John Carradine Movies
Though best known to modern filmgoers as a horror star, cadaverous John Carradine was, in his prime, one of the most versatile character actors on the silver screen. The son of a journalist father and physician mother, Carradine was given an expensive education in Philadelphia and New York. Upon graduating from the Graphic Arts School, he intended to make his living as a painter and sculptor, but in 1923 he was sidetracked into acting. Working for a series of low-paying stock companies throughout the 1920s, he made ends meet as a quick-sketch portrait painter and scenic designer. He came to Hollywood in 1930, where his extensive talents and eccentric behavior almost immediately brought him to the attention of casting directors. He played a dizzying variety of distinctive bit parts -- a huntsman in Bride of Frankenstein (1935), a crowd agitator in Les Miserables (1935) -- before he was signed to a 20th Century Fox contract in 1936. His first major role was the sadistic prison guard in John Ford's Prisoner of Shark Island (1936), which launched a long and fruitful association with Ford, culminating in such memorable screen characterizations as the gentleman gambler in Stagecoach (1939) and Preacher Casy ("I lost the callin'!") in The Grapes of Wrath (1940). Usually typecast as a villain, Carradine occasionally surprised his followers with non-villainous roles like the philosophical cab driver in Alexander's Ragtime Band (1938) and Abraham Lincoln in Of Human Hearts (1938). Throughout his Hollywood years, Carradine's first love remained the theater; to fund his various stage projects (which included his own Shakespearean troupe), he had no qualms about accepting film work in the lowest of low-budget productions. Ironically, it was in one of these Poverty Row cheapies, PRC's Bluebeard (1944), that the actor delivered what many consider his finest performance. Though he occasionally appeared in an A-picture in the 1950s and 1960s (The Ten Commandments, Cheyenne Autumn), Carradine was pretty much consigned to cheapies during those decades, including such horror epics as The Black Sleep (1956), The Unearthly (1957), and the notorious Billy the Kid Meets Dracula (1966). He also appeared in innumerable television programs, among them Twilight Zone, The Munsters, Thriller, and The Red Skelton Show, and from 1962 to 1964 enjoyed a long Broadway run as courtesan-procurer Lycus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Though painfully crippled by arthritis in his last years, Carradine never stopped working, showing up in films ranging from Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex But Were Afraid to Ask (1972) to Peggy Sue Got Married (1984). Married four times, John Carradine was the father of actors David, Keith, Robert, and Bruce Carradine. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This Florida-lensed slasher silliness (not surprisingly produced by exploitation overlord Fred Olen Ray) is enlivened only slightly by posthumous cameos from John Carradine and Cameron Mitchell, as well as appearances from B-movie "Scream Queens" Linnea Quigley and Brinke Stevens. The plot is basically a riff on the standard Freddy Krueger-esque supernatural-maniac formula, only here the unstoppable psycho is merely a lumbering ghoul with a big pumpkin for a head, awakened from a cursed sleep on Halloween night by the usual handful of obnoxious teenage morons. Amid confusing flashback sequences and some phony occult blathering (courtesy of the town witch), we're told that Jack-O is the incarnation of a murdered farmer who has returned to avenge himself by taking a scythe to his killers' ancestors, but this particular pumpkinhead's people-reaping spree seems to cover a much broader swath, including a crop of nubile young things -- preferably just out of the shower, or fresh from a randy romp in the local cemetery. Even allowing for a certain camp appeal, there's not an original concept to be found amid the abundant nudity and severed limbs. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Linnea Quigley, Rebecca Wicks, (more)
- 1989
- R
