The House by the Lake, Brenda Vaccaro in a Rape/Revenge Nasty

 A couple of years before "I Spit in Your Grave" hit the drive-ins, our film today hit them. Also called "Dead Weekend," "The House by the Lake" seemed a better title to draw them in at the drive-in. Unlike the aforementioned rape/revenge nasty, this one had a big name cast of actors we recognized and also Brenda Vaccaro as the beset beauty. The level of violence in this one may surpass the Camille Keaton classic, and poor Ms. Vaccaro...as an actress, a lot was asked of her. Let us look at the sometimes hard to watch rape/revenge film from 1976, and shot in Ontario.  Directed by William Fruet, the heavy in this film is masterfully portrayed by Don Stroud.

Diane (Vaccaro), a sultry fashion model/party girl, hooks up with the uber rich Harry (Chuck Shamata). They take his Corvette to his lake house, a massive mansion, away from population. She thinks he's having a party.  Harry is a pervert and jerk. No party, but he does have two-way mirrors to photograph Diane naked in the shower, or changing in her room. Then psycho perverts arrive. Led by Lep (Stroud), also in the group is Runt (Richard Ayres), Frankie (Kyle Edwards), and Stanley (Don Granbery). They bust in and work on humiliating Harry and Diane.  Sadly, Diane will be viciously raped.  Harry, a dentist nerd, is in no position to offer resistance. Diane knows what her fate is and schemes.  Harry begs and cries. Lep and his peeps absolutely destroy the house, breaking everything.  Already having raped Diane, Lep sends Runt into  the bedroom to rape her.

Diane sees opportunity.  Runt is drunk, high on something, and ripe for being cut-up by a psycho-babe. It begins.  Not intending to get raped anymore, and realizing Harry, if he's still alive, will be of no help, Diane turns homicidal.  Poor Runt...his death will not be quick. The others...you may end up feeling sorry for them. Their outcomes will be hard to watch, and pretty but soiled Diane will have no mercy.

Will the brutish and sex-psychopath Lep fall to the pretty fashion model with an attitude?  Will Harry shed his pervert loser existence, develop some manhood, and help Diane? Will Diane castrate any of the men in the mansion?  Brenda Vaccaro turns in a heartbreaking and frightening portrayal of a woman raped who turns into the aggressor.  See "House by the Lake" and see Brenda Vaccaro in a role that will shock you.

Steel and Lace, Sultry Android Murders Rapists

A rape/revenge flick...with an added twist.  The vengeful force is an android.  No, the android did not get raped...though I'm sure that is a plot device coming down the pipe...or down the ethernet cable. What we also have here is the magnum opus for Clare Wren and one of the only, if not only, portrayals of a mad scientist by Bruce Davison.  Alluring and gory, heartbreaking and vicious, let us look at 1990's "Steel and Lace," directed by Ernest Farino.

The lovely concert pianist Gaily (Wren) is gang raped, after she gives a concert, in the back alley of the concert hall.  The slime-bag Daniel (Michael Cerveris) dose the brutal deed as his buddies Tobby (Scott Burkholder), Oscar (Paul Lieber), Norman (Brian Backer), and  Craig (John J. York) hold her down. Brutal. Fast forward to the trial. The wealthy Daniel pays everyone off and is found not guilty. Gaily is so distraught she climbs up the stairway to the roof of the courthouse, and in front of her loving brother Albert (Davison), she hurls herself off to her death several stories down. Sad. Remember, Albert is a mad scientist and he gets busy, as he is distraught over the fate of his sister. Meanwhile, Daniel's company makes him wealthy and he promotes his four accomplices to his partners. Then five years later the partners begin dying horribly.

Yep, she's back. Gaily is no longer human...android, created by Albert.  She doesn't just kill.  She shreds internal organs, crushes heads, uses helicopter blades as weapons, and sucks the life force out of rapists. What a gal. One by one the partners fall. The hunk Detective Dunn (David Naughton) is on the case.  He remembers the rape case and suicide five years ago.  Also on the case is babe reporter/artist Alison (Stacy Haiduk).  She and Dunn will have premarital sex and eventually get on Gaily's trail. Uh oh...Gaily is not just murdering rapists.  She is murdering anyone that witnesses her murdering rapists.  The evil aren't the only ones falling. Albert, who programs the sultry android, does not care.  Uh oh...Gaily starts developing a conscience and wants friends. Yep, it is getting complicated.  The ending is masterful.

Will the sultry Gaily android find love in her new form?  Will Gaily kill all the partners and Daniel, or be stopped before she gets to them all?  If androids could be made that looked like Gaily, would any real college dame ever get a date again? This is an interesting one and as I said earlier, will break your heart and throw a lot of gore at you.  For some vicious and alluring android action, see "Steel and Lace." 

