Happy Christmas from Jigsaw's Lair!!!

It is that time of year again where the cheesy Christmas songs are played non stop and food and drink are consumed as if it was the end of the world! But, we love it!!!! My Christmas will be filled with some heartwarming movies such as Silent Night, Deadly Night, Black Christmas and Christmas Evil!!! We here at Jigsaw's Lair wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year. We hope that you all enjoyed the movie/TV reviews of 2011 and we promise that there will be plenty more in 2012. Let us hope that there will be bigger and better horror movies released next year and that there will be lots of slashing and blood letting in the New Year!

                Jigsaw and Amanda.

The Walking Dead, Season 2, Episode 7

This is the final episode in this first half of the second season. Why they have to break it into two, I do not know. It really annoys me that we have to wait until next year for the second half of the season!

Glenn is struggling with his news that the walkers are living in the barn. He has told Dale and Dale tells him that he should inform the others which he eventually does. Maggie is not happy with him. Shane is furious and he wants to exterminate them immediately or get the hell out. Rick argues with him that they can't leave without finding Sophia and Shane tells him that she is dead or else they would have found her before now. Rick wants to get rid of the walkers, but he needs to talk to Hershel first to get his backing. Hershel is not happy with what Rick tells him and he wants them gone. Rick has no choice but to tell him that Lori is pregnant and that they can't leave now. Rick spills the beans to Shane too and Shane is shocked.

Hershel asks Rick to come with him to the woods where there are walkers stuck in a swamp. He asks Rick to help him to rescue them and bring them back to the barn. Rick has no choice but to agree as he wants to keep staying in the house. Shane goes mad when he finds out that Dale went off with a bag of guns and nobody knows where. Shane runs after him, determined to get them back. He finds him preparing to bury them and he gets them back. Dale thinks that Shane is dangerous. Shane doesn't care. When he arrives back at the camp and sees Rick and Hershel with the new walkers, he shoots them dead and he opens the barn and unleashes the rest of them who are gunned down by the others. One more walker comes out of the barn and it is a child- Sophia! None of them can bring themselves to kill her so Rick takes aim and kills her. Everyone is shocked and horrified.

This was a great episode. I like the way that Shane is becoming another leader and I think that there will be a split in the camp with Rick and Shane being the two leaders now. I think that Shane's character is very good and I like Daryl too. That is it until next year, unfortunately!!!

American Horror Story Season 1, Episode 11

This series is getting better and better as it goes along. Episode 11 was an exciting one with plenty happening!

It begins in 1984 and Tate is a young child. He is playing with his truck when he decides to investigate the basement. Something comes out of the shadows and tries to attack him. It is stopped by Nora who tells him that she will always protect him. Cut to modern day and Tate meets Nora once again. She tells him that she wants her baby. He promised her one of Vivian's babies but now he doesn't want to do it because of his love for Violet.Nora plans to take the baby anyway. Ben wants to take Violet away and he drags her out to the car, unaware that she cannot leave the house. Chad and Pat are decorating the nursery, thinking that the babies will be theirs! Tate informs them that they will not have them.

Meanwhile, Violet talks to Constance about Chad and Pat and their plans. Constance is adamant that they will not have anything to do with the babies and she tells them so. Constance brings in Billie, her psychic pal and she advises Violet on the best way to banish Chad and Pat from the house. Ben is at the mental hospital and he collects Vivian. They are all going to Florida to stay with her sister. The doctor tells them that one of the babies is very large and strong and the other is small and weak. He recommends that Vivian not travel but she won't listen. The psychic tells Violet that she needs something from Chad such as jewellery to banish him. Tate gets it from him after they have a fight. Vivian and Ben arrive at the house to collect Violet. Ben goes inside to get her while Vivian waits in the car.

Vivian begins to go into labour in the car. Ben talks to Violet and she tells him that she can't go with them. She tells him that she is dead. He tries to take her with him. Constance sees Vivian going into labour and she brings her back into the house. Vivian has no choice.The evil twins wreck Ben's car so he can't leave.The power and phone are cut off. Charles Montgomery comes to help with the birth and the two dead nurses from an earlier episode assist. Ben is horrified, but he keeps a brave face for Vivian. She gives birth to the first baby but it is stillborn. Nora takes it away. Chad catches Violet trying to banish him and he laughs at her . It doesn't work. He tells her about Tate. He tells her that Tate raped her mother and that Tate killed him and Pat.

