Reviews

A former prize-fighter (Marlon) wrestles with his conscience as a longshoreman on the Hudson River across from Manhattan and the Empire State Building. He finds himself attracted to the sister (Eva Marie Saint) of a murdered dockworker while his lawyer brother (Rod Steiger) defends the corrupt Union boss (Lee J. Cobb). Karl Malden is on hand as a concerned local minister.

"On the Waterfront" (1954) is an iconic B&W crime drama that won myriad awards when it came out. It's a seminal socio-political noir and one of Brando's three big hits in the early 50s, along with "A Streetcar Named Desire" and, less so, "The Wild One." I cite those movies because this is cut from the same cloth, just with the milieu of the Hoboken docks in the shadow of the Big Apple. Why it's not included on lists of film noir is a mystery.

Although it's understandably old-fashioned and a little melodramatic, there's enough human interest, especially the potential romance, and you can't beat the authentic setting. I particularly like the rooftop perspective with skyscrapers in the distance in many scenes (reminiscent of Spider-Man comics from the 1960s-1980s).

The flick supports being a "stoolpigeon" against corruption and was director Elia Kazan's answer to those who denounced him for identifying eight Communists in the industry before the House Committee on Un-American Activities in 1952.

Despite its renown, Brando seems pudgy and somewhat unappealing. I thought he improved in later (better) movies, like "Désirée," "The Young Lions," "One-Eyed Jacks" and "Mutiny on the Bounty," even "The Fugitive Kind," "Morituri" and "The Night of the Following Day."

The flick runs almost 1 hour, 48 minutes, and was shot on the shores of Hoboken, New Jersey.

GRADE: B-

A good detective in the Tampa Bay area (Harris) trains his greenhorn partner (Del Toro) while starting a relationship with an alluring woman (Stowe). It turns out she's in an abusive marriage with a pompous banker (Charles Dance). Havoc ensues.

"China Moon" (1994) is a crime drama/thriller similar to "Body Heat" from over a dozen years earlier; even the setting is similar. The difference is that "Body Heat" was a hit at the box office while this one failed to acquire an audience and basically went into obscurity.

Regardless, it's a well-done 'modern' film noir that's more conventional than highly stylized, but includes some brooding rainy night sequences. The acting is great, but the forced ending is ridiculous. It wasn't necessary. Kyle (Harris) finding himself in an ironic role while his rookie pal suddenly discovers how to be a detective was interesting enough. Then it gets eye-rolling. Why Sure!

Still, if you like neo-noir and the actors, it's worth checking out.

The movie runs 1 hour, 39 minutes, and was shot in the Greater Tampa Bay area, including Lakeland and Bartow, which are an hour's drive east of Tampa; and St. Pete's Beach.

GRADE: B-

In Missouri and eastern Kansas, 1869, a sheriff (McDonough) teams-up up with his son, a Federal marshal (Steven R. McQueen), and his AmerIndian associate from the war (Gregory Cruz) to track down a bitter Union comrade who could reignite the war if not stopped (Van Dien). Annabeth Gish is on hand as his wife.

"The Warrant" (2020) is part Western and part Civil War flick. While the main story takes place in 1869, there are myriad sequences from 1864. There's a smidgen of humor amidst the gritty drama and tense action.

A couple of lackluster Trace Adkins Westerns ruined my impression of modern Westerns. I'm talking about "Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story" and "The Virginian" ("Traded" and "Hickok" were much better, but nothing exceptional). Thankfully, this one and "Old Henry" from the following year changed my mind. They were made on relatively low budgets, but quality writing and acting win the day.

A sequel came out in 2023 called "The Warrant: Breaker's Law," which switches the setting to the far west.

The movie runs 1 hour, 24 minutes, and was shot in toccoa and Alto, Georgia, which are a 95-minutes drive northeast of Atlanta. The classic "The Long Riders" was also shot (primarily) in Georgia, which technically makes both films Easterns.

GRADE: B.

After the sighting of a UFO near a remote radio station in SoCal, an extraterrestrial takes over the station with a DJ & a crewmember stuck inside. The being apparently wants to use the air waves to apprehend attractive females, but the process involves shrinking them.

"Bad Channels" (1992) is amusing in a hammy way with its creative story and three great rock/metal video sequences: "Somewhere in the Night," written & sang by Ron Keel, "Touching Myself Again" by DMT and "Manic Depresso (I'm So Happy)" by Sykotik Sinfoney. This was the only movie score done by Blue Oyster Cult. They also have two songs on the soundtrack, "Out of the Darkness" and "Demon's Kiss."

It's cut from the same cloth as, say, "Hard Rock Zombies" mixed with "Shock 'Em Dead." Fans of "Trick or Treat" (1986) should appreciate it, although it's not as serious as that one. Like I said, it's very campy.

