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Cassandra Peterson's Birthday!

I made too many gifs, so have some more!

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Happy Birthday Cassandra Peterson!

Another year has gone by and it is once again time to celebrate the incredible woman behind Elvira, Cassandra Peterson! It was a beautiful overcast, rainy day here, so I spent the afternoon rewatching Elvira: Mistress of the Dark. I went overboard making gifs. It's officially Halloween season! Enjoy!

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Spotlight: All About Evil (2010)

Watching every movie featured on Movie Macabre and Elvira's other shows is going to take me a while. While working through these movies, I thought I'd also take some time to watch Cassandra Peterson and Elvira's other appearances (in no particular order).

All About Evil (2010) Written and Directed by Joshua Grannell (Peaches Christ)

Starring: Natasha Lyonne Thomas Dekker Cassandra Peterson Mink Stole Jack Donner

"A mousy librarian inherits her father’s beloved but failing old movie house. In order to save the family business, she discovers her inner serial killer — and a legion of rabid gore fans — when she starts turning out a series of grisly shorts. What her fans don’t realize yet is that the murders in the movies are all too real…" (Letterboxd)

What an absolute treat. All About Evil is an effective, enjoyable low-budget slasher flick. It feels like a film where people who enjoy working together came together and just made the exact film they wanted to make. Some of the best independent horror movies comes from people just setting out to have fun and make a good movie.

Peaches Christ has shown time and again how much they were influenced by horror movies. All About Evil is a campy ode to classic slashers. It's easy for a movie like this to veer too far into the comedy. If a director tries too hard to be intentionally bad, often times the movie just comes off boring. That's not the case here. All About Evil strikes the right balance of horror and comedy.

Look at Mink Stole. That's the best low-speed run from an attacker ever. It's absolutely perfect. The cast does a lot for the movie. There are some people that aren't the best actors, but they're buoyed by the stronger cast members. Cassandra Peterson plays Linda, the concerned but caring mother of the protagonist Steven (played by Thomas Dekker).

I don't want to say too much more about the movie. If you enjoy competent, campy, low-budget horror, it's absolutely worth checking out.

Call me a nerd, but I love celebrating local independent theaters. Support the local theaters in your town!

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Movie Macabre 113 - Baron Blood

Movie Macabre Season 01 - Episode 13 (113) Original Air Date: 27 December 1981 (Final Episode of 1981)

Baron Blood (1972) (Original Title: Gli orrori del castello di Norimberga / The Horrors of Nuremberg Castle) Directed by Mario Bava Screenplay by Vincent G. Fotre, Willibald Eser, and Mario Bava

Starring: Joseph Cotten Elke Sommer Massimo Girotti Antonio Cantafora Alan Collins Humi Raho Rada Rassimov

"A young man, visiting the castle of a murderous ancestor in Austria, accidentally brings his dead relative back to life - searching for new victims." (IMDb)

Episode 13 of Movie Macabre was the first to feature a movie by director Mario Bava, considered one of the masters of Italian horror. Because of this reputation, my expectations were not in line with reality. I found this movie overall pretty dry. While there were a few moments of good atmosphere, very little about this movie really stands out.

Peter is visiting Austria, the place of his family's history. He's particularly interested in a "ghoulish" ancestor, a baron who tortured and murdered people. Peter believes he has the key to resurrect this long-dead evil. In the exact type of stupidity that only seems to exist in horror movies, Peter keeps trying to resurrect the baron until he succeeds. And then he's upset the baron is going around killing people.

Baron Blood casually murders a few people, while Peter and his friends try to solve the mystery of who is killing the people.

The movie's not all bad. There is competent film making hidden in the somewhat bumbling plot. There are some good practical effects.

I try to find the good in every movie I watch. Even if something's not to my tastes, there are usually redeeming qualities. Even movies that are completely incompetent can be enjoyable. But it's difficult to get past a movie that's just boring. Unfortunately, I found this movie boring. The plot wasn't compelling, and often relied on the characters being almost stupid in order for anything to happen. The atmosphere was largely akin to daytime television, except for a couple of standout moments. Much the movie felt added just to get the film to feature length. This particular film was made to be half watched while waiting for Elvira to pop up and comment on it.

I would be interested in seeing more (and better) Mario Bava films. He has a reputation as a master of horror cinema. Surely he didn't earn it for things like Baron Blood?

