Dead of Night (1977) Movie Review

Dead of Night is a 1977 anthology movie directed by Dan Curtis and starring Ed Begley Jr., Patrick Macnee and Elisha Cook. Jr.

The first story is called Second Chance. It begins with a guy called Frank Cantrell(Begley Jr.) who goes to look at an old car. The car was in an accident in the past and he buys it. He is going to restore it to its former glory. He works on it and drives it. He ends up being transported back to 1926. Someone takes the car and tell him that they own it and he ends up stuck in a place called Cresswell. He goes to sleep and wakes up in his own time. Frank meets his girlfriend's grandparents. The grandad has the same car as Frank. He gives it to Frank on one condition- he gets one last ride in it.  The grandparents tell Frank that they nearly died in the car back in the 1920's. Frank asks them if someone saved them from taking a dangerous turn. He realises that the car is indeed the same one he had bought earlier and the couple who took it from him in the 1920's are his girlfriend's grandparents. They were saved from crashing by him meeting them. If they had died, his girlfriend would never have existed and he wouldn't be with her. The segment ends with Frank and his girlfriend marrying and Frank restoring the car.

The second tale is called No Such Thing as a Vampire. A woman wakes up screaming. She is called Alexis(Anjanette Comer) and she thinks that she is going to die. She believes in the existence of vampires. Her neck is bleeding and she thinks that she has been bitten. Dr Gheria(Macnee) is doubtful about what she says. A man called Michael arrives to help the doctor who explains about her belief in vampires.  He says he has been attacked by a vampire too. The doctor puts something into Michael's tea to knock him out and he draws blood from Alexis and puts in onto Michael's lips. Then he puts him into a coffin. He goes to his servant and tells him to search the house for vampires. They discover Michael in the attic. The servant kills him. It turns out that Michael was Alexis' lover. Dr. Gheria was aware of this and set him up to be killed under orders from Alexis' husband.

The final tale is titled Bobby. It begins with a woman, Alma(Joan Hackett), who is performing a black mass. Her son has died. She calls on the spirits to come and obey her. She wants her dead son back. She hears knocking at the door. She sees her son. He has come back. He tells her that he was picked up on the beach by people. He didn't die after all. He asks her some strange questions. He seems angry at her. They play hide and seek. He turns out the lights and tries to kill her. She wasn't a very good mother to him. He gets a sledgehammer and chases her with it. She shoots him and he falls out of the window. He comes back for her. He pushes her down the stairs. He tells her that he drowned himself to get away from her. He is a demon and her son Bobby sent him back to get revenge.

This is a fun anthology. The stories are good and the cast do a good job. This is an above average TV movie directed by Dan Curtis who also directed the great Burnt Offerings and lots more besides. I recommend this for fans of anthologies. I will give it a 5/10.

Circus of Fear (1966)Movie Review

Trailer here.

Circus of Fear is a 1966 horror movie directed by John Llewellyn Moxey(City of the Dead, Home for the Holidays) and starring Christoper Lee, Leo Genn, Anthony Newlands, Klaus Kinski and Suzy Kendall. 

The film begins with a robbery of a money van in London. One of the thieves is shot and the others get away by boat. The police arrive on the scene and the thieves go to their hideout. A man called Manfred(Kinski) shows up. One of the thieves is taking the money to a farm to hide it. The police are after the gang. They chase a van they suspect as being part of the robbery and they catch some of the thieves. The one thief is searching for the farm. He is met by someone who murders him. Cut to a circus. It is called Barberini's circus. The owner is Mr. Barberini(Newlands). There is a man called The Great Gregor(Lee). He is a lion tamer. He wears a mask. Manfred arrives at the circus seeking work.

The police are searching for the man who took the money to the farm. Gregor has money. He is being blackmailed by Mr. Big, another entertainer. The money seems to be the same money from the robbery. The notes are being traced by the police to the circus. Inspector Elliot(Gen) is asking questions at the circus. There are plenty of things happening there. Manfred is hanging around. Someone lets a lion out of it cage and it almost kills a circus member, Gina(Margaret Lee). The Inspector asks the staff questions. The police find a body and a knife. They think that it is the thief who escaped. Gina is the next to die. The same knife is in her back .

