Vikings - 1958 - 6/10   

 
Unbeknownst to each other, heir apparent Einar and slave Eric are half brothers.
The Viking and English blood ties are muddled, as is the plot in this.
Very much a live action cartoon of battles, betrayals and blood.
Plenty of dismemberment in this (one wonders how many times George Lucas saw as a child).
Location filming boosts the look.  Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh were still in love at this time.
Best, however, is Kirk Douglas as the seething Einar.
Memorable theme, as well as the final storming of the battlements using axes.
Am I the only one who sees a homo-erotic element in this film?

In The Bleak Midwinter - 1995 - UK

In The Bleak Midwinter - 1995 - 6/10

 
The rep group decides to tackle “Hamlet”.
Venue, an abandoned  church, awaiting demolition.
The actors, a scattered tribe of six, dislike each other, and fear the worst, knowing there is no money.
No matter, in the spirit of “the show must go on” they rehearse, experiment, and find their characters.
A lot of time is spent on personalities and personal dramas.
Will they learn to get along, coalesce as a troupe (this is movie, friend).
By the end, however, the plot is absolutely crackling.
Indeed, while I dislike “Hamlet”, I wanted to see their version of the Dane, set during the 1920’s.

Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark - 1973 - USA

Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark - 1973 - 6/10

 
After grandma dies, Sally inherits the big house.
She moves in with her husband, a social-climbing lawyer.
The caretaker warns Sally to leave certain things alone.
Since she possess the DNA of Pandora, Sally soon chips away a sealed area.
And releases house demons that had been imprisoned.
Or is this all in her mind?
Slow boil horror yields shocks for the very, very patient.
Kim Darby effective as the grating Sally.

Night Nurse - 1931 - USA

Night Nurse - 1931 - 7/10  

 
Night emergency is what nurses Lora and Malonney are assigned after breaking curfew.
Late night means crazies, gun wounds, and underworld characters.
The hospital setting is shown to be extraordinarily lacking, which would change after the Code came in.
Stanwyck and Blondell are nurse chums, both assets are on display, rude jokes, crass behavior.
More?  Clark Gable as a thuggish chauffeur.  Drug addiction, children in peril, skimpy lingerie.
Not quite Baby Face (1933), but this remains a wild film.
Essential Pre-Code gem, and one that annoyed the decency crowd and led to the Production Code.

Theatre Of Blood - 1973 - UK

Theatre Of Blood - 1973 - 6/10

 
After critics, once again, savage hammy Shakespearean actor Edward Lionhart, the player commits suicide.
Not so fast!  He is rescued in the Thames, and a few years later, incognito, he is back for revenge.
Directed at whom?  The critics, of course!
Vincent Price has a field day in this especially bloody comedy.
There is an edge in this, as each victim receives an inventive Shakespeare themed demise.
Stellar cast includes Diana Rigg, Ian Hendry, Jack Hawkins, Michael Horden, Diana Dors, Robert Morley  …
Filmed, I believe, in a vacant theatre.
Oh, for a behind the scenes documentary, and to hear cast members carry on.

Dracula’s Daughter - 1935 - USA

Dracula’s Daughter - 1935 - 6/10

 
After his death by Van Helsing, Dracula’s corpse is stolen by his daughter, Countess Marya.
A vampire herself, she hopes that by burning his body, she will lose her vampirism.
When that fails, she returns to hunting victims.  Female victims.
Gloria Holden makes a chilly countess, and the role seems closer to Carmilla.
Typical of the era, marvelous Gothic sets.
The lesbian undercurrent, how did that slip past the censors?
Nevertheless, this is a melancholy story of a depressed and lonely soul.