Purely Joyful Movie!

n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

I stumbled on this movie a few years back knowing almost nothing about it, save for it starring the awesome Sid Haig. Somehow, in all of my wanderings through the horror graveyards, this movie had escaped my attention as it had not been the sort of movie frequently discussed in horror boards or history books. It was a wonderful surprise, then, to discover what an amazing, eerie treat this movie was to behold.The reason for its' hidden place in the horror archives has to do, mainly, with its' distribution history. The movie was filmed in 1964 but lost in limbo for several years when the producers went bankrupt. It finally saw the light of day in 68, though it was packaged in subpar drive-in double bills under several titles and never got the promotion that it so truly deserved. It wasn't until home video release in the 80s that it started to gather a real following and that has increased greatly over the last decade with a DVD release and inclusion in Netflix streaming, where I stumbled across it. As such, it's one of those rares movies that's probably more well-known to modern fans that it was to the horror geeks of its' time.Directed by Jack Hill, who had come from the Roger Corman family, working on movies like THE TERROR and DEMENTIA 13. He would go on to direct exploitation classics like FOXY BROWN. The movie stars Sid Haig, Beverly Washburn (from OLD YELLER) and Carol Ohmart (HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL), along with the legendary Lon Chaney Jr.The movie starts with a fun animated title scroll backed by a campy song sung by Chaney himself. Instantly, the viewer realizes that you are onto something different and fun. The opening scene sets the tone as character actor Mantan Moreland (KING OF THE ZOMBIES) is trying to deliver a letter to the Merrye House, only to be caught in the web of one of its' youngest, who sets to slicing him up. We are, then, introduced to a demented family that carries a strange malady causing them to digress to primordial monsters.While this is not the first example of a horror movie using a demented family as the villains (you can go back to THE OLD DARK HOUSE for that), you can certainly see the touchmarks that quite possibly influenced legions of horror movies to come. Lon Chaney's caretaker reminds me a lot of Jim Seidow's cook in Texas CHAINSAW. The presence of Sid Haig and the family dynamic certainly share a resemblance to HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES and the creatures in the basement remind me of PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS.The movie is decidedly low on gore, with very little bloodshed, beyond the initial killing of the postman. However, there is a strange, disturbed sexuality throughout the movie. Ohmart parades around her room in lingerie, arousing the lust of Haig's Ralph character. Her scenes, plus the partial disrobing of the secretary in the climax show a little more risqué flesh than most movies of its' time. There is also an implied rape and one of our young females attempts to seduce her uncle, all of which play to the theme that the cause of this strange malady is forbidden desire, namely incest.The movie looks absolutely gorgeous, especially when put into the context of its' budget. If you can, avoid the free streams on sites like YouTube and rent a copy of the DVD, which looks striking and shows a clear attention to cinematography that belies the independent nature and relative inexperience of its' cast and crew.You''ll certainly find some who don't "get" the love of this movie and that's probably got more to do with over-hyped expectations than the actual results, as this movie has started to gain a devoted cult following. If you're a fan of dirty, creepy horror films and looking for something new, this will not disappoint.

It's hard not to at least like the family living in the strange old house in this movie, despite then being the antagonists. Two adolescent sisters and their older brother Ralph live with their caretaker Bruno who used to be the family chauffeur until the death of the parents. All three kids suffer from a disease inherited from the inbreeding in their family which causes their mental stability to regress as they get older. Ralph is an overgrown and mute adult man with the mind of a child who enjoys hiding in the dumbwaiter. His sister Virginia has an obsession with spiders; she frequently enjoys "playing spider" with strangers and neighbors, which involves killing them, and she collects whatever spiders she can find in the basement. the other sibling, Elizabeth, is a very hostile teenager who often causes trouble. Bruno loves them; he knows the good sides of the three kids but knows that outsiders would only see them as freaks, so he takes care of them and tries his best to isolate them from people. One day a letter arrives which warns of the coming of the children's estranged aunt, uncle and a sleazy lawyer. When they show up they immediately suggest that the children should be institutionalized, but Bruno protests that it would terrify them to leave home. For dinner the guests, without realizing it, are eating garden weeds, some wizzled up old mushrooms and a stray cat that Ralph caught and killed. Bruno tells the guests that it's a rabbit. When the guests stay the night, things only get worse as murders begin to take place, and more gruesome family secrets are discovered that lead Bruno to the only choice he has left to protect the children.It really makes you question whether the children are the real antagonists or if the ill-fated guests with bad intentions are the bad people. I'd say Bruno was my favorite character; he was a character with a kind and caring personality but conflicting choices to make. The acting for all the characters was really good, and the film had a very shocking conclusion... maybe there'll be more "spider babies" out there... The film also had this very messed up but funny cartoon at the beginning, accompanied by a weird little song and title credits. If you're a fan of classic horror, this is definitely worth your time, I loved it!

