Directors Act!

 

 

 

 (imdb)

VIOLENT SHIT: THE MOVIE-2015-This is a kind of Italian remake/sequel to a German series of movies by Andreas Schnaas (who has a small role in this). An Italian cop (director Enzo G. Castellari) and a German cop (Steve Aquilina) investigate the ritual killings that seem to be tied to tectonic serial killer Karl the butcher. Meanwhile the bald pasty-faced Prof. Vassago (Giovanni Lombardo Radice) talks about Attila the Hun. Occasionally a guy in a metal mask kills people. Directors Lucio Fulci and Luigi Cozzi also have small roles. 

 Radice under the name John Morghen is better known for his roles in Italian cannibal films like CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD (1980) and CANNIBAL FEROX (1981). This is drawn out garbage with lots of talk and excessively gory in spots. The music is by Claudio Simonetti. This Italian/Germany production was directed by Luigi Pastore.

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Grenwich Village Killer

 

 (imdb)

VIOLATED-1953-It's like Ed Wood meets Ron Ormond in this very cheap sleazy thriller. In Greenwich Village in NYC, police investigate the murders of several models/strippers. A tall police lieutenant (Mitchell Kowall) questions everyone. The suspects the cops pick up are pretty amazing looking weirdos. A photographer, Jan Verbick (William Holland in his only film role) is the culprit. He becomes obsessed with a stripper named Lili (Lili Dawn) but she rebuffs him. ("Beat it, ya jerk. I told ya to scram!") After he kills her, he runs down a fire escape in a funny scene. He gets away and the next day he tries to strangle his new young model. The police burst in and arrest him. Under sodium pentothal, Jan reveals why he kills women. The end seems to suggest another killer is around. 

There's an unusual scene (for the time) where two men have their arms around each other. Except for a short film based on “Othello” this was director William Strate's only film. It was produced and written by William Mishkin who years later produced Andy Mulligan's early movies. Lili Dawn was an “exotic dancer” who's only other film appearances are in 8mm films by Irving Klaw.

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Junk

 

 (imdb)

MANIACTS-2001-Junk about a serial killer named Joseph (Jeff Fahey) who's put in a mental hospital. The movie gives a lot of sympathy for him as the place is run by smug cruel doctors and sadistic guards. One African American doctor is sympathetic though. Joseph later meets a psycho woman and they kill everybody. I'm not much for movies giving sympathy to murderers even if it's supposed to be a comedy. Put it in the trash.

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Massacre: Very Popular in the '80's

 (wikipedia)

SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE-1982-Some college bimbos are terrorized by a power tool carrying escaped psycho, Russ Thorn (Michael Villella). Unpopular girl next door Val (Robin Stille), taking care of her younger sister Courtney (Jenifer Meyers) is also later terrorized. Conceived as a parody, it's done as a straight slasher film and though it contains a lot of the usual cliches it has some intentional humor, suspense and is more entertaining than a lot of the crap made around the same time. 

The screenplay is by feminist writer Rita Mae Brown. The director Amy Jones only made three more movies after this and mainly became a screenwriter (MYSTIC PIZZA, THE RELIC). It was also the debut film for future “scream queen” Brinke Stevens. Unfortunately Robin Stille committed suicide in 1996.

Happy Birthday Mom!

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Deadtime

 (IMDB)

 DEADTIME STORIES-1986-A reluctant babysitting uncle (Michael Mesmer) tells his nephew 3 bedtime stories. In the first 2 old hag sisters Hagnathol & Florinda search for a third sister with the help of a servant boy Peter (Scott Valentine). They kill a priest and use his severed hand to find the corpse. They plan to resurrect her using her heart and sacrificing Miranda, a local maiden (Kathy Fleig) but Peter turns against them and saves her. They are then briefly terrorized by the reanimated sister but Peter pulls her heart out. They seem saved but there's a sort of twist ending. 

Then uncle then tells his own version of Little Red Riding Hood. A stupid druggist mixes up the prescriptions of a woman named Rachel (Nicole Picard) and a pill popping loser named Willie (Matt Mitler). While Rachel and her boyfriend have sex in a shack Willie turns into a werewolf and attacks Rachel's grandmother (the prescription had been for her). Then he kills the boyfriend. Rachel kills the wolf with a silver cake knife. At the hospital grandma turns into a wolf. 

Then comes the tale of Goldilocks which takes place at the "Home For The Hopelessly Insane". A woman helps her husband and idiot son escape. Meanwhile Goldi Lox, an escaped serial killer who can kill with her psychic powers lives in their old house. This is by far the worst story with a lot of characters acting like morons. At the end a kid is attacked by a fake looking monster. Terrible music. 

