A far-out and thoroughly groovy tale of the swinging scene of 1970's California. But also a disturbing tale of childhood abuse. Molly has fantasies of tying up men that also involves the use of razors. Two American Football stars are found butchered. Could Molly be responsible? Have her fantasises started to overlap with reality? The …
Continue reading Day 4- 31 Days of Halloween- The Witch Who Came From The Sea (1976)
Is this- a) A beautifully acted, nuanced and sensitive portrayal of the horror of the Nazis and those unlucky enough to have crossed paths with them? or b) A badly acted slice of exploitation resplendent with terrible dubbing and almost no budget? I'll give you a clue- look at the film's name! This is also …
Continue reading Day 2- 31 Days of Halloween- The Horrifying Experiments of the SS Last Days (1977)
A boat sails into New York but the only person onboard happens to be a morbidly obese zombie who seems to be pissed off and hungry. The daughter of the boat’s owner decides to venture to where her father had been, a Caribbean island called Matul. She takes along with her a journalist who smells …
Continue reading Day 18- 31 Days of Halloween- Zombie Flesh Eaters (1979)
A bigger budget, a remake of sorts, this film was released when the video nasties furore was petering out. People were starting to see that horror movies wouldn't turn the working class oinks into bloodthirsty serial killers or even adversely affect their dogs (as Graham Bright so hilariously claimed) but could be considered as art …
Continue reading Evil Dead 2 – Day 29 – 31 Days of Halloween
Probably Argento's best movie in my opinion. A successful writer Peter Neal is visiting Rome from America. He becomes aware that a serial killer is on the loose and strongly influenced by his work. This film is staggeringly good. Prepare to be astounded by the tracking shot of the outside of the apartment block- one of the …
This film has quite a reputation. It was submitted to the British Board of Film Classification for a rating. But it didn't receive a rating. The head of the BBFC was so disgusted with the film that he made sure it was actually escorted out of the country. Its still cut to this day after …
Continue reading The New York Ripper (1982) – Day 19 – 31 Days of Halloween
This movie is just as infamous for the furore surrounding the film as it is for the actual content. I grew up in the midst of the Videos Nasties storm in a teacup in which the Tory government led by Herr Thatcher thought that the commoners who watched certain horror movies would grab a chainsaw …
Continue reading The Evil Dead (1981) – Day 16 – 31 Days of Halloween
The telephone has always held sinister connotations for me. I grew up in a time before mobile phones when everyone had a landline and telephone systems were positively archaic. This primitive system meant that calls couldn't be traced easily. This was perfect for every nutjob, crank or serial killer to call you. And this happened …
Continue reading Hanging On The Telephone- How The Telephone Has Been Used To Terrify In Film
As this is a new site I thought I'd take some time to introduce myself. My name is Simon and I'm a film aficionado. I studied film for 3 years in London and am undertaking a teacher training course so that I can lecture in the subject. But before you think that my tastes in …
Meathook Cinema 