The Ghost of Greville Lodge

While browsing around Amazon for movies with a good ghost story, The Ghost of Greville Lodge (2000) starring Jon Newman, Prunella Scales and Marc Danbury caught my eye.  I hadn't heard of this British movie but it looked like it might be a good ghost story with lots of atmosphere so I gave it a try. 

A teenaged orphan, James, is invited to stay with his long lost great uncle at the family estate, Greville Lodge.  Once a bustling English country manor, now mostly closed up and run with the help of Sarah the housekeeper.  James explores the large house and manor and starts having dreams of the past where he is the owner's son.  These dreams soon become waking dreams where a ghost from the past is trying to get James to right some unfinished business.

There was some good atmosphere: wandering around the manor, estate and village (including a graveyard down the road), although I would have liked to see more.  The story kept my interest trying to tie the past to the present but overall it won't be one which I will return to.  If you are looking for a kid friendly ghost story, this may be a DVD for you.

Where Have All the People Gone?

Where Have All the People Gone? (1974) is a made for TV movie starring Peter Graves, George O'Hanlon Jr. and Kathleen Quinlan.  While camping in the Sierra Nevadas, the Anders family discovers that everyone has evaporated into dust (very similar looking effect as in the later film Night of the Comet but no zombies here).  We discover later there has been a severe solar flare which caused everyone to catch a virus and die.  Only a few people were immune.  The explanation for the disappearances doesn't make a whole lot of sense but is only the backdrop for why the family is left alone to fend for themselves.  On the way home to find out if the mother has survived, the father, son and daughter find a couple of other people to bring with them.  There is not a lot going on in this movie.  Really, the family meets very little jeopardy on the journey home through the mostly deserted cities - wild dogs and someone who steals their car.  The story is mainly the family dynamics and discovering that they want to survive in this new world.  Peter Graves is good as usual as the father.

The Bermuda Depths

I had been wanting to see The Bermuda Depths (1978) and finally bought the DVD.  The made for TV movie stars Leigh McCloskey, Carl Weathers,   Burl Ives and Connie Sellecca.  The producers are Rankin and Bass the same that brought all the stop motion animated holiday shows such as Rudolf.  This movie is live action and takes place in Bermuda.

Magnus returns to the island he grew up on trying to find out more about the mysterious death of his father many years ago.  While on the beach he meets Jennie who he soon remembers is the same girl he was friends with as a child and who used to play with him on the beach with a turtle they found since it hatched from its egg.  Jennie mysteriously always shows up swimming from the sea and there is an entire island lore about her having drowned decades ago in a sinking boat after she made a deal with the devil to save her and keep her alive. No one else except Magnus ever sees her except those doomed to drown in the sea.

The special effects are clearly done with models and the giant turtle looks like something out of the Land of the Lost.  This is a very quirky movie - a mystery, a romance, an action adventure and a creature feature.  The underwater scenes are beautifully shot and the music adds to the mysterious atmosphere of this movie. While not a masterpiece of the telefilm genre, it is a movie to enjoy on a weekend afternoon.

The Stranger Within

On a rainy summer day it was nice to stay inside and watch an old made for TV movie called The Stranger Within (1974) starring  Barbara Eden, George Grizzard and Joyce Van Patten.  Ann and David are the happily married couple until Ann discovers she is pregnant even though David had previously had a vasectomy.  That fact and the escalating strangeness of Ann's behavior soon cause a rocky marriage.  Ann starts craving way too much salt and black coffee and keeps the house cold and a mess.  She also starts speed reading through every book she can get her hands on.  We soon discover that her unborn baby is causing her to do these things.  What the baby turns out to be you'll have to watch to see.

I always like watching Barbara Eden in movies and she did a fine job acting at times crazed, erratic, and bizarre in this movie.  The setting in the sunny California hills contrasts with the shadow cast over their marriage and the coolness that permeates the film.  This is not the best Barbara Eden film from that period (see 'A Howling in the Woods') but it is an enjoyable escape on a rainy afternoon.

The Woman in Black

I finally saw The Woman in Black (2012) starring Daniel Radcliffe, Janet McTeer and Ciarán Hinds.  This is a gothic horror movie that takes place in the early 1900s.  Daniel Radcliffe plays a young lawyer  named Arthur Kipps who travels to a small remote village to go through the papers of a recently deceased client.  The village is unfriendly and seemingly frightened of him. The house he needs to go to is an imposing mansion on a remote island in the swamp lands near the sea.  He keeps seeing a woman in black and once back in town he sees one accident after another of town children getting killed.   

