Scott of EurocultAV.com and I had such a blast at our first movie party that we are having another one! Here are some choice moments from Twitter while we watched Pieces. We used #piecesofgeorge to mark this historic event. Here are some choice moments:
We are going to do this again with the essential Paul Naschy film: Werewolf Shadow. At the stroke of midnight (Eastern Central Time) on January 31st, start the film and join us on Twitter so we can frolic in the slow motion vampires and sexual power of Waldemar Daninsky. This time, use #NaschyShadow to be a part of the fun. Be sure to follow us on Twitter: @EuroCultAV and @doomedmoviethon and we'll see you on January 31st!
This is it, folks! The second issue of Fang of Joy: Eurohorror and Giallo Zine is finally ready for you. In this issue we cover subjects like Paul Naschy in Fury of the Wolfman, Blue Eyes of the Broken Doll, The People Who Own the Dark, and Frankenstein's Bloody Terror; Werner Herzog's Nosferatu; Pete Walker's Frightmare; Michele Soavi's The Sect; the George Romero-inspired Italian Zombie series; Umberto Lenzi's Nightmare Beach; the infamous slasher Pieces coupled with Sergio Martino's Torso; Dog Soldiers. Not enough for you? Good because there's more! This issue features an interview with Italian cinema master Ruggero Deodato and an interview with the German morbid-king Jörg Buttgereit. There's even an Essential Giallo Checklist- have you seen them all? Every issue comes with a free Doomed Moviethon sticker.
Want to trade horror movie zines? Or you don't use eBay? Email me: doomedmoviethon(at)gmail.com and we'll work something out.
My good friend Brad Hogue watched a whole mess of Naschy. Here's what he had to say about it:
I recently watched Paul Naschy's Waldemar Daninsky El Hombre Lobo series of wolfman films from 1968-1980. Friday night we watched Mark Of The Wolfman, Assignment Terror, and Fury Of The Wolfman. Saturday we wrapped up with Werewolf Shadow, Dr. Jekyll And The Wolfman, Curse Of The Devil, Night Of The Howling Beast, and Night Of The Werewolf. We watched them in chronological order according to Wikipedia (dates differ on different sites.) PLEASE NOTE: There are some minor spoilers ahead.
Seeing these films back to back for the first time has led me to a conclusion that I hadn't really formulated before. Naschy never told a simple werewolf-on-the-rampage story. He didn't remake The Wolfman over and over. In fact, he never remade The Wolfman at all. Naschy's interest was with Frankenstein Versus The Wolfman and a love of the monster rally films from the 40's. There is plenty to say about these films but I want to focus on some of the different 'monsters' in the films.
In 1968's Mark of The Wolfman (also known as Frankenstein's Bloody Terror) you have him being bitten by another werewolf but it's not the story of him trying to be cured by itself; you have the introduction of two vampires. 1969's Assignment Terror has aliens, a vampire, a mummy, and a Frankenstein's monster variant. 1970's Fury Of The Wolfman includes suspect pseudoscience, a female werewolf, plant people, insane hippies, and a Phantom Of The Opera-style masked madman. Later the same year Werewolf Shadow showcased Daninsky vs. Countess De Nadasady, a vampire stand in for Countess Bathory, and a zombie monk. 1971's Dr. Jekyll And The Wolfman features not a showdown between Daninsky and Mr. Hyde but Daninsky being a wolfman AND Mr. Hyde. 1972's Curse Of The Devil, perhaps the closest Naschy comes in this period to a wolfman-on-the-rampage film, still manages to include a gypsy curse and an axe murderer. 1975's Night Of The Howling Beast folds two cannibalistic, vampirish sisters, a fradulent witch in the employ of a bandit warlord, and a yeti. 1980's Night Of The Werewolf is a remake of sorts of Werewolf Shadow with Daninsky facing off once again with Countess De Nadasady and a bevy of vampires.
The Daninsky series is both reflective of the times and contain throwbacks to earlier styles and genre filmmaking. Mark Of The Wolfman could be seen as a Hammer style horror film while Night Of The Howling Beast is a pulpy, serial style film. Werewolf Shadow is a fun, fast paced film whereas Curse Of The Devil is a more somber period piece. It is a testament to Naschy that he was able to write screenplays that fit into many different sub genres. Perhaps that versatility, his love of the genre, and his strong screen presence were major factors in the longevity of the series.
