Based on a novel by Stephen King, “Needful Things” describes the opening of an antique shop in a small town, called ‘Needful Things’. The proprietor, Leland Gaunt (Max Von Sydow) always seems to have the very item stocked that a person needs, that touches some deep desire or fills some hole in their hearts. The…
“The Last Boy” is described as science fiction, but personally I would call it fantasy – there is precious little science involved. Sira (Flynn Allen) is living in a caravan with his dying mother. She gives him instructions about a place he needs to travel to, and a map. There is a ‘wind’ that will…
“Glass Onion” is a sequel of sorts to “Knives Out”, starring Daniel Craig as detective Benoit Blanc. It is another Agatha Christie-style whodunnit, with a group of rich friends called together to a Greek Island by their billionaire ‘genius’ friend for a weekend of fun. Blanc himself gets an invitation, only for the millionaire to…
“The Devil’s Pass” is a found footage horror film, inspired by the real life Dyatlov Pass incident. This involved a group of nine Russians who went hiking in the Ural mountains in 1959, and died under mysterious circumstances. Over the years possible explanations and conspiracy theories have abounded, ranging from aliens and yeti through to…
“The House of Usher” (1960) is one of Roger Corman’s series of films based on Edgar Allen Poe stories. Starring Vincent Price, it centres around the family of Usher, a brother and sister living in a rundown old house over a ‘tarn’ or mountain lake. A visitor comes to the house, who in the film…
The producer/director Roger Corman made eight adaptations of the works of Edgar Allen Poe. This movie is one of the better productions. It stars Vincent Price as Prince Prospero, a devil-worshipping European prince who mistreats the peasants and invites nobility to his castle to indulge in endless partying while the ‘red death’ plague kills off…
Vincent Price. Peter Lorre. Boris Karloff. Basil Rathbone. All in one movie. What’s not to love? “The Comedy of Terrors” is a comedy/horror (not sure there’s that much horror in it, really) that is a great deal of fun. It was directed by Jacques Tourneur (‘Cat People’, ‘I walked with a zombie’) and the screenplay…
I’ve said more than once that I am very partial to ghost stories, so I thought I’d talk about a few ghost films I particularly like, that you might want to check out. These are in no particular order of preference, and I make no claim to them being the best. They’re just movies I…
I’m not sure what I expected, watching this. Something a bit silly, a bit schlocky, a bit of mindless fun, soon to be forgotten. I was pleasantly surprised. “The Cabin in the Woods” is a horror/comedy, and on a superficial look seems like it ought to be the ultimate in cliché. I mean, five (young)…
“Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead” was the last film directed by Sidney Lumet, a director with a career spanning sixty years and included masterpieces such as “The Verdict”, “Serpico” and “Dog Day Afternoon”. It stars Philip Seymour Hoffman, Albert Finney, Ethan Hawke and Marisa Tomei. The film involves two brothers plotting to rob their…
Eclectic Assemblage 