MILL CREEK MAD SCIENTIST THEATER MONTH: House of the Living Dead (1974)
Also known as Shadows over Bridge Farm (Skaduwees Oor Brugplaas), Curse of the Dead, Doctor Maniac and even retitled as Kill, Baby, Kill — what, that isn’t taken? — for video releases, this 1974 release is a South African/British co-production that attempts to mix gothic melodrama, science fiction and horror. Yes, distributors did just straight-up […]
WEIRD WEDNESDAY: Truck Turner (1974)
Released by American International Pictures as a double feature with Foxy Brown, this movie features Isaac Hayes as former pro football player turned bounty hunter Mack “Truck” Turner. After another successful job with his friend Jerry, he gets another bounty from Fogarty (Dick Miller), but not before seeing his girlfriend Annie (Annazette Chase, The Toy). […]
WEIRD WEDNESDAY: The Thirsty Dead (1974)
This starts like a women in prison Phillipines-made Roger Corman movie but before you’re ready, the kidnapped ladies all end up in a camp run by Baru (John Considine), who has a crazy necklace and cape. I think it’s his fashion that made him ruler and part of their immortal cult that drinks the blood […]
2026 Scarecrow Psychotronic Challenge Day 1: Savages (1974)
1. HUNTING SEASON IS OPEN!: This season’s opener will have some kind of seeking, stalking, tracking or trapping, you know… hunting! Tally ho! If your only frame of reference for America’s favorite fictional small-town sheriff is Mayberry’s gentle, homespun wisdom, watching 1974’s Savages is like finding out Uncle Bee moonlights as a syndicate hitman. Months […]
CBS LATE MOVIE: The Lords of Flatbush (1974)
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Lords of Flatbush was on the CBS Late Movie on October 26, 1979. Martin Davidson made his directorial debut with this film. You may know him better from Eddie and the Cruisers. You may not know him from the John Ritter vehicle Hero at Large. Stephen Verona wrote and co-directed it, and years later […]
CBS LATE MOVIE: The Strange and Deadly Occurrence (1974)
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Strange and Deadly Occurrence was on the CBS Late Movie on February 11, 1976. Directed by John Llewellyn Moxey from a script by Sandor Stern (who wrote the script for the original The Amityville Horror and directed and wrote one of my favorite films, Pin) and Lane Slate, the verbose title of this mildly spooky […]
CBS LATE MOVIE: Betrayal (1974)
EDITOR’S NOTE: Betrayal was on the CBS Late Movie on JAugust 28, 1979 and July 14, 1980. Helen Mercer (Amanda Blake, Miss Kitty from Gunsmoke) is a wealthy widow who had to kill a handyman who menaced her last year. Now, the rest of town calls her “Deadeye” and she doesn’t leave her home. She’s looking for a […]
WEIRD WEDNESDAY: Slaughter In San Francisco (1974)
Originally released internationally as Yellow Faced Tiger and also known as Karate Cop, Slaughter In San Francisco was directed by Lo Wei and produced by Golden Harvest. This 1974 Hong Kong-American production carries an incredible piece of cinematic history on its shoulders: it was originally written as a vehicle for Bruce Lee before his tragic […]
WEIRD WEDNESDAY: Puzzle (1974)
Released in Italy as L’uomo senza memoria (The Man Without a Memory), Puzzle was directed by Duccio Tessari, who like many Italy exploitation directors had a career that went from genre to genre: peplum (he wrote several, including Goliath and the Vampires and Mario Bava’s Hercules in the Haunted World), westerns (he wrote and directed A Pistol for Ringo […]
CULTPIX MONTH: The Street Fighter (1974)
Gekitotsu! Satsujin Ken is the story of Terry Tsurugi (the legendary Sonny Chiba). Terry isn’t a hero. He doesn’t have a heart of gold. He’s a mercenary, an assassin and a deeply unpleasant human being who lives in a world of pure, unadulterated machismo. When a wealthy oil magnate dies, the Yakuza tries to hire Terry to […]
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