TERROR-CREATURES FROM THE GRAVE

Barbara Steele and Mirella Maravidi

TERROR-CREATURES FROM THE GRAVE (aka 5 tombe per un medium/1965). Director: Massimo Pupillo. Colorized.  

Lawyer Albert Kovak (Walter Brandi) pays a call on widow Cleo Hauff (Barbara Steele) and her stepdaughter Corinne (Mirella Maravidi), and learns that although his partner just received a letter from Dr. Geronimus Hauff (Umberto Raho), the man has been dead for nearly a year! For some reason Hauff, who was a student of the occult, has threatened revenge on five people who were present at his death, and three of them have already died in mysterious circumstances. As Albert investigates with Dr. Nemek (Alfredo Rizzo), more deaths occur. Then it develops that the widow Hauff and Albert's partner, Joseph Morgan (Riccardo Garrone), have been having an affair. The Hauff manor had been built over the ruins of a hospital where hundreds of plague victims died in the 15th century. On the one year anniversary of Dr. Hauff's death, their spirits will run wild!

Walter Brandi and Alfredo Rizzo

Terror-Creatures is an atmospheric Italian horror film which promises a lot but delivers very little. There is some suspense as you wait for the climax, which is criminally brief. Although shots of tombs and graves opening are provocative, we never see the actual ghouls which the audience has been impatiently waiting for. Instead some of the characters break out in a disfiguring plague. An interesting touch has a display case of human arms that were severed centuries before from people who spread the plague. Terror-Creatures has a lot of interesting elements to it, but few of them are realized. This is not one of Ms. Steele's better movies, although she's okay in it. 

Verdict: An Italian horror flick with real potential that is frittered away. **. 

OBSESSION (2025)

 OBSESSION (2025). Writer/director: Curry Barker.

Bear (Michael Johnston) is an attractive if nerdy young man who is infatuated with the pretty Nikki (Inde Navarrette). She seems to think of him only as a friend, but one day -- in desperation -- he uses a novelty item called the "One Wish Willow" to make her fall in love with him. Bear never expects it to work, so it's not as if he was using a date rape drug. Nevertheless, the results are not what he expected. Nikki does indeed fall in love with Bear but she begins to act very strangely and obsessively. It's definitely a case of "be careful what you wish for."

Obsession is an obvious play on the notion that a sick infatuation can lead to destruction of both yourself and the object of your affection. Proving that there's nothing new under the sun, the basic premise -- a man uses supernatural means to make someone fall in love with him to his regret --was used in numerous horror comic book stories, and there isn't that much that's terribly original in this picture. The movie is slow, the direction generally uninspired, although the acting by the two leads and others is on the money. 

Although the film is comparatively tasteful for a modern-day horror flick -- of course the film is so underlit you really can't see that much of the more gruesome stuff -- it doesn't resist one moment of slasher-type carnage late in the picture. Bear takes much, much too long to suggest -- if he ever really does -- that Nikki may need psychiatric help, but as the characters in this are pretty one-dimensional it probably doesn't matter. The picture takes a long time to really get going, and the build-up isn't worth it. 

Verdict: A low-energy, over-long, and vastly over-rated horror film with excellent performances. **1/4.  

THE SOUL OF A MONSTER

Horror Hair: Rose Hobart as Lilyan

THE SOUL OF A MONSTER (1944). Director:  Will Jason. 

A great doctor and humanitarian, George Winson (George Macready), is dying and no one can save him. His wife, Ann (Jeanne Bates), calls on any power, including the power of darkness, to save him. Along comes a mysterious woman named Lilyan (Rose Hobart) with a severe and hideous hairdo, who somehow manages to save George's life. However, everyone -- including his friends and associates Fred (Erik Rolf) and Dr. Vance (Jim Bannon of The Unknown) -- notice that the good doctor has changed and doesn't especially care about people anymore. Ann is convinced that George is under the control of the evil Lilyan, and the witch even tries to get George to murder Dr. Vance. Then George wakes up ...

