The Puppet Master Continues: Puppet Master: Axis of Evil

ey there folks and welcome back to Day 4 of The Puppet Master Continues.  I took a mild break from these to bring you a podcast yesterday and hope you all got to enjoy #2 of Rotten Ramblin' On .  That in mind I did say we would dredge into YET another Puppet Master and this is also another time period piece... which people cannot seem to research their own source material.  We move back to 1939 with the Nazis hot on Toulon's trail in the Bodega Bay Inn as Toulon (William Hickey via archive footage) has just eaten his revolver and the Nazis consider this a dead end now but we never did find out if the puppets had respond to the loss of their beloved master.  With that, a young man investigates Toulon's room and finds more than he could have imagined.  This is Puppet Master 9: Axis of Evil.

Blade returns to smite Nazis!!!

Taking place in 1939, Danny Coogan (Levi Fiehler of In the Moment, Moonshine Inc., Wolf Town, Fetching, Crosshairs and Glitch) starts us off with making a series of wooden chairs for his Uncle Len's (Jerry Hoffman of Eight Is Enough, A Day for Thanks on Walton's Mountain, The Ratings Game, The Thirst and The Things We Carry) wedding reception and we are treated to a patriotic whining not unlike Steve Rogers in how he cannot get into the army and fight Nazis due to a limp in his leg.   Danny is hip to Toulon in that he knows he is on the run from the Nazis but for what reason there is no real indication.  Danny is actually on his way to Toulon's room when he hears a gunshot and sees two black garbed men goosestep their way from the room.

The House That Dripped...Puppet Juice??

 Toulon had previously shown Danny his puppets and began telling him the tale of his formula and miracle it can bestow on the puppets.   He looks around the room and finds a wall panel that doesn't seem to line up with the rest of the room finding the puppets with re-introduction to Six Shooter and a new puppet named Ninja.

With the Nazi assassins still at large, Danny accidentally discovers a plot to sabotage a bomb manufacturing plant as he recognizes one of the workers as one of the men trailing Toulon.  Desperate to warn his girlfriend Beth (Jenna Gahllaher of Nightfall and Puppet Master: Axis of Evil) that this Max is a Nazi, she doesn't believe him and he trails Max to an old Opera House in Chinatown to uncover the plot.   Long story into it, Max sends his partner Klaus to take care of this snooper at of all places, his brother's sendoff party before he is overseas.

Klaus ends up killing Danny's mom and mortally wounds his brother.  Following Toulon's notes, Danny transfers his brother Don's soul into Ninja and the rest of the puppets are also reanimated for a showdown with some ratzis.   Will the Reich be foiled?  Can Donny be a true puppet master?  Whatever happened to Beth?

A handful of facts now about the flick.  This is the first Puppet Master movie to be shot in Asia, more specifically China.  This is also the first Puppet Master film to occur in almost seven years since Puppet Master: The Legacy.  Interestingly enough both this Puppet Master and the flick Killjoy 3 were filmed back to back then released in 2009.   Sadly I could see a bit of electric tape put around Ninja's had to hold up his katana.  There was a big debate on whether or not L.A.'s Chinatown had neon signs during the 1940s and finally director David DeCoteau decided it did and it gave the night scene more levels.   Yeah, following the trend past Puppet Master 5, there is no stop animation and more mono-filament wire.  Ugh.

Nutzis is the craziest of peoples....

The Puppet Master Continues: Puppet Master: The Legacy

Welcome back one and all for Day 3 of The Puppet Master Continues. When last we left our monstrous moppets, they were flashing back to a simpler time when they were first brought into existence and Sutekh's people were rampant over Cairo. This time around we move into modern era with a "rogue" agent searching for Toulon's puppets and secrets and she will not be detoured. This is Puppet Master: The Legacy.

Jeez, another old guy. Why don't babes ever answer our Craigslist post?

