There’s a reason that this particular story keeps getting told over and over again. A family, seemingly perfect, that up and butchers themselves? Yeah, that’s fascinating. Whether it’s because of demonic forces or (more likely) just your garden variety insanity, there’s something there that makes for potentially strong horror filmmaking. Alas, that’s rarely the case, and this week’s new offering, The Amityville Murders, does nothing to reverse the trend. It avoids being outwardly terrible, but still ends up bland, unremarkable, and among the least interesting releases of 2019 so far. The movie is an origin story, telling the tale of the first killings that inspired this urban legend. As the official plot synopsis states: “On the night of November 13, 1974, Ronald DeFeo, Jr. took a high-powered rifle and murdered his entire family as they slept. At his trial, DeFeo claimed that “voices” in the house commanded him to kill.
- 2/5/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
By Todd Garbarini
The 1970’s were a time of much spookiness and speculation in this country. Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO’s), a publicity-shy Plesiosaur called Nessie steaking out the Scottish Highlands, Sasquatch “sightings”, ghosts, satanic cults, witchcraft, and the threat of nuclear catastrophe highlighted the newspapers when Vietnam, Richard Nixon and Watergate weren’t. Between 1977 and 1982, Leonard Nimoy’s narration provided the basis for nearly 150 speculative and generally outright creepy episodes of In Search Of…Similarly-themed television specials were even categorized by TV Guide as “speculation” in their genre listings. I even recall a scenario in 1979 that was reported in a local newspaper concerning the discovery of ribcages and bowls of blood at a nearby campground. Yikes!
May 1970 saw the release of Hal Lindsey and Carole C. Carlson’s book The Late Great Planet Earth, a grimly-titled caveat in eschatological terms detailing the end of the world and destruction to...
The 1970’s were a time of much spookiness and speculation in this country. Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO’s), a publicity-shy Plesiosaur called Nessie steaking out the Scottish Highlands, Sasquatch “sightings”, ghosts, satanic cults, witchcraft, and the threat of nuclear catastrophe highlighted the newspapers when Vietnam, Richard Nixon and Watergate weren’t. Between 1977 and 1982, Leonard Nimoy’s narration provided the basis for nearly 150 speculative and generally outright creepy episodes of In Search Of…Similarly-themed television specials were even categorized by TV Guide as “speculation” in their genre listings. I even recall a scenario in 1979 that was reported in a local newspaper concerning the discovery of ribcages and bowls of blood at a nearby campground. Yikes!
May 1970 saw the release of Hal Lindsey and Carole C. Carlson’s book The Late Great Planet Earth, a grimly-titled caveat in eschatological terms detailing the end of the world and destruction to...
- 1/28/2019
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
What's this? John Ford's last silent western is as exciting and entertaining as his later classics. A trio of horse thieves turn noble when given the responsibility of a young woman lost on the prairie; Ford gives the show comedy, drama and spectacle. 3 Bad Men Blu-ray Kl Studio Classics 1926 / B&W / 1:33 Silent Ap. / 92 min. / Street Date August 23, 2016 / 29.95 Starring George O'Brien, Olive Borden, Lou Tellegen, Tom Santschi, J. Farrell MacDonald, Frank Campeau, Priscilla Bonner, Otis Harlan, Phyllis Haver, Georgie Harris, Alec Francis, Jay Hunt . Cinematography George Schneiderman Original Music Dana Kaproff (2007) Written by John Stone, Ralph Spence, Malcolm Stuart Boylan from a novel by Herman Whittaker Produced and Directed by John Ford
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
What a great discovery! Last year Kino brought us a good-looking disc of John Ford's Hurricane and now they take the bold step of issuing one of the director's oldest intact features,...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
What a great discovery! Last year Kino brought us a good-looking disc of John Ford's Hurricane and now they take the bold step of issuing one of the director's oldest intact features,...
