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Post by andydecker on Oct 2, 2021 11:11:19 GMT
As I wanted to say something more off-topic, I took the licence to put this into another thread. Has anyone watched Midnight Mass in Netflix - quite an unusual vampire flick. Or Fear Street - must say I enjoyed it, grand guignol for 21st century teenagers. Chapelwaite, though, is a bit hard to sit through. Interesting recommandations, I must say. May deserve a look. Thanks. I avoided Fear Street because I thought Stine the poorest of the early YA pulpsters. Give me Christopher Pike any day.
The only Netflix I looked into recently was Brand New Cherry Flavour, which I abandoned mid-through even if it deliverd some nicely realized distrubing scenes. I am deeply tired of so-called "relevant" content and Hollywood self-flagellation. Also after reading the umpteenth comment of "wow, this is like David Lynch!" which it doubtless and unashamedly is (like the creator's earlier effort Channel Zero) I only thought: How about some creators who actually create something NEW? Same XY who in thirty years from now are hailed as "wow, this is like XY".
Of course it is quite amusing (not to mention deeply sad) that a lot of current horror desperatedly try to go the period piece road, so they can dial down the PC, have people smoking a lot and can avoid doing complicated scenes writing around plot-destroying smartphones. BNCF failed spectaculary in its effort to portray the 90s.
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Post by johnnymains on Oct 2, 2021 15:43:19 GMT
Me and the missus have just caned through two seasons of MR MERCEDES - the first one brilliant, the second the polar opposite. We followed that by watching the rather marvellous SQUID GAME, a very violent South Korean series based on children's playground games and played by adults who are on their uppers. Got films BIRDS OF PARADISE and THE GREEN KNIGHT to watch next, then it's back to another series, this time Japanese and called ALICE IN BORDERLAND.
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Post by jamesdoig on Oct 2, 2021 21:17:29 GMT
Me and the missus have just caned through two seasons of MR MERCEDES - the first one brilliant, the second the polar opposite. We followed that by watching the rather marvellous SQUID GAME, a very violent South Korean series based on children's playground games and played by adults who are on their uppers. Got films BIRDS OF PARADISE and THE GREEN KNIGHT to watch next, then it's back to another series, this time Japanese and called ALICE IN BORDERLAND. Agree with you about Mr M - there seems to be a third season that I haven't watched yet. I've one episode to watch of Squid Game, which is terrific - another Korean triumph after the Parasite. I'm interested in The Green Knight to see how they've managed to turn it into a film. Vera Chapman turned it into a short novel:
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Post by jamesdoig on Oct 2, 2021 21:24:09 GMT
I avoided Fear Street because I thought Stine the poorest of the early YA pulpsters. Give me Christopher Pike any day. I never gave Stine or Pike or try and I couldn't face them now. But there's so much outrageous, over-the-top plots and violence going on in Fear Street that I found it hilarious, especially the first one.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Oct 4, 2021 11:13:43 GMT
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Post by andydecker on Oct 4, 2021 11:25:10 GMT
After twenty years it looks like The Last Voyage of the Demeter is in the can Again a heartfelt wow. Thanks for the info. Considering how lame 90 minutes of "Demeter" in the recent BBC Dracula were, this will be genius or crap.
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Post by jamesdoig on Oct 11, 2021 7:02:53 GMT
If anyone likes evil, parasitic Siamese twin movies, I can recommend Malignant.
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Post by ripper on Oct 17, 2021 13:19:41 GMT
I have been watching some of the Elvira's Movie Macabre series, currently free to view with an Amazon Prime subscription. The series was made about a decade ago, and in each episode, Elvira (Cassandra Peterson) introduces a low-budget film, most of which I suspect are in the public domain as they appear regularly on cheapie DVD sets.
Peterson has been playing Elvira since the 1980s and is probably the most famous horror host around today. The show features various short skits and Elvira's occasional comments on what is happening in the film. There are bad jokes, puns and innuendo aplenty, much of which references Elvira's ahem most prominent assets. Peterson plays the part of Elvira very well imo and it is hard not to warm to her. Inevitably, her performance will draw comparison with that of Maila Nurmi, who played Vampira on TV in the 1950s in the Vampira Show--she is thought to be one of the first TV horror hosts, maybe the first. I haven't seen enough of Vampira to make a fair comparison between the two ladies. However, I would be surprised if Vampira, being on 50s TV, could get away with what Elvira does.
