The Torture Chamber of Dr. Sadism (1966)
aka. The Blood Demon
aka. Blood of the Virgins
aka. The Snake Pit and the Pendulum
★ ★Christopher Lee brings a lot of charisma to the beginning and end of the film, but this loose adaptation of the Poe story looks cheap and rushed. Nothing seems particularly clever or thought out, including the potentially horrific opening where Lee is quartered by horses – the limbs detach like they’re Velcro – and the supposedly elaborate torture chamber, with traps hidden in secret passages.
The Return of Count Yorga (1971)
aka. Curse of Count Yorga
★ ★The suburban vampire is back. Despite a poster selling Christopher Lee, Yorga is actually played by someone better resembling Ray Liotta. There’s a sense they were going more for fun this time, but there’s little sense of Yorga getting closer or further away from his master plan. One of the earliest horror films to pump up the sound mix and score, including a cheap jump scare. Also one of those annoying films where someone suggests it’s the work of a vampire and everyone laughs at them until it’s too late.
Haunted (1995)
★ ★Based on a 1988 novel by James Herbert, though you might’ve guessed the material was a century older by how familiar it feels. As creaky as the doors in this over-lit gothic mansion. Extremely light on scary moments or violence, but gets the R Rating because of a high amount of nudity.
Tales from the Hood (1995)
★ ★ ★ - OkayCheesy but effective because the five stories have strong roots in real black problems. Gang violence, police brutality, racism and domestic abuse manage some social points as well as comic book style horror that reminds me of Creepshow. First episode is perhaps best, with some great blending of fantasy and graffiti, while the last suffers from jamming the black-on-black violent message down our throats with actual and staged news clips and photos.