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WELCOME
TO RETROFANTASMA!
A monthly film series of double-features dedicated to bringing
classic horror movies back to the big screen in 35mm! Created
in 1998, RETROFANTASMA has developed a large dedicated audience
of horror movie enthusiasts whose desire to see their favorite
terror flicks is matched only by their willingness to cheer at
the screen.
From John Carpenter to Dario Argento to Lucio Fulci, this diverse
film series offers it's audience a joyful jolt of terror and nostalgia.
You'll likely find yourself screaming and applauding in the same
breath. Before long, you'll be joining the thousands of people
who have whispered in the dark to their friends, "Did you
ever see the one where....?" Much like the infamous midnight
screenings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, The RETROFANTASMA
Film Series is pure devilish fun for anyone who loves the mysterious.
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Upcoming
Retro Showings:
updated
on Saturday, August 14, 2010
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THE AMITYVILLE HORROR
(US, R, 1979, 117 min.)
Friday, August 27th
7:00 p.m.
For God’s Sake…Get out! For George and Kathy Lutz, their
new colonial home seemed ideal: quaint, spacious and amazingly affordable.
Of course, six brutal murders had taken place there just a year
before, but houses don't have memories...or do they?
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078767/
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THE MANITOU
(US, R, 1978, 104 min.)
Friday, August 27th
9:30 p.m.
Evil never dies. It waits to be reborn. A tumor growing at an accelerated
rate on Karen’s neck will soon give birth to a 400-year old
Native American demon. Now a modern-day medicine man and a psychic
must destroy the enraged beast known as The Manitou!
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077904/
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Did
you know…
The Amityville Horror claims to be a true story based on the lives
of George and Kathleen Lutz, a young couple with three children
who purchased the infamous house at 112 Ocean Avenue in December
1975. Their story became the basis for Jay Anson's international
best-seller. So much controversy surrounded their tale that the
Lutz' took a lie detector test in 1979. They both passed. The Amityville
Horror was filmed at a house in Toms River, New Jersey, after authorities
in Amityville denied permission for filming on the actual location.
The Amityville Horror became the highest-grossing independent movie
in history (even surpassing 1978's Halloween), earning an astonishing
$86 million in 1979; a record that remained unbroken until 1999's
The Blair Witch Project. Adjusted for inflation, it still ranks
in the Top 200 highest-grossing films of all time. Lalo Schifrin's
musical score was nominated for an Academy Award and is sometimes
claimed to be the score rejected for 1973's The Exorcist, but Schifrin
has denied this in interviews.
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THE HAUNTING
(US, NR, 1963, 112 min.)
Friday, September 3rd
7:00 p.m.
You may not believe in ghosts, but you cannot deny terror! One of
the greatest haunted-house movies ever made, Robert Wise's The Haunting
is a classic spook-fest based on Shirley Jackson's novel The Haunting
of Hill House. Four people come to the house to study its supernatural
phenomena. Or has the house drawn them to it? Almost 50 years later,
The Haunting will still manage to scare you.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057129/
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TALES FROM THE CRYPT
(US, PG, 1972, 92 min.)
Friday, September 3rd
9:30 p.m.
Death lives in the vault of horror! Based on five chilling tales
from EC Comics, Tales from the Crypt stars Peter Cushing, Joan Collins,
and Nigel Patrick as part of a tourist expedition exploring old
caves. Separated from the main group, five strangers are locked
in a hidden room with the mysterious Crypt Keeper…who entertains
them with stories about how each of them are going to die!
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069341/
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Did
you know…
The Haunting’s stature and following has grown steadily since
its original release in 1963 and is now considered by film historians
to be perhaps the finest ghost movie in filmdom, including Director
Martin Scorsese who placed The Haunting on his list of the 11 scariest
horror films of all time. The $1.5 million film adaptation was directed
by Robert Wise, who had just won an Academy Award for Best Director
for West Side Story. The famous sharp contrast of the house against
the dark sky and the clouds was created by the use of infrared film
stock. Tales from the Crypt was made by Amicus Productions, a British
studio which is often mistaken for the better-known Hammer Studios.
Both are similar in visual style and they shared many stars, including
Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. But unlike the period Hammer
films, Amicus productions were usually set in the present day. Stephen
King and George Romero considered remaking Tales from the Crypt.
Their work resulted in a completely separate but similar film, Creepshow.
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SWAMP THING: EUROPEAN EXTENDED CUT
(US, PG, 1982, 91min.)
