Of COURSE there's a line in hell. There are probably many, many, never ending lines in hell. Populated by people who habitually cut in line during life.
He was soooooo good in that role, but I would have loved to have seen the Broadway production with Broadrick Crawford, another actor who never met a drink he didn't like.
Lon Chaney Jr. made seven horror films in the last nine years before his death in 1973. Two were good, :Witchcraft (1964) and Spider Baby (1967). The other five bad, Face of the Screaming Werewolf (1964), House of the Black Death (1965), Hillbillies in a Haunted House (1967), Gallery of Horrors (1967) and his final film, Frankenstein vs. Dracula in 1971.
That's my favorite Lon Chaney, Jr. movie after "The Mummy's Tomb". If you look past the typical hokey '50s Hollywood style, it has a gothic, Lovecraftian essence.
Like my late pastor used to say after reports of a major earthquake, _"Thats just Hell making more room for itself."_ ...he liked to catch the congregation when they were fresh in their worries.
Having a nemesis approaching you step by step in pictures was also the main plot in Stephen King's novel "The Sun Dog", though there the protagonist was a large dog that came closer and closer on each picture taken with a polaroid camera. King might have gotten the idea from The Devils Messenger or even from The Mezzotint. And while there's nothing common in the plot, the episode with the miners have such imagery of the lady in the ice that reminds me of how the lead vampire in "Lifeforce" was found in a transparent sarcophagus. I guess they both draw on Snow White and Sleeping Beauty.
Chaney was in "High Noon" with Gary Cooper. A small, but interesting part. Probably the best acting he'd done since "The Wolfman" (in which he was actually pretty good)
I've had the DVD of this for years. Picked it up cheap, thankfully. It's not even that the stories are bad in themselves, they just feel slow paced and none of the characters are relatable. Ironically, the best bit of the film is the stock footage at the end.
That last episode was especially made for MST3k. The "who'd a thought he'd kill me" trope was in The Girl in Gold Boots. There's also a touch of Blackadder: he has a cunning plan.
I've seen 13 Demon Street, and I can tell that they re-shoot most of the material from the TV series, probably because the actors weren't very good in English (13 Demon Street was made with an almost entirely Swedish crew and ensamble).
Of course the movie LCJ raised was SPIDER BABY, and the other one I'm sure no one mentioned was HIGH NOON. Chaney was very underrated in that film. Chaney had made a lot of non-horror films that people forget about. He also did a great job on THE MONKEES.
I love anthology shows. I watched the first season of Creepshow around Halloween last year and I can recommend it. Every episode is well written and has a good cast (including genre stalwarts like Adrienne Barbeau and Jeffrey Combs).
I think Stephen King used a similar version of the "approaching girl in the photograph" in his novelette "The Sun Dog". Lon Chaney always seemed to liven up any film he was in. I think one film that really benefited from his involvement was "Spider Baby" (1967). I understand that he took the role of Bruno because he loved the script and he promised the director (Jack Hill) that he would stay sober throughout filming.
My wife, who cannot stand 'old' black and white movies, indulges me every October for my run through of the classics, and she was quite taken with how haunted and effective Lon Chaney Jr. is in most of his films, especially the OG Wolfman. (sidenote, non-sequitor(?) I could BARELY get through the first third of the remake; Max Von Sydow, Anthony Hopkins, Hugo Weaving and decent effects but Benicio Del Torro was more miscast than Keanu Reeves in Dracula)
The framing device and editing were stitched together by Herbert L. Strock (which is appropriate since he directed 'I Was A Teenage Frankenstein.') Too bad they didn't include the scene from the episode (I forget which) where Chaney hurls a chunk of ice into a fireplace and roars "The world is evil! So are YOU! So is EVERYBODY!"
Sorry but that first segment with the attack by the photographer made me think of Rocky Horror (or at least the audience) - "It was easy. But it would have been easier without the pantyhose."
Is there anything that wrong with the Quatermass movies? Besides casting Brian Donlevy at first, that is? Always thought that Quatermass and the Pit was brilliant. If you're going to get upset about an American being cast in a classic British TV role, how about doing the Doctor Who movie with Eric Roberts as The Master?
i mean we should at least consider that the objects might have been cursed to alter their recipients' behavior somehow. i know that cheapens the premise, but then again, should we really expect the Devil to play by the rules?
This would have worked better if they didn't reveal the framing device until the end and just had the girl show up and deliver the goods no explanation and have each story end with the camara focusing on the object. Maybe instead of Satan he is just some weird evil guy with a collection of objects and a fiendish insane laugh.
