DR JEKYLL AND THE WEREWOLF - This kind of inspired silliness - the kind where werewolf Paul Naschy hops over to swingin' London for an appointment with Dr Jeckyll, who inadvertently unleashes a whip-wielding, strip club-frequenting Mr Hyde - is so of its time that it's slightly nauseating to think of any A24 types wanting to turn the clock back on it now. Could you imagine a remake these days? I suppose there's a subplot about someone mourning the loss of their spouse. Anyway, wahwah guitars, random shots of stuffed animals, inane technobabble in place of dialogue, Jack Taylor looking very shifty and a few lovely 'gothic passages'... gets a bit languid in spots, but it's a nice jolt to see such an unapologetic dollop of socially oblivious monster mash.
TICKS - Seth Green and a bunch of wayward 'city kids' are on a wilderness retreat when they come face to face with genre stalwart Clint Howard's mutant bugs. 'Ticks' offers a relatively slick rendition of man vs nature with a little body horror thrown in. Its actiony tropes are entertaining enough, but it's lightweight; it never really wants to mess with us or slime us out, and watching it now just goes to show how reined-in horror had become by the mid-nineties. Competently handled by Tony Randel, who made a bit more of an impression with the likes of 'Hellraiser 2'.
REQUIEM FOR A VAMPIRE - One thought that occurred to me whilst revisiting 'Requiem For A Vampire', in what must surely be its definitive version courtesy of the new release by Indicator, was something like "I could basically just sit and watch a camera going up and down the derelict corridors of a run-down castle - sometimes under candlelight, sometimes by day - for ninety minutes, and pretty much be OK with it". More than that happens in 'Requiem For A Vampire', and it generally involves vampires with bad fake teeth either waxing melancholy or shagging, but I like that for Rollin it's always about atmosphere and imagery and never screaming college kids trying to move the 'plot' forward. I'm sure this needs no recommendation, but you have mine anyway.
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