Movie review - "Dr Goldfood and the Bikini Machine" (1965) *** (rewatching)

 It doesn't hold up well but I'm giving it three stars because it's silly and fun and such a delight for AIP fans: whether it's James Nicholson writing the story as a vehicle for his soon to be wife Susan Hart, Susan Hart getting a lead role, the double act of Frankie Avalon and Dwayne Hickman, the double act of Vincent Price and Jack Mullaley, the cameos from Deborah Walley, Harvey Lembeck, Annette Funicello.

The film just works. All the casting. It has an emotional core - Hickman and Avalon have a proper bromance. Also the scenes where Hart is tortured by Price make her likable.

No room for songs, cutting them was good ieda.

I watched The Weird World of Goldfoot afterwards - it just wasn't as good. Aaron Kincaid isn't as funny as Avalon. Tommy Kirk isn't as warm as Hickman, Harvey Lembeck isn't as good as Mullaney.

Movie review - "Gas" (1970) ** (re-watching)

 Thoughts

- Corman off the leash - no point in AIP changing the ending because it's all mad

- it hates bikers and jocks - Corman doesn't like these people, they're all bad-  it's not anti youth just anti fascist youth

- it likes the free spirited young kids

- Robert Corf scores hot women including a sex scene like The Trip

- there's rape and rape jokes

- it has black characters but Corman feels uneasy with them and any miscegenation is dispensed with

- the sadness/dramatic issues inherit in the concept are ignored

- the hippy commune is sympathetically depicted

- some lines are genuinely hilarious and it looks good (lots of extras) but it's a mess

Movie review - "The Terror" (1963) *** (re-watching)

 I've seen this so many times but did it again in light of rewatching the Corman Poes. It's a jagged mess, full of charm, and familiar faces - even support like Jonathan Haze. It's better than Comedy of Terrors because it's serious and Corman goes for mood. The plot is erratic but at least stuff does happen. Sandra Knight is genuinely evocative and otherwordly. Jack Nicholson is charming. Poor Karloff in that flooding water!

Random thoughts of Corman Poe Films

(I just rewatched them all)
1. Vincent Price’s performances are consistently varied and wonderful - he does enigmatic and strong (Usher), weak (Pendulum), comic (Raven), truly evil (Masque), Byronesque (Ligeia) - it’s wonderful
2. Usher is sometimes taken for granted but it really se the scene and holds up well
3. The juvenile male leads were generally terrible and wet eg Richard Ney, John Kerr - Jack Nicholson was the best in the Raven - I think Corman was uncomfortable around macho younger actors
4. The abilities of the women varied but at their best they were marvellous and gave career highlight performances eg Barbara Steele, Elizabeth Shepherd, Hazel Court
5. Yes Cormsan had a strong crew but he also brought a hell of a lot himself - just watch Comedy of Terrors which despite Matheson, Crosby, Haller, Price, Karloff, Rathbone and Lorre is a mess
6. Ray Milland is no Vincent Price but it’s actually nice to see a film in the cycle without Price and Milland does a good job
7. Lovely to see Lon Chaney in Haunted Palace
8. Script work consistently great from Matheson, Towne, Beaumont etc... shame Griffith wasn’t given a go
9. The final two British films reinvigorated the franchise

Movie review - "Fall of the House of Usher" (1960) ***1/2 (re-watching)

 Random thoughts

- really liked this on reviewing - it had a serious, romantic tone that was very effective

- felt padded at times with dream sequences etc but generally well written

- Mark Damon didn't annoy me this much - he's fine

- I really liked the lesser known woman Elizbaeth Fahey and the old butler - didn't know him, they were effective

- extremely well put together for its budget

- Price is so wonderful, campy yet honest

Movie review - "The Premature Burial" (1962) *** (re-watching)

 Watching this you do constantly feel "this would be more fun with Vincent Price" but Milland is a good actor, suits the period. It's a very good story, with fear of premature burial, and actual premature burial. I like Hazel Court more this time. Richard Ney is hilariously wet but I was prepared for him. Bit too much exposition at the end from the sister - better if this had been dramatised throughout. (Richard Matheson didn't do the script for this one, Charles Beaumont and Ray Russell did).

Book review - " Corman/Poe Interviews and Essays Exploring the Making of Roger Corman’s Edgar Allan Poe films, 1960–1964" by Chris Alexander

 Look, I guess this is fine. It's the sort of book I was always going to like. I just wish it was better. There's synopses and essays of the films, plus an interview with Corman on each of the films - but only of the main eight, not of the spin offs like The Terror or of the second wave of Poe adaptations with Price. And only talks with Corman, no one else. The definitive (or even a more comprehensive) book on this topic awaits.

Movie review - "Tales of Terror" (1962) *** (re-watching)

 Anthology series of Poe stories, which benefits from the virtues of this series - Vincent Price, gorgeous photography and sets, Richard Matheson's script.

"Morella" is competent but very familiar - grieving widower, "she's not really dead", ingenue, wife back from the dead, house burns down. Price acts his butt off but needed stronger support from Maggie Pearce or Leona Gage.

