PUPPET MASTER 6 - "Curse Of The Puppet Master" (Fullmoon Productions 1998) This is set a few years after the earlier Puppet Master series ended. A professor, who had bought the (killer) puppets at a garage sale, then sets up shop to display his puppets as they move & do tricks for the public. Helped by his pretty daughter (fresh back from college) & a timid local boy he hires as his assistant (his former assistant has mysteriously disappeared), who is routinely picked on by local bullies. The Prof. Wishes to make his own living puppets using the boys carving talents. He tells the boy "You must put your soul into your work". The boy nickenamed "Tank" and the daughter develop a spark between them & do the nasty. The bullies from earlier attack Tank and the girl (molesting her a bit) which sets up a revenge scenario with the loyal puppets. The puppets seek vengeance and kill the boys w/ a bit of cool gore. Tank starts to weaken and weaken as he comes close to finishing his best puppet. I love it when the asshole sheriff bites it, more slicing and dicing from the little wooden monster's than a Ginsu commercial! By the way the zombie/demon looking puppet "Blade" with the knife/hook for hands rocks In a cool twist the seemingly devoted puppets inexplicably attack the Professor ruining his evil plan. Not an amazing movie but the acting was decent and the plot was okay too. I hear Fullmoon is now making Sub-Species 4, hell yeah!!++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
RASPUTIN - "The Mad Monk" (Hammer Films 1966) Man, what a great flick! This is my personal favorite of the Hammer Horror classics. As soon as Christopher Lee arrives on screen to announce "I am Rasputin" you know this evil looking bearded guy is gonna be a fucking nut. And a nut he proves himself to be as he uses his strange healing powers for his own benefit. Rasputin consistently get's drunk and layed throughout this movie and a commanding attitude (reminding me somewhat of early Clint Eastwood roles: Pale Rider, Hang 'Em High ect.) let's you know that he won't be asking for what he desires. Not much gore to speak of, except for the hand severing scene in the beginning, but this film was made in a time when a movie like this didn't need it and probably would be worse with it (you mean due to the cheesy special effects of the time? - Dale). Now I've gotta look into getting myself an authentic Rasputin beard to wear for the next time I watch this. - JEFFREY KUSBEL ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968 / 1993 (Re-release in original b&w format by the Canadian Mandacy Music Group)) This is George A. Romero's first in his great series of zombie flicks (true to his visions the man made zombie movies in 3 consecutive decades ('60's/70's/'80's)) This is the black & white classic which center's on an abandoned (very recently, probably due to the zombie outbreak) house where a couple different small groups of living people hole-up and try and battle their way out to help while keeping everyone within safe from zombie assault. Surprising amount of good gore in a movie so old! You get to see zombies eating meat off human bones, chewing on livers and playing with intestines. You get to see also a freshly zombified daughter within the house brutally stab her mother to death w/ a small gardening shovel - Great! I remember the first time I watched this being shocked at the surprise ending. True classic and a must see go rent/buy it now!!++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
HALLOWEEN (1978 Compass International Pictures) This is probably my fave horror movie of all-time! The creepy music made by director John Carpenter is the scariest ever, I sought out and ordered the soundtrack to this movie on CD I loved it so much! It starts off with a young boy named Micheal Meyers who brutally slaughters his sister on Halloween night. He then spends his next 15 years in a mental hospital biding his time. He escapes the day before Halloween 15 years later and returns to the small, quiet town of Haddonfield to continue his gory and murderous rampage on his mission to kill his other sister Lauri (Jamie Lee Curtis). You get to see a dog killed, a young man stabbed to the wall with his feet off the ground, a guy boiled and lots more fun. The whole time he is hunting Lauri his old doctor for the last 15 years is hunting Micheal Meyers in attempt to not only stop him but to kill him, it is the only way. The masked cold-blooded killer after leaving a trail of dead bodies finds Lauri and attacks her. She fends him off stabbing him with a sewing needle, coat hanger and ect., he keeps coming and cuts her and just before he is about to kill her his old doctor Loomis (whose acting throughout the movie is excellent a key ingredient, also as a trivia side note: his last name was used as one of the last names of the killers in Scream) shows up and shoots Micheal repeatedly and he falls backwards out of a balcony house window. But when Dr. Loomis looks out the window a moment later he is gone. The blood-chilling music comes in and credits roll but the ending of this movie will serve as the beginning of the Halloween II which I suggest you to rent both at the same and make a day long horror fest like I have done many a time. Beyond classic!!
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NIGHTBREED (1989 Morgan Creek) Anyone remember this flick released right around the time Clive Barker started to become a household name? This one is based on his book Cabal (great book indeed and it was based right in the area I used to live in Canada! -Dale) which of course is better than the movie and different than the movie but the movie is pretty cool actually. Nightbreed has plenty of weird characters to deal with and they are almost all violent (a definite plus). The Nightbreed, while not zombies, enjoy devouring human flesh and really hate to be pissed off. They all live below ground under a old graveyard called Midian and they are the last of an ancient species of shape-shifters. Their lives are changed forever when their prophecies come true and a man named Boone walks into their lives. He also brings a clingy girlfriend and a serial killer doctor (played by renowned director David Cronenberg if I'm not mistaken!? - Dale) along so you can imagine the very off-the-wall content and conclusion of this movie. You have to really see it to understand it but you will not be disappointed. Hey, a guy even severs half of the skin off his head along with most of his hair (That's gotta hurt) what more can you ask for? - JEFFREY KUSBEL