The second child is born and it is fine. Vivian is bleeding heavily and she is getting weaker. Constance takes the baby. Hayden wants it too. Ben tries to help Vivian, but it is too late. Charles cannot save her. She dies.

Violet finds Tate and she tells him that her mom is dead. She also lets him know what Chad told her. He is sorry, but she can't forgive him. She blocks him out and closes her eyes. When she opens them, he has gone. Vivian appears as a ghost and she comforts her daughter. This was a very good episode with so much happening. I can't wait to see what will happen next!!!!

A Bay of Blood Movie Review 213

 A Bay of Blood is a 1971 horror movie directed by Mario Bava. It stars Claudine Auger,Luigi Pistilli and Laura Betti. It is also known as Twitch of the Death Nerve or Carnage.

An old woman, Countess Federica lives alone in a large house. She is attacked and hanged by a man. He puts a prepared suicide note on the table. He gets attacked himself and killed. He is Filippo Donati and someone takes him to the bay and throws him in. The cops think that the Countess did away with herself. Nobody realises that Donati has been murdered. Frank Ventura is a real estate agent and he is having a bit of fun with his woman. He wants the house by the bay. A fisherman called Simon and an insect scientist called Paolo discuss the murder of the Countess. A group of young people arrive in the area and they go up to Franks place. They are having a party. Paolo's wife is called Anna and she is a medium. She tells Paolo that there will be bloodshed. Paolo thinks that she is scatter brained.

The young people begin to get killed by an unknown person.  A woman called Renata (Auger) arrives in the area with her husband Albert(Pistilli). They are digging into the death of her father, Filippo Donati. Simon is the illegitimate son of the Countess and he has signed over the house to Frank Ventura. Renata is not happy about this at all. Renata finds the dead body of her father floating in the bay. She is shaken so Albert takes her to Frank's house. Renata goes to the bathroom and sees all of the dead bodies piled up in there. Frank is also there. He has an axe and he goes to kill her. She stabs him with a scissors. Albert finds them and he  is horrified. She tells him what happened. Paolo is killed by Albert because he sees Frank lying on the floor and goes to call the police. Anna is also killed.

Renata wants the house so she goes to get rid of Simon so it will be hers. It also turns out that Frank and his lover Laura got Donati to kill his wife. Donati fell for Laura and wanted to get rid of his wife. Simon and Frank were working together because Frank wants the house and Simon wants money. Laura arrives at the house looking for Frank and she finds him barely alive. He tells her to go and get Simon. She goes to find him but he realises what she did and kills her. Albert finishes Frank off. Renata and Albert are left alive and they go back to their kids who are staying in a caravan. The kids have a shotgun and they kill their parents and run off laughing as they pass the dead bodies!

This was an interesting movie. It is one of the first slashers and there are so many twists and turns that you could get confused. The ending is really weird, I thought. I didn't expect it, though, so it was amusing. I would recommend it if you like Italian horror or a good blood soaked slasher movie! It gets 6/10.

American Horror Story Season 1, Episode 9 and 10

Episode 9 begins in 1947 and with a young woman(Mena Suvari)visiting a dentist who gives her gas and rapes her, but he can't wake her up afterwards. He takes her body down to the basement and meets Charles Montgomery who dismembers her and dumps her where she is found. It turns out that her name is Elizabeth Short a.k.a. The Black Dahlia. Cut to modern day and Travis who is dating Constance has a row with her and he heads off to the store. He meets Hayden on the way and they talk and have sex. Meanwhile, the cops are looking for Hayden. Her sister turns up with them and they question Ben about her disappearance. Hayden suddenly shows up in the house and tells them that everything is fine. She chats to Ben and tells him that she had the abortion.He doesn't realise that she is dead.The Black Dahlia shows up at the house and asks Ben for help. He agrees to help her.

