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Film & TV on DVD - John Doe News & Reviews

 
Greetings Film Fiends and welcome to John Doe's Film Blog. 30 years of dedicated celluloid obsession has meant that I have seen a few films. Drawing attention to some of the lesser discussed gems that I love. Cult classics, obscure curios and quality genre pictures. This blogs purpose is to translate some of my passion for these films and with luck, inspire you the reader to go check em out.
Part 2: John Doe's Favourite Horror TV Anthologies.


Read Part 1- John Doe's favourite Horror Series by clicking HERE

twilight zone, rod serling, science fiction, horror, tv classic
Eye of the Beholder - A John Doe favourite from The Twilight Zone



Now that you have read Part One, which was JD’s favourite horror TV series, continuing sagas told chapter by chapter, episode by episode. Now comes the staple of the small screen genre. Compilations of short stories, only linked by their common intent, these are the Anthologies where each episode is a stand alone tale.



The Anthologies


masters of horror, dvd, john carpenter, takshi miiike, john landis, horror tv
The temptation of the Masters of Horror
Masters of Horror (2005)
With episodes Directed by John Landis (An American Werewolf in London), John Carpenter (Halloween), Takashi Miike (Audition), Mick Garris, Lucky McKee (May), Dario Argento (Suspiria), Joe Dante (The Howling), Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator) and Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) do I need to waste anymore words in telling you this a terror treat of the top tier?


Here are trailers for John Doe's two favourite episodes:

John Carpenters Cigarette Burns



Takishi Miike's Imprint


twilight zone, , night gallery, rod serling, science fiction, horror, tv classic
The most influential shows on TV?
Rod Serling’s Twilight Zone (1959) and Night Gallery (1970)
Few series have ever had as much longevity as this pair of brain mutating, social commentary laden exercises in intellectual potpourri. Every week a new mystery, every 7 days a revelation and all episodes ranged from good to classic with numerous unforgettable episodes feeding the imagination. Need I say a trip to The Outer Limits was equally enjoyable?

Cast Included: Lee Marvin, Cliff Robertson, Martin Landau
Directors included: Stuart Rosenberg (Cool hand Luke), Don Siegel (Invasion of the Body Snatchers), and Richard Donner (The Omen).


alfred hitchcock presents, horror tv, great directors, thriller
Alfred Hitchcock sheepishly surrenders to his critics
Alfred Hitchcock presents (1955)
That rotund refiner of tension and suspense Alfred Hitchcock hosted this quality selection of macabre short stories with his trademarked dark wit. Hitch also Directed 17 episodes himself and like other anthologies listed AHP contained a slew of memorable guest stars.

Cast Included: Charles Bronson and Walter Matthau
Directors Included: Steven Spielberg (Jaws), Robert Altman (The Long Goodbye)
Writers Included: Ray Bradbury, Roald Dahl


tales from the crypt, horror tv, tv on dvd
All the Crypt keeper you can handle on DVD
Tales from the Darkside (1984) & Tales from the Crypt (1989)
Inspired by the 1950’s comic books, forever entwined by their similar format and distinctly 80’s nostalgia, who can forget the extroverted Crypt Keepers cackle opening. Piled high with grotesque and maniacal intent this duo balanced wrongful giggles and genuine frights to ensure its destiny of warping a generation of young minds.

Crypt Writers Included: Frank Darabont (The Mist) and Walter Hill (The Warriors)
Crypt Directors Included; Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future), Russell Mulcahy (Highlander), Richard Donner (The Omen)


Darkside Directors Included: Tom Savini
Darkside Writers Included: Stephen King


night stalker, night strangler, vampires, horror tv, darren mcgavin
The Stalker and Strangler together on DVD
Richard Matheson’s The Night Stalker (1972), Trilogy of Terror (1975) & Dead of Night (1977)
After cross pollinating with Rod Serling on The Twilight Zone and Night Gallery writer Richard Matheson (I Am Legend, The Box) was the major creative force behind the vampire TV movie The Night Stalker and its sequel The Night Strangler. Matheson then contributed to the quality anthology series Trilogy of Terror and Dead of Night.


the hitchhiker, horror tv, hbo, television
The Hitchhiker thumbing its finger at the censors

The Hitchhiker (1983)
Edgy, erotic and graphic, all served with a slice of cheese and a side of imaginative beef. The thrilling, sometimes demented show The Hitchhiker is a perfect example of how HBO changed the television landscape forever challenging what was acceptable by thumbing a ride on the horror express.