The inspector wonders why he murderer didn't leave with the money. There is some story with Gregor and his brother. Mr. Big hears about it and he wants money to keep his mouth shut.Gregor replaced his brother in the circus. He found the money from the robbery and took it. Manfred is looking for it. He ends up getting killed with the same knife. The killer sets fire to the place. Gregor races to get the money but gets caught up in the flames. A guy called Carl(Heinz Drache)was at the circus looking for the man who murdered his father. He thought it was Gregor. He finds Gregor hiding in cave as the police are searching. He confronts him about the death of his father and Gregor says it was an accident. He heads off with the money but he falls and gets pushed off a cliff by someone. 

The inspector says that they haven't found the killer. The real killer is a man called Eddie who is also in the circus. He is the son of a knife thrower and he is an expert. He owns the deadly knives that were used in the killings. He tries to escape as the police close in.  One of the others throws a knife at him and he dies.. The inspector knows that Mr. Big was blackmailing Gregor so Barberini fires him.This is a mystery film. There are lots of suspects and a lot of stuff going on. It has a good cast and I did enjoy it. I will give it a 5/10.

The Fourth Victim (1972) Movie Review

Trailer here.

The Fourth Victim is a 1971 giallo movie directed by Eugenio Martin and starring Carroll Baker, Michael Craig and Miranda Campa.

The movie begins with a woman dead in her pool. The housekeeper and her husband pull her out. The doctor arrives and writes a death certificate. She is buried. Superintendent Dunphy(Jose Luis Lopez Vazquez) appears and says that the body will have to be dug up on orders of the magistrate. He talks to her husband Arthur (Craig). He says someone questioned the death. Arthur has been married three times. His previous wives also died. Dunphy is suspicious. Arthur is brought to court for the murder of his wife. He pleads not guilty. It can't be proved that it was murder for certain. The insurance company is suspicious also.The housekeeper (Campa)testifies. She backs up Arthur and he found not guilty.

Dunphy follows Arthur into a travel agent. He tells him that he knows he is guilty. Arthur finds a girl in his pool. It is his neighbour, Julie Spencer (Marina Malfatti). She is squatting in the house next door. She is really there to investigate Arthur. They end up sharing a kiss. A woman is watching Julie. She and Arthur get closer and they end up married. He finds her snooping and he hits her. She runs off and disappears. A strange woman has rented the house next door. Arthur finds Julie's car at the cliffs. He goes to the police who tell him that Julie went insane after killing her husband.  He goes to the clinic where she was kept afterwards to find her. He talks to the doctor who informs him that she was fine and she was released. A friend of Julie's from the clinic tells Arthur not to let Julie near the lake. He is confused.

Julie arrives back. She meets Dunphy. Julie admits what she did in the past to Arthur. She calls someone on the phone and tells them that she can't go through with it. Arthur catches her and she drives off. He follows her. She crashes and he takes her home and gives her a sedative. Dunphy arrives and tells Arthur that his wife is NOT Julie Spencer. The strange lady next door is wandering around. She kills a doctor who comes to see her. She is going to kill Julie for some reason. Dunphy tells Arthur that he is going to meet the real Julie Spencer. Arthur is going too.The real Julie is going to kill the imposter. She locks the doors in the house and says she will help the fake Julie to die. Fake Julie is actually called Lillian. She fights Julie.She ends up knocked out. Dunphy and Arthur are searching the place for Lillian and Julie. They know Lillian is in danger. It turns out Lillian is working for the insurance company. It was a set up. Arthur figures that Julie will take Lillian to the lake and kill her. Julie ends up slipping into the water and drowning.Police arrive and Arthur and Lillian leave together.

There's a lot of twists and turns in this. The story gets a bit confusing at times but it is still an entertaining movie. I like a mystery film and this does the job nicely. The cast are good and the story is fun. I will give it a 5/10.

The Phantom of the Opera(1962) Movie Review

Trailer here.

The Phantom of the Opera is a 1962 horror movie directed by Terence Fisher and starring Herbert Lom, Heather Sears, Edward de Souza and Michael Gough.

The movie begins with a man at the opera. He frightens an opera singer called Maria. She tells the producer Harry(de Souza) about it. He calms her down. The manager is called Lattimer(Thorley Walters) and he and Lord D'Arcy(Gough) sit together. D'Arcy is unhappy that one box is empty because it is supposed to be haunted. Someone has sabotaged the music. Maria is on stage when a dead body falls down near her. She is terrified and refuses to sing again. Harry has to hold auditions for a replacement. The phantom is watching. A woman called Christine Charles(Sears)is hired. D'Arcy likes her. He invites her to dinner with him. She hears a voice speaking to her. It tells her that she will sing only for him and it warns her about D'Arcy.