Filmed in New York City by director/co-writer Jeffrey Delman.\

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7 For One

 

RAGE WAR-(aka THE DUNGEON-MASTER)-1984-In this low budget anthology from Empire Pictures, a running guy Paul (Jeffery Byron) is obsessed with his talking computer Cal. His fiance Gwen (Leslie Wing) doesn't like it. After a weird dream, Paul is transported to some kind of cave where Gwen is chained to a rock with fire all around. A strange wizard/sorcerer Mestema (Richard Moll) likes Paul's "magic" (his computer is on his watch) and says he will make a worthy opponent. 

Later Paul and Gwen find a cave full of frozen people from the past including Einstein and Bloody Mary. They are attacked by Jack the Ripper, a mummy, a wolf man & some other creatures but an ice crystal destroys the bad guys. After Gwen disappears Paul meets the troll Ratspit (John Carl Buechler) then some cartoon dragons fight. When Mestema plays some of his music Paul counters with his own (the movie's theme). Paul is then transported to a heavy metal concert where a comical Ozzy clone sings. Gwen is a victim of their S & M show but Cal destroys them.

 In another land some dwarfs steal his computer watch. Then a giant stone statue comes to life and shoots a laser from its head. Paul destroys it and winds up in an alley with a dead woman, victim of a serial killer. Gwen is his next victim and Paul has to save her. Two dumb cops arrest him but he escapes. They elude the killer and are then menaced by a flaming devil head. Next in another cave a monster throws exploding rocks at Paul. Before it dies it turns into an angel like woman. In a graveyard of airplanes the pair are threatened by some hooded soldiers and a little guy who talks like Cousin Itt. At the end Paul and Mestema fight it out and somehow Paul wins. They are freed. 

Like most Empire junk it's imaginative but makes no sense, the acting (especially by Byron as Paul) is bad, the sfx so so and the script is dumb. It's in seven parts with each directed by a different person (including Buechler, David Allen, Charles Band, Peter Manoogian, Ted Nicolaou).

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Haunted

 

HAUNTER-2013-A young girl Lisa (Abigail Breslin) experiences the same events with her family over and over. It's the eve of a birthday that never comes, her father endlessly fixes their car, mom prepares the same meals every night and her little brother plays the same video game and talks to an imaginary friend. It turns out she and her family are dead, the victims of a serial killer Edgar Mullins (Stephen McHattie) who once lived in their house. He possessed Lisa's father and killed the family. Now a new family has moved into the house and Lisa tries to prevent Edgar from killing again. 

This starts off promising but goes on too long. Director Vincenzo Natali made another movie I liked better CUBE (1997).

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Not Another One!

 

ANOTHER SON OF SAM-1977-Opens with the names of infamous serial killers. A serial killer named Harvey escapes from a mental hospital. He goes on a killing spree in a small town and a police lieutenant who's psychiatrist girlfriend was assaulted by Harvey goes after him even though his captain has brought in a SWAT team when they trap the killer in a building. Harvey is usually shown in POV shots and very tight close-ups. The police and the SWAT team don't seem to know what they are doing as Harvey outwits them several times. They really botch things up. Even killing a hostage and thinking they got the killer, who then kills the captain's son in law cop when he goes to investigate. Later they get Harvey's mom, who abused him as a child, to talk him out and despite her assurances he won't be harmed he's shot and killed to a bloody mess. The lieutenant's girlfriend dies though. 

A guy named Johnny Charro sings a terrible song terribly. Filmed in Atlanta, Ga., it features a lot of slo-mo and freeze frames and the editing, acting, direction, everything sucks. 

Originally called “Hostages” and filmed in 1975, the director/writer Dave Adams (his only movie) changed the title to cash in on you know who.

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George Sanders

 

BLUEBEARD'S TEN HONEYMOONS-1960-Antique dealer Henri Landru (George Sanders) falls for cabaret singer Odette (Corinne Calvet). She says she needs 3000 francs to help her sick mother (yeah right). He tries to borrow money from another dealer (George Coulouris) and sell his watch but to no avail. Odette dumps him but he's persistent. He meets widow Vivian (Patricia Roc) and woos her to get her money and accidentally kills her but makes it look like suicide. He gives Odette the money even though he finds her with another man. Vivian's sister Giselle (Ingrid Hafner) goes to the police but they can't help. He then romances Juliette Gullin (Jean Kent) and eventually takes her to a secluded villa where he poisons her, cuts up her body and burns it. He repeats this process several more times just to make the ungrateful Odette love him. When one woman stalls their marriage plans he strangles her in a bathtub. 

