/sapphic/ - Sapphic Dreams

>>2898

>Wow, how beautiful was Meg?

Top tier cute 3,14 for sure. She was perfect in the role. Her BF looked like he should be done with university, let alone high school.

Along with The Gate this could be my all-time favourite ’80s horror film. Goes to show that there is a lot more to ’80s horror than slashers. Saw some reviewers online, compare it to Gothic British horror and Hammer Horror, but one of them thought the film was boring till the finale, so I discarded his opinion.

Found the site of a chick who worked on the film; she worked on the corpses, and that girl with the toy was pretty effective. Not often you see that in horror.

Lisa's SFX Gallery: https://archive.vn/m3bTv / https://web.archive.org/web/20160305082032/http://www.lisamorton.com/sfx.html

>Did the 'mean girls' suffocate to death under the corpses?

Sure looks that way. But Raymar probably nearly drained their bioenergy, so it may not have taken much more before they died; maybe they died from fright?

Found this Norwegian VHS cover online. Of course this PG film was given a 18 rating here. Guessing the Nor title, Når de døde våkner (When the dead awaken) could be a nod to Henrik Ibsen’s 1899 play Når vi døde vågner (When We Dead Awaken).

>>2809

Noticed she made a recent video on accepting and learning to love her grey hair – maybe that will help me cope?

>>2899

>She was perfect in the role.

I loved her outfits. Too cute.

>Her BF looked like he should be done with university, let alone high school.

IKR? I assumed they were in college what with the whole fraternity/sorority thing. Then the mum

<she has to finish her homework

>wut

>this is high school?

>Found the site of a chick who worked on the film; she worked on the corpses

The corpses being re-animated and moving around remind me so much of something but I can't think what. I wonder if I saw this when I was very young.

>Noticed she made a recent video on accepting and learning to love her grey hair – maybe that will help me cope?

Very sound advice in that video. Which tells me we should resurrect the writing thread. What say you? Even if it's one sentence at a time. We could come up with something fun.

>>2902

Those jackets the Sisters wear are pretty neat too; got some Drive vibes from them.

The sort of hazing they are putting Julie thru may not have worked in a college setting; either there would be other pledges in the mausoleum with her, or it would just be her getting that kind of hazing, and that would be weird too.

It may have felt more natural without the custom jackets and them being called the Sisters, since it makes it seem like a sorority, rather than a group of friends.

>The corpses being re-animated and moving around remind me so much of something but I can't think what. I wonder if I saw this when I was very young.

If I were as pedantic as you were regarding the stars on the Cosmati Pavement/Selburose, I would make the point that the corpses are not actually reanimated. Raymar is using his telekinetic powers to move them around like puppets on strings. But I’ll take the high road on that :^)

You could do a tag search on IMDb to try and find the film you are thinking of. Would have loved to see this film as a kid.

>Which tells me we should resurrect the writing thread. What say you? Even if it's one sentence at a time. We could come up with something fun.

Sure. I am in. Been writing a lot this year; it is a great way to keep the mind occupied and focus on something else, but it doesn’t appear that anyone else finds my writings worthwhile, so it probably deserves to be stored away in a folder and forgotten.

The site is acting really strange, there must be some bug with the caching because the newest posts I'm seeing on the index page are from mid August.

Planned to get Las Brujas de Zugarramurdi off my backlog last night after Aerobicide/Killer Workout but had some delays that meant I was too exhausted to do a double feature by the time Aerobicide was over. By the way, Aerobicide is basically the retarded sister of Lucio Fulci's Murderock: uccide a passo di danza, which doesn't mean I didn't like it, though. It's just a shameless ripoff, even the murder weapon and the motivations of the killer are variants of what was seen in Fulci's film. This one is a lot less graphic on the murders, but a lot more graphic when it comes to showing T&A, shamelessly gratuitous to the point of hilarity. The ending is a lot more like an American slasher than Fulci's was, though. And when it comes to the murders themselves, it's less graphic than Fulci, probably out of budgetary concerns. Some effects in the beginning are Batman (1966 TV series) or The New Original Wonder Woman (1975) tier, which was both charming and hilarious at the same time. While it's very lustful one thing that can't be denied is that the director wanted to give eye candy to women as well, just like you get gratuitous T&A shots you also get a lot of torso shots of men flexing, both things are hilarious in how obvious they are. You don't see a guy or a woman in some shots, you only see their torso and arms. It's like a collection of creepshots at some moments. Cliches abound too, and if you analyze the movie after watching it some parts of the plot fall apart (didn't Rhonda's "partner" who was actually herself hire the detective guy? Why would she do such a thing?). Some parts are straight-out wish fulfillment. A guy (could say the hero) beats up another guy who messed with him, then a hot girl from the gym who saw the whole thing invites him for a ride on her convertible. They go to her house, have some beers and she goes inside to change her clothes. She comes out in a bathrobe and when the guy says he's gotta go do some stuff she says "you have plenty of stuff to do here", takes off the bathrobe and is seen in a bikini, then they embrace and kiss. It's like one of those dreams where you're an irresistibly cool guy and random women casually throw themselves at you in the blink of an eye, hilarious.

