Next SFF Author: Joseph Fink
Previous SFF Author: Gemma Files

Series: Film / TV


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Ginger Snaps: “The curse” gets worse

Ginger Snaps directed by John Fawcett

The viscerally effective horror thriller Ginger Snaps sports a doubly clever title. Gingersnaps, of course, are yummy cookie treats sweetened with molasses and, naturally, ginger, but that is hardly what is being suggested here. “Snaps” can also mean “to go crazy” or “to lose it,” which is certainly the case for the film’s lead character, Ginger Fitzgerald. And more to the point, “snaps” can also mean “to seize with a sudden closing of the jaws,” which is what poor Ginger does quite a lot of here,


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I Vampiri: Mario gets his feet wet

I Vampiri directed by Riccardo Freda

Besides being marvelously entertaining, 1956’s I Vampiri is also an historically important film, and for two reasons. First, it was the very first Italian horror film of the sound era (I have never been able to precisely ascertain WHY the Fascists saw fit to put a ban on this type of entertainment in the 1930s, but the effects of the clampdown were far-reaching indeed). And second, and perhaps just as historic, it was the film that saw the first bits of direction from the great Mario Bava,


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King Of The Zombies: See it for Mantan

King Of The Zombies directed by Jean Yarbrough

Film buffs who are desirous of getting their hands on the obscure little horror/comedy King of the Zombies (1941) seemingly have no other option than buying the DVD currently available from the Roan Group. This DVD is actually a pretty good deal, as residing on its flip side is the second zombie movie ever made, 1936’s Revolt of the Zombies (1932’s White Zombie was, of course, the first). But be forewarned: ROTZ is a fairly terrible film, slow moving and deadly dull,


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The Long Hair Of Death: Long live the Queen!

The Long Hair Of Death directed by Antonio Margheriti

In a taped interview that she gave at Toronto’s Festival of Fear 2009, cult actress Barbara Steele mentioned that of her 40-odd films, only 11 have been in the field of horror (the clip is currently viewable on YouTube), the inference being that Babs today wonders just WHY her legion of fans insists on calling her “the Queen of Horror.” By my count, however, Steele has appeared in at least 14 horror pictures, and is perhaps best remembered for the string of nine Italian Gothics that she appeared in,


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Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl: Herschell, meet the Emperor Of Gore

Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl directed by Yoshihiro Nishimura

It was Pittsburgh-born filmmaker Herschell Gordon Lewis who, by dint of a dozen or so splatterific exploitation films that he directed from 1963 – ’72, earned himself the nickname “The Godfather of Gore.” But, I have a feeling, Herschell, who is presently 84, might just bust an artery himself if he ever got a gander at what the Japanese are currently doing in the field of gore FX; specifically, what Yoshihiro Nishimura has accomplished in the last 12 or so years. It was the 2001 film Suicide Club that initially alerted me to the talents of this modern-day goremaster,


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The Four Skulls Of Jonathan Drake: Headshrinker

The Four Skulls Of Jonathan Drake directed by Edward L. Cahn

Watch trailer.

Back in the early 1960s, The Four Skulls of Jonathan Drake (1959) used to be aired quite often on NYC television. But somehow, I managed to miss all those many showings, although my young mind couldn’t help feeling that the film boasted one of the coolest-sounding titles that I’d ever heard. And then, as happened with so many other cheaply made “B” films of the time, it seemed to disappear, and remained virtually impossible to see for many years to come.


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I Bury The Living: Excellent, until that finale

I Bury The Living directed by Albert Band

Featuring a story line worthy of inclusion in the soon-to-premiere Twilight Zone TV show on CBS, 1958’s I Bury the Living would seem to be a natural pick for “sleeper” status, and indeed, the reputation of this minor classic has only grown over the years. Deservedly so? Well, having just watched the film for the first time, I would have to say “yes” and “no.” The film is a surprisingly effective thriller for most of its 76-minute length, but unfortunately – for this viewer,


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Teenage Zombies: Mullet heads

Teenage Zombies directed by Jerry Warren

Despite the advent of Elvis Presley and the birth of rock and roll, the mid-1950s still proved to be a tough time for the American teenager… at least, on the big screen. From the juvenile delinquents in 1955’s The Blackboard Jungle and the angst-ridden James Dean in the same year’s Rebel Without a Cause, to the punks in Roger Corman’s Teenage Doll (1957) and the dopers in 1958’s High School Confidential!, theater goers in the middle of that decade were treated to a variety of troublesome predicaments befalling the nation’s youth.


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It!: Try It, you might like It!

It! directed by Herbert J. Leder

I have a feeling that I wasn’t the only baby-boomer boy to fall in love with the late British actress Jill Haworth after seeing her, over 50 years ago, in her very first film, 1960’s Exodus. Then only 15 years old, Jill – via her sweet portrayal of Karen, a tragically fated Jewish immigrant to the new Israeli state – was certainly an actress to move hearts and garner attention. Over the next few years, that attention was mainly centered on her budding romance with Exodus costar Sal Mineo,


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Isle of the Dead: “Vorvolaka! Vorvolaka!”

Isle of the Dead directed by Mark Robson

The history of the American horror film in the 1940s can practically be summarized with two words: “Universal” and “Lewton.” Throughout that decade, megastudio Universal pleased audiences with a steady stream of films dealing with Frankenstein, the Invisible Man, the Mummy and the Wolfman, culminating with the finest horror comedy ever made, 1948’s Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein. Meanwhile, over at RKO, producer Val Lewton was taking a wholly different tack, and between the years 1942 and ’46, brought to the screen no less than nine wonderful,


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Next SFF Author: Joseph Fink
Previous SFF Author: Gemma Files

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