Rituals (1976) review

RITUALS 1976 (US release in 1978) aka THE CREEPER

Hal Holbrook (Harry), Lawrence Dane (Mitzi), Robin Gammell (Martin), Ken James (Abel), Gary Reineke (D.J.), Jack Creley (Jesse Crowley), Michael Zenon (Matthew Crowley)

Directed by Peter Carter

"We're payin' for somethin' somebody else did!"

The Short Version: One of the most talked about and yet one of the most obscure horror movies ever made. This Canadian wilderness tale of terror is greatly respected in horror circles and now it's finally available to the masses in an uncut version. The plot has been done before and so many times since, but seldom this good. Very similar to DELIVERANCE (1972), this outright horror film has plenty of suspense to go around ably assisted by an intriguingly witty script and astonishing, sometimes cataclysmic cinematography.


Five doctors on their yearly vacationing ritual decide to enjoy a six day sojourn camping in the wilderness. Not long after they've arrived, they discover they are not alone. Someone, or something is watching, waiting and stalking them--playing a game of cat and mouse that ends in gruesome violence. With no compass and dwindling resources, the remaining men eventually turn on each other pointing fingers in the process; unable to figure out why this unseen stalker wants them dead.


Peter Carter, the director of the obscure ALIEN inspired TV monster movie, THE INTRUDER WITHIN (1981), helmed this ominously suspenseful spooker about a group of friends on a camping trip who encounter danger and death on their six day excursion into the woods. With a resume full of outdoor productions, Carter makes the most of the dense forests and desolate wastelands of the Canadian wilderness. The photography, the locations, the music, the acting and direction all gel to create a satisfyingly uncomfortable viewing experience. It's a shame RITUALS remains an obscurity. It's recent DVD release from Code Red sold out amazingly fast (it has since become available again), so hopefully the film will find the audience that eluded it years before.


The theme of city dwellers battling both the elements and crazed denizens of the woods was done most famously in John Boorman's DELIVERANCE (1972). While that film was less a horror movie than it was an adventure thriller about three men discovering themselves and civilizations darker side, that storyline was reused for later pictures that heightened the horror potential of such a story. Movies like JUST BEFORE DAWN (1980), HUNTER'S BLOOD (1986) and WRONG TURN (2003) are good examples of this. RITUALS (1976) follows this template as well, but abandons slasher conventions and while it's definitely a horror movie, it perfectly balances the cruelty with its characterization. Another 'Campfire Carnage' movie, MOTHER'S DAY (1980), uses the idea of a group of friends partaking in an annual ritual of picking a new vacation spot as a grand getaway. In that film, it's three young women who are stalked and eventually captured by two insane brothers trained to brutalize, rape and kill women by their demented mother.


In RITUALS, a great deal is learned about these five friends before the unseen stalker begins killing them off. Meticulously toying with them before he kills them, this mountain madman utilizes methods that recall similar tropes seen later in THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT (1999). Individuals are startled by bizarre, or gruesome objects left for them to see, or are stumbled upon. Once it's finally revealed during the last twenty minutes just who the killer is, his motive is not laid out for the viewer. It may not catch your attention the first time around, but there's a sequence early in the film during a campfire scene with the five doctors getting sufficiently drunk that clues the viewer in on the deranged and deformed maniacs reasoning. RITUALS is one of those movies that's best discovered with very little knowledge of what transpires beforehand--knowing about as much of what's going on as the five men being terrorized onscreen.


Genre fans more akin to newer examples of wilderness horror (that leave nothing to the imagination and splashing severed limbs at the screen every few minutes) may find this exemplary production tiresome with its talky stretches, exposition, haunting, desolate locations (some of these are absolutely stunning emitting an apocalyptic vibe) and minimal gore. Even though very little blood is spilled, the gore present elicits the appropriate shock especially one scene when two of the men awaken to find a surprise left for them sometime during the night.


The practice of keeping the killer in the dark till the closing moments works wonders and there's some strikingly eerie shots of the madman seen standing stationary from afar; watching his quarry, savoring the hunt. There's one shot early on in the campfire scene near the beginning where we see a shadow of a scraggly man in the moonlit glow from the river. Of course, POV shots had been generously used in Bob Clark's BLACK CHRISTMAS (1974) and again in Carpenter's HALLOWEEN (1978). The usage of a stalker merely standing at a distance watching its prey was seen in the creepy excess of the even more obscure SHOCK WAVES (1976) and yet again in HALLOWEEN.