Jeanne Bates and George Macready

The ending to the pretty terrible Soul of a Monster will have you groaning. The screenplay by Edward Dein -- who was better known as a director [The Leech Woman] -- is ludicrous, with stilted dialogue that would have been a challenge to any actor. Despite this, Rose Hobart manages to make a minimal impression and Macready is almost always on target in his performances. The best you can say about Will Jason's direction is that it is fortunate he did no more horror movies. Dein did write a few more scripts in the genre, which were better than this. The basic effect of the movie is that of a filmed old comic book with little logic and very haphazard storytelling. A near-murder sequence where Macready stalks his friend (who never mentions it to anyone) with an icepick in hand is so protracted  and slow that it becomes more boring than suspenseful. A scene with a boys' choir singing "Ave Maria" is more interesting. 

Verdict: A waste of an interesting idea. *1/4. 

THE CAR

THE CAR (1977). Director: Elliot Silverstein.  

A small California town has its complacency shattered by a series of murderous attacks on its citizens by an automobile that seems to have no driver. Sheriff Wade Parent (James Brolin) is at his wit's end after one of the victims is his boss, Everett Peck (John Marley). It quickly becomes apparent that there is something almost supernatural about this car and its abilities, and the incidents become more vicious and outlandish. Parent may have to accept that this may be something that it will be awfully hard to fight ... 

James Brolin and Ronny Cox

While I would have preferred that there be a human antagonist behind the actions of the car -- James Bond films have already shown that some autos can do amazing things and remote control cars have been featured in such shows as Science Fiction Theater -- but The Car has a more demonic slant, which, fortunately, doesn't decrease its suspenseful and entertaining quotient in the least, although some might find it way too farfetched. The screenplay presents fully realized characters, mostly decent people up against a formidable and inexplicable enemy. The acting is generally good, with Kathleen Lloyd as Wade's ill-fated girlfriend, Elizabeth Thompson as her co-worker, Doris Dowling (of The Crimson Key) as a victim of spousal abuse, and John Rubinstein as an early victim of the car. Leonard Rosenman has contributed a chilling score, and there is top-notch widescreen photography from Gerald Hirschfield. Director Silverstein was mostly a television director, but his other theatrical films include Cat Ballou. He knocked one out of the ballpark with The Car. 

Verdict: Quite memorable and unusual horror film. ***1/4. 

THE SURVIVOR

Peter Sumner and Robert Powell

THE SURVIVOR (1981). Director: David Hemmings.  

A pilot named Keller (Robert Powell of Asylum) is the only survivor of a devastating airline disaster that kills over 300 people. As Keller tries to find out what the investigators know about what caused the tragedy, he is contacted by a lady psychic named Hobbs (Jenny Agutter of Child's Play 2), who claims he is the only one who can help the souls of the dead passengers find peace. Keller also asks for the help of a priest (Joseph Cotten). Meanwhile there are odd incidents in the town near the airfield where the remains of the plane are scattered. Eventually Keller will have a confrontation with the man responsible for the crash and the deaths of so many innocent people.

Powell with Jenny Agutter

The Survivor is based on an excellent, pulpy horror novel by prolific British author James Herbert. David Ambrose's screenplay throws out most of the book aside from the basic premise. In the novel Keller was the co-pilot, his girlfriend was a stewardess on the plane, and he had a one-night-stand with the pilot's wife, which he fears might have led to something bad happening on the plane before the crash. There is a lot of suspense worked up over who might have destroyed the plane, suspense that is entirely lacking in the film adaptation. Hobbs is not a young female in the novel but a middle-aged man. Most of the horrifying incidents that Herbert describes so well in the book are completely scrapped in the screenplay. The neo-Nazi who was on the plane in the novel and influences some of the passengers to do evil is abandoned. Even director Hemmings -- one of the actor's few directorial assignments -- felt it was a mistake to go for subtle tension instead of the out and out horror of Herbert's book. Reportedly Herbert claimed the film put him to sleep.

Powell with Joseph Cotten

No wonder. Because The Survivor is confusing and slow, and poorly directed with few exceptions. There is a disquieting scene on railroad tracks where a photographer who made a killing taking photos of the accident encounters the ghost of a dead little girl, and there is a well-staged finale where the perpetrator is revealed. But otherwise, The Survivor is a major disappointment. Powell acts throughout the film as if he's merely perturbed, Agutter seems confused, and the audience gets bored long before the conclusion. Joseph Cotten is completely wasted.