Cursed Waters, A Swashbuckler Horror Film

Sadie Katz is a beautiful actress we don't see enough of. No stranger to playing goddesses, but in our film today, is that what she is? Maybe, but her logic and ethos is one that will be the moral compass of this entire film. If you're right, can you also be wrong?  Can both arguers be right?  Be wrong? Her stated moral relativism sounds good, but so does cannibalism to the one doing the eating. Today we have a swashbuckler with pirates, sea battles, swords, cannonballs, sails, taboo ritualistic killings, etc. Let us look at the newest film from The Mahal Empire, 2026's "Cursed Waters," directed by Adam Werth.

Easy enough to see who the good guys are...right? A pirate ship commanded by the escaped slave Captain Bure (Glenn Plummer). His crew are also freed slaves, escaping from capitalistic and racist tyrannies. The good guys? Maybe. The bad guys, an evil navy ship, the USS Perry. It seeks Captain Plummer's vessel and to return all the slaves to their owners, after all, the slaves are mere property. The ship is headed by naval officers Captain Arnold (Michael Pare) and Commodore Bridger (Greg Tally). The two ships meet off Baja, California, fire at one another, board one another, and have a swashbucklng sword battle. Now both ships are ruined and survivors from both end up on a big island not on any maps.  Right...uh oh! At sea, or stranded on an uncharted island, both groups of survivors keep murdering one another.

Shaw (John Wells) is a hunk pirate who seems to be the voice of reason.  His buddy Drake (BJ Mezek) is his loyal mate.  Kilgore (Wesley Cannon) and his beautiful daughter Flora (Elizabeth Chamberlain) all fight heroically.  Bridger and his men mow down Shaw's people...but then the horror starts.  Beautiful sirens with poison darts murder indiscriminately. Now both sides are on the run and have not figured out they will all die if they do not work together. Kilgore and Flora scamper away on a scouting mission only to come upon what apparently looks like a hippie commune led by Credonia (Katz). She welcomes the pirates...and Kilgore and Flora are suspicious. Smart. Credonia and her people look sweet and nice, and Credonia seems to preach a respect for all and nonviolence. Ha! The blood will now flow freely. The taboo will flood into the plot. Pirates and navy sailors will fall prey to these peaceniks. Most of all, we see neither side, navy or pirate, has a monopoly on goodness and victimhood.  We also see the seemingly happy and nonviolent are anything but.

The morals are clear in this film...you'll see.  It may seem preachy at the outset, but just wait until the second half.  Shaw and his mates will see his real enemies aren't human.  The sailors will see the ones they looked at as mere property are mortals with the capacity for so much good.  The hippie commune crowd? Vicious creatures, you'll see. Even if Credonia is evil, can't we cut her a break because she is a sultry blonde?  Will Credonia and Flora engage in a muddy catfight?  Will the hunk Shaw ultimately secure freedom for beset escaped slave pirates? See "Cursed Waters" and enjoy an epic swashbuckler with a gory horrific plot. See it on Amazon Prime, Fawesome, and other streaming services.  

The Perfect Lover, An Artificial Woman Mate

Yep, after the past 60 years, any reasonable man is eagerly awaiting for the Japanese to invent an AI robot dame. Sultry, doting, and happy.  Once in college, men realize that dames seem to have been put on Earth to file harassment or assault charges against a man who might want to date them.  Can't tell a woman she looks nice without the threat of rape charges being leveled. Sadly for women...their time is coming to an end. Bring on an AI powered robot, or android, or cyborg, or artificial person. No drama...just happiness. But is that true? Today's film from Spain, is 2025's "The Perfect Lover" (aka "Personhood"), directed by Richard Jordan.

Waylen (Eliot Harris) will never get a woman to look at him...other than to laugh or coil in disgust.  He's almost a dwarf and a hunchback.  The computer genius who works from home orders an "artificial person" to serve as his companion...then she arrives.  She?  It? Therein lies the big questions of this film. Gala (Agathe Levi) arrives and she is quite the dish. Programmed to love Waylen and learn about his needs, Gala is sultry and a foot taller than our hunchback protagonist. No matter, she adores him. Sultry in little sun dresses, in leather miniskirts or pants, in a bikini, or nude...Gala is definitely the most beautiful dame in Spain...and she is all into our hunchback friend. Waylen is apprehensive as he is bothered that Gala has been programmed to love him and it is not real. Bingo! But wait!  She's programmed to handle all that and soon, Gala has convinced Waylen her love is genuine.

Uh oh...enter Anders (Alan Emrys)...he's all hunk and Waylen's ne'er-do-well cad of a brother. He is homeless after an orgy gone bad at his place. He is aghast at his brother's new GF and doesn't know she is an "artificial person."  Seeing her, he does find a way to stay around and enjoy the show. Gala will be in a bikini a lot and often swim with Anders.  Now here's where it gets complicated.  Anders enacts a dastardly plan to get Waylen away from the house while he...he...well, it will be a bit more complicated than what you might think.

