Saturday, November 2, 2013 Dia de Los Muertos with El Santo!

Wednesday, October 30, 2013 Halloween Countdown: El Santo!

He is the king of the luchadors! He is the national hero of Mexico and a pop icon worldwide! He is a complicated man, and no one understands him bu- no, wait that's someone else. He is El Santo, and if judged by longevity and sheer diversity of opponents, he might be the greatest monster hunter of them all!

Rodolfo Guzmán began his wrestling career in the mid-thirties but it wasn't until he adopted the El Santo persona in 1942 that his career began to take off.  Originally working as a rudo, Santo's growing popularity led him to make a face turn and he worked as a technico for the rest of his career.

In 1952, Santo became the first superhero luchador when he received his own comic strip.  A B&W mix of fumetti-like photographs and line art, the series was published thrice-weekly and, according to some reports, was selling half a million copies per issue!  This was where the wrestler's career began as a teratonomist and he would do battle in these pages for over thirty years, fighting monsters, gangsters, and whatever else the strip's writers could dream up.

Knowing a good thing when the saw it, Mexican moviemakers invited Santo to bring his superhero persona to the silver screen.  He turned down the offer as he was not confident in the project and felt a cinematic flop could do serious damage to his career.  Santo would not star in his own motion picture until 1958, after the luchadaor genre was an established success.

Though he was late to the party, Santo hit the ground running and never looked back.  (Mixed metaphors are perfectly acceptable when talking about someone as awesome as El Santo.)  He would appear in a whopping 52 films; the only other actor I know of that has played the same character in as many films is the legendary Kwan Tak-hing.  

The Santo films would play across all manner of genres, from horror to comedy, and feature the hero confronting everything from serial killers to cattle rustlers. However, it's El Santo's battles against the forces of darkness that we most remember.  Werewolves, vampire women, Mexican mummies, La Llorona, Frankenstein's daughter, and even Dracula himself - Santo has suplexed 'em all!

The Santo films reflected their times.  In the Batmania 60's, no attempt was made to give Santo a backstory or personality other than that of a 24-hour crimefighter/pro westler.  He would often race straight from match to crime scene in full costume, leaping out of his convertible to deliver forearm smashes to vampires, aliens, and enemy spies.   By the 70's neo-realism had taken root; Santo would usually be seen in street clothes (albeit masked) and was as likely to battle drug dealers as he was monsters.

I recently picked up a couple of UK DVDs of Santo films not available in English-friendly versions here in the States. 1963's Santo in the Wax Museum is a classic typical of era; Santo is a mysterious force for good popping in and out of the film as needed, leaving the young romantic leads to drive most of the story.  1972's Santo vs Las Lobas is a different animal (hah!) entirely. This version of  Santo much more human and is capabable of fear and despair in a way that would have been unthinkable even five years earlier.  If Wax Museum is an attempt to invoke the feel of a Universal horror, Las Lobas is squarely in the downbeat mode of Al Adamson and other early Seventies drive-in fare.

Both discs were released by Yume Pictures in an attempt to cash in on the Nacho Libre mania that never materialized, and sadly the third release in the series was canceled. I was pretty lucky to score the out-of-print DVDs for cheap and would recommend them to any fans of the genre.

Today's treat is a English-subtitled version of Santo vs. Las Lobas, ripped from my DVD, hosted in several chunks on YouTube, and subject to the usual complicated access issues.  The first part is embedded below.  Enjoy!

Monday, October 28, 2013 Halloween Countdown: Shaun of the Dead Soundtrack

Still recovering from a busy weekend, so let's keep this short and to the point.

Today's treat is in honor of Simon Pegg; actor, comedian, tireless advocate for the slow zombie, and the second-best thing about the Star Trek reboot after Karl Urban's DeForest Kelley impersonation.  He deserves all of your love and most of your money. Go out and support The World's End in the medium of your choice, other than the illegal download.

Because you will be spending that karmic coin on this, the official soundtrack to Shaun of the Dead, instead.  It's wayyyy out of print and commanding ridiculous prices wherever fools congregate to be parted from their money. Which is a shame as the music and sound clips are perfect background noise for your Halloween activities.

Shaun of the Dead - Music From the Motion Picture 

Thursday, February 21, 2013 From the Vault: Flash Point

I have a lot of DVD's.  Flash Point is one of them.

