Further back, the Ray Bradbury book upon which the film is based was assigned reading for me in 7th grade. I cannot imagine such a thing in schools now, but this was the go-go 1980's, and we were even given assignments to come up with a short story about how Mr. Dark would prey upon our insecurities. I vaguely remember something about being turned into what I realize now is the Incredible Hulk.
Special thanks to Stuart, who belongs to Disney Insiders and landed me a copy of this club-only release of Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983) BluRay. Lovely presentation.
Anyway, this is such a strange little movie, one that I don't recall getting any promotion at the time of its release, nor had I seen it on the shelf at the video store. Possibly, because of the Disney label on the tape, it had been shelved with kiddie movies. Which is an interesting problem, because it's not one the book has. It just gets shelved with Ray Bradbury books. But as a film...
Well, whatever opinion I have will be wrong, by everyone who watched this movie. And, especially, if you read the book.
I've only read Dune once, years ago, at the recommendation of RHPT and StevenH (and probably Lauren, if Steven was pitching it). That said, I thought it was a singular reading experience. My inability to return to the book has much more to do with life being short and me doing other things rather than my lack of love for what I read.
I think people who read and grok Dune are changed a little after, maybe in tiny ways, but a bit. I cannot imagine approaching a Dune movie without having read the book - I know watching Lynch's version without having read the book led to me giving up 20 minutes in. But after reading it, I was like "oh, yeah, this is maybe not the best way to do this, but ok." Similarly, before reading the book, I could only follow the SyFy Channel TV mini-series version of Dune so far before I was like "y'all are on your own".
So - I have no idea what those who didn't read the book took away from the movie currently in theaters and running on HBOmax.
I am unfamiliar with this studio, Vulcan Productions, but it's out of Britain. That said, in theory the movie takes place in Massachusetts, and is a witchy story about a small town where there's still witchy business afoot 400 years later.
The movie stars a whole bunch of people I didn't know, and I think English people playing Americans, which would explain at least one guy's voice. But it's got Christopher Lee! So, super double bonus points.
The movie isn't bad! It's mostly thriller as young people first try to do some research for a college course, and secondly when others go to look for the first person. The sets, acting, etc... are all good stuff. I particularly liked Patricia Jessel as a creepy inn owner.
Anyway, I mostly watched it as past of Elvira's 4 movie hosting gig on Shudder, and she's terrific! Good bits in there and what I believe to be a true story of her running into Christopher Lee in a window that I believe would have had to have been pre-Elvira. Anyway, she has a kicky song at the end I very much enjoyed.
Well, I've seen this one a lot, and we talked about it last year on the podcast.
What I noticed this time was that Maleva, the gypsy woman, has a speech of her own as she bids farewell to first Bela, and then Larry after they've been killed and freed from the curse.
The way you walked was thorny, through no fault of your own, but as the rain enters the soil, the river enters the sea, so tears run to a predestined end.
It's funny - I've seen this movie a lot, and I've listened to a bit about it on commentary tracks and read about it online, and I don't recall anyone calling this out. Maybe they did. Everyone gets hung up on the usual rhyme,* but folks tend not to focus on Maleva's farewell, bridging worlds for the cursed and absolving them, I suppose.
One wonders exactly how many werewolves she's had to deal with.
We check in on the boys and see what the kids are up to! One back in the old family villa and the other heading to Louisiana for some jambalaya, we assume. Two franchises rise yet again, stitched together from ideas new and old as we look at the third in the series for each, and sink their teeth into familiar tropes as well as all new stories and characters!
Universal kept putting out horror films after Bride of Frankenstein, and would hit it big again - zeitgeistwise - with The Wolf Man in 1941.
No, he does not look like a dog or wolf, he absolutely looks like a guy with a glandular problem and in need of a dentist. But that's not the real terror of the film. It's a movie about curses and bad luck. And trying to convince people that Claude Raines could have fathered Lon Chaney Jr. (Mrs. Wolf Man must have been 7'3").
Still, it's a fun picture and perfect for the days leading up to Halloween!
The Universal Monsters Hallow-Scream Watch Party series is meant to be a casual good-time as we check out the run of horror movies that started with Dracula and have become staples of culture the world over! Everyone knows what these monsters look and act like, but it's probable most people haven't ever actually seen the movies they're in! So, come watch!
Starting just two years after the silent era, these movies quickly became the blockbusters of their day, bringing strange ideas most people hadn't considered, wild visuals, and complicated creatures to the screen. And, ever since, studios have been looking to recapture this particular lightning in a bottle.
We think you'll enjoy watching along and checking out the creepfest that is Universal Horror!
I don't know what I just watched, but it was maybe the best thing ever?
I mean, truly, I could not look away. This movie is batshit, and I love batshit. Like, it starts out batshit and just keeps going, changing and getting better. I can truly say, I did not know what was going to happen next.
Anyway, any attempt to describe the movie is a fool's errand, so I will not. But I will definitely be rotating this into my scary movie faves.
noticing the poster makers realized they needed to not tell everyone their favorites aren't really in the movie
Watched: 10/21/2021
Format: Disney+
Viewing: First
Decade: 1980's
Director: Walter Murch
I am categorizing this movie as a kid's horror movie, because (a) that's how Jamie, who has seen it, pitched it to me, and (b) this is a horror movie. Starring and for kids. I don't know if that's what anyone set out to make, but that's what it is. Dorothy returns to a post-apocalyptic Oz where everyone is "dead", and she's pursued relentlessly by murderous creatures. This is AFTER she's almost given experimental shock treatment to make her forget Oz. There's a headless woman and her cabinetry of de-capitated heads she can wear who is going to enslave Dorothy for future decapitation. Dorothy's then put into some weirdo Saw type situation and has to outmaneuver the guy playing with her life.
All of which would be fine - kids can take a lot - except that the movie is joyless and a slog.
A few weeks ago, tweeter Dr. PopCulture BGSU posted a picture or two from a movie of which I'd never before heard discussed, Killer Workout (1987), and I vowed to watch this movie at some point. Well, our own JimD decided, YES, we would both see this movie, and so a copy showed up in the mail.
I am genuinely supportive of the genre film preservation going on in weird little corners. There's basically no reason anyone should work to preserve and distribute Killer Workout. It's a very low-budget film with no bankable stars, bad cinematography, as wobbly a plot as you're going to find, and zero logic. Sort of. But. Movies like this were an important part of the cinema world for a long time, and they've mostly disappeared as VHS players and tapes have headed to the bin. It's weird that we may lose a lot of movies because of dedication to a format.
Olive Films is a newer but growing distribution company doing good work out there, bringing a wide range of film types to the market - from respectable classic film to.... Killer Workout. They seem really cool and I need to spend more time reviewing their catalog. I would LOVE to know more about their efforts to preserve and distribute films - but I have a lot of questions about their presentation of Killer Workout. It *seems* like they had an idea to not just get the movie out there, but retain some of the VHS experience.