Although this bloody, relentlessly weird South African production purports to be a modern-day treatment of the works of Edgar Allan Poe (most promotional materials list the author's name above the title), it actually bears so little relation to Poe's writing that it makes Roger Corman's Poe "adaptations" seem meticulously loyal by comparison. The story involves a young psychologist whose arrival at the creepy Ravenscroft Institute for troubled girls is followed by the disappearance of several students. Tormented by a series of grotesque nightmares involving a deranged killer, the heroine eventually learns of the bizarre goings-on within the school's hallowed halls. Some oddball touches and outlandish performances from Robert Vaughn and Donald Pleasence (in a bad wig) make this film just campy enough to be entertaining. Alert viewers can spot John Carradine in his final role. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
Gorgeous space traveller Taura (Sandy Brooke) is captured on the planet Arous (as in "The Brain From..."?) Taura is accused of a murder she didn't commit by Bantor (Ross Hagen) , chief flunkey of the all-powerful Inquisitor (Aldo Ray). She is incarcerated in an intergalactic prison ship, populated by beautiful, barely dressed woman. Thus does science fiction segue into "babes behind bars",complete with a sadistic female guard named Muffy (Dawn Wildsmith). Don't worry: you're not supposed to take this one seriously. John Carradine costars in this lively R-rated cheapie, which was also released as Star Slammer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ross Hagen, Sandy Brooke, (more)
- 1987
Evil Spawn, a violent, bloody, but surprisingly effective English horror film directed by Kenneth Hall, deals with a woman's fear of aging and its consequences. When a space probe brings back microbes, scientist Dr. Zeitman (John Carradine) uses them for his experiments in aging but dies before his work is finished. An aging actress, Lynn Roman (Bobbi Bresee), desperate because she is being passed over for roles being given to younger women, injects herself with the drug -- hoping to become young again. The microbes in the serum turn the actress into a bug-like alien killer who quickly deals with her rivals. The film is routine, but the special effects are frightening and the premise is interesting, and while it adds little that is new, is worth a view for horror-film fans. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bobbi Bresee, Drew Godderis, (more)
During her 25th high school class reunion, middle-aged Peggy Sue (Kathleen Turner) tries to forget her marital problems with husband Charlie (Nicolas Cage) by renewing old friendships. Wondering if she made the right decisions in her life, Peggy Sue gets a chance to try again when, zapped into a time warp, she finds herself a teenager back in 1960. Armed with foreknowledge (the scene in which she tells off her algebra teacher is a particular treat), Peggy Sue gets to retrace the steps leading up to her unhappy marriage to high-school sweetheart Charlie. Will nerdish Richard Norvik (Barry Miller), who always carried a torch for Peggy Sue and whom she knows will become a millionaire computer mogul by 1985, win out over the unreliable Charlie this time? A "small" film from the otherwise profligate Francis Ford Coppola, Peggy Sue Got Married possesses an irresistible charm that makes up for its glaring plot deficiencies. The youthful cast is matched in its appeal by such veterans as Leon Ames, Maureen O'Sullivan and John Carradine. And yes, that is Jim Carrey as Walter Getz. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kathleen Turner, Nicolas Cage, (more)
A cult of "caninus" or dog-worshippers is terrorizing a farm woman in order to get her to sell them her land, land that they need for a special ritual. The members of the cult keep their association secret and apparently have infiltrated all levels of local society, on up to Senator Bradford (John Carradine) who is the cult leader. Gory scenes are interspersed throughout the story as the cult murders anyone who starts catching on to the fact that they exist. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Wayne, John Carradine, (more)
- 1986
This low-budget, supernatural, tongue-in-cheek story is about an ancient Egyptian princess out to maintain her immortality. Nefratis (Michelle Bauer) has two problems: her tomb has been desecrated, and she needs some special amulets (now in California) that are used in the rituals of human sacrifice to keep herself alive. After she kills the professor responsible for the sacrilege committed against her tomb, the professor's son David Manners (Richard Alan Hench) and his friend Helen (Susan Stokey) set out to solve the mystery behind the murder. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cameron Mitchell, John Carradine, (more)
- 1986
