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    Past Tense - Blood The Other Drink Part II


    Tangent.

    From time to time I wonder what could've been - the unmade Charles Bronson horror/crime flick. The Cannon Group project fell apart.

    He's done a sci-fi/fantasy movie, "Master Of The World" (1961) and even a supernatural one with "The White Buffalo" (1977). Granted he did one other horror flick, 1953's "House Of Wax", but his role was minor. In fact he had zero dialog, played a mute.

    There was however a horror vehicle in the works for him star in - Bronson was going to battle a legend - the clay man. Yes, that one. *slow nods*

    "The Golem" was announced in the early 1980s with a screenplay by Michael Alan Canter (in reality it was just a treatment). There was even a trade ad in Variety for the production...



    As you can see, a maquette of the head was made; no idea what scale.

    It takes place in New York, a crime wave is hitting the Big Apple hard, especially in the impoverish neighborhoods. In one such place is an elder rabbi; keeper of the clay protector.

    He is the last living member of an ancient secret society in charge of safeguarding the object; not falling into the wrong hands.

    But with so much violence, some of which happened to him, he decided to use the Protector to save them. And so it went to work, murdering all those who are doing ill. The problem comes when the rabbi dies. Can't recall if it were natural causes or crime related. There was no word to rescind the order.

    Now the Golem is running amok. It's up to a police detective (Bronson) to understand what is murdering all those thugs and how to stop it.

    This was a precursor to the T-1000; it could travel through pipes as mud and reform to complete its task. I would've loved to have seen this and you know it would be badass.



    Yeah I should, some could be in the dark.

    Above is Bronson, he made a lifetime career of playing the tough guy who got sh!t done.

    He really came onto his own in the 1970s and 80s, a middle age man who took names and bashed heads. He did not look like the stereotypical hero, but was the guy you wanted when in a serious scrape. A one man army, a vigilante.

    Bronson did crime dramas, westerns and action movies. Some of them were so-so, but others were amazing.

    I don't call this Tangent for nothing. *smiles*

    There was another film with the Clay Man, "It!" a 1967 British semi-horror movie starring Roddy McDowall.



    This tale involves McDowall as Arthur Pym, a timid, British museum assistant who becomes corrupted with absolute power. Pym uncovers the secret to controlling the clay statue to do his dark desires. Things escalate, resulting in a small nuke being used to bring down the soil automaton, which fails. And fails reason too - out running a nuke on motorcycle.

    Man, that ending was stupid as hell. *shakes head*

    Don't be so curious. It's a crappy flick; nearly embarrassing in its juvenile logic and wanting Pym to be this Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins in "Psycho" [1960]) wannabe. Like the motel clerk, he has his long dead mother in his home in a rocking chair. Why? It has nothing to do with the story being told. In fact, it's hinted since she was rocking that there was some kind of supernatural aspect at play. Which in terms of the Golem plot is true, but for Arthur's personal life...

    No.

    Anyhow, under this muck is a good film, better writing and losing pointless story lines. The Golem is a man in suit (Alan Seller), which is fine. But when he's not moving, you need a full size prop - not just having the guy under the make-up stand still which doesn't work since you can see him ever so slightly move/breathe. Plus have prop limbs for close-ups. You can see the rubber suit dent and wobble. But the overall look of the Golem is solid, it's creepy; created by Eric Carter.

    There is another part that grabbed my attention.

    And continues to this day.

    Once Pym finds an inscription on the body, he takes a rub to a Jewish scholar to translate. First off, Arthur works at a museum; he should've known some department there to have it deciphered. Or maybe, just maybe this move was smart - covering his tracks for when he uses the clay brute. *shrugs*

    This part - where the scholar (Richard Goolden) is concerned by what is brought to him, I enjoyed. You get a taste of what this could've been...

