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Overall Rating : 5.5/10
Supplied By : Warner Home Video
Film Reviewed By : Rick L. Blalock
Date Reviewed : December. 6, 2007
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| SYNOPSIS The Twisted Terror Collection includes From Beyond the Grave, Someone's Watching Me, The Hand, Eyes of a Stranger and Deadly Friend available for the first time on DVD, as well as the previously released Dr. Giggles. All titles will be available separately at $14.97 SRP. The collection features a specially designed "Twisted Terror" line look. |
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| THE HAND (1981) : Directed by - Oliver Stone IMDb PLOT A comic book artist who loses his right hand in a car accident. The Hand is not found at the scene of the accident, but soon it returns to follow Jon around, and murder those who anger him. REVIEW/SUMMARY Before he helmed a number of well received films, Oliver Stone took on the Directing duties of THE HAND, a bizarre psychological Thriller based on a novel titled THE LIZARD'S TAIL. Inspired by what happens when a Lizard's tail is detached(how it still moves as if it were attached - much like a chicken with it's head cut off) Stone, directs a story that takes this idea and applies it to humans. When comic artist Jonathan Lansdale, has his hand severed in a car accident, his detached limb, still alive, comes back to haunt him, and also kill those who anger Lansdale. In my opinion, the plot for THE HAND, is a brilliant one. Some say that when you lose a limb, such as the character of Jonathan Lansdale does, that you can still sense it as still being there...well this film not only shows you this element, but also shows you what it might be like if the limb itself had a mind of it's own. When Jonathan gets angered and has thoughts of killing someone, the hand, still able to sense the emotions of it's former host, actually begins to carry those thoughts out literally. But the havoc doesn't end with just the killing of those whom anger the comic strip artist, but visions of the hand itself begin to haunt Jonathan, causing him to go insane in his own right. Michael Caine gives a fairly realistic portrayal of a man that becomes somewhat bitter, not being able to support his family anymore - and later descends into a psychotic madness. As much as I liked THE HAND, it has moments where it lags in my opinion, and it's pace begins to dull down, making some scenes far less intriguing than others...overall, it's pretty decent, especially the concept found within. Rating : 5/10 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
DR. GIGGLES (1992) : Directed by - Manny Coto IMDb | PLOT The psychopathic son of a mass-murdering doctor escapes from his mental institution to seek revenge on the town where his father was caught. REVIEW/SUMMARY DR. GIGGLES is being released in this set, after the pressing of the first round DVD went long out of print. Some fans, whom wanted to own an original copy were paying in the hundreds of dollars, while those that wanted to merely see it, settled for less than stellar bootleg copies. The truth about this film is that it's not the best in terms of the black comedy Horror genre, but it somehow, over it's 15 years in existance has gained a cult following, I am guessing due to it's rather zany lead character - Doctor Evan Rendell aka "Dr. Giggles", portrayed in an offbeat mentallity by Larry Drake. Fronted by DARK HORSE COMICS and based on their comic of the some name, DR. Giggles plays out much like what you'd see in those pages of the comic. Some of the dialouge is cheesy, the gore and horrific gags are a little over the top, and you have an evil Doctor who spits out clever oneliners as he kills in order to "heal" them. The plot is basically a paint by numbers scenerio, the crazy Doctor in this film had his childhood tramatized by watching his Father(whom was a Doctor with shady practices), kill his patients, for no other reason other than his self satisfaction. He along with his father was be amused by his doings, until one day he is caught - the young boy would escape, by hiding in his mom's corpses, he would be sent to a mental institution, eventually escape return to the town of Moorehigh where his Dad was brought to justice, kill some residents in some very Doctorly ways, and stalk and torment Jennifer Campbel(a young Holly Marie Combs), whom has a heart condition. Overall, a very fun film, that is not to be taken serious at all. Many of the kills/gags, in which employ various medical instruments being used, reminds me a lot of THE DENTIST series of films, in which the first entry would be made 4 years after DR. GIGGLES, and were possibly inspired by. DR. GIGGLES is enjoyable for what it is, it has a plot and villain, that is, as we know, a bit far-fetched, but it has the right amout of gore and humor to keep fans watching - as for myself, I enjoy it, but I found that I liked it more the first time I saw it, opposed to this second viewing. But afterall, DR. GIGGLES is a film that any Horror fan is likely to find themselves watching more than a few times. Rating : 5.5/10 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
