Tag Archives: Saturday is Horror Day

Saturday is Horror Day #219 – The Prowler (1981)

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Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

The Prowler(1981)

At the end of World War II, many soldiers came home to find the women they loved had sent them Dear John letters, ending their relationship. In the town of Avalon Bay, after the war was over, a young couple are brutally murdered by a man with a pitchfork, and their murders go unsolved.

Thirty-five years, the teens in Avalon Bay are holding their annual graduation dance. But the joyful event is married when a prowler is reported to be in the community. They are told to stay at the school and not to leave until the man is caught. But a killer is on the loose in Avalon Bay and he wears the fatigues of a US World War II soldier….

This film is definitely a product of the 80s, as evidenced by the writing, the acting, and the production values. It has a couple of names I recognized, such as Farley Granger and Lawrence Tierney, but most of the cast is unknown to me. I like Farley Granger in Rope, an Alfred Hitchcock film based on the story of Leopold and Lobe, but I fear he is wasted here.

I confess to being confused by the motivation of the soldier/killer here. If he was jilted 35 years ago, why come at these teens so long after the fact? Did he keep his original pitchfork or what? I will admit that some of the scares are effective and I did jump a time or two. But the film is uneven, and those moments did not sustain my interest. Luckily, it’s only about an hour and a half long. I’ll give this film 2 Tars.

Saturday is Horror Day #218 – Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)

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Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)

Solicitor Jonathan Harker (Bruno Ganz) is sent by his employer Renfield (Roland Topor) to Transylvania to assist a new client, Count Dracula (Klaus Kinski) in the purchase of a house in Wismar, Germany, where Harker lives with his wife Lucy (Isabelle Adjani). The people in the nearby village warn him not to go there, that there is no castle, and only danger lies there. But he doesn’t listen and, when they refuse to take him there, he walks to the Borgo Pass, where he is met by the Count’s carriage.

The castle is a strange place, and so is the Count. Harker finds it difficult to get him to concentrate on the business at hand. But when he accidentally cuts himself, the Count’s reaction is inexplicable. Harker finally realizes there is something very off about Dracula. Even worse, he is a prisoner in this place – and Dracula is headed toward Wismar – and Lucy.

Meanwhile, Lucy is anxious to learn any news of her husband, who has fallen silent. Her friend Mina (Martje Grohmann) tries to console her, but Lucy is distraught. When a mysterious man appears in her bedroom, the Count, Lucy is both frightened and fascinated. Meanwhile, there seems to be a growing problem with rats in Wismar, and as they spread their plague among the village, the death toll is rising, as Harker races back to save his wife.

I admit I had some high hopes about this version of Nosferatru, and the review I saw was good, but I quickly became disillusioned and almost turned it off, but decided to stick it out in order to give it a fair shot.  That didn’t help. Where to start? The actor playing Renfield was so manic and over the top, that in reality, he would have been locked up well before he was in this film.

Also, I found Isabelle Adjani’s acting to be terrible, and very over the top but not in a good way. I understand she is considered to be a talented actress, but I saw none of that in this film.

The original Nosferatu was an actual rip-off of Bram Stoker’s Dracula (and they did get sued for that). In this version, for some reason, they made some changes to the original story. Lucy is Harker’s wife, instead of Mina. The other suitors, aka Dr Seward and Quincy Morris, are nowhere in evidence. And the rats is simply a twist on Dracula’s ability to control the rats in the scene in Carfax Abbey.

Klaus Kinski’s make-up, as Count Dracula, is clearly modeled after the original Nosferatu, but his mannerism is at times almost simpering. Other than the fact that he drinks blood from his victims, what is scary about him? Nothing. Neither does he possess the sensuality of Bela Lugosi or Gary Oldman.

All in all, I was disappointed in what at first glance appeared to be a pretty film. But alas, I discovered that it lacked the substance I was hoping to find. I’ll give this film 2 Stars.