>>2911

>Those jackets the Sisters wear are pretty neat too; got some Drive vibes from them.

Yes, and the pink ladies in Grease

>The sort of hazing they are putting Julie thru may not have worked in a college setting;

I legit thought it was just a small college or select group kek.

Speaking of Meg, I came across a clip of Body Snatchers and she was in it! I don't remember her being in it but do remember the main actress and Elise from the Chucky series. Definitely want to watch that one again (but it's from the 90s).

>Raymar is using his telekinetic powers to move them around like puppets on strings.

Fair play.

>But I’ll take the high road on that :^)

Someone as magnificently humble as me can admit when I am mistaken.

>You could do a tag search on IMDb to try and find the film you are thinking of.

I never have much luck with that kind of thing. I tend to just come across films accidentally decades later and shout

<aha! I knew that wasn't a dream!

>Sure. I am in.

Great!

>Been writing a lot this year

Double great!

>but it doesn’t appear that anyone else finds my writings worthwhile

There are many lurkers on the internet in ratio to those that comment/interact. Have you posted stuff for anyone to see? In any case, fuck what others think.

>it probably deserves to be stored away in a folder and forgotten.

What needs to be expressed needs to be expressed. I very much doubt your writings need vaulting as much as you think. Have you seen the amount of media crap we are surrounded by on a daily basis?

>>2917

>It's as if Lara Flynn Boyle were blended with Laura Branigan

Can totally see that.

>>2918

Killer Workout

Will have to give this one a watch. I thought it was something I watch a couple of years ago at first but I think that one was Death Spa (which I honestly don't remember much of other than some of the plot and thinking it was entertaining to have a gym as the setting for crazy deaths).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HImCpzFxCg

>>2920

>wSjZjX4ShjU is the video ID, I suggest using youtube-dl and watching it with your player of choice

Danke

Finally got around to watch Fulci’s Ængima from 1987). It has that familiar Fulci atmosphere; there is a strange, sort of dreamlike or nightmarish atmosphere in his films, and it can be found in other Italian-made films set in the U.S. as well. The combination of a U.S., setting, the Italian crew/production and music and cast create this weird feeling that something is slightly off, giving everything a beautiful dreamlike quality.

Not sure if it is this dreamlike tone, but there were two scenes in particular that felt almost /sapphic/; the girl who casually caresses Eva’s lower arm when they are lounging on the bed, and then the spectacles teacher who seems almost smitten with Eva after her nervous breakdown at the dorm.

This is the least violent film I have seen by Fulci, though there are decapitations and blood enough. The scene in the hospital morgue reminded me a lot of the morgue scene in …E tu vivrai nel terrore! L'aldilà/The Beyond (1982), and it is also very reminiscent of The Dead Pit (1989) without the latter being a rip-off; it is the atmosphere and the setting – a female protagonist who has had a nervous breakdown, and we are not sure what her backstory is.

I was left with quite a few questions after the film ended, though the main story is pretty straightforward; Kathy’s spirit/soul uses Eva’s body to remain in this mortal world since she wants her revenge on the other girls and Fred the P.E. teacher. But Mary’s part in the whole matter is much harder to find out – the other girls at the school speculate who Kathy’s father could be, and Mary’s eyes turn daemonic red, as does Eva’s at one point. Is Mary using/forcing her daughter to take revenge – keeping her broken body artificially alive at the hospital long enough so her spirit (in Eva’s body) can kill those who wronged her (i.e. Kathy)? That possibility, along with the scene where Kim, one of the girls who in particular tormented Kathy, finds her boyfriend’s decapitated body in every room she looks into, is reminiscent of Mario Bava’s Operazione paura/Kill, Baby, Kill (1966), where a mother forces her daughter’s ghost to carry out a revenge on those who wronged her, and a character chases someone only to run though the same room over and over, and eventually finding out he has been chasing himself – very much like in Twin Peaks with Cooper and the doppelgänger…

Aenigma (Lucio Fulci, Italia, 1987) - Trailer: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=NKQ-j68QRjA

>>2930

Only seen Grease once, almost twenty years ago, but now that you mention it, it probably is a reference to the pink jackets in that film. If Julie’s BF in One Dark Night looked too old for high school, John Travolta looked positively ancient in that film – what on earth were they thinking, trying to pass him off as a high school student?

Christ, I thought Meg was in the Chucky series, but is her sister, Jennifer. Mind blown. Also, the ’90s is close enough to the ’80s imho tbh.

>Someone as magnificently humble as me can admit when I am mistaken.

Well played.

>I never have much luck with that kind of thing.

Same, and it is so damn annoying to not know the name of the film or song you are thinking of. Hate that feeling.

>There are many lurkers on the internet in ratio to those that comment/interact. Have you posted stuff for anyone to see? In any case, fuck what others think.

Yeah, first time in forever, and it went as well as can be expected. It was basically a challenge to see if I could continue writing a story without a fixed plot in mind from the beginning. The idea being that if I put it out there I would have an incentive to keep going. It was no doubt a bit too outré to appeal to a mainstream audience, and nothing special, but I’ve seen worse stories receive attention and praise, so that was a bit disheartening.

