Today’s bonus horror song of the day comes from the 1971 film, Vampyros Lesbos. The Vampires’ Sound Incorporation was a band specifically formed to do the soundtrack for Jess Franco’s classic portrait of Eurotrash decadence. This song found renewed popularity in the 90s when Quentin Tarantino included it on the Jackie Brown soundtrack.
I like this song. It’s great driving music and it sounds like something that a vampire would actually listen to.
Today’s scene that I love comes from Mario Bava’s 1977 masterpiece, Shock. This, as the title of the YouTube video states, is one of the best jump scares ever.
8 Shots From 8 Films is just what it says it is, 8 shots from 8 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 8 Shots From 8 Films is all about letting the visuals do the talking.
Today’s director is Mario Bava, the maestro of Italian horror and one of the most influential and important filmakers of all time!
8 Shots From 8 Mario Bava Films
Black Sunday (1960, dir by Mario Bava, DP: Mario Bava)
Black Sabbath (1963, dir by Mario Bava, DP: Ubaldo Terzano and Mario Bava)
The Girl Who Knew Too Much (1963, dir by Mario Bava, DP: Mario Bava)
Blood and Black Lace (1964, dir by Mario Bava, DP: Ubaldo Terzano)
Planet of the Vampires (1965, dir by Mario Bava, DP: Antonio Rinaldi)
Kill Baby Kill (1966, dir by Mario Bava, DP: Antonio Rinaldi)
Lisa and the Devil (1974, dir by Mario Bava. DP: Cecilio Paniagua)
Shock (1977, dir by Mario Bava, DP: Alberto Spagnoli and Mario Bava)
Today’s horror movie on the Shattered Lens is both a classic of silent era and one of the most influential horror films ever made. It’s one that I previously shared in 2013, 2015, 2016, 2108, 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 but it’s such a classic that I feel that it is worth sharing a second (or fifth or even a sixth or perhaps an ninth) time.
First released in 1925, The Phantom of the Opera is today best known for both Lon Chaney’s theatrical but empathetic performance as the Phantom and the iconic scene where Mary Philbin unmasks him. However, the film is also a perfect example of early screen spectacle. The Phantom of the Opera was released during that period of time, between Birth of the Nation and the introduction of sound, when audiences expected films to provide a visual feast and Phantom of the Opera certainly accomplishes that. Indeed, after watching this film and reading Gaston Leroux’s original novel, it’s obvious that the musical was inspired more by the opulence of this film than by the book.
This film is also historically significant in that it was one of the first films to be massively reworked as the result of a poor test screening. The film’s ending was originally faithful to the end of the novel. However, audiences demanded something a little more dramatic and that’s what they got.
Today’s horror song of the day comes to us from John Carpenter. Best-known as a director, Carpenter is also an accomplished musician and composer who is responsible for some of the most iconic horror themes of all time. Today, we offer you the main theme from his 1980 film, The Fog.
As I’m sure you have guessed, there will be more Carpenter songs in the days ahead.
by A.R. Tilburne
I picked this cover because of the cat.
This would seem to be appropriate for the season.
Enjoy!
On tonight’s episode of One Step Beyond, a man suspects that his best friend is having an affair with his fiancee. What better way to take care of the problem than by leaving his friend to die on the side of a mountain?
It seems like the perfect crime and the man might get away with it …. but only if he can do something about the ghost who seems to be stalking him in the days leading up to his wedding!
As always, this is supposedly based on a true story.
This episode originally aired on March 1st, 1960.
Enjoy!
Frank Grillo and werewolves?
That sounds like a winning combination to me!
Here’s the trailer for Werewolves, which is being released in December despite being a natural for October.
A group of hikers decide to take a walk through the hills of Ireland. Things do not go well. First, one hiker is injured in an accident. Then the other hikers ignore a “No Trespassing” sign while looking for help and end up being stalked and targeted by a the people living on the land. The hikers have no one to blame but themselves. If you look through your binoculars and see someone wearing a skull mask and carrying a rifle, that should be enough to make you turn around.
The story is basic and the characters are poorly drawn but the Irish landscape is stunning, even when people are fighting for their lives. The budget is low and there are more than a few scenes where you can see the blood squibs under everyone’s clothes before their shot. If you can overlook or forgive that, Hillwalkers is occasionally suspenseful and it has enough action to appeal to thriller fans. This is a standard city folks vs country folks movie and there’s nothing surprising about it but it does a good job of showing why it’s best to stay on the approved path while hiking. Pay attention to those warning signs. They’re there for a reason!
Through the Shattered Lens 