Sweet Sixteen (1983)

 

Teenager Melissa moves into a small town filled with racial prejudice and bullying, and each time she meets up with one of the boys in town, they end up murdered - but who is the killer?

Sweet Sixteen is a 1983 American slasher film directed by Jim Sotos and starring Bo Hopkins, Susan Strasberg, Dana Kimmell, and Patrick Macnee.

A beautiful lonely girl named Melissa tries to make new friends from a town she's currently living in. The only problem is, each of the boys that she spends time with end up brutally murdered. Her sixteenth birthday is on the way, but Melissa turns out to be a suspect when it seems she's the last person who has seen her boyfriends alive.

This was not generally a well-regarded slasher movie back in the 80's since it did not contain a lot of graphic violence or gruesome Tom Savini-type special effects. It is more of a murder mystery. And the identity of the murderer is pretty obvious,  I found it to be mostly a snooze fest and I fell asleep twice and had to run it back to pick up from where I dozed off. 

Don't fret dude.  This movie made my eyes bleed too. 

The movie is nicely shot with quite nice photography and good directing but just as with many other slasher flicks from the 80s, the movie suffers from being too dark at times. The acting is actually pretty good though and Melissa's character is easy to sympathize with, even though she's a complete slut. Not that I'm complaining, because without the occasional spot of nudity, this would be a lot less enjoyable, the actual horror content being fairly lame.

Most of the film consists primarily of dull police procedure, as Sheriff Dan Burke (Bo Hopkins) slowly pieces together clues to discover the identity of the killer, plus some clichéd racial tension between the town's rednecks and local Indians, none of which is particularly thrilling.

Not even close to being among the best slasher films of the 80's but you could catch some fond memories of that time period if you grew up then as I did. 

Trivia:

Patrick Macnee replaced Leslie Nielsen, who was forced to withdraw from the film because of scheduling problem.

Final film of Henry Wilcoxon.

Dana Kimmell starred in the third Friday The 13th film Part 3 in 3-D (1982) one year earlier. She and Michael Pataki both appeared on episodes of Charlie's Angels. Michael Pataki and Don Shanks both appeared in the Halloween films. Pataki in Part 4 like his installment in the Rocky movies too, Rocky 4. Don played the series' iconic villain Michael Myers in Halloween 5.

The Giant Behemoth (1959)

 

Marine atomic tests cause changes in the ocean's ecosystem resulting in dangerous blobs of radiation and the resurrection of a dormant dinosaur that threatens London

The Giant Behemoth (a.k.a. Behemoth the Sea Monster in the U.K. and The Behemoth) is a 1959 black-and-white science fiction giant monster film distributed by Allied Artists Pictures. The film was produced by Ted Lloyd, directed by Eugène Lourié, and stars Gene Evans and André Morell. The screenplay was written by blacklisted author Daniel Lewis James (under the name "Daniel Hyatt") with director Lourié.

The Giant Behemoth was one of the last giant monster-on-the-loose films of the 1950's,  And this amazing beast doesn't fucking show up until 50 minutes into a 79 minute film. The story itself isn't horrible but god damn in a giant monster movie let's have a little more giant monster. 

The Biggest Thing Since Time Began!

It was King Kong's Willis O'Brien and his assistant Pete Peterson, that brought the Behemoth to life. This was basically a copy of the Beast From 20,000 Fathoms and not nearly as good. The original script for this film was about an invisible radioactive monster that dwelled in the ocean. The backers of this film turned the script down, saying they didn't like the idea of an invisible monster.  Who in the blue hell thought it was a good idea to have an invisible monster?  

For the most part, the actors do a credible job although Gene Evans (Dr. Karnes) overplays his part a bit. "The Giant Behemoth" isn't bad, but it's basically a rehash of a plot that had already been done - and done better. Good, but not great, for this type of thing.

SEE the Beast that shakes the Earth! LIVE in a world gone mad! WATCH the chaos of a smashed civilization! FLEE from the mightiest fright on the screen! NOTHING so Big as Behemoth!