"The Black Cat" is much better. Peter Lorre is on hand as a drunk whose wife hooks up with Vincent Price. It's over the top but Lorre vs Price is a great battle of hams and it's a grim story - I mean, Lorre drugs the couple and bricks them up alive... and they die. That's full on.

"The Case of M Valdemar" is classy, helped with the ageing star power of Basil Rathbone to take on Price and a plot that doesn't whimp out.

Movie review - “The Haunted Palace” (1963) *** (re-viewing)

 This has its own little niche in the Corman Poe cycle - most of the others I group as duos (Usher and Pendulum, Raven and Tale of Terror, Premature Burial and X Ray Eyes, Ligeia and Masque).

It’s different but also it’s not, which is a weird thing to say but I’ll try to explain - it’s based on a Lovecraft novel, and there’s some things which are unique to this (a mob of villagers, transporting to another world) but other aspects are typical of the series (Price, Dan Haller, Price playing a good man haunted by his ancestor).

Maybe it was a mistake to have the early section happen so long ago - surely it would’ve been better for it to have been within the memory of the townsfolk. They could have played up the relationship between the doctor and Price’s wife, Debra Paget. Paget doesn’t have anything to play apart from being scared. She should’ve been possessed too. Or they could’ve made more of bringing back to life dead Price’s girl... made her a character.

It looks terrific, the music is lovely. I enjoyed it. I was aware of its second-tier status but as second tiers it's fun. This was one where you go "you know, Price is fabulous, but this could've handled a different star").

Movie review - "Masque of the Red Death" (1964) ***1/2 (rewatching) (warning: spoilers)

 Odd film. Too lumpy to be a genuinely great movie - not enough story, the troubled script development does come across on screen. It lacks the logic of a Richard Matheson on the keys. Padding. Plots seem to come and go eg Asher's boyfriend and father.

But the elements are wonderful. The red death. Vincent Price as a truly evil man. The beauty and bravery of Jane Asher. The gorgeous photography. The cotsumes. Price revealing himself. The decaying skin at the end. Patrick Magee's creepiness. Hazel' Court being a groupie for Satan.

Some bits made you laugh, like a gorilla suit man on fire. Others are unsettling, like a little person and the young girl with a dubbed voice.

A unique piece.

Movie review - "Tomb of Ligeia" (1965) ***1/2 (re-watching)

 Random thoughts:

- filming so much outside acts as a tonic - gives a different feel, ditto filming in UK

- Elizabeth Shepherd has a big part, bigger than Price - she does very well - complex, juicy role

- Price is a massive red flag but I guess life is dull

- good script from Bob Towne

- gosh the young male lead is a drip

Movie review - "War Gods of the Deep" (1965) **1/2 (re-watching)

 I'm watching most of Tab Hunter's oeuvre and sometimes that's a slog so I put this on again, one of his most fun films for me. I know it's not that good with silly Gill Man make up and too-long scenes of swimmimg under water, but it's entertaining. Charles Bennett movies generally have a decent structure and this one does. Its more Jules Verne than Poe. I liked the art design, the underwater world, Vincent Price hamming it up, Tab Hunter and Susan Hart as juveniles. I could've done without David Tomlinson and the duck but there's even something endearing that Louis Heyward added that.

Movie review - "The Raven" (1963) ***1/2 (rewatching)

 Put this on for some comfort food. Marvellous three old stars, Lorre, Price and Karloff, plus two new ones, Hazel Court and Jack Nicholson.  Olive Sturgess is sweet as Price's daughter. Final magic duel underwhelming.

Movie review - "The Terror" (1963) **1/2 (re-watching)

Look, it's a mess. I love this, love the story behind it's making, what film fan doesn't, but it's all over the place. It varies in tone and logic.

But it's got Dan Haller sets, Sandra Knight is beautiful and evocative, the atmosphere is creepy, Jack Nicholson is in a French officer's uniform, Jonathan Haze is creepy, Dick Miller is fun as the butler, Karloff is supericonic. The flood stuff works.

A movie of its own genre.

Movie review - "The Terror" (1963) **1/2

Watched this again because Dick Miller died. There is a lot of walking around. I mean a lot. Jack Nicholson, Boris Karloff do a lot of walking. There's also padding - people talking about what's happened or what might happen.

It does have atmosphere though. It looks great. I love the waves, and the credits, and the castle. I love the homey-ness of the old lady's place.

Jack Nicholson is very miscast but he's still Jack Nicholson. Sandra Knight is perfectly ethereal. Dick Miller is absurdly miscast. Jonathan Haze is fun. Boris Karloff is perfect.

This film has a magic. It is slow and confusing.

Movie review - "The Haunting of Hell House" (1999) **

Not even Roger Corman could recapture the success of his 1960s Poe films, as proved by this late 90s attempt, shot in his short-lived Irish studio near Galway. It actually wasn't a bad idea to have a go though because the beautiful albeit gloomy Irish countryside was ideal for a Poe film - I should say Poe-esque, because this is based on a Henry James short story.