If I made an effort to appeal to as wide an audience as possible perhaps that would be noticed, but it’d feel like selling out.

I very much doubt your writings need vaulting as much as you think. Have you seen the amount of media crap we are surrounded by on a daily basis?

I try not to watch as little TV as possible these days. Just turning on the news is enough to ruin my day. Writing can be a nice way to cope. I think the important thing is to write something positive, happy and “feelgood” nonsense – that way you keep thinking about that happy story rather than all the depressing things going on.

>Death Spa

That one looks pretty neat. Love the neon colours/unnatural lighting, and the prospect of /fit/ women in leotards and wearing legwarmers is tempting.

The weight lifting in the trailer, and presumably in Killer Workout, made me think back to Tragedy Girls (2017).

>tfw the story continues

>>2937

It is on life-support.

>>2941

>>2944

If the film or show is interesting I do tend to look it up and check the archived IMDb forum and articles on blogs and magazines. The lunar eclipse death was pretty solid too though. You could take scenes from these two and cobble them together to make a perfect film.

There is a lot of focus on gutters in both Suspiria & Inferno; the heavy downpour and the rainwater going down the gutters. The three witches appear to manipulate the weather and cause these heavy rainfalls almost as a defence against fire.

Got done watching yet another Fulci film just now; Manhattan Baby from 1982. Knew nothing about it and was expecting another giallo, but this is horror. Very unique and weird film with the Fulci tropes. Really beautiful film. Fulci doesn’t use the unnatural lighting as much as Argento, but he manages to come up with some really clever visuals nonetheless.

The kid actor who played the annoying Bob in Quella villa accanto al cimitero/The House by the Cemetery (1981), though he is nowhere near as annoying in this. One or two other Fulci regulars show up as well, and Fulci has a small cameo as a pipesmoking doctor.

Some interesting connections to Lo squartatore di New York/The New York Ripper (1982) other than the New York City setting. The young daughter, Susie, reminds me of the young blonde hospitalised girl Susan in that film. A very similar visual of a hospitalised girl also appears in Ænigma (1987).

The film opens in Egypt, and the Egyptian theme in this film is quite unique to this horror film. Whenever you have a horror film and a connection to Egypt you always have mummies, but not in this.

Some absolutely gorgeous imagery connecting the Egypt and NYC settings and removing the borders between these places. The ancient evil cult who is still operating and carrying out their evil schemes and the NYC setting reminded me of H. P. Lovecraft’s underrated story The Horror at Red Hook. The film also alludes to cosmic horrors HPL would have appreciated.

This film, perhaps more than any other, really shows Fulci’s fascination with eyes; so many close-ups of eyes in this film, almost all of the characters have beautiful blue eyes, and it is nice to see so much emphasis on their eyes. Rather than relying on dialogue the eyes reveal what they feel or think, and it makes for a striking visual.

IMHO the brutal scene in Argento’s Profondo rosso/Deep Red (1975) where one character almost has his teeth knocked out by the killer, is much harder to sit through than any of Fulci’s eye-gouging scenes. There is a scene in this film involving nails that was also pretty damn brutal, and a scene very similar to the lengthy bat attack in Quella villa accanto al cimitero/The House by the Cemetery.

>>2979

The hardest Fulci scene to sit through is in Non si sevizia un Paperino.

I actually still have to see Una lucertola con la pelle di donna, but incidentally I had planned to see it soon. Planning on going through a lot of Sergio Martino's stuff too. My biggest problem right now is finding the time to get through the backlog. These days I'm just managing to see movies I had planned to watch since last year before the site went down and all that fuzz.

I haven't seen the others you mentioned, my experience with Fulci outside of Murderock - Uccide a passo di danza is all from the 70s (and 1969).

Glad to see you liked Sette note in nero. I bet the scene in pic related caught your attention :^).

>>2979

>lousy lesbian

Kek I thought it was going to show her being a lousy pitcher. That blonde kid is just the worst.

>This film, perhaps more than any other, really shows Fulci’s fascination with eyes; so many close-ups of eyes in this film, almost all of the characters have beautiful blue eyes, and it is nice to see so much emphasis on their eyes. Rather than relying on dialogue the eyes reveal what they feel or think, and it makes for a striking visual.

So the opposite of Amer I hope.

>>2981

>My biggest problem right now is finding the time to get through the backlog.

IKR.

Decided to check out The Return of the Living Dead from 1985 because Dan O’Bannon (Alien & The Resurrected) wrote the screenplay. Turns out he directed it as well! Not have so much fun seeing a horror comedy in ages. This is the perfect blend of horror and comedy; all too often you have characters acting like they are aware they are in a comedy, causing the overall film to suffer from it.

Here you have a dark comedy with terrific special effects, a killer soundtrack, and Linnea Quigley dancing nude in a graveyard.

Now I really wish O’Bannon had written the screenplay and directed Re-Animator… Supposedly he had added some dark comedic parts to The Resurrected (1991) as well, and he was not pleased when the studio took control and recut the film.

