Lon the Witch!

 

 (imdb)

WITCHCRAFT-1964-Supernatural trouble brews when an ancient graveyard that hosted the Whitlock family for 800 years is bulldozed. Morgan Whitlock (Lon Chaney), head of the clan, gets upset and threatens the construction company run by Bill Lanier (Jack Hedley) and Miles Forrester (Barry Linehan). Of course, Lanier's brother Todd (David Weston) is in love with Morgan's daughter, Amy (Diane Clare). When Forester drowns taking a bath, a devil (voodoo) doll is found. It seems a witch has been resurrected by the bulldozing. She makes Bill's Aunt Helen (Viola Keats) drive off a cliff. All the Whitlocks, including Amy, are part of a coven. Fire spells their end before they can sacrifice Bill's wife. 

This is low budget but entertaining little supernatural tale that gives the aging Lon Chaney a good role in a decent film. Except for a few westerns and TV, he wouldn't get many more but always threw himself into whatever role he was playing. 

Director Don Sharp who directed Christopher Lee in DEVIL SHIP PIRATES the same year and would go on to work with Hammer, directing CURSE OF THE FLY (1965), RASPUTIN: THE MAD MONK (1966) and two Fu-Manchu entries. He makes the most with what he has on WITCHCRAFT in a very short shooting schedule (the number of days it took varies on who's talking about it...). 

American Robert Lippert was the producer and backed THE LAST MAN ON EARTH the same year. Writer Harry Spauding worked a lot for producer Lippert (and director Maury Dexter).

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First Fu

THE FACE OF FU MANCHU-1965-Although evil Fu Manchu (Christopher Lee) is beheaded at the onset, his good guy nemesis Nayland Smith (Nigel Green) has a dream that his arch foe is still alive. After Dr. Muller (Walter Rilla) disappears Smith is sure of it and he's right. Somehow Fu got a double to take his place on the guillotine and now holds the doctor hostage to learn the secret of the Black Hill poppy. His slutty daughter Lin Tang (Tsai Chin) wants to whip a female traitor but Fu drowns her instead. Then Fu goes after some papers in a museum. Although Smith does his best and rarely underestimates his foe, Fu usually gets the drop on the situation (they read an address out loud in front of a spy, etc.). When an eccentric professor takes the papers home Fu hypnotizes him then wipes out a coastal town with some toxic gas he hopes to rule the world with. He goes to Tibet to get the secret ingredient poppy but Smith with the help of his usual companion Dr. Petrie (Howard Marion Crawford) blows up the castle he and his daughter are in. However his infamous catch phrase “the world shall hear of me again” is also heard. 

This was the first of five film versions with Lee as the infamous doctor each one getting cheaper and more preposterous as they went on. Don Sharp directed most of them and had already worked with Lee on THE DEVIL SHIP PIRATES the year before. Harry Alan Towers was the producer and wrote this one which I don't think was based on any actual story by creator Sax Rohmer. Karin Dor and Joachim Fuschberger also have roles.

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Hammer Vampires

KISS OF THE VAMPIRE-1963-This Hammer production begins with a guy interrupting a funeral and using a shovel to smash open a coffin. A scream emulates from within and blood appears. Then newlyweds Gerald (Edward DeSouza) and Marianne (Jennifer Daniel) have car trouble and Jerry goes off for some petrol. All the while they are being spied on by a mysterious figure in a nearby castle. All alone and spooked by the rising wind Maria ventures out of the car and meets the guy with the shovel who warns her to go back to her car. After getting a tow the couple get a room at an inn and are invited to dine with Dr. Ravna (Noel Willman), the guy who was watching them earlier. The eerily suave doctor has two kids, Sabena (Jacquie Wallis) and Karl (Barry Warren). At dinner Marianne seems mesmerized by Karl's piano playing. At a masked ball Marianne learns the truth. Ravna is head of a vampire cult. They imprison Marianne then tell Gerald there is no such person as his wife. Everyone agrees so Gerald goes to Prof. Zimmer (Clifford Evans) for help and we learn that his own daughter had been vampire-ized by Ravna (he killed her in the pre-credit funeral sequence). 

Although the story is fairly standard and boring, the finale where Zim and Jerry rescue Marianne is exciting and violent with the professor using a spell that sends vampire bats to kill the vampires! Director Don Sharp went on to direct Christopher Lee in THE DEVIL-SHIP PIRATES, RASPUTIN and several Fu Manchu entries.

Dead Cyclists

PSYCHOMANIA-1973-This starts off with a motorcycle gang riding through graveyard in slow motion while the credits play. Then the gang, called "The Living Dead" and led by Tom (Nicky Henson) drive a car off the road, killing the driver. ("Teach him a lesson. Blow his mind!"). Later Tom makes out with his girlfriend Abby (Mary Larkin) on a grave. He talks about them killing themselves and takes home a frog he finds. At home he talks to his mother (Beryl Reid) about a room that will help him come back to life after he's dead. Their butler Shadwell (George Sanders) hangs around too and offers Tom a medallion to protect him when he's in the room. Tom goes into the room and nearly freaks out but in a smoky mirror he sees a giant frog and what appears to be his mom selling him to a figure all dressed in black. He promptly faints. After he recovers he and his gang really cause a lot of trouble in town. After a high speed police chase Tom drives his motorcycle off a bridge and dies. His friends bury him (sitting on his motorcycle) in a place where some witches were killed while a guy sings a song ("Riding Free"). Later Tom rides out of his grave and kills a gas station attendant. He picks up a girl but later kills her too. He convinces most of the gang to commit suicide so so they all can enjoy being un-dead. Unfortunately Abby doesn't want to die. She pretends to be dead but Tom won't buy that and decides to kill her. His mom decides to break the spell by turning herself into a toad. Tom decomposes before Abby's eyes (a terrible effect) as do all the other un-dead members. Robert Hardy is also featured as a police inspector. The gang members have names like Hatchet, Gash, Hinky and Chopped Meat.

Director Don Sharp (RASPUTIN-THE MAD MONK) can't do much with this dumb premise and the whole thing is pretty much a bore. The bikers don't do much more than any living bikers would do but it was nice to see the great George Saunders (sadly in his last role; ironically he committed suicide before the movie was released) try to bring some dignity to this stupid production.

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"Acting is like roller-skating. Once you know how to do it, 
it is neither stimulating nor exciting"-George Sanders

Mad Monk!

RASPUTIN: THE MAD MONK-1966-Christopher Lee plays the title role in this very entertaining but historically inaccurate Hammer production.

The drunken and gluttonous Rasputin is first introduced at an inn where he saves the life of the owner's young son. They then throw a party where he does a wild dance, seduces the owner's daughter and cuts off the hand of an older son. Later he wins a drinking contest and takes up with a drunken disbarred doctor (Robert Duncan). Barbara Shelley is Sonia, the Czarina's lady in waiting who comes under the mad monk's thrall and causes an "accident" that gets him in good with the ruling class. When he grows tired of Sonia he makes her commit suicide and sets his sights on Vanessa (Suzan Farmer) another lady. Sonia's brother tries to take revenge but is killed with acid. Eventually the doctor and Vanessa's boyfriend (Richard Pasco, also in THE GORGON) do away with him in a nice finale. Also with Joss Ackland and Michael Ripper.

Lee is great as the crazy but self assured Rasputin with his long hair and beard and piercing eyes. He and Shelley had just been in DRACULA, PRINCE OF DARKNESS the year before and some of the sets were re-used here. Director Don Sharp made several movies with Lee including 2 in the Fu Manchu series, DEVIL SHIP PIRATES and BEAR ISLAND.

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