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Reviews
Autumn Born (1979)
Brilliant!
If you're a fan of the films of Doris Wishman, you have got to check out the first film featuring "Star 80" Dorothy Stratten. It's a torrid tale of a young heiress who's kidnapped and locked in a room until she agrees to give up her fortune. Beatings, torture and really awful acting ensue.
See Dorothy yell at the walls for the awful music to stop! See Dorothy get whipped repeatedly! See Dorothy bond with a wind-up toy mouse! See Dorothy look humiliated as she takes a bath! See Dorothy engage in softcore lesbianism with a woman that looks like Mary Woronov!
Why this film hasn't gotten a cult rep I don't know. Well, here's my shot at trying.
Bruiser (2000)
Strong Romero entry ranks with his better later work
"Bruiser" is allegorical horror the way only George Romero (and Larry Cohen) knows how to do it. It's a tale of identity lost that works much better than the similar "American Psycho." It's well-acted with clever dialogue and some truly memorable images that smell of Dario Argento's influence. (You know, back when Argento was making decent movies.) It's not perfect, of course--many characters get the short shrift in terms of depth and some plot twists make little sense--but it certainly ranks with "Monkey Shines" and "The Dark Half" quite comfortably.
Komodo (1999)
Unmemorable killer lizard pic
Terminally below-mediocre island-based horror flick desperately attempting to cash in on the non-existent demand for homicidal lizard cinema. After his parents are devoured by the title critters, a little kid is taken back to the island they were offered on as part of a psychological experiment(!?) and, lo and behold, they're still there. Bland hero and typical love interest run around as standard supporting characters get killed. Not so much actively bad as pointless, but why bother? Some nice "Lord of the Flies" moments near the end are too little, too late.
The Cat and the Canary (1978)
Above-average mystery chiller
While most noted for his adult films, Radley Metzger proved he's not limited to the ol' in-and-out with this fourth remake of the oft-filmed reading-of-the-will format play. The plot is fairly typical stuff (a bunch of heirs, a will with loads of cash to be handed down, a history of insanity in the family), but a good cast, some clever plot twists and Metzger's usual adept hand at visual imagery (check out the shot where the maid recites a monologue through the reflection on a picture of the old man) make this a welcome change of pace to the dreary and remarkably similar Agatha Christie murder mysteries of the same time period.