Category: TV Terror Guide

  • The Woman Hunter (1972)

    The Woman Hunter (1972)

    If The Woman Hunter (1972) succeeds in anything, it’s in reminding us that Barbara Eden is a beautiful woman. What better way to demonstrate the fact than by placing her on an Acapulco beach! However, coming from the mind of Brian Clemens (prolific writer from The Avengers television series and creator of Captain Kronos: Vampire…

  • When Michael Calls (1972)

    When Michael Calls (1972)

    If there’s one TV horror film I remember from the 1970s, it’s When Michael Calls (1972.) For some reason, it remains vivid in my mind. That reason may very well be the commercials I saw for it around the time it originally aired. (I find myself frequently remembering advertisements for movies and TV shows more…

  • Something Evil (1972)

    Something Evil (1972)

    Arriving immediately after Duel (1971), you have to be at least a little disappointed in Steven Spielberg’s next-to-last TV movie, Something Evil (1972.) However, a comparison of the two provides a good example of how a minimalist approach can work perfectly for one movie and not so perfectly for another. As you’ll read, I don’t…

  • The Screaming Woman (1972)

    The Screaming Woman (1972)

    When The Screaming Woman (1972) began, I immediately liked the music and therefore closely watched the credits to see the name of the composer. Either I missed it, or it was not in the opening credits. In any case, I have now learned it was none other than John Williams! This was apparently one of…

  • She Waits (1972)

    She Waits (1972)

    The headline here is that She Waits (1972) was written by Art Wallace, the man who created the bible for Dark Shadows and wrote its first 40 episodes, plus many more after that, including those introducing the reluctant vampire, Barnabas Collins. Here, he focuses strictly on ghosts. The story isn’t quite as soapy as Dark…

  • Women in Chains (1972)

    Women in Chains (1972)

    Yes, that’s Ida Lupino, award-winning actress from the golden age of Hollywood, playing prison guard Claire Tyson and punching women in the stomach. This was, in fact, her 1970s television movie debut. During the following two years, she appeared in five more. She was no stranger to television, though, having appeared in many series throughout…

  • Black Noon (1971)

    Black Noon (1971)

    The cat in Black Noon (1971) is yellow, not black, matching the blonde witch in the film, Deliverance, played by the lovely Yvette Mimieux. This isn’t a spoiler; we see her in a pre-opening credits scene in which she strokes the cat as she watches a church burn. Granted, we don’t exactly know her role…

  • Duel (1971)

    Duel (1971)

    It had been a long time since I watched Duel (1971) and I forgot what an incredible movie it is, made for television or not. During this viewing, I paid more attention than I have in the past to how the direction, cinematography, and music contribute to the suspense. Make no mistake; every bit of…

  • Paper Man (1971)

    Paper Man (1971)

    Although parts of Paper Man (1971) are dated, the overall premise is as relevant as ever. Simply substitute artificial intelligence for old-fashioned computer coding, and the resulting creation of a virtual human that doesn’t physically exist, is a compelling, sometimes frightening, concept for a movie. What a 1971 TV-movie like this one mixes into the…

  • Revenge! (1971)

    Revenge! (1971)

    Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new leader of the pack for my favorite 1970s TV horror film: Revenge! We’re only up to the end of 1971, and there are eight more years to go, but it’s going to take a lot to top this one. From cast to script to direction to music, Revenge!…