At the Earth’s Core (1976) – Amicus Films – movie review

At The Earth’s Core (1976)

Directed by Kevin Conner
Screenplay by Milton Subotsky

starring: 
Doug McClure
Peter Cushing
Caroline Munro

This is the third Amicus film based on the stories of Edgar Rice Burroughs. At The Earth’s Core feels like a combination between The Time Machine and Journey to the Center to the Earth. In the book all the creatures were dinosaurs. For the movie, the studio created their own giant monsters to terrorize our characters.

The first thing you’ll notice is Peter Cushing’s terrible accent (German?). It’s pretty much the same accent he used in The Beast Must Die. In this film he plays Dr. Abner Perry, inventor of an earth moving submarine (The Iron Mole) that can dig its way to the core. With his co-pilot and investor, David (Doug McClure), they set off through the bedrock and find an inner world. This world is ruled by a race of humanoid beings similar to the Morlocks. They serve and worship a group of reptilian bird creatures who communicate their desires through telepathy. The ruling race rounds up the humans. The men are turned to slaves and their women are sacrificed to these reptilian bird men.

David overcomes many obstacles to free the humans and teach them how to fight against the dominant race. He also rescues, Dia (Caroline Munro), from being sacrificed and the two fall in love. The wild creatures in the film are clunky, man-in-a-suit costumes that would make Toho laugh. But they do have a certain understated charm. Doug McClure delivers a melodramatic performance and seems to be aware of it at times which almost makes it comical. Munro seems to be having a grand time herself smiling and even laughing at times in the film when she’s caught unaware of the camera. It’s a moderately fun fantasy flick with amusing creatures, often for all the wrong reasons – ei. zippers, wires and rubbery horns. I really didn’t get the garish pink and purple lighting for the film; it looked like they were lighting the sets for a soft-core porn flick.

For a studio that started out with such serious modern gothic horror and above average acting, this seems like a silly product. However, the movie was quite popular and profitable for the studio. If you watch it, your enjoyment will stem from the unintended comical aspects more than anything else. Have some fun with it.

Amicus Films Overview

There were a bunch of Caroline Munro publicity shots for this film. Here’s some of them:

ok, this one was from the James Bond flick

I’ve made some great steps in reviewing much of the Amicus Films releases. Check out all the links to the reviews I’ve done so far. Amicus Films Overview 

The Monster Club (1980) – movie review

The Monster Club (1980) 

Directed by Roy Ward Baker
Produced by Milton Subotsky
Starring
Vincent Price
Donald Pleasence
John Carradine
Stuart Whitman
Britt Ekland
Patrick Magee
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This is often considered the last Amicus Film, however Amicus was dismantled shortly before working on this film. This is also the last film that Milton Subotsky worked on in his career. It is based on short stories by British horror author R. Chetwynd-Hayes who is also a main character in the film. Vincent Price plays Eramus, a vampire who attacks the author, R.Chetwynd-Hayes, played by John Carradine. When he realizes he has attacked his favorite author, he offers Chetwynd-Hayes access to a place that will give him ideas for his next book. He brings him to a club where all the ghouls and creatures of the night gather. At a small table in the corner three stories are revealed. The first story concerns a Shadmock described as a lesser monster who’s only power is his demonic whistle. The Shadmock, Raven, puts out an ad to hire a personal assistant. A young man convinces his girl to take the job just so they can later rob the rich old estate owner blind. At first the young woman is fearful of Raven’s strange, deathly look. But soon it seems the Shadmock and the assistant may be falling in love. As his trust in her grows he reveals the hidden safe showing the riches of the centuries. But will the young woman steal his valuables or stay on as his assistant and let their budding love flourish? Raven puckers his lips but is it for a kiss or to whistle? The second story tells the tale of a young family who lives in a big scary house and the husband/father who ‘works nights’. A few detectives in a van start flowing the young boy and asking him questions. What does your father actually do for a living? Why does he sleep all day in the cellar? etc. The detectives finally convince little Jimmy to let them In and lead them to the cellar. They are modern day vampire hunters with wooden stakes and garlic cloves. Can Jimmy’s dad somehow survive a daytime attack? In the final story an impatient movie director, Sam, goes location hunting for his next film and finds a small town inhabited by the Humgoo (ghouls). The ghouls won’t let him leave the town, they want him to stay for dinner. They paw and grab at him like zombies, trying sluggishly to bite him. He takes sanctuary in an abandoned church where they seem reluctant to enter. There he learns the strange history of the town. All the stories are campy entertainment and there isn’t a moment of anything remotely scary in the whole film. The film is amusing and entertaining, but I wouldn‘t consider it much more than a novelty. Between the story segments there are full 1980’s MTV video style songs played by bands at the club with mixed results. There’s also an interesting stripper dance where the woman takes off more than her clothes. The wrap around story concludes with a social message. The undead creatures make R.Chetwynd-Hayes, an honorary member of the Monster Club, after describing what man does to his fellow man (to a montage of news clips and video) and concluding that man is the biggest monster of all.

