FORGOTTEN & UNDERRATED HORROR, SCI-FI FANTASY

[venoms5]

What are some of your favorite forgotten or under appreciated films of the 50s, 60s, 70s or 80s and why you enjoy them so much and why you think the film(s) is worthy of rediscovery and or whether said film(s) would make a good remake. Some of my picks would be BLACK SUNDAY(1959), SHOCK WAVES(1975), THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT(1977), TOWER OF EVIL(1972) and HORROR EXPRESS(1972). BLACK SUNDAY(original title:MASK OF SATAN) is an excellent Mario Bava picture which I caught on Shock Theater as a youngster. A film on par with and more atmospheric than the Hammer films of the day. Barbara Steele(who plays two roles) is a witch who along with her brother are executed for being devil worshippers and murderers. The film begins with Steele having a mask with steel spikes being hammered onto her face but not before placing a curse on her captors. Years later the curse is visited on the descendant of the witch also played by Steele. The villains are essentially vampires only they cannot be killed with a stake through the heart but a silver needle through the eyes does the trick. The bw photography accentuates the creepy atmosphere and lighting effects giving every scene a ghostly and dreamlike appearance. Although remade in 95 this film didn't require one and seeing it in color causes the effect as seeing NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD in color. A scene featuring Barbara flanked by two dogs was later paid homage to in the exploitation classic ILSA , HAREM KEEPER OF THE OIL SHEIKS. SHOCK WAVES I also caught on Shock Theater as a kid and the music creeped me out so badly I could never watch it from beginning to end. A great zombie classic which features little to no gore and a great ghost story punctuated by a somewhat villainous performance by Peter Cushing. During WW2 the Nazis' have created invincible killing machines using murderers and psychopaths. They could survive any climate whether it be the desert, the arctic or underwater. When a boat load of tourists run afoul of a "ghost ship" they are shipwrecked on an island inhabited only by Cushing and the recently disturbed underwater nazi zombies. Some good performances and intense scenes such as the zombies simply standing there watching the stranded tourists in the distance invokes scenes of Michael Meyers from HALLOWEEN. Has a good shock ending too. John Carradine and Brooke Adams also star. The film performed poorly during first release and was re-released under several different monikers to equally dismal results and it's a shame as it's such a great scare flick. THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT was one of the first monster features I saw as a kid and I still have it on tape where it was shown on the late show paired with LAND THAT TIME FORGOT. Patrick Wayne(The Duke's son) goes in search of his friend Tyler(Doug McClure from the first film) and encounters dinosaurs, cavemen, samurai like warriors and the beauty of Dana Gillespie, a girlfriend of David Bowie who tried and failed at a singing career and then turned to movies. The effects may not be hi tech but a spirit of adventure and good banter among the actors make it worthwhile along with a rousing soundtrack and well done action scenes including an attack on the heroes' plane by a giant Pteradactyl. Sarah Douglas(looking a bit like Princess Leia), Thorley Walters, Doug McClure also star and a brief appearance by Dave(Darth Vader)Prowse and several scenes of Dana Gillespies' heaving, sweaty bosom threatening to erupt from her minimal cavewoman outfit make for a great Saturday Matinee or late show. This film was nominated by the Academy of Scifi and Horror as best film and presumedly lost out to STAR WARS. Also after this film Gillespie and Douglas auditioned for the role of Ursa in SUPERMAN. Incidently the recent MGM DVD is missing a brief scene of dialog that is present on my VHS copy from tv about 25 years ago. HORROR EXPRESS is another Shock Theater mainstay and deserves classic status. Basically Christopher Lee finds an ape man frozen in ice and while transporting the creature back to civilization aboard a train bodies are discovered with their eyes completely white. To say too much would give away the superb story which in my opinion was ahead of its time. Definitely one of the best duo performances of Cushing and Lee ever with both playing heroes. This movie has everything- evil monks, aliens, creatures, zombies, spies and Telly Savalas as a Russian Captain who boards the train to take control of the situation. Serious fans should seek this one out particularly the Image DVD as the sound and picture quality is the best release so far. This film has many qualities and an intelligently written script that would make it ripe for a remake even though it doesn't need one. No single actor today could bring a performance such as the ones delivered by Cushing and Lee here. There are some great comedic bits here involving C and L including Lee insisting he had reserved a train ticket to the refusal of the ticket master resulting in Lee's actions afterwards. Some elements of the film are very reminiscent of John Carpenters THE THING. The music is also well done and several performers can be heard whistling, or playing on the piano the main theme. Highly recommended. TOWER OF EVIL could be considered the precursor to the slasher genre since it contains a startling amount of traits inherent in slasher films including oversexed characters, gory muders and a spooky location harboring a deadly secret. A group of individuals are stranded on a tiny island containing a lighthouse that contains several dark secrets that are revealed over the course of the picture. There is a surprising amount of nudity, sex and gore present here. The opening scene catches your attention with the discovery of several corpses in the lighthouse one a naked woman who when checked if alive, her head rolls down the staircase. Released under several titles and heavily cut under the title HORROR ON SNAPE ISLAND I believe and released in the US as BEYOND THE FOG in some territories. Whether this or BAY OF BLOOD was first(both were 1972) I don't know but the future FRIDAY THE 13ths' owe a debt to this seemingly forgotten british horrorfest.