Does this "artificial babe" really have the capacity to develop true love?  Will Waylen end up having pre-marital sex with the babe robot...excuse me...artificial person?  Exactly what will the evil brother do and will it involve violating the chastity of the babe machine? The ending is a twist, no doubt.  Let's be honest...the appeal of this film is actress Agathe Levi...babe!  She captures the camera and is always sultry.  Robot or not...she will cause you to drool.  See "The Perfect Lover" and hope the Japanese put these robots out soon.

Wounded, Madchen Amick Revenge Fest

It is about time we do another Madchen Amick film. We have not done one since...well...you know. The lovely waitress in "Twin Peaks," Madchen Amick was always that character we wanted to see more of.  She also portrayed the type of waitress we all fantasized about getting when strolling into a diner. Ah, Madchen Amick.  Say the name three times and it will surely bring a smile to your face.  Madchen Amick!  Madchen Amick!  Madchen Amick! Yes, bring me a slice of apple pie, Madchen Amick. You "Twin Peaks" fans understand this semi-insane outburst. Let us look at the 1997 thriller, "Wounded," directed by Richard Martin. Did I mention that Madchen Amick is in this one?

The lovely game warden, Julie (Amick...Madchen Amick), and her lover Don (Richard Joseph Paul), also a game warden, find dozens of murdered bears in the British Columbia wilderness. Poacher Hanaghan (Adrian Pasdar) murders the creatures and sells their parts to foreign buyers. The FBI and other agencies find out about this and send agents to help Julie and Don track this poacher. The poacher, Hanaghan, wins. He uses booby traps, daggers, and hunting rifles to murder his pursuers. He thinks he has murdered Julie, but a medical miracle allows the babe game warden to survive.  Sadly, her lover, Don, is murdered in front of her. Now, after coming out of a coma, and much rehab, Julie emerges suicidal.

Enter Nick Rollins (Graham Greene), an alcoholic burnt out cop. He saves Julie from committing suicide and she moves in with him. Uh oh...Hanaghan does not like loose ends...and Julie is a loose end. He comes into Vancouver and begins hunting her. Still peeved that this creep murdered her lover, Julie arms up and goes full psycho and hunts him, too.  Nick tries to deter Julie as he thinks she has no chance against this psycho poacher. Julie heads into the wilderness to begin her hunt...the bait?  Her.  Hanaghan follows and carnage will ensue.

Will the sweet Madchen Amick be able to convincingly portray a psycho hunter?  Will Julie have a prayer in the wilderness against the psycho poacher?  Would it have been too much to ask David Lynch to have put in a catfight between Madchen Amick's waitress character and Laura Palmer? This is a good one filled with wonderful British Columbia nature scenes...and Madchen Amick going psycho scenes. See "Wounded" and mourn for opportunities lost by the makers of "Twin Peaks."

Fantasies, Suzanne Pleshette in Peril

Suzanne Pleshette!  Though never naked in this one, she is quite the babe. With some smart business attire, or maybe some shiny undies, the beauty with the gravely voice and the shiny lips gives a nice and alluring performance of a damsel in great peril in the ABC TV's movie premiering on January 18, 1982. Her character isn't likable, but because she is quite the babe, we are pulling for her. Let us look at "Fantasies" (aka "Studio Murders"), directed by William Wiard.

Carla (Pleshette) is a TV soap opera writer who has created the adult soap opera "Middletown USA." Think "Peyton Place" meets "Dynasty." Carla is a cold blooded studio exec who has no qualms about killing off characters or writing young actors and actresses out of her show. Then, one by one, the leads in her TV show get murdered in real life. Take a hiatus? No! The show must go on! Using clever writing, no one is missed and other villains are created. Detective Flynn (Barry Newman) is on the case and tries to convince the president of the network, Mr. Girard (Robert Vaughn), to pause the show, but he's all numbers, ratings, and bottom lines. Carla then has a brilliant idea.  She takes the female lead, an actress (Robin Mattson) and turns her from nubile damsel into villain. The actress is impaled that night while making love to her husband...in real life. Flynn and Carla fall in love and Carla tells her ex-husband John (Patrick O'Neil) to get lost.

Suspects? A ton. Enter Roy (Stuart Damon). He starred in the soap until Carla cut him out of the plot. He's still angry and would love to murder Carla. Too easy? Probably. Flynn runs all  the suspects and they all have alibis.  Carla will strip to her undies and try on some clothes...get attacked in her bedroom and the department store, and Flynn will have no luck putting a case together. Pre-marital sex will occur between Flynn and Carla, and the steamy and prurient soap will continue.

Is Flynn, the suave detective, the killer? Should Carla and her stupid soap opera survive?  Is there a chance that ratings will kill the soap before the killer kills Carla? This is a steamy one and the reveal is just as prurient and maniacal as the plot of "Middleton USA."  Enjoy Suzanne Pleshette, and a shiny shade of lipstick she wears throughout the film, and see "Fantasies."