>>3106

You would be shocked if you knew how many classics I have not seen.

The very dark comedy helps take some of the edge off the incredibly bleak and nihilistic tone, but after the film ended I was struck by just how bleak it really was. Not only the nuclear ending, but seeing the characters constantly doing the smart thing to deal with the situation, only to have it all spiral out of control and mean nothing in the end. Then there is the part where they tie down the ½ Lady Corpse and ask her why they are killing and eating brains – her answer was pretty damn chilling. The idea that they are in constant, unbearable pain, and that only eating brains can help dull their agony for a moment is incredibly dark. Normally you have reanimated corpses who can’t feel anything and just shamble around, but here they are very intelligent, fast and they have a motivation too!

Btw., I loved how Burt just wanted to wipe the whole thing under the rug to save his business. His reaction (“Oh, shit!”) to hearing there was a walking corpse in his medical warehouse. Gotta admire that kind of passion and drive.

Interestingly there are quite a few connections and parallels to Mortuary from 2005 directed by Tobe Hooper. Hooper was originally set to direct The Return of the Living Dead.

In Mortuary you have a scene where a mortician breaks up the rigor mortis and begins to inject the embalming fluid. You also have a trio of punks heading to a graveyard to drink and have sex. The film also has a similar dark comedic tone, in sharp contrast with the very dark story. The cadavers looked really good in Mortuary, but I cannot stand the actor who plays the son/brother, and the CGI looks beyond atrocious. It is not a good film, but it managed to entertain me. With a new draft, recasting and going practical effects only, it might have been a good film.

>I secured a copy of Messiah of Evil.

Swell! I’ll rewatch it whenever you get around to it. Already got some notes written down, but this film really deserves a closer look. It is as if Argento directed a slow-burn, atmospheric Lovecraftian horror film. Reminded me of Dead & Buried (1981), written by Ronald Shusett & Dan O’Bannon, who wrote the story for Alien (1979) together, and Let’s Scare Jessica to Death (1971). There are also some interesting similarities to Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1973)…

Even the poster to Dead & Buried reminds me of Messiah of Evil.

Dead & Buried (1981) Trailer: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=8ZmlEh34unM

DEAD & BURIED (1981) HD TRAILER: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=5X0z0uCALKU

Rewatched Dead & Buried just now and this outfit was very familiar…

>>3155

Wow, it's almost the exact same as Carol's from Una lucertola con la pelle di donna. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Sure, the hat is slightly different but it's "steal her look" tier.

Just saw Brian De Palma's Body Double (1984), a film I had on my backlog for a long time. It's basically an American giallo, like Dressed to Kill. Honestly, I found it a bit underwhelming in comparison, specially given the hype around it. Some parts dragged a bit. I don't remember exactly where but at some point I felt tempted to up the playing speed. I think it was during one of the phobia scenes. The opening is genius and I love the self-conscious use of mattes and smoke that look obvious yet produce a wonderful juxtaposition. It's classic De Palma, he did something similar in Scarface (1983). The way it opens was genius and had me confused until it was clear what was going on. Had a good scare too, mainly driven by it taking me off-guard. And like some gialli, it's hard to make complete sense of the plot. There's some dreamlike ambiguity aided by non-linearity. I'm unsure of how to interpret the ending as a whole. There were also some apparent plotholes that might have been clues, like the key card. I thought it was a policeman returning it to Gloria but I guess it was someone from the alarm company giving her a new one. The Indian wouldn't have needed it because he had to have his own key but it would have given away a lot. The perp completely surprised me. As for the ending, my personal interpretation is that the coffin scene played in his head but what came after was real. I wonder how much this influenced Conspiracy Theory. Jake gets called a "conspiracy nut" here and Jerry (Mel Gibson) was rather voyeuristic, watching Alice through the blinds of her window on his way to becoming her protector.

And as gialloesque as it is, it would be stupid to ignore its number one influence: Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window. It's so obvious I won't comment further on it though.

Overall, a good film but overhyped. I can't really point out what it was but it left me unsatiated. I think it's not as visually stylish as it could have been. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't ugly. But it could have been even more stylish. And for its infamy, I didn't find it particularly scandalous. Dressed to Kill felt more scandalous to me and it was released four years before.

>>3156

It is the exact same look, even the colour is the same. Think it is an intentional homage?

Was surprised to see that Disney made this one. Bette Davis is in it, and the trailer looks very interesting, stunning posters as well. Like that it is marketed as a suspence film, rather than an outright horror.

The Watcher in the Woods (1980) Trailer Ingles: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=4tEJ_HKC_NE

This one looks really good and I love these posters. Very similar to the alternate posters for John Carpenter’s The Thing.

Mutant AKA Night Shadows Trailer {1984}: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=oXcC3dt7NsI

Never seen a Mattei film, but this one, Guardian of Hell aka The Other Hell, looks sorta interesting, and more than a little Fulci-inspired. Fulci apparently did not have a very high opinion of Mattei, and disavowed Zombi 3 in an interview; Fulci was credited with directing it, but it was actually directed by Mattei.

