Paranoiac

"Paranoiac" (1965) starring Janette Scott, Oliver Reed, Alexander Davion and Sheila Burrell is another great psychological thriller from Hammer Studios. 

The setting is a large mansion on a country estate in England.  The Ashby family lives there, including brother Simon (Reed), sister Eleanor (Scott) and Aunt Harriet (Burrell).  Oliver Reed is particularly good as the psychotic, alcoholic brother that wants his sister committed so he can inherit the entire estate in a few weeks when the estate comes out of trust.

Eleanor has become a fragile wisp of who she formerly was since the death of her other brother Tony (Davion) two years ago.  Suddenly she keeps seeing Tony but no one believes her.  One day she decides to jump off a cliff into the sea but Tony is watching nearby and saves her.  Much to the dismay of Simon and Aunt Harriet, Tony returns to the house with Eleanor.  Neither believes it is really him.

This is another one of those thrillers that has you guessing until the very end.  The characters in this very dysfunctional family are very well played.  Watch this film and enjoy all the twists and turns!

The Nanny

"The Nanny" (1965) starring Bette Davis, Wendy Craig and Jill Bennett is a psychological thriller that will have you guessing until the end. 

Nanny (Davis) has been with the family since Virginia Fane (Craig) was a child.  She is also nanny to her children.  However two years ago, the young daughter Susy drowned in the bathtub.  Her brother Joey was blamed and sent to an institution for two years.  At the beginning of the movie everyone is getting ready for his return and the mom isn't sure she wants him back. 

Nanny is ever doting and always sweet.  She takes care of the mother even more than the son.  Upon Joey's return, he wants nothing to do with Nanny.  He says she is trying to kill him.  No one believes him though.  Is Joey a bad seed or is Nanny not what she appears?  You'll have to watch this great Bette Davis movie to find out.

The Undying Monster

 

"The Undying Monster" (1942) starring James Ellison, Heather Angel and John Howard and directed by John Brahm is a classic atmospheric horror film that takes place in the early 1900s that I recently stumbled across. 

Brother & sister, Oliver (Howard) and Helga (Angel) Hammond live in a giant Gothic looking house on a seaside cliff in England.  We learn there is an old legend that Hammonds should not go out along the seaside lane on cold, foggy nights because there is some type of monster that kills people.  At the beginning of the movie the brother is walking home from a friend's house and is late in arriving.  Helga hears screaming outside and gathers the household staff to get the carriage and gun so they can investigate.  They find the brother injured on the rocks and a local woman in a coma.

Scotland Yard sends in a scientific investigative team to try to find out what really happened.  Scientist Robert Curtis (Ellison) and his assistant Christy (Heather Thatcher) come to the estate to investigate.  This duo tries to use the newly evolving scientific methods to solve crimes. These two characters actually add a little humor into the horror movie - especially Christy.

This film has been restored and is a wonder to watch.  The scenes are lit with candlelight, people wander seaside cliffs with lanterns, the house has secret rooms and a crypt in the basement and there is some sort of monster lurking around outside.  The scenes are beautifully filmed with some really interesting angles and methods.  This is a very well done movie that is worth finding and watching.  This is definitely one that I will watch again and again in the years to come!

The Selling

"The Selling" (2011) starring Gabriel Diani, Janet Varney, Etta Devine and Jonathan Klein is a comedy about a man Richard Scarry (Diani) and his friend Dave Ross (Klein), both real estate agents, who purchase a cheap house so they can fix it up and flip it.  It turns out there's a reason it was cheap - it's haunted by the ghosts of victims of the Sleep Stalker serial killer. 

Shortly after buying the place, the ghosts make themselves known and they don't want anyone else buying the place.  The real estate duo hold open houses only to have all the people fleeing in fear after seeing bleeding walls and other scary stuff.  Ghost Blog writer/waitress, Ginger Sparks (Devine) soon becomes friends with Richard and tries to help him figure out how to calm the ghosts so he can sell the house.

The scares here are mostly for laughs instead of scares.  The film is well done and characters are actually well acted for a film that I had previously never heard of.  If you want a mix of humor and haunting, give "The Selling" a try.

The Screaming Skull

"The Screaming Skull" (1958) starring John Hudson, Peggy Webber and Russ Conway is B Horror movie about a widower, Eric Whitlock (Hudson), who brings his new wife, Jenni (Webber) back to his large mansion and estate where he used to live with his deceased wife.  The gardener, Mickey, has lovingly been keeping up the gardens and estate in memory of  Eric's dead first wife while he has been away.

The house does not yet have the power turned back on so all night scenes are lit by candlelight.  Jenni starts hearing noises at night and soon finds a screaming skull that's haunting her.  Eric suspects it's Mickey that is up to no good and trying to scare her.  Eric's first wife is haunting the estate but what does she want?

