CHRISTOPHER LEE STOKING HAMMER'S 'THE DEVIL RIDES OUT'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgezbGgOAq2Z1a1EecqiOOsCMCyxXARxFhGG8_euxEFJ7rulauI6nEY9YGVP243X_cuN_4JYFrTcPIKNZ3iLDB7GKM0VGCbPEAwJoiHWDbyD49-zcXsic-BIJAWjV3HmaPsfZ6UTg5h0SeF42_PJywaCRNm-GJ98N7rILeaXT_2niq7Tcp9iB2UquGCt-g4/s1734/Screen%20Shot%202025-01-11%20at%201.00.35%20AM%202.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="984" data-original-width="1734" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgezbGgOAq2Z1a1EecqiOOsCMCyxXARxFhGG8_euxEFJ7rulauI6nEY9YGVP243X_cuN_4JYFrTcPIKNZ3iLDB7GKM0VGCbPEAwJoiHWDbyD49-zcXsic-BIJAWjV3HmaPsfZ6UTg5h0SeF42_PJywaCRNm-GJ98N7rILeaXT_2niq7Tcp9iB2UquGCt-g4/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202025-01-11%20at%201.00.35%20AM%202.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Christopher Lee & Nike Arrighi in The Devil Rides Out/The Devil's Bride Year: 1968 Rating: **</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>In two of Hammer legend Christopher Lee's favorite Hammer movies, he's a regular fella, not a monster or killer... although in the <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2021/07/2F.html">THE TWO FACES OF DR. JEKYLL</a> he's a double-crossing scoundrel, having sex with his titular best friend's wife and suffering constant gambling debts that he talks the initially vulnerable cuckold into paying... <br><br>Yet in THE DEVIL RIDES OUT, with the same director in Hammer staple Terence Fisher, he's actually the hero... and it was Lee's own persistence to bring author Dennis Wheatley's occult novel to the big screen...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p><span></span></p>

charles gray, christopher lee, hammer films, horror, nike arrighi, occult, sixties, terence fisher

CHRISTOPHER LEE STOKING HAMMER'S 'THE DEVIL RIDES OUT'

Christopher Lee & Nike Arrighi in The Devil Rides Out/The Devil's Bride Year: 1968 Rating: ** In two of Hammer legend Christopher Le...

HAMMER FILMS PENULTIMATE HORROR 'TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDmBQ3R_8FA2uxX4misTdem9XiaB7CB1BGCzkkPPwTyXeg-gxNAMVSr_3ns3a8EmBk8Cf5LPy4cn7dsFx4ftBYf0aVacMQjKYiiBaEK5oUJ7pk1b6t57aqRBJmc_yvWSa0LW6l0GLc8LBCd4QllcAa530ODLD9MHls344uIQyoO65nj5g06rmMZVedCVN7/s1518/Screen%20Shot%202025-01-04%20at%202.15.02%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="906" data-original-width="1518" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDmBQ3R_8FA2uxX4misTdem9XiaB7CB1BGCzkkPPwTyXeg-gxNAMVSr_3ns3a8EmBk8Cf5LPy4cn7dsFx4ftBYf0aVacMQjKYiiBaEK5oUJ7pk1b6t57aqRBJmc_yvWSa0LW6l0GLc8LBCd4QllcAa530ODLD9MHls344uIQyoO65nj5g06rmMZVedCVN7/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202025-01-04%20at%202.15.02%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Nastassja Kinski in TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER Year: 1976 Rating: **</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Penultimate horror for one of the most famous horror studios, British's Hammer Films, has a young girl, schooled by nuns and dressed accordingly, being surreptitiously groomed into a Satanic coven care-of Hammer's biggest star Christopher Lee (who seems ready to bare fangs at any given moment) playing an ex-priest...<br><br>But the main problem with TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER... where the exploitation aspect's built right into the title, most likely to compete with THE EXORCIST... is that the novelty of a gorgeous young girl being used for Satanic/risque purposes means little since fourteen-year old Nastassja Kinski looks more like a nineteen-year-old old enough for whatever else she's being hidden from...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p><span></span></p>

christopher lee, denholm elliott, hammer films, honor blackman, horror, nastassja kinski, occult, richard widmark, seventies, thriller

HAMMER FILMS PENULTIMATE HORROR 'TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER'

Nastassja Kinski in TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER Year: 1976 Rating: ** Penultimate horror for one of the most famous horror studios, British'...

