Trailer - THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1957)

Revisited this one last night and found myself loving it even more than my memory told me I would. In the past I've found the slow build to the birth of the monster difficult to deal with when rewatching this classic. But this time it felt perfectly paced and structured to bring almost any willing audience along for the horrific sights it has to show them. Decades after it changed the genre it still stands as an impressive accomplishment! Vibrant and alive it kicks in the door and demands to be seen - again. 

Trailer - HORROR OF DRACULA (1958)

The Bloody Pit #185 - TEN LITTLE INDIANS (1965)

Author Troy Howarth returns to the show to talk about the second feature film of Agatha Christie’s TEN LITTLE INDIANS (1965). We compare it to the superior 1945 version and a couple of later attempts to bring this sturdy tale to the big screen. Both of us try not to spoil the story for those who have yet to experience the fun, but a few of the surprises do slip into the conversation.

We discuss the novel and its original title as well as the changes Christie made to her bestselling story when she adapted it for the stage. This beautifully photographed black and white movie is a stylish and well-cast progenitor of the slasher horror genre in which the mysterious killer murders his victims in darkly humorous ways, whittling the cast down for our entertainment. The cast is fascinating and we dig into the careers of several of them touching on their high and low points. Troy’s appreciation of Dennis Price surfaces with me teasing him about a possible future writing project. Fingers crossed! I point to a couple of small things that stand out as ill-fitting or overlong but we both think highly of this strong revisioning of this always intriguing tale. I’m just not sure I’m ready for the Frank Stallone version.

If you have a favorite screen adaptation of this story let us know at thebloodypit@gmail.com – we’ll be glad to hear from you. Thank you for listening and we’ll be back soon.

Video - Trailer for TEN LITTLE INDIANS (1965)

Podcast on the way! 

The Bloody Pit #134 - 1941 (1979)

We don’t cover many comedies on The Bloody Pit for various reasons but 1941 (1979) ticks off many boxes for genre fans that makes it nearly perfect for discussion. Toshiro Mifune and Christopher Lee as bickering military leaders trapped together in a submarine? Is this a humorous variation on HELL IN THE PACFIC (1968) hiding in plain sight?

Mark Maddox joins me to dig into our mutual fascination with this much criticized epic of American madness and wartime paranoia. Told before production that they should make a serious World War II film on the subject instead of a comedy, Spielberg and his team forged ahead with their warped vision of post-Pearl Harbor attack fears. It’s an ambitious tale with dozens of characters and multiple storylines that slowly escalates into a long December night of chaos and violence. I’m sure that a serious movie about this historical incident could be made but I’m so glad that this farce exists in its place. 1941 is one of my favorite comedies of all time and I never cease to laugh at the insanity every time I watch it.

Using the sprawling template of IT’S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD (1964) we are given a scenario ripe with potential sparks while the plot scatters metaphorical open barrels of gasoline around to see how they explode in flames. Combining oddball comedic characters with characters that are taking the spiraling events seriously keeps the entire affair grounded enough to seem believable and suspenseful enough to be thrilling. The nutty folks’ antics never overpower the forward momentum of the wild story even in the extended version of the film that Mark and I discuss. We talk about our first encounters with the film, its effect on us at the time and how popular opinion of it has changed over the years. We dig into the huge cast of amazing actors and debate some of the performances. The topic of the John Williams score is broached with a snippet or two of the music inserted into the show and we marvel at the amazing miniature work in the film’s climax. We do get off-track at least once trying to decide what Spielberg’s worst movie might be. As usual, Mark is wrong!

If you know which Spielberg film is the weakest the email address is thebloodypit@gmail.com where we’d love to hear from you. And if you think Mark and I should just bash in each other’s heads and call it a day – let us know that too! Thanks for listening to the show.

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Trailers From Hell - HORROR EXPRESS (1972)

Joe Dante makes a good case for this excellent film that has to stand as one of the best pairings of Cushing and Lee onscreen. Such a great film and one that should be a part of every horror fan's collection. 

Trailers From Hell - THE TWO FACES OF DR. JEKYLL (1960)

Re-viewing THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA (1973)

Because THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA (1973) was recently bought out on Blu-ray by Warner Archives I decided to revisit it. As the last of Hammer's Dracula films I've always considered this to be the nadir of that studio's run of vampire epics. My memories of it were that it was poor on almost every level with barely any actual Dracula presence in the story. It was only because of the chance to see a cleaned up HD print showing the film at it's best that I decided to rewatch it and I am glad I did!

I remembered only a few things about the film including the one image almost everyone takes from it. This would be the vampire brides rising from their basement coffins to attack potential victims. These sequences are still quite memorable and effective but the things I had forgotten were numerous!

Bizarrely, I had forgotten that Peter Cushing was even in this film! How the hell did I edit Cushing out of this? Was I trying to excuse him from a movie I thought was beneath him? But there he is front and center playing the same Van Helsing character he played in the previous year's DRACULA A.D. 72 and getting involved in the mystery at the heart of this one. And he's great, as always. I had forgotten that the amazing Freddie Jones is in this doing his usual brilliant, brittle loon character who is teetering on the edge of madness. And he's great, as always. I had completely forgotten the entire MI-6 James Bondian style plot of the film and I found myself very much enjoying how well written it is. I was having quite a lot of fun before the supernatural element in the story advanced beyond somebody possibly screwing over old rich people with occult silliness. Watching British spies work off-book to discover if their superiors are doing dastardly things is entertaining enough on it's own.