Saturday is Horror Day #217 – The Changeling (1980)

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Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

The Changeling (1980)

Composter John Russell (George C. Scott) loses his wife and daughter in a horrible accident that leaves him devastated. Several months later, his concerned friends urge him to get away so he rents an old mansion near Seattle, owned by a Mrs. Norman (Madeleine Sherwood). Her daughter Claire (Trish Van Devere) helped him to get the mansion, and she is very helpful in aiding him to settle into the huge mansion. The house seems like a great place for him to resume his composing. But he quickly discovers that he is not alone in the house. As he grows closer to Claire, together they seek to find the answers to the secrets of the house – and the powerful man who is guarding them.

I remember when this movie came out, but I never made an effort to watch it until yesterday, not sure why, but I should have. The film was directed by Peter Medak, who also directed movies such as The Ruling Class and Romeo is Bleeding, as well as episodes of Hannibal and House. The Changeling was beautifully directed and filmed. George C. Scott was already a well-known and very talented actor, but I hadn’t seen one of his films in years, so it was almost like watching him for the first time. Trish Van Devere, who plays Claire, was Scott’s fifth wife. They were married in 1972 and remained married until his death in 1999.

Among the rest of the cast, veteran actor Melvyn Douglas plays a senator whose family once owned the mansion, Jean Marsh plays the ill-fated wife, Barry Morse is a parapsychologist, and John Colicos a detective. If you’re old enough you might remember Madeleine Sherwood from the TV series The Flying Nun – she played the head of the convent where Sally Field was a nun.

A haunting musical score lends atmosphere to this lovely film. The heartbreak of the present helps to solve the sins of the past. This is a great example of a haunted house film, one that I highly recommend. I’ll give this film 4.5 Stars.

Saturday is Horror Day #216 – A Haunting in Connecticut 2

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Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

A Haunting in Connecticut 2

Lisa and Andy Wyrick (Abigail Spencer and Chad Michael Murray) and their daughter Heidi (Emily Alyn Lind) move into an historic house in Georgia.  From the beginning, something feels off about the house… as if someone else is there. Heidi talks about her new friend, Mr. Gordy, who is apparently an older man. Lisa is alarmed until she realizes that Mr. Gordy is an imaginary friend. Lisa’s free-spirited siter Joyce (Katee Sackhoff) joins them, living in a trailer that sits next to the house. From the beginning, she believes there are ghosts in the house, restless spirits who are trying to contact them. Lisa thinks that is so much nonsense. But when strange things start to happen, she begins to question her own sanity, and wonders if her sister may be right/

While this sounds like it’s a sequel to A Haunting in Connecticut, it isn’t. The title was thrown on to capitalize on the first film. Seriously, a movie that takes place in Georgia as a sequel to one that took place in Connecticut with no connection whatsoever?  I’m afraid it goes downhill from there – I know, low bar. The film is based on a true story of the Wyrick family, who claim the women in the family are all natural mediums. While I think there is an interesting story here, involving ghosts and the sins of the past,, I think the writers and the producers failed to capture it. The story was confusing and disjointed, in my opinion, and asks the viewer to suspend an awful lot of disbelief. It also relies a lot on jump scares, which is a rather cheap trick.

The acting is so-so, and the most memorable character, in my opinion, is Mr. Gordy, the so-called imaginary friend. To be honest, I almost turned it off somewhere in the beginning, but decided to finish it anyway. The ending was…. well, just see for yourself if you are really interested. If you pass on it, you won’t have missed anything. I’ll give this film 1.5 Stars.

Saturday is Horror Day #215 – The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

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The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Mild-manner Dr. Henry Jekyll (Jack Palance) has a theory regarding the dual nature of man – he posits that it is possible to separate men into good and evil, thus allowing their good nature to overcome and the evil to be quelled. But his ideas are met with scorn by the medical community, and the other doctors tell him that even if he concocts the potion he is speaking of, there will be no way of testing it ethically. So Jekyll returns to is lab undaunted, determined to use the potion on himself. So he takes the potion….

The next morning, he returns to the place where he went the night before, the Windmill Music Hall, and

learns of his actions the night before as his alter ego, Edward Hyde. Seems like Hyde had a good time, drinking and carousing, and particularly spending time with one of the hostesses, Gwen Thomas (Billie Whitelaw). Jekyll repeats the experiment in the following days, and Hyde, who apparently is quite the hedonist, returns to the Windmill and Gwen. But more and more, Hyde’s violent urges come out, and he is vicious and relentless.