Be sure to view all the Amicus films I have reviewed on Parlor of Horror at this master page: Amicus Films Overview 

City of the Dead (1960), aka: Horror Hotel – movie review

 

City of the Dead (1960)

aka: Horror Hotel (US)
Directed by John Moxey

Produced by Seymour S. Dorner, Max Rosenberg, Milton Subotsky, Donald Taylor
Screenplay by George Baxt
Story by Milton Subotsky

Starring:
Venetia Stevenson
Christopher Lee
Dennis Lotis
Betta St. John
Valentine Dyall
Patricia Jessel

–
Although this film is listed under Vulcan Productions, it was the first film in which Subotsky and Rosenberg worked together and is often considered the first Amicus Film.

The storyline is a bit choppy but not hard to follow. At the behest of her college professor, Driscoll, (Christopher Lee), Nan Barlow, agrees to do an extra assignment to boost her grade. Nan takes a road trip to Whitewood, a town with a history of witchcraft. When she gets there she finds the town barely changed in the past two hundred years. She arrives at night to eerie surroundings. The townsfolk are unfriendly and odd. A continuous fog and mist further cloaks the town in mystery. There’s some strange weirdness that adds to the creepy mood, like the hitchhiker ghost. There’s townsfolk that are often standing in the streets, shadowed in darkness, and /or standing completely still.

Iconic visuals such as the gathering of the coven and the back story sequence where they burn the witch Elizabeth Sewyn, further propel my enjoyment of this film. The horrifying sequence when they drag Nan into the depths of a hidden dungeon to sacrifice her at the 13th hour is a bold horror presentation for 1960. And only a half hour into the film our delightful main character, Nan (Venetia Stevenson), is sacrificed in ceremony. After some conflict with Professor Driscoll, Nan’s brother, Richard, and boyfriend, Bill, head to Whitewood to find her. They are joined by Patricia, a Whitewood native who‘s father was a pastor in the town. Because of this format in story telling, (MC missing, loved ones go to find her) CotD is often compared to Psycho. But the similarity stops at that one point because to me they are completely different types of films.

What really makes this film stand out is the wonderful mood and atmosphere portrayed by the stark black & white contrast and fantastic cinematography. When I’m in the right mood, some of the scenes can still creep me out. It succeeds where other films of the same ilk have not with me, such as The Wickerman, The Devil’s Reign, and The Blood On Satan’s Claw. It is films like this that endear me to the b&w image and artistry of yesteryear. I really feel this is an underrated horror film and one of the best witch/satanic themed films ever made.

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Amicus Films Overview – a master list of Amicus films reviewed at Parlor of Horror.

The Uncanny (1977) – movie review

The Uncanny (1977)

Milton Subotsky post Amicus film
The Rank Organisation

directed by Denis Héroux

Peter Cushing
Donald Pleasence
Ray Milland
Joan Greenwood
Donald Pilon
Samantha Eggar

–
Awesomely creepy music puts you in the mood during the opening credits. In the first scene, Wilbur Gray, (Peter Cushing) looks nervously out his window into the dark alley and shadowed streets. He then leaves his apartment in a rush, carrying a case file. Several felines follow his moves with their eyes and in this short scene feel very ominous.

Gray enters the home of a publisher, Frank Richards (Ray Milland) who has little faith in what he has written. Gray mentions how people believe in alien conspiracies and incidents but with his theory he has proof. The publisher’s cat growls at him, to which he turns to the cat and says, I know everything. He presents case files that would back up his theory that cats are evil and conspiring in tandem to take over the world from humans.

Tale one bloody and gruesome. A Maid and the Nephew of a wealthy old crone attempt to steal the Last Will and Testament that cuts the nephew out of the inheritance and leaves everything to her numerous cats. In the process, the maid winds up killing the wealthy old woman. The cats are not pleased. This turns into the Cujo moment of Catdom. Over a period of many hours the old lady’s cats bludgeon the maid to death. This film was originally given an ‘X’ – rating, presumably because of the violence in this segment.