Hosted by veteran horror actor John Carradine, this documentary chronicles the legends of several supposedly haunted sites in Hollywood and interviews such celebrities as actress Elke Sommer, who relates her experiences with supernatural incidents in Hollywood. Also included are clips from such films as The Amityville Horror. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
A humorous and skilful parody of the cliches and plot contrivances of 50's horror films, this monster movie is set in California, where closets can be large and quite important. The monster (Kevin Peter Hall) is straight out of Alien, if not quite as gruesome. It hides out in closets and wait for victims to unsuspectingly grab a shirt or slacks. After several closet deaths, a San Francisco obituary writer (Donald Grant) is sent to cover the story. He soon teams up with a science teacher (Denise DuBarry) and her son, a super-smart child prodigy, and they set out to solve the murders. The plot thickens when the gruff, brash Gen. Turnbull (Donald Moffat) enters the picture. It seems the monster is bullet-proof, laser-proof and bomb-proof -- a challenge to capture, kill, or subdue. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Donald Grant, Denise Du Barry, (more)
This uproariously bad sci-fi horror oddity plays like a modern version of a cheesy '50s alien invasion flick, only not as clever. The filmmakers deserve some credit for throwing everything but the kitchen sink into the plot (and perhaps even the sink's in there somewhere), which involves the diabolical plans of three silver-suited aliens, played by -- ready for this? -- John Carradine, Julie Newmar (TV's Catwoman), and Tina Louise (Ginger from Gilligan's Island), who hire a couple of drunken wrench jockeys (Neville Brand and Aldo Ray) to help them abduct a bunch of lame-brained teenage campers for use in the production of a youth-restoring serum. This allows for endless riffing on the Friday the 13th scenario, as over-sexed teens are stalked by ski-masked Brand and Ray. B-movie fans should be forewarned that this film's once-in-a-lifetime acting ensemble does virtually nothing to enhance the negligible entertainment value. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- 1985
- R
Filmed in 1982 but unreleased until after the success of 1983's Valley Girl, this is a low-budget mix of valley-speak, trendiness, and message. In the end, it may have proved too difficult to combine dialogue such as "grody to the max," sex scenes, a bubbly teenager or two, the noble objective of saving an orphanage, and a rambling plot and still come out ahead. Saving the orphanage involves an unrealistic scheme to steal money from cocaine dealers, while other problems involve how to convince your boyfriend to have sex with you -- another stretch of reality. Flaws in this film do not include the acting on the part of the teens (Jill Carroll, Sharon Lea, and others) which is not to be faulted. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jill Carroll, Michelle Laurita, (more)
In this undistinguished parody of the sci fi genre, Robert Urich is Jason who leads a band of pirates in redistributing the wealth of the few to the coffers of the needy. He also joins up with Princess Karina Mary Crosby in searching for her father and a possible source of water in the next galaxy. Meant to be a campy romp through the sci fi genre, the film stops short of achieving a goal that should have been effortless. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Urich, Mary Crosby, (more)
- 1983
Directed by Philip Martell, music director of such horror films as Snake Woman (1961) and Die, Monster, Die! (1964), this documentary recounts the history of horror movies, with footage and scenes from major horror films such as Nosferatu and The Horror of Dracula. Highlights include footage of various actors, including such horror masters as Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, and Vincent Price, as well as performances by or interviews with José Ferrer, Dana Andrews, Pat Boone, John Carradine, Herman Cohen, Roger Corman, Archie Duncan, Valentine Dyall, Rouben Mamoulian, Dennis Price, and Gloria Stuart. ~ Steve Blackburn, All Movie Guide
- 1983
- R
As a sequel to the first Boogey Man, the horror of Boogey Man II lies in the script itself which adapts so much of the footage from its predecessor that this is really a half a movie in one. A fragment of the "possessed" mirror that caused the damage in the Boogey Man is brought to Los Angeles by the heroine Lacey (Suzanna Love) and takes over a hapless butler. He goes on a rampage, but then other appliances get into the spirit of the thing, as animated garden hoses, corkscrews, electric toothbrushes, and hedge trimmers wreak havoc with the "house appliance" horror genre. In-between the madness, Mickey Lombard (Ulli Lommel -- the director playing a director) lambasts Hollywood for pandering to commercialism -- a case of someone biting the hand that is not feeding him. For the record, the term "boogeymen" comes from the Bugi men of Indonesia, feared pirates of the high seas. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Suzanna Love, Shannah Hall, (more)