My wife and I compiled a list of our favorites based on only this viewing of the films.
Elizabeth
1. Curse Of The Devil
2. Night Of The Werewolf
3. Mark of The Wolfman
4. Werewolf Shadow
5. Night Of The Howling Beast
6. Dr. Jekyll And The Wolfman
7. Fury Of The Wolfman
8. Assignment Terror
Brad
1. Night Of The Werewolf
2. Assignment Terror
3. Curse Of The Devil
4. Mark Of The Wolfman
5. Dr. Jekyll And The Wolfman
6. Werewolf Shadow
7. Night Of The Howling Beast
8. Fury Of The Wolfman
My good friend and Doomed Moviethon Junior Assistant Staff Writer, Brad Hogue, sent me a photo of his birthday cake. That's right, his wife Elizabeth surprised him with this magnificent cake when he came home from work the other night. Happy birthday, Brad, you magnificent bastard. I hope you bit the throat right out of that bad ass cake!
It’s an all out Naschy Blog-a-thon over at Mad Mad Mad Mad Movies and I was very graciously invited to participate. So here I am, trying to think of something to say on this very awesome subject. I wish I could say that I’ve been into the films of Paul Naschy since back in the day but sadly, I can’t. It wasn’t until about a year after my reconnection (“reembracement” is NOT a word, duder) to the world of horror that I found out about Jacinto Molina and his life as a werewolf and other monsters in front of (and behind) the camera.
I’ve had man-crushes before but damn y’all, this is for real. Being that I am a fat, breathless, and weakling loser-face, I am just astounded by Mr. Naschy’s screen presence. The duder was larger than life. His bodybuilding days weren’t too far behind his film career and there are a few films where Naschy is just plain ripped. Let’s face it, the guy was a movie star and the world sucks without him in it.
For fans of either 1970s or European horror films, it isn’t long before one stumbles upon something magnificent and cheesy like Werewolf Shadow. This is how I discovered Paul Naschy. And I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Nothing I had read could have prepared me for what I was about to see. Director Leon Klimovsky and his star create a strange and mesmerizing concoction of undeniable atmosphere and straight-faced camp.
Horror Rises From the Tomb was soon to follow. This one is my favorite Paul Naschy film of all time. I’ve watched it over and over again and I can’t shake the feeling that maybe seeing this film is the reason I was put on this planet. Cool, I can die now. Bye bye, everybody. But wait, there’s more. I kind of liked Curse of the Devil but I was a little disappointed the first time around. My second viewing proved to me, not for the first time, that I had my head up my butt. Curse of the Devil rules. Deal with it.
My only speed-bump on my journey down Naschy Street is Crimson. I hate this fucking movie. I bought it because the DVD was cheap and I got rid of it as quickly as possible. Is there a chance that I need to revisit this film? I don’t care. You can’t make me watch it again. No sir, uh uh. It has all the elements for a trashy good time but sometimes a film rubs you the wrong way and there’s no going back.
I was back on track by the time I witnessed Night of the Werewolf and Exorcism. I love Exorcist-clones, so Naschy playing a priest who has to save a young lady from possession is right up my alley. A great movie? Not really. But Exorcism does contain enough cackling insanity and head-scratching plot twists to make any bad film buff happy. Night of the Werewolf on the other hand, is just awesome all the way around. It’s sort of like a remake of Werewolf Shadow but with more blood and hotter women.
Some strange Naschy-ness came to me in the form of People Who Own the Dark. This post-apocalyptic freakout is more about how human beings pretty much totally suck than it is about a bunch of murderous blind people driven mad by nuclear radiation. Paul Naschy plays one of the survivors of the bomb and he is a total dick. When I think of this movie, I always thinks of it as the one where Paul Naschy plays a dick.
Now don’t get me wrong, anti-heroes were this duder’s specialty. Just watch Human Beasts sometime and tell me how in the world are we supposed to like his character? Or Blue Eyes of the Broken Doll; in this Spanish giallo, Naschy plays a friggin’ murderer who can barely contain his strangling desires when he gets aroused by a woman.