Jekyll’s best friend, Devlin (Denholm Elliott) is concerned about Henry, as are his servants, including  his faithful manservant Poole (Gillie Fenwick). When Hyde leans toward ending the experiment, he discovers to his horror that Hyde doesn’t need the potion to come out  to play, and it requires more of the anti-potion to put that particular genie back in the bottle. With Hyde becoming more and more out of control, Jekyll doesn’t know what to do….

This version of Jekyll and Hyde is actually a TV movie from 1968. I remember watching it as a child (I would have been about 11 then), and rewatching it as I grew older. I was always drawn to Jack Palance’s Hyde. From what I read, the role was originally given to Jason Robards, but due to complications, ended up with Palance, and the make-up was changed, the final result meant to resemble a satyr. As a teenager, I remember being quite taken with Mr. Hyde. I wondered if I would feel the same as a fully grown adult – I did. Palance is mesmerizing in the dual roles, between the mild-manner Dr. Jekyll and the sensual hedonistic Hyde. The story is undoubtedly a familiar one to most audiences, based on the story by Robert Louis Stevenson.  I haven’t seen them all, but I always liked this one a great deal.

TV movies and shows were filmed differently, I can’t explain quite why that is, not being an expert, but it’s quite visible, and actually lends a Gothic feel to the movie. From the moment I began to watch, I got strong Dark Shadows vibes – and no wonder, as Dan Curtis of Dark Shadows fame was a producer. Also, if you listen during one of the scenes and you think you recognize an eerie little tune that is being played, you probably do as that song went on to become Quentin’s Song from Dark Shadows.

I was concerned that I might not like the film as much as I did years ago, that it wouldn’t stand up to the test of time. I am happy to report I did and it did, and if you are a fan of Jekyll and Hyde, or Jack Palance, I recommend you add this to your viewing repertoire. I give this film 4 Stars.

Saturday is Horror Day #214 – A Haunting in Connecticut

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Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

A Haunting in Connecticut

Sara Campbell’s (Virginia Madsen) world fell apart when she learns her son Matt (Kyle Gallner) has a life-threatening illness. The long drive between their home and the hospital in Connecticut where he is receiving treatment is hard on everyone and taking a toll on Sara’s marriage to Peter (Martin Donovan). Sara copes with her faith, while Peter copes with the bottle. At the end of her rope, Sara decides they need to get a home in Connecticut, at least for now, to spare Matt the agony of the long rides to and from the hospital, and having to make multiple stops for him to be ill, wearing him out even more.

One day, after Matt was sick again on the way home, Sarah impulsive returns to the town she has just left

and spots a man hammering a For Rent sign in his yard. He jokes with her that if she keeps him from hammering the last night, she can have the first month free. She agrees, and he even supplies a mattress, so mother and son can spend the night. Peter is furious that she did this without consulting him, but she explains how much pain Matt was in. So they move in with  Matt, his brother Billy (Ty Wood) and Sara’s two nieces, Wendy (Amanda Crew) and Mary (Sophi Knight). But Sara is hiding something from her husband – something he is livid about when he finds out.

Matt claims a bedroom in the basement, drawn to it for reasons he can’t explain. He finds what appears to be a secret door, but his father can’t budge it. However, later Matt manages to get through the door, and he and Billy discover the secret of the house that Sara withheld from her husband – at one time it was a mortuary.

Sleeping in the basement, Matt begins to see things. Very strange things. A young boy. But he’s afraid to say anything. He’s been warned that if he experiences hallucinations, he will have to be dropped from the drug trial he is participating in. So he keeps it to himself. At his treatment one day, he befriends a fellow patient, Reverend Popescu (Elias Koteas) and they become friends, as he tells the minister about the things he’s seen. Popescu is concerned that something is wrong with the house and that maybe they are in trouble.As Matt becomes more and more involved in the dark history of the house, Sara begins to feel as though she is losing her son in more ways than one.