This movie has some great atmosphere.  Moving around the big old house by candlelight. Creepy gardener wandering around the estate at night.  Eerily screeching peacocks wandering the estate.  This is definitely a B Horror movie so go in knowing this and enjoy.

See No Evil

"See No Evil" (1971) is a horror/thriller starring Mia Farrow, Dorothy Alison and Robin Bailey .  Sarah (Farrow) is a woman who lost her sight in an accident and is returning to her uncle and aunt's estate in England a couple years later.  Sarah gets used to being back and getting to know the lay of the house and goes out with her old flame, Steve.  While out, her family is murdered and when she returns she is completely unaware of the tragedy and that the murderer is still on the estate.

 
This is a very well done movie.  The viewer never does see the killer's face, just his cowboy boots so we never know who the murder is until the surprise unveiling near the movie's end.  Mia does an excellent job going through a host of emotions in this movie.  I ran across this movie on Turner Classic Movie (TCM) channel and it was a very good find!

Dominique

"Dominique" (1978) starring Cliff Robertson, Jean Simmons and Jenny Agutter is a story about a vengeful ghost.

Dominique Ballard played by the wonderful Jean Simmons believes she is being driven mad by her husband, David.  She finds a figure with her bracelet hanging in the conservatory one night but when she and David go back, it is gone.  After not finding any help, she eventually does hang herself. 

Shortly after the funeral, David starts to hear her voice calling him.  He sees her across the street at work.  He finds out a woman matching his description has purchased his headstone to put right next to hers with a date of death that says "soon".  It appears that Dominique is exacting her revenge upon her not so loving husband.  Yet, appearances can be deceiving. 

This thriller turns out to be not what one expects at the end. 

Scream of Fear

"Scream of Fear" (1961) AKA "Taste of Fear" starring Susan Strasberg, Ann Todd, Christopher Lee and Ronald Lewis is an excellent thriller from Hammer Films.

A wheelchair bound woman, Penny Appleby (Strasberg) returns to the French Riviera to her father's estate after a 10 year estrangement.  When she arrives, her step mother Jane Appleby (Todd) informs her that her father is away on business and doesn't know when he will return. Shortly after arriving, Penny starts to see her dead father in different areas of the house.  No one will believe her though.  Bob (Lewis) the chauffeur becomes Penny's confidant and together they try to figure out what is happening.

This thriller has more twists than you can imagine!  Just when you think you know what's going on, you'll discover it's something else completely!  The film is gorgeously shot in black and white and the rich estate and beautiful location shots becomes even more mysterious with the use of darkness, light and shadows.  This is a must see classic thriller!

Tormented

"Tormented" (1960) starring Richard Carlson, Susan Gordon and Lugene Sanders is ghost story that takes place on an island. At the beginning of the movie we see Tom Stewart (Carlson) meeting with ex-girlfriend Vi (Juli Reding) who has showed up on the island unexpectedly wanting to rekindle the relationship.  When Tom doesn't go for it, because he is marrying Meg (Sanders) in a few days, Vi turns to blackmail.  As they are discussing the issue at the top of an old lighthouse, the railing breaks and Vi falls over and is hanging for dear life.  Tom is caught in a catch 22, let her fall to her death, refusing to save her or save her and face being blackmailed.  Needless to say to make this movie work, he chooses to let her fall.

Soon afterwards, Tom becomes tormented with the choices he made.  He also starts to experience ghostly appearances from the Vi who is still threatening, even as a ghost, to expose him and to ruin his upcoming wedding! 

This is a good, though somewhat cheesy, ghost story.  The special effects are particularly bad but what does one expect from 1960?  The acting is pretty good for this type of movie, especially in the roles of Meg's little sister Sandy (Susan Gordon) and Mrs. Ellis (Lillian Adams) who is the blind friend of the family who becomes a confidant about the supernatural occurrences to Tom.

Will Tom end up marrying Meg or will he be driven mad with guilt by the ghostly presence of Vi?  You'll have to watch to find out.

The Leopard Man

"The Leopard Man" (1943) starring Dennis O'Keefe, Margo and Jean Brooks is another classic film produced by Val Lewton. 

A leopard is introduced into Kiki's (Brooks) nightclub show by her agent Jerry (O'Keefe) but the cat gets scared and escapes into the small New Mexico town where it soon kills a girl.  As the creature continues to kill, it becomes clearer that maybe it's not the leopard doing all the killing, there may be a man who is causing terror and fear in the town.

Filled with lots of shadows, dark strolls through the town at night and windy nights, this movie is filled with atmosphere and thrills. 

