207) Tales of Terror (1962)

"And it is with death and dying that we concern ourselves."

Director

Roger Corman

Cast
"Morella"
Vincent Price - Locke
Maggie Pierce - Lenora Locke
Leona Gage - Morella Locke
Ed Cobb - Coach Driver

"The Black Cat"
Vincent Price - Fortunato Luchresi
Peter Lorre - Montresor Herringbone
Joyce Jameson - Annabel Herringbone
Lennie Weinrib - Policeman
Wally Campo - The Barman

"The Case of M. Valdemar"

Vincent Price - Ernest Valdemar
Basil Rathbone - Mr. Carmichael
Debra Paget - Helene Valdemar
David Frankham - Dr. Elliot James

Halloween is over for another year, but thankfully the Fall season - my favorite time of year - carries on. If there was an ideal season for watching classic horror and thriller flicks, this is it. It's just how my imaginative mind works. 

Now that I've finished my string of Dracula/ Vampire movies for Halloween, I'm anxious to get back to other things, particularly Roger Corman's Edgar Allan Poe films. 

The last Poe film I reviewed was "Premature Burial" which follows a theme Poe seems to love. Namely, being buried alive.

"Tales of Terror" is an anthology movie that tells three different tales of the macabre. It's been a while since I reviewed a horror anthology movie. For a short period, I was reviewing a bunch of them and calling those reviews, "The more horror there is." They're fun to watch and comment on. I should get back to that anthology thread. 

The word "macabre" strongly comes to mind after watching this movie. And as expected, one of the stories involves being buried alive. 

As Poe is well known for writing short tales of terror, this movie has a true Poe feel to it. Thankfully, Vincent Price returns after being absent in "Premature Burial."
The Poe movies with Vincent Price were produced through American International Pictures (AIP). "Premature Burial" however was produced through Pathé Lab. While Corman wanted Price to appear in the last movie, Price was under contract with AIP. So, Ray Milland took on the lead role. But Vincent Price is back, and in three different and distinct roles! 

"Morella"

The first tale begins with a young lady (that's never a bad start) named Lenora (Maggie Pierce) as she's headed to Boston to see her estranged father, Locke (Vincent Price). He lives a reclusive life in his dark and dingy mansion. 

He's a big lush suffering from a stinging loneliness. Who wouldn't be if they lived alone for some many years in a huge house?

Locke holds a grudge against his daughter blaming her for the death of his late wife, Morella, who died while giving birth to her. 

While roaming his house, Lenora finds her mother's remains resting in a bedroom and treated as though she's only sleeping. 

Locke cannot accept Morella's death and has closed himself off from the outside world. He's waiting for death to take him, too. 

Lenora tells her father that she's sick and could die as a result. So, he begins to dissolve his grudge and allows her to stay. Despite having been estranged from his daughter, he doesn't want her die. 

That night, Morella's ghost returns to her decaying body since daughter is now in the house. She arises from her bed and restores her decaying corpse to her former beauty. But the catch is that her body is exchanged with Lenora's body as an act of revenge for being the cause of her death. Lenora's body then becomes the decaying corpse in Morella's spot.

Morella seeks out Locke and strangles him. His huge mansion catches fire, and Morella and Lenora switch places again. 

Lenore breaks a smile as she lies on the body of her dead father, while the bodies inside burn with the house. Burning houses, by the way, seem to be a reoccurring event in these Poe movies. 

Peter Lorre as Montresor Herringbone in the "Tales of Terror."

"The Black Cat"

In this segment, Peter Lorre plays Montresor Herringbone who has absolutely no love for his wife, Annabel (Joyce Jameson). 

He has even less affection for her black cat. 

He's also a huge lush like Locke in the previous story and wanders around town looking for a drink. 

After getting kicked out of a tavern, he stumbles upon a wine tasting party hosted by a widely respected wine connoisseur named Fortunato (Vincent Price). He decides to take on Fortunato in a wine identifying challenge. 

Herringbone impresses Fortunato by identifying each wine flawlessly. He chugs each glass while Fortunato sips and smells each glass like a well-trained connoisseur would. But Herringbone passes out before the challenge is over. Of course, Fortunato is just fine since getting plastered wasn't on his agenda for the night. Afterall, a connoisseur needs to stay respectable.  

At the end, he walks the drunk Herringbone home. There, Fortunato meets Herringbone's wife, Annabel (Joyce Jameson) while her husband remains passed out.  

After a while, Fortunato and Annabel become a little too familiar with each other. 

When Herringbone wakes up and realizes what happened between the two, he takes his revenge on both by sealing them up alive inside a wall in the cellar. 

However, after bricking up the wall, he doesn't realize that the black cat found its way inside as well and is now crying to get out. 

Police later show up to investigate Fortunato's disappearance. That's when they hear the crying cat which leads them to the sealed wall. 

When they break it open, they find the remains of Annabel and Fortunato. 

Vincent Price as Ernest Valdemar.

"The Case of M. Valdemar"

In the final segment, Vincent Price plays M. Ernest Valdemar who's suffering from a horrible illness that's slowly killing him.
So, he consults a hypnotist named Mr. Carmichael (Basil Rathbone) to hopefully ease his pain and maybe even cure him. 

Carmichael puts Valdemar into a trance. But then he keeps him a state between life and death as a kind of experiment.

While in this trance, Valdemar telepathically begs and pleads for Carmichael to end the trance or to kill him. But in the name of experimentation, Carmichael keeps him in this trance. In fact, he keeps him in this state for months. All the while, Valdemar's body starts to decay though he's still alive. 

Meanwhile, Carmichael starts to move in on Valdemar's wife, Helene (Debra Paget). She rejects his advances which infuriates him enough to attack her. This all happens in front of Valdemar's decaying lifeless body. 

However, he knows what's taking place. So much so that he slowly wakes up and kills Carmichael. 

 Vincent Price, David Frankham, and Debra Paget in
"The Case of M. Valdemar."

My thoughts...

I enjoyed "The Black Cat" the most. The late, great Peter Lorre launches this segment into grand heights. 

I really appreciate Corman casting Lorre in this film. His performance is fantastic, making "The Black Cat" among the most enjoyable stories in all the Poe films I've watched so far. Watching him work off of Vincent Price is the stuff of film legend. It's a real rarity to see these two on screen together. To my pleasure, they appear together in the next of Corman's Poe movies, "The Raven" which I will post commentary on later. 

Also, Basil Rathbone - Sherlock Holmes himself - is a welcomed sight as he plays a conceited character whose self-righteous style of cruelty effectively makes the audience want to dislike him. His performance lends Vincent Price a little more triumph when he awakens to kill him. 

I've heard "Tales of Terror" referred to as a throw-away horror flick, whatever that means. The talent is there with its big-name cast, and I'm partial to its gothic horror style just as I am with the other Poe films. 

The scare factor is in the scenarios, gothic sets, and situations. Like "House of Usher" in which the house is the monster, "Tales of Terror" relies on those three things. 

The first tale is decent enough, but more of the same as previously seen. It's a grim situation in a big creepy house just as the previous movies are. And the final tale is rather subtle. I think it's "The Black Cat" that really makes "Tales of Terror" worthwhile. 

Despite any problems this movie might have, I appreciate it for the variety that distinguishes it from Roger Corman's, especially with its off-putting tales. 

The subplot of being buried alive, seen in "The Black Cat" is depicted as an act of revenge rather than an act of despair as seen in "House of Usher." And that burial scene delivers one of the most chilling exchanges in the Poe series.

As Fortunato is being sealed up alive in the wall, he begs and pleads for Herringbone to let him go.

"For the love of God, Montresor," Fortunato pleads.

Montresor glares back and says coldly, "Yes...for the love of God." 

Vincent Price most impressively plays multiple characters, one for each story. Each character he portrays is depicted with completely different personalities. 

He's a depressed recluse in the first segment. That's followed by his performance as a conceited professional wine expert and scoundrel in the second segment. And in the third segment, he plays a sick man trapped in his own body. This movie alone shows how versatile an actor Vincent Price was. 

Out of all of Corman's Poe movies I've seen so far, this is the most Poe-like film. Of course, this and the previous movies takes various liberties with Poe's short-stories and poems. 

And it's an anthology movie which is right up my alley. I love horror anthologies. 

The movie really takes its time with its pace. Its runtime is two hours. 

Overall, "Tales of Terror" deserves appreciation. And it's a perfect segue for the next movie in Corman's Poe series which I can't wait to get to! 

119) Black Sabbath (1963) - The More Horror There Is...

"As you will see from one of our tales, vampires - wurdulaks - abound everywhere."

