Iconic Dutch director Nouchka van Brakel, who was responsible for A Woman Like Eve which focused on lesbianism, previously explored something even more taboo. In her 1977 film, The Debut (AKA Het Debuut), she conjured up a story about another controversial subject, sex with an underage child and the discreet love affair that would follow…
A Woman Like Eve Blu-ray review
A Woman Like Eve, known as Een vrouw als Eva in the Netherlands, is a 1979 film directed by legendary Dutch filmmaker Nouchka van Brakel. She was a pioneer in the filmmaking industry when it came to feminism and strong female characters. Her films created a stir and followed by controversy when they first came…
Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House Blu-ray review
Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House is a 1948 comedy drama film about a family wanting to buy and build a home. The film stars a pair of screen icons in Cary Grant and Myrna Loy who were no strangers to screwball comedies. The tale focuses on Jim Blandings (Cary Grant, North by Northwest) and…
Blu-ray Review – Love After Death and The Good, The Bad, and the Beautiful – AGFA and Something Weird
After Mr. Montel is “accidentally” buried alive by his wife, he digs his way out of his own grave and goes on some sexy adventures. In life, Montel was sickly, too cowardly, and quite possibly just plain impotent to fulfill his wife’s desires. Now that he’s out and about in the city, he spies on…
Blu-ray Review – Grizzly/Day of the Animals – Severin Films
It is animal attack month at Severin Films, well aside from the tremendous 4k Santa Sangre release, and in a way that HAD ANIMALS in it (that elephant funeral kills me every time). Earlier in the month we got an excellent release of the underseen sharksploitationer Deep Blood by Italian exploitation king Joe D’Amato, and…
Tabletop Review – Hansa Teutonica – Pegasus Spiele
Hansa Teutonica came into my awareness during a board game discussion with a few friends in the last 6 months. I went searching for a copy only to come up short. Interesting that in that time the company behind it Pegasus Spiele would decide to re-release it in a “Big Box form. I’ll say this…
Blu-ray Review Homegrown Horrors Vol. 1
There is nothing that feels quite like a backyard, or “Homegrown Horror” film as the latest box set from Vinegar Syndrome calls them. I am not just saying this, as a fan of horror films, but I genuinely feel that horror (with science fiction as a close second) has the most genuinely passionate fan base…
Tabletop Review – Block Ness – Blue Orange Games
Block Ness by Blue Orange Games – Ryan Miller Years ago I was introduced to a game called Blockus by my nephews on my wife’s side of the family. It was a fun little game in which players place Tetris-like pieces on a square board to control an area. There was a lot to like…
And Then There Were None Marathon: Eight Adaptations of Agatha Christie’s Legendary Mystery Novel
**Note: Be aware that this article will be full of spoilers so if you have somehow avoided reading one of the most widely popular mystery novels of all time and avoided seeing at least one of its more than a dozen adaptations, you may want to just skip down to the conclusion to find out…
Director Spotlight: Curtis Harrington
Curtis Harrington was an interesting figure, towing the line between the avant garde and schlock cinema, reminiscent of forbearers like tVal Lewton and Jacques Tourneur who made minor masterpieces within the confines of horror and crime genres. After a stint as a film critic, Harrington began producing esoteric, surrealist short films and working with experimental…