DEATH LINE (Raw Meat) - Blue Underground Blu-ray Review

UK/1972
Directed By: Gary Sherman
Written By: Gary Sherman, Ceri Jones
Starring: Donald Pleasance, Norman Rossington, David Ladd
Color/87 Minutes/Not Rated
Region FREE
Release Date: June 27, 2017
Blu-ray/DVD

The Film
When a rash of people have disappeared in the London Underground a Scotland Yard Inspector (Donald Pleasance) must investigate the case where he has a suspicious eye toward an American student studying abroad but eventually learns that a group of workers may have survived a tunnel collapse in the 1890s surviving for generations off the flesh of their own dead until now when hunger has driven them to the surface.

From the moment the bassy, baritone groove kicks in over the opening credits you're immediately aware that DEATH LINE isn't going to be a typical horror film. It has a personality all its own from the dark comedy that Donald Pleasance brings in a brilliant performance, to the cold, uninviting subway tunnels and the bellowing calls of "Mind the doors" that are haunting and quite frankly unnerving, DEATH LINE has different tones and vibes that don't always work together, but they come together and compliment each other nicely.

Director Gary Sherman helms an almost entirely British production and makes a film that feels distinctly of its country, surprisingly. It's a bit dry in it's delivery in a way that so many British productions are. That's not a bad thing either. It plays the story straight, with only Pleasance's character and rivalry with Christopher Lee's character who plays a MI5 Intelligence Agent in a lone scene that he plays almost entirely straight to the camera and is incredibly snotty and perfect in it. His backhanded suggestion that Pleasance goes back to planting pot on suspects before he becomes a missing person himself leaves a lasting impression for Lee's lone moment in the film.

Gary Sherman wouldn't return to the directors chair on a feature film for almost a decade after DEATH LINE when he'd return with a film that has a lot of similarities in pacing and delivery, Dead And Buried, which is severely underrated among horror fans. It is the pacing in DEATH LINE that I think stops it from being an a true classic. It is very much a display of Pleasance's antics and snarky attitude through much of the picture with a few horrific moments sprinkled throughout until the climax. Those sparse moments are quite good however and there is a seven minute tracking shot in the tunnels among the dead and dying tunnel dwellers who suffer from plague, emaciation and countless other ailments that is a masterful sequence. The skill that this scene took cannot be overlooked or underestimated. This was years before Steadicam and it is simply perfect in execution and helps bring a sense of humanity and empathy to the tunnel dwellers. Hugh Armstrong portrayed the male tunnel dweller and was both tragic and nightmare fuel.

DEATH LINE was released in the US as RAW MEAT which is what I always knew the film to be. I don't think either title is much better than the other but I think the US artwork is a stroke of maniacal brilliance. It is eye catching, striking and bizarre while the standard artwork that you see pictured on this blu-ray release is more in line with the stark, cold tone of the film. No matter which title or poster is used I believe DEATH LINE has been lost in the shuffle over the years, never quite gaining the popularity or acclaim it is deserving of.

The Audio & Video
Blue Underground has given DEATH LINE  a brand new 2K restoration and transfer which looks fantastic! The 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer has a warm, naturalistic color palette. The picture is sharp with great levels of detail that allows everything from clothing to the special effects makeup look exceptional. The image is clean with virtually no noticeable dirt or debris and skin tones looks lifelike and not at all waxy. An English DTS-HD Mono track is the lone audio option which takes the original mix and brings it to HD quality and it sounds excellent. There's no drop outs, distortions or background noise. The mix allows the dialogue to come through clear while the soundtrack comes in powerful when needed.

Please Note: Screen grabs do NOT represent Blu-ray quality.