Verdict: Read the book instead. **.

13 GHOSTS

Rosemary DeCamp, Donald Woods, Martin Milner

13 GHOSTS (1960). Produced and directed by William Castle. Colorized. 

Cyrus Zorba (Donald Woods of The Black Doll), who works in a museum, inherits a house from his late uncle, a researcher in spirits. Cyrus movies his wife and two children into the spooky manor, then learns that his uncle actually collected ghosts and they are haunting the place! A special viewer that resembles weird binoculars enables Cyrus to see the ghosts, which include a headless lion tamer, the lion, an axe murderer, and others. But Cyrus may have more problems besides ghosts -- the uncle left a fortune in the house and a certain individual will stop at nothing to get his hands on it, including murder!

Martin Milner and Jo Morrow

13 Ghosts is a fun movie that may, at times, be sillier than it needs to be even if it occasionally has a darker tone to it as well. Woods is fine as the hapless Cyrus, and he gets good support from Rosemary DeCamp as his wife, Jo Morrow as his daughter, and Charles Herbert as his little boy, Buck, not to mention Martin Milner as an amiable lawyer who dates Morrow and befriends her brother. John Van Dreelen (of The Leech Woman) is Wood's boss -- smooth as ever -- and Margaret Hamilton is adequate as the crusty housekeeper.  Jo Morrow, a very appealing actress, also co-starred in The Three Worlds of Gulliver. 

Verdict: One of Castle's better movies. ***. 

TORMENTED

Richard Carlson and Lugene Sanders

TORMENTED (1960). Director: Bert I. Gordon. Colorized.  

Artist Tom Stewart (Richard Carlson) wants to marry into a wealthy family and has gotten engaged to Meg Hubbard (Lugene Sanders). But what to do about his girlfriend, Vi (Juli Reding of Why Must I Die?), who objects to his plans and tries to blackmail him? Fortunately for him the railing gives way on the balcony outside of an abandoned lighthouse where they have secret rendezvous, and Vi finds herself falling to the rocks below. Tom could have reached out and saved her, but chooses not to. Soon Tom is seeing images of the dead woman and hearing her voice everywhere he goes. Her ghost is determined to keep him from going through with the wedding plans ... 

Carlson at the lighthouse

Bert Gordon didn't just direct movies about big people and creatures, but also helmed a few thrillers of varying types. While the premise may not be terribly original, Tormented has a good plot, more than decent performances -- Carlson is especially good -- and is quite entertaining. One especially good sequence has Carlson's blind landlady (Lillian Adams) trying to communicate with the ghost -- which she definitely believes in -- in the aforementioned spooky lighthouse. A bit with the ghost's disembodied head showing up isn't quite as effective. This was the last credit (of four) for Hubbard, who is not classically beautiful but is nevertheless appealing and talented. Susan Gordon, who plays her younger sister, was the director's daughter, and is fine. Another notable cast member is Joe Turkel, who plays a sleazy blackmailer. As usual, the contributions of composer Albert Glasser and cinematographer Ernest Laszlo are not to be discounted. 

Verdict: No giant monsters but the flick is still fun. ***. 

POLAROID (2019)

POLAROID (2019). Director: Lars Klevberg. 

Bird (Kathryn Prescott), a young high school student, discovers an old polaroid camera in an antique store where she works, and begins taking pictures with it. The first person she photographs is Tyler (Davi Santos), a co-worker, who is attacked and killed. The next person Bird snaps with the polaroid is a party hostess, who is also found dead the next day. Bird comes to realize that whoever she photographs with the camera winds up dying, and that there is an evil entity inside the camera. She and her friends, all of whose images have been captured by the camera, set out to learn the secret of the polaroid so they can save themselves. This brings them to the widow of a demented man who captured, tortured and murdered four teens, but her story may not be the whole truth. Can Bird destroy the entity before she and the others succumb ... 

