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Post by thwhtguardian on Oct 22, 2019 9:17:59 GMT -5
Watched last night (recorded from Svengoolie last year) the made for TV movie Gargoyles! Starring Cornel Wilde and Bernie Casey and a young Scott Glenn this story has always stuck with me ever since seeing it on television back in the 70's. Always spooky and dark, the movie setting in the depths of the cold dark desert night appeals to my Arizona upbringing and the movie is played out very seriously with no camp. A stellar movie and once seen you will always remember it: I grew up with friends imitating the Gargoyle voice: READ TO ME DIANA... This is a new one for me, and the creature effects look pretty interesting. |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 22, 2019 9:40:20 GMT -5
thwhtguardian ... Could you please send me the YouTube link to House movie? ... I just can't find it.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Oct 22, 2019 10:13:51 GMT -5
thwhtguardian ... Could you please send me the YouTube link to House movie? ... I just can't find it. I don't think it's available for free but you can buy it on DVD, or stream it from Criterion |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 22, 2019 10:23:32 GMT -5
thwhtguardian ... Could you please send me the YouTube link to House movie? ... I just can't find it. I don't think it's available for free but you can buy it on DVD, or stream it from CriterionFound it and thanks for the tip ... watch it later on tonight. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Oct 22, 2019 11:05:54 GMT -5
Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht  1979 This is possibly my favorite vampire movie of all time, it's just so wonderfully dark, beautifully shot and is ultimately deeply unsettling. Right from the get go with the opening shot panning over a line of desiccated, mummified corpses while a heat beats in the back ground you know that this is different than any other film you've ever seen. I think my favorite element of the film though is the contrast between death and beauty that infuses the whole picture; shots of the idyllic Transylvanian country side next to the ominous mountain castle of Dracula and the beautiful canals of Wismar with the homes teaming with plague rats and empty streets full of wandering farm animals create this inescapable feeling that darkness lies just beneath the surface of everything. There are no jump scares here, but the quiet menace of death is deeply unsettling and I find it hard to shake that feeling long after I've watched this film every time I revisit it.
Many thanks to Shax for turning me on to this during what I think was the original iteration of this game( or maybe just a thread that inspired it?) back on CBR.
10/10 |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Oct 22, 2019 14:14:31 GMT -5
Dracula  1931, Universal It's just not Halloween without seeing Bella croon, "I bid you...Welcome.". Browning's adaptation lacks a little depth in terms of what makes Dracula such an enthralling story and it simplifies much of the plot itself but it has style to spare and Bella has a fantastic screen presence that just begs you to sit up and pay attention.
Grade:8/10 |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 22, 2019 15:44:21 GMT -5
House TOHO Film 1977 Reminds me of 007 Blofeld Kitty Kat. Reading thwhtguardian's post and this got me real curious and this movie is probably the most difficult for me describe to and I have no way to start discussing it. It's about a group of girls in schoolgirls outfits with some or little value at all and dealing with a lots of things that make you wonder if you really watching a Japanese Horror flick at all? This is bizarre film and totally wacky almost laughable and make you wonder what's going to happen next! I just having a hard time describing it and this movie may not be suitable for everyone; and yet ... I have seen it and probably not going to bother seeing it again. If you like weird movies this one for YOU! I'm still laughing and can't think straight at all. I'll give it a C grade ... but yet a Passing Grade ... a letter grade of F to A does not apply here.
