THE LODGER (2009)

Simon Baker as mysterious Malcolm

THE LODGER (2009). Writer/director: David Ondaatje. Loosely based on the novel by Marie Belloc Lowndes.

In West Hollywood Ellen Bunting (Hope Davis) and her husband (Donal Logue) rent a room to a handsome writer named Malcolm (Simon Baker), whom Ellen is strongly drawn to. Meanwhile Detective Chandler Manning (Alfred Molina of Spider-Man 2) and rookie detective Street Wilkinson (Shane West) investigate grisly slayings of prostitutes which first remind them of the work of a convicted and executed killer who may have been innocent, and then seem to be copycat killings of Jack the Ripper. Oddly, the same year this was released British television came out with the superior Whitechapel: The Ripper Returns which also had a copycat Jack the Ripper. Another similarity is that both of these stories pair a grizzled veteran with a new, much younger cop, whom the veteran assumes is gay but turns out (supposedly) not to be (Wilkinson lets Manning's dumb homophobic remarks just slide). Since there are gay cops it might have been more refreshing if Wilkinson had really been gay, and it makes little sense that he allows the obnoxious Manning to think he is without correcting him. What The Lodger has going for it is that it delivers a couple of unexpected and clever twists at the end, but unfortunately it never really delivers the much-needed tension or suspense due to directorial slackness, and the characters aren't that well developed; Manning is unsympathetic as well. The performances are good, however. Tasmanian actor Baker starred as The Mentalist on CBS for several years.

Verdict: Worth a look for the ending if nothing else. **1/2.

THE CARD PLAYER

THE CARD PLAYER (aka Il cartaio/2004). Director: Dario Argento.

A maniac who kidnaps women wants to play poker with the police with the stakes being the life of the woman he holds captive, all played out over the Internet. Rome police inspector Anna Mari (Stefania Rocca) and John Brennan (Liam Cunningham) from Interpol are the team trying to find the women and stop the "card player;" they enlist the aid of a young poker expert named Remo (Silvio Muccino). The Card Player is different from a lot of Argento's shockers in that it's a fairly straight-forward crime thriller, which boasts a tense, exciting climax on the train tracks. It is also a lot better than some of the other films Argento made during this later period. Some Argento fans -- gore geeks -- hated it because it wasn't gruesome enough.

Verdict: Absorbing and suspenseful for the most part. ***.

CHILDREN OF THE DAMNED

Beware Their Stare!

CHILDREN OF THE DAMNED (1964). Director: Anton Leader. Colorized.  

Psychologist Dr. Tom Llewellyn (Ian Hendry) and geneticist Dr. David Neville (Alan Badel) are amazed at the incredible intelligence of a young boy named Paul (Clive Powell). They discover that Paul is only one of a half dozen special and unemotional children from around the world, all of whom have come to London for testing. In each case the mother is unstable and there is no sign of a father. Eventually the telepathic children -- what one knows they all know -- band together, holing up in an abandoned church, and use their mind-control powers to kill anyone they perceive as a threat. Although at first the children are seen as a separate species, it is later theorized that they are about a million years ahead of ordinary humans in development. Tom and David literally come to blows arguing about the children, with David convinced they are a menace that must be destroyed and Tom hoping to fully communicate with them. It is a question who will be decimated first: the children, or the forces who come to kill them. 

Ian Hendry and Alan Badel

Children of the Damned is not really a sequel to Village of the Damned, but a completely different movie that uses some of the same concepts of the original picture while creating many of its own. In Village the children were essentially the vanguard of an alien invasion, but there's absolutely no mention of extraterrestrials in Children. Instead these six urchins are mutants with special powers but apparently no special purpose. However, they are not about to lay down and die, building a weapon utilizing the vibratory power of an organ to destroy the minds of armed invaders in the church in a very unnerving  sequence. Another good sequence is a triple murder by three men who are under mind-control, and the entire climax, a breathlessly edited standoff between the military and the children that ends in utter disaster. 

The kids and Barbara Ferris

Unfortunately, Children of the Damned has perhaps too many ideas percolating in its screenplay by John Briley. There's the carry over from Village with its dichotomy of little monsters with sweet, angelic faces, the need for mankind to protect itself versus the loathsome notion of killing children. The church setting, and especially the resurrection of one of the children after being shot, summons up thoughts of religious martyrdom and the like, even the Second Coming. The children seem to be praying at one point but we don't know to whom. One critic felt that Hendry and Badel are playing a gay couple, and the latter's hostile attitude toward the children is because Hendry seems to be drawing closer to Paul's aunt, Susan (Barbara Ferris), but I think this is a mighty big stretch. 