Then he meets Jeanette (Greta Gynt) and after stabbing her to death, pretends to be her dead husband to get the contents of a safety deposit box. He also tries to bamboozle Mrs. Boyer (Selma Vas Diaz) about her dead husband being alive but then he catches Odette with another man. He takes her to the villa and gives her the kill, chop and burn treatment. Then Giselle discovers his identity and pays him a visit. They almost miss each other but when they meet he nearly kills her. Fortunately the police arrive and after a brief chase arrest him. In the final scene he is guillotined for his crimes. 

This is not a half bad little thriller made essentially better by the presence of George Sanders in the lead role. It could be the best film made by director W. Lee Wilder (KILLERS FROM SPACE). It was written by his son Myles.

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Beware The Horror Horn!

CHAMBER OF HORRORS-1966- In Baltimore a nut named Jason Cravatte (Patrick O'Neal) murders a woman and then has a minister marry them at gunpoint. Police detective Albertson (Wayne Rogers) investigates. The cigar smoking Mrs. Perryman (Jeanette Nolan) calls in Wax Museum proprietors and "amateur" criminologists Anthony Draco (Cesare Danova) and Harold Blount (Wilfred Hyde-White) to catch her nephew, the murderer Cravatte. They are assisted by little person Pepe (Tun Tun). Draco figures out Cravatte is hiding out in a whorehouse run by Madame Corona (Marie Windsor). He's arrested, tried and sentenced to hang. On his way to the death house he manages to escape but has to chop off his own hand to do it. The chief inspector assumes he died but of course he didn't. In New Orleans he has a (fake) Chinese guy (Berry Kroeger) design a hook hand with several unusual extras. He uses Maria (Laura Devon), a hooker to set up his revenge on the judge (Vinton Haywood) who condemned him. Gravette uses a butcher knife attachment to kill him. He then sets his sights on Draco, once again using Marie. Meanwhile Draco takes time to romance old flame Barbara (Suzy Parker) while Gravatte does away with the doctor (Richard O'Brien) who said he was sane enough to stand trial. Later he kills Albertson, the arresting officer. They set a trap for Gravatte at the museum but he gets by it, terrorizing Maria and trying to kill Draco. They fight and Gravatte is killed. It ends with the duo stumbling upon a new murder right in their museum. 

CHAMBER OF HORRORS was originally made for TV and based on HOUSE OF WAX but it was thought to violent for TV and it was turned into a feature film and added two "William Castle like" gimmicks: "The Fear Flasher" and "The Horror Horn" which would warn the viewer a murder was coming. 

Tony Curtis has an unbilled cameo and for some reason Patrick O'Neal's name is omitted from the end credits! I'm sure the serial killers union had something to say about that!

Director Hy Averbach worked on many TV shows and TV movies but around this time made several other features with long titles: I LOVE YOU ALICE B. TOKLAS, WHERE WERE YOU WHEN THE LIGHTS WENT OUT and SUPPOSE THEY GAVE A WAR AND NOBODY CAME?

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Serial Killer Short

I WAS A TEENAGE SERIAL KILLER-1993-Crappy, pseudo-arty black and white nonsense features lots of close-ups and dialogue that's not synced to the person talking. Mary (Kristin Calabrese in her only acting role) is a slut who has sex with men and then kills them. After killing one guy, she sticks a banana in his mouth. She meets a male psycho Henry (Corey) who kills “straight white males”. They seem to fall in love and kill people. Later she kills him. I think it might have been some kind of black comedy but I don't think the director, producer, etc. knew exactly what they wanted from this 20 minute waste of time. Director/writer Sarah Jacobson later made MARY JANE'S NOT A VIRGIN ANYMORE.

Murder Mystery

THE HIDDEN HAND-1942-A rich woman Lorinda Channing (Cecil Cunningham) helps her crazy serial killer brother John (Milton Parsons) break out of jail so she can use him in a scheme to test her relatives' faith. Two uncaring nephews (and their snooty wives) are invited to her house as is her secretary Mary (Elizabeth Cunningham) (who's been made her sole heir), her doctor (Frank Wilcox) and his bitchy nurse (Marian Hill). Mary is engaged to Lorinda's lawyer Peter Thorne (Craig Stevens). Lorinda wants to fake her death with the help of her doctor and a drug but he lets her die. Only she doesn't die and comes back to life and she and bro John start killing. 

