The end of this plane is a wall of stone. Carved into this stone is a huge Dwarven Mausoleum.
The door to this structure is sealed shut and requires a combined strength of 40 to open.
Once open, the characters in the doorway need to save vs. Death or take 2d6 hp of damage (save for half).
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
This movie is an old one. So instead of going over it detail (I mean, everyone has seen this one right?) let's talk about what it has going on.
Béla Lugosi is back as Dracula, a role he has been playing at this point for 20 years. This was one of his last major roles before his alcohol and drug addiction made getting roles more difficult. He also was very typecast at this point. I always liked him in this role and I think this is one of the first depictions of Dracula as a mad scientist. Something that would become more prevalent later on.
Lon Chaney Jr. is also back as Lawrence Talbot / The Wolf Man. This role I think really was the first time it sold me on the idea of lycanthropy as a curse. This movie was also one of the many of the Frankenstein-Dracula-Wolfman crossovers of the last four or so years. Were these the origin of the Vampires vs. Werewolves in the movies? Maybe. This was also the last appearance of the Wolf Man in the Universal Studios movies.
Lenore Aubert plays Sandra Mornay, our mad scientist. She is the one bringing Frankenstein's monster back to left and just needs Lou Costello's brain to do it. Fairly progressive for 1948.
This movie also has a special guest at the end, Vincent Price as the voice of the Invisible Man. A nice start to his career in horror.
The movie is fun. It was one of the first "monster movies" I can remember watching with my dad.
October Horror Movie Challenge 2023
Viewed: 9
First Time Views: 3
Moving past the area where the Ankou and his undead cows are "grazing," the party will encounter three wandering vampire girls. They look young but are many centuries old.
They will claim to be thralls of the Vampire Queen and want to help the party.
In truth, it is far simpler. They were thralls and now they are bored. They come back here because they are still drawn to their Queen.
They have no idea if the Queen is living or dead. They have not been able to get below this level. They will try to strike up a bargain with the party to get to the lower levels. They have no idea how to get to lower levels, nor even what is there.
They have every intention of killing the party as soon as they can.
The voiceover in the beginning informs us that humans and vampires have had a truce for years.
We see
Benny (Jorge Lendeborg Jr.) is a driver...well, not really, he is subbing in for his brother Jay, and he is hired to drive around two young socialites, Blaire (former Disney kid Debby Ryan) and Zoe (Lucy Fry, playing her second Vampire). The girls have a list of parties they want to hit and the last one has to be reached before morning.
Blaire and Zoe are vampires going on a killing spree, killing people against the truce. Beeny discovers this and soon discovers that the cops are going to be no help to him.
We learn they are working Victor (who also grabbed Jay's girlfriend in the beginning) killing everyone in Eva (Sydney Sweeney) and Grace (Megan Fox) network. Jay is a vampire hunter who was supposed to help them, but Jay wouldn't help.
The girls go through LA killing vampire bosses, dragging Benny with them.
Jay confronts Victor to kill him, but Victor already had his girlfriend Maria killed.
At the last stop Zoe is shot with a crossbow so they go to Victor's. Knowing he is about to be killed Beeny crashes the car into the house, killing Zoe with sunlight. Jay tackles Victor but not before Benny is bitten.
Benny, dying is given some blood from Blaire. At first it looks like maybe Benny isn't a vampire, but when he is later picked up by Blaire you can see his fangs.
--
So not a bad flick really. Certainly, part of the modern Vampire mythos of vampires as the rich and powerful. Other recent examples include Day Shift (2022) and go back to the Blade and Underworld movies. Sure it has been part of Vampire myths for a while, with the prime example coming from the Anne Rice books. This newest crop also features organized and funded (though not as well as the vampires) vampire hunters.
This one wasn't very "Teen" but still a fun flick. It was great seeing Debby Ryan in something other than a Disney series (I had little kids back then).
October Horror Movie Challenge 2023
Viewed: 8
First Time Views: 3
Beyond the tomb of the Blood Goblins, there is a 40% chance that the party will encounter the Ankou and his undead herd.
The Ankou is a farmer who was caught between the Vampire Queen and the dwarves when she grabbed their mountain and transported it here.
The Ankou uses the same stats as a Mummy. It can only transmit its disease with its mowing scythe.
The 12 undead cows use the same stats as a horse. The cows are turned as Ghouls. The Ankou is turned as a mummy.
.jpg "The House that Dripped Blood (1971)")
The House That Dripped Blood (1971)
Vampires, Witches! Psycho killers, Weird waxworks! Peter Cushing! Christopher Lee! Ingrid Pitt! and Jon Pertwee? Ok. What sort of alternate universe Hammer film has all of these Hammer Horror mainstays in it? Well...it's not a Hammer film, but rather by Amicus Productions. Or the Hammer that Americans made while in England. I am not trying to dismiss Amicus, but that is a good way to describe them. This might be one of their best in a genre they were pretty well known for.
This is movie is a classic for many reasons. You can see it's DNA in everything from the Horror anthology shows of the 1980s, especially one like Friday the 13th the Series to the American Horror Story season Murder House.
There are four stories of goings-on in the house, each leading to murder and death with the framing story of a missing actor Paul Henderson, played over the top by Jon "The Third Doctor" Pertwee either when he just got the Doctor Who role or just before it.
I could go over all four stories, but you can read about them anywhere, instead, I want to talk about the movie as a whole.
First off we do not get Cushing, Lee, and Pitt in the same scenes, which is a freaking crime, really. Each one is in their own tale.
Secondly. The movie is worth watching just for this scene alone.
Robert Bloch wrote the movie screenplay, but the individual stories came from various Pulp-era magazines like Wierd Tales and Unknown. So if these feel like, say Creepshow the Movie or Tales from the Crypt there is good reason.
A few other points. "Sweets for the Sweet" is one with Christopher Lee and features the cutest little witch this side of Wendy the Witch. Reminded me a little of the Twilight Zone episode The Most Toys.
Watching this and knowing Pertwee was in it I thought about Peter Cushing's role as "Dr. Who" and thought we really, really needed a movie with his Doctor and Christopher Lee as the Master. Typecasting? Maybe, but I would have loved it.
I am pretty sure I have seen this house in other movies.
Pertwee commented on Dracula and how he like Lugosi but not "the new guy" who of course was Lee.
The owner of the house was "A.J. Stoker" something that even Pertwee's character remarks on.
This was a fun flick. Not a scary one, but a foundational one for any horror buff.
October Horror Movie Challenge 2023
Viewed: 7
First Time Views: 2
A quick one today and perfect for the first properly chilly day we have had this fall here in Chicagoland.
The Crooked Moon: Folk Horror in 5E by Legends of Avantris
Honestly, this one looks really damn cool. It has everything I love. I want the dice, the tarot cards, the minis, and the special edition core book. I am just not 100% sure I'll ever get around to playing it.
But damn. It looks so great.
If they had an OSE version or even a Swords & Wizardry one I'd grab it in a heartbeat.
Anyway, check it out!
