Year: 2012
It's a Horror to Know You:: FatherOfTears!
It's an Horror to Know You: FatherOfTears!
OK, just who is this guy hiding behind a "Twin Peaks" character avatar? My name is Bob, age 45, and I reside in Northern New Jersey. My TV viewing back then could have been considered typical: Saturday morning cartoons, TV shows like "Emergency", "Kung Fu" and just about all those Sid & Marty Krofft shows. I also spent a good deal of time watching syndicated reruns of classic 60's TV shows like "Star Trek" and the Emma Peel/Tara King episodes of "The Avengers". I was also hooked on "The Little Rascals" too. There was also the comedy stuff like "Gilligan's Island", "I Dream of Jeannie", "Bewitched" and so forth. I did also spend a good deal of time watching sci-fi and horror movies on TV. Who didn't rush home from school to see ABC's "4:30" movie whenever "Monster Week" was on! Let's also remember WPIX Channel 11's "Chiller Theater" with the claymation 6 fingered hand coming out of a pool of blood:
Yes, a bit creepy bit it never scared me outright. I even saw "The Golden Voyage of Sinbad" in a theater when it first came out and I thought those Ray Harryhausen animations were great! Now this was all early to mid 1970's and asides from a few scenes in "Star Trek" (The Empath absorbing McCoy's injuries and Scottie's alien possessed girlfriend) and a few TV commercials, one involving a cymbal monkey toy, I was never terrified from something seen either on TV or at the movies till 1977.
What is the first film that ever scared you?
A three way tie starting in the Summer of 1977. Yes, it involves a TV add for a Dario Argento movie:
I first saw this during a commercial break for "Welcome Back Kotter". Ten year old me thought this was some type of shampoo commercial and this was then popular brunette like Jacklyn Smith……till "she" turned around! Made my heart leap into my throat! Scared me so bad each time it came on I ran out of the room……while my seven year old sister ran into the room to watch it! For years just mentioning the name "Suspiria" would make me stop for a moment and freeze! After that it was the trailer for Magic:
That voice! The rolling eyes! It didn't make me run out of the room but I would sit by the TV sort of frozen in terror! Number three was an actual movie: The made for TV film "Salem's Lot". For years I was used to Lee and Lugosi's vampires who, while creepy, looked human. Reggie Nalder's Kurt Barlow scared me! Oh, the townsfolk vampires with their sunken eyes and pale faces were just as terror inducing! Don't get me started on those "window scenes" with the floating vampire kids!
What is the last film that scared you?
2005's "The Descent". The whole claustrophobic atmosphere in those caves got to me. OK, I'm not claustrophobic but I always feel uneasy watching a TV show on "The Discovery Channel" involving spelunking! Crawling in an 18 inch wide hole that could be filled half way with water! No lights except for you glow stick and flash light. Oh, those "Crawlers" reminded me a bit of the Barlow character from "Salem's Lot"!
Name three horror movies that you believe are underrated.
"The Witchmaker" (1969) A professor of paranormal studies and his student with psychic abilities go out with a small group to investigate reports of witchcraft of the Louisiana swamps. The sorcerer who resides in the swamp has killed young women for their blood so he can use it to summon his fellow evildoers. He has his sights on the psychic and he wants her in his coven. As for the rest of the group? Well……Some scenes do show the film's low budget but the dark exterior swamp scenes cast a feeling of eeriness as do the scenes in the underground lair where the sorcerer does his black magic.
"Messiah of Evil" (1973) OK, yet another zombie movie. However it has two of the all time classic zombie kills seen in a horror film. First there's the theater scene:
And then there's the supermarket scene where 1970's "The Price is Right" model Anitra Ford suddenly becomes the main course:
"Inferno" (1980) The sequel to "Suspiria". Some may not like the fact that Argento used Keith Emerson instead of Goblin. I thought he did a good job. Most of his pieces were more subtle than the Goblin music in the previous film but I don't think the eeriness felt in that New York apartment would have worked with more louder "Suspiria" pieces. Yes, the "Mater Tenebrarum" piece was out of place near the end of the film. The movie is also missing "Suspiria's" BOLD red colors but the featured blues and green work well here.