Clive Powell as Paul

The acting in the film is generally excellent, with especially nice work from Sheila Allen as the neurotic virgin mother of Paul. Alfred Burke is Colin Webster, a government man who decides to insert himself into the situation. Bessie Love is briefly seen as the grandmother of one of the children. Hendry and Badel play with real conviction, and Ferris manages to convey some anguish and confusion as the woman who spends half her time being controlled by her nephew and the others. One has to say that this film, including its predecessor and the novel, "Midwich Cuckoos" upon which it was derived, were highly influential: Stephen King's "Carrie," John Farris' "The Furies," and Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's X-Men all come to mind.

Verdict: Slow in spots, much too obtuse and muddled, but with an undeniably effective and powerful climax. **3/4. 

BEASTS

BEASTS. Liam Sykes. Echo Horror. 

Erica Rogers is disturbed by the fact that her horses are acting strangely and can't figure out why. There is also bizarre, inexplicable behavior among the horses in Nevada where a young man named Rory makes his home. Eventually wild mustangs and other horses band together to literally wipe Rory's town off the map in an exciting chapter entitled "Stampede." As for Erica, one of her horses kills a little girl, as well as her mother, while the rest of her formerly docile mounts attack her, her mother, and her cousin. The horses even develop a taste for human flesh! There are more bloody encounters at county fairs and race tracks even as Erica tries to track down the people responsible for this equine outrage. 

This book is a reissue of a vintage "killer animal" paperback from the eighties and it is a lot of fun. Horses may seem unlikely antagonists, but the beasts in this book have been transformed and are extremely nasty and dangerous, and even undergo some physical changes. The author can't quite seem to make up his mind if it's a chemical, a plague, or supernatural influences that are responsible for the attacks -- or all three -- but it doesn't really matter. The paperback is available from Amazon and Barnes and Noble and the ebook is on Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and others. 

Verdict: Be careful whom you give a sugar cube to! ***

THE KILLING HOUR

Norman Parker and Perry King

THE KILLING HOUR (aka The Clairvoyant/1982). Director: Armand Mastroianni. 

The corpse of a handcuffed prostitute is found in the Hudson river, and then a series of men, also handcuffed, are murdered in various ways. Detective Larry Weeks (Norman Parker) and his causal friend, TV journalist Paul "Mac" McCormack (Perry King), both try to unveil the killer using different methods. Each man gets involved professionally and romantically with an artist and psychic named Verna (Elizabeth Kemp), who has visions of the murders which she transposes into artwork. But once the killer finds out about this ability, will she become a target?

Elizabeth Kemp with Perry King

Although The Killing Hour can be slow-paced, it does have an interesting storyline and works up some suspense towards the end. One could argue, however, that the revelation of the killer's identity makes this person's actions a little inexplicable. Parker and King both give very good performances -- the detective is also an aspiring stand-up comic and there are scenes at New York's Comic Strip nightclub  (which is still open today). Kemp and other cast members, including Kenneth McMillan as a grumpy chief detective, give okay performances. The murder sequences are bloodless and tasteful (almost too much so), and one especially diabolical trap has a man handcuffed by the ankle to a ladder in a swimming pool, causing him to drown. 

Verdict: Passable suspense thriller with some good performances. **3/4.  

M3GAN 2.0

Gemma and M3gan

M3GAN 2.0 (2025). Director: Gerard Johnstone. 

In this sequel to the unremarkable M3gan, the robot's inventor, Gemma (Allison Williams), discovers -- when FBI agents knock on her door -- that there is a rogue government android, Amelia (Ovanna Sakhno), who seems to have developed her own agenda. Gemma is accused of being behind this, and even of being a traitor. Then she learns that M3gan's consciousness might still be active -- could she be of help or only cause more trouble? This all leads to the complicated unraveling of a terrible conspiracy ... 