This film has a premise we’ve seen many times – the house of death (mortuary) where people have been brutally killed and seek retribution of some kind, while haunting the new people who just happen to buy the house. It’s an interesting premise, but one I feel could have been better handled here. Supposedly this was based on a true story that was actually investigated by Ed and Lorraine Warren themselves. I think it could have been better done. Some of the story seems disjointed or isn’t well explained. For example Sara’s animosity toward the revend. The husband’s growing alienation with his family.  Matt seeing the boy and then becoming caught up in his story doesn’t seem to flow. At times it almost seems to have shades of Poltergeist. I think better attention could have been paid to the storyline and the characters. It was interesting enough to warrant watching the second one. I’ll give this film 3 Stars.

Saturday is Horror Day #214 – The Creeping Flesh

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Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

The Creeping Flesh

Emmanuel Hildern (Peter Cushing) returns from the jungles of New Guinea with a marvelous find in the form of a huge skeleton, one he believes will serve to bolster his theory that evil is a disease that can be cured. His daughter Penelope (Lorna Heilbron) is overjoyed at her father’s return, and hopes to spend time with him, but he is quickly lost to his studies once more. On his arrival, he finds a letter from his brother James (Christopher Lee) who runs a mental asylum. James regrets to inform his brother that while he was gone, his wife passed away. And he has said nothing to Penelope, of course. The truth of the matter is that Penelope believes he mother died years ago and her father is not about to let her know the truth.

But he doesn’t realize how obsessed with the idea of her mother Penelope is, especially because she has

been forbidden from entering the locked room that was once her mother’s. But where there is a will, there is a way, and Penelope gains entrance.

In the meantime, Emmanuel has made an accidental discovery that he cannot quite explain – if the skeleton becomes wet, flesh begins to grow on the bone! Interestingly, his brother James is involved in his own dark experiments. And the two experiments are about to overlap!

While this film has the look and feel of a Hammer film, including Hammer’s two biggest stars – Cushing and Lee – it is not. There are also supporting actors Duncan Lamont, Michael Ripper, make-up artist Roy Ashton, and cinematographer turned director Freddie Francis.

Cushing plays the absentminded scientist well. He means well in protecting his daughter, but she finds out anyway, unprepared for the reality of her mother’s mental instability. We see flashbacks of her descent into madness, and we are led to believe that this was inherited by her daughter. I think the daughter’s own descent was a bit rapid, but considering the film is only an hour and a half long, understandable.

Sure, one has to suspend a certain amount of disbelief, such as water growing flesh on a skeleton, and the skeleton coming to “life” and wreaking havoc. But it’s a fun watch with a twist ending I didn’t see coming. If you are fans of Cushing and Lee, as I am, I recommend giving this a watch. I’ll give this film 3.75 Stars.

Saturday is Horror Day #213 – The Haunting(1999)

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Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

The Haunting(1999)

Eleanor, known as Nell (Lili Taylor) has not had it easy, taking care of her invalid mother for eleven torturous years, always at her beck and call and the incessant beating of her cane against the wall. Now that the old woman has passed, perhaps Lili can relax… except that her sister Jane (Virginia Madsen) and her husband Lou (Tom Irwin) have power of attorney and they have decided to sell the flat out from under Nell, leaving her homeless. Her sister says that Nell can come stay with them – if she wants to work for her living, including caring for their bratty child, Ritchie (Saul Priever). Just when all seems lost, Nell receives a phone call from a doctor telling her to look in the paper where she finds a study for insomnia that is paying participants $900 a week plus room and board. Nell leaps at the opportunity and is accepted for the study.

Dr. David Marrow (Liam Neeson) has placed an ad for an insomnia study. But what the participants don’t know is that his actual purpose is to conduct a study on group fear. His assistant Mary (Alix Koromzay) objects that this isn’t fair to the people involved, but the doctor insists he can’t conduct the study any other way.

Nell follows the directions and finds herself at the gates of an enormous mansion where she meets the surly caretaker Mr. Dudley (Bruce Dern). He lets her in and tells her to ask for his wife (Marian Seldes). Next to arrive is Theo (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and then Luke (Owen Wilson), followed by Dr. Marrow and Mary. From the beginning, strange things seem to be happening, including an accident which sends Mary to the hospital, never to be seen again.

Nell claims that there is something about the house and about the man who built it – allegedly as a home for his future children – something evil. But the others insist she is having a breakdown. Is the house haunted, or is Nell behind the mysterious goings on?

