Monstrous
MonsterVision => Classic Horror => Topic started by: prezhorusin04 on September 10, 2006, 12:35:24 AM
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I'll admit, i've seen a lot of cheesy 70's horror films, and some good and great ones too, but i haven't seen these 3.....
Three of the Best Horror Movies You've Never Seen:
Psychedelic Scares from the '70s
By Suzanne Donahue
Aug 28 2006 10:00AM
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/54279/three_of_the_best_horror_movies_youve.html
A lot of people have never watched horror movies from the 1970's, and if they have, it's generally the usual suspects: Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Halloween, and the landscape of zombies galore. But I've got a list of three films from the same era which, in my opinion, are both spectacular and spectacularly unseen.
1) Simon, King Of The Witches (1971, directed by Bruce Kessler, as yet available only on video): This is actually one of my favorite movies of all time from any era. Andrew Prine stars as Simon, a warlock who is dead set on doing everything it takes to become a god. He has been thwarted in the past, but the question is whether he'll finally get it right in this lifetime. One of the best aspects of the film, aside from the fact that Prine has never been more suited to a role, is that Simon looks like a hobo.
He, in fact, lives in a storm drain and sells charms and potions to groovy swinging 70's partygoers to get enough cash for booze. He is frequently picked up by the police for vagrancy, and ultimately befriends a young man named Turk (played by George Paulsin) in jail.
Turk introduces Simon into his party world, and Simon attempts to find a suitable mate to help him complete the rituals necessary for becoming a god. He also spends his free time interrupting the local fake pagan ceremonies which consist of Ultra Violet, naked pensioners, and a rather tired-looking goat.
Does Simon succeed in becoming a god? Does he win the girl (played by Prine's real-life ex-wife Brenda Scott)? Does he help two local potheads sell more weed? I'm not telling, but suffice it to say the dialogue, costumes, and situations make the trip far out. Trivia: the script is rumored to be based on a real warlock's life!
2) Barn Of The Naked Dead (AKA Nightmare Circus, 1974, directed by Alan Rudolph, as yet available only on video): Andrew Prine is back for more, this time as Andre the local maniac. Three girls have some car trouble on their way to Las Vegas, and Andre smilingly brings them back to his ranch, where he chains them up in the barn with the rest of the women in his "circus." Andre is in fact convinced that he is the ringmaster and the girls he kidnaps are his animals to train.
But it's not all Andre's fault, as he misses his mom in a distinctly Norman Bates sort of way. And as for his dad, well, the ranch just happens to be located next to an old nuclear testing site and somewhere along the way Andre's father turned into a mutant that must be kept locked in a shed. Lots of real wild animals are roaming around to wreak havoc, as well. Large hungry cats, large sex-starved snakes, and plenty more.
Does someone save the girls? Or do they escape? And what happens to Andre? Sorry, still not telling, but this is a must for anyone who, like me, loved Psycho. Trivia: yes, this was directed by THE now widely-respected Alan Rudolph, and was in fact the second film he made in his career.
3) The Reincarnate (1971, directed by Don Haldane, as yet available only on video): This one is a mood-filled masterpiece. The late Jack Creley plays Everet Julian, a rather wealthy man with a terminal illness, an unbelievable animal-like hairpiece, and an interest in reincarnation. In fact, he belongs to a quasi-religious group (practicing what's known as Sakana) who can more or less guarantee his reincarnation provided he can find a suitable virgin for the ritual (enter Trudy Young) and a suitable host for all of his past memories (enter Jay Reynolds).
Reynolds isn't an easy mark; he plays a temperamental artist whom Creley commissions to do a sculpture of his oddly-shaped head in order to ultimately convince him of the part he must play in the reincarnation process. In return, Reynolds starts to enjoy great fame and success with his art. But what is the ultimate price? What happens during the final ritual? Does Everet Julian die, and more importantly, is he reincarnated? And what follows for the rest of the characters?
You'll have to watch it to find out, and also to experience both the mesmerizing power of Jack Creley's hairpiece and the ear-crushing sounds of the final credit song. Trivia: Gene Tyburn, who plays the somewhat substantial role of a priest in the Sakana church, has absolutely no recollection of having been in this film whatsoever.
All three of these films can easily be found in video form on eBay. Hopefully, they will soon get the DVD treatment they deserve. And if you would like to read more about the making of these films, I would recommend the book Gods In Polyester: A Survivors' Account Of 70's Cinema Obscura. The behind-the-scenes antics are as much fun the films themselves.
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I haven't seen any of these, but I'll see if I can check them out when I get a chance. I am a fan of 70's films.
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I watched a really great film from 1962 a few weeks back, a cult classic entitled "Carnival of Souls".. I remember bits and pieces of this film, seeing it as a kid, but watched it again over Halloween. It starts off a little rough, but it's actually a really good movie. Very atmospheric..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnival_of_Souls
Not 70's horror, but still well worth the mention...
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Here is one that is even older that I sat and watched one day with the kids
and that night my son came running into the room...Daaaaadddy
This is what you would call a B flick cheese fest
The Screaming Skull
http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0052169/
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*<:)
The Devil Bat:
http://imdb.com/title/tt0032390/
A Bucket of Blood:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052655/
These were both pretty good considering when they were made. Cheesy, but they still hold up in their own classic-retro way. It's cool, especially around Halloween, that you'll find all these DVD boxed sets with about 16 old horror/sci-fi movies, for only about $12 bucks. Some of them are definitely worth watching..