In the realm of Jaws knock-offs, two films stand above all others Enzo Castellari’s Great White – which never got a legitimate American release because Universal sued Castellari and company and won – and Joe Dante’s Piranha. Piranha also felt Universal’s legal wrath according to legend, but the studio apparently backed down after Jaws director Steven Spielberg saw the film and loved it. Of the two films, I really love Castellari’s more – but Dante’s Piranha is a lot of fun as well.
When two kids decide to skinny dip in a pool at an abandoned military facility, they get more than they bargained for. The pool isn’t empty – it’s home to a pack of genetically mutated piranha. Seems Dr. Hoak (Kevin McCarthy) has been carrying on his research even after the government pulled the plug. When a skip tracer, Maggie McKeown (Heather Menzies) is sent to find the missing kids, she meets alcoholic mountain man Paul Grogan (Bradford Dillman). Dillman is coerced into taking her to the military base and before you can say “eco disaster”, Maggie’s drained the pond and released the carnivorous fish into the nearby river. The fish (which can also live in salt water) eat their way toward the ocean (including run-ins with kids at a summer camp and a rich folk at a swanky new resort on the river) while Paul and Maggie race desperately to keep them from getting to the sea and the world beyond.. Oh yeah, the military isn’t really all that interested in stopping this threat – nor is the evil doctor played by genre legend Barbara Steele.
Forbidden World, the third film in producer Roger Corman’s unofficial trilogy of Alien clones (following Inseminoid and Galaxy of Terror), is arguably the sleaziest of the bunch. Featuring naked women, a slimy tentacle monster who feels like the inspiration for nearly every hentai anime film to emerge in the past two decades, and some surprisingly decent gore, these are fine examples of why Corman’s productions are still revered when so many other cheapie exploitation films from the same era have faded into obscurity.
In typical Corman fashion, Forbidden World was made fast and cheap. The sets from Galaxy of Terror had yet to be torn down, so the maverick producer gave editor Allan Holzman a challenge – take a day and see if he could shoot something interesting. Holzman, looking to break into directing, ran with the opportunity. He recruited actor Jesse Vint and shot over 90 set-ups in a single day. Corman then viewed the footage and liked what he saw – and Forbidden World was given the greenlight.
It’s hard to believe that Death Race 2000 is 35 years old now, but it’s still just as much campy fun as it was back in 1975. It’s a relic of a bygone era, yet its odd social commentary is just as relevant today as it was back then – perhaps even moreso. In this regard, Death Race 2000 is sort of like Romero’s Dawn of the Dead – it’s not as good a film overall, but it is eerily prescient in predicting the future.
While we’ve passed the year 2000 without an event like the Transcontinental Road Race – a cross country rally where cartoonish drivers and their navigators travel from one coast to the other while scoring points for running down innocent pedestrians – the film’s commentary on the media and sensationalism of violence as entertainment seem quite valid. Maybe that’s a stretch on my part, but I don’t think so – I think some of the most profound commentary on our society was reflected in the cult films of that era.
George Romero’s latest zombie opus, Survival of the Dead is currently available on VOD and at select theaters. However, if you’re holding out for a DVD release, news broke last week that August 24th was the date you were waiting for. On that day, retailers will start selling copies of the Ultimate Undead Edition of the film, a two-disc collector’s set sure to be filled with all sorts of goodies.
Wal-Mart’s website has the DVD up for pre-order, including a single disc edition for those who don’t want to pay for a bunch of supplements they’ll never watch. Even better, they’ve got our first look at the cover art for the film. That’s it at the top of the post.
Here’s the film’s plot synopsis:
When the idyllic retreat of Plum Island falls victim to the zombie plague, a new breed of clan war breaks out. On one side is the camp who want to exterminate all undead with a wickedly diverse array of brain-splattering headshots. On the other, devoted family members take the stance that “zombie-ism” is a disease, the undead have rights and they must be kept alive until a cure is found. Unable to simply “agree to disagree,” the two clans go to war and make their island microcosm a whole hell of a lot bloodier. An undead parallel to the tribal wars that are plaguing our own society today, SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD exposes the futility of such conflict and the need for tolerance of the beliefs of others. Plus it’s got zombie horses in it!
There have been many attempts made over the years to bring HP Lovecraft’s fiction to the big screen. Some of them have been more successful than others (oddly enough, what may be the most successful attempt—John Carpenter’s In the Mouth of Madness—wasn’t actually based on a Lovecraft story at all…), but none has managed to perfectly capture the feelings of dread and terror inspired by the author’s work. That changed back in 2005—not with a big budget effects-laden Hollywood extravaganza, but instead thanks to a short film put together by the HP Lovecraft society. The Call of Cthulhu is not only the greatest HPL adaptation to date, it’s an amazing cinematic achievement regardless of subject matter.