<At the peak of his ‘80s excess, Italian sleaze maestro Bruno Mattei – using the alias ‘Stefan Oblowsky’ – stunned audiences with THE OTHER HELL, a raging Nunsploitation shocker about a series of brutal murders in a depraved convent. And while his cinematic legacy may remain controversial, Mattei here delivers a surprisingly stylized yet undeniably blasphemous orgy of stabbings, stigmata, Satanism, sexual violence and graphic savagery that ranks among his very best. Franca Stoppi (THE TRUE STORY OF THE NUN OF MONZA), Carlo De Mejo (WOMEN’S PRISON MASSACRE) and Franco Garofalo (HELL OF THE LIVING DEAD) star in this “filthy nugget” (Mondo Digital) – written by the notorious Claudio Fragasso (RATS: NIGHT OF TERROR, TROLL 2) and featuring a score ‘borrowed’ from Goblin – newly transferred from a 35mm print discovered behind a false wall in a Bologna nunnery!

The Other Hell [Blu-ray] | Severin Films: https://web.archive.org/web/20190517161347/https://severin-films.com/shop/the-other-hell-bluray/

The Other Hell Trailer: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=bDuQyjDpyJ0

The Watcher in the Woods is one of the most interesting Disney films I have ever seen, and a damn fine horror-light/suspense thriller. Was afraid it would turn out to be a standard ghost film at one point, but then it went in a completely different direction. Even looking at the posters I got a hint that there would be something unique and special about the film, and it did not disappoint.

There are three endings to this film it turns out – the original cut of the film did not go over well with audiences and the film was pulled from theatres after a few weeks, and a new ending was shot by a different director. This new ending was the one I saw first.

Then there are two versions of the original ending – one short and one slightly longer. Can’t decide which of these I prefer, but they are far better than the ending they replaced it it, though that one is not bad either.

Got some serious flashbacks to Children of the Stones (1977) while watching this, and afterwards I found out Katharine Levy, who plays Karen Aylwood in the film, played Sandra in Children of the Stones!

Watcher in the Woods– Alternate Ending: https://www.yewtu.be/watch?v=Bkpf2IzmMVg

The Watcher in the Woods (1980) - Alternate Ending #2: https://www.yewtu.be/watch?v=nj7BTISeq7E / https://www.dailymotion.com/video/xursfv

BFI | Sight & Sound | Lost and found: The Watcher in the Woods: http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/feature/49702

https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/3521/watcher-in-the-woods-the/

Melissa Joan Hart directed a made-for-TV version of the story in 2017, and I am tempted to check it out to see how it compares to the 1980/1 version(s).

>>3197

Not only is it a Disney horror film, it is undeniably a cosmic horror film! The two versions of the original ending in particular are very Lovecraftian. In the cut endings there is an actual H. R. Giger-inspired Lovecraftian eldritch abomination who shows up at the climax.

I watched the Melissa Joan Hart adaptation from 2017, and it is nothing special visually. Pretty much typical made-for-TV fair.

By far the biggest problem is that the 2017 adaptation removes the unknown Lovecraftian entity in the woods with the spirit of a plague doctor who was burned to death. Again, nothing special, but it was interesting to see another take on the story. Want to check out the book, A Watcher in the Woods, now. I expect the Lovecraftian eldritch horrors was there originally.

>To me she's always just been Sabrina (which was an admittedly fun show).

I also remember her from Clarissa Explains It All from back in the day, but, yeah, she will always be Sabrina for me as well. I got the first season on DVD a few years ago. Was fun to revisit that. Got a bunch of memories of watching that show after coming home from school. The guy who voices Salem wrote and directed the best episode in the first season, the one where Sabrina wishes things were more interesting and ends up turning everything into a real-life soap opera.

If I remember correctly she is a conservative/on the right side, which is very rare for Hollywood – at least openly.

>For me this will most likely be no movie week, tight schedules. I hate deadlines.

Just got a bunch of films off my backlog these last days.

Sleepy Hollow (1999) directed by Tim Burton, screenplay by Kevin Andrew Walker, story by Kevin Yagher

The Watcher in the Woods (1980) directed by John Hough, based on the novel A Watcher in the Woods by by Florence Engel Randall

Tenebre/Tenebrae (1982) written & directed by Dario Argento

The Watcher in the Woods (2017) directed by Melissa Joan Hart, based on the novel A Watcher in the Woods by Florence Engel Randall

Bad Dreams (1988) co-written & directed by Andrew Fleming

Bad Dreams is fucking amazing. I love it. Great performance by Jennifer Rubin from Little Witches (1996) & Richard Lynch, who I remember from God Told Me To aka Demon (1976). Bruce Abbot from Re-Animator (1985), Dean Cameron, Harris Yulin & E. G. Daily are also in it. Jennifer Rubin reminds me of Milla Jovovich, and the film is sorta similar to The Dead Pit'' (1989); a young woman with amnesia is hospitalised and there she is terrorised by a figure from her past who starts killing those around her.