Director

Mario Bava

Cast

Boris Karloff - The host

The Drop of Water

Jacqueline Pierreux - Helen Chester

Milly Monti - the Maid

The Telephone
Michèle Mercier - Rosy
Lidia Alfonsi - Mary

The Wurdulak
Boris Karloff - Gorca
Mark Damon - Count Vladimir D'Urfe
Susy Andersen - Sdenka
Massimo Righi - Pietro
Rika Dialina - Maria
Glauco Onorato - Giorgio

I've mentioned the book "The Top 100 Horror Movies" by screenwriter and film historian, Gary Gerani, several times throughout this blog. It's the book that initially inspired me to do this blog in the first place. 

My initial plan was to review all 100 of those movies listed, beginning with "The House of Dark Shadows" (1970). But that's not how this all went down. 

Anyways, one of those movies in Gerani's top 100 - entered at number 40 - is the 1963 horror anthology "Black Sabbath," not to be confused with the 1960 movie "Black Sunday." That's also in his book, by the way. 

The title has caught my attention each time I've flipped passed that section. Part of the reason is my curiosity as to whether the heavy metal group "Black Sabbath" took their name from this movie. 

A quick Google search says they did. 

The other reason being that this is an anthology film. The title strikes me as unique and certainly darker a title than most, especially for such a movie. 

I wanted to know what stories did this movie tell that necessitated such a grim, almost blasphemous label. 

I mentioned in my previous review of "To the Devil...a Daughter" that I generally don't go for horror movies centering around Satan and the Occult. That's not to say there aren't good movies I do like with such content. 
The title "Black Sabbath" is misleading. It has nothing to do with Satan nor the occult. It doesn't even have anything to do with the sabbath day. 
This Italian film was released under the title "I tre volti della paura" which Google translates to "The Three Faces of Fear." That's much more appropriate a title for a movie like this. I watched the American version available through Hoopla streaming app. I don't yet know where I can watch the Italian version.

It's truly a product of its time.

"Black Sabbath" begins with Boris Karloff as our story teller. He glares underneath his brow into the camera as different shades of colored lights alternate on his face while he introduces the audience through three separate tales. 

The Drop of Water 

The first story takes place back in the early twentieth century. Nurse Helen Chester (Jacqueline Pierreux) gets a call from the maid (Milly Monti) of an elderly medium asking her to come over immediately. 

When she arrives, the medium has already passed away. Her face is frozen in a warped and eerie expression.

As Nurse Chester dresses the corpse for burial, she notices a sapphire ring on her finger.

She pulls it off with effort as it's on there rather tightly, causing her to bump the bedside table and knock over a glass of water. A fly then lands on the spot where the ring was worn. 

When the nurse gets home, strange things begin occurring in her flat. The lights start acting funny. She then keeps hearing dripping water coming from various parts of her apartment. And she's also tormented by a fly. Soon, Chester sees the body of the medium lying on her bed. 

It rises into the air, and soon floats right towards her. 

The scene shifts to investigators searching the apartment for clues as to the nurse's death. All they find is a small bruise on her ring finger. Her face is frozen in a manner similar to that of the medium's. 

Michèle Mercier as Rosy in the story "The Telephone."

The Telephone

In the next story, a French call-girl named Rosy (Michèle Mercier) is tormented by a series of mysterious phone calls after she returns to her apartment one night from an outing.

After a couple calls, the caller identifies himself as "Frank." Rosy thinks it's a prank because the Frank she knows, who I'm guessing a former lover, is dead. But the caller makes it clear he's out for revenge, and promises she'll be dead by morning. He swears that no matter what she does, she won't be able to escape his wrath. 

Rosy calls her friend Mary (Lidia Alfonsi), asking her to come over.
When Mary arrives and gives Rosy a little peace of mind. Rosy tells her everything that's going on. 

She gives Rosy a sedative to help her sleep, and a large knife to put under her pillow for protection.

As Rosy sleeps, Mary writes out a confession that she set up the phone calls for the sake of establishing a reunion. She knew Rosy would call on her to come over. 

While she's writing, someone sneaks into the apartment. The intruder comes up to Mary from behind and strangles her.

He then goes for Rosy who is just waking up. Rosy recognizes him right away, and calls out his name... Frank. 

Boris Karloff as Gorca in "Black Sabbath."

The Wurdulak 
This is the story were the movie really shines. 

The story opens as a nobleman living in the 19th century named Vladimir D'Urfe (Mark Damon) finds a decapitated body with a knife plunged right into its heart.

Despite being shocked by the discover, Vladimir seems to recognize the knife. So, he takes it out and holds onto it while he rides off to find shelter.

He comes upon a house where he meets Giorgio (Glauco Onorato). Vladimir asks to stay for the night, and shows Giorgio the dagger he found. 

Giorgio recognizes it right away, claiming it belongs to his father whom he hasn't seen for several days. He allows Vladimir to spend the night and introduces him to his wife and child, Ivan, as well as his brother Pietro (Massimo Righi) and sister Sdenka (Susy Andersen).

They've all been waiting for Giorgio's father, Gorca, to come home as he's been hunting down a Turkish outlaw who is really a wurdulak, or vampire in Slavic mythology. This type of vampire only feeds on the blood and flesh of those he loves. 

Gorca (Boris Karloff) finally returns, but looks angry, disheveled, and pale. 

They're all rather worried and hesitant around Gorca.

As they all adjourn for the night, Gorca attacks Giorgio's brother, Pietro (Massimo Righi) and kidnaps young Ivan.

He flees with the boy, and returns hours later with Ivan's dead body. Giorgio realizes Gorca is now a wurdulak and will soon become one of the undead. 

So, plans to steak and behead him. But his wife refuses to let him do that. She eventually kills Giorgio to save her walking-dead child. The child is seen walking after his death.

Vladimir and Sdenka run and hide in the nearby remains of a monastery. But their not as safe as they think.

My Thoughts... 

The entire production, including the acting, feels like I'm watching a stage performance thanks to the setup of each scene, and the setting the stories take place in. That's not to say the acting is bad. It doesn't feel like a movie until the third story.  

This movie utilizes supernatural horror, psychological horror, and horror that was on its way to being classical horror, even at that time. 

Each time I've seen the title "Black Sabbath," the claim that it's one of the greatest horror anthologies seems to follow.

While it's not necessarily a terrible film, I wouldn't raise it on such a lofty horror pedestal. I even think it's unfair to call it campy. "Black Sabbath" is certainly a dated film. I have yet to find out what this movie as contributed to the genre all together. There's nothing foundational nor groundbreaking about it. It doesn't have to be so. But to bear the claim of "greatest," I would think it would need to bring something to the horror genre. I can't imagine what that would be. Honestly, nothing really stands out about it other than Boris Karloff's appearance in the movie.

I wonder what sort of audience the writers had in mind back in 1963. Considering the kind of horror movie it is, and what tropes are used to scare the audience, I get the impression the adults who were scared by Frankenstein and Dracula 30-plus years before this movie's release is who the film was intended for. 

By 1963,  the era of Universal monsters like Dracula and Frankenstein was making room for the atomic age of horror with gigantic, nuclear monsters like Godzilla, oversized man-eating creatures, and space aliens looking for a planet to invade.

So many older horror tropes (well, "old" by today's standards) are used in "Black Sabbath" such as foggy terrains, squeaky doors, quick zoom-ins, secluded cottages, and dark and stormy nights. That's really all the stories offer. Aside from Karloff's performance as Gorca, none of the stories leave the audience much else to walk away with. 

Karloff's character in the final story is unsettling and memorable, especially amidst the uneasiness of seeing Gorca kidnap a child because, as the audience uncomfortably understands, he's going to turn the child into a vampire. That's pretty horrific to say the least. Of course, we don't see that actually happen.

Speaking of "Black Sunday" as I did up above, Gerani points out in his book that the movie's success encouraged American International Pictures to hire director Mario Bava to make another movie that would be similar, and in color this time.

He also mentions that the story "The Telephone" in the original version had some stronger lesbian overtones which were diminished with dubbing and editing in the U.S. release. 

The music by Les Baxter doesn't fit the mood of the stories. It's bland, cliché' and unintentionally comical. Evidently, American International Pictures switched Roberto Nicolosi's original soundtrack used in the Italian film with Baxter's for the U.S. Bad choice, in my opinion. 

There's nothing to take away from any of these stories. The last story is the only one I found entertaining, but that's all I got out of it. I guess it accomplished that much, which is what movies are supposed to do. The rest is dry. 

Fans of classic horror, and especially of Boris Karloff, will surely find a fair amount to appreciate in "Black Sabbath." I feel I need to watch the original Italian production to be fair to director Mario Bava and to the movie. Otherwise, I found the American version sadly underwhelming. 

112) Creepshow 2 (1987) - The More Horror There Is...

"Welcome, kiddies, to another edition of Creepshow."

