764 Lair Of The White Worm ( 1988 )

 Ken Russell's latest film was  a loose ( as you'd expect with Russell ), contemporary  adaptation  of  a  little known  Bram Stoker novel. That said , this  is  Russell  in  relatively  restrained  form with  fewer  jump cut montages  and  much less pretension than usual.  Ruseell  stated it was a  comedy  and with its   comic  cops , atrocious  attempts at Northern accents.  the  casting of two  extensively  derided  actresses and  a  thoroughly  ridiculous finale, it's  plain to  see  he  wasn't  taking  it  too  seriously. Hugh Grant and Peter Capaldi give it some heft though.

Amanda Donohoe ( as Lady Silvia )

Sex : Silvia  seduces a  boy scout before killing him

Death : Falls into the mouth of a giant serpent

Amanda first came to public attention as  the  teenaged  girlfriend  of  Adam Ant. She  then  attended a  theatrical college. She made  her  name  with  her  mostly  naked  role in the  film Castaway. She  moved  to  America  in  the  early  nineties and  had   good  roles  in L.A.Law and  the  film  Liar Liar.  She  returned  to  Britain  in  the  early  2000  and  has  starred in Bad Girls  and Murder City as  well  as  a  year  in  Emmerdale. Her career is ongoing.

Catherine Oxenberg ( as Eve Trent )

Sex : Eve is a virgin

Death : Survives

Catherine  is a scion of  the  former royal family of Yugoslavia and related to most of the European royals. Her first screen appearance was  playing Princess Diana in a 1982  TV movie. She is best known for  her time as Amanda  Carrington in Dynasty for  which  she  was  slammed for her wooden acting  and  eventually  replaced, This  was  the  first of  half a dozen film  roles but  she  has  a  long  string  of  TV movies to her name. She  has  also  dabbled  in  reality TV and  in  recent  years has  attracted  publicity through  intervening to extract  her  daughter  from  a  cult.

Sammy  Davis ( as Mary Trent )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Sammi made  her  film  debut  in  Mona  Lisa  in 1986  and  was  very  busy  in  the  late  eighties though  she  attracted much  criticism for  her  mannered  acting  style. In  the  nineties  she  married film  director  Kurt Voss  and  her  appearances  became  less  frequent, ceasing  altogether at the end  of  the  decade. She  has  made  occasional  appearances since  but   mainly  works  in  corporate  photography  these  days.

Gina McKee ( as Nurse Bradwell)

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Gina is from Durham and  started acting as a young teen, making her first appearance in  Tyne  Tees ' Quest Of  Eagles in 1979. She  reappeared in  1986 in Auf Wiedersehn Pet and this one scene  cameo was her first film role. She  made  her  name as Mary in Our Friends In The North in 1996 and  has been  a  busy  actress ever since.

763 Dream Demon ( 1988)

 This  British chiller  is  a  polished  effort which  keeps you  watching without  being very original.  Diana, a naive young woman has unnerving dreams in apprehension of her imminent marriage to a Falklands war hero  in whom  the  tabloid  press are interested ( a bit of a  stretch  for  1988) .These take a  disurbing turn  for  the  worse when she  encounters  a  young  American woman  who  was  brought  up  in  her  house. The  acting  of  both the  young  lovers  could  be  better but  Jimmy Nail and  Timothy  Spall  are  entertaining  as  gutter pressmen.

Jemma Redgrave ( as Diana )

Sex : Diana is a virgin

Death : Survives  

Jemma  is  the  daughter of  Loony  Left  actor  Corin  Redgrave. She  had  already  made  a  mark on  stage  before  making  her  screen  debut  in  this film. Although she has  made other films, she  is  primarily a  TV  actress playing  the  title  role in Bramwell, a  recurring  role  in  Holby City and  an  ongoing  role  in  Dr Who. She  is  also  active  in  the  theatre.

Kathleen Wilhoite ( as Jenny )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Kathleen does her usual kooky turn  in  this  one.

Annabelle Lanyon ( as Little Jenny )

Sex : n/a

Death : See above

A  very  strange  piece  of  casting  here  as  Annabelle  was  actually  four  years  older  than her  adult  counterpart  and doesn't look  remotely  like  her. She  started  out  as  a child  actress in  the  early  seventies appearing  in  Pardon My Genie and  The  Adventures Of Black Beauty  and  continued  playing  children into  her  twenties. Annabelle  took  a  sabbatical from  acting  in  the  early  nineties  but  returned  to  the  screen in  the  noughties and  is  still  active, mainly  in  horror  films.

