There
is a small town called Potters Bluff on
Rhode Island which seems like a sleepy
town and very peaceful as a photographer
named George LeMoir (Christopher Allport)
is taking pictures and then meets a
beautiful woman named Lisa (Lisa Blount)
who volutneeers to model for him but
afterwards a gang of townspeople beat him
to a pulp and then tie him on a net. Next
they set him on fire as he ends up in a
hospital as scarred up.
Sheriff Dan Gills (James Farentino) and
William G. Dobbs (Jack Albertson) tries
to find out who created this madness.
Some of the townspeople are disguised as
employees at hospitals or at a diner
finding any way to get to the people they
have plans for their evil deeds.
Later on Dan discovers some of the other
strangers in the area left for dead and
yet realises that William seems to be
responsible for all of this finding a key
to resurrect them due to black magic
witchcraft making them bloodthirsty
killers and finds the whole city has gone
mad.
This flick was
very creepy with the fog and the cult of
people doing the sinful deeds which
looked like a pre Children of the
Corn and Halloween III:
Season of the Witch. Personally
I could imagine both Stephen King and
John Carpenter watching this and
getting their ideas to make their stories
by this film. It almost reminded me a
cheesy version of The Fog
to top it all off except for the pirate
ghosts killing people.
This film was out the same year the
horror boom of other low budget flicks
but this one I found to be quite original
and very twisted too. You wonder if it's
a zombie flick or not as Dan O'Bannon
kept his writing very mysterious and
suspenseful. I'd say it was like a total Frankenstein
invasion. Just imagining killing people
and resurrecting them with witchcraft now
that would scare anyone who would want to
mess with that stuff period!
By all means grab some popcorn with your
fiends in a quite place, turn out the
lights and watch the movie. It will creep
you out for sure.
The acting is
dated but still passable in which lead
actor James Farentino had a good
gruff look as a Sheriff acting tough when
he needs to be as well as a great
seriousness to his part playing those
good guys in a horror flick.
Melody Anderson was incredibly
mysterious as the housewife in the film
as she really draws attention to the
screen in a good way. It makes you wonder
if she's behind on what is all happening
throughout the film.
Jack Albertson really knew how to
behave strange and intimidating with what
he had and knew how to make his point
across that he is another suspect to the
madness going on. He had the prefect
creepy looks too.
Lisa Blount really came across as
evilly soft spoken really bringing out
her horror character having a sweet like
attitude before her killing making her
part not someone to trust at all. Her
role wasn't huge but was well remembered.
Of course we can't forget about Robert
Englund as this was before his days
of Freddy Krueger and performed very
creepuily in his role which probably
impressed Wes Craven a great
deal.
We get a goofy performance by Barry
Corbin as he seemed a little too
melodramtic and over the top. However, it
came across well when he acted terrifying
later on.
Lisa Blount exposes
her breasts while having her pictures
taken.
There's throats slit
Faces slashed
Faces burnt off
Face melting off
A heart is revealed wrapped in cloths
We spot a cheesy
dialogue between Lisa Blount modelling
with supporting actor Christopher
Allport taking pics of her and then
having a supporting cast him to
a pulp which was a bit slacking but still
disturbing enough. Along with them tying
him up in a net and supporting actress
We have a perfect moment with both actors
James Farentino and
Jack Albertson discovering a
burnt up car upside down with a burnt up
person as they reach their hand and the
person screams as it nealry makes you
jump. Good stuff there.
We have a nice dark camera shot on bit
part actor Ed Bakey as a
fisherman acting drunk on a pier wobbling
around as the direction shows some good
humor there and then a nice shocking
moment with hands breaking out of a wall
and grabbing him along with him
constantly being stabbed and people
taking pictures of him with the odd 3D
effect which looked very well done too.
We spot many interesting dialogue
sequences between Farentino and Melody
Anderson making the direction on it
look mysterious.
We have a nice shot on Allport
wrapped in bandages on a hospital bed
with Blount coming in disguised
as a nurse and speaking softly to him in
an intimidating way with a good shot on
him with his eyes looking wide and
terrified and then a good shot on
Blount stabbing him in the eye with
a needle.
We have one of the best directions of all
which includes supporting actors
Dennis Redfield and Linda
Shusset with two twin child actors
performing in different scenes named Mark
and Michael Courtney
entering a cafe for directions with the
supporting cast like Shusett and
Allport helping them out leaving
a cringe that this isn't gonna be good
for them.
There's many great shots on a large cast
walking towards their car with knives and
cameras as well as a struggling chase
scene with them trying to get away in a
creaky old house too.
We have a very impressive moment
involving Anderson teaching her
class about voodoo and witchcraft trying
to act charming by acting creepy but in a
fun way too.
There's a good moment with bit part
actress Lisa Marie as a
hitchhiker having a dialogue with
supporting actor Barry Corbin
while driving his truck although the
direction seems a little too goofy. But
it changes once he takes his camera and
shoots pics of her while opening the door
and she falls into the mud but her
pleading didn't seem convincing. But we
have a nice camera shot looking up on Corbin
when his picks up a rocks and heaves it
back down.
There's a great intense moment with Farentino
really getting aggressive and losing
his mind towards Albertson and poitning a
gun at him as he does well behaving like
a mad scientist all of that was
terifically and energetically directed.
We have a nice camera shot on Anderson
on top of her coffin in the burial ground
emotionally telling Farentino to
bury her as we have good shots on him
putting dirt onto her.
Some good low pounding
piano as well as organ playing for the
creepiest moments along with a deep
sounding effect in many scene's which
sounded like a gloomy fog horn. We also
have the low violin orchestra playing and
at times real sqeauly violin soundings
too which almost sounds echoey too.
[repeated line]
Ernie: Welcome to Potters Bluff!
Dobbs: You can try
to kill me, Dan. But you can't. You can
only make me dead.
Janet Gillis: Dan,
I'm dead! Please bury me!
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