It turns out that Vivian's babies have two different fathers. Constance figures out that Tate is the one who had sex with Vivian in the rubber suit and that he is one of the fathers of her babies. Ben is the other. Ben walks in on Moira and the Black Dahlia having fun on the couch. They want him to join them. He doesn't want to and he sends Black Dahlia away. Cut to the murder of Black Dahlia. Hayden informs her about what happened to her in the house. Vivian is in the mental home and Ben goes to visit her. He is angry with her . Hayden talks to Ben and she still wants him. He doesn't want her. She tells him that Vivian was having sex with Luke, the security guy. Travis and Constance argue and he goes to visit Hayden again. She kills him. He gets cut up by Charles Montgomery like the Black Dahlia. Ben asks Luke over and confronts him about Vivian. He is amused as he is sterile so the baby cannot be his. Ben finally sees Moira as she really is- not a sultry sex kitten but an old hag. Constance asks her medium pal about the baby and she tells her that the baby will be evil!!!!

Episode 10 begins with Constance, Larry, Tate and Adelaide sitting around the dinner table in the house.

It turns out that Larry cheated on his wife with Constance. Tate doesn't like him. He blames Larry for Beau's death. We see that Tate was taking cocaine and he had loads of guns. He went to Larry's workplace and he set him on fire, hence his disfigurement. Ben goes to see Vivian and tells her that he believes her story about the rape. He informs her that the twins have different dads and she's stunned. He wants her back home again.

Ben tries to talk to Violet about her not attending school. Constance goes to see Larry about Travis' death. She thinks that he killed him but he tells her that he didn't. Tate persuades Violet not to go to school. The cops question Constance about Travis' death. Her first husband disappeared as well as her housekeeper(Moira).

They discover a knife in her handbag.

There is a lot of flies in the house and Ben hires an exterminator. He goes into a crawlspace to find the source of the problem and meets Tate who kills him after he sees something horrible. Tate discovers that Ben is thinking of sending Violet away to school. Larry and Travis talk about Constance. Larry meets his dead wife and kids. He tells her he is sorry for leaving her for Constance. She tells him he needs to pay for what he did. Tate tells Violet that she needs to die so that they can be together. She pretends to agree but then runs out of the house. She can't escape. She thinks that she is going mad. Tate takes her to the crawlspace where she sees her own dead body. It turns out that she killed herself by taking pills and he couldn't save her. She is stuck in the house just like him. Larry confesses to Travis' murder and goes to prison. He tells Constance that he is taking the blame because he needs to pay for everything bad he has done. She doesn't care.

The Walking Dead, Season 2, Episode 6

Episode 6 begins with one of the doctor's group giving live chickens to the walkers to eat. Glenn talks to Maggie about it and she tells him to keep it a secret. Andrea apologises to Daryl for shooting him. Glenn tells Lori to inform Rick about the baby. Carl decides that he wants to carry a gun and he wants Shane to teach him how to use it. Lori is not comfortable with it. Glenn spills his guts to Dale about the walkers and Lori. Dale has a word with Hershel about the walkers and Hershel tells him that he won't kill them. Some of them are family members etc. Lori thanks Hershel for everything and he tells them that they need to leave soon. Lori talks to Rick and tells him that she doesn't want to go. Dale talks to Lori about the baby. Glenn and Maggie go into town for more supplies for Lori. They get attacked and Glenn kills the walker. Maggie has words with Lori when they return. She is shaken by the encounter with a walker.

Andrea and Shane go looking for Sophia. They are confronted by loads of walkers and Andrea has to use her new skills to shoot them with Shane. Lori feels guilty about Maggie and Glenn getting attacked. They were getting her morning after pills. Andrea and Shane have sex.Lori takes the abortion pills but vomits them up. Dale tells Shane to leave as he is getting dangerous. Shane threatens him. Rick finds the abortion pills and he is furious. Lori finally tells him about Shane.