Polaroid, rated PG-13, is an engaging and interesting horror film that gets its points across without resorting to overly graphic mayhem or sadism. The acting is effective, and that includes Mitch Pileggi as the town sheriff, who has secrets of his own. The camera creature is creepy looking and there are several suspenseful and well-handled sequences. 

Verdict: A satisfying if unspectacular horror film with a premise straight out of EC comics. ***. 

THE FIRST OMEN

Nell Tiger Free as Margaret

THE FIRST OMEN (2024). Director/co-screenplay: Arkasha Stevenson. NOTE: This review reveals important plot points.

Raised in an orphanage and supervised by Cardinal Lawrence (Bill Nighy), Margaret (Nell Tiger Free) is brought to another orphanage in Rome to help out as she prepares to take her vows. Margaret is contacted by the strange Father Brennan (Ralph Ineson), who tells her an unbelievable story: a faction in the Catholic church, dismayed by how so many people have abandoned the church, has decided upon an outrageous scheme to create more of the faithful and bring them back into the fold -- bring the anti-Christ into the world! Understandably Margaret finds this hard to believe, but when she investigates uncovers some highly disturbing facts. Has she been chosen to give birth to the anti-Christ? 

Bill Nighy as Cardinal Lawrence

The First Omen is, of course, a prequel to The Omen (1978) and its sequels. In the original film, it was Satanists who wanted their very own anti-Christ, but in this, it's a secret group within the church (although the film implies that it is pretty much the Catholic church itself). The whole notion of unleashing a great evil into the world to bring people back to the church -- creating more problems than it solves (for one thing won't the formerly faithful possibly be attracted to the anti-Christ?) -- is fascinating but fairly ludicrous. Are none of these nuns, priests or even the Cardinal able to see the sheer evil of their actions, which include murder? (Admittedly, I'm no great fan of the church but this is ridiculous.)

Sonia Braga as Sister Silva

As for the movie itself, its main strength are the performances, with Tiger Free offering a compelling portrait of the increasingly frightened and confused Margaret. Nighy and Ineson are also on target, and Sonia Braga is a stand-out as the rather demented Sister Silva. Andrea Arcangeli also scores (literally!) as Paolo, the handsome man in the disco who comes to a bad end in the film's grisliest sequence. Tawfeek Barhom, Nicole Sorace, and Maria Caballero also offer some good work. Charles Dance appears briefly in an early scene. The First Omen is slow-paced, but full of interesting (if familiar) and ghastly images. One could argue that the film's best moment is when we hear Jerry Goldsmith's great music from The Omen on the soundtrack. 

Verdict: Creepy moments, good performances, but not nearly as good as the original Omen. **1/2. 

THE LIVING IDOL

James Robertson Justice, Liliane Montevecchi. Steve Forrest

THE LIVING IDOL (1957). Written and directed by Albert Lewin.

Down in Mexico Dr. Alfred Stoner (James Robertson Justice) leads Terry, a photographer (Steve Forrest), and Juanita (Liliane Montevecchi), the daughter of a colleague, up an inner staircase into a recess of a pyramid to see the idol of a jaguar god. Juanita is badly frightened, and Alfred wonders if she might be the reincarnation of a young lady who centuries ago was sacrificed to the god. When Juanita's father, Manuel (Eduardo Noriega), is crushed by a stone with a jaguar representation on it, she is even more freaked out. Alfred and his wife, Elena (Sara Garcia), take the orphaned Juanita under their wing, but Alfred develops an insane plan to get her out from under the alleged influence of the jaguar god. 

Beautiful beast: a stalking jaguar 

I had never heard of The Living Idol but hoped this might be a lost gem when I saw some familiar names in the cast, saw that it was in CinemaScope and Technicolor, and that it was photographed by Jack Hildyard. But my hopes started to fade the minute I saw the phony-looking and not very frightening jaguar-idol, which Alfred brings back with him to Mexico City. Forget about Juanita, the only one who seems to have an odd relationship with a jaguar is Alfred, who lets the beautiful beast out of a zoo in his crazy, senseless scheme to let it have an encounter with the poor young lady. Lest you mistakenly think that this all sounds interesting, be forewarned that The Living Idol is deadly slow and dull, with very little happening during a nearly two hour running time. At times the film almost seems more like a romance than a horror film, if that's what it even is. The shame of if is it could have gone off in so many different, much more fascinating and frightening directions, but it basically goes nowhere ... slowly. Manuel's death scene occurs off-screen and is poorly handled. Some nice scenery can't save this. You would never know that director Lewin had actually helmed a couple of pretty good pictures. This was his last one. 

