Tag Archives: Director

Captain Blood (1935)

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After a long while, I finally added this film to my DVD collection.  Originally released in 1935, Captain Blood is black and white, no CGI – switch off now if this isn’t your thing.  But you’ll be missing something special if you do.

This is the story of a doctor, Peter Blood, who through misfortune and circumstance finds himself a slave in the West Indies.  From here he escapes with his trusty comrades and commandeers a Spanish ship, his only option now a life of piracy.  We follow Captain Blood and his crew’s adventures on the seas. captainblood1

Warner Brothers took a gamble in casting the unknown Errol Flynn in the lead role.  The risk paid off – Flynn lights up the screen from the start.  A star is not so much born as presented fully formed for the audience to adore.  Olivia de Havilland, as Arabella Bishop, also found herself become an established name.  There is real on screen chemistry between the two (they’d go on to star in many other films together); both Flynn and de Havilland captivating throughout.

Director Michael Curtiz employs everything he has to create a spectacle on screen, though surprisingly most of the scenes were shot on sound stages.  Flynn’s sword fight with Basil Rathbone is energetic and deadly.  The final swing-across-the-cavern ship to ship battle is still exciting even now.

Curtiz takes his time telling the back story before we get to the piracy on the high seas.  On first viewing you may wonder when the film will actually get to the pirate part, yet the tale is told well with engaging characters and action.

Captain Blood is golden era Hollywood.  It has escapism, adventure and above all, fun.  Even without a single “Garrrrgh!”, it’s still full of pirate-y goodness.

8/10 

Hallowe’en Horror Fest Must Be Destroyed

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Ed Wood (1994)

OK – so Ed Wood doesn’t have any shocks or frights.  Nor does it contain anything remotely supernatural.  Yet it does have Bela Lugosi, Vampira, a Hallowe’en scene and references to some of the worst horror B-movies of all time.

This film charts the career lows (and more lows) of Ed Wood, a man whose movies are largely considered absolute disasters.  Played by Johnny Depp, Wood and his band of misfits blunder from one production to another, with far more enthusiasm than talent.  Thus we see a dramatised version of Wood’s life behind the scenes of such turkeys as Bride of the Monster and Plan 9 From Outer Space. ed_wood_ver2

Bela Lugosi is played fantastically by Martin Landau, in a role that elicits great sympathy from the audience.  The film also stars Sarah Jessica Parker, the legendary Bill Murray, Patricia Arquette and Lisa Marie as the aforementioned Vampira.  Depp, too, does a riveting job, making Wood likeable – a failed hero the audience can root for.

Directed by Tim Burton, this is a film that I can watch again and again.  You don’t have to be familiar with the works of Wood, but it does add another dimension if you are.  It’s a wonderful film that has, at it’s core, a story of succeeding against the odds.  Sort of.

Not a horror film then, as such, but the fact that Ed Wood features such icons of early horror makes this film an unmissable Hallowe’en treat.

10/10

Day of the Dead (1985)

So it’s post apocalypse and there are zombies everywhere.  There are these survivors holed up in an underground mine/storage facility.  Tensions mount between the survivors –  some being scientists and some military – as they each have their own agendas.  Eventually everything goes belly up and it’s zombie attack time.

I don’t think that gives away too many spoilers – you weren’t expecting anything else, were you?

Director George A Romero was also responsible for the completely thrilling Night of the Living Dead.  He also made Dawn of the Dead, a very fine sequel.  However, for me, Day of the Dead doesn’t quite reach the heights of the two earlier films.  Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty to get your teeth into here, and there are a few genuinely innovative moments.  It’s just harder to relate to people stuck in an underground cavern than it is a shopping mall.

I won’t mention the zombie Bub, a character that I definitely thought was too much.  But check it out, certainly if you’ve seen the other Dead films.

7/10

Son of Hallowe’en Horror Fest

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28 Days Later (2002)

When Mrs Platinum Al and I went on our very first date, this was the film she wanted to see.  I’d heard it was good, and being a fan of the Director Danny Boyle’s earlier works (Shallow Grave, Trainspotting) agreed it would be a good choice.  What followed was one of the most extreme cinematic experiences I’ve ever had.  You’ve heard stories about people walking out of the cinema?  I saw that during this screening.  Audience members were getting up and leaving.  I’m sure that it wasn’t because the film was bad – it was because 28 Days Later is utterly terrifying. MV5BNzM2NDYwNjM3OF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNDYxNzk5._V1._SX337_SY500_ (1)

Jim (Cillian Murphy) wakes up in hospital after being in an accident.  Slowly he finds that the world he knew has crumbled, as an infectious virus called “Rage” has decimated the population by turning the victims into violent, mindless killers.  Jim meets other survivors, and together they begin a journey to find a cure for Rage, and safe refuge from the Infected.