Name three horror movies that you enjoy against your better judgment.
Speaking of "Suspiria" sequels there's the film that's the basis for my username: "Mother of Tears". Yes, I found it not as good as the first two films though it wasn't completely wretched.
"The Return of Count Yorga" This was done with more for laughs. It does have its moments though. The scene where Yorga's brides crawl out the earth from their graves is good. It's also interesting to see Mariette Hartley, the lady from those "Polaroid" commercials in this as well as a young Craig T. Nelson. By the way, how did Yorga come back?
Speaking of horror films with Robert Quarry I also liked the zombie film he did called "Sugar Hill". Chrome colored zombies with silver eyes!
Send us to five places on the Internet!
I am a big fam of the current ABC series "Once Upon a Time" so here's that show's official site.
As some of you have seen I am a big fan of the classic TV series "Mystery Science Theater 3000". Here's the official fansite.
The official site of rising rock performer Annie Clark/St. Vincent.
The Kyle MacLachlan site.
And I might as well plug my Vimeo channel.
Name That Trauma:: Reader Cameron C. on a Vampire Book with Animal Ghosts
Greetings! First off I'd like to say how much I enjoy your website. I've already read my way through the entire Name That Trauma and Traumafession archives and have been turned on to some great things by doing so. Reading about other peoples traumas has made me think more about any unresolved fears that I had in my younger days. One that stands out to me is a book that I remember getting at my local library when I was in elementary school (maybe six or seven). The book was about vampires which I was absolutely obsessed with at the time (I remember making an effort to sleep with my neck out of the covers to be open to any chances of getting bit). The book was in the children's section of the library, but I really don't think it belonged there. It was a black hardcover book with cover art of a vampire wearing dark clothes with a pale white face and an impossibly large fang filled grin. The vampire also had what appeared to be bat white bat wings sticking out of the side of his head and blood dripping from his mouth. The picture wasn't drawn in a cartoony way but seemed like a piece of artwork made to look truly terrifying. The book was just a collection of legends and facts about vampires. I remember towards the end there was a section on animal ghosts for some reason. One of the animal ghost legends was something about a ghostly bull who cursed a bridge so that any pregnant woman who walked over it would lose her baby. I had nightmares after reading the book, but for some reason continued to take it out of the library periodically until some time in middle school. Each time I read it I ended up having nightmares (something that happens very rarely for me). It might have been called The Book of Vampires or something along those lines. It was probably the mid to late nineties when I first took the book out of the library, but the cover looked pretty worn even then, so it was probably an older book. I'd love to find this book again, even if just to see that eerie cover art one more time. Thank you very much for taking the time to read this and helping me to find this book. If anything can help me find this lost nightmare, Kindertrauma can!
Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986)
POLTERGEIST II: THE OTHER SIDE falls apart like a subpar paper towel on several occasions and yet it somehow sports a scene so acutely chilling that it leaves most other cinematic depictions of evil looking hopelessly impotent. That it achieves that transcendent point without the aid of special effects (save a rain machine) compounds the impressiveness of what's been captured. If you've seen the movie you know the bit I'm referring to. In it, JULIAN BECK as the reverend Henry Kane attempts to gain entrance into the home where the ill-fated Freeling family has taken up temporary residence. The day is bright and gorgeous and watching cadaverous Kane making his way to the front door is like witnessing a skull-faced wrecking ball rolling through a flowerbed leaving a trail of smoldering ash behind it. At the time of filming BECK was reportedly gravely ill and I can't help wondering if his proximity to death allowed him to relay his grim tidings in a frighteningly unmodified manor. We peg Kane at once as a manipulative liar but wince at the base truth he dispels when he very nearly looks directly into the camera and bellows, "You're all going to die in there!" The scene, taken alone, remains as ghoulishly powerful as it ever was and I know I'm not exaggerating its impact because we've received a slew of Traumafessions certifying its indelibility.