American Horror Story Season 1, Episode 7 and 8

Episode 7 begins with Constance and Larry together in an attic.Her deformed son lives up there and they kill him.Vivian is told that she is having twins. A prospective buyer looks around the house and Moira flirts with him.He decides that he might be interested in buying the house. Tate catched Violet trying to cut herself with a razor blade. He tells her not to do it. Her parents are worried about her. Larry calls over and bothers Vivian. She tells Ben and he is irritated. He goes to talk to him. Larry tells him that he needs to have the house back. Cut to Larry in the past. He tells his wife that he loves Constance and he wants her to leave. He wants to move Constance in to the house. His wife kills herself and his children. Ben tells Lary about the prospective buyer. 

 

Flashback to Charles Montgomery and Nora. Her baby is dead but Charles tells her to look in the nursery. It is a mutant that he has put together. Nora tries to kill it as it is horrible. She shoots him and herself. Larry meets Constance in the basement and tells her about the buyer. She goes to see the buyer and tries to persuade him not to. He tells her that he is going to turn it into condos. Ben and Tate discuss Violet. He tells him that he is worried about her. Constance tells Moira about the house being sold. Moira invites the buyer to the house with promises of sex and she leads him down to the basement where he is killed by Larry. Vivian tells Violet that they are going to go and live with her aunt. Violet shows Vivian a picture of Charles and Nora Montgomery and Vivian is astonished to realise that she has met Nora!

Episode 8 begins six months ago. Norah is in the house. She doesn't like it now.She wants her baby. Cut to man in rubber suit. It is Tate! Vivian tells Marcy and Moira about Nora visiting the house. Marcy doesn't believe her but Moira does. Cut to Chad  and Patrick. Chad thinks that Patrick is cheating on him. He goes looking for S&M stuff to spice up their sex life. He buys the rubber suit. He shows it to Patrick who doesn't like it. Hayden talks to Nora and tells her that she is dead. Nora doesn't believe her. Hayden wants to take Vivian's babies and tells Nora that they can have one each. We discover that Tate killed Chad and Pat. Ben finds out that Violet hasn't been to school in weeks. Vivian thinks that she is going mad. Moira tells her to get out of the house to save her sanity. Vivian and Violet go to leave but there are ghosts in their car and they run out of it and back into the house.

Ben finds out that Vivian was planning to leave. Vivian talks to Marcy about the buyer and it turns out that he has vanished. She finds a gun in Marcy's purse and she takes it. She thinks that the rubber man is trying to kill her. She shoots the gun but she shoots Ben by mistake. She is taken away to a mental hospital. Cut to Tate killing Chad and Patrick. Moira is there also! They make the crime scene look like a murder/suicide.

The Legend of Hell House Movie Review 212

  The Legend of Hell House is a 1973 horror movie directed by John Hough. It is based on the book Hell House written by Richard Matheson. It stars Roddy McDowall, Pamela Franklin and Clive Revill.

The movie begins with a Physicist called Lionel Barrett(Revill) who is called in by a eccentric millionaire to investigate the Belasco House or Hell House as it is known as. He thinks that there is something supernatural in the house and others have stayed there and not survived. His wife, Ann(Gayle Hunnicut) is coming with him along with a medium Florence Tanner(Pamela Franklin).Another medium, Ben Fischer(Roddy McDowall) is going too. Ben was in the house before with other mediums and he was the only one to get out untouched. They all meet and they enter the house for a few days. The house was built by a man called Emeric Belasco and he was reported to have been a huge looming figure with perversions and sick fantasies. His family were murdered in the house and he disappeared. Is his ghost still in the house????

There are many strange occurrences in the house after they enter. Florence is haunted by something which gets into bed with her. Ann is turned into a pleasure seeking temptress and she goes into a trance. She tries to seduce Ben and when he slaps her face, she comes to and has no idea what happened. There is something sinister about the chapel. Florence thinks that the evil might originate from there. Barrett is unconvinced and he doubts what she tells him. He thinks that there is electromagnetic energy in the house and that is what is causing things to move around etc. He has built a special machine to get rid of the unwanted energy and cleanse the house. Florence is sure that there is something evil in the house but she cannot get him to see sense.

