That time of year again, folks. Another October, and another Halloween. Time for more links to public domain horror movies, that'll surely be broken in no time because YouTube doesn't understand how the public domain and copyright laws work. I'll need to fix the links from the previous installments, but while we're here, let's enjoy some movies you can (LEGALLY) watch for free. Also, I must note that there are a lot of silent public domain movies. This year, I'll only keep it to one silent movie, and I'll save it for the end so you don't lose your interest, like, right away. Let's begin.
The Robot vs. The Aztec Mummy
Made in 1958, and the first Mexican production in this series, this one shows that America doesn't hold the entire pie when it comes to campy cult movies. Without even watching the movie, and with some basic knowledge of Mesoamerican cultures, you'd know at least one thing. The Aztecs didn't mummify their dead, and they certainly didn't have hieroglyphics. That would be the Egyptians, Guillermo Calderón. The Aztecs lived in Mexico, and this is a Mexican production. That would be like if I made a movie called The Pilgrims Fight the Loch Ness Monster.
I should also note that this is the third in a series of Aztec mummy movies, but strangely, it's the most famous, thanks to Mystery Science Theater 3000. The entire trilogy was shot in 1957, and it shows.
The whole movie, and even the MST3K episode are available online on YouTube for free, so you can watch a movie made in Mexico slightly older than my dad.
The Terror
This one's a gigantic doozy. Rodger Corman had just filmed 1963's The Raven. Filming was done 3 days ahead of schedule, so rather than send everyone home, Corman paid a dude to write a script, they shot some footage with Boris Karloff, sent him home, and filmed an entire story around that footage. The result is a goddamn mess, and the project was tossed around several directors, including Francis Ford Coppola and Jack Nicholson, before they were even famous.
I won't tell you anything about the plot, mainly because I don't hate myself enough to comprehend this dumpster fire of a movie.
According to Boris Karloff:
"Corman had the sketchiest outline of a story. I read it and begged him
not to do it. He said "That's alright Boris, I know what I'm going to
do. I want you for two days on this." I was in every shot, of course.
Sometimes I was just walking through and then I would change my jacket
and walk back. He nearly killed me on the last day. He had me in a tank
of cold water for about two hours. After he got me in the can he
suspended operations and went off and directed two or three operations
to get the money, I suppose... [The sets] were so magnificent... As they
were being pulled down around our ears, Roger was dashing around with
me and a camera, two steps ahead of the wreckers. It was very funny."
Attack of the Giant Leeches
See my entry on The Killer Shrews, or watch The Killer Shrews. Then replace the word "Shrew" with "Leech". Screaming. Radiation. Leeches. Possibly an insult to your intelligence. Watch it anyway.
Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror
Folks, in no way do I support piracy or theft, but I'd like to tell you a story. This was an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula, one of my favorite books of all time. Even though several measures were taken, Stoker's estate and heirs had a court order the destruction of all copies of this film.
This wonderfully shot, beautifully made film was only saved due to piracy, in a time when film preservation wasn't taken seriously. Had it not been for these early preservers of film (or pirates, as they would be known) this movie would be forever lost to time. If anything, Nosferatu boils the book down to about 80 minutes without long strings of boring dialogue. And remember: If you don't watch it, Nosferatu will mess with the lights.
See? You made him happy.
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