She Devil, From Charity Case to Trollop

Yep, pure trollop. You divorced guys out there will be able to relate to this one. All women, deep down, are trollops! They smile and wriggle their butts at you, and you're hooked.  Then they turn. Yep turn into... trollops! Today we have a "Frankenstein" type story, complete with a mad scientist who falls in love with his creation. Let us look at the sultry Mari Blanchard film from 1957, "She Devil," directed by Kurt Neumann. BTW..."Trollop" is a term used quite freely in this film.

She's not a trollop yet. Nope, now Kyra (Blanchard) is on a hospital bed, dying. Enter the brilliant and handsome Dr. Scott (Jack Kelly). He has created a serum that cures...everything! Broken bones, paralysis, tuberculosis, gashes to the skin, PMS...you name it. He convinces the head of the hospital, Dr. Bach (Albert Dekker), to allow him to use the serum on the lovely dying dame. He does, cures her, and instantly falls in love with her. She is quite the looker. Kyra thanks them and turns evil immediately. As she robs an old man and a department store, Kyra realizes she can now change her appearance at will. The black haired beauty is now blonde, and now Scott loves her even more...sap! Kyra tells the two doctors that she will do anything she has to to secure great wealth and good clothes. The guys then realize the serum has made her a...trollop!

At a ritzy party to raise funds for the new hospital, Bach and Scott invite rich people and Kyra. Kyra sets her sights on Barton (John Archer) and his money. Uh oh...Barton's wife (Fay Baker) slaps Kyra and calls her a trollop. Yep...catfight ensues and the trollop murders the socialite dame...leaving Barton a widower. Now Kyra sets her sights on marrying the millionaire...then...well you can figure it out. Scott, who loves the trollop...well, she is Mari Blanchard...wants her back and tries to reason with the devil woman. She scoffs at Scott and becomes a deadly femme-fatale.  Carnage will be left in her wake and now Scott and Bach realize they need to act to destroy the devil they have created.

Is Kyra a metaphor for any pretty dame out there...nubile and pure one moment...trollop and evil the next? If a devil woman looked like Mari Blanchard, would we be the same suckers Dr. Scott and Dr. Bach were? Just how does a mad scientist get rid of the creation that has become smarter than he? This is an alluring one and Ms. Blanchard's performance is seductive and captures the camera any time she is in a scene. See "She Devil" and be seduced by a trollop that can stir your juices at will. 

Shark Evil, Big Shark vs. Asian Babes

Chinese babes, to be more specific. Yep, the Chinese actresses look great in bikinis, or other swimwear, or tight SCUBA suits...and sadly, some look terrific being eaten by a big Great White. Of note, Fan Dong and Xiaoxuan Wei. Not household names here, but in China? Yep, they'll make billions forget about Mao...or Chiang Kai-shek. Who? Never mind.  The Chinese have made a shark film, that isn't preachy, and throws babes aplenty at us. Hunks? Sure, they're in this too. Let us look at 2023's "Shark Evil" directed by the Frank Capra of Asia, Huanxiang Chen.

Yu Fei (Dong)...babe! Sad babe. She's arranging a party on her yacht. Engagement party for her bestie Tong Yan (Wei) and Wu Liang (Xin Zer Tan). Problem, Yu Fei was once in love with Wu...who wasn't. More drama, Zhang Yi (Xin Cai) arrives with his new GF...the TV spokesmodel Li Qing (Ziling Huang). She's totally superficial but we like her because she looks great in a swimsuit. Yu Fei feels awkward.  She doesn't have a date and everyone else is smooching and feeling one another up.  The good sport that she is, Yu Fei puts on a nice shiny SCUBA suit and all go out into the ocean. The lovebirds, Wu and Tang Yan go jet skiing, while Yu Fei, the spokesmodel, and Zhang Yi go diving. Uh oh...the Great white comes to the divers.  The lovebirds on the jet ski? They find a derelict fishing vessel.

The horror begins. Sadly, our supermodel won't fare well...sad. Mao would have shed a tear, too. Wu and Tong Yan explore the ghost vessel only to find out its horrific past. The shark now, with a supermodel in its belly, wants dessert. The beautiful will be put through the Great White ringer, and the hunks will be forced to show they are not useless.  The former besties, Yu Fei and Tong Yan will be thrown back together to either reconcile and fight the fish...or die. The babes will get pretty inventive as death gets closer.  The fish seems unstoppable.  It'll ultimately be babes vs. monster shark.  Hopefully the babes will have a better track record than the Chinese armed forces.

Will any babe survive to the end credits?  Will any of the hunks in this film do anything even remotely useful? Is there a catfight brewing between the Yu Fei in her SCUBA suit and Tong Yan in her swimsuit? This is a good one.  Cheese and beef are aplenty as the monster shark seeks to eat both. For a terrific shark film, and the one film that captures the ethos of China through the ages, see "Shark Evil."