The Haunting is a remake of the 1963 film starring Julie Harris, which is from an original story by Shirley Jackson. Despite the famous cast, the star of the show is the actual mansion, which gives off elegant/creepy vibes from the beginning with its over the top opulence and its disturbing statuary of children, as well as a rotating room with its own carousel, and a fireplace you would fit a football team in. Lili Taylor does a good job as the tortured Nell, who only wants a place to belong, and someone to belong to. Catherine Zeta-Jones is stunning, as usual, and Owen Wilson clueless, while Liam Neeson swings between villain and victim. It’s not a perfect film, but it does have a certain ambience as the people who are locked inside until morning (shades of House on Haunted Hill!0 try to negotiate what appear to be evil spirits. I think the ending will haunt you for a while. I’ll give this film 3.75 Stars.

Saturday is Horror Day #212 – Amber Alert, Dracula Untold

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Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

 

Amber Alert


Jaq (Hayden Panettiere) has an appointment she has to keep, but when the rideshare she arranged for is stolen out from under her, she is temporarily flummoxed. Just then another driver appears, dropping off his fare. She tries to engage him, but the driver Shane (Tyler James Williams) has places to go and things to do and he is off the clock. But Jaq persists until he reluctantly agrees to take her where she is going.

 

 

As they are driving, they each receive a notice on their cell phones of an Amber Alert, along with a 


description and picture of the car in question, but no plate. Jaq looks up to see a car like the one in the alert, just ahead of them. She asks Shane if he thinks that could be the one but he tells her that there are too many of that type of car in the whole city, it’s not likely. As they approach a light, a large message lights up with the amber alert information, and the driver she had observed, suddenly pulls through the intersection, not waiting for the light. Jaq senses that this might be the guy the police are looking for and urges Shane to follow him. He does, albeit reluctantly, and they follow him to a gas station, where Shane points out that he just needed gas. The odd thing is that he leaves without ever getting gas… and the chase is on.

 

If you are a parent, this movie will hit close to home. One minute your child is there and the next they are gone. A stark reminder that there are predators in this world. Also, it’s a reminder to trust your gut instincts, because that might be all you have to go on. Two strangers follow a man they think has kidnapped a child, not knowing if they are on a fool’s errand or not. Sometimes it seems as though they might be being foolish. They have also blown off prior engagements to fight for a stranger’s child… and yet they persist. I think this was a great testament to the fact that there are good people out there who are willing to fight for others, for the weak and helpless, for the children.

I did enjoy this film, and I’ll admit Jaq made me cry at one point. I wasn’t sure how the ending would play out, but I hoped for a happy and satisfying conclusion. Definitely worth watching. You may remember Hayden Panettiere from Heroes, where she played the cheerleader who was destined to save the world.  I’ll give this film 4 Stars.

Dracula Untold


The kingdom of Transylvania is threatened by the Turks, and have been off and on for many years. The prince, Vlad (Luke Evans) was once a political prisoner of the Turks, where as a young boy he learned many things, including how to fight. Now he is a grown man who has a wife, Mirena (Sarah Gadon) and children he needs to protect against the Turks, led by their sultan, Mehmed (Dominic Cooper). While out with his men, Vlad discovers a place where Turkish troops were mysteriously slaughtered – and not by any of his troops. He discovers a cave that holds the secret of their demise, and barely escapes alive, keeping the knowledge of that cave to himself.

Not wishing to endanger his kingdom, Vlad negotiates a peace with the Turks, only to have his trust 


turned against him when the Turks demand he surrender 1000 young boys to them for their army – just the way his father had sacrificed himself and the other boys. Moreover, Mehmed demands Vlad’s son, intending to raise him as his father had raised Vlad. That’s the last straw. Vlad returns to the cave and the master vampire (Charles Dance) who resides there, determined to do whatever he needs to do to save his kingdom and his family.