It sort-of sets up events in "Dollman vs. Demonic Toys," which came out the next year and is also a sequel to "Demonic Toys." There's a post-credits sequence that shows Dollman just outside of town talking about getting together with the female that's still shrunk. (Dollman is otherwise nowhere to be found). The statuesque Nurse Ginger, played by Melissa Behr, resurfaces in "Dollman vs. Demonic Toys."

Other notables on the feminine front are: Martha Quinn (Lisa Cummings), Charlie Spradling (Cookie) and Daryl Strauss (Bunny).

The flick runs about 1 hour, 28 minutes, and was shot in Los Angeles.

GRADE: B-

After a prologue during the Spanish Civil War, the time switches to 1973, Madrid, where a sad clown (Carlos Areces) joins a circus and an alluring trapeze artist catches his eye, but she's abused by her beau, a supposedly happy clown (Antonio de la Torre). It can't end well.

A Spanish/French production (with English subtitles), "The Last Circus" (2010) smacks of a Tarantino flick if he did one about a circus and shot it in Spain. Unfortunately, it lacks his compelling dialogues. It's reminiscent of "Santa Sangre" from two decades prior, just overblown and with a plot revolving around two characters locked in an epic struggle in which a lose-lose scenario is likely.

As the story progresses, one is reminiscent of The Joker (Jack Nicholson and Heath Ledger's versions) mixed with Two-Face and Jonah Hex; the other meanwhile morphs into a pudgy version of Papa Emeritus. The last act recalls the climax of 1989's "Batman," albeit on amphetamines.

Statuesque Carolina Bang as the trapeze artist is basically Europe's taller version of Margot Robbie, a few years before she made it big.

While outrageously madcap and brutal, it's sometimes amusing and has its highlights. It's basically too crazy for mass appeal, but no doubt has a cult following. As far as I'm concerned, less is more.

The film runs 1 hour, 47 minutes, and was shot in Spain (Comunidad Valenciana on the southeast coast; Madrid; and, for the last sequence, Valle de los Caídos, aka Valley of the Fallen, which is a half hour drive northwest of the city).

GRADE: C+/B-

During Christmastime in East Willard, Massachusetts, two siblings visit their older brother's grave and stay at a family's house where they learn of the legend of Black Peter, Santa's dark brother. But it's the lost journal of a man named Jeffrey Butler that's really horrifying because it concerns the town's real-life creepy past.

"Silent Night, Bloody Night 2: Revival" (2015) is a sequel to the original movie from 43 years earlier and is not connected to the no-budget British remake from 2013 called "Silent Night, Bloody Night: The Homecoming," which only cost $20,000.

This one didn't have much more money to play with; I can't find a specific amount, but even if it was over twice that, say $50,000, this is a spare change budget flick. The original film was made in December-March, 1970-71, and cost $295,000, which would be $2.3 million in today's dollars (2024), which means it had more than enough resources for a competent film. Regrettably, this can't be said for this one.

While Julia Farrell is a worthy protagonist as Angelica Zacherly, it's otherwise strapped with bad acting and dull writing. It's also visually unappealing, totally lacking the creepy mood of the original. When the most interesting parts of a flick is the reused footage from its predecessor, it's not a good sign.

Speaking of which, close to a third of the runtime involves footage from that original movie, which smacks of the lousy "Silent Night, Deadly Night 2." But at least the footage here is sepia toned.

I only recommend this if you're an uber-devotee of the first film and don't mind really low-budget Indies.

It runs about 1 hour, 27 minutes, and was shot in Nebraska, which is a dubious substitute for New England (at least the original was shot around Oyster Bay on northwestern Long Island).

GRADE: D+

After a tragedy, a nigh-psychopathic shop owner in Wyoming (Nicolas Cage) teams-up with his precocious daughter (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) to set things a'right. Nick Searcy plays the head marshal while Noah Le Gros and Clint Howard are on hand as villains.

"The Old Way" (2023) mixes together the openings of "The Outlaw Josey Wales" and "Unforgiven" with the seasoned gunfighter/young girl protagonists of "True Grit," along with the comic book villains of "Hannie Caulder" and the milieu of "The Missouri Breaks" (southwestern Montana, where it was shot). While it's on par with "Hannie Caulder" it's not quite on the level of greatness (or near-greatness) of the others. But it's certainly superior to relatively recent Trace Adkins' Westerns like "Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story" and "The Virginian," which weren't up to snuff.

It's enjoyable to see Cage in a 'Man With No Name' role and the little girl is quite good. Meanwhile the scenery is worth the price of admission. Unfortunately, the comic book vibe and some contrived writing make the proceedings seem unreal. Yet the 'dead inside' element is interesting along with the corresponding 'chip off the old block' angle.