The second story about a young girl, Lucy, orphaned that goes to her aunt and uncles stately home to live. The aunt is immediately detest over the girl’s cat. An older cousin bullies Lucy and purposely says hurtful things to her about not having parents. She accuses and blames Lucy for things she did not do. It all plays a little like a 1970’s After School Special, but it gets quite nasty in the end. The aunt has a company whisk away the cat while Lucy sleeps but the cat, Wellington, returns. The cat leads Lucy to a book on witchcraft that belonged to her mother. After reading, Lucy tricks her bully older cousin into stepping into a Pentagon she drew in the garden greenhouse. There she reads a spell that shrinks the girl to a size, no bigger than a mouse. That is where Wellington takes over chasing the girl under the bed in some decent miniatures and back-screen effects. The cat chases the cousin out from under the bed and that is where Lucy puts her foot down on the matter of bullying.

The 3rd story is a campy affair featuring actors from the 1930s. It stars Donald Pleasance as Valentine De’ath, a horror actor and a cat hater who replaces a prop in the movie with the real thing, killing his actress wife. Now his dim-witted actress girlfriend, Edina, can take her place. At first she’s amused by the wife’s cat which Valentine calls “Scat”. Valentine sends off Scat’s newborn kittens to a pest control. Scat is not happy. The cat torments the couple in some random slap-stick antics. Meanwhile, the film ‘Dungeons of Terror’ begins re-filming only to find that Edina is a horrible actress. Attempting to coach her on a scene in the torture dungeon Scat leads Valentine to accidentally kill his new leading lady.

It’s a decent anthology in the Amicus tradition. By 1977 these stories were considered ‘old-hat’ and not very popular with the horror watching youth, but as an adult I can appreciate the old style story-telling aspects of the film. I’d say it’s worth seeing just for the violent and bloody first segment, whose gory style has never been repeated in film (not with cats, anyway).

See all my other Amicus Films and related movie reviews here:
Amicus Films – The Studio that Dripped Blood Overview

hiss-n-boots

creepy old lady sighting # 18

Donald wit a wig!

traps have been set…

the foreign posters really capture the essence of the films….NOT!

Tales From the Crypt (1972) – movie review

Tales From the Crypt (1972)

It seems quite fitting that I should be reviewing this now because last year I chose this film for top holiday viewing. The ‘All Through the House’ segment is quintessential holiday horror.

In 1972, Amicus Films gained the rights to produce a film of shorts based upon the William Gaines comics Tales From the Crypt and Vault of Horror. Milton Subotsky penned the screenplay himself based on the comic tales. The film stars Peter Cushing, Joan Collins, Patrick Magee and Ralph Richardson and is directed by Freddie Francis. These shorts pushed irony and the ‘surprise ending’ to its jarring best, shocking the viewer in the final moments of each segment. Even though they are somewhat dated, the stories are still entertaining today because of this aspect.

The film starts out with several people on tour through an ancient crypt. Five of them are separated from the group and sealed off in a room. Enter, the Cryptkeeper, who when asked, “What are we doing here?” is all to happy to show them. So, we are introduced to five segments:

All Through the House I love the way this first scene plays out. A woman (Joan Collins) is tending to the fireplace in her home with a brass tool. The husband is in his chair reading his newspaper. He brings the paper up to read it closely, blocking our view of his face. A moment later the newspaper is splashed with blood that quickly seeps through the printed sheets. The paper falls and the woman is standing behind the dead husband with the bloody fireplace ‘poker’ in her hands. What really makes me laugh is that the brass tool is bent from the blow – she must have really hated her husband. Brilliant scene. The story goes on to reveal an escaped lunatic that is wearing a Santa costume loose in the neighborhood. The woman struggles to clean up the evidence of the murder, fight off the psychotic Santa and keep her young daughter in bed. The segment has little dialogue and is made more ironic by the celebratory Christmas music being played throughout its running time. This segment was remade in the Tales From The Crypt series but I prefer this version.

Reflection of Death A man kisses his wife before heading out on a business trip. He and his mistress leave town by car with no intentions of returning. Unfortunately, they have a nasty car crash. The film then switches to first person POV as the man wakes up in a ditch alongside the road and tries to find his way home. You can probably guess what has happened to him by the fact that everyone he sees flees from him in horror. But the reveal to himself is the clincher in this segment and it surely brings a smile to my face every time I watch it.

Poetic Justice Peter Cushing plays the old widower, Arthur Grimsdyke. He is a pleasant man, friendly to all the neighborhood children and townspeople, but living in sorrow over the passing of his wife. A real-estate investor who would like him to sell his home, starts a secret campaign to drive him from the neighborhood. After some particularly cruel acts, Grimsdyke commits suicide. The real-estate investor vows to keep his actions a secret, but secrets like this can never stay buried, if you know what I mean.