762 The Understudy : Graveyard Shift II ( 1988 )

 This  quickfire sequel to Graveyard Shift went  straight to video  and  even that's too good  for  it. Michael Miranda  returns as a vampire  but it's not clear if he's  the  same  character. In  fact  nothhing's very  clear from  the  script  which  is  both incoherent and pretentious. From what I can make out a young actress  in a low budget film about a pool playing vampire makes a Faustian bargain with a real vampire  to feast on  her  thoroughly dislikeable  colleagues. How  this  helps  her is  anyone's guess. This  is  heap and  shoddy and  a  must  to  avoid.

Wendy Gazelle ( as Camilla )

Sex : Camilla has sex with her boyfriend

Death : Camilla becomes a vampire

Wendy  is  a  jobbing actress from Ohio who  first  emerged in  the  mid-eighties. She  made  her  last  film  in 1997  but continues to act on TV.

Ilse Von Glatz ( as Ash )

Sex : Ash has sex with the vampire

Death : Ash becomes a vampire

Ilse  was  from  Toronto. She  worked as a  chef  before  taking  up  acting. She  appeared  in  only  two  films  and  found most  success in  the  TV  series  War  Of The  Worlds . When  that  finished in 1990, she  gave  up  on  acting  and  became  a  Doctor  of  Naturopathy. She  also  ran  a  boarding kennels. She  died in 2014.

Lesley Kelly ( as  Martina )

Sex : No

Death :  Martina becomes a vampire

Lesley also returned from the first film but  clearly as a different  character.

761 Pin (1988 )

 This  Canadian film is on the  borderline between horror  and  disturbing psychological thriller  but  it's  pretty good all  the same. Leon, a disturbed young boy regards his  doctor father's anatomical dummy as  a  person after his father uses ventriloquist skills to  have  it  dispense health advice to children. Leon ( David  Hewlett ) grows up to be a  paranoid schizophrenic  over -protective of his sister Ursula and treating Pin as a member of  the  family. It's a tad slow  in places  and  there's  the odd plothole like why it takes the doctor ( Terry O Quinn )  so  long  to  spot  his  son is abnormal  but  overall it's  gripping stuff  with a  well  concealed surprise ending.

Cynthia Preston ( as  Ursula )

Sex : Ursula  is very promiscuous at  fifteen

Death : Survives

Cynthia  was  very  unfortunate that  the  film  got  buried due  to  industry  politics as  hers  is  a  starmaking performance.

Helene Udy ( as Marsha )

Sex : Marsha strips off for sex with Leon but he can't do it

Death : Survives

This  is  one  of  Helene's favourite  films.

760 The Carpenter ( 1988 )

 This  Canadian  slasher  has  a  limited  budget  but  makes up  for  it with an  interesting  premise  and  good  performances. Alice is a  bored  housewife  recovering from a nervous  breakdown when her controlling husband Martin  ( Pierre Lenoir )  moves them into a country manor which  is  still  being  renovated. Alice begins to bump into Ed ( Wings  Hauser) an amiable  carpenter who  works very unusual hours and  has  a  pretty brutal way of  of dealing with uninvited guests. It  is  a  little clunky  at  times - a sheriff  drops  by  purely  to  explain Ed's  backstory  - but  otherwise it's  an  intriguing  little  chiller.

Lynne Adams ( as Alice )

Sex : Alice has sex in the shower with Ed

Death : Survives

Since  first  appearing in a TV movie  in 1986, Lynne has  amassed nearly 100  screen  credits  while  flying  under  the  radar, this  being  one  of her  few lead roles.

Barbara Ann Jones ( as Rachel )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Barbara was the Assistant Art Director on Scanners  before becoming a bit part actress. Her acting career ran from 1981 to 2000 including  a  minor  role in Scanners II

Louise-Marie Mennier ( as  Lauren)

Sex : Lauren is Martin's mistress

Death : Alice kills her with a nail gun

This was  the  first of  only  two  film roles for  Louise-Marie in a short career.

759 The Brain ( 1988 )

 This  Canadian sci-fi  horror  is  a  shocker in all the wrong senses. Tom Breznahan plays Jim , a  student  trouble-maker  sent  to a TV psychiatrist ( Reanimator's David Gale ) , who  just  stumbles on the fact that  he's  serving  a giant  sentient brain  with teeth. As soon as you catch  sight of  the  brain,  it's  all downhill as  this  preposterous lump of rubber with a  very  limited range  of  movement , wouldn't frighten a  four year old  and  its  ultimate  destruction  scene is  utterly  risible. When it's not  trying  to  be  an Ed Wood  movie , the  film  is  just  illogical and  boring.