Director

Michael Gornick

Cast

Prologue

Domenick John - Billy

Tom Savini - The Creep

Old Chief Wood'nhead

George Kennedy - Ray Spruce

Dorothy Lamour - Martha Spruce

Frank Salsedo - Benjamin Whitemoon

Holt McCallany - Sam Whitemoon

The Raft

Paul Satterfield - Deke
Jeremy Green - Laverne
Daniel Beer - Randy
Page Hannah - Rachel

The Hitchhiker

Lois Chiles - Annie Lansing

Tom Wright - The Hitchhiker

I'm bypassing the anthology horror movie "Creepshow" from 1982 and going straight for its sequel.

The first movie is directed by horror icon George Romero, with a screenplay written by the other horror icon, Stephen King. 

King even stars in part one, in the segment called "The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill" - one of my favorite stories. 

The movie has a cast of well-known actors such as Leslie Neilson, Ted Danson, Ed Harris, Hal Holbrook, Adrienne Barbeau, E. G. Marshall, and Tom Savini... to drop a few names. Even King's son, Joe King, has a role in "Creepshow."
The whole movie is presented in a comic book style very similar to EC anthology horror comics, "Tales from the Crypt", "The Vault of Horror", and "The Haunt of Fear." I have a stack of reprints sitting in the closet. Original copies cost some serious coin these days.
It's definitely a unique movie that's memorable either for the actual stories, the imagery, the style, the cast, or all of the above. Though "Creepshow" is a favorite guilty pleasure of mine, I don't have any plans to write anything up about it.
Part two continues the style of part one, though in its own unique way, with new stories that lean towards the campy but are just as unforgettable. Despite being weaker than the first and containing three stories instead of five like part one, I still find something to enjoy about it.

This time, we're treated to the "Creep" (Tom Savini, and voiced by Joe Silver) who acts as the storyteller similar to the Crypt Keeper, the Vault Keeper, and the Old Witch who tell the stories in the comics I just mentioned.

Two other stories were originally intended to be in this movie.
One is "Pinfall" and the other is "Cat from Hell."
Readers of my blog (both of them - mom and my buddy Ryan) may remember my mention of "Cat from Hell," written by Stephen King, in my review of the anthology movie "Tales from the Darkside." The story is told in that later anthology movie.

Old Chief Wood'nhead

"This hair's gonna get me paid 'n laid!"

"Old Chief Wood'nheadt" is the first segment to start things off. 

The story takes place in a dusty old general store that's barely hanging on within the nearly dead town aptly named Dead River, Ariz. 

Outside the general store stands a wooden tobacco store Indian which the store owner, Ray Spruce (George Kennedy) lovingly takes care of by reapplying its war paint as soon as it begins to fade.  

The store is long owned by Ray and his wife, Martha (Dorothy Lamour) - an old couple who are split between keeping the store or closing it down permanently.

Martha clearly sees the town's promising outlook is long behind it. Ray thinks there's still enough life left in Dead River to keep going a while longer. His store has been a welcoming part of the community for so many years. As Martha points out, he's given out more than he's put in. And once he has nothing left to give, everyone will just look for someone else to take from. 

He thinks the memories are too wonderful and numerous to just close the store for good. Thanks to the general store, they built their life together, and even managed to send their girls to college.

Among the "good things" the Spruces have done for the people of Dead River, they have financially helped a local Indian tribe.

An elder of the Indian tribe, Benjamin Whitemoon (Frank Salsedo) visits Bruce and Martha to give them a collection of the tribe's most valuable, sacred and cherished turquoise jewelry as payment for the debt the tribe incurred after all the financial helped they received. 

Ben tells them to keep the jewelry until they can pay their debt in full. If they can't pay back in full within a certain time, the jewelry is theirs.

At first Ray refuses to accept the offer, but Benjamin insists as refusing would be an insult to the tribe.

"It's a bad thing to borrow," Ben says. "It's a worse thing to beg."

So, Ray accepts it and promises to guard it with his life. 

And that's exactly what he does when Ben's nephew, Sam Whitemoon (Holt McCallany) and his gang shows up armed with a shot gun, moments after Ben leaves. 

Sam robs the couple, while his little gang - Andy "Rich Boy" Cavanaugh (Don Harvey) and Vince "Fatso" Gribbens (David Holbrook) - trash the store. 

After threatening to blow holes in the couple multiple times, and taking all the cash they have on them, Sam demands the jewelry Ben left with the couple. 

Ray refuses to just hand it over, and the two start arguing. In anger, Sam fatally shoots Martha. Shocked, Ray approaches his now dead wife. Sam points his gun at him and pulls the trigger. After Ray collapses, Sam snatches the tribe's jewelry and tells his buddies they're leaving for Hollywood that night. 

After they leave, the wooden Indian Chief (Dan Kamin), with fresh war paint on, comes to life to avenge the death of the couple. He pays each of the thugs a visit, the last being Sam. Needless to say, none of them make it to Hollywood. 

Incidentally, this is Lamour's last film before she passed away in 1996. Having been a well-known actress of the golden age of Hollywood, Lamour is especially known for starring in the "Road" movies with Bob Hope and Bing Crosby. 

Anyways, this is the best segment in the story thanks to its cast, acting, and story. 

McCallany plays his character as truly intimidating. He puts in a lot in this one role. 

McCallany's acting and presence on screen is truly daunting. He plays it so well that the audience wants to hate this egotistical, narcissistic, callous thug, and see him get what's coming to him. 

The segment left me with an admiration for McCallany as an actor thanks to this one particular role. He was a star in "All My Children" when he appeared in "Creepshow 2." According to IMDB this is his first film role. I didn't even realize until recently that he later stars in the film "Fight Club." 

The dialogue is a little campy but the story has originality to it. And it starts the movie off with something that's very unsettling. Having a "monster" as the good guy the audience is rooting for is a change of things. Still, the premise is still chilling none the less. This is a story I wish I thought of myself. It's a tale of vengeance towards the wrong-doer, similar to another segment in this movie.

The Raft

"It came when we came...like it could smell us." 

"The Raft" is based on a

short story by Stephen King, found in his story collection "Skeleton Crew." The story centers on two sets of college aged lovers- Deke (Paul Satterfield) and Rachel (Page Hannah), Randy (Daniel Beer) and Laverne (Jeremy Green) - as they take a trip to a secluded lake called Cascade Beach. It's the off season and they're there to have a good time, among other things. 

They plan to swim out to an old raft that sits in the middle of the lake and "hang out." 

When they reach the raft, it doesn't take long before Randy notices what looks like a huge oil slick following them in the water. 

He quickly becomes nervous about the oil slick as he sees it devour a duck on the water.

The others, however, think he's acting crazy. 

They quickly change their mind when the black oil slick grabs hold of Rachel, pulls her into the water, and digests her. 

Terrified, Deke thinks he can outswim it back to shore. Just before he attempts to do so, the blob grabs his foot through the wood planks of the raft and pulls him through the cracks. 

Randy and Laverne are now by themselves out in the lake with this thing underneath the raft trying to grab them through the wood. 

Soon, night falls and they take turns keeping watch as the other sleeps while trying to be careful not to step on any spaces where the blob can grab them, 

As morning comes, Laverne becomes the next victim of this blob, leaving Randy with no other choice than to try to swim back to shore. He makes it, but the blob capable of more than he thought.

The acting is bad but the segment's saving grace is the unsettling story that leaves the viewer feeling apprehensive and disturbed.

The look of the monster - greyish black, greasy, glossy, and viscous - is gross. It looks like something that would live just as well in some dank city alleyway.

The way the slime shoots up out of the water like tentacles eager for its prey is impressive. And kudos to the actors who immersed themselves in it.

"The Raft" is a classic creature feature story, but with a somewhat different setting. Rather than having otherwise innocent teens trapped in a cabin in the woods, or at a camp site, they're stuck on a raft surrounded by water within reach of the shore. Escape isn't necessarily impossible but don't count on it.

Tom Wright in "Creepshow 2."

The Hitchhiker 

"That'll cost ya, Mrs. Lansing." 

An adulterous businesswoman named Annie Lansing (Lois Chiles) heads back home late after sleeping with the guy she's having an affair with.

When she gets in her car and takes off, Annie realizes she only has 15 minutes to get back before her working husband returns home. 

So, she races back hoping to beat her husband. 

Annie lights up a cigarette after an otherwise fantastic night. But she drops her cigarette in her lap which causes her to lose control of the car.

In the chaos, she hits a hitchhiker (Tom Wright) holding a sign that reads "Dover."

At first she's shocked that she just hit someone. But as no one else is around, Annie takes off and doesn't look back. 

A truck driver (Stephen King) and some other drivers find the dead hitchhiker lying in the secluded street and report it to the police.