The film runs 1 hour, 34 minutes, and was shot at Yellowstone Ranch in Paradise Valley, Livingston, Montana, which is an hour's drive north of the border of northwestern Wyoming & Yellowstone National Park.

GRADE: B-

This was the first Hammer horror flick in color and its success resulted in a resurgence of the classic Universal monsters reinterpreted from the British perspective with Hammer's renowned lush colors. Speaking of Universal, the studio threatened a lawsuit if Hammer copied any elements from their classic version. This helped prevent the movie from copping a same-old, same-old vibe.

Its popularity led to six sequels. The franchise includes: "The Curse of Frankenstein" (1957), "The Revenge of Frankenstein" (1958), "The Evil of Frankenstein" (1964), "Frankenstein Created Woman" (1967), "Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed" (1969), "The Horror of Frankenstein" (1970) and "Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell" (1973).

Cushing played the Baron in each of these except "The Horror of Frankenstein" since it's a remake of this one remake 13 years later and they needed a much younger actor for the role (they chose Ralph Bates).

Unlike that remake, there's no touch of humor to the proceedings here. This is totally serious Victorian horror with the main story taking place in 1860. Being a loose redo of the original Frankenstein tale, it's predictable to some degree, but there are enough changes to keep things interesting. For instance, Baron Frankenstein isn't just an obsessed academic with misplaced priorities, he's a womanizing, homicidal maniac.

One-note evil characters are relatively boring. What makes Dr. Frankenstein interesting in this series is that his gruesome work has a positive side despite the crimes he commits in order to carry it out. For instance, his desire in "Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed" to benefit humanity by preserving the brains of brilliant individuals so that their knowledge doesn't go to waste and thus blessing future generations.

The problem of course is the immoral extents he's willing to go to reach his goals. Then there's his taking advantage of Justine in this film (Valerie Gaunt) and his rape of someone in the aforementioned "Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed," which reveals gross arrogance, as if he thinks he's so great he deserves any beautiful woman he happens to crave at the moment, no strings attached.

While "Frankenstein Created Woman" and, especially, "Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed" are my favorites in the series, this is the one that started it all and inspired Hammer's Dracula series the next year, not to mention the Mummy series the year after that. It was Cushing's debut as a lead actor and he met Christopher Lee on set, which led to their close friendship and 22 cinematic collaborations.

It's short 'n' sweet at 1 hour, 22 minutes, and was shot just west of London at Bray Studios in Down Place, Oakley Green, Berkshire.

GRADE: B.

In southeast New York, near the border of Pennsylvania, a shy tavern cook (Pruitt Taylor Vince) is concerned about his weight after finding himself attracted to the new server, a drop-out college student (Liv Tyler). The other worker, an aging blonde (Deborah Harry), naturally feels threatened by her. Shelley Winters plays the matriarch and Joe Grifasi a drunk that hangs out at the pub.

"Heavy" (1995) has been called the "Marty" of the '90s. I've never seen that one, but it stars Ernest Borgnine in a role similar to the protagonist here. While this is a character study of Victor, it also evaluates Del (Harry, aka Blondie); and the others to a lesser extent.

Del is closing in on 50 years-old, but was surely stunning back in the day. She's left to making a living at a small-time tavern with romantic options limited to a garrulous alcoholic and a quiet mama's boy.

Obviously, this is not a flick for people who require an explosion every ten minutes to keep their attention (not that there's anything wrong with that, lol). It's a mundane drama about regular people and the social dynamics thereof - their (boring) daily lives, hopes, fears, regrets, grievances and lamentations. In part, it's about people who have been caged so long they no longer know how to be free. It's similar in tone to other 90's dramas like "Sling Blade," which came out the next year, and "Limbo" (1999). While it lacks the survival element of the latter, does it really?

The frontman of The Pixies was approached to play the part of Victor, but he declined, saying he wasn't interested in playing such a character. Regardless, he would've fit the role.

The movie runs 1 hour, 44 minutes, and was shot in southeast New York at Barryville (Victor's house); five miles northeast of there in Highland Lake (the tavern); across the border of Barryville in Shohola, Pennsylvania (the bridge); and 80 miles northeast of that area in Hyde Park, NY, on the Huson River (Culinary Institute).

GRADE: B.

A shy man finds success as a ventriloquist with his dummy "Fats," but curiously self-exiles himself to his hometown in the Catskills where he reunites with his high school crush. What's he gonna do when his agent shows up at his door, not to mention her hubby? Burgess Meredith and Ed Lauter play the latter two.

