OBRAS MAESTRAS DEL TERROR (1960) BW. Argentina.
Aka: MASTER OF HORROR.
Credits: Dir: Enrique Carreras; Prod: Nicholas Carreras; Sc: Louis Penafiel. From short stories by Edgar Allan Poe.
Cast: Narcisco Ibanez Menta, Inez Moreno, Carlos Estrada.
A maid decides to read a triology of Poe tales: "The Case Of M. Valdemar", "The Cask Of Amontillado" and "The Tell Tale Heart".
All but "The Tell Tale Heart" were dubbed in English by producer Jack Harris in 1966 and released as MASTER OF HORROR for distribution in America double billed with THE MASTER OF TERROR (Aka: The 4-D Man).

THE OMEGA MAN (1971/Warner/Walter Seltzer) 98mins. US.
Credits: Dir: Boris Sagal; Prod: Walter Seltzer; Sc: John William Corrington & Joyce H. Corrington; Ph: Russell Metty; Ed: William Ziegler; Art: Arthur Loel & Walter M. Simonds; Mu: Gordon Bau;Mus: Ron Grainer. From "I Am Legend" by Richard Matheson.
Cast: Charlton Heston, Anthony Zerbe, Rosalind Cash, Paul Koslo, Lincoln Kilpatrick, Eric Laneuville, Jill Giraldi, Anne Aries, John Dierkes, Monika Henreid, Brian Yoghi, Deveren Bookwalter, Linda Redfearn, Forrest Wood.
"He has no place here, he has the stink of oil, electrical circuitry about him. He is obsolete." - Mathias (Zerbe).
Following an extensive plague of 1977, caused by the Sino-Russian germ war, Los Angeles seems deserted but for Col. Robert Neville, (Heston), who apparently is the only one immune to the plague virus. From the lonely security of his apartment he wards off the attacks of the remaining plague victims who roam the streets at night. This vampire-like "family" abhor the technology that made them what they are and they blame Neville as a representative of the technological irresponsibility. One night the "family" capture Neville and their leader Mathias, (Zerbe), puts Neville on trial. Neville's punishment is to be burnt on a pyre of scientific manuals, but another man rescues Neville and takes him to where other plague survivors are living. The "family" manage to capture one of the child survivors and use him to lure Neville to them, where, in the ensuing battle, Neville is killed. The other survivors move away from the city to the mountains.
An enjoyable second adaptation of Matheson's novel with an intelligent mixture of humour and religious parallels that has dated only slightly.
Previously filmed in 1964 as THE LAST MAN ON EARTH.

THE OMEGANS (1968) US/Philippines.
Credits: Dir. & Prod: W. Lee Wilder; Sc: Waldon Wheeland & W. Lee Wilder.
Cast: Ingrid Pitt, Keith Larson, Bruno Punzalan.
A mysterious river has the ability to murder, cause disfigurement or grant life after death. The local tribe is ammune to the river's effects, but an artist asks his wife and her lover to pose in the waters hoping that the river will kill them.

OMICRON (1963) Italy.
Credits: Dir. & Sc: Ugo Gregoretti.
Cast: Renato Salvatori, Rosemarie Dexter, Mara Carisi.
Omicron is an invisible alien entity that takes over the body of an Italian factory worker to spy on earth in preperation for an invasion. The alien slowly learns the worker's body movements enabling the man to work at record speed without becoming tired, but when the invader falls in love he is no longer of any use to his planet's intentions. Eventually the alien is persuaded to invade Venus instead.
The amusing start soon loses it's entertainment value and the all important "message".

ON THE COMET (1970) Czeckloslovakia.
Aka: MR. SERVADAC'S ARK.
Credits: Dir. & Sc: Karel Zeman. From "Hector Servadac" by Jules Verne.
Cast: Emil Horvath, Magda Vasarykova.
A man faces many adventures when a piece of North Africa breaks away from Earth and flies through space as a comet. Also on the displaced piece of land are some French nationals and a few prehistoric monsters.
Fair family entertainment.

ONE HOUR TO DOOMSDAY (1970) see City Beneath the Sea

ONE HUNDRED CRIES OF TERROR (1965) Mexico.
Credits: Dir: Ramon Obon.
Cast: Adriana Welter, Joaquin Cordero, Ofelia Montesco.
Two tales of gothic horror:
[1] A husband and his mistress plot to kill his wife.
[2] A woman is buried alive in a mausoleum.