Sha Po Lang may get all the love, but I enjoyed it's kinda-sorta prequel a bit more.  Not least because of the blistering climatic fight between Donnie Yen and Collin Chou.

Thursday, February 14, 2013 Happy Jack Benny's Birthday!

Valentine's Day is for losers with relationships and sex lives and stuff.  Me?  I'm celebrating Jack Benny's birthday today!

I love Old Time Radio and am a comedy nerd, so of course I am a huge fan of Mr. Kubelsky's.  The Jack Benny Program's three decade run (first on radio, then television) was an amazing accomplishment, but this success did not transfer to the silver screen and Benny starred in only a handful of films. Of these, only the bona fide classic, To Be Or Not To Be, and Charley's Aunt are readily available on home video.

Buck Benny Rides Again is one of the films still MIA on DVD, which is a darn shame.  Not only is it a funny movie in its own right, it's of special interest to Benny fans as a film version of his radio program at its height. The show's entire cast turns up (though notoriously stage-shy Mary Livingstone only contributes a voice cameo).  Several running gags are carried over from the radio, including the title conceit of Benny as a raucous cowboy. It even starts with Don Wilson serving up an introduction as if it were a regular Sunday night broadcast.

Benny considered Eddie "Rochester" Anderson to be the true star of the movie, and he's right.  Anderson shows off his singing and dancing ability, has some of the best lines, and even gets the girl.  Small wonder the premiere was held in Harlem.

This isn't my encode of the movie but it is my upload, in six parts in order to avoid selling my soul to YouTube.  Happy Jack Benny's Birthday!

Saturday, February 9, 2013 Z is for Zombies: M is for More Brains!

M is for More Brains! A Return to the Living Dead
USA, 2011

The Zombies: O'Bannon Brain-Eaters.

The Source: A chemical spill (2-4-5 Trioxin!)

The Result: A fantastic in-depth look at a genre classic.

Bill Stout attempts a second career as a horror host.

I first saw Return of the Living Dead during its original theatrical run in the summer of 1985.  I had just graduated high school and was at the peak of my zombie phobia, having finally caught Dawn of the Dead at a midnight show the year before.  To say RotLD rocked my world is an understatement.  The film kicked over all the new-found conventions of the zombie genre and managed to be both hilarious and scary.  The soundtrack was great, the movie's punks actually looked like punks*, and oh, that graveyard dance...

Return of the Living Dead has built up a massive following over the years, and most of us were disappointed by the US blu-ray release.  The original soundtrack was replaced by a director-approved version that tweaked the sound effects and dropped some musical cues to the detriment of the film.  When I heard that the UK release had the original soundtrack, included the More Brains! documentary as a bonus, and was compatible with Region A PS3s, it was not a difficult decision to order a copy.

It turns out the blu-ray will play in most if not all US players.  Once you get the region warning screen, simply hit the menu button and the HD content - the main movie and the fantastic documentary - will play just fine.  However, your player does need to be able to play PAL SD content in order to view all of the bonus features.  My PS3 wouldn't play the extras but my Philips handled it swelegantly.

More Brains! features just about everyone still above ground who was involved in the making of the film.  At just over 120 minutes, the documentary is a half-hour longer than the film it covers.  However, the doc never outstays it's welcome.  The cast and crew reminiscences are put together in a way that feels like a lively conversation instead of a parade of talking heads.  The animated link segments and thematic set design for the interviews also keep things peppy, and the behind-the-scenes footage will be new to most fans. I loved every minute of this documentary, not least because it shows that those who made RotLD have just as much affection for it as their audience. 

The blu-ray comes in a handsome steelbook with groovy interior art and a cool booklet (presented as the notepad of Ernie Kaltenbrunner).  Amazon UK asserts that the steelbook is shipped in "guaranteed crush-proof packaging".  Well, Brit guarantees don't mean nothin' to Americans - the US Postal Service managed to put a nice little ding in the bottom back half of my copy.  USA!  USA!  USA!

Halloween is a time for family.

More Brains! easily rates at least a 4 for fans of Return of the Living Dead.  Add in the classic film itself - with its original soundtrack - in some nifty packaging, and the blu-ray is an absolute most-own.