Running not so close behind is a lesser showstopper involving lovable (mostly due to cues provided by the impossible to argue with JOBETH WILLIAMS) dad Steve Freeling (CRAIG T. NELSON) getting trashed on tequila, gulping a possessed worm, and transforming into the antithesis of the good natured man we've come to know. NELSON mimics BECK's mannerisms with wild gusto and even purses his lips to mime his facial structure and the result hits my favorite note of being both legitimately disturbing and borderline embarrassing. Love still holds some power in the POLTERGEIST universe so when Diane states her unconditional devotion to her hubby, he has no recourse but to puke up the demon, which then squirms and flaps about on the floor like a giant maggot. The slimy bastard even has the cheekiness to grimace like a Kane-o-lantern before hobbling out of the room! I am giving this scene less laudation because some of its success hinges on somewhat dated special effects but like the one previously mentioned, it hits a bona fide nerve. Vomit creature (as it's listed in the credits) aside, Steve's loathsome, post-possession behavior replicates that of an abusive alcoholic in a squirmy, uncomfortable way (not much of a leap considering the instigator he ingests is found at the bottom of the bottle.)
So with not one but two highly memorable, if not classic, scenes like these what could possibly be wrong with POLTERGEIST 2? Well, a lot. Director BRIAN GIBSON is fine when dealing with consummate professionals like BECK, NELSON and WILLIAMS, but every other cast member is left looking humiliatingly amateurish and hung out to dry. Matters are made worse by a title that sparks the imagination with a promise of revealing the afterlife when all we are delivered are poor blue screen flying effects, a badly realized miniature representing "the beast" and a too corny for even this cornball glowing grandma angel who saves the day to a furiously trying to pick up the slack JERRY GOLDSMITH score. In fairness, P2: TOS experienced more than its share of behind-the-scenes setbacks including the already mentioned death of its ace in the hole baddie BECK but that hardly explains all of the lack of creativity shown depicting the titular "Other side." In addition, it's a little difficult to buy the "We must do this as a family" schmaltz when the Freeling's eldest child has disappeared and it's deemed not worth mentioning why. The fact that DOMINIQUE DUNNE who played daughter Dana, was murdered shortly after the first film makes the mass denial all the more crass…or maybe it's just sad.
Oh hell, you know what I have to do? I'm going to do it. I'm stamping this movie with my slightly unflattering but ultimately affirming GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME stamp! There. Bang. I just did it. Parts of it are crap and it reeks of negative energy but when it shines it shines and maybe there are better sequels out there but do they boast such monumental take away moments? Not much can alter the fact that THE OTHER SIDE is the least fun film of the trilogy (PART 3 is hilarious) but that's the price you pay for raking up unpleasantries like spousal rape, alcoholism, child abuse, religious fraud and suicide cults (not to mention granny death) in a would-be summer blockbuster. Hey, at least it's ambitious. People can go ahead and claim this is a retread of the first but its actually following its own dark guide. If the first film secretly worried about the teacher student relationship children have with their television this one boldly wonders if Sunday school was ever any better. I love the first movie, it can't be beat, but one thing it doesn't have is JULIAN BECK as Kane. If his character was all that this movie offered that would still be good enough for me. Yep, heaven is a let down but should anyone be surprised? Here's hoping BECK is somewhere enjoying something grander than a blue screen cloud.
Wait a minute! I thought I was done with the above post but I have to add one more thing. If I had any pride in my work I'd incorporate this thought to the above text but I'm taking the easy way out and shoving this tacked on addendum here instead like a lazy bastard. While gathering the images for this pile of words I came across another scene that I'm strangely drawn to. It's right after the grandma dies and Diane goes out to the garden, she sees a rose bush and she recalls planting it with her mother in a gauzy flashback (Me = sucker for gauzy flashbacks). A wind picks up and as petals fly by, Diane senses her mother still very much with her and how sweet. Then suddenly it's night and a weird cloud is over the house. Diane gets up from bed to visit the area where she felt her mother's spirit. I think she even hears her voice. Then all of the sudden rotting dead people jump out of the ground and drag her under the earth screaming (Don't worry it's just a dream). I don't know, something about contrasting the earlier consoling scene with it's pessimistic opposite so quickly afterward gets to me. One moment it's suggested that the cycle of life is completed with one becoming part of nature and the next we're being told it ends with one succumbing to an inescapable army of rot. See, this movie is so unapologetically morbid that I must forgive its slipshod moments. I have no choice.
