'Tentacles' aka 'Tentacoli' (1977) – Ovidio G. Assonitis.

This savagely human scoffing sea beast's trachea-thrashing tentacles are so terrifying, just the mere sight of 'em would sordidly shrivel a rhino's armored testicles!!!!! Hollywood veterans John Huston and Henry Fonda provide superfluous gravitas to this blissfully bonkers, barnacle blasting, scuba diver decimating, beach bunny bisecting, brine-soaked B-Movie bonanza! Should goofy seafaring schlock be your bag of soggy scampi, the wantonly carnivorous appetites of this skiff skewering, child-chomping calamari remains a mayhemic, multi-tentacled terror treat! 70s creature feature cognoscenti could do a yacht worse than checking out Assonitis attention grabbing 'Tentacles', as you're sure to have a whale of a good time! Maestro Stelvio Cipriani's stridently ear-wormy score is a legit cinematic high point, and an adorably plump Shelley Winters's shrill mumsyness was quite lovely, and strangely erotic!!!!

'Halloween Night' (2006) - Michael Atkins.

A notorious party prankster's plans for a memorably shocking Halloween soiree are all too successfully realized when an infamous nutjob crashes the party! Conspicuously shot-on-video, these slasher-by-numbers shenanigans are colourfully embellished by plentifully top-popping hotties, some splashy old school kills and a weirdly likable melt-faced loon! Cheap and cheerful with the onus on the latter, I really enjoyed the luridly hack-happy vibe of 'Halloween Night. This fun, low budget, perkily poon-packed chunkblower has a zesty D.I.Y approach that isn't afraid to wear its goofy love of vintage slasher films on its gaudily blood-spattered sleeve!

'Outcast' (2010) - Colm McCarthy.

A powerful, enigmatic Romany Witch (Dickey) and her secretive, increasingly strange teenage  son seek refuge in an especially grim-looking council flat in Scotland. The angsty Pagan pair are pursued by spell-casting gypsies, with the relentless would-be warlock (Nesbitt) bloodthirstily seeking revenge for past crimes altogether mysterious! 'Outcast' is a fascinatingly gritty affair, an inventive indie horror gem that recalls folk horror classic 'Blood on Satan's Claw'. The doomy, chav-encrusted domain of a dismal sinkhole estate darkly imparts an oppressive  atmosphere, eerily matched by the equally sinister, shape-shifting savagery of this mysterious night stalking beast. I loved this intelligent pagan nightmare, but I feel embellishing the practical FX with CGI was an error, smart editing and creative lighting would have suited the mood better.

The Card Player (2003) - Dario Argento.

This tricky noughties giallo features a degenerate serial killing card player who likes to poker face with a Stanley knife!!!!! Often unfairly maligned by those clearly not operating with a full deck, Argento keeps the killer's identity close to his chest, and his two handsome, charismatic cops prove entirely sympathetic. This slick, frequently inventive Italian blood-spiller is given an additional adrenaline boost by another exciting electronic score by maestro Claudio Simonetti! Not without flaws, what's good is certainly good enough, and I've grown to appreciate the somewhat bizarre Penelope Pit Stop climax!

'Taste of Fear (1961) - Seth Holt.

Steeped in sinister suspense, this tantalizingly twisted tale of teeth-chattering terror provides one of Hammer Films finest frightmares! Immaculate performances from a fabulously talented cast, an exotic,  greatly atmospheric location, a dazzling score, this raven dark 60s shocker will keep-you-guessing until its breathtaking climax!  Macabre, menacing, and fascinatingly convoluted, the diabolical mystery of monochromatic murder masterpiece 'Taste of Fear' rivals the very best of Hitchcock and Clouzot! Brilliantly directed by an assured Seth Holt, with a sublimely skewed screamplay by Jimmy Sangster,  this hysteria-hyped Hammer classic remains a ferociously fear-festooned terror treat!

'Trial by Terror' (1983) - Hildy Brooks.

Watchable whitebread thriller about a couple who move into their new home and become systematically terrorized by local thugs. The stolid, TV movie of the week vibes are greatly invigorated by delectable star Kay Lenz, and the no less engaging Martin Landau. The performances are credible, and Robert O. Ragland's synth-tastic score is a highlight.

'La Settima Donna' aka Last House on the Beach (1978) - Franco Prosperi.

Following a bloody bank heist, three violent thugs take shelter in a luxurious, suitably isolated beach-side property. Swiftly brutalizing the young naive female occupants, it fatefully falls upon their beautiful guardian nun (Florida Bolkan) to revenge these despicable carnal abuses. Franco Prosperi's stylized, cruelly hedonistic home invasion shocker sticks out from the crowd due to its uniquely Italianate twist! Well-made, compellingly acted, with bracingly mean-spirited interludes, a rousing score, plus an exhilarating climax make this an indelible psychotronic treat! Criminally underrated, little seen, 'La Settima Donna' remains one of the more vivid examples of deliciously Disco-drenched 70s degeneracy!