This movie harkens back to a time when movies didn't have to show lots of blood to scare you.  It's filled with spooky atmosphere of graveyards, ghosts, foggy causeways, dark candlelit hallways and dusty old rooms.   There are plenty of scares in this movie and an ending that you may not be expecting.  I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and found it an equal, if not improvement over the older version.  I have added this movie to my favorite haunted house movies although it would also fit nicely on my atmospheric horror list.

Dark Shadows

Last night was movie night at one of the few remaining drive-in theaters in the area.  We went and saw director  Tim Burton 's Dark Shadows (2012) starring Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Helena Bonham Carter and Eva Green.

I never watched the original Dark Shadows TV series but I am a fan of the revival series from 1991.  Tim Burton's version has vampire Barnabas Collins awakened after two hundred years imprisoned in a coffin.  The time is 1972 and he rejoins his descendants in their now run down mansion, Collinwood.  Barnabas tries to help his family regain some of the importance they once held in the town that holds their family name.  His awakening also stirs up the family's archenemy, Angelique, the witch who is still alive and trying to get Barnabas to love her or else she will destroy him and his family.

The previews made this out to be an ultra campy, almost purely comedic movie.  While the actual movie  includes the comedy, camp and liberal use of 70's music, it also includes the atmosphere of the Dark Shadows series as well as the Collins family dynamics and all the other supernatural creatures such as vampires, ghosts, witches and werewolves.  The actors did a great job with their characters, including Johnny Depp as Barnabas, Michelle Pfeiffer as the family matriarch Elizabeth and a very delightful and colorful Helena Bonham Carter as Dr. Julia Hoffman.  The romance between Barnabas and Victoria Winters seemed almost like an afterthought though.

As a whole,  I liked this version of Dark Shadows.  It's a good addition to the ongoing Dark Shadows saga and I look forward to owning it when it is released on DVD/Blu-ray.

Death at Love House

Death at Love House is a made for TV move from 1976 starring Robert Wagner, Kate Jackson and Sylvia Sidney in an Aaron Spelling production.  Joel and Donna Gregory, husband and wife writing team move into the old mansion of dead Hollywood star Lorna Love so they can research and write a book about her and Joel's father who had a long affair together.

Stormy nights on the old estate add atmosphere to the other mysterious things going on on this estate: an unknown women in white who wanders around the estate, the dead star's body enshrined in a glass tomb, a man in black cloak who is up to evil and Joel suddenly starting to lose his grip on reality as he immerses himself into the memories of the house.  Donna has to get her husband to see that there is something wrong here and get them both out alive.

This is one of those made for TV movies that's perfect to watch on a Saturday afternoon.

Cat People Double Feature

I just watched a Cat People Double Feature.   Cat People (1942) starring  Simone Simon, Tom Conway and Kent Smith.  Based on tales from her homeland in Serbia, a woman fears she will turn into a cat woman if she becomes intimate with her American husband.  This film's use of light and shadow make for an eerie tale of suspense.  The scenes of the walk through the park at night and in the swimming pool are beautifully shot.  The main character of Irena is entrancing as she struggles to keep the inner cat contained while still trying to live a normal life.  This is a very enjoyable chiller from the past.

The Curse of the Cat People (1944) starring Simone Simon, Kent Smith and Jane Randolph is the sequel about Oliver and Alice's lonely daughter whose imaginary friend is Irena, the cat person from the first movie.  Although not as good as the original, the shadows and chills continue now in a small town instead of the big city of the first film.

The Amazing Mr. X

Today I watched an old movie from 1948 called "The Amazing Mr. X" (AKA "The Spiritualist").  It stars Turhan Bey, Lynn Bari and Cathy O'Donnell.  Some have called this movie a gothic noir film.  The main character believes she is being haunted by her dead husband in her mansion on a cliff overlooking the ocean.  But in fact we learn that she is being conned by her spiritualist who is out to get her money. We later discover that he's not the only one putting on a show.

This movie is filled with mystery, eeriness and lots of atmosphere.  It was an entertaining film to watch.

Out of Contention, AKA The Victim

I found a great 70s made for TV movie that I watched today called "Out of Contention" (1972).  It was originally released under the title of "The Victim".  It's a great mystery/thriller starring Elizabeth Montgomery, Eileen Heckart and Sue Ane Langdon. Elizabeth Montgomery plays Kate Wainwright the sister of a woman that is murdered at the beginning of the film and stuffed in a basket in her basement.  The audience never sees who did it.