"Magic" (1978) is a slow burn Hitchcock-ian psychological drama/thriller that mixes bits of "Psycho" with the creepy mannequins of several 70's movies/shows, like Kolchak: The Night Stalker's "The Trevi Collection." The well-done "Pin" from a decade later was influenced by it. It's basically a lowkey cabin-in-the-woods flick with the unique dummy angle.

While not great like "Psycho" or even "Carrie," it's cut from the same cloth in its unique way with toned-down horror. I respect a movie that has the confidence to take its time and is frugal about thrills. It makes it more realistic. Meanwhile the quiet rural locations are great and it's interesting seeing Hopkins when he was young and relatively unknown. He was 40 during shooting while Ann-Margret was a couple months shy of 37.

The film runs 1 hour, 47 minutes, and was shot at Blue Lakes in Northern California (substituting for the Catskills), which is a two-hour drive north of San Francisco/Oakland. Other scenes were done at nearby Ukiah (Corky's childhood home) and Twentieth Century-Fox Studios in Los Angeles, as well as Manhattan.

GRADE: B.

An artist in Union Square, Manhattan, struggles with his homeless father, finishing a key painting, an annoying rock band in the building, and his relationship with his two female roommates. Insanity and worse can't be too far away.

"The Driller Killer" was shot from June, 1977, to March, 1978 and released in 1979. I point this out because it reeks of late 70's Manhattan, and not the pretty side. It's a gritty art house Indie made by the protagonist, Abel Ferrara, who's listed as actor Jimmy Laine in the credits.

Despite the exploitive title and the fact that it undeservedly ended up on the UK's "video nasties" list, it's actually a grungy psychological drama about life in the Big City in late 70's America mixed with lowkey amusement concerning the country's growing fringe decadence and corresponding lunacy. The "driller killer" element doesn't manifest until the second half and isn't exploited as in conventional slashers. Speaking of which, this aspect inspired the usage of driller slayers in the "Slumber Party Massacre" trilogy (1982, 1987, 1990).

The film only cost $20,000 (equal to about $98,000 today), but Ferrara was able to acquire quality no-name actors for his weekend project. In other words, the key peripheral actors are convincing in their roles despite what critics might say. I'm talking about the ones who play Carol, Pamela, Dalton Briggs, the landlord, Tony Coca-Cola and his girlfriends.

A couple years before Ferrara made this, Marvel's Man-Thing featured Steve Gerber's "Song-Cry of the Living Dead Man" in issue #12. I bring this up because "The Driller Killer" covers some of the same core issues, namely society driving an individual insane with pressures on every side, like bills, relationships, obnoxious neighbors, and making enough money or you'll be out on the street. I'm sure Ferrara was influenced by it.

On July 21, 1945, General George Patton predicted "I fear that perhaps in fifty years America will... become a land of corruption and degenerate morals." This flick effectively shows this development and I'm sure the Soviets and China (et al.) used it to illustrate the downside of America & the West's curious catering to Lefty madness.

It runs 1 hour, 36 minutes, and was shot in Union Square, Manhattan, which is just northeast of Greenwich Village and northwest of East Village. The rock club was located just northeast of Union Square.

GRADE: B-/C+

Seven friends from high school reunite a couple years later for a camping trip in the arid high country north of Los Angeles. Unfortunately, they pass a rural graveyard on the wrong day with horrifying results.

"Hold Your Breath" (2012) is basically cabin-in-the-woods horror except that the protagonists are camping out. It combines elements of "Shocker," "Doom Asylum," "Death Tunnel" and various low-budget backwoods brutality flicks, such as "Desecrated" (which debuted three years later). While the actors who play Warden Wilkes and Van Hausen (the serial-killer) ham it up, the rest of the cast play it serious and realistic, for the most part. There's some R-rated gore in the manner of the prologue of "Ghost Ship" and one sex sequence with nudity (just a heads up).

Critics argue that there's bad writing and plot holes, but that's not true. Everything makes sense once you put the pieces together (that is, makes sense as much as paranormal mumbo jumbo CAN make sense). It's certainly better thought-out than the gobbledygook in the comparatively lame "The Hollow," "The Night Before Halloween," "Neverknock" and "Stickman."

Erin Marie Hogan stands out on the female front as Natasha while brunette Lisa Younger (Samantha) and blonde Katrina Bowden (Jerry) are also notable. Devanny Pinn is featured in an early bit part as the woman with a scarred face.

There are a few noteworthy songs on the soundtrack, including "Fire and Brimstone (Hold Your Breath)" by Chris Cano, sung by Jaymie Valentine, and "Freak" by The Maension. "Vote For Me" by Straight Jackitt is quite good too. All are available to listen to on Youtube.