The Snow Demon, Idiots vs. the Monster

Go monster! From the United Kingdom we have a stirring film about a creature that haunts the frozen tundra of the United Kingdom. Go with it. Sure, the protagonists are silly and annoying, but our demon, or monster, or Yeti, or whatever it is, will be unmerciful. Today we look at 2026's "The Snow Demon," directed by Dominic Nutter.

As our film begins, Lila (Jenny Miller), a babe, is chased through a kind of snowy landscape by a... well... a snow demon.  This grouchy looking monster that looks like a big coyote that stands on its hind legs, is probably as annoyed by the babe as we will be at her friends, that will come look for her.  Demon wins. It claws Lila apart and eats her...just like a man who has had too much to drink at a frat party. One year later, her buddies come to the isolated part of these woods where she was last seen.  They stay at the same cabin they stayed at last year when Lila wandered away not to be seen again. Emma (Francesca Weir) has the brilliant idea that all of them will light candles to show Lila's spirit the way home. Harper (Belle Taylor) is a thin Goth-wannabe who doesn't quite buy this 'show her the way home' strategy. Jade (Gina Smith) has a secret which once revealed will make us yawn. Rhea (Jessie Vinning)...well, she's there too. Oh, Rowan (Ben Maddocks)! He needs a dose of manhood and to stop hanging out with a scrapbooking crowd.

The snow begins to fall and Harper goes for a jog. She meets a folklorist, Owen (Ronny Mendoza) and then watches him get eaten by the demon. She runs back to the cabin in shock, and Rowan takes Jade, or is it Emma, and goes out to see what scared Harper...he'll find it...to his dismay. Now the gals who are left, which include the catatonic Harper, must batten down the hatches of the cabin and survive. Jade sort of takes the lead...and all her ideas are ridiculous.  The demon-thing seems to have the advantage in this war and will end up eating well. Then, as their ranks thin, Jade comes up with more bad plans.

Will any of the babes survive the wrath of this coyote-like thing?  Will these candles ever get lit?  Is there a man around who has some ounce of masculinity that could come by and save the gals and kill the fiendish demon-thing? This is a fun one, in a MST3K sort of way.  See "The Snow Demon" and see just how far the U.K. has fallen under Keir Starmer, or this new Andy Burnham guy.

The Black Demon, Senor Shark

Okay, maybe I have been a bit too cranky of late.  Still, I have to confess...we have another film in which I'm cheering for the monster. Unlikable characters? Yep...but the preachy tone of this one really turns us against the idiots who will be beset by a 200 foot long shark. Oh, as in many modern shark films, homage will be paid to "Jaws" with the classic line, "I got no spit." Of all the lines...but again, I know I'm a bit too grouchy of late. Let us look at the big shark film from 2023, that no one has seen (big surprise there), "The Black Demon," directed by Adrian Grunberg.

The Baja coast of Mexico.  Hopefully soon to be the America Coast of the United States, is suffering as all its fishing villages are destitute. Cartels? No!  See, a giant demon god has been woken up after an American oil company's oil rig has leaked. Now the demon shark monster is inflicting carnage on all responsible. Enter the  oil company scientist Paul (Josh Lucas). He is assigned to inspect the rig and close it down.  With him are his insufferable family, a Mexican babe wife Ines (Fernanda Urrejola), and two snotty kids (Carlos Solorzano and Venus Ariel). Oh the horrors created by the inane idea of "Bring Your Kids to Work Day." Yep, don't ask, but the family ends up in the rig with Paul...and they are annoying. Everyone on the rig is now in the sea in many pieces.  Only two are left on the rig, the machete wielding Chato (Julio Cesar Cedillo) and Junior (Jorge Jimenez).

Paul is told that because the rig has ruined the environment, the big shark has been sent by some obscure god to wreak vengeance on any human that has ruined the environment. Yawn. The shark attacks the rig with hopes of bringing it down.  Paul and Chato work to secure the rig, get the power back on, and contact someone on shore to come rescue them. Ines and the kids get in the way of the plot and serve to slow it way down...as the kids do at work in those insufferable "Bring Your Kids to Work Days" do. The shark keeps attacking and also eating any boat that could rescue the family and the two Mexican brutes. Feeling guilty about ruining the environment, Paul works to save everyone on board, even his lead weight of a family, and also to bring to light what his oil company has done to the waters off Baja...which we will call the America Coast.  Go ahead say it!  

Will Paul be able to save his family or will the big shark, mercifully, eat them all?  If Mexico refuses to clean up the drug cartels, should anyone feel bad about some leaked oil on the America coast? Will the demon shark take Paul's family as a sacrifice to stop terrorizing the rig?  We can only hope. This is a fun one and big shark movies always have appeal.  For a fun viewing experience, practice saying "America Coast" and see "The Black Demon."