It's a Horror to Know You:: John Squires of Freddy in Space!
It's a Horror to Know You: John Squires of Freddy In Space!
1. What is the first film that ever scared you?
Don't really have any sort of great story here, but I have this one very vague memory of watching The Exorcist with my dad when I was pretty young, and being very scared of it. It's weird because I remember feeling like the film had some sort of evil power to it, and it totally freaked me out. I don't even think we watched the whole movie together, I think it was just on TV and we passed by it and watched for a bit but yea, that feeling I got from it always stuck with me. The way my dad spoke about it in particular really had an impact on me, and made me feel like we were watching something that could potentially be harmful to our health. It's kinda weird that I even have that memory, and can recall those feelings, but I'm glad I do, and that I can!
2. What is the last film that scared you?
That'd be Jaume Balaguero's Fragile, which was made way back in '05 but not released until 2010, when Fangoria picked it up for their 'Fright Fest' DVD line. It's not that the film is super scary or even all that amazing or anything, but I watched it at the absolute perfect time for it to creep me out. I've always felt that one's enjoyment of any given horror movie has a lot to do with the circumstances it's watched under. Like if you watch Blair Witch with the lights on and some friends in the room, it's totally gonna be lame and unscary. But if you watch alone in the dark, it's a whole different story. When I watched Fragile, my wife and I had just moved into our own place, and I still had that feeling that we were sort of living in someone else's house, where we didn't belong. It didn't hurt that the house used to be owned by my uncle, and all my childhood memories of the place were linked to it being really dark and unsettling. Not that he's a dark guy or anything, but he was a bachelor at the time, so the place had this kinda lonely and sad vibe to it. On top of that, he used to tell my brother and I that a boogeyman lived in the basement. So yea. Anyway. One night, after Jen went to bed, I watched the movie, alone, in the pitch dark, in this house that felt foreign to me. Needless to say, it scared the shit out of me. Again though, really has more to do with the way I watched it than it does the scary factor of the movie itself. I honestly don't remember much about the movie but it is pretty solid, definitely worth checking out for anyone who may have skipped over it. Give it a chance, it's directed by one half of the directing team who brought us the super scary REC films!
3. Name three Horror movies that you believe are underrated.
1) Blood Creek – Gotta put this on here because I never hear anyone talking about the movie, which leads me to believe that not all that many people have seen it. Why do I say that? Because if you've seen it, you'll damn sure be talking about it! Directed by Joel Schumacher, Blood Creek is the story of an immortal badass Nazi demon … played by Michael Fassbender! The movie is so different and gory as all hell, with one scene of zombie horse carnage that needs to be seen to be believed. SEEK THIS MOVIE OUT. It'll totally make you forgive Schumacher for the nipple suits.
2) Amityville 1992 : It's About Time – There's generally this broad sweeping belief that everything past Amityville 2 is complete and utter garbage. Which is mostly true, but there is a gem hidden in the wreckage of the infamous evil house. And that gem is the sixth installment, fitting titled "It's About Time" … as in, it's about time this franchise had something worth watching in it! Directed by the dude who made Hellraiser 2 (Tony Randel), Amityville 92 is about an architect who becomes consumed by the visage of the Amityville house, so much so that he plans on building an entire town full of nothing but Amityville houses. It's all a result of the man bringing home a clock from Amityville, which has the power to turn his own home into the evil 112 Ocean Avenue house, whenever it so desires. It's a very interesting film, full of some pretty awesome and memorable sequences, and I highly recommend skipping everything else past Part 2 and giving this one a chance.