A mighty 5 Ghouls!

* I hung with a punk/New Wave crowd during the mid-80's.  I was the "Chuck" of the group, albeit a lot more self-aware and clad in bomber jackets instead of suits. I didn't beg for sex**, either, though I might have if someone as hot as Linea Quigley was around. 


**I just sort of whimpered.

Friday, February 8, 2013 From the Vault: The Flesh-Eaters

I have a lot of DVD's.  The Flesh-Eaters is one of them.

Anyone who grew up watching horror movies on UHF channels will remember this film for the one nightmare-inducing scene that freaked all us kids out - the brutal demise of the goofy, Gilligan-esque beatnik, Omar.

Saturday, October 27, 2012 Doc of the Dead

Doc of the Dead is a forthcoming documentary that promises to explore the zombie phenomenon currently infesting all aspects of our culture, including rather crap blogs run by middle-aged men who really should have started a family by now.  

The homepage states that the film will be "shot and edited in a cinematically edgy, high-octane style", but here's hoping it will be good anyway. The makers have already interviewed the likes of George Romero and Simon Pegg, bless him, and are targeting a 2014 release date.  The project is currently a kickstarter, because of course it is.

The sizzle reel looks good and I look forward to seeing the completed work two years hence.  Hopefully, it will still be relevant and we all won't have moved on to Triffids or pishtacos or something.

Friday, October 26, 2012 Z is for Zombies: Z is for Zombies of Sugar Hill

Z is for Zombies of Sugar Hill
USA, 1974

The Zombies: Voodoo zombies.

The Source: Voodoo, dumbass.

The Result: Foxy Brown with zombies.

Despite all his supernatural power, Baron Samedi still had a weakness for blondes.

When her man is killed by gangsters, fashion photographer Sugar Hill enlists the aid of Baron Samedi and his army of zombies in her quest for vengeance.

Zombies of Sugar Hill follows the same formula AIP used for its other blaxplotiation films with female leads.  The protagonist is an independent career woman who loses a loved one to criminal elements the law can't touch, so she uses guile and her sex appeal to lure those responsible to their doom.  The only difference here is that Sugar's preferred weapon is voodoo instead of shotguns or razor blades hidden in her hair.

This movie makes it look really easy to summon Baron Samedi.  Like, so easy that a Gilligan / Curly Howard tag team couldn't mess it up.  If Catholic saints were that easy to conjure, I might have gone through with my Confirmation.

Maybe my expectations have finally hit rock bottom, but the zombies are actually kind of neat when they first turn up.  In daylight shots, however, the tiny L'Eggs Sheer Energy shells they wear over their eyes look goofy.  Do you guys remember L'Eggs in the plastic containers?  Nah, you're probably too young.  Google it sometime.

It's notable that every time Sugar gets her zombified revenge on, her hairstyle changes from a straightened Vanessa-Williams-meets-Farrah 'do to a big, beautiful afro.  Either the movie is implying that voodoo is reconnecting Sugar to her true identity as a black woman, or it's really bad at continuity.

The film's portrayal of Baron Samedi is obviously inspired by Live and Let Die, but Don Pedro Colley is no Geoffrey Holder.  Which is a shame, because Marki Bey is no Pam Grier and this sort of film lives or dies (ha!) on the strength of its leads.  Neither Bey nor Coffey have enough presence to keep things lively between the kill scenes, which are rather perfunctory themselves.  Although the homicidal chicken leg is a hoot.

Oh no!  Not the chicken foot!

Still, if "Coffy with zombies and an animated rooster foot" sounds appealing, you owe it to yourself to check out Sugar Hill.  

2.5 Ghouls

Halloween Countdown: The House on Haunted Hill

Today's treat is a classic of public domain horror, William Castle's original House on Haunted Hill.

An eccentric millionaire - played by the incomparable Vincent Price - offers five strangers a ten thousand dollar prize if they can survive a night spent locked in a ghost-ridden mansion. But is the place really haunted, or is there a living menace at play?

Nah, there couldn't be.

Many keys have been stroked on the internet about Castle and his fantabulous "ballyhoo" style. House on Haunted Hill was presented in "Emergo", which was basically a plastic skeleton on a wire that would come swinging out at the audience during an opportune moment.   If you have a toy skeleton of your own, keep it handy to reenact "Emergo" at that scene. You'll know it when you see it. 

