The Killing Kind (1973)

The Killing Kind (1973)

Troubled and unstable Oedipal wreck sex offender Terry Lambert (an excellent and convincing performance by John Savage in an early lead role) gets released from prison after serving a two year sentence for gang rape he was forced to participate in and returns to the gloomy boarding house run by his doting and desperately lonely overbearing mother Thelma (superbly played with moving restraint and subtlety by Ann Southern). Terry develops an unhealthy fixation on comely, but naive aspiring model new boarder Lori Davis (a fine portrayal by Cindy Williams) and plots revenge on the folks responsible for sending him to jail. Director Curtis Harrington, working from a grimly compelling script by George Edwards and Tony Crechales, delivers an arrestingly stark, sad, and deeply creepy portrait of everyday madness, despair, denial, and the darker side of smothering motherhood that inevitably begets insanity and tragedy while doing his trademark expert job of creating and sustaining a bleak and seamy atmosphere that proves to be quite potent, intriguing, and ultimately heartbreaking as the depressing narrative unfolds towards a shattering bummer conclusion. Moreover, the uncomfortably incestuous and suffocating relationship between Terry and Thelma, a severely deviant and twisted sexuality, a few shocking moments of sudden brutal violence, and a dryly amusing sense of black humor further add to this picture's supremely unsettling edge. (IMDB  Woodyanders)

John Savage

Cindy Williams

Sue Bernard

Luana Anders

Ruth Roman

Helene Winston

Ann Sothern

Combat Shock (1984)

Combat Shock (1984)

aka 

American Nightmare

COMBAT SHOCK is a gritty film about the disillusion and ultimate break down of Frankie, a Vietnam vet, living in New York with his wife and "child". Frankie is basically a complete loser with no money, job, or life in general, and the film pretty much just follows him around from one depressing experience to another, until the shocking finale. COMBAT SHOCK is far too bleak for the standard audience, and as a previous reviewer noted, most people either really like, or really loathe this film. Personally, I felt it was a realistic and somber portrayal of an individual who has absolutely nothing positive going on in his life, and no real hope of a better future. If you are clinically depressed or on any type of depression medication, you should probably leave this one alone. Those who prefer more thought-provoking cinema may want to give this one a shot... (IMDB EVOL666)

Shrooms (2007)

Shrooms (2007)

3 couples go to Ireland woods to collect magic mushrooms and trip out. On their way they meet some strange inhabitants of the woods and it doesn't take long until a creepy story is being told at the campfire which might be more than just a story. So strange things happen, people start disappearing, silhouettes move through the woods and the creepy story starts to melt into reality. The horror kicks in along with the effect of the mushrooms. (IMDB) FN&NV