Verdict: A major disappointment and pretty terrible movie. *1/2. 

THE EXORCIST: BELIEVER

Two possessed girls

THE EXORICST: BELIEVER (2023).  Director: David Gordon Green. 

Two young girls -- white Katherine (Olivia O'Neill) and black Angela (Lidya Jewett) -- go missing for three days and are found with no memories of what happened. Afterwards they begin displaying strange, violent tendencies and acting oddly, things that point to demonic possession according to Katherine's church-going parents. However, Angela's father, Victor (Leslie Odom Jr.), does not believe in such nonsense but is finally driven to contact Chris McNeil (Ellen Burstyn), who wrote about her own experiences when her daughter, Regan (Linda Blair), was possessed and successfully exorcised. Regan hated the world-wide attention and cut off contact with her mother because of the book. Now Chris is determined to help these two new families who are facing an unfathomable evil. 

Frail but feisty: Ellen Burstyn

There have been so many Exorcist sequels and imitations that Believer comes off like a parody at times, and has little suspense. The protracted sequence that features dual exorcisms eventually becomes tedious -- the movie is almost two hours long --  and aside from an eye stabbing of one pivotal character, and an unfortunate incident involving a priest, there is so little action that you begin longing for even the slimiest of slasher flicks. Believer severely limits the thrills and chills and substitutes some minor character development and little else. The FX are okay and over-familiar. The performances of the young girls are fine, and Ann Dowd scores as Ann Brooks, a nurse with some experience with the occult. David Gordon Green also directed Halloween (2018). Linda Blair doesn't show up until the very end of the movie and has about one line. 

Verdict: Definitely won't make a believer out of you. **.

THE BOOGEYMAN (2023)

Chris Messina

THE BOOGEYMAN (2023). Director: Rob Savage.

After the death of his wife, psychiatrist Will Harper (Chris Messina) is left to raise two daughters. Sadie (Sophie Thatcher) is a teenager and her little sister, Sawyer (Vivien Lyra Blair), is scared of the dark and of monsters under her bed. A strange man, Lester Billings (David Dastmalchian), comes to Will's house to seek help, and tells him that all of his children were killed by some strange creature, then commits suicide. Sawyer is convinced that now this same monster is hiding in their house, waiting until dark, and neither Sophie nor her father believe her ... at first. Sadie goes to talk to Billings' widow, Rita (Marin Ireland), and finds she is living in squalor, hoping she can destroy the thing that wiped out her family. But even when Sophie and Will realize Rita is telling the truth, they many have a very hard time getting rid of this ancient demon.

Sophie Thatcher with Messina

Based on a short story by Stephen King, The Boogeyman is slick and well-acted, has some decent FX work and a couple of scary sequences, but suffers from its sheer overfamiliarity. You just get the feeling you've seen the whole thing before -- there is absolutely nothing distinctive, original, nor unique about the movie. It's well-done for what it is, but it just doesn't amount to much. Chris Messina is very appealing as the father, however, and Thatcher and Blair are quite effective.  

THE GHOST OF SIERRA DE COBRE

A ghost confronts Judith Anderson and Martin Landau

THE GHOST OF SIERRA DE COBRE (1964 telefilm), Produced, directed and written by Joseph Stefano. 

"Psychical" investigator Nelson Orion (Martin Landau) -- who makes most of his money as an architect -- is called in when blind, wealthy Henry Mandore (Tom Simcox) starts receiving disturbing phone calls that are supposedly from his dead mother. Afraid of being buried alive, she had a phone installed in her crypt, and the calls are coming from this line. Accompanied by Henry's wife, Vivia (Diane Baker), Orion investigates the crypt and Vivia encounters a scary and bloody female spirit. Orion's no-nonsense housekeeper, Mrs. Finch (Nellie Burt) doesn't believe in ghosts, and neither does the Mandore's housekeeper, Paulina (Dame Judith Anderson), but the latter seems to know a lot more about what's going on than anyone else does. 