House has a special place in my family's lore. My mother and her sisters went to see it at the drive-in when she was little, and the film frightened her so badly that she had nightmares for weeks.  (One can only imagine how much more traumatized she would have been had she seen the film in "Emergo".) She always described it to her own children as one of the scariest films she had ever seen. When I finally got her to watch again recently - the first time she'd seen it in over fifty years - she was a bit chagrined at how quaint the thing was.

While I am sure that House on Haunted Hill won't be giving any of you night terrors, it's still a great way to spend a few hours this Halloween season.

Thursday, October 25, 2012 Z is for Zombie: L is for Last of the Living

L is for Last of the Living
New Zealand, 2009

The Zombies: Romero Ghouls mostly, with some souped-up Snyder Sprinters near the end.

The Source: A virus, apparently.

The Result: An utter waste of time.

When she learned the in-flight movie was Last of the Living, Jane took the easy way out.

Three slackers with odious personalities are coasting through the post-apocalypse until a chance encounter with a female scientist - the only living woman around - sends them on a quest to find a cure for the zombie virus.

Spoilers ahoy, but trust me, I'm doing you a favor.

As the movie begins, it's cozy catastrophe time. The protagonists live a life of ease, enjoying a never-ending supply of gas, water and electricity and changing up luxury dwellings when they're bored.  The streets are clean with no sign of junked automobiles or rotting carcasses.  The boys can grab whatever they want from the local supermarkets with no fear of shortage or spoilage.  And zombies?  They're something to be killed for fun.

Now, there's a chance that this is all a commentary on Millennial males.  You know - manchildren still living at home, isolated from the trials of adulthood and sponging off the 'rents until they are forced to grow up through the influence of a mature, capable woman.  Except that statement would be completely undermined by the fact that the guys get killed following said woman on her ultimately futile quest.  So unless the intended moral is, "stay in your parents' basement where it's safe", I think we can safely dismiss any higher meaning here.  Especially after the fart jokes kick in.

Fricking fart jokes.

Anyhoo, the three asses follow Dr. Ladygirl through what is supposed to be hilarious hijinks and thrilling escapades.  Then, in the last act, the movie suddenly decides it wants to be serious and poignant and scary.  So the zombies, who up until now were literally punchlines, suddenly have to become a threat.  And because the movie is completely incapable of establishing dread or suspense, it takes the path of least resistance and just has the zombies start running.  At super-speed.  Yes, the formerly shambling goofballs can now keep pace with a speeding automobile and track a fleeing human across miles of brush in a heartbeat.  Whee.

I won't mention many of the movie's other failings, such as establishing characters that will only appear in a single disconnected scene and make-up effects that were apparently supervised by a boardwalk face-painter with a bad NyQuil habit.

After Bozo's Circus went off the air, Cooky the Clown joined the ministry.

Look, I know the film was shot on a miniscule budget.  But good ideas cost the same as bad ones.  Last of the Living isn't as funny or clever or exciting as it thinks it is, which makes its smug tone rather tough to endure.

1.5 Ghouls

Tuesday, October 23, 2012 Halloween Countdown: Monster Roll

Sweet little kaiju eiga from filmmaker Dan Blank.

Next Week, A Double Feature of Bambi and Salo!

From Yahoo! UK:

Cinema shows Paranormal Activity instead of Madagascar 3
'Technical error' sees children 'crying and screaming' and running for exits

A cinema full of children waiting to see 'Madagascar 3' were shown supernatural horror film 'Paranormal Activity 4' by accident.

Shocked families at Nottingham's Cineworld had to rush their children out of the auditorium as they realised that the wrong film was being projected.

But not before a scene at the very start of the film - featuring a bloodied female corpse being thrown at the camera – upset children as young as five, among around 25 families watching.

Natasha Lewis of Bulwell in Nottingham, who took her eight-year-old son Dylan to the screening, said: “They started playing the movie and I thought - this doesn't look right. And then I recognised the opening sequence as a flash back to the first movie, which I saw a couple of years ago.

“It opens on the most terrifying scene in the first film - where a body shoots full pelt towards the camera. It's enough to make grown men jump, so you can imagine the terror in these young faces.

