Beyond Naschy #27 - A BELL FROM HELL (1973)

Our latest episode has us finally covering an under seen and not often spoken about horror classic. A BELL FROM HELL (1973) straddles the fence between the worlds of Art-House and Exploitation cinema taking elements from both to create an impressive fusion. It's easy to imagine this film playing to highbrow crowds seeking an intellectual vision of the fate of aristocratic families in rural Spain under the Franco regime. But it's even easier to think of it playing in grindhouse theaters for people looking for cheap horror thrills from a film about a well planned, well deserved revenge. Luckily, these dissimilar audiences get what they want here with enough intelligence and excitement for both types to feel satisfied with this darkly comic tale. It's a creepy tale of hate, greed and lust couched in clearly symbolic terms to make comment on life under a repressive government. It'll keep you guessing right up until the end credits!

Troy and I try not to spoil too much of this one as it is less well known than it should be. (Where is the Blu-Ray of this exceptional work?) Nevertheless, we talk about the obvious symbolic connection between the titular bell and the film's main character as we watch him released from an asylum to return home. His aunt and cousins welcome him back, with reservations, as we watch him begin a series of increasingly cruel practical jokes with a deadly endpoint in mind. We discuss the unfortunate fate of the film's talented director, the exceptional career of the screenwriter and explain that you certainly have seen some of the cast in other places. See if you can spot where I catch myself when delineating the possible symbolic nature of certain characters because I realize I might end up spoiling one of the film's nastier surprises. Sometimes my thoughts race ahead of my best intentions!

We end the show with a voicemail from a British listener which prompts us to talk a bit about Jess Franco films again. It's pretty easy to get us onto that topic, huh? If you have any comments or questions the email address is naschycast@gmail.com or we can be reached on the show's FaceBook page. Thank you for downloading and listening! Oh -and vote for us in the Rondo Awards! We'd love to win in the category BEST MULTIMEDIA SITE!

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What I Watched In February

GLASS (2019) is the final part of M. Night Shamalan's long delayed trilogy focused on his personal vision of superheroes and villains. When SPLIT (2017) was released and turned out to be a stealth sequel to UNBREAKABLE (2000) this film became inevitable and much anticipated. With all of Shamalan's past missteps and bad ideas I was worried that he might find a way to blow his chance at a cohesive tale but it turns out he succeeded quite admirably. Indeed, I was very impressed with only one caveat.

Bruce Willis seems to be only occasionally bringing his 'A' game to the screen these days. I rewatched the first film to refresh myself with the entire mythology of the series before seeing GLASS. This served as a sharp reminder of how good Willis was back then and particularly in this role. He brought a careful quiet strength to the character that played perfectly with his director's filmmaking style. In the new film he only seems completely engaged about 70% of the time. There are scenes in which he looks bored or is simply going through the motions of enacting the basics of the script. He is effective when he needs to be but as soon as the focus is off him or diluted with other details it's as if his concern for the material is barely there. This is a massive shame as the rest of the cast is working their asses off bring this fascinating story to it's dark conclusion. If Willis is as rich as I suspect he might be, perhaps it's time he retired.

I understand that there has been an quantity of anger at the film's ending. I don't understand this at all. I felt that the downbeat ending perfectly encapsulated the ideas of the series as it went along. For there to have been three such individuals in Philadelphia means that there had to be others elsewhere and that points to the probability of what plays out in the final act of this movie. I was reminded of the early way Marvel handled the mutants in the first few years of the X-Men comic books in the 1960's. This film felt very much in keeping with the natural fears of humanity when confronted with something this scary.

ESCAPE ROOM (2019) is a very enjoyable thriller keying off a social/cultural phenomenon that I have absolutely no experience with or, really, any desire to experience. I like playing a game with friends just as much as the next person but I still don't get why I would want to join together with a group of complete strangers in an attempt to win a game in some public place. If you suggest sitting around a table and drinking while we play Monopoly or something and you can probably get me on board but not anything like this. But, clearly these types of game adventures have become a huge business, so.....

This is a pretty diverting film with a mostly likable cast. The story ramps up well and I found the characters interesting enough with each staying well within their stereotypical lanes. The female actors are generally better than the males which adds some unexpected texture to events as they progress. I was never bored by the film but, by the end. I felt as if I had seen this story before and done in a much more interesting way. This is quite similar to the 2016 film THE BELKO EXPERIMENT with an ending that is only one degree of separation from that earlier film's conclusion. While I find the idea behind this film's hideous actions (trying to not spoil things) scarier than those in THE BELKO EXPERIMENT it also seems less universal in it's final statement as well. I'd be curious to see what others think about the similarities between these two movies and the thread that could be followed on through to the PURGE films as well. 

