October Scary Movie Fest: Days 3 & 4

Our Sunday night "fright" flicks were the animated The Batman Vs Dracula and the 1980's horror comedy, House II: The Second Story. The first was a decidedly mediocre adventure of DC Comics' Dark Knight, which - considering the premise - should have been so much better. The second, well, it's just a goof about a haunted house, alternate universes, zombie gunslingers, a crystal skull, and colorful 80s fashions. Not even remotely scary, but entertaining enough.

Obviously, we were in the mood for some lighter entertainment.

Tonight, we watched a themed double feature of 1973's Horror Express, starring horror legends Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee and 1980's Terror Train, starring 70s scream queen supreme, Jamie Lee Curtis.

Horror Express is an old favorite with Cushing & Lee as rival scientists trapped on the Trans-Siberian Express with a powerful alien entity that can possess people's bodies. Shot in Spain on a low budget with an International cast, Horror Express is a genuinely chilling, claustrophobic little genre gem.

My DVD of Horror Express is the old "Euroshock Collection" edition from Image Entertainment, which is out of print. The movie is in public domain, so a number of versions are available, but this one has the best picture and sound of any I've seen.

Terror Train was one of Curtis' "slasher" film follow-ups to Halloween, and tells of a bunch of college kids renting an old steam train for a New Year's Eve party. Too bad for them that there's a killer on board with a grudge. Not the best of its sub-genre, but far from the worst. The claustrophobic train setting works to its advantage in keeping the viewer on edge, and veteran character actor Ben Johnson helps bring a little dignity to the proceedings.

The Fox DVD includes both full-frame (which I haven't looked at) and widescreen presentations and the theatrical trailer.

Tomorrow night? Maybe Zombies.