Wes Craven, creator of Nightmare on Elm Street, and Scream directed this ’80’s science fiction horror film for television. The money must have been right. The movie is a clear cut example of good folk versus evil folk and it has a somewhat annoying 1980’s sheen to it. Robert Urich relocates his family to his new work site and residence. It turns out that the influencers in the community all belong to a fashionable country club. Low and behold, the country club harbors a malignant force that guarantees success or failure in the suburban, gated community that the family moves [More]
I am trying to pinpoint the origins of how this movie was made. What haunted house film had come before that could provide “inspiration” to get this film produced? I have guessed “The Omen” (haunted in a different way) or maybe even “The Legend of Hell House” but I am not sure. “House of Evil” is a mismatch of ghostly manifestations taking place in an abandoned mansion which has been recently purchased by a scientist as the site of a new research facility. A team of fellow scientists and assorted specialists join the professor in his new digs and then [More]
This alien on the loose in a small community film caper has the great advantage of having two acting legends as part of the cast: Jack Palance and Martin Landau. Add in their over the top characterizations, manic is a kind word, and this makes for a moderately memorable viewing experience. There are some nasty attack sequences by some flying nasties that clamp on and zombify their victims. The main alien actor is a towering apparition that appears closer to the end of the film to maintain some dread and mystery as to his purpose and appearance. Landau’s bug eyed [More]
Author Michael Crichton made a career of fabricating yarns about scientific pursuits which are intended for the advancement and betterment of Man going horribly awry. Whether it be an unfailing belief in the infallibility of scientific advancement being a good thing and absolutely essential to our well being or just a catastrophic domino effect of good intentions and can’t fail scientific method crumbling into chaos, Crichton offered up a bevy of such cautionary tales about our experts overstepping their bounds with regard to natural order and development. Case in point: The Terminal Man. This cinematic take explores what would happen [More]
Monte Hellman was a director with three very iconic movies that can be counted to his credit: “Ride In The Whirlwind” (1966), “The Shooting” (1966) and “Two Lane Blacktop” (1971). “Whirlwind” and “The Shooting” were two Westerns which featured both Jack Nicholson and Warren Oates. Oates also appeared in “Blacktop”. I can only recommend that you seek out these titles and explore their worlds of existential angst and sad depictions of idealized lives and dreams shattered in a moment’s notice. All these movies have achieved cult status as they demonstrate the bleaker side of life that can catch us unaware. [More]
Nature can hold great beauty and allure but it can also be full of unseen dangers. Weather can be unpredictable and deadly. A family ventures out on a day hike but gets trapped in a torrential downpour and then the cold. The results are tragic.
Eccentric actor and personality, Charles Grodin, passed away recently. There are two roles that I most strongly equate him with. One was as an opportunistic oil company executive who hopes to cash in on a motherload of an oil find in “King Kong” (1976.) Very humorous, comic performance. But I best remember Grodin for his playing of the newlywed schmuck who asks his wife for a divorce a day or two after getting married. “The Heartbreak Kid” contains this classic performance and it is linked here. It is a goodie!
A black and white science fiction film from 1959 that asks the question: What is causing the disappearance of so many submarines in an area near the North Pole? A meeting of military experts convenes to try and come up with a plan to fins what is happening in the region. The nuclear submarine, “Tigershark” is dispatched to the area to investigate further. Be prepared for some crude but cool special effects miniatures work and a reveal of a USO, an unidentified submerged object, that is in fact a flying saucer. The military finds a way to temporarily subdue the [More]
A new granular fact regarding our last Halloween Video Crypt episode, “Mysterious Mendocino”. The fate of the first POV camera we used on our remote controlled boat.
A story from Mendocino, California which may involve the very mysterious. Namely….Bigfoot! But, who knows? You decide. This is the second video episode of Halloween Video Crypt. Hope you like it!
I think “Horror In The Heights” was the best episode from the short lived “Kolchak: The Night Stalker” TV series. I have discussed Kolchak in prior posts but I watched this particular episode again recently. It was scripted by Hammer films vet, Jimmy Sangster, whose screenwriting credits included Hammer’s “Curse of Frankenstein” and “Horror of Dracula”. Very good credentials, indeed. A series of ghastly murders are occurring in a neighborhood primarily populated by the elderly. What worse is that the bodies show the signs of being partially devoured! Our fearless reporter, Kolchak, begins to sense that the killings are far [More]
The very talented actor George Segal just left us. Segal was a good dramatic actor as well as possessed of comedic timing. Segal had a long career and certainly will be missed. I include a clip from “The Terminal Man”, an adaptation of a Michael Crichton book. This was a harrowing look at science and technologies meant for good potentially having a disastrous and deadly side effect.
I just viewed this science fiction film from the 1950’s a few days ago. I admit that I was mostly entertained by this movie which eluded viewing until just recently but coincided with some articles I saw that illustrated the decline and fall of the Salton Sea recreational area located in the southern most part of the state of California, USA. Seems that this area was once a thriving vacation and resort spot before things got a little disgusting with the receding of this (basically) unnatural lake. The lake resulted as a collection of runoff of high water from the [More]
We try our hand at a video based review of the old favorite animated series, “Jonny Quest”. Join our host, Exejo Smith, and his take on “The Invisible Monster” episode.