I bet Elvira would have livened up a viewing of Baron Blood. Someone somewhere has to have all of the episodes of Movie Macabre. Right?

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Elvira from Dynamite Comics

I have been re-reading the Elvira, Mistress of the Dark comics from Dynamite Entertainment. If you've never spent any time with Elvira or if you're a long-time fan, I recommend these books. David Avallone has truly mastered what makes Elvira such a lasting character. The books are campy fun in much the same way Movie Macabre is. Elvira finds herself meeting horror legends like Mary Shelley, Edgar Allan Poe, Divine, and Lucifer. She faces challenges with her trademark irreverence. Dave Acosta's art is beautiful. I genuinely highly suggest all of Dynamite's Elvira comics.

Now I just need Dynamite to give us a nice deluxe hardcover of the series!

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Movie Macabre 112 - Murders in the Rue Morgue

Movie Macabre Season 01 - Episode 12 (112) Original Air Date: 12 December 1981

Murders in the Rue Morgue (1971) Directed by Gordon Hessler Written by Christopher Wicking and Henry Slesar

Starring: Jason Robards Christine Kaufmann Herbert Lom Adolfo Celi Michael Dunn Lilli Palmer

"Paris...at the turn of the century. Inspector Vidocq investigates a series of unexplained murders at a Grand Guignol-type theatre...where the players have suddenly become real-life victims. Based on the story by Edgar Allan Poe." (IMDb)

Elvira's Movie Macabre episode 12 featured Gordon Hessler's Murders in the Rue Morgue from 1971. Based very loosely on the Edgar Allan Poe story of the same name, the film fails to entertain and enthrall the way Poe's stories do. As is always the case with these Movie Macabre episodes that are unavailable, I am curious what Elvira had to say about this movie. Would she comment on the age difference of the two lead characters? Would she be bored at the needlessly slow pacing? We'll probably never know.

"I never slept with her! I was too in love with your mother!" Cesar (Robards) says to his wife, who is considerably younger than him. Everyone is in love with Madeleine, mostly because everyone was in love with her mother. Now she's haunted by nightmares of an axe wielding maniac, while current and former actors are dying mysteriously.

Rarely does a 90 minute feel too long, but this really could have been a 30 minute special without losing anything. Slow, atmospheric films are great at building tension and suspense. But it has to be done well. This movie just wastes time meandering around to pad the runtime.

This movie does have one thing going for it: the costumes. There's a great mix of French fashion and gothic elements. Almost everyone wears cloaks. Can we bring back cloaks? They're so dramatic and way better than jackets. Thanks, costumer Tony Pueo.

I understand Movie Macabre was cheap B-movies, but I keep expecting better quality from these movies. That's my own fault. I shouldn't expect that. But when these movies are extra dull, it highlights the lack of Elvira. I'm sure this boring movie was considerably more watchable when Elvira was poking fun at it.

Without the Movie Macabre episode, this movie is entirely skippable.

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Elvira's Halloween Commercials

One of my favorite ways to celebrate the Halloween season is by watching old Elvira Halloween commercials. They just don't make fun, campy, Halloween commercials like these anymore.

Elvira did a ton of different commercials in the 80s and 90s. She watches movies from Blockbuster with Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, and a werewolf.

You could win a trip to Universal Studios with Elvira if you drank Mug Root Beer (or Slice).

She gave out Movie Macabre caliber movies with Coors Flick-or-Treat. And she took a trip to Mali-Boo! Beach.

I put together a quick playlist of Elvira Halloween commercials on YouTube. Check them out and enjoy the delightful time capsule.

Happy Halloween and Unpleasant Dreams!

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Movie Macabre 111 - Count Yorga, Vampire

Movie Macabre Season 01 - Episode 11 (111) Original Air Date: 05 December 1981

Count Yorga, Vampire (1970) Written and directed by Bob Kelljan

Starring: Robert Quarry Roger Perry Michael Murphy Michael Macready Donna Anders Judy Lang

"A couple invites a Count from Hungary, who recently immigrated to America, to conduct a seance for the woman's recently deceased mother, oblivious to the fact that he is actually a vampire." (IMDb)

Count Yorga is a fairly standard Dracula story. Foreign man arrives and starts bewitching some women. Some men are suspicious and planning to kill the foreigner based on their suspicions. Unfortunately, the movie never really does anything interesting or unique with the premise.