Things go very wrong for Florence when the spirit actually hurts her and leaves marks on her skin. Something attacks Barrett and he begins to think that Florence is using the negative energy in the house to attack him. He tells her that she should leave the house, but she won't go. They find a skeleton behind a wall and think that it is Belasco. They bury it and hope that things in the house will go back to normal. But, they don't. Ben is attacked and he tells the group about his time in the house 20 years ago. He says that he was the only one not to suffer. His other friends all ended up crippled or scarred from their experience in the house. He wants to get Florence out before the spirit kills her. Barrett is going to use his machine and Florence isn't happy. She goes into the chapel, thinking that Belasco's dead son is calling her there. A huge crucifix falls on her, killing her. After this happens, Barrett turns on his machine and lets it do its work.

The three head outside while the machine goes. When it has finished, they go back inside to see if it has worked. Ben has to open himself up to the house and see if the evil has gone. Ben tells him it has, but he is wrong. Barrett gets blown up by his own machine. Ben and Ann go to the chapel and  Ben realises that it was Emerich Belasco haunting them all along. He was not the huge looming figure of legend, he was a small man who was illegitimate. He hid away in his house and preserved his body after death. The house is cleared and Ann and Ben leave. This movie is a gem which has not been given the recognition it deserves. It is very entertaining and spooky. I like haunted house movies and this is one of the best. It gets an 8/10.

American Horror Story, Season 1, Episode 6

Episode 6 begins in 1994 and Constance opens her front door to a SWAT team. Cut to a school and somebody is shooting at students. There are kids hiding in the library(Columbine, anyone???). Tate is the killer. He is caught by the SWAT team in his bedroom. Cut to Violet who discovers that Tate murdered those kids who were chasing him. She runs off and finds Constance. They talk about Tate. Constance tells Violet that the house is responsible for all of the evil. Constance introduces her to Billie Dean(Sarah Paulson) who is a medium. She tells them that Tate is lost and that he is dead. Violet cannot believe it.

Vivian has a bad dream and calls Luke. Ben comes back and Luke tells him that Hayden has escaped. Violet has a razor and she looks at her wrists. Constance gives Vivian offal to eat for the baby. Ben helps a patient who comes to him after having nightmares about a creature called Hog Man. Ben tries to help by showing him to a mirror. It is said that if a person calls the Hog Man three times, he appears. The patient does so and  Hog Man appears and later, he gets shot by a burglar. Violet talks to Leah and Leah gives her sleeping pills to help her. Ben gets jealous when he sees that Luke and Vivian are getting along well together.

Constance asks Billie to contact Adelaide. She talks to her through Billie. She apologises for everything . Flashback to Tate getting shot by the SWAT team. Violet and Tate talk and he thinks that she doesn't want him around. He tells her that he loves her. They hug and fall asleep on her bed together. Another good episode of this series. I am eagerly awaiting the next one!

Henry:Portrait of A Serial Killer Movie Review 211

Henry:Portrait of a Serial Killer is a 1986 thriller released in 1990. It is directed by John McNaughton and starring Michael Rooker(The Walking Dead). It is loosely based on real life serial killer Henry Lee Lucas.

Henry(Rooker) is a loner who has a nasty past-time. He kills people for apparently no reason. He is a quiet guy by day and he is not someone who stands out from others. Henry spots women and he follows them home. Then, he kills them. He has no conscience or guilt about those he kills. He has a dodgy friend called Otis(Tom Towles) who is a weirdo also. They share a place together until Becky(Tracy Arnold) arrives. She is Otis' sister and she has fallen out with her husband who treats her badly. She has arrived in Chicago to make something of herself for her daughter who is staying with her mother for the moment. She likes Henry immediately but he is very shy with her.

Henry kills bugs for a living and he uses his job to enter people's homes and kill them. Becky is interested in finding out about Henry so she asks Otis who tells her that Henry killed his mother. Otis was in prison with Henry and that is how they became friends. Becky doesn't seem to be too bothered about Henry murdering his own mother. She still likes him. She has a heart to heart with Henry and finds out that his mother mistreated him as a child. Becky tells him that her dad was abusing her. They bond over their bad childhoods.

Becky gets a job. Henry gets angry when Otis tries to kiss his sister. Otis and Henry go out and pick up two prostitutes. Henry kills them both. Otis is shocked at this.