Cynthia Preston ( as Janet )

Sex : Janet has sex with Jim  but  it could be an hallucination

Death : Survives

Cynthia  was  born  in  Ontariobut took US citizenship in 2008. This  was  one of  her  first  films. She  has  maintained her  career through  versatility. She  was the voice of Zelda  in  the  animated series The Legend  of  Zelda, had  a  five  year run in  General Hospital in  the  noughties  and  was  in  the  2013 remake of Carrie.

Christine Kossack (as Vivien)

Sex : Vivien strips to the waist to get Jim's attention

Death :  Vivien gets eaten by the brain ( despite it being little bigger than her had when it first attacks her)

This  was  the  only substantial role of Christine's three film career.

Susannah Hoffman ( as Becky )

Sex : No

Death : The hallucinations directed by the brain cause her to fall out of a window

Susannah is  a  former  ballerina  from  Ontario  whose  work  has  mainly  been on Canadian TV. Her  career is  ongoing.

Sarah Chapple ( as Debbie )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  was  the  third and  last  of  Sarah's film roles.

758 American Gothic ( 1988 )

 A  rather  presumptuous  title  for  this  Canadian  shocker which is something of a cross between a  less carnal Texas Chainsaw Massacre and  Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny and Girly. Six not particularly likeable  weekend  holidaymakers have  to  down their  seaplane  on  an  isolated  island where  an old  couple live as  though  it  were still the  1920s with  their  three  infantilised offspring. The  culture  clash  soon  turns  nasty.  Despite  a  slow pace  for  the first half   hour or  so  and  some  glaring plotholes, this does  become viscerally  exciting  and Rod  Steiger is  excellent as the  mild-mannered but malevolent patriarch.

Sarah  Torgov ( as Cynthia )

Sex  : No

Death : Survives

Sarah  was the daughter of  Canadian novelist Morley Torgov. She  had  an  acting  career of  about 10  years  but  this  film  was  actually  her  swansong as  she  gave  up  acting to  be  an  artist  and  book illustrator.

Caroline Barclay ( as Terri )

Sex : Terri's  corpse  is  raped by Teddy, one  of  the  clan

Death : The  oversized Teddy unintentionally snaps her neck

Caroline was born in France and this  was  her  first  film  after  starting  out  as  a  child  actress, She  had  small parts in some  big  films ( Roxanne, Species, The  Game ) and  a  lead  role in  Candyman:Farewell To The Flesh. Her career petered out  in  the  late  nineties but she has  popped up  in  a  few shorts  since.

Fiona  Hutchison ( as Lynn )

Sex : No

Death : Hanged from a  tree  by  a  skipping  rope (offscreen )

Fiona  was  brought  up in Jamaica. She was  a  promising ballerina but had to give up  through  injury when she was 17. This  was  her  second  film  role. She  had  more  success on TV in  the  soaps  The  Guiding Light and  One  Life  To  Live . In  recent  years , she  has moved  into  TV  production and  is  more of a  talk show  hostess than  an  actress these  days,

757 Hellbound : Hellraiser II (1988 )

 This  quickfire  sequel  picks  up  exactly where the original  left off  with  heroine Kirsty  detained by police who  find  her explanation of  the  carnage at her family home a  little hard  to  believe. She is  passed on  to a psychiatric hospital where the  head  doctor, Crannard ( Kenneth  Cranham )  beliees  her  only  too  well and  is  looking after  a  mute  teenager with a predilection for puzzle boxes  for  a  very  specific  purpose. The  film  works  very  well for  the  first  hour  then  it  loses  all coherence  with  the  characters  bumping  into each  other  in   a  labyrinth  with  no clear  purpose  and  the  terrifying  Cenobites getting a  meagre  amount  of  screen  time. It's  not  atrocious  and  Cranham   is  great  but  it  could have  been a  lot  better.

Clare  Higgins ( as Julia )

Sex :  Julia  uses  her  seductive  charms on all  the  male  characters

Death : Julia  is  pulled out  of  her  skin by  some  inexplicable  force  but  she's  come  back  from  the  dead  before

Clare  bowed  out  of  the  franchise after  this  film  and  hasn't  returned to  the  horror  genre.  