ORSON WELLES HYPNOTIZES NANCY GUILD WITH 'BLACK MAGIC'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcsdU-bowMNuYSBU2-n0QZqIGRFIumd5fv52JBK8fRUEyOz4eNtgeJGPPlx-5UHFa27AurPD2khtjHLhR5rpq3uReMTaTmqf5CyHoJAsTiOvRt3Xj9qOwHlFqM4-BI3_jxR06F0OgBmBff_0MP40dDenLmP2D7AMyL4OS2-YWfEcgUSYHgpF9jV1MOLw/s1022/1.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="1022" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcsdU-bowMNuYSBU2-n0QZqIGRFIumd5fv52JBK8fRUEyOz4eNtgeJGPPlx-5UHFa27AurPD2khtjHLhR5rpq3uReMTaTmqf5CyHoJAsTiOvRt3Xj9qOwHlFqM4-BI3_jxR06F0OgBmBff_0MP40dDenLmP2D7AMyL4OS2-YWfEcgUSYHgpF9jV1MOLw/s16000/1.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Orson Welles and Nancy Guild starring in BLACK MAGIC Year: 1948 Rating: **1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>As a hired actor instead of director or producer, Orson Welles — while making money for those projects he developed on his own — was used for his deep, godlike voice, but in BLACK MAGIC... released the same year as THE THIRD MAN which epitomized that sublime vocal delivery... it was his sharp, cold, piercing eyes that were the most exploited...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>He's a hypnotist after all: born the son of two 1700's-era gypsies and whose mother could actually foretell the future, he is soon orphaned when they're hanged for wielding so-called demonic powers...  </p><span></span>

adventure, akim tamiroff, berry kroeger, con man, drama, forties, frank latimore, nancy guilt, occult, orson welles, period piece, revenge, reymond burr, victorian

ORSON WELLES HYPNOTIZES NANCY GUILD WITH 'BLACK MAGIC'

Orson Welles and Nancy Guild starring in BLACK MAGIC Year: 1948 Rating: **1/2 As a hired actor instead of director or producer, Orson Welles...

ORSON WELLES, PAMELA FRANKLIN & LEE PURCELL 'NECROMANCY'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeOYTDVcq7VdkTX5auzU3YTUfqZBKWU3fxBxuFOzl4-XSilHuArmQH2o2oqTBx18Swf2hW5fwzxxGS-nG9ebfqNnMT33tVa32GDviOdKOfccRJ2APJQEevGMgxGAl1cSB9I2meyaUcuBSHwOYPkUpnxtTXbULYLPdc9Jey8ssDvlTbs8Vbu5jfMvV1Rg/s908/Screen%20Shot%202022-10-27%20at%202.21.00%20AM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="572" data-original-width="908" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeOYTDVcq7VdkTX5auzU3YTUfqZBKWU3fxBxuFOzl4-XSilHuArmQH2o2oqTBx18Swf2hW5fwzxxGS-nG9ebfqNnMT33tVa32GDviOdKOfccRJ2APJQEevGMgxGAl1cSB9I2meyaUcuBSHwOYPkUpnxtTXbULYLPdc9Jey8ssDvlTbs8Vbu5jfMvV1Rg/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202022-10-27%20at%202.21.00%20AM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Pamela Franklin & Orson Welles in NECROMANCY Year: 1972 Rating: **1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Exploitation/Horror b-director Bert I. Gordon definitely knew WHO he had for the <i>Rural Satanic Hippie Cult</i> flick, THE WITCHING actually/originally titled NECROMANCY, but he didn't know enough about WHAT he had in his stellar cast including the legendary Orson Welles as the leader of a colorful coven... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>He's yearning to reanimate his dead son using the lovely, vulnerable, and soul-troubled wife of new couple in town Pamela Franklin, married to passive tagalong Michael Onkean as both are semi-seduced into the realm by one of the few women more insanely gorgeous than Franklin...</p><p><span></span></p>

bert i. gordon, harvey jason, horror, interview, lee purcell, michael ontkean, occult, orson welles, rural, seventies, thriller, witch

