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An obscure little gem

posted 19 years ago by BijouBob8mm
16 replies | jump to latest

Once more Image has made an obscure slice of Euro-Horror available to a more mainstream audience with their DVD release of this moody Italian horror outing. One of those films that used to turn up on "Triple Bills of Terror" at the drive-in in the 1960s, the film has a nice atmospheric feel that was a hallmark of Italian horror of the late 1950s/early 1960s. Now, if Image would only rescue THE VAMPIRE AND THE BALLERINA to go with this. (After all, they did give the DVD treatment to THE PLAYGIRLS AND THE VAMPIRE, as well.)

[–] WinstonNephron 17 years ago

I remembered seeing this back in the mid 1980's on USA Network or someplace, and decided to buy it on dvd. It's fairly well done, and is much underrated.
The musical score, together with the moody way some of the scenes are presented, does make for an impressive atmosphere to the film. Best of all, it was shot in glorious black and white.

[–] BijouBob8mm 17 years ago

In the mid-Eighties, the USA Network managed to give us a lot of obscure horror offerings from Italy, Mexico and Hammer. Great stuff, and a far cry from what the channel has become, today.

[–] WinstonNephron 17 years ago

Television in general today is a sad joke. The inventors of the infomercial should burn in hell. I'm convinced that in order to be a television executive these days, one has to have both the IQ of silly putty and the character of a $10 Ho.

I swear that if I ever win one of those $100 million lottery jackpots, my first purchase will be a television station that will feature a hosted Saturday Horror movie show, as well as reruns of all the now unseen classic 60s and 70s programs. Scifi, USA, Tv Land, Nick, etc...,as well as most local stations, have all become pale shadows of their former selves---their programming stinks.

Carol lies like the rest of us breathe

[–] BijouBob8mm 17 years ago

Ah yes...the notorious Infomercial. Given that we pay for TV (and considering what we pay), there should be less commercials cluttering up the airwaves. Channel surfing to stumble across something cool on the late show has almost become a misty memory.

[–] WinstonNephron 17 years ago

I spent my youth in the outskirts of Philadelphia, where every Saturday afternoon we had a station that presented two horror films hosted by Dr. Shock.
In my early adulthood, within broadcast range of Cleveland, we had Big Chuck and Little John on Saturday nights. As you previously stated, in the 80's we had CMDR USA. Now, we have nothing; television stations would rather put in a taped infommercial than produce a movie show. It's a sad, sorry state.

If it were not for VHS and now DVD, many of these films would have been long lost memories of a better time.

This Section Is Under Construction

[–] Joannakathryn 17 years ago

We had Nightmare Theater, late on Saturday night, in the late 50s and 60s in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Gorgon, (Bill Camden) the host, scared me when I was little, but then later I found out that he was also Icky Twerp, who hosted a children's show in the mornings and evenings, "Slam-Bang Theater," which mostly showed Three Stooges episodes.

If you're interested, scroll down to Gorgon and a clip on youtube. If you listen to him, his Texas accent will come through occasionally. He also resembles Barnabas, from DS.

http://www.patioculture.net/slam_bang.html

Carol, phone home. Your village misses you.

[–] WinstonNephron 17 years ago

Wow, he does resemble Frid.

bigchuckandliljohn.com

GO COWBOYS!!!

This Section Is Under Construction

[–] BijouBob8mm 17 years ago

Thanks for sharing that link, Joanna!

[–] greenbudgie (2355) 3 years ago

Great video clips. Wish I could see him how he used to be on the 'Nightmare Theater' too.

[–] Boutros_Boutros_Sirhan_Sirhan 16 years ago

Image mentioned it was a Czech/German production I believe and not Italian. Good gothic horror (lighting, set design, general plot, and locations), but the opening song that droned on for about 5 minutes was horrible, and the dubbing was weaker than say Bava's work.

[–] Demon2112 16 years ago

Would be awesome if they put Commander USA on again. I would definitely have my vcr and a mound of blank tapes ready to go. Here is the collection of movies aired on that program that i had aquired from wiki.>>> Good times my friends!

