Hysteria (1965) / The Snow Devils (1967) / Maniac Cop (1988)

Hammer Films was single-handedly responsible for the return of classic horror icons in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Their gory, full-color reboots of the Dracula and Frankenstein franchises made all the old gothic haunts bankable again. But the studio also dabbled in comedies, action and suspense thrillers like Hysteria, a sub-Hitchcockian story of an amnesiac who tries to piece together the circumstances behind the car crash that was responsible for his fragile mental condition. It’s obvious upfront that there’s some sort of conspiracy afoot, so the chief viewing pleasure is trying to sort out exactly who is responsible: the innocent nurse, concerned psychiatrist, mysterious femme fatale…or all three? Director Freddie Francis is responsible for some of the most visually sumptuous films ever made. This isn’t one of them. Hysteria is a perfectly flat and dull looking affair, that really only comes alive when bit player Maurice Denham enters the story as a surprisingly street smart private detective. Still, for Hammer aficionados looking to fill those few empty slots, it’s nice to see Warner releasing the film as part of its Archive Collection, available exclusively at

The abominable snowman hasn’t gotten a lot of screen time over the years. Perhaps it’s his bad fashion sense on display in The Snow Devils, the fourth and final chapter in a series of cheap Italian sci-fi pictures shot back-to-back by Antonio Margheriti following the adventures of space commander Rod Jackson (here played by Giacomo Rossi-Stuart) and his crew on the Gamma One space station. After fighting off various extraterrestrial menaces in the previous films, we come back down to earth where a weather station is under attack by mysterious foes who leave behind a trail of oversized footprints in the Himalayan snow. Upon further investigation, Jackson stumbles upon a secret society of abominable snowmen, all dressed in color-coordinated polyester pantsuits with matching capes. Turns out the snowmen are actually aliens from a dying world looking to freeze the earth to match their home environment. It’s up to Jackson to melt them down to size. Full of phony effects and even worse techno-jargon dialogue (“How’s our flux generator plasma level?” “Plasma charged to capacity, sir.”), the Gamma One series gets by on the dated charm of its inherent corniness. Space snowmen covered in blue make-up and glued on fur? We’re gonna need more plasma! Once again, this is part of the Warner Archives Collection available exclusively at

In his first film role after the cult success of Evil Dead 2, Bruce Campbell finds himself framed for the murders committed by a uniformed killer stalking the streets of New York…but shot in L.A.. A hit on the home video market, Maniac Cop plays things quite safe by today’s standards, with minimal gore and missed opportunities to market its titular bad guy (director Willliam Lustig keeps his disfigured face hidden for almost the entire film). But the presence of Campbell, a quick cameo from director Sam Raimi, and genre veteran Tom Atkins (Night of the Creeps, Halloween 3) piqued fans’ interest in 1988 and keeps a new generation of geeks interested over 20 years later. A major player in the early NYC exploitation scene, Lustig directs Maniac Cop with much more classical approach than his early, more infamous (and more interesting) work. Campbell is miscast as the leading man, but it doesn’t help he has to split screen time with Atkins who can play the rough ‘n tough cop role like no one before or sense. Neither scary or shocking, Maniac Cop’s reputation coasts on a recognizable cast and a catchy tagline, “You have the right to remain silent…FOREVER!” Synapse Films’ Blu-ray edition bails the film out of its VHS holding cell, providing a super-clean transfer, interviews, poster art and TV spots.