ORSON WELLES, PAMELA FRANKLIN & LEE PURCELL 'NECROMANCY'

Pamela Franklin & Orson Welles in NECROMANCY Year: 1972 Rating: **1/2 Exploitation/Horror b-director Bert I. Gordon definitely knew WHO ...

PHOTO GALLERY 'CURSE OF THE DEMON' FOR ANOTHER OCTOBRER

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizqB7rhKiOybwlWd3JSEed0OEndIcKMTbgbIeCluN6z0DuF3sGNZ8sTZyJUVeuBR2SDSXnAn9Oe3NGfw7n9YpqbLptnAE8rvDcVE8i-XsvS3i3Sd-BfFimchJ-jxvmhq98dwQfIjqHByWU29atpZWGVJGjJArcwiuzZIVOQijA9YyveEYBsFadsEVElw/s1455/1%202.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="1455" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizqB7rhKiOybwlWd3JSEed0OEndIcKMTbgbIeCluN6z0DuF3sGNZ8sTZyJUVeuBR2SDSXnAn9Oe3NGfw7n9YpqbLptnAE8rvDcVE8i-XsvS3i3Sd-BfFimchJ-jxvmhq98dwQfIjqHByWU29atpZWGVJGjJArcwiuzZIVOQijA9YyveEYBsFadsEVElw/s16000/1%202.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Cover of the British Blu Ray Box Set for NIGHT OF THE DEMON/CURSE OF THE DEMON</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>There have been two reviews on the Jacques Tourneur classic horror <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2018/12/DemonCurse.html">CURSE OF THE DEMON</a>, the American re-release title, and how it differs from the original British <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2019/10/NightCurse.html">NIGHT OF THE DEMON</a>, which these particular captures, celebrating this years' Halloween, derive...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Our favorite actor is Dana Andrews and favorite director is Jacques Tourneur, making either DEMON a favorite horror that combines American cinema thrills and leading man, a French auteur and everything else belongs to the British including locations (including Stonehenge), character-actors and leading lady, Peggy Cummins...</p><p><span></span></p>

article, british, cult, dana andrews, fifties, horror, jacques tourneur, list, niall macginnis, occult, peggy cummins, thriller

PHOTO GALLERY 'CURSE OF THE DEMON' FOR ANOTHER OCTOBRER

Cover of the British Blu Ray Box Set for NIGHT OF THE DEMON/CURSE OF THE DEMON There have been two reviews on the Jacques Tourneur classic h...

ELYSSA DAVALOS IN THE TV HORROR MOVIE 'GOOD AGAINST EVIL'

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih2tUlpFMCVMnsg_b5wTjlR8hSXAqXCBIEjKXFMDpbKoRY8DcyWWU7v4slZnKr_VG6RJXWXnYpBw17g3JgoYf9PNe9RWRxIlbQF86Y9qlD3y5_5juyahfE7-OGIKVp1kOHcteU_8VM6ZuP/s1600/Screen+Shot+2020-02-11+at+10.36.27+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1045" data-original-width="1253" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih2tUlpFMCVMnsg_b5wTjlR8hSXAqXCBIEjKXFMDpbKoRY8DcyWWU7v4slZnKr_VG6RJXWXnYpBw17g3JgoYf9PNe9RWRxIlbQF86Y9qlD3y5_5juyahfE7-OGIKVp1kOHcteU_8VM6ZuP/s400/Screen+Shot+2020-02-11+at+10.36.27+PM.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Elyssa Davalos as in GOOD AGAINST EVIL Year: 1977</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> This proposed TV pilot that's almost a TV-movie isn’t quite sure who the main character is – important when kickstarting a possible series...<br> <br> So let’s begin with a group of Satan Worshipers led by the always deceptive and devious Richard Lynch: They steal an infant during the 1950's who grows up to be Elyssa Davalos as Jessica Gordon when this movie takes place, 1977...<br> <br> Exotically beautiful and living a seemingly charmed life, Jessica works in the garment trade and has everything all mapped out. Until Dack Rambo's Andy Stuart, a handsome, confident writer living in his van, smashes into her vehicle, and romance ensues – but the couple's dogged by a hissing black cat sent by Lynch’s minions, all making sure the sparks <i>don’t </i>fly in a semi-involving tale thanks to Davalos, who, unaware of the devil inside, effectively plays a two-tier role...<br>

