While it's lumped into the giallo genre this is certainly no mystery since we're introduced to the murderer right away. It is a sorta variation on Hitchcock's STRANGERS ON A TRAIN(a cigarette lighter even comes into play) where George Hilton blackmails our killer, that he oversees dumping a body, into offing his wife. Things don't exactly go as planned and there are a few twists and turns which is more typical of a giallo. It's also one of the best movies director Luigi Cozzi ever made. He would go on to do a lot of silly trashy films throughout the 1980s including those dumb Lou Ferrigno HERCULES movies. AKA DARK IS DEATH'S FRIEND
Allegedly Cozzi wanted to call the film THE SPIDER and that is what it's titled on some video releases in a couple of other countries.
The first movie in this Swedish series was a great combo of thriller/horror/action and drama while the 2nd film, THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE, leaned more heavily into the all-out crazy action-movie genre this one course corrects to more of an all-around action/thriller similar to the first film and is a great way to tie everything up. It's kind of crazy that all 3 of these films were made so quickly and were released within the same year in Sweden, especially since they're all so long. There are 2 versions of this one out there, the theatrical 2 and a half hour cut and TV version that clocks in at over 3 hours!
I've never seen the Americanized version of the original movie, released only 1 year after the Swedish one was released in America, and it seems really pointless but perhaps because it was done by David Fincher it won't be as disappointing as I suspect.
In 2018 there was another American film based on this book series, THE GIRL IN THE SPIDER'S WEB, but that was based on something written after the original author Stieg Larsson had died and was a bit of a bomb so I'm in no hurry to check that out.
This was the big highlight from a recent horror movie marathon I attended. Even though it was shot on video it looks light years better than your average American film shot the same way in this era and just looks like your typical TV program of the time. It also helps that it's only 54 minutes long since the story is not the most complex. We're dealing with demons here(based on some Japanese folklore?) that impregnate themselves inside humans and then violently, and gorily, burst out. From there it takes some very oddball unexpected turns as Japanese horror is sometimes wont to do. Maybe not for everyone but if you're a weirdo like me give it a look. Rubber monster effects by Tsuburaya Productions(responsible for ULTRA-MAN among other groovy Jap sci-fi things) really spice things up. AKA THE TASTY FLESH and GAKIDAMA
Giving birth to a Gakidama demon sure looks like a drag!:
I caught this in the middle of a horror marathon last weekend and since it's a really low budget shot-on-video project it did not look very good projected on a large screen. Probably the coolest thing about this was checking out all the horror movie posters in one of the rooms they filmed in. There is also a lot of gore and some heavy rockin' tunes but overall this is a pretty big waste of time. If it's not unwatchable enough some scenes appear to be shot on even crappier tape than others. There's a telekinetic killer who wears a clown mask for no discernable reason and some zombies show up to end it all. Somehow director Todd Jason Cook would go on to make a bunch more movies like this.
22 years later there was a remake and then 3 years after that there was a sequel to the original film churned out.
Even on a very small screen this is still blurry as hell!:
I'll give this movie a little bit of credit for being something made in 2014 and not being a total CGI shitfest. Unfortunately the werewolves in this look more like they belong in a FRAGGLE ROCK episode than any kind of horror movie but at least they made the attempt. The movie itself is more of a character study of a blind vet played by Nick Damici placed in an old folks' community where a werewolf just so happens to be lurking about. One of his neighbors is GINGER from GILLIGAN'S ISLAND. So if you want to see what Ginger looks like at 80 here's your chance. While nowhere near the top of the heap of werewolf movies this might appeal to someone looking for a slightly different take on the old wolfman story. AKA NIGHT OF THE WOLF
Caught this one for the first time recently as part of a kung-fu/horror movie marathon and it was one of the big highlights. It starts of as your standard kung fu movie before entering into the world of the supernatural when our main character(Tien-Chi Cheng) makes a deal with the devil to get revenge with the help of the titular nine demons. These demons consist of a eight little kids and their mom(or maybe she's their babysitter? idk) who sometimes turn into plastic skulls and do dastardly things. Our hero, who now isn't acting all that heroic, also gets some sweet new glamtastic clothes to wreak havoc with. This is obviously a wacky interpretation of the legendary Faust story so you shouldn't expect much of a happy ending but it's a hell of a trip getting to the conclusion and one of my wacky favorites from former Shaw Brothers director Chang Cheh.
One of the all-time classics of Eurotrash cinema! Obviously inspired by NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, director Amando de Ossorio takes things in a decidedly Spanish-horror direction with his tale of some ex-communicated Templars returning from the dead to mount horses and chow down(and chop since they brought along their old-timey swords) on the living. The best thing about this film is the unique-look our zombies have. They're kind of a gang of grim-reapers with beards on horseback. The horses always confuse me a bit though. Are they phantoms? zombies? Where do the Templars keep them when they're in their graves? Weird, bloody, rapey, 70s horror that all fans of Euro-horror need to check out at least once.
I made the mistake of watching the dubbed version on my last viewing which is missing almost 20 minutes of prime footage. So stick with those subtitles for maximum carnage.
The weirdest retitling of this is REVENGE OF PLANET APE which gave this a whole new opening monologue tying it into the, very popular at the time, PLANET OF THE APES SERIES. Other AKA's include LEGEND OF THE BLIND DEAD, THE BLIND DEAD, THE NIGHT OF THE BLIND TERROR and MARK OF THE DEVIL PART 4: TOMBS OF THE BLIND DEAD (also released on video as MARK OF THE DEVIL PART V: NIGHT OF THE BLIND TERROR)
Lots of nudity featured in this kung fu/horror mash-up. A "moon monster" is on the bloody rampage in Hong Kong until the movie relocates to Cambodia and we get a tribal goddess/holy virgin with a magical sword involved in the ass-kicking action. Lots of gun-fu, a piranha attack, a magic sword, a tranny god with a Freddie Mercury moustache and some gory kills.
I did see this as part of a 12-hour marathon recently in the local weirdo movie theater so the main thing I recall from this were the boobs.
This has nothing to do with the EVIL DEAD series but it's still a cool title.
If you mixed INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS with MARS NEEDS WOMEN(which wouldn't actually be made for another 10 years) you pretty much get the plot for this schlocky 50s sci-fi flick. Just like INVASION it's all a thinly-veiled metaphor for the evils of communism, or possibly in this case how crappy marriages can get. If you read pretty much any review of this some cinema-critiquing snob will explain all that to you. While not up there with the heavyweight classics from this era it's still a fun old b-movie watch and one of the snazziest titles to boot!
"They're gonna strip you naked and go to work on you with a pair of plyers and a blowtorch"
One of the best movies I've seen in a while. Obvious influence on Quentin Tarantino(especially with that line up above that he stole) this one is filled with an all-star cast including stars Walter Matthau and Joe Don Baker. A bank robbery goes wrong and the mafia gets involved. Shoot-outs, double-crosses, ass-kicking and explosions occur. A notable car vs. plane chase is a highlight. Director Don Siegel(responsible for lots of classics including the original INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHRES and DIRTY HARRY) has got to be one of the greatest directors to ever have to work within the Hollywood system.
One of the last movies featuring the great Joe Spinell(best known as that maniac from MANIAC). Sadly he's not very great here and seemingly drunk for most of his scenes. The rest of the "acting" is also just as bad. Really garbagey bottom-of-the-barrel pointless slasher movie. Watch THE UNDERTAKER AND HIS PALS instead!