Maclain (Kate Orsini of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Gilmore Girls, Gargoyle, Rail Kings, Welcome to Earth and The Nurse) has tracked and scoured the Earth looking for the secrets of Toulon back to the Bodega Bay hotel where Toulon offed himself waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay back in the first film... and was resurrected for the second and them we are at a lost from there on. Reading through his diary and getting a narrative of earlier accounts the diary catches fire and Maclain will have to seek her answers elsewhere. She found a older gentleman now of Eric Weiss (Jacob Witkin of Ekkusu bonba, Superboy, Swamp Thing, Showgirls, Star Wars: Jedi Knight II- Jedi Outcast, Dr. Moreau's House of Pain and Phantom) formally Peter Hertz, the boy Toulon saved from the Nazis in World War II. Present day, Peter has finally found out whatever happened to his friend after years of being out of contact with each other.

Yul Brynner??!!!

Eric has been going through Toulon's notes in order to make sense of the alchemy and strange chemical formula when he is held at gunpoint by Maclain and she demands the secrets so we go through an extensive flashback re-telling with... archived footage? That's right folks, we are getting Toulon's vacation slides and a narrative from Eric. Interspersed with previous footage I saw maybe a half hour of new material but otherwise the rest is from the previous flicks. Maclain goes on to further establish before she arrived at the hotel she tracked Dr. Rick Meyers of Puppet Master 4 and Puppet Master the Final Chapter down and stipulated she wanted Toulon's diary. When she didn't get it by means that were not evil she apparently shot Meyers and his friends to lay hands on the diary.

Eric remains calm for the most part, waiting for a chance to strike. Knowing full well that the puppets remember him and will protect him at Toulon's last wishes and thoughts are being played out on a recorder. The recordings always speak of someone else discovering the secrets and not knowing fully what the formula can be. Soul transference is the name of the game kiddies. Toulon has been dropping souls into his deadly dolls for ages and each new puppet master has been doing the same. Are they now legion? Where are these other dolls? What is their end game?

A few comments of the film now. This is the first Puppet Master film directed by the franchise creator Charles Band. The acting in this movie between Orsini and Witkin isn't bad. The film really tries to fill in the massive amounts of gaping plot holes left by the series but let's face it, those holes are as wide as chasms by now. The pretentious need to have everything tie together by this time does not quite meet up with fans' expectations by this point. Vainglorious endeavors aside, the effort should be acknowledged in spite of the lack of real story telling. If you are an avid fan of the series then by all means, partake in the movie. Otherwise, you can easily skip it. This moving picture doesn't really tell us anything we didn't already know but plays up a bit of suspense.

You will sexually gratify me or get a bullet in the head!!

The Puppet Master Continues: Retro Puppet Master

Hello all and welcome back for Day 2 of The Puppet Master Continues. Yes after that tremendous pile of donkey flop, I wouldn't at all be surprised if all interest in this series completely stopped. Well enough of Dr. Magrew, his daughter Jane and Tank and surprise, surprise NO NEED TO FOLLOW THEM anymore. It's time for another flashback story. Toulon returns after the events of Puppet Master III as he escapes the Nazis heading towards the Swiss border for their fine hot chocolate, watches and knives. What adventures await Toulon and his creations this time around? This is Retro Puppet Master.

No I am not Wesley Snipes and does it look like I can sign an autograph??!!

So the year is 1944 in Switzerland... which is impressive considering Toulon blew his brains out with a pistol in 1939 so this should actually be the year 1938 but who needs fact checking and consistency in their own series? Find me a Horror franchise that has actually mastered that well. Toulon and puppets hide out in an abandoned inn when Blade discovers an old carved puppet head in the case called Cyclops bringing Toulon into a series of flashbacks within a flashback. Ahhh!!! We are approaching Highlander territory now. Journey to Cairo in 1902 when Toulon (Greg Sestero of Nash Bridges, Gattaca, Edtv, The Room, Accepted, Alien Presence and The Pit and the Pendulum) as a young man meets Afzel (Jack Donner of Star Trek, Mission: Impossible, Mannix, Good vs Evil, Star Trek: Enterprise and Vampire) a reputed 3,000 year old sorcerer that stole vast secrets from the followers of the demon Sutekh. Sutekh less than thrilled about this creates three mummies to dispatch him but for some reason the mummies subcontract to a couple of human servants because the sorcerer can sense the mummies trailing him. Confused? EXCELLENT!!

I think we are too early for Goth.

