Small Town Secrets Month Quick Picks and Pans

Kyrsyä -Tuftland (2017) After a devastating breakup with her boyfriend, textile manufacturing student Irina (Veera W. Vilo) looks for summer work to pay her bills and clear her head. She answers an ad to work in the backwoods Finnish village of Kyrsyä, where she’ll gain experience making hand-woven items. She arrives at a cult-like community seemingly frozen in time, where men and women live separately. Director/writer Roope Olenius’ slow-burn folk horror film (based on a play by Neea Viitamäki) takes its time building suspense, until things get truly disturbing by the final third.   

Rating: ***½. Available on DVD 

 

The Endless (2017) Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson’s (who also appear as the lead characters) semi-sequel to their 2012 film, Resolution,* takes a lo-fi approach to science fiction, with a focus on characters, rather than flashy special effects. Two brothers, Aaron and Justin, who escaped a doomsday cult as teens, decide to revisit the secluded cult compound as adults to arrive at some closure in their fractured lives. They’re faced with a mystery when they discover the same people, seemingly unchanged after 20 years. While they piece together their hazy memories of growing up in the compound, they begin to question their grip on reality. While it may not be everyone’s cup of tea, I was entranced by its deliberate pace and challenging story. 

* Note: You may want to watch their earlier film first, for reference. 

Rating: ***½. Available on Blu-ray and DVD 

 

The People (1972) A young teacher (Kim Darby) moves to an isolated Amish-like desert community led by the staunch Sol Diemus (Dan O’Herlihy). She takes it upon herself to discover why the children seem so joyless and repressed, while uncovering their town’s tightly held secret. William Shater plays a local doctor who holds a strange fascination and reverence for the townspeople and their unusual ways. The People plays a bit like an overlong Twilight Zone episode, albeit with an ending that just fizzles out. One of the highlights in this otherwise serious movie is one of the goofiest scenes in recent memory involving a trunkload of floating kazoos. 

Rating: ***. Available on DVD (Out of Print) and Prime Video 

Invitation to Hell (1984) In this loopy TV movie by director Wes Craven, Matt and Patricia Winslow (Robert Urich and Joanna Cassidy) relocate to a new neighborhood in the suburbs where all may not be as innocuous and idyllic as it seems. Matt and his family are encouraged to join an exclusive country club, run by Jessica Jones (Susan Lucci), the Mephistophelean director. While the rest of his family succumb to the club and its apparent charms, Matt can’t shake the feeling that there’s a sinister agenda at work. Despite pressure from his boss Mr. Thompson (Kevin McCarthy), he’s resolved to learn the club’s secret, and why everyone at his job seems to be getting ahead. The surprises are obvious, and it’s undeniably silly and heavy-handed, but an oddly entertaining experience. 

Rating: ***. Available on DVD, Tubi and Prime Video

 

Population 436 (2006) Census-taker Steve Kady (Jeremy Sisto) travels to the tiny backwoods town of Rockwell Falls to solve a century-long mystery – somehow, the population has consistently remained at 436. He’s greeted by locals who seem a little too friendly, but once he’s learned their sinister secret, it’s too late. He gets cozy with the dim deputy sheriff’s (Fred Durst) fiancée Courtney (Charlotte Sullivan), who’s eager to leave the town behind, if she can only find a way out. The film raises many answers, but answers little, leaving you to reach your own conclusions. 

Rating: ***. Available on DVD

They’re Watching (2016) The crew of a home improvement show travel to rural Moldova (it was actually filmed in Romania) to feature an American expatriate (Brigid Brannah) and the old cottage that she restored. The film crew gain the attention and ire of the superstitious townsfolk after one faux pas follows another. An intriguing premise is mostly squandered because of the mostly unsympathetic leads (SPOILER ALERT: one of the most obnoxious characters survives), and the plot falling into the trap of most found footage movies (specifically, someone is there to film every awkward moment). It’s a comedy/horror that’s not funny enough to be a comedy, nor scary enough to be a proper horror film, leading to an overblown, unsatisfying climax. 

Rating: **½. Available on DVD and Tubi

The Bubble (1966) Writer/director Arch Oboler, who co-created the pioneering 3D movie Bwana Devil (1952), made this oddity (also originally shown in 3D). A young married couple, Mark and Catherine (Michael Cole and Deborah Walley), force their charter plane pilot to land after choppy weather causes Catherine to go into labor. They land on the outskirts of a strange town that resembles a movie set (obviously a cost-conscious choice on the part of the filmmakers). The residents speak in loops, as if they’re pre-programmed, wandering about in a daze. They soon learn that they’re trapped like zoo animals by an invisible bubble which surrounds the town. It’s an interesting premise that sadly goes nowhere (just like the town’s inhabitants), slowly crawling to a tepid ending. Skip it. 

Rating: **. Available on Blu-ray and DVD

October Quick Picks and Pans – Horror Month 2021

 

Symptoms (1974) Angela Pleasence stars as Helen, a disturbed young woman in writer/director José Ramón Larraz’s thriller, a bubbling cauldron of repressed sexuality and unrequited love. She lives alone on a country estate, nursing the wounds of an unspecified psychological trauma. As a comfort to her friend in need, Anne (Lorna Heilbron) leaves London to spends some time with Helen. Over the course of the next several days secrets will be revealed. Symptoms takes its time, building up suspense gradually, and letting the story unfold (in the kind of slow-burn approach that’s so distinctively 1970s). Not much occurs for the first half, but stick with it, because it’s going to be a bumpy ride. Pleasence turns in a subtly creepy performance, portraying one woman’s disintegrating psyche.  

