Vultural

The Sea God - 1930 - 5/10

The skipper has the worst luck. One, his name is Pink. Two, he loses all his money gambling. Three, he bets his boat, loses that. Four, his sweetheart, Daisy, is back with his hated rival, and engaged!
Hope springs eternal, however, when a dying seadog tells him where a fortune in pearls can be found.
So long as those pesky cannibals keep away.
Stodgy adventure film set in the South Seas (ahem, Catalina Island).
Fay Wray and Richard Arlen have sparse chemistry, despite making several films together.

Le Sauvage - 1975 - 6/10

Ever of her wedding, Nelly flees her future husband, or more likely, his huge, rambunctious family.
After her nightclub boss refuses her back pay, she swipes his Toulouse-Lautrec.
And winds up on Martin’s island. Where he grows vegetables and subsists off the land.
Martin is trying to escape the rat race; Nelly is the rat race, obsessed with money and the value of everything.
Silly French RomCom boasts powerful leads in Catherine Deneuve and Yves Montand.
Support includes Tony Roberts and Dana Wynter, set in Venezuela.
Comedy seem forced, may depend on your attitude.
Still, not often you see Deneuve so capricious.

Various (Editor: Marín, Álvaro García) - The Vampire Of Vourla

A half dozen vampire stories from 18919-1846, predating the Bram era.
All are Greek oriented, though many appear to have come from English writers.
Editor Marín pens a lengthy introduction, explaining the long history of vampires in Greece, their origins which may have gone back to Turkish domination, and the rationale for their erasure from history.

The opener by Lord Byron is a mere fragment, yet reflects the ornate writing of old. Flowery to the point of overripe. Ending mid-sentence, mid-paragraph? Just ending.

“The Vampire: A Tale” picks from Byron’s story, perhaps copied, perhaps influenced. Written by John Polidori, Byron’s physician, whom I might pigeonhole as a frenemy. The story is of a young man with an older, more experienced, slightly sinister man. He reminded me of Dorian’s mentor, Lord Henry.

“The Story Of Demetrio Gkikas” is less bloodsucker than a restless spirit, an unhappy soul.

In John Bowring’s “Vampires”, we listen in as a father tells his children a spooky bedtime story. The children, while not precocious, easily possess more common sense than many individuals today.

“The Vroucolacas” is a fun little romp with a good mix of characters, a possessive father whose beautiful daughter loves an unacceptable male. Complaining to the local Turkish official is perilous, as the Bashaw would sooner chop off heads than tax himself listening. While the vampire in question disturbs the local community, readers chuckle at the mischief.

An essential book? Probably not. Good for those who want more stories that are off the heavily worn path. The notes and scholarship aid immensely, as well.

redundant = will sort later

The Jangling Man: Martin Newell Story - 2022 - 6/10

Meandering documentary (fitting actually) of the iconoclast musician and poet who shuns the music biz.
Youth barely mentioned, read “This Little Ziggy”. Bands are checked, with tune snips.
Mostly, this is Newell in his home studio, accent on home.
Plenty of talking heads, primarily musicians, certainly not the London critics.
Giles Smith seems a big omission.
While this rambles, by the end you have a good feel for Martin as an individual.
Fans of Newell ought to bump my score a couple points.
Never heard of him, but like vintage pop and psychedelia?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heKeeC_ADcA

Highest 2 Lowest - 2025 - 6/10

Glossy remake of the Kurosawa classic from 1963.
Music mogul, King, regrets selling part of his empire, now seeks to retake control.
His son is kidnapped, an exorbitant ransom demanded, only it was not HIS son, but his chauffeur’s.
Pay the ransom and lose the company? Or refuse and face the wrath of social media?
The moral dilemma. Bear in mind, Hollywood is not Japan.
Slick, beautiful shots of New York. The film is overlong, however, and great stretches stagnate.
Moreover, the logic of the demands (Swiss francs) and the fund transfers defy belief.

