Sunday, October 9, 2016

A Cinematic History of Horror for Hallowe'en On Roku - DAY 09: Bats, Cats & Dancing Skeletons (1927-1930)





Welcome back, Boils & Ghouls...



... to 'Day Nine' of "A Cinematic History of Horror for Hallowe'en On Roku" in which I shall bring you my next batch of fright flicks from the enormous back-catalogue of macabre movies that have been thrilling cinema-goers for more than a century and can now be streamed to your television sets via the magic of Roku player - so, let's dim the lights... and get on with the frights! :-O


If you read my special hallowe'en blogathon preview - FOUND HERE - which I published just over a week ago, you'll know that I plan to post one Hallowe'en / Horror related article each day, throughout the month of October, which will feature one horror movie per year from cinematic history, starting in 1895 and ending in 2016. This should average out at about four films per day, so you'll have plenty of choice for your macabre movie viewing as we count down the days to Hallowe'en on October 31st! ;-)


To get things started, in the first week of this blogathon, we went all the way back to the end of the 19th century for some of the earliest horror cinema ever recorded. The movies on day one were from 1895 - 1898 (inclusive) and featured beheadings, vampires, skeletons and nightmarish dreams. For my second article on day two of this series, I shared four films (one for each year) from 1899 - 1902 (inclusive) and those featured ghostly apparitions, aliens and selenites, plus a visit from the devil to a convent. In my next post on day three, I shared four films (again, one for each year) from 1903 - 1906 (inclusive) and those featured impish devils, demons and ghost brides, plus a man who practices entomology being pinned to a cork like an insect. For my fourth article on day four in this series of posts, I shared four more films (one for each year) from 1907 - 1910 (inclusive) which featured evil spectres, haunted houses, plus the first filmed version of the story of Frankenstein's monster. Following that post, on day five, I shared four films (again, one per year) from 1911 - 1914 (inclusive) and those were all based on works of literature by either Dante Alighieri, Robert Louis Stevenson or Edgar Allan Poe. Next up, on day six, four more films were shared (one for each year) from 1915 - 1918 (inclusive) and those included one about a spooky portrait, another about the victim of a kidnapping, plus a Faustian tale told from a female perspective and another about an artificial creature produced by a mad scientist. For my next post, on day seven, I (again) shared four more films (one for each year) from 1919 - 1922 (inclusive) and those featured an epic account of the horrors of war, plus tales of vampires and phantom carriages, as well as a hypnotist who used a somnambulist to commit acts of murder!


To kick-off the second week of my month-long blogathon, on day eight of this series, I shared another four films (again, one per year) from 1923 - 1926 (inclusive) and those included tales of hunchbacks, phantoms, and a pact with the devil plus a pianist whose hands were replaced by those of a murderer (following a train accident) after which he discovered they had a will of their own! For today's post, I plan to share four more films (one per year) from 1927 - 1930 (inclusive) and these are set to feature a truly stunning "mood piece" based on the work of Edgar Allen Poe, along with the story of a master criminal who terrorizes the occupants of an isolated country mansion, plus the creepiest, spookiest, mystery melodrama ever produced, with an early animated horror short thrown in for good measure! As with the films shared previously in this series (bearing in mind the time period during which they were made) some do still fall into the silent movie category, but we are now starting to include some of the early horror film "talkies", as well! Again, some may have visible signs of wear and tear but, despite this, they are all none the less watchable as further examples of early films whose influence can still be seen in far more modern movies from the horror genre...



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First up today... is a feature-length film from the USA, directed by Paul Leni, and based on the 1922 stage play, "The Cat and the Canary", by John Willard... a title they kept when it was adapted for the big screen. Released in 1927, this film tells the story of events surrounding the reading of a will left by Cyrus West, an eccentric millionaire, which he stipulated must take place twenty years after his death. When the time comes, his expectant relatives gather at his rather grotesque-looking mansion overlooking the Hudson only to hear that Annabelle West, the only one among them to still bear his family name, is set to inherit everything... provided, that is, she is deemed to be completely sane. If not, then his money plus some diamonds go to someone else - whose name is in a sealed envelope - but, before the identity of the would-be beneficiary is revealed, the lawyer goes missing... and so begins a series of mysterious events which may well prove Annabelle to be mentally unstable and, therefore, unable to claim the inheritance that she is due!