The Flying Serpent, The Reptile-Bird-Vampire Thing

We have been asking for this our whole lives. A definitive movie about Montezuma's Revenge. When the Aztecs go down to defeat at the hands of savages, they no doubt conjure up some of their gods. Enter Quetzalcoatl. Humongous and thunderous creature?  As big as Godzilla or Rodan?  Breathes fire? Well, not quite. Special f/x budgets don't always allow the vengeful gods that we actually need. Let us look at the 1946 film "The Flying Serpent," directed by Sam Newfield.

Professor Forbes (George Zucco) is an evil archaeologist who is into cultural appropriation. He finds the Aztec temple that houses the great god, or at least pretty good god, Quetzalcoatl.  We'll call this deity Q. Yep, in the middle of New Mexico he has excavated Montezuma's lost city and found Montezuma's hidden treasure. Now he wants it all for himself. When anyone gets close to his secret, he lets Q loose from his cage to go kill him. Q? Yep, big bird, though not too big. Maybe five feet long. The bird attacks the necks of Forbes' enemies and drinks their blood, then flies back to the cage. Enter investigative reporter Richard Thorpe (Ralph Lewis). He flies in from New York when he hears about all these ripped apart peeps people in New Mexico. He even begins romancing Forbes' stepdaughter, Mary (Hope "Delayed Disappointment" Kramer). They get real sweet on one another.

Forbes senses Richard is getting at the truth.  Richard is, and now our reporter from NYC figures Forbes is murdering all his competitors. Forbes gets reckless and even has his god-bird murder the cops and other media types who are interested in this story. Richard is fearless and Mary is now in love with him. Sensing Mary can be a big help to Richard in uncovering the truth, Forbes now sets his sights on setting Q on the lovely damsel.

Will Richard be able to protect Mary from the vampire-bird-god?  Will Forbes ever overestimate the loyalty of this underwhelming deity?  If the Aztecs were anywhere as powerful as we're told, why did they just disappear into nothing?  Instead of finding a virgin sacrifice to attend, see "The Flying Serpent" for some terrific B monster movie fun. 

Grizzly Attack, Bear vs. Grouches

Go bear! Yep, another one in which we are rooting for the creature.  In this gritty realistic horror flick, a monster grizzly bear terrorizes a campsite in...the United Kingdom! Just go with it.  In a film that makes us pine for the days of MST3K with Joel and the 'bots, we have the most unlikable characters and a CGI bear. There will be honey.  There will be paint.  There will be bickering.  There will be kerosene and grief. Let us look at 2026's "Grizzly Attack," directed by Peter Borak.

A family grieves the loss of dad. After a few minutes we realize dad was lucky to die in order to get away from this family. Margaret (Jodyanne Richardson) is the mom. She has this look on her face that we just want to smack. Anna (Holly Mae Jackson) is the teen daughter that shows us all why young men have stopped dating in favor of porn. Then there is son David (Jack Hyde). He yells a lot. Then there is son Ethan, who is really stupid and we pray he gets eaten first. Yep, this family heads to the woods to stay in a cabin and remember dad. They bicker the entire time. Then the bear show up.

The bear is a grizzly and has a soft moan and even the CGI can't make it look scary. Our fear is that it may lose interest in this family and let them live. Fortunately the bear does attack and one by one eats these grouches. I will say there is a fiery death scene that really does warm out hearts. Plans for survival? They come up with them. What they are is a mystery and won't work. The bear keeps coming back . Anna keeps waxing poetic and lets us know the cabin smells of old firewood and regret. Later she lets us know it smells like grief and kerosene. Hopefully, Anna smells like dinner for the bear.

Do any of these family members survive the wrath of the CGI bear...and should they? Will Anna give her nose a rest and actually try to figure out some plan that has some level of intelligence behind it? Will the bear wipe the mom's stupid grin off her face, or wipe the entire face off? This is a fun one in a MST3K type of way. Hey, it's better than anything Harrison Ford has done over the past 40 years. See "Grizzly Attack," and cheer at the carnage.  

Come and Get Me, Psychos vs. Aussie Babes

This may be the most depraved film ever from Australia...or of the 21st century.  The film can boast of a beautiful set of actresses, and some psycho males that will shred them, or try to. Depraved.  Misogynistic. Torture-Porn. Ominous.  Gratuitous. Lacking any humor or respite.  For those who like their horror horrific, we have one for you today. Warning, it won't be easy to watch what complete nutcases do to some very attractive Australian babes. Our feature today is 2011's "Come and Get Me," directed by Chris Sun.

Three complete psychos. Johnny (Christian Radford), Bretto (Shaun Trainer), and William (Christopher Price) abduct babes, then hunt them.  The hunts never last long and result in brutal rapes, and then the gals are butchered into little pieces. The first hunt we see is the lovely Kate (Jess Taylor), and it will not be easy to watch. Elongated. Brutal. Gory. Okay, four sultry Aussie party girls come to Brisbane for nightclubbing. Brisbane? Yeah, kind of like Terre Haute without the glitz. The sultry Gemma (Allira Jacques), Susan (Sarah Jane Blair), Michelle (Alexis Fernandez), and Leah (Kelsie McDonald) are each looking fine and drinking a lot.  Yep...the aforementioned groups are going to meet up...and it won't be pretty.

