AMERICAN GOTHIC (1987) When their propeller plane is forced to make an emergency landing, a group of friends find themselves stranded on a remote island in the pacific northwest that’s home to a religious zealot (Steiger), his wife (De Carlo), and their demented children, middle aged adults who dress and act like kids. A slow-burn that starts off feeling like a typical slasher flick but transforms into an oddball but amusing mishmash of family drama and cult chiller, and ultimately becomes a satisfying revenge thriller, highlighted by a terrific Wright as “12-year-old” Fanny. B d: John Hough. c: Rod Steiger, Yvonne De Carlo, Janet Wright, Sarah Torgov, Michael J. Pollard, Mark Erickson, Mark Lindsay Chapman, William Hootkins
MONSIEUR VERDOUX (1947) In order to support his wheelchair-bound wife and child after getting laid off, a bank clerk (Chaplin) marries several wealthy women and murders them for their money. A terrific black comedy written and director by star Chaplin and filled with wonderful set pieces and genuine hilarity, including the scene where Caplin tries, and fails, to murder ditzy wife Raye in a rowboat. The film was undoubtably ahead of its time in its use of blending comedy and horror, as well as moments of surprising compassion, but audiences weren’t ready to see the Tramp as a serial killer and the film was panned upon its initial release. This has since become a classic, and deservedly so. B+ d: Charles Chaplin. c: Charles Chaplin, Mady Correll, Robert Lewis, Martha Raye, Marilyn Nash
WITCHFINDER GENERAL (1968) During the English Civil War in 1654, a young soldier (Ogilvy) seeks revenge against the infamous Matthew Hopkins (Price), a dreaded witch-finder who raped his wife (Hilary Heath) and murdered her uncle he branded a satanist. One of the defining European horror films of the ’60s, this handsome production was one of the first of the “folk horror” subgenre and delivers a powerful tale of crippled morality and a first-rate, dramatic performance from the usually scene-chewing Price. The ending rings both bleak and honest. B d: Michael Reeves. c: Vincent Price, Ian Ogilvy, Hilary Heath, Robert Russell, Rupert Davies