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shaxper
CCF Site Custodian
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Post by shaxper on Oct 22, 2019 17:17:28 GMT -5
This is possibly my favorite vampire movie of all time, Yes. So very very yes. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Oct 22, 2019 17:30:23 GMT -5
This is possibly my favorite vampire movie of all time, Yes. So very very yes. I forgot just how beautiful the score was until today, I think I watched the scene where Harker hikes up to Castle Dracula three times just for the music this morning. It's a great film on so many levels. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Oct 22, 2019 18:39:38 GMT -5
I don't know if you covered this one in your review of the early years of horror, but as a fan of silent horror films shaxper I think you should make this next one your grading buddy next... The Phantom Carriage 1921 I learned about this one earlier this year from... Steven King! I stood in line to talk to him at a book signing and when talking to him about the upcoming film adaptation of Doctor Sleep he mentioned that Stanley Kubrik drew inspiration for the famous, "Here's Johnny!" scene from this old, silent Swedish film and as a huge fan of both the book and film The Shining I knew I had to find this...and lo and behold Criterion had it...and it's amazing. The film plays out a little like A Christmas Carol and It's a Wonderful Life with Death in the guise of an old friend visiting a drunk on new years eve and showing him his past scenes of depravity and what would happen if he was gone in an attempt to force him to mend his ways. It's never scary, so some may not say it's a true horror film, but its morality play on the road to redemption and the toll true damnation would take is truly moving and coupled with the aforementioned ax scene that obviously struck Kubrick and the eerie ghost effect used in portraying Death definitely make it count for this month's theme.  Sure, it's just a simple double exposure but it works great. Grade:10/10 |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Oct 22, 2019 20:01:48 GMT -5
I don't know if you covered this one in your review of the early years of horror, but as a fan of silent horror films shaxper I think you should make this next one your grading buddy next... The Phantom Carriage Covered it? Ahem... The 50 Greatest from the First 50 Years of Cinema Horror (1896-1946) #5: The Phantom Carriage (1921/Sweden) Each year, the last person to die before New Year's Eve is forced to drive Death's carriage for the following year. At least that's the simple basis of this enormously complex film that both is and is not horror. Rather than a straight horror film, The Phantom Carriage utilizes its supernatural premise as a strange and stylistic vehicle for conveying a morality tale about average, ordinary existence, where the embodiment of death provides an opportunity for reckoning and, ultimately, redemption by the close. While the visuals are delicious in their execution, the direction and camerawork remain restrained, never showing off for the sake of showing off, and never delighting in the supernatural for the sheer sake of spectacle. This is the film about the everyman, his sins and his divinity. Director Victor Sjöström (also starring in the film) never allows the film to waver from this point, even as the narrative seems to tease and drift many times before revealing its full focus and momentum towards the end. This is a brilliant film, an absolute must-see for anyone who is receptive to films that circumvent the obvious plotline and conflict in favor of a deeper and more universal message. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Oct 22, 2019 20:04:00 GMT -5
I don't know if you covered this one in your review of the early years of horror, but as a fan of silent horror films shaxper I think you should make this next one your grading buddy next... The Phantom Carriage Covered it? Ahem... The 50 Greatest from the First 50 Years of Cinema Horror (1896-1946) #5: The Phantom Carriage (1921/Sweden) Each year, the last person to die before New Year's Eve is forced to drive Death's carriage for the following year. At least that's the simple basis of this enormously complex film that both is and is not horror. Rather than a straight horror film, The Phantom Carriage utilizes its supernatural premise as a strange and stylistic vehicle for conveying a morality tale about average, ordinary existence, where the embodiment of death provides an opportunity for reckoning and, ultimately, redemption by the close. While the visuals are delicious in their execution, the direction and camerawork remain restrained, never showing off for the sake of showing off, and never delighting in the supernatural for the sheer sake of spectacle. This is the film about the everyman, his sins and his divinity. Director Victor Sjöström (also starring in the film) never allows the film to waver from this point, even as the narrative seems to tease and drift many times before revealing its full focus and momentum towards the end. This is a brilliant film, an absolute must-see for anyone who is receptive to films that circumvent the obvious plotline and conflict in favor of a deeper and more universal message. Ha, I'm going to have to revisit that thread in more depth and see what other films I've missed! It really is an amazing film, it's simple but everything it does it does excellently which is really something. |
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shaxper
CCF Site Custodian
Posts: 22,871
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Post by shaxper on Oct 22, 2019 20:19:41 GMT -5
