Tag: Halloween

31 Scary Movies: ‘Black Sunday’

Jeff Mitchell

“Black Sunday” (1960) – When an executioner lifts his sledgehammer and smashes a mask with about 20 pointed nails into your face – while you are also tied to a stake and then branded with the letter “S”, the mark of Satan – you gotta know that it is not your day. This is Princess Asa’s (Barbara Steele) horrible day, but what makes matters worse is her own brother sentenced her to this ghastly fate.  Set in the 17th century, this unseemly opening sets a sinister tone for “Black Sunday”, which…

31 Scary Movies: ‘Invasion of the Body Snatchers’

Jeff Mitchell

“Invasion of the Body Snatchers” (1956) – With hair sprayed across his brow, his clothes soaked in sweat and a wild look in his eyes, Dr. Miles Bennell (Kevin McCarthy) desperately tries to explain his plight to a handful of doctors and police. “Will you tell these fools I’m not crazy? I’m not insane,” he screams. He certainly resembles a man who just escaped from a mental hospital, but Dr. Bennell begs to tell his story, in Don Siegel’s (“Dirty Harry” (1971), “The Shootist” (1976)) landmark science fiction picture that…

31 Scary Movies: ‘Diabolique’

Jeff Mitchell

“Diabolique” (1955) – The cover-up is worse than the crime. In the case of director Henri-Georges Clouzot’s sensational “Diabolique” (1955), the cover-up morphs into something much more: unbearable paranoia and a deep mystery. It is not a mystery that Christina Delassalle (Vera Clouzot) isn’t happy.  She enjoys her job as a teacher and an owner of Delassalle Boarding School, but she’s married to a boorish jerk, Michel (Paul Meurisse). He openly cheats with another teacher, Nicole (Simone Signoret), and when Michel actually spends time with Christina, he usually browbeats her. …