There's nothing to the story beyond the surface level. Visually, the movie is forgettable. Count Yorga's house has some good sets, but nothing particularly special. Perhaps, for the time, this was a more interesting movie. While there was a proliferation of vampire movies in the 60s and 70s, the ones that have stood the test of time are the ones that put their own unique spin on the idea. Count Yorga never seems to have its own point of view, relying solely on the standard Dracula story to keep it going.

After seeing the movie, I learned that the original intention was to film a softcore vampire film (as if the film needed to be any shallower). Ultimately, the best thing I can say about Count Yorga, Vampire is that it's not the worst movie of all time. It's mostly competently made (except for the terrible day-for-night shots). The character motivations are at least logical. Just skip this one.

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It's that time again! September 17th is my personal official start to Halloween season. It's Cassandra Peterson's birthday, the amazing talent behind the Mistress of the Dark, Elvira!

Stream Elvira's Movie Macabre on Shout! and Peacock (well, the 13 episodes that are available)! Stream Elvira's 40th Anniversary Special on Shudder! Read the Elvira comics from Dynamite! Watch your favorite horror movies.

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Movie Macabre 110 - Cry of the Banshee (1970)

Movie Macabre Season 01 - Episode 10 (010) Original Air Date: 29 November 1981

Cry of the Banshee (1970) Directed by Gordon Hessler Written by Tim Kelly and Christoper Wicking

Starring: Vincent Price Hilary Dwyer Essy Persson Hugh Griffith Elisabeth Bergner

"In 1500s England, a cruel witch-hunting magistrate, who often tortures innocent villagers for his entertainment, runs afoul of a witch who conjures a banshee to kill the magistrate and his family." (IMDb)

Cry of the Banshee was featured on the tenth episode of Elvira's Movie Macabre. Ten episodes into the series and this is already the third film from American International Pictures. This felt like the least competent of the three. 

The film starts with a quote from Edgar Allan Poe's The Bells, and featured Poe's name on the posters. The film itself has nothing at all to do with Edgar Allan Poe's work. They were just trying to cash in on Roger Corman's Poe movies.

Aside from an unexpected opening animated sequence by Terry Gilliam and the charismatic Vincent Price, this movie didn't have much going for it.

I learned after watching the movie that it had some production issues. Director Gordon Hessler reportedly didn't like Tim Kelly's original script. Hessler replaced Kelly with Christopher Wicking. Hessler wanted Wicking to develop the characters further, but AIP was on a tight schedule so there wasn't time. There was a definite sense that many scenes were there just to get the film to 90 minutes. The film could have been 30 minutes long and told the same story with a lot less sexual assault. It didn't even bother to have good atmosphere.

I do enjoy seeing how movies portray "witchcraft."

When I decided to try to watch every movie featured on Elvira's Movie Macabre, I knew there'd be some bad movies. That's the nature of the show. This may be the first one that I'd truly recommend skipping. It's not entirely unwatchable, but there's not much interesting or noteworthy here.

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Movie Macabre 109 - The Werewolf of Washington (1973)

Movie Macabre Season 01 - Episode 09 (009) Original Air Date: 21 November 1981

Full episode available to watch for free on ShoutFactoryTV

It's also available on DVD, packaged with The Doomsday Machine (episode 232).

The Werewolf of Washington (1973) Written and directed by Milton Moses Ginsberg

Starring: Dean Stockwell Jane House Biff McGuire Henry Ferrentino Despo Diamantidou Clifton James Jack Waltzer

"After being unknowingly inflicted with the bite of a werewolf while on a visit to Europe, White House press secretary Jack Whittier begins to turn into a deadly beast by night, terrorizing Washington D.C. and presenting a very deadly threat to the President." (Letterboxd)

The ninth episode of Movie Macabre featured the absolutely baffling The Werewolf of Washington. This movie has some of the oddest filmmaking choices I've seen in a long time. Jack Whittier is a journalist returning to Washington D.C. after a long absence with a secret: he's a werewolf. In his wolf form, Whittier kills important people. In his human form, he nervously paces about, trying to get anyone to believe what he's going through. It's a fairly basic premise with potential. Unfortunately, the execution of the storytelling and filmmaking leave a lot to be desired.

The story moves along at a decent pace. The film gives the viewers enough to understand what's going on. But every now and again, things will inexplicably veer into scenes that feel superfluous. The story is a little shallow and somewhat lacking in any clear point of view.