Trivia:

Willis H. O'Brien and Pete Peterson completed a significant amount of the stop-motion animation on a table in Peterson's garage.

The original stop-motion puppet of the Behemoth is owned by Dennis Muren.

Many of the sound effects are taken from King Kong (1933), including Fay Wray's scream.

US prints do not have Douglas Hickox sharing the directing credit with Eugène Lourié, nor list Leonard Sachs among the cast. The UK version's credits, on the other hand, leave off the entire special effects crew.

There are lots of The Beatles connections in this movie. Jessie Robins (as Jessie Robbins), who played Aunt Jessie in Magical Mystery Tour (1967), is in a scene drinking tea whilst the radio reports are airing. Norman Rossington, who played Norm in A Hard Day's Night (1964), is one of the men killed in the car when the Beast tosses it into the Thames. Lastly, in the scenes showing a deserted London, in one of the streets is the block of flats The Beatles live in at the start of Help! (1965).

To save money on an already tiny budget,the attacks on London and the ferry were filmed without sound. Many people are seen talking but there is no dialog. Sound effects were added later. The reporter at the ministry is shown in close up, but his mouth movements and dialog don't match. He also has a distinct American accent.

The helicopters in the movie are a US H-5 Dragonfly and an H-19 with RAF markings.

Several clips from the film were used in Knots Landing: Giganticus II: The Revenge (1989), Knots Landing: Dial M for Modem (1989) and Knots Landing: That's What Friends Are For (1989) to represent the fictional Japanese kaiju film "Giganticus".

Unlike his contemporaries, the Rhedosaurus (from The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953)) and the eponymous monster of Godzilla (1954), who both walk on the ocean floor, Behemoth is seen swimming under water in the Thames. However, to save money on animation, only his back legs move; his forelegs are stationary.

In the original story treatment, the Behemoth was originally going to be an amorphous radioactive blob, but the producers wanted a dinosaur creature similar to the Rhedosaurus from The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953). Eugène Lourié, the director of that film, directed this one, as well as assisting on the screenplay.

The audio commentary by Phil Tippett and Dennis Muren on the film's DVD and Blu-ray release generated some ire among enthusiasts of Willis H. O'Brien. Many found the comments by Tippett and Muren to be condescending and misinformed as the pair lambasted the film and didn't offer much information with many of their statements ending with "I don't know".

Wolfen (1981)

 

A New York cop investigates a series of brutal deaths that resemble animal attacks.

Wolfen is a 1981 American crime horror film directed by Michael Wadleigh, and based on Whitley Strieber's 1978 novel The Wolfen. It stars Albert Finney, Diane Venora, Gregory Hines and Edward James Olmos. The film follows a city cop who has been assigned to uncover what is behind a series of vicious murders. Originally, it is believed the murders are animal attacks, until the cop discovers an ancient Indian legend about wolf spirits.

Based on a novel by Whitley Strieber, Wadleigh, who also co-wrote the script with David Eyre, alludes to the killers' identity, but wisely keeps them off screen throughout most of the film. When only a pair of evil red eyes peer through the darkness, the imagination creates the horror. The killings and victims are subjectively seen through the killers's eyes with cinematographer Gerry Fisher's striking use of thermographic images, which add a surreal element. However, Fisher's non-thermographic photography is equally beautiful and turns the empty shells of churches and apartment buildings in the South Bronx into an otherworldly landscape consistent with the supernatural aspects of the story.

Wolf-O-Vision

Unusual film that takes a very different path from the traditional werewolf movie. The use of the negative image when we see through the eyes of the wolves is great, its less plastic than ordinary SFX and far more realistic than CGI.  

This is a serial killer crime thriller with a huge twist and part of that twist is that the film is so well made that no matter how far fetched it may seem, you truly understand it and enjoy it.

The old decayed and abandoned New York is the majority setting for Wolfen, which suits its style to the ground and provides some chilling moments, especially as Albert Finney portrays one of the most unhealthy and out of shape detectives ever devoted to lead character. It's refreshing to see an older film like this where talent overrides appearance.

