176) Mountaintop Motel Massacre (1983)

"They know you're crazy. They're gonna send you back to the hospital. Everyone must die."

Director
Jim McCullough Sr.

Cast
Anna Chappell - Evelyn
Bill Thurman - Rev. Bill McWiley
Will Mitchell - Al
Virginia Loridans - Tanya
Major Brock - Crewshaw
James Bradford - Sheriff
Amy Hill - Prissy
Marian Jones - Mary
Gregg Brazzel - Vernon
Jill King - Lorie

I've done a decent number of reviews for horror movies released within the year. Now, I want to get back to some good old fashioned, nitty gritty, gag inducing, sick and insane, blood 'n guts, so bad they're good, fright night, creature feature horror flicks. I want to get back to the kind of horror movies, as my blog header says, you forgot about, wanted to forget about, or just haven't heard of... yet. 

I have a lot of these kind of schlocky horror movie titles listed in my go-to movies I plan to get to at some point. 

Well, recently, I stumbled upon a horror subgenre called psycho-biddy. The term sounds familiar. I'm pretty sure I've heard of it before. 

This subgenre is a label for psychological thriller flicks that center on older women who have gone insane to some degree or another. The 1990 movie "Misery," based on Stephen King's novel about the crazy and unstable Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates) who holds author Paul Sheldon (James Caan) hostage comes to mind. In early psycho-biddy horror movies, these violent unbalanced older women were often depicted as being among the upper-class. 

The 1962 psychological horror thriller "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" starring Joan Crawford and Bette Davis is great example of this subgenre. 

There are a few other psycho-biddy movies filmed in the same period that pair well with "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane" such as "Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte," (1964) also starring Bette Davis, "What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?" (1969), "What's the Matter with Helen?" (1971), and "Whoever Slew Aunti Roo?" (1972). 

Bette Davis stars in another psycho-biddy horror movie called "Dead Ringer" (1964), also known as "Who Is Buried in My Grave?" Even the movie poster advertises it as "for 'Baby Jane' people!" 

And Joan Crawford stars in the psycho-biddy horror films, "Straight-Jacket" (1964) and "Berserk!" (1967). 

Maybe it's fitting to cast Joan Crawford in these kinds of movie considering her true life past. The 1981 biographical psychological drama movie "Mommie Dearest" which I've heard some refer to as horror, is based on Crawford's parenting. 

Anna Chappell and Bill Thurman in "Mountaintop Motel Massacre." 

Anyways, the 1983 psycho-biddy slasher flick, "Mountain Motel Massacre" is a movie I've tried watching twice before. And each time, I ended up falling asleep. That's not a criticism of the movie. Well, this time I stayed awake for the entire experience. 

The story is set in rural Louisiana. Motel proprietor Evelyn (Anna Chappell) is taking care of her motel after previously spending time in a mental hospital. Little does she know that her daughter, Lorie (Jill King), practices black magic in the basement, trying to contact her deceased father. 

When Evelyn finds Lorie in the middle of some weird ritual, she has a breakdown and accidentally kills her own daughter with a sickle. 

Not sure what to do next, she drags Lorie's body to the kitchen, calls the police, and convinces them she had nothing to do with her death. 

Of course, they believe her...except the sheriff (James Bradford). He's not convinced. 

Meanwhile, the motel she runs, called "Mountaintop Motel," is really a bunch of separate cabins used as motel rooms.

After Lorie's funeral, Evelyn is now alone at her motel. And as expected, she begins to go mad.
Rev. Bill McWiley (Bill Thurman), who presided over the funeral, checks into the motel for Evelyn's sake. 

Soon, other guests arrive. 

A guy named Robin Crewshaw (Major Brock) checks into a cabin right next to McWiley's. The two of them chat it up and have a drink in McWiley's cabin. 

Meanwhile, some newlyweds named Vernon and Mary (Gregg Brazzel and Marian Jones) arrive as they pass by on the freeway during their honeymoon road trip and need a place to crash for the night.

