Chiller Films To Release CAMERA OBSCURA

CHILLER FILMS RELEASES ‘CAMERA OBSCURA’

In Theaters June 9 and on VOD and Digital HD June 13

NEW YORK, NY – April 11, 2017 – Chiller Films is pleased to announce the release of the anticipated horror thriller CAMERA OBSCURA, in theaters on June 9 and on VOD and Digital HD on June 13.  The film is written by Aaron B. Koontz and Cameron Burns and marks the theatrical directing debut of Koontz. The cast includes Christopher Denham (“Billions,” “Argo”), Nadja Bobyleva (“Bridge of Spies”), Catherine Curtin (“Stranger Things,” “Orange is the New Black”), Chase Williamson (SIREN, “Beyond the Gates”) and Noah Segan (“The Mind’s Eye,” “Tales of Halloween”).

In CAMERA OBSCURA, a veteran war photographer with PTSD sees imminent deaths in his developed photos, questioning his already fragile sanity and putting the lives of those he loves in danger.

CAMERA OBSCURA is produced by Aaron B. Koontz, Andrew van den Houten (“All Cheerleaders Die,” “The Woman,”) and Amir Zbeda (“Area 51,” “Paranormal Activity”) and is executive produced by Justin Smith (SIREN, “The Boy”).

For more information on the film, please visit https://www.facebook.com/cameraobscuramovie/.

About Chiller

Chiller is an entertainment brand delivering round-the-clock scares with its commitment to producing diverse and high-quality horror content.  Chiller's eclectic slate of entertainment includes a broad offering of original movies, series and specials, genre films, documentary and reality shows, along with suspenseful series (The X-Files, The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits). With its Chiller Films initiative, Chiller also produces feature films for select theaters and On-Demand.  Chiller network is currently available in 40 million homes. To learn more, visit: www.chillertv.com. Chiller. Scary Good.

(CLOSED) M. Night Shyamalan's SPLIT Giveaway

Universal Studios Home Entertainment has been kind enough to allow us to host a contest for a brand new Blu-ray copy of the latest film from M. Night Shyamalan, SPLIT, available in stores April 18th! See the rules below for entry details!

How To Enter
CLOSED

That's it, it's that easy! A winner will be selected and notified on April 18th, the film's release date!

CHICAGO ROT (2017)

USA/2015
Directed By: Dorian Weinzimmer
Written By: Brant McCrea, Dorian Weinzimmer
Starring: Brant McCrea, Shira Barber
On Demand Release Date: April 4, 2017

Ambition is something all filmmakers should strive for. Making the most out of whatever budget and talent you have isn't always the easiest thing however, especially for independent filmmakers. If there's one word to sum up CHICAGO ROT it is "ambition."

The film centers around a man nicknamed "The Ghoul" and he's fresh out of prison after a decade of incarceration and now he's hunting Chicago's seedy, violent and supernatural underbelly searching for the man for stole his soul. What ensues is a sleazy, ultra violent, neon and rock-n-roll infused horror/sci-fi/crime mashup that really needs to be seen to fully understand, although I'm not sure I fully understand it after viewing it.

From what I was able to find out about CHICAGO ROT with some internet research is that the film took several years to complete, which means the filmmakers were damn persistent on top of ambitious. It does lead to some moments where the film feels piecemealed together but the direction from Dorian Weinzimmer is so damn good that it really doesn't detract too much from the film's flow. Weinzimmer's direction looks and feels like that of someone that is far beyond their debut feature film. It's stylish and makes the world we're in feel massive and legitimate, never feeling cheap or that they're hiding the shortcomings of various sets like I've seen in plenty of bigger pictures from more experienced mainstream filmmakers with exponentially larger budgets.

The cast is quite good as well and with the number of colorful characters with very distinct personalities it's impressive to see that there isn't much in the way of overdoing it or a performance that feels out of touch with the rest of the film. Brant McCrea stars as Les aka "The Ghoul" and gives a strong performance as the center of the film that the rest of the cast revolves around. McCrea also co-wrote the film with Weinzimmer and if I had to pick something about the film that didn't work as much for it it's the story which is convoluted and as much I enjoy everything that is going on within the film on a visual level I think it may be too much for the story to contain and keep a steady flow. CHICAGO ROT has different levels of story going on and at times it goes back to the piecemeal feeling that I mentioned earlier that it feels like various parts were tacked on in stages. This may not be the case but that's the feeling it gives me and is my biggest gripe with the film.

Gripes are to be had and while I don't absolutely love CHICAGO ROT I quite enjoyed watching it and respect the absolute shit out of it. The costumes, locations, effects and overall quality of filmmaking cannot be overlooked or understated. There is some legitimate Hollywood level work in CHICAGO ROT and it's the ambition that drives this film and the successful realization of that ambition that really sets CHICAGO ROT apart from most indie films.

Too much work, damn good work, went into CHICAGO ROT for it to fade away into the indie film abyss. Go watch it.

Phoenix Forgotten (2017) Trailer

PHOENIX FORGOTTEN is the new sci-fi thriller from producer Ridley Scott and it hits theaters on April 21st! Check out the trailer below!

