TheArchive: Reviewing the Rare, Retro, and Restored

Halloween rolls out the obligatory cinematic fright-fest, but  TheArchive  has some seriously twisted eye candy including, for its time, one of the scariest films ever made. No need to waste any time - let's jump in. Once described as "positively the most horrifying film ever made"  Adrian Hoven (and Michael Armstrong) deliver the gore. According to Cool Ass CInema,  Mark of the Devil  is  "one of the signature examples of 1970s exploitation at its most grueling. It's been over 40 years, but it still retains a few squirm inducing moments to leave its 'mark' on modern audiences."   In 18th century Austria, a witch-hunter's apprentice has doubts about the righteousness of witch-hunting until he witnesses the injustice, torture, and arbitrary killing that go with the job.  Adrian Hoven ( Mark of the Devil ) is at it again with  Castle of the Creeping Flesh . Set in an ancient castle, a mad scientist is trying to revive his dead daughte...

This week we stalk the Mike Mendez (Gravedancers, Big Ass Spider) collection for a couple gems that should do your twisted soul just fine this Halloween season. Namely because Mendez makes you laugh your ass off as much, if not more, as he scares the shit out of it! In The Convent , a group of college students break into an abandoned convent, only to discover that it's inhabited by demons that are intent on possessing them. The group dwindles in numbers and the bodies pile up. RIP Coolio, no stranger to horror films (he frequented lesser known horror fare including Dracula 3000, Pterodactyl, Red Water, Leprechaun 5 ) who has a less than star-making cameo in the film.  The cast also includes horror icons Adrienne Barbeau ( The Fog, Creepshow ) and Bill Moseley ( The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, House of 1000 Corpses ) But rest assured it is worth the watch and according to morbidlybeautiful.com, “This is the perfect movie for the Halloween season. It’s what Sam Raimi would call a...

As we kick off our countdown to Halloween, we are starting with some scares for all ages. TheArchive  has a huge genre collection including great titles like The Cannibal Man , Demonicus , and multiple Amityville sequels. But we'll get to those next time. For some spooky family fun here's a few of our favorites: In Teenage Space Vampires , geeky teen Bill Stetson witnesses a UFO landing near his small town and discovers that it contains a horde of vampires bent on ruling Earth by blocking the sun's rays.  In  Josh Kirby: Time Warrior! Chap. 1: Planet of the Dino-Knights , there is an ultimate super weapon, which Irwin 1138 separates into 6 pieces and scatters them throughout time. When the evil Dr. Zoetrope goes after them, Irwin enlists Josh Kirby to help him.  There's a ton of content in this series so dive in deep! In X-treme Teens , a teenager named Andy struggles with moving to a new city until he discovers a pair of x-ray vision goggles that help him unco...

Did you know it's World Space Week 2022, or did you space? This year's theme celebrates “Space and Sustainability!" And of course TheArchive  has content that speaks to what's out there past the space litter and orbit of Elon Musk's satellites. Speaking of, i n the four part series Race to Mars , it's the year 2030, and the race to be the first to reach the Red Planet is on—and China is leading the way. China has stunned the world by leapfrogging over America's long-term plans and has landed a series of rovers in their quest to make the most important discovery in history—extraterrestrial life on Mars.  Once again, America and its partners are thrust into a winner-take-all space race. But who will win? Since Mars is on everyone's mind including ours' we are doubling down on red planet viewing. And when Bill Shatner and James Cameron weigh in, it's worth watching... Mars Rising  explores the quest for a manned mission to Mars.  A companion to the...

Poppy Montgomery in 2001’s ‘Blonde’ This week might as well be dubbed Marilyn Monroe week with the wall to wall coverage of Netflix’s release of Blonde. But the reviews continue to praise our version of the Oates classic as a mighty if not superior production. TheArchive  doesn’t like to keep score, or does it? As we’ve discovered, the onscreen Marilyns have also been ranked by Vulture: guess where our version of  Blonde ’s  blonde ranks? While Ana de Armas’ recent portrayal clocks in at #9 of 22, Poppy Montgomery who stars in the first Oates adaptation of  Blonde  from 2001 comes in at #5.   It appears that gentlemen (and ladies) prefer  Blonde .  Starring Poppy Montgomery. On  TheArchive . In an Indiewire opinion piece from this week, “The 2001  Blonde   Miniseries understands Marilyn Monroe Better Than Andrew Dominik,” the author goes on to explain that TheArchive’s “Blonde contains the same beats as Dominik’s film, and yet...

As we observe National Hispanic Heritage month through October 15th, TheArchive curated a list of classic 50s and 60s Mexican cinema to watch throughout the coming weeks. Hispanic Heritage month (which started as a week) began in 1968 years after these films released. It kicks off every September 15th, which marks the the anniversary of independence for Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Mexico celebrates on September 16th. To that end, let's celebrate this important time by spotlighting some brilliant films from some of Mexico's great filmmakers. We start with the legendary Oscar nominated Luis Buñuel. In the classic film  Una Mujer Sin Amor  (1952) from famed director Luis Buñuel, when a woman sacrifices her own happiness for her family, she creates a rift that will only come to pass years later. It is based on Guy de Maupassant's story "Pierre et Jean."  The film is an indictment on bourgeois  values and Buñuel himself, later in ...

The 74th Emmy Awards are finally here and Kenan Thompson is hosting live from the Microsoft Theater. A number of notable Emmy contests will be sure to delight and surprise while no one will be all that surprised, perhaps delighted, if HBO's Succession and Netfix's  Squid Game take home the most awards, While the current Emmy race is always exciting, each year at  TheArchive  we like to go back in time and feature a few of our favorite Emmy nominees and winners from our own library. As Marilyn Monroe is on everyone's mind with the forthcoming Ana De Armas Netflix movie, our Marilyn and Me from 1991 was a Primetime Emmy nominee for, no surprise,  Outstanding Individual Achievement in Hairstyling for a Miniseries or a Special. Paul Wendkos' Cross of Fire was 1990's Primetime Emmy winner for  Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Drama Miniseries or a Special. But our most nominated series of all time is Peter Gunn with a total of eight nominations including Best Drama, ...