Moving on, Ilsa (Brigatta Dau of Ranma 1/2, Alien Nation: The Enemy Within, Sliders and NightMan) is daughter to the German Ambassador who is apparently a horrible human being and her mother is well less than notable as she doesn't even appear physically in the movie at all. Thugs start pummeling Afzel in the streets outside the theater Toulon's puppet show inhabits, shrieks for help as the thugs scatter like rats deserting the sinking ship, leaving Toulon and Ilsa to aid Afzel.

Realizing that humanity will need help from the elder gods stirring in their sleep, Afzel teaches Toulon the power and formula to animate the puppets as saviors to humankind. In spite of their murderous tendencies of the past movies. A humble beggar dies on the streets and Afzel and Toulon transfer his soul into Pinhead (the puppet not Hellraiser's Doug Bradley). Amazed what is before his eyes, Toulon becomes a diligent student in these arts of magic. Our mummies look a bit foppish in bowler hats, suits, ties and dark smoked glasses. Yes I am not even making that up.

White guys playing Egyptians which I guess that would be Brownface do their level best to secure the secrets of Sutekh by being total peckerheads. Attacking the embassy in the night, abducting Ilsa and killing her parents. Toulon must give back the scrolls to the white Egyptians or they will dispatch Ilsa. Will they be true to their word? Is there a double-cross lurking in the wings?

Yup, now it is time for more facts on the film. This is the first of the Puppet Master series to be filmed outside the US. Mostly "Paris" was Bucharest and Snagov Romania. Shot in 12 days Guy Rolfe's scenes were shot in a day so you guessed it, we will be in flashback land for a bit. The footage of the train is actually shot for a mini-trilogy called Puppet Wars that never got off the ground, so why not use footage already in the can? It was all interior anyway. Interesting enough James Franco auditioned for young Andre Toulon. Well it beats playing new Green Goblin with Sandman and Venom I suppose. Mono-filament wire is being used yet again so no stop-animation for our puppets. Still this was vastly superior to Curse of the Puppet Master.

So what did happen to Rick Meyers? Even beyond the grave I cannot tell you.

Puppet Master Continues: Curse of the Puppet Master

Welcome back friends and film freaks to Day 1 of Puppet Master Continues. We move on from the adventures that Doctor Rick Meyers (Gordon Currie from Puppet Master 4, Puppet Master 5: The Final Chapter, Beverly Hills, 90210, Ripe, Listen, First Wave and Left Behind: World at War) defeated Sutek and his totems... so where the 9 Hells is he??!! Did Blade convince the others he wasn't worth their time and they gacked him in the middle of the night? Are they on strike? This is Curse of the Puppet Master.

Psst, Warden. Heard from the Governor yet?

With no explanation what happened to Rick Meyers at all the puppets were put up for auction. Maybe they sang show tunes all night and Meyers simply had enough of it. EVEN THOUGH, they are the secret to immortality and so on and so forth. Our film opens at The House of Marvels, a museum devoted to dolls and their collection and of course Toulon's puppets can been seen from... a cage? Dr. Magrew (George Peck of Deathtrap, Under Water, Anywhere But Here, The Extra Man and Excuse Me for Living) assures the puppets that this time everything will be different... to whatever that means and he stuffs something into a wooden crate. Seen speeding off into the foreboding woods (which look a bit like Canoga Park in L.A.) he dumps the crate to the ground, douses it in gas and lights it up. As the camera pulls away from the crate a very faint screaming is heard. OooO maybe he was burning Warwick Davis for all those Leprechaun movies. 

Who missed me??  No I am not a garden gnome!

 Anywho, we meet Magrew's daughter Jane (Emily Harrison of Curse of the Puppet Master, Puppet Master: The Legacy, Food for Thought, Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star, The Bold and the Beautiful and Defending Santa)fresh from college... though I am convinced she is only done for the year and not graduated. Jane looks about for Magrew's assistant, Matt but apparently he had to leave to tend to his sick father leaving Magrew without aid for his dolly show. Dammit I am still irked that Rick isn't even a factor in this when he was a serious driving force of the previous two films. Well, actually the long film broken into and edited to be made into two movies but that is not the point. I want Rick back!