James Horner (Aliens, Enemy At The Gates, Troy) provides the chilling old-school orchestral soundtrack, which really sets the scenes on edge and the dialogue is all original, making the characters all very believable and down to earth.

"They can hear a cloud pass overhead, the rhythm of your blood. They can track you by yesterday's shadow. And they can tear the scream from your throat. There is no defense."

It's a "message" horror film--it tries to give us a little moral message about civilization, the environment, Indians...   Albert Finney looks like he's drunk most of the time.  Gregory Hines is more than a simple sidekick, although how he gets from pathology to being a street sniper is brushed over without explanation. 

"Wolfen" withholds any glimpses of the titular creatures until the film's final ½ hour, but the wait turns out to be well worth it. The rampaging beasts are revealed to be both beautiful to look at and remarkably savage to behold as well, their eyes bespeaking both supreme intelligence and invincible power; no wonder that Eddie Holt holds them to be gods

I am surprised that more people don't talk about this film as it is pretty good but it seems to have escaped major attention due to the Howling and An American Werewolf in London which were released around the same time frame. It is worth viewing at least once if only to say you've seen it.

Yeah I've been drinking....fuck you.

Trivia:

Dustin Hoffman seriously wanted to play the role of Dewey Wilson, but was refused the part by director Michael Wadleigh who really wanted to work with Albert Finney, who was his favorite actor. It was the only time in his career that Hoffman was rejected for a part.

The film was the first movie to use a thermographic visual photographic look to represent the point-of-view of a character, in this case, the wolfen. The type of effect shot has been used in a number of movies to show the POV of a character, usually villainous, like a beast. One notable example of the popularizing of this kind of visual effects perspective is its use in the "Predator" films.

Director Michael Wadleigh's cut of the film that he handed to the studio in Febuary 1980 before his removal from the film in post-production, was over four and a half hours.

Composer Craig Safan wrote an original score for this film and was replaced at the last minute by future Academy Award winner James Horner, who had only 12 days to write and record his score.

One of the few films to be released theatrically with the "Megasound" sound system format. Megasound was a movie theater sound system created by Warner Bros in the early 1980s. It was used to enhance the premiere engagements of a handful of Warner features. Theaters equipped for Megasound had additional speakers mounted on the left, right and rear walls of the auditorium. Selected soundtrack events with lots of low-frequency content (thuds, crashes, explosions, etc) were directed to these speakers at very high volume, creating a visceral effect intended to thrill the audience.

The film was delayed because the effects for the Wolfen were unusable and the filmmakers had to hire another effects company to handle them.

Nothing to see here.  Just a dude dancing on top of a bridge.

First filmed adaptation of a Whitley Strieber novel. Others that would follow would be "The Hunger (1983)" a couple of years after then later "Communion (1989)."

According to director Michael Wadleigh, a dozen police sharpshooters were employed and positioned all over the place as the wolves were considered wild and uncontrollable animals. These sharpshooters were ordered to shoot to kill if a wolf got out of the enclosed area.

The theatrical trailer contains scenes/dialogue not present in the movie: When Van der Veer jumps out and startles his wife, the trailer shows a clip of their bodyguard reaching for his gun which is not present in the film; when Executive Security is reviewing the video of Becky Neff, someone says "team her up with Wilson". In the film, the head of security says "I want her."; the trailer includes a scene where Dewey and Becky, en route to the South Bronx, are talking in his car about the mysterious nature of the killings. This scene is not in the film; an overhead shot of the moon and clouds in "Wolfen-vision" that is present in the trailer is not in the film; in the scene where the Wolfen lures Becky up to the second floor of the abandoned church, there is a voice-over from Dewey (although it is NOT Albert Finney's voice) where he tells her that something was trying to lure her upstairs and separate them.

Director Michael Wadleigh's only non-Woodstock related film.

Trade Paper 'Variety' reported that the film "...was reportedly recut several times (four editors are credited)".