dack rambo, elyssa davalos, horror, kim cattrall, occult, richard lynch, richard stahl, seventies, thriller, tv movie

ELYSSA DAVALOS IN THE TV HORROR MOVIE 'GOOD AGAINST EVIL'

Elyssa Davalos as in GOOD AGAINST EVIL Year: 1977 This proposed TV pilot that's almost a TV-movie isn’t quite sure who the main char...

COMPARING 'CURSE OF THE DEMON' WITH 'NIGHT OF THE DEMON'

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmnBz87SFC2xZFbkxZYDwbAeI9YCbtMy0T2A2Y7JCSpgtXmjApjG0HpWdTGFQZaXvpC0r92SNtswSZz2o7N9Zwjd30GamsYFNqJDkgqEZcm_gLsNZNdZ3JlxJLeYxkeg23o8YxXRkgyO8/s1600/night-of-the-demon.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1057" data-original-width="1315" height="321" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmnBz87SFC2xZFbkxZYDwbAeI9YCbtMy0T2A2Y7JCSpgtXmjApjG0HpWdTGFQZaXvpC0r92SNtswSZz2o7N9Zwjd30GamsYFNqJDkgqEZcm_gLsNZNdZ3JlxJLeYxkeg23o8YxXRkgyO8/s400/night-of-the-demon.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Art for NIGHT OF THE DEMON with Dana Andrews<br></u></td></tr> </tbody></table><i>NOTE: Just learned it turns out that both CURSE OF THE DEMON and NIGHT OF THE DEMON, the American version and the original British cut, were the same length and version before BOTH were cut to a shorter length: however, now only CURSE is shorter/edited and so, here are some differences...</i><br> <br> As said, NIGHT is the original British cut while CURSE was edited for American audiences. But that doesn't mean CURSE is just a chopped version of NIGHT as each film has its own order, aura, and fans who decide which one they prefer. So perhaps this reexamination rundown will help with that decision, or even change it... And on the airplane, following the demon-killing intro that's the same in both versions, in NIGHT OF THE DEMON Peggy asks the stewardess is she can move seats because she bothered Dr. Holden. He's trying to sleep and she's writing a letter to the kids in her classroom. Also in NIGHT, Holden speaks longer to the professors greeting him into the airport baggage claim and then walking out the door. CURSE cuts from him going down the escalator to being right outside the airport...<br>

article, british, cult, dana andrews, fifties, horror, jacques tourneur, list, niall macginnis, occult, peggy cummins, thriller

COMPARING 'CURSE OF THE DEMON' WITH 'NIGHT OF THE DEMON'

Art for NIGHT OF THE DEMON with Dana Andrews NOTE: Just learned it turns out that both CURSE OF THE DEMON and NIGHT OF THE DEMON, the Ame...