- 7/17/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
By Todd Garbarini
Just after the school year ended in June 1984, I went to a friend’s house on a Friday night to watch the premiere of Carlin on Campus, an HBO concert of one of my favorite comedians, the legendary George Carlin. When the concert was over, my friend switched around until he reached NBC-tv. They were airing When A Stranger Calls, a 1979 thriller starring Carol Kane, Charles Durning, and Colleen Dewhurst. I saw the film from the beginning, and the first twenty or so minutes had me utterly captivated. It presented a scenario that I found to be terrifying, and apparently so did Rex Reed, whose proclamation “some of the most terrifying sequences ever filmed” was used in the newspaper ads. I thought it was so original – until I saw Bob Clark’s frightening Black Christmas (1974) four years later and saw where the “inspiration” may have come from.
Just after the school year ended in June 1984, I went to a friend’s house on a Friday night to watch the premiere of Carlin on Campus, an HBO concert of one of my favorite comedians, the legendary George Carlin. When the concert was over, my friend switched around until he reached NBC-tv. They were airing When A Stranger Calls, a 1979 thriller starring Carol Kane, Charles Durning, and Colleen Dewhurst. I saw the film from the beginning, and the first twenty or so minutes had me utterly captivated. It presented a scenario that I found to be terrifying, and apparently so did Rex Reed, whose proclamation “some of the most terrifying sequences ever filmed” was used in the newspaper ads. I thought it was so original – until I saw Bob Clark’s frightening Black Christmas (1974) four years later and saw where the “inspiration” may have come from.
- 8/10/2015
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Billy (Peter Billingsley) is shocked to discover that his father (Edward Herrmann) mother Sally (Catherine Hicks) are getting divorced. Torn away from his beloved New York City, Billy is relocated to Arizona along with her mother’s childhood sweetheart, Mike (Paul LeMat) whom she has reconnected with.
To make things worse, upon arriving in Death Valley for a vacation before their move, Billy stumbles upon a crime scene and becomes enmeshed in a life or death struggle with a mysterious man who is stalking the family.
Peter Billingsley is easily the star of the show. It’s a lot for any actor to handle, much less a child actor, and Billingsley plays everything right. Catherine Hicks is also notable as Billingsley’s mother. Before Child’s Play, Hicks was playing a mother doing everything possible to protect her child from murderous danger. She’s a very capable actress, and doesn...
To make things worse, upon arriving in Death Valley for a vacation before their move, Billy stumbles upon a crime scene and becomes enmeshed in a life or death struggle with a mysterious man who is stalking the family.
Peter Billingsley is easily the star of the show. It’s a lot for any actor to handle, much less a child actor, and Billingsley plays everything right. Catherine Hicks is also notable as Billingsley’s mother. Before Child’s Play, Hicks was playing a mother doing everything possible to protect her child from murderous danger. She’s a very capable actress, and doesn...
- 12/10/2012
- by Derek Botelho
- DailyDead
Jill Johnson (Carol Kane) meets with the Mandrakis family to see that their children are looked after while they head out for dinner and a movie. Piece of cake, considering the children are already sound asleep upstairs. But Jill’s seemingly mundane evening of studies and telephone banter takes a turn for the worse, when Jill begins receiving a string of eerie telephone calls from some anonymous caller in which she is unable to identify. Have you checked the children? The caller asks repeatedly. Hesitant to check on the children, anchored by fear - Jill telephones the police, who in turn arrange to have any future calls traced. As Jill continues to catch the creepy incoming calls, she begins hearing strange sounds from within the house. Before Ms. Johnson has the chance to learn the fate of the children upstairs, police phone her to inform her that those mysterious calls she’s been receiving,...
- 9/1/2009
- by no-reply@fangoria.com (Matt Molgaard)
- Fangoria
Intrada's 89th release in the Special Collections series features a unique collaboration between composers John Barry and Dana Kaproff. The Golden Seal's story can be guessed by looking at the CD cover to the right - yes, the story is about boyand his cute animal partner, but this particular picture is a lot more mature than the image would lead you to believe. There are some really intense scenes in The Golden Seal, so do not necessarily approach it as a family film moniker is a bit of a mis-nomer, but the music is wonderful and lends a magical edge to the story. Even the compulsory theme song which often feels tacked on to a production has a real heart and can bring tears to your eyes.
From the release's point, it's most welcome that Intrada managed to do a complete release as opposed to a simple LP re-issue.
From the release's point, it's most welcome that Intrada managed to do a complete release as opposed to a simple LP re-issue.
- 1/26/2009
- Daily Film Music Blog
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