Ovanna Sakhno and Jemaine Clemont

M3gan 2.0 is one of the only movies that I found entertaining and yet boring at the same time! For one thing, at two hours it is way too long. There is a lot of messy, often dull and silly running around to what seems like little purpose. The snippets of humor are sometimes genuinely amusing, however. Jemaine Clemont is quite funny and adept as shady tech billionaire Alton Appleton and Aristotle Athari scores as Gemma's friend and colleague, Christian. Jenna Davis and Sakhno are perfect as the wily robots. The frequent discussions of artificial intelligence, especially its dangers, are often interesting. The large supporting cast is game. But this is nothing that I would ever want to sit through again. 

Verdict: Both savvy and dumb. **1/4. 

THE NANNY

THE NANNY (1965). Director: Seth Holt. Screenplay by Jimmy Sangster.

A ten-year-old boy, Joey Fane (William Dix), suspected of being responsible for the drowning death of his younger sister, comes home from an institution and gets into a battle of wits with the middle-aged nanny (Bette Davis) -- in the process testing the patience of his stern father (James Villiers) and fragile, emotionally-devastated mother (Wendy Craig). But does his hatred of the nanny perhaps have a basis in reality? This very suspenseful movie keeps you guessing nearly until the end, and Davis' excellent performance (for once her latter-day affected style works to her advantage) doesn't give it away. Little Dix, a remarkably confident and talented child actor, is more than a match for Davis, and the other performances, including that of Jill Bennett as his aunt with a weak heart, are all very effective. Pamela Franklin is also good as a young upstairs neighbor who wonders if it's nanny or little Joey who's nuts. Very interesting story with a moving finale. Dix later appeared in Doctor Doolittle but his career did not continue into adulthood. 

Verdict: This is one of Hammer studios' best pictures. ***. 

THE BRIDES OF FU MANCHU

Christopher Lee and Tsai Chin

THE BRIDES OF FU MANCHU (1966). Director: Don Sharp. 

In this sequel to The Face of Fu Manchu, the diabolical Chinese doctor (Christopher Lee of Alias John Preston) is kidnapping the daughters of prominent scientists so that he can force their fathers to work on a devastating weapon with which he hopes to conquer the world. His chief adversary, of course, is Nayland Smith (Douglas Wilmer), accompanied by Dr. Petrie (Howard Marion-Crawford), while Fu's assistants include his daughter Lin Tang (Tsai Chin), the faithful Feng (Burt Kwouk), and the quisling Nikki Sheldon (Harald Leipnitz of The Sinister Monk). Franz Baumer (Heinz Drache) takes the place of one of the fathers so that he can lead Smith to the Temple of Karna where the prisoners are held and Fu has the controls for his weapon. Fu succeeds in vaporizing one ship and all of its passengers -- we see little children playing on the boat deck before this happens -- and has set his sights on destroying all of the participants in a political conference unless he can be stopped ... 

Douglas Wilmer

With a wealth of material from Sax Rohmer's atmospheric, detailed, and suspenseful novels about Fu Manchu, it's a shame that the British films featuring the character are comparatively bland and tame. Sure, we have one poor woman thrown into a pit of vipers, but Brides has none of the outre creatures or torture devices employed by Fu in the books. The super-weapon the scientists develop is pretty lame, especially when you compare it to similar devices in spy movies of the period. As usual Fu himself is completely one-dimensional, where there was more substance to him in the novels. 

The "brides," Carole Gray, Rupert Davies

Brides is a step down from Face of Fu Manchu, which was also directed by Don Sharp. The only real period atmosphere is provided by the automobiles, and the film has little urgency or real excitement. As Nayland Smith, Wilmer is okay, but not as good as Nigel Green in the first film. Lee is also okay, but seems a bit disinterested, treading water -- he would get worse. An interesting, if under-developed character is Abdul (Salmaan Peerzada) who surreptitiously works against Fu Manchu and does his best to help the shanghaied ladies. Carole Gray plays Michelle, one of the women, and Rupert Davies is her father. All in all, it's just a bit bleh. 

Verdict: Acceptable but minor-league Fu film. **1/2. 

THE SECRET OF THE BLACK WIDOW

Karin Dor

THE SECRET OF THE BLACK WIDOW (aka Das Geiheimnis der Schwarzen Witwe/1963). Director: Franz Josef Gottlieb.  