The photo was a really clever and creepy idea, kind of prefiguring Ringu and Dr Who's Weeping Angels. It's a pity they couldn't come up with a better resolution.
There's a creepy M.R. James story called, "The Mezzotint" that has a similarly menacing motif. Only in that a picture shows a shadowy figure sneaking up on a house. Every time the picture is looked at, the closer the figure has moved towards a window.
That messenger didn't really work out. Had ideas above his station. So the Devil transferred him into Accounting and told him to calculate the value of Pi to the last decimal.
Blimey, this movie really looks to be less than the sum of its parts! I quite liked the idea of being offered a job by the Devil, though. Less the idea that he only appears to have done so because she had such a stupid name...
@@colleencrouch4346 And the guy who stops by every day for his Tutti Fruiti cone is the SAME GUY who married the girl whom the ice cream vendor was once engaged to!!!
@@colleencrouch4346 I went to school with a girl who drove a hot dog van every summer. Now she has a job selling carpet cleaner over the phone and seems much happier.
'The anthropologists want to extract her'.
Well, I've never heard it called that before.
Of COURSE there's a line in hell. There are probably many, many, never ending lines in hell. Populated by people who habitually cut in line during life.
"George, tell me about the rabbits."
He was soooooo good in that role, but I would have loved to have seen the Broadway production with Broadrick Crawford, another actor who never met a drink he didn't like.
"Meanwhile, back in hell. . . "
While 'Abbott & Costello Meets Frankenstein' certainly stood on it's own... I think he contributed greatly in that flic!
"I never drink... blood." -Lon Chaney jr.
Lon Chaney, Jr.: Prohibition - the worst time of my life.
Even a man who is pure in heart and drinks his whisky at night...
Lon Chaney Jr. made seven horror films in the last nine years before his death in 1973. Two were good, :Witchcraft (1964) and Spider Baby (1967). The other five bad, Face of the Screaming Werewolf (1964), House of the Black Death (1965), Hillbillies in a Haunted House (1967), Gallery of Horrors (1967) and his final film, Frankenstein vs. Dracula in 1971.
"The prediction's on the other foot!" Wait, what?
One of my favorite Lon Jr.'s would be "The Alligator People" -- he made this schlock-fest very enjoyable to watch.
That's my favorite Lon Chaney, Jr. movie after "The Mummy's Tomb". If you look past the typical hokey '50s Hollywood style, it has a gothic, Lovecraftian essence.
I had forgotten another one until I read another comment: "Spider Baby".
One of my favorite Lon Chaney movie🍿🎥is The Wolf🐺Man👞♂️.
The presence of Beverly Garland helped, too. Much more so, IMO.
"I'll kill you Alligator Man!"
Spider Baby! A must see for any Lon Chaney Jr./bad film buff.
"I think I came up with a diabolical idea"? Technically, if the Devil decides to go the bathroom it's a diabolical idea.
Accurate.
LoL! Well spotted! 👍😅👍
Like my late pastor used to say after reports of a major earthquake, _"Thats just Hell making more room for itself."_ ...he liked to catch the congregation when they were fresh in their worries.
What a scumbag, to trade on the suffering of others.
@@Flood520 He was a pastor. It's part of the job description.
I gotta tell ya. Im straight up addicted to your bad movie reviews.
Having a nemesis approaching you step by step in pictures was also the main plot in Stephen King's novel "The Sun Dog", though there the protagonist was a large dog that came closer and closer on each picture taken with a polaroid camera. King might have gotten the idea from The Devils Messenger or even from The Mezzotint. And while there's nothing common in the plot, the episode with the miners have such imagery of the lady in the ice that reminds me of how the lead vampire in "Lifeforce" was found in a transparent sarcophagus. I guess they both draw on Snow White and Sleeping Beauty.
What other movies has Lon Chaney Jr. sone well in? "Of Mice and Men" springs immediately to mind.
Chaney was in "High Noon" with Gary Cooper. A small, but interesting part. Probably the best acting he'd done since "The Wolfman" (in which he was actually pretty good)
I've had the DVD of this for years. Picked it up cheap, thankfully. It's not even that the stories are bad in themselves, they just feel slow paced and none of the characters are relatable. Ironically, the best bit of the film is the stock footage at the end.
Whew. I thought he said my name at first.
😂😜
So did I! I mean, your name.
Many people consider HOUSE OF DRACULA bad, but his Larry Talbot makes you watch that one as usual. At least it does me.
Larry Talbot... was that not with Abbott & Costello?
