Masterpiece of Horror Theatre- The Exorcist

      In 1949, reports came in across several newspapers of a young man in Cottage City, Maryland, (around 14 at the time), going by the pseudonym "Roland Doe" or "Robbie Mannheim", whose erratic behavior made him the subject of a series of exorcisms by several local Catholic priests.This incident became the subject of speculation for decades, including claims (even by the ones doing the exorcism) that the boy merely suffered mental illness, or had even just been making the events up for attention. Regardless, occasional screenwriter and author William Peter Blatty used the incident as the basis of the 1971 novel The Exorcist, though only the idea of an exorcism was used, other details were changed. This was all it needed to be very controversial in its time. Warner Brothers got the rights to make the film adaptation, and, after directors like Mike Nichols and Stanley Kubrick ultimately passed on the project, chose William Friedkin (known at the time as the director of The French Connection, which was why he was chosen) to direct. Blatty served as both screenwriter and producer. Many child actresses were screened for the part of Regan MacNeill before Linda Blair was chosen. After a difficult filming process, where the actors were often either shocked by the content, or physically injured during the more intense, the film was released on December 26th, 1973. It was immediately controversial, with people either fainting from shock during the film, or throwing up in the aisle. Others condemned the film for its content, mainly revolving around the depiction of the exorcism. Still, it garnered critical acclaim, and became the first horror movie to be nominated for Best Picture (while it didn't win, it won "Best Adapted Screenplay" and "Best Sound Mixing"). However, during editing, Friedkin made the decision to cut several scenes from the movie. Many years later, these scenes were cut back into the film in 2000, with this being the version in most DVDs. The film is considered one of the greatest horror movies ever made.

    The film opens in northern Iraq, where Father Merrin (Max von Syndow) finds a strange amulet for the pagan god (and demon) Pazuzu (Mercedes McCambridge), a demon he had encountered years earlier, and after viewing the statue of Pazuzu, he realizes Pazuzu. The narrative shifts to actress Chris MacNeill (Ellen Burtsyn) and her daughter Regan (Linda Blair). While Chris is in Washington, DC, for a film shoot, Regan begins to exhibit strange behavior. These behaviors begin to escalate, including strange events happening around Regan, (like steps in their attic, or objects moving around her) and Chris' director, Burke Dennings (Jack MacGowran), getting killed while watching over Regan. After doctors and psychiatrists fail to find an Earthly cause for Regan's problems, one of the doctors suggests an exorcism, and tells Chris to find Father Karras (Jason Miller). While Karras is skeptical, seeing Regan gradually transform into a human representation of the demon convinces him, and he agrees to do the exorcism. However, he needs help, and gets Merrin to come and help him out. Together, they try to compel the demon to leave Regan's body.

     I suppose I should start with the first thing that impressed me about this film: the music. It helps build the atmosphere of the film, and accentuates certain events. The opening title screen uses a discordant music score the same way 2001 did to great effect in both cases, to give the audience an unsettling feeling going into a film. This is the definition of a good horror score, one which doesn't distract from, but adds to the fears of the film. The build-up also works, giving each main character personalities, and enough background to really care for them, when events begin to turn south. Foreshadowing is also used to great effect, sometimes very subtly. The cinematography emphasize the strangeness of these events, their effects, and their brutality. The effects are deservedly praised, and it is worth the hype in terms of horror, as there are some very terrifying scenes in the film. Mercedes McCambridge's groggy voice with the heavily scarred make-up and puppet are, to put it bluntly, very creepy, and sometimes, her shouts shook me. The stare was also slightly unnerving. It unnerved me when I was 11, and it hasn't really changed.

   A few people told me that the film came off as a little ridiculous when viewed today, as opposed to 1973. Which, I admit, is somewhat true in some scene. They aren't really so much scary, as overly ridiculous or absurd. Some scenes noted for their horror are more silly today. There are still enough scares to creep you out, but not as much as I thought. I also wish it had taken up more of the movie, since if it was prolonged, it could've been much scarier. I think I watched the shorter version (because the longer version had a scene of her spider-walking, which I can't recall seeing), so maybe it was done better in the longer version.

   Had I watched this film when I was 11 or 12, it would've scared me out of my wits. Today, I think the effect select scenes had on me when I was that age has been numbed by other horror movies. Still, this very much lives up to the hype of a chillingly effective horror movie, and a good overall film, and should be watched along with other pieces of classic cinema. For me, while I'm not usually into supernatural horror, I might seek out and watch the extended version, just to compare the two versions.

    Thank you all for reading this years Masterpiece. If you're new, I did one of these last year, and all reviews are still available. For now, the terror shall retreat from the land of living until this time of year next year. Have a Happy Halloween, ladies and gentlemen. 

Masterpiece of Horror Theatre- Theatre of Blood

      Not much I could say on the history of this film. Vincent Price apparently did this movie to show his considerable Shakespearean abilities (having started out doing Shakespeare on Orson Welles' Mercury Theater in the 1930's.) He was offered the project by his friend and former agent, Sam Jeffe. Sure enough, it became a personal favorite of Price's among his filmography. It was notable for having been shot entirely on location, with the Putney Hippodome and the Kensal Green Cemetery in London being primary shooting locations, as opposed to studio locations. Many West-End Actors were secured to star in this film. To produce the murders, over six gallons of fake blood was used. Price was introduced to his future wife Carol Browne through his co-star Diana Rigg (most famous for her role as "Emma Peel" on the British television show The Avengers, no, not related to that one. Co-star Ian Hendry also starred in The Avengers. ). The film now has a 72% on Rotten Tomatoes, and now has a stage adaptation, with Jim Broadbent and Riggs' daughter Rachel Sterling in the lead roles.