Later, as rain starts pouring, cousins Prissy (Amy Hill) and Tanya (Virginia Loridans) are also driving along the nearby freeway towards Nashville when their car breaks down. As luck would have it, a wealthy businessman named Al (Will Mitchell) passes by and offers these young girls a ride. 

With the rain coming down in sheets, they decide to find a motel to wait out the storm. Attempting to drive in the rain would be dangerous. 

They hitch a ride with Al, who claims to be a record producer for Capitol Records. He even has a car phone which is pretty prestigious for 1983. 

Of course, the girls leave their money and stuff in their car. So, they have to bunk with Al at the motel. They fancy themselves singers, so they see this meetup as a golden opportunity for a potentially successful career. And Al is just full of promises. 

Back in Crenshaw's cabin, Evelyn peaks in through a trap door on the floor. When the coast is clear, she releases some cockroaches in his room, 

In the newlywed suite, Mary is getting ready to hit the sack as Vernon is relaxing on the bed. Evelyn sneaks underneath their cabin and releases a poisonous snake into their room unbeknownst to the couple. The snake makes its way towards Vernon, and bites him on the face. Mary freaks out and tries to call a doctor. But the phone doesn't work. 

She runs to the main office and runs into Al just after he checks in. 

Mary tells him what happened, and he calls a doctor. 

Everyone is generally uneasy in their rooms. McWiley is awoken with rats in his cabin and tries killing them all.  

But in Al's room, he and the girls, especially Tanya, start getting loose with themselves. 

Before anything happens, the girls lock themselves in the bathroom to freshen up and argue over who's going to sleep with Al. Tanya's willing to go to bed with him if it'll lead to a record deal. 

But Prissy remains in the bathroom. 

As Tanya and Al begin fooling around, Evelyn sneaks into the bathroom through a trapdoor and slashes Prissy's throat with a sickle. She takes her body down into the basement. 

Tanya hears the ruckus, but when she opens the bathroom, Prissy is gone. All that remains is blood splatter on the wall. 

Soon, some of the guests discover the trap doors and begin to figure out what Evelyn has going on. So, it's up to someone to stop her and get to the bottom of these massacres.

This is nothing more than a hack n' slash flick where all the bad acting and plot devices are enjoyed for the sake of a cheap fright.

It's clear the guests are going to die. But how it all plays out is what keeps audiences tuned in. It's definitely a poor man's "Psycho." Very poor!

But watching this movie makes me glad I set this blog up in the first place. This is the place where shlock like "Mountaintop Motel Massacre" has a memory hole to fit into and remain. 

Not a Review Necessarily - My Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire trailer reaction

The 2021 film "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" was a decent third installment to the 1984 horror comedy "Ghostbusters" and it's 1989 sequel "Ghostbusters II." I wrote about my thoughts of "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" in the local newspaper, noting that it "works as a tribute to the original film." I even gave it 3.5 out of five stars. 

Now a fourth Ghostbusters movie is on the horizon, titled "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire." And the trailer for it dropped November 8th. 

Based on the trailer, this new Ghostbusters movie looks like something unlike the other movies, save for the Ghostbusters squaring off with the paranormal. Where "Ghostbusters Afterlife" is a retread of the 1984 film, namely to restart the franchise with new characters, part four looks like something all on its own. 

The trailer starts off lighthearted as "Cruel Summer" by Bananarama appropriately plays on top scenes of beach goers enjoying the New York City summer. Of course that's interrupted as an ominous sky begins to loom over the city, coming in off the beach and engulfing everything with ice. 

It looks like New York City is under a bit of a frozen spell in the middle of summer. Patton Oswalt's character voices over the trailer, stating "for the first time in New York history, people froze to death in the middle of July." That's a lot of death and destruction!

"Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" looks darker and more sinister than before.