@@kirbyculp3449 Yes, in a whole set of films, starting with THE WOLF MAN.
That last episode was especially made for MST3k. The "who'd a thought he'd kill me" trope was in The Girl in Gold Boots. There's also a touch of Blackadder: he has a cunning plan.
"Yup, yup, that's how you'd do it, beat my skull in with a tire iron, that's the only way to keep me from talkin'"
The Anthropologistmobile 🚨🚨🚨
Also the truck says "FELIX fryst" Swedish for "FELIX frozen (foods)".
Gonna echo everyone saying Spider Baby. Definitely my favorite performance of his.
I had forgotten that one! Good little flick, too.
Lon or no Lon, Spider Baby belongs in this Dark Corner
important to note that the acting in this movie was on-point (IMO)
IMDB says: Because Of Chaney's status The Devil's Messenger received top billing on a drive-in double bill with the far superior Carnival Of Souls.
I've seen 13 Demon Street, and I can tell that they re-shoot most of the material from the TV series, probably because the actors weren't very good in English (13 Demon Street was made with an almost entirely Swedish crew and ensamble).
I actually liked this one what's wrong with me
Nothing. I've never heard of the series or the film
Boy!; it has been a long time since I have seen this movie. I saw it as a kid.
He’s good in Spider Baby. He elevates most things he’s in. Even the episode of The Monkees he’s in, “Monkees in a Ghost Town”.
I guess they have a high turnover rate down there.
okay "what do i owe you" gave me a good laugh lol.
Lon was also great in 'Manfish' and 'Cyclops', he always steals the movie...
Did anyone else initially misread the title as 'The Devil Massager'?
No?
It's just me then?
...that would probably be a better movie though...
Of course the movie LCJ raised was SPIDER BABY, and the other one I'm sure no one mentioned was HIGH NOON. Chaney was very underrated in that film. Chaney had made a lot of non-horror films that people forget about. He also did a great job on THE MONKEES.
I remember this series and I liked it. This movie was a reconfigured 3 episode set from the 13 episodes🐯🖒
The first section is a bit of a rip off of M.R James' story the Mezzotint.
If Hell is so overcrowded that Management is feeling the pinch, maybe they should be trying to keep people from getting in.
I love anthology shows. I watched the first season of Creepshow around Halloween last year and I can recommend it. Every episode is well written and has a good cast (including genre stalwarts like Adrienne Barbeau and Jeffrey Combs).
Without question, "Spider Baby"
I think Stephen King used a similar version of the "approaching girl in the photograph" in his novelette "The Sun Dog".
Lon Chaney always seemed to liven up any film he was in. I think one film that really benefited from his involvement was "Spider Baby" (1967). I understand that he took the role of Bruno because he loved the script and he promised the director (Jack Hill) that he would stay sober throughout filming.
My wife, who cannot stand 'old' black and white movies, indulges me every October for my run through of the classics, and she was quite taken with how haunted and effective Lon Chaney Jr. is in most of his films, especially the OG Wolfman.
(sidenote, non-sequitor(?) I could BARELY get through the first third of the remake; Max Von Sydow, Anthony Hopkins, Hugo Weaving and decent effects but Benicio Del Torro was more miscast than Keanu Reeves in Dracula)
I'm pretty sure that background painting of Hell is leftover from The Mole People where it stood in for the ancient Sumerian city of Ishtar.
The framing device and editing were stitched together by Herbert L. Strock (which is appropriate since he directed 'I Was A Teenage Frankenstein.') Too bad they didn't include the scene from the episode (I forget which) where Chaney hurls a chunk of ice into a fireplace and roars "The world is evil! So are YOU! So is EVERYBODY!"
"Hell is company". ~Jean Paul Sartre
I thought it was 'hell is other people'?
The incel photographer. I AM WATCHING YOU THROUGH A CAMERA!!!!!📹📹🤳🤳📷📷
th-cam.com/video/CU9X3tvTmIQ/w-d-xo.html
Surely not an incel if he's a married philanderer?
Based on MR James’s “The Mezzotint.”
Satania's ex is the Ultimate 50s Guy.
Robin, the fortune teller did kill him, she was the statue that fell on him...
Well, Cheney did a pretty good job as a handyman/surrogate father in SPIDER BABY....
Agree. th-cam.com/video/JmTawqjfAIQ/w-d-xo.html
Sorry but that first segment with the attack by the photographer made me think of Rocky Horror (or at least the audience) - "It was easy. But it would have been easier without the pantyhose."