In London a tippling reporter named Welby (O. W. Fischer) angers his bosses by writing lurid articles about a series of murders. The victims are taken out by a poisoned dart that is fired by a blow gun and has a rubber spider at the end. The paper Welby works for is owned by a group of men who are the victims of the unknown killer. Years ago, these men were on an expedition in Mexico which discovered a horde of Aztec treasure -- their leader, Avery, was murdered. It turns out that a secretary named Clarisse (Karin Dor) is Avery's daughter, and suspicion soon falls upon her. Is Clarisse the Black Widow, or is someone else responsible for the deaths?

Klaus Kinski, O. W. Fischer

The Secret of the Black Widow is a West German thriller that for once is not based on a story by Edgar Wallace, although it's very, very much like something Wallace would come up with. In addition to Dor, the film is full of familiar faces from other krimi movies: Klaus Kinski as a mysterious man who appears now and then to get Welby out of danger; Eddi Arent as a bumbling public servant, the usual comedy relief; Werner Peters as Osborne, Welby's direct superior; and others. At times the film is much sillier than it needs to be, the climax is dragged out to a tedious degree, but there is some suspense and the true identity of the Black Widow is a bit of a surprise. Franz Josef Gottlieb also directed the similarly mediocre Curse of the Hidden Vault. 

Verdict: Acceptable West German crime thriller. **1/2. 

THE STRANGE COUNTESS

Brigitte Grothum, Lil Dagover, and Eddi Arent

THE STRANGE COUNTESS (aka Sie seltsame Grafin/1961). Directors: Josef von Baky; Jurgen Roland; Ottokar Runze.

Margaret (Brigitte Grothum) receives menacing phone calls from a strange man (Klaus Kinski), is nearly killed on more than one occasion, and decides to accept a job offer from Countess Luana Moran (Lil Dagover) to become her new secretary. Margaret had previously worked for the countess' lawyer, Shaddle (Fritz Rasp), who importunes Inspector Dorn (Joachim Fuchsberger) to watch out for her as he feels she's in danger. This proves true even when Margaret arrives at the countess' imposing castle, and meets her son, Selwyn (Eddi Arent), the strange Dr. Tappan (Rudolf Fernau), and the oily Chesney Praye (Richard Haussler), among others. If a near-death incident on a collapsing balcony weren't enough, Margaret learns that Mary Pinder (Marianne Hoppe), a woman who served twenty years for poisoning someone, is her biological mother and is coming to work at the castle! Time to seek new employment, perhaps? 

Grothum with Joachim Fuchsberger

This is another West German thriller based on a novel by Edgar Wallace. With mysterious countesses and castles, sinister psychiatric clinics, and a hero who doesn't clue the heroine in as to what's going on and therefore manages to frighten her as much as the bad guys, Strange Countess betrays its thirties origins. While you may develop some interest as to why Margaret is on somebody's hit list, the movie never becomes gripping, although the actors are certainly game. Lil Dagover was a German actress who had a very long career and who appeared in the original silent Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. 

Verdict: Despite a dozen or so people running around in all directions this never becomes that interesting. **. 

DEADLY INHERITANCE

Tom Drake and Valeria Ciangottini

DEADLY INHERITANCE (aka Omicidio per vocazione/1968). Director: Vittorio Sindoni. 

When Oscar (Arnaldo De Angelis), the supposedly poor patriarch of a family, is killed, it turns out that he was actually wealthy. However his will has a stipulation that none of his daughters -- Simone (Femu Benussi), Rosalie (Giovanna Lenzi) and Colette (Valeria Ciangottini) -- are entitled to anything until their adoptive brother, Janot (Ernesto Colli), turns twenty-one in three years. This does not sit well with Rosalie's husband, Leon (Ivo Garrani), who has serious debts, while Simone is hoping to give her married lover, Jules (Isarco Ravaioli), enough money to divorce his shrewish wife, Natalie (Alessandra Maravia). When some of these people wind up dead, Inspector Greville (Tom Drake of Date with Disaster), assisted by Etienne (Virgilio Gazzolo), has to find out who the killer is. 

Drake with Femi Benussi

Deadly Inheritance suffers from too much padding -- a business involving one of the main suspects running away from the police -- and running and running -- goes on forever, for instance -- and it doesn't have much style or directorial panache. Some of the acting is amateurish as well. What this Italian nominal giallo film has going for it is an absorbing plot and a couple of good and unexpected twists at the end (although they are a bit far-fetched). An unintentionally comical scene has a character lighting a candle to walk up a supposedly dark staircase only the staircase is so brightly lit that it's like daylight! 