D'Arcy comes on to her. Christine doesn't like it. She asks Harry to come with her. D'Arcy loses interest. Christine tells Harry about the voice she heard. They go to the theatre to find out more. The voice speaks again. It warns Harry. He warns him to leave before something happens. Christine sees the phantom. Harry finds out about a Professor Petrie(Lom) who burned to death. Harry is interested in this and he finds out that the Professor didn't actually die. He got burned by acid and he has been missing since. Harry goes to the police and asks about the fire. The police tell him that the man went into the river. Christine gets taken by the phantom who is Professor Petrie. He also has a dwarf working for him. He tells her that he will teach her to sing. He tells her that she will be the greatest. She will sing only for him.

Harry looks around the river and he hears Christine's voice singing. He gets into the water and finds a tunnel. The dwarf hears him coming and attacks him. Harry manages to fight him off and finds the Professor and Christine. Petrie tells him that D'Arcy cheated him out of his music and passed it off as his own. Petrie broke into the printers to stop them from printing his music and caused a fire. He got burned badly by acid. He jumped into the river for relief and he was washed into the sewer where he met the dwarf who looked after him. He is now dying and he wants to hear Christine sing his music before he dies. They agree to help him fulfil his dying wish.

Petrie pays a visit to D'Arcy who is horrified by his face. Petrie goes to the theatre and hears his music being performed by Christine. He is happy. He stands in the haunted box. The dwarf is up in the rafters listening to the music when he gets disturbed by someone. He walks over a chandelier and it begins to fall. Christine is about to be hit but Petrie jumps in front of her and saves her life. He dies in the process. This is a good film. It is of course a classic story and this version is very entertaining. The cast are very good and there are some familiar faces. I definitely recommend this one as it is directed by Terence Fisher who directed some horror classics such as The Curse of Frankenstein and Dracula(1958). It gets a 6/10.

Amityville Apartment(2025) Movie Review

Trailer here.

Amityville Apartment is a 2025 horror movie directed by various directors and starring various actors.

The film begins with a man performing a ritual in his apartment. He calls for Satan. Cut to a priest coming to bless the apartment later. A couple are living in it but strange things are happening at their complex. They feel a presence there. The evil interferes with the priest and he ends up becoming possessed by it.  Next we see a woman called Lavina(Kassandra Escandell) who is searching for zodiac signs to take her back to the 1600's. Zelda(Brinke Stevens) and Luna(Chantal Casutt) are helping . Cut back to 1950's Amityville, A group of friends go to a palm reader. There are weirdos in there and Lavinia is also there. The girls end up being killed.

Next story begins with a guy in one of the apartments who gets a note saying 'beware'. He writes a note saying 'of what?' and slides it under his door. He gets a reply on bloodstained paper. It says 'me'. Something evil drags him off. Next tale begins with a dad and his daughter. They discuss her dead mother's occult collection. They know someone who might take it off their hands. The dad finds a figure and he takes it out. It is a statue of a demon. It freezes people who mess with it. The demon emerges from the statue and the dad hits it. The dad and daughter show it it's own reflection in the mirror and it freezes itself, end of story.

In a new apartment, a girl called Carly(Jacquelyn Stern) gets a present outside her door. It's a jack in the box. She takes a photo of herself and there is a clown behind her. Next, a balloon floats in. She hides in the closet. The clown shows up and ties her up. In the next story, a musician called Jeff(Jared Rivet) gets a call. His boss sends him a video to help with his work. The video is weird. There is some sort of ritual happening and it has music. A weird creature sees him. Jeff tries to recreate the music. He starts to see and hear things. The creature shows up at his apartment. He runs away. He gets a call from his boss. She wants him to have the music written. He has lost a day. The creature pulls him away. It ends with Jeff being inside the video as the creature is going to kill him.

In the final story, a woman called Jody(Nicole Cinaglia) is hearing noises in her apartment. She is on the phone with her sister. The sister tells her to look around and see. There is nothing there. A figure is actually in her apartment. Jody hears voices. A woman called Jackie(Maria Shapley) hears screaming. She and her boyfriend talk about the Amityville story . She is worried . The apartment is built on the same land as the original house. The boyfriend laughs at her. Jackie hears voices telling her to kill the boyfriend. She gets her gun and shoots him and then herself.