Bad Dreams (1988) Theatrical Trailer: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=IB-tvXJovC4

<Lynch's distinct scarred appearance made him a popular nemesis, and he can be seen in more than 100 film and television performances. The scars came from a 1967 incident in New York's Central Park in which, under the influence of drugs, he set himself on fire, burning more than 70% of his body.[3] He spent a year in recovery, gave up drug use and ultimately began training at The Actors Studio and at the HB Studio.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Lynch

PS: if you want another audio commentary track that goes into low-budget/indie filmmaking, check out the one on God Told Me To aka Demon (1976) by Larry Cohen.

>>3202

>Tenebre/Tenebrae (1982) written & directed by Dario Argento

That one is great, I love it. The camerawork is top notch and makes it alone makes it one of the quintessential gialli in my opinion. The long crane shot and the creep camera.

It probably would make a great double-feature with Michael Mann's Manhunter, with the photographic themes going on.

Also I love Goblin's Lesbo. Listening to it right now. We had a short discussion about it with BO last year. Interestingly enough I brought up both Tenebre and La dama rossa uccide sette volte in our talks the other day, specifically the creep camera part and I mention it in my review too. Looks like it had an immense æsthetic impact on me because I talked it on my review over a year ago:

>>1527

>>1528

>>1529

Mutant aka Night Shadows is an overlooked horror/action film from 1984, and it is one worth adding to the list of 1980s horror films that are criminally underrated. This was not at all what I expected, and it kept on surprising me all throughout. It subverted my expectations in a good way. The story is a bit of a mess, and there are several massive questions left unanswered, but it was a fun ride, and the characters really make this film great. The dynamic between the two brothers, Josh & Mike, was great. Very refreshing and unusual to see two brothers who really care about each other. By far the best character is the town Sheriff. At first I thought he would be a minor character and a caricature, but they really bring him to life in the story, and what began as a comedic character, turned into a fully fleshed out human being.

The film goes really dark, and after the death of a major character it felt like it would end on a very bleak note, just like The Return of the Living Dead (1985). In fact, according to an article in Fangoria, it did end just like The Return of the Living Dead!

<I was one of the original screenwriters. The original title was THE PESTILENCE before the storyline was changed from germ warfare to toxic waste poisoning. It was filmed under the rather generic title NIGHT SHADOWS. Prior to release the title was changed to MUTANT in an attempt to mimic the success of ALIEN. I've always felt the original poster art was beautiful and atmospheric, with the airbrushed swirls in the dark sky deliberately eerie and ambiguous. The first video release from Vestron featured a bad paint-over of the image to resemble the jaws/face of a monster. Deliberately deceptive but doubtless intended to promote rentals and sales.

https://moviechat.org/tt0087796/Mutant/58c742106b51e905f66f0239/Who-else-thinks-the-title-and-cover-art-is-misleading

Article on the film in Fangoria #34 1984: https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_034/page/n11/mode/2up?

Interview with actor Wings Hauser about the film in Fangoria #36 1984: https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_036_c2c_1984_Friday_13th_final_chapter_HotPoker-Bollywox-DREGS_S/page/n21/mode/2up

Interview with director John “Bud” Cardos about the film in Fangoria #36 1984: https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_036_c2c_1984_Friday_13th_final_chapter_HotPoker-Bollywox-DREGS_S/page/n23/mode/2up

Next up I plan to check out The Titan Find aka Creature from 1985 & The Deadly Spawn from 1983. Seen parts of The Titan Find/Creature before, but it has been re-released on DVD in its original widescreen format, and hopefully the picture quality is better than the public domain versions that circulate online. Doesn’t seem to be a Blu-ray release for this one yet, which is a real shame; reading the articles about the film in Fangoria & Cinefantastique, it is obviously a film that deserved to be viewed in HD. The Skotak brothers worked on the special effects, and the gore effects sounds pretty awesome as well, so it would be suboptimal to see a dark and grainy 4:3 VHS rip of it.

Article on the film, then known as Titan Find, in Fangoria #41 1985: https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_041_c2c_1985_Torture_0daypoopoo-Bollywox-DREGS_S/page/n51/mode/2up

Review of Creature aka Titan Find in Fangoria #54 1986: https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_054_c2c_1986_Poltergeist_2_c2c_Sprout-DREGS_S/page/n17/mode/2up

http://wrongsideoftheart.com/2009/03/creature-1985-usa/

TITAN FIND (1985, AKA CREATURE): DIRECTOR’S CUT DVD | MEMORY MOVIES: https://archive.vn/6Q6E4 / http://web.archive.org/web/20201116000011/https://forthehellofitreviews.wordpress.com/2018/03/07/titan-find-1985-aka-creature-directors-cut-dvd/

US-Trailer 'Creature': https://yewtu.be/watch?v=N2ZHZyj8vrU

The Titan Find aka Creature (1984)-Original Trailer: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=HTS_DlIh3VM

https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/42008/titan-find-a-k-a-creature-finally-getting-a-proper-dvd-release/

The Deadly Spawn (1983) trailer: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=agtrqXBfiE4

The eye-catching poster for The Deadly Spawn was drawn by Tim Hildebrandt (F), who along with his brother Greg did a number of illustrations for The Lord of the Rings in the 1970s, as well as artwork for Star Wars: http://wrongsideoftheart.com/2010/05/the-deadly-spawn-1983-usa/

The original, The Gate (1987), is one of my all-time favourite ’80s horror films, and that one delved into some dark territory as well, but this once ups the ante even more – sacrificing pets to open a gate to communicate with daemons, parents struggling with alcoholism and attempted suicide… they don’t make films like this nowadays.