When you die, you release any....uh....food or liquids inside. So the stream is probably a reference to that?
Lon Channel was in INNER SANCTUM
Im currious on if you will be reviewing the Quatermass series ?
Yes. We are planning this for down the line, but don't expect it very soon.
Is there anything that wrong with the Quatermass movies? Besides casting Brian Donlevy at first, that is? Always thought that Quatermass and the Pit was brilliant.
If you're going to get upset about an American being cast in a classic British TV role, how about doing the Doctor Who movie with Eric Roberts as The Master?
@@robotrix it will be in our longer form retrospective format, not this bad movie review format.
SPIDER BABY!!!!!!!!!
i mean we should at least consider that the objects might have been cursed to alter their recipients' behavior somehow. i know that cheapens the premise, but then again, should we really expect the Devil to play by the rules?
Spider Baby!
Unfortunately, I had already seen this turkey before this review.
This first story was done better on Night Gallery.
I knew that story seemed familiar. Thanks for reminding me where!
Didn't Stephen King do something similar to the first story with his short story The Sun Dog?
Put me in mind of
Night Gallery
" the girl with the hungry eyes"
@@andrewyoung2796 I was thinking of the first segment from the Night Gallery pilot, with Roddy McDowell and Ossie Davis.
QUESTION: Did Stephen "plot plagiarist nonpareil " King use this idea?
ANSWER: Yes. Among many, many, MANY others. The answer is Y.E.S.!!!
Not a horror movie (and a very short part) Lon Chaney was great in the 1958 "The Defiant Ones"
He certainly didn't raise the quality of Son Of Dracula....
Yeah. How about them.
This would have worked better if they didn't reveal the framing device until the end and just had the girl show up and deliver the goods no explanation and have each story end with the camara focusing on the object. Maybe instead of Satan he is just some weird evil guy with a collection of objects and a fiendish insane laugh.
As Lennie Small in Of Mice and Men
5:49 Why the materials are ever so con-veniently shabby ?
I like Spider Baby
The photo was a really clever and creepy idea, kind of prefiguring Ringu and Dr Who's Weeping Angels. It's a pity they couldn't come up with a better resolution.
There's a creepy M.R. James story called, "The Mezzotint" that has a similarly menacing motif. Only in that a picture shows a shadowy figure sneaking up on a house. Every time the picture is looked at, the closer the figure has moved towards a window.
It feels a bit like they brainstormed ideas but then failed to develop any of them.
SPIDER BABY
7:07 the biggest bomb was only 50 megatons.
oh I thought the biggest bomb we have solid numbers on was still Cutthroat Island at a loss of $176 million (adjusted for inflation)
@@andrewparsons2391
the devil (Lon Chaney) apparently ignored it & the even bigger one that is the connerie of ''Zardoz''.
So Throne of Fire was a sequel to this movie?
I think technically a prequel.
That messenger didn't really work out. Had ideas above his station. So the Devil transferred him into Accounting and told him to calculate the value of Pi to the last decimal.
for all its flaws I did like it
This looks awesome💯
Hum.... cursed artafa
Blimey, this movie really looks to be less than the sum of its parts!
I quite liked the idea of being offered a job by the Devil, though. Less the idea that he only appears to have done so because she had such a stupid name...
Maybe he just figured he could remember it...
Sadly accurate depiction of male photographers
They imply something with the avalanche and a mountain stream but she's still fully clothed. That's censorship.
The photographer killed her before he could manage anything more sordid. Then he wet himself....
In what would have been the sequel Satanna buys an ice cream vendor a new scoop and they use it for EVIL! Bwahaha ha ha!
Just think of all the damage they could do with the kind that has the little lever for dislodging the ice cream. Click-click, click-click...
@@colleencrouch4346 And the guy who stops by every day for his Tutti Fruiti cone is the SAME GUY who married the girl whom the ice cream vendor was once engaged to!!!
@@buzzawuzza3743 And now she's making cow eyes at the Hot Dog man!
@@colleencrouch4346 I went to school with a girl who drove a hot dog van every summer. Now she has a job selling carpet cleaner over the phone and seems much happier.
@@buzzawuzza3743 Go figure....
Hey Dark corners do a review of Hell Drivers 1957 and Quatermass and the pit
👍👍👍🎬
LOVED KARLOFF, LUGOSI, AND CHANEY SR. BUT CHANEY JR. DID HIS FATHER JUSTICE.
Lon Chaney Jr is an awful actor.
Ah, you noticed! Good to know I'm not the only one of this opinion! ☺️
Spider Baby!