RE-ANIMATOR (1985) AT 40: GREEN, GOO, GUTS, AND GAGS!!

RE-ANIMATOR (1985) d. Stuart Gordon (USA)
BRIDE OF RE-ANIMATOR (1990) d. Brian Yuzna (USA)
BEYOND RE-ANIMATOR (2003) d. Brian Yuzna (Spain)

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Stuart Gordon’s debut feature Re-Animator is a fast-paced, tongue-in-cheek blend of horror, sci-fi, and dark comedy that helped define the splatter subgenre of the 1980s. Loosely based on H.P. Lovecraft’s serialized novella and set at the fabled Miskatonic University, the wildly intense Herbert West (deliciously played by Jeffrey Combs) embarks on a series of experiments to bring the dead back to life—with increasingly chaotic and outrageous results.

ZONE TROOPERS (1985) Blu-ray Review

Zone Troopers (1985) d. Bilson, Danny (USA) (86 min)

In contrast to this month’s other KRYPTIC ARMY selection, while I had been aware of its indelible box art staring back at me for decades from the VHS shelves, Zone Troopers had never really struck me as “must-see material,” and being that I was never the biggest Empire/Full Moon fan growing up, it was never more than a blip on my radar. However, as the years rolled by and my tastes mellowed, I’ve learned to appreciate and enjoy quite a bit of Charles Band’s output, so it was with a mild degree of optimism that I pulled this one up off the interwebs. Happily, I was not disappointed.

GHOST TOWN (1988) Blu-ray Review

Ghost Town (1988) d. Richard Governor (USA)

On the outskirts of Riverton County, AZ, handsome quick-draw expert deputy Langley (Frank Luz) gets a call that local bad girl Katie (Catherine Hickland) has fled the altar and headed out into the desert. But when her car turns up missing its driver (played out in a fine spectral dust storm kidnapping sequence), it’s up to Langley to track her down, which he ultimately does in a desolate, literal ghost town run by malevolent gunslinger Devlin (Jimmie F. Skaggs). Seems Katie bears a striking resemblance to the dark one’s former barkeep flame Rose, and Devlin isn’t giving her up without a fight. The haunted netherworld’s residents’ souls hang in the balance – and it’s mighty hard to kill what’s already dead.

GHOULIES II (1988) Blu-ray Review

Ghoulies II (1988) d. Albert Band (USA)

In the traveling Hardin Carnival, the Satan’s Den haunted ride is facing financial issues, and money-hungry Philip Hardin (J. Downing) is ready to cut bait, much to the disappointment of washed-up boozehound magician Ned aka The Great Fausto (screen veteran Royal Dano) and his nephew Larry (Damon Martin). But when four of the titular creatures, which we saw escaping the isolated mansion at the end of the first film, take refuge amidst the mechanical mummies and monsters inside of the Den, things get a lot more lively . . . and deadly!

GHOULIES (1985) Blu-ray Review

Ghoulies (1985) d. Luca Bercovici (USA)

Unapologetically juvenile with a paper-thin plot, entertainment value for this early Empire Pictures effort will depend entirely on one’s palate for cheesy effects and lusty overacting. Jonathan Graves (Peter Liapis) and his girlfriend Rebecca (Lisa Pelikan) move into the old family mansion inherited from his Satan-worshiping pop (rock singer-turned-actor Michael Des Barres). Upon taking up residence, and stumbling upon a tome of ancient spells and a family grave, he finds himself compelled to summon a myriad of latex beasties into this world (designed by creature man extraordinaire John Carl Buechler) and unleash them upon his circle of friends in a decidedly murky basement ritual.

PUPPETMASTER III: TOULON'S REVENGE (1991) movie review

Puppetmaster III: Toulon's Revenge (1991) David DeCoteau (USA)

True story: Prior to tackling this for this month's Kryptic Army mission theme (that of "revenge), I’d only seen the original 1989 Puppet Master and that viewing was at least 10 years in the rearview. However, having read Gert Verbeeck’s outstanding retrospective of the series for HorrorHound back in 2012, I had learned that this installment was 1) a prequel, so I wouldn’t be lost by o’erleaping the first sequel and 2) many fans consider this the high point of the franchise. Thus bolstered, I ventured in and I gotta admit, it was pretty entertaining.

CRAWLSPACE (1986) Blu-ray review

Crawlspace (1986) d. David Schmoeller (USA)

Despite having the estimable FX talents of John Carl Beuchler and John Vulich among the ranks, the greatest special effect in this mid-80s shocker from executive producer Charles Band’s Empire Pictures is its wackadoo headliner, Klaus Kinski. The Poland-born star commands every onscreen moment as the offspring of a notorious Nazi doctor, now living a quiet life as the landlord of a apartment building who spends his times spying on his exclusively female tenants and every so often – when they get too nosey – bumping them off with elaborate mechanical traps. Each murder is followed by a round of Russian Roulette, and – after clicking upon an empty chamber – the chilling whisper, “So be it.” Out goes the “For Rent” sign and in come the fresh victims.

END OF THE WORLD (1977) movie review

End of the World (1977) d. Hayes, John

As a stranded alien and the priest whose body he replicates, Christopher Lee pulls double duty in this turgid early Charles Band production, lording over six alien nuns while blackmailing nosey brainiac Kirk Scott and bride Sue Lyon into procuring the mysterious elements necessary for their return trip home. Of course, once they’ve got the goods, Lee and his sister act reveal their darker purpose: they’re really here to exterminate the Earth’s population via a series of natural disasters.

DOLLS (1987) movie review

***UPDATED DEC 2014 TO REFLECT SHOUT! FACTORY'S COLLECTOR'S EDITION BLU-RAY RELEASE***

Dolls (1987) d. Stuart Gordon (USA)

“They Walk. They Talk. They Kill.” Following the success of Re-Animator, Gordon’s second directorial feature shot for Full Moon (though released a year after From Beyond due to the extensive post-production special effects work) was this dark fairy tale of murderous children’s playthings combined with the “motley crew of rain-drenched travelers taking refuge in old dark house” horror staple. While her parents (Carolyn Purdy-Jones, Ian Patrick Williams) are portrayed as over-the-top unfeeling monsters, little Judy (Carrie Lorraine) provides one of the few sympathetic turns as the plucky youngster who appeals to the kindly, mysterious dollmakers (Guy Rolfe and Hillary Mason) who reside therein.