Dom's B-Movie Round-Up #21

The "Curse" series is yet another loose succession of cheap horror ditties that have nothing to do with one another. Movie studios must love cranking out in-name-only sequels. They all but guarantee a profit, what with the low budget and the connection to a relatively popular film. "The Curse" concerned rabid farm animals, "Curse II: The Bite" dealt with a half-man/half-snake, and this, the long-awaited third installment (cue the cheeky giggling), is about a sea creature who is called upon to avenge the life of a goat. Yes, you read that correctly. You can't say that "The Curse III: Blood Sacrifice" is a trite cash-in. The plot is sort of original. You can see the novelty if you squint your eyes. Christopher Lee collects a paycheck with a role as a mysterious doctor. I hope that Lee's agent in the early-to-mid 90's was fired. What was he thinking?

As to be expected, the eightysomething scream king is the only cast member that sells his dialogue. Jenilee Harrison (Cindy on "Three's Company") stars as a pretty idiot. She couldn't act her way out of John Ritter's casket (ouch, I offended myself with that one). Our sea creature is of the rubber suit variety. We only get to see it for three minutes. I'm a monster man, so I got a few cheap thrills out of the klutzy climax. The pacing is mostly swift, although the second act slows to an arthritic crawl. I don't really know if I liked this movie or not. It just exists. While "Curse III" is a slight step down from its gory, nauseating predecessor, it's not a total loss. I have yet to see the first film. Man, whoever is responsible for the "Curse" flicks would have to be completely loony to scrounge up a fourth chapter in this slapdash saga.

Curse IV: The Ultimate Sacrifice (1993)

"Curse IV" is not "Curse IV." It's a film called "Catacombs" that was made in 1988. It was released on video in 1993 as "Curse IV: The Ultimate Sacrifice." Does this mean that "Curse III" was merely a penultimate sacrifice? Ha! I'm not funny. This flick isn't quite as predictable as one would imagine. The action takes place in a monastery where a demon is resurrected from beneath the holy temple. The first half of "Curse IV" is a religious drama. It's actually - dare I say it - good! The acting is mannerly. I couldn't believe how well all of the characters were developed. The horror aspects of the storyline asperse the film as a single unit. Quite frankly, the spooky stuff is lame. This reluctant sequel would have been better off as a drama.

Famed composer Pino Donaggio contributes haunting melodies to the proceedings. The atmosphere is gloomy to the core. I was hoping for a killer second half to knock this one out of the ballpark, but I got a sac bunt instead of a homerun (an ultimate sacrifice bunt, that is). The demon is just a guy donning a dusty wig and a crude prosthetic. He looks like a bum who woke up with his face in a bowl of oatmeal. I am forced to chalk up "Curse IV: The Ultimate Sacrifice" as wasted potential. There are not even any cool death sequences to speak of. In fact, I don't remember seeing a smattering of blood. Boring, boring, boring. For some reason, I still want to view the original "Curse" film. I'm a masochistic completist. Why am I single again?