We don't like any of the gals when we first meet them.  Sadly, what happens to them will still be difficult to watch.  The first kill is brutal and gory, and internal organs will pour out.  Now the surviving gals are on the run through the woods and the three killers are close behind. The gals will fight for their lives.  Humiliation, rape, and disembowelment await them if they fail.  William, Bretto, and Johnny will make sure rape precedes, and follows the murders if they catch the beauties. What unfolds will be shocking, cause you to look away from the screen, and absolutely break your heart. Vicious and at no point will any of these babes receive a break.

Will any of the beauties survive this trio of psychos?  Will any of the psychos fall in their quest for rape and murder? Will this film end any kind of partying tourism Brisbane had enjoyed? Be warned, "I Spit on Your Grave" was a Disney classic compared to this gore-fest.  For an exercise in extreme horror, see "Come and Get Me." 

How Awful About Allan, Psycho-Lite

Anthony Perkins! Yep, in a movie where he plays an unstable young man, sent to a mental institution after maybe committing a murder. Then some psychiatrist, ill informed, releases him...then he heads back to the house which is the scene of the crime? "Psycho"? No! Today we look at the ABC Movie of the Week for September 22, 1970. Oh, you'll like this...an Aaron Spelling presentation! Let us look at "How Awful About Allan," directed by Curtis Harrington.

Allan lives in a big house with his sister Katherine (Julie Harris) and father. A fire occurs in the middle of the night and Allan rushes into his dad's room only to freeze as his dad is engulfed with flames. Katherine rushes in next, sees Allan has frozen, and tries to save the dad....her face is burned to a crisp as she does, leaving her scarred for life. Allan emerges blind.  His blindness is purely psychological and he is sent to an insane asylum. Now he gets out and does not appear happy to be sent back home to be cared for by his sister, Katherine. Katherine believes Allan still belongs in the looney bin.  Olive (Joan Hackett) is sweet on Allan and is the neighbor. She is happy to see Allan, but Allan doesn't feel like socializing. Allan is hostile to Katherine. She was always daddy's favorite and her and the dad may have been a lot closer than they should have been.

Allan never liked his dad and Katherine believes Allan could have saved him that fateful night. Olive? She's happy to see Allan and desires a romantic relationship with him.  Then Katherine allows borders in the house. The borders? Supposedly they are students form the college but Allan believes Katherine has brought her lover into the home to murder him. Paranoid to the max, Allan thinks there is a presence in the house, that may be a ghost, or a border, that is trying to murder him.  Allan seemingly gets increasingly unwound and Katherine begins making arrangements to send him back to the nuthouse.

Is Allan correct, that Katherine is trying to murder him?  Is Olive in on the plot?  Will Allan regain his sight just in time to see the axe come down on his head? Allan's sanity is in question for the entire film and the ending will be haunting.  For a thriller that stays low-key, but builds to an uneasy conclusion, see "How Awful About Allan."  

Tailgate, The Dutch Exterminator

Dutch horror films? "Amsterdamned" is the one that comes immediately to mind. Well, we have another. Yep, a weird one that is kind of icky. Perhaps a ballad on politeness, as rudeness is what sets the psycho off in this one. The protagonist? We don't like him. We kind of see the psycho's point of view.  Not that we condone the horrific stuff that he does, but as with much of western Europe, their arrogance is not their friend. Let us look at a 2019 film from The Netherlands, "Tailgate" (aka "Bumperkleef"), directed by Lodewijk Crijns.

As our film begins, Ed, a humongous exterminator in a white van chases down a bicyclist, mows him down, and fills him up with rat poison. You know the Dutch. Apparently the bicyclist was rude to him and cut him off on the road. Fast forward, the twerp Hans (Jeroen Spitzenberger) is herding his snotty family into the family Volvo (I know, you hate them already). His grouchy wife, Diana (Anniek Pheifer), yells at him nonstop.  His two snotty little girls (Liz Vergeer and Roosmarijn van der Hoek) bicker constantly. Late, Hans speeds in traffic and tailgates Ed and his white van. Ed goes psycho and begins terrorizing the family on the road.  The hulking Ed looks to be almost seven feet tall, and when he dons his white HAZMAT suit, and straps on his tank of rat poison, well, it's pretty scary...or as scary as you are going to get in Holland.

He sprays the family and is bent on teaching Hans and Diana manners. The kids scream in horror.  Both Hans and Diana seem to unravel as Ed continues his pursuit. Uh oh...Ed has stolen Hans' phone and knows where his parents live.  Hans' parents are battling dementia and when Ed shows up at their home, more horror. Now Hans' and family arrive at the grandparents house and do not know Ed and his rat poison have beaten him and his family there. An awkward and twisted war develops and Hans will really be put through the ringer as his snotty family is of little help.

