the monster club (1980)

"If I may suggest, tomato juice will be less conspicuous."
R.Chetwynd-Hayes (John Carradine), a horror writer bumps into Erasmus (Vincent Price), a very hungry vampire. In return for some blood, Erasmus promises to show ? his club, the 'monster club'. There, inbetween bands, including the Pretty Things, he's told three gruesome stories.
A who's who of horror actors pack out the club and the stories told, in this campy horror anthology.

moon zero two (1969)

"My God, it's so bleak!"
A salvage expert, William H. Kemp (James Olson), is hired by Clementine (Catherine Schell), who is worried about her missing brother, a miner on the far side of the moon. Unknown to the duo is that a gang have bumped him off, as they plan to hijack an asteroid made of sapphire and bring it down on the unfortunate miners land.
A western set in space, with saloon scenes, bar room brawls and mining claims etc. Unfortunately it lacks the wit or flair to pull it off. Added to which the film doesn't know what it wants to be, a drama or a Saturday matinee serial. On the up side its visually stunning - a kitsch feast of bright colours and futuristic fashions.

a night to remember (1958)

"Abandon ship! Every man for himself!"
The first and last fateful voyage of the 'unsinkable' Titanic. This puts a human perspective on the tragic events by introducing the viewer to some of the passengers and crew.
Stands the test of time and gives light to some of the practices that doomed some passengers before the lifeboats were even launched. Fine performances all round including David McCallum, Kenneth More and Hon.or Blackman.

the anniversary (1968)

"Well Terry are you going to please your mother on her anniversary?"
The family gathers for the anniversary of Mrs. Taggart (Bette Davis),a domineering mother who has three sons.
Terry, Henry and Tom (Jack Hedley, James Cossins, and Christian Roberts) all have things they need tell their mother: Tom intends to marry; Terry wants to emigrate to Canada; and Henry is transsexual. Mrs Taggart has one mission in life to keep her sons close to her, and will go to any lengths to do so.
One for Bettie Davis fans, as she trashes everyone and everything, stealing the film with her bitchy self. One liners zing around the set, sit back and watch the battle.

the vault of horror (1973)

"Everything in its place and a place for everything."
Five men enter a lift and end up trapped in a basement vault of an office. Whilst they await rescue they tell the others their nightmares.
A portmanteau horror featuring many a famous face including Denholm Elliott, Tom Baker, Terry Thomas, Curd Jürgens, and Glynis Johns. All in all a great little anthology.

flame in the streets (1961)

John Mills is a union leader in a company who fights to win equal rights for some of his black workforce. His determined efforts win out in the end, but then his daughter tells him that she intends to marry a Caribbean immigrant and his home life becomes strained, especially when it becomes apparent that his wife is racist.
An early 60's example of the racial tensions that were becoming apparent with the Caribbean immigration of the 50's and 60's following the 1959 Notting Hill Riots. The fact that the screenplay has its roots in a stage play is obvious, with long periods of wordplay. Despite its inherent wordiness and characters that are apt to spout polemics at the drop of a hat, this is an assured attempt to address a problem that has never truly gone away.

scars of dracula (1970)

Dracula is back from the undead again. Simon Carlson stumbles upon the village living in fear whilst looking for his brother, who has disappeared. The locals throw him out of the tavern so Simon heads to the castle to see if they know where his brother may have got to.
In this the sixth Hammer Dracula we have the vampire moving closer to the original creature that Bram Stoker dreamed up, with much more to do than snarl, (as was most often the case in previous incarnations). Dracula is also more obviously sadistic and violent than is usually the case, stabbing to death a female vampire and branding his servant with notable glee. While this version of Dracula is a revelation, the film is let down by it's obvious cheapness. Though don't let that put you off, sure the bats are obviously rubbish, but the film is rather better than that. Not the best Dracula, but not the worst either. A good solid Gothic horror.

the legend of the seven golden vampires (1974)

aka 7 Brothers Versus Dracula. 7 Brothers and a Sister Meet Dracula. 7 Brothers of Dracula. 7 Golden Vampires. Dracula and the Seven Golden Vampires. Seven Golden Vampires: The Last Warning. The Last Warning. The Seven Brothers Meer Dracula.
Count Dracula reincarnates in a remote Chinese village with six vampires terrorising the locals. Professor Van Helsing, who is in Chung King on a lecture tour, is persuaded to help a family of martial arts experts to rid the village of the seven vampires and their zombie minions.
Hammer Films teamed up with the Shaw Brothers to mix vampires with martial arts. Again a film that seems to divide people, me I like it for it's interesting new take on the formula. As someone who likes both genre's its great to see the two melded in this way.

the vampire lovers (1970)

"The coffin has gone!"
Part of the Karnstein Trilogy, based on the Le Fanu story Carmilla. It stars Ingrid Pitt as Marcilla, who comes into the the care of Von Spielsdorf (Peter Cushing). She befriends his daughter, but the daughters health rapidly deteriorates. With her death Marcilla mysteriously vanishes, only to turn up at another house as Carmilla, and soon the daughter of this house (Madeline Smith) suffers a similar malaise.
Architypal 70's Hammer when they added nudity to the gothic horror. It has all the classic Hammer trademarks, misty castles, flimsy nightgowns and beautiful female vampires, what's not to like?

and now the screaming starts (1973)

aka Bride of Fengriffen. Fengriffen. I Have No Mouth But I Must Scream.
18th Century England and Catherine (Stephanie Beacham) marries Charles Fengriffen (Ian Ogilvy) and moves into his country estate. From day one she is tormented by visions and a severed hand. Things that seem to revolve around Silas the woodsman and her husband's grandfather. As she seems to descend into madness Dr Pope (Peter Cushing) arrives and is determined to unravel the mystery before it is too late.
This film has it's moments, but for me it unwinds at too slow a pace, and worse, is too well lit at times, which unfortunately dispells any chance of suspence in a number of scenes. So if you come across it then have a watch, just don't go out of your way.

asylum (1972)

aka House of Crazie.
A young doctor arrives at a lunatic asylum and is set the task of interviewing four patients and determining which one was the former head doctor, who has subsequently gone insane. Thus follows four separate stories of various descents into madness. Will the doctor deduce correctly.
Well written and filmed, with stories that are all sufficiently different to maintain your interest and a startlingly nihilistic ending for the period. This is a product of a company that had honed its product and filled it with stars of the day, everyone from Peter Cushing, Charlotte Rampling, Britt Ekland and Richard Todd, amongst others pop up. Whilst there is nothing new here, it is a good solid example of the genre of portmanteau horror.

dr jekyll and sister hyde (1971)

Dr Jekyll decides the secret to prolonging life is female hormones with drastic consequences for himself, his 'sister' and the young female population of Whitechapel. An interesting mix of Stephenson's classic novel, the Jack the Ripper and Burke and Hare stories. This definitely gets more interesting when Martine Beswick pops up as Mrs Hyde.

quatermass and the pit (1967)

aka Five Million Years To Earth.
The third Hammer Quatermass film. This time Quatermass gets irascible when workmen in the London underground discover skeletons of what appear to have been subhuman creatures. Things get even more interesting when they then discover what could be a spaceship.
My favourite of the three Quatermasses is an interesting mix of Sci-fi and horror and wonderful Barbara Shelley.