      Stage actor Edward Lionheart (Vincent Price) considers himself one of the greatest Shakespearean actors of the modern era. Thus, when he is snubbed for a "Critic's Award", and promptly acts out, humiliating himself, he decides to enact vengeance on the critics who had given him poor reviews and had taken his award from his clutches. Helping him in this endeavor is his daughter Edwina (Diana Rigg), who adopts a disguise using a fake mustache and beard, who assists him in faking his suicide, and getting in contact with a group of vagrants on the Thames, who become his "stage players." Once he has murdered three of the critics, one of them, Peregrine Devlin (Ian Hendry) figures out the murders are themed around the Shakespeare plays that Lionheart has performed in, and teams up with Police Inspector Boot (Milo O'Shea) to figure out the murders, and hopefully stop Lionheart.

     Vincent Price is this movie. He simply has a large presence around the entire film. While he is deliberately overacting, it is legitimately great to watch, and he is incredibly charismatic, delivering a certain demented glee when performing these murders. It's clear he is having a lot of the fun  He also delivers Shakespearean monologues in a way that would actually work in a real Shakespeare play. He really could've done very well in an actual Shakespeare movie. He basically towers over all the other actors in the feature, though most of them do fine. This also had a very interesting and creative idea for a serial murder film. Reenacting many Shakespeare's own murder scenes, or reinterpreting certain scenes, (like a metaphoric line in The Merchant of Venice). It's mostly uses black comedy and absurdity over actual horror to portray these murders.

     That said, it isn't particularly scary. It's quite gory, though, and sometimes disturbing, but never actually scary. I would've preferred some more actual scares, making the murder of the critics have more impact. As is, some of them are simply too silly to really take that seriously. There are also the occasional plotholes and contrivances to get the plot going. There's also no mystery to the whole affair. We know basically from the beginning that Lionheart is the murderer, and thus, Devlin and Boot's investigation has no suspense. Similarly, the fact that the Lionheart's bearded assistant is his daughter is treated as a big twist towards the end, but you could figure it out just through sheer logic. This mostly kills any suspense the film may have had.

     This was a fun, jaunty sort of ramp, one made so Vincent Price could belt out Shakespearean monologues, while also committing murders. I had a lot of fun watching it, despite it not really being a particularly deep film. This would be a good, fun Halloween watch, to just watch and have a good time. It's also for those who like the violence in Shakespeare plays (as opposed to the monologue, the classic dialogue, the themes...)

Next time, we conclude this year's Masterpiece with a film I've been avoiding for the past few years, but will finally confront: The Exorcist.   

Masterpiece of Horror Theatre- Occulus

    Director Mike Flanagan produced a short film called Oculus: Chapter 3 – The Man with the Plan, using a single setting, and a single mirror, in 2005. This short film garnered acclaim, and studios began to offer him deals to turn the short film into a feature film. However, most of these offers wanted to turn the feature into a "found footage" movie. After passing on most such offers, Intrepid Pictures finally made an offer which actually said not to do it found footage. It eventually got other production companies involved after completion including.... wait, WWE films?But, this has nothing to do with wrestling. Apparently, they got involved after the film was shown in Toronto, but still. Why? Anyway, filming was completed in 24 days in Fairhope, Alabama, and the film was released in 2014 to generally good reviews and good box office.There is apparently a Hindi remake called Zahhak. Flanagan has gone to direct more feature. As of this writing, (October 23rd, 2016), his most recent picture Ouija: Origin of Evil is out in theaters.

        The film follows two narratives. One narrative revolves around siblings Tim (Brenton Thwaites) and Kaylie (Karen Gillian) reuniting after Tim has been discharged from a psychiatric hospital. Tim was accused of having murdered his father, who had killed his mother, while stating he had been under the influence of a mysterious mirror 11 years ago. Kaylie and her boyfriend (James Lafferty) have managed to retrieve that same mirror, and Kaylie, having documented the extensive history of it and strange occurrences around it, tries to find a way to destroy it by researching it. Tim has been convinced at the psychiatric hospital that he had hallucinated the whole incident, despite Kaylie's insistence on the contrary. As Kaylie tries to research the mirror, and the siblings argue, the second narrative arises, this one dealing with the incident itself, when Tim (Garett Ryan) and Kaylie (Annalise Basso) were pre-teens. After their father, Alan (Roy Cochrane), a software engineer, gets a new mirror, he and their mother Marie (Katee Sackhoff. Yes, Starbuck) begin to act strangely, with Alan remaining in his office all day, becoming obsessive with it, and Marie having disturbing hallucinations, about scars. This slowly degenerates their minds, as their children watch helplessly, all while in the present, similar things begin to happen to them.

        This film has some of the best use of jumpscares I've seen. Unlike other films, sometimes, the tension doesn't build to a jumpscare. Sometimes, it just happens out of nowhere, and the tension is there just to build atmosphere. Most of the actors do good, as a family that is slowly degenerating into madness. The breakdown of the nuclear family is nothing new, but it's portrayal  here is disturbing, with the mental breakdown of the mother in particular being very graphic in nature. There is also the psychological aspects to consider. Perhaps this was going on entirely in their heads. Perhaps, Tim's comments on possible rational explanations were plausible. There could be some sort of placebo effect on them. Or, the mirror subtly brought out the baser instincts of the people it comes into contact with. I enjoy films with multiple interpretations.

      The interaction between the two narratives sometime murky. While it's usually easy to tell which timeline we're in, by the end, it sometimes gets confusing. While I praised the jumpscares, the film itself isn't very scary. It is more creepy and unnerving than actually scary, and frankly, it didn't stick with me the same way a very scary horror film can (I had the same problem with The Witch). It is more interesting than scary. Finally, it lags a bit, though not enough to slow it down.

    Like I said, I didn't find the film very scary, so if you want a scary film to watch with your friends, then you won't find it here. If you want to see a film to ruminate and contemplate over, and have a brief unnerving experience, this would be a good one.