Speaking of the giallo genre, Naschy was in the problematic though occasionally entertaining 7 Murders for Scotland Yard where he plays a circus performer who after a “career ruining” injury, takes up drinking and is accused of being a modern day Jack the Ripper. The film is silly and mostly nonsense but the ending delivers. And while I’m on a silly tangent, there’s always Vengeance of the Zombies where Naschy plays an Indian mystic named Krishna. He also plays the friggin’ devil. How bad ass is that?
A couple of the more obscure Naschy titles that have surfaced recently, The Hanging Woman and The Hunchback of the Morgue, are the cat’s pajamas. In the former, Naschy doesn’t have a very big part. But he makes the most of it and it’s another atmospheric and odd film for his catalog of horrors. Released the same year is The Hunchback of the Morgue, which is pretty much a perfect part and a perfect performance from our guy. The film is a gory hodgepodge of ideas and Naschy gets the juiciest role as the hunchback in the title, an outcast driven by impossible love and manipulated by evil.
Naschy wasn't content with just playing the werewolf either. He has also played a mummy in Vengeance of the Mummy and a vampire in Count Dracula's Great Love both to great success. Well, "great success might" not be the right term. Maybe he played them both to fan appreciation. Because I friggin' love those flicks.
I’ve seen quite a few Naschy films and luckily, I have many more to go. I feel special, like I’m in some secret club that I want everyone to know about. You say you’re not a “Naschy type” of person? You think his movies are overhyped, boring, stupid, or not important? Just keep watching them, duder. And after you’ve seen about 10 or 12 of his films, let me know if you still don’t like Paul Naschy and I just might consider letting you off the hook.
I’m always hesitant to do top 5 or top 10 or top 31.14 lists because for one thing, it’s going to be slightly different a month (or less) from now anyway because I’m a fickle beyatch. And for another thing, as I start putting a list together, I immediately start concocting subgenre lists. It’s a pretty nerve-racking process to stay within the confines of the “favorite”, the “top #”, and whatever genre or subgenre I’m talking about. I also feel that if you guys see my pathetic list, you’ll laugh, guffaw, or snicker and then never come back. Please baby please, don’t burn my blog down to the ground!
All of the following films improve (at least in my eyes) with multiple viewings. I can pretty much put any of these on at any time and be completely content. Even if their logic fails under a scrutinizing eye, their entertainment value rarely wavers. I can watch these movies in a room full of haters and come away blissfully unscathed. This is a top 10 list of movies that are very important to me. This list is subject to change and whimsy. In some cases, I have already written about these films in other places on the site or on the blog so links have been provided. Anyway, I hope you dig it.
# 10 – Sorority Babes in the Slimeball Bowl-O-Rama
Is this list set on reverse? How come this isn’t number freakin’ one, dawg? I first heard about Sorority Babes in the Slimeball Bowl-O-Rama on the “This is Horror” series back in the late 80s. Unable to remember the ridiculously long title and having never stumbled across the VHS back in the day, it was many years before SOBASLIBABO finally entered my life on a budget DVD. All I really could remember from the clips was that some hot babes with bad attitudes where kicking each other’s asses. Granted, there is some hot babeness and some ass kickery but this flick is so much more than that.
I knew of Linnea Quigley from Night of the Demons and Return of the Living Dead but it’s in this film that she really captured my heart. Her character, Spider, is the woman of my dreams. No, not those dreams. The other ones, dang it. She could make a zero into a hero and that’s just what she does. I’m not talking about the movie either. I’m talking about myself. I’ve shown this film to many people and they all have groaned and asked me foolish questions like “Why?” and “Do you actually think this is a good movie?” My answer to both questions is always the same: “Because.” I guess that doesn’t really answer both questions but seriously SOBABLIBABO is quite the broken 80s masterpiece.
Zeder is and forever shall be. When I was a kid, I first saw this film under its Revenge of the Dead title and very misleading cover art. The VHS artwork for Zeder is more appropriate for one of the Return of the Living Dead films. It promised me rotting zombies bursting out of the sewers. Yeah, that don’t happen, duder. Zeder is so fucking weird that I can’t help but admire the distributors for their blatant lie. It made me rent the movie. And in the end, I was more perplexed and intrigued than disappointed.