By the way, Peterson starred in Elvira: Mistress of the Dark, a feature film, in the late 1980s, which is where I first saw her when I rented the VHS tape. It's crammed full of innuendo at Elvira's expense, and in it her character inherits a spooky old house. It's been a long time since I saw it, so I can't recall too much. However, one scene stands out--as does Elvira (this innuendo is catching)--and if you have seen the movie then you will know the part I am referring to--I will just say 'tassel dance' and leave it at that. I think, however, that it is only right to urge caution to our own fair Vault Princess, as I am sure it would outrage her sensibilities and result in her loyal servants running for the smelling salts.
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Post by andydecker on Oct 17, 2021 14:08:34 GMT
I have been watching some of the Elvira's Movie Macabre series, currently free to view with an Amazon Prime subscription. The series was made about a decade ago, and in each episode, Elvira (Cassandra Peterson) introduces a low-budget film, most of which I suspect are in the public domain as they appear regularly on cheapie DVD sets. I have two of those on DVD, Count Dracula's Great Love and The Devil's Wedding Night, bought before the movies got a made-over BD release. This is just my peculiar taste, but I hated this way of presentation and thought it quite painful. Also the quality of the print was horrible, but I had the sneaking suspicion that they were additionally aged to make them look more drive-in.
Both movies are worth a look. Count Dracula's Great Love may look on the first glance just like another European gore and tits movie with Paul Naschy, but it surprisingly well done, even the screenplay makes sense. For a low-budget film it looks very good. The Devil's Wedding Night is another costume horror starring Mark Damon and Rosalba Neri, also about vampires. It is the one where Neri bathes nude in blood, and it looks much more convincing than Pitt does in Countess Dracula. Damon plays twin brothers, not so convincing. A couple of years ago there was a restored BD in France, which showed how good the cinematography actually was. While the movie is too slow and the story cannot hold the 90 minutes, from its looks it can compete with any Hammer horror movie. Of course the producers could work on location which is always a plus.
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Post by ripper on Oct 17, 2021 16:29:45 GMT
I have been watching some of the Elvira's Movie Macabre series, currently free to view with an Amazon Prime subscription. The series was made about a decade ago, and in each episode, Elvira (Cassandra Peterson) introduces a low-budget film, most of which I suspect are in the public domain as they appear regularly on cheapie DVD sets. I have two of those on DVD, Count Dracula's Great Love and The Devil's Wedding Night, bought before the movies got a made-over BD release. This is just my peculiar taste, but I hated this way of presentation and thought it quite painful. Also the quality of the print was horrible, but I had the sneaking suspicion that they were additionally aged to make them look more drive-in. Both movies are worth a look. Count Dracula's Great Love may look on the first glance just like another European gore and tits movie with Paul Naschy, but it surprisingly well done, even the screenplay makes sense. For a low-budget film it looks very good. The Devil's Wedding Night is another costume horror starring Mark Damon and Rosalba Neri, also about vampires. It is the one where Neri bathes nude in blood, and it looks much more convincing than Pitt does in Countess Dracula. Damon plays twin brothers, not so convincing. A couple of years ago there was a restored BD in France, which showed how good the cinematography actually was. While the movie is too slow and the story cannot hold the 90 minutes, from its looks it can compete with any Hammer horror movie. Of course the producers could work on location which is always a plus. Sadly, neither of those films seems to be included in the Prime subscription here in the UK. I think I have seen both included in DVD sets, but I haven't watched either. It's interesting that horror hosts have had a long history on US television going all the way back to Vampira in the 1950s, yet apart from a few exceptions such as Mystery Train and Dr Terror on BBC in the 90s, it never really took off here.