I hardly know where to start with this film. It uses the Amityville name but is very loosely connected to that house. The stories are just thrown together and there aren't many scares or tense moments. The only story I really liked was the clown one. That could have made a decent film by itself. There were too many stories and they weren't fleshed out properly. I think they could have cut out a few and made the okay ones better. That's why I am giving this one a 3/10.

Bloody Moon (1981)Movie Review

Trailer here.

Bloody Moon is a 1981 horror movie directed by Jesus Franco and starring Olivia Pascal.

The movie begins with a man called Miguel who is disfigured. He is at a party and he sees others having fun. He puts on a Mickey Mouse mask and pretends to be someone else.He murders a girl. He is put into a psychiatric hospital for a few years. Miguel is finally released into the care of his sister, Manuela(Nadja Geganoff). She is responsible for him. She has a language school in Spain along with Countess Maria Gonzales(Maria Rubio). A professor Alvaro arrives at the school. He is teaching Spanish there. Manuela and the Countess don't like each other. She accuses Manuela of trying to get her money. She gets burned to death in her bed.

A girl called Angela(Pascal) arrives at the school. Miguel sees her and watches her. The tennis coach, Antonio has spotted Angel and he likes her. He is a ladies man. We find out that Miguel and Manuela are in a sexual relationship. Manuela thinks that they could get together if things were different. A friend of Angela's goes to her room to borrow a jumper when she is murdered by a masked man. Angela discovers her friend and runs to tell Antonio. Alvaro shows up and she tells him but he doesn't believe it. Angela searches for her pal but cannot find her.

Angela sees Manuela and Antonio arguing. She asks him about it and he dismisses it. Another girl dies. Angela wants to leave the school. Miguel is creeping around looking at her. She barricades herself into a bungalow. Her friend Laura shows up and gets killed. Angela gets a creepy call from the killer. She finds a severed head in her bed.Her friend's body shows up and Laura's corpse hangs from the ceiling. The killer shows up to get her. Miguel tries to stop him.Angela runs.

Manuela and Alvaro are plotting to set up Miguel for the murders. Alvaro is the real culprit on Manuela's orders. She wanted the family money. Miguel hears this. He tries to kill Angela thinking that she is Manuela. Angela stabs him. Manuela kills Alvaro and saves Angela. She and Angela have an understanding. Somehow Miguel survives and kills his sister. The movie ends with Angela and Antonio together while the police arrive.

This film has so much happening in it that it is confusing at times. There are some good kills in it though. There is a scene with a saw that is gruesome! I liked this and I recommend it for fans of euro slashers. I will give it a 5/10.

Fear Below(2025) Movie Review

Trailer here.

Fear Below is a 2025 Australian thriller movie directed by Matthew Holmes and starring Hermione Corfield, Jake Ryan and Arthur Angel.

A van carrying gold drops its load on the road. A criminal called Bull(Ryan) is the leader of a criminal gang who have stolen it. His lackeys put the gold back into their truck but they end up crashing and the gold ends up in a river. They need divers to retrieve it. They go to a struggling diving company called Sea Dog Diving Company run by Ernie(Angel) and he has two partners-Clara(Corfield) and Jimmy(Jacob Junior Nayinggul). Bull offers them money to get the gold from the bottom of the river. They agree. Bull tells them to ask no questions. The divers meet Bull and his pals at the river. Unfortunately there is something in the river with them.

Clara and Jimmy find the van but can't open the door. Clara gets knocked over by a shark. She passes out when her air supply is cut off. They pull her out and realize it is a bull shark. Ernie tells Bull that he won't send his two divers in there until the shark is dead. Clara wants to leave the job. She doesn't trust Bull. A man called Bob Drummond is called in to get the shark. He goes out in a boat and tries to draw it out. It is too clever. It knocks the boat and Bob gets eaten by the shark.  Ernie tells Bull that he is not going to do the job but Bull threatens him. Ernie and Jimmy decide to go down and get the gold while Clara is on the shore. They lure the shark by putting meat into the water. They find it and try to bring it up but the shark sees them.

