Curtains (1983)

Curtains is a Canadian horror/suspense film that began production in 1980, but due to problems (tensions between producer and director perhaps chief among these difficulties) did not premiere in the United States until early 1983. The vibes were so bad that upon completion of the film, director Richard Ciupka had his credit changed to Jonathan Stryker, the name of the director in Curtains.

The movie did not find much of an audience theatrically but gained a second life through cable showings and video rentals, which is where I found it on a video store shelf around 1984.

Samantha Eggar stars as Samantha Sherwood, an incredibly committed actress who has herself thusly committed to a mental institution as method preparation for the title role in director Jonathan Stryker's (played by ham handed favorite John Vernon) newest film Audra. When Samantha finds out that Stryker has tapped several actresses to audition for Audra at a secluded estate; she breaks out angry and with revenge on her mind.

Curtains makes great use of the wintry setting and creates an increasingly chilly atmosphere with highlights being a creepy doll and a mask wearing murderer, wielding a nasty sickle.

the trailer

the feature

Incubus (1982)

The 1981 movie Incubus is directed by John Hough, who is notable for his many genre films including: Twins of Evil (1971), The Legend of Hell House (1973), Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry (1974), Escape to Witch Mountain (1975), and American Gothic (1988). If my memory is correct, I believe this is one of many Canadian produced films from the late 1970s/early 1980s that was made possible by lucrative government sponsored tax breaks.

The film is based on a 1976 novel by Ray Russell, who aside from being a prolific author also served as co-screenwriter on Roger Corman films such as X: The Man With the X-Ray Eyes and The Premature Burial. The story is set in a small town that is shocked by a series of brutally violent rapes and murders which appear to be committed by either a gang of perpetrators or one very large evildoer. John Cassavetes is a local doctor who begins to suspect that a troubled young man, who much to his chagrin also happens to be dating his teenaged daughter, is somehow connected to the vicious assaults. Stick with the film until the end and you'll be rewarded with a curious twist ending.

Also of note is the appearance of a pre-Iron Maiden Bruce Dickinson. When a doomed gal goes on a date to the movies, the film being screened is a 1980 short directed by Julien Temple titled Biceps of Steel which features Dickinson with his earlier band Samson in a laughably dated laser and hard rock spectacle.

the trailer

the feature

The Mask (1961)

Allegedly Canada's first horror film, 1961s The Mask is a curious entry into the world of both fright films and 3D features. The plot involves a psychiatrist who becomes the owner of an extremely old tribal mask after a former patient sends it to him before committing suicide. When he tries the mask on, it propels the psychiatrist into a bizarre realm that quickly morphs from purely strange to increasingly disturbing with nightmare like visions. These visions soon begin to take their toll on the psychiatrist, altering his temperament and driving him towards madness.

I first became aware of this cinematic oddity when a still from the film was used on the cover of 1986s highly recommended RE/Search Incredibly Strange Films book. It wasn't long after that I finally got the chance to check out the film when it was broadcast on cable television. Most of the film is shot in standard black and white, but there are portions when a deeply reverbed narrator will remind you to "Put the mask on, NOW!" as all footage within the mask world is presented in 3D. A unique gimmick, the 3D viewers were not the conventional glasses, but instead a cardboard mask somewhat similar to the one in the film.

the trailer

the feature

Cronenberg on Cronenberg - 2013 Interview

Canadian director and favorite of mine, David Cronenberg speaks here in footage on 3sat (a public, advertising-free, television network in Central Europe that broadcasts in German) from 2013. He recounts his life and his progress as a film maker in a great interview that is both extensive in scope but very laid back in questioning, with much time allowed for him to expand on his answers.