Despite the premise this is actually a comedy mystery with secret panels, clutching hands, real eyes behind a painting and too much “scared tatics” from Willie Best who refers to a razor he carries as “my persuader”. 

Director Ben Stoloff started his career in 1920 with a short called PLAY BALL WITH BABE RUTH. I guess it's only fitting that his last work was directing 26 episodes of TV's HOME RUN DERBY! THE HIDDEN HAND is based on a 1934 play “Invitation To Murder” by Rufus King.

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The Zodiac

THE ZODIAC KILLER-1971-This is based on the real life incidents that took place in California,from 1968 to 1969 in which the killer was never caught. It's very cheap, exploitative and badly acted with terrible dialogue (except for the Zodiac's rantings). The story focuses on two characters who could be the killer. One is Grover (Bob Jones), a truck driving, drug user alcoholic who hates women (especially his ex-wife), goes to bars wearing an ill fitting wig, gets drunk and can't remember anything. The police suspect him but when he holds his daughter hostage they shoot and kill him. Then there is Grover's friend Jerry (Hal Reed), an unhappy mailman who likes rabbits and breaks down crying when one of them dies. He turns out to be the Zodiac and kneels in front of an idol and rants (“I am the supreme Zodiac!”). He shoots various people and taunts the police (“I want headlines!”). One couple he stabs to death then he kills an old woman with a tire and drops a jacked up car on her. He wears a false nose and glasses to kill an old man in an elevator then cuts off his ear. He kills an old woman by crushing her head with a car hood. Apparently the heart of his problem was being unloved by his father who he visits in an insane asylum (the father completely ignores him when Jerry emotes during a visit). So that the visit isn't a total loss, Jerry kills two patients. The final scenes show Jerry helping various people in his neighborhood while his ominous voice-over talks about how trusting and unsuspecting future victims are (“I'll be seeing you”). It ends with the words “This is not the end”. 

Comedian Doodles Weaver (his name is spelled “Doddles” in the credits) has one scene as Jerry's neighbor who says of women “I like them plump, juicy and dumb”. The director Tom Hanson made one other movie A TON OF GRASS GOES TO POT (also with Hal Reed and Doodles Weaver) and acted in Coleman Francis' NIGHT TRAIN MUNDO FINE'.

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BTK

BTK-2008-A guy named Dennis (Kane Hodder) who calls himself a “compliance officer” is thought to be a nice guy though it's obvious he's nuts. He's actually a serial killer who wants to make a name for himself. It uses the case of a real life killer who used the same initials (it stands for Bind. Torture. Kill) but that's just an excuse to show an excess of violence, torture and gore. “Ain't Nobody's Business” by Mississippi John Hurt is heard over the end credits. 

Director/screenwriter Michael Feifer had made CHICAGO MASSACRE: RICHARD SPECK and exploited other real life murderers and their crimes with ED GEIN: THE BUTCHER OF PLAINFIELD, BUNDY: AN AMERICAN ICON and THE BOSTON STRANGLER:THE UNTOLD STORY.

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Ugh!

DEAD BODY MAN-2004-This is a shot on video “horror-comedy”. It begins with a guy pretending he's learning impaired so he can pick up a hooker. He takes her home, kills her, skins her face off then goofs around with it while endlessly chattering nonsense. He's a necrophiliac killer who hears God's voice in his closet. He also has a symbiotic BASKETCASE like creature attached to his torso. He attends a therapy group for serial killers run by some asshole. Ha-ha! So funny!

He kills some women but mostly he just rants stupidly and later cuts off the creature and buries it (it comes back to life at the end). He gives his dog (actually a piece of meat with a dog collar wrapped around it) and a chain to a little kid and declares that the kid is the new Dead Body Man. And walks away unpunished. Oh yeah, I'm rolling with laughter....

The director of this junk Ryan Cavalline (he was also the writer/producer/cinematographer) actually had the audacity to make at least two sequels! 

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Bad Movie

SLAUGHTER-2008-Terrible shot on video nonsense about a pasty face guy named Harold (he looks like a cross between Teddy Roosevelt and the native assassin/servant in THE FOUR SKULLS OF JONATHAN DRAKE) who hires internet models, kills them and then posts the gory photos on his snuff website. Meanwhile a female PI uses a victim's computer to track him down. There's death by baseball bat, electrocution, razor and gun with a lot of nude bloody bodies. One woman blinks after being shot to death. Harold calls his website “The Slaughtered Sheep” but the PI refers to it several times as “The Slaughtered Lamb”. Later the ghosts of his victims rise out of his computer and kill him. Bad acting, direction and SFX. 

