The Telephone Book (Blu-ray Review) - Vinegar Syndrome

USA/1971
Directed By: Nelson Lyon
Written By: Nelson Lyon
Starring: Sarah Kennedy, Norman Rose

The Film
Have you ever seen a woman have sex with a skyscraper? You will in this film. 

Alice is a sweet 18 year old hippie type, sexually free yet strangely innocent. She receives a phone call one day while laying around in bed from a stranger who is perhaps the greatest dirty phone caller of all time. He says all the right things to Alice and gets her juices flowing so much that she can't contain herself and decides to track down this mysterious voice. Her adventure takes her across New York City where she encounters everything from a weird porno film actor who claims to be the voice, to a lesbian with a baby cart. Alice runs into the ludest and crudest, and even gives them a little of their own medicine. She eventually comes face to face with the voice that brought her to the brink of sexual ecstasy where the voice continues to talk to her about his story, eventually giving Alice the time of her life. 

THE TELEPHONE BOOK is a very unique little film. Part stag film but without any hardcore penetration scenes, part comedy, and part hippie culture, director Nelson Lyon melds all the aspects of this picture like some sort of bastard child of Waters and Meyer with a dash of Kubrick thrown in for good measure. It is sleazy, yet at the same time funny and artistic in its editing and composition. Actress Sarah Kennedy is great as a young, doe eyed teen quickly experiencing everything sexual she can while still somehow seeming like she could fit in just fine with the Brady Bunch kids. Among our main narrative are these interview like segments with other obscene callers who discuss why they began to make these phone calls and what exactly they do while calling. This just adds to the overall raunchyness of the film. 

From the film's use of black and white photography until the climax where we are greeted an purely surreal piece of 1970s animation that will strangely remind you of School House Rock, to Nelson Lyon's direction in his only time helming a motion picture (he's best known as a Saturday Night Live writer) THE TELEPHONE BOOK is a dirty, sexy and funny piece of 1970s cinema that deserves to be redisovered with this new release. 

The Video
Vinegar Syndrome presents THE TELEPHONE BOOK in a full HD 1080p transfer, with an anamorphic 1.85:1 aspect ratio that looks like it came straight from a midnight showing in NYC. The transfer has some dirt and scratches and a layer of grain but beneath it lies a pretty good transfer that shows decent facial and textural detail in close ups. The black and white photography is deep in the blacks and looks good with no smearing or blaring contrast problems in the whites. This won't become your favorite new toy because of how shiny it is but you will appreciate that it probably looks pretty damn close to what it would have had you saw it in a sticky seat 40 years ago. The BD/DVD combo pack is region free. 

*Please note that screen grabs were taken from the DVD copy of the film. 

The Audio
I didn't notice any major hissing or cracking in the 2.0 Mono audio track. Dialogue stays comfortably clear and above the soundtrack. The audio and video are very similar in that they both feel true to the film and not overly tinkered with.

The Extras
The star of the extra features is a lively and informative commentary track with the film's producer Merv Bloch in which he discusses various trivia about the film and its history and some Andy Warhol love. We also get a couple of theatrical trailers and radio spots and a still gallery.  

The Bottom Line
THE TELEPHONE BOOK is a hell of a weird movie that deserves an audience discover it and fall in love with all over again. 40 years later this movie is still a dirty little piece of strange film making that you can have fun watching. Vinegar Syndrome did one hell of a job on this release. 

THE TELEPHONE BOOK is available HERE 

Anatomy Of A Psycho / The Lonely Sex (DVD Review) - Vinegar Syndrome

USA/1960, 1959
Directed By: Boris Petroff, Richard Hillard
Written By: Jane Mann, Don Devlin / Richard Hillard, Stephen Ripley
Starring: Ronnie Burns, Pamela Lincoln / Mary Gonzalez, Karl Light
Black & White/137 Minutes/Not Rated

The Films 
As Duke Marco is sentenced to death for a murder, his younger siblings who were raised by him must deal with his death. Chet, the youngest, believes that Duke confided to him and only him that he was innocent, and sets out on a path of vengeance against those responsible for putting his brother to death. Despite his sister's pleas to stop, and see Duke for the hoodlum he really was Chet attacks the DA's son and the judge's son, even letting his own friend die after a fight to set up the DA's son with a murder charge himself. 

ANATOMY OF A PSYCHO is a decent little thriller that would probably have been better suited for production 10 or 15 years later when it would have been full of excess that makes these types of revenge films entertaining. As it sits, it is a fine film, that isn't really bad at all, just tame. Tameness is it's biggest flaw. The fight scenes are almost comical at times (especially the one leading up to a large fire) in how over acted they are, but that is more a sign of the times than a flaw of the film. ANATOMY OF A PSYCHO is best summed up in one word, decent.  