Wasn’t sure what to expect going in with the knowledge that it focuses on Terry who opens the titular gate again, but I think it works surprisingly well. In the first film we find out Terry has been struggling after the death of his mother, so it makes sense he would look after his dad, who is suicidal and struggling with alcoholism.

Like the original, this sequel is written by Michael Nakin & directed by Tibor Takacs, and that helps connect the two films – they have a similar, shared tone and atmosphere, and both films deal with the esoteric and sorcery and daemons. The sequel goes even deeper into the daemonology angle of it, whereas in the original it was more through bad luck and ignorance that they opened the gate, this time Terry deliberately opens the gate to make a deal with the daemons from beyond.

In this sequel our main characters are teenagers themselves, and there were some interesting Twin Peaks similarities going on. Two of the main characters come off as a bit thin and clichéd at first, but they are given depth and fleshed out more, and Moe in particular came off as more sympathetic.

I did not like it as much as the original, but it is a pretty damn solid film all around – it looks absolutely stunning, the practical effects, with one or two exceptions, look fantastic, the characters are interesting, and the tone is surprisingly dark. The story is too much of a “be careful what you wish for”/monkey’s paw story, and the ending did feel wonky, but it was a thrilling ride, well worth a watch.

<FX artist Reardon takes a similar view. “It has a cast of characters who are rather colorful young adults … It gets pretty horrific at the end, like those H.P. Lovecraft stories, with ancient demons coming back to rule the earth.”

Article on the film in Fangoria #97 1990: https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_097_c2c_1990_Night_of_the_Living_Dead_FemaleBikerSweat-DREGS/page/n29/mode/2up

Gate 2 Trailer 1992: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=AHfOJBo_l_I

>>3302

I didn't even know there was a Gate 2! Will have to see if I can find a copy.

Just watched Nightmare City (1980). Cipriani does the soundtrack. Pretty fun and gory. The characters are largely insufferable which makes watching them getting bumped off infinitely more enjoyable.

Apologies for the lack of posting lately. End of year has been crazy with marking and planning for next year.

>>3314

>I didn't even know there was a Gate 2!

That came as a surprise to me too.

Gate.2.The.Trespassers.1990.1080p.BluRay.x264-SADPANDA[rarbg]

Director Tibor Takács and special effects artist Randall William Cook also made another horror film together: I, Madman aka Hardcover from 1989. Jennifer Wright from Near Dark plays the lead!

I, Madman (1989) Trailer: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=Jr-BpaRTq8s

>Just watched Nightmare City (1980). Cipriani does the soundtrack. Pretty fun and gory. The characters are largely insufferable which makes watching them getting bumped off infinitely more enjoyable.

Sounds familiar… I see it is made by Umberto Lenzi and stars Hugo Stiglitz, and it can be seen online: https://ok(dot)ru/video/33162201711

Might check this one out.

Btw., have you seen that they are making another In Search of Darknes documentary on ’80s horror? They are asking for preorders or KickStarter support.

>Apologies for the lack of posting lately. End of year has been crazy with marking and planning for next year.

It hasn’t been the same without you. Take care Down there and try not to let the kids coof on you.

Sounds like this author could be one of the inspirations for Garth Marenghi. Someone claimed the author was a “high level executive at the BBC”

<John Halkin is the pseudonym of an unknown British author who wrote several horror novels in the 1980s for Hamlyn, most notably the “slimy” trilogy Slime, Slither, and Squelch. He also wrote Blood Worm, Fangs of the Werewolf, The Unholy, Fatal Odds, Hantu, a literary novel called Kenya, and a handful of short stories before apparently calling it quits.

http://realmsofnight.com/2015/09/02/john-halkin/

>>3368

>Slither

Wait, like the film?

>>3369

Not according to writer/director James Gunn: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slither_(2006_film)#Themes_and_influences

Here is the description of Halkin’s Slither novel on Amazon:

<From his first terrifying, bloody encounter with them Matt Parker knew they were lethal to the human race. Out of the murky sewers they suddenly attacked —snapping, biting, ripping at his flesh. After the first sensationalism had died down, the newspapers lost interest … the experts dismissed them as no more dangerous than ferrets … people started to forget.

<But Matt knew different. All the time they were growing in size and numbers — and they preyed on living flesh!

<For when they returned — slithering out of village ponds, swimming pools, even bath pipes — the fate of the British population was sealed.

<And there was no more horrifying way to die….

Hard to tell if these critters in the book look like the alien worms in the film, but check out the alternate book cover and compare it to the bathtub scene in the 2006 film… 🤔

>>3370

It is a really great teen horror dulogy, and there’s some really memorable lines in both films. There have been rumours about a third film, with Randall William Cook set to (write &?) direct at one time.