This was made by The Asylum, a company notorious for releasing cheap knockoffs of major releases to steal some of their thunder. The company has certainly put out some dreck (like "30,000 Leagues Under the Sea" and "Mega Piranha"), but they can also surprise you with some worthy low-budget stuff (such as "The Land That Time Forgot," "Grimm's Snow White" and "6 Guns"). "Hold Your Breath" ranks with the latter, if you can forgive the cartoonish CGI fire.

The movie runs 1 hour, 28 minutes, and was shot at a movie ranch in Agua Dulce, which is a 55-minute drive north of Los Angeles, as well as Linda Vista Hospital back in the city.

GRADE: B.

In a dubious neighborhood in Manhattan, a Catholic priest (Jones) starts to question his occupation after talking with a dying man (David Strathairn) and meeting the woman in whom the victim was once involved (Annette). M. Emmet Walsh is on hand as a know-it-all detective.

I guess "Broken Vows" (1987) is technically a television production helmed by a proven TV director (Jud Taylor) and this can be observed in the wooden delivery of the characters' dialogues (like they just learned their lines the night before). Once you get past that issue, however, this ranks with Tommy Lee's best movies, just don't expect the action thrills of "The Fugitive." Rather, it has 'thrills' in the sense of real-life drama, which can be more compelling than overkill action if done effectively, at least for the mature-minded.

Annette was still in her prime at 34 years-old during shooting and so was Frances Fisher, who has a smaller part as Maureen. Meanwhile Jones was 40.

I also appreciated the unexpected depiction of artists and their studios in the big city. I had a couple of friends in this uncertain line of work; one was my best friend at the time and his studio looked very similar to Stuart Chase's in the movie, aka Amil.

The film works on three fronts: There's the murder mystery, there's McMahon's struggles with the usefulness of his profession and the Catholic sect in general, and, lastly, the relationship of the two protagonists. As my title blurb suggests, the flick commendably addresses the good, the bad and the ugly of life's blessings & curses and everything in between.

The lowkey route is taken and the movie's the better for it. For instance, we sense what's going on underneath the surface, but it's not spelled out. Lesser flicks require a passionate sex scene to 'wow' the viewer whereas this one opts for a revelatory statement or the simple clasping & kissing of hands.

It runs 1 hour, 35 minutes, and was shot in Montréal, Québec.

GRADE: B+

God appears to a grocery store manager (John Denver) in the guise of an old man (George Burns), offering him the task of spreading the word that He's there, He cares, and we must work it out on Earth through peace and love as opposed to violence and hate. Teri Garr is on hand as the man's wife.

"Oh, God!" (1977) is a comedy-fantasy that I found laugh-out-loud funny through the first act. It eventually gets more serious, addressing religious sects and hypocrisy, while remaining amusing. Being a lighthearted movie for the masses, don't expect commentary on hardcore or complicated theological issues, like sin, divine judgment and humanity's need for eternal life, not to mention the consequence of damnation. There might be a quick witty comment on some of these items, but nothing more.

If you can accept that, it's an entertaining fantasy that screams mid-70s in every frame. Besides, the basics ARE true: If the Almighty manifests (one way or another) and gives you a mission, you would be compelled to carry it out and face the negative consequences, like ridicule and loss of your job. Likable Denver is surprisingly good for a musician and the ending is heartwarming.

A sequel came out in 1980 with the same sitcomy vibe, but focuses on a little girl and wasn't as funny, although it's worth checking out if you liked this one. The third and last installment, "Oh, God! You Devil," debuted in 1984 and involved a Barry Manilow wannabe morphing into a stud-ly Rick Springfield-like rock star after making a deal with the devil. It's reminiscent of "The Rose" if it were a comedy and, in its own way, is just as good as this one.

The film runs 1 hour, 38 minutes, and was shot in Burbank and surrounding areas (Long Beach, Los Angeles, Van Nuys and North Hollywood).

GRADE: B.

In 1880 Carlstadt, Düsseldorf, a doctor (Vincent Ball) is sentenced to life-in-prison for malpractice in performing an emergency blood transfusion, which had never been done successfully. Instead of being sent to the prescribed penal island, he's curiously transferred to a prison for the criminally insane where the director (Donald Wolfit) wants him to perform blood-typing research for some unknown reason.

"Blood of the Vampire" (1958) was obviously inspired by the success of Hammer's "The Curse of Frankenstein" because the producers hired the same scriptwriter, Jimmy Sangster, and it includes elements of both that flick and "The Horror of Dracula," which started filming shortly after this one. While it lacks Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing, it's on par production-wise and certainly different enough to stand on its own.

It's worth seeing just for the beautiful Barbara Shelley, who plays the doctor's fiancée and was only 25 during shooting. She went on to appear in Hammer Films' "The Gorgon," "Dracula, Prince of Darkness," "Rasputin: The Mad Monk" and "Five Million Years to Earth," aka "Quatermass and the Pit."

