During this season of ghouls and goblins, I decided to have fun with this list and share ten 70s TV horror movies that scared me as a kid. Most of them provide chuckles now, but some are still pretty spooky!
(Click on the titles below the movie poster gallery to get to our reviews of the titles covered here at the Movie Madhouse!)
The original Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark may be corny and a bit cheesy by today’s standards but, it still has plenty of spooky atmosphere and chilling moments and I’ll admit it scared the heck of me as a little boy when first aired in 1973. It told the story of a young couple that move into an old house inhabited by demonic creatures who target the young wife, Sally, to claim her soul.
The remake from producer Guillermo del Toro and director Troy Nixey, keeps the old house but, makes Sally a little girl (Bailee Madison) with the diminutive demons after…her teeth? Sally moves into the cavernous old mansion with her dad Alex (Guy Pearce) and his new girlfriend Kim (Katie Holmes) and once the creatures are unleashed, their nasty activities (shredding Kim’s dresses and Sally’s teddy bears) are continually blamed on Sally as a result of her emotional distress over her parents divorce… despite a character being savaged when Sally is nowhere near. Even when it is obvious something else is going on and Kim looks into the folklore behind the house, Alex still doubt’s it’s anything but Sally’s bid for attention and leaves her in situations where she can easily be victimized by the scurrying little monsters. But if they didn’t, it wouldn’t allow for the overblown Gremlins-ish attack scenes in the finale act.
So, does Nixey deliver a spooky flick and are the creatures at least scary? Sadly, no. The CGI critters show up fairly early and are smaller and more numerous then the original demons but, don’t have anywhere near the menace they should. They evoke the hairy wingless versions of the tooth fairies from Del Toro’s Hellboy 2 and to a degree they are similar as teeth play a part of their character for whatever reason. That and they are paraded out in full view far too much and the over-exposure and the obvious CGI origins kill any effectiveness they might have. As for the positives, the film does look great with sumptuous production design and gorgeous cinematography but, sadly Nixey, from Del Toro’s and Matthew Robbins’ script, never is able to make it scary. He’s a competent enough director but, just not able to establish suspense or the atmosphere of dread the film needs. It may entertain some as a dark Disney film or a humorless Gremlins 3 but, it never works as a horror film even thought the intended victim is a child and she is played sympathetically by young Bailee Madison.
And while on the subject… the cast are fine with Madison standing out as Sally. Holmes is adequate as the new girlfriend trying to overcome Sally’s dislike and win her over. Her concern once things get weird appears genuine. Pearce is a little heavy handed as the dad who thinks it’s all in Sally’s head and seems a little callous when it comes to his daughter’s well being but, that seems to be how the character is written and the character in the original TV movie wasn’t much better, a little too self-centered to realize something strange is going on till it’s too late. Too bad a good cast could help generate what the film lacks, scares.
Overall the film is not bad, just not scary. It is sumptuous to look at but, the CGI creatures look like exactly that and have no weight or threat or personality. The film is simply not frightening and afraid of the dark is something it never makes us.
The 70s was a great time for made for TV horror. So, for this week’s Saturday Night Double Feature I have decided to showcase two 70s TV movie horrors that scared the heck out of me when I was a little kid and watched them when they first aired. Gargoyles and the original Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark gave me nightmares back in the day, when I was a lad of less then ten years old and will always remain horror favorites despite what effect time might have had on them…and speaking of which, what effect did they still have on me?…
GARGOYLES (1972)
Gargoyles is still one of my favorites and brings back such memories of a seven year old MonsterZero NJ being scared out of his wits by this fun and sometimes still spooky TV movie. The film opens with narration telling us that when The Devil was cast from Heaven he vowed to get revenge by ruling earth and every 600 years his minions, The Gargoyles would rise up to attempt to do so. We then focus on Dr. Mercer Boley (Cornel Wilde), a scientist and author who specializes in the study of man’s belief in demons, traveling in the desert with his hot photographer daughter Diana (Jennifer Salt) to see a man who claims to have found something of interest. Uncle Willie (Woody Chamblis) is an old man running a middle of nowhere roadside attraction and shows the pair a bizarre skeleton that looks like some kind of man-sized flying, horned lizard. Boley thinks it a fraud, but agrees to hear the old man’s tale of the local Native American legends telling of the tribes battling such creatures. During his tale the shack is attacked and Mercer and Diana barely escape with their lives and the mysterious creature’s skull, but not before being attacked by one of the very monsters Boley thought didn’t exist moments before. The creatures follow the two to a remote motel and after continual attacks The Gargoyles retrieve the skull, the corpse of one of their own killed in a previous attack and Diana, whom the leader (Bernie Casey in Stan Winston make-up) takes a liking to. Now with only two cops and a dirt bike gang, initially blamed for Willie’s death, as allies, Mercer must find the Gargoyles lair, rescue his daughter and stop the monsters from taking over the planet.