SOMEONE'S WATCHING ME! (1978) : Directed by - John Carpenter IMDb | PLOT This TV movie, directed by John Carpenter, tells the story of Leigh Michaels (Lauren Hutton) who is slowly stalked to the brink of madness by a man watching her from the opposite tower block. Her attempt to get the police to take her seriously leaves her with no option but to track him down herself. REVIEW/SUMMARY SOMEONE'S WATCHING ME!, is a TV movie that has basically been an obscure find for years, starring Lauren Hutton as a Television producer, who has recently relocated to LA and moved into a luxurious apartment building, whom is suddenly being watched by a mysterious man. The man creeps her out with various phone calls and gifts, Despite reporting the man's actions to authorities, they don't believe her(did you think they would anyway?). So with proper authority not supporting her, Leigh along with her new guy friend, follow clues until they uncover the mystery that has began to haunt her life - in the midst of it all, she watches her friend Sophie slain by the man, as she gets closer to finding him out - but would Sophie's fate also be one in the same with Leigh when it all comes to an end. I have always wanted to see this earlier made-for-TV movie, because, one, it's John Carpenter, and two, because of it's overall rarity. Thanks to this boxed set, I am finally able to do so. Overall, I knew the plot would be nothing new, from what I have seen before. I mean, because right from the beginning this film reminded me of the 1982 film THE SEDUCTION starring Morgan Fairchild as a TV reporter whom is stalked in basically the very same way. Now that I have seen SOMEONE'S WATCHING ME, I guess it's ok for me to assume that THE SEDUCTION was nothing more than a copy-cat of this film -whereas THE SEDUCTION was both cheesy and soapy, SOMEONE'S WATCHING me, is effective in the most simplest of ways. John Carpenter, as always in any thriller that he does, brings his trademark feeling of claustrophobia and panic, through various camera angles and sometimes eerie lighting. The performance of Lauren Hutton was very believable and not in the least bit over the top, like most performances in these types of films are - especially those of the victims. Even though Hutton has been around awhile, I have actually not seen her in much, personally, except for the infomercials she does now.... but her portrayal of Leigh is pretty solid here I must say. This is a creepy made-for-TV thriller, that is highly effective in most parts, but still struggles from the usual faults that follow a TV Movie - such as overdrawn pacing. I felt that some scenes moved kind of slowly, but that is most likely due to having to pad the film's run time to fill for it's TV time. I enjoyed it, but I can't help but think I would've appreciated it more, had I not seen THE SEDUCTION first, which was a film that made the subject matter in which these films share, seem cheesy and comical, rather than having that shear terror and fear that the subject actually contains. Also included is a 6 minute Featurette with John Carpenter, titled "John Carpenter : Director Rising. Carpenter here talks about how SOMEONE'S WATCHING ME! came about, and how it actually made him a better filmmaker. When watching this featurette, you just can't help but notice, just how cool a guy, John Carpenter is... Rating : 5.5/10 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
DEADLY FRIEND (1986) : Directed by - Wes Craven IMDb | PLOT Wes Craven directs this tale of Paul, a new kid in town with a robot named "BB" whose only real friend is a neighborhood girl named, Samantha. When Samantha's abusive father throws her down some stairs and kills her, Paul implants BB's computer brain into Samantha's human brain. REVIEW/SUMMARY 1986's DEADLY FRIEND is a rather odd but interesting film that Wes Craven Directed a few years after he directed arguably the biggest film of his career, which was A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. I wouldn't say that DEADLY FRIEND is too odd of a film for Wes Craven, because around the same time he did SHOCKER and SUMMER OF FEAR in which both were a bit cheesy in their own right - I actually believe that Craven was the right guy for the job, because he seems as if he knows just how to handle the off-beat subject matter. The film actually starts out much like any 80's teen comedy would. I mean, the film does center around a teenage Science whiz named Paul Conway, whom has just moved into a new neighborhood bringing his only friend along, which is a robot in which Paul constructed himself. He has developed a brain for the robot that makes the machine near human mentally, and around the new neighborhood everyone is amazed by "BB" the robot, even the beautiful girl next door, Samantha. If their wasn't one person impressed by the robot, it would have to be the neighborhood grouch, Elvira Parker, whom takes matters into her own hands in means to getting rid of it, and does so. When BB goes over Elvira's fence to retrieve a basketball belonging to Paul that mistakenly went over the fence, Elvira comes out shooting, destroying Paul's precious robot. Meanwhile Sam is also continuing to have trouble at him with an abusive Father. When Samantha comes home late one night, she is met by an angry father, whom hits Sam causing her to fall down a flight of stairs. The result would be fatal, as Sam would be pronounced brain dead With both of his best friends suddenly gone, Paul gets a bright idea. He is convinced that he can re-animate Samantha using the re-salvaged brain of BB with a little alterations. He happens to do just that, but the results are drastic as the brain given to a once, rather mild mannered girl, causes the girl to take on the violent urges that once belonged to BB. This film is quite enjoyable and fun, I must say. this was actually the first time I had ever seen this film, so I really didn't know what to suspect. As I said, the first half of the film plays out like your typical 1980s offbeat comedies, but it soon takes a twist, and turns into a completely different and strange film, I was quite surprised - but that's not a bad thing, because I was not ever bored at all with this film - it had a strange plot, and even stranger gore scenes, all of which kept me interested. It's also worth mentioning that DEADLY FRIEND also features a young Kristy Swanson as Samantha "Sam" Pringle. Rating : 6/10 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE (1973) : Directed by - Kevin Connor IMDb | PLOT An anthology film adapted from four short stories by R. Chetwynd-Hayes strung together about an antique dealer (Peter Cushing) who owns a shop called Temptations Ltd. and the fate that befalls his customers who try to cheat him. REVIEW/SUMMARY 1973's BEYOND THE GRAVE, is a film with episodic Horror film with 5 separate stories linked together by a central idea. Horror legend Peter Cushing, owns a vintage