Gargoyles [DVD]

When this aired in 1972 I was 7 and it scared me and really stuck with me. The woman hanging haunted me for years. But Bernie Casey is what I really liked. Great part he played. If you like classic horror , tv suspense in the era of the 1970's as I do. You will love it.

Very good early 70's made-for-TV horror film. A historian and his daughter, on a field trip/vacation in the desert, run across a myth come to life; gargoyles. The beginning is very creepy. They go to visit an old desert rat who runs a slapdash museum full of oddities. The only thing of true interest is a strange skeleton that happens to be a gargoyle. The living gargoyles attack and the professor and his daughter start being stalked by the creatures, who want their existence to remain a secret. The head gargoyle, played by Bernie Casey, is truly impressive. The gargoyle makeup is, for the times, very good. No two gargoyles look alike. Both the Hens Tooth DVD release and the VCI DVD release are excellent quality. Highly recommended.

Great movie! And it was made for TV back in the early 70s! So with their schedule and budget, I think it's a great movie. You can imagine how much more frightening it would be were it to be produced today. It's actually very effective in several scenes, very well directed from a decent script. An original story! How often can you say that about a movie? The actress who plays the scientist's daughter wears a very early-70s halter top which did not make an impression on me when I was a kid, but which definitely caught my eye as a grown man. Cornel Wilde carries the movie. I want to avoid spoilers, so I'll leave it with the beginning, when the scientist and his daughter bump down a dusty desert road to find a decrepit compound run by Willie, a desert rat, who, eventually, reveals a man-sized skeleton he has in a separate building from his creepy "desert museum" roadside attraction, which has bones for wings and horns on its skull. The scientist laughs at Willie, who has broken out in a sweat as he revealed the skeleton... by this time night has fallen. As the scientist is laughing at Willie, you hear what sounds like the brush of enormous wings on the roof of the shed they're in... and away it goes! GOOD MOVIE!!! I wonder what the story is behind this movie, why they didn't go for an independent movie release instead of a made-for-TV movie? Buy this DVD while it's still available!

THE STORY: A college professor & his daughter travel across the desert to a roadside tourist attraction to interview the owner, who claims that a skeleton he keeps locked in a shack is of an honest-to-goodness gargoyle. But before much more can be learned, the place is ripped apart and the old man lies dead & burned in the ruins. The prof & his young daughter find themselves on the run from (and knee-deep in) the reptilian demons, who've recently begun hatching as their 600 lifecycle begins anew. Their fiendish goal? The same one all evil beings have: conquer the world, of course!THOUGHTS: I fondly recall watching this when it debuted on TV back in 1972. In those days it seems there was always something scary being made for TV: The Night Stalker, The Norliss Tapes, Scream of The Wolf, Trilogy of Terror, Don't Be Afraid of The Dark, etc. Nowadays nothing gets made for TV unless it's socially significant or whatnot. Blah! Whatever happened to just being entertained for entertainment's sake? GARGOYLES has a pretty spiffy acting cast. Cornel Wilde & Jennifer Salt are the gruff professor & his headstrong daughter. Prolific character actor Bernie Casey, (perhaps best-remembered as U.N. Jefferson, president of the Tri-Lambda fraternity from "Revenge of The Nerds"!), is quite excellent, (though unrecognizable buried under an early Stan Winston make-up job), as the cruel & crafty leader of the gargoyle gang. And check out Scott Glenn as a renegade badboy who teams up with the local authorities to help battle the legions of lizard men. Boy was he young here! This movie was scary fun and at the tender age of six I was terrified. GARGOYLES still packs a few scares, but I watch it more for the nostalgia factor now. Kids these days aren't "scared" unless someone's head's being split in two with a hatchet or bodies are being blown up, spurting fountains of blood or whatnot. *SIGH* Who needs all that excessive in-your-face violence & gore when all you really need is the ability to suspend your disbelief and a vivid imagination!?THE DVD: Audio & video quality of this particular home release is pretty good, actually. Much better than some of the earlier editions I've owned. Colors are solid, picture is clear, focus is sharp. Audio is clean & strong. BOTTOM LINE: After more than 40 years the made-for-TV spooktacular fright flick GARGOYLES is still a fun way to spend a rainy Saturday afternoon, or a good excuse to stay up late with a bowl of popcorn and veg on the couch. 4 STARS

This TV movie was surprisingly good back in the 70s, and it is still entertaining. I was willing to pay the price to have it in my collection.