Victor Maddern is effective as the Quasimodo-like assistant, Carl. The extensive make-up he had to wear gave him a headache.

The milieu of the grim, grimy and hellish prison hospital no doubt inspired "Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell" sixteen years later.

The movie runs 1 hour, 26 minutes, and was shot at Alliance Film Studios Twickenham, southwest of London.

GRADE: B-

Five American archeological students are invited to Denmark by a disreputable anthropologist to dig up the remains of a berserker clan of Vikings in bog near a castle. Things go awry when the bodies amazingly come to life.

"The Bog Creatures" (2003) is a low-budget creature feature costing around $75,000 (I'm guesstimating based on the cost of another one of the small studio's productions from that time period). For such a miniscule budget, the story is rather ambitious and there's some welcome droll humor amidst the life-or-death goings-on. The female cast is okay, but not exceptional, including Leia Thompson (Diana), Courtney Henggeler (Suzie) and Debbie Rochon (Tara).

While I'm giving this a relatively low rating due to the story bogging down after the first half hour and some lame writing here or there, it's watchable if you don't mind really low-budget fare. There's a nice twist in the last act that I didn't see coming.

It runs 1 hour, 22 minutes, and was shot in Bovina, New York, which is a 1.5-hour drive southeast of Albany and a 1-hour drive northwest of Woodstock.

GRADE: C-

At the turn of the century in Victorian London, the owner of a wax museum (John Carradine) is offered to sell by a Broadway producer (Broderick Crawford). But his associate doesn't want him to sell (Ray Milland) and there are relatives who have an interest in the property as well (Elsa Lanchester and Nicole Shelby). When people start winding up dead, a Scotland Yard inspector (Mark Edwards) tries to solve the mystery.

"Terror in the Wax Museum" (1973) is a Victorian murder mystery in the tradition of Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," which started the genre in 1841 and influenced Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, amongst others. The best film version of "Rue Morgue" is arguably the 1986 one with George C. Scott, Val Kilmer and Rebecca De Mornay. I bring it up because this is cut from the same cloth. Other comparisons include "House of Wax" (1953), Hammer's "The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll" (1960) and Klaus Kinski's "Jack the Ripper" (1976), as well as "Edge of Sanity" (1989) and "From Hell" (2001).

This one isn't as sensationalistic as some of those as it prefers to focus on the murder mystery and the seasoned actors. It's basically "old-fashioned" horror that's timelessly entertaining since these types of films keep being made decade after decade. "The Limehouse Golem" is a well-done example from more modern times.

Redhead Shani Wallis stands out in the beauty department as the tavern singer while Nicole Shelby is worth a mention as the brunette who may inherit the museum and catches the eye of the young detective.

While not exactly great, if you're in the mood for a Victorian milieu, black coats, cobblestone streets, gas lamps, horse-driven carriages, London fog, pub entertainment, ghastly killings, fortune tellings and quaint mystery, this nicely fills the bill.

The film runs 1 hour, 33 minutes, and was shot at Paramount Studios in Hollywood.

GRADE: B-

An American family moves into a huge manor north of London where the teenage daughter (Neve) discerns a ghostly presence (Stewart) while romancing a young duke (Daniel Betts).

A television production, "The Canterville Ghost" (1996) is based on Oscar Wilde's humorous short story from 1887 and is one of the more faithful film adoptions (amongst many), just updating the story to modern times and omitting the eldest son, Washington, as well as making Virginia about 18 years-old, rather than 15.

It's an entertaining family fantasy with a haunting edge in the mold of "The Watcher in the Woods" (1980/2017). You could call it G horror or PG horror and there's nothing wrong with that, as long as the story's good. It's akin to a Nancy Drew mystery set at a castle-like manor in Britain.

Neve was 21 during shooting, almost 22, and does fine as the intelligent protagonist, although I could take her or leave her. Meanwhile Stewart was keeping busy before doing his second TNG movie. He makes the specter sympathetic.

The movie runs 1 hour, 32 minutes, and was shot at Knebworth House, which is located 30 miles north of London.

GRADE: B/B-

Two carloads of partiers in their 20s-30s make the mistake of stopping at a mansion with a graveyard curiously right by it. Something diabolical is going on and they might not make it out alive!

"Spookies" (1986) is similar to prior 80's flicks like "Hell Night" or "Frightmare" and would influence soon-to-come ones, such as "Doom Asylum," "Waxwork" and "Deadly Manor." It's low-budget, but imaginative and amusing, not to mention you can't beat the 80's ambiance. You could say it's one of those "so bad it's good" flicks.

There are a few highlights on the feminine front: Redhead Joan Ellen Delaney (Linda), blonde Charlotte Seeley/Alexandra (Adrienne, the smoker) and the bride Maria Pechukas (Isabelle).