    Next time, we go in a different direction. Vincent Price's Theatre of Blood.

Masterpiece of Horror Theatre- 20 Million Miles to Earth

            At the beginning of this month, I discussed famed special effects director Ray Harryhausen. I mentioned that Harryhausen got his start making b-movie monsters. After becoming an assistant to his ideal Willis O'Brien (who did the effects for The Lost World and King Kong, and doing the legwork on the O'Brien film Mighty Joe Young, Harryhausen made his debut with the film The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms. This cemented him as O'Brien's successor as Hollywood's premier stop-motion creator. This film was originally The Great Ymir, before it was changed (possibly to prevent the confusion between "Ymir" and the Arabic word "Emir", which is also why the creature's name is never said in the actual film). Harryhausen and actress Charlotte Knight wrote the main story, which was adapted to screenplay by Bob Williams and Christopher Knopf. Academy Award winning director (well, technically he won it as an art director, but still) Nathan Juran directed, and longtime Harryhausen collaborator Charles Schneer produced. Originally set in Chicago, Harryhausen decided he always wanted to visit Italy, so he changed the script accordingly. Filmed in the US and Italy, it was filmed in black and white due to budget. Harryhausen had wanted to film in color, and after Juran's death in 2002, worked to have it colorized (this is the version I saw.)  This was his last monster movie before he transitioned towards fantasy fare, and also his last black and white film.

    The film opens in a fishing village in Sicily, where several fisherman witness a rocket crashing into the ocean.  Mondello (Don Orlando) and Verrico (George Khoury), two of the fisherman, with young Pepe (Bart Braverman) in tow, investigate, finding two of the crew members, Calder (William Hopper) and Sherman (Arthur Space), unconscious. They bring them back ashore. Meanwhile, the Pentagon receives word that the ship had landed near Sicily, so General McIntosh (Thomas Browne Henry) goes to investigate. While on the beach, Pepe finds a strange metal capsule, with some strange green object inside. Mondello heads to the trailer of Dr. Leonardo (Frank Puglia), a zoologist, to help heal the men. While he can't help, his granddaughter Marisa (Joan Taylor, who inexplicably speaks with an American accent, despite being in Italy) goes, because she is a medical student. Pepe meanwhile, sells Dr. Leonardo the green object. Marisa comes in time to see Calder wake up, and try to wake up Sherman, who has some strange infection. Sherman says that the whole crew had been wiped out by this infection, before succumbing to it. Marisa returns to the trailer to find a strange creature, who had emerged from the green object. Leonardo and Marisa trap it in a cage they have, and plan to study it later. Meanwhile, McIntosh meets with Calder and the local police commissioner (Tito Vuolo), and an Italian government official (Jan Arvan) Calder and McIntosh inform them that the mission was actually to the planet Venus (which technically should make the title "24 million miles to Earth"), and the strange capsule was actually holding a creature they found on the surface. The spacecraft was pelted by meteors, which broke the capsule, and caused the infection. Pepe (after a strange hangup about keeping his cowboy hat), shows them the capsule, and tells them where Dr. Leonardo lives. Meanwhile, Leonardo and Marisa wake up to find the creature much larger than it previously was, and travel with it briefly, while Calder, McIntosh and the Commissioner follow them. Eventually, the creature escapes, and rampages through the Italian countryside, and may end up in a certain "Eternal City".

        Okay, the effects to create the Ymir was good, of course. I really hate to repeat myself on that matter. The actors seem to do fine interacting with it, even though during filming, there was likely nothing there. I like that the Ymir was not a vicious, bloodthirsty creature, but more a confused animal, increasingly scared at its new surroundings, and growing at an unnatural rate on this planet (as opposed to suffocating) There is also the fact the Ymir is not carnivorous. It actually consumes sulfur, which usually comes from volcanism (volcanism being a prominent feature on the Venusian surface), which actually plays into the story. The Italian setting is not cosmetic, it actually does serve some purpose in the story, with the different strategies of the American and Italian officials actually being a point of tension at one point.

    That said, it was really easy to tell who was an American playing an Italian, and an actual Italian. Some of them had really fake sounding accent. (the actual Italians were really apparent). This was somewhat distracting. Okay, at least they attempt the I don't think some things were ever explained. Like the infection. I think it was implied the Ymir brought it on board from Venus, but that was never really explicitly stated. Also, obviously there is a romance between Calder and Marisa, and it is basically slows the film, and is completely pointless.

       Honestly, I wasn't expecting much from this. The only reason I did it was because it was set in Italy. It was actually quite a surprise, in how good it turned out to be. This is the better version of the film The Thing from Another World, and is a much better execution of that idea. It's also a good monster movie, with plenty of rampages and large sets. And if you enjoy monster movies, this is a pretty good example of the genre.

      Next time, we take a look at a most recent critically acclaimed horror film, Occulus.

           

Masterpiece of Horror Theatre- Quartermass II

     (I'm sorry for the lateness of this. I had other matters to pertain to)

      Last year, I discussed the Quartermass franchise, and the third film in the franchise from Hammer (If you want the full history, go read the Quatermass and the Pit review from last year). Anyway, Nigel Kneale, the creator of the character, really disliked the first film, and when Hammer Films adapted the second serial (having gotten the rights before it was broadcast), he opted to write this sequel himself, albeit only the first draft. Subsequent draft were rewritten by director Val Guest, who directed the first film, and returned to direct this film. Unfortunately for Kneale, Brian Donlevy, one of his most hated aspects of the first film also returned. During filming, Kneale claimed Donlevy was intoxicated, and could barely read through his lines (a claim denied by the director). The budget of the film, at around  £92,000 (around 70% of which was contributed by American studio United Artists), was higher than the first one. It was originally filmed in Ansco Color, but the finished film is in black and white. Released in the UK on May 24th, 1957, and later in the US under the title Enemy from Space, it received mixed reviews and moderate commercial success. However, the larger success of Castle of Frankenstein caused Hammer to shift its focus towards Gothic Horror, and the third serial (which was released about a year later,) would not get adapted for another 10 years. Notably, it is one of the first films to use "2" in its title to indicate that it's a sequel to a previous film.

