Kooky But Creepy, a Good "Silent Slasher"-Type Flick

The House By the Cemetery (1981)
Director- Lucio Fulci
Starring- Catriona MacColl, Paolo Malco, Giovanni Frezza

A family moves into a house, the basement of which is inhabited by a demonic killer who uses the bodies of his victims to rejuvinate his own cells.

I have to say that the Halloweeny 1980's synth music is hypnotic. It sounds as good as it sounds bad, and it's impossible to stop listening to during the opening sequences. In that same vein, the movie itself is mostly a little silly-looking. The styles, the acting, it's all a little hit/miss. That's okay, though, because the creepy killer element comes alive during the shots of the basement killer, slowly stepping up the steps toward whoever gets themselves locked on the wrong side of the door.

Without giving too much away, I was surprised to see him kill characters I honestly didn't think would die. That's mediterranean horror for you, keeps you thinking. The ending becomes stressful to watch, then morphs into a completely bizarre but happy (I guess?) conclusion.

I was pleasantly surprised by the movie in spite of all the bad things about it.

Rating: 4/5 Bonedaddies.

Jersey Devil? Where?

Satan's Playground (2005)
Director- Dante Tomaselli
Starring- Felissa Rose, Irma St. Paule, Christie Sanford

A bickering family finds themselves stranded within the Jersey Pine Barrens on their way to a camp ground. When they can't free themselves, husband Frank (Salvatore Paul Piro) ventures out for help. He happens upon an old house and is greeted by old Ms. Leeds (St. Paule) and her nurse, Judy (Sanford). Frank soon meets the extended family in a horrific manner.

When Frank fails to return, wife Donna (Rose) takes off looking for them. The same fate appears to befall her. One by one, the family disappears into the wilderness, only to stumble upon the same house. Donna escapes and returns the next day with police, but after the initial introduction to Ms. Leeds, more carnage occurs.

The first twenty-or so minutes of this movie were very boring and uneventful. I understand they were trying to establish the "unhappy family trying to have a good vacation" motif, but that became apparent early on, and wasn't necessary to play out for the next eighteen minutes.

The Satanic rituals going on in the backyard of the house were cool, but not elaborated on. I figured they had something to do with the "Jersey Devil" legend, but nothing was really explained about it, and it wasn't really even brought up again after the first occurrence.

The acting was okay--the only noteworthy performance would probably be Christie Sanford, whose creepy nurse came just shy of being over-the-top and Tim Burton-esque.

Despite its negative aspects, it is still a very good example of making a creepy movie on a very small budget.

Rating: 3/5 Bonedaddies.