Martha Mattox and Laura La Plante in The Cat and the Canary (1927)
PHOTO CREDIT: Pretty Clever Films






The Cat and the Canary (1927) [Movie Poster] - PHOTO CREDIT: alchetron.com






The Cat and the Canary (1927) [Alternative Poster #2] - PHOTO CREDIT: imdb.com






The Cat and the Canary (1927) [Alternative Poster #3] - PHOTO CREDIT: Doctor Macro





The Cat and the Canary (1927) [Lobby Card] - PHOTO CREDIT: Doctor Macro






The Cat and the Canary (1927) [Alternative Poster #4] - PHOTO CREDIT: Sales On Film






The Cat and the Canary (1927) [Alternative Poster #5] - PHOTO CREDIT: imdb.com



As with a lot of these early films, we are fortunate to have free copies to watch on Roku devices... and, thanks to the internet, they are available on YouTube as well as other video streaming resources. So, please feel free to watch this movie online, or else use the link to cast it from your 'YouTube' app (via Roku player) and watch on the big screen for maximum shock value! Either way, here it is...



YOUTUBE LINK:- The Cat and the Canary (1927) [IMDB Rating: 7.2]



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Our next film today is a feature-length film from France, which was directed by Jean Epstein, and first released in 1928 under the original title of "La Chute de la Maison Usher"... but, anyone who is familiar with the works of Edgar Allan Poe is unlikely to need an expert in linguistics to determine that it was based on "The Fall of the House of Usher" - an immortal horror classic by the author. That said, Epstein (apparently) exercised his right to "artistic license" a little too much in this adaptation... because his creative assistant, Luis Buñuel, chose to quit the picture on the grounds that it deviated too far from Poe's original story! Nevertheless, what we have here is still a worthwhile piece of silent horror cinema which, as with all the best films in that genre, let's the storyline play second fiddle to the overall ambience of the movie... and, in this case, we are treated to a truly stunning "mood piece" where the tone is downbeat throughout and re-inforced by the gloomy, often haunting, imagery and creepy Gothic atmosphere. For those unfamiliar with it, this film tells the story of Sir Roderick Usher (Jean Debucourt) and his wife, Madeleine Usher (Marguerite Gance), who live in a remote mansion with a doctor (Fournez-Goffard) - there to care for Madeleine, who suffers from a mysterious disease. Aside from being his wife, Madeleine is both muse and model: always being painted by Roderick, who obsesses over her portrait. They are visited by Allan (Charles Lamy), sole friend of Roderick, who remains as their guest & observes all the goings-on around the house. When Madeleine dies, Roderick is unable to accept her death and Allan witnesses his friend's slow descent into madness!






La Chute de la Maison Usher (1928) [Movie Still] - PHOTO CREDIT: mubi.com






La Chute de la Maison Usher (1928) [Movie Poster] - PHOTO CREDIT: senscritique.com




As with "The Cat and the Canary" (1927), this silent classic by Jean Epstein is available online, as well as free-to-stream on Roku devices. Once again, I'm sticking with 'YouTube' as my means of sharing this film with you. As before, you can watch it online, or else use the link to cast from your 'YouTube' app (via Roku player) and watch it on the big screen. Either way, here's some links...



 YOUTUBE LINK:- La Chute de la Maison Usher (1928) [IMDB Rating: 7.5]


VIKI.COM LINK:- La Chute de la Maison Usher (1928) [IMDB Rating: 7.5]



PLEASE NOTE:- The version of "La Chute de la Maison Usher" [The Fall of the House of Usher] on 'YouTube' includes English-language audio narrative, in addition to Portuguese subtitles, plus all the original French-language title cards and narrative cues which were part of the film when it was made. If you prefer, the version of "La Chute de la Maison Usher" [The Fall of the House of Usher] shared by 'Viki.com' has English-language subtitles (in white), as well as Portuguese subtitles (in yellow), plus all the original French-language title cards and narrative cues, as per the 'YouTube' version.