Containing a sufficient degree of suspense, this character driven exercise in backwoods terror is an essential title for the serious horror fan and one that has been hotly anticipated since its announcement two years ago. It's been a long time coming, but RITUALS is well worth the wait. Previously available in inferior versions in both stateside and foreign releases, this Code Red version, while bearing a fairly beat up print, is uncut at 100 minutes and the concluding cabin sequence (damaged in a lab accident back in '76) looks far better than the murky mess of all other releases. While this movie deserves a class A release all around, Code Red should be commended for their efforts considering the climate of the niche DVD market these days. Brave the elements to secure yourself a copy of this brooding and shocking entry in the backwoods survival horror sub genre.

DiabolikDVD got over 40 copies in this week they are now down to 8 as of this writing. It can be purchased their at this LINK

This review is representative of the Code Red DVD

Malibu High (1979) review

A blatant case of false advertising. Not only are none of these people featured on the above poster in the movie, but this image would have you believe the title film is a teen sex comedy! However, there's plenty of sex and lots of UNintentional comedy.

MALIBU HIGH 1978

Jill Lansing (Kim Bentley), Stuart Taylor (Kevin), Katie Johnson (Lucy), Phyllis Benson (Miss Bentley), Alex Mann (Tony)

Directed by Irvin Berwick

"You can screw the teachers, but you can't screw the school!"

The Short Version: Tawdry and tasteless flick about a spiteful high school tramp who screws her way to the top of her class becoming a hooker and hitwoman along the way. This amazing, morally repugnant, no budget wonder is a treasure trove of trash for drive in and 42nd Street specialists.

***WARNING! This review contains nudity***

Kim Bentley is a high school hellcat who has no interest in graduating and no tolerance for anyone save for her friend, Lucy. After her boyfriend dumps her for another girl, Kim decides to get 'A's the old fashioned way--by screwing her way to the top. Making money on the side as a hooker, Kim attracts a high dollar clientele who makes her an all new proposition--as a paid assassin!


Irvin Berwick, the director of THE MONSTER OF PIEDRAS BLANCAS (1958) was behind this wholeheartedly hokey, but profusely entertaining chunk of 70s sleaze. While the performances are terrible and the production values are non existent, this poverty row picture is never boring and has one of the scummiest auras of any exploitation movie that spewed onto a theater, or drive in screen during the 1970s. Playing like a reverse version of an 'After School Special' and loaded with sex, nudity and violence, MALIBU HIGH is a checklist of what NOT to do when in high school.

This image sums up Kim perfectly

Jill Lansing's performance as Kim, while not good, is the only one that registers a pulse. Her constant eye rolling and cavalcade of snide remarks are memorable. Kim is a wholly unlikable character and a seriously hateful bitch. While her scenes and dialog exchanges elicit some laughs, there's nothing about her that makes her sympathetic in any way. She insults her mother, seduces her teachers, sells her body, kills various cast members and gets revenge on those she perceives as having wronged her when she is the one in the wrong the entire time!


MALIBU HIGH is simply one of the most mesmerizingly bizarre exploitation movies you're ever likely to see. From the way it's shot, to the ridiculous dialog, the line delivery and the way the plot works itself out. The story of a high school hitwoman is just too wild to pass up and even though this largely hack work from start to finish, it's undeniably entertaining just the same. Even more peculiar is the films title and its poster. Both are one of the most incredibly deceptive cases of false advertising you're likely to come across.

Kim has got it made and she's Hot For Teacher

The music is another case of hilarity. There's recognizable stock tracks throughout (you'll recognize one from KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS), but the most riotously funny is the inclusion of THE PEOPLE'S COURT main theme. Once it hits, you expect to hear Doug Llewelyn to introduce Judge Wapner and both the plaintiff and defendant. Other humorous musical moments are these chintzy game show like stings that follow heated conversations that close out a scene. They're bewilderingly bad and serve this uproariously awful, but summarily sleazy flick all too well.

Kim has the principal sent to her office

It's not a horror movie and it's not a teen sex comedy as its title and marketing would have you believe. There are teens, though, and plenty of sex. There's also dollops of lewdness and aberrant behavior that signals a goldmine for exploitation hounds. Before you decide to flunk out, make sure you take the course in High Trash at MALIBU HIGH.

This review is representative of the BCI DVD