The Crawling Hand

"The Crawling Hand" (1963, Herbert L. Strock, Donald J. Hansen Enterprises) is an American sci-fi horror about why even med students shouldn't take home severed human remains as souvenirs...

Right, Vyvyan?

Back to the film...

Young Paul Lawrence (Rod Lauren) discovers the severed arm of a deceased astronaut whilst out on the beach with his girlfriend. He takes the gruesome discovery home but lives to regret this decision as the arm comes back to life, strangling everyone in its wake....

A very of-its-era black and white film, with fun background music and too much dialogue. Man finally landed on the moon in 1969, but this film was made right at the time of the space race hype. The action is quite tame by today's standards, but people like me will still get a kick out of it and enjoy the film for what it is; classic, cheesy horror. The acting is pretty campy, but for me that just enhances the experience.

The film also features Syd Saylor in his final film role, and a small nod to Bela Lugosi. It was also featured in the Mystery Science Theatre 3000.

Hani 

Idle Hands

"Idle Hands" (1999, Rodman Flender, Columbia Pictures) is another horror comedy (ok, so I like horror comedies!).

This time it's all about 3 stoner teens, Anton (Devon Sawa), Pnub (Elden Henson) and Mick (Seth Green) who do nothing all day but smoke, chat, eat and watch rubbish on TV.

Until, of course, Anton discovers on Halloween that his hand has become possessed and is killing everyone! He tries to find a way to stop it before it kills all 2 of his friends and that girl that he likes, Molly (Jessica Alba).

Gory, entertaining and dumb, "Idle Hands" isn't a clever film and doesn't try to be. The effects are fun, and while the humour isn't quite of "Evil Dead 2" calibre, it's still fun.

A fun 90s soundtrack includes Rob Zombie, Mötley Crüe and an appearance of The Offspring reminds you why you're watching this film; for fun. If you want a serious horror it isn't for you.

More of a humorous homage to the horror genre, "Idle Hands" should be taken with a pinch of salt and enjoyed for its base attractions: Seth Green, Jessica Alba, undead folk and killer hands. If you want more, I think you should go watch "Evil Dead".

[Image: Columbia Pictures]

 

Hani