THE LONELY SEX begins with a newspaper heading "Sex slaying in memorial park" and cuts to a man walking down the street, peering into a window to spy on a woman undressing from her black lingerie and fishnets. The man is ever vigilant to make sure he isn't caught, but he never once glances away. The man is Mr. Wiler, a tenant at a boardinghouse run by Annabelle and her father, a doctor. Mr. Wiler has an attraction to Annabelle and doesn't keep it a secret. We are soon introduced to another man, a loner that spends his time in a shack where he lives or spying on beautiful women in the park. When he offers one of those women, Annabelle, a flower and she laughs in his face his weak mind responds with brutal violence and he begins choking and striking her repeatedly. After letting her go, he stalks her again, this time capturing her and locking her in his shed. The deranged man goes to Annabelle's father seeking help for his own damaged mind when he reveals that he has kidnapped her. Wiler and the doctor go to rescue Annabelle and Wiler decides to go one step father.

THE LONELY SEX is a rather bland psycho sexual thriller. There was some potential early on but it quickly becomes nothing more than a sit-and-wait affair for the girl to be rescued, while the deranged man escapes to the confines of a church with his life until the police come. The short film movies at a brisk pace to prevent the movie from dragging but a boredom still manages to creep in by the end of the film.

Video
Aside from a few short moments of damage ANATOMY OF A PSYCHO has a very nice looking print. The black and white transfer is sharp and features a healthy dose of natural grain. Vinegar Syndrome did a really nice job here. 

 
THE LONELY SEX looks nice for the most part. The black and white 1.37:1 transfer is clean and sharp, with some scratches and dirt present but nothing distracting. There are some moments towards the end of the film where the source material was damaged and you can notice skips in the frames. Nothing major, and Vinegar Syndrome did a nice job.

Audio
ANATOMY has a clean and clear audio track. Dialogue and music are nicely mixed and provide an all around enjoyable listen. 

 As with the video on TLS the audio isn't bad either. There is some hissing and crackling in the background but dialogue comes through loud and clear.

Extras
Barebones.

The Bottomline 
While this pair of thrillers probably won't keep you on the edge of your seat, they will give you a bit of insight into exploitation films a good decade before they exploded into what we picture them as today. And on top of that neither is particularly bad, just nothing exceptional. Recommended, even if only to see how exploitation films have evolved.

ANATOMY OF A PSYCHO / THE LONELY SEX Drive-In Collection Double Feature is available HERE 

Gut (2012)

Tom is tired of his go-nowhere suit job, and is letting it affect his life at home with his wife Lily and daughter Katie. They've begun the process of looking for a new home away from the city, much to the chagrin of Tom's childhood best friend and co-worker Dan. Tom and Dan's friendship was based largely on their mutual love of horror films, something that Tom has grown out of with time and his growing family. Dan has recently received a disc that has him very excited to show his friend, one of a woman being lustfully sliced open in a surgical fashion and it all feels much too real. These discs keep coming, and viewing them starts to mess with both friend's psyche. Tom has nightmares of the images, and Dan's new girlfriend ends up murdered. Their relationship is falling apart from these possible snuff films and their lives are at stake when Tom takes a short trip to continue the search for a new home and job and returns to find his worst nightmares have come true.

GUT was directed by Elias, and is a low budget psychological horror film, that has a few moments of really well done effects. The acting from men carry the weight of the film with no trouble. It is a surprisingly strong performance from the whole cast really, except perhaps the bitchy diner waitress who is overdoing it. The soundtrack is subdued, as it should be, adding to the mood but never becoming something you notice. GUT is a solid effort. The main problem is that it goes exactly where you expect it to go, without any twists or turns along the way. It sets a goal and head's straight for it, and in some cases that is fine and works for that particular film. With what GUT is trying to accomplish it keeps the film from excelling and being "next-level".

GUT is a promising film, that just lacks a couple of punches to the viewer to really make things interesting. It is a shame that it ends up being a mono tone affair because it didn't have to be and it holds the film back from better things. 

The Suckers / The Love Garden (DVD Review) - Vinegar Syndrome

USA/1971, 1972
Directed By: Stu Segall, Mark Haggar d
Written By: Harold Lime ,Mark Haggard
Starring: Sandy Dempsey, Norman Fields, Linda York, Jason Yukon
Color/150 Minutes/Not Rated

The Films

A very wealthy big-game hunter has grown tired of killing animals. The passion has left him as there is no challenge left. He still holds hunts on his ranch and has invited the owners of a modeling agency and some of the talent to be his guests for a weekend and take some photos and the like. There is very little said about the hunt for the first part of the visti, instead the first 50 minutes of the film are filled with all sorts of sex. When the hunt finally happens it is revealed that there are no animals on this hunt, instead the guests are fighting for their lives against a madman and his sicko guards.

