Holiday Flix: Santo in The Witches Attack! (1968)

 A yearly look at Lucha Cinema is something I always look forward to.

This is El Santo in The Witches Attack, a 1968 Action/Horror Film.  This is at a good midpoint in his Film career- which ran until 1982- and features many familiar things.

Lots of fighting.  Black and white mood.  Ladies in miniskirts.

The Plot involves a woman who fears that she'll be sacrificed by a Witch and only El Santo can save her!  He's a spry 50-51 years old at this time.
There wasn't a younger Luchador who could help- Rey Mysterio Jr. wasn't born yet.

This one does a few unique things that are worth mentioning.
Are they enough to make this not too familiar?

To find out, read on...

The Film actually has a Cold Open where this lady monologues about the danger she's in from some Witches and that only El Santo (not named by her) can save her.

He fights masked thugs and is captured, but then breaks free and makes a cross with his arms...

...and that was all a dream.  

The Woman has been having very vivid nightmares ever since she moved into her Parents' house to get the money willed to her.

Her Sister tells her to stay.

Her fiancée Arturo (who was in the dream too) meets with El Santo after hearing about her dream.  He knows the guy.

What luck!

He explains the situation with the house and will to our Hero...and that the Sister is not who she claims to be!

She might even be- wait for it- a Witch!

This leads to the 2nd of what feels like a dozen (more like 6) prolonged Fight Scenes with El Santo, this time with unmasked guys (but clearly the same ones)...and there's no a third guy.

He doesn't find the proof he needs.

The Witches are real, of course, and doing exactly what was in the dream.

They capture and control Arturo with a magical spell.

Santo saves our Heroine from them again, but they flee...again.

It's not a Luchador Film without one unnecessary Wrestling Match Scene.

This has one that runs about 5 minutes.

The Witches have nigh unlimited power at their disposal thanks to the dark arts and their infernal Masters!

They...summon a single spider (seemingly made by a preschooler) to kill Santo.
It fails.

They do capture the woman again and she appears to escape...again.

She meets with Santo and tells him where to go.

Surprise- it was the Witch all along!

They capture Santo at Fight #22 (or 6) and chain him down for the sacrifice.

He breaks the chains...which shouldn't surprise them since he's DONE IT TWO OTHER TIMES and fights them.

Outnumbered, he resorts to their weaknesses (which the Witch recounted to the audience earlier) and returns with a big cross.
He waves it around and they all die.

The End.

A Film that is very similar to many Santo Films, but with some extra, spooky aesthetics.

The Plot is pretty simple- so much so that it is laid out in the opening minutes.
Not much changes from that setup explained to us then- we just see it play out.

I guess Horror can be about NOT surprising you.

To be fair, I might be judging this through the wrong point of view.

These Films were made for a broad audience and likely ran as Matinees in Santo's homeland of Mexico.

People weren't looking for great Acting or amazing Plots.  This is very similar to watching a spooky Episode of the Adam West Batman TV Show.

I own the whole Series on DVD and watch it every weekend, so clearly, I don't hate the formula.

This one gets a few points of credit for adding the spooky stuff, but is otherwise a fairly copy-paste adventure.
There's really no difference between these Witches having male henchmen and the Mad Scientists/Vampires having them.

Speaking of Vampires, this...goes nowhere.

A pretty fun, if familiar El Santo Film.  If you want one of these with a few new tricks, give it a watch.

Holiday Flix: Finian's Rainbow (1968)

 A logical, sane man would cover a Film from the Leprechaun Film Series today.
When have I ever been that?

Instead, let me talk about a different Leprechaun movie- Finian's Rainbow!

This 1968 Musical was adapted from the 1947 Musical Play of the same name.  It is Irish and features a Leprechaun as key to its Plot.

It was also Directed by Francis Ford Coppola.
No, really.

The Film brought back Fred Astaire to the limelight (his first dancing on Film since 1957) and its Themes of Racial Integration were sadly still topical 20 years later. 

The Play has been revived at various times over the Years, as recently as 2009 and 2017.