[irons]

Twins Of Evil is my favourite Hammer film, dunno about it being underated, most British horror fans say it's one of the best, if not the best film Hammer ever made. The Carlton R2 disc is a pristine transfer, i've never seen the film looking so good. It comes in the Carlton box set along with Vampire Circus and Countess Dracula. Pick it up if you can.

[Nguss]

I just got Forbidden World on German Dvd a few weeks back, and quite enjoyed it for what it is, though it did recycle footage from Battle Beyond the Stars from what I can recall.

I did quite enjoy Dead and Buried, which does not get as much recognition as other Dan O'Bannon films but is effective for what it is.

Also has anyone seen Raw Force with Cameron Mitchell as a 'karate expert' battling zombies, piranhas, cannibal monks and a Hitler lookalike on 'Warriors Island'? That is cheesy but cracks me up every time.

[gorlank]

Wow, I saw Forbidden World in my local grindhouse theater when it came out. I was more interested in the incredibly gorgeous female leads, June Chadwick and Dawn Dunlap. There was quite a run in the 80's of splatter in space movies, like Horror Planet, Creature and the one with Erin Moran, name escapes me though.
I have to get my hands on Forbidden World. Good mamm, errr memories. :D

[Nguss]

On the theme of 'forgotten' space monsters, another one I have just thought of is Terror Vision, which I loved when I was little and still love now! I recently managed to put the VHS onto Dvd and have watched it a few times since.

I know it's cheesy to say the least, but I love the insanity of the whole 'monster beamed down from space via a satellite dish which then goes on to eating the swinger parents' thing. And the ending is great too.

Also the women in Forbidden World are hot!

[venoms5]

Gorlank, the Erin Moran film you mention is GALAXY OF TERROR. I discussed it in one of the above posts but it's missing now. Just got the Italian import disc yesterday and the print is stunning. Another underappreciated gem is the 1978 film TOURIST TRAP, a film that has some striking similarities to the HOUSE OF WAX remake. The film stars Chuck Conners and Tanya Roberts. It's about a group of young people whose vehicle breaks down and they happen upon one of those creepy roadside attractions, a wax museum run by Chuck Conners. The opening twenty minutes is one of the most intense sequences ever and the film itself is quite violent. How they managed to secure a PG rating is beyond me. Compass International, the company that released HALLOWEEN, handled this one as well. The director has stated he felt the films PG rating hurt its success as suggesting that not many people would go to see a horror picture with that rating. Actually that's the reason I passed over seeing this one for so long. It's a nice addition to the TEXAS CHAINSAW school of horror with an unusual twist added to liven the proceedings. I won't say what it is in case some decide to check it out.

[gorlank]

Thanks venom for the title of the Moran film.
I've seen Tourist Trap. For some strange reason it used to get played quite regularly here on Channel 9 in NY in the 80's.
This thread brings back many good memories.


I had a really long reply typed out but when I submitted it, the forum conked out. :|

[venoms5]