Diane Baker and Martin Landau

The Ghost of Sierra de Cobre was the pilot for what was supposed to be a follow-up series to The Outer Limits, with the focus on horror and the supernatural instead of science fiction. I assume that Nelson Orion was to be a continuing character from week to week. It's too bad that that didn't work out for one reason or another, as it might have made a compelling series. Stefano's plot has some interesting twists and turns to it -- although it never seems quite real --  and skillfully blends the supernatural with other sinister events that have natural explanations. Stefano's direction -- he replaced the original director -- although good, isn't quite as assured, but Conrad Hall's expert cinematography helps smooth over the rough edges. 

Landau with Tom Simcox

Ghost features a generally excellent cast. Landau proves he could certainly handle the lead on any TV show, and Anderson, cast as yet another creepy housekeeper, rises above the stereotype and offers a highly proficient and intense performance as Paulina. Diane Baker isn't quite on the same level and seems a bit "off" at times, but is effective. Tom Simcox certainly gets into the mood as the handsome, haunted husband who is afraid he is going out of his mind. Nellie Burt is a burst of fresh air as the other, happier housekeeper. Orion makes a hasty date with a blonde on the beach -- nothing ever comes of this -- and the blonde is billed as Delores Starr, but I swear she looks just like Diane McBain. Simcox studied meditation with the Beatles in India!

Verdict: Creepy if flawed telefilm with good performances and a very interesting plot. ***. 

SMILE (2022)

 SMILE (2022). Written and directed by Parker Finn. 

After seeing a patient, Laura (Caitlin Stasey), commit suicide right in front of her, psychologist Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon), starts becoming paranoid. Laura was convinced that she was being stalked by an "entity" that could look like her or anyone else, and caused bad things to happen every time it appeared. Rose starts to act quite odd, causing anger and consternation in her self-absorbed sister, Holly (Gillian Zinser) and fiance Trevor (Jessie T. Usher). With the help of a detective and ex-boyfriend, Joel (Kyle Gallner), Rose discovers that there have been a whole series of suicides whose witnesses seem to take on the curse of the person who killed themselves. Apparently the only way Rose can get rid of the curse is by killing someone else -- in front of a witness ... The title refers to how the entity makes people/apparitions smile in a fearfully grotesque fashion. 

If Smile clocked in at about 80 minutes, it might have been a taut and effective horror film, but at nearly two hours, the deliberate pacing works against it. The premise is creepy but kind of familiar, and while the climax is quite well-done and spooky, it is also not that original. The entity looks quite horrifying, however. The acting and FX in this are good but the flick is just so so. Smile might have been more interesting if it had at least explored the possibility that a human agent was behind the bizarre goings-on. Sosie Bacon is the daughter of Kevin Bacon and Kyra Segwick -- she scratched and clawed her way to success! 

Verdict: Sometimes less is literally more! This might have been a knock-out if it didn't remind one of a dozen other previous movies. **1/2.   

POPULATION /436

POPULATION /436 (2006). Director: Michelle MacLaren. 

Census taker Steve Kady (Jeremy Sisto of Law and Order) shows up in the bucolic small town of Rockwell Falls, where he discovers that year after year the population remains exactly the same: 436 people. As Steve leisurely interviews the assorted townspeople, he finds himself falling for a pretty young lady, Courtney (Charlotte Sullivan), who happens to be keeping company with the friendly Deputy Caine (Fred Durst). Steve discovers that odd things are happening in Rockwell Falls and an act of sudden and shocking violence makes clear to him why the population always stays the same. The question is: can he and Courtney ever get out of the place? 