The most baffling thing about the movie is the filmmaking. A substantial portion of the film feels like they only had one take. Awkward moments and dialogue flubs are left in the film. In a strange way, it almost feels more true to life. Take for instance this scene with a necklace:

Why? Why not cut and re-film this? Why not put the necklace on a longer chain? Why not unlatch it and put it around his neck? It's so weird and awkward. This is only a small example of the baffling choices (one that Elvira herself comments on).

Guess which of these two people is speaking. I'll give you a hint: it's not the one in view. Strange choices abound. Despite these weird moments, there is some fun to be had. I love the moments when the wolf acts like an overgrown dog.

And who can ignore the bowling waddle.

Despite my complaints, I did find myself enjoying the movie. It's not so-bad-it's-good. But it's a perfectly fine movie to half pay attention to on a Saturday morning. It fits well with the other films featured on Movie Macabre to this point.

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Celebrate the 34th Anniversary of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark!

On September 30, 1988, Elvira's first feature film, Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, was released in theaters! If you haven't watched this comedy gem, do yourself a favor! It's available streaming on Shudder / AMC+. Arrow Films has also put a great collector's edition blu-ray.

This is a film that I've watched many times, and I think I appreciate it a little more every time. It never feels stale. It's a great way to start off your Halloween season.

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Movie Macabre 108 - The Thing with Two Heads (1972)

Movie Macabre Season 01 - Episode 08 (008) Original Air Date: 15 November 1981

The Thing with Two Heads (1972) Directed by Lee Frost Written by Lee Frost, Wes Bishop, and Joseph Gordon White

Starring: Ray Milland Roosevelt Grier Don Marshall Roger Perry Kathy Baumann

"Doctors are forced to transplant the head of a dying, racist surgeon onto the body of a black death row inmate." (IMDB)

Episode eight of Movie Macabre featured the ridiculous film The Thing with Two Heads. This movie really should have been called "Let's Fuck Up Police Cars."

A racist, entitled, wealth-hoarding, disgusting man thinks that he's so important to the world that he can transplant his head onto another man's body in order to circumvent death. As the old man's death creeps ever closer, a death row inmate agrees to an undisclosed medical procedure, believing this to be an opportunity to clear his name. The racist wakes up on the body of a person of color and complains. Then they go on an extended motor bike ride wherein fourteen police cars are destroyed in absurd, comical ways.

I don't really know what the intended plot of the movie was meant to be. Was it racist man dealing with his racism by helping his host clear his name? Nope. Was it about a death row inmate overcoming impossible odds to prove his innocence? No, not that. Perhaps it was a piece about people coming together? Yeah, no. It was more like someone said "Tie their heads together awkwardly and make 'em ride a dirt bike while we wreck cars all around them!"

Most of the time, the "effect" looks awkward. The film cuts between a fake head on an obvious shoulder rig and having Ray Milland hunch behind Roosevelt Grier. The most effective special effect was during the scene where they transplant Milland's head on to Grier's neck. The moments where the movie made good use of the two-headedness were rare.

The acting varied wildly. Most of the cast was fairly one-note, usually either "comical villain" or "I'm not taking this nonsense seriously." Roosevelt Grier was the definite standout. He had peaks and valleys to his performance.

The movie was definitely more on the "schlock" side of the spectrum. It wasn't terrible, nor was it particularly entertaining. Rather than sit through the full movie, just find a video featuring all of the car crashes.

It is worth noting that the two-headed gorilla was played by special effect/make-up artist Rick Baker, four years before he went on to play King Kong in the 1976 King Kong film.

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Elvira in Horrorland #4 (Dynamite)

Elvira fans, if you're not reading the Elvira comics from Dynamite, you're missing out. The stories are irreverent and fun, campy and quirky, with a nice touch of horror, just like the Mistress of the Dark herself.

Issue 04 of Elvira in Horrorland came out this week, and it featured this gorgeous Nightmare on Elm Street homage cover by Silvia Califano.

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Happy Birthday, Cassandra Peterson!

Happy Birthday to the incomparable Cassandra Peterson! It's so awesome to live in a world where Elvira, Mistress of the Dark exists.

September 17th is my Official Start of Halloween Season.