         The film opens with a couple franatically driving through the countryside. The man had apparently been struck by a mysterious object. They literally run into Professor Quatermass (Brian Donlevy), who retrieves the meteorite from the couple. He heads to Winnerden Flats, where he is examining a recent downpour of meteors. In his downtime, he is also detailing his plans for moon colonization, which hasn't had much support from the government. When he and one of his colleagues Marsh (Bryan Forbes), locate one region of high meteor activity, they run into a complex much like the one Quatermass had conceived of for the moon. Forbes picks up a rock, and is knocked out by a gas. Guards arrive, and Quatermass is kicked out. Quatermass then goes to his old friend Inspector Lomax (John Longden) (he played a supporting role in the first film), who gets him in contact with MP Vincent Broadbent (Tom Chatto), who arranges a tour of the complex. However, when Broadbent tries to investigate further, he disappears. Quatermass attempts to find him, only to see him tarred in a strange black substance. Quatermass also learns that people are being infected with a certain V, leading him to a terrifying conspiracy, involving beings not of this Earth.

        This is better than the first Quatermass movie, which could be chalked up to Kneale actually writing this film. The mystery is handled in a far more interesting manner, and the problems have more intellectual solutions than the first film. The conspiracy is actually reminiscent of Invasion of the Body Snatchers from several years earlier, and this handles that theme well. The cerebral science fiction elements are usually very good in these, and this is no exception, with the concept of aliens trying to survive on Earth, much as humans might survive on the moon, is an interesting parallel.

     Brian Donlevy was ill-suited for this role. Granted, he wasn't terrible in the first movie, or in this one for that matter. It's just his gruff, American action man demeanor is very out-of-place in the English countryside setting. An English actor would've probably been better for the role, as he would've fit. Donlevy's American accent is never commented on in the film, which is bizarre. Maybe he's doing a British accent and I didn't notice. Also, it had some pacing issues, like the other two films did, though this one is a bit faster. Finally, the special effects are not great, but given the era, they are serviceable.

     I've seen all three movies now, as well as the final Quatermass TV serial from 1974 (I need to watch the other three serials. I think Quatermass II and Quatermass and the Pit are mostly intact from their original runs, and they remade The Quatermass Experiment a few years ago). In that context, it isn't as good as Quatermass and the Pit or the 1974 serial, but it is a significant improvement on the first film. Really, none of these are "scary" per se by today's standards. They work better as good science fiction mysteries, and intellectual musings. If you want something like that, I highly recommend checking this film (and really the other two as well) out.

   Next week, we return to the films of Ray Harryhausen with a more appropriate feature: 20 Million Miles to Earth

Masterpiece of Horror Theatre- Shaun of the Dead

        Many of you probably know Edgar Wright as the director of films like, well this one, Hot Fuzz, The World's End, and perhaps his most well-known Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Visually stunning and interesting pictures, which also showcase excellent physical comedy. Wright actually got his start co-creating the British sitcom Spaced, with future frequent collaborator (and best thing about the Star Trek reboot) Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, both of whom star as two strangers who pretend to be a couple to rent a flat (a British term for apartment). In the episode Art (aired October 8th, 1999), Pegg's character Tim, after consuming some amphetamines, hallucinates about actually killing zombies while playing Resident Evil 2. That's really the entire genesis of the film. Wright and Pegg realized they had a shared affinity for the classic Romero zombie flicks, and decided to create a parody/homage to the genre, starring Pegg and fellow Spaced co-star Nick Frost. It stars Stevenson in a minor role, and many other British TV actors (including Martin Freeman in a cameo). Wright had to take several TV directing jobs (and had to borrow money from friends), while shopping the concept (then called Tea Time of the Dead) to several studios. After securing a studio, filming commenced between May and July 2003. Released in 2004, it not only garnered critical acclaimed (listeners of BBC1 listed this as their second favorite film), but George A. Romero himself was so impressed that he cast Wright and Pegg as zombies in 2005's Land of the Dead. This film would be the first of the Cornetto trilogy (named for the Cornetto ice cream, which is featured in all three films. In this one, Shaun uses it to get over a hangover, a reference to how Wright himself once got over a hangover.)

       Shaun (Simon Pegg) is a 28 year old electronics salesman, having relationship problems with his girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashfield). The two spend every date at Shaun's favorite pub, the Winchester, with Shaun slothish friend Ed (Nick Frost). Liz is forced to bring her two friends, David (Dylan Moran) and Dianne (Lucy Davis), to make up for this. He also has a sordid relationship with his step-father Phillip (Bill Nighy) Shaun promises Liz that he'll pick a much fancier restaurant their next date. However, after a particularly harsh day at work, he fails to get the reservation, and Liz breaks up with him. After a failed attempt to win her back, Shaun and Ed spend the night at the Winchester, and get very drunk. Drunk enough, that they don't notice the developing zombie apocalypse that Shaun had failed to notice earlier has become full-on. After Shaun and Ed fight off two zombies in their backyard, Shaun resolves to save both his mother (Penelope Wilson) and Liz, and wait out the crisis at the Winchester. Things don't go as planned.

        As an Edgar Wright feature, you can expect very active cinematography. Every shot is dynamic and there are several subtle gags focused entirely on physical elements. The visual gags are very good, and gained a small laugh every time. Not that the dialogue is not also funny. Really, all a comedy needs to be is funny, and this is very funny. Not as funny as Hot Fuzz or The World's End, but still a solid comedy. One particular stand-out scene is when they take on a zombie to Queen's Don't Stop Me Now.  Similarly, the build-up to the zombie apocalypse was very good. Shaun almost has that moment, when he realizes the world has changed... but keeps getting interrupted. Simon Pegg is, well, he's always good, as is Nick Frost,  and both usually have excellent chemistry in any movie they're in. The other actors do well in this.