Gunn - 1967 - 6/10

A retired mob boss is liquidated on his boat.
Even though the new cartel warns him, Peter Gunn owed the old man.
And as the new chief starts squeezing, casino owners cry for help.
Reboot of the vintage TV series seems out-of-step from the start.
1967, the Summer Of Love, yet the interiors are Jazz clubs and gangsters in fedoras.
The mystery angle is good, great twist, Stevens laid back (seems too old to lure the ladies, though).
For the cult of Sherry Jackson, she has a meaty role and is as intoxicating as ever.
Look for Carol Wayne at the end.

Bookish - 2025 - 7/10

Mr. Book sells used books. Also assists the Yard on occasion.
After all, he has a letter from Mr. Churchill.
Period mysteries set between the end of WWII and the Swinging Sixties.
Plenty of rubble and resentments, and, of course, murders.
Superb looking series. A trio of two-part episodes.
Clues are strewn, but usually a big one is saved for the final reveal.
Compared with other cozies, there is a meaner edge to this, setting it apart.

Murders In Valenciennes - 2018 - 6/10
AKA - Les Disparus de Valenciennes

Florian had been working on the history of the fatal mining disaster.
Until he was found hanging, a steel chain around his neck. Murdered.
Responding are two French officers, long estranged brothers.
Mean-spirited throughout, what with bickering, resentments, class rancor.
This one does not rely on scenery, but very plot driven.
No end of malfeasance, too. Dark edge that cuts to the conclusion.

Show us?

Cthulhu In Salem - 2047 - 5/10

A hazing ritual gone bad, an initiation taken too far.
Stultus Fortis fraternity pleads accident. Behind the smiles, “accidentally on purpose.”
Bound and blindfolded, pledges were submerged in freezing waters.
One was held under until his lungs filled. His last gasp, however, was “Fanglue muggle calla you relay wha-fatgen.”
Afterward, frat members – and girlfriends – die or disappear mysteriously.
The blotched rendition of the classic “Ph’nglui mglw’nafh Cthulhu R’lyeh wgah’nagl fhtagn” is one of numerous errors.
Warning: This is a variation on “The Shadow Over Innsmouth” and NOT “The Call Of Cthulhu”.
Also, Innsmouth is transplanted to Salem. Either producers did not know HPL or did not care.
Actors from a local college. Hockey team and Phi Pi Phi girls.
Effects surprisingly good. Fog for mist, creatures backlit or shadowed. Eerie music and sound field.
Derivative story is, yet pacing is crisp and tension builds. One can see why this is a hit on the Dark web.
Acolytes? Cthulhu is never seen nor mentioned.

The Stone Tape - 1972 - 5/10

The old castle provides the new location for the research laboratory.
One room, however, well … it’s haunted. Screaming, sightings.
Anyone with common sense might go, “OK, close this off and leave it alone.”
These are lab coats, mind you, so they drag their gear inside and begin investigating.
Dawdling narrative, elements of Horror and clunky science.
Looks cheap. Actors strive their best, but they deserved a sharper script.
This was a real theory, by the way = https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Tape_theory

Brown, Eric - The Telemass Quartet

Retired cop Matt Hendricks is in pursuit across light years.
Ex-wife Maatje and her partner have kidnapped the daughter.
Dead daughter.
Hurtling from one system to another in search of a promised resurrection cure.
Since alien treatments might work on humans, right? Maybe? Hopefully?
Four novellas, each around eighty pages, read hard and fast.
For an ex-investigator, ole Matt is repeatedly outsmarted by Maartje.
Luckily, convenient help, and willing ladies, appear just when needed.
The first two novellas seemed fresher; maybe I appreciated the world building better in those.
Every story bolts to a conclusion, with the “The End” plug yanked abruptly.
Note: I have read little SciFi since the 70’s, but this was entertaining.
Part of a second grab-bag assortment bought from PS Publishing.