ONE HUNDRED GHOST STORIES (1968) see Yokai Hyaku Monogatari

ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. (1966/Hammer/7 Arts) 100mins.
Credits: Dir: Don Chaffey; Prod. & Sc: Michael Carreras; A.Prod: Aida Young; Ph: Wilke Cooper; Ed: James Needs & Tom Simpson; Art: Robert Jones; Sfx: Ray Harryhausen & George Blackwell; Mu: Wally Schneiderman; Mus: Mario Nascimbene. From a story by Mickell Novak.
Cast: Raquel Welch, John Richardson, Robert Brown, Martine Beswick, Percy Herbert, Jean Waldon, Lisa Thomas, Malya Nappi, William Lyon Brown, Yvonne Horner.
"This was the way it was!"
Banished from his Rock tribe, a man, (Richardson), encounters the civilised Shell people where he meets and falls in love with Loana, (Welch), while trying to overcome dinosaurs and other dangers.
Easy to dismiss, this remake of the 1940 film One Million B.C., is an enjoyable adventure with impressive dinosaurs, good direction despite the intrusive music score. Filmed in the Canary Islands and responsible for launching Welch's career.

ONIBABA (1965/Tokyo Eiga/Kindai Eiga Kyokai) 105mins. BW. Japan.
Aka: THE HOLE.
Credits: Dir., Sc. & Art: Kaneto Shindo; Ph: Kiyomi Kuroda; Ed: Toshio Enoki; Mus: Hikaru Hayashi.
Cast: Nobuko Otowa, Yitsuko Yoshimura, Kei Sato, Taiji Tonomura, Jukichi Uno.
During the Japanese Feudal wars, a peasant woman, (Otowa), and her daughter, (Yoshimura), buy food by killing Samuri soldiers and selling their armour and possessions. Much to her mother's annoyance, the daughter falls in love with a soldier named Hachi, (Sato), a former neighbour who has returned to report the death of her husband, so the mother dons one of the demon masks taken from another samuri to frighten the couple, but she finds that she is unable to take the mask off. When the daughter manages to prise the mask away from her mother's face it reveals the rotting features underneath.
Despite a simple plot the film is unique and beautifully photographed against eerie marsh grasses in stark monochrome, enhancing the artistic qualities as well as the entertaining shocks.

THE ONLY WAY OUT IS DEAD (1970) see The Man Who Wanted to Live Forever

OPERACION TERROR (1969) see Los Monstruous del Terror

OPERATION MONSTERLAND (1968) see Kaiju Soshingeki

OPERAZIONE PAURA (1966/FUL.) 88mins. Italy.
Aka: CURSE OF THE DEAD (UK); CURSE OF THE LIVING DEAD; KILL BABY KILL (US).
Credits: Dir. & Ph: Mario Bava; Prod: Nando Pisani & Luciano Catenacci; Sc: Romano Migliorini, Roberto Natale & Mario Bava.
Cast: Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, Max Lawrence, Erika Blanc, Fabienne Dali, Giana Vivaldi, Piero Lulli.
"Shiver and quiver with kill baby kill and shake and quake!"
In a small Transylvanian town people are either being driven to suicide by the ghost of a seven year old girl, or they are killed by a witch who embeds gold coins in their hearts.
A stylish and effective Bava masterpiece with witty moments occasionaly spoiled by an overuse of the zoom lens. Reportedly this was made by Bava on a bet that he couldn't complete a film in 12 days, however, the diretor's hurried script improvisations actually provide the greatest moments of horror including one scene in which a ghostly child's handprint appears on a misted window.
The title was chosen to exploit Blanc's appearance in OPERATION: POKER.