Directed by Bill L. Norton from a script by Steven and Elinor Karpf, Gargoyles is a fun horror flick that may not be as scary now as it was to me as a child, but is still a spooky, nostalgic good time nonetheless. Norton takes his film seriously and provides some very creepy moments early on, such as the attack on Willie’s and the subsequent attacks on Mercer and Diane in the motel. The film then switches gears somewhat and becomes a more traditional monster movie with our small band of heroes making a desperate attack on the Gargoyle nest. The film makes things a bit interesting by having the Gargoyle leader not only speak, but intelligently as well. He actually has charm as he obviously lies to Diana about his intent with not only her, but their purpose here, revealing his true nature and goal to Mercer once he feels he has the upper hand. This cleverly makes him less of a generic monster and gives him character and personality under the creepy make-up by FX legend Stan Winston (who would work on Bernie Casey again in Dr. Black And Mr. Hyde). This adds to a film already given some unsettling atmosphere by director Norton who really succeeds on making the creatures threatening and keeping them mysterious even once fully revealed. The film has some added suspense as the Gargoyles are few, but their long gestating eggs are steadily hatching and there will be thousands of them if Mercer and Co. cannot destroy them soon. Adding to Norton’s atmosphere is a very effective score by Robert Prince and equally effective cinematography from Earl Rath. Sure the film is not perfect, the narration tells us the creatures appear every 600 years, but the Gargoyle leader says 500, as does Mercer, and the Gargoyles revealing themselves long before they have enough numbers to be a real threat makes no sense since their existence is disbelieved. Why risk everything for a skeleton no one believes is real? But the flaws are minimal when compared to the entertainment.
As for the stars, the cast all take this very seriously and thus it goes a long way in giving weight to a, let’s face it, silly story. Wilde makes a strong hero, a man with both intelligence and fortitude and the fact that he is a skeptic at first makes his character more interesting in light of what is happening. Salt is more than just a pretty face and hot body as she gives Diana a lot of courage and she is a professional, smart and a tough girl, who works well in her scenes with Casey’s Gargoyle. As the leader, Casey is both charismatic and threatening. His scenes with Salt are very effective because, despite telling her he means her and mankind no harm, you can see it on her face that she isn’t convinced and he seems almost amused by his own lies. There is an uncomfortable sexual tension as the creature seems very enamored with Diana and she very afraid, despite his attempts to assure her that is not his intent. The whole ‘charm of the devil’ is well conveyed by Casey as is his malice when his true nature is brought to bare. The added element of the leader’s mate being jealous of his attention to Diana adds an effective angle that displays that the creatures are not very different than us under the scales and horns. The rest of the supporting characters are fine though we do get a little overacting by Grayson Hall’s Mrs. Parks, but the character appears to be an alcoholic, so it’s not that obtrusive. We also get a glimpse of an actor that would become a star in later years, with a young Scott Glenn playing a heroic biker who has taken a liking to Diana and joins Mercer to rescue her. A solid cast that worked well with the material.