Necromancy - 1971 - 5/10

Frank accepts a job in isolated Lilith, dragging a reluctant Lori along.
The small town is a gated community, inhabitants mostly twenty-year-olds.
Well-garbed hippies, New Age occult dabblers.
Ruling all is Mr Cato (Orson Welles, why oh why?), pining for his dead son.
Lori, it seems has gifts: second sight, visions.
In a town full of wannabe witches, she is the genuine article.
Promising concept, poorly executed.
“Witchcraft is the only honest religion, that makes things happen now, in this life.”

Curse Of The Dog God - 1977 - 6/10
AKA - Inugami no Tatari // 犬神の悪霊

Three men, racing down the backroads, Geiger counter suddenly clicking like mad.
So excited, they accidentally smash into a small shrine, then run down and kill a dog.
Yes, they brought this on themselves. Even though they are ignorant for a while.
Nevertheless, one marries a village girl who soon realizes her husband is under the curse.
Trying to protect him drives her insane, and she is possessed.
Above, the husband about to succumb to the intruder inhabiting his wife.
Twin evils throughout: ancient curse, modern uranium. Village superstitions, motorcycle thugs.

Arachnid - 2001 - 5/10

An experimental stealth fighter locates and shoots down … an alien spaceship!
Jump ahead several years, when a scientific expedition flies to a remote South Seas island.
Natives are being decimated by some sort of mysterious venom dissolving them from within.
Oh-my-God, does that mean there was a big, intelligent spider piloting that craft?
Half-baked ripoff of Predator finds a team beset by various, deadly insects.
Locations reminded me of Ramar and Jungle Jim.
You like junk food? Here’s something to watch with it.

Dearest Sister - 2016 - 6/10
AKA - Nong Hak

Nok leaves the small village for large city Vientiane to care for a distant relative, Ana.
Ana, married to Westerner Jakob, is going blind, and suffers from passive aggressive servants.
A side-effect of the failing eyesight, Ana is soon seeing the dead, and receiving messages.
Numbers, winning lottery numbers, which the poor village girl exploits for material goods.
Nok is soon snooping, eavesdropping, losing small town morals.
Yes, there are some cloudy dead souls, but this is limited Horror, more a slow burn thriller.

Nadja - 1994 - 6/10

Modern take on Dracula, actually his daughter, and this bears little resemblance to the 1936 film.
The look is Noir / Gothic, although “vampiric” scenes are pixilated.
The pixilation is overused, gets repetitive, ultimately tedious.
A Van Helsing descendant is jailed after driving a stake (finally) through Count Dracula’s heart.
Dracula’s daughter retrieves the body, then parties begin scrambling across New York.

Acting is dominated by a loose, swinging Peter Fonda and a mesmerizing Elina Löwensohn.
Back and forth, I was riveted to the screen and bored out of my mind.
Arthouse vampires, in line with Only Lovers Kept Alive.

The Norman Conquests: Round And Round The Garden - 1977 - 7/10

Final part of the trilogy, this one set in the back garden.
This opens earliest, with Tom arriving for an injured cat, then Norman, then Reg and Sarah.
One ought NOT watch this first, however, as subsequent proceedings stem from indoor incidents.
Any sympathy for Norman collapses in this outing.
Norman is an emotional huckster with a smooth lie, “I can make you happy.”

He comes off as a pathetic sleaze. One wonders at the desperation quotient of females drawn to him.
Norman is a charade, miserable himself, with radar for similar sufferers.
Ayckbourn comedy mixed with poignancy may rouse your ire.

The Norman Conquests: Living Together - 1977 - 7/10

Concurrent with events in the dining room are those within the living room.
Norman seems more subdued here, perhaps guilty over his treatment of veterinarian Tom.
Reg has devised a new board game that no one is interested in.
Less explosive than the dining room, yet one senses undercurrents of quiet despair and ennui.
These are sad people, perhaps depressed, perhaps in denial.
Save for Tom, poor thing, who simply possesses no social skills, no radar for negativity.