ORGASMO (1965) see L'Amanti d'Oltre Tomba

ORGASMO (1969/Tritone/Societe Nouvelle) 91mins. Italy/Spain.
Aka: PARANOIA; UNE FOLLE ENVIE D'AIMER.
Credits: Dir: Umberto Lenzi; Prod: Salvatore Alabiso; Sc: Rafael Romero Marchent, Marcello Coscia & Bruno Di Geronimo; Ph: Guglielo Mancori; Ed: Antonio Ramirez & Enzo Alabiso; Art: Wolfgang Burmann; Mus: Gregorio Garcia Segura & Piero Umiliani.
Cast: Carroll Baker, Lou Castel, Tino Carraro, Collette Descombes, Jean Sorel, Marina Coffa, Alberto Dalbes, Anna Proclemer, Lilla Brignone, Franco Pesce.
A jealous woman undergoes psychological terror when those she trusts most involve her in blackmail and betrayal in a plot to drive her insane.
A vicious film that relys heavily on it's nastiness and sex scenes to maintain interest.
Cut to 77 minutes for British release.
Not to be confused with PARANOIA (Aka: A QUIET PLACE TO KILL) also directed by Lenzi and starring Baker with a similar theme.

LES ORGIES DU DOCTEUR ORLOFF (1966) see Solo un Ataud

THE ORGIES OF DOCTOR ORLOFF (1966) see Solo un Ataud

ORGY OF THE DEAD (1965/FOG. Distribution)
Aka: ORGY OF THE VAMPIRES.
Credits: Dir: Stephen C. Apostoloff; Sc: Ed Wood Jnr.
Cast: Tor Johnson, Criswell, Texas Starr, Lon Chaney Snr., Bunny Glaser, Fawn Silver.
A couple researching information in a cemetery are captured and tied to posts by the Master of the Dead and the Princess of Darkness who make them watch "sinners" being judged and sentenced. They witness a topless blonde slave owner being whipped by her slaves, a large breasted murderess marry a skeleton and another woman is turned into a gold statue. A werewolf and a mummy also appear.
A dated film with ample nudity from the strippers hired as the cast. Scripted by the same man responsible for Night of the Ghouls and Plan 9 From Outer Space who shows no improvement with this fiasco.

ORGY OF THE VAMPIRES (1965) see Orgy of the Dead

ORLAK, EL INFIERNO DE FRANKENSTEIN (1960/Columbia) BW. Mexico.
Aka: ORLAC, THE HELL OF FRANKENSTEIN.
Credits: Dir. & Prod: Rafael Baledon; Sc: Alfredo Ruanova & Carlos E. Taboada.
Cast: Joaquin Cordero, Rosa de Castilla, Armando Calva.
A mad doctor creates a monster, but the 100,000 volts that brought it to life has melted the creature's face, so that it has to wear a steel box on it's head. A criminal manages to obtain the monster and uses it to enact revenge on his enemies.
More nonsense from south of the border.

ORLOFF AND THE INVISIBLE MAN (1970) see Orloff y el Hombre Invisible

ORLOFF Y EL HOMBRE INVISIBLE (1970/Careyvision) 90mins. Spain/France.
Aka: ORLOFF AND THE INVISIBLE MAN; THE INVISIBLE DEAD; DOCTOR ORLOFF'S INVISIBLE HORROR.
Credits: Dir: Peter Chevalier (Jesus Franco).
Cast: Howard Vernon, Brigitte Carva, Fred Sanders (Fernando Sanches), Francis Valladares, Isabel Del Rio, Evane Hanska, Arlette Balkis, May Chartrette, Christian Forges, Eugene Berthier.
A young doctor visits the castle of Dr. Orloff, (Vernon), and has to try and save the scientist's daughter, (Carua), from the affections of an invisible creature created by the madman in his laboratory.
An incredibly inept tale. Even die-hard Franco fans will only find it only mildly interesting.

ORPHÉE (1950/Paulv‚ 1/Palais Royal) 112mins. BW. France.
Aka: ORPHEUS.
Credits: Dir. & Sc: Jean Cocteau; Ph: Nicolas Hayer; Des: Jean d'Eaubonne; Mus: Georges Auric. From a play by John Cocteau.
Cast: Jean Marais, Maria Casarès, Juliette Greco, François Périer, Marie Déa, Edouard Dermithe, Roger Blin.
The poet Orpheus, (Marais), becomes obsessed with the Princess of Death, (Casares), asissting her when the poet Cegeste, (Dermithe), is killed by motorcyclists, but then Orpheus sees Cegeste walking through a mirrior at the princess' house. Haunted by what he saw, Orpheus is then informed by Heurtebise, (Perier), that his wife Eurydice, (Dea), has also been killed. Passing through the mirror to the underworld, Orpheus learns that his wife will be restored to him if he promises never to look at her, but when he breaks his promise he is killed by a mob. Eventually Orpheus is reunited with his wife when the princess and Heurtebise are punished for interfering with the affairs of mortals.
A moody poetic masterpiece of fantasy cinema interwoven with old myths that nicely complements Cocteau's other parts of the Orpheus trilogy that began with Le Sang d'un Poete (1930) and ends with LE TESTAMENT D'ORPHEE (1960). The odd camera angles, and atmospheric lighting creates a film that is the closest anyone has come to portraying poetry and imagination on the screen. Highlights include the entry to the hereafter through a mirror.
Sequel: LE TESTAMENT D'ORPHEE.