3) Silent Night, Deadly Night 4 : Initiation – Much like Halloween 3, this is one of those movies that would probably be a whole lot more appreciated if it weren't attached to the franchise it's attached to. Silent Night Part 4 has absolutely nothing to do with the first three films, and in fact really has nothing to do with Christmas either. In other words, it could be enjoyed all year round, if only anyone other than me seemed to enjoy it! Directed by the equally under appreciated Brian Yuzna, Initiation is a whacky mess of giant bugs, awesome practical effects and Clint Howard, a mixture that has to date never failed me. Look past the fact that this movie is part 4 in the Silent Night franchise and go ahead and fall in love with it as soon as you possibly can!
4. Name three horror movies that you enjoy against your better judgment.
1) Ice Cream Man – I talk about this one a lot over on my blog, perhaps way too much. The reason for that is because Ice Cream Man is the ultimate 'best worst movie' for me, a delicious little treat starring Clint Howard as a killer ice cream man that is just so damn good, despite the fact that it tries very hard not to be. I could watch that movie every single day and never tire of it. In fact, just talking about it is making me want to get off the computer and pop it in. But I won't leave you hanging. So I'll continue writing this post instead.
2) Sorority Row – Is the 2009 remake of House On Sorority Row a good horror movie? Or even a great one? No, it's not. But I'll tell ya what. I have an absolute blast with the film every time I watch it, and that's enough for me to sing its praises whenever I hear anyone else bashing it. It's a totally run of the mill and generic slasher flick, but there's just something I dig about it. Maybe it's the cool kill scenes (bottle down the throat!). Maybe it's the image of a bloated Princess Leia with a shotgun. All I'm saying is, this movie + a couple adult beverages = fun.
3) The Creeps : Full Moon's Charles Band wrote and directed this film in the late 90's, about midget (sorry, little people) versions of the Universal Monsters and their quest to take over the world. Need I say more? No? Well I will anyway. The Creeps is one of my favorite Full Moon titles, which I first discovered on television back in my high school days. In fact, I can remember staying up many nights way past my bedtime, watching this movie. It's one of those movies that simply cannot be turned off whenever it's flipped past. It's admittedly a guilty pleasure, but nevertheless is somewhere up there with The Monster Squad as one of my favorite film uses of the Universal Monsters. Well, it's of course no Monster Squad, but I love it all the same!
5. Send us to five places on the Internet!
1) Dinosaur Dracula – This is the new site from the guy who used to run X-Entertainment, which was a huge inspiration for me in the blogging game. Dinosaur Dracula is pretty much the same site, only with a Dinosaur mascot that wears a Dracula cape. Matt is a crazy sumbitch, in the best of ways, and there is quite frankly nobody on the net capable of writing up posts in as entertaining a way as he. Whether it's Halloween product reviews or looks back on vintage toys like Madballs and Boglins, Matt is the absolute best of the best in the entertainment blogging game.
2) Shit Movie Fest – My buddy Tom Bryce runs this blog, which is very much like my own. In other words, it's totally awesome, and full of cool shit both new and vintage that'll remind you why you love the horror genre. And wrestling. Because Tom loves both, and gives both equal love on his blog. Which works for me, because I also love both!
3) Fright Rags – Pretty sure most people reading this are well acquainted with this company by now, but if you're looking for cool horror movie shirts, you need not go anywhere else. Truth.
4) Horror Movies And Beer! – This is a blog after my own heart, given my love for both horror movies and beer. Our host Erik not only talks horror, and reviews movies from time to time, but he also reviews various different craft beers, oftentimes ones that have horror themes to them. What more could you ever ask for from a blog!?
5) VHSPS – With so many horror and cult titles still not yet released on DVD, and the VHS releases of those films selling for a pretty penny as a result, somebody needed to take matters into their own hands and give us a chance to own and watch those films affordably, and on DVD. Thankfully, brothers Sean and George Jordan did just that with the VHS Preservation Society, where you can find hundreds of awesome lost gems, on DVD and for a mere 10 bucks a pop. Oh and be sure to use the Freddy In Space coupon code 'BOOTS10' to save 10% off all orders!!