Meanwhile, as a shaken Annie tries to get home and not think about what just happened, she convinces herself that as no one was around to witness what she did, she's therefor in the clear. The only witness was the hitchhiker, and he's dead. 

She stops and starts convincing herself to go to the police. In that moment, sees the hitchhiker in her rearview mirror lumbering towards the car. 

Annie glances back, but he's gone. When she turns back around, he's right next to the driver's side window. 

"Thanks for the ride, lady," he says, his face covered in blood. 

He continues to appear, attempting to get in her car. And each time, Annie tries to kill him again. Every time Annie thinks she's killed him, or ditched him for good, he shows up again trying to get ride. 

Though this story seems the most cliche out of all the stories, it has the most horror comic book story style to it - the best horror story for a a buck or two. 

The makeup on Wright is rather gory. The blood covering his appearance increases throughout the story as Annie keeps trying to kill him again and again. It's a welcoming touch. 

Like "Old Chief Wood'nhead", it's a retaliatory kind of horror premise. Sinners only bring retribution upon themselves when it comes to horror movies. However, there is a psychological twist to the story that leaves the audience asking if she really saw the dead hitchhiker or not. Is her conscious simply running at full throttle? 

It's a shame "Creepshow 2" ends on this particular story. 

If only the movie included at least one more story. One of the originally planned tales that were ultimately left out would have been better to end on. Then perhaps "Creepshow 2" might have been appreciated a little more.  

Tom Savini as "The Creep" in "Creepshow 2."

The Interludes 

The animated transitional scenes are just as entertaining as the stories...for me, anyways. 

They give the movie its horror comic book feel, even more so than "Creepshow." The interluding story that transitions all the rest follows young Billy who initially waits eagerly for the delivery truck to drop off the first editions of the "Creepshow" comic hot off the presses. 

The delivery guy is none other than the Creep. 

After Billy gets the first copy, the Creep vanishes back to his lair, where he welcomes us "kiddies" and introduces us to the stories in this next "edition" of Creepshow.

"It's amazing that you bores and ghouls keep coming back for more," he says. "You must be gluttons for punishment, eh? Well I guess you bloodsuckers enjoy being repulsed? You're loyal to the gore." 

He's similar to the Crypt Keeper, or the Old Hag who take readers from one story to another in the pages of "Tales from the Crypt" and "Vault of Horror".

After the first tale, we find Billy picking up a package at the post office. It contains some Venus fly traps he ordered from his copy of "Creepshow." 

He pays the $9 c.o.d. charge, and heads out. The Creep opens a new service window at the Post Office to tell us the next anecdote.

On his way back home, Billy bumps into a gang of bullies. Rhino, their leader, snatches Billy's package and rips it open. He takes one of the plant bulbs and stomps on it.

Billy retaliates with a swift kick to the groin. 

He books it on his bike with the bullies in hot pursuit. 

In the meantime, the Creep tells us one last tale.

At the end, the bullies corner Billy in a vacant lot, ready to pound him. 

But what they don't notice is a group of towering, carnivorous Venus fly traps looming behind them.

The kids scream in absolute terror which is uncomfortable to hear. 

Billy, meanwhile, stands motionless with a sinister smirk on his face as he watches his bullies meet their end by becoming a meal for the plants. It's a bit uncomfortable to watch. The animators went as far as they could with this small animated segment.

The stories overall are what I like in this sequel. It's too bad there's less of them than part one. 

Like its predecessor, "Creepshow 2" has a notable cast of stars. 

It's worth noting that as actor Hal Holbrook stars in the segment called "The Crate" in the first "Creepshow," his son plays "Fatso" in "Old Chief Wood'nhead."

I first saw this movie at a rather young age - probably too young - thanks to my brothers renting it once way back in the day. Not only did my young self find the first and second story terrifying, but seeing an old innocent couple fall victim to a criminal with a shot gun surely scarred me for life. But having watched it multiple times since those days, I find the story just as much of a fun guilty pleasure than part one. It's the same sort of momentary thrill as reading a cheap horror comic. They're novel and classic, and you get your few bucks worth of momentary uneasiness and cringy horror which is why anyone would read such comics in the first place. 

It does nothing else for you other than give your eyes and the darkest part of your imagination something to play around with. Otherwise, that's all it's good for. Again, the best scares a few dollars can buy. Like such comics, the movie leaves its audience with the creeps as they imagine themselves in those same predicaments.

"Creepshow 2" definitely accomplishes the same thing, which is what it sets out to do with the same cheesy, pun-filled dialogue found in cheap horror comics. 

Holt McCallany as Sam Whitemoon.

After the segment "Old Chief Wood'nhead" the Creep tells the audience, "Well, kiddies, that was quite a price for young Sam Whitemoon to pay... toupée, eh?"

The overall stories are prone to sticking power. That is, they easily stay in the memory of audiences. Vengeful wooden Indians, and man-eating oil slicks somehow have that power. 

I came across "Creepshow 3" but that's another post for another time.

Anyways, as the Creep says, 'til next issue, try to stay scared.

109) Dead of Night (1945) - The More Horror There Is...

"Everyone in this room is part of my dream."

Directors

Basil Dearden - The wraparound story at the farmhouse, and "The Hearse Driver."

Alberto Cavalcanti - "The Christmas Party" and "The Ventriloquist's Dummy"

Robert Hamer - "The Haunted Mirror"

Charles Crichton - "The Golfer's Story"

Cast

Mervyn Jones - Walter Craig

Frederick Valk - Dr. van Straatan

Roland Culver - Eliot Foley

"The Hearse Driver"

Anthony Baird - Hugh Grainger 

Judy Kelly - Joyce Grainger

Miles Malleson - the hearse driver/ bus conductor

"The Christmas Party"

Sally Ann Howes - Sally O'Hara

Michael Allen - Jimmy Watson

"The Haunted Mirror"

Ralph Michael - Peter Cortland

Googie Withers - Joan Cortland

Esmé Percy - The antiques dealer

"The Golfer's Story"

Basil Radford - George Parratt

Naunton Wayne - Larry Potter

Peggy Bryan - Mary Lee

"The Ventriloquist's Dummy"

Hartley Power - Sylvester Kee

Michael Redgrave - Maxwell Frere

Gary Gerani writes about the importance of the anthology film "Dead of Night" within the horror genre in his book "Top 100 Horror Movies." 

"Anthology style movies have had an uneven history at the box office. Audiences tend to prefer a single plot, theme and set of characters into which they can invest their emotions for ninety some-odd minutes. But of all the popular film genres, horror seems best suited to the fractured, multi-tale format, with or without a unifying 'host.' And undoubtedly the best of these episodic fright films is one of the first ever made, Dead of Night." (p.148)

Incidentally, Gerani places "Dead of Night" at number 20 in his top 100 horror movies. I think that's fair. This British horror film from 1945 deserves recognition for not only being an early horror anthology, but for its unique overall unique story line that portrays the hazy line separating reality and delusion. 

The film opens as architect Walter Craig (Mervyn Johns) is driving out to a country house to discuss renovations with a guy named Elliot Foley (Roland Culver). 
When Craig arrives, a handful of guests are sitting in the living room. 
He's rather dumbfounded when he enters because even though he's never met the people inside, he knows them for a reoccurring dream. He's also so familiar with the situation, thanks to his dream, that he's able to predict events that will occur around the house. He then predicts something terrible is going to happen before he leaves. 
A psychologist named Dr. van Straatan is one of the guests present. He tries to convince Craig that his fears are only in his head. The others, however, take an interest in Craig's insight and start telling each other about strange experiences they've personally had. These are where the stories begin. 

The Hearse Driver

This segment is based on a story by E.F. Benson.  
Hugh Grainger (Antony Baird) races cars for a living. One particular racing accident lands him in the hospital. 

One sleepless night, as his health has vastly improved, he notices the clock in his room stops. 
He gets up and happens to look out of his hospital window. A horse-drawn hearse is sitting underneath his window on the street below. The driver (Miles Malleson) looks up at Grainer and says in a Cockney British accent, "just room for one inside, sir." 
This, of course, freaks out Grainger. Soon after the experience, he's discharged from the hospital. 
He waits to catch a bus. And when it arrives, the bus conductor is the same man he saw driving the hearse. 
"Just room for one, inside," he tells Grainger.
Dumbfounded, Grainger doesn't board. The bus pulls away. And what happens next leaves Grainger thankful he listened to his instinct. 

The Christmas Party

Based on a story by Angus MacPhail, "The Christmas Party" this segment centers on teenager, Sally O' Hara (Sally Ann Howes). Sally tells of her experience encountering the ghost of a child during a Christmas party held inside a huge mansion. 
All the young guests start a game of hide-and-seek.  
Sally runs up a few flight of stairs and hides behind window curtains. 
A boy named Jimmy finds her, and then hides with Sally. 

