Gorgo 1961 Story by Eugène Lourié and Daniel Hyatt, screenplay by John Loring and Daniel Hyatt, directed by Eugène Lourié. We watched the new Gorgo Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome. I've watched this movie several times over the years, this is the nicest version so far.
A giant monster wanders into an Irish village on Nara island. An enterprising seaman and his partner catch the beastie and take it to London to put on display for 5 shillings a head. The seaman lets some scientists take a gander at the creature, they find out that it's a youngster. The seaman speculates that there could be an adult out there.
Of course the parent comes calling to Nara Island, it leaves a devastated village and heads out to sea. The Navy can't stop it and neither can the buildings of London. Many die in the city that day. Successfully rescuing it's child the beasts head back to the sea.
Even after many viewings the movie holds up. I'm enjoying the movie and it's a good reminder that taking a giant beast into the city is just a bad idea all around.
Evil Dead Rise 2023 Written and directed by Lee Cronin. The fifth in the Evil Dead series.
The movie opens with an unrelated scene by a lake. One woman scalps another woman and cuts the head off of a man. Cut to a rundown apartment building in LA. It's due for demolition but there are still a few families living on site. The son of a woman finds a book and 3 phonograph records in a secret room. He plays the records, a man reciting some foreign words opens a portal to evil and mom gets turned into a deadite. Most everyone dies.
There's plenty of yelling, running about and slaughter but the film lacked the humor that the series had in the hands of Sam Raimi. I might have enjoyed it more with a lighter tone. Deadly dark films aren't my jam. It did make me realize I wouldn't need to pick up a copy. My other complaint is about the constant references to other horror film scenes that Lee shoehorns into the film, like the elevator filled with blood opening onto a lobby from The Shining. One or two references would be fine but 8 or 10 are too many.