I haven’t watched a Puppet Master flick in years, but that may change this June.
News hit yesterday that the newest installment in the long-running franchise, Puppet Master: Axis of Evil, will be landing on DVD this June 15th. No details on the extras (if there are any…) but here’s the plot breakdown.
In a stateside hotel during the height of World War II, young DANNY COOGAN dreams of joining the war effort. Following the murder of hotel guest Mr. Toulon by Nazi assassins, Danny finds the old man’s crate of mysterious PUPPETS and is suddenly thrust into a battle all his own. He discovers that Nazis MAX.
If you’ve found yourself wanting to see porn starlet Sasha Grey in another mainstream film where she doesn’t insert a multitude of male appendages into her various orifices, you’re in luck. Media Blasters’ new Fresh Meat imprint has snagged the US DVD distribution rights to Smash Cut.
The film, which features the actress in her second mainstream film role (following up her buzz-worthy turn in Steven Soderbergh’s The Girlfriend Experience) finds Grey starring alongside genre legend David Hess.
Here’s the plot breakdown:
SMASH CUT stars Sasha Grey as television news celebrity April Carson who hires private investigator Isaac Beaumonde (Jesse Buck) to help find her missing sister, a stripper known as Gigi Spot (Jennilee Murray). Following a bloodstained trail, Carson goes undercover and auditions for a role in a low budget horror movie. Soon, she shockingly discovers that the movie’s director, Able Whitman (David Hess), is not only the killer but that he has utilized her sister’s body parts to pump up the ‘realism’ for his new production! When Whitman requires more ‘props’ for his film, he sets off on a crimson-splattered killing spree. Now, only intrepid reporter April and the celebrated private detective stand between the demented director and his unquenchable thirst for reel slaughter at 24 frames per second!
Expect to find the film at DVD retailers everywhere on March 23rd.
Good news for lovers of the late and sorely missed Godfather of Gore, Lucio Fulci. My Horror Squad colleague Scott Weinberg spotted a listing for a Blu-ray version of City of the Living Dead over at DVD Active.
Blue Underground is the company responsible for this new version of the intestine-spewing, drill bit-to-the-head Italian splatter epic. The film–also commonly known as The Gates of Hell–will be available on regular DVD, but the new Blu-ray is the version you’re going to want to grab. Extras for the Blu-ray disc include three brand new goodies: “Acting Among the Living Dead – Interview with Star Catriona MacColl”, “Entering the Gates of Hell – Interview with Star Giovanni Lombardo Radice”, “Memories of the Maestro”. I’d be all over that for those three things alone–if I owned a Blu-ray player.
The discs are scheduled to be in stores on May 25th. Check out the new cover art above.
One of my favorite under-the-radar films of last year was Glenn McQuaid’s I Sell the Dead. The film turned up on IFC’s VOD service, but most people missed it. I reported news earlier that it was slated to come to DVD at the end of March. Now, Dread Central has scored a look at the cover art and supplemental materials for the disc. Looks like it’s shaping up to be a nice release.
That’s the cover art above. Extras on the disc include:
Commentary with stars Dominic Monaghan and Larry Fessenden
Commentary with director Glenn McQuaid
The Making of I Sell the Dead featurette
The Visual Effects of I Sell the Dead featurette
Trailer
Check out my review if you’re on the fence about this one. I Sell the Dead hits retail on March 30th.
If you like your slashers old school, then news that Code Red is preparing a new DVD release for 1982′s cult classic Madman should definitely brighten your Monday.
Originally released on DVD by Anchor Bay back in 2001, the film has long been out of print. IFC keeps it in regular rotation, which has helped a whole new generation of slasherphiles appreciate its considerable (and cheesy) charms, but news of it being available again to own certainly warms my black heart.
Details on what the disc will include in terms of supplements are still being hammered out. What we do know is that the commentary track with director Joe Giannone, writer Gary Sales, and stars Tony Fish and Paul Ehlers will be jumping to the new version.
STYD is also speculating that the new disc will feature cast interviews and a tour of the film’s various shooting locations led by Ehlers himself.
Here’s the simplistic plot description from IMDB:
At a summer camp for youths, cockey pre-teen calls out the name of mass serial killer “Madman Marz”. Suddenly, counselors are being maimed and slaughtered in various ways by the backwoodsman who has returned when his name was called.
No official release date has been announced, but it seems safe to assume that we’ll see Madman sometime in 2010.
In the realm of Jaws knock-offs, two films stand above all others Enzo Castellari’s Great White – which never got a legitimate American release because Universal sued Castellari and company and won – and Joe Dante’s Piranha. Piranha also felt Universal’s legal wrath according to legend, but the studio apparently backed down after Jaws director Steven Spielberg saw the film and loved it. Of the two films, I really love Castellari’s more – but Dante’s Piranha is a lot of fun as well.