Jimmy tells her about a murder that happened in the mansion years ago. Sally doesn't let the tale scare her, though.
They decide to hide up near the attic. Sally finds a door that leads to a nursery. She walks in and finds a little boy crying all by himself. 
She tries to console him, and then tucks him into bed. He says his name is Francis Kent. 
Afterwards, she heads back downstairs with all the other party goers. 
She inquires about the little boy upstairs she claims to have seen. Sally tells one of the adults about him and says his name is Francis. When its explained who Francis is, she nearly collapses with dred. 

Ralph Michael and Googie Withers in 
the story "The Haunted Mirror."

The Haunted Mirror
After Sally tells her story, a wife named Joan Cartland (Googie Withers) talks about an antique mirror she gave her husband, Peter (Ralph Michael), as a birthday gift. 
At first Peter loves the mirror. It fits in their apartment well. 

But he starts seeing his reflection in an unfamiliar room whenever he looks in the mirror.
He thinks he's loosing his mind. Even when looking in the mirror with Joan, he can see the unfamiliar room, but can't see Joan's reflection. Joan says she doesn't see what her husband claims to be seeing.
Concerned, Joan looks into the mirror's history and who the previous owner was. 
The antique dealer who sold her the mirror tells Joan it belonged to a Francis Etherington who had murdered his wife after thinking she was having an affair. 
When Joan returns home after visiting the antique dealer, she finds Peter sitting alone in the dark facing the mirror. He's not himself at all, and accuses her of cheating on him. 
Things become violent fast, until Joan is forced to take care of the situation with her husband and the mirror herself. 

Golfer's Story

Based on the short story, "The Tale of the Inexperienced Ghost" by H.G. Wells, this segment is the comic relief of the movie. 
Golf buddies, George Parratt (Basil Radford) and Larry Potter (Naunton Wayne), fall in love with the same woman, Mary Lee (Peggy Bryan). 
To figure out which one of them will pursue Mary's affection, they agree to let a game of golf figure that out for them. The winner will have Mary's hand. The loser will not interfere in any way, and will disappear forever. 
Parratt ends up winning by cheating. Defeated, Potter walks into a nearby lake and drowns himself. 
Soon, his ghost appears to Parratt demanding he gives Mary up. If he doesn't he has to haunt him for the rest of his life. 
Of course, he doesn't. Potter's ghost, meanwhile, forgets how to make himself disappear. 
This becomes a major problem on Parratt's wedding night.

Michael Redgrave (right) and Hugo in
the story "The Ventriloquist's Dummy."

The Ventriloquist's Dummy

Dr. van Straaten tells his own tale about an interview he conducted with a ventriloquist named Maxwell Frere (Michael Redgrave). 

Frere is famous for his performances with his dummy, Hugo. He appears at various nightclubs and other venues. Frere is an English gentleman while Hugo is insulting and quick with his biting remarks.
An American ventriloquist, Sylvester Kee (Hartley Power) travels to England to meet Frere and his dummy. 
Hugo, who seems cognizant and tends to speak for himself, evidently wants to leave the act with Frere and join with Kee. 
During an act, Hugo seems to get out of hand, and Frere tries to silence him. Hugo then bites his hand which draws blood. 
After that show, Kee meets with Frere and Hugo in Frere's hotel room to talk business. 
The next morning, Frere finds Hugo in Kees' room, and accuses him of trying to steal his dummy. He ends up shooting Kees and is, of course, arrested. 
This is where Dr. van Straaten gets involved. He meets with Frere in his jail cell, and then has Hugo brought to the cell.
He watches as Frere has an argument with Hugo, and attempts to suffocate the dummy with a pillow before smashing its head in with his foot.  
When Kee, who survives being shot, visits Frere in the hospital, he finds that Frere isn't himself anymore.

This is the creepiest story, thanks in large part to Hugo. It's also a story that obscures what's real and what's pure delusion, which is done really well. Nothing is obvious in this segment.

In the final act back inside the house, Craig's horrific prediction comes true. He murders Dr. van Straaten. During this tragic event, he starts seeing himself within each of the stories he has heard throughout the course of the movie. 
Soon, he wakes up at the sound of the phone ringing, and tells his wife he had a terrible nightmare. The caller is Eliot Foley, inviting him to his country home to discuss renovations.
As the credits start rolling, we see Craig driving down the same country road from the beginning of the movie. He then stops at the same country house and is greeted by Eliot Foley. 
"Dead of Night" is a well-made psychological film with a theme (or so it seems to me) of human reaction to death and eternity. 

The first story seems to portray the looming reality of death. This leads to other stories surrounding individuals facing or confronting death in various manners. 

The reality of death is told in various unique ways. The movie doesn't completely rely on grotesque images and monsters to frighten the audience. Reality and mental delusion are obscure. 
It ends with Craig in an eternal loop. Is he in some kind of hell for his deed? Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting a different result. 

"Dead of Night" feels a little ahead of its time as a psychological thriller and an anthology. Or, perhaps its more better to say the movie is foundational in the horror genre. 

I may have to re-watch this movie to gain some clarity about the entire premise.  

I thought I had "Dead of Night" figured out within the first 30 minutes. I anticipated that all the people in the room were dead and it would later be revealed they were all living some sort of hell. That's not quite the case. 
The movie slows down right before the last act. There's a slight but distinct foreboding feeling that wafts from story to story. It's interrupted in "The Golfer's Story."
That segment is intentionally silly, and ends with an uncomfortable situation. On Mary and Parratt's wedding night, Mary obviously wants Parratt to take her to the bedroom so they can consummate their marriage. 

Mervyn Jones as Walter Craig in "Dead of Night."

But Potter is forced to haunt him as he forgot how to make himself vanish. So, when they go into the bedroom, the idea is that Potter is going to be forced to watch them. 
Of course, it doesn't get that far as Parratt accidentally makes himself vanish leaving the ghost of Potter to...umm...fill in for him. No pun intended.
It would have been so much better if this story were depicted with the same trepidatious tone as the other stories. I haven't read Wells' story this is based on. I don't know if his short story is meant to be comedic or not. Either way, the comedy feels out of place in this movie. 

In "The Golfer's Story", Basil Radford, who plays George Parratt, and Naunton Wayne, who plays Larry Potter both starred as a double act in Alfred Hitchcock's 1938 movie "The Lady Vanishes" where they played Caldicott and Charters. They were popular enough that their characters in "Dead of Night" are derived from Caldicott and Charters.   
Though the movie doesn't rely on hideous creepy things that generally scare audiences (or did in 1945), it packs in a lot of frightful elements surrounding premonitions of death, spirits, cognizant (maybe?) ventriloquist dummies, unrequited love, and insanity. 
After the credits rolled, I couldn't wait to start writing. The story has been lingering in my head since I watched it.
I recognize Welsh actor Mervyn Johns from his later role as Bob Cratchit in the 1951 British film "Scrooge." English actor Miles Malleson, who plays the hearse driver in this movie, also appears as "Old Joe" in "Scrooge." 
But most recognizable of all is the young Sally Ann Howes who is well known for playing "Truly Scrumptious" in the 1968 film "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang."
I previously reviewed another horror movie that stars Howes - 1980's "Death Ship."

"Dead of Night" is like a long episode of "The Twilight Zone." It if were a Twilight Zone tale, it would surely be a classic episode worth remembering. 

I have yet to find another horror anthology film so well structured with a story well told in a multi-tale format without a singular host to tell it. It's a beautiful foundation to anthology horror films. "Dead of Night" doesn't begin inside a haunted house, or with a hideous monster telling us how we're going to be scared. It begins with a bad dream and a group of ordinary people sitting in a living room telling each other what weird experiences they've had. The uneasy grows from there. Well done! 

107) Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990) - The More Horror There Is...

"I've saved the really, really best story for now."

Director

John Harrison

Cast

Deborah Harry - Betty

Matthew Lawrence - Timmy

Lot 249

Christian Slater - Andy

Steve Buscemi - Bellingham

Julianne Moore - Susan

Cat from Hell

William Hickey - Drogan

David Johansen - Halston

Lover's Vow

James Remar - Preston

Rae Dawn Chong - Carola

Robert Klein - Wyatt

The television anthology series "Tales from the Darkside" is worth remembering. The show comes from the mind of horror legend George Romero and aired some campy but otherwise good episodes during its run. 
I've mentioned the series before when I wrote about obscure movies and shows based of the works of Stephen King. 
"Tales from the Darkside" ran from 1984 to 1988 on CBS. After the weekly horror series ended, the show's producer, Richard Rubinstein, went on to produce another horror anthology show called "Monsters." I've also mentioned this series in my list of Stephen King movies. "Monsters" ran from 1988 to 1991 and is a series I'd like to look into more. The only episode I've seen on "Monsters" is titled "The Moving Finger", based on a short story by King. 
Both shows featured celebrity appearances similar to another horror series of tales I just wrote about that aired on HBO. 
"Tales from the Darkside" somehow managed to earn itself a movie in 1990 called, "Tales from the Darkside: The Movie." How original. And like its source material, it has quite a list of celebrity actors in its three tales of terror. The stories come from the minds of Michael McDowell, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and... surprise...Stephen King. 
The film begins with a wrap-around segment starring rock singer Deborah Harry as a modern ghoulish witch named Betty whose keeping a young boy, Timmy (Matthew Lawrence, "Mrs. Doubtfire") locked in a cell. She feeds him cookies in the hopes of fattening him up because she's planning a dinner party and Timmy is the main course. 
Timmy tries to stall the witch by reading tales from a book she left in the cell with him - her favorite book when she was a child. 