28 Days Later was never billed as a zombie flick originally, at least not as I remember it.  Although obviously inspired by zombie movies and other post apocalyptic films, it was promoted as a film exploring what could happen following the outbreak of a pandemic.  Scenes of an abandoned London created emotions of despair that were related, in the press, to the aftermath of 9/11.  Psychologically, the audience is submitted to a world of sheer desperation that pervades every minute.

As a result, 28 Days Later gives us much more than a zombie re-hash.  It has shocks and creates tension in the viewer unlike any other film I have ever seen.  But it also asks questions: how far away are any of us, in a world of road rage and social unrest, from mindless uncontrolled violence?

Quite simply a superb film on every level, 28 Days Later horrifies beyond belief.

10/10

The Bride of Hallowe’en Horror Fest

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The Vampire Lovers (1970) THE-VAMPIRE-LOVERS

It’s Hammer time!  And though it might not be a popular opinion to express, this film is, for me, classic Hammer.  With the dawn of the 1970’s the studio started to put out films that featured more explicit gore and nudity.  In The Vampire Lovers, there are some fairly gruesome decapitations and some totally gratuitous nakedness.  Brilliant.

Based on Sheridan Le Fanu’s novel Carmilla, The Vampire Lovers stars the late, great Ingrid Pitt as Mircalla/Carmilla.  She charms her way into the houses of well-to-do families and seduces their daughters with her vampiric powers.  Peter Cushing – total hero – makes a cameo appearance and we even get to see George (Minder) Cole in a substantial role.  vampirelovers2

The sets are quite lush and the atmosphere is archetypal Hammer Gothic fare.  But the real stars here are the lovely ladies – Ingrid, plus Kate O’Mara and one of my all time favourites, the beautiful Madeline Smith.  Maddy looks wonderful in this film and plays the doe-eyed innocent perfectly.

The Vampire Lovers ticks all the Hammer boxes.  And with a line-up that includes Pitt, Smith and O’Mara, offers possibly the greatest Hammer Glamour cast for a single film of all.

9/10

Alien (1979)

“Alien isn’t a horror film – it’s science fiction!”  Nonsense.  Despite the sci-fi setting, this film is pure horror – and one of the all time greats.  It still has the power to shock all these years later, not to mention some very gruesome scenes.  Gripping and shit-your-shoes off scary.

The design is faultless – both H. R. Giger’s creature and the lived in space ship sets.  The film looks great and the viewer is totally immersed in the world on-screen.  I don’t need to add more, just watch it and be mesmerised.

9/10

Earth vs. Hallowe’en Horror Fest

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The Thing (1982)

I’m not going to preach on about this film, let’s just say it’s pure genius.  John Carpenter’s The Thing is an excellent film – not just an excellent horror (or sci-fi) film, but an excellent film outright.

An isolated team of American scientists in the Antarctic are infiltrated by a shape changing creature from outer space.  As the mystery unfolds, the team have no idea who has been taken over by the thing and who is still human.  The tension mounts as the men’s suspicion of each other increases. title the thing

Great special effects (no CGI here) and believable performances (Kurt Russell as Mac) help, but it’s Carpenter’s ability to squeeze every ounce of unease, mistrust and anxiety out of the cast that makes it work.  A classic.

10/10

Paranormal Activity (2007)

When I first saw this film, the initial twenty minutes or so didn’t impress me.  It was like watching a feature length version of Most Haunted.  Not that there’s anything wrong with Most Haunted (great show), I just don’t want to watch a dramatised version of vaguely strange happenings when I can watch the TV show any time.  Plus, Paranormal Activity was another from the “found footage” genre, and while Blair Witch was OK I wasn’t a huge fan.

Where this film works though, is in tapping into a very primal fear – the fear of what goes on when we’re asleep.  There are some very scary moments where the viewer can’t help but wonder if anything strange occurs when they’re sleeping.  Sure, the hokum is ladled on mercilessly (frightened psychics, demonic possession) but there are genuinely hair-raising sequences that are really creepy.

The film works best when it’s low key, and plays on our fear of what goes bump in the night.  Definitely worth a watch, just don’t expect to be convinced that the “found footage” is real…

8/10 

The Revenge of Hallowe’en Horror Fest

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Shadow of the Vampire (2000)

An interesting one, this – not exactly a shocker, but undeniably creepy.  Shadow of the Vampire proposes that the classic silent film Nosfertu (1922) employed an actual vampire to portray it’s evil protaganist, Count Orlock.  Set during the production of the film, Director F. W. Murnau (John Malkovich) decides that only a real undead creature can portray the villain of his story.  As a result, the production is plagued by catastrophe as the vampire’s natural urges threaten to derail the project. shadow-of-the-vampire-poster

Willem Dafoe is almost unrecognisable as Max Shreck, the vampire playing a vampire.  He gives a fantastically eerie performance, superbly impersonating the Orlock of the original movie and also bringing his own air of barely contained menace.  Malkovich shows his skills as the driven perfectionist trying to keep together a production that is teetering on the brink of collapse.