The Norman Conquests: Table Manners - 1977 - 7/10

Alan Ayckbourn’s comedy of manners of strained marriages.
Disappointed wives, a “kept” husband, a spinster sister who seems destined for a dullard.
Norman may be “kept” but he makes lecherous advances.
He is obnoxiously juvenile, gratingly so.
Still, never overlook the female prerogative to get soppy for fools.
This looks very much like British telly of the era. (eg: Are You Being Served?, Good Neighbors.
I found it amusingly odd to see Margo and Tom as a couple.

Unsworth, Sophia J - Silent House: And Other Strange Stories

This ought to tempt many who enjoy “strange” stories. Yes, too many books wave that shingle. “Hey, I’m strange, I’m packed with strangeness” when they are just Horror tales, supernatural yarns, ghost stories.
Unsworth seems to have found a crossing into the borderlands.

The title story flows into the cinema, Silent cinema. A house devoted to a bygone artiste, disliked by the authorities. There was a death, a murder. Later, footage from his final work goes missing. Nevertheless, the museum acts as a lodestone for tarrying memories.

“The Caller” is more about the recipient of mysterious phone calls. After all, he had purchased a vintage telephone. Pre-plastic, Bakelite. He ought to have expected the device to have a few quirks. That it may even pick up on other resonances.

One can stare at the past, inhabit old memories, resist change. “The Grey Man”, an reclusive observer, is himself seen by the homeowner. He doesn’t appear danger, a bit sad, really. Gazing, sometimes even walking up the front lawn, then too hesitant to knock. There is a longing.

“The Tall Tailoress” shares a building, an alliance, with the architect. She is the more successful, designing gowns and dresses for an elite clientele. Including royalty. He is less fortunate, as none of his elaborate designs find form. So, he takes the random side jobs. Once underway, this becomes an unsettling tale of betrayal and death.

“Woodbine” was an older country home, settling into ruin. The appraiser’s task was straightforward enough. Catalogue and value the inventory. Daunting, yet the remuneration was handsome. Plus, he could stay there rent-free for five months. Small stipulation, should he depart, for any reason, prior to the five months, he would have to pay rent for the time spent there. What could possibly force him to leave?

This is an auspicious debut, and fans of troubling stories would be well served in searching this out.

The Locked Door - 1929 - 6/10

Ann accompanies Frank to one of those offshore, floating casinos.
A classic masher, Frank attempts to get her drunk and disrobe her.
Yet an unexpected police raid catches all in the net.
Within a year Ann, married to the stuffy Lawrence, sees Frank seduce her sister-in-law.
Stodgy Talkie melodrama bogs down once we leave the casino.
Menzies sets are worth studying, and the sweeping bar seems a precursor to Shanghai Lil.
Barbara Stanwyck, barely in her twenties, is captivating.

Fatal Termination - 1990 - 6/10
AKA - Chi se da Feng Bao // 赤 色 大 風 暴

The insanity of Hong Kong cinema.
Moon Lee clutching tight to the hood of a speeding car, while a stuntman holds a kicking, screaming, terrified child by the hair!
A Lebanese terrorist needs to smuggle a crate of guns, over 1000, with a stopover in Hong Kong.
Most of the Customs agents have been bribed, save for a few righteous souls.
Police know something is afoot, but they keep getting outflanked.
Confusing plot, characters who muddle about, interspersed with action sequences.
Until the last third of the film. Then, buckle up.
The crazed car sequence above, a fight through towering shipping crates, combat between cars, helicopters, grenades, rockets.

Companion - 2025 - 6/10

Strolling the grocers, heading toward the clichéd Produce section, Iris is about to meet-cute.
With Josh, who has the charisma of a never washed gym sock.
All ain’t fair in love, however, as Iris is being set up by greedy would-be criminals.
Despite being the ultimate innocent, Iris learns right quick.
This has the workings of a good, fun thriller, but the writing is clumsy.
Way too many sections of explanations and expositions.
Scriptwriting 101 – Show, don’t tell.