PAMELA SUE MARTIN POSSESSES 'BAY COVE' WITH TIM MATHESON

<span style="font-size: 100%;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVvHEbew72cCzvwnfJqTdk_pMfP_mxYsdvSthYFczVDhTnCeeh0_ZTjzu9oRnAI0He1o8Uw7k5JwzusO5-lzLOXV5ngsMGotFsomdD-yIFzEkh2CWhrwfPZdbspvdQEmgyZsi9tIg4fKcNtN1qM1DwWJ0tWClRz6SXIOeNOzTuXjED_i0WTFXbwA7LIp4q/s1536/Screen%20Shot%202023-08-21%20at%204.24.46%20AM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1232" data-original-width="1536" height="321" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVvHEbew72cCzvwnfJqTdk_pMfP_mxYsdvSthYFczVDhTnCeeh0_ZTjzu9oRnAI0He1o8Uw7k5JwzusO5-lzLOXV5ngsMGotFsomdD-yIFzEkh2CWhrwfPZdbspvdQEmgyZsi9tIg4fKcNtN1qM1DwWJ0tWClRz6SXIOeNOzTuXjED_i0WTFXbwA7LIp4q/w400-h321/Screen%20Shot%202023-08-21%20at%204.24.46%20AM.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%;"><span style="font-size: 100%;"><span style="font-size: 100%;"><u>Pamela Sue Martin in BAY COVE Year: 1987 Rates: ***1/2<br></u></span></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table>Occasionally, made-for-television horror movies are surprisingly good, like GARGOYLES, SALEM'S LOT, or </span><span style="font-size: 100%;">Pamela Sue Martin and Tim Matheson as a big city couple who decide to move to the nearby old-fashioned island of BAY COVE, which, it turns out, has some strange content...</span><br> <br> <span style="font-size: 100%;">Including an eerie old man who stares out a window SENTINEL style; neighbors who hatefully fear dogs like STRANGE INVADERS; and a cemetery that's most recent headstone dates back to the 1700's, possibly making the middle-aged residents a couple hundred years old as Pamela Sue's our investigative Mia Farrow ala ROSEMARY’S BABY (sans impregnation) while in-denial Matheson adheres quickly to the weird locals, taking the John Cassavetes soulless husband mantel; and Woody Harrelson's the heroine's best friend who, like Maurice Evans, gets a piece of clothing stolen before buying the farm... </span><br>

barbara billingsly, eighties, exploitation, horror, james b. sikking, jeff conaway, marsha moreau, mystery, occult, pamela sue martin, thriller, tim matheson, tv movie, witch, woody harrelson

PAMELA SUE MARTIN POSSESSES 'BAY COVE' WITH TIM MATHESON

Pamela Sue Martin in BAY COVE Year: 1987 Rates: ***1/2 Occasionally, made-for-television horror movies are surprisingly good, like GARGOYLE...

PETER CUSHING 'LAND OF THE MINOTAUR' AKA 'THE DEVIL'S MEN'

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkOBpAWK9q1NhmUnL0ohW_B6Zl8eXZWRxFknFtE0ljxbWDN6bXdVfXhQyE_iFvCQHq7JBOprl_Jgs66TFH_gkl75A8pYeqF61lH6yB37pjuoAAJxgT1qtZeVaETsy1CGKQDSP6N5jlpz3F/s1600/Screen+Shot+2019-10-03+at+12.54.18+AM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="885" data-original-width="1073" height="325" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkOBpAWK9q1NhmUnL0ohW_B6Zl8eXZWRxFknFtE0ljxbWDN6bXdVfXhQyE_iFvCQHq7JBOprl_Jgs66TFH_gkl75A8pYeqF61lH6yB37pjuoAAJxgT1qtZeVaETsy1CGKQDSP6N5jlpz3F/s400/Screen+Shot+2019-10-03+at+12.54.18+AM.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Deliciously wicket poster art for the MINOTAUR Year: 1976</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> You can't deny the timeless aesthetic villainy of Peter Cushing, one year before managing the Death Star in STAR WARS and after years of starring in England's legendary Hammer Films, he slummed in the Crown International Picture LAND OF THE MINOTAUR aka THE DEVIL'S MEN, where, alas, that famous scowl means very little...<br> <br> And while Ray Harryhausen vividly brought a Minotaur to life in THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD a few years earlier, this bullish beast, important enough for the alternative title, rises slowly and then just stands there, a literal statue in a hidden labyrinth wherein a sporadic handful of young archaeologists wind up, trapped and... could be made into sacrifices unless our unlikely heroes find them. And, shockingly not too bad for a bad movie where each frame resembles a last known photo, MINOTAUR creatively juggles various twenty-something victims...<br>

body count, crown international, cult, donald pleasence, drive-in, exploitation, horror, import, luan peters, occult, peter cushing, seventies, thriller