It runs 1 hour, 25 minutes, and was shot northeast of New York City in Rye, which is near the border of southwest Connecticut.

GRADE: B-

Burt Lancaster stars as PT Barnum, breaking the fourth window to tell the story of the showman, author and politician who died four months shy of 81 years-old in 1891.

The man is known as the best purveyor of entertainment in history, a master of sales and marketing. He entered into showmanship in New York at the age of 25 after purchasing a blind and near-paralyzed slave woman, supposedly George Washington's 161 years-old former nurse. She died a year later with an autopsy revealing that she was no more than 80.

He then acquired a museum on Broadway that attracted people with exhibits, such as stuffed animals and changing live acts or curiosities, including the "Feejee" mermaid and General Tom Thumb. Barnum toured Europe with the little entertainer in 1844-1845 wherein he learned of the famous Swedish soprano singer Jenny Lind (played here by Hanna Schygulla), which led to enlisting her talents at great price for a tour of America in 1850-1852.

The showman didn't start the first traveling circus by train with canvas tents until he was 60 years-old in 1870, calling it "PT Barnum's Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan & Hippodrome."

All of this, and more, is effectively told, but don't expect a lot of what is traditionally associated with circuses, such as depicted in movies like "Water for Elephants," "The Greatest Show on Earth," "The Big Circus," "Roustabout," "Circus of Horrors," "Trapeze" and "Circus of Fear," aka "Psycho-Circus." These films take place a century after the events in this one. In other words, the events in "Barnum" laid the foundation for traveling circuses in the 1900s. But, don't get me wrong, there's a little bit of what is linked to conventional circuses, like during Lancaster's walking the circus grounds breaking the fourth wall and the very end.

Interestingly, it is stressed in the movie that it wasn't Barnum who coined the phrase "There's a sucker born every minute." Evidence suggests that the phrase can likely be attributed to David Hannum, a banker from Syracuse, who bought the "Cardiff Giant" in 1869 and made a profit in admission fees. Barnum wanted to buy it but Hannum wouldn't sell, so he created a replica and claimed that Hannum's giant was a hoax. When Barnum's exhibit proved more successful, it is alleged that Hannum said "There's a sucker born every minute."

This flick should not be confused with another television production, the British musical "Barnum!," which debuted the same year, four weeks later. It obviously had the lesser budget.

The film runs 1 hour, 40 minutes (some listings claim 1 hour, 30 minutes), and was shot in Montreal.

GRADE: B-

A small bus of people traveling the stoney mountains northeast of Madrid is forced to bypass to a remote town, which turns out to be a death trap.

A Spanish production, "The Vampires Night Orgy" (1973) is Gothic-tinged Euro horror that borrowed its plot from "The Devil's Nightmare" from two years prior, replacing the castle milieu with an old rural village similar to "Kill, Baby... Kill!" from seven years earlier. People who complain about the title perceive 'orgy' in a one-dimensional sense. Actually, an orgy is any actions or proceedings marked by unbridled indulgence of passions, such as an orgy of killing.

Redhead Helga Liné naturally stands out in the beauty department, but Dyanik Zurakowska (Alma) is also worth a mention. As usual with these types of flicks, there's some nudity. Speaking of which, the guy who turns out to be the protagonist has no qualms with a little voyeurism (Jack Taylor).

While this is easily on par with "Kill, Baby... Kill!" it's not as good as "The Devil's Nightmare" because it lacks the seven deadly sins angle, not to mention the castle. However, the mountain village is awesome in its own way. If you like those two flicks and similar contemporaneous ones like "Messiah of Evil," you'll appreciate this.

It runs 1 hour, 25 minutes, and was filmed in the heart of Spain, with exteriors shot in the mountains about 25 miles northeast of Madrid in Patones de Arriba and Talamanca del Jarama.

GRADE: B-

In Paris, a recently-retired detective (Scott) is encouraged by his daughter (De Mornay) to investigate a shocking double murder in order to save her fiancé. Kilmer plays his associate godson while Ian McShane is on hand as the Prefect.

"The Murders in the Rue Morgue" (1986) is a fairly faithful adoption of Edgar Allan Poe's tale, published in 1841. This is in contrast to the 1971 film of the same name (with Jason Robards and Herbert Lom), which totally deviated from the original yarn and is more akin to "The Phantom of the Opera." Here, scriptwriter David Epstein wisely augmented Poe's story to spice it up a little and make it worthy of a feature length movie, albeit a TV production. (Poe's tale is only about 38 pages in modern form).