Picnic at Hanging Rock

"Picnic at Hanging Rock" (1975) starring Rachel Roberts, Anne-Louise Lambert and Vivean Gray is not your standard horror movie.  It is an Australian film that takes place on Valentine's Day 1900 at Appleyard College, a school for girls.  The school is run by the stern Mrs. Appleyard.

It is St. Valentine's Day 1900 and Mrs. Appleyard has sent the girls on a field trip for the day to Hanging Rock, a large rock formation where they are to enjoy a picnic outdoors.  We see the girls getting into their Victorian era dresses, hats and gloves and get into the carriage with several teachers to go off on their outing.  Once there, we watch the group eat, read, nap and laze around in the hot summer weather.  It's all so civilized!  Four of the girls decide to explore the rocks a little more and as they get higher up into the outcroppings, the girls experience dizziness and disorientation.  Three of the girls then go into a cave and the 4th girl goes running back screaming to the rest of the group.  The result is three girls and one teacher go missing at the rock.

The rest of the movie is about the mystery of what happened to the missing students and teacher.  All the townspeople suspect foul play.  The disappearance has become fodder for all the newspapers and Mrs. Appleyard starts losing control over the school.  Hysteria with the girls abounds!

This movie mainly takes place on hot sunny days.  It is not your average horror movie that builds suspense and horror using darkness.  The atmosphere is palpable and Hanging Rock is an eerie and mysterious presence. This is an excellent example of atmospheric horror.

The Pact

I recently watched "The Pact" (2012) starring Caity Lotz, Casper Van Dien and Mark Steger.  I didn't know anything about this movie as I had missed its run in theaters.  I was pleasantly surprised by this movie and it has stayed with me for days.

Annie (Lotz) returns to her childhood home after the death of her mother.  Annie's sister had been there getting everything ready for the funeral but at the beginning of the movie we see her walk into the closet and disappear into the darkness.  We begin to learn that life growing up in the house for the sisters had not been easy.  Annie begins to hear noises in the house and unexplainable ghostly happenings.  She begins to investigate into her mother's past with the help of local policeman Bill Creek (Van Dien).  What we find in the third act of the movie is unexpected to say the least and takes this ghost story in a new direction.

This is one of those old school like horror movies with slowly building suspense and terror. There is very little gore or blood, mainly contained to one scene in the movie.  This movie may get under your skin and have you thinking differently about those odd noises you may hear while "alone" in your house.  Be prepared for some good scares!

Don't Go To Sleep

"Don't Go To Sleep" (1982) starring Dennis Weaver, Valerie Harper, Ruth Gordon and Robin Ignico is a made for TV that is an Aaron Spelling production. The family moves to a new home a year after they are in a car accident and one of their daughters, Jennifer dies.  Grandma, played by the excellent Ruth Gordon (one of my favorites from Rosemary's Baby), also moves in.

Shortly after moving in, daughter Mary starts seeing her dead sister.  Jennifer eggs Mary on - bad mouthing first the grandma and then the little brother.  Soon "accidents" start to happen and family members start to die.

This is a good spooky little made for TV movie.  I was shocked when watching to discover that a scene with a pizza cutter being slowly moved up a stairway's railing is in this movie.  My sister and I had remembered that particular scene from our childhood but never remembered the movie.  As luck would have it, without even looking, I found it today!

This movie is not gory but is suspenseful and is a good watch on a Saturday afternoon.

House of Dark Shadows

"House of Dark Shadows" (1970) starring Jonathan Frid, Grayson Hall and Kathryn Leigh Scott is directed by  Dan Curtis and has finally been released on DVD & Blu-ray!  All the characters from the TV series are here:  the Collins family (Carolyn, Roger, David and the matriarch Elizabeth Collins Stoddard), vampire Barnabas Collins, governess Maggie Evans, Dr. Julia Hoffman, caretaker Willie Loomis and more.  Everyone lives in Collinwood the family mansion and estate.

Barnabas is uncovered by Willie in the Collins family crypt.  He is awakened after nearly 200 years of being imprisoned.  He soon begins killing as vampires must do and making additional vampires.  He also introduces himself to his family saying he's a distant relative from England.  He moves in and fixes up the old family home that's on the estate.  One by one people around Collinwood start dying, including some of the family members.  Dr. Julia Hoffman (the wonderful Grayson Hall) soon figures out Barnabas is behind this and offers to try to cure him of being a vampire.  Barnabas also falls in love with the governess who he believes is the reincarnation of his fiancee Josette who died before they were married.

The storyline and characters will be familiar to those that loved to watch the original series or any of the remakes over the years.  Collinwood Estate is a huge Gothic style mansion with a large estate that has dilapidated buildings that the characters wander through at night to add to the suspense and eeriness.  This is another great Dark Shadows film to add to your video library!