Henry and Otis come to an understanding and Otis joins him in his killing spree. They steal a camcorder and start recording their horrible crimes. They pick victims at random and they even kill a family. Becky decides that she wants to go back home. She asks Henry to come with her. He needs to think about it. While he has gone to get cigarettes, Otis attacks and rapes his sister. Henry arrives back and tries to stop him. Becky stabs Otis in the eye. Henry finishes the job. Henry cuts Otis up and puts him in plastic bags. Becky and Henry go off in a car and Henry disposes of Otis. Henry and Becky go to a motel to rest and the next morning, Henry  drives off in the car. Becky isn't with him but her suitcase is and there is blood coming from it. Henry has killed her and he throws her body away... We assume that he is going to continue his murder spree.

This movie is bleak. There are no happy endings here. It is a honest, realistic account of a serial killer with no

conscience or guilt over his crimes. He is murdering people and walking away from them. He even murders the girl who loves him. He has no social skills or no sense of empathy with people. It is a very good movie and it is worth watching for Rooker's performance alone. It gets an 8/10.

The Walking Dead, Season 2, Episode 5

Episode 5 begins with a flashback to when Lori originally met Carol. At that time, Shane and Lori were together and they were trying to find out what was going on. There is panic everywhere.The government were blowing up cities to get rid of the walkers. Cut to present day and Carol wants to make dinner for everyone in the house.The others are out looking for Sophia once again. Rick and Shane argue about it. Daryl is out alone when he sees something in the river. It is a doll. Daryl is on his horse when a snake spooks it. He is thrown and impaled by his own arrow. He hears someone talking to him. He locates his bow and climbs up the rocks. He sees Merle and he is taunting him. Then he gets attacked by a walker but he kills it. Another one attacks and he kills that too. He cuts off their ears and puts them on a string around his neck. He pulls his arrow out and patches himself up.

Merle is actually helping him to climb back up the hill. He eventually reaches the top. The horse has taken off.

Dr. Greene is not happy that Carol has cooked dinner. He doesn't want them to get settled at the house. Daryl stumbles back to the house. The others see him but think he is a walker. Andrea wants to prove herself and she shoots at him wounding him. The doctor patches him up. Andrea feels guilty for shooting him. Glenn and Maggie agree to meet in the barn and Dr. Greene finds out about it. He  is not happy. Carol thanks Daryl for trying to find her daughter. Glenn goes to meet Maggie but he goes into the barn and discovers a load of walkers locked up inside!!!!! Maggie finds him and tells him he was not meant to see that!

American Horror Story, Season 1, Episode 5

Episode 5 begins with Violet and Tate together. Ben goes outside and he meets Larry who is lurking around.

Larry tells him about Hayden coming back. Ben hits him as he thinks that they have arranged it between them and that he only pretended that Hayden was dead so that they could extort money from him. The security guy,Luke(Morris Chestnut) comes over as the alarm was triggered and he chats to Vivian. Tate and Violet are on the beach fooling around when a group of kids approach them. They want to kill Tate for some reason. Violet is scared. They back away.

Hayden calls Vivian. She tells her that Ben went to Boston to meet her.Vivian thinks that she is in the house. She doesn't realise that she has come back from the dead. Ben finds her in the basement. He thinks that she is trying to blackmail him. She is really annoyed with him.Larry comes down to the basement and hits him over the head. Chad comes back to the house. He goes after Vivian and he wants her out of the house. Violet and Tate talk about those kids on the beach. Tate won't tell her. The kids turn up at the house. Hayden is scaring Vivian. The kids wait for Tate and they chase him. Hayden faces off with Vivian. She tells Vivian she was pregnant with Ben's child and that Ben wanted her to have an abortion. She grabs a glass and she goes for Vivian. Ben walks in on them and Hayden forces him to tell Vivian the truth about the baby etc.

Constance tells Violet that Adelaide has died. She also tells her that Tate is her son. She begs her not to tell Tate about Adelaide. The kids catch up with Tate and we find out why they are so angry with him. He killed all of them. He can't remember them or what happened. They leave. All of the ghosts approach the house.

Luke has arrested Hayden and he puts her in the back of his car, but when he turns away, she disappears. He can't figure it out. Ben has to leave.