It attacks Ernie. Jimmy harpoons it. It goes after Ernie again and he stabs it with a knife. He dies. Jimmy is furious about it. He attacks one of Bull's lackies. Clara is going to go and retrieve the loot. She dives and loads up some of the gold. The shark is lurking. She hides from it and she finds a gun in the sunken van. The shark gets itself stuck inside the van after going to get her. The gold is brought to the surface. A cop shows up and confronts the group.  He shoots one of the gang and this makes Bull shoot him. There is a big fight between Jimmy and one of the gang. Clara ends up shooting him. Bull gets his machine gun out and he tries to kill Jimmy and Clara. They dive into the water. He gets into a boat and he follows them. He shoots into the water. Clara shakes the boat and it knocks him into the water.

Jimmy escapes. Clara pulls Bull down into the water. The shark is approaching. Clara gets into the boat and she gets the gun and shoots at him. The shark does the job for her. Bull becomes shark food. Jimmy and Clara survive. Cut to some time later and Jimmy and Clara are still working at the diving company. Ernie had a will and he left the company to Jimmy. The bank gives them a reward and they intend to buy a boat with it.  This was an unusual shark story. It is a mixture of thriller and monster movie. It was set in the 1940's also which made it different. I liked it though. The shark scenes were not bad and the cast did their job well.There was a familiar face in this. Jake Ryan played Robbo in Home and Away for a few years. I recommend this and give it a 5/10.

Splatter Farm (1987)Movie Review

Splatter Farm is a 1986 horror film directed by John and Mark Polonia and Todd Smith and stars the same three guys.

A guy is dismembering a body. He uses the severed hand to masturbate. Two guys Joseph(John Polonia) and his brother Alan(Mark Polonia) are visiting their Aunt Lacey. She has a farmhand living with her called Jeremy (Smith), who just happens to be a killer. He has dead bodies in the barn. He is a total weirdo. Aunt Lacey is weird too. Jeremy is claiming victims all over the place.

Jeremy dances around with a skin mask on . Aunt Lacey knows all about it and is messing around with her husband's corpse. Of course, Jeremy killed him.Alan and Joseph look around the farm and find a bloody boot. They run to the house to call the police. The phone isn't working. Aunt Lacey drugs and sleeps with Alan. Joseph finds a human skull and tells Alan.They try to leave but the car won't start. Alan goes to sleep and Joseph talks to Jeremy who hits him. He drags him off and ties him up and tortures him.

Joseph is stabbed and buried alive. Next day, Alan looks for his brother. He asks Jeremy, who just smiles. Alan finds Joseph's glasses and fears the worst. Jeremy shoots him. Aunt Lacey tells him that Jeremy is the result of rape by her brother. Jeremy gets angry and kills her too. The movie ends with him dancing around. Let me just say that I have enjoyed many low budget films. I like them, but this is something else. I know it's not a professionally made movie but it is so bad that it stinks. There is nothing about this that I like. The acting is woeful. There is no story. It is just so bad that it was hard to sit through it . The filmmakers might not have had much of a budget but that is no excuse for such a bad movie. 1/10.

Carnifex (2022) Movie Review

Trailer here.

Carnifex is a 2022 Australian horror movie directed by Sean Lahiff and starring Alexandra Park, Harry Greenwood, Sisi Stringer and Darren Gilshenan.

There are bushfires in the outback. Something is frightening the animals in the area. It is some sort of creature. There are cameras there. Three people are making a documentary on the wildlife and the effects of the bushfire. Ben(Greenwood) is a biologist. He has Bailey(Park) who is a filmmaker and Grace(Stringer) who is also a biologist with him.They meet Matt(Gilshenan) who is a park ranger. The three head off into the wilderness. They are putting camers around to keep an eye on the animals. There is a hunter out at night shooting kangaroo. He hears something moving around in the trees. He goes to investigate and gets killed. 

The group retrieve their cameras. They decide to walk in the forest . Ben calls birds but there are none which is unusual. They discover one of the cameras which has been knocked down. They also find animal remains. They look at the camera footage. Something weird is on it. They think it might be some kind of feral animal. They call the park ranger and tell him. He goes to meet them. Bailey finds scratches on a tree. It looks like claw marks. Ben and Grace set trps to lure the creatuee out. Matt finds the hunters camp and looks around. Ben thinks that it might be a carnifex which is an extinct creature. Grace doesn't believe it. Matt ends up meeting it and he dies. The others wonder where he went. The carnifex shows up and the group see it. Grace and Ben are delighted.

