Every now and again a horror film's reputation builds through word of mouth and because the first horror fans who have seen it rave about it and this snowballs until it can't be denied or ignored by fans and film journalists alike. This happened in 1998 when Japanese film Ringu was made. This was also …
Continue reading 31 Days of Halloween 2020- Day 9- Ringu (1998)
A movie that was on the other side of my DVD of the (much better) film, The Pit. This direct to video movie concerns a young woman who is snatched by a gang of bikers and brutally murdered. Her father then discovers a crystal that can bring the dead back to life and uses it …
Continue reading 31 Days of Halloween 2020- Day 8- Hellgate (1989)
I remember seeing this on video shortly after it was released way back when. The original Hills Have Eyes wasn't on video at that time and so seeing this was the next best thing especially in hindsight as there are LOADS of flashbacks to the first film. Yes, even a dog from the first movie …
Continue reading 31 Days of Halloween 2020- Day 6- The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 (1984)
Land of the Dead is George A Romero's next instalment in the Dead series after 1985's pedestrian and plodding Day of the Dead. This involves the human race who are still at the mercy of a world overrun by the undead and now being split into the ordinary folk who are forced to live in …
Continue reading 31 Days of Halloween 2020- Day 5- Land of the Dead (2005)
A Blaxploitation Exorcist rip-off. A pastor goes to Nigeria and accidentally unleashes an ancient malevolent spirit. Oops. His daughter-in-law back in America then starts to change from being a God-fearing, wholesome wife to becoming a possessed randy harlot. This film is such good fun. The pastor is played by William Marshall who was already known …
Continue reading 31 Days of Halloween 2020- Day 4- Abby (1974)
I didn't even know there was a remake of George A Romero's 1985 film. When I found out about it I was hardly looking forward to reviewing it as I found the original to be the runt of the litter of Romero's zombie movies- it was too slow, talky and with not enough action. The …
Continue reading 31 Days of Halloween 2020- Day 3- Day of the Dead (2008)
A man finds himself having visions of murders being committed that turn out to be true. His visions and investigations take him to Berlin where several revelations bring him face to face with the killer. I love 'one good twin, one evil twin' movies. This is another example of this genre but is closer to …
Continue reading 31 Days of Halloween 2020- Day 1- Blood Link (1982) ***
I can still remember the first time I saw the poster for Maniac. The killer's legs and crotch, his hand holding a severed head, his other holding a knife with the tagline of 'I WARNED YOU NOT TO GO OUT TONIGHT' in the deranged scrawl of a psychopath. What was not to like for a …
William Friedkin tells a great story in his autobiography about Warner Bros' marketing department and how they wanted to market The Exorcist on it's completion. The idea they came up with was a drawing of Regan's bloodied hand holding a crucifix (referencing the infamous masturbation scene) with the tagline 'For God's sake, somebody help her!' …
There is so much to love about Beyond The Door, the 1974 Exorcist rip-off made in Italy. Yes, it had a budget that was a tiny fraction of that of the William Friedkin classic but thats part of it's charm. It also copies similar scenes from it's parent movie with varying degrees of success. The …
Continue reading Soundtrack of the Week- Chi Sei aka Beyond The Door (1974)
Meathook Cinema 