PETER CUSHING 'LAND OF THE MINOTAUR' AKA 'THE DEVIL'S MEN'

Deliciously wicket poster art for the MINOTAUR Year: 1976 You can't deny the timeless aesthetic villainy of Peter Cushing, one year ...

VENETIA STEVENSON INVESTIGATES 'THE CITY OF THE DEAD'

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbKgLGBK7VLEt35x5IsOSqv3nCmP1d_Q6a2EhbQOi7GE6wedeQNvDdqMB0Ww-L_mw-VM4KZ9esiTjkIXD635ACqF-fUmZrfHDENUR6WR0CdodhjJE34ZPhoGjwqpsf1cxvIZIgaBTjfTFk/s1600/0.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1298" data-original-width="1600" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbKgLGBK7VLEt35x5IsOSqv3nCmP1d_Q6a2EhbQOi7GE6wedeQNvDdqMB0Ww-L_mw-VM4KZ9esiTjkIXD635ACqF-fUmZrfHDENUR6WR0CdodhjJE34ZPhoGjwqpsf1cxvIZIgaBTjfTFk/s400/0.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Venetia Stevenson studies THE CITY OF THE DEAD Year: 1960</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Style over substance, THE CITY OF THE DEAD involves a terrific old Massachusetts locale in modern times (with a burned-witch intro) resembling the village from James Whale's FRANKENSTEIN: fitting since the Brits' own Monster, Christopher Lee, plays a professor who recommends his hottest student in blonde beauty Venetia Stevenson literally study-up on the town's use of witchcraft...<br> <br> But her character Nan Barlow is more ambitious than smart, lacking common sense to return home after a frightened gas station attendant warns her to... return home. From there she picks up a mysterious hitchhiker that, once arriving in town, vanishes before her eyes. But she's got a paper to do, and her forty-minute screen-time is liken to Janet Leigh in the same year's PSYCHO, which opened a week earlier...<br>

actress, christopher lee, cult, england, horror, occult, patricia jessel, sixties, thriller, venetia stevenson

VENETIA STEVENSON INVESTIGATES 'THE CITY OF THE DEAD'

Venetia Stevenson studies THE CITY OF THE DEAD Year: 1960 Style over substance, THE CITY OF THE DEAD involves a terrific old Massachuset...

JACQUES TOURNEUR'S 'CURSE OF THE DEMON' W/ DANA ANDREWS

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkuCPhga75gLyG78E0wJSgY8v8RnIt1z4RvWehbuYVMMIED4k4lYLWXmTF1kise5h3d8e-INr-h2B4Z4NzA9lF_-yqEpAgilv_-ztcvQ05HCP_fT0iCh4MB3NBSG33p5Q58gcvxSdPQzHB/s1600/20399.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="416" data-original-width="585" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkuCPhga75gLyG78E0wJSgY8v8RnIt1z4RvWehbuYVMMIED4k4lYLWXmTF1kise5h3d8e-INr-h2B4Z4NzA9lF_-yqEpAgilv_-ztcvQ05HCP_fT0iCh4MB3NBSG33p5Q58gcvxSdPQzHB/s400/20399.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Curse of the Demon YEAR of RELEASE: 1957</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Director Jacques Tourneur, in the first of two 1950's collaborations with actor Dana Andrews followed by THE FEARMAKERS and a decade after CANYON PASSAGE — wanted the CURSE OF THE DEMON demon — resembling a grizzly bear mated with an irate buffalo — to be revealed later on instead of the first ten minutes...<br> <br> During an investigation by Dana Andrews as John Holden, a scientist who debunks a powerful occult/cult leader and is simply begging to learn his lesson the hard way, it's obviously far less of a mystery since we know exactly what kind of monster he'll wind up dealing with, as opposed to the audience being in-the-dark along with the main character... Kind of an implied and ambiguous gumshoe Film Noir approach within a supernatural horror picture...<br>

british, cult, dana andrews, fifties, horror, jacques tourneur, liam redmond., niall macginnis, occult, peggy cummins, supernatural, thriller