Rather than go for a big name supporting cast, director Michael Wadleigh decided to cast unknowns or actors that appeared on Broadway, which included Diane Venora, who beat out over 200 actresses for the part and Gregory Hines.

It will tear the scream from your throat.

A specific day-for-night shooting process was used to create the nocturnal point of view of the "killers".

The DVD sleeve notes state that the predators' perspectives were simulated with the use of a Louma crane and Steadicam camera.

Prior to the start of filming it was Albert Finney's idea that he and Gregory Hines hang out together to develop a camaraderie as their characters would show in the film.

Wolfen was the word used by the Dutch farmers who settled in America to describe the Indians and the wolves as wild animals. The original script for the film opens in the 17th Century.

The "Canis Lupus" mentioned in the film is a real zoological term. The species has thirty-nine subspecies. Though Canis is the term for the canine species, "Canis Lupus" is the term for "Gray Wolf". Another werewolf film would use real wolves as well, "Blood and Chocolate". Though Canis Lupus is in there just like this film, they would primarily use "Canis Rufus"-- Red Wolves.

The setting for the transient home of the wolves was shot in the South Bronx (intersection of Louis Nine Boulevard and Boston Road). The church seen in the opening panorama shot was located at the intersection of E 172nd Street and Seabury Place. The shot of this neighbourhood is from the north looking roughly south-south-east. The decrepit site of ruined buildings was no special effect. The church was built and burned exclusively for the film. Urban decay in the South Bronx in the early 1980s was so widespread that it was the ideal production setting.

The movie poster for this film is visible in an alley in the final minutes of "Joker" (2019).

Production on the film began in October 1979 and the production was halted in Febuary 1980 due to budget concerns as well as the dailies.

When the movie was being filmed, major parts of New York's boroughs were undergoing re-gentrification. This was incorporated into the story that if First Nations NAM protesters and iron worker 'sky walkers' were skin changers, or werewolves, and worked high rise construction by day, and hid in the ruins of Queens and hunted the inhabitants of New York City by night, thus creating a police investigation.

A brotha's gotta work.

Debut feature film of actress Diane Venora, and almost the first film for actor Gregory Hines, it being his second, as History of the World: Part I (1981) had premiered about a month earlier.

The source novel's title was changed from "The Wolfen" to simply "Wolfen" for the movie.

"The Wolfen" was Whitley Strieber's first novel.

This was Albert Finney's first film appearance since "The Duellists" in 1977, which had only been little more than a cameo because his then-girlfriend Diana Quick was also cast.

For Die Hard fans: Reginald VelJohson (Al Powell in Die Hard) as the morgue attendant who slaps the dead man on the gurney.

The score for this film by James Horner as highlighted in the final street showdown in front of the courthouse, can be heard, in part again within the 1982 Star Trek 'Wrath of Khan' score as the antagonist theme titled 'sneak attack' on the soundtrack.

The area shown in the opening neighborhood panorama was visited by President Carter in the fall of 1977. He stopped on Charlotte street between Boston Road and East 170th Street (also visible in the opening) and walked among the piles of bricks from demolished buildings. It was not until the mid 1980s that single family homes were built in this section of the city.

The book ends with the world discovering the truth about the Wolfen which implies that they will all be eventually hunted down and made extinct.

The Mummy's Ghost (1944)

 

Kharis the mummy is given a sacred potion that grants him eternal life to search for his lost love, Princess Ananka, despite the unending curse that haunts them.

The Mummy's Ghost is a 1944 American Universal Studios horror film, directed by Reginald Le Borg. It is the second of three sequels to that company's The Mummy's Hand of 1940. The film is the sequel to The Mummy's Tomb (1942). Lon Chaney, Jr. again takes on the role of Kharis the mummy. The story was continued in the 1944 sequel The Mummy's Curse.