Driving into town for a break, Jane and her father stop at the gas station where the local slow kid dubbed "Tank" (Josh Green of Sweet Kill, Curse of the Puppet Master, Party of Five, Spiders and Peal Harbor) is treated to some low brow bullying because... hell I guess there was nothing good on cable, at the theater or the bully boys just got done burning some books. Jane and Magrew shoo the bullies away by being smarter than they and try to talk to Tank. A timid soul lurks in Tank as he enjoys wood carving, Magrew notices his passion in the carving and asks Tank if he would rather work for him instead. He introduces Tank to Toulon's puppets as they are "alive" and it fascinates Tank to the point he himself is carving new puppets. I would say it as though we have stepped back in time again but seeing the lad only gets paid $35 a week I wouldn't know where to put that timeline considering a '96 Mustang is shown. Jane seems to have a real bond with the puppets and the business. Will the puppets get loose and do in Magrew? Will Tank be the new master?

Just a few bits of interest now.

Full Moon went completely bankrupt during the follow-up to Part 5 and several film projects simply tanked without Paramount bankrolling so Band had to finance his own films and this was the first step. With a much smaller budget and David Allen unable to do the stop animation of the puppets due to be incredibly ill, the stage hands were holding the puppets up or moving them around, coupled with stock footage of the previous Puppetmaster flicks made this look hokey at best and cheesy at worst. At some points you can see the monofilament wire moving their limbs.

The original script was going to take them back to Egypt were Toulon learned of this animating process but it got scrapped and we were given "this" film shot in 8 days.

Hmm?  Oh sorry, I was thinking about that Seinfeld episode.

The Puppet Master Continues!!!

Welcome back friends, family and film freaks. Well it has been a bit since I took a peek into what truly got me started into reviewing films. More than a few years back, I got relegated into reviewing the genre of Horror. Not because I have a natural aptitude to gore, violence, crappy story lines, one-dimensional characters and poorly timed jump scares. Apparently being a guy was the deciding factor. 

Told you we'd get that dope to review the rest of the flicks.

Thankfully for my editor, I didn't run away screaming like a B-movie extra from the babysitter slayer but some days it really made me a tad bitter. That all being said, I have actually been introduced to some clever and well-written fright flicks so I suppose I can muster through the memories of 374 zombie movies and suck it up. Seriously, the comments and compliments I have gotten over the last 3 years has been good. So keep churning those out!

Previously, I reviewed the first five Puppetmaster films, a franchise created by Charles Band, writer and producer of Full Moon Pictures. With the Subspecies franchise and Puppetmaster it didn't matter that this company made Doll Man or Demonic Toys. Our little marionettes of mirth and mayhem are back to cause mischief and murder for those that dare seek to harm their master and who knows... maybe there will be additions to the flock.

For those of you that are still reading this, I declare The Puppet Master Continues.  Be afraid... Be very afraid I don't start laughing.

Blade: a cut above the rest.

Puppet Master Week: Puppet Master 5: The Final Chapter

Hello there and welcome back to Day 5 of Puppet Master Week. It has been quite the whirlwind with fairly decent writing in spite of a few continuity errors and a path of has bounced our characters through various timelines. I admit having somewhat of a guilty pleasure with this series and so perhaps I am not as critical as I should be. We continue our story arc with the continuation of the 4^th movie when a new Puppet Master Rick Myers has gain not only control of the puppets but the blessing of Toulon to continue Myers independent research of the formula in all that it may provide. Of course their is the matter of thwarting Sutekh and that remains to go unpunished in that god/demon's eyes. This is Puppet Master 5: The Final Chapter.

Telling you these late night film session are wiping me out.

Oh if only the tagline The Final Chapter held sway or meaning in films. Just ask Jason Vorhees,Freddy Kruger or those damn crocodiles from Lake Placid. After the previous events of Puppet Master 4, Rick Myers (Gordon Currie of Puppet Master 4, Blood & Donuts, Highwaymen and The Dark Hours) is arrested for the deaths of Dr. Piper and Baker, given he would have been the only one with access to either. Motive? Well the police believe it simple enough that they were cutting him out of the grant and potential success his A.I.work would have. Enter Dr. Jennings (Ian Ogilvy of Withfinder General, Tom, Dick and Harriet, Death Becomes Her, Walker, Texas Ranger, and The Disappearance of Kevin Johnson) who decides in his lack of wisdom to view Rick's story of the happenings of the nights leading up with the discovery of Toulon' formula, the puppets and the chance of those unrivaled treasures to be found, professes to dismiss Rick's claims but clearly sees he did not cause these deaths.