My fear, however, is that the plot of a frozen Manhattan is a setup for a preachy flick about climate change. We've had too many of those, and they're pretty much all crappy movies. 

Thankfully, the official synopsis of Frozen Empire gives me some reassurance. 

It reads, "The Spengler family returns to where it all started - the iconic NYC firehouse - to team up with the original Ghostbusters, who've developed a top-secret research lab to take busting ghosts to the next level. But when the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an evil force, Ghostbusters new and old must join forces to protect their home and save the world from a second ice age." 

James Acaster in "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire."

But a recent article in "Rolling Stone Magazine" speculates a plot about climate change.

I want a paranormal story with the Ghostbusters, no matter how old they are, doing what they do best - telling jokes and busting ghosts. 

I don't want to spend money on admission just to be lectured again about climate change and saving the planet, yada yada yada. I want to escape for an hour and half, and just be entertained. 

That was my big gripe over the 2019 movie "Godzilla: King of the Monsters." It's a preachy flick about that same topic. I've heard it all before.

The trailer offers some images that, like so many other fans, has me anxious and excited to see this new movie. 

For instance, the characters from "Afterlife" dawn red winter coats that are a new part of the Ghostbusters uniform. 
One new character, played by James Acaster, is also sporting this red winter coat along with a name patch similar to those on the Ghostbusters coveralls. Some on social media speculate this might be baby Oscar from "Ghostbusters II" all grown up. Others think the name on his coat looks like it reads "Melnitz" which may indicate he's related to the Ghostbuster's receptionist, Janine Melnitz, played by Annie Potts in parts one, two, and in Afterlife. 

I even read that this mysterious character might be related to EPA agent Walter Peck, played by William Atherton in "Ghostbusters."

Incidentally, Atherton is supposed to reprise his role in this new movie. 

As for the new specter tormenting New York City, it's appearance is really intriguing. It show's up twice in the trailer. 

In the first brief glimpse, the monster looks like its attaching horns into its head. 

A fellow Ghosthead I chatted with on Facebook seemed certain this new ghost is "Garaka" which he surmised thanks to some leaked concept art. 

"Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" concept art.

I couldn't find anything online to confirm this except for a blurb on the Ghostbusters wiki page about a character called "Hob Anagarak" - a monster that appeared in the episode "Cold Cash and Hot Water" from season two of the animated series "The Real Ghostbusters." However, they're clearly not the same two characters as Hob Anagarak is a fire deity who "has the ability to breathe and control fire, has incredible strength, and can teleport away from danger. It was said Hob Anagarak could have reduced whole cities to charcoal." 

The horns on that thing, which you can barely see in the blurred shot of it walking into the firehouse, makes me think of Bullwinkle J. Moose. 

Still, the Ghostbusters News website has an article that claims "Frozen Empire" is said to have taken inspiration from "The Real Ghostbusters." 

Actor Kumail Nanjiani, who appears in the trailer, posted the following on X - formerly Twitter; "Also I am a huge fan of The Real Ghostbusters (the animated series) and that show was a point of reference for this movie. The filmmakers wanted to make a long episode of the animated series. So if you love that show as I do, be excited." 

I guess the animated series has content that's worth pulling inspiration from in order to make an entertaining live-action movie with the original Ghostbusters along with the new characters. I hope there's more originality thrown into the new movie rather than ideas recycled from the cartoon. 

Whoever this big scare is, I appreciate something new and original for the franchise rather than rehashing old characters from before. 

Even so, I think it would be great to see Rick Moranis return, even if briefly, as Louis Tully from parts one and two. Still, I doubt his return as he's very selective about the roles he's offered nowadays.

Gil Kenan, who worked as a writer for Afterlife, sits in the director's chair this time after Jason Reitman directed the previous movie. Kenan directed the 2006 animated horror comedy "Monster House" which isn't a bad film. I enjoyed it, as did my kids.