JACQUES TOURNEUR'S 'CURSE OF THE DEMON' W/ DANA ANDREWS

Curse of the Demon YEAR of RELEASE: 1957 Director Jacques Tourneur, in the first of two 1950's collaborations with actor Dana Andre...

LAWRENCE TIERNEY CINEMA 'MIDNIGHT' WITH MELANIE VERLIN

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmYvEko-4iTjYany_qalh8ULwudf_6Ri3tF9mrxId2kgZZRJKhY6BUZacKsYnge4rcKCFUIZvnsRK1n39ZSOrSKNmIY2qHO9M4cD0e_AR-hchGI9zPjY8hHzp4m_cd_Yx-F-vsWB5y4Xdd/s1600/15.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="730" data-original-width="960" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmYvEko-4iTjYany_qalh8ULwudf_6Ri3tF9mrxId2kgZZRJKhY6BUZacKsYnge4rcKCFUIZvnsRK1n39ZSOrSKNmIY2qHO9M4cD0e_AR-hchGI9zPjY8hHzp4m_cd_Yx-F-vsWB5y4Xdd/s400/15.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Melanie Verlin rides a groovy van to hillbilly hell YEAR: 1982</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> A teenage girl runs away from home, and with good reason: Her alcoholic cop step-dad, played by Lawrence Tierney, tried to rape her, and the Noir icon/future RESERVOIR DOGS boss is always an intimidating presence on (and off) screen... <br> <br> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiofR_arYfNYWkaOPs4LL00vlfHZAxcuJXc_2ToKiFl2Zyp5uw5_sVfQgDYJCtJNxrrv6KbatS1zQdMLUU3pkRrXD5Aj851F8o7u7mAULJd0x8Vnzmb_vygt08SmeFrvcxkWQacszOt1iPK/s1600/midnight.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="777" data-original-width="470" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiofR_arYfNYWkaOPs4LL00vlfHZAxcuJXc_2ToKiFl2Zyp5uw5_sVfQgDYJCtJNxrrv6KbatS1zQdMLUU3pkRrXD5Aj851F8o7u7mAULJd0x8Vnzmb_vygt08SmeFrvcxkWQacszOt1iPK/s320/midnight.jpg" width="193"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>It was actually a book</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Although he's a medium-heat frying pan compared to the blazing fire that awaits, all in the name of "Girls In Cages" drive-in exploitation: Our tomboy heroine, Nancy, played with natural yet stiff ease by Melanie Verlin, makes for a terrific ambiguous, semi-androgynous, exploitation pawn.<br> <br> The following sequence (as these kind of movies roll more in numerous "parts" than the standard three acts) feels more 70's than 80's: Nancy hitches a ride with two college-aged guys in a van, and, since one is black, they face racism in a town so small it probably had to rent that one horse. Targeted as lowlifes, they purposefully live up to their name for an illegal beer run: A strange break of joviality while a sense of rural doom is palpable; or maybe with such a low budget, the grainy "last known photo" aesthetic has no choice but to thrust the characters (and viewer) into chaotic oblivion... and beyond...<br>

body count, eighties, exploitation, horror, indie, lawrence tierney, melanie verlin, occult, rural, slasher

LAWRENCE TIERNEY CINEMA 'MIDNIGHT' WITH MELANIE VERLIN

Melanie Verlin rides a groovy van to hillbilly hell YEAR: 1982 A teenage girl runs away from home, and with good reason: Her alcoholic c...