The Extras
Blue Underground has put together a nice selection of special features for this release including:

-Audio Commentary with co-writer/director Gary Sherman, producer Paul Maslansky, and assistant director Lewis More O'Ferrall
-"Tales From The Tube" - Interview with Gary Sherman and executive producers Jay Kanter and Alan Ladd Jr.
-"From The Depths" - Interview with star David Ladd and producer Paul Maslansky
-"Mind The Doors" - Interview with star Hugh Armstrong
-Theatrical trailers
-TV and Radio Spots
-Poster and Still gallery
-Booklet with new writing by Michael Gingold and Christopher Gullo

The Bottom Line
DEATH LINE has been a bit overlooked for years but hopefully no longer! This new Blu-ray is the perfect way for new fans to discover the film. If you haven't seen it now is the time to educate yourself with this Blu-ray that has blown me away.

DEATH LINE is available HERE

THE GREEN INFERNO (Blu-ray Review) - Universal

Chile, USA/2013
Directed By: Eli Roth
Written By: Guillermo Amoedo, Eli Roth
Starring: Lorenza Izzo, Ariel Levy, Aaron Burns
Color/101 Minutes/R
Region A
Release Date: January 12, 2016
Blu-ray/UVHD

The Film
A group of college students determined to protect the rainforest fly to Peru and crash land in the Amazon jungle where they are captured by a tribe of cannibals and suffer brutal and grotesque acts of savagery while their very existence becomes a fight to survive.

I'm a huge fan of the Italian cannibal films that were released in the 70s and 80s from Umberto Lenzi's Man From Deep River that started it all to the infamous classic Cannibal Holocaust from director Ruggero Deodato. Eli Roth has made it known that's he's a big fan of these films and wanted to make his own film to pay homage to them with THE GREEN INFERNO.

I'm watching this film again to bring you a review and I hope you appreciate it because this movie is pure ass. Where even the lowest form of the Italian cannibal films succeed at only being an exploitation film with graphic imagery and questionable agendas at least they succeeded at being sleazy entertainment. THE GREEN INFERNO isn't entertaining and it is filled with obnoxious unlikeable characters and wooden acting.

Many of the big scare and gross out moments of the film are filled with awful looking CGI that not only takes the viewer out of the moment but can actually have you laughing at the screen when you should be shocked and deplored - one look at the "ant" scene will show you exactly what I mean.

The film is a mess from start to finish with moments of comedy sprinkled throughout that have no place being there. Any message that Roth wanted to convey is completely lost. I doubt there was ever one to begin with.

I'm done talking about THE GREEN INFERNO. I endured it a second time for this review and that will be the last time I waste my time on it.

The Audio & Video
The Blu-ray from Universal features a stunning full HD 1080p transfer in the film's original 2.40:1 aspect ratio. Colors are vibrant and jump off the screen from the lush greens to the blood reds and various color paints used on the native's faces and bodies. Skin tones are fleshy and natural with no signs of waxiness. There's excellent detail level in both surfaces and textures, from the barks of trees to facial hair and threads of cloth. A DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix handles the English audio with great success. The mix is brilliant as background noises such as wild birds and animals are noticeable without taking away from the more primary channels of dialogue and score. There's not a single bit of damage or background noise evident in the crystal clear track. You couldn't ask for a nicer A/V presentation of the film.

The Extras
Where Universal killed it with the A/V, they totally dropped the ball on special features including only a audio commentary track and a still gallery. A featurette on shooting in the jungle, the history of cannibal films and where THE GREEN INFERNO fits in, or cast and crew interviews would have been a welcomed addition to really round out the disc.

The Bottom Line
If you're a lover of modern gore movies and don't care about decent writing, acting or watching a good movie in general you may find something to enjoy here. This is shock value for the sake of shock value and doesn't even entertain on the lowest levels.

THE GREEN INFERNO is available HERE

APPETITES (DVD Review) - Image/RLJ

USA/2015
Directed By: Cameron Casey
Written By: Darren Bevill
Starring: Bret Roberts, Lauren Parkinson, Travis Eberhard
Color/106 Minutes/Not Rated
Region 1
Release Date: August 4, 2015

The Film
"Do you know what tattoos lead to? More tattoos!"