Cult Epics Press Release: 100 Girls By Bunny Yeager Blu-ray

 100 GIRLS BY BUNNY YEAGER Premieres on BLU-RAY April 11, 2017

Los Angeles, CA (April, 2017.) Cult Epics presents a homage to 50s Pin up photography. Bunny Yeager, ‘the worlds prettiest photographer’, started out as a beauty contest winner and professional photographer’s model in the 50’s. She established herself as one of America’s top ten glamour photographers throughout the 50’s and 60’s for Playboy and other magazines. This pictorial shows 100 of her most glamorous models, featuring her most famous one Bettie Page, and includes photographs and original footage of Bunny with the girls behind the scenes. Narrated by Bunny Yeager, who past away in 2014. 

Blu-ray features a 2K HD transfer and new bonus features including two featurettes of Bunny’s never-before-seen photos of Bettie Page, as shown and presented at the Catalina Island Museum in 2016. 

100 GIRLS BY BUNNY YEAGER Blu-ray

Price:                              $29.95

Street Date:                              April 11, 2017

Production Year:                     1950/1997/2016

Video run time:                 Approx. 70 Min

Language:                                English language 

Aspect Ratio:                           1.33:1

Audio:                                      Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo

Label:                                       Cult Epics

Distributor:                              CAV 

Blu-ray Cat.no.                        CE-150

BD UPC:                                 881190015094

Rating:                                     Not Rated

SPECIAL FEATURES

New 2K HD Transfer (from original 16mm film)

Over 200 Pin Up photos

Clips from Bunny Yeager’s Nude Camera and Nude Las Vegas and unseen footage

Bettie Page Uncovered: The Unknown Photographs of Bunny Yeager

 (Introduction by Helmut Schuster) 2016, HD

Bunny Yeager/Bettie Page HD Virtual photo exhibit (2016, HD)

( CLOSED)GIVEAWAY: THE BYE BYE MAN BLU-RAY

Universal Studios Home Entertainment has been kind enough to allow us to host a contest for a brand new Blu-ray copy of the Unrated Edition of THE BYE BYE MAN, available in stores April 11th! See the rules below for entry details!

How To Enter
CLOSED.

That's it, it's that easy! A winner will be selected and notified on April 11th, the film's release date!

MONDO WEIRDO/VAMPIROS SEXOS (Cult Epics) - Blu-ray Review

Austria/1988, 1990
Directed By: Carl Andersen
Written By: Carl Andersen
Starring: Soledad Marceignac, Frank Khunne, Jasmin Bevilaqua
Black & White/134 Minutes/Not Rated
Region FREE
Release Date: March 14, 2017
Blu-ray/DVD/CD
Limited Edition: 2,000

The Films
This collection of Carl Andersen's three earliest films including two features and a short are nothing short of a midnight movie lovers dream. These films are erotic, experimental, sometimes darkly comedic and wholly Avant Garde ventures into horror and various aspects of human discovery. From tainted olive oil vampires to a teen experiencing the pains of womanhood in the most bizzarely gothic psychadelic mind fuck involving Elizabeth Bathory you're likely to see anytime soon, Andersen's work are light on traditional narrative and storytelling and heavy on visual impact steering us through the adventure.

Hardcore sex and graphic violence are commonplace in the grainy and gritty photography that ranges from beautiful (see the three way split screen in MONDO WEIRDO) to inventive with  the play with exposure and washing out the majority of the picture in several scenes in VAMPIROS SEXOS. The films on display here are a visceral experience that leave you replaying scenes in your mind over and over. The soundtrack on both MONDO WEIRDO AND VAMPIROS SEXOS is from a Model D'oo, a band with a post punk, gothic industrial sort of vibe that I was not previously familiar with but their sound is the perfect backdrop to these pictures as it matches the punk attitude and aesthetic that isn't easily defined but I think a rougher version of early David Lynch is a good place to start.

The Audio & Video
Cult Epics gives these Carl Andersen a home they can be appreciated on for the foreseeable future. MONDO WEIRDO has been newly transferred to HD from the original 16mm film for the first time. It definitely shows good detail and sharpness despite the gritty photography but where you can really see the HD treatment is in the depth of the black and white levels. They saturate the screen in ways a standard DVD cannot. The German audio sounds good with sporadic English subtitles used when they're intended and other times without. The sound quality is surprisingly crisp despite expected imperfections for an underground film such as this.

VAMPIROS SEXOS is presented on DVD and looks as I expected it would after viewing MW on Blu-ray in that it is noticeably grainier and rougher looking overall, in part from some damage the elements have incurred over the years but I was pleased to see that there is still good detail present, especially in close ups and a decent sharpness to the photography overall.


The Extras
The main special features include the 1990 short film WHAT'S SO DIRTY ABOUT IT? and a making-of featurette with interview clips for both MONDO WEIRDO and VAMPIROS SEXOS. An introduction to MW by Erwin Leder, the star of Angst is also included and is a heartfelt introduction and farewell to his late friend. This limited edition also includes a CD soundtrack with 4 unreleased bonus tracks from Model D'oo.

The Bottom Line
These types of films are something you either appreciate or you don't, I find there is usually very little middle ground. If you're the type of movie viewer that can sink their teeth into offbeat and far from typical fare then these Carl Andersen films will be right up your alley and they're a perfect fit for the Cult Epics catalog.

MONDO WEIRDO/VAMPIROS SEXOS is available HERE