THE SUCKERS knows what it is and that is an excuse for sex and rape to be shown on screen. It isn't necessarily a bad thing but it could have been a top notch piece of exploitation. While the first 2/3 of the movie are eaten up with plenty of sex, some a bit more hardcore in nature than the rest, the ending hunt scene is rather lazy with a chase and capture scenario happening with each captive victim and no real set up or payoff. There is a lack of tension and dread despite the scenario. There is a rape scene including one of the models and a guard that is a nasty affair, perhaps the best part of the film. Stu Segall (as Arthur Byrd) directs this and seems to cheap out on it, making just enough of a movie to pass but not be anything great. 

THE LOVE GARDEN features magazine article writer Mike falling for his new neighbor Claire the first time he sees her at the pool. Claire lives with Inez and passes on Mike's invitations for dinner and a movie. Mike is a persistent man, and quickly learns the truth of Inez and Claire's relationship which makes him want her even more. Eventually Claire accepts an invitation and Mike professes his love to her.

A quick moving, 70 minute drama revolving around a pair of sex scenes, THE LOVE GARDEN is more interesting than it sounds on paper. The three characters are the entire cast of the film but they each have different layers and emotions that they go through which really keeps things interesting. The simple storytelling and voice overs from Mike really work to make this a pretty good little film.

The Video
THE SUCKERS is presented in a 1.85: widescreen transfer that is in rough shape. From start to finish the picture is littered with green and blue scratches and marks. Underneath, the transfer seems to be pretty decent however with colors having a nice natural look to them. The age and condition of the source material certainly show with a few wobbles but it definitely adds to the vibe for this Drive-In Collection release from Vinegar Syndrome.

The transfer for THE LOVE GARDEN is a nicer affair. The condition of the print is in nicer shape with a fairly sharp look and a print that has damage marks and some dirt and debris but it isn't nearly to the point of the first feature and is all around an enjoyable view. The film is presented in a 1.37:1 aspect ratio. (I couldn't get a screen shot from TLG because VLC Media Player wouldn't play that feature, just kept crashing. Not sure why)

The Audio
Similar to the video, THE SUCKERS is filled with hissing, pops and cracks throughout but it never interferes with the dialogue. Not a pretty sounding track but it matches the video quality and is serviceable. This is more about the experience than perfect quality. THE LOVE GARDEN has a solid and stable audio track from start to finish, it is never really pushed to any sort of extreme but it handles its duty nicely.  

The Extras
Barebones.

The Bottomline
While neither of these films will ever be called "classic" or "must-have" they are both entertaining in their own right and deserve a place on any exploitation film fan's shelf along with the rest of the Drive-In Collection from VinSyn (reviews coming soon!)

THE SUCKERS / THE LOVE GARDEN Drive-In Collection Double Feature is available HERE 

Exploitation/B-Movie/Drive-In Challenge 2013 - Last Days & Wrap-up

Before I run down the last few days of the challenge I have to give a shout out to the unofficial sponsor of my month's viewing, Wild Eye Releasing who generously sent me a bunch of DVDs to check out and one I had already seen I was able to give away as a prize. Wild Eye is responsible for releasing lots of weird, trashy and independent horror, sleaze, comedy, and other types of crazy movies. Whether I loved the movie or I hated the movie I knew I was in for something different and for that reason alone Wild Eye is a company worth checking out and supporting.

The 26th and 27th of the month had no viewings for various reasons so there was really no reason to update until now. I got back on track on the 28th with 4 flicks.

First was GOLD. This is a weird movie that apparently didn't get shown in the US until very recently despite it being over 40 years old. This is the story of a hippie commune, full of love, nudity, drugs and sex being terrorized by the local law for all of their raunchy indecency. It was made on the fly it seems, with little budget or pre-planning and a lot of drug use. It actually isn't bad and is interesting to look at from a historical standpoint of that time and culture.

Next up was DEAD SUSHI. This movie is a freaking blast, that will have you smiling the entire time. The plot is a basic Kaiju plot with an evil corporation experimenting in drugs that will bring back animals from the dead. Well it works on sushi and the sushi grow teeth, spikes and sharp blades and begin flying around killing people. It is hilarious, and total tongue in cheek fun. This description doesn't even begin to describe the total shenanigans that occur during the very quick 91 minute runtime but you'll have to see it for yourself.