    Honestly, not much is wrong with the film. Sometimes, the gags fall flat, or they repeat jokes that weren't really funny to begin with, but there are enough better gags that those don't run the film. It isn't as in your face as Hot Fuzz or Scott Pilgrim, and that's a flaw, because it would've been funnier had it taken more advantage of visual jokes. There are funny visuals, but there should've been more and more apparent.

   As you could tell, there isn't much I could say about this, other than, "Really Good, really funny" If you like visual comedies, or you enjoyed Wright's other works, or want a good zombie parody, or just want a really good film, check this one out. And while you're at it, watch the rest of the Cornetto Trilogy (I consider Hot Fuzz the funniest movie I have ever seen, and The World's End is pretty good as well).

Next time, we go back to the underrated Quatermass franchise with Quatermass II.

Masterpiece of Horror Theatre- Dawn of the Dead

  After the success of Night of the Living Dead,  director George A. Romero tried to move in a different direction, directing five movies in the early 70's, which were mostly horror, with one drama (There Will Always Be Vanilla). However, none of them were as critically or financially successful as Night of the Living Dead. Then, in 1974, when exploring the Monroeville Mall in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, (east of Pittsburg), his host showed him several secret rooms, and commented that someone could survive an emergency in the mall using these passages. Inspired, Romero wrote a film around people holed up in a shopping mall during a zombie apocolypse. However, Romero had difficulty raising funds for this new project. News of a Living Dead spiritual sequel in the works reached Italian horror filmmaker Dario Argento, who had been a strong critical advocate of the first film. Argento secured funding for the project, in exchange for international distribution rights, and even invited Romero to Rome to write the screenplay. Argento's brother, Claudio became one of the producers, and Dario helped scored the film. Filming commenced at the Monroeville Mall from November 13th, 1977 to February, 1978. Tom Savini, who had declined to do the effects for Night of the Living Dead after getting drafted to fight in the Vietnam War, was the special effects director, which would start a distinguished career as a horror make-up artist and special effects director. Due to the violence of the picture, the MPAA demanded an X-rating, unless cuts were made. Romero refused to cut the film, and released the film unrated. The film was released under the name Dawn of the Dead in the United States and most English-speaking countries, but in Italy, and most non-English speaking nations, where Argento had the distribution rights, it was called Zombi (with some subtitle at the end). The massive financial and critical success of this film convinced Romero to continue making zombie movies, and it would become a major pop culture touchstone for generations to come.

     The film opens at the television station WGON in Pennsylvania, where the news crew is dealing with the current zombie epidemic terrorizing the nation. While the station is airing a discussion on the crisis, staff members Francine Parker (Gaylen Ross) and Stephen Andrews (David Emge, who looks a little like Hugh Laurie) decide to flee using the traffic helicopter. At the same time, Roger DeMarco (Scott Reiniger) and his SWAT team are trying to evict tenants at a housing project, who refuse to give them their dead, despite needing to hand them over to the government. Sure enough, the SWAT team encounters zombies in the projects. After clearing them out, they find that the tenants have placed all their reanimated death in a single pile. While in the basement of the project, he meets fellow SWAT team member, Peter Washington (Ken Foree), who tells him that he could get Roger a seat on Andrew's helicopter. Together, the four attempt to flee Pennsylvania. However, after an attack during a stop for fuel, the four decide to stop at a local shopping mall. There, while they find it teeming with Zombies, they find a secret compartment away from the store, and block it from the zombie epidemic. While Peter and Roger gain supplies, Francine admits her pregnancy to Stephen. After fighting off the hordes, and gaining supplies, they decide to lie low in the mall for a bit. In the rather desperate situation, they actually do have some enjoyment for a bit. However, this is only temporary, and soon, they will found their sanctuary threatened.

       This film does its tension very well. The threat of the zombies is very ever present, and our protagonists have to deal with the seeming collapse of civilization, as seen with the lack of any television broadcasts. (How the power is kept on for that long.... I have no idea). At the same time, there are moments of fun and relaxation to deflate that tension, reaching an effective balance,The make-up and pracical effects in this film look fantastic, very realistic and gruesome. The zombies look inhuman, but they aren't as exaggerated as they are on the Walking Dead.  The scenes where the zombies consume flesh are very unsettling to watch, because of the visceral special effects. The image of zombies moving like regular patrons in a mall is very amusing (and true to life, if you've ever been in a mall.). Finally, the writing is very good, with smart character, who actually think about their situation, and act reasonable and intelligently.

     That said about the writing, the acting isn't that great. Most of the actors give somewhat subdued performances and awkward line readings. The only exception is Gaylen Ross, who gives a decent performance as the female lead, strong and a participant to the action. Other than her, none of the actors are particularly good in their roles. The pacing is, like Living Dead,  somewhat stalls slightly in the middle, and doesn't pick up until rhe end. Thus the middle portion, while not boring, is lackluster compared to the beginning and end.

    I admit, when I did my short review of Night of the Living Dead on my Facebook a few years ago, I was a bit harsh on it. Over time, I've come to see its genius, and its effeciveness as horror. I'll say this, though. This is the better movie. The shopping mall is a more interesting setting than the home, and the action flows better. If you liked Night of the Living Dead or just enjoy zombie movies in general, and want to see a classic, check this one out.

    Next week, we take this film, and do a 180 on it. Shaun of the Dead.