He also directed the 2015 "Poltergeist" remake. The less said about that flop, the better! I saw it when it was released, and don't remember anything about it. He also directed the Christmas movie "A Boy Called Christmas," which is also a decent enough picture. So, being a decent enough director, I think Kenan's presence adds a little promise to this next Ghostbusters movie. We'll see, of course. 

There's a spectacular shot of Ecto 1 blaring down the streets of New York City in the trailer! And it's restored. I'm excited to see her in action again.

Plus, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and Bill Murray return. That's always a welcomed sight, especially for Murray who seemed reluctant to do any more Ghostbuster movies after the second film. 

Though I can't help but have my doubts that part four will be any good as the original film's success is true lighting in a bottle, and both part two and "Afterlife" are hit and miss, I'm still anxious and curious to see where "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" takes the franchise. As of now, "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" is set for release on March 29, 2024. 

175) Down in the Cellar (1983)

Director
Jan Švankmajer

Cast

Monika Belo-Cabanová - Little girl
Ol'ga Vronská - Washer woman
Aleksandr Letko - Man with candy

After sitting through the horror comedy "Leprechaun" and the seven nonsensical films that followed, I wanted to get to something meaningful, deep, and worthy of attention. 

A year or two ago, while employed at a local library, I managed to find an interlibrary loan DVD of short films by Czech filmmaker Jan Švankmajer.

I stumbled upon Švankmajer a couple years ago while watching a YouTube video that showcased ten strange and unusual films, or something like that. It was one of those top ten videos. This video presented one of his films called "Virile Games" also known as "Mužné hry" or "Male Games." It's a live action/ stop motion short film from 1988. I wouldn't do it any justice if I tried describing this film. It just needs to be seen. Švankmajer describes himself as a surrealist, and it shows in his films like "Virile Games."

But it spurred me to look into his other works, many of which are available on YouTube. So, I did. 

It wasn't until later that I looked to see if his films are available on DVD. 

Švankmajer is a surrealist film maker whose works can be whimsical, unsettling, nightmarish, profound, reflective or relatable, intriguing, and humorous. 

He uses a variety of art forms such as clay, puppetry, cutout figures, random objects, and actors to make his movies. What's even more impressive is that when he uses live actors, he'll often animate them through stop-motion techniques. His short film "Breakfast" which is part of his three-part "Food" film series is a perfect example of what I'm talking about. And when I say "impressive" I mean that sincerely. Other film makers such as Terry Gilliam and Tim Burton have taken inspiration from Jan Švankmajer. 

He's made films, both short and feature length, from the 1960s up to 2018's feature film "Insects" being the last title I can find of his.

On top of these artforms, he's a master at editing and the use of sound effects. Most of his films have no dialogue. In these cases, communication is done through visuals. It's amazingly effective and so meticulously constructed! His style fits all elements masterfully together into films that are strange, unforgettable, and simply remarkable. 

The two-disc DVD set I found through the library was "The Collected Shorts of Jan Svankmajer." It includes 14 of his films including "The Fall of the House of Usher" based on the story by Edgar Allen Poe, "A Game with Stones," "Et Cetera," "Punch and Judy," "The Flat," "Death of Stalinism in Bohemia," and "Food." 

One of these films in that set has stuck with me. I've watched it several times already on YouTube, even moments before writing this post. 

It's called "Do pivnice" or "Down in the Cellar" produced in 1983.  

Monika Belo-Cabanová in
Jan Švankmajer's short film, "Down in the Cellar."

The short centers on a little girl, played by Monika Belo-Cabanová, who reluctantly heads to the dark dirty cellar of her apartment with her basket, a flashlight, and the cellar key to fetch potatoes. 

As she heads down the apartment stairs, an older man (Aleksandr Letko) wearing a hat and tie is walking up. The only sound in this scene are their footsteps. The man's footsteps are heavy. Hers are soft and careful. As the man passes her on the steps, the camera cuts to a closeup of her eyes wearily watching him make his way past her. Her eyes alone are shy, cautious, and curious. The man stops and turns around to look back at her with a short smile on his face. He looks inside her basket, to get a clue of what she's up to. He reaches and pulls out a piece of candy from behind her ear. But she's not having any of it and runs down the steps. 

