ISMN: Roger Corman’s “The Undead” (1957) - Thursday 8:30 PM (in Springville)
Not available on NetFlix #13 - (Notice the location change again this week! We’ll be screening once again in Springville)
Continuing our Halloween setlist this year, it’s one of the rarest films by Roger Corman:
“The Undead” (1957)
DVDR/Sourced from two VHS tapes/B&W/76 Mins/Unrated
Right before typing this, I transferred this film from two video sources! Years ago I taped this film off of AMC’s Monster Fest while living in California. Right after Corman introduces the film, the network messed up and after a couple minutes of silence, AMC started playing the wrong movie and then The Undead began, already 3 minutes in. I’ve restored the intro from a PAL VHS from the UK, and then returned to the superior television transfer.
Make sense?
I do own the Mystery Science Theater version of this film, but I appreciate the original version this movie for what it is. (I also own the abbreviated Super 8 version :)
Two actors that you may recognize are Allison Hayes from “Attack of the 50 ft Woman”, and famous “Mormon” actor Billy Barty as the Imp (“Willow”, “UHF” and “Gold Diggers of 1933” etc.)
A personal favorite of the AIP films, I like this film more the more I see it. Originally titled “The Trance of Diana Love”, The Undead was one of several reincarnation films to cash-in on the popular vinyl record/hypnosis novel “The Search for Bridey Murphy” by Morey Bernstein.
I once played it in it’s entirety on “Oddity Rock Radio”. We have the original vinyl in the archive and may play a clip before the movie if there’s time :)
Plot summary from IMDB:
“Two psychical researchers procure the services of a lady of the night and send her back in time under hypnosis. She finds herself in the body of a past existence - a woman in medieval times waiting to be beheaded as a witch. By avoiding this fate she unwittingly starts to alter history.”
For a second opinion of The Undead check out: http://www.dvddrive-in.com/reviews/t-z/undead57.htm
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Bonus Short Film:
Tales From the Dark Side: “Trick or Treat”
VHS/20 Mins/TV - Not Rated
The pilot episode of one of the greatest TV series of all time, written by George A. Romero (Night of the Living Dead). All the music of this episode was changed for the recent DVD release. We bring you the out of print VHS version with the original music intact!
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Time: Thursday Oct. 20th @ 8:30 PM - Starting later this week due to our F.H.E. starting at 7.
Place: The home of Joseph Winter and Will McCalister etc. - 363 w 300 s, Springville, UT
It’s the last house on the left of the street that looks like an old mansion by the train tracks. Plenty of parking at this location, and more space than my living room. Hope to see some of you there :)
- BC Sterrett
(Above: “The Undead” was originally shown as a double bill with “Voodoo Woman”)