THE LIST

ESCAPE FROM GALAXY 3 (1981) -2 (a.k.a. STARCRASH 2)

ESCAPE ROOM (2019) - 6

SPLIT (2016) - 8 (rewatch)

BOMBA, THE JUNGLE BOY (1949) - 5 (first of the series)

BEHIND THE HEADLINES (1937) - 5 (OK competitive reporter tale)

BLOODY NEW YEAR (1987) - 6 (silly but inventive British horror film)

THE CARPET OF HORROR (1962) - 7 (fun krimi)

WITCHTRAP (1989) - 4

ANNIHILATION (2018) - 9 (rewatch)

NINJA BUSTERS (1985) - 2 (amusingly awful)

GLASS (2019) - 8

HOUSE OF SECRETS (1936) - 5 (British set mystery)

KLONDIKE KATE (1943) - 5

CONQUEST OF COCHISE (1953) - 6

DON'T KILL IT (2016) - 4 (good idea let down by low budget)  

HAPPY DEATH DAY (2018) - 8 (rewatch)

SHERLOCK HOLMES: A GAME OF SHADOWS (2012) - 7 (rewatch)

SHINING SEX (1977) - 7 (Jess Franco Sci-fi sex film)

THE REDEEMER: SON OF SATAN (1978) - 7 (much better than I expected)

ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL(2019) - 6

INVASION OF THE BLOOD FARMERS (1972) - 3 (rewatch)

ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK (1972) - 8 (rewatch)

POLAR (2019) - 7 (over-the-top NetFlix assassin film)

JACK THE RIPPER (1958) - 7 (rewatch)

MAD MAX FURY ROAD (2015) - 9 (rewatch)

TORNADO (1983) - 4 (a.k.a. THE LAST BLOOD)

Trailers From Hell - THE SWIMMER (1968)

Here's the great Illeana Douglas talking about the fantastic Burt Lancaster film THE SWIMMER (1968). By the time I saw this movie for the first time I knew the John Cheever source story and was surprised that it handled the tale's complexities so well. Lancaster is great and I second Miss Douglas' strong recommendation of this under seen classic. 

The Bloody Pit #82 - Cult Blu-Ray Releases

This episode sees the return of cult movie expert and long time film writer Robert Monell. He and I discuss four of the newest Blu-Ray releases from Severin Films with a few mostly related side roads along the way. We're both stunned by the continuing announcements from several small labels that focus on giving obscure genre movies the chance to shine in high definition. These are films that would probably never be part of the Criterion Collection but are still very well worth being seen in the best possible presentations. And now, because of the love of discerning fans running niche labels, we can have incredible multidisc releases of rare giallo films, strange horror epics shot in the Philippines, little seen Jack the Ripper cinema and even a tiny budgeted 1970's attempt at making a human sacrificing druid cult into a terrifying horror threat. It truly is a great time to be alive!

Please join Mr. Monell and I for this brief show about some highlighted new Blu-Rays worth the attention of cult film fanatics. We talk about the virtues (and vices) of these entertaining movies and also the copious extras lavished upon these often unseen pieces of genre history. The films we cover in the most detail are ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK, the 1959 film JACK THE RIPPER and the insane INVASION OF THE BLOOD FARMERS. We also excitedly chat about the awesome extras-packed set called All The Colors Of Giallo because it is such a fantastic primer on that fine genre and, surprisingly, the German Krimi films as well. These releases are worth their weight in gold!

If you have any questions or comments the show can be reached at thebloodpit@gmail.com or on the podcast's FaceBook page. Thanks for downloading and listening!

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Werewolf For Hire!

Nic Brown's pair of Werewolf For Hire novels are a real joy for genre fans. They treat the werewolf sub-genre seriously placing the characters in the context of 1970's and 80's style men's adventure tales. Luckily, Brown is a gifted enough writer that he is capable of doing so in a credible, intelligent way that makes his work more than just exciting page-turners. They are smartly plotted and fast paced reads well worth checking out.

I had enjoyed the first of these books but I have to admit the second one is a bit better. After an effective monster fighting opening sequence that puts the titular werewolf Michael Warren in a depressed state of mind he is called to England on a personal case. Michael's detective partners Tabitha and Sam are summoned across the pond on a case that strikes at their extended family. This allows this second tale to expand the supernatural world of the books to include more magic and a pair of warring European lycanthrope groups that may or may not help our heroes.

Brown's stories are told in an exciting and clear fashion with a solid ear for characters and dialog. As a modern pulp author he understands the needs of adventure fiction but is able to make things interesting beyond just relating the basics of the tale. The world he creates in these two books is a complex and intriguing one that I wish he would return to soon. It's easy to sense that there are many great mysteries to be solved by the werewolf for hire and his partners in detection.

Guess these short stories will have to hold me over! 

Pulp Covers - The Spider!

The intensely cold weather we're currently suffering through has me in the mood to curl up and read some Spider tales! 

Rima The Jungle Girl!

I have a mild fascination with Jungle adventure tales that probably traces back to my childhood love of Tarzan. The Jungle Girl sub-set of these stories have become a special interest for me in the past several years leading me to track down the Sheena pulp tales and any other examples I can locate. Until just the other day I had somehow missed this one though.

Rima, The Jungle Girl is a character that was created (and killed!) in a 1904 novel called Green Mansions: A Romance of the Tropical Forest. A film of the book was made in 1959 starring Audrey Hepburn in the Rima role - a fact that had me thinking I was accidentally reading information from a parody website! But, it's true. How have I missed this movie? And when can I finally catch it?

Anyway - in 1974 DC comics published seven issues of their Rima comic book and this prompted her inclusion in several episodes of The All New Super Friends Hour between 1977 and 1980. That means that, as a kid, I must have seen her in that show but completely managed to forget about the odd sight of a Jungle Girl running around with Wonder Woman and company.

So, the other day when I was looking through a dollar bargain bin at a comic shop I spotted the first issue of the DC series and impulsively grabbed it, of course. It seems to be an adaptation of the Green Mansions novel with excellent interior artwork from Nestor Redondo and a great cover from Joe Kubert. I will be searching for the other six issues to see what they did with the character other than adapt the source book. That there are still hidden little series like this lurking out there to be discovered really puts a smile on my face!