Sign The Book

 

 (imdb)

THE UNDEAD-1957-After a sinister intro by The Devil (Richard Devon), a weird guy named Quintas Ratcliff (Val Dufour) returns from Tibet to confront his former teacher with his regression experiments. Quintas regresses hooker Diana (Pamela Duncan) to a past life in some medieval time when persecution of witches was trending. She finds herself a condemned witch named Elaine, locked in a dungeon awaiting execution. She escapes but is accidentally locked in a coffin (with a corpse played by Paul Blaisdell) by feeble gravedigger Smolen (Mel Welles). Meanwhile Pendragon (Richard Garland) searches for proof of Elaine's innocence. A woman named Livia (Allison Hayes) pretends to care but is really a witch with imp companion (Bobby Barty) who's after Pendragon's heart. 

(Metaphorically speaking…).

 After Smolen frees Elaine from the coffin she meets Maud (Dorothy Neumann), a kind of witch who hides Elaine and tells Pendragon. Maud then challenges Livia. Bruno VeSota plays a pub owner who's decapitated. When Quintas realizes he's changed the past he goes back to try and fix things up. Livia convinces Pendragon the only way to help Elaine is to make a pact with the devil but Qunitas now a knight who somehow the devil knows dissuades Pendragon from signing. But if Elaine doesn't die by dawn all her future lives will cease to be. Will she submit to the executioner's axe? And what of Quintas? Will he make it back to the present? Dick Miller appears in one scene as a leper. 

This is a great low budget AIP production directed of course by Roger Corman with a lot of flair and imagination. There's some nice SFX and spooky settings. Screenwriters Charles Griffin and Mark Hanna also collaborated on Corman's best sci-fi/horror film NOT OF THIS EARTH the same year. Corman also made ATTACK OF THE CRAB MONSTERS in '57, written by Griffin and and starring Garland and Duncan.

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Sequel?

 

 (imdb)

WIZARDS OF THE LOST KINGDOM 2-1989-Failed wizard Caedmon (Mel Welles) guides a young stupid kid Tybor (Robert Jayne) with a terrible haircut, to becoming a wizard so they can free three cities from the clutches of 3 wizards. They want a mercenary The Dark One (David Carradine) to help them but he doesn't want to leave his busy bar. Meanwhile Princess Amathea (Lana Clarkson) helps them and organizes an army. One wizard Loki (Edward Blackoff) tries to turn them to stone. A sorceress Freya (Diana Barton) and the wizard Donar (Sid Haig) have a sword the good guys want. Later The Dark One shows up to help them battle Zatz (outrageously overacting Henry Brandon in his last film role). 

It's basically a comedy, one of the handful of movies directed by Charles Griffith better known for this screenwriting efforts (LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, NOT OF THIS EARTH), many produced (and or directed) by Roger Corman who co-produced this filmed in Argentina “sequel” which has no characters from the first one! It also features stock footage from other sword and sorcery productions made by Corman's company Concorde. Co-star Clarkson was shot and killed by Phil Spector in 2003.

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Corman Killer Robots

 

CHOPPING MALL-1986-At Secure-Tronics Ltd., Suzie (Barbara Crampton) and Alison (Kelli Maroney) and their brain dead friends drink beer and have sex in a furniture store in a shopping mall where some security robots have gone haywire after an electrical storm. The group run around exploding propane tanks, shooting guns and being picked off one by one until only Alison is left (well sort of). 

Dick Miller is a janitor named Walter Paisley who's electrocuted. Paul Bartel & Mary Woronov have a pre-credit appearance and Mel Welles, Gerrit Graham, Ace Mask, Arthur Roberts and Angus Scrimm have small roles. There's nudity, an exploding head and one jerk saying "Let's send those fuckers a Rambo-gram”. The 'bots say things like "Thank you. Have a nice day" after killing. 

This Concorde release was co-written and directed by Jim Wynorski who a couple of years later re-made Roger Corman's NOT OF THIS EARTH with Maroney and several other Chopping Mall actors.

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Hold That Hypnotist!

HOLD THAT HYPNOTIST!-1957-When the Bowery Boys' landlady Mrs. Kelly (Queenie Smith) decides to visit a hypnotist (Robert Foulke) so she can be regressed to a former life, Sach (Huntz Hall) and Duke (Stanley Clements) decide to investigate. They are assisted by Myron (Jimmy Hall) and Chuck (David Gorcey). Sach is regressed to a 17th century tax collector! He has to confront the pirate Blackbeard (Mel Welles) and learns of his hidden treasure. Well, sort of. When he is re-hypnotized to find out more info he becomes a Mark Anthony quoting Shakespeare! They are eventually double crossed by the hypnotist and his manager (James Flavin). 


Parts are funny (especially when Sach talks with an English accent but most of the routines are "sub Abbott & Costello". Also with Jane Nigh. Usual second unit director Austin Jewell made only one other film. The credited screenwriter Dan Pepper is a pseudonym. Mel Welles was in 3 Roger Corman features the same year!


Happy Memorial Day and thanks for reading!