To see if the Film (last released on Blu-Ray in 2017) hold up today, read on...

Finian and Sharon (Father and Daughter) travel from Ireland to America...on foot.

The Credits play over shots of them at various landmarks, though you could mistake shots like this for ones from The Lord of the Rings.

They end up in a place called Rainbow Valley in the Deep South.

The residents are trying to keep their land, but Senator Dawkins is trying to buy it all up for various reasons.

Oh, and this lady can only communicate via dance.  Welcome to a Musical.

Sarah falls for a guy named Woody, who is a wandering musician/sharecropper who has returned with talks of great money and success.

He brought none of that.

Finian brought a Pot of Gold he took from a Leprechaun with him as part of his dream.

He buries it in the ground, believing that planting it near Fort Knox will make it multiply.

Did this shot inspire Pulp Fiction?

Said Leprechaun then appears OG (pronounced as OG and not O-G) wants it back.

The longer he doesn't have his gold, he loses his powers and becomes more mortal (shown by him growing taller).

As the Senator tries to take the land, he amends a law that makes it illegal for the white and black residents to intermingle.

Sarah says that she 'wishes that the Senator was black' while standing on the Pot of Gold, making the wish come true.

In his absence, she's now thought to be a Witch.

OG is still looking for his gold as things get worse for everyone in Town.

Elsewhere, the Senator learns a lesson, but is still Black.

OG, who was in love with Sharon (as he's more human) falls for Susan the Silent (the dancing girl) and accidentally wishes for her to be able to speak.

Now he's in love!

OG has to make a big choice- use the third wish to restore the Senator to save Sharon OR take the gold and become a Leprechaun again.

He obviously chooses the former, saving the day.

Also, a B-Plot involving the residents creating Menthol Cigarettes is also resolved.  Yea.

Finian leaves to 'find his rainbow.'

The End.

A fun Film, but do know that this is absolutely a full-on Musical.

Lots of songs.  Lots of dancing.

If you don't like those things, this one won't do it for you.

For those who into that, the Film is definitely for you, from Petula Clark's vocals to the score to Astaire's dancing.

As a Play turned Film, it has a surreal look with technicolor and being mostly shot on a Sound Stage.

I will say that some of the stuff has not aged well.
Mostly it is the fact that the Senator being turned Black was done the way you think it was.

It's not something I'll defend- I will just stop short of attacking it.

Having said all of that, the Film is still pretty fun and it apparently inspired the Cohen Brothers, so I'm not mad.  
Did it also inspire later Werewolf Films too?

A Film that is fun, as long as you can enjoy/endure all of the song & dance.  Slainte, everyone!

Holiday TV: Evil Druids on 'Friday the 13th: The Series!'

 Another Friday the 13th in the year 2026 is here.

Let's see if there's a properly Irish Episode to cover.

***

We're at the 2nd to last ever Episode and it is...

A woman is about to give birth at a Private Center.

The Nurse says that the Father-to-be needs to go outside with a candle for a ritual...and he's grabbed by roots and pulled into the base of a tree!

Johnny- the new Male Lead for Season 3- meets the woman from earlier.

She was told that only her Son survived, but she doesn't buy it.

Johnny looks into her story and, well, she's right.
This would be a bad Episode if she was just crazy.

The Center is run by Druids- all Ladies- is helping couples give birth to fraternal twins and then keeping the girl child.

They're also sacrificing the Husbands, because Cults.

The girls are all part of a plan to form new Druidic Covens across the World!

Step 1: Make A Bunch of Covens
Step 2: ????
Step 3: Profit!

The group finally believes Johnny as he finds out more about the group.

It all revolves around an artifact- a Cernunnos Idol.

It makes magic fruit or something as long as you do the rituals correctly.

The Mom, of course, doesn't wait for help and is left to die by the evil Druids.

They do what Dr. Phibes did to Terry Thomas, but slower and less efficiently.

The trio try to stop it, but things don't go well at first.

Jack is nearly sacrificed, while Johnny attacks the tree at the roots.

Lightning strikes and the ritual is ruined.