Lot 249
Screenwriter Michael McDowell starts the story telling off with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's short story "Lot No. 249." 
In this tale, Steve Buscemi plays graduate student, Edward Bellingham, who's a lover of antiquities, and has been framed by two fellow students, Susan (Julianne Moore) and her boyfriend, Lee (Robert Sedgwick).
They stole a valuable museum piece and planted it in Bellingham's dorm room. 

With the University breathing down his neck, as they think he's guilty of the theft, this betrayal will ruin his opportunity of obtaining a scholarship.  
Bellingham obtains an ancient mummy which he is able to reanimate by reciting words found on a parchment buried with the mummy. 
As the mummy is under his control, he uses the corpse to murder both Lee and Susan in the same ancient Egyptian way it was preserved centuries ago. Back then, according to the film, Egyptians would extract the deceased's brains through its nose with a metal hook. And its insides were removed and replaced with flowers and spices. 
Susan's brother, Andy (Christian Slater) quickly figures out what is taking place behind Susan and Lee's murder.
He knocks Bellingham out, and ties him up in a chair. Andy's plan is to get Bellingham to summon the mummy so he can destroy it. After that, he'll set Bellingham on fire. 
Andy is able to destroy the mummy. But when he gets to the killing part of his plan, he can't bring himself to do it. 
Later, Bellingham brings Susan and Lee back to life to obtain revenge on Andy.
McDowell's screenwriting credits include work on the TV series as well as on "Monsters", "Tales from the Crypt", "Amazing Stories" and "Beetlejuice." He's also a novelist, and is all-around a talented writer.

The story itself is a bit bland, and I say that with all respect to Arthur Conan Doyle. Though the premise certainly has the feel of classic horror, it's the lackluster performances in this segment that make it lackluster. 

As the students are all upper-class preppy 90s kids, they're all played without any personality or emotion. Julianne Moore screaming is the only time anyone in the story emotes.

This segment feels like a palate cleanser.

The horror is grotesque right away, and continues through the film. The horrific imagery is what stands out most about "Tales from the Darkside: The Movie."

 

David Johansen in Tales from the Darkside: The Movie

Cat From Hell

George Romero takes this short story from Stephen King and includes it as the second tale. 

It's both the most humorous story, and the most disturbing as far as disgusting imagery is concerned. Spoilers ahead...because I have to mention the ending.

A wealthy old businessman named Drogan (William Hickey) hires a killer, Halston (David Johansen), to take out a simple house cat.  

Drogan informs Halston that he owned a pharmaceutical company which used cats as test subjects for new drugs. This testing resulted in the death of thousands of felines. So, Drogan believes this cat, who suddenly appeared on the doorstep one day, intends to gain revenge on the entire household. 

Drogan relates how the cat is responsible for killing his two sisters, Amanda (Dolores Sutton) and Carolyn (Alice Drummond, "Ghostbusters"). It also took out their family butler, Richard (Mark Margolis). Now, Drogan is next.

Holston, of course, thinks Drogan is out of his mind. But since he's paying big money, he accepts the job to simply kill a cat.

Drogan leaves him while Halston gets to work. 

As he tries to take the cat out, Halston discovers it's his most difficult job yet.

When Drogan returns, he finds Halston's body dead on the floor.

The cat had leapt onto his face, and forced its way into his mouth, crawled down his throat, and into his body. And the audience sees the entire thing happen.

As Drogan stares at Halston's body, the cat comes back out of Halston's mouth and leaps onto Drogan's lap. The shock leads to Drogan having a heart attack.  

It's a predictable story, but Johansen certainly has fun with the role. He gives a lot of energy, infuriatingly yelling at this cat that is getting the better of him. 

Evidently, this story was intended to appear in the 1987 horror anthology movie "Creepshow 2" but was ultimately scrapped. 

The segment has the feel of a tale to be told in the "Creepshow" franchise with its awkward angles, many of which are of the cat's point of view, and comicbook-esque flashback sequences shot in blue filter.

Seeing a cat crawl in and crawl out of Johansen through his mouth is a well-done effect, and truly unforgettable scene.

 

James Remar as "Preston" in the story Lover's Vow.

Lover's Vow

Michael McDowell writes the final story in the film. And this is the most terrifying one. More spoilers are ahead. 

A struggling artist, Preston (James Remar), lives alone in a studio apartment. A stone gargoyle on an adjacent building happens to face into his apartment through the skylight. His agent, Wyatt, (Robert Klein) calls asking to meet at a bar near Preston's apartment.

When Preston finally arrives, Wyatt, doesn't beat around the bush. He tells Preston that his artwork isn't selling, and that he's dropping him as a client.

Feeling demoralized, Preston stays at the bar and drinks a few more. 

Before he knows it, it's closing time. The bartender offers to get him home as he's too plastered to take himself home.

As the two exit into the alley, Preston takes a moment to relieve himself. Meanwhile, the bartender sees a winged gargoyle standing right there in the alley. So, he starts shooting.

The creature tears the bartender's hand off, and then rips off his head. 

It then turns its attention to Preston, who begs the creature to spare his life.

"Your life in exchange for a promise," the creature says.

Of course, Preston agrees. 
"If I let you go, you must swear you'll never say you saw me, never say you heard me speak, never tell anyone how I look, never repeat what I've said. A promise... forever," it says.

He hesitates a bit, until the gargoyle raises its hand to strike. Then he promises.

"Cross your heart," the gargoyle says at it claws Preston's chest with three long slashes. And then it flies off. 

Later in the night, trying to sober up while comprehending what he just witnessed, Preston runs into a young woman named Carola (Rae Dawn Chong) while she's trying to get home. 

He stops her, warning her that it's dangerous on the streets. 

Carola claims to be lost and wants to get a taxi. Preston encourages her to call a taxi from his apartment, promising she'll be safe. 

After a while, the two fall in love, get married, and have a couple kids.

In the ten years proceeding, Preston is burdened by the events he witnessed the same night he met Carola. He's never been able to forget. But his life as an artist has improved considerably thanks in large part to connections Carola has in the art world.
That promise, though, chews at his mind incessantly. Holding in this experience has been difficult.

On their 10th anniversary, Preston decides to tell Carola about the gargoyle he saw the night he met, and how it killed the bartender. 

He thought after ten years, his promise would have been forgotten. But, it wasn't. And he broke it. 

I find this story this the scariest segment with its depiction of a man's burden of being forced to hold onto a secret. How would someone cope with witnessing the existence of gargoyles, but forced to never tell. In Preston's case, demon like gargoyles exist and kill people. And when he does tell someone, he's forced to watch all he holds dear succumb to that otherworldly reality. 

Matthew Lawrence as "Timmy."

"Tales from the Darkside: The Movie" relies more on its horror and imagery, which, to the movie's credit, is unforgettable. The stories get better as they progress.

I recall seeing this in my younger days. Scenes from each story stuck with me for 30 years. 

Too much of it initially comes across as flat and, at times, rushed. 

After the third tale is told, young Timmy makes a quick getaway. He kills the witch and makes a cute remark to the camera, breaking the fourth wall, saying "Don't you just love happy endings?" and then credits roll. 

This horror movie is a fun scare but doesn't exceed past that.

Still, it's a movie that has received a bit of a following, and hasn't been lost to obscurity. With names such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, George Romero, and Stephen King, that's certainly no surprise.

104) Tales from the Crypt (1989-1996) - The More Horror There Is...

I started this post back in 2019. I'm finishing it now. And it's timed perfectly as I meander through horror anthologies in posts I've been calling "The more horror there is." 

I thought it would be worthwhile to list what I think are the best episodes from the classic HBO series Tales from the Crypt. I never watched the show while it originally aired from 1989 to 1996, save for a few instances when I caught at episode or two at friend's houses. 

Part of that was due to its sexual content, graphic violence, nudity, and profanity. You know, typical HBO stuff. 

The other half of that was because my family didn't subscribe to HBO, which was a wise decision in hindsight. 