So, overall, this is a fun and very well made TV movie horror that treats it’s B-movie monster story with a lot of respect and a talented cast and crew that makes it work. Even now it still has some creepy moments and effective bits, not to mention some decent bloodletting and with the added 70s nostalgia, it makes an entertaining treat. I will personally always have a place in my heart for this flick as a prime example of an era when TV horror was prolific and could hold it’s own against theatrical releases. The scene with the Gargoyle creeping up from under Mercer’s bed still gives me the willies!
Couldn’t find a trailer so a short clip will have to do…
DON’T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK (1973)
I saw this 70s TV movie horror classic as a kid when it first aired and it scared the heck out of me. I had trouble sleeping thinking the tiny demons from the film were under my bed and waiting to get me. Now, upon revisiting it, I do still feel it still has some creepy sequences, but some problems too.
The story has a young couple, Alex and Sally (Jim Hutton and Kim Darby) inheriting an old house that has been in Sally’s family for years. Sally notices the fireplace in the cellar is bricked up and the door used to remove the ash is bolted shut. Her inquiries to family handyman Mr. Harris (William Demarest) are met with vague warnings to leave well enough alone. Of course Sally fails to heed and opens the door and unknowingly unleashes 3 goblin-like creatures into her home who intend to do her great harm. Worse still, no one believes her when she starts to see the creepy little beings who want the pretty young woman to become one of their own. Can Sally save herself before the creatures get her, or her husband has her committed?
From a script by Nigel McKeand, Don’t Be afraid Of The Dark is very well directed by John Newland, who got his experience with all things spooky directing and hosting the classic One Step Beyond TV show. He gives the film some really creepy atmosphere and along with cinematographer Andrew Jackson gets really effective use out of the big old house that serves as it’s primary location. The little demons and their eerie whispering are very effective even now and after all these years they still give you the creeps despite being fairly simple in their design…like little prune headed apes. Basically they are three little people in suits (Tamara De Treaux, Patty Maloney and Felix Silla, to be exact) filmed on large sets to make them look small and it’s simple and effective. Also effective is keeping the creatures origins a mystery. They seem to have been there since the house was built claiming anyone who releases them from their imprisonment. In this case, the air of mystery works. The film has some nice suspense, especially in it’s last act and a very unsettling ending that still stays with you. Add Billy Goldenberg’s chilling score and you have a very effective little horror…though not perfect…
Where the film fails somewhat is in it’s the human characters. Kim Darby is just bland as the object of the demon’s attention. Sure we have sympathy for her, as no one believes she’s being haunted and terrorized, but the actress seems very monotone most of the time. It’s hard to really become endeared or concerned for her. Jim Hutton is livelier as her husband, but he’s written like such a jerk that you can’t stand him, so he elicits very little sympathy when he finally realizes his wife may really be in danger. And my biggest problem is with William Demarest’s handyman. His performance is fine, he’s a little hammy, but it suits the material. The character claims to only know something isn’t right with the house, but not too many details. Yet, when in the basement and he encounters the creatures, they talk to him like they know him and he responds as if he knows them, too. It’s never clarified. Is he hiding something? Even when the husband comes to him later for answers, he never mentions his encounter, or that he knows exactly was going on. He again gives vague details that there is something in the house that he thinks claimed Sally’s grandfather and he now might be one of them. But he is never clear, though his ‘talk’ with the little monsters indicates he knows a lot more than he ever tells. If he’s going to warn them and save Sally’s life, why not tell them everything? Also there is a sequence in the last act where a friend of Sally’s is locked outside the house by the fiends and there are a few shots that are in daylight when the sequence clearly takes place after dark. Whoops!
Flaws aside, there is still a nostalgic charm attached to this and it is still very effective in the creepy department. I count this as a favorite despite seeing it a little differently now, through the eyes of an adult and not an eight year-old boy. This film scared that eight year-old boy quite a bit when first viewed in 1973. Remade recently under the guidance of producer Guillermo Del Toro, but with none of the effectiveness of this 1973 TV gem.
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