To truly get the most from Shadow of the Vampire, the audience needs to be familiar with the source material.  But then, if you’ve never seen Nosferatu – you should be ashamed of yourself.

8/10

The Curse of Hallowe’en Horror Fest

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An American Werewolf in London (1981)

I first saw this film when I was about ten years old.  Or rather, I saw the first ten minutes.  When the initial attack occurs on the moors, my Mum switched it off.  And I’m not surprised.  Just those first few minutes were enough to make me shit my shoes off.  It would be many years later before I would actually watch the movie all the way through.

An American Werewolf in London begins with two backpacking young Americans finding their way to a mysterious village somewhere in Yorkshire.  They are attacked on the moors by a werewolf – one is killed and one survives, thus carrying on the werewolf’s curse.  Recovering in a London hospital, the survivor, David (David Naughton) is cared for by nurse Alex (Jenny Agutter).  His nightmares soon erupt into vicious attacks as he transforms, under the full moon, into a werewolf. american_werewolf_in_london_poster_04

This film is an absolute classic of the genre.  There are genuine jump-out-of-your-seat shocks, moments of bloody gore and a tragic love story that combine into a thrilling experience.  The special effects make-up (by Rick Baker) is still out standing today, particularly the transformation scene.

Often described as a “horror comedy”, there is a humorous tone in moments throughout the film which helps create the light and dark shades.  Director John Landis, however, has stated that An American Werewolf… is not a comedy, it just uses the lighter shades to create impact for the more horrible scenes.  Landis blends the moods superbly.  There are also numerous nods to the werewolf movies of the past; both verbally (The Wolfman and Curse of the Werewolf both get a nod) and in the structure of the film.

I’ve seen this film many, many times since Mum first switched channels after ten minutes. I’ve even seen it on the big screen, for a special late night showing a couple of years ago. The film’s ability to shock is now lost on me somewhat – I know when every scare is due to happen.  But I still enjoy watching this film and absorb every incredibly clever touch that Landis utilises.  It’s made a massive impression on me – I still remember the first time I was way down deep on the London underground, and gained an appreciation of the loneliness and isolation in one particular scene.

An American Werewolf In London: if you’ve not seen it, see it now.  But not in a dodgy theatre in Piccadilly Circus, obviously.

10/10

Hallowe’en Horror Fest

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It’s October!  Which means it’s not long till Hallowe’en.  Which also means that I’ve started my annual Hallowe’en Horror Fest – watching scary movies and listening to horror rock!

The festival of Hallowe’en is a big deal at the Virtual Hot Tub.  Not only will I be decorating the place and having a fancy dress party for all my fiends, I’ll update you on other cultural happenings throughout the month.  Starting now.

A big part of Hallowe’en Horror Fest is the films.  Horror movies old and new, whether they’re real shit-your-shoes off jumpy, or just have some supernatural element to them.  My aim is to watch as many as possible before we get to November.   Here’s the scoop on the first two.

The Raven (2012)

A serial killer is committing terrible murders inspired by the writings of Edgar Allan Poe.  Poe (John Cusack) must turn detective to put an end to the grisly crimes before his betrothed becomes the next victim.

I was intrigued to see this film as I’ve read many of Poe’s stories over the years, and enjoyed them immensely.  Whether you enjoy the movie will depend on if you can accept the fictionalised account including the real Edgar Allan Poe as a protagonist.  For me, this twist was a great idea and worth exploring.

Not truly “Horrific”, but nonetheless creating a suitably dark, brooding atmosphere with a fair dose of gore, I enjoyed the film very much.  Very good, though shock factor is not too high.

7/10

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

A hybrid of Tarantino gangster movie and splatter crazy vampire fest, I wasn’t a big fan of this film the first time I saw it.  The juxtaposition of the two styles jarred.  However the exploding, gloopy vampires – acting more like zombies in their mass attack on the humans – grated on me even more.  They didn’t resemble enough the vampires of folklore I was familiar with.  I actually enjoyed the gritty realism of the first part of the film rather than the horror element.

Repeated viewings have proved me wrong.  The more I see this film, the more I admire the ingenuity, creativity and enthusiasm thrown onto the screen like an exploding blood pack by Director Robert Rodriguez.  Great performances from everyone, including George Clooney, Juliette Lewis, Harvey Keitel and Tarantino himself.  Watching it again now, the disparate elements really serve to create a sense of bewilderment when the vampires show themselves.

Highly recommended, if you’ve not seen this film, get on it now.  And not forgetting Salma Hayek makes one of the sexiest vampires ever as Santanico Pandemonium.

8/10