Masterpieces of Horror Theatre- Halloween III: Season of the Witch

         After the success of Halloween II, producers Irwin Yablans and  Moustapha Akkad wanted to create yet another entry in the franchise to cash. However, screenwriters John Carpenter and Debra Hill were reluctant to commit to a third film. They had intended the franchise to a Twilight Zone style anthology, each entry simply revolving around the theme of Halloween. While Halloween II didn't follow up on this, they decided, with Michael Myer's death in the second one, to go through with this plan, and agreed to produce a third one, on the condition that Michael Myers not appear in it. (Actually, he tchnically does... in a commercial for the first film briefly seen on a television) Originally set to direct was Joe Dante (who would later come to more prominence as the director of Gremlins and Explorers), who approached British science fiction screenwriter Nigel Kneale, creator of the Quatermass series (which Carpenter had admired), to write a screenplay. Kneale turned in a comic screenplay, focusing on psychological horror than visceral one. Kneale blamed the producers for rewriting the script, though apparently, most of plot remained the same (then again, Kneale, by at least accounts I've read, seems like a jerk, so I suspect his outrage is merely him being difficult and rude, because it wasn't precisely his screenplay). Still, Kneale requested that his name be taken off, due to the violence and gore of the finished film. Given credit as the writer was the eventual director Tommy Lee Wallace (brought in after Dante left the project),  a frequent Carpenter collaborator, who worked with him since Dark Star. (Carpenter himself did some uncredited rewrites). The subtle came from the 1972 George A. Romero film Season of the Witch, (one of the films he made between Night of the Living Dead  and Dawn of the Dead, and is not a zombie movie). Wallace took some inspiration from Invasion of the Body Snatchers, including setting it in a town called Santa Mira, (the setting of the latter film.) Wallace wasn't the only regular Carpenter collaborator on hand. Jamie Lee Curtis,Nancy Kye (who played Anne Brackett in the original two Halloweens),  and Dick Warlock (Michael Myers in the second one) all play minor roles. Tom Adkins (who worked with Carpenter on The Fog and Escape from New York) plays the lead. One non-Carpenter collaborator was veteran Irish actor Dan O'Herily (who was nominated for an Academy Award for The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe in 1954), who plays the central antagonist. Filmed around Loleta, California, the film was released to disappointing box office, and harsh critical reviews. Ultimately, the anthology idea didn't pan out, and the producers returned Michael Myers in 1988's Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (and before you ask, I will not cover this or any of the direct sequels. I might do the Rob Zombie remake and its sequel at some point, though).Even to this day, it is the black sheep of the franchise, primarily due to the lack of Michael Myers. But does it deserve its reputation? Let's take a look.

     Once again set around Halloween, the film opens on the 23rd of October (presumably 1982, when the film came out), with  Harry Grimbridge (Al Berry) fleeing from a mysterious assailant (Dick Warlock) wearing a business suit. He manages to survive an encounter with the assailant and flees to a gas station attended by Walter Jones (Essex Smith), who takes him to the hospital.Meanwhile, Dr. Dan Challis (Tom Adkins) is visiting his ex-wife, Linda (Nancy Kye) and his children. His children are wearing the Halloween masks produced by the Silver Shamrock Corporation, and are watching a commercial for the mask with an inane (but admittedly somewhat catchy) jingle, encouraging them to watch a commercial set on Halloween Day. He  is forced to cut short the visit  to attend to Grimbridge. Grimbridge omniously warns that "They're going to kill us all", while holding one of those same masks. While Challis was on break, the same suited assassin comes in, and kills Grimbridge, before setting himself on fire. Challis notes the strangeness of the incident, especially since nobody could have entered the complex. Grimbridge's daughter Ellie (Stacy Nelkin) comes to identify the body, and after noting how she had been looking at the various places that he had been, decided to investigate his death. Challis joins her. Together, they learn he had gone to the town of Santa Mira, headquaters of the Silver Shamrock Corporation, to get some new stock of their masks for his shop. Given he was clutching one of those masks, they decide to head to Santa Mira. There, they meet other shop owners Marge Guttman ( Garn Stephens), and the Kupfler family (Ralph Strait, Jadeen Barbor, and Bradley Schacter, as well as the strange motel manager (Michael Currie), who praises the head of the Silver Shamrock Corporation, Conal Cochran (Dan O'Herily) for his work in the town. While investigating during night, Challis briefly meets a homeless man (Jonathan Terry), who warns him of the company. The homeless man was promptly killed by the same men in business suits. Meanwhile, Marge briefly examines one of the seals of the masks, and is electrocuted. From her fried corpse, some insects come out. Cochran actually comes out to greet the guests, while Marge's body is being exhumed. The next day, they take a tour of the factory, and Ellie finds her father's car in one of the facilities. While Challis attempts to call his coroner friend Teddy (Wendy Wassberg), Ellie is kidnapped by the men in suits. Challis goes into the factory, and uncovers a sinister plot by Cochran to return Halloween to its roots.

      First off, the plot is pretty good. Despite a couple of plot holes, (I'll give an example in the flaws paragraph), it builds on itself, the mystery is compelling, and the pay-off is pretty interesting. It is very creepy. Not necessarily scary, but creepy in the way the first two Halloweens were, and what the masks actually do to the wearer is pretty distrubing, especially in one gruesome scene in the climax. The pacing problems of the second film are fixed, and it flows seamless. The acting is very good across the board, with Dan O'Herily as a standout, bringing in a charismatic, but creepy performance as the main antagonist. I also notice several interesting themes in this film, about the commercialization of Halloween, consumerism in general, and capitalism. A lot of these themes Carpenter would explore in greater detail in They Live. They Live is a better film than this, but nevertheless, the plot of the villain is interesting to think about in a socio-political context. Finally, it's always good to hear a score by Carpenter himself.