A washer woman (Ol'ga Vronská) is scrubbing the floor at the bottom of the steps and looks up at her as if to say, "where do you think you're going?" 

Seeing that the girl has a cellar key, this woman nods in approval and lets her pass. 

When the girl reaches the top step down to the cellar, a black cat with golden yellow eyes is laying on the bottom step looking up at her, just daring her to pass. 

As she slowly moves towards the door, one cautious step at a time, the cat runs into the cellar. 

From there, the girl's fears and imagination take hold. There's a part where she finds both the man and woman she just encountered living down in separate parts of the cellar amongst the coal. It's a strange scene, and one that could easily be inspired by a fever dream, or childhood fear. She watches the man brush his teeth and get ready to sleep as he lays down in a bed of coal. His niche in the basement is set up like a makeshift bedroom. 

He covers himself with coal like it's his bedsheet. But he sits back up and looks at the girl, gesturing for her to come in and rest as well. He points to a crib against the wall and invites her to use it. 

As she backs up, shaking her head, she turns to see the same woman as before in another niche made up to look like a kitchen. 

This woman is using the coal to make pastries. That is, she cracks two eggs and adds a little water to a bowl full of ground up coal. She mixes it to create a "dough" and then starts to knead it. Then she cuts out circles in this black dough to make biscuits. It's a surreal, unsettling and haunting scene. 

Ol'ga Vronská in "Down in the Cellar."

The absence of dialogue contributes to that dreamlike feel. 

I think the reason this short film clicks with me is because it reminds me of the basement in my boyhood home. Our basement was partially subterranean as my house was built on the side of a hill. Part of the basement had an unfinished dirt area. The rest of it was dusty, dark, and packed with stuff...like normal basements. It was a part of the house that scared me, and to this day, I still have dreams about it. My younger self can relate to this young girl and her imagination.

In an interview with the International Film Festival in Rotterdam, Švankmajer said, "Dreams play a big role in my life. Dreams play a big role in the life of any surrealist. Of course, they are also reflected in my films." 

Everything in the cellar has its attention on this little girl, even the lid of the potato bin. The black cat is also following her around, giving the impression that it's the mastermind behind the girl's active imagination.

And it ends on a chilling note, at least through the eyes of a young child. 

When finally leaving the cellar, she trips over the cat as it sits on the steps waiting for her to stumble, and all the potatoes fall out of her basket and go rolling back into the cellar. 

It's as though the cat knowns her fears and is there, like a demon, keeping her from escaping the darkness of the cellar. She stares back into the darkness before heading back into the cellar to gather up the potatoes. And that's when it ends. 

The young actress playing the little nameless girl conveys her anxieties and determination effectively through her eyes and mannerisms. 

She's very meticulous about where she stands and aware of what's around her. Švankmajer includes shots of her feet standing on the edge of the stairs, frozen in place with trepidation before she ventures forth. He uses stop motion animation to portray her fears. She doesn't cry or scream. Rather she takes pauses to compose herself and build up her confidence before continuing. In one instance, she takes a moment to stare at her reflection in a dusty old mirror, and then sticks her tongue out at herself.  

The lighting is primarily from her flashlight, although other scenes definitely demand more lighting. 

Švankmajer is careful in the execution of this short film. The imagery has staying power in the audience's memory. Like other Švankmajer films, "Down in the Cellar" makes an impression. 

While this short film depicts horror elements - namely, fear - it's a stretch to call it a horror movie. A horror movie as I understand it attempts to inflict fear into its audience. "Down in the Cellar" is about fear. It's easy to imagine ourselves in the girl's place. The premise, animation, and simplicity make it that much more of an effective film. It's a masterpiece of a short movie.