Frustrated with the Walt Disney studio's reluctance to produce full-length animated films, Don Bluth and a number of animators left the studio in the early '80s with the intent of creating movies in the style of Disney's classics. The Secret of NIMH is the first film Bluth produced after leaving the studio. Adapted from Robert C. O'Brien's acclaimed children's book Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of N.I.M.H., the film is about a widowed mouse whose home is threatened; also, one of her children is gravely ill. On her way to find help, she discovers NIMH, a secret society of highly-intelligent rats who have escaped from a nearby science lab. The rats help the widow to protect her family and home. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elizabeth Hartman, Dom DeLuise, (more)
- 1982
In this umpteenth remake of the George M. Cohan-Earl Derr Biggers play Seven Keys to Baldpate, Desi Arnaz Jr. plays Kenneth Magee, the young writer who bets that he can bat out a mystery play in one evening. Magee squirrels himself away in a forbidding old mansion where, unbeknownst to him, a bizarre family reunion is scheduled to commence. As the participants begin dropping like flies, Magee finds himself in the middle of a genuine mystery. At least, he thinks he does. At least, the audience thinks he thinks he does. Of historical importance is the fact that House of Long Shadows represents the only co-starring effort of those titans of terror Vincent Price, Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee and John Carradine. The highlight is the cozy tete-a-tete between Price and Cushing during the climactic party scene. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vincent Price, Christopher Lee, (more)
- 1982
- PG
This gothic hillbilly horror thriller was produced in New Zealand and centers around a small rural town, circa 1953, where unusual events lead a teenager to cross paths with a serial killer. Ned (Jonathan Smith) and his pal Les (Daniel McLaren) are a pair of teens in trouble with local bullies after they steal some prize chickens. Their troubles are compounded by the arrival of a carnival, employing the sinister Salter (John Carradine), an evil magician and sideshow hypnotist. The presence of Salter seems to bring out the worst in the local citizenry, inspiring nascent lust and perversion to surface in disturbing ways, much of which is centered on Ned's nubile sister Prudence (Tracy Mann). When a girl is slain in the woods, the trial leads to Salter, who is not only guilty of the crime, but of many more. The Scarecrow (1982), based on the novel of the same name by Ronald Hugh Morrieson, was shown at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was the feature debut of co-writer and director Sam Pillsbury, who went on to direct numerous television movies and series episodes in the U.S. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jonathan Smith, Daniel McLaren, (more)
- 1982
- R
This sex-filled exploitation favorite has bounced from one double-billing to the next, undergoing numerous re-titlings (including Bride of Satan and Fury of the Succubus) in the process. It stars Lana Wood as a frustrated housewife who begins having nightly trysts with a tall, dark stranger... who, of course, turns out to be Satan himself. Thus begins her descent into dementia, as she begins to distance herself even further from her husband and kids (if that were possible) while painting portraits of her enigmatic new lover. For reasons never detailed in the film, there is a fully-functional guillotine in the cellar, and it's only a matter of time before heads begin to roll. Assorted devil-worshippers pop up out of nowhere for a confusing climax. Not a bad little time-waster, this film relies more on nudity than scares, with a dollop of gore for good measure. Britt Ekland fans be warned: despite her prominent billing in the credits, her role barely amounts to a walk-on. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Britt Ekland, Lana Wood, (more)
- 1981
A delightful feature that tells how a young boy learns about inner feeling and their importance. ~ All Movie Guide