    Like I said, despite the main plot being generally good, it does have plot holes. We never actually get to know how Grimbridge found out about the plot. I suppose you infer that he stumbled upon it while in Santa Mira, but it's not specifically mentioned. A much bigger one is the villain motivation. I won't spoil the peculiars of the villains plot, but I'll say that it centers around its origins as Samhain, a Gaelic fall festival. While O'Herily is Irish, we never know why exactly he wants to honor Samhain. Perhaps he just has a fascination with the occult. Another half spoiler, but the plot also involves small children. I admit, I get a bit antsy when small children are involved in harm in movies, and this film was uncomfortable for me towards the end. Still, it wasn't exploitative of that aspect. It easily could've applied to adults, and would've been as impactful. While it was creepy, a lot of scenes meant to be outright scary didn't really work for me. It is more interesting than it is actually scary.

     I agree with Tommy Lee Wallace on this. Had this just been called Season of the Witch, it would've been received decently, because, aside from its lack of connection with the Halloween series, it is still a decent standalone film. Hell, if they wanted to make it an anthology, they should've made this the second one. That way, the Halloween  series wouldn't be so associated with Michael Myers. Overall, this is not really associated with the Halloween franchise, so I don't know if those who liked the first two will like this. I'd say it's a good watch at least once for fans of thematic horror, or more thriller based horror. It's not a great film, but it's good, and it's underappreciated for it does right.

  Tomorrow, we look at George A. Romero's follow-up to his most famous movie, Dawn of the Dead.

   

Masterpiece of Horror Theatre- Clash of the Titans

     Last time, we discussed Ray Harryhausen, legendary stop motion/special effects director. He had the market on fantastic adventures featuring stop motion monsters. However, by the late 70's, that market was dwindling, in the wake of higher quality special effects films like Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Harryhausen made what would be his final film in 1981, returning to the old well of Greek mythology, this time adaptating the legend of Perseus and Medusa.  He teamed up with producer Charles Scheer and screenwriter Beverly Cross (two people I forgot to mention in Jason). Cross got the idea for a film about Perseus and Medusa during a vacation near the island of Seriphos, where the legend took place. The story was expanded to include other monsters for Harryhausen to animate. Cross' then-wife Maggie Smith came aboard, and convinced her friend Laurence Olivier to join the cast. This being the period when Olivier did many roles for money, the most notable being as Douglas MacArthur in the Unification Church produced film Inchon. Another relationship on set was between stars Harry Hamlin and Ursula Andress (who played Aphrodite. I mention that, because she has no bearing the plot). There were a number of disagreements between star Hamlim and  the producers, particularly over the scene where Medusa was beheaded (getting beheaded by a thrown shield Captain America-style, over the original method in the original myth. The movie uses the latter, because Hamlin refused to leave his trailer until it was changed). As mentioned, this was Harryhausen's last film. To capitalize on the success of Star Wars, a mechanical owl was added as comic relief. After some modifications, the British film classification board placed an A rating (not recommended for those under 14) There was a sequel planned called "Force of the Trojans" (presumably adapting the Iliad), but that never came into fruition. However, some of you might be aware of the 2010 remake, and its sequel. I'll probably never cover or watch those, but we're talking about the original, so let's go.

      The film follows the story of Perseus (Harry Hamlin), a son of the king of gods Zeus (Laurence Olivier) and Danaë (Vida Taylor), who is the daughter of King Acrisius of Argos (Donald Houston) . For reasons I'm sure are explained at some point, but I didn't catch, Arcisius puts his daughter and grandson in a wooden coffin, and casts them out to sea. In vengeance, Zeus has the Kraken (a creature from Norwegian maritime myth, but we'll ignore that), destroys Acrisius and Argos, and ensures that Danae and Perseus are safely on the island of Seriphos, where Perseus grows up. The gods decide that Perseus was destined to achieve a certain mission, he is placed in an abadoned stadium with an elderly poet named Ammon (Burgess Meredith). Perseus learns that his mission is to free Princess Andromeda (Judi Bowker), daughter of Queen Cassiopeia (Siân Phillips) ruler of the city of Joppa, from a curse by her ex-fiance Calibos (Neil McCarthy), who was mutated by Zeus to a horrific Satyr creature, by solving a riddle. After the gods grift him with several mystical weapons, and gaining Pegasus (who was formed by the blood of Medusa in the myth, but whatever), Perseus follows the apparition of Andromeda to Calibos' realm. He battles Calibos, and figures out the riddle pertains to the ring on Calibos' hand. He cuts off the hand, but keep Calibos alive. He presents the hand, breaking Andromeda's curse, and making Perseus the main suitor for Andromeda. However, Thetis (Maggie Smith) is enraged by this, and Cassiopeia's statement that Andromeda was comparable to her beauty. In statue form, she demands that Andromeda be sacrificed to the Kraken, or the Kraken will destroy Joppa. Perseus seeks the guidance of the gods. Zeus commands Athena (Susan Fleetwood) to give her owl Bubo, but instead sends a replacement produced by Hephaestus (Pat Roach). Bubo guides Perseus and his small entourage assembled to assist him to the  the Stygian Witches (Flora Robson, Anna Manahan, and Freda Jackson). He takes their eye hostage in exchange for information on how to defeat the Kraken. He learns he must cut the head off of Medusa, which could turn the Kraken into stone. Now, Perseus must get Medusa's head, and get to Joppa, before Andromeda can be sacrificed.

   Once, the special effects are the main stars of this film. Medusa and the Kraken are particular standouts, with unique designs, and much more fluid motion than in Jason and the Argonauts. And the integration between the actors and the effects looks even better. Especially with Pegasus and Calibos, both of whom are portrayed in both stop-motion and physical forms (horse and actor, respectively). While obvious where the stop motion ends and the live action begins, it still is seamless enough that it isn't very bothersome. The acting is mostly fine. I kept hearing how Olivier was "over-the-top" and "clearly not caring". Honestly, that's not the impression I got. He did fine in the film. He seemed a bit tired, but given he was sick on set, it is understandable. Once again, since this is a classic of Greek mythology, I find it hard to criticize the story. Sure, it deviates from the original, but these stories have been changed all the time over the centuries. The pacing is better in this film, possibly because the film is longer, allowing equal time for both the story and the action scenes

     Once again, it was hard at time to figure out what was going on. I understood generally what happening in the story, but specific details confused me. I had to look up later that Arisius was jealous of Dinae's beauty, and that's why she was cast out. Perhaps it was explained in dialogue, but the dialogue is pretty grading, so I zoned out of parts of it. Perhaps it's my fault for not paying attention, but it got confusing. The characterization isn't very nuanced, but mythological films are more about archetypes than characters, so that gets a soft pass.