I am pretty fascinated by Italian horror movies (no way, are you for reals?) and oddities like Zeder just knock me out. This film is tense, strange, brutally violent, and subtly terrifying. Its darkness will remain with you for days, months, and years. My heart is racing just thinking about it. Okay, maybe I need to see a doctor about that. Pushing these keys is awfully strenuous. Much like director Pupi Avati’s giallo masterpiece, The House with the Laughing Windows, I will defend Zeder against any negative criticism from any disappointed viewer. Hopefully, I won’t come off as a condescending douchebag. Oops, too late. Renting this film in my youth was very important. It is one of the reasons that I am as insane about horror movies as I am today.
Out of all of the films in Mario Bava’s spectacular body of work, Lisa and the Devil just gets to me. It’s super-dreamy and perfectly morbid. I’ve still never seen the abominable thing it became, The House of Exorcism, in its entirety. I guess one day I’ll have to suck it up and actually watch the Exorcist rip-off in all of its glory. Satan knows, I loves me an Exorcist clone. If you don’t know the story, the film premiered as Lisa and the Devil for limited audiences. The studio panicked because let’s face it, Bava made a crazy friggin’ movie. So the film got shelved and a few years later, the studio asked for some exorcism scenes which Bava reluctantly agreed to film. And thus, House of Exorcism was born and its very existence just ticks me off.
Beautiful ladies in tha house. Elke Sommer and Sylva Koscina compete for the most beautiful woman in this film and I don’t know who wins. I just don’t know. Of course, I’m avoiding the big issue here: Telly frickin’ Savalas! The guy is in this film all pre-Kojak and shit and just steals every single scene that he’s in. There’s so much delirium and artful wackiness going on that Lisa and the Devil gets better with every viewing. Now it is dreamlike and a bit sleepy so don’t get all pissy with me if you think it’s “boring” or whatever. All I’m saying is if you love Italian horror (or you’re just curious) and you haven’t already seen this film then you need to ASAP.
Lisa and the Devil was the final film I watched during BAVADOOM.
# 7 – Horror Rises from the Tomb
When Paul Naschy died last year, I didn’t want to say anything for fear of sounding trite and silly. This is going to sound stupid but I felt pretty fucked up about it. For some reason, it felt like a real heroic duder was gone too soon. And it seemed like he was finally getting the recognition he deserved too, at least here in the States. When I was a kid going through VHS in the stores, his name never came up. In fact, it wasn’t until I happened upon Anchor Bay’s DVD of Werewolf Shadow that I’d even heard of the guy. The more I pursued his films, the more friggin’ amazing shit I found. Okay, so Crimson was fucking wretched but damn y’all, Naschy made so many great movies.
It didn’t take me long to find out which of Naschy’s films was my favorite. Werewolf Shadow almost makes the grade but I had to choose which one knocked it out of the park. Horror Rises from the Tomb is that movie. It’s gore and a séance and boobs and some more boobs and- But seriously, the suped up chintzy organ soundtrack, the shameless cheesiness, and the cold, desolated atmosphere alone are enough to make this a favorite. Also, this flick is a perfect starting point for folks thinking of checking out bad ass 70s Spanish horror flicks or somebody who doesn’t know jack about the man, the myth, the legend: Paul Naschy.
There’s more about my undying and unholy love for this film right here.
# 6 – Re-Animator
While Hellraiser and its first sequel were instrumental in turning me into a gorehound, I have to say that Re-Animator charms its way onto my top 10 list for a number of reasons. As far as films that push the boundaries of bad taste, well you don’t have to look much farther than this flick right here. I also admire this film for creeping me out more each time I watch it. Those that are re-animated by Dr. Herbert West’s serum are more disturbing to me than the undead of your average zombie movie. They are unpredictable, angry, and really fucking strong. I know I complain about fast-moving zombies in other horror films but these creatures are powered by Lovecraftian molecules so it makes more sense!
Oh yeah. This movie is friggin’ gross. If you want to get desensitized to gore real quick, pop this little number into your DVD player, duder. You’ll have the intestinal fortitude of an ER nurse in no time. I appreciate the rotten and irreverent mood of Re-Animator. The images playing about before me reek of formaldehyde and drying blood. This film introduced me to both its star Jeffrey Combs and its director Stuart Gordon and I’ve never been the same since. As I mentioned a moment ago, any film that gets scarier with repeat viewings is pretty bad ass. Somehow watching this movie as a kid was less frightening than it is to watch as an adult. For instance, the original Nightmare on Elm Street was a walk in the park when I was 9 but was somehow it became more terrifying at age 14. Go figure. Re-Animator is sitting on my DVD shelf right now, taunting me: "Scaredy cat! Scaredy cat! You are a scaredy cat! FLYING INTESTINES GOOOOOOOOOO!"