Friday, September 17th
7:00 p.m.
Deep in Florida's everglades, a brilliant scientist has developed
a secret formula that could end world hunger. Mutated by his own
experiments, he becomes Swamp Thing---a half plant superhero who
will stop at nothing to defeat the forces of evil.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084745/
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KING KONG LIVES
(US, PG-13, 1986, 105 min.)
Friday, September 17th
9:30 p.m.
America's biggest hero is back. And he is not happy. Linda Hamilton
and Brian Kerwin discover a female gorilla of Kong's size just in
time to save the big guy’s life. Now, they must fight the military
to keep the magnificent gorillas alive in this loopy, jaw-dropping
crowd-pleaser.
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091344/
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Did
you know…
Swamp Thing was filmed for $3 million in Charleston, South Carolina
and directed by Wes Craven. In the original comic, the character
of government agent Cable (portrayed by Adrienne Barbeau) was male,
but was changed in order to create a love interest for the title
creature. The European version of Swamp Thing includes additional
nudity and several sequences trimmed from the American theatrical
cut. This version was accidentally released on DVD for a brief period
in the United States, but all copies were immediately pulled by
its distributor once the error had been acknowledged. It has become
a highly sought-after collector’s item. King Kong Lives is
a direct sequel to Dino De Laurentiis’ 1976 blockbuster. With
a production budget of $10 million, it was the biggest flop of Christmas
1986. It is now listed among the 100 Most Enjoyably Bad Movies Ever
Made in Golden Raspberry Award founder John Wilson's book, The Official
Razzies Movie Guide.
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THE VAMPIRE LOVERS
(UK, R, 1970, 91 min.)
Friday, October 1st
7:00 p.m.
If you dare…taste the deadly passion of the blood-nymphs! This
is Hammer the way everyone remembers: drenched in costumes and fog-shrouded
atmosphere, beautiful women wearing low-cut gowns, and men of indeterminate
ethnicity speaking lines filled with dread and foreboding. Ingrid
Pitt and Peter Cushing star in this sensual masterpiece which ushered
in a new golden age and rebirth for Hammer in the 1970s.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066518/
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THE CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF
(UK, NR, 1961, 91 min.)
Friday, October 1st
9:30 p.m.
Even the innocent girl who loved him was not safe... once the full
moon rose! Oliver Reed portrays the bloodthirsty man-beast who loves
by day and kills by night in this classic gothic thriller. Try as
he may, the cursed youth is unable to suppress the dark forces within.
When the moon is full, he becomes an uncontrollable killer incapable
of distinguishing between friend and foe.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054777/
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Did
you know…
The Vampire Lovers was considered somewhat daring for its time in
explicitly depicting lesbian themes. As part of the film’s
advertising campaign, posters included the tagline: “Caution!
Not for the Mentally Immature.” Prior to filming, the script
was sent to the British Board of Film Censors who warned Hammer
Productions against depictions of lesbianism. In response, Hammer
replied that the lesbianism was not of their doing but was present
in the original story by J. Sheridan Le Fanu. The British Board
agreed to pass the script without much censorship. Curse of the
Werewolf is the only werewolf movie made by Hammer Studios. Originally
planned to be a loose remake of Universal’s The Wolf Man, Hammer
soon realized that the “wolf man” character had been specifically
created for the screen by Universal, and was not adapted from any
novel. Instead of purchasing the remake rights to The Wolf Man,
Hammer instead turned to an unknown book, The Werewolf of Paris,
and was forced to create a substantial reworking of the werewolf
myth.
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HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH
(US, R, 1982, 98 min.)
Friday, October 22nd
7:00 p.m.
The night no one comes home. After the brutal death of a toyshop
owner, a doctor and the man's daughter uncover a horrifying plot
by a diabolical tycoon who hates the way American kids are despoiling
the religious spirit of Halloween and decides to teach them a
nasty lesson using his Silver Shamrock masks.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085636/
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TERROR IN THE AISLES
(US, R, 1984, 84 min.)
Friday, October 22nd
9:30 p.m.
Here's the ultimate collection that fright-film lovers have been
dying for! Donald Pleasance and Nancy Allen are the hosts for this
blood-curdling journey through the most terrifying moments from
over 70 scream classics like Jaws, Poltergeist, The Exorcist, Halloween,
Dawn of the Dead, and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088249/
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JUDITH:
A HALLOWEEN TRIBUTE SHORT FILM
- Locally made film (Hillsborough, NC) from The
Myers House NC
(US, NR, 2010, 28 min.)