Corman produced, but he doesn't have the collaborators - Michael York adds some class but is no Vincent Price, the authors are no Richard Matheson/Robert Towne/Charles Beaumont, the set design is no Daniel Haller, the female lead is no Hazel Court/Barbara Steele, the cinematographer no Floyd Crosby, the music no Les Baxter and the director is no Corman. The male lead is weak but I admit that is in keeping with many of those films (eg John Kerr).

It's an okay film - the basic story is good, there are spooky moments. It looks alright. I didnt mind it - it just lacks the magic and atmosphere of those 60s Poe movies.

Movie - "Murder in the Rue Morgue" (1971) *** (warning: spoilers)

The reputation of this picture isn't high - it was one of AIP's second Poe cycle, directed like many of them were by Gordon Hessler. I actually liked it more than I thought it would - it felt a little bit cut about but not tremendously and had some good things about it.

I didn't mind that much they disregarded Poe's book - rather this is a Phantom of the Opera knock off with Herbert Lom reprising that part (he played it in the 1962 Hammer film) as an actor getting revenge on the a theatre company. The company do Grand Guignol, including an adaptation of Murders in the Rue Morgue, which I liked. It's a decent story, well thought out, and impressive production values.

Two flaws for me. First Jason Robards in a role clearly meant for Vincent Price. AIP must have thought "oh Robards is a big theatre actor he'll be great" but he's not nearly big, flamboyant or fun enough - he's too raspy, realistic. I so wish Price was in this . (He was fighting with AIP over money at the time).

There's also Christina Kauffman's performance. Her character is key - Lom's love/obsession for her drives this - but she's a flat damp squib. I guess the character is meant to be passive but she's really dully depicted.

Still, like I said, I went in with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised.

Movie review - "Spirits of the Dead" (1968) ***1/2

Anthology films were all the rage in Europe in the 1960s - they were reasonably popular in Hollywood too. Roger Corman had done an Edgar Allan Poe anthology, Tales of Terror - some enterprising producers had the idea of getting art house darlings to do one. This has Fellini, Vadim and Malle, not a bad line up (Orson Welles, Chabrol, Visconti and Bergman were also approached).

Vadim's segment is the campiest fun - Jane Fonda is a vixen who runs around her estate killing people, having orgies and seducing unwilling women as part of threesomes.  She falls in love with the boy next door... played by Peter Fonda! Which is a bit perverse, even for Vadim... but they don't kiss or anything he's not keen until so she accidentally kills him and then lives to regret it. Its all garish and not particularly well made but the Fondas make it fun (Jane really, that is - Peter is only in it briefly).

Malle's segment is much better directed, more serious. Alain Delon is very effective as a nasty piece of work (it's a shame Delon didn't play more villains, he suits them) who tackles his own conscience - manifested as an actual person. Brigitte Bardot is not convincing in a black wig and feels wasted but I enjoyed this bit - it's not as highly regarded, I'm not sure why.

Fellini's segment is superb. It's a sort of companion piece to La Dolce Vita and 8 1/2  with Terence Stamp, at the height of his sixties groovy-ness, playing a Shakesperean actor who is in Rome to make a Christian Western. He's hassled by various parties - the paps, director, interpreter, press, random women etc. Its done with flair and vivacity. The "horror" is more muted but Stamp hooning along the highway is genuinely scary - I wish Fellini had made a horror film or two.

A strong, entertaining film with gorgeous colour.

Book review - "The Pit and the Pendulum" by Lee Sheridan, Laurence French

Another in Bear Manor Media's much appreciated reprints of novelistations of old movies - in this case the 1961 Roger Corman-Richard Matheson-Vincent Price etc classic. Matheson had to do a lot of work to flesh out Poe's story to feature length, and did it by falling back on some reliable tropes: man arrives in mysterious castle looking for sister; mysterious man of the house who may or may not be a killer; dead person revealed to not really be dead; person going insane; person buried alive.

It's creepy and well structured and benefits from not having to endure John Kerr's performance.

There's an excellent separate bit about the making of the film, including looks at the script, Corman's direction, Price's performance, the art direction, etc.

Movie review - "The Black Cat" (1934) ***1/2 (re-viewing)

Two of the greatest horror movie stars were Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi; they teamed on several occasions, of which this was the first and perhaps the best... It's definitely the one where they really go mano a mano.

Its an intense, way out film with a weak link to Edgar Alan Poe but a lot of imagination and boldness. Lugosi is relatively subdued but it's still a fantastic role - a dashing, tormented psychiatrist, haunted by having been in a prison for 15 years, determined for revenge. Karloff is unique, with his close cropped haircut, black robes and sleeping next to Lugoi's daughter.

David Manners is bland in what is really a thankless role, the "ordinary guy", but he's solidly bland if that makes sense. Jacqueline Wells - who later became Errol Flynn co-star Julie Bishop - gets to have more fun as Manners' bride who gets a little horny after Lugosi injects her with something, giving Manners a big kiss.

Lots of things I noticed on reviewing - Karloff caressing the wooden sculpture of a naked woman, the choppy nature of the story, the fact the middle seems padded despite the fact its only 65 minutes, the awkwardness of the comical police interlude. But it's got great sets, a wonderful kinky feel and a slap up climax.