Dracula Untold is actually an origin story, something to explain how Count Dracula of film and novel becomes the way it is. It’s actually a romanticization that combines some actual history of Vlad Dracula, aka Vlad Tepes (the Impaler) with Bram Stoker’s vampire. The film explains away his cruelties as a necessity to combat the Turks. To some degree, this is true. Vlad Dracula was held as a political captive while a boy, and was subjected to much cruel treatment, probably some sexual in nature, and he learned a lot about their methods of torture. Lessons he put to good user later in life. The film doesn’t mention his younger brother, Radu the Handsome, who was also a captive, but was treated much nicer than Vlad. In fact, in later years, he had a relationship with the Turkish sultan. It’s fair to say this did not endear him to his brother.

 

I thought Luke Evans did a great job as Dracula, playing him as a good husband and father and ruler.  I don’t believe the original Vlad was necessarily a good husband, but he did care for his people. He also had a cruel streak, no doubt a result of his treatment by the Turks during his formative years. That being said, I liked that they tackled the origin story of the vampire and presented it in a realistic fashion. It was interesting to watch, and the ending hinted of a sequel. However, I am pretty sure that is off the table. But I still recommend this film, especially if you are a fan of Vlad and/or Dracula as I am. I am giving this film 4 Stars.

Saturday is Horror Day #211 – The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)

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Reviewer: Julie Lynn Hayes

The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)

Baskerville Hall has been cursed after Sir Hugo Baskerville sullied the place with his drunkenness, violence, and complete disregard for anyone but himself. But one night he finally went too far, and a curse was placed upon his descendants. Fast forward a number of years. The current master of Baskerville Hall has died under, shall we say, mysterious circumstances, and his son, now Sir Henry Baskerville (Christopher Lee) is headed home to claim his inheritance. However, he is mindful of the curse and reluctant, so he seeks advice from renowned detective, Sherlock Holmes (Peter Cushing). Holmes listens to his tale, though obviously he gives no credence to the possibility of a curse. However, when a tarantula almost kills Sir Henry in Holmes’ flat, he admits that maybe someone wishes to harm him.  He agrees that Sir Henry should not travel there alone. However, he himself cannot accompany him, but there is no reason that his associate, Dr. Watson (Andre Morell) cannot. So the two men set off.

On arrival, they discover that a prisoner by the name of Selden has escaped from the nearby Dartmoor

Prison. At the Hall, Sir Henry finds a couple who served his father, the Barrymores (John Le Mesurier and Helen Goss). Holmes left strict instructions to Watson to never allow Sir Henry to go onto the moors alone, but one night he does just that and meets a strange girl. He impulsively follows her, despite her obvious desire to lose him, and becomes instantly smitten. He learns that the girl, Cecile (Maria Landi) lives with her brother Stapleton (Ewen Solon) nearby.

Doctor Mortimer (Francis De Wolff) had attended Sir Henry’s father before his death and advises the son to be careful as he has a weak heart. Watson and Sir Henry run into a pastor (Miles Malleson) with an unusual penchant for entomology, and a telescope that seems to be fixed on the Hall. Hearing the fabled hound baying across the moor is just the icing on the cake, as Watson inadvertently puts himself into the very predicament Holmes had advised against. Is the curse of the Baskervilles a real thing?

This 1959 version of the famous story by Arthur Conan Doyle, is a Hammer film featuring two of the studio’s greatest stars – Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. It was also the first Holmes film to be shot in color. Peter Cushing makes a great Holmes, although there is no evidence of his drug habit, but that is not surprising for the times in which this was made. As is the lack of real violence. It doesn’t have to be seen to be felt, after all. Imagination plays a great part in good horror films. I like Andre Morell’s Watson, who was not made out to be the buffoon that Nigel Bruce was forced to play. In fact, he is a good foil for Cushing’s Holmes. Christopher Lee is his usual patrician self as Sir Henry Baskerville. I do have to say that the relationship between Sir Henry and Cecile was sudden and not believable. Luckily it’s but a small part of the plot. Also, in the original story the Stapletons were posing as a brother and sister when in actuality they were married, but in this film, they are father and daughter.

Even after all these years, this film holds up as a good version of the story, and I enjoyed it as much as I ever did.  I am a huge fan of Basil Rathbone’s Holmes, and also the more recent Benedict Cumbermatch series, but Peter Cushing is just as good. I’ll give this film 4 Stars.