Verdict: Unexceptional but watchable Italian thriller. **1/2. 

THE COLLEGE-GIRL MURDERS

Another mad monk with a whip on the loose!

THE COLLEGE-GIRL MURDERS (aka Der Monch mit der Peitsche/1967). Director: Alfred Vohrer.

Frank Keeney (Siegfried Rauch) is spirited out of jail by corrupt prison staff so he can become a paid killer for an unknown figure who keeps alligators in a pen on his property. Keeney is given a special gun that fires a stream combining gas with acid so that he can kill several co-eds at a girls college run by Harriet Foster (Tilly Lauenstein). If that weren't enough a man in a monk's outfit and carrying a whip murders people just as was done in The Sinister Monk, a film that is referenced in this one. Inspector Higgins (Joachim Fuchsberger) teams up with the rather buffoonish Sir John (Siegfried Schurenberg) to try to unravel a very strange, indeed, utterly absurd -- but very entertaining -- Edgar Wallace mystery. 

Siegfried Rauch

This is another in a series of West German thrillers based on the works of prolific British author Edgar Wallace. College-Girl Murders comes from "The Black Abbot," but somehow I doubt that it's a particularly faithful adaptation. This version has added "euro-spy" elements with secret super-villains in elaborate HQs, weird weapons, and as usual, enough plot for five movies. (Schurenberg's Sir John appears in most of the Wallace adaptations.) The musical score is not off-putting, the pace is fast, the acting is generally good, there are numerous suspects, and the identity of the masterminds comes as a bit of a surprise (although you may not quite buy it). A plot element is "borrowed" from Agatha Christie's "ABC Murders." 

Verdict: Wild and crazy caper from West Germany. **3/4. 

SERPENT ISLAND

Mary Munday and Sonny Tufts

SERPENT ISLAND (1954). Written and directed by Tom Gries. Produced,  photographed, and edited by Bert I. Gordon. 

Pete Mason (Sonny Tufts) is a laid-back sailor who knows a lot about Haiti, and is importuned to sign on as a crew member for the dyspeptic Kirk Ellis (Tom Monroe). He is doing this at the request of Ricki Andre (Mary Munday), who insists that there is a treasure in Haiti that belongs to her family  -- all somebody has to do is find it. The three set sail and have a number of arguments, even as different people keep trying to steal a letter that has clues to the treasure's location. Pete suggests that the treasure is not on Haiti, but on a nearby island, where he re-encounters a woman named Ann Christoff (Rosalind Hayes) and her sinister, machete-wielding companion Jacques (Don Blackman). But then there's also a malevolent boa constrictor to deal with.

Ricki "struggles" with a boa constrictor

Be forewarned that the above synopsis makes Serpent Island sound more interesting than it actually is. In fact for most of its length it's an indifferently photographed (by Bert I. Gordon) travelogue with scenes of supposed Haitian ceremonies that seem to go on forever. The sequence when Ricki wrestles with a large boa is unintentionally hysterical. The acting is actually okay, with a feisty Munday going on to have many more credits. Don Blackman has a striking presence and also had several future credits. Tufts, who became better-known for his off-screen drunken shenanigans than for his acting, is perfectly convincing as the laconic Pete. Bert I. Gordon switched from photography to directing and helmed quite a few movies that are much more entertaining than this. Munday and director Gries were married after filming. 

Verdict: A real stink bomb. *.

INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL

Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones

INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL (2008). Director: Steven Spielberg. 

In 1957 some Russians, led by Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett), attack a U.S. military base and carry off an artifact that is stored there. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) manages to survive the attack, and even lives through an atomic test by sheltering inside a refrigerator in a model town filled with dummies. Teaming up with a young man named "Mutt" (Shia LaBeouf) he later learns that his mother is Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) and that Mutt is his son. The whole group, along with Irina and her boys and an addle-pated Professor Oxley (John Hurt) ,wind up in South America, where they discover the hidden "El Dorado" as well as the remnants of alien beings who have skulls made of crystal. Or something like that. 

Ford, Allen, Blanchett

The trouble these days with the Indiana Jones movies, which were originally imitations of the classic cliffhanger serials, is that there have been so many imitations and rip-offs of the franchise -- everything from the National Treasure movies to the Da Vince Code and so on and so on -- that any originality has been completely eradicated. The very over-familiar elements in this include grumpy Jones' relationships with ex-girlfriend and son, the maps and codes that will lead to the treasure, the aliens (who resemble the monster in Alien in some ways as well as the aliens in Close Encounters), the locales that we've all seen before etc. etc. There is absolutely nothing fresh and new in the film. Obsessive fans probably won't care, finding the cliches comforting and endearing. 