Wish You Were Here is probably the weakest segment of all. A man and his wife find a statue that can grant them three wishes. Naturally all these wishes backfire. It is the familiar ‘monkey’s paw’ story and I have seen it done better in other films. When the husband dies the wife wishes him back, but he has already been embalmed. He screams and writhes in pain as the fluid courses through his veins. There is one glaring continuity fault with this segment, which I hadn’t really noticed until viewing it several times.

Blind Alleys is my 2^nd favorite segment in the film. The new head of a retirement home for the blind, an ex-Major in the military, makes some harsh changes to the home. In glaring attempt to save money in order to increase his own pay, the Major cuts the heat and rations blankets. When one of the members gets sick the men beg the Major to get him medical attention and to increase the heat. He doesn’t and the man dies. After that, the inhabitants of the home plot their revenge. When they spring their trap the Major must run a gauntlet of danger, a maze that will essentially have him making choices of pain and injury. It’s a nasty but well-deserved demise for the corrupt Major.

The film became the most successful of the Amicus anthologies. It’s legacy lived on for many years to come, spawning an HBO series from 1989 – 1996 and several feature films baring the Tales From the Crypt moniker.

Worth a watch for nostalgia and historical footnote.

The All Through the House segment is fun horror viewing for the Holidays.

Related articles:
Amicus Film Overview
 (you can link to all the Amicus Films I have reviewed from this page)

Amicus Films – The Studio that Dripped Blood

Amicus Films – The Studio that Dripped Blood
A salute and overview

I am going to spend time reviewing most of the Amicus Films, horror and sci-fi releases. I am a big fan of Horror Anthologies and for years Amicus Films had been a name synonymous with that format of filmmaking. Before I delve into the film reviews, I thought it would be appropriate to post this history and overview of Amicus Films. Most horror fans probably know all the info gathered here but it bares repeating from time to time, especially for younger horror fans looking to explore the roots of horror.

Amicus Films is a British film production company created by Milton Subotsky and Max J. Rosenberg in 1962. The two had previously worked together on The City of the Dead (Horror Hotel) in 1960. The first two movies by Amicus Films were teenage, rock-n-roll, drive-in style movies. Not having much success with either, they steered Amicus Films into the field of horror. Emulating the format of the popular 1945 horror film, Dead of Night, the studio produced their 1^st horror anthology, Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors. They would follow that with more horror anthologies, horror and thriller movies, and sci-fi features. Some of the horror anthologies were written by, or based upon stories by Robert Bloch. Tales From the Crypt and Vault of Horror were based upon stories from the EC Horror Comics of the same names.

Many Amicus films are often mistaken for Hammer Films. The biggest difference in each studio’s productions (especially early on) was; Hammer Films production’s were gothic period pieces, but the Amicus film’s were set in present day situations. Both studios procured mutual actors (Lee, Cushing) and directors. Amicus Films Studio’s most successful film, Tales From the Crypt, would later spawn a series on HBO in the late 1980’s and several films baring the Tales From the Crypt moniker through the 1990’s.

I own all of the horror films on dvd, and about half the sci-fi films. There is also a documentary called, Amicus House of Horrors: A History…. The documentary is mostly interviews with the actors and directors.

Amicus Films: Horror

Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors (1964)
The Skull (1965)
Torture Garden (1967)
The House That Dripped Blood (1970)
Asylum (1972)
Tales from the Crypt (1972)
The Vault of Horror (1973)
From Beyond the Grave (1974)
And Now the Screaming Starts! (1973)
The Beast Must Die (1974)
Madhouse (1974)

related:

Horror Hotel (1960)
The Uncanny (1977)
The Monster Club (1980)

Amicus Films: Sci Fi

Dr. Who and the Daleks (1965)
Daleks – Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D. (1966)
The Deadly Bees (1966)
They Came from Beyond Space (1967)
The Terrornauts (1967)
The Land That Time Forgot (1974)
The People That Time Forgot (1977)
At the Earth’s Core (1978)

Thrillers:

The Psychopath (1966)
Danger Route (1967)
The Birthday Party (1968) (Directed by William Friedkin)
What Became of Jack and Jill? (1971)

Dramas:

The Mind of Mr. Soames (1969)
A Touch of Love (1969)

Rock N Roll films:

It’s Trad, Dad! (1962) (aka Ring-a-Ding Rhythm)
Just for Fun (1963)