I’m picky about horror comedies, but this is a good one. Nicholas Cage does his thing as dad without slipping into Wicker Man level ridiculousness, and Selma Blair is the perfect choice as mom. The pace is pretty relentless, and the end ramps up the crazy even further. The filmmakers have done an admirable job at keeping the movie effective, and not as silly as it could have easily become in lesser hands.
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This is a damn good horror film based on Clive Barker’s story “The Last Illusion,” and directed by the man himself. I’d say this only comes in second to Hellraiser among films he’s helmed. It’s cheesy as hell. In spite of that fact, Barker thankfully ditched the one-liners that plagued Nightbreed. I watched this again recently, for the first time in ages, and found the cheese on display quite charming. If you are a Seinfeld fan, the Fromage Knob is turned to 11, because the bad guy was once George Costanza’s boss Mr. Kruger. Don’t take that the wrong way, Daniel Von Bargen (RIP), was a fantastic actor, and this is his best role by far. It’s just hard to not picture him menacing George instead of Famke Jansen. Two major plusses for this film are that it’s extremely gory, and there’s a ton of Barker’s awesome art and design on display. The CG is a little dated, but it didn’t bother me all that much. This is some recommended anomalous horror my friends.
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If you can’t get past the primitive look and FX of Star Trek: The Original Series, read no further. You will not appreciate Planet of the Vampires. I grew up watching TOS and still love it, so this movie was very enjoyable. If you’ve seen any of Mario Bava’s early, fog and color drenched work, imagine it as a feature-length Star Trek episode. That with way more experimental electronic music, far better uniforms, and a proto-Alien (1979) feel. Except wait a second… Bava made this BEFORE Star Trek ever aired. Yes this movie is cheesy, but I love it, warts and all. I also have a feeling that blood on the crew’s insignias might have a deeper meaning. That or Mario just thought it looked cool.
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NOTE: This post has been updated on 6.24.24 to reflect the recent Criterion 4K / Blu-ray edition. It appears that this restored version is currently streaming on The Criterion Channel (as well as the Leo Marks documentary I mention below). I highly recommend you watch this version, preferably the 4K UHD disc.
Mark is a sad, but somehow lovable, serial killer with a unique murder technique. You might not think that would be the plot of one of the very best films ever made, but it is.
The first time I saw this was on a terrible VHS tape. The colors were washed out and the movie was cropped from it’s original aspect ratio. I liked the story but wasn’t impressed. A couple of years later I got to see a restored 35 mm print, and the difference was unbelievable. The saturated colors alone made such a huge impression. Seeing it properly presented made it one of my all time favorite films.
I really want to avoid talking about specific format releases on Anomalous Cinema, but I will ignore that for this one movie. The reason is the Criterion Collection edition. I bought the original DVD version shortly after seeing the film print, that was a very good looking release for the time. The 2024 4K/Blu-ray version is even more amazing looking (arguably perfect). The extras include a long documentary on Leo Marks, who wrote the screenplay (this doc, A Very British Psycho, has been restored and is included in the 2024 Criterion extras). What a mind-blower that was. Marks is one of the most interesting people I’ve ever learned about. We’re talking William S. Burroughs level interesting. I was so fascinated by Leo Marks I read his book “Between Silk and Cyanide: A Codemaker’s War, 1941-1945” even though it has nothing to do with Peeping Tom or movies in general.
My experience with this one has been a gradual revelation. Peeping Tom remains a film that I’ve watched over and over, which is very rare for me.
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I’ve been wanting to feature an Indian movie for a long time, but nothing has struck me as good enough. I was going to direct you to check out Veerana: Vengeance of the Vampire / Purani Haveli: Mansion of Evilbut that Mondo Macabro disc is selling for crazy collector prices now (maybe try a torrent search). Anyhow, Tumbbad was a real pleasure to find as it’s easily the best Indian film I’ve ever seen, of any genre. It’s super dark, and there’s very little of the silly humor that plagues most Bollywood films. Most important, it is genuinely creepy. Some of the CG isn’t quite up to current standards, but don’t let that keep you away. This is an excellent film with a damn good soundtrack to boot. Oh and by the way, smoking is injurious to your health.
Not available on domestic Blu-ray.
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The following text is from a little art-slanted curated shelf I did at my beloved local video store Movie Madness a while back…
Lucio Fulci was a huge fan of Antonin Artaud and knew a thing or two about art. Sadly I believe he thought he was stuck grinding out crap cinema for a paycheck. Just watch this and imagine it with no music. You’d swear it’s some unholy mutant child of Luis Buñuel and The Chapman Brothers.
Note: Of course I don’t think Fulci’s work was crap. Critics and moralists did, maybe Lucio himself from time to time. I have featured Don’t Torture a Duckling here and also love his films The Beyond, Beatrice Cenci, A Cat in the Brain, Zombi, and Contraband, among others.
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This is a solid, deliberately paced, creepy horror movie with an excellent soundtrack. The location is the star of the show though. That is the very real, very ominous, Danvers State Hospital (sadly it was demolished in 2006). The film was written for the location, and the crew did very little additional set dressing. It all works quite well. Session 9 is one to watch in the dark with popcorn. I’d add adult beverages into the mix too, but that’s me. You be you.
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I saw an early screening of Alexandre Aja’s High Tension at the Philadelphia film fest and really enjoyed it. I hoped that he’d become the next great horror director. That didn’t really happen. However Aja has managed to make several entertaining genre films over the years. Crawl is not as intense as his 2006 reboot of The Hills Have Eyes, but I liked it. It’s a solid, well-constructed, horror thriller with some genuinely chilling moments. Expect no more and you won’t be disappointed.
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If you are a fan of Anomalous Cinema, please consider supporting this site by donating any amount (even $1.00 is appreciated) via Venmo @vergeoflight / Cash App $vergeoflight / or Paypal at this secure link. A Paypal account is not required. Thank you.
If you are a fan of Anomalous Cinema, please consider supporting this site by donating any amount (even $1.00 is appreciated) via Venmo @vergeoflight / Cash App $vergeoflight / or Paypal at this secure link. A Paypal account is not required. Thank you.
Anomalous Cinema 