OCTAMAN (1971) movie review

Octaman (1971) d. Essex, Harry (USA)

One of special f/x maestro and multiple Oscar-winner Rick Baker’s early efforts and one that he’d probably like most of us to forget, which might account for its relative obscurity. However, thanks to Fred Olen Ray, the much-beloved limb-swinging creation finally made its home video premiere last year in a stunning widescreen print that leaves your darker-than-pitch TV broadcast bootlegs in the dust. Now you can actually see Baker's many-limbed creation as it stumbles along attacking a crew (headed by former Sinbad Kerwin Mathews) investigating the effects of pollution and radiation on a small Hispanic village - whether that's a good thing or not is open to debate.

SPLATTER UNIVERSITY (1984) movie review

Splatter University (1984) d. Haines, Richard D. (USA)

When a maniac escapes from an insane asylum (you’d think these folks would learn the value of added security one day), he infiltrates a nearby university’s faculty, posing as one of the staff and bumping off random students and professors alike. Plucky Francine Forbes, with her bright smile and Breck girl hair, makes for a likeable heroine, newly hired to replace one of the last semester’s recently demised.

THE SEA SERPENT (1984) movie review

Sea Serpent, The (aka Hydra) (1984) d. di Ossorio, Amando (Spain)

After U.S. Forces drop a bomb into the Atlantic during a training exercise off the coast of Portugal, a giant slumbering sea serpent is awakened from its centuries-long slumber. Mayhem and hilarity ensue. The only thing faker than the titular menace, which rivals Reptilicus for sheer goofy monster puppetry, are the horrendous acting stylings of garishly miscast WASP Timothy Bottoms as a crusty sea salt tough guy captain (named Pedro, no less!) and Taryn Power’s fetching socialite, whose facial expressions upon seeing her American friend gobbled up resemble that of a heartburn sufferer.

TURISTAS (2006) movie review

Turistas (2006) d. Stockwell, John (USA)

Billed by pundits as “Hostel: South American Style,” this yawn-worthy would-be slaughterfest starts off promisingly enough with a wingding of a bus crash that strands a multinational crew of tourists in the middle of Brazil. Walking down to the seashore, they discover a local cantina where the water is warm, the beer is cold and the tanned rippling flesh is everywhere.

MADHOUSE (1974) movie review

Madhouse (1974) d. Clark, Jim (UK)

Vincent Price takes center stage as a hammy horror star sidelined when someone lops off his fiancée’s head at a fancy dinner party (rude, that), resulting in a decade-long rest in the booby hatch. When sleazy producer Robert Quarry decides to resurrect Price’s “Dr. Death” character in a new series of films, the aging icon returns…only to encounter his cast and crew being mysteriously murdered one by one – with himself the prime suspect.

DAYBREAKERS (2009) movie review

Daybreakers (2009) d. Spierig, Michael/Spierig, Peter (Australia/USA)

The boys from Down Under follow up their high-energy, low-budget zombie flick Undead with a vampire epic that starts off with such promising and well-developed mythology that it’s more than a little disappointing when it devolves into “small band of rebels vs. the all-controlling corporate powers” action clichés, complete with predictable last minute double crosses and irksome jump scares (in this case, in the form of annoying vampire bat shrieks).

HOSTEL (2005) movie review

Hostel (2005) d. Roth, Eli (USA)

Following the spirited (if not entirely successful) twist on the “kids in the woods” horror subgenre with his flesh-wasting freshman effort, Cabin Fever, writer/director Eli Roth heads overseas to provide a chilling assault on the vacationing habits of backpacking college kids everywhere.

HOSTEL: PART II (2007) movie review

Hostel: Part II (2007) d. Roth, Eli (USA)

Eli Roth knows what he likes: Boobs and blood. In this follow up to his smash 2005 hit, he once again proffers plenty of both, but unfortunately, with the element of surprise gone, he has little else to offer. Since the mystery behind the sanguinary Slovakian hostel is already on the table, the erstwhile writer/director tries to expand his storyline by exploring the inner workings of the organization behind it all, as well as the prospective sadists who patronize it.

I KNOW WHO KILLED ME (2007) movie review

I Know Who Killed Me (2007) d. Sivertson, Chris (USA)

Even without star Lindsay Lohan’s tabloid-documented public implosion just prior to its theatrical release, IKWKM ends up being 2007’s biggest “mainstream torture-porn laughing stock,” thanks to Chris Severtson’s listless, hammerheaded direction and Jeff Hammond’s two-tons-of-dumb script.  After a sadistic serial killer kidnaps a bright and bubbly high school student, the town is rocked when she turns back up minus a few limbs...claiming to be somebody completely different.

TEENAGERS FROM OUTER SPACE (1959) movie review

Teenagers from Outer Space (1959) d. Tom Graeff (USA)

When a film is ready to fry a cute little yapping dog into a pile of bones within the first two minutes, you know you’re in for a treat.

SXSW announces its 2013 "MIDNIGHTER" lineup!

Howdy folks,

Well, the word came down this week. Looks like Ye Olde Foole is going to be making the trek to the land of the Alamo Drafthouse. Yep, the City Limits of Austin are going to throw their arms open wide for the Doc from March 8 - 17 as South by Southwest (SXSW) takes over the town.