Made in 1964 but not released until 1968. This is significant since Movies and attitudes about Movies changed considerably in those four Years. If this was unleashed to Theatres in 1964 it probably would have caused seizures among League of Decency types and would have been along with H.G. Lewis' Blood Feast (1963) another example of the decline of Western Civilization.This Ultra-Low-Budget Quickie is remarkable in the way it looks so Professionally done. The Actors all perform like seasoned Pros. Given the Bizarre Script, subject matter, and overall depravity it wasn't a given that this was at all nothing more than the lowest common denominator types that would later become known as "Nasties". Words like retarded, incest and brain rot are delivered in a stark explanation.But apparently it was the Dark Humor that made it palatable for the Filmmakers and Audiences to endure this dementia as some kind of Fun. As it turned out, it was and still is to this Day. If You looked up Cult Movie in the Dictionary there just might be a reference to this seminal Film.A hoot and a holler, this is simply one of the best B-Movies ever made and is disturbingly Entertaining and a must see for Fans of Cult Movies, B-Movies, Horror, Black Comedy, and Primitive Art lovers. This is Writer/Director Jack Hill's first and most Personal Film and it is a must see.

Debuting writer / director Jack Hills' gleefully macabre tale of an insane family instantly calls to mind 'The Addams Family', and works as a forerunner to films like "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" and "House of 1000 Corpses". Give full credit to Hill and crew for their Old Dark House, midnight movie feel, complete with right-on-the-nose cinematography and production design, and to the whole cast for their utterly convincing and ghoulishly fun performances.Ever lovable Lon Chaney, Jr. plays Bruno, chauffeur and guardian to a trio of children with the surname Merrye. For generations, Merryes have suffered from a disease so rare it's actually named after them: they start mentally regressing at the age of 10 until they end up in an utterly primitive, pre-natal, cannibalistic condition. Trouble brews for Bruno and the kids - Elizabeth (Beverly Washburn), Virginia (Jill Banner), and Ralph (Sid Haig) - when a greedy relative and an equally scummy lawyer - hilariously named Schlocker - come to stay, intending to get their hands on the family fortune.Things get off to a fairly amusing start with a title ditty sung by none other than Lon himself. Soon after, there's a cameo role for old pro Mantan Moreland, playing an ill-fated messenger, who becomes an unwilling participant in Virginias' beloved game of "spider". And speaking of spiders, there's no shortage of eight legged critters dotting the landscape of this film, which features a highly memorable mansion with its fair share of atmosphere and surprises. It's especially a joy to see something such as Ralph crawling about on the outside on the mansion, doing a priceless Spider-Man impression.Haig and lovely young ladies Washburn and Banner do a wonderful job of portraying people with very young minds and whose playfulness has such a morbid quality. Carol Ohmart ("House on Haunted Hill" '59) is good as the bitchy cousin Emily, Quinn Redeker (who would go on to co-write "The Deer Hunter" years later) appealing as the goofy cousin Peter who mostly takes everything he sees in stride, Mary Mitchel ("Dementia 13") is fine as the comely young secretary, and Karl Schanzer, complete with Hitler-style moustache, is a hoot as the stereotypically slimy lawyer.With very appropriate schlock movie music by the great Ronald Stein, "Spider Baby" proves to be very hard to resist, taking its viewers on a tour through a wild and wacky funhouse. The humour is delicious, and there's a nice little in-joke when Redeker and Mitchel begin discussing horror films and reference Lons' most famous role, after which he quips, "There's going to be a full moon tonight.".The pacing could have used a bit of tightening, but the running time is still pretty reasonable at about 80 minutes (85 minutes in the directors' cut). Recommended to anybody who loves a movie with a true "late show" sort of ambiance.Eight out of 10.