Potentially Positive News About Let's Scare Jessica To Death (1 Viewer)

[Paul_Scott]

got mine in from DDD today, so it took exactly a week after getting the ship notice. Not too bad compared to past experiences.

will be spinning this late tonight and post some thoughts afterwards.


btw, the first time I ever saw this film, back in the mid-late 70s, I was spending the night at my friends house when we lived in Monroe, Ga- about 60 miles outside of Atlanta. I remember there used to be a Saturday night Shock Theater out of Gainsville or Macon or someplace that we got on the UHF band (i think). Don't remember if this movie was on that (or maybe on the CBS late movie?). I miss Shock Theater. They always played these sleazy, bottom of the barrel Avco Embassy pics- I hated them at the time compared to the classy Universal Monster/horror stuff, but now that I'm an old fart theres a nostalgia factor that makes me want to check these out again.

Never been to Savanah myself, but one of my good firends attended SCAD. I agree with you about the 'between seasons' down in that part of the country. Octobers were awesome

 

[Radioman970]

I used to watch Shock Theater too!! Hosted by Count Justin if I remember right.

"...pull up a tombstone...lean back and relax. as. much. as. you. can. and enjoy Shock Theater this evening." {cheesy laugh} That's all I can remember of the opening. But it never got old. It meant a fun movie was about to follow if I could just stay awake.

From the mid-70s until about the mid-late 80s I never missed that show. But the first time it came on I couldn't turn the TV off fast enough. They used to show this skeleton face near the beginning and that scared me to death! Luckily my mom assured me I'd love the show/movies and to give it a try. I never looked back. I really, really miss that old show too. They used to have a Star Trek rerun first and then Shock Theater, if I remember right. I think they changed it to Twilight Zone for a time. Maybe that was Friday, I can't quite remember. I'd watch Johnny Carson (then Fridays/snl ripoff for a time). Columbo some other day during the week over summers. Good times those were!!

I closely tie Jessica with Shock Theater. I'm thinking they did have it on there. I also tie The Creeping Terror with the show. Even at 9 years old I thought Creeping Terror was the stupidest movie. But I was drawn to it for some reason. The weird way the people would pretty much climb inside the monster...

There is an old movie they showed on there once about a plane crash, a little boy survives and he's taken in by these natives. They sort of worship him and every time they look at him his head glows. I've been unable to figure out what it was called. I remember it looked cheaply produced just like Creeping Terror and Attack of the Giant Leeches.

We never got Elvira down here (I don't think). So I'm thinking those new sets of her old show from the 80s coming out are going to be real treat. We rented a couple of the tapes in the 80s. You might want to look at those as an alternative to good old Shock Theater. I'm right with you on that nostalgia. Glad MST3K picked up a few of the "best" ones.

 

[Paul_Scott]

YES YES YES!!!!
the last part of that opening has stayed with me all these years , but I can't for the life of me remember the begining either. I've been asking about this specific ST on boards for years now, and have never got any sign of recoginition. There were a ton of them around the country, but you're the first person I've found that has actually seen the same one I remember.
Iirc, I think the guy wore glasses too (I vaugely remember him looking like a pudgy tax accountant in a Dracula or maybe a monks costume). Man, I would so love to get a copy of that opening on tape.


bingo...it was out of Augusta and it was indeed Count Justin Sane

 

[Radioman970]

People thought you were nuts.

Yeah! Your description is right on. He had on a cheap little cape and those eyeglasses. I'm sure it was a Dracula costume.

I'm afraid all we'll ever have is our memories of that show. My family got a VCR about 85 or so and I don't think I recorded Shock Theater. I did record those Star Treks though. It'd be killer to see that again.

I did find a similar show you can watch online. Not quite the same but it has lame jokes and stuff. I'm still trying to locate where I saw that...It might be at one of these...

http://www.publicdomaintorrents.com/...l?category=ALL

http://netbroadcaster.com/new/movies/guide.html#A

I'm thinking the second link. It wish netbroadcaster offered larger windows for the streaming video. The first one has bittorrents for small file versions of films like Horror Express. I downloaded Horror Express recently and plan to watch it in October. It doesn't look half bad.

 

[Radioman970]

Holy shit!! I didn't see that picture before!!

*instantly cries eyes out*

I lived in Augusta from 1978 - 87. I first saw it when I lived about 2.5 hours away in a dinky little town.

Count Justin Sane. Damn. I'm happy you found that picture. I looked about 5 years ago and found nothing. Just a shock Theater from up north (maybe NY) and it was different from ours.

I'll show that picture to mom. I'm sure she doesn't remember a thing about it. It'll be fun reminding her.

Here's a write up about him...

http://myweb.wvnet.edu/e-gor/tvhorrorhosts/hostsc.html

I keep editing this post...sorry...

According to someone at that link he used to close the show with...

"Pleasant dreams...muhahahahaha!"

I remember that!

 

[Henry Gale]

Saw this one when it was first released and I'd really like to see how its held up...but it's hard to believe Zohra Lampert will be 70 this coming spring.

 

[WadeM]

I picked this one up and was pleasantly surprised to find an effective chiller. There was a small scene toward the end that I thought didn't work quite right, but otherwise it was quite well done. I'm glad I got it.

