Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 9

Tonight at 10PM, Turner Classic Movies brings us what is, unarguably, the best horror movie to ever star a severed head sitting in a lab tray full of magic science liquid.

I speak, of course, of The Brain That Wouldn't Die.

This movie has everything: Pin-Up Girls; Mangled Hands; Monster in a Closet Only to Be Released in Case of Emergency. Flishkeys. (It's that thing of when a monster starts to give you a hickey but ends up biting a chunk of your neck off instead.)

A scarf will cover up that flishkey, no prob.

You can also watch The Brain That Wouldn't Die on Amazon Prime, or for even more fun, watch "Mystery Science Theater 3000"'s version right here!

Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 8

Trick or treat!

There's not much to recommend on the TV tonight, so I've decided on days like this, I'll talk about some more recent horror movies that I've seen, liked, and are available to stream via at least one provider.

Today's is You're Next.



Now, on the surface, You're Next might look like a standard home invasion horror movie. And, in some ways, it is. But this one is low-budget, made by some mumblecore veterans, and features one of the most kick-ass final girls in the history of slasher cinema.

In a lot of slasher movies, you've got the girl being pursued, getting away, but doing something dumb in the process. This can be fun, because it gets the audience to yell at the screen with things like "WHAT ARE DOING? DON'T DROP THE KNIFE AND WALK AWAY!!!" But with You're Next, you may yell, "STAB THAT GUY AGAIN!...Oh, good....OK....whoa....WHOA. OH MY GOD WHAT ARE YOU DOING YOU'VE STABBED HIM ENOUGH!"

Basically, the final girl in You're Next does everything you'd want her to do, and then some. In addition, the movie has some genuine surprises, and is also very funny. I've watched it about five times, and will probably watch it again this month.

Watch it free via Amazon Prime, or rent it for a fee.

Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 7

OK fine, this has basically becoming Musty Vincent Price, because tonight we have another Roger Corman/Edgar Allan Poe/Vincent Price flick, The Tomb of the Ligeia, which is on MGMHD at 9PM.



This was Corman's last Poe adaptation, and the screenplay was written by Robert Towne, who would go on to write a little screenplay called Chinatown ten years later.

Puttin' on my top hat...

It's also available to rent via Amazon Instant.

Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 6

We've already established that Vincent Price is the best everything, and that everything is in full force in Roger Corman's The Masque of the Red Death, airing tonight at 9PM on MGMHD.

When Vince blushes, he really blushes.

Like many a Corman movie, it can be slow at times. But it's also wonderfully colorful, beautiful, and at times, a little hypnotic. And, again, Vincent Price. What more do you need?



It's available for rent on Amazon Instant, and via disc from Netflix.

Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 5

Andy just hasn't been himself since the war.

Director Bob Clark is best known for his perennial classic A Christmas Story, but before he told the tale of Ralphie and his never-ending quest to shoot his own eye out, he was the director of several exploitation films, including the horror movie Deathdream, a retelling of the classic Monkey's Paw story set in the days of the Vietnam War. (It was also known as Dead of Night, as seen in this trailer.)




It's not every horror movie that can boast the presence of two Oscar winners...and actually this one can't either, as John Marley and Lynn Carlin were merely nominated, not awarded. Nice try, trailer!

You can watch Deathdream at 12pm today and 9PM Friday, PT, on Robert Rodriguez's El Rey network. It's also available to rent on Amazon Instant  and on disc from Netflix.

Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 4

This past month or so I went to see the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical The Phantom of the Opera. Twice. Now, it was work related, so I didn't pay to see it both times, but I will admit to enjoying the hell out of it. Well, at least the first act, which includes the cheesy theme song that I can't help but love. Luckily, this new touring version keeps the ultra 80's sound of the song, complete with synthesizers and electric guitars. It sounds like something Giorgio Moroder could have written, and that's a good thing in my book. Here's the original cast recording.



Tonight at 9:25PM, PT TCM will be airing the 1925 silent version starring Lon Chaney, and while it doesn't have power ballad guitar chords and synthesizers, it's still pretty good.

The Phantom limbos!

 If you don't have Turner Classic movies, you can basically watch it anywhere, as it's available on all the streaming services, including YouTube.

Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 3

Roger Corman directs Vincent Price in a movie with a title from an Edgar Allan Poe poem, and a plot from an H. P. Lovecraft novella (The Case of Charles Dexter Ward). It's The Haunted Palace and you can watch it on MGMHD at 9PM, PT.



I think that trailer tells you just about all you need to know about it. It's got Vincent Price. In a lacy shirt. Being burned alive.

Hope that velvet's flame retardant!

To quote comedian Dana Gould, I love Vincent Price so much!

It doesn't look like The Haunted Palace is available to stream, but if you've got Comcast/Xfinity cable, you might be able to watch it via On Demand.

Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 2

As usual, TCM is devoting its Friday night programming to lots and lots of classic horror movies. Of course, the term "classic" is used loosely for a lot of the offerings. Tonight, we have one certified classic, and one that's never been featured on Musty TV before.

First, the classic: It's The Haunting (8:30PM, PT), one of the only movies to ever make my heart pound with fright, which is pretty amazing since horror movies rarely scare me, and those that do don't tend to be old black and white horror movies. All I can say is, if you've never seen it, you just must.

Oh man. I just watched this scene, and now I'm spooked.



Now for the less-than-classic. It's Two On a Guillotine starring Connie Francis. It's another haunted house movie, but with crazy magicians and guillotines. And Connie Francis.

Shovels! Skeletons! Go signs! TERROR!

That's it. Sold! It's on at 5PM.

You can also watch it and The Haunting via Amazon Video rental.

Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 1

Hellooooo and Happy Halloween Month! Yes, month. Christmas seems to get about two months with the ever increasing Christmas creep, so Halloween deserves at least an entire 31 days, right? Right.

So, let's begin.

AMC is having a Stephen King movie marathon tonight, although when it comes to Stephen King and movies, there are way, way, WAY more misses than hits. And tonight's offerings fall into the later.

Sure, Pet Sematary (6:30PM, PT) has its fans, but I watched it again about a year ago, and maintain it's a bad movie, but a really weirdly bad one. The acting is just...off. Although, you can't really beat that scene where Gage wields a straight razor scalpel and you can clearly tell the director told the young actor to "Make a GRRRR face!"

Grrrr!

Another killer-child-Stephen-King-movie is Firestarter (4pm, PT), starring Drew Barrymore. It, too, is terrible, especially because George C. Scott plays an evil, one-eyed, Native American (!). Badly. The scenes where Barrymore does her fire-starting basically involve her standing still, sweating and panting, while a fan blows her hair around, Beyonce style.

Terrifying!

Finally, there's Thinner, which I never bothered seeing, since I didn't much care for the book. But you can watch it at 8:30PM, PT.

Pet Sematary is currently available to stream on Netflix, or can be streamed for a rental fee, along with  Firestarter and Thinner, via Amazon Video.

Oh, Hello!

This blog really should just be renamed Musty TV's Countdown to Halloween, since I only seem to update it one month out of the year, as is evidenced from that previous post down there. But, better one month than no months, right?

It's almost October, and I'll be doing roughly the same thing I've been doing for the past...hoo, boy, eight years, since I first partook in the Countdown to Halloween: At least one pick a day of something on TV that is suitable for Halloween viewing.

Of course, I realize these days nobody watches TV when things are actually on. Or via TV, for that matter. So, I'll likely throw in some alternative viewing options when I can, and may go beyond broadcast for some days.

The point is, it's that time of the year, and our nights should be filled with spooky things. Because Halloween and spooky things are the best!

Trick or treat!