DVD played with no issues, it is in full screen and states it is in format that the movie originally played. I own a wide screen TV so do not mistake full screen meaning as a box or that video was distorted/ characters stretched, squashed, or scenes cut off. I could not see any problems with format and enjoyed seeing the movie once again.

In a land in the distant past BC(before Cable), Television had orginal programs! Gargolyes is an excellent example of what can be done in a TV movie. And a hell of a introduction to Milton!The Screenplay is written better than average and direction is fast paced.The DVD is Sharp and Commercial free, although the colors are way to vivid. The greens make New Mexico look like Hawaii. (The film was filmed in and around Carlsbad NM. Note: Opening scene with the Texas International Convair 600 on it's milk run) I agree there should have been a commentary track! (Jennifier Salt would have been great!)Cornel Wilde and Jennifer Salt sold the story with help of a great supporting cast of real character actors.Watch the back seat for the uncredited camera man.Watch it before your next road trip in the desert and you too will see Garagolyes in the distant hills.Oh don't forget to stop by Uncle Willy's Desert Museum.Enjoy!

Good 70s horror film

This is a movie that I have searched for a long time. I knew it was a TV movie and thought I would never find it on DVD. I had only seen it once when it was televised back in 1972 and really enjoyed it. When I found out it was released on DVD, I just had to buy it. I have watched it twice already and absolutely love it! Sure, it has the look of a 70's movie to it (including the production values) but that doesn't really matter to me. I enjoy the story and I still find it a bit creepy to this day. Most of it was filmed at night and that is one of the reasons it feels creepy and suspenseful. Overall, it was a good movie. Sure, the special effects were a bit dated, however, it was over 40 years ago. I'm just pleased I finally have the movie.

Since its first airing on television, the 1972 Cult Classic "Gargoyles" has been a hit with horror fans the world over and thanks to Hen's Tooth Video we can enjoy it once again on DVD. For any fan of this movie wondering what the picture and sound quality are like; wonder no more. The full screen video transfer from Hen's Tooth video is almost perfect, better than anything I expected. The picture is the best I've ever seen and the colors are sharp and vibrant. The sound is English mono 2.0 and it's the best I've ever heard this movie sound. The sound is really clear and consistent and it sounded great on my home theatre set up. The disc packaging and disc artwork are well done and Hen's Tooth video should be commended for their efforts.Very few low budget made for TV movies created almost 40 years ago have stood the test of time; Gargoyles is the exception. The acting is solid and the makeup, costumes and non CGI special effects are well done; this film won an Emmy for Outstanding Achievement in makeup and it wasn't a Hollywood blockbuster. The makeup, costumes and eerie music make Gargoyles a classic! For anyone who hasn't seen this film, Gargoyles is 74 minutes of pure entertainment and I'm glad I finally own it on DVD.An anthropologist/professor and his daughter as well as some local townspeople are attacked by a colony of hideous Gargoyles after the father and daughter uncover a mysterious winged skeleton unearthed by an old man in the Arizona desert. The old man unveils the mysterious skeleton to the Anthropologist and his daughter in the hopes of becoming rich and famous. The Anthropologist has a different idea; he wants to take the skeleton back to the lab for testing. The Gargoyles have a more sinister plan, they want their skeleton back and nothing is going to stand in their way. Let the terror begin!Special Features Include:- Audio Commentary by Director Bill L. Norton- Optional English Subtitles for the Hearing ImpairedThe Cast:Cornel Wilde .... Dr Mercer BoleyJennifer Salt .... Diana BoleyBernie Casey .... The GargoyleScott Glenn .... James ReegerGrayson Hall .... Mrs. ParksWilliam Stevens .... Police ChiefWoody Chambliss .... Uncle Willy

There used to be a time when you could hardly get a copie of this classic and if you could, it was not at a cheap price...glad to see it back on the market at a low cost...I remember as a kid watching this on TV (made for TV special) and actually thinking of its great special FX (no computers at the time...full costumes)...if you liked the Jeepers Creepers series well here is it's grandfather!

I bought this item more for nostalgia than anything else this movie was certainly unusual I had not seen a film quite like it the acting is not too bad the gargoyle costumes were a bit of giggle on the I am pleased to have it in my collection , thank you