Dane Cook's true form!!

Meanwhile Sutekh, defeated by mere mortals decides to get his claws dirty and creates a new Totem with his own life force attached to it. Apparently he cannot leave Hell without a homunculus or totem. Nothing strikes fear in the heart than a creature maybe 24 inches tall. Suzie (Chandra West of Kindred, The Embraced, The Gates, Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe, Hidden Moon and Played) is by Lauren's side when a vision of Sutekh/Totem appears in the room outlining his intent on Rick, the puppets and Hell probably anything or anyone standing in the way. Unable to reach him, Suzie heads back to the hotel.

Jennings hellbent to get Toulon's formula sends his rent-a-thugs to search the hotel and if needs be, bounce Rick around until he coughs it up. With the spirit of Toulon (Guy Rolfe) warning Rick of the impending danger, the lad rouses the troops and prepares for the intruders and the totem.

Will Jennings get the formula for his own insane lust for power? Will Sutekh unleash a mammoth can of whoop ass? Will the puppets die protecting their new master?

We can converse about some trivia with this film now. An entire day of filming was lost on due to the crew walking off as their paychecks had bounced as a whole. The issue was resolved expeditiously. David Allen of David Allen's Production crew of animatronics and stop motion animation felt this was his final installment to the films. In August 16^th, 1999 the man who truly brought the puppets to life passed away.

Torch makes an appearance in this one and yes suspend disbelief for his absence in 4 as we did with Six-Shooter for the first two. 

This movie was shot back to back with Puppet Master 4 due to it was one movie broken into two that Full Moon's own CEO Charles Band was scheduled to direct known as Puppet Master: The Movie. Catchy title to be certain. Guess Puppet Master: The Moving Pictures sounded hokey. As our final scene establishes there is still more to come but for this reviewer, I am done for the week.

JAZZ HANDS!!!

Puppet Master Week: Puppet Master 4: The Demon

Greetings my remaining readers. After this week I cannot say I blame you running for the virtual hills but I return for Day 4 of Puppet Master Week. It would appear this time around our fearsome figurines seems to be in the modern age and placed away in their trunk...but for how long? What if hell itself decided to wage war on humanity? What could possibly stave of the denizens of Hell? This is Puppet Master 4: The Demon

Hook shot!!!  Yes, bad pun.

Deep within the bowels of Hell lies a demon known only as Sutekh (just ignore that it is also the Egyptian god of death, war, storms and disorder) who sends a trio of his underlings, constructs called totems to dispatch any and everyone that knows the the secret of animation (So Disney, WB and 20^th Century Fox are scared out of their minds), including of course our fellow Andre Toulon (Guy Rolfe of The Case of Marcel Duchamp, The Bride, Dolls, William Tell, Puppet Master III: Toulon's Revenge and Retro Puppet Master) and his puppets. Caretaker of the hotel Bodega Bay Inn, Rick Meyers (Gordon Currie of 21 Jump Street, Alive, Puppet Master 5: The Final Chapter, Forever Knight, Highlander: The Raven and Leap Years) should really read the fine print on this gig, uses the basement region as a makeshift lab into his experiments in artificial intelligence while his mentors Dr. Piper (Stacy Randall of Trancers 4: Jack of Swords, The Assault, From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money and Shade) and Dr. Baker (Felton Perry of Magnum Force, Robocop, Hooperman and Dumb & Dumber) work uninhibited in their lab when they encounter a package holding one of the strange totems that smacks them about and for lack of better term seems to tear their souls from their bodies.

Val Kilmer has really let himself go.

Meanwhile that is happening, Rick's buddies Cameron (Ash Adams of A Nightmare on Elm Street, Lionheart, Puppet Master 4 and Once Fallen), Suzie (Chandra West of Viper, Something More, Universal Soldier II: Brothers in Arms, Forever Knight, Night Terrors and Highlander) and Lauren (Teresa Hill of Puppet Master 4, Puppet Master 5: The Final Chapter, Models Inc., Raging Angels, Bio-Dome and Twin Falls Idaho) to hang out and typical get wasted when Rick tells them of the puppets that seem almost lifelike and similar to his A.I.works and proceeds to awaken them with the formula. Now this is where it gets nutty. The formulas hails from Egypt from a band of sorcerers that were loyal to Sutekh and anyone using it may anger this ancient power. Oops.

