The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1936) Tod Slaughter stars as Sweeney Todd, the legendary 19th century barber who enjoyed giving his customers a really close shave. Beside the requisite morbid themes, the film is surprisingly funny thanks to Slaughter’s spirited portrayal. Rather than being depicted as a tortured soul with a tragic past, he enjoys his work. Slaughter (Could there be a better name for a horror actor?) seems to relish every minute as the infamous serial killer, gleefully talking about “polishing off” his clients, with a twinkle in his eye. Not to be missed.
Rating: ****. Available on Blu-ray (included in The Criminal Acts of Tod Slaughter box set) and DVD
Diary of a Madman (1963) Based on the stories of Guy de Maupassant, Diary of a Madman is told in flashback, tracing the events leading up to the death of Magistrate Simon Cordier (Vincent Price). Price is excellent as the tormented Cordier, who has the misfortune of crossing paths with a Horla, an invisible, malevolent being. Much like the condemned criminal he sentenced to death, he’s compelled to murder against his will. Can anything or anyone stop the bloodthirsty Horla? Tune in and find out.
Rating: ****. Available on Blu-ray, DVD and Tubi
Horrors of the Black Museum (1959) Michael Gough stars as Edmond Bancroft, a true-crime author who delights in staying one step ahead of Scotland Yard. He keeps a secret museum devoted to torture and killing in his basement. Meanwhile, he directs his obedient assistant to carry out his dirty work. One of the dubious pleasures of this movie is wondering what creative death awaits his next victim. Warning: You may not want to use binoculars again after watching this.
Rating: ***½. Available on Blu-ray and DVD
The White Reindeer (1952) In this supernatural tale from Finland, by director/co-writer Erik Blomberg, the beautiful witch Pirita (Mirjami Kuosmanen) marries handsome reindeer herder Aslak (Kalervo Nissilä). The nature of his work calls him away from home more than she’d prefer, so the restless witch casts a spell that makes her irresistible to herdsmen (including her husband). She transforms into a white reindeer, roaming the snowy countryside, killing men that are attracted to her. The stark white Lapland landscape not only serves as a backdrop for the story, but takes on a role as its own unique character.
Rating: ***½. Available on Blu-ray, DVD and Tubi
The Screaming Skull (1958) Widower Eric Whitlock (John Hudson), whose former wife died under mysterious circumstances, marries Jenni (Peggy Webber) an emotionally fragile (and wealthy) woman. Soon after they move into his deceased wife’s home, Jenni begins to see and hear strange occurrences, leading her to believe the dead wife has come back to haunt her. Only Mickey (Alex Nicol), the childlike, reclusive gardener, seems to know what’s going on. The plot and gaslighting theme are nothing new, but the performances are quite good, and it has its fun little creepy moments.
Rating: ***. Available on Blu-ray, DVD, Prime Video and
Tubi
Supernatural (1933) A convicted serial killer, Ruth Rogan (Vivienne Osborne) is executed, but before her sentence is carried out, a psychologist (H.B. Warner) seeks her consent to use her body for an experiment. While a fake spiritualist (Alan Dinehart) tries to con Roma, a young woman (Carole Lombard) who’s inherited a fortune from her deceased brother, the killer’s consciousness enters her mind. The possessed Roma promptly sets out for revenge against the spiritualist, who’s also Ruth’s former lover. Supernatural packs a lot in its brief 61-minute running time, although it falls a bit short on chills or logic (why Rogan arbitrarily decides to leave Roma’s body is beyond me).
Rating: ***. Available on Blu-ray and DVD
The Frozen Dead (1966) Those pesky Nazis are at it again, determined to take over the world. But first, Nazi scientist Dr. Norberg (Dana Andrews), now living in England, must find a way to revive a group of select officers who were frozen after World War II. He can reanimate the bodies, but somehow can’t adequately revive their brains. The solution comes in the form of his niece Jean (Anna Palk), who unexpectedly arrives home with her American friend Elsa (Kathleen Breck). His ruthless assistant Lubeck (Karel Stepanek) abducts and kills Elsa, providing an unprecedented opportunity to study her disembodied head and brain in action. The head, however, has other ideas, exerting psychic control over Jean and a wall of severed arms. The whole thing plays like a slightly more competent version of The Brain that Wouldn’t Die (1962), but it’s not without its relative merits, providing some low-key, low-budget thrills.
Rating: ***. Available on DVD
From Hell It Came (1957) American doctors visit an unspecified South Pacific island nation, where they encounter mostly hostile (and generic) villagers. Things get even worse when a wrongfully executed native is reincarnated as a murderous tree monster known as Tabonga, who embarks on an indiscriminate rampage. Expect lots of scenes with the condescending doctors espousing the virtues of Western society over the “primitive” and “ignorant” natives (who speak pidgin English). The “star” of the show, however, is the slow-moving and barely ambulatory Tabonga. It’s hard not to be amused by the goofy yet endearing tree monster, which seems to have more trouble remaining upright than causing mayhem.
Rating: **½. Available on Blu-ray and DVD
No comments:
Post a Comment