Ashley Laurence ( as Kirsty )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Unlike Clare, Ashley signed up for the next one.

Imogen Boorman ( as Tiffany )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Imogen was  born in Kent. Despite her surname. she is not thought to be  related to director John Boorman. She  started out as a child  actress in 2002. Although this was her second and last  film  role , she  was  successful in British TV with  brief  runs in Casualty and Coronation Street before  quitting  acting in 1993.  In  recent  years  she  has frequently  been in  trouble  with  the  law  over  alcohol-related  misbehaviour and  she  is  now on  the Sex  Offenders Register after a  naked  rampage in a pub in Montrose.

756 Watchers ( 1988 )

This  film is  loosely based on a  Dean Koontz novel, so loose in fact that it  renders  the  title irrelevant. Who's  watching  who and  that's  not  the  only  question  left  unanswered by  the  film's  conclusion.  A  dog  escapes from a  government  research  centre  following  an  unexplained  explosion and is  pursued by a maniacal creature that can track it telepathically and kills  anything that gets in the way. The  dog  finds  its  way  to  the  home  of  young Travis ( Corey Haim )  but  the  creature isn't  far  behind. There  are  one  or  two things  to  like  about  the  film such  as  Michael Ironside's villain  and  Travis  taking his mum along when  he  goes  on  the  run  but  the  tone is  too  uneven,. One  moment  you're in Scooby Doo  territory,then  there's another gory killing. The  creature when  finally  revealed is  ridiculous.

Barbara Williams ( as Nora )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Barbara was  born in Vancouver  and  started appearing on Canadian TV in the late  seventies. She met  her  first  husband Nick Mancuso on the set of her second film  Tell Me  That  You Love Me . She had a solid career as a TV actress  and  supporting player in films. In 1993, she  married political activist  Tom Hayden who was previously  married to Jane Fonda.

Lala  Sloatman ( as Tracey )

Sex : Tracey  starts  undressing  for  Travis but  they  are  interrupted.

Death : Survives

Lala  is  the  neice of  Frank  Zappa  and  is  more  famous  for  her  love life than her undistinguished film career. She  was  dating Corey  Haim  in  real life when they made  this and they also appeared  together in Dream A Little Dream. She then moved on to C Thomas Howell  and  was  briefly maried to singer  Chris  Robinson in the mid-nineties. Her acting  career appeared  to  have  peterd out  by  then  but  she  briefly  resurafced in  2003  and 2011. 

Ghislaine and Justine Crawford ( as Girls at School )

Sex : No

Death : Survive

These  sisters appeared  together six times across  film and  TV ( and  each  has one  other  credit )  But  I  can't  find  a  common link between their  outings.

 

 

755 Child's Play (1988)

 The  controversial franchise  started  here with  what  amounts to  a  pretty  nifty litle shocker with good  performances and  impressive special effects. A  serial killer played with wild-eyed relish by Brad Dourif  is  mortally wounded but uses  his  knowledge of  voodoo  to  transfer his  soul into a plastic  doll to  seek  revenge on the  cop who shot him ( Chris  Sarandon ) 

Catherine Hicks  ( as Karen Barclay )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  was  Catherine's  last  horror  role.

Dinah Manoff  ( as Maggie )

Sex : No

Death: Rather unconvincingly, she  falls  out  of  a  high window after being  hit with a toy hammer

Dinah  is  the  daughter of actress Lee  Grant. She  started acting hereslf  in  the  mid-seventies and  is  best  known for  playing  Marty in Grease ( at 21 she was  the nearest thing to a  real teenager in the cast ). She  also  appeared in Ordinary  People  and  won a Tony Award  for  I  Ought To Be In Pictures on Broadway. She  reprised  her  role in the film  version  but  it  flopped  and  she  fell  into  TV movies  with  the  odd  supporting  role in films. She  seems  to  have  retired  now.

754 They Live (1988)

 Perhaps  the  strangest  entry  in  John Carpenters  body of  work, this is  an odd blend  of  social satire, science  fiction  and  action  movie  which only  works  in parts. Professional wrestler Roddy Piper plays Nada , an unemployed drifter existing on  the  fringes of  LA  society  who  realises that a  small  band  of  conspiracy theorists  are  actually right and that  US society  is  controlled  by  hidden aliens. David  Icke  must  love  this  movie. He  then becomes  a  resistance  fighter  and  the  film goes rapidly  downhill into  a  stew  of  unrealistic  violence and  borrowed sci-fi tropes ( Invasion of the Bodysnatchers, Blakes Seven, V, The Running Man).