Friday, October 22nd
TRICK-OR-TREAT! It's Halloween day in the quiet rural community
of Haddonfield, Illinois. Judith Myers and her best friend D'arcy
Mims are planning a Halloween night campout at The Myers House with
their friends. Judith is trying to forget the growing tensions in
her family and wants to immerse herself in a carefree celebration,
but her reclusive brother's presence casts an ominous shadow over
their cheerful preparations.
This short film breaths life into an often overlooked character
from John Carpenter's HALLOWEEN - Judith Myers may have only had
a short appearance in the classic film, but she nevertheless played
a crucial role in the forming of the Michael Myers story. Director
Josh Hasty (A Mannequin in Static) and writer Kenny Caperton (the
creator of The Myers House NC) join forces to reinvent a classic
character in an original new story.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1615012/
• The
Myers House NC (official website)
• The
Myers House NC (facebook page)
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Did
you know…
In conjunction with Universal Pictures, Retrofantasma is proud to
present the last surviving 35mm prints of Halloween III: Season
of the Witch and Terror in the Aisles. Originally to be directed
by Joe Dante (The Howling) and simply entitled Season of the Witch,
Halloween III was intended to create an anthology out of the series
along the lines of The Twilight Zone. British screenwriter, Nigel
Kneale (author of the Quartermass series) had his name removed from
the credits over outrage toward the film’s violence. The three
different masks seen in the film were marketed as “the Halloween
Three.” Jamie Lee Curtis returned in an uncredited cameo as
the voice of a telephone operator. Terror in the Aisles has never
been released on DVD due to the cost of the massive rights clearance
for all the clips seen in the film. The producers had to continuously
re-edit the movie in order to avoid an X rating from the MPAA, despite
the fact that none of the films featured had received a rating higher
than R when they were initially released.
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THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN
(US, NR, 1957, 81 min.)
Friday, November 5th
7:00 p.m.
A fascinating adventure into the unknown. After exposure to a strange
mist, Scott Carey finds that he has begun to shrink. First just
a few inches, so that his clothes no longer fit, then a little more.
At six inches tall, his world becomes a terrifying arena in which
he must battle giant-sized spiders, mousetraps, and ruptured boilers
in order to survive.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050539/
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THE GIANT CLAW
(US, NR, 1957, 83 min.)
Friday, November 5th
9:30 p.m.
Winged monster from 17,000,000 BC! A giant prehistoric bird from
outer space attacks Earth. Soon aircraft are swatted from the skies
by an oversized monster that feeds off their energy. The world’s
nations join forces, but only test-pilot Mitch MacAfee and his gal
Sally discover how to remove the antimatter barrier that protects
the creature from all weapons. Will they solve the mystery in time?
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050432/
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Did
you know…
In 2009, The Incredible Shrinking Man was named to the National
Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally,
historically or aesthetically” significant and will be preserved
for all time. It was adapted to the screen by Richard Matheson from
his novel, The Shrinking Man. Produced for a budget of $750,000,
the camera work and effects were considered remarkable and imaginative
for their time. Matheson wrote a script for a sequel titled Fantastic
Little Girl, but the film was never produced. By contrast, The Giant
Claw has gone down in history as one of the greatest “bad”
movies ever made. The giant bird (“…as big as a battleship!”)
is considered one of cinema’s funniest movie monsters. Star
Jeff Morrow later confessed that no one in the film knew what the
monster looked like until the film's premiere. Morrow first saw
the film in his hometown, and hearing the audience laugh every time
the monster appeared on screen, he left the theater early, embarrassed
that anyone there might recognize him.
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME
(US, R, 1981, 111 min.)
Friday, November 19th
7:00 p.m.
Six of the most bizarre murders you will ever see. Somebody has
begun butchering the snobby members of Crawford Academy's Top Ten.
As her 18th birthday approaches, will Virginia be the guest of honor
at the most horrific party of all? One of the cleverest slasher-whodunnits
ever made!
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082498/
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ALICE, SWEET ALICE
(US, R, 1976, 106 min.)
Friday, November 19th
9:30 p.m.
If you can survive this night...nothing will scare you. Who is the
murderer behind the mask? Is sweet, 12 year-old Alice capable of
killing her sister minutes before receiving her first communion?