Their delight doesn't last long as they both get attacked by the creature. Bailey is alone and gets to the car. She tries to hide from the creature. Ben finds himself in a tree. He is injured, as is Grace. Ben gets eaten by it. It wants Grace next. She manages to find Bailey and the two go to find Ben but it is too late. They get back to the car and try and escape. The car gets stuck and they can't go. Bailey shines a light and she hits it. It drags her off. They have a shotgun with one shot left in it. Grace shoots it and it runs off. The survivors head off. 

This is a fun creature feature. There is lots of action and it is good overall. The ending is a little flat but it is an interesting tale. I will give it a 5/10.

Twisted Nightmare(1987) Movie Review

Twisted Nightmare is a 1987 horror movie directed by Paul Hunt and starring Rhonda Gray, Cleve Hall and Natalie Main.

A girl called Laura(Gray) wins a weekend away  to Camp Paradise. She went there as a child and she wants to bring her boyfriend, Shawn(Brad Bartram) and some old friends-Jennifer(Main), Tak, Nicole,Jerome,Gus, Sylvia,Ken, Julie, Dean and Cheri. There is a caretaker called Kane(Robert Padilla) working there. He lets them in and locks the gate after them. We discover that Laura had a disabled brother called Matthew(Hall) who had an accident at the camp years before and died. It isn't long before people start to get killed. Sylvia and Gus are the first.

Some of the group go hiking.Dean and Cheri are leaving because they think something is weird at the camp and they are suspicious of the free weekend.Ken and Julie don't go hiking and Ken goes looking for Kane. Julie finds Sylvia and Gus dead in the barn and goes to ring the Sheriff but she gets cut off before she can explain. She runs to the truck but gets pulled out and killed. Dean tells the others someone put sugar in his gas tank so he can't leave. Tak and Shawn are hunting . Shawn asks Tak about Matthew.Tak says people were teasing him and somehow Matthew was on fire. His body was never found.

Kane warns them to leave before it's too late. Others get killed. The Sheriff comes up to talk to them. He finds Laura but she knows nothing. Kane tells Shawn that the land belonged to his tribe. He tells him his people were killed by the white man. There is a curse on the land. He warns them to leave or die. Nicole and Jerome die. Shawn and Tak see the killer. They make it back to the cabin and find Laura. The Sheriff meets Dean and Cheri. He gives them a lift to the cabin. He tells all of them to stick together. He goes for a look around.Most of the gang meet their deaths. The Sheriff also gets attacked. Laura gets attacked by Kane but Shawn saves her. He shoots Kane. Laura tells him that they are all dead. Shawn shoots at the killer. Matthew kills him. Jennifer spots them and sees Laura sending Matthew to kill her. Kane isn't dead and he decides to burn down the barn with Laura, Matthew and himself inside. It goes up in flames and Jennifer survives.

This was a decent slasher movie with some fun scenes. The acting wasn't very good but I suppose that's normal with these lower budget movies. It is entertaining though and I recommend it to fans of 80's slashers. I give it a 5/10.

Tarot(2024)Movie Review

Trailer here.

Tarot is a 2024 horror movie directed by Spenser Cohen and Anna Halberg and starring Harriet Slater, Jacob Batalon, Avantika, Humberly Gonzalez, Wolfgang Novogratz.

A group of friends are on holiday together. It is Elise's(Larsen Thompson) birthday. Along for the celebration is Haley(Slater), Lucas(Novogratz), Grant, Paige(Avantika), Madeline (Gonzalez) and Paxton(Batalon). They find a basement and there is strange stuff in there. Paxton finds tarot cards. Haley knows how to read them. The cards are not ordinary tarot cards.Haley reads their fortunes. Paxton thinks that he sees something outside. The cards seem to come alive.

The group leave and their fortunes start to come true.Elise hears a bang at her door. She hears someone is playing tricks on her. It is no trick when the figure from her tarot card is waiting for her and kills her.Each of the group start to find their tarot figures coming to life. The cops talk to them about what's going on. They think they are accidents. Haley thinks the readings influenced the deaths. Grant doesn't believe it. Haley finds an expert, Alma(Olwen Fouere) and tells her what is going on. She doesn't want to know. When she hears about the deaths, she tells them about the haunted tarot cards.

She knows of others who died from using the cards but she survived it. She has been searching for the cards to destroy them. The cards are cursed. They need to destroy them. More of the gang die as they try to get the cards and destroy them. They burn them and call Alma. Alma calls an astrologer who reads Alma's fortune. She kills her. Haley and Grant are left. Haley meets the astrologer and does a reading. Haley faces off with her.There's some silly story about grief and the astrologer ends up disappearing along with the cards. Grant, Haley and Paxton survive.