* The Abominable Snowman of the Himalayas
* Alligator
* The Alligator People
* Alone in the Dark
* An American Werewolf in London
* Andy Warhol's Dracula
* Andy Warhol's Frankenstein
* The Aztec Mummy
* Bedlam
* Black Carrion
* The Black Cat
* Blood and Roses
* Bloodbath at the House of Death
* The Blood Beast Terror
* The Blood of Nostradamus
* Blood Song
* The Bloody Vampire
* The Boogeyman
* The Brainaic
* The Brute Man
* Bug
* Captain Kronos,Vampire Hunter
* Cat People
* Cave of the Living Dead
* The Children
* Child's Play
* C.H.U.D.
* The Clonus Horror
* The Contraption
* The Corvini Inheritance
* Countess Dracula
* The Crawling Eye
* Cry Wolf
* The Curse of Frankenstein
* Curse of Nostradamas
* Curse of the Aztec Mummy
* Curse of the Cat People
* The Curse of the Crying Woman
* Curse of the Doll People
* Curse of the Vampire
* Dance of the Dwarfs
* Dark Forces
* The Day Mars Invaded Earth
* The Deadly Mantis
* The Death Kiss
* Death Valley
* Demonoid
* The Devil Bat
* The Devil Bat's Daughter
* The Devil's Gift
* The Devil's Nightmare
* Devil Times Five
* Doctor of Doom
* Dracula
* Dracula's Dog
* Exorcism at Midnight
* Fiend Without a Face
* The Fifth Floor
* The Flying Serpent
* Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell
* Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed
* Fraulein Doktor
* Friday the 13th
* Friday the 13th Part 2
* Friday the 13th Part III
* Funeral Home
* Genii of Darkness
* The Great Alligator
* God Told Me To
* Hands of the Ripper
* Hangar 18
* The Hearse
* Hercules in New York
* Horror of Dracula
* Horror of the Blood Monsters
* Horror of the Zombies
* Horror Planet
* House of Psychotic Women
* The House of the Long Shadows
* House of 1,000 Dolls
* The House Where Evil Dwells
* I Married a Monster From Outer Space
* I Walked with a Zombie
* Inframan
* In Search of Dracula
* Invasion of the Vampires
* Island Claws
* Island Monster
* It's Alive
* J. D.'s Revenge
* Laserblast
* The Late Nancy Irving
* Let's Scare Jessica to Death
* The Little Shop of Horrors
* The Living Coffin
* The Living Head
* The Lochness Horror
* Mako, The Jaws of Death
* The Man and the Monster
* The Man and the Snake
* Mark of the Devil
* Mark of the Vampire
* Mausoleum
* The Monster Demolisher
* My Bloody Valentine
* The Pack
* Panic
* A Polish Vampire in Burbank
* The Possession of Joel Delaney
* The Premonition
* Psychophobia
* Psychotronic Man
* One Dark Night
* Q, the Winged Serpent
* Rabid
* The Return of the Vampire
* The Robot vs. The Aztec Mummy
* Samson vs. the Vampire Women
* Samson in the Wax Museum
* Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (film)
* Satanik
* Scalpel
* Scared to Death
* Simon, King of the Witches
* Slugs
* Space Children
* Spaceship aka Naked Space or The Creature Wasn't Nice
* Stranglehold
* Student Bodies
* Swamp of the Lost Monster
* Tales that Witnessed Madness
* Taste the Blood of Dracula
* Tattoo
* The Terror
* They Still Call Me Bruce
* Three in the Attic
* Trick or Treats
* Toxic Zombies
* Undersea Kingdom
* The Unseen[disambiguation needed]
* Up in the Cellar
* The Vampire
* The Vampire Bat
* Vampire Circus
* The Vampire's Coffin
* Venom
* War of the Colossal Beast
* What?
* What's Up Tiger Lily?
* Witchfire
* The Witchmaker
* The Witch's Mirror
* The Woman Who Came Back
* World of the Vampires
* Zombies on Broadway
* Zorro's Black Whip

Let it be known, sons and daughters, that Satan was an acid head.

[–] The_Dying_Flutchman 14 years ago

Too bad you forget "The Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow" and

"What is the sound an imploding pimp makes?"
Alonso Semple McFlondheim

[–] gary_overman 8 years ago

This film is entertaining, even if it is also bit silly. Too bad there are no English subtitles for the hearing impaired. It is in German dubbed English which means that I can't even read lips.

[–] greenbudgie (2355) 3 years ago

'The Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow' is another drive-in movie I want to see. Hot rods and monsters and rock'n'roll is a triple bill in itself.

[–] greenbudgie (2355) 3 years ago

I'll keep this great list tagged. What a great station that was.

[–] greenbudgie (2355) 3 years ago

I'll add 'The Vampire and the Ballerina' to my 1960s Euro-Horror to search for.
Drive-ins must have been fun. There used to be a DVD company who provided 3 of these type of films on one disc. So that you got the triple bill experience in your own home.