Mike Lester's Blog, page 3

Saturday Sinema #57 - The Ghost

Bitches, man. I tell ya, they'll be the death of you every time. Every damned time. No actress better portrayed the back-stabbing, murderous bitch archetype on the silver screen than Barbara Steele. She had that role down to a science, every nuance perfected. She was at her most gloriously bitchiest during her Italian period of the 1960's, and the highpoint of these films were the few she made with Riccardo Freda. In this week's entry, The Ghost, Babs plays the unfaithful wife of Dr. Hichcock. She and her lover decide to do the good doctor in. Once the deed is done, all would seem to be well, but as can be expected in these situations, bad shit happens. Have they really offed the doc, or is he returning from the grave to haunt them straight into batshit city? Stick around for a while and find out why dontcha?...

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyOrZ...

Full Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9REv...

B is for Barbara: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vryyD...

Babs!: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czNUr...

Queen Bitch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cUDG...

Read this before it's too late:






Save yourself: www.saturdaysinema.com

Saturday Sinema #56 - Count Dracula's Great Love

Holy frijoles! It's Paul Naschy! I'm still having a hard time wrapping my mind around the fact that its taken us 56 weeks to get to our first Naschy flick, but here we are folks. Known primarily for his recurring role as Spain's own wolfman, Naschy here plays the suave Count, lapping up blood like so much gazpacho. As for the plot of this week's flick, well, you know the routine - carload/busload/wagonload of ditzy broads gets stuck at remote castle, spend the night, get violated. Naschy, true to form, plays a dual role as both the randy Count romping about the castle in search of naughty, nubile virgins, as well as the tragic doctor Marlow (who most likely wishes he could do the same). Hells yeah! So, slick back your hair and pop in those plastic fangs - this one will drain you dry....

Full Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWKo4...

Naschy speaks!: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xuuiz...

Sink your teeth into this:






It only comes out at night: www.saturdaysinema.com

Saturday Sinema #55 - The Brood

You know you're seriously fucked up when it turns out Oliver Reed is your shrink. But then again, psychotherapy would be a blast with that motherfucker calling the shots. And that's basically what this week's flick is all about. Seems good old Ollie has a unique therapeutic method he calls "Psychoplasmics," which seems to be a cross between a CIA waterboarding and an evening at Dr. Phil's house. Needless to say, some serious side effects pop up, quite literally, in the form of tumors and other fun stuff, like murderous, malevolent pajama-clad dwarves. Needless to say, shit goes down. Stick around for the juicy final reel of this, David Cronenberg's third psychotronic magnum opus. Can you dig it? I knew you could...

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70g9J...

Full Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWVN3...

Dave kicks out the jams: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UZPG...

Oliver takes no prisoners: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_hBn...

Just go with it:






It only hurts the first time... www.saturdaysinema.com

Saturday Sinema #54 - The Devil's Nightmare

Erika Blanc is one of those women who can be both terrifying and alluring at the same time. In this week's flick she gets to use all her talents. Like Bloody Pit of Horror, which we watched a few weeks ago, the plot of this one centers around a busload of lost tourists stranded at a spooky castle. Seems each one of these folks has a deadly flaw, a deadly sin that rules their lives. Erika plays the naughty succubus dispatched to collect the devil's due. And collect she does.... Made in 1971, this one features everything that makes movies great - Nazi mayhem, torture implements, a groovy soundtrack, and Erika in a leather bikini. Hell yeah!

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6AMx...

Full Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igwkq...

Erika...: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ViaV...

