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The Curse/Curse II: The Bite - Double Feature
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray A - America - Shout! Factory Review written by and copyright: Anthony Arrigo (24th April 2016). |
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The Film
 Scream Factory has been pumping out cult classic double features this year, and one of their most recent releases contains two doses of 80's awesomeness with “The Curse” (1987) and “Curse II: The Bite” (1989). For the uninitiated, don’t let the titles fool you. This “series” is only connected through titling, with each of the four “Curse” films having nothing to do with the others. It’s sort of like the American answer to Italy’s infamous “La Casa” series only this franchise has half the entries and even less connective tissue. In-name-only sequels are usually done from a marketing and financial standpoint, though in this case it makes little sense since “The Curse” was far from successful. But it does have a cool title, and apparently that was enough to justify lumping together unrelated movies. Despite their dubious connection, both of these films make for a perfect late night/lazy weekend double header. In “The Curse”, fire and brimstone spewing farmer Nathan Crane (Claude Akins) has been having a rough harvest season. His farm has been losing money, prompting local sleazy realtor Charlie (Steve Carlisle) to continually harass him about selling off the land. But Nathan won’t hear any of it; he’d much rather put on blinders and avoid facing the obvious. In the meantime he puts his sons Cyrus (Malcolm Danare) and Zack (Wil Wheaton) to work in the fields – Cyrus being his biological child, while Zack came along with Nathan’s marriage to Frances (Kathleen Jordon Gregory); that also included Zack’s younger sister, Alice (Amy Wheaton). Luck strikes hard one night when a massive meteorite lands near the farmhouse, glowing bright in the night sky before smashing down into the field. Come morning, the Crane family invites over Alan Forbes (Cooper Huckabee), a local physician, to check out the massive space stone that has begun to shrink in size and be absorbed into the earth. Forbes suggests the “meteorite” is nothing more than frozen airplane waste that dislodged and landed in their yard. Eventually the object melts away entirely into the soil. Then a miracle occurs! The Crane farm swells with a mighty harvest, with crops blooming larger than anything Nathan has seen before. Praise be Jesus! Only when Nathan and Frances cut open the literal fruits of their labor they find green slime and writhing insects within. Not so good after all. Not only are the crops affected by the space sludge, so is the water coming from their new well. Zack recognizes something is wrong and refuses to drink the water or eat any food, a caution he extends to his younger sister. Everyone else in the family, however, continues on with their usual routine… even when it’s clear there are problems. Frances is mutating into some… thing, while Nathan and Cyrus are afflicted by facial boils and dripping green goo. The Crane family’s idyllic farm life has turned into a complete nightmare, and things are about to get worse. Directed by actor David Keith (who has a cameo acting in a TV commercial), “The Curse” is actually pretty solid for the first two acts before shoddy editing, scripting and acting try their best to sink it during the climax. I can’t harp on the writing much, though, because it had two competent scribes at the helm – the original tale comes from H.P. Lovecraft’s “The Colour Out of Space”, while the script itself was written by David Chaskin, who is no slouch, having written “A Nightmare on Elm St. 2: Freddy’s Revenge” (1985) and cult favorite “I, Madman” (1989). The tale is simple enough, and there is little complexity to the plot. Chaskin’s script moves at a steady pace, allowing time to build up characters just enough before hell starts to break loose. There are definite stumbles, including a completely pointless affair between Frances and a frequently shirtless houseguest living out back. After Nathan refuses her advances, Frances heads out back and screws this dude, with their cover being blown when the meteorite lands with a thunderous thud. Nathan comes outside to investigate, sees the two of them half-dressed, sneers at Frances the next morning at breakfast and… that’s it. We don’t even see the guy she slept with again. Famed Italian filmmaker Lucio Fulci is credited as producer here, though rumor has it he also oversaw special effects sequences and did some second unit directing. Some of his trademark styling can be glimpsed if you know to look for it. The buildup to the climax, as I said, is done well enough for a low-budget 80's horror picture, but once the action begins to ramp up the film falls apart like the Crane’s farmhouse. There are many editing issues and errors, and the acting by the affected family members borders on laughably bad. Cyrus, in particular, is like a bad cartoon character. Wheaton works in his role as protective older brother/skeptical youngster, though some of his decisions seem to be plot-convenient and not exactly done through deductive reasoning. Claude Akins rules, though. His baritone voice is practically a character unto itself, and he adds a ton of gravitas to the film. I’ll say that even though the final act finds the film ending on a mildly deflated note, it didn’t completely kill my enjoyment. “The Curse” is a fun little film, thanks to some good casting decisions, a small town bucolic