Without retyping the bits about the films themselves from the lost posts I'll list some of the titles here-
VAMPIRE CIRCUS
TWINS OF EVIL(the reason I list this one is the fact that many hammer fans consider the 70s output of lesser quality than the 50s and 60s films and all of the films listed were either profitable upon first release and later forgotten, bombed and became overlooked gems, or have always been considered cult classics but would not click with a modern audience.)
USED CARS
THE GREAT TEXAS DYNAMITE CHASE
DEATH RACE 2000
DEATHSPORT
GALAXY OF TERROR
BLACK CHRISTMAS
Two of my favorite films from the early eighties that were box office bombs and have yet to recieve any respect or reevaluation are FLASH GORDON and KRULL. The budgets for these were huge for the time 22m and 30m respectively. FG was never meant to be taken seriously and was a tribute to the bw serials of the 30s and 40s and the comical touches and rock n roll soundtrack helped to accentuate the playful nature of the film. It's one of the few films I can watch over and over and not get tired of it . It's just a really fun fantasy funhouse of a film. KRULL I saw in the theater here where it died a quick death after just a week. Another great fantasy film with a lot going for it-lots of action, likeable characters, monsters in the Harryhausen tradition and a supremely awesome soundtrack from James Horner. Originally the film was christened THE DRAGONS OF KRULL but since the somewhat graphically violent(for a Disney picture) DRAGONSLAYER was box office poison, the title was quickly changed to eliminate any connection to dragons. So many critics claimed this film was trying to be too many things and once ultimately collapsing under its weight as it was lost in the shuffle what with Columbia releasing it rather bravely against RETURN OF THE JEDI of all things as well as SUPERMAN 3 and JAWS 3 among other summer releases that year. A decent special edition DVD from Columbia a few years back is the closest to a new lease on life that this film is going to get although it does turn up regularly on cable and tv.

[Nguss]

Krull! Remember that! I used to love this as a kid, Dragonslayer too, and this thread is reminding me of a lot of stuff I should be picking up. I remember seeing it on Tv first and they always cut the bit where the creatures came out of the Slayers heads after they were killed and went into the ground. Come to think of it I also remember watching The Beastmaster, which I also used to love.

Galaxy of Terror has been released uncut in the Uk and can be had for about £6. I'll have to pick it up...

[venoms5]

If you don't mind paying a bit more the Italian import has gorgeous print quality and is widescreen. There are three audio options one being english mono and forced italian subs on the english track although they are below the black bars and a photo poster/lobby card gallery are included.

[rob g rob]

>: my post is gone, that sucks

[sammofan]

Anything that had Caroline Munro in it :b
e.g. Captain Kronos
At the Earth's Core
Golden Voyage of Sinbad
Starcrash (...ok maybe not!)

The Humanoid - I saw this euro Star Wars clone at the cinema on my 10th birthday and liked it! If I ever see it again I'll probably laugh at how bad it is.

[venoms5]

Some of my favorite slasher films that I also feel are a bit underappreciated are HELL NIGHT, a great cast including Linda Blair and Vincent Van Patton about a group of Sorority hopefuls who must spend the night in a creepy mansion with a murderous past. MY BLOODY VALENTINE, suffered mercilessly at the hands of the MPAA although talk of an uncut edition surfacing sometime in the future. A group of teens decide to have another valentines dance against the wishes of a killer who had murdered the men responsible for a mine cave-in years before trapping a group of miners who resorted to cannibalism to survive. A nice twist at the end too. FADE TO BLACK, Dennis Christopher plays a movie fanatic who is constantly bullied and taken advantage of and one day decides to revenge himself on the world killing those who do him wrong by dressing up as movie madmen and monsters. Also stars Tim Thomerson and a young Mickey Rourke and tons of old movie quips and clips. THE HOUSE ON SORORITY ROW about a group of mean(mostly) sorority sisters who plot a vengeful prank on the domineering house mother but the prank goes wrong and a dark secret in the attic is watching them. Some weak gore effects but good performances keep this one afloat. Two stalker in the woods flicks-JUST BEFORE DAWN and MOTHERS DAY are two worth re-discovering. The film WRONG TURN owes a debt to this film from the director of SQUIRM about hillbilly inbreds murdering vacationing teens against the better judgment of forest ranger George Kennedy. A special edition DVD is coming sometime this year. MOTHERS DAY has always received critical drubbing for its scenes of extreme violence but under the surface the film is really a black comedy about consumerism. An unusual aspect about the film is that much care was taken with the characters, particularly the three girls which yield good performances by all. Some original death scenes involving a can of drano, a TV set and a balloon in the shape of two large breasts stand out. For the longest time I wondered how in the world Kaufman was able to nab Rose Ross from the old CAR 54, WHERE ARE YOU? tv show to participate in this film with such scenes of violence. On the commentary track I believe it's stated she didn't want to be on set for scenes involving violence and several scenes required an actor dressed up as a woman including the vicious rape scene midway through the film. Another film worth checking out although not really a slasher picture is FRIGHT. Although HALLOWEEN owes a big debt to BLACK CHRISTMAS, both films are very similar to this film about a babysitter stalked by an insane killer who's escaped from an asylum. Susan George and Honor Blackman star.