Here's a little taste of what's in store as part of their MIDNIGHTER series:

AVPR: ALIENS VS. PREDATOR - REQUIEM (2007) movie review

AVP:R Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007) d. Strause, Colin / Strause, Greg)

Picking up immediately after the close of the previous film where the union of the two galactic goliaths seemed inevitable – and not in an olive branch kind of way, this latest installment features a Predator “cleaner” (shades of Harvey Keitel’s “Wolf” character from Pulp Fiction) sent to erase any evidence left behind on earth of either race. A relatively intriguing jumping-off point, but the whole endeavor goes south in a big, big hurry, thanks to Shane Salerno’s mean-spirited body-count screenplay and the ham-fisted, sniggering, “see how they splatter” direction by siblings Colin and Greg Strause.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS (1968) movie review

Destroy All Monsters (1968) d. Honda, Ishiro (Japan)

To celebrate their 20th kaiju eiga (although that depends a little on which ones counted as giant monster movies), Toho plundered directing/special effects team Inshiro Honda and Eiji Tsuburaya’s warehouses for the entire range of their major mashers, eleven in all.

THE MIST (2007) movie review

Mist, The (2007) d. Darabont, Frank (USA)

In the arc of Darabont’s screen treatments of Stephen King stories, this novella’s long-awaited cinematic incarnation falls somewhere in between the magnificence of The Shawshank Redemption and the not-badness of The Green Mile. Following a massive rainstorm, inhabitants of a small Maine village head to the local grocery store to stock up on supplies. Before their shocked eyes, they witness a strange fog enveloping their town and soon learn that there is something within the mist…something hungry.

SEVERANCE (2006) movie review

Severance (2006) d. Smith, Christopher (UK)

Finally, a horror film the entire cubicle crowd can appreciate, one that doles out the laughter and splatter in equal measure. When a team-building weekend for the sales division of weapons company Palisade Defence in the mountains of Eastern Europe goes horribly wrong, the results pay off in rich dividends for gore-loving genre aficionados.

THE REFLECTING SKIN (1990) movie review

Reflecting Skin, The (1990) d. Ridley, Philip (UK)

A cerebral, challenging film that examines the bleak and beautiful nightmare of childhood. Award-winning playwright/author/painter Philip Ridley envisions the American Midwest of the '50s as a wasteland devoid of moral compasses and populated by bizarre characters. Here, the monsters are everywhere but where we look for them, the beauty of the landscape masking the darkness that lurks beneath.

FOOL'S VIEWS (1/21 – 1/27)

Hey kids,

Been a wild and wacky week. In addition to my usual chicanery, after years of waffling on the subject, I decided to start up a separate blog to celebrate those flicks that take up at least half of my viewing time – those of the “Civilian” quarter. The fact of the matter is that I’m lazy and didn’t want to be managing two different blogs, but as the past year has shown, there are many non-horror efforts that could use some championing.

FOOL’S VIEWS with Dr. AC will hopefully serve as a venue where I can extol the virtues of underrated, overlooked civilian gems. And just as hopefully, I hope you, Faithful Reader, will stop by from time to time to see what’s cooking over yonder.

Another format change is that as the horror views have been growing in size and visual content, I will now be providing links to these individual reviews as opposed to re-printing them below. Hopefully that won't prove too annoying, but please leave your feedback below. After all, I'm writing these for you.

On with the show. Wrapped up the Oscar views this week, as well as completing the first Kryptic Army assignment of 2013. Hope you like. As always feel free to leave your two cents worth – we’ll make sure you get some change back.

Enjoy!

BROKEN (2006) movie review

Broken (2006) d. Boyes, Simon / Mason, Adam (UK)

Amidst the spate of “torture movies” that descended upon the latter half of the last decade, writers/directors Simon Boyes and Adam Mason’s gut-wrenching effort stands out for several reasons, first and foremost being its tiny budget (approx. £500,000), proving once again that zillions are not required to create effectively chilling horror. The plot is deceptively simple: Single British mother Nadja Brand (who also co-produced) finds herself abducted, secreted away to a secluded woodland setting, and forced to go through a rigor of survival tasks by her captor Eric Colvin, each nastier than the last.

THE OTHER SIDE (2006) movie review

Other Side, The (2006) d. Bishop, Gregg (USA)

Fifteen. Thousand. Dollars. That’s how much writer/director Bishop spent on this impressively well-conceived and executed horror flick that showcases some decent acting, fine cinematography, generous splatter, a clever screenplay, snappy dialogue and a real eye for making something out of nothing, especially considering that his subject matter concerns nothing less than escapees from Hell and the dark forces out to recover their damned souls.

THE LAST DINOSAUR (1977) movie review

Last Dinosaur, The (1977) d. Kotani, Tom / Grasshoff, Alex (USA)

“His time has passed; there are no more. He is the last dinosaur.” From jazz vocalist Nancy Wilson’s warbling theme over the opening credits, we are assured that subtlety will not be the order of the day. Top-billed Richard Boone behaves as though he just crawled out of a whiskey bottle to assay the role of great white hunter and oil tycoon Masten Thrust, and his full-throttle performance elevates what could have been a C-grade Lost World retread into camp classic gold.