For information on this wierd black comedy (TV) set in a haunted hospital, written and directed by Lars Von Trier, see Wiki entry here
GROUNDHOG DAY (1993)
For information on this mainstream comedy, where a middle aged grump (Bill Murray) get's to repeat one day in his life over and over again, see allmovie by Rovi here
SILENT RUNNING (1972)
For more information on this poignant eco-science fiction movie see allmovie by Rovi here
INLAND EMPIRE (2006)
For information on David Lynch's very weird and surreal mystery shot on digital cameras see Wiki entry here
From Tangent/Nader Elhefnawy: "Our Lady centers on Franz Westen, a widowed and formerly alcoholic pulp writer with a lot of time on his hands in '70s-era San Francisco (in short, a rather obvious stand-in for Leiber himself) who is intrigued by a figure--a "pale brown thing" he spots in Corona Heights Park from his apartment window. Coincidentally, his eye then falls on a pair of old books he bought years ago--Megapolisomancy: A New Science of Cities by one Thibaut de Castries, and a journal apparently kept by Clark Ashton Smith of Weird Tales fame--and it strikes him that these might have something to do with that mystery. His fancy tickled, he decides to check out Corona Heights for himself, and what starts as a lark soon enough immerses him in a Lovecraftian mystery amid obscure old books and archives, involving the secret history of San Francisco as influenced by Victorian occultism."
"Leiber, praised by Moorcock in that very same essay as "the best of the older American sf writers," for, among other things, "his wit and his humanity, as well as his abiding contempt for authoritarianism," would seem to live up to that praise with his new take on the Cthulhu mythos, pointedly discarding the older writer's racial and sexual baggage, cutting the implied horrors down to size and using reason to defeat anti-rationalism, all with a spirit of play much like what he previously brought to sword and sorcery in the Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser stories. It is on this level that Our Lady succeeds--admirably, but problematically, since this approach is best suited for a hardcore readership capable of not only recognizing but appreciating such a spin by one giant of science fiction on the work of another."
This is the new Blu-Ray restored edition of the Hammer Horror classic with all the extras. The picture quality is fantastic and the film although dated now is one of the greatest horror films of all time.
From allmovie by Rovi: "With so many mediocre vampire films, the few which are truly excellent often get lost in the static. Terence Fisher's 1958 Dracula is easily one of the best, and it proves just how important good writing, acting and directing can be in a time-tested genre. The performances are stellar: Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee make their respective roles of Dr. Van Helsing and the Count uniquely their own. Screenwriter Jimmy Sangster's condenses Bram Stoker's novel, shifting most events to Dracula's castle and sharpening the material's dialogue and pacing. Appropriately atmospheric and dark, the film adds enough touches of humor and sexuality to update the tale's heretofore staid feel. Fisher's Dracula is a must-see not just for devotees of modern horror but also for fans of good storytelling in general."
A weirdo horror pic from Mexican cinematic surrealist Alejandro Jodorowsky, saturated with garish and colourful imagery. If you like David Lynch or Luis Bunuel you'll love this.
From allmovie by Rovi: "A candy-colored, blood-soaked journey into the disturbed mind of a damaged soul, Alejandro Jodorowsky's dark and surreal comeback offers a potent tale of psychological despair with striking, haunting imagery that will linger in the mind long after the viewing. It had been quite a long time since El Topo (1970) and The Holy Mountain (1973) thrust '60s underground cinema into collective mainstream consciousness, and Jodorowsky proves without a doubt that he still has the power to shock and move audiences as few other filmmakers can. Time has certainly not diluted Jodorowsky's ability to craft the sort of bold and fearless film made virtually extinct with the ever increasing commercialization of the film industry, and his years spent penning fantasy comics has only served to strengthen his ability to portray the kind of complex characters that make his films so compelling. As deeply troubled Fenix (Axel Jodorowsky) is enslaved by his armless mother and forced into a murderous existence following his release from a sanitarium, Jodorowsky instills his protagonist with a desperate sense of fear and helplessness from which there seems little chance of escape. An alternately brutal, hallucinatory, and beautiful film, Santa Sangre is without question a polarizing effort by its very nature, though viewers willing to be seduced by Jodorowsky's alluring cinematic nightmare will find themselves surprised, enthralled, and richly rewarded with an uniquely unapologetic film that's not easily shaken off."
From allmovie by Rovi: "Pre-adolescent angst has rarely been as eerie or unsettlingly honest as it is in director Tomas Alfredson's stylish, psychologically complex tale of friendship between a tormented schoolboy and his new neighbour -- a reclusive 12-year-old girl who isn't exactly what she appears to be. Adapted from the popular novel by author John Ajvide Lindqvist, who also wrote the screenplay, Let the Right One In is one of those rare genre films that uses fantasy not as a means to its own ends, but as a springboard to exploring topical issues and mature themes that might come off as clichéd if explored within the restraining confines of a real-world setting. What we get, instead, is a thoughtfully plotted adult fable that builds quiet momentum while winding toward a true stunner of a climax that will literally leave you breathless."
