Aided by the police, news anchor Karen White is on the trail of a sick and twisted serial ... more
killer. After an intense confrontation with the killer, the suspect is shot by the police and Karen White id left traumatized and suffering amnesia. In need of recovery Karen takes refuge within 'The Colony', a country retreat organised by her psychiatrist Dr Waggner. But things at The Colony aren't as idyllic as they originally seemed and as blood curdling screams break the midnight silence Karen's memories slowly begin to come into focus.
Production Year: 1998 - Horror - Director: Steve Miner - Original Language: English - Classification: 18 years and over - Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Michelle Williams, Adam Arkin, Adam Hann-Byrd, Janet Leigh, L.L. Cool J.
Advantages: Looks great Disadvantages: Runs a little too long really
period the movie is supposed to be set in seeing Cavalrymen on Horses but steam powered Trams, Trains, Steam Cars & Sedan Chairs too.
It appears the lead character of the film is Sophie who works in a millinery shop (thats hats to you philistines) and we start off meeting her leaving work, being rescued from the over amourous attention of 2 soldiers by a chap who not only seems to know Jedi Mind tricks but can also fly and is being chased by evil black ectoplasmic creatures.
Sophie discusses her encounter with her sister Lettie and they also discuss Howl (he's clearly a Wizard and everyone thinks he's evil and eats womens hearts), returning to the Shop Sophie has a spell cast on her by The Witch Of The Wastes which turns her into an old women. She avoids her mother and leaves town rescuing a scarecrow which repays her with a walking cane ...
Advantages: Good story for all ages, great animation Disadvantages: None
Synopsis
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For Sophie, a beautiful, young hat maker, life is pretty dull and uneventful, that is until one day when she ventures into town, she finds herself the attention of an obnoxious royal guard. Scared of what the guard may do, she finds herself being rescued by a mysterious and handsome young wizard named Howl. Safely returned back to her little shop, she cannot get the handsome Howl out of her head. But her troubles aren't over yet, as the wicked Witch of the Waste pays her a visit, and jealous of her brief flirtation with Howl, casts a spell over her that transforms her into a 90 year old woman.
Embarrassed by her sudden transformation into an old woman, she flees the town and starts roaming the countryside of Waste in search of a cure for the spell which had been cast over ...
Advantages: Fanatstic Characters, Heart-Warming Story, Miyazaki's Work Disadvantages: Not fully derived from book meant it lost some necessary elements
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SYNOPSIS
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The story sets in a place called Ingary, which is very similar to our own world in many ways. The heroine of this film is a young lass called 'Sophie'. She works hard day and night to run her father's business - a hat shop. Sophie's father has past away and her mother is always away, leaving Sophie single-handedly slaving away.
Due to this unappealing lifestyle, Sophie is convinced that she is plain, yet her more glamorous sister, 'Lettie', is surrounding by many admirers as she serves behind the bar at a popular café. A lonely but ordinary life soon turns around to an adventure that perhaps; even Sophie can do without.
On day in town, Sophie became acquintant to 'Howl' as he rescued her. Howl is the stud of the town with many ladies falling immediately for him. He also a powerful wizard ...
...A kind of tribute to Roger Corman... (New York Times, )
...A good, creepy show from Macnee... (Total Film, )
...There are good one-liners throughout... (Variety, )
DVD Description
Dee Wallace stars as Karen White, a popular female reporter in Los Angeles who cannot escape the horror of a traumatic experience that she suffered while trying to capture a dangerous serial killer. When her psychologist (played by Patrick Macnee) recommends a retreat to The Colony, up the Northern California coast, she reluctantly agrees hoping to recover from her nightmarish visions. Karen and her husband (played by Christopher Stone) arrive at the remote retreat and are shocked at the bizarre behaviour of the motley crew of residents. Lurking in the ominous Northern California woods, blanketed by fog, strange sounds can be heard at night, luring the members of the retreat into the forest. In anguish, Karen stumbles on the deadly secret of the community: when sexually excited, they turn into werewolves! Based on the best-selling novel by Gary Brandner, this horror film makes effective use of the classic werewolf tale.
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