La Grande Trouille/Tendre Dracula (1974)
A great horror star has given up his career in order to devote his life to the cause of Romance. His producer sends two inept screenwriters after him, to drag him back to his commitments. But the fugitive star is much more than he seems to be; and the two idiots soon find that nothing in the real world could prepare them for entering the realm of either horror or romance.
It’s often said that Peter Cushing didn’t make any truly bad movies, because his presence alone was generally enough to save even the worst of them. Trust me to find the exception. La Grande Trouille is so awful that I find myself digressing even further than usual to avoid talking about it. This French would-be comedy wastes not only a good premise, but also the talents of some other fine actors in addition to Cushing: Alida Valli and Miou-Miou.
Will Laughlin is the Braineater.
#1 by GalaxyJane on December 30, 2017 - 8:31 pm
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Not sure I have ever heard “Uncle Was a Vampire” referred to as a charming little comedy before. Then again I haven’t seen it in 30 years and it wasn’t quite what I was looking for as a Christopher Lee obsessed teenaged horror fan.
#2 by Braineater on December 31, 2017 - 8:15 pm
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I enjoyed it more than I expected… (though then again, look what I was comparing it to). Some of the “comedy” that doesn’t involve Christopher Lee is — you’ll pardon the expression — a little long in the tooth. But as long as Lee is on screen, it’s pretty watchable.
#3 by lyzard on December 31, 2017 - 6:57 pm
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Okay. Is it weird that I now feel like rewatching The Blood Beast Terror?
I also feel like a hot shower. I’d say “Thanks for taking one for the team, Will”, but actually I feel bad that you watched this. (Though your review makes the best of things as usual.)
#4 by Braineater on December 31, 2017 - 8:05 pm
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You know, I had the same reaction. So I did.
It helped.
#5 by lyzard on December 31, 2017 - 8:40 pm
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Well, I might take that prescription too!
I always say The Uncanny is the worst Cushing film I’ve seen, but of course that’s mostly because I hate its attitude so much. (I’m sure you sympathise…?)
#6 by Braineater on January 1, 2018 - 1:36 pm
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Mm. There are some movies I don’t like to mention even in passing.
At least Blood Beast Terror is enjoyably stupid. Then again, I don’t have so much of an emotional attachment to moths.
#7 by ronald on January 1, 2018 - 10:46 am
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This isn’t on-topic but has anyone ever pointed out to you (Braineater) that white letters on a black background are WAY harder to read than black letters on a white background? (unless that’s just me, of course) I frequently have to give up on reading one of your reviews (no matter how intriguing it was prior to that point) because my eyes just plain hurt too much from the white-on-black format.
Just thought I’d start the new year by getting that off my chest. Thanks for your time and Happy New Year to everybody. 🙂
#8 by Braineater on January 1, 2018 - 1:46 pm
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Well, I am sorry to hear that. Though I suspect most of my reviews would be be fatiguing in any color…
Early on I did look up some studies on the readability of black-on-white vs. white-on-black, and found the consensus was that they were pretty much the same for a majority of viewers. So I stuck with what I found comfortable.
I have considered moving the whole site over to some sort of content management system, so the readers could choose their own styles. Trouble is, those kind of systems end up being constantly under attack… you wouldn’t believe how many automated attacks the B-Masters’ site gets every day.