From allmovie by Rovi: "Similar in style to his Halloween, director John Carpenter's The Fog makes for a sturdy, if unspectacular companion piece to the 1978 horror classic. Reteaming with many of that film's principals, including Jamie Lee Curtis, Carpenter and co-producer/screenwriter Debra Hill attempt to fashion a ghost story with a menacing edge. As in Halloween, The Fog's strengths are courtesy of gut-wrenching chase scenes that capture the director's ability to create suspense, atmosphere, and some wonderful jolts. Carpenter's eerie, pulsing score also helps to ratchet up the tension level. Where the picture weakens is in the script, which lacks punch, relies on numerous horror clichés, and features one-dimensional characters. The cast's performances are decent and Carpenter's then-wife Adrienne Barbeau is fine in the lead role, but Jamie Lee Curtis is wasted in a secondary part that helped cement her early reputation as a "scream queen." John Houseman, in a prelude to his later work in Ghost Story, turns in a wonderfully chilling cameo as a salty storyteller."
Ftom Rotten Tomatoes Website: "A righteous police officer investigating the disappearance of a young girl comes into conflict with the unusual residents of a secluded Scottish isle in this unsettling, intelligent chiller. Brought to the island of Summerisle by an anonymous letter, Edward Woodward's constable is surprised to discover that the island's population suspiciously denies the missing girl's very existence. Even more shocking, at least to the traditionally pious law office, the island is ruled by a libertarian society organized around pagan rituals. Repelled by the open acceptance of sexuality, nature worship, and even witchcraft, the officer takes an antagonistic attitude towards the people and their leader, an eccentric but charming English lord (Christopher Lee). The officer's unease intensifies as he continues his investigation, slowly coming to fear that the girl's disappearance may be linked in a particularly horrifying manner to an upcoming public festival. Anthony Shaffer's meticulously crafted screenplay creates a thoroughly convincing alternative society, building tension through slow discovery and indirect suggestion and making the terrifying climax all the more effective. Performances are also perfectly tuned, with Woodward suitably priggish as the investigator and horror icon Lee delivering one of his most accomplished performances as Lord Summerisle. Little noticed during its original theatrical run due to studio edits and a limited release, the film's intelligence and uncanny tone has since attracted a devoted cult following."
From BFI Screenonline about Whistle and I'll Come To You (1968): "A masterpiece of economical horror that remains every bit as chilling as the day it was first broadcast, this was the first, and arguably the best, of the M.R. James adaptations that peppered BBC schedules during the late 1960s and '70s, and an advance warning of a new tradition of Christmas ghost stories.
Some James purists have been less enthusiastic, upset perhaps by director Jonathan Miller's complaint, in an otherwise respectful piece in Radio Times, that James' dialogue was "ludicrously stilted", but also by the other liberties Miller takes with the much-loved story, from pruning its title - originally 'Oh Whistle and I'll Come to You, My Lad' - to recasting its protagonist, Professor Parker, as a bumbling, self-satisfied old academic so detached from everyday life that he struggles with even the most basic interaction with others.
A graver offence for some, perhaps, is the way that Miller introduces an element of ambiguity as to the truth of the Professor's supernatural experience - what we may be witnessing, he dares to suggest, is not a literal haunting but a clever mind teetering into madness. All the same, Miller's adaptation is not only genuinely unnerving but, in fact, remarkably faithful to the spirit of James, and the theme of an arrogant, self-absorbed intellectual being harshly punished for his dabbling in things better left alone is entirely Jamesian.
Absorbing the lessons of Val Lewton's legendary team at RKO Studios in the early 1940s - responsible for such low budget genre classics as Cat People (1942) and I Walked With a Zombie (1943) - Miller uses suggestion rather than direct representation, and builds and sustains an eerie atmosphere with a diverse array of stylistic devices - exaggerated sound and lighting effects, high and low camera angles, disorienting extreme close-ups, teasingly obstructing our view with trees, railings or other objects. The ghostly manifestations, particularly the Professor's dream/hallucination on the beach, conjure terror from the minimum of special effects.
As the unfortunate Professor, Michael Hordern - whose career more than once entered James territory - is glorious, with each line on his multi-furrowed face used to expressive effect. The drama's success owes much, too, to the gorgeous black and white photography of Dick Bush, whose previous credits included Peter Watkins' Culloden (BBC, tx. 15/12/1964) and Miller's own extraordinary Alice in Wonderland (BBC, tx. 28/12/1966)."