Rating: ***½. Available on Blu-ray

Parents (1989) What goes on in the secret world of parents when the kids are in bed? Director Bob Balaban’s pitch-dark comedy/horror attempts to answer that question. Balaban and writer Christopher Hawthorne use an idealized ‘50s backdrop to spin a subversive yarn about domestic conformity. A young boy (Bryan Madorsky) suspects his squeaky-clean parents (Randy Quaid and Mary Beth Hurt) are up to something nefarious (Just what is that mystery meat they keep trying to serve him?). The film keeps its cards close to its chest about what his parents are really up to (Are they or aren’t they?) for the first two-thirds. Although Madorsky’s performance tends to be one-note, it’s mainly a foil for all the erratic behavior and skullduggery around him. Even though the climax is a trifle predictable, it’s worth seeing for the build-up.   

Rating: ***½. Available on Blu-ray, DVD, Tubi and Amazon Prime

Grave Encounters (2011) Before you think, “Oh no, not another found footage movie,” give this one a try. The host (Ben Wilkinson) and crew of a TV ghost-hunting series named (Can you guess?), investigate an abandoned mental hospital, which might not be as uninhabited as they originally thought. Although the movie relies on a few too many CGI-enhanced jump scares, it stands out by introducing some intriguing concepts. The more time the investigators spend in the haunted asylum, the further it alters their perception of time and space. 

Rating: ***. Available on Blu-ray, DVD, Shudder, and Amazon Prime

The Terror (1963) If you think Roger Corman’s The Terror seems cobbled together from his other Poe movies, you’re not wrong. Corman repurposed the sets from The Raven for his film, along with a couple of its stars, Boris Karloff as Baron Victor Frederick Von Leppe, and Jack Nicholson, as French soldier, Lt. Andre Duvalier. Corman regulars Jonathan Haze appears as a mute, and Dick Miller (sporting an odd accent) plays the Baron’s butler. Duvalier meets a mysterious young woman wandering the beach (played by Nicholson’s then-wife, Sandra Knight), who seems to be linked to Van Leppe’s castle, and its brooding baron. I’m not sure where the eponymous “Terror” fits in, but Corman’s attempt to (in his words) “out-Poe Poe…” has some nice atmosphere, and Karloff seems game enough. It’s not as bad as some might attest, but there’s a “been there, done that” feel to the production. 

Rating: ***. Available on Blu-ray, DVD, Amazon Prime, and Kanopy

The Gruesome Twosome (1967) Herschell Gordon Lewis does it again, with this gore-laced oddity. An elderly lady (played by Elizabeth Davis, who spouts aphorisms to her stuffed wildcat “Napoleon”) lures young women to her house, under the auspices of having a room for rent. Subsequently, her deranged son Rodney (Chris Martell) scalps them, using their hair for a home-based wig shop (Not exactly a sustainable business model). A snooping college co-ed (Gretchen Wells) investigates a series of missing young women, while her irritating boyfriend doubts her suspicions. The story and characters have about as much depth as a puddle, but if you’re a fan of H.G. Lewis, or just curious about his movies, you could do much worse. 

Rating: **½. Available on DVD

Guru the Mad Monk (1970) Here’s another baffling, bargain-basement wonder from filmmaker extraordinaire, Andy Milligan (I think he had about $50 allotted for this movie, yet somehow managed to stay under budget). Lead Neil Flanagan plays the titular character, a ruthless, self-serving priest who tortures for the thrill of it (a highlight is a scene where he acts against a mirror). He runs his cathedral like a private fiefdom, while sheltering his former mistress, a vampire named Olga (Jaqueline Webb). Everyone recites their lines with a strange cadence as if no one knew what real speech sounded like. The story is supposedly set on an island, but there are no location shots (or stock footage) to establish where they are. Instead, we just hear a looped recording of the crashing of ocean waves and seagulls. Its many faults aside, you have to admire how anyone could attempt to shoot a medieval period piece with virtually no resources, except for the use of an old Manhattan cathedral. 

Rating: **½. Available on DVD and Tubi

The Stone Tape (1972) The scariest thing in this BBC television production from writer Nigel Kneale and director Peter Sasdy might be the appalling preponderance of the color green in the set and costume design, but it does have its moments. The Stone Tape carries many of the themes that Kneale has explored previously, albeit with mixed results. The director of an electronics firm (Michael Bryant) stumbles on a potential new recording medium, thanks to a discovery by his resident mathematician (Jane Asher). Ghostly sounds and visions emanate from the ancient stone foundation of an estate, leading a team of researchers to investigate. Madness and chaos ensue. An interesting premise is hampered by casual racism and sexism throughout. Overwrought acting, and an unlikable lead also make this difficult to stomach. 

Rating: **½. Available on DVD (Region 2)

 

The Mummy’s Hand (1940) This sort-of sequel to 1932’s The Mummy is a big step down. An archaeologist (Dick Foran) and his very annoying sidekick (Wallace Ford) set out to find the tomb of Karas, with the promise of untold riches and notoriety. A high priest (George Zucco) who’s sworn to protect the tomb, and the not-so-dead Karas have other plans. There are some impressive sets, and the mummy (played this time by Tom Tyler) is truly frightening. It’s too bad the story is so scattershot and unfocused, and the emphasis on comedy doesn’t help the mood. Watch if you must. 

Rating: **½. Available in The Mummy: Legacy Collection Blu-ray and DVD