"The Mummy's Ghost" is a sequel to "The Mummy's Tomb" (1942). In that film Kharis the Mummy (Lon Chaney) perished in a house fire. Also the old high priest (George Zucco) dies of old age while handing over his powers to a new high priest. In this film we find out that not only did Kharis survive the fucking fire unscathed but the old high priest turns up still alive as shit.  This is the third of four movies in the original "Mummy" franchise.

NO CHAINS Can Hold It! NO TOMB Can Seal It!

I'm not saying The Mummy's Ghost is any worse than the rest, it's just the same god damn thing. The movie features both John Carradine and Lon Chaney Jr. again in the role of the mummy. Chaney invests some character into Kharis this time, allowing him to become visibly angered, frustrated, and even saddened during the course of the movie. The biggest drawback for this chapter is that Robert Lowery and Ramsay Ames are pretty lousy as the two leading lovers.  Chaney's ass was usually drunk by 12 noon.

Among the solid supporting cast are Frank Reicher as the doomed Professor Norman, Harry Shannon as the Sheriff, Lester Sharpe as the helpful Doctor Ayad, and the always welcome Barton MacLane as a clever police inspector who tries to come up with an alternative means of dealing with the mummy on the loose. An adorable little dog named "Peanuts" has his moments, as well. Martha Vickers has a bit as a student in Reichers' class.  Director Reginald Le Borg keeps it moving along adequately, to help it clock in at an appreciably brief running time of 61 minutes.

It is rumored during Kharis' raging attack on the night-porter (Oscar O'Shea) in the Scripp's museum, that Chaney actually slammed the old man into a real pane of glass, smashing it and injuring O'Shea. Alcohol has not been ruled out. 

There's an amusing part where the locals, lead by Barton MacLane's cranky Inspector Walgreen, cunningly fashion a disguised pit in which to topple the Mummy, who doesn't even notice the fucking thing and just walks straight past!  

The ending of the film is most notable - the monster gets the girl! But it's a short lived victory, as the Mummy and his kidnapped bride succumb to a swampy grave, an ancient Egyptian curse is fulfilled - "The fate of those who defy the will of the ancient gods shall be a cruel and violent death".  At least she has been spared a life of married bliss with that jerk off Hervey.

A Hot Chick.  The only thing that makes the Mummy's dead arm come to life.

The plot holes and lack of continuity in the Mummy series are well known and have been pointed out in many knowledgeable sources. Kharis is a killing machine and not a sympathetic creature as some of the other Universal monsters are. His tendency to kill senior citizens is yet another reason not to root for him. Watching The Mummy's Ghost isn't the worst way to spend an hour and is essential if your are following the series.

Now swear by the ancient Egyptian gods, that you will never rest until the Princess Anaka and Kharis have been returned to their rightful resting place, in these tombs...

Trivia: 

In the scene where Kharis trashes the Scripps Museum, Lon Chaney Jr. drove his fist through real glass--it was supposed to be breakaway glass, but the prop man forgot to replace it before shooting started--and a shard of it flew up and cut him through his mummy mask in his chin. In this scene, Kharis can be seen bleeding, and it's real blood.

Although there are rumors that Lon Chaney Jr.'s scenes in the "Mummy" series frequently used doubles for Chaney, director Reginald Le Borg stated that Chaney did his own scenes in this film.

According to director Reginald Le Borg in a 1989 interview, Lon Chaney Jr., as Kharis, went overboard in the scene in which he strangles Frank Reicher, although Chaney blocked the camera from picking up Reicher's reaction. The veteran actor was moaning, and exclaimed, "He nearly killed me!" According to LeBorg, Reicher was a veteran and didn't make a formal complaint, but the next day the director noticed his neck visibly bore the effects.

The opening scene introduced Kharis simply walking out of the woods with no explanation or rationale. Director Reginald Le Borg was able to talk producer Ben Pivar into shooting a prologue set in Egypt with John Carradine and George Zucco in order to give Kharis' introduction a basis in logic.

Acquanetta, who was initially cast as Ananka, slipped and fell in her first scene on the first day of shooting, suffering a slight concussion. She was replaced by Ramsay Ames.