# 5 – Slumber Party Massacre
I love slasher movies. I really, really love slasher movies. And Slumber Party Massacre slays me so completely that no other slasher films make my top 10 list. I have totally adored this movie upon my first viewing when I bought it unseen from Suncoast Video for $5.99 or something back in 2003. I’m not sure how it happened but this silly and fun film became essential viewing for my wife and me every Halloween. This film has nothing to do with the holiday whatsoever but damn it all, that is what we do every Halloween no matter what.
Slumber Party Massacre is a very weak attempt (like a joke really) to subvert the charge that slasher movies are sexist. So the producers get an all female writing and directing team together and they try to make a feminist slasher movie. Do they succeed? Well, it’s either a massive success or a miserable failure. Sure, all of the male characters are total putzes but the gratuitous nude scenes (female only) make me think that the dudes win in the end. This is one of those rare body count movies where I like all of the characters. Everyone in this movie is essential. The bratty sister, the wise black chick, the chick whose dead body gets stuffed in the refrigerator, the mopey main chick, and of course, the power-drill wielding killer are all integral to one’s enjoyment of Slumber Party Massacre. Watch this with lots of friends and drinks. You will not be disappointed.
# 4 – Masque of the Red Death
If it weren’t for Masque of the Red Death, it would have been years before I ever gave old horror movies a chance. In case you haven’t noticed from my choice of movies that I ramble about on this blog, I’m kind of an ass when it comes to movies older than 1960. Don’t ask me why but I actually need to be constantly reminded that there have been great horror movies around since movies have existed. This started when I was kid. Somehow this stigma that anything older than brand new was bad. But then again, I had no concept of how old things were. I mean I thought that color like as in all colors that human beings can see were invented in the 1960s. How did I get on this topic? Now granted, Masque came out in 1964, but it was one of the first horror movies I saw that just happened to be released before I was born that had an impact on me. I would seek out films like the original Frankenstein, Dracula, and Creature from the Black Lagoon a little bit later because it dawned on me that old films are cool too. Do you see how dumb I was (am)?
What struck me immediately is the pure unadulterated horror packed into this film. Suddenly, I was scared of catching the plague but I was more afraid of my fellow human beings. There are some real pieces of work in this flick. They’re greedy, perverse, self-centered, and cruel. But the real master of evil is Prince Prospero, played by Vincent Price. His cold black heart is a bottomless pit of nastiness and when death comes to collect, he is a sniveling swine. This is the film that introduced me to Vincent Price and I continue to worship at the horrifying altar of this man.
# 3 – Phenomena
Oh shit. How did this slip away from the top spot? For years and years, whenever anyone would ask me what my favorite horror movie of all time was, the answer was easy: Dario Argento’s Phenomena. I always say “Dario Argento’s Phenomena” because if I just say “Phenomena” non-horror movie people go “You mean that movie with John Travolta? That’s not a horror movie, is it?” No, it’s not but I’m sure it is horrifying in its own way. Its number one title slipped away this year when I watched this and my new number one fave back to back. And sadly, it dropped not one but two spots from the top. Sorrio Dario!
But when it comes to pleasing a bunch of restless friends who want to be wowed by a horror movie, Phenomena does not fail. I played this for a group of people after their dismal reaction to Twitch of the Death Nerve (don’t worry, I don’t talk to any of those motherfuckers anymore) and everyone was totally blown away by Dario Argento’s freaky mix of maggots, monkeys, and heavy metal. This was one of the very first Italian horror films I ever watched (back before I even knew that Italians made movies) and it will always be hovering near the number one spot in my heart. Anyone who says they don’t love Phenomena is lying.
If not for Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn, I probably would still not have seen this fantastic and utterly essential horror film. I think I was 12 years old when I saw clips of Evil Dead 2 on that “This is Horror” show (I really need to get a copy of this) and I was determined to watch it. When I found the film in the video store, I decided to watch the first movie because I assumed (wrongly) that I needed to watch the first Evil Dead to understand what was going on in the second one. So that weekend, I rented both films. I pulled the shades in my room and watched The Evil Dead for the first time. Man, I couldn’t wait for it to be over! It wasn’t funny at all and it was just kind of boring. Thankfully, when I put Evil Dead 2 in I was rewarded with a spastic film loaded with slapstick humor that even has a Holy Grail type ending. Bonus!