It's Victorian mystery/horror in the manner of Hammer's "The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll" (1960) and Klaus Kinski's "Jack the Ripper" (1976), as well as later films like "Edge of Sanity" (1989) and "From Hell" (2001). It lacks the colorful sensationalistic elements of those movies and focuses on the murder mystery but, remember, Poe's tale is famous for being the first fictional detective story and obviously influenced Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, amongst others.

I first became aware of "Murders in the Rue Morgue" as a teen due to Iron Maiden's song on their (best) album KILLERS, but never read Poe's yarn and so wasn't familiar with the creative revelation of who the murderer is. As such, this kept my interest. No, it's not as colorfully entertaining as most of those other movies noted, but you can't beat the authentic French locales and the great cast. The special effects for the ending are surprisingly convincing and hold up.

The movie runs 1 hour, 40 minutes, and was shot in the Paris area, including Notre Dame Cathedral, the Place de l'Opéra and in Buttes-Chaumont, the latter standing-in for the Bois de Boulogne. Almost a third of it was filmed away from the city, such as the prison sequences, which were done in Corbeil, Marne, which is in the country 115 miles east of the city.

GRADE: B-

A high school teacher in SoCal (Stephen Baldwin) decides to open an extracurricular club that focuses on the Scriptures and Christianity, but faces constant opposition in carrying it out. Corbin Bernsen is on hand as his supportive friend.

"God's Club" (2015) is similar to "God's Not Dead 2," beating it to release by 3.5 months. It's not as good because it only had a fourth of that one's budget ($1,250,000) but, thankfully, it doesn't morph into a courtroom drama (not that there's anything wrong with that).

If you can forgive the TV budget and the corresponding limitations (e.g. The dubious acting by the teenage peripherals), it's a decent drama about real-life issues with potent morals. For instance, confronting grief and moving on, coming-of-age, bullying, friendship, seeking healing for depression, popping pills or not popping pills, counseling, resorting to violence, vandalism, the suicide solution, offense & forgiveness, and freedom of speech and religion in a multicultural society. Let's just say that the flick doesn't wuss out in tackling tough issues.

Consider the sequence at the bridge. I'm not going to give away what happens but, in my area, a 15 years-old girl jumped off a similar bridge and her body was found down the river. Witnesses said that she had a dead, hopeless expression on her face when she jumped. You see, people can live a week without food, three days without water, a few minutes without air, but... less than a second without hope.

The film runs 1 hour, 29 minutes, and was shot at San Fernando Valley Academy in Northridge, which is just northwest of Los Angeles.

GRADE: B-

When it seems imminent that a small boat-building company is closing down in a sleepy Maine town, it affects the lives of the key personnel and those linked to them in different ways.

"Signs of Life" (1989) is worth seeing for the scenic setting of coastal Maine, as well as catching Vincent D'Onofrio and Mary-Louise Parker when they were young and relatively unknown. Several other notables are on hand, like Kevin J. O'Connor, Beau Bridges and Arthur Kennedy. The latter plays a cantankerous 66 years-old man, but easily looks ten years older (he was 74 during shooting and this was his last film).

Some parts are too draggy, but there's enough interesting things going on in the intersecting stories to keep interest, along with some quality droll amusement. I like how the flick leads you to think something is going to happen, but pulls the rug out from under you.

It runs 1 hour, 30 minutes, and was shot at various locations near the central coast of Maine (Thomaston, Stonington, South Bristol and Ellsworth), except for one short underwater sequence done at Mystic Marine Aquarium in Connecticut.

GRADE: B-

Six college youths from SoCal sneak away to the vacation home of the lead girl (Haylie Duff) for some fun in the wilderness, but the fatigues-wearing caretaker is kind of creepy and two of them foolishly break into a hallowed trailer hidden in the forest. Havoc ensues.

"Desecrated" (2015) isn't exactly great cinema, but it delivers the goods for those in the mood for backwoods brutality and don't mind low-budget issues. Despite some expected cliches, the antagonist isn't the same-old-same-old and the characters are effectively fleshed-out in a story that's a little more intricate than the set-up suggests. It's superior to Haylie's "Backwoods" from seven years prior.

Speaking of Haylie, she does well as the protagonist supported by Heather Sossaman and Vera Rosada as the almost interchangeable brunettes Lizzie and Nina. The latter is stunning in a bikini, but don't expect nudity.

On the masculine front, Gonzalo Menendez is both entertaining and convincing as the stereotypical ex-military guy with a shaved head while Wilmer Calderon works well as the "axx clown," Eduardo (he desperately needed humbled but I can't wish upon anyone what happens). Michael Ironside shows up for a small part as Allie's father.

The movie runs 1 hour, 22 minutes, and was shot in Ojai, which is located in the desert high country 80 miles northwest of Los Angeles, as well as Playa del Rey & Marina del Rey, which are on the coast, just west of the city.

GRADE: B-