<[John:] I saw you with that freak, what’s his name.

<[Moe:] Larry.

<[Liz:] Terrence. His name is Terrence.

<[John:] ’scuse me, so he’s got a faggot’s name instead of an asshole’s name.

>>2918

Finished this one yesterday, and I had a blast watching it. The aerobics scenes and the kick-ass soundtrack alone makes it worth a watch IMHO.

>Aerobicide is basically the retarded sister of Lucio Fulci's Murderock: uccide a passo di danza

It totally is – first film I can remember where the Americans are ripping off the Italians. Fulci’s film is a masterpiece, but this film has a whole lot of charm, and it’s just so much fun! Detective Morgan has some really memorable lines in this, and it is so damn ’80s; the aerobics, leotards, hairstyles, cars, outfits, attitudes, and the slasher genre. Every 1980s cliché wrapped up into one damn enjoyable low-budget rip-off film!

>Some parts are straight-out wish fulfillment.

That not-hero is actually played by the writer/director’s brother! And they drink (diet) Pepsi in the chick’s back garden, not beer.

This film has a very weird tone to it, not unlike a lot of the Italian-made 1980s films – the characters and the dialogue feels detached from reality in a way. How on earth is still gym not shut down after the first couple of murders? People are pumping iron and dancing as the paramedics are carrying out the most recent murder victims! One of the paramedics even tell detective Morgan “see you soon!” or something along those lines as they carry out a new murder victim. That showed me the filmmakers knew how silly the whole story is and made with a wink to the audience.

>>3406

>Murderock: uccide a passo di danza

While performing a quick search to see if this too was on YT I found what appears to be a gem of a channel: GialloRealm https://www.youtube.com/c/GialloRealmOfficial/videos

>>3411

How has this channel managed to fly under the radar of the copyright?

The poster for Grotesque caught my interest, but the trailer looks meh. Linda Blair is in it though. Might just be a cameo, but still.

Grotesque Trailer 1987: https://invidious.snopyta.org/watch?v=mfenBtoqBvw

>>3569

>Terrence was an idiot like that dweeb in the Evil Dead remake.

Yeah, he really should have known better than to mess with that shit again – especially after

It might have been better if it was some new kid who heard the rumours of what happened, maybe someone who had recently moved into the house where Glen & Alex lived in the first one?

>The underworld setting near the end reminded me of a setting in one of the Hellraiser movies, can't think which one. One of the sequels I think, also with teenagers?

Loved the look of that place – so creepy and simple. I haven’t read this book yet, but from what I know about it, it sounds similar to William Hope Hodgson’s 1912 horror/fantasy novel The Night Land; it takes place millions of years into the future, after the Sun and all the stars have died out, and the entire world is a barren wasteland, lit only by the faint glow of residual vulcanism.

Haven’t seen a single Hellraiser film, but I’ve seen a clip of the second one, “Hellbound: Hellraiser II” (1988), and that might the one you are thinking of. It has that M. C. Escher-esque world and the massive shape, Leviathan, Lord of the Labyrinth, looming above it. That eerie, droning score playing over that scene supposedly contains a Morse code message: “I am God”. Here is the scene on YT: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=u2qT7GylRxw

>The father buried his son in jeans and a leather jacket? Kek.

That is pretty badass. Reminds me of the opening quote in Mandy:

<When I die

<Bury me deep

<Lay two speakers at my feet

<Wrap some headphones

<Around my head

<And rock and roll me

<When I’m dead

>Yes they were impressive. Especially the little minion in the beginning.

According to the interview in Fangoria they made a new minion suit with better articulation than the first film, and got a prima ballerina to play the role, since she’d have better body control and know how to move with the suit to make it look natural due to the proportions of the suit:

>”I made it faithful to the original miniature,” reveals Reardon. “And this was complicated to do because the proportions of that puppet, though they are definitely humanoid, are actually not human. They have a much greater spread between the shoulders than does any normal human being. Also, the elbow joint is in a slightly different place, and the legs are jointed differently too. The sculpted details of the suit don’t directly correspond to where the woman who wears the suit actually moves.”

Think Christophe Gans used dancers because of these reasons in Silent Hill (2006), such as the nurses, who had to move in a very erratic and unpredictable way and have good body control and stamina to do take after take.

>Understatement.

Do you think they originally had Terry, Moe & John die in the original ending and were forced to come up with a new ending where they come back to life?

>>3576

>The monologue by the detective is hilarious, I could see the final result from a mile lol.

After all the shenanigans thru the film I half expected Lieut. Morgan to actually kill her and get away with it. The director has done a bunch of other films too, might be something else worth checking out on his filmography too.

Found out Barbara Crampton was on the episode of Creature Features dedicated to Messiah of Evil the other day. What are the odds? The constant ads are bad enough, but by far the most annoying part is the host. He is a fucking spaz and he is doing this horror host role all thru the interview. What a waste.

Barbara Crampton & Messiah Of Evil: https://yewtu.be/watch?v=vb4hj-biIBE