Directors include – Phillip Noyce (Backroads) and Mike Hodges (Get Carter)

Dark Shadows (1966)
Vampires, Ghosts and other supernatural characters populate the story of the wealthy Collins family from Collinport Maine. Directed by Dan Curtis (Trilogy of Terror, Night Stalker) this gothic horror soap opera had the vibe of live theatre often filmed on the fly, there has been nothing quite like since.


Here is the opening to the Dark Shadows pilot, gnaw on the juicey overt seriousness



Click HERE for Part 1 of John Does Favourite Horror Series
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Part 1: John Doe's Favourite Horror TV Series'

Read Part 2- John Doe's favourite Horror Anthologies by clicking HERE

carnivale, hbo, horror tv, nick stahl, clancy brown
Roll up, roll up for the Carnivale of freakish horrors and mutated delight


Being in the U.S and experiencing Halloween for the first time was for John Doe an excuse to go all out on horror for the month of October.

Still dripping scarlet fluids and peeling of decrepit false flesh Mr Doe embraced the dark, evil rituals of his first all Hallows night in the USA. As a result his blog suffered from such a hemophiliac loss of creative blood that it would have even left a vampire withering in its own starving misery.

The festive mood still lingers and having previously posted his 13 Great Horror Movies for Friday the 13th The Doe has decided to list his all time small screen horror favourites.

Pure horror on TV is even rarer than finding it in cinemas. Generally it gets merged with Science Fiction or Fantasy so a little liberty has been taken with the list below. That being said all the shows have moments of genuine chills and a self evident adoration for the genre itself.

Divided into 2 parts, the first (The Series) being continuous sagas driven by episodic storytelling. The second (The Anthologies) is shows comprised of stand alone short stories


The Series


American Gothic (1995)
Lording over a small South Carolina town called Trinity, the devilishly enigmatic Sherriff Lucas Buck (Gary Cole) is obsessed with a gifted young boy named Caleb (Lucas Black). Criminally canceled just as it was truly hitting its stride, this Sam Raimi produced series combines it dark intent with a mischievous sense of humour.

American Gothic Trailer



carnivale dvd, hbo, horror tv
Carnivale DVD
Carnivale (2003)
The battle between good and evil, heaven and hell rages in this Lynchian Deadwood meets American Gothic series produced by Ronald D Moore (Battlestar Galactic). The production design is faultless, the script eagerly plays with the mysterious characters and the dense storytelling make it worthy of several viewings. The cast including Clancy Brown (Highlander) and Nick Stahl (Bully) are as good as any that have slimed onto the small screen and the epic scope of its tale made John Doe want to bite the head of a chicken when it was cancelled after only two seasons.


the kindom, riget, horror tv, lars von trier
The Kingdom - Riget DVD
Riget aka The Kingdom (1994)
Controversial Filmmaker Lars Von Trier (AntiChrist, Breaking Waves) happily exists on an existential plain of his own and this TV miniseries capitalizes on his esoteric eccentricities. Set in a state of the art hospital where things gradually get weirder and weirder to get specific would do you the reader an injustice, just know that this challenging brain food that serves its dish cold.


x files, david duchovny, chris carter, gillian anderson
The X Files Complete Box Set DVD
Chris Carter’s Millennium (1996) and The X Files (1993)
It is hard to choose which of these two horror/sci-fi morsels was superior. The Mulder and Scully show aka The X Files may have been more science fiction based but contained its share of atmospheric terror. The fact that Stephen King and Dean Koontz wrote episodes justifies including it in a horror list too. Millennium however thrived in a dark,foreboding tension that was forever indebted to Lance Henriksen’s (Near Dark, Aliens) skillful strength of menace.


The moody Intro sequence for Millennium


dead like me, horror comedy, horror tv, mandy potemkin
Dead Like Me Complete Series DVD
Dead Like Me (2003)
This is a quirky horror/comedy about a young girl named George (Ellen Muth) who discovers that after death she has been assigned to Grim Reaper duties. Witty with colorfully imaginative deaths, a self aware script created by Bryan Fuller (Heroes, Wonderfalls) and the twisted after-life politics amuse. Mandy Potemkin (The Princess Bride) makes it a must watch. Oh and you guessed it, canceled before it's time while Buffy ran 7 years, makes no sense to Doe


For all us fans here is the trailer for the Dead Like Me movie released on DVD in 2009



Click HERE for Part 1 of John Does Favourite Horror Anthologies
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