APPETITES is a fitting title when everything is said and done but getting to the point where all is said and done is going to be a bit of a chore. The opening ten minutes start out as an uber violent, sex driven cannibalistic horror film that has obvious influence from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and House Of 1000 Corpses. Almost immediately the cannibal angle is dropped for nearly an hour while we follow a detective on the trail of "John Doe" who is our super cool guy who loves to pay women for sex and then murders them because of their tattoos. Yeah, this guy can't get passed women having tattoos, when he looks like a Kid Rock wannabe. This guy wishes he was an American badass. His super smooth (please note the thick sarcasm) lines include ordering a "whiskey and Coke, hold the Coke" and dropping "That's what she said." to girls he's hitting on. Yeah, this guy is the epitome of cool.

We follow the detectives half assed attempts at tracking down Doe and stopping his murderous rampage of all inked women while Doe sets his sights on the flawless Daisy who is one of our early cannibals along with her large and mentally unstable brother Bubba. John Doe does his best to swoon Daisy, who only manages to find her southern accent when it's convenient and certainly doesn't come across as any sort of cannibal killer, even bringing Doe to her property that is lined with booby traps for any trespassers. Eventually she gives in to Doe's advances and they begin to fool around until he sees a hidden tattoo on her hip and Doe begins to lose his cool over.

The opening scenes had me thinking that this movie was going to be nothing more than ripoff of similar classic films. I was surprised, unfortunately not pleasantly to find this to be something quite different. The cannibal angle feels tacked on to a lackluster serial killer story. Those first ten minutes could have summed up what the audience was in for (sex, cannibalism and murder) but instead it sums up what the audience hoped this movie was about. Yes, I wish this movie was a cheap knock off of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre or even Rob Zombie's films. APPETITES runs too long with an antagonist that is pathetically lame and no real protagonist. Thankfully there are some incredibly attractive ladies baring it all to save this movie from being a total loss.

The Audio & Video
Image/RLJ Entertainment give APPETITES a rather standard but fitting standard definition DVD release. Colors are good and clarity is good. There's a bit of crush during darker scenes but it isn't overly distracting by any means. The English audio is handled with a Dolby Digital 5.1 track that sounds good with stable and clear sound levels.

The Extras
None at all.

The Bottom Line
APPETITES is a film worth watching for a few moments of violence and a few very attractive ladies but fully passable otherwise.

CANNIBAL FEROX (Blu-ray Review) - Grindhouse Releasing

Italy/1981
Directed By: Umberto Lenzi
Written By: Umberto Lenzi
Starring: Giovanni Lombardo Radice, Lorraine De Selle, Danilo Mattei
Color/93 Minutes/Unrated
Region A
Release Date: May 26, 2015

The Film
It recently hit me that the Italian cannibal films of the 1970s and 80s were very similar to the rise of the "torture porn" craze the horror genre was hit with in the mid 2000s. While films like Last Cannibal World, Cannibal Holocaust and CANNIBAL FEROX all centered around outsiders meeting various gruesome and barbaric ends at the hands of native tribes in various jungle settings, films like Saw and Hostel gave birth to a trend of films where the narrative of the film allowed the film to be confined to a single location and have the victims of the film tortured as they fight for their survival. While the settings and periods of those genres are very different, they both made their money on pushing the envelope of sadistic violence and being exploitative while the films followed similar narrative themes and patterns without putting too much worry into creating anything meaningful.

Of course there are exceptions as with Cannibal Holocaust which is one of the most poignant films ever made and Saw which was a pretty damn good film that has unfortunately had to deal with being part of a rather dreadful subgenre of films and being the first film in a franchise that quickly became total fucking shit in every way. Then there are those films that are perfectly happy doing nothing really new except trying to ramp up the violence and sleaze to make a buck. Like the Saw sequels, I largely lump CANNIBAL FEROX into that group. But that doesn't mean I don't love it.

Umberto Lenzi created this subgenre of horror film in 1972 with The Man From Deep