As Rick goes through Toulon's notes he discovers this amazing ability to create stop motion animation, that is animate the puppets and fight alongside them as the totems have come gunning for him. Toulon makes an appearance as a vested spirit to aid Rick in controlling the puppets and reviving Decapitron his darker puppet made specifically for taking out totems... mighty convenient but hey that happens. Will the puppets be able to stop the totems?? Could the totems win? Shouldn't we dust off, nuke the sight from orbit and move on?

A few tidbits on the movie now. David Allen Productions re-apprises its services for the puppets but for some reason Torch was benched and his flamethrower became Tunneler's new laz weapon and he must also be buck bare as his coat made its way on Decapitron. Rushed to finish the 4^th installment was supposed to be a longer film be producers wanted the film out ASAP, so Puppet Master 4 became 4 and 5. Similar to the latter Critters movie, one film got sliced in twine and made into 2 movies closely following each other. No nudity to speak of but a fair amount of gore effects that seem well silly in some spots. Your call on this one, readers.

So Hell is connected to Carnie Fun fairs??? Should have known.

Puppet Master Week: Puppet Master II

Salutations everyone and welcome back for Day 2 of Puppet Master Week. When we last left our maleficent marionettes, they held quite a party for the psychics and that may have ended all in tears. Now, we find the mischievous little monsters breaking into Shady Oaks Cemetery uncovering the grave of Andre Toulon, Pinhead working diligently to clear off the dirt to find his dearly departed master.  This is Puppet Master II.

I still don't see your ball.  just take the penalty so we can play!

With Blade, Leech Woman, Jester and Tunneler by his side, Pinhead pours Toulon's formula over the decaying skeleton giving it life again. Why they waited a year before raising their beloved master, coupled with the fact he has been dead for 50 years, shouldn't he almost be dust?

Months later, a group of parapsychologists, led by Carolyn Bramwell (Elizabeth Maclellan of Friday's Curse, Jake and the Fatman, Santa Barbara, Puppet Master 2 and Crash and Burn) is trying to discover there is any truth to the ramblings of Alex Whitaker from the previous movie. Claims and accusations of a formula raising the dead does perk some ears up. With that logical conclusion, our brilliant shrinks head for Bodega Bay Inn, to investigate. Along with Carolyn is her brother Patrick (Gregory Webb of Boone, Falcon Crest, Running Mates and It's a Living), Camille (Nita Talbot of Search for Tomorrow, Girl Happy, That Funny Feeling, Night Shift and Spider-Man: The Animated Series) and Lance (Jeff Celentano of American Ninja 2: The Confrontation, Puppet Master II, The Player, Windfall and Moscow Heat) as they just move into to the hotel. Permits, contacting a landlord or executor of the estate is not a big issue apparently.

Medieval Darkman misspoke the words.

Camille is nabbed by the puppets with no hide nor hair of her left to be found. Plot device convenience brings Camille's son, Michael (Colin Bernsen of Double Trouble, Future Shock, Savage Land, The Glass Cage, Sliders and Cover Me) to visit the hotel. As luck would have it a bandaged fellow Eriquee Chanee' (Steve Welles of Biohazard, Shooters, Solar Crisis and Baywatch) standing about the same height and build of Andre Toulon, claims to have inherited the house and was in Bucharest prior to their arrival, graciously allows them to stay and find whatever it is they are looking for. A mystery indeed.

Odd things and deaths occur when it would appear that Toulon resurrected after all these years has gone completely unhinged, claiming that Carolyn is the reincarnation of his late wife. Yeah, that old chestnut that horror gets WAAAAAAAAAAY too often. Will Carolyn's soul and body survive? Are we going to see the book of the dead somewhere in here? And what of Scarecrow's brain?

Just some notations on the film now. David Allen Productions, once again show their capabilities in stop motion animation and animatronics. Creating a new puppet Torch, 4 versions had to be made for safety on the set as he flambes people in different scale and shots. Their puppet could shoot flames as long as 10 feet. When still linked to Paramount for distribution, the studio executives disliked the puppet Leech Woman and demanded it be destroyed because they didn't want her for future sequels. The funny thing is, she has made a comeback for Puppet Master III.... or did she?