LaBeouf and Ford

Steven Spielberg directs by the numbers. I've often felt that the FX people and cinematographers do all the work, actually, in some movies like this. Some of the action sequences in Crystal Skull are quite well-done -- not always the case in heroic thrillers -- but you are always getting the sensation that it's all stuff you've seen many times before -- the amazing leaps, the foolhardy jumps into space, driving off of cliffs etc. Is there anything unusual about any of this? The movie does have, for me at least, one knock-out sequence, and that's when the characters are besieged by very large and voracious ants who move with frightening swiftness. (Of course, there's nothing original about that, either, but it does look great!) The underground sets look too new and are always over-lit, making them much less creepy than they could have been. 

Allen, Ford and Hurt

As for the actors, well Ford could probably play this part while asleep. Blanchett is effective, although she seems to be channeling Natasha from Rocky and Bullwinkle most of the time. Allen remains perky and attractive in her way. It is probably not LaBeouf's fault that Mutt comes off as being rather obnoxious through much of the movie. I found the whole flick too cutesy and obvious by far and was annoyed that a sequence at the very end rips off Journey to the Center of the Earth. 

Verdict: You'll swear you've already seen this even if you haven't. **1/2. 

OSS 117: MISSION FOR A KILLER

Frederick Stafford

OSS 117: MISSION FOR A KILLER (aka Furia a Bahia pour OSS 117/1965.) Director: Andre Hunebelle. 

After a series of suicide bombings which seem to be committed by solid citizens who have been drugged, Agent 117 (Frederick Stafford) is sent down to Rio to investigate. There he meets two lovely ladies: supposed secretary Consuela (Perrette Predier), who's in league with the bad guys, and Ana-Maria (Mylene Demongeot), who is being targeted by them because she knows too much. Ana-Maria and her brother Miguel (Jacques Riberolles) are friends with a man named Leandro (Raymond Pellegrin) who may or may not be in league with Carlos (Francois Maistre), who wants to bring about a New World Order from his base in the jungles of Brazil. 

Stafford, Demongeot, Riberolles

After Kerwin Mathews finished two OSS 117 films for director Andre Hunebelle, the latter discovered Czech actor Stafford and cast him as the secret agent in his first movie. Like Mathews, Stafford plays a super-cool, seemingly unflappable and mostly unemotional  spy. While he isn't better in the role than Mathews, he does seem a touch more likable. In addition to widescreen photography and color, the film greatly benefits from intriguing and colorful locales and some spectacular scenery. 

Spectacular scenery

Mission for a Killer has several memorable scenes: a gunman opens fire in an operating theater, killing the patient, shooting doctors and nurses, and nearly killing 117 and Ana-Maria. There's a terrific sequence in which a felon uses a flame thrower on 117 and doesn't care if he burns up his own partner or the entire house. Then there's a lively battle on a plane over the Amazon where the balance of power quickly shifts from one side to the other and back again. A climax on a waterfall boasts a truly spectacular setting. While Mission for a Killer isn't quite up to the level of the best of the Bonds, it is still a superior eurospy movie. Stafford later starred in Alfred Hitchcock's Topaz. Followed by OSS 117: Mission to Tokyo. In French, with English sub-titles.

Verdict: Smooth, fast-paced entertaining spy stuff. ***. 

HOUSE OF A THOUSAND DOLLS

George Nader, Martha Hyer and Vincent Price

HOUSE OF A THOUSAND DOLLS (aka House of 1000 Dolls/1967). Director: Jeremy Summers. 

Dr. Stephen Armstrong (George Nader of Sins of Jezebel) and his wife, Marie (Ann Smryner), are vacationing in Tangier when their friend, Fernando (Sancho Gracia), tells them that he's searching for his missing fiancee, Diane (Maria Rohm). Diane was last seen in Vienna where she was made to disappear by stage magician Manderville (Vincent Price) and his assistant, Rebecca (Martha Hyer of First Men in the Moon) -- and she was never seen again. Diane has been shanghaied to the House of 1000 Dolls, a house of prostitution where most of the kidnapped girls are forced to service wealthy clients and are mistreated by the staff, including Madame Viera (Yelena Samarina). When Fernando is found murdered, Stephen begins his own investigation, but he doesn't realize that this will cause a lot of trouble for himself and his wife ... 

