18-20. The Wicker Man, Island of Terror and A Candle for the Devil
It's been a lovely weekend. I've done some errands, gone shopping, lounged about in lady_lugosi1313's garden, worked out some ideas for a lecture on Dracula I've been asked to deliver, eaten some lovely food and of course live-tweeted the latest Cellar Club film. Just the kinda stuff a girl can do when she's no longer devoting all her evenings and weekends to a largely hopeless cause! Anyway, talking of live-tweeting, I thought I'd get another few Twitter threads down here.
18. Sing-along-a-Wicker-Man in Sheffield, 20 November
This was not actually a Cellar Club tweet-along, but a live in-person screening of The Wicker Man (1973) done by these good people. I have been to one of their performances before ( LJ / DW), but this was the first time I'm aware of that they've come anywhere near Leeds since, and HickeyWriter and miss_s_b agreed with me that it was worth the journey down to Sheffield. After I'd booked, I was then also contacted by my GP and asked to come in for my third COVID jab earlier on the same day, which made me a bit worried that I would be full of aches and hot flushes in the screening, but actually it was fine and I didn't really get any symptoms until the following day. And of course it would have been utterly worth it even if I had felt a bit sub-par during the screening, because it's that jab, along with its predecessors, which helped ensure I had such an easy ride of it recently when I got actual COVID.
Anyway, I wrote briefly about the trip and the pre-show fancy dress competition in an end-of-year round-up post (LJ / DW), and of course I've written about the film itself a few times in this journal before. But there's always more to say! The real joy of these sing-along screenings is the way they make the filmic world bleed into the real world, and that begins even before the screening, when you find yourself sitting amongst an audience full of people in costumes from the film. We didn't dress up ourselves, though I did wear my Summerisle May-Day Festival T-shirt and my vintage purple flares, but I would say probably about 50% of the audience did, which was quite a sight to behold. Most people had gone for animal masks, which is probably the easiest option, but there was a Lord Summerisle and a man with a Hand of Glory on his shoulder, which we were very taken with. Interesting that everyone went for the role of an islander, rather than Sergeant Howie, revealing something about where the sympathies of most audience members lie. We also noticed that the audience at this particular screening leant fairly young. We ourselves were all born after the film was made, but even then we found ourselves towards the older end of the audience demographic, which is great news actually. It means there's a whole new generation of Wicker fans who will carry on the interest in this film for plenty of decades to come.
The screening itself was the short version, which is standard practice for these sing-along shows. But that's good with me, as it's a chance to see a few snippets which aren't featured in the long version. Although HickeyWriter and I had been to a sing-along version before, miss_s_b had not, so it was lovely watching her experiencing it all for the first time, laughing like a drain at all the in-jokes which the compères do along the way and singing along to all the songs with great gusto, as well as leaning over to anoint her with yellow smiley stickers at the right moment. We had front-row seats which put us right in the centre of the action, and at one point, the compères threw a 'dead hare' (cuddly lion) into the audience which one of us (might have been me initially?) caught, but soon ended up as miss_s_b's little companion for the rest of the screening. The sing-along aspect inevitably positions the audience members as Summerislanders, since Howie doesn't really get much in the way of songs (except for trying to sing 'The Lord's My Shepherd' from his wicker prison at the end), which I suppose helps to explain people's costume preferences as well. And that's great fun, but does also generate an uncomfortable sense of complicity at the end too - which is exactly what the film is all about. Excellent fun, and I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for further screenings in our general neck of the woods.
OK, back to regular tweet-alongs for these next two...