But the thing I was most surprised that I had completely mis-remembered was the ending of the film. I correctly remembered that Dracula gets caught in hawthorn bushes but incorrectly thought he was killed by this entanglement. No, no! Drac gets stopped by these thorn bushes and then Cushing grabs a convenient piece of wood and stakes that sucker good! And I mean he leans into this action. It is vicious and well done. How could I have forgotten this? It's the end of the movie! And the end for Hammer of the Lee Dracula character. It's a great vampire destruction and I just edited it out or my head. Nuts!

I stand corrected on the qualities of THE SATANIC RITE OF DRACULA (1973). It was not a sad, silly, sloppy ending for the series. It actually quite strong and I'm glad that the Blu-Ray exists.

Poster Art for THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA (1973)

Re-viewing THE GORGON (1964)

Revisted THE GORGON (1964) because it's now available on Blu-Ray and it has been years since I last watched it. I've always liked this Hammer fantasy/horror story but this time I was surprised by the power of my reaction. I actually loved the film this time and found myself drinking it in and, once it was over, thinking about immediately watching it again. Director Terrance Fisher is often quoted as saying that, for him, the Hammer horror films he made were fairy tales and surely THE GORGON is a perfect example of this idea. Stepping outside the usual horror tale types for a story rooted in myth but still set in the vaguely mid-European local that all Hammer films seem to inhabit, the script is extremely tight. John Gilling is a known quantity for crafting some of the studio's odder 1960's efforts including THE REPTILE and THE PLAGUE OF THE ZOMBIES but I hadn't realized he wrote this film. Indeed, his list of script credits reveals a set of films that add to my appreciation of his career.

The standard complaint leveled against THE GORGON has always been that the central mystery of 'who is actually the mythic creature come to life' is obvious. It had been so many years since my last viewing of the film that I had allowed that criticism to seep into my opinion, so I was surprised this time through. The script very definitely sets up a more probable person to be the human form of the hideous Mogera. I had forgotten this! Of course, the presence of the lovely and talented Barbara Shelley generally indicates that her character will play a larger than average role, but the film does present a good argument for the frequently escaped old lady lunatic than my memory or the film's reputation had indicated.

Also, I found myself much happier this time around with the admittedly weaker than I would like snake-head effect. No, it's nowhere near Harryhausen levels of effects brilliance but it is much better than my general recall suggested. In fact, the whole film looks so beautiful in high definition that I feel almost like it's the first time I've ever really seen the movie. I think my last viewing was from a TV broadcast with washed out colors and fuzzy details. This time, seeing was loving! This is Hammer still at the top of it's game and trying to stretch outside their usual set of monsters. I think they succeed very well!

Plus - Christopher Lee is the hero! In a huge mustache! And bonus Patrick Troughton! 

The Bloody Pit #54 - THE MASK OF FU MANCHU (1932)

Fu Manchu is author Sax Rohmer's most famous creation and one that he returned to repeatedly over the years eventually writing a total of thirteen novels detailing his insidious plots for world domination. From the first serialized section of the first Fu tale published in 1913 the stories were very popular, well regarded adventures tales. Such a widely known villainous character was sure to inspire filmmakers to adapt him to the screen and from 1923's THE MYSTERY OF DR. FU MANCHU to 1980's comedic take THE FIENDISH PLOT OF DR. FU MANCHU different producers have brought his evil machinations to cinematic life with varied levels of success. For a longer time than seems plausible the specter of the Yellow Peril loomed large enough to make an Asian master criminal bent on conquest seem a credible threat for both page and film.

In this episode of The Bloody Pit Brian Lindsey and I discuss the character's various film incarnations with special concentration on Karloff's scenery chewing villainy in MGM's lavish THE MASK OF FU MANCHU (1932) and Christopher Lee's 1965 to 1969 five film run as a more accurate version of the character for producer Harry Allan Towers. We also touch on the novels, the 1940 Republic serial and the last (so far) big screen attempt to use Fu in Peter Sellers' final film in which the star plays both Fu and his nemesis Sir Nayland Smith. We both fear that the possibilities of a modern adaptation of these Sax Rohmer stories are next to nil but we do give a few suggestions about what would be necessary to accomplish such a difficult (and probably financially ruinous) task.

So, if you know very little about the character or even if you know quite a bit we think you'll enjoy listening to the two of us talk about the various film versions of the great evil criminal genius Fu Manchu. If you have any questions or comments please write the show at thebloodypit@gmail.com and let us known what you think. Also, there is a FaceBook page for The Bloody Pit and we encourage you to join for occasional updates and show notes. Thanks for downloading and listening.

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Trailers From Hell - THE SKULL (1965)

It's time to rewatch this one, especially now that it's available on Blu-Ray! 

Trailers From Hell - HORROR EXPRESS (1972)

THEATER OF DEATH (1967) Poster Art

I know I shouldn't be surprised but I don't think I've seen this little horror film under either of its most common titles. I'm pretty sure I have it stuck on a double feature DVD somewhere in my collection but the plot description does not ring a bell at all. Time to dig it out and see if I ever watched this one!