I liked the premise of this one. It sounded good but the execution was not so good. There wasn't anything in this that was great. It felt long and dull in parts. It's one of those ok films but not great. I will give it a 4/10.

The Shadow of the Cat(1961)Movie Review

Trailer here.

The Shadow of the Cat is a 1961 horror movie directed by John Gilling and starring Andre Morell, Barbara Shelley, William Lucas, Freda Jackson and Conrad Phillips.

An old woman called Ella Venable is killed in her house. Her cat, Tabitha sees it and knows who the killer is. There are two men and a woman involved in it. The cat witnesses them burying the body. Police come to the house. Ella's husband is called Walter(Morell) and he is in on the murder along with Andrew(Andrew Crawford), the butler and Clara(Jackson), the maid. Walter tells the police that Ella has been missing for a few days. He tells them that he hasn't seen her at all. Andrew tries to catch the cat but it won't come to him. Clara tries too. The cat is lurking, watching everything. Andrew tries to kill it. It runs into the basement. Walter tries to get it too. Tabitha attacks him. Andrew tells Inspector Rowles(Alan Wheatley) that the cat is being vicious.

Ella has a niece called Beth(Shelley) and she is coming to the house. A reporter called Latimer(Phillips) is on the case of the missing lady too. He comes to the house and he meets Beth. Andrew tells them that the cat attacked him. Tabitha goes to see Beth and she pets it and it likes her. When Clara appears, the cat gets angry and vicious. Walter sends for his brother, Edgar(Richard Warner) and his son Jacob(Lucas).Jacob brings his wife, Louise(Vanda Godsell) with him. Clara is worried about the cat. Beth asks her what is going on. Walter informs his family about the cat and he orders them to kill it. Tabitha and Beth have no problems at all. She calls Latimer and tells him that she is frightened of what is happening in the house. Michael Latimer thinks that the cat knows what happened to Ella.

Tabitha is making the culprits feel guilty. Michael tells her that he thinks that Walter is behind it all. Edgar and Jacob find the cat and trap it in a bag. Andrew runs off with it and goes into the woods but it escapes. The cat leads him to a swamp. Andrew falls in and dies. Tabitha returns to the house. Beth asks everyone why they are frightened of a little cat. Clara realises that something has happened to Andrew and she tells Walter. She wants to go but Walter won't let her. She dies when the cat jumps on her and tumbles down the stairs. Michael shows up at the house and Louise blames the cat for Clara's death. The Inspector comes and informs them about Andrew. 

Beth and Michael explore the house and they see that there is a broken wall. Edgar, Jacob and Louise disscuss Walter. They want to get rid of him. Beth hears noises at night. The cat sits on Walter's bed. He has a heart attack and dies. The Inspector and Michael arrive. Edgar has a will that leaves everything to him. Louise thinks that Jacob had something to do with  Walter's death. Michael thinks that there might be another will. The police look for the cat. Ella had put her papers in a safe deposit box. Michael thinks that Ella was killed and the cat witnessed it. The Inspector asks about the will and he wants to search the house for it. The cat comes in and runs upstairs. Jacob chases it. He goes onto the roof and falls off. Edgar is searching for another will. Michael and Beth are searching too. Edgar finds Ella's box and the cat comes in. He chases it and he gets hit by a beam. The box is found. Beth is the one who was supposed to inherit Ella's estate. Tabitha leads the police to Ella's body. The house is sold and the new occupants are moving in. Puss is there, looking for a new family.

This was a really good movie. I liked the idea of the cat witnessing the murder and making sure that the guilty are punished. The cast were great and there were some really great moments in this one. Interesting note- this is actually a Hammer movie. I recommend this and I am giving a 7/10.

The Sorcerers(1967) Movie Review

Trailer here.

The Sorcerers is a 1967 horror movie directed by Michael Reeves and starring Ian Ogilvy, Boris Karloff, Catherine Lacey and Susan George.

Professor Monserrat(Karloff) is advertising his services as a hypnotist. He has a plan. A man called Michael(Ogilvy) is at a club with his girlfriend, Nicole(Elizabeth Ercy). The professor and his wife, Estelle(Lacey) have a machine and they need a person to test it out. Michael is walking alone when he meets the Professor. They get chatting and Monserrat offers him an experience he will never forget. Michael follows him back to his house. The Professor has a laboratory and he tells Michael that he is a hypnotist and he has a special machine which he uses for his hypnosis. Michael doesn't seem too worried about it. He gets hypnotised and the experiement is a success. The Professor and his wife can control Michael and his thoughts.  The Professor tells him that he will remember nothing about it when he leaves their house.