Watch in terror and suspense as Brooke Shields makes her film debut
in this classic thriller directed by Alfred Sole.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076150/
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Did
you know…
In conjunction with Columbia Pictures, Retrofantasma is proud to
present the last surviving 35mm print of Happy Birthday to Me. Melissa
Sue Anderson had spent seven years starring as Michael Langdon’s
daughter in the wholesome TV series, Little House on the Prairie,
before starring in this infamous slasher. So tight was security
on this Canadian thriller that the cast and crew were not told the
identity of the killer until the actual day of shooting. This advance
press made for wonderful speculation, but was wholly fabricated
by the filmmakers to hide the fact that the film had gone into production
with no twist ending at all. The original script had an ending that
made logical sense to the story, but wasn’t much fun, so Academy
Award-nominated director, J. Lee Thompson (The Guns of Navarone),
continued shooting while the scriptwriters tinkered with a new identity
for the killer. This perhaps explains why the out-of-left-field
twist ending happily stunned audiences in 1981.
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THEATER OF BLOOD
(UK, R, 1973, 104 min.)
Friday, December 3rd
7:00 p.m.
It’s curtains for his critics! After years of suffering deadly
reviews, hammy Shakespearean actor Edward Lionheart (Vincent Price)
decides to wreck poetic justice on the snobby critics who panned
his performances. Staging murders inspired by Shakespearean tragedies,
Edward and his accomplices dispatch their victims with bloody ingenuity.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070791/
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Edgar Allan Poe’s MASQUE OF
THE RED DEATH
(US, NR, 1964, 85 min.)
Friday, December 3rd
9:30 p.m.
Horror has a face. Death and debauchery reign in the castle of Prince
Prospero (Vincent Price), and when it reigns...it pours! Prospero
has only one excuse for his diabolical deeds---the devil made him
do it! But when a mysterious, uninvited guest crashes his pad during
a masquerade ball, there'll be hell to pay as the party atmosphere
turns into a danse macabre! Directed by Roger Corman.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058333/
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Did
you know…
Theater of Blood is considered by critics to be among Price's greatest
work. It was also Price’s personal favorite film. He always
wanted the chance to act in Shakespeare, but found himself typecast
in horror films. Before or after each death in the film, Lionheart
recites passages of Shakespeare, giving Price a chance to deliver
choice speeches such as Hamlet's fifth soliloquy; Marc Antony's
self-serving eulogy for Caesar from Julius Caesar; and finally,
the raving of the mad King Lear. Originally to be called Much Ado
About Murder, some critics disliked the film---as you might expect---because
Price made Lionheart too sympathetic a character, especially compared
to his enemies, the critics, who were all portrayed as pompous buffoons.
Robert Morley’s death in the film has become infamous as one
of the most-gruesome murders in cinema history. Masque was directed
by Roger Corman. It was his first film shot in England. Corman made
Masque look more expensive than his earlier productions by using
sets leftover from 1964’s Becket.
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DRESSED TO KILL
(US, R, 1980, 105 min.)
Friday, December 10th
7:00 p.m.
The latest fashion in murder. When a sexually-repressed Manhattan
housewife is brutally butchered with a straight-razor in a Manhattan
elevator, her teenaged son and a witness attempt to track the killer.
Michael Caine, Angie Dickinson, and Nancy Allen star in Brian De
Palma’s classic shocker!
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080661/
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THE FAN
(US, R, 1981, 94 min.)
Friday, December 10th
9:30 p.m.
This is the story of a great star...and a fan who went too far.
Lauren Bacall stars as a renowned Broadway actress who becomes the
object of adoration to a disturbed young man. His impassioned letters
are a source of pleasure, then annoyance, and finally terror as
he tries to realize his ultimate fantasy.
• Link
to movie trailer
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082362/
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Did
you know…
Dressed to Kill was the target of severe backlash from the gay and
transgender communities who felt that its portrayal of transgender
people was homophobic. After an outcry for using a body double during
Angie Dickinson’s infamous shower scene, De Palma responded
to critics by naming his next film…Body Double. Sean Connery
was originally planned for the Michael Caine role, but declined
due to other commitments. In 1982, Dressed to Kill had its television
broadcast premiere on NBC. During the broadcast, the following dialogue
slipped past the censors and was aired to millions: Dr. Elliot:
“How's your sex life, Lieutenant?” Det. Marino: “What
the fuck business is it of yours?” Although based on a national
best-seller by Bob Randall, trailers for The Fan included an infamous
disclaimer that told audiences that the movie was in no way intending
to capitalize on the recent death of John Lennon, who was murdered
by a psychotic fan five months before the film’s release.
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