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Well, I don't know about you... but, after the desolation, disorientation, and general downbeat mood of "La Chute de la Maison Usher" [aka The Fall of the House of Usher], I feel the need to lighten things up a bit... so it's probably just as well that our third film today is a short animation from the USA, directed by non other than Walt Disney. Billed as "A Silly Symphony" and first released in 1929 under the title of "The Skeleton Dance", it's a comically clever cartoon classic that was once described as "a laugh riot, from start to finish"... so, it should do the trick! To set the scene for you... as the clock strikes midnight, bats fly from the belfry, a dog howls at the full moon, and two black cats fight in a cemetery: in other words - it's the perfect time for four skeletons to come out & dance!





The Skeleton Dance - A Silly Symphony (1929) - PHOTO CREDIT: imdb.com




Fortunately for us, like "La Chute de la Maison Usher" [aka The Fall of the House of Usher] plus "The Cat and the Canary", this comedy "horror" short from Walt Disney is also available online and free-to-stream on Roku devices. As before, I'm sticking with 'YouTube' for sharing it with you in both the original short (5m 32s) version, as well as an extended (62m 06s) looped version... for those who really want to watch it over and over. So, feel free to watch these online, or use the link to cast from your 'YouTube' app (via Roku player) and watch it on the big screen. Either way, here's the links...



Original (5min Short) Version:

YOUTUBE LINK:- The Skeleton Dance (1929) [IMDB Rating: 7.8]


Extended (Hour Long) Version:

YOUTUBE LINK:- The Skeleton Dance (1929) [IMDB Rating: 7.8]




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Last, but by no means least, is another feature-length film from the USA... but, this time, it's directed by Roland West. Released in 1930, "The Bat Whispers" is a horror crime thriller, based on the stage play by Mary Roberts Rinehart and Avery Hopwood, which also happens to be a remake of Roland West's dark house thriller, called "The Bat", released in 1926. As with his earlier work, this adaptation tells the story of a master criminal who terrorizes the occupants of an isolated country mansion. One major difference between the two films is that "The Bat Whispers" featured a mono sound mix, with audible character dialogue, whereas "The Bat" was a silent film. Interestingly, however, some people feel that the limitations of these early sound recordings served only to hamper their enjoyment of the movie but, for better or for worse, it's the remake which makes it into this cinematic history of horror.






Una Merkel and Chance Ward in The Bat Whispers (1930) - PHOTO CREDIT: imdb.com






The Bat Whispers (1930) [Movie Poster] - PHOTO CREDIT: imdb.com






The Bat Whispers (1930) [Alternative Poster] - PHOTO CREDIT: imdb.com



Anyway... you probably guessed already but, if not, this film (like the others from this article) is also available online and free-to-stream on Roku. Again, I'm sticking with YouTube as my means of sharing this film with you. As before, you can choose to watch it via your browser, or else use the link to cast from your YouTube app (via Roku) and watch it on the big screen. Either way, here's a link...



YOUTUBE LINK:- The Bat Whispers (1930) [IMDB Rating: 6.6]




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Anyhow, that's all I've got time for today... but do remember to come back again tomorrow, for more macabre movies from the history of horror cinema, when I serve-up another batch of four films on 'Day Ten' of "A Cinematic History of Horror for Hallowe'en On Roku" right here on this blog. Meanwhile... please be sure to visit the Countdown To Hallowe'en website and show your support for this annual online Hallowe'en extravaganza... PLUS don't forget to use the links you find there and check out all the other 'Cryptkeepers' taking part this year. I know they'll appreciate it if you visit their blogs & share your thoughts on the contribution(s) they've made.




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BEFORE I GO: Don't forget that, aside from all the Hallowe'en / Horror-themed ghastliness going on around these parts for the next month, you can always keep up with all the UK Roku action (as it happens) by following the companion Twitter Feed: @ukrokuchannels where you will find that up-to-the-minute info on all things Roku-related is posted on a daily basis (well, almost).



Until the next time, then...



That's all folks !!





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