Jeremy Sisto

Population 436 borrows from numerous sources -- The Lottery, Harvest Home, The Stepford Wives, The Wicker Man and even Brigadoon -- but on its own terms it's a suspenseful story, bolstered by some good photography (Thomas Burstyn), music (Glenn Buhr), and good performances from Sisto and Durst (who is especially notable) and several members of the supporting cast. Maybe it's the overfamiliarity of the plot -- another "small town with a dread secret" -- or a lack of true intensity, a kind of TV movie feel, that keeps this from being more memorable, although it is nevertheless compelling for most of its length.

Verdict: Perhaps not quite top-notch but worth a look. **3/4.   

SATAN'S TRIANGLE

Doug McClure and Kim Novak

SATAN'S TRIANGLE (1975 telefilm). Director: Sutton Roley.

A Coast Guard copter comes across what appears to be a deserted yacht, although there are corpses -- and one live female -- on board. Lt. Haig (Doug McClure) tries to rescue Eva (Kim Novak) but the cable snaps before they can be lifted into the copter. Back on board, Eva tells Haig her story: they are in a part of the sea known as the Devil's Triangle, and supernatural things began to happen after a priest (Alejandro Rey), who survived a plane crash, is taken on board. Haig insists that there is a natural explanation for all of the deaths, including the sight of the corpse of the ship's wealthy owner, Hal (Jim Davis), which appears to be simply floating in mid-air in his cabin. But Haig may be in for a very rude awakening ... 

Alejandro Rey

Satan's Triangle is yet another movie about the Bermuda Triangle, even though it is never referred to by that name (nor as Satan's Triangle, either). It has a creepy premise and a good ending but the direction is so mediocre that what might have been a nail-biter is just another flaccid Movie-of-the-Week. We also have such cliches as the priest who councils a fallen woman, the former prostitute, Eva -- these two nearly make out in a scene which might at least have been interesting --  and some of the outdoor scenes seem to be shot through a smeared and grimy lens. The musical score is hopeless and aside from Rey and Michael Conrad as Haig's co-pilot the acting is generally poor as well. Rey portrayed the playboy in The Flying Nun TV series and he's quite effective in this. 

Verdict: Sort of like an EC comics horror story but not as good. **1/4. 

THE EVIL DEAD

THE EVIL DEAD (1981). Written and directed by Sam Raimi. 

Ashley (Bruce Campbell) and four friends travel to an isolated cabin in the woods where they discover and play a tape recording of incantations from the "Book of the Dead" which can resurrect demons. Which is exactly what happens. Before long -- and after one woman has apparently been raped by malevolent, moving roots -- the women in the party are possessed one by one by demonic forces that transform them and turn them into murderous, cackling hags that only dismemberment can kill. This is another in a long line of Exorcist-inspired films, and in its own way was also a bit influential, though it's much less impressive now than it seemed nearly thirty years ago. The movie, full of comic book gruesomeness, is like a nightmare come to life, and is sometimes effective and sometimes clumsy, often employing shock techniques that were old-fashioned even in 1981. Some feel the direction and camera work of the film are "masterful." Well ... not quite. Raimi's screenplay fails to provide three-dimensional characters. The true stars of the film are the FX people and the make up artists, whose work is excellent. Some of the acting is awkward, although Campbell isn't bad. The best scene has a paranoid Ash all alone in the cabin wondering what on earth is going to happen next. Raimi would go on to direct much better films. 

Verdict: Lively, once it gets going, but perhaps not lively enough. **1/2.

DARKNESS FALLS

Chaney Kley

DARKNESS FALLS (2003). Director: Jonathan Liebesman. 

When Kyle (Chaney Kley) was a boy, his mother was murdered by a ghastly figure who came out of the shadows. This figure is a vengeful witch, wrongly accused of child murder, who was known as the town of Darkness Falls' "tooth fairy" because of her loving habit of exchanging teeth for coins. Facially burned in a fire, and then burned to death at the stake, she places a curse on the town. Anyone who sees her face when she comes to get their teeth must die. 