setting and a handful of creepy moments. “Curse II: The Bite” bears no relation to the first film, though I suppose since one of the leads is “cursed” with another mutation issue that kinda counts, right? Lisa (Jill Schoelen) and Clark (J. Eddie Peck) are a new couple heading out through the desert on a road trip. What they don’t know is there have been nuclear experiments conducted in this desert, and it has greatly affected the local snake population, which is a lot of damn snakes. During a pit stop a snake sneaks into their car and eventually it winds up biting Clark’s hand. He seeks medical attention from a local wannabe doctor, Harry Morton (Jamie Farr), who gives Clark an antidote. There, that hand should be all better now! Except it isn’t, and it’s only getting worse. Clark’s hand is not only undergoing some kind of metamorphosis, but it’s also affecting his mood. He used to be an affable guy; now he’s all moody and brooding, even going so far as to strike Lisa after she dances with another guy. Eventually the bandages come off and the truth comes out: Clark’s hand has mutated into a snake. And his insides are also filled with snakes. The guy is basically a snake factory. Cutting off his hand seems like the logical thing to do, except the damn thing just grows right back. Lisa, despite her better judgment, decides to stay with Clark and try to help him. Nothing can help. The only solution is killing Clark, but the more he continues to mutate the harder he’ll be to destroy. This is not a great film but it is somewhat original, and part of its enjoyment comes from how ineptly it has been shot and edited. Continuity errors abound, viewers can easily make a drinking game out of each time something doesn’t match up from shot to shot. Peck does a decent job as the film’s leading man, though he could have sold his turmoil a bit better. Schoelen comes across a little stiff at times. As the quasi-girlfriend of Clark she does a fine job of acting concerned and trying to help her man, but some scenes just fall totally flat. In the “venerable character actor every low-budget film needs” category we get a double dose: Jamie Farr and Bo Svenson. The former adds some levity to the mix, while the latter is just cool to watch on screen, even if his character is mostly inconsequential. Snakes make for great villains, and in this case that greatness is increased because Clark is turning into a literal snake man. Prior to his ultimate transformation, he’s got the previously mentioned killer snake hand, and later on when his body starts to break down further the guy is just spewing up snakes left and right. Thankfully, Screaming Mad George, whom viewers should know from most of Brian Yuzna’s filmography, did the effects. I wouldn’t exactly say the FX work here is indicate of his signature style, which most horror fans could probably pick out of a lineup, but he delivers some great gory pieces. The snake hand is all kinds of gooey, bloody, venomous radness. This is the sort of double feature I love to see getting a release. Both films suffered on DVD, with a subpar double feature that sported weak a/v quality. Scream Factory hasn’t included any substantial bonus features here, unfortunate as that is, but the presentation in terms of audio & video is outstanding. Those who revel in all the horrors of the 80's will want to snap up this disc. “The Curse” film rating: B- “Curse II: The Bite” film rating: C+
Video
“The Curse” strikes Blu-ray with a 2.35:1 1080p 24/fps AVC MPEG-4 encoded image that looks stunning, far exceeding my expectations for a forgotten catalog title. The print looks absolutely beautiful, with virtually no damage and a very fine sheen of grain. Color saturation is excellent, though black levels are a tad underwhelming. The picture presents many fine details, especially evident in close-ups. Grain does spike a bit during night scenes, though it never looks bothersome. A very strong effort. Things are a little less rosy for “Curse II: The Bite”, which is also presented with a 2.35:1 1080p 24/fps AVC MPEG-4 encoded image. Taken from a 35mm print, the picture starts off with blown out white levels and generally weak contrast. Things stabilize as the movie progresses and the image begins to look smoother, though it never approaches the level of quality set by the first film. Colors look decent and black levels are somewhat stable. Cigarette burns are evident throughout.
Audio
Both films get the same audio treatment – English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo. “Curse” has a good score, filled with piano and twang-y Southern charm. It reminded me of Richard Stone’s work on “Pumpkinhead” (1988). Dialogue and sound effects come through clean and with a solid presence. “Curse II” sounds a little weaker, lacking in energy and weight. Dialogue is clear, though it does register a little low at times. Subtitles are available on both films in English.
Extras
There is but a single bonus feature included here: the theatrical trailer (1080p) for “The Curse”, which runs for 1 minute and 49 seconds.
Packaging
The single disc comes housed in a standard Blu-ray keep case. The cover art is not reversible but it does feature some production photos for each film on the inner sleeve.
Overall
I had a damn fun time with this double feature. It reminded me of those halcyon days of VHS renting way back in the day, when any horror film was a good pick. Scream Factory has been killing it with their double features in 2016 and this release is yet another feather in their cap.
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