With brief nudity, the gore has kicked up a notch but no more than the previous film.

Hey that's not Tom Servo!

Puppet Master Week: Puppet Master

Well let's get this started and welcome to Day 1 of Puppet Master Week. Logically we will begin with the first film but first I wanted to give a little detail on the creator of this bizarre series Charles Band. Less than thrilled how distribution occured in the states and overseas, Band formed Empire Pictures in 1984 to produce and distribute his films and make sure of return on the profits. As the VHS market was just being its mass allotment, Empire Pictures had allied itself with Wizard Video for their contacts and they only became a power in the industry for producing two horror games on Atari 2600 in 1982, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Halloween. Imagine the scandal of horror games pre 8-bit. As Italy had its fluctuation or many economic issues, most of the low budget films Band was making hailed from the region causing him leave and return to the US of A. Forming the company Full Moon Pictures. Aside from ambition behind the scenes, Band started developing scripts of horror genre ranging from period pieces, guy in rubber suits and the love for inanimate objects doing horrible things to people. This is Puppet Master.

Just a little work under the chin and around the eyes please.

Written by Charles Band, our movie starts in 1939 in Bodega Bay, California with an elder man, a puppeteer name of Andre Toulon (William Hickey of Mikey and Nicky, Wise Blood, A Stranger Is Watching, Prizzi's Honor, One Crazy Summer and The Maddening) who has discovered a secret, a formula that brings life to where there was none. A true alchemist whose secrets were handed down to his ancestors for generations. This goes without saying the Nazi party would be very interested in this... you know, the remaining few that did not go after the Ark of the Covenant or the Holy Grail or virtually any other religious artifact. Wonder how that tesseract business went for them. Moving along, a pair of goose-steppers are looking to cease Toulon and his prized puppets when Toulon locks them away in a secret compartment and ends his life with a revolver.

50 years later a gathering of psychics Alex Whitaker (Paul Le Mat of American Graffiti, Melvin and Howard, Wishman, Lonesome Dove: The Series and American History X), Dana Hadley (Irene Miracle of Midnight Express, Inferno, Puppet Master and Walking Thunder), Frank Forrester (Matt Roe of Puppet Master, Child's Play 2, My Blue Heaven and Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult) and Carissa Stamford (Kathryn O' Reilly of Married with Children, Jack's Back, Saturday the 14^th Strikes Back and Top of the Heap) get in touch with some college colleagues Neil Gallagher (Jimmie F. Skaggs of Lethal Weapon, Cutthroat Island, Hollow Man and Catch Me If You Can) who is not melon crazy but has found Toulon's hidden treasures.

Meatloaf looks on confused as ever.

The four agree to meet him at the late Toulon's home, already envisioning fortune and glory but don't count your Sankara stones yet, folks. There is bound to be more than a few problems. No sooner do they arrive that all the psychics recieve premonitions of death or death still to come and meet Megan (Robin Frates of Puppetmaster, The Arrival, Man's Best Friend, One Night Stand and The Round and Round) who is apparently Neil's wife has news that Neil shot himself. Yeah you can see that being an issue. Alex and the gang were attempting to find the secrets of Toulon's alchemy that hails from Egyptian practitioners...when they were putting hot pokers up nostrils and preserving organs in jars. With each psychic having a unique gift it is their hope to unlock these secrets. Frank and Neil's research has almost pinpointed everything they need but now the party seems taken back by all of this. Meanwhile unaware of this, our cast is being haunted by tiny puppets that seemingly have been animated by Toulon's formula as they stalk their late master's would-be grave-robbers. Will any of our psychics get out alive? Can these dastardly dolls be burned and destroyed?

A few comments about the movie now. The practical effects for the puppets from David Allen Productions was amazing. From stop motion animation and animatronics these killer puppets are maiming in style. Originally slated for a theatrical release, our movie had to go with a straight-to-video instead due to Band feeling it would do better in the rental market which given its popularity gave it cult status and the grounds for a sequel or nine in this case.

I got no strings, to keep me down!