The tree falls on the evil Doctor and the day is saved.
The End.

A strong Episode, even if the promise of a Wicker Man isn't delivered.

The idea of evil, lady Druids is a good one.  It only took 71 Episodes to get there!

Granted- in a real-world situation, this evil plan has about 100 holes in it.  This is the Show about magical artifacts though, so...

While watching the Episode, I was making Wicker Man jokes to myself (jokes about bear suits and bees, etc.).  Seconds later, they say that they are preparing a Wicker Man!

Well, it is actually just a Wicker Coffin to burn.  Boo.

Regardless, this one has an evil villain with a lovely Irish brogue and Jack speaking Gaelic.
Oh well, time to check out this Show in...8 months.

Sorry, Jack.

An Episode with good villains and an interesting Artifact.  Just don't promise me a Wicker Man and then give me nothing!

Holiday Flix: Heart Eyes (2025)

 A Holiday based around love and commitment.

A Film about love and death.

This is the most recent Josh Ruben Film known as...

In a (very) Cold Open, we see a pretentious Couple filming their Engagement at a Vineyard.

A masked killer strikes, taking out the Couple, the Videographer and a Cop.

This is the Heart Eyes Killer or HEK for short.
Yes, that is clearly based on BTK.

For the last 2 years, he's had a murder spree of exclusively Couples (plus anyone in the way) in two different Cities.

Now it is the third Valentine's Day and he's, naturally, in the Town where the Film is set.

This is Ally.

She's an Ad Executive whose Marketing Campaign for Jewelry has gone horribly wrong.

She needs to fix it ASAP.

Is it because she doesn't believe in love?

She meet-cutes a guy named Jay (Mason Gooding from Scream 5-6).

He believes in love.
She doesn't.

They kiss.

Unfortunately, that has made them the next target for HEK!

They try to fight HEK.
It doesn't go too well.

They try to flee HEK.
It doesn't go much better.

Things take a turn as Jay is accused of being HEK.

We know that isn't true, but tell it to Hobbs and Shaw (Devon Sawa and Jordana Brewster)- the Detectives on the case.

I won't SPOIL anymore of it, so stream away.

A Film that is a fun blend of Comedy, Romance and Horror.

You shouldn't be able to do all three, but it does.

The Plot plays with conventions, establishing a new killer with a background from the get-go.  We then get Leads that are not the normal kinds of victims.

The whole thing works best once you see the whole Film.  The explanation for the killer makes earlier Scenes make sense.

I like when a twist (or three) actually helps the Movie and not the other way around.

Josh Ruben said in an interview that his goal was to 'shoot the romantic scenes like Nora Ephron and the killer scenes like Wes Craven.'

Sounds crazy, but...yeah, it works.

At its worst, the Film doesn't exactly break the mold.  We'll see what the planned Sequel does.

For now, enjoy this alternate Poster that pays homage to The Burning...

A Film for romantics that like gore OR gore fans feeling a bit romantic.  It's also just pretty damn funny to boot.

Holiday TV: 'Cupid's Quiver' (Friday the 13th: The Series)

 Another Friday the 13th is here.  The first of 3 this Year.

This one comes the day before Valentine's Day, so love is truly in the air!

This is Season 1, Episode 3.  We are checking out...

A man is rejected at a Bar.

In response, he unwraps the Cupid Statuette that he apparently brought with him and uses it to entrance the woman who just turned him down.

Good thing this is Canada- they are too polite to steal it from the bar!

She falls in love with him and they have offscreen sex.

In the afterglow, he tries to choke her to death, spurred on by the creepy Statuette.

He's thankfully interrupted, but a College 'Kid' (who was nearby and called the Cops) takes the Cupid with him.

Our Heroes are now looking for it and we are at the Campus of said College 'Kid.'

We meet Eddie, who is the even creepier version of Langly from The Lone Gunmen and he's fixated on a girl.

He manages to steal the Statuette from the 'Kid' (since he's a lackey who cleans up for the frat).

He uses it at a bar to get what he wants.

In the afterglow, he enacts an elaborate murder plan involving opening a jar of honey, retrieving a Beehive (safely) and locking the woman in the car with said bees.

