childhood horror movie favorite....

death dream, dead of night, night walk, whispers, the veteran, the night andy came home... these are various titles of the same 1974 canadian horror film that i was as a child.  i saw a lot of horror movies, and for some reason this one scared me the most.

it's taken me years to remember the movie and research the storyline to find it.  the DVD was released a few years ago with commentary from tom savini (it was his first special effects job!)

IMDB synopsis:  A young Soldier is killed in the line of duty in Vietnam. That same night, the soldier returns home, brought back by his Mother's wishes that he "Don't Die"! Upon his Return, Andy sits in his room, refusing to see his friends or family, venturing out only at night. The Vampiric horror is secondary to the terror that comes from the disintegration of a typical American family.

i remember thinking that the guy was creepy for wearing turtlenecks.  and that the mother character was a horrible bitch.  the dad was a crabby old alcoholic who loved the family dog.

it all ends badly and the final scene, where he drags himself back into his own grave, always made me sad.  it's a horror movie, for sure, but it's also quite depressing.  seeing it on DVD for the first time in over 30 years was amazing.

FYI- i originally saw it on "super host".  remember him???

i like to take photos...

where the wiki takes me....

spending my morning on wikipedia.  i've been reading about kenneth anger, donald cammell, and various underground hollywood directors.  i ended up on the wiki for lupe velez and recalled hearing her story before.  i couldn't remember if it was a film or tv show, so i searched on google and found it.  it was "frazier" of all things!

anyways, i always loved this bit of dialog.....

Roz:  What's eating you?

Frasier:  Oh, I'm sorry. It's just this thing with my father and this,

this person he wants to hire. I thought I'd started my life

with a clean slate. I had picture of what it was going to

be like, and then, I don't know...

Roz:  Ever heard of Lupe Velez?

Frasier:  Who?

Roz:  Lupe Velez - the movie star in the '30s. Well, her career

hit the skids, so she decided she'd make one final stab at

immortality. She figured if she couldn't be remembered for

her movies, she'd be remembered for the way she died. And

all Lupe wanted was to be remembered. So, she plans this

lavish suicide - flowers, candles, silk sheets, white satin

gown, full hair and makeup, the works. She takes the

overdose of pills, lays on the bed, and imagines how

beautiful she's going to look on the front page of

tomorrow's newspaper. Unfortunately, the pills don't sit

well with the enchilada combo plate she sadly chose as her

last meal. She stumbles to the bathroom, trips and goes

head-first into the toilet, and that's how they found her.

Frasier:  Is there a reason you're telling me this story?

Roz:  Yes. Even though things may not happen like we planned,

they can work out anyway.

Frasier:  Remind me again how it worked for Lupe, last seen with her

head in the toilet?

Roz:  All she wanted was to be remembered.

Will you ever forget that story?