Ha, I'm going to have to revisit that thread in more depth and see what other films I've missed! It really is an amazing film, it's simple but everything it does it does excellently which is really something. It's also the film that inspired Ingmar Bergman to become a film director. It's not a well known film to the general populace, but it's a pretty big deal in film circles. |
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Post by Hoosier X on Oct 22, 2019 21:18:12 GMT -5
House TOHO Film 1977Reminds me of 007 Blofeld Kitty Kat. Reading thwhtguardian's post and this got me real curious and this movie is probably the most difficult for me describe to and I have no way to start discussing it. It's about a group of girls in schoolgirls outfits with some or little value at all and dealing with a lots of things that make you wonder if you really watching a Japanese Horror flick at all? This is bizarre film and totally wacky almost laughable and make you wonder what's going to happen next! I just having a hard time describing it and this movie may not be suitable for everyone; and yet ... I have seen it and probably not going to bother seeing it again. If you like weird movies this one for YOU! I'm still laughing and can't think straight at all. I'll give it a C grade ... but yet a Passing Grade ... a letter grade of F to A does not apply here. I love this movie so much! I just discovered it a few years ago and I've seen it twice. I might watch it this Halloween season at some point. |
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Post by Hoosier X on Oct 22, 2019 21:48:18 GMT -5
The Corpse Vanishes (1942)Yikes! I put this one on as my next grading companion, mistakenly believing it was yet another Old Dark House murder mystery I'd seen a thousand times before. Somehow (I have no idea how), I was totally mistaken, and I've never actually seen this one before! It was so enthralling, I had to stop grading in order to watch it until the end. There's so much going right in this one, from a great Lugosi performance, to a strong ensemble cast, to a legitimately creepy tone pervading the film and making for some truly eerie scenes (and no, it doesn't follow the format of an Old Dark House film at all). But, unfortunately, the pacing falls apart by the second half, in which the director favors the hero duo, back in the real world and hatching a plan, rather than the shadowy corridors of Dr. Lorenz's mansion, populated by his terrifying compatriots and insane undead wife. Too bad. This one has so much going for it otherwise, and I intend to watch it every October from now on. I love this one so much! I've been watching it regularly for decades. I used to have a friend who moved a lot and did odd jobs and had trouble keeping a regular job, so he didn't have many belongings, just clothes and a few boxes of stuff. He didn't have a VCR. but he did have three DVDs that went with him every time he moved. It wasn't his very favorite movies, because a lot of them were pretty easy to see on cable. No, his three movies were rare copies of films that he liked to watch a lot that weren't so likely to be accessible. I unfortunately don't remember one of them. But the other two were Too Late for Tears and The Corpse Vanishes. (The first time I saw Too Late for Tears was that copy. And I could see why he wanted to be sure he could see it!) I already had my own copy of The Corpse Vanishes when I knew Roberto. He loved that movie! He could recite or act out the whole thing! He grew up in El Paso, Texas. His older brother started taking him to the movies when he was 3 or 4. (This would have been late 1930s or early 1940s.) And he loved the movies so much that he started just leaving the house and going to the movies by himself several times a week. He would go into the lobby and then just walk in behind a random family after they had given their tickets to the usher. It sounds like Roberto saw EVERYTHING! (I remember him telling me how The Leopard Man scared him worse than just about anything because his neighborhood looked like the Mexican village in the movie, and he was afraid the Leopard Man would get him on the way if his mom sent him to the store before it closed if it was getting dark.) And Roberto saw The Corpse Vanishes and he never forgot it! He identified with Toby (played by Angelo Rossitto) and he hated Bela so much after Toby was shot and moaned "Master, don't leave me!" and Bela kicked him off the running board! (Yeah. That's pretty cold. I've long felt this is one of Lugosi's most evil roles. Not quite as bad as the evil sociologist in Bowery at Midnight though!) Roberto moved around a bit after he grew up. He was in New York City in the 1960s, then he moved to Los Angeles in the 1970s. He told me he had only lived in LA for a few weeks and he wasn't sure he liked it. He got on a bus, I think it was either Fairfax or La Brea, and there was Toby on the bus! Yeah, Angelo Rossitto was still living in Los Angeles and making the rounds and working the studios in the 1970s! (He was in Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome as late as 1985!) It made Roberto very happy to see Toby on the bus! There was still a part of Roberto that was a little kid, watching the end of The Corpse Vanishes and wondering if Toby had died at the end or if he was just wounded. And seeing Toby on the bus made him feel good that Toby had survived the events of The Corpse Vanishes and moved to Los Angeles and rode the bus! That's one of those Hollywood stories I carry around with me. And I've lost track of how many times I've seen The Corpse Vanishes. |
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