Perhaps inspired by the success of PBS' Shakespeare Plays series, Bard Productions Ltd. Came out with this diverting if not very cinematic adaptation of the Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra. Timothy Dalton plays Marc Antony, while Lynn Redgrave is uncharacteristically alluring as Queen Cleopatra. The all-TV cast includes Nichelle Nichols, Anthony Geary, Walter Koenig, and Brian Kerwin. Also making a cameo appearance is John Carradine, giving his all to the brief part of the Soothsayer. At three hours, Antony and Cleopatra has some trouble getting bookings outside the "art" houses. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Timothy Dalton, Jane Lapotaire, (more)
- 1981
- PG
Though it strains credibility to the breaking point, the made-for-TV Goliath Awaits proved a ratings success when it was first syndicated via "Operation Prime Time" on November 16, 1981. Mark Harmon plays oceanographer Peter Cabot, who intends to salvage valuable treasures from the ocean liner Goliath, which was sunk by a German U-boat during World War II. Descending into the ocean depths, Cabot stares into one of the portholes of the Goliath--only to see someone staring back at him! Through a fluke, the submerged Goliath's air supply has remained intact for nearly forty years, and a tiny group of survivors (and their progeny) live in an idyllic society ruled by benevolent despot John McKenzie (Christopher Lee). But when Cabot announces that he intends to rescue the denizens of the Goliath, McKenzie's benevolence quickly evaporates. Originally telecast in two 2-hour installments, Goliath Awaits was also made available as a ten-episode miniseries. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This groundbreaking, darkly-comic horror film from director Joe Dante changed the look and feel of werewolf movies in ways light-years distant from Universal's horror classic The Wolf Man. The story begins with television reporter/anchor Karen White (Dee Wallace) taking part in a dangerous police operation intended to trap psychopath Eddie Quist (Robert Picardo). When confronted by Eddie face-to-face, she witnesses something horrifying enough to trigger selective amnesia. Plagued by a series of violent nightmares, Karen decides to admit herself to a posh recovery resort known only as "The Colony," run by her eccentric New Age therapist Dr. Wagner (Patrick MacNee), and brings along her husband Bill (Christopher Stone) for support. The night after they arrive, Karen and Bill are unnerved by eerie howling in the woods. Back in the city, Karen's coworkers Chris (Dennis Dugan) and Terry (Belinda Balaski) have been investigating Eddie's background after discovering that his body has disappeared from the morgue. Sifting through Eddie's possessions, they find a strange collection of artwork depicting wolf-like creatures, and decide to consult with Walter Paisley (Dick Miller, of course), the owner of an occult bookshop, on werewolf lore. Though he claims not to believe in the stuff he's selling, Paisley nevertheless convinces Chris to purchase a handful of silver bullets... just in case. Back at the colony, Dr. Wagner has organized a hunting party after hearing Karen's account of the nocturnal howling, but the men find nothing but a rabbit, which Bill is told to bring to the cabin of the sultry Marsha (Elisabeth Brooks) to prepare for dinner. After resisting Marsha's less-than-subtle sexual overtures, Bill is attacked by a wolf while returning to his cabin. The following moonlit night, the sleepless Bill wanders outside to find Marsha waiting and the two make love by the campfire, their bodies undergoing a frightening transformation. Just as Karen is beginning to suspect that her husband is hiding a secret far more threatening than marital infidelity, Chris and Terry have come to realize -- too late, in Terry's case -- that Eddie Quist is not only still alive, but not quite human... and he knows he's being followed. Chris arrives at the colony too late to save Terry, but manages to find Karen just as the colony's residents -- all of whom are werewolves, including Dr. Wagner -- are assembling to decide her fate. Dante fills his film with heartfelt homages to The Wolf Man and other classic horror movies, as well as a few clever visual puns and in-jokes from his tenure with Roger Corman, but never strays from the path to genuine horror, particularly when Rob Bottin's chilling monsters are onscreen. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dee Wallace, Patrick Macnee, (more)