    This is basically as good as Jason and the Argonauts. It has the same good elements and most of the same flaws. It just has higher quality cinematography, and it was a good end to a career like Harryhausen's, especially how the ending describes how the heroes are preserved in the constellations. If you like Greek mythology or stop-motion monsters, or liked Jason and the Argonauts, you'll like this.

   I might revisit Harryhausen in one of his monster movies later on, but next we look at an actual horror movie, Halloween III: Season of the Witch.

Masterpiece of Horror Theatre- Jason and the Argonauts

      It's that time of year again, folks! Time for me to once again go through film history, and personally look through what are considered  classics in the horror genre. The scariest, the cheesiest, the most powerful. And, in honor of a recent trip to Greece, I decided to tackle two of the most well known films on Greek mythology, which also feature monsters (because I have to maintain the facade that this is a series about horror and monster movies) as the first two films. And starting that off is Jason and the Argonauts. 

     The account of the Argonauts that most modern iterations draw from was the epic poem Argonautica by Apollonius of Rhodes, in the 3rd Century BCE. Since then, Jason and the Argonauts has been adapted by a number of other authors, and Jason himself has made appearances, including a cameo in Dante Aligheri's 12th century poem Inferno. In the 20th century, there were many filmed adaptations, including an appearance in 1958's Hercules, starring Steve Reeves. However, the real hero of this particular film was its special effects director and associate producer Ray Harryhausen. The mastermind behind the stop motion effects for films like Mighty Joe Young, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, and Earth vs. Flying Saucers, Harryhausen wanted to distance himself from B-movie monster antics, which led him to produce The 7th Voyage of Sinbad in 1958. After the success of that, there was originally going to be a sequel, where Sinbad (despite being from the 11th century) teams up with the Argonauts. This was scrapped, and a stand alone feature for Jason was instead made. Harryhausen teamed up with Don Cheffey, and composer Bernard Herrmann (most known for composing the score for Psycho). It was originally called Jason and the Golden Fleece, but a similarly named Italian feature lead the producers to change the name. It was filmed primarily in Italy.  The effects took much longer to produce and film, with the ending skeleton scene having been shoot over for months. After release, the film garnered financial success, and influenced an entire generation of filmmakers. Tom Hanks, speaking at Harryhausen's Special Oscar award in 1992, remarked, "

Some people say Casablanca or Citizen Kane. I say Jason and the Argonauts is the greatest film ever made". But does it live up to the hype? Let's take a look.


The film begins with Pileas (Douglas Wilmer) getting a prophecy from the god Zeus (Niall McGinnis), that he will overthrow King Aristo, of Thassaly, and take over the Kingdom. During said coup, he kills Aristo's daughter, Briseis (Davina Taylor), while she prays to the goddess Athena (Honor Blackman, who some may remember as the Bond Girl from Goldfinger) . Athena, enraged, warns Pileas of a man with one sandal, and vows to protect Aristo's infant son, Jason. Years later, Jason (Todd Armstrong), raised by one of the soldiers from the palace, saves Pileas from drowning, unaware of who he is. Jason seeks to regain his throne, by gaining the legendary Golden Fleece. Pileas decides to support this effort in a bid to destroy Jason, having his son Acastus (Gary Raymond) tag along. Jason briefly discusses this with Zeus and Athena. Athena tells Jason that she will only help him five times during his journey. Athena also directs Jason to the location of the Fleece in Colchis. Jason assembles a crew, including ship builder Argus (Laurence Naismith), and crew Hercules (Nigel Green) and Hyla (John Cairny). Naming the ship Argo, they set sail for Colchis, with Athena's help. With many fantasic obstacles in their way (large bronze statues that come to life, demons, crusing cliffs, skeletons), can they get the Golden Fleece?

    The main aspect of this film that is most talked about is the stop motion effects, and they deserve all the praise they get. The special effects in this film are incredible, even in this day, with the most advanced CGI around in movies. The way the effects and actors are integrated, while crude, does give some credibility to the action happening. The famed skeleton scene at the end is especially notable, for the amount of detail that Harryhausen put in, during the fight. The acting is serviceable, standout performances comung  from Honor Blackman and Nigel Green. The story, while mundane, is still a classic Greek adventure, and seeing all those colorful creatures from mythology come to life was great.
   This movie has inconsistent pacing. The story set-up is done very quickly, causing you to miss parts of the story. For instance, it jumps 20 years between Pileas' coup and Jason's reemergence, but I couldn't tell until later on. This is a recurring problem, and I got confused sometimes when characters would appear out of nowhere. (Also, them being muscle bound cacausian men made them hard to tell apart, aside from Jason and Argus). Other times, the pacing would slow down, such as when they were journeying or fighting. The dialogue is stilted, and also causes confusion at points, since they explain events too late. The characterization, especially of Jason himself, leaves much to be desired.

    I could see why  this film is so beloved, despite its flaws. The effects are very impressive, and it does have that classic epic adventure atmosphere that is lacking now. However, it is imperfect, muddling in narrative elements. Still, if you're into Greek mythology, classic monster movies, stop motion animation, or want to see the myth that inspired Percy Jackson:Sea of Monsters,  check this one out.

   Next time, the other Harryhausen Greek mythology movie, the original Clash of the Titans.