From allmovie by Rovi website: "Often cited as an homage to the infamous films of Hammer Studios, upon deeper investigation into the influences of director Tim Burton, it becomes increasingly clear that, while the film does indeed have much in common with the British horror classics, the majority of visual influence is instead derived from the lush, gothic films of Mario Bava. Bearing a striking resemblance to 1960s Black Sunday in particular, Burton's muted color palate, vividly splashed with abundant amounts of blood so unnaturally red it seems to drip from the screen, represents a masterful command of color scheme rarely seen since Bava's color-era heyday. While Sleepy Hollow may not retain the masterful balance of a striking visuals and solid characterization as skillfully as Burton's early efforts, Sleepy Hollow remains a remarkably beautiful film which offers both dark humor and some breathtaking set pieces. Burton's cast does as much as humanly possible to bring scribe Andrew Kevin Walker's characters to life, though without the proper foundation, the means to define the characters much further beyond the occasional meaningful gesture or enduring quirk are unfortunately absent. Despite this minor flaw, those willing to judge Sleepy Hollow on its own terms and forego the stratospheric expectations with which Burton films are generally greeted will find themselves in for a sumptuously visual and giddily macabre interpretation of an enduring tale that has chilled the bones of children for generations."
Imagine elaborate alternate histories where characters and creatures from hundreds of years of fantasy literature and cinema co-exist with real historical figures and events. Kim Newman's 'Anno Dracula: The Bloody Red Baron' is a continuation of his 'Anno Dracula', which imagines a universe where the infamous vampire wins at the conclusion of Bram Stoker's novel. Here WW1 is fought with the undead as the dominant force in Europe, although it's Germany and Austria-Hungary with Dracula as commander-in-chief of its armies and Manfred von Richthofen as a monsterious bat, that has embraced the true gothic vampire aesthetic. A mash up of ripping yarn, steampunk, pulp horror and 'All Quiet On The Western Front," this is a highley entertaining read.
Black Dossier and Century: 2009, part of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen series of 'graphic novels' by Alan Moore, creates an even more complex mythos, where almost every imaginary character and land (lost worlds, imaginary kingdoms) from earth bound fantastic and pulp fiction co-habitate in an alternate timeline. Some of the authors drawn upon are Shakespeare, H.Rider Haggard, Verne, Wells, Stoker, Lovecraft, Orwell and countless others including even Gerry Anderson and J.K. Rowling! Behind the elaborate pulp fantasy is a celebration of the transformative power of the human imagination.
Read a review of The Bloody Red Baron from Kirkus Review here
Read Wiki entry for Black Dossier and a review from The Independent for Century: 2009 here and here
From BFI Screenonline: 'Released onto a market dominated by science fiction 'creature features', the success of Terence Fisher's The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) revitalised and reinvented the ailing horror genre. Critics were horrified by the colourful blend of blood and sex, but the film was a huge commercial and artistic success.
Despite the success of Hammer's The Quatermass Xperiment (d. Val Guest, 1955) and X - The Unknown (d. Leslie Norman, 1956), and other studios' efforts like Devil Girl From Mars (d. David MacDonald, 1954) and Fiend Without A Face (d. Arthur Crabtree, 1958), the science fiction genre belonged firmly to the Americans. Fisher's retelling of Mary Shelley's classic (which could itself be classed as science fiction) would prove to be Hammer's first successful foray into the closely related but temporarily stalled horror film market.
Fearing litigation by Universal, owners of the 'classic' 1930s and '40s films, Fisher had to rethink certain elements of the Frankenstein story. Universal were particularly protective of the Monster's image - the flat topped head, the electrodes (or bolts, as many people mistakenly assume) on the sides of the neck - and refused to allow its likeness to appear in other films. Make-up artist Phil Leakey returned to Mary Shelley's novel for inspiration, avoiding any resemblance to Jack Pierce's design for the Universal films. The Monster's new appearance was suitably gruesome. Played by Christopher Lee, it now seemed recognisably stitched together from assorted body parts.
Shot in colour, The Curse of Frankenstein proved a visceral retelling of Mary Shelley's story. Eyeballs, severed hands and surgical procedures are presented in a relatively unflinching style. At one point, the Monster is shot in the head and blood gushes from its wound. This approach distanced the film from Universal's monochrome, more suggestive horrors. The film was met with great enthusiasm by paying audiences, but alienated and horrified critics.
Another important departure from the established pattern of Frankenstein films was the emphasis on the Baron, played with cool, calculating brilliance by Peter Cushing, rather than his creation. It was Cushing who would return in subsequent films, not his ill-fated first attempt at creating life.
The Curse of Frankenstein was also the first horror film to feature Cushing and Christopher Lee together. This successful partnership would be repeated in Fisher's Dracula (1958), and soon became a regular feature of many British horror films.'
