"C.H.U.D." is one of those....wow, what do you say?.....movies you definitely know the title of but may not have seen all the way through or at all. I was in the former category. The first understanding (in the movie) of what the acronym stands for....Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dweller....pretty much sums up what the film is about. Well, some of those dwellers and some humans of varying stations in life.
I'm surprised at some of the low ratings for this film; it's pretty enjoyable....a bit slow in the early going (even for this Tarkovsky fan), but it picks up speed later and finishes well. The cast is fairly unique and contains many at least somewhat-known names: John Heard, Kim Greist, Daniel Stern, Chtristopher Curry.....even Brenda Currin. (Come on, tell me you know who Brenda Currin is.) John Goodman also shows up in one of his first roles.
There's nothing surprising about the plot....that might be a reason for low ratings......but the film's still a lot of fun. It really belongs in that short list of "grimy NYC" flicks, with "Taxi Driver," "Maniac," "Basket Case," "New York Ripper," and the like. The monsters look fairly silly, but some of the attacks come off admirably tense. And, if you get the recent Arrow release, you'll be treated to a hilarious commentary from Heard, Stern and Curry....well worth the admission price.
Next up: some Hellraisin'!. I received as a late birthday present Arrow's recent domestic release of The Scarlet Box, comprising the first three Hellraiser movies and a ton of extras, including a very nice hardback book. I've always enjoyed the first two Hellraiser movies but have never gone any farther into the series. Since I've received this, I've only watched the first two films, but I'll jump on that third one soon.
The first two, titled "Hellraiser" and "Hellbound: Hellraiser II" respectively, are every bit as great as I remember them. These truly were "something fresh" when released in the late 80s; horror was still mining the almost-empty slasher cave. The first movie was created (or at least the script was) almost concurrently with Clive Barker's novel "The Hellbound Heart." "Hellraiser" is at its core, a dysfunctional family story. A grisly one, at that. "Hellbound" is an expansion of the first movie, with a couple of the core characters remaining, and is quite different than "Hellraiser," although for me every bit as satisfying. I have a feeling the third one might let me down a bit.
For those of you who know the Hellraiser series primarily from the iconic image of Pinhead, well, he ain't in it much of these two movies. And it might be a surprise to find out that he is one of a cast of Cenobites.....but he seems to be the leader of that little gang. The Cenobites are overlords of an area of the netherworld, overseeing people who crave "extreme sensation," let's say. (Oddly, I thought of "Martyrs" when watching "Hellraiser" this time. If you've seen "Martyrs," maybe you'll understand my connecting these two.) Andrew Robinson and Clare Higgins star in the first film, Higgins in particular shining.....as she does in the second film. Both these movies are better when she's in the scene. Robinson is admirable as the father figure in the first film, but I wish I could see him without shouting out "Callahan! It was Callahan!" ("Dirty Harry" reference....)
I'll leave you with this: these movies are both close to classics in my book, but they are grisly. Even for a horror buff such as myself, there are scenes that make me cringe a bit. And everything's gooey. You'll find out what I mean.
"Black Christmas!" Now, here's a classic. And we didn't even watch the new Shout! Factory edition....have not purchased that one yet. Supposedly, the transfer is much improved from this older Somerville House release, but ya know.....as long as the content's all there, sometimes a slighter image is better for horror. There, I said it.
[I have to quote my wife here. Recently, we watched "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" in its latest Blu-ray edition (and I didn't write about it!), and she said "ya know, the movie now looks TOO good." Even though I enjoyed the clarity of the version, I agreed with her sentiment. Maybe there's something to these folks who hang onto their old VHS tapes of 80s horror.]
"Black Christmas" (1974) is written about a lot as a forerunner of the slasher wave that hit America
after "Friday the 13th" was released in 1980. You usually hear about it as "first there was 'Bay of Blood,' then there was 'Black Christmas,' 'Halloween,' ' Friday the 13th,' and then the avalanche." That's pretty much true. In the pre-internet less-global days, for sure. "Bay of Blood" was from Italy's Mario Bava in 1971, "Black Christmas" was from Canada's Bob Clark, and "Halloween," of course, is from our John Carpenter. I didn't even mention Michael Powell's "Peeping Tom" or Hitchcock's "Psycho" (both 1960). There might be some question as to who saw whose movie, as to influence, although it's generally recognized that a kill in "Friday the 13th, Part II" is straight out of "Bay of Blood." Wait, I'm off track......
"Black Christmas" is less of a slasher and more of a psychological horror, but it's a good one....very creepy. And a very interesting cast: Olivia Hussey (Zefferelli's "Romeo and Juliet"), Keir Dullea ("2001"), Margot Kidder (you know who SHE is), Andrea Martin (later of SCTV), John Saxon (many genre movies of the 60s-80s), and Lynne Griffin ("Strange Brew"). The action mostly takes place in an old multi-level sorority house around (surprise!) Christmas time. The happenings lead you to
believe one character is responsible, until the very end when, well.....hmmm.....
Please watch this one. Doesn't have to be Christmas time. Excellent direction from Bob Clark, who also directed "Porky's" and "A Christmas Story," if you want to know how diverse his interests were. All three of these films look pretty much the same, too. Watch it!!!!
And I can't find a trailer......AAGGHH!!!!!
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