What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[MrBarlow]

Satan's Slave. 1976.

A young woman staying at her Uncle's country house finds out she is to be sacraficed in order to bring back a deceased relative.

I gotta say this first, this film has the lamest car crash scene I have seen in a British film, are we to believe a car can be dented that badly by a tree driving at at least 15mph I'm pretty sure the car was dented before it struck the inmovable object.

We got Michael Gough as the eccentric family doctor who wants the control over a decendant who was a powerful witch and needs a female family member and chooses his niece. Aside from the up close female nudity and the young man with the scissors, the actors do try and create a tense atmosphere with director Norman J. Warren but at times the acting can be wooden yet this was a decent 70s occult film.

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[MrBarlow]

Deadstream. 2022.

A disgraced YouTuber and live streamer tries to win bacl his followers by spending a night in a haunted house.

Another found footage that almost rips off The Evil Dead but with one main cast member and one co star who pops up every so often (Not saying how). The writers and main star did a decent job in creating the back story to the haunted house. The make up could have been a bit more realistic or were they trying to make a homage film to the cheesy 80s film era. I'm not saying this film is good but it's not shit either.

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[MrBarlow]

Family Of Cops. 1995.

A policeman's daughter is accused of murder and he steps in to investigate it and crossing the line of duty and family.

After Death Wish V which isn't great and not terrible Charles Bronson went from theatrical release films to made for tv movies. I think we have had our fair share of tv movies with some good and some not so good but this was a decent film. Daniel Baldwin and Sebastian Spence plays the sons who joined the police, Barbara Williams as the Public Defender and Angela Featherstone as the faraway child who ends up in the slammer. Bronson at 73 when this film was made shows he can still be a lead actor and mentor to others and still able to swing his arm for a good punch.

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[Demoncrat]

Llamageddon (2015, Howie Dewin)

A hoot. When a group of friends gather for a shindig, they foolishly ignore the llama grazing in next doors field ....
Very silly, and it knows it. Compared to this, Body Melt is high art
Low budget caper. Forced to house sit, two siblings find out what each other is made of cough when the chips are down. The cheese factor is high here.



M3GAN (2022, Gerald Johnstone)

Another hoot. The sister from Get Out has some more family troubles. Her reaction does not reflect well on the tech community
Really enjoyed this one. Sod the trailer, just sit back and bask in this mish mash of various bits of genre cinema given a glossy sheen by todays FX.
Recommended.

[MrBarlow]

The Horror Of Frankenstein. 1970.

I have never been a fan of Frankenstein movies except for Boris Karloff and Young Fronkensteen, but I am a fan of Ralph Bates and this was a bit of a campy edition to the Hammer franchise and loosely remake of the previous Peter Cushing version of the Mary Shelley Novel.

Bates is the young wannabe smart sarcastic medical student who decides to try and re-animate dead tissue to life with a mad concoction of lab equipment with fellow student Graham James as his assistant who we see as Igor. Dennis Price pops up with Joan Rice playing homage to Burke and Hare graverobbing duo. Kate O'Mara pops up and nearly pops out of her dress as the near loyal housekeeper and always nice to see her bend over frontwards. And we got the Green Cross Code man David Prowse as the result of the creation of sewn body parts together monster.

This does have its atmospheric moments, great set designs of the gothic castle and the constructed attic space for the laboratory and grounds for the forest area that gives it the gloomy night look for a good killing ground for the monster. I actually enjoyed this more than I thought I would.

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[MrBarlow]

Monster Man. 2003.

A mix combination of Duel, Jeepers Creepers, and possibly Raod Kill all on a very cheap budget, two guys one trying to do a "Graduate" and stop the wedding of his intended with his mate, are terrorised on a open empty road by a monster truck and decide to pick up a hitchhiker and get her involved in the chase.

I'm gonna be honest but I found this more hilarious than horror, writer/director Michael Davis does deliver on the gore fest and the monster man himself had a botched up face job repair and done decently thanks to the make up people. It may not be for everyone but certainly a good popcorn flick.

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[Demoncrat]

Revisited Stonehenge Apocalypse (2010, Paul Ziller)

When a black cab draws up with one of the protagonists in it, you know you aren't in Kansas anymore
Remarkably straight laced performances mean this does not descend the depths of some second tier flicks, but it's still fairly bonkers.
A fringe "researcher" and officialdom clash when it seems that the titular stone circle is going to be responsible for the end of times .... sooner rather than laterer
Because of playing it straight, it does have flat patches, but it's not here long enough to cause rigor mortis.

[MrBarlow]

Get Carter. 1971.

One of Michael Caine's best performances as the gangster returning home to get the truth about his brother's death in a car crash. I can honestly say hand on heart now that this is the first time watching it from start to finish in peace and quiet and not have the Mrs asking me daft questions. The BFI done a decent job with the picture quality but sound is a bit iffy at the start being low but does get better.

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[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)

Although not quite as good as the first film Joe Dante's sequel in which Gizmo ends up in the Clamp Center, a state-of-the-art high rise building in Manhattan owned by John Glover's eccentric billionaire, is still so much fun.

Less of a horror movie and more a slapstick filled ride this is a lot less dark than Dante's original film, it does however maintain the movie buff in jokes and references that gave Gremlins an added layer of charm.

Faster paced and extremely witty - even Christopher Lee as the chief scientist for the Clamp organisation joins in with some funny lines but is sadly otherwise wasted - Gremlins 2 remains a hugely engaging 100+ plus minutes.

[Demoncrat]

Race For The Yankee Zephyr (1981, David Hemmings)

Ken Wahl and a few other familiar faces fight for attention with some lovely scenery in this tale of luck and helicopters
The "vintage" footage at the start gives us a decent idea which trope we'll be mining here. I enjoyed this romp tbh, the antagonist has fun and the location makes for a different backdrop.



Tangerine (2015, Sean Baker)

Two friends reconnect after one returns from a short spell inside. When one of them accidentally lets a secret slip, this triggers a series of events which was interesting to see. Violently different from the other two of his that I've seen, apparently he shot it with an adapted iPhone? Anyway, twas a bittersweet wee thing and if you like that kind of thing then Recommended. If not, here's LA Bounty
Ahem.