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Showing posts from February, 2009

50 Horror Classics: The Wrap-up

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I did it! I watched 50 old public domain movies slapped together by a cheap home video label under the claim that all of them are "horror classics." So... now what? I'll get to that later, but first, how about a breakdown of all 50 horror classics by letter grade? Before you read on, try guessing which letter grade I gave out most frequently! A: 2 Night of the Living Dead, Metropolis B+: 3 The Little Shop of Horrors, The Phantom of the Opera, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde B: 9 House on Haunted Hill, The Bat, Monster from a Prehistoric Planet, Nosferatu, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Corpse Vanishes, Invisible Ghost, Creature From the Haunted Sea, Carnival of Souls B-: 9 The Amazing Mr. X, Bloodlust!, The Gorilla, Doomed to Die, The Killer Shrews, The Fatal Hour, The Giant Gila Monster, One Body Too Many, The Last Man on Earth C+: 5 A Shriek in the Night, Tormented, Bluebeard, The Vampire Bat, Nightmare Castle C: 8 Last Woman on Earth, Swamp Women, Indestructible Man, King of...

Horror Classic 50 of 50: THE PHANTOM FROM 10,000 LEAGUES

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Countdown update: After this movie, there are... zero. Zero horror classics out of 50. Wow! Can that possibly be true? Why, as good as these movies have been, it seems like only... only 12 years ago that I started this project. And now here I am, about to write up the very last one, 1955's The Phantom From 10,000 Leagues . Do you suppose the people at Mill Creek Entertainment who put these DVDs together saved the best for last? Will this phantom be even better than that other phantom who hung around the opera? Let's dive in and find out. But first! Let me remind you that this blog ain't over yet! Next week I'll be posting the super mega deluxe Horror Movies Wrap-up post. In 3-D! Synopsis So there's this guy out fishing in a little rowboat in the ocean, and suddenly a monster shows up, tips his boat over, and fondles him vigorously until he dies . Wait! They already showed us the monster? It hasn't even been 5 minutes yet! And here already we know exactly wha...

Horror Classic 49 of 50: DEMENTIA 13

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Countdown update: If you can do basic math, you may have already guessed that after his, I only have 1 movie left to go! Just one left! That means next week is the last horror classic! But it won't be the end of this blog, no sirree, Bob. In two weeks, I'll post a grand finale of a post, which will be moving, entertaining, stirring, and spectacular. I'm calling it -- Are you ready for this? -- The 50 Horror Movies Wrap-up . Hmm. So maybe it's not such a catchy title. Certainly it's not as catchy as Dementia 13 , the title of this week's movie. It was released in 1963, produced by Roger Corman, and it's more or less the directing debut of Francis Ford Coppola , who would later go on to direct such masterpieces as The Godfather, The Godfather Part 2 , and Captain E-O . And no, it is not the sequel to Dementia s 1 through 12. Synopsis Married couple John and Louise are out in a boat, surrounded by darkness. Why would you go for a boat ride at night? Don't ...