Emma Caulfield Ford, Lee Cormie, Kley

Kyle has managed to stay out of the shadows, sleeping with the lights on and so on, until he reaches adulthood. His childhood friend, Caitlin (Emma Caulfield Ford) contacts him when it develops that her little brother, Michael (Lee Cormie), has also seen the witch's face and is absolutely terrified. As Kyle tries to do what he can to help Michael, others around him who see the witch are murdered, with Kyle becoming the prime suspect. This leads to an assault on a police station and a desperate struggle for Kyle, Caitlin, Michael and cop Matt (Sullivan Stapleton), who comes to believe Kyle's incredible story, to stay alive until daylight. 

Sullivan Stapleton as the cop

If I remember correctly, Darkness Falls did not get especially good reviews, mostly because they saw the villain as being the tooth fairy -- not quite the truth -- and couldn't take it seriously. Also the creepy scenes eventually gave way to action sequences that were generally well-done, although the supernatural element perhaps became too literal to be scary. However, the film is fast-paced, well-acted, and entertaining, so I don't think it deserved a critical drubbing, although I can certainly see why many viewers didn't care for it. As for the cast, Chaney Kley ironically and tragically died of sleep apnea when he was only thirty-four. Ford had many subsequent credits, as did Stapleton, now best-known as the super-butch FBI agent on the hit series Blindspot. Cormie was an appealing and talented child actor who is still working today. Liebesman also directed Wrath of the Titans. 

Verdict: No masterpiece, but hardly the train wreck some have called it. ***. 

DEAD SILENCE

Donnie Wahlberg with dummy

DEAD SILENCE (2007). Director: James Wan. 

Jamie Ashen (Ryan Kwanten) and his wife, Lisa (Laura Regan), receive a box containing a ventriloquist's dummy. Not much later, Lisa is horribly murdered, and Jamie -- at least as far as Detective Lipston (Donnie Wahlberg) is concerned -- is the chief suspect. But Jamie thinks he might get answers if he goes back home to the town of Ravens Fair where there is a local legend about an evil and dead ventriloquist named Mary Shaw. Then more killings, similar to Lisa's death, begin to occur ... 

Ryan Kwanten

When I first saw the dummy in this movie I was afraid Dead Silence was going to be just a knock-off of Child's Play/Chucky, but fortunately that isn't the case, as this has a completely different storyline (albeit dolls do play a significant role). Dead Silence isn't perfect, but it is a slick, classy horror-thriller with first-rate cinematography (John R. Leonetti) and an exciting, sinister score (Charlie Clouser). 

Whatcha lookin' at? 

With all the actors waiting tables in Hollywood, I'm surprised the producers chose Ryan Kwanten as the lead because, in this at least, he can best be described as mediocre -- he's just not much of an actor. Donnie Wahlberg is better as the detective, even if his role of a world-weary, cynical cop is beyond a cliche these days. The best work probably comes from Michael Fairman as the local undertaker, although there is also good work from Joan Heney as his terrified sister, Bob Gunten as Jamie's father, and Amber Valletta as his step-mother, Ella. Judith Roberts certainly makes an impression as Mary Shaw. James Wan also directed the first Saw movie as well as Aquaman and the surprisingly awful The Conjuring. 

Verdict: Despite flaws, this is one of the better 21st century horror flicks. ***. 

THE HOUSE IN MARSH ROAD

Tony Wright and Patricia Dainton

THE HOUSE IN MARSH ROAD (1960). Director: Montgomery Tully. 

David Linton (Tony Wright) is a struggling novelist who lives off of his increasingly impatient wife, Jean (Patricia Dainton). Jean inherits a lovely if somewhat rundown country house -- Four Winds -- from her aunt, which means no more paying of rent, but even that doesn't satisfy David. The house is supposedly haunted by a poltergeist that the housekeeper, Mrs. O'Brien (Anita Sharp-Bolster), calls "Patrick," only because he reminds her of her late husband. As David concocts a plot to do away with Jean for her money and property so that he can be with sexy typist Valerie (Sandra Dorne), Patrick keeps interfering ...

The acting is good in Marsh Road, with Sharp-Bolster perhaps making the best impression as the peppery servant who always speaks her mind. It's an entertaining enough time-passer with a truly despicable protagonist in David. There is an interesting score by John Veale. 

Verdict: Acceptable British suspense film with supernatural overtones. **1/2.