“Everybody just scrambled for the exits, all you could hear were children crying and screaming. Everyone was very upset.

“I've watched a few horror films in my time but the 'Paranormal Activity' films are the scariest since 'The Exorcist'.

“It was only about two minutes worth of the film but it was enough to scar them for life. There were parents and kids in there, including some children who were younger than Dylan.

“The cinema needs to check the film before sending everyone in so they don't make this mistake again. I'm disgusted about it, mistakes like this simply should not happen.”

A spokesperson for Cineworld said: “We have investigated the incident and can confirm that this was a technical error with the projector and apologise sincerely to the families.

“All customers who were affected by the incident were offered refunds and complimentary tickets. We also invited customers to watch the screening of Madagascar 3 half an hour later.



“We take matters such as this very seriously and are currently working with technicians to ensure this does not happen again.”

Frankly, the thought of seeing either film fills me with terror.

Halloween Countdown: Scream Queens

The League of Gentlemen sure do love their horror.   Last Halloween, I offered up Mark Gatiss' History of Horror and Reece Shearsmith's Haunted House, complimentary works that cover the length and breadth of the fright genre.  This year, both Leaguers have similar projects that have much narrower focus; Gatiss has a forthcoming documentary on European horror movies, and Shearsmith has produced a BBC Radio documentary on the changing role of women in horror.

In Scream Queens, Shearsmith sketches an overview of that transition, from victim to predator to stake-wielding heroine. But it's his interviews with some of the great ladies of horror that comprise the bulk of the half-hour.  Shearsmith talks with Pauline Moran (from the heartstopping The Woman in Black),  Linda Hayden (star of LoG favorite, The Blood on Satan's Claw), the truly iconic Barbara Shelley, and one of my own faves, Madeline Smith.  Shearsmith is clearly delighted to be in such exalted company, and his enthusiasm is infectious and entertaining - even when the old dears get a bit dry.

Shearsmith with horror icons Pauline Moran, Madeline Smith, Linda Hayden, and Barbara Shelley

Warning: If you've ever seen the tv version of The Woman in Black, there's a segment early on this broadcast that you will not want to listen to on headphones in an empty apartment after midnight.  Trust me.

Sunday, October 21, 2012 Z is for Zombie: H is for Hell's Ground

H is for Hell's Ground
Pakistan, 2007

The Zombies: Romero Ghouls.

The Source: Polluted drinking water.

The Result: Classic horror filtered through a distinctly Pakistani lens.

This actually happened to me in India.

A group of young Pakistanis skip out on school and family commitments in order to attend a rock concert. Unfortunately, they stray off the main highway and end up in a region with the richly deserved nickname of "Hell's Ground".  Hi-jinks ensue.

Hell's Ground is clearly the result of a filmmaker's love of classic horror films. There are early nods to the Universal monsters, slashers like Maniac, and the seminal Lollywood vampire film, The Living Corpse.  Even the plot is a mash-up of old favorites; the film is actually kind of light on zombie action as there's an early swerve out of Romero territory and right into Texas Chainsaw Massacre country.

But Hell's Ground doesn't just retread ground blazed by earlier films.  Writer/director Omar Ali Khan injects a strong Paksitani vibe throughout the proceedings.  The language is a mix of English and Urdu with a healthy dose of slang.  While conforming to horror film archetypes, the kids also represent a cross-section of Pakistani society.  And the music, costumes, and cultural references all add a distinct sense of time and place.  Hell's Ground is like an old pop standard being covered by some crazy foreign combo; the tune may be familiar, but the groove is strictly local.

There's a scene in Hell's Ground that has particular resonance for me.  During one trip to India I was in a van that was literally swarmed by a horde of beggars who pounded on the doors and windows and thrust grasping hands through every opening.  Flashbacks to every zombie movie I had ever seen kicked in, and I was torn between hacking away at the intruders or collapsing into a sobbing, doomed wreck.  The same situation to the kids in the movie, except with actual zombies of course.

Luckily, this did not.

But you don't need to have had nightmarish experiences on the other side of the globe to enjoy Hell's Ground.  You just have to love horror movies.