Second of Lon Chaney Jr.'s three "Mummy" features, filmed from August 23-September 1, 1943, but not released until June 30, 1944 (copyrighted 1943) .

Lon Chaney Jnr. often said that being made up as the Mummy character was his least favourite make-up. There is a photo of the actor on set during production of "The Mummy's Ghost" where he is pinching his own nose in disgust.

Part of the original Shock Theater package of 52 Universal titles released to television in 1957, followed a year later with Son of Shock, which added 20 more features.

A Scene with Robert Lowery & the Dog at the 50 minute mark in the movie (50:30 seconds), Robert Lowery picks up the dog & says "Where is She?", puts the dog down & you hear a Sqweeky Dog Toy sound .. and the dog runs across a bridge with Lowery, after the Mummy.

This is one of a very few Universal Horror Classics where the female lead doesn't survive the film.

The Werewolf (1956)

 

Two scientists come across an auto accident and find an unconscious man in the wreck. They take him back to their lab and inject him with a serum they have been working with. Unfortunately, the serum has the effect of turning the man into a murderous werewolf.

The Werewolf is a 1956 American horror science fiction film directed by Fred F. Sears and starring Don Megowan and Joyce Holden.

Set in contemporary times (i.e. the 1950s), the storyline follows an amnesiac man who, after being injected with "irradiated wolf serum" by unscrupulous doctors, transforms into a werewolf when under emotional stress. The film "marks precisely the point in which horror, which had been a dormant genre in the early '50s, began to take over from science fiction", and is the first of only three werewolf films made in the US during that decade, preceding Daughter of Dr. Jekyll and I Was a Teenage Werewolf (both 1957). The Werewolf was released theatrically in the US as the bottom half of a double feature with Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956). 

It happens before your horrified eyes!

This little B picture from 1956 grows on you, with repeated viewings. Steven Ritch is superb as the tormented Duncan Marsh, nice guy family man turned into a monster by two unscrupulous scientists. There's something strangely believable and compelling about his plight, as he tries to make sense of his confused memories, while being pursued by a posse, and wondering who he can trust. The supporting players are all fine in sympathetic roles, especially Joyce Holden as the nurse who does her best to help the lost and terrified Marsh. Eleanore Tanin is also very good as Marsh's wife, and Don Megowan plays a macho but caring lawman, who realizes the fugitive is a human being, as well as a monster.

Scientists turn men into beasts!

Good little werewolf movie, packs a bit of an emotional wallop thanks to Ritch's unfortunate situation and it's effects on his family and the paranoid, afraid community of Mountaincrest. The mountainous setting is rich with atmosphere and it's a breath of fresh air from the usual movie lot sets. This film uses dissolves when Ritch turns from human to werewolf and vice versa from the same make-up man behind "The Return of the Vampire."

I must still point out that there is a PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE-like moment late in the film where it goes from pitch black outside to daytime and back again due to lousy editing. It's pretty silly and very noticeable.  I'm not sure what possessed them to release it like that but it looks stupid as shit. 

Shit starts to get emotional.  I'm not crying, you're crying.

Trivia:

When first released, this movie played as the bottom half of a double bill with Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956).

The werewolf in this film was the screen's first science-fictional, non-supernatural lycanthrope. While possessed of incredible strength and ferocity, he could be killed by ordinary bullets ( don't need silver bullets ) and didn't require a full moon to cause transformation.

This isn't the first time Clay Campbell created a werewolf makeup. He used the same techniques to create the monster for an earlier film, The Return of the Vampire (1943).

Director Fred F. Sears also served as the narrator in the opening sequence.

Probably to save time and/or money, shots of the werewolf fleeing the posse near the climax, were shot "day-for-night" while the posse shots were filmed during real nighttime.

Asylum (1972)

 

In order to secure a job at a mental institution, a young psychiatrist must interview four patients inside the asylum.