ORPHEUS (1950) see Orphee

L'ORRIBLE DR. ORLOFF (1962) see Gritos en la Noche

L'ORRIBLE SEGRETO DEL DOTTORE HICHCOCK (1962/Sigma III/Panda) 90mins. Italy. Aka: THE TERROR OF DR. HICHCOCK (UK); THE HORRIBLE DR. HICHCOCK; RAPTUS.
Sequel to: Lo Spretto de Dr. Hichcock.
Credits: Dir: Robert Hampton (Riccardo Freda); Prod: Luigi Carpentieri & Ermano Donati; Sc: Julian Perry.
Cast: Barbara Steele, Robert Flemyng, Teresa Fitzgerald (Maria Teresa Vianello), Montgomery Glen (Silvano Tranquil), Harriet White, Spencer William.
"His terrible secret was a coffin named desire...The candle of his lust burnt brightest in the shadow of the grave."
Respected surgeon Dr. Hichcock, (Flemyng), is a closet necrophiliac who drugs his wife and performs funeral parlour sex-games with her, but one day his perversions go too far and she dies. Ten years later he returns to London with his new wife Cynthia, (Steele), but the first wife, Margaret returns from the grave as a decomposing corpse, so the doctor drains the blood from his second wife to try and restore her.
A shocking and subversive film shot in eight days that begins with the doctor raping a corpse, but the heavy handed blood letting becomes rather tedious.
A card was given out in some cinemas with a bra and panties on it covered in a furry substance and a warning not to rub it too much as you may become just like Dr. Hichcock.
American and British prints were released twelve minutes shorter cutting the scenes of Flemyng fondling corpses.

GLI ORRORI DEL CASTELLO DI NORIMBERGA (1971/Leone International/AIP.) 92mins. Italy/Germany/US.
Aka: THE THIRST OF BARON BLOOD; THE TORTURE CHAMBER OF BARON BLOOD; BLOOD BARON; BARON BLOOD; THE CHAMBER OF TORTURES.
Credits: Dir: Mario Bava; Prod: Alfred Leone; Ex.Prod: Sam Lang & J. Arthur Elliot; Sc: Vincent Fotre & William A. Bairn; Ph: Emilio Varriani; Ed: Carlo Reali; Art: Enzo Bulgarelli; Sfx: Franco Tocci; Mu: Silvana Petri; Mus: Stelvio Cipriani.
Cast: Elke Sommer, Joseph Cotten, Antonio Cantafora, Massimo Girotti, Dieter Tressler, Rada Rassimov (Sarah Bey), Humi Raho (Umberto Raho), Nicoletta Elmi, Alan Collins (Luciano Pigozzi).
A young student, (Sommer), in Austria meets Peter Kleist, (Cantafora), who accidentally brings back to life his sadistic ancestor Baron Otto von Kleist from the eighteenth century noted for his orgies of torture and murder. Finally the nobleman is undone by a witches curse and his zombie victims, causing the Baron to rise from his wheelchair and crumble.
A dull and unimaginative mixture of Vlad the Impaler myths and The House of Wax (1953), spoilt by the director's over use of the fashionable zoom. Despite the good atmosphere and bizarre moments of humour, the actors seem unsure whether to underplay or overplay the material.
AIP. insisted that American versions were rescored with music by Les Baxter.
Some US. theatres posted disclaimer notices to publicise the film: "The management disclaims any responsibility for patrons who suffer A. Apoplectic strokes, B. Cerebral hemorrhages, C. Cardiac seizures or D. Fainting spells during the shockingly gruesome scenes in this film".
Filmed in Austria.

OUTLAW PLANET (1965) see Terrore Nella Spazio