4 Ghouls

Friday, October 19, 2012 Chi-Town Cinematic Chills

 If you're looking for cinematic spookiness this season and you live in the Chicago area, you're kinda spoiled for choice.

This Saturday (October 20th) is The Masscre, a 24-hout marathon of classic horror that features some really great films.  The marathon looks to be quite the event, with vendors and a charity auction and, best of all, appearences and autograph sessions from Jack "Spider Baby" Hill and horror icon Linnea Quigley!

Looks like the entire Portage Park area will be celebrating Halloween this weekend, with arts & crafts and a treasure hunt for the kiddies, live entertainment, and more on Saturday.  On Sunday, the legendary Svengoolie will be presenting a screening of Beetlejuice,once again at the Portage.

Speaking of Sven, he will also be hosting a 3-D presentation of The Creature From the Black Lagoon at the Muvico Theater in Rosemont on Sunday, October 28th.   Keen!

Also on Sunday is the kick-off of Halloween Havoc 5, a week long festival of horror favorites at, you guessed it, the Portage.

Personally, I'd love to attend the Saturday screening of Return of the Living Dead, but I'm going to a party that night all the way out in Naperthrill.  The whole line-up for the Massacre is pretty solid, and it looks like most if not all of the films will be presented on 35mm film.  I might swing by the first day of HH5, but I'm pretty sure the group that organizes it shows digital projections of DVD's; as I own pretty much all of the films on disc already the screenings lose a lot of appeal for me.

Finally, I'm tempted to make the long drive from the family Halloween part in Indiana all the way to Elgin for Nightmare on Chicago Street.  It's not a movie, but a zombie-themed block party with live entertainment and precious, precious booze.  Based in the photos from last year's event, it looks like a lot of fun.

Friday, December 2, 2011 Santa Claus is Coming to Town

 And he's bringing Martians with him!

Holland Releasing is bringing this holiday "classic", along with a bevy of seasonal shorts and cartoons, back to theaters across the country this Christmas. A list of theaters and screen dates are available at the site.

I've already seen SCvM on the big screen at a Cinematic Titanic event a few years back, but if you haven't yet experienced this "space-blazing" spectacle this is a great opportunity to do so!

Monday, October 31, 2011 Halloween Treats: Fun-Sized Horror

Fill up your trick-or-treat bag with these mini-movies from Daywalt Fear Factory and Fewdio! They're all under ten minutes, so they make for perfect viewing in-between doorbell rings.

There's No Such Thing... by Drew Daywalt

Cellar by Randy Link

Creep by Drew Daywalt & David Schneider

Room 19 by Drew Daywalt

Jack by Drew Daywalt

Loads more films at the links above!

Saturday, October 29, 2011 Halloween Countdown: Monster NIght 1998

There used to be a time when Halloween meant all-night creature features on local tv.  Here in Chicago we were spoilt for choice as WGN and the various UHF stations would break out the best ghoulish goodies their syndication packages had to offer - Universal, Hammer, and Toho - well into the early hours of All Saints' Day.

The cable boom and the rise of the infomercial have put an end to that era.  Yeah, some basic cable outlets put on their own fright-fests, but they tend to be rather anemic affairs that stick to the glossy, brain-dead crap that have be filling multiplexes for the last decade or so, as anything older alienates the most desirable demographics.  On the other hand, the wonders of DVD has enabled bitter old geeks like me to create our own monster movie marathons

One of the last gasps of traditional creature features actually took place overseas.  Way back in 1998, BBC2 broadcast an entire night of giant monster mayhem hosted by comedian Bill Bailey.  In addition to such kaiju classics as King Kong vs. Godzilla and Gamera vs. Gyaos, programming included an original documentary (Godzilla, King of the Monsters), a clip show (Lee and Hering's Reasonably Scary Monsters), and wraparound segments featuring Bailey, Phil Jupitus and Chris Moyles.  Tonight, I'm sharing everything but the movies themselves, via an avi rip of an old off-air VCR recording.  While it's entertaining enough on its own, I'm listing the movies originally shown you can recreate BBC2's Monster Night in its entirety if you're ambitious or really, really bored.  

BBC2 Monster Night (1998)
699mb

Godzilla vs Ebirah
King Kong vs Godzilla
Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (under the title Gamera vs Gyaos)
King Kong (1976)
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991)