antique shop called "Temptation LTD.", and as the name suggests, with everything purchased from the shop, comes some unknown and unwanted evil. The objects purchased are; 1. A Mirror, in which houses an angry and evil spirit, 2. Having nothing really to do with the antique shop, the second story feature a man, having marital problems with his wife. He meets a quirky man played by HALLOWEEN's Donald Pleasence, whom sets him up with his Daughter(played by Pleasence's own Daughter Angela). The Daughter teaches a way to get rid of his wife via a voodoo doll, do him this was a great idea, but little did he know that he would be on the receiving end of death as well, 3 still straying from the antique shop, the third story tells of a man whom meets a strange woman whom is sort of a paranormal expert. She tells him that an evil spirit is lurking on his shoulder. When what she tells him happens to be the truth, he and his wife call on the woman to exorcize their house but not without some strange occurrences, 4. The fourth story occurs when a man buys an antique door that dates back to Charles the First, unfortunately when the said door is put into place, the opposite side of the door, awakens a portal into that era in which would create deadly cocequenses - our fifth story is of course the one in which ties the four plots together, that being the Temptation LTD. antique shop. This British anthology film is just one in a long string of films produced by Amicus Productions, and follows TORTURE GARDEN. The film is UK based and has an ensemble cast of British talent - in which the most recognizable faces here are Peter Cushing and Donald Pleasence. I have yet to see any of the Amicus films - this being my only one, and to be honest I found this to be a very slow and nagging film to sit through. So after watching, you could just imagine how surprised with the majority of the positive reactions it has received. For one I have never truly been a fan of anthology films....they just aren't my cup of tea really. So I guess I am probably not the target fan for these types of films. The idea of the antique shop is a good one however(such as it's been replicated in some of the AMITYVILLE series regarding objects taken from the house), but overall, the plot just moved entirely too slow to me. I also thought that the plots just weren't linked together good enough as some stories were serious, yet others leaned more toward comedy - I felt it was too uneven Rating : 2/10 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
EYES OF A STRANGER (1981) : Directed by - Ken Wiederhorn IMDb | PLOT An enterprising local news anchor discovers that one of her neighbors is actually the serial killer/rapist who has been terrorizing the city. She must prove her suspicions before the killer gets to her and her deaf and blind sister. REVIEW/SUMMARY 1981's EYES OF A STRANGER is familiar in plot and is certainly nothing new. There is a killer on the lose, whose raping and killing the innocent at nightfall. Jane Harris, one of the top news reporters at her local Miami news station has been covering the case of the said killer, and with each and every murder, she becomes more and more interested - so interested that it gets to the point where she won't rest until she finds out who they are. With a little bit of research she reveals the killer's identity to be that of a neighbor living in her very building. To silence Jane, the killer breaks into her apartment, only to find Jane's disabled Sister, Tracy. With Tracy not expecting it and not having a means of protection, Jane must rush to her aid. As I said, the plot is nothing new, not even to this collection as both SOMEONE'S WATCHING ME and this film are strikingly similar - so it's fitting that the two are included in the same set. Both involve an apartment building in which a killer is lurking, and in both, each of the films' heroines are involved in Television(in this case, Jane is a reporter). EYES OF A STRANGER is basically a cross between a Slasher film like HALLOWEEN(the original of course) and thrillers such WHEN A STRANGER CALLS(the original), and THE SEDUCTION. But unlike many 80's Slasher films to come after HALLOWEEN a few years later, EYES OF A STRANGER happens to be one of those that suffers from a very slow and boring pace. In my opinion I found the film to be very uneventful and when something did happen there was very little suspense accompanying it to make it anything meaningful. This is due to the filmmakers revealing the killers identity too soon. In my opinion, there just wasn't enough build-up around the villain character - his identity is revealed, and instead of being shocked by the revelation, it's barely a shock, and we pretty much don't even care(or at least I didn't). I'd say that the only real reason to see this is to see some early FX work by gore master Tom Savini, and if you are a fan of Jennifer Jason Leigh, she is featured here in one of her earlier roles as Tracy, the Sister of lead character, Jane. Other than that, EYES OF A STRANGER is a pretty generic 80's Slasher - but I have seen worse. Rating : 3/10 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
SPECIFICATIONS |
5 DVDs Total, included in 5 Standard Cases -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
BOXED SET CONTENTS | The Hand Dr. Giggles Someone's Watching Me Deadly Friend From Beyond the Grave Eyes of a Stranger -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
OVERALL IMPRESSION OF THIS SET |
THE TWISTED TERROR COLLECTION is comprised of 6 very different films, that have very little to do with one another. Perhaps the one thing they share in common is the fact that they are rare and hard to find. Having these finally available to Horror film collectors is the good thing - unfortunately they aren't consistent when it comes to their level of quality, as some of them are clearly better than others. In my opinion DR. GIGGLES and DEADLY FRIEND are the standouts here. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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