Yeah, I’m a little ashamed of my initial reaction to The Evil Dead. After renting and renting part 2 over and over again, I eventually got tired of it. Years later, I bought the Elite DVD (I’m not even sure which edition I have) of The Evil Dead and watched it again. Like, really watched it and now I think it’s the best independent American horror film ever made. The film has this unpredictable and completely bent vibe to it. And it’s charming! It has this held-together-with-spit feeling to it and everything works. The Evil Dead has a big heart. It wants to be loved because the people who made it really, really cared about what they’re doing. I’ve read about how miserable the production of this film was and how difficult of a time the filmmakers had acquiring funds to complete the project and it makes me feel like I’m a weak loser who has never done anything with his life. Shut up. Not you, I was talking to me. I will say more about this another time.
# 1 – The House by the Cemetery
There had to be a number one. It’s a top 10 list, people are gonna expect it. I bought both The Beyond (as Seven Doors of Death) and The House by the Cemetery on those el cheapo Diamond DVDs back in 2003. They were both like $7 apiece or something like that and I watched both of them that same weekend. Needless to say, I was changed forever. I had seen Fulci’s Zombie the year before on VHS and it left me in a little depressed (in a good way) puddle on the floor. But nothing could prepare me for the surreal assault of these two films. The Beyond seems like it’s the weirder movie because it’s bigger, louder, and has more characters doing totally inexplicable shit. However, the more I dig into The House by the Cemetery, the more I realize that it is just as bizarre as its zombie infested cousin.
How can a film produce in a person’s heart a feeling of retroactive nostalgia? I can’t look back on the good old days of watching this movie when I was 10 years old because I didn’t see it until I was 27. And yet, with every viewing, I get the sense that I’m returning to a beloved film from my youth. How the shit does that work? I don’t want anyone to watch The House by the Cemetery thinking either a) “Here’s another overrated Fulci movie” or b) “Some blowtard on a blog said that this is the greatest horror movie ever made like ever”. You have to be patient with this one. You have to be patient with all Fulci films. Did I love The Beyond or House by the Cemetery when I first watched them? No! I thought they were dumb but I liked the gory bits. But then it was too late for me. I couldn’t get them out of my head. I’m like that redhead kid in the “Forever Young” video but Rod Stewart ripped off my arm and is using it to hold his victims still so that he can use their cells to restore his own deteriorating undead carcass.
Last year, I wrote several pieces for a site that is unfortunately gone now. I thought I had rescued all of those articles from oblivion but one had escaped me somehow. In September, I wrote about my favorite Paul Naschy film, Horror Rises from the Tomb. Blah blah blah, recycled content, aw phooey! Anyway, you can check it out here and throw sticks at me later.
Can you describe in 700 million words or less that European horror movie thing? I sure as hell can’t. What is it about Eurohorror that makes it so friggin’ addictive? Could it be the lazy menace or the incalculable morbidity? The feeling that something dark is lurking just around the corner or hiding just behind that tombstone is a big part of what makes horror so great. The European flair usually just means that the payoff will be bigger, brighter, or cheaper and yet somehow more endearing. This shit might bore Europeans to tears but for us kids over here on the other side of the pond, their films’ alienness is intriguing if not utterly fascinating. Eurohorror has secret transmissions that awaken those happy (depressing) and morbid (ecstatic) neurons that destroy (invigorate) my dumb brain. For the purposes of this ramble, I’m going to call this unique phenomenon ‘The Vibe’.
I don’t really know precisely where this very rambly Wednesday Ramble is going but I think I’m talking about white stucco walls, dirt floors, strange camera angles, overly bright blood, achingly beautiful actresses, claustrophobic spaces, ethereal music, ridiculous plots, etc. These are all things that make the Italian gothics of the 1960s so great. I want to blame it all on Mario Bava. These characteristics were replicated (and in some cases improved upon) very, very well by Spanish horror cinema in the 1970s. I mean, the Italians didn't really lose it until the mid 1980s. Of course, horrible 70s wallpaper helps too so things like the inept but strangely perfect Werewolf Woman make the list as well. And speaking of werewolves, most of Paul Naschy's body of work (especially with directors León Klimovsky and Carlos Aured) contains this unique sensation as well. Check out any of his performances as the doomed Waldemar Daninsky to see what I'm talking about.