Foreshadowing the Vampire Bees in Season 2.

He uses it on his unrequited 'love,' but the gang interrupts and chases him off.

He gets Cupid back and gets her to show up...

...but it was actually a trick by our Heroes!

He tries to escape with it yet again, but falls to his death in the process.

Love hurts.

The End.

A tale of an incel decades before the term was coined.

This one is interesting, because they could have made the bad guy pathetic and made you feel sorry for him.  Instead, he's just a creep and you don't.

It is the easier choice, but is it the better one?

The Cupid Statuette is a creepy prop and it is elegant in its simplicity.  The face is creepy.  It moves just enough to let you know that it is magic.

Good work all around.

I appreciate the twists and turns in the tale.  It still goes where you think it will, but I appreciate the journey.
That said, why use bees to kill the girl in the truck?  So random!

All in all, it is a good (and topical) Episode.
Next, you'll tell me that the Director went on to be highly acclaimed or something...

A tale that is about love and rejection.  Just don't reject a chance to revisit this underrated Show.

Fiction vs Fiction: Gremlins (1984)

 A late Christmas gift for all of you!

The 1984 Film Gremlins is a Christmas Classic a la Die Hard, Reindeer Games and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.

Did you know that it had a Novelization?
Well, you do now....

***VS***

What's the Same?

The Plot doesn't change here.  Like most Novelizations, the core Story is untouched.

That said, there are many, MANY little tweaks and/or additions.

What's Different?

Right on Page 1, we get a big addition- the origin of Gizmo and the Mogwai.

They are Aliens!
No, really.

The Book tells you about the race that created them, why and how they got to Earth.
We also learn that their brains work 'faster than their mouths,' so they can't talk like we do.

Gizmo also has many inner monologues in this one.
In addition, we 'hear' him and Spike 'talk' to each other in their crazy Mogwai voices.

It sure is easier and a bit less silly than watching the two wag at each other with Subtitles on the screen though, right?

The Town's local DJ gets WAY more focus in the Book as well.

We 'hear' him explain a TON of events that we actually just see in the Movie.
He's also not attacked by the Gremlins in the Book (which we hear in the Film).

Was Don Steele too busy to actually appear on camera?

In the Book, the Gremlins frame the Dog for making a mess in the House, which is why the Dad takes him away with him.
In the Film, they tie it up with the Christmas lights (off screen) and that's...enough for the Dad.  Okay...

The oddest change- we don't get to 'see' the famous, over-the-top death of Mrs. Deagle (whose Deleted Scene motivations are also in the Book) in the Book.

The Movie shows her booby-trapped Electric Stair Car launch her up the stairs, through a wall and in front of the Cops.

The Book goes from the setup to...having the DJ explain how the Cops found her.  WTF?!?

Poor Judge Reinhold was mostly cut out of Gremlins.
In Deleted Scenes, we see him scheme and later hiding out in the Bank Vault.

In the Book, he went a bit crazy after the Bank Manager was killed (off screen) by the Gremlins and is 'turning this into a Bank for Little People.'

The Book has other minor tweaks here or there that were likely adjustments made on-set.
Like how the Cops crash their car via Gremlin sabotage in the Film but run into a 'sea of concrete posts' put up by the Gremlins in the Book.

Lastly the Chinese Shop Owner (Keye Luke) is much nicer in the Book.  He says that 'they accomplished a great deal' as he leaves, as opposed to telling him that 'mankind is not ready for the Mogwai' in the Film.

Final Thoughts

The Book is a fun adaptation.  It gives background to the Story that is nice (but not needed).
It has the same charm of the Film, minus a few baffling omissions.

As a reminder, VHS tapes were SUPER expensive in this Era, so this was a MUCH cheaper option than spending say $80 to own the Film back then.

Anyone still have these?

What is Better?

As fun as the Book is and how silly the explanation of them being Aliens is, there's no replacing...

The Film.

Seriously, I'm glad I found this Book.
That and the Sequel Book- see you in 2026, Mister!