From allmovie by Rovi: 'The Company of Wolves is Little Red Riding Hood for the Alien generation. Sheltered 13-year-old Sarah Patterson, living on the edge of a foreboding woods, is visited by her grandmother Angela Lansbury. The old lady delights in telling Sarah the most horrific stories, usually involving what happens to little girls if they trust wolves--the actual, rather than symbolic kind. Later on, Sarah sets out through the woods to visit her grandmother. She makes the acquaintance of a seductive young huntsman (Micha Bergese), who turns out to be.....well, what big teeth he's got. The ads for Company of Wolves, showing a wolf springing from the open mouth of poor little Sarah Patterson, were warning enough for the faint of heart. Actually, the horror is secondary to the remarkable Grimms-Fairy-Tale ambience which the film successfully sustains from beginning to end. And, in keeping with the original unexpurgated versions of most fairy tales, the sexual subtext is never far from the surface. Director Neil Jordan would further develop some of the subliminal themes in Company of Wolves in his 1994 production Interview with the Vampire.'
One of the best Hammer horror pics but without Peter Cushing or Christopher Lee. A young couple on their honeymoon are lured by the sinisterly erudite Doctor Ravna into his vampire cult. The picture quality on this DVD is superb, bringing out the film's lushly decadent atmosphere.
For further info on Kiss Of The Vampire see Wiki entry here.
Seen at BFI Southbank on Thursday 5th April. Swinging London horror/exploitation pic from Michael Reeves, director of the classic Witchfinder General. Shown as part of BFI's The Flipside and was introduced by Michael Reeves biographer, Benjamin Halligan.
For further info on The Sorcerers see Wiki entry here.
I read these two horror novels back to back. Ramsey Campbell is one of my favourite authors and is as obscure as you can get, while Stephen King is probable one of the most well known writers in the world. Thieving Fear is another eerily unsettling excursion into progressively accumulating dread as the four protagonists of the novel are literally infected by their worst nightmares by an un-dead Victorian occultist. Kubrick's The Shining is one of my favourite films, but have never got around to reading the novel it's based upon. I have to say the film is far superior. King is excellent with character background and dialogue and has an easy-to-read style which carries you effortlessly through the story (the true meaning of the overused term 'a great storyteller') but the supernatural horror here is sometimes so over the top and hysterical it loses all believability-for instance the garden topiary that comes to ravaging live (not in the film) I found just ridiculous. And yes it all ends with a very un-subtle explosion.
For a review of Thieving Fear, read Arthur B from Ferrettbrain here.
The Wiki entry for Stephen King's The Shining is here.
The expanse of the sky and the vital orb of the sun were unknown concepts to Wilbur Swinburne. Likewise the people of his universe were unaware of infinite space, the stars lost in the depths of vacuum and dust. His world was enclosed, labyrinthine, except in his most primal dreams. The faintly glowing points of illumination, arranged on the ceilings of the countless open spheroid spaces, metal caverns, conduits and tunnels, were Wilbur’s only contact with light. The organic was rare too. In the mile high steel caverns of the Borderlands bathed in a synthetic and dank luminescence, there were jungles teeming with swarming life forms. But hardly anyone went there; the Borderlands were feared, hated by some. Small pockets of vegetation in lost rooms and corridors, even whole caverns were rumoured to exist but these only increased his terror of the flesh...
A new short story added to my Tales Of Terror, Tales Of Wonder blog. A cosmic horror tale in the Lovecraftian mode, this time situated in the steamy jungles of Cambodia.
I have set up a new blog to showcase my short stories. These can be categorised as weird tales, horror, and dark fantasy.
So here it is-Tales Of Terror, Tales Of Wonder, opening with Underground Man (that I named my original blog after), a horror story set on the London Underground. Enjoy (or not)
Added to collection on 17/12/11. Like Halloween, a horror classic from the 70's, probably the best decade for horror films. Based on the very first novel by Stephen King. For further information about this film see Wikipedia here.
I'm a working-class philosophy of the London suburbs and an armchair rebel-an introvert and a full time dreamer. Imaginative fiction, writing, cinema, music, dreams and class struggle are my reasons for living.
Vote No Heathrow
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Just had this via Roger Hallam of Vote No Heathrow, please spread the word.
Things are rapidly taking off for the campaign now the hunger strikers are
ente...
Identity, love and death
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*I*. Identity, in the modern sense, is necrological. It is an obituary
notice. It overwrites us, in lapidary fashion, with the deposit of history.
Here li...
BORED WITH THIS MEDIUM
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Yes I am, it promotes a shallowness,, that, for the moment at least, I
cannot condone or participate in. Go read a fucking book, in depth, a
physical one, ...
Three events this week ...
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1. Wednesday, 13 March at Waterstone's Trafalgar Square: Capitalist
Realism: What is it and how to fight it With Mark Fisher, Peter Fleming and
Alex Niven....