Michael goes back to the club and is unaware of what has happened. Estelle wants Michael to bring her a fur coat. They concentrate on him and he leaves his girlfriend to bring them the coat. Estelle enjoys controlling him. Michael tells his girlfriend that he thinks he did something bad but he can't remember it. Michael and Nicole go into the country on a motorbike. Estelle makes him speed on the bike. His friend Alan(Victor Henry) is upset because it was his bike. Michael fights with him. He attacks Alan's boss too. He is acting crazy. Nicole is horrifed by his behaviour. Monserrat is not happy with his wife. She is getting carried away. He tells her that he will stop her. She tells him that he can't.

The Professor tells her that he will go to the police and she trips him up and breaks the machine. She hits him. She makes Michael kill a woman. Nicole and Alan read about it in the paper and they become suspicious of Michael. They look for him. The police are closing in on him too. Michael has no memory of doing anything. They talk to him and tell him what happened. Estelle controls him and makes him pull a knife on them. Alan and Michael fight and the police are on the way. He runs off. He drives off. Estelle is losing her grip on him. The Professor tries to get into his mind. He makes Michael crash the car. It explodes and he dies. In the end, the Professor and Estelle are also burned because of their link to Michael.

This was a fun film and I enjoyed it. The cast were good and there was enough to keep me entertained. I would recommend this, I will give it a 5/10.

The Blood Spattered Bride(1972) Movie Review

Trailer here.

The Blood Spattered Bride is a 1972 horror movie directed by Vicente Aranda and starring Simon Andreu and Maribel Martin.

A woman called Susan(Martin) is newly married and she has an awful vision of someone trying to hurt her at a hotel. When they arrive home, Susan meets her husbands(Andreu) staff and a woman called Carol who is the daughter of one of the servants. Susan spots a woman in the woods near the house. She talks to Carol and Carol tells her that there are portraits of women in the cellar. Susan sees a portrait of a woman called Mircala(Alexandra Bastedo). Her husband tells her about Mircala. She killed her husband on the wedding night. They go to her tomb and Susan sees her. She gives Susan a dagger and she bites her neck. Susan screams. Her husband doesn't see anything. Carol tells them she put a dagger under Susan's pillow. She tells them that she got it from a lady in the woods.  Susan wants to leave.

Mircala comes to Susan at night. She shows her where her husband hid the dagger. She wants Susan to murder her husband. Susan has a vision where she kills her husband with Mircala. It seems to be a dream. The doctor comes to see her. He gives her injection to help her. He tells her husband that she is thinking about myths and legends and she shouldn't be. The dagger is hidden in a clock. The husband thinks Carol hid it. She denies it. The husband buries the dagger on the beach. He sees a woman buried in the sand. She is naked. He brings her home.

The woman meets Susan. She says that her name is Carmila. Susan and Carmila have a connection. Susan begins to act strangely. The husband wants to know what is going on. Susan digs up the dagger and she cuts herself. The doctor is called again and the husband hides the dagger and locks it up. He takes the key with him. The doctor recommends that Susan should see a psychiatrist. The husband tells him about Mircala. The groundskeeper tells the doctor that he saw Susan in the woods with Mircala. Susan slips away at night. The doctor follows. He sees the two women. Mircala drinks Susan's blood. She is turning Susan against her husband. The doctor informs the husband. He sees it for himself.  He sees that Carmila is a vampire. She is using Carol to get her things she needs.

Susan tries to get the dagger without the key. She breaks open the drawer where it is and she grabs it. She kills the doctor. Her husband spots her and Mircala dragging the body away. Mircala orders Susan to kill her husband. He runs away and gets to his car and speeds off. Mircala becomes caught in a trap in the woods. Susan kills the gardener. The husband gets a gun and goes after them. He finds them in a coffin and he shoots holes in it. Carol arrives. She is also a vampire. She tells him that the two women will return. He shoots her too. The film ends with a newpaper headline about a a man who cut out the hearts of three women so it seems to hint that he was found guilty of murdering them. 

This was an ususual film with some good scenes. I enjoyed it overall and I would recommend it for fans of vampire movies. I will give it a 5/10.