Film Review: WITCHERY (1988)

Fabrizio Laurenti (as Martin Newlin) directs Witchery (1988) which was released in Italy as La Casa 4.  For those of you that didn’t know, The Evil Dead and Evil Dead 2 were released in Italy as La Casa and La Casa 2, respectfully.  This film was released as an unofficial sequel to those hit films to capitalize on their popularity.  Ghost House (1988) was released in Italy as La Casa 3 and this film was the next in line for the series.  Neither of these films have anything to do with the popular Sam Raimi films or each other. 

A rich family venture off to an island in   There is also a photography couple looking to discover the truth about the witches and the history of the hotel and they all get stranded on the island during a storm.  Now, waiting for the day to break them each come face to face with the nightmares of the building that begins to take them one by one.

Massachusetts to buy an abandoned hotel only to discover that the former resident is still living their but as a witch who wants to see them all dead.

The film has its moments including starring turns from Linda Blair and David Hasselhoff and despite it being a very predictable horror film the witch elements make it more interesting.  The film is not so much a slow burn but the decaying of each of the ensemble of characters as you watch them become distanced from one another as they die one by one.

The film will satisfy fans of ‘80s Italian productions but audiences who don’t realize the genre (and country) of the film won’t be able to appreciate the film for what it is.

Film Review: GHOST HOUSE (1988)

Umberto Lenzi (as Humphry Humbert) directs the haunted house thrilled Ghost House (1998) which for Italian audiences was known as La Casa 3 or an unofficial sequel to Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead films.  For those of you that didn’t know, The Evil Dead and Evil Dead 2 were re-titled La Casa and La Casa 2, respectfully, when released in Italy so many audiences know this film as a sequel to those films.  This film has nothing to do with those films and if you were expecting something in their style then you’ll be sadly remiss.

Instead, this film deals with a group of people drawn to a mysterious house because of a radio signal.  Once at the house the group begin to see and experience haunting imagery tied to a little girl and her evil doll.  AS each of them fined themselves alone in the house they meet a deadly demise and time is running out for them to discover the true history of the house and why each of them were drawn there.

Unless you’re a Lenzi fan then there is very little to recommend this film.  It’s very tame even for one of his films and unfortunately time has not been kind to it as it has dates pretty badly.  This being said, the film is typical Lenzi and there are some haunting images that Lenzi will immediately recognize.

Film Review: ZOMBEAVERS (2014)

It’s not safe in the water and it’s not safe on land in the zombie-beaver horror film Zombeavers (2014).  When a canister of deadly chemicals falls from a truck and lands in a pond with a large beaver population strange things start to happen as the beavers exhibit behavior attributed to being dead. 

Three girlfriends decide to make it a weekend trip to the family cabin when one of them has problems with her boyfriend.  The trip is meant to be a weekend for the women but it’s not long before their men make an unexpected appearance.  All six try to make the best of it until they are suddenly attacked by what appears to be a rabid beaver.  It’s not long before they realize that it’s not just one beaver that’s infected but the entire lake’s population and they are out for human blood.  Now these friends and everyone else that lives around the lake must find a way to survive as the undead beavers kill everything in their path.

Directed by Jordan Rubin and written by Al Kaplan, Jon Kaplan and Rubin this is a comedy horror that’s very aware of the absurdity of the premise of zombie-beavers.  These aren’t just your ordinary zombeavers either.  They are smart and cunning and if you get infected by them you not only become one of the undead but you also become part beaver as well (it has to be seen to be believed).  For fans of The Evil Dead II (1987) and Mulberry St. (2006) and more recently Tucker & Dale Vs. Evil (2010) this film is right up your alley as it successfully melds the horror-gore-comedy and has some nudity as well.

This is a fun and entertaining film from beginning to end with a cast that is equally as aware of the film that they are in.  The film also succeeds in being surprising and never boring because everyone is fair game in this film that bucks Hollywood trends and expectations.  This is not a film for everyone (especially those that can’t immediately buy into a world where there are zombie beavers) but for those willing to go for the ride it’s a wild and entertaining one well worth your time.