Magician Manderville (right) checks out Dr. Armstrong

House of a Thousand Dolls, whose villains are truly loathsome, has a certain sinister atmosphere throughout and holds the attention, if for no other reason than you hope to see the bad guys get their comeuppance at the finish. Manderville, Rebecca, and the others report to a mysterious King of Hearts whose identity isn't revealed until the end. The actors are all professional, although Price -- probably contemplating which piece of art he will buy with his paycheck -- doesn't put himself out too much. Luis Rivera makes an impression as Fernando's sexy friend, Paul. For some reason Stephen is remarkably obnoxious to the police inspector (Wolfgang Kieling of Our Man in Jamaica) in the case, which seems foolish for someone who may need the man's help in the future. There's a fairly exciting chase scene with two desperadoes pursuing Stephen through a series of interesting locations (the film was actually shot mostly in Spain). Reportedly a racier version of the flick was shown in Europe. The villains in this don't really get the vicious fates they so richly deserve. 

Verdict: Minor but entertaining and smooth Euro-thriller. ***.  

PUZZLE

PUZZLE (aka L'uomo sensa memoria/1974.) Director: Duccio Tessari. 

A man who calls himself Peter White (Luc Merenda) has had amnesia ever since he was in a bad car accident. He is told that his real name is Ted and that he has a wife named Sarah (Senta Berger), whom he believes has sent for him. As he struggles to remember his past, which clearly includes criminal activity, he, Sarah, a little neighbor boy named Luca (Duilio Cruciani) and a doctor-friend named Daniel Reinhardt (Umberto Orsini) become the targets of a nasty character named George (Bruno Carazzari). George is convinced that Ted knows the location of something that is worth a million dollars, and he wants it -- or else!

Puzzle is considered by many to be a giallo film but it lacks the mad, mysterious killer, the fiendish murders, and so on that distinguish the genre. This is simply an Italian mystery that despite some good scenes is rather mediocre and even a bit dull. The dubbed cast go through their paces competently, however. The most lovable cast member is the cute little dog Whiskey, who, unfortunately, comes to a bad end. There are a couple of decent fight scenes, and at the climax, which has some suspense, a chainsaw figures in the action. 

Verdict: Basically bloodless so-called giallo really isn't worth your time. **. 

LADY OF VENGEANCE

LADY OF VENGEANCE (1957). Director: Burt Balaban. 

William Marshall (Dennis O'Keefe), a tough American publisher in England, importunes a criminal mastermind, Karnak (Anton Diffring of Circus of Horrors), to plan the execution of the man he holds responsible for his pretty young ward, Melissa's, suicide-by-train. Obviously there are assorted complications. This movie is on the level of a TV production, with lots of unanswered questions, and a twist that sharp viewers will probably see coming. O'Keefe is well cast, even if he isn't quite up to his more emotional scenes. Ann Sears is lovely as the secretary who has long been in love with him. Anton Diffring is as sneeringly effective as ever as the ever-superior, stamp-collecting Karnak. Vernon Greeves is properly oily as the make-out artist and musician who dallies with Melissa. This isn't terrible, just not much to rave about. 

Verdict: Flaccid suspenser. **.

SHE DEVIL

Mari Blanchard

SHE DEVIL (1957). Director: Kurt Neumann. 

Dr. Dan Scott (Jack Kelly of Cult of the Cobra) is convinced that all animals have the ability to heal themselves, and has come up with a miracle serum derived from fruit flies. His associate and friend Dr. Richard Bach (Albert Dekker of Gammera, the Invincible) warns him against testing it on humans, but they both agree there is no harm in testing it on a hopeless case, a dying woman named Kyra (Mari Blanchard). The serum not only saves Kyra's life, but gives her amazing healing properties as well. To study any further effects of the serum, Kyra agrees to move in with the two men -- the maid Hannah (Marie Blake) will serve as chaperone -- but they soon discover that Kyra has a decidedly ruthless and opportunistic nature. 