In 2019, I found the entire series on DVD for a very reasonable price. 

I've read a lot of the EC horror comics in my adult years. Even non-horror fans probably heard of some EC titles such as The Vault of Horror, The Haunt of Fear, Shock SuspenStories, and Two-Fisted Tales.

The more popular comic in that EC lineage of horror and schlock is Tales From the Crypt, created by Bill Gaines and Al Feldstein. No doubt its popularity is primarily due to the HBO series of the same name.

Just like the comic, the show was hosted by the "Crypt Keeper." With his decayed flesh, piercing sky-blue eyes, sarcastic and horrific pun-filled humor, he introduced each new chilling story to us "boils and ghouls" in every episode.

The comics also feature an "old witch" and a "vault keeper" who tell some of these ghoulish stories within the pages. 

These issues are still a novel treat to flip through. 

And while the series makes these same stories its own through the medium of television, they're just as fun to watch. Behind the campiness of some of these segments, the series doesn't hold back in the gore and terror. That, of course, was thanks to its airing on the unscrupulous HBO.

Tales from the Crypt is by far one of the best comic adaptation TV series in the history of comic adaptation TV series. 

While much of the horror is blood and gore, a fairly equal amount is psychological. I call that sort of fear "did I remember to lock my car door" horror, but intensified. 
The series captured the voice and the style of the comic book, each issue having different horror and thriller stories. 

Some episodes stand out above the rest thanks in part to the celebrity appearances. Practically every episode has a well known guest star - Demi Moore, Tom Hanks, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Christopher Reeve, that kid from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Don Rickles, Dan Aykroyd, Michael J. Fox, Iggy Pop, and Joe Pesci just to drop a few names. Several episodes are also directed by great directors such as Robert Zemeckis, Richard Donner, William Friedkin, and Bob Gale. I get a sense that back then, being a celebrity guest or featured director on the show was a badge of honor. 

Even some celebrities, such as Michael J. Fox, Tom Hanks, Bob Hoskins, and Arnold Schwarzenegger sit in the director's chair for an episode or two.

Some episodes are over-the-top just like the comics. Others have a more serious tone, yet are still horrific to some degree or another..  

I was fortunate enough to find a complete series collection on DVD for under $30. So, as I watched the entire series from beginning to end, I've picked out my personal favorite episodes.

Many of the stories told in the HBO series are taken from the other EC horror comics I mentioned earlier.

Season one

"Jonas" from the segment Collection Completed, which
aired on June 28, 1989.

Tales from the Crypt starts off with a lot of eagerness, energy and gusto. It's like the writers already knew what they wanted, and couldn't wait to get it rolling. 

It's heavy on the fun clichés and bargain-basement horror elements like old creepy houses, voodoo, and maniacal killers on the loose.

And All through the House, the second episode in the initial season, tells a story that's also depicted in the 1972 film Tales from the Crypt. This segment stars Mary Ellen Trainor (Goonies, Lethal Weapon, Ghostbusters II) as a greedy housewife who murders her husband for insurance money on Christmas Eve. Her young daughter is asleep upstairs, eagerly awaiting the arrival of Santa. 

Meanwhile, a homicidal killer escapes from a mental hospital and is now the loose, dressed as Santa. As she tries to get rid of her husband's corpse, he pays her a little visit. 

It's the quintessential Tales from the Crypt story, and told with more disgusting imagery than the 1972 movie. Horror icon Larry Drake plays the homicidal Santa Claus. It's a nice little slasher story told in 30 minutes.

Collection Completed is definitely one the series' more cheesy episodes, and I like it for that reason. 

It tells the tale of an older man named Jonas (M. Emmet Walsh) who's forced into retirement thanks to his wife's out-of-control habit of adopting animals. He grows so sick of her habitual adoptions that he decides to turn them into a hobby of his own. 

It's certainly over-the-top horror, which makes it a fun segment. And it captures the same tone and feel of the comic. 

Season two

Jon Clair (left) and Moses Gunn in the segment, Fitting Punishment.

The next season carries the energy of the first season well. 

Cutting Cards is, in my opinion, one of the more iconic episodes in the entire series. It takes a more serious tone than previous episodes. 

Two gamblers, who passionately hate each other, square off in unfriendly challenges. The ultimate loser must leave town for good. 

The stakes are violent and brutal. And the more they carry on, the more violent they get just so each can see the other in pain. But neither want to give their rival that satisfaction. 

The segment stars Lance Henriksen and Kevin Tighe, both of whom put so much character and energy into their respective roles. It's an intense episode as the two rivals go at it with as much hatred for each other as they can muster. 

The Ventriloquist's Dummy is another segment that's pure EC style horror as it relies on pure cringe to shock the audience. 

This episode is one among many directed by Richard Donner. Comedian Bobcat Goldthwait plays Bill Goldman- an up and coming ventriloquist who wants to master the craft. He approaches his icon, Mr. Ingles (Don Rickles) for tips. 

But Billy gets more than he bargained for when he finds out his idol's deepest, darkest secret- who's behind the dummy.

Fitting Punishment is a gruesome revenge tale that makes my skin crawl even as I think of it. The segment stars Moses Gunn (The NeverEnding Story) as an overly religious funeral home director. 

After a tragic car accident, he's forced to care for his teenage nephew, Bobby (Jon Clair). 

He grows abusive towards Bobby, while making him his apprentice mortician as payment for room and board.

Bobby immediately takes a disliking towards his uncle. Their unstable relationship finally meets a boiling point that leads to a truly terrible accident.

Moses Gunn puts a ton of emotion and seriousness into this one role. He is truly an actor's actor. 

Season three

Kirk Douglas as Gen. Calthrob in the segment "Yellow" 
which aired Aug. 28, 1991 on Tales from the Crypt.

By season three, Tales from the Crypt feels truly established.  

Carrion Death is a brilliant "what if" type of story.

Kyle MacLachlan plays murderer, Earl Raymond Diggs, who escapes from jail. He crosses the desert trying to make it to the Mexican border before the state trooper pursuing him catches up.

When he does catch up, and slaps handcuffs on him, the trooper swallows the key - literally. 

Diggs kills him, and now has to trek across the desert cuffed to the dead body of this state trooper.

It's a story that wants the audience to put themselves in the main characters place, and ask themselves what would they do. The ending is loaded with such cheesy stupidity, it's fantastic.

Yellow is the only full hour episode in Tales from the Crypt. This segment is more of a psychological horror, although drama is a better word to use. 

The story is set during World War I. Lt. Martin Calthrob (Eric Douglas), who's the son of an Army General (Kirk Douglas), is court-martialed for cowardly failing to warn men under his command that German troops were approaching while they attempt to fix a broken communication line. As he runs for his life, those same men are killed. 

Before dying, Sgt. Ripper reveals to the general what Lt. Calthrob failed to do, calling him "yellow."

Calthrob is sentenced to death by firing squad. 

His father tries to save his son's life by swapping the bullets with blanks. His son just needs to face death with bravery and dignity.

Lance Henriksen returns to the series as Sgt. Ripper.

The story is taken from Shock SuspenStories number one, though initially I assumed it was published in Frontline Combat - an anthology war comic also published from EC Comics. 

It's definitely one of the better stories in the show. I'll admit I didn't see the ending coming until moments before.

Kirk Douglas and his true son, Eric Douglas, star in this segment along with Dan Aykroyd. 

Season four

Christopher Reeve and Bess Armstrong in
the Segment "What's Cooking."

This season certainly has some of the funniest and most insane episodes. 

What's Cooking stars the late, great Christopher Reeve along with Judd Nelson, and the late, great Meat Loaf.

Husband and wife Fred and Erma (Reeve and Bess Armstrong) are struggling to maintain their failing diner. The problem is they only serve squid dishes. 

Their luck changes after their janitor, Gaston (Judd Nelson - The Breakfast Club), gives them some delicious steaks to try. 

The couple put these steaks on the menu, only to find out the meat came from Gaston's landlord, Chumley (Meat Loaf). Actually, the steaks are Chumley himself.

As shocking as it is, still...the steaks are a hit with customers. Business quickly begins to boom. 

Superman himself, Christopher Reeve, in this role is such a trip to watch. 

King of the Road is a story with a pretty good the twist.

Brad Pitt plays a typical street racing punk kid named Billy who's confronted by a Sherriff named Joe Garrett (Raymond J. Barry).

Billy recognizes that Garrett is a legendary former street racer once known as "Iceman." So, he does the obvious. HE challenges him to a race. 

To ensure Iceman accepts his challenge, Billy kidnaps his daughter.

So, he's forced to accept in order to save his daughter's life.