Meg Foster ( as  Holly)

Sex : No

Death : Nada shoots  her

Meg is from Pennsylvania . She  made  her  TV debut in 1969 and worked almost exclusively  in  TV during  the  seventies. She  started  making more films in  the  eighties often in villainess  roles due to  her  strikingly pale blue eyes. She  is probably best  remembered as Cagney in the  first series of Cagney and Lacey before being replaced by Sharon Gless. She  retired in 2004  but  returned to  acting in 2011 , mainly in horror  films. Though they appeared  together in the film Carny , she  is unrelated to Jodie.

Cibby Danyla ( as Naked Lady )

Sex : She  discovers she's having sex with an alien in the  final scene

Death : Survives

Cibby was a  film  extra  in the late eighties who  usually went  uncredited.In  the mid-noughties she was involved in Christian broadcasting.

753 Halloween IV : The Return Of Michael Myers (1988 )

 As  the  title unsubtly  suggests, the  film-makers responded to the  lukewarm  reception for Halloween III with a return to formula. Michael Myers and  Donald  Pleasence's Dr Loomis have both somehow  survived the explosion at the end of Halloween II  and  ten year's later Myers reurns to Haddonfield and goes after Laurie Strode's orphaned daughter ( Jamie Lee Curtis having  declined to  reprise her role). While  not containing  too  many  surprises, it's  an  effective  slasher with a  shock  ending that still delivers a punch.

Ellie Cornell (as Rachel)

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  was  Ellie's  second  film after a minor  role in  Married To  The  Mob. She reprised the  role  in  the  sequel. She  had  to  put  her  career on  hold  in 1992 after  becoming  pregnant. Ellie  returned  to  the  screen in 1988  mainly  in  horror  films. Ellie  has  dabbled in film  production with her husband  and  they  also  own  a  restaurant.

Danielle Harris ( as Jamie )

Sex : N/a

Death : Survives

Danielle  is  from Pennsylvania. This  was  her  first  film  role  at  age 11 after doing  commercials and  one  or  two TV appearances.  She  has built  a  substantial career since  with  decent  roles in  The  Last  Boy Scout  and Free Willie  and  success as  a  voice  actress in The  Wild Thornberrys and Father Of The  Pride.  She  is  however  best  known as a scream queen.

Kathleen Kinmont ( as  Kelly )

Sex : Kelly  starts having sex with Rachel's boyfriend but they are interrupted

Death : Impaled with a shotgun

Kathleen is  a  former  model who  worked her  way up from bit parts to more substantial roles. For  four  years she  starred in  the  series  Renegade  alongside  her then-husband Lorenzo Lomas. She  is  currently  in  the  TV  series Phoenix.

752 Pumpkinhead (1988)

 The  always reliable Lance  Henriksen stars  here  as  a  vengeful father out  in  the  sticks who  calls  on  a  local demon  when his  son is  mown down by an oaf  from  a  group  of  campers . This  is  a slick  monster  movie  graced  with  some genuine pathos. Henriksen is  great but the  victims  are a bit too  thinly  drawn  for  you to  care  much  what  happens to  them.

Cynthia Bain ( as Tracey )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Cynthia  is  from California and  this  was  her  second  film  role. Her  acting  career mostly  consisted of  TV  work. In 2005, she  retired from  acting  herself  and  became  an  actung  coach. She  worked  in  this  capacity on  Tv  for  another  10 years  and  runs  her  own  Young Actor Studio.

Kimberly Ross ( as Kim )

Sex : No

Death : Dropped on to a rock from a great height

Kimberly  was  from  Missouri  and  was  a  model  before going  into  acting in  the  early  eighties. This  was  her  penultimate  screen role . After  retiring from acting  in  the  early  nineties, she  ran  a  photography studio. She died of breast cancer in 2006.

Kerry Remsen ( as Maggie )

Sex : No

Death : Her head is rammed through a glass window, cutting her throat

Kerry  was  from  Los  Angeles  and  had  a  solid unspectacular  career , mainly on TV, between 1981 and 1995.

Devon Odessa (as Hessie )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  was 14 year old Devon's first film role after a handful of TV appearances. Her  career has  been  split about 50/50  between film and  TV ( notably My So-Called Life )  but  her  appearances have been sporadic in recent years.