19. Island of Terror (1966), dir. Terence Fisher, broadcast 26 November
Original tweet-along thread
Individual tweets:
Evening, #CellarClub dwellers! Are we all ready for poached-egg aliens with noodly appendages? I know I am! #TheFilmCrowd #IslandOfTerror
Already some splendid duffle coats on display here - one navy blue, one camel brown. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Ooh, loved that effect of the flickering torchlight seen through the cave entrance and accompanied by offstage screams! A nice tease of menaces to come. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Very good shot of the helicopter landing with a wagon in the foreground, to signify the difference between the technically-advanced outsiders and the simple rural locals. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Don't think I've ever noticed the archaic Greek kore in a niche in the corridor in Phillips' house before. I assume it's to show he comes from a wealthy family with ancestors who did the Grand Tour - but such families usually have Roman statues, not Gk. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
The stone effect on the corridor and the staircase down to the lab is really quite poor. On the level of Scars of Dracula for convincingness. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
I'm struggling to accept the sight of cars driving around Black Park. Surely it is a place for horse-drawn carriages and hearses only? #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
David and Toni remind me so much visually of Ian and Barbara from Doctor Who, and that leap over the noodly monster was a lot like the way Ian and Barbara behaved together in Who, too. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
I'm choosing to believe these are the new identities they adopted after being dropped back in London by the Doctor the previous year. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Good to see they're getting the Guinness in during their trip to Irish parts. It would be a waste if they didn't. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Curious to know if the cast are throwing real squibs at this point. There is certainly plenty of very realistic looking smoke. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
If you have ever wished to see Peter Cushing dressed in a giant condom, #IslandOfTerror is the film for you. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
I'm not surprised the cattle are bloody restless! I'd be restless too if you injected me with a radioactive isotope. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
I've seen this film before, pre-COVID, but I have to say the islanders getting panicky and acting against their own good in the face of a public health threat hits different now. All too real. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Whoa, what was David about to inject Toni with there without her consent?? Whether a sedative or something that would have killed her before the creatures could get her, that was DARK. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
And fin. It's a B-feature for sure, but an enjoyable one. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd #IslandOfTerror
20. A Candle for the Devil (1973), dir. Eugenio Martín, broadcast 10 December
Original tweet-along thread
Individual tweets:
It's Friday night, which means it's #CellarClub time! Tonight, Spanish horror, Candle for the Devil. It sounds a bit salacious and sensationalistic, but I am loving the jaunty seventies music and establishing shots of Judy Geeson's journey to Spain so far. #TheFilmCrowd
Uh oh, #sexycorpse! #TheFilmCrowd
Oh, I see, sorry, that wasn't Judy Geeson in the opening credits. Here she is! #TheFilmCrowd
Oh, OK, so we were seeing her travelling to join her sister, rather than the first sister's outward journey? That would explain my confusion! #TheFilmCrowd
Eh up, looks like we need a bun count on this film as well as a boob count! Good to have something for everyone. #TheFilmCrowd
More buns for the tally! #TheFilmCrowd
Now this scene is reminding me of Christopher Lee pushing his way through the hawthorn in The Satanic Rites of Dracula. #TheFilmCrowd
Oh dear, the cut from gory serial killing to an advert about tackling tomato juice stains was a bit unfortunate! #TheFilmCrowd
I love how the latticed wooden screen in the pension looks so much like the screen inside a confessional. The camera-work is making a big thing of it, presumably for that reason. #TheFilmCrowd
And another #sexycorpse... #TheFilmCrowd
To be fair, that was quite a compelling closing shot. I've probably seen that film for the first and last time, though. #TheFilmCrowd
18. Sing-along-a-Wicker-Man in Sheffield, 20 November
This was not actually a Cellar Club tweet-along, but a live in-person screening of The Wicker Man (1973) done by these good people. I have been to one of their performances before ( LJ / DW), but this was the first time I'm aware of that they've come anywhere near Leeds since, and HickeyWriter and miss_s_b agreed with me that it was worth the journey down to Sheffield. After I'd booked, I was then also contacted by my GP and asked to come in for my third COVID jab earlier on the same day, which made me a bit worried that I would be full of aches and hot flushes in the screening, but actually it was fine and I didn't really get any symptoms until the following day. And of course it would have been utterly worth it even if I had felt a bit sub-par during the screening, because it's that jab, along with its predecessors, which helped ensure I had such an easy ride of it recently when I got actual COVID.
Anyway, I wrote briefly about the trip and the pre-show fancy dress competition in an end-of-year round-up post (LJ / DW), and of course I've written about the film itself a few times in this journal before. But there's always more to say! The real joy of these sing-along screenings is the way they make the filmic world bleed into the real world, and that begins even before the screening, when you find yourself sitting amongst an audience full of people in costumes from the film. We didn't dress up ourselves, though I did wear my Summerisle May-Day Festival T-shirt and my vintage purple flares, but I would say probably about 50% of the audience did, which was quite a sight to behold. Most people had gone for animal masks, which is probably the easiest option, but there was a Lord Summerisle and a man with a Hand of Glory on his shoulder, which we were very taken with. Interesting that everyone went for the role of an islander, rather than Sergeant Howie, revealing something about where the sympathies of most audience members lie. We also noticed that the audience at this particular screening leant fairly young. We ourselves were all born after the film was made, but even then we found ourselves towards the older end of the audience demographic, which is great news actually. It means there's a whole new generation of Wicker fans who will carry on the interest in this film for plenty of decades to come.