What would this month be without a little Russ Meyer action? I didn't get to see as many as I would've liked, especially since this challenge just screams out for his movies but I did manage to get one in at the end. I'd never seen it before so I popped in the DVD of MOTOR PSYCHO. The story isn't anything you've never heard before, a group of motorcycle riding weirdos terrorize passing cars on a desert road. The women in the cars are of course big breasted and beautiful as women not of that nature seem not to exist in Russ Meyer's world. I'm okay with his world. The movie is a good tale of revenge and has a rather violent finale with TNT. Very enjoyable stuff.

I couldn't decide what to watch after that so with plenty of beverages in hand I popped in XTRO 2. I'm a fan of the creepy weirdness that first movie offers but the second is just crap. Having nothing at all to do with the first Xtro, XTRO 2 is sort of like a really bad Alien ripoff... except that it is more like a ripoff of an Alien ripoff. What a shitty movie.

The 29th featured just one movie, and it would be the final Wild Eye movie of the month. THE DEATH OF ANDY KAUFMAN is an independent documentary digging into the possibility that Kaufman faked his death. This isn't really an exploitation movie in any sense but Kaufman kind of exploited people with his act, and hell, he may be exploiting all of into thinking he's dead... not sure what he'd get out of it than his own satisfaction but whatever. The documentary is okay, probably as good as I could hope for given it's seemingly DIY nature. There is a lengthy interview with Kaufman's brother and a rundown on Kaufman and his history and life. The film never gets deep enough into the idea that he did fake his death or "finding the real Andy Kaufman" and who he truly was. It scratches the surface but could've been so much more.

And on to the final day...

KEOMA was on tap. This is a sort of trippy, psychadelic, dream-like spaghetti western that is great. From Enzo Castellari's direction to Franco Nero's performance as the titular character I love this movie.  Check it out the next time you watch a western. And the image won't upload so no poster... whammy.

And the challenge comes to a conclusion with THE LOVE GARDEN. I won't say much about this now because it is part of a disc review I have coming up in a few days but it is an absolutely textbook definition way to end an exploitation marathon.

THE WRAP UP

Total Films Watched - 64
1st Time viewings - 59 (92%)
Average Film Score - 5.6/10
Best First Time Viewings - Ms. 45, Godzilla vs. Hedorah, Emergency Squad, My Dear Killer
Biggest Surprise - That I had as much enjoyment with Nazisploitation as I did.
Biggest Disappointment - The Iguana With The Tongue Of Fire
Thoughts To Sum It Up - There was a metric ton of shitty movies this month and it really drained me at times. From a disappointing giallo to unbelievably shitty shot on video horror fare this month was a struggle. There were some great movies though and putting a big dent in my "to watch" pile is always a good thing. I probably should have planned out what I wanted to watch instead of winging it but where's the fun in that? (Where's the fun in this?) The exploitation fun rolls right on into May with disc Reviews coming from Synapse and Vinegar Syndrome. And a new branch of Celluloid Terror is coming. WOO! Thanks for following along this month.

An Interview With The Stars Of Troma's Return To Nuke 'Em High

A few days ago Asta Paredes and Clay Von Carlowitz, 2 of the stars from Troma's upcoming film THE RETURN TO NUKE 'EM HIGH, were gracious enough to give a great two part video interview for Celluloid Terror. Check out the interviews and see below for links!







And part 2!







Follow them on Twitter: Asta - @tulipnoir87  Clay - @clayvon87 Return To Nuke Em High - @Return2CONH

And Facebook Fan Page: www.facebook.com/AstaMParedes and Facebook Fan Page: www.facebook.com/clayvoncarlowitz

Exploitation/B-Movie/Drive-In Challenge 2013 - Days 24 & 25

There were only a couple of movies for these days, these shitty movies are really catching up to me. I doubt I'll watch more than a couple more before the month is over as I'm really just letting my brain reset for a busy month of new disc reviews in May.

TIGHT is a mockumentary/documentary/reality TV show sort of movie about 4 porn stars that form a rock band and are managed by former Charlie Sheen girl Bree Olson. The 2 hour movie follows their trials and tribulations of trying to make it on their first tour. I have no idea what this is really supposed to be. Parts seem line a genuine documentary, and they actually do play their instruments (believe me, they're shitty enough that no one would ever fake it) and some of the drama between the girls seems legit but there are other parts, including just about any with Bree Olson that seem so poorly staged that I just don't fucking get what the movie is going for. It is infuriatingly stupid and the music sucks.

Then there was COOL AS HELL. I've finally reached the end of the James Balsamo movies. This one is about... well I don't really know what the fuck it's about. There is a nerdy guy who ends up hanging out with a demon who still can't get him laid. Then there is a woman with witchcraft and zombies. And a hairy demon arm that kills people? I don't know. It's a fucking mess. It is mainly just the nerdy guy in a Hawaiian shirt going around and getting dissed by ladies for the majority of the movie. Just avoid it.

Today's Rundown
They both fucking suck