The director Anthony Doublin made a few other video horror films but was mostly a lighting technician on low budget horror movies and the TV series “Robot Chicken”. 

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Chicago Nut Job

CHICAGO MASSACRE: RICHARD SPECK-2007-Based on the true story of mass murderer/nut job Richard Speck who murdered 8 nurses in cold blood in 1967, this is really just an excuse to show and exploit death, blood and gore at the expense of it being based on a true story. It shows how he was a nut from the beginning after being abused as a child and how he could have been taken off the streets earlier but wasn't. He abuses, tortures and kills several other women (and given the look and demeanor of the Speck character and the portrayal of these victims as being fairly normal the movie almost seems to say it was their fault they were killed). Two detectives track him down.

It's very brutal and graphic and Corin Nemec (also a serial killer in the same director's TED BUNDY: AN AMERICAN ICON) gives a good scumbag performance but recently these types of roles are all the rage in Hollywood. Some real footage of Speck in jail is also used but since the director Michael Feifer when on to make similar “opuses” about Ed Gein, Henry Lee Lucas and others that were not exactly fact based this may not be all that accurate either.  

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UK Crap

SKYGGEN-THE MIND OF A KILLER-2006-Take my advice please! Don't bother with this terrible shot on video garbage about some guy in England with amnesia who is suspected of being a serial killer. Sometimes a mysteriously laughing guy shows up. Everybody is killed and confused flashbacks show the guy was abused as a child. It's all talk, bad acting, direction and editing by star/writer/director Jemshaid Ashraf and goes on forever. This guy read too many Stephen King novels (well, there are too many Stephen King novels...but anyway....) They show outtakes too! 

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Lured

LURED-1947-Interesting overlooked murder mystery directed by Douglas Sirk (later known for his glossy Hollywood tearjerkers).

Lucille Ball stars as an American dancer in London who's recruited by a Scotland Yard inspector (Charles Coburn) to be a decoy to help capture a killer who meets his victims via personal ads. Costar George Sanders is his usual suave self and a chief suspect. George Zucco is great as the crossword puzzle solving detective who helps out. Boris Karloff has a one scene in a stand out role as a crazy dress designer/red herring! Other suspects include Alan Mowbray, Cedric Hardwick and Joseph Calleia. Alan Napier is Coburn's assistant.

It's a remake of a French film "Pieges" (PERSONAL COLUMN; LURED's original working title) made in 1939 by Roberet Siodmak with Erich Von Stroheim in the Karloff role. Earlier Von Stroheim was Karloff's immediate successor for the role of Jonathan Brewster in ARSENIC AND OLD LACE on Broadway.

For some reason LURED was not easy to find for a long time but TCM has showed it several times in recent years and Kino finally released it on DVD.

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Wicked Stuff?

WICKED WICKED-1973-This typical slasher/stalker film was shot in "duo-vision" a split screen process showing two different scenes at one time.

Randolph Roberts (later Chuck Cunningham, Richie's older brother in TV's HAPPY DAYS) plays Jason, a handyman/custodian/electronics expert who also kills women (while wearing a scary mask) who come to stay at the hotel where he works. The split screens not only shows the goings on in the hotel but also provide flashbacks while certain characters talk about their lives.

Tiffany Bolling is a singer (and does the horrible theme song) who performs at the hotel and Jason 's next target. David Bailey (later a regular on the soap opera ANOTHER WORLD) is the house detective (and Bolling's character's ex-spouse) trying to figure it out and Scott Brady (who had a role in THE NIGHT STRANGLER the same year) is a no nonsense detective he butts heads with. Roger Bowen (Col. Blake in the movie version of MASH) is the pompous hotel manager. Madeleine Sherwood and Arthur O'Connell are also in it. Edd Brynes (formerly TV's Kookie on 77 SUNSET STRIP) is a red herring waiter who uses the phrase "honest bread" a few times. Meanwhile an old woman plays the organ as background music.

It's a little better than the usual serial killer stuff clogging up '70's cinema, uses some ironic comic touches and puts the split screen to good use. This was the last feature film directed by Richard L. Bare (who also wrote the screenplay), better known for his TV work on such comedies as GREEN ACRES. Lyrics to the insipid songs are by Irwin Levine who co-wrote "This Diamond Ring". Charles Pierce was the set decorator. Actor Bailey later died in an accidental drowning.

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