Marie Blake displays her opinion of Kyra's painting

She Devil should have been a fun movie, but it lacks energy and real viciousness and never fully exploits its potential. One gets the impression that Kyra -- who has a hard-luck story we never really get to hear -- was a sociopathic personality long, long before Dr. Scott administered his magical elixir, but this never occurs to the scientists. Despite the elixir being derived from fruit flies, Kyra never starts crawling across the ceiling or turning part-bug as The Wasp Woman does -- or as the hero does in The Fly, also directed by Kurt Neumann -- although that certainly might have been amusing. Blanchard plays the sexy hard-boiled, one-dimensional Kyra as well as anyone could, supported by a bland Kelly and an earnest Dekker. Marie Blake, herein billed as "Blossom Rock" as she was later on The Addams Family TV show, has one of her best and biggest roles and is very funny as the disapproving maid Marie, especially when she reacts to a painting of Kyra that she gives cast-off lover Dr. Scott as a wedding present. 

Jack Kelly and Albert Dekker

Two other significant roles in the film are played by John Archer and Fay Baker, the former as Barton Kendall, a wealthy suitor -- and then husband -- of Kyra's and the latter as the former's outraged wife, Evelyn, who is helped into eternity by the actions of the second Mrs. Archer. Although the score by Sawtell and Shefter at times tries to work up some pathos, sympathy, for Kyra (in the hopes that it was the serum that made her evil, as unlikely as that might be), the movie is too junky to really make anything of this. In fact, She Devil would have been a much more worthwhile watch if it was even more lurid and sensational. Paul Cavanagh shows up briefly as a wealthy man Kyra assaults and robs in a dress shop. Kurt Neumann also directed They Were So Young. 

NOTE: The same source material was used for an episode of Science Fiction Theater, "Beyond Return," that aired two years earlier. 

Verdict: Too tame by far. **. 

THE SEA SERPENT

The pop-eyed serpent of The Sea Serpent

THE SEA SERPENT (aka Serpiente de mar/1985). Writer/Director: Gregory Greens (Amando de Ossorio).

Pedro Fontan (Timothy Bottoms) loses his licence as ship's captain and may go to jail for claiming that his ship was sunk by a sea monster. Linares (Jared Martin), who didn't see the creature, insists to a board of review that Pedro was drunk. Pedro was also captain of another ship that sunk, and Linares' sister died. Leaning of a woman, Margaret (Taryn  Power), who was institutionalized after seeing her friend devoured by the creature, Pedro goes to see her and sneaks her out of the hospital. The two then contact Professor Wallace (Ray Milland), who after initial distrust, believes their stories and decides to help them track down the sea monster, which was apparently created or revived when the military activated and dropped an atomic bomb in the ocean to keep it out of the hands of the enemy (!). 

Bottoms, Power, Milland

If you're hoping for a classic sea monster movie like The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms or a not-quite-classic like The Giant Behemoth -- and this movie borrows many elements from both films -- be warned that The Sea Serpent is nowhere near that level. The screenplay itself is by no means terrible, and there is at least an attempt at characterization, but the movie is almost defeated by the rather silly-looking monster. Not a "sock puppet" as many have described it, the creature has a full-size prop head large enough for certain actors to fit inside its mouth. (The scenes of the beast gobbling down supporting cast members eventually become comical.) The monster is quite large, with a very long, snake-like, slithering body that in one genuinely creepy scene winds itself around and around a lighthouse. The climax involving a bridge and a helicopter is somewhat exciting as well, if only the budget and the FX had been up to the challenge. The protagonists in the movie seem less interested in fully destroying the monster than they are in simply chasing it away so it can become somebody else's problem! Nice!

Bottoms and Power

One might suggest that the performances in the film are better than the movie deserves. Although most of the actors are dubbed, it appears as if the four leads were allowed to use their own voices. One has to say that this cheapie-creepy certainly has an interesting cast: Bottoms from The Last Picture Show; Martin from TV's Dallas; Milland, a Best Actor Oscar-winner for The Lost Weekend; and Tyrone Power's daughter, Taryn, from Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger. I wonder if they knew what the monster with its decidedly limited movement would look like while they were filming? It's one of the least convincing monsters since the big bird of The Giant Claw. 

The Sea Serpent was Milland's last theatrical film. Power only made one more film out of ten. Bottoms' career survived this flop and he is still acting and producing today. Martin passed away in 2017 at age 75. 

Verdict: Not completely atrocious, but hardly one of the better efforts in the genre. **.