I can’t (or rather, I won’t) think of any quintessential titles that perfectly encompass what it is that makes European horror so wondrous because I’m sure everyone out there has a different list of flicks. But I do have a few here that I’d like to mention that really get under my skin. One of the first European horror films I ever watched that gave me ‘The Vibe’ was Pupi Avati’s Zeder. Ohhhh doctor, I tremble with joy just thinking about watching this movie. Every frame is filled with so much dread and the production design lays on the dull off-white and gray tones that just amp up the feeling that we, the audience, are alone are we are about to die horribly.
One fairly blatant example of that distinctly Euro flava is the wacked out Vampyros Lesbos. Jess Franco shot this little piece of brilliance in Spain, Germany, and Turkey. I’m not much for the softcore elements (and I’m not really complaining about them either) but this film instantly grabbed hold of my soul when I first took a chance on it. There is just something undeniably hypnotic about this shit. And while we’re on the subject of lesbian vampires, there is also a very important and dreamy little number called Daughters of Darkness. If this soft focus gothic poem doesn’t knock your socks off then you’re not breathing, duder. And while I love the film, José Ramón Larraz's excellent Vampyres, doesn't give me the same feeling. Strange, huh? It has all the required elements: buckets of blood, lesbian vampires, and a killer cemetery but nope, 'The Vibe' just ain't there. I'm sure some folks would disagree but damn it, I just don't feel it.
Here are two more Italian examples, one from Dario Argento and one from Lucio Fulci. First up is Argento’s Phenomena. Most of this movie is so wild and bizarre that it is impossible without multiple viewings to pick up on ‘The Vibe’. Late in the film however, when Jennifer Connelly is trapped inside the killer’s house, she finds a hole in the floor and descends right into what I’m freakin’ talking about here. The catacombs beneath the Brückner house are starkly lit, gray, and insanely creepy. Lucio Fulci competes with the sheer awesomeness of Phenomena with his own bizarre adventure in abstract moodiness: The House by the Cemetery.
One Italian director that consistently delivers on ‘The Vibe’ is the late, great Joe D’Amato. Before he disappeared forever into directing porno movies for a living, good old Joe was a cinematographer on the silly but very atmospheric The Devil’s Wedding Night. When he got a chance to direct his first horror film, the man made an art form out of style (and softcore sex) over substance with Death Smiled at Murder; a film that helps me escape the real world and threatens to never let me return. Even when he is wallowing in cheap crap, D’Amato still manages to deliver on that nearly indescribable gloomy goodness with Anthropophagus and Anthropophagus 2 (AKA Horrible). Part 2 in particular is responsible for my current condition as it first entered my mind over 20 years ago when I caught it on late nite television. This Halloween-influenced gore flick with piles of accidental atmosphere never left my mind and has thankfully landed on DVD in the good old US of A. Oops, I almost forgot his death-obsessed masterpiece Beyond the Darkness!
Usually, 'The Vibe' comes from supernatural films but there are also several gialli that deliver what I crave. Whether it is through intent or accident, I get brief flashes of gray brilliance when I watch the yellow thrillers of Sergio Martino. I obsess over the tiniest scenes in everything from The Case of the Scorpion's Tail to Torso and I still can't quite put my finger on it. Other gialli that produce the same haunting reverberations in my soul include Emilio Miraglia's The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave and Armando Crispino's The Dead Are Alive. It helps that both of these films have a dreamlike quality, a heightened sense of ghoulish improbability.
So do you get it? Do any of you out there feel this thing; this unsavory and unwholesome longing for Eurohorror and don't have a friggin' clue why? Or do you have a name for 'The Vibe'? (I'm tempted to call it 'ghoulish improbability'.) Is there some obscure text that has coined a phrase for this stuff that I'm having a helluva time trying to describe? If you have an answer to any or all of these questions, please step forward. I'd love to commiserate with y'all. I know Riccardo Freda, God rest his soul, knows what I'm talking about. Just watch Barbara Steele in The Ghost and soak it up.