Break on through:






Have you ever been experienced? www.saturdaysinema.com

Saturday Sinema #53 - Inferno

I've said this before and I'll say it again - when Dario Argento was on fire, man, he was unstoppable. Inferno is Argento's sequel to his masterpiece, Suspiria, and it's every bit as good. True to form, Argento opens his film with a unique set-piece; it seems Rose has come across a book called The Three Mothers, written by some crusty alchemist. Bad shit happens. Her brother, Mark, played by Leigh McClosky, who sounds like the Gorton's fisherman, comes to New York to see what the fuck happened. More bad shit happens. Stick around with Mark as he discovers the secret of The Three Mothers.... Conceived as the second part of a trilogy, Inferno shines with Argento's signature moving camera and art deco grooviness. An uncredited Mario Bava contributed greatly to this films magic - one of his last gigs, and Daria Nicolodi shows up, looking her best, which is nice. What more do you want, cutty?

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1a6I...

Full Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7M6hO...

This is seriously kick ass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rnu5...

Leigh!: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlZXT...

Learn something, why dontcha: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DljSp...

Ahoy mateys: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weERR...

Reading is fundamental:






Step up: www.saturdaysinema.com

Saturday Sinema #52 - I, Madman

There's something really sexy about geeky girls who read a lot. The pillow talk is always so much more...stimulating. This week's flick features one of my favorite aloof '80s tarts, Jenny Wright, as one of those gals. One day, at her job in a used bookstore, she finds an old pulp horror novel and gets obsessed. As she digs deeper and deeper into the text, she starts mixing reality with fiction until she can't tell what the fuck is going on anymore. Sounds like most birds I know.... Released in 1989, this slick motherfucker came and went with nary a critical nod in sight. Damn shame, too. This is a good one.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwEEn...

Full Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXOty...

Go to the source:






Do it! www.saturdaysinema.com

Another Interview Promoting WRAPPED IN BLACK

Here's another rip-roaring interview promoting the new occult anthology Wrapped In Black. Enjoy!

http://www.robustmcmanlypants.org/per...

Saturday Sinema #51 - Dark Waters

Easily one of the most criminally underrated, unappreciated, and unseen genre flicks of the '90s, Mariano Baino's Dark Waters is a funky hybrid of Dario Argento's Suspiria and the mythos of H.P. Lovecraft. Sounds pretty cool, right? I mean, c'mon, this is fucking cinematic gold here folks. The story is pretty basic: Elizabeth travels to a remote Crimean convent to see an old friend, having many madcap adventures with the local townies on the way. Turns out the nuns are into some pretty diabolical shit.... Made on a shoestring budget and plagued with every known mishap under the sun, Dark Waters easily overcomes adversity and out-classes all competitors in style and mood. I once went to an American Cinematheque midnight screening of this film at the huge Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. The crowd consisted of me, my girlfriend, the director Mariano Baino, and the dude from the Cinematheque... That is a fucking crime. Make up for humanity's shortcomings - check this one out. You won't be disappointed.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1JNK...

Full Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LGFS...

Straight from the horse's mouth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juCHp...

Mariano is the fucking man: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeUjo...

Subtext people, subtext:






Get your shit together, go to www.saturdaysinema.com

Author Interview - Mike Lester

Here's a nice little interview promoting Wrapped In Black...

http://www.killionslade.com/mike-lest...

Saturday Sinema #50 -Tragic Ceremony

In this week's flick a group of hippies decide to go on a sailing trip and do their thing. One of the guys gives a hippie girl a pearl necklace (get your minds out of the gutter kids...) which turns out to be cursed. And, you know, whenever cursed objects are around strange, fucked-up Satanic cultists can't be far behind. Sure enough they show up and ruin everybody's day at the beach. Shenanigans ensue. Riccardo Freda's name isn't nearly as well known as Mario Bava's or Dario Argento's, but it should be. Freda, a contemporary of Bava, should rightfully be considered, along with Bava, as one of the founding fathers of Italian genre cinema. Both men heavily influenced the look and feel of later, younger director's like Argento and Lucio Fulci. Grab some snacks and kick back with this one. I think you'll like it....

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNDUb...

Full Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBUH8...

Camille dishes it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL0Xx...

Perle di saggezza:






Yeah. www.saturdaysinema.com