Traum-mercial Break:: Tribute to Terminix
UNK SEZ: I hope you're not eating while checking out this post. I've been meaning to salute the wonderful world of TERMINIX commercials for some time now and this is the day. Once upon a time TERMINIX ads were content to present their pesky threats as almost-cute fantastic beasts but somewhere along the line they have graduated to nausea inducing LOVECRAFT-ian, THING-like creatures that could encourage DAVID CRONENBERG to take a bleach bath. The invasions are made all the more dramatic by taking place in seeming sterile environments that closely resemble E.G. MARSHAL's immaculate digs in CREEPSHOW. Thanks for dipping in the horror well to get your point across TERMINIX! I'd say more but I have to go wash my hands.
It's a Horror to know You:: Luisito of A Slash Above!
It's a Horror to Know You: Luisito JoaquÃn González of A Slash Above!
1. What is the first film that ever scared you?
I was quite squeamish as a kid and I remeber I used to get scared even by murder mysteries on TV. But that changed forever when I saw John Carpenter's Halloween. I was about eight years old (I think) when I watched it and I was petrefied! Michael Myers was like nothing that my little eyes had ever seen before. I can recall that walking from one room to another with the light off was almost impossible. The mystery of that open ending kept me seraching for years. I always wanted to know how and why he could get back up after so many bullets. It's amazing that we never really get a real explanation.
That's how I became a fan of slasher movies, because I was always trying to get that same feeling that I got from Carpenter's seminal flick. After a while, I noticed that it was a pretty niche sub-genre to follow as stalk and slash flicks generally get a hard time from critics. They're also quite hard to find, so I have spent the past nineteen years tracking the rarest entries down. Most of them are fairly bad, but there is most definitely enjoyment to be had in watching them.
2. What is the last film that scared you?
To be honest the last film that really made me jump was The Ward from 2010. I agree that it was by no means classic Carpenter, but I remember we were watching it in a big empty cinema and some of the shocks were quite effective. Before that I thought that [REC] from 2008 was quite scary, but after something like 800 horror movies, it takes something special to get me now. If I ever fancy a scare, I go for one of the older 'classics' like Baron Blood or La Residencia (The House That Screamed). I'll give you one that you may not be aware of. The film Alison's Birthday from Australia is fairly rubbish, but has one of the most terrifying opening scenes anywhere ever. Seriously, it used to terrify me.
3. Name three Horror movies that you believe are underrated.
There's so many! Of the recent ones though, I thought that The Mist was deserving of higher praise. The downbeat ending and the grim environment of impending doom were exceptional and it's one that I feel may grow in popularity in ten years or so. Another that is regularly overlooked and undeservedly so is Small Town Massacre (a.k.a Strange Behavior/Dead Kids) from 1981. I know, you are probably wondering what the hell it is, right? Although not scary, it is superbly acted, brilliantly plotted and it boasts a unique retro vibe. The small town community is something that I think really gives it an authentic character. My last is Al Filo Del Hacha (Edge of the Axe) from 1988. This is a no nonsense straight-up slasher flick and probably not so different from the countless others that were made for next to nothing around this time. What makes it stand out though are the characteristic performances, the twist ending and the absolutely gorgeous backdrops.
4. Name three horror movies that you enjoy against your better judgment.
Now this is more my area of expertise. I grew up on rubbish, but charming horror. I love 1988's Blizzards of Blood or Iced as it's more commonly known. The dialogue, personas and attempts to be sinister, whilst failing – drastically, make it all the more fun. It's so unbelievably campy that it will cheer you up quicker than twenty bottles of Prozac. The character of Carl should become like an ambassador for eighties cheese. Next up, Mausoleum from 1983. A terrible, terrible film in every which way but lose, but if you don't get kicks out of seeing a beautiful ex-Playboy centerfold with yapping fangs for breasts, then you're lucky enough to still be very sane. But people, like me, who 'lost it' many moons ago, will be in riddles of laughter all the way through. Last but by no means least, I would have to say Burial Ground from Andrea Bianchi. The gore, the cheese, the bad acting, the kid trying to get it on with his mom! Yes it's all those things and more; a horror flick filled with more funny parts than a Jim Carrey omnibus. In fact, many of the Italian Zombie films from that period were great fun. It wasn't only the stalk and slashers.