 

[Paul_Scott]

I think you were just commenting on the screencap when you wrote that James, but that was actually my reaction thru the whole thing last night.
Considering the nature of it, the budget, the age, etc I ended up being just as impressed with this as I was with The Searchers in HD. The disc may be bare bones in the extreme, but Paramount delievered in spades where it mattered.

also great to see that the film holds up as a well made, well performed, and effective chiller- just as creepy as ever. Lampert blows me away every time I watch this and last night was no exception.

something I've always noticed and appreciated with this film, but don't know whether it was intentional or not - is the feeling of dislocation that the ADR dubbing gives to some scenes. Carnival Of Souls shares this quality too at times and I can't figure out if its merely an attribute of the low budget filming or intentional- but whichever it is, the nature of it imparts a unique dreamlike effect.


Wade if you know how to use the spoiler tags -can I ask what bit you didn't think quite worked?

 

[honestjohn]

Picked it up at a NC BestBuy as a BlindBuy for $9.99 and found it in the sci-fi section as Alan-A mentioned. Sounds like this movie is right in my sweet spot. Suprised I've never seen it.

 

[Radioman970]

That's terrific! All these years later I've matured enough to analyze this thing too. It really generated a unique feeling, something I seek out these days (even revisiting films I avoided before, like TCM). Although common fears, I've never been afraid of the dark or of the woods (although Blair Witch is one I quite like), but I do have a fear of not being in control of myself or that people are around me humoring me because they all think I'm nuts or they are just trying to break me or something. Blair Witch had some of that, TCM did too and I think Jessica has a lot of that too. Hell, maybe this film gave me some of those fears.

I have that CoS DVD that features Mike Nelson from MST3K. I watched it for the first time last October. First b&w for the best first-time effect. Then in color with Nelson's commentary. The color was competent but ruins the mood (and the reason to watch the damn thing in the first place). Still, a great DVD for the money. I remember reading quite a few comments from first-timers who expected more from it. I'll bet Jessica gets a lot of that too.

 

[WadeM]

Blair Witch never did anything for me, but TCM & this one did

 

[Radioman970]

You didn't squirm when they're in the tent and ... "stuff" starts to happen?

Speaking of tents, the one they show in TCM always freaks me out. The whole idea of it is simple but freaky & superb. Makes it hit home with stuff hanging in trees. I hope Jessica has something like that but in a different way. I think it does since it's a flick I've never forgotten.

 

[WadeM]

I didn't "squirm" & if my heart-rate changed at all during Blair Witch it was probably because I was getting anxious about what I would do after the movie.. (where's the yawn smiley when you need it?)

 

[Dave Mack]

Ok, let's not let this turn into another Blair Witch bash thread... There's plenty of those around. That film worked for some of us...




I am ordering this today.
Creepy films give me the wigguns way more than gorefests...

 

[Radioman970]

Yeah, Blair Witch gets a lot of that. I do understand why people dislike it. Many simply get seasick from the camera movement. Others got pissed off when they heard it was fake. I knew it was fake from the beginning because it was advertised on Sci-fi Channel (why would they have that on the Sci-fi Channel and not on the evening news?). Plus, I'd seen one done about an alien abduction that was really good but only fooled me for a few minutes.

Now, that Blair Witch sequel. I know we all agree on it.

 

[Kevin M]

..so...anyway...Let's Scare Jessica To Death...great film, great DVD (just got it today at Wallyworld for $12.00), do I wish that someone from the film had been offered a commentary track? Well sure but the transfer is great so I have no complaints....besides, I am truly amazed that it got a release at all!

 

[Paul_Scott]

me too. Esepcially when you consider recent comments attributed to the head honchess over there and their drip drip output of new to dvd catalog releases from the last 2 years, not to mention the fact that the film currently has no theatrical or broadcast tie-in. It really is a small miracle the disc got releasesd at all.

as of now, I have two Paramount titles left on my 'most wanted' list - and both are much higher profile than this was. We'll see if they make it out in 2007, but i'm not holding my breath anymore.

 

[Ralph Jenkins]

I think this might be a film that is better appreciated if you saw it back when it was released, or when you were younger. I picked this up as a blind buy and I could barely stay awake while watching it. I watched the film with two friends -- one who had never heard of it, and one who had fond memories of it. The one who had never heard of it also nearly went to sleep while my other friend seemed a bit insulted that we didn't care for it. I kept waiting for a big reveal and was instead greeted by the ending credits. Maybe I was expecting something else from a movie called "Let's Scare Jessica To Death". Instead, what I got reminded me of some of the Jean Rollin films I've seen, like The Iron Rose (the one where a woman gets trapped in a cemetery and goes insane). Slow, dreamlike, and surreal, but not scary.

 

[Dave Mack]

Different things are scary to different people.

 

[Kevin M]

Well this is definitely not a "jump out and scream BOO! with the soundtrack turned up to deafening levels" type of thriller, it deals in subtleties and forboding dread as well as the fear of insanity & the nature of paranoia.....not exactly in the same category as one of today's (or yesterday's for that matter) cheap "scares" kind of horror film.