Not able to reach her sister by phone she gets worried and travels unannounced to her sister's house in Northern California.  She arrives to a seemingly empty house during a horrible thunderstorm.  Elizabeth Montgomery does an excellent job playing the concerned sister just trying to figure out what is going on.  For most of the movie it's just her trapped in the house during a storm with no phone or electricity.  But the murderer is lurking around.  Is it the possessive maid that the sister previously fired, the husband who the sister wanted to divorce, or someone else?  Dark house, rain, thunder & lightning, strange noises in the basement, eerie music - loads of atmosphere in this one! This is one of those classic made for TV thrillers that I love and I have now added it to my favorites on my Made for TV Horror/Thriller page.

Recently Seen 70s Fright Movies

YouTube has been getting a workout lately while I discover some "new to me" made for TV (mostly) films from the 70s.

• She Waits (1972), starring Patty Duke, David McCallum and Dorothy McGuire:  A murdered woman seeks revenge, possesses her husband's new wife.  Nice atmosphere and good job by Patty Duke playing the innocent new wife.
• Reflections of Murder (1974), starring Tuesday Weld, Joan Hackett and Sam Waterston: The wife and mistress of the abusive headmaster of a boy's school plot and carry out his murder.  Takes place in and around Seattle.  Good plot twists that keep you guessing.
• Scream of the Wolf (1974), starring Peter Graves, Clint Walker and Jo Ann Pflug:  A big-game hunter comes out of retirement to help track down a killer wolf, and begins to suspect that it isn't a wolf but an animal that can take human form.  One of Dan Curtis' made for TV movies.  Couldn't quite hold my attention.
• Haunts of the Very Rich (1972), starring Lloyd Bridges, Cloris Leachman, Edward Asner, Donna Mills and several more famous actors: A group of rich people are lured to a secret new resort.  It seems like paradise at first but then things start to go wrong. Kind of a mash up of Fantasy Island and Twilight Zone.
• The Uncanny (1977) [not made for TV], starring Peter Cushing, Samantha Eggar and Ray Milland: Wilbur Gray, a horror writer, has stumbled upon a terrible secret, that cats are supernatural creatures who really call the shots. In a desperate attempt to get others to believe him, Wilbur spews three tales of feline horror. The first story of the old lady, her many cats, her devious maid and nephew was my favorite.  After that, they kind of went downhill.
• The Eyes of Charles Sand (1972), starring Peter Haskell, Joan Bennett and Barbara Rush: When his father dies, Charles inherits the Sand family legacy, the ability to see visions beyond the grave. He helps a girl investigate her brother's alleged murder. Very slow to start but had a fast paced last third.

A Kolchak Kind of Day

Yesterday I watched a double feature of Carl Kolchak made for TV movies: Night Stalker & Night Strangler.  Kolchak is a pushy newpaper reporter who keeps getting into trouble in each city he lives and has to leave town.  The Night Stalker takes place in Las Vegas where a vampire is on the loose and no one in the city will believe Kolchak.  Classic 70s telefright film that I have added to my Made for TV list as a favorite.

The Night Strangler is a sequel that takes place in his new city, Seattle.  Here also there is a string of murders, women being strangled and blood being taken, but it's not a vampire who is to blame this time.  Not quite as good as the original but great to see my city from the 70s on the screen.

Both films directed by Dan Curtis who made a lot of these types of movies during the 70s, including my favorite Burnt Offerings.

2 Movies Added to My Favorites

Last night was a good night to watch a couple of horror movies.

I started with a new movie, "The Innkeepers" which was released in 2011.  This movie takes place in a haunted hotel called the Yankee Pedlar Inn in Connecticut - which is a real life hotel.  Talk about a slow build-up of terror but it all pays off in the end.  Lots of wandering around this old hotel listening for spirits.  Just don't go into the cellar!  Added to my Haunted House movie page.

I finished with a late night viewing of "Night Watch" from 1973 starring Elizabeth Taylor.  I just recently found this movie on Amazon and received the DVD yesterday.  This movie has elements of horror, mystery and thrillers.  It has many of the elements I love about atmospheric horror movies:  spooky dilapidated house next door, lots of rain, thunder and lightning, peeking through the window out into the dark and lots of suspense.  Elizabeth Taylor is fantastic in her roll of the wife who is seemingly going mad.  A great find and addition to my favorites on my "Atmospheric Horror Movie" page.

Atmospheric Horror Movies

Loaded with lots of suspense and eerie atmosphere including: foggy moonlit nights, candles glowing in the window of a large house, creaking staircases, unexplainable sounds, dark woods and strange and creepy characters.  A few of my favorites on my Haunted House Movies page fit well here too but I won't list them twice. See some of my favorites on my Atmospheric Horror Movies page.

Haunted House Movies

Haunted house movies are one of my favorite sub genres of horror.  They have large scary looking houses, run-down estates with graveyards, hidden passages, creepy characters, ghosts and lots of atmosphere.  To see some of my favorites, visit my Haunted House Movies page.