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Movie Macabre 107 - The Comedy of Terrors (1963)

Movie Macabre Season 01 - Episode 07 (007) Original Air Date: 07 November 1981

The Comedy of Terrors (1963) Directed by Jacques Tourneur Written by Richard Matheson

Starring: Vincent Price Peter Lorre Boris Karloff Joyce Jameson Rhubarb the Cat Joe E. Brown Basil Rathbone

"Dishonest undertaker Waldo Trumbull and his sidekick Felix Gillie are creating their own customers when they cannot find willing ones." (IMDB)

The seventh episode of Movie Macabre was the first episode to feature a film that was more comedy than horror. Distributed by American International Pictures and featuring several AIP regulars, The Comedy of Terrors pokes fun at some of the standard elements of AIP's horror catalog.

The movie starts with a bit of slapstick: two undertakers dump a body out of a coffin which they then clean and reuse. Thus the tone of the film is set. Unfortunately for me, that tone was neither comedy nor terror.

The cast is superb. Vincent Price is debonair and detestable. You can't help but feel sorry for Peter Lorre's loveable oaf. Joyce Jameson manages to upstage Vincent Price in nearly every scene. And Basil Rathbone as the cataleptic John F. Black got a few chuckles out of me. The real star of the movie was Rhubarb the cat. This cat was credited in the opening title crawl and on the poster. Rhubarb was also all over the movie, including riding on the top of the hearse.

Visually, the film doesn't really manage to be particularly unique. That's probably due to the fact that AIP churned out a ton of movies using the same sets, the same actors, and the same filmmakers. After a while, the style can blend into other movies.

This film has one of the worst uses of day-for-night filming that I've seen. The characters are supposed to be out at midnight, and yet we see them riding through what is obviously a sunny day ever so slightly color corrected. It's possible the version I watched had a different color grading than the original released film.

Despite the great cast and the otherwise competent filmmaking, I found it difficult to connect with this movie. I'm not a huge fan of the slapstick humor that comprises a large part of the comedy in this film. If it's not people falling down, it's Trumbull being verbally abusive to his wife. I understand what the film was trying to accomplish. It just all fell flat for me. Still, I would recommend it to those who enjoy Vincent Price.

I wish the full episode of Movie Macabre still existed. I'd love to hear with Elvira had to say about The Comedy of Terrors.

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Movie Macabre 106 - Blacula (1972)

Movie Macabre Season 01 - Episode 06 (006) Original Air Date: 01 November 1981

Blacula (1972) Directed by William Crain Written by Joan Torres and Raymond Koenig

"An ancient African prince, turned into a vampire by Dracula himself, finds himself in modern Los Angeles." (IMDB)

Starring: William Marshall Vonetta McGee Denise Nicholas Thalmus Rasulala

Blacula was the sixth movie featured on Elvira's Movie Macabre first season. Equal parts supernatural horror and Blaxploitation film, Blacula is a film that continues to have an important spot in horror history. Though I had never seen Blacula, cultural osmosis led me to believe I knew more about this movie.

Prince Mamuwalde is a cultural ambassador sent to open relations with Transylvania and the rest of the world. Dracula, a racist who delights in enslaving people, takes offense to Mamuwalde's demand that he stop all slave trade in Transylvania. So Dracula turns Mamuwalde into a vampire, and curses him with a terrible name.

Luckily, no one calls him Blacula. What follows is a quintessential story about a vampire trying to reunite with their lost love while wrestling with their demons. William Crain's directing tends more towards action than horror, which I think benefits the film greatly. Elements that could seem cheesy come off more exciting. The film makes excellent use of light and shadow.

The story is very character-driven. The four central performances are all captivating in their own ways. We get to know a lot about these characters just based on how they carry themselves or interact with others. These are strong, intelligent, confident characters.

Overall, Blacula was a highlight of these first six Movie Macabre features. It's easy to see how Blaxploitation films, their casts, and their creators influenced so much of American pop culture at the time. Add Blacula to your watchlist if you enjoy supernatural action and character driven stories.

This film also features The Hues Corporation. Most well known for their song "Rock the Boat," the group recorded three songs for Blacula. I saw a lot of reviews complaining about the almost complete performance of "There He Is Again" in the middle of movie. I loved this moment. The song feels like a message, both to the audience and the characters. It doesn't slow the pace of the film. And look at the joy. This is a group of people doing what they love to do. I love to see it.