Asylum (also known as House of Crazies in subsequent US releases) is a 1972 British horror film made by Amicus Productions. The film was directed by Roy Ward Baker, produced by Milton Subotsky, and scripted by Robert Bloch (who adapted four of his own short stories for the screenplay)

A young psychiatrist interviews four inmates in a mental asylum to satisfy a requirement for employment. He hears stories about 1) The revenge of a murdered wife, 2) A tailor who makes a suit with some highly unusual qualities, 3) A woman who questions her sanity when it appears that her brother is conspiring against her  4) A man who builds tiny toy robots with lifelike human heads.

The doctor makes his last house call.

Robert Bloch, the man responsible for writing the novel of one of horror's greatest movies, Psycho (1960), writes for us four intriguing and pleasurable short horror pieces bound together wonderfully in the confines of an asylum.  I previously reviewed the film "Torture Garden" which also was all Bloch stories. 

"Frozen Fear": story of a man who attempts to cut himself off from a loveless marriage in order to take up with his mistress by a rather inventive means of murder. Only some things don't seem to want to stay dead.  This story was pretty good.  A nice opening story.  

The hot-blooded beauty in the cold freezer.

"The Weird Tailor": a tailor desperate for money agrees to, at the request of an unusual elderly customer (played by Peter Cushing), to make a special suit out of a very strange type of fabric. Only when he delivers it, he discovers the elderly customer actually has no money to pay and even more shocking is the true purpose of this bizarre suit.  This is my favorite story in the film..  It has Peter Cushing in it so how could it go wrong. 

Don't fuck with Peter Cushing

"Lucy Comes To Stay": a tale of psychosis as Lucy (Charlotte Rampling) returns home from the mental hospital, presumed cured, only it seems the naughty girlfriend who landed Lucy in trouble to begin has started to visit her in secret as well.  This story runs kind of long but it's not that bad.  

You have nothing to lose but your mind.

"Mannikens of Horror" Powell meets a seemingly calm rational doctor, played by Herbert Lom.  Lom has created a series of mechanical figures, including one of himself. He tries persuading those around him that he can bring the figure to life but everyone thinks he's crazy. This one is good as well and has this crazy little mother fucker running around.  

See the little mother fucking metal man and his big knife.

Roy Ward Baker directs the movie and many of his styles are evident here. He makes excellent use of "A Night on Bald Mountain" to score the movie, ensuring it fits with the somewhat Gothic setting. His other choices of music have an orchestral Gothic style that ensure consistency and help build suspense and tension, something particularly evident in the final story. Baker makes excellent use of camera angles to hook the audience with something quirky or sinister, draw them in slowly and then deliver a sudden shock out of nowhere. These styles were also used on many of his other movies but it is here where it works best.

Overall, I was very surprised by this film, as I had very low expectations.  There are lots of great special effects and solid acting across the board. This seems to be a classic which has gone on to influence later "asylum" oriented films. I really enjoyed it.  

A polite warning: This House is Not a Home!

Trivia:

Shot in 24 days.

Vermicelli was used for the robots' insides

Richard Todd has stated in interviews that he regrets making this film.

Herbert Lom was only booked for one day, and ended up shooting his cameo in half a day.

Peter Cushing filmed his part in two days.

The movie started shooting in early April of 1972 and was playing in West End cinemas 15 weeks later.

Arthur Grant was booked as director of photography but three weeks before shooting discovered he was terminally ill and had to reluctantly drop out. Denys N. Coop stepped in at short notice.

Shit Happens

Appropriately enough, the story "The Weird Tailor" had first been published in the magazine "Weird Tales".

"The Weird Tailor" was previously shown on Boris Karloff's Thriller: The Weird Tailor (1961), which aired on October 16, 1961.

Geoffrey Bayldon was cast at the 11th hour to replace Spike Milligan who dropped out before shooting began.

In segment 3, "Lucy Comes to Stay," there is no rearview mirror in the Jaguar XJ6 driven by George when he first brings Barbara home.

Peter Cushing (Smith) and Herbert Lom (Byron) both played Professor Van Helsing in films starring Christopher Lee as Count Dracula: Cushing in "Horror of Dracula (1958)," "Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972)" and "The Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973)" and Lom in "Count Dracula (1970)." Cushing also played the role in "The Brides of Dracula (1960)" and "The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974)," in which Lee did not appear.