The screening itself was the short version, which is standard practice for these sing-along shows. But that's good with me, as it's a chance to see a few snippets which aren't featured in the long version. Although HickeyWriter and I had been to a sing-along version before, miss_s_b had not, so it was lovely watching her experiencing it all for the first time, laughing like a drain at all the in-jokes which the compères do along the way and singing along to all the songs with great gusto, as well as leaning over to anoint her with yellow smiley stickers at the right moment. We had front-row seats which put us right in the centre of the action, and at one point, the compères threw a 'dead hare' (cuddly lion) into the audience which one of us (might have been me initially?) caught, but soon ended up as miss_s_b's little companion for the rest of the screening. The sing-along aspect inevitably positions the audience members as Summerislanders, since Howie doesn't really get much in the way of songs (except for trying to sing 'The Lord's My Shepherd' from his wicker prison at the end), which I suppose helps to explain people's costume preferences as well. And that's great fun, but does also generate an uncomfortable sense of complicity at the end too - which is exactly what the film is all about. Excellent fun, and I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for further screenings in our general neck of the woods.
OK, back to regular tweet-alongs for these next two...
19. Island of Terror (1966), dir. Terence Fisher, broadcast 26 November
Original tweet-along thread
Individual tweets:
Evening, #CellarClub dwellers! Are we all ready for poached-egg aliens with noodly appendages? I know I am! #TheFilmCrowd #IslandOfTerror
Already some splendid duffle coats on display here - one navy blue, one camel brown. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Ooh, loved that effect of the flickering torchlight seen through the cave entrance and accompanied by offstage screams! A nice tease of menaces to come. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Very good shot of the helicopter landing with a wagon in the foreground, to signify the difference between the technically-advanced outsiders and the simple rural locals. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Don't think I've ever noticed the archaic Greek kore in a niche in the corridor in Phillips' house before. I assume it's to show he comes from a wealthy family with ancestors who did the Grand Tour - but such families usually have Roman statues, not Gk. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
The stone effect on the corridor and the staircase down to the lab is really quite poor. On the level of Scars of Dracula for convincingness. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
I'm struggling to accept the sight of cars driving around Black Park. Surely it is a place for horse-drawn carriages and hearses only? #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
David and Toni remind me so much visually of Ian and Barbara from Doctor Who, and that leap over the noodly monster was a lot like the way Ian and Barbara behaved together in Who, too. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
I'm choosing to believe these are the new identities they adopted after being dropped back in London by the Doctor the previous year. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Good to see they're getting the Guinness in during their trip to Irish parts. It would be a waste if they didn't. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Curious to know if the cast are throwing real squibs at this point. There is certainly plenty of very realistic looking smoke. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
If you have ever wished to see Peter Cushing dressed in a giant condom, #IslandOfTerror is the film for you. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
I'm not surprised the cattle are bloody restless! I'd be restless too if you injected me with a radioactive isotope. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
I've seen this film before, pre-COVID, but I have to say the islanders getting panicky and acting against their own good in the face of a public health threat hits different now. All too real. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
Whoa, what was David about to inject Toni with there without her consent?? Whether a sedative or something that would have killed her before the creatures could get her, that was DARK. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd
And fin. It's a B-feature for sure, but an enjoyable one. #CellarClub #TheFilmCrowd #IslandOfTerror
20. A Candle for the Devil (1973), dir. Eugenio Martín, broadcast 10 December
Original tweet-along thread
Individual tweets:
It's Friday night, which means it's #CellarClub time! Tonight, Spanish horror, Candle for the Devil. It sounds a bit salacious and sensationalistic, but I am loving the jaunty seventies music and establishing shots of Judy Geeson's journey to Spain so far. #TheFilmCrowd
Uh oh, #sexycorpse! #TheFilmCrowd
Oh, I see, sorry, that wasn't Judy Geeson in the opening credits. Here she is! #TheFilmCrowd
Oh, OK, so we were seeing her travelling to join her sister, rather than the first sister's outward journey? That would explain my confusion! #TheFilmCrowd
Eh up, looks like we need a bun count on this film as well as a boob count! Good to have something for everyone. #TheFilmCrowd
More buns for the tally! #TheFilmCrowd
Now this scene is reminding me of Christopher Lee pushing his way through the hawthorn in The Satanic Rites of Dracula. #TheFilmCrowd
Oh dear, the cut from gory serial killing to an advert about tackling tomato juice stains was a bit unfortunate! #TheFilmCrowd
I love how the latticed wooden screen in the pension looks so much like the screen inside a confessional. The camera-work is making a big thing of it, presumably for that reason. #TheFilmCrowd
And another #sexycorpse... #TheFilmCrowd
To be fair, that was quite a compelling closing shot. I've probably seen that film for the first and last time, though. #TheFilmCrowd