This segment was originally filmed for the pilot episode of a spin-off series Two-Fisted Tales which was going to air on the Fox Network. But Fox passed on it, and it aired on Tales from the Crypt instead, along with the segments Yellow and Showdown (season four, episode eight). 

Split Personality Joe Pesci can be both intimidating on screen, or funny should the role he's playing demand it. And no, I won't make any references to Goodfellas after using "Joe Pesci" and "funny" in the same sentence.

This is one episode I can recall from childhood after watching it at a sleep-over back in my elementary school days. 

Pesci plays a con man named Vic Stetson who goes in for a big con after his car breaks down in front of a mansion.

The home owners, two gorgeous twins named April and June Blair (Jacqueline Alexandra Citron and Kristen Amber Citron) let him come inside to use their phone.

He quickly learns these twins are worth $2 billion. 

Wanting to get his hands on their fortune, Vic convinces them that he also has a twin in order to fool them into marriage.

What Vic doesn't realize is that he doesn't know the twins as well as he thought he did. The final scene is burned in my memory, probably forever. 

This episode also stars Burt Young - Paulie from the Rocky movies.

Season five

Tim Curry as Winona Brackett.

By now, the series seems more saturated with campy stories. Of course, the previous seasons have their share of schlocky tales as well. 

Death of Some Salesman is absolutely unforgettable as it stars Tim Curry in three roles. Fan-bloody-tastic!

I haven't seen any Tim Curry performance I didn't like. 

The story involves sleazy door-to-door salesman, Judd Campbell (Ed Begley, Jr.) who tries to swindle other people's money by selling them over-priced burial plots for fake graveyards.

He calls on a hillbilly family (ma, pa, and Winona Brackett - all played by Tim Curry) who have a load of money stashed away in their house. 

Little does Campbell know they have already been cheated once too many times. 

Curry as Winona Brackett is one of the creepiest and unforgettable performances I have ever seen him in. By the way, Curry also stars in the 2002 Tales from the Crypt film, Ritual. I'll have to check that one out later.

Food for Thought stars Ghostbuster, Ernie Hudson in a villainous role. 

He plays "the Great Zambini" who's a mind reader performing in a circus. He tries reading his wife Connie's (Joan Chen) mind.

When he successfully does, she happens to be in the middle of a passionate affair with the fire-eater. So, Zambini goes insane with jealousy. 

Hudson seems like a gentle, friendly, cordial person. His role in this episode is just the opposite. Well done, Ernie. Well done!

People Who Live in Brass Hearses is a story about an ice cream man, and is another pure cheese tale at its best.

Billy DeLuca (Bill Paxton) is just released from prison after serving a two-year stint for embezzlement. He gets his mentally challenged brother, Virgil, (Brad Dourif) to help him gain revenge on the ice cream man who ratted him out to the police. Virgil, however, messes up at every step of the plan. 

This story is one of the more "so dumb, it's good" segments. I have to include it among my favorites. 

Season six

John Lithgow and Humphrey Bogart starring
in the segment You, Murderer.

This is where the series begins to feel lackluster, tired and, at times, forced. 

It's like the writers are starting to lose steam in their imagination and will power to produce episodes that could leave the audience horrified. That is, until the last episode of the season.

You, Murderer is the most unique story in the entire series. 

It's narrated by the deceased Lou Spinelli whose a former criminal turned businessman. He undergoes plastic surgery to resemble Humphrey Bogart. And he's portrayed by Bogart himself, though Bogart passed away in 1957. 

Throughout the story, Spinelli tells of the greed, sex, and murder that lead up to his death. The entire segment is told from his point of view. We occasionally see his face, which is the face of Bogart himself. 

I'm willing to bet that in the wake of the 1994 film Forest Gump, which brought back several notable dead people to star in the film, Tales from the Crypt producers wanted to do something similar.

This episode has the feel of a film noir. It goes to show that dead celebrities staring in films and, in this case, television shows is nothing new. 

Season seven

A scene from The Third Pig, the final episode of
 Tales from the Crypt which aired July 19, 1996,

The last season is certainly hit or miss. Some episodes are either boring, uncomfortable, or merely alright at best. By this point, the series needed to end.

There's one episode that left me unsure whether I liked it or not. I'll throw it in for the sake of mentioning it. The rest just didn't grab my attention, or were ridiculously underwhelming, such as the episode Cold War with Jane Horrocks, Colin Salmon, and a young Ewan McGregor.

This is also when the series moved from Los Angeles to England to film episodes. 

To the producers credit, it was something new and different for the show. The U.K. offers more opportunities to shoot in castles and large estates. It offers a different atmosphere. 

Recognizable names from that side of the pond also make their way into season seven episodes, such as Bob Hoskins, Steve Coogan, Daniel Craig, and veteran actor Roy Dotrice. 

Though some horrific elements remain to some degree or another, the majority of these episodes feel like I'm watching a PBS series. It sticks to the motif of bad people getting what's coming to them.

Horror in the Night is one of this season's more gory episodes thanks to a few disturbing scenes of horror and psychological turmoil.

Nick Marvin (James Wilby) is a jewel thief who is purposely deceived by his partner, "T" (Ronan Vibert).

After a shoot-out between the two, Marvin hides in a cheap hotel. While inside, horrific images and psychological turmoil torment him. 

He's also visited by a strange yet gorgeous woman named Laura (Elizabeth McGovern). 

He quickly learns only he can see Laura, whose motives quickly change as the night progresses.

One particular scene during a dream sequence is especially morbid and disturbing.

The Kidnapper is the episode in which I wasn't sure what to make of it. It's uncomfortable to watch in the sense that I couldn't help put myself in the shoes of one of the main characters. 

In this episode, Steve Coogan plays a simple-minded pawn shop proprietor named Danny. 

When a homeless pregnant girl named Teresa (Julia Sawalha) enters the shop, Danny takes pity on her and offers to let her stay with him. 

It doesn't take long before Danny develops feelings for Teresa. She, however, doesn't share the same romantic feelings, though she is very grateful for his generosity and kindness. Teresa just sees him as a true friend. 

Time goes by, and her baby is now apart of both their lives. The baby takes up most of her attention, as babies often do. Danny grows envious, and wishes the baby were out of the picture.

He hires a kidnapper to steal the child, hoping his absence will lead to a romantic involvement between the two. Rather, it only leads to Teresa's emotional break-down. 

Regretful of what he's done, Danny sets out to retrieve her baby. As I write out this synopsis, the episode now leans more towards the side of ludicrous than it did while I watched it. 

The ending though left me feeling chillingly uncomfortable, which is what this series is supposed to do. I've included it here because it's an episode that left me thinking afterwards. 

The Third Pig ends the entire series with a magnanimous bang, and an animated one at that. This is the only animated episode in the series. 

This segment retells the story of the three little pigs, narrated by the Crypt Keeper. 

The Big Bad Wolf (voiced hilariously by Bobcat Goldthwait) attempts to devour the three pigs, Drinky (Brad Garrett), Smokey (Charlie Adler), and Dudley (Cam Clarke). Drinky builds his house out of an old alcohol barrel. Smokey builds his out of  match sticks and cigarettes. And Dudley builds his home out of bricks. 

As Smokey and Drinky loose their homes to the wolf's huffing and puffing, they bunk in with Dudley, and soon begin bossing him around. 

One day, as Dudley goes to the store to buy them beer and smokes, the wolf pays them a visit. 

He eats them, and leaves a mess of carnage inside. 

Dudley is accused of the murders and is thrown in the clink by a judge and jury composed of wolves. The ghosts of Smokey and Drinky show up to help break him out. He then plots revenge against the wolf who killed hills brothers. 

It's story that's original to the show as it's not pulled from the comics as far as I know.

Being animated allows for some truly grotesque, ghoulish horror scenes. It's a fantastic send-off for the series.

It goes without saying Tales from the Crypt has left an indelible mark on pop culture, and the horror genre specifically. I would love to see this series rebooted. The Crypt Keeper is, without a doubt, one of the best show hosts in show hosting history. He's truly iconic.

The series spawned a trio of films, Demon Knight (1995), Bordello of Blood (1996), and Ritual (2002).

There was also a Saturday morning cartoon, Tales from the Cryptkeeper which ran for two season from 1993 to 1994. Though I watched Saturday morning cartoons religiously back then, I have no recollection of this show.

Looking up the premise of the cartoon, I read that the Old Witch and the Vault Keeper, pulled straight from the comics, were regular characters on the show. Evidentially, a third season called New Tales from the Cryptkeeper aired in 1999, teaching kids some morals and lessons with the Crypt Keeper in a more active role than just storyteller. Weird, but...whatever.

As far as the HBO series goes, it's a fun venture that maintains the atmosphere and feel of the comic anthology so well, even though it's a different medium. That's quite an accomplishment. These are tales meant to chill, and they do precisely that - all jolting tales told in the EC tradition.