5. Send us to five places on the Internet!
VEGAN VOORHEES – A fantastic site dedicated to slasher films, where the authors are always first with the newer entries.
A SLASH ABOVE – Is it egotistical to put my site here? I hope not, but I am concentrating on reviewing the most obscure slashers along with the classics, so maybe you will find something you like there!
THE TERROR TRAP– One of the oldest horror websites on the web and easily one of the best. Intelligently written reviews and a really nice lay out make this one a must.
HORROR.COM FORUMS – Great forum for chatting with other fans of horror. The people logged on are generally full of knowledge and good fun to speak with too.
SLASHER STUDIOS – These guys don't only love slashers, they make slashers too! What more do you need?
Name That Trauma :: Diana L.C. on a Post-Apocalyptic Storybook and More
Hi, yes, I am relatively new fan of your site and I just love the Name That Trauma section. It's just fun to read all the different descriptions and imagine what it was like to see such things as a kid. Well, I have a few entries for you, though they aren't exactly traumas, but they are obscure memories about odd things.
The first one's from my mother:
1. It's a book that she read in elementary school about a boy and his experience in a forbidden area near his village. When he went into the forbidden zone, he ate and drank certain things and experienced flashbacks of how life used to be in this area. He uses terms such as "a horseless chariot" to describe a moving vessel that he witnessed. He also described a similar vessel that moved through the sky. There were also several references to other things that he had never imagined possible. Upon finishing the book, her teacher revealed that the forbidden area was actually ground zero of a nuclear war, and this story was taking place many generations afterward. All the technology (and knowledge of it) of that era was left behind. Throughout the generations, the concept that the area was deadly persisted (after all, it was radioactive), and the people were banned from ever returning. Oh, by the way, the book was written in a way that made it seem like the story was written in the past.
The next ones are from me:
2. There are these scenes from some move or show that I saw as a young one. The first one shows a woman at a beach-like area at nighttime as she is chest deep in a sand pit, screaming and struggling to get out. The next seems to be of the same woman on a boat or something with wind blowing at her. Very vague, I know, but hopefully someone can get something out of it.
3. There was this movie that my second grade teacher showed us. It was about a brother and sister who were home alone when their house gets washed away in a flood. When they wake up, they find the house full of water and a cougar in the closet. Essentially, it's about them trying to survive with a cougar in the house and two thieves that are in the area. If anybody can find it, especially a place where I can watch it, then I will be very grateful.
4. There was a trailer for a low-budget '70s horror movie that featured a young guy who murdered people with an axe. There was this one distinct scene where he murders a black housekeeper in a kitchen stating that "he needs the house." Also, I think the tagline that kept coming up was "Scream Bloody Murder" (that was not the movie's title). Kind of vague, I suppose.
Anyway, if you guys can figure them out, that would be great.
Time After Time (1979) by Kinderpal Mickster
Is TIME AFTER TIME a thriller, a romance, or science fiction? The answer is yes! TIME AFTER TIME (1979) delves into all three genres. I distinctly remember watching TAT on HBO at my older sister's apartment back in 1980. My clearest memories of the film involve Jack the Ripper, of course. I have been fascinated with Jack the Ripper as long as I can remember (see my JACK'S BACK post), so this movie was right up my alley. I received the movie on DVD a couple of years ago and finally got around to revisiting it this summer.
Mickster's Memorable Moments:
*Jack's special pocket watch with his tune for murder.
*Wells finds a young boy (Corey Feldman) at the museum is staring at him.