Will Hans, and his family, survive the psycho who merely seeks politeness?  Is Ed's evil methods to instill niceness a metaphor for the iron hand used by the European Union to redefine western morality? Will Diana ever shut up and let her husband enjoy a moment of peace? This is a weird one and the villain is ominous and big.  For something a little different, from Europe, see "Tailgate." 

Green Room, Punk Rock Band Shredded

Punk Rock bands don't make the kind of victims that we pull for.  They have no talent and most are high on whatever they can shoot.  Still, by the end of this film, we are pulling for them.  Sure, not as a punk rock  band but as losers in life.  The underdog. The much heralded 2015 film we will look at today is a gore-fest, and even stars that "Star Trek" guy...the bald grouchy guy.  Our film today is "Green Room," directed by Jeremy Soulnier.

The Ain't Rights are the aforementioned band. Not much talent, but they have taken their van across country to play in gigs...that net them only a few measly dollars.  After earning only $6 at their last gig, they drive down near Portland and play at some dive filled with skinheads and neo-National Socialists. It goes...okay.  The crowd got down for their music, and even liked one of them. Pat (Anton Yelchin) is the lead singer and Sam (Alia Shawkat) is the manager. On the way out of the green room the band sees Emily (Taylor Tunes) knifed in the head by Justin (Eric Edelstein). Justin is a big one and holds the band in the room at gunpoint. Uh oh...a lot is going on at this dive bar and the owner, Darcy (Patrick Stewart) is called to manage the clean-up. Clean-up? Yeah...get rid of witnesses and preserve the operation being undertaken in the basement. 

Now Darcy wants the band to come out of the room.  Pat has gotten the gun away from Justin. Uh oh, Emily's bestie, Amber the skinhead babe (Imogen Poots) is also in the room, and she's psycho. Upset at what Justin did to Emily, she...well, it is pretty gory, you'll see. Darcy mobilizes his skinheads and neo-National Socialists to raid the green room, which is locked and barricaded. War ensues. Guns. Machetes. Boxcutters. Fire extinguishers. Attack dogs. You name it. Darcy has a lot to lose if The Ain't Rights get away.  Pat and his band have even more to lose.  Blood will be shed.  Limbs will be destroyed.  Throats will be ripped out. All very yucky.

Do our underdogs have a prayer against an army of skinheads? Will Pat develop a third chord, thus maybe gaining some talent?  Can Pat trust psycho Amber as his band wages war against the neo-National Socialists?  "Green Room" is an ominous one, with much gore, and some heartbreaking deaths.  For a good metaphor of the fate of most Punk Rock bands, see "Green Room." 

American Driller Killer, America's Bloody Decay

Detroit...Washington, DC...Memphis...Baltimore...Philadelphia...Louisville...Atlanta...New York City...Los Angeles...Chicago...take your pick. Arguably, the aforementioned cities can be termed s**t holes. The original title of 2020's "American Driller Killer" was "Detroit Driller Killer," but most major American cities can fit the bill of the setting for this vicious film with an extraordinarily high kill count. The decay of the American city's, if anyone's fault, is the fault of all of us. No elected pol in any of these cities has the brains nor desire to fix them. As Americans continue to get mowed down in these places, at a much higher rate than the Afghanistan death count, perhaps this film by Matt Jassle  should be required viewing.

Reno (Justin Scro) is a loser who can't find a job. He writes screenplays. When the job he lands, to write the script for "Cannibal Inferno," falls through...he goes berserk. First up, after buying a power drill, is his nagging wife Carol (Alyssa Rose Schultz). He'll store her body in the shower and keep talking to her. Reno then goes out for a walk/spree. During this spree he will drill to death hookers, a mugger, and a guy wielding a baseball bat. His rampage will continue the next day after talking to the voices in his head. The punk band Splooge will be drilled.

Reno's victims don't draw much sympathy from us. They are the dregs of society...the creatures that have taken over the inner cities. It is easy to fall into that trap...and we do. You know...that trap when we believe not all human life is sacred...you don't have to admit that out loud. Then, two decent folk get it...and this serves as a wake-up call...perhaps their is something precious  about human life. After these two heartbreaking killings, we the viewer have sobered up. The trash Reno is cleaning off the Detroit streets all of a sudden are human beings to us. Humans with potential for good. This doesn't matter to Reno as the bulk of his murders are ahead.

What will Reno's ultimate death count be as the final credits roll? Is there anything in Reno's hatred that perhaps we can identify in ourselves? Is there any hope for the urban decay that has destroyed our major cities? These aren't rhetoric questions but you can answer them in private. Vicious, grim, gory, and ominous, "American Driller Killer" may be an American parable, or a warning with a call to goodness.