Keith Barron, Ralph Bates, Tom Adams, Michael Jayston, and Martin Jarvis were considered for the role of Dr. Martin, which went to Robert Powell.

Torture Garden (1967)

An anthology of four short horror stories about people who visit Dr. Diabolo's fairground haunted-house attraction show.

Torture Garden is a 1967 British horror film directed by Freddie Francis and starring Burgess Meredith, Jack Palance, Michael Ripper, Beverly Adams, Peter Cushing, Maurice Denham, Ursula Howells, Michael Bryant and Barbara Ewing. The score was a collaboration between Hammer horror regulars James Bernard and Don Banks.

A special sideshow torture exhibit has the power, according to showman Dr. Diabolo (Burgess Meredith), to warn people of evil in their futures. One by one, skeptical customers stand before the Fate Atropos to be shown the greed and violence they're hiding behind their respectable façades.

Where Nothing Grows But Fear!

Torture Garden is a very misleading title for this movie because there is no torture and no fucking garden. It's written by Robert Bloch and directed by Freddie Francis. There are four stories plus the linking/wraparound story.  Every story was written by Bloch who was also the author of Psycho. There's nothing here as good as Psycho but a few of the stories aren't bad at all. 

Story 1 is about a dead witch who possesses a cat and causes an inheritor to rue his greediness. It's entertaining. That's what the dude gets for fucking around and opening up a coffin. If you happen to find a coffin in the basement don't open the damn thing.  Also if a live car jumps out of the coffin leave the fucking house. 

Story 2 is more mysterious than horrific but the story about androids is, at least, relatively original.  Beverly Adams is the star and she's incredibly beautiful.  She also starred in "How To Stuff A Wild Bikini" and believe me she can stuff that bikini. 

I Bet You Can Stuff A Wild Bikini

Story 3 is a distinctly silly episode about a piano "with a mind of it's own", who kills it's player's lover. It's not just silly but fucking stupid.  The girl should have been dating a guitarist anyway.  Eveybody knows the guitarist and lead singer get all the chicks. 

Story 4, is about the resurrection of Edgar Allan Poe.  This is easily the best story here and Jack Palance and Peter Cushing are awesome.  I love Peter Cushing in just about every film he's been in. 

This has been called the worst of the Amicus anthologies. That may be true, but it is still enjoyable. "Torture Garden" is entertaining enough for fans of Horror omnibuses, but I'd recommend most other Amicus anthologies (especially the excellent "House That Dripped Blood") over this one. Positive points are a nice atmosphere and look, but overall "Torture Garden" is just OK.

Do You Dare See What Dr. Diabolo Sees?

Trivia:

When this movie was shown in 1967, one of the promos was a pack of torture garden seeds given to patrons as they entered the theater. The seeds were actually grass seeds.

Despite being present from the opening, and also top billed, Jack Palance (Ronald Wyatt) does not speak until one hour and fifteen minutes into this movie.

"Columbia Pictures" financed this movie and insisted that two American actors be cast. Therefore, the initial casting of Peter Cushing (Lancelot Canning) and Sir Christopher Lee was changed to that of Jack Palance (Ronald Wyatt) and Burgess Meredith (Dr. Diabolo).

A scene featuring Burgess Meredith is used at the beginning of the film "See No Evil" (1971) on a TV set in a shop window.

This movie was released in the U.S. as the top half of a double feature with "Trog (1970)," which was Joan Crawford's final movie. Both movies were directed by Freddie Francis.

Barbara Ewing (Dorothy Endicott) received an "introducing" credit.

Robert Hutton (Bruce Benton) and Peter Cushing (Lancelot Canning) died only four days apart: Hutton on August 7, 1994 and Cushing on August 11, 1994.

After The Twilight Zone: Printer's Devil (1963), this was the second time that Burgess Meredith played the Devil.