    Arthur: You have it?
    Scholar: This is a most rare thing. I don't believe that you got it off some stone as you said. If I translate it for you, will you agree to tell me the truth?
    Arthur: [pause] Yes.
    Scholar: Very well. "He who will find the secret of my life at his feet, him I will serve until beyond time. He who shall evoke me in the 17th century, beware for I cannot by fire be destroyed. He who shall evoke me in the 18th century, beware for I cannot by fire or by water be destroyed. He who evokes me in the 19th century, beware for I cannot by fire or by water or by force be destroyed. He who in the 20th century shall dare evoke me, beware for neither by fire nor water nor force nor anything by man created, can I be destroyed. He who in the 21st century evokes me must be of God's hand himself because on this Earth the person of man existeth no more." Now, tell me. Where did you get this?
    Arthur: [long pause] I traced it off an old statue that came from Czechoslovakia. Does it have any significance?
    Scholar: Significance? That statue is the great Golem, believed to have been destroyed centuries ago. If it is still in existence. IF, I say. It is probably the most powerful force on Earth today.
    Arthur: More powerful than the H-bomb?
    Scholar: [scowl] A bomb is finished when it has exploded, but the Golem will go on and on... forever. Serving or destroying.
    Arthur: What do you mean, serving?
    Scholar: It will obey whoever places the magic scroll beneath its tongue.
    Arthur: Were does one get this magic scroll?
    Scholar: If I knew that, I would not reveal it to you. Power destroys.
    Arthur: Yes. I appreciate your help.
    Scholar: I fear it.

    Think about that. *wicked grin*

    It feel very much like that moment from John Carpenter's "Prince Of Darkness" (1987).

    The possessed girl, Lisa (Ann Yen) - typing at her computer...

    "You will not be saved by the Holy Ghost. You will not be saved by the god Plutonium. In fact, YOU WILL NOT BE SAVED!"

    If this was a better production, it would be remembered as a classic. No, I'm serious. There's enough elements here that shine through the mess. NOW this is a movie that screams to be remade, done proper. Hell, keep it set in the 1960s; it ain't broke.

    Another thing that kinda bothered me. How can the Golem understand Arthur? He's speaking English; should he give his commands in Hebrew???

    Hey!

    What if, Charles Bronson fought the "30 Days Of Night" vampires?

    It would be amazing.

    And yeah, I know there is a German silent movie on the subject "The Golem" from 1915; I have it on DVD from Kino International. There were two sequels, "The Golem And The Dancing Girl" (1917) and "The Golem: How He Came Into the World" (1920). "Dancing Girl" is considered a lost film.

    - - - - - - - - - -

    Footnotes.



    There was a sequel. Released on October 5th, 2010, a direct to video, "30 Days Of Night: Dark Days" ($24.96) which took place a year after the slaughter at Barrow, Alaska. That cover is pretty crappy, like it was the preliminary art that somehow made it to final because someone was asleep or too lazy, 'good enough'.

    Actress Kiele Sanchez took over the Stella Oleson role. While I would've liked George to reprise her character, I'm not disappointed with Sanchez. As I understand she wanted to come back to the role, but George had a scheduling conflict.

    Sanchez side note, I wish her former ABC series, "Married To The Kellys" (2003) would come to DVD.

    I liked it, lasted one season.



    Stella has moved to Los Angeles trying to get anybody to believe her claim that real vampires murdered her town folks, giving lectures. In one such lecture she exposes some vampires in the audience. But her reveal gets shot down by an FBI agent in league with the vamps. She then meets a group of hunters who tell her that the vampyre queen, Lilith is in town, ready to leave for Alaska. Together they go on the hunt to avenge their lost love ones.

    The sequel was made for $3,000,000 (estimated) and is based on the comic book mini-series of the same name. Mia Kirshner plays Lilith; most remember Kirshner as 'Naked Mandy' from the first episode of the series "Twenty-Four" (2001). I know I do. Anyhow, "Dark Days" was a decent flick, I own it. Did like that the vampires were as nasty as the first film.

    Next month starts a new theme; "Agitated Movie Month". Films that ticked me off, things could have been a lot better. Come back here on November 10th, 2016 for a movie that nearly killed a franchise, bring bandages, dusty ones.

    Have a happy and safe Halloween!
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 08-18-2019 at 03:56 AM.

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