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Post by andydecker on Oct 17, 2021 20:55:58 GMT
Sadly, neither of those films seems to be included in the Prime subscription here in the UK. I think I have seen both included in DVD sets, but I haven't watched either. It's interesting that horror hosts have had a long history on US television going all the way back to Vampira in the 1950s, yet apart from a few exceptions such as Mystery Train and Dr Terror on BBC in the 90s, it never really took off here. A pity. But both are not in the public domain. Maybe that is the problem. I liked Devil's Wedding Night so much I bought the French BD, even if it has no subtitles and I don't understand a word But the picture quality is it worth. I never understood the fascination of the horror host either, to be honest, especially after they were so often incorporated in movies or tv shows. Fright Night comes to mind, I seem to remember one or two on old tv shows. Of course it is a staple of horror comics from the Cryptkeeper to a dozen others. Eerie and Creepy, Cain and Abel, the many Dell mystery comics like Boris Karloff presents and such.
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Post by helrunar on Oct 18, 2021 2:36:25 GMT
I've been watching this little-known Boris Karloff series (only 11 episodes shot) from 1958, The Veil--and this evening saw this intriguing episode about a clairvoyant in 1888 London making psychic contact with Jack the Ripper: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lyk447aN52wNiall MacGinnis and Clifford Evans star. H.
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Post by ripper on Oct 18, 2021 11:07:00 GMT
Sadly, neither of those films seems to be included in the Prime subscription here in the UK. I think I have seen both included in DVD sets, but I haven't watched either. It's interesting that horror hosts have had a long history on US television going all the way back to Vampira in the 1950s, yet apart from a few exceptions such as Mystery Train and Dr Terror on BBC in the 90s, it never really took off here. A pity. But both are not in the public domain. Maybe that is the problem. I liked Devil's Wedding Night so much I bought the French BD, even if it has no subtitles and I don't understand a word But the picture quality is it worth. I never understood the fascination of the horror host either, to be honest, especially after they were so often incorporated in movies or tv shows. Fright Night comes to mind, I seem to remember one or two on old tv shows. Of course it is a staple of horror comics from the Cryptkeeper to a dozen others. Eerie and Creepy, Cain and Abel, the many Dell mystery comics like Boris Karloff presents and such. There were also horror hosts on various old time radio series going back to the 30s with Nancy the old witch in The Witch's Tale.
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Post by helrunar on Oct 20, 2021 1:26:15 GMT
Another obscure Boris Karloff item, this 1949 episode of the US TV anthology series Suspense is straightforwardly a recording of a one-act stage play. Adapted from Lord Dunsany's drama "A Night at an Inn" by screenwriter Halsted Welles (who went on to pen some episodes of Night Gallery in the early 1970s), it's very much in the Tod Slaughter barnstorming tradition--love the blatant theatricality--but will be viewed simply as a curio by most. www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2zFmu82Fh8H.
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Post by andydecker on Oct 26, 2021 19:07:24 GMT
Midsommar (2019) Finally was able to catch it on some channel for free. A lot of people here in the Vault liked it. I tried to, but at the end I couldn't. I thought the script underdeveloped in every regard that was important. It is of course okay to do a new version of The Wicker Man. But some innovations or new interpretions of the established story-beats would have been nice. The biggest problem I had with the script was the undefined pagan faith which failed to establish a strong story-fundament. In Hardy's and Shaffer's movie the roots of the paganism and the mystery it offered were easy to comprehend. Without any spoon-fed exposition the viewer understands what this is about. Ordinary people with a different belief who kill people to kickstart their export. In Midaommar there was no mystery, the moment you see the sect you know how this will end. No grey tones here, just a town full of nutters in uniform.
(And frankly I thought the non-existant reaction of our heroes to the suicide/murder so preposterous that I couldn't take the rest seriously. Hey, they just bashed a head of an oldtimer in, but it is their belief, so we are not to judge. Yeah, right.)
But more problematic IMHO was that even at the end I didn't understand what the belief of the sect was about. Why the may queen stuff, why the bear? Weirdness for weirdness sake, which is seldom a good thing. The whole belief-system seemed fake and made-up, which made this unrelatable and arbitrary. At least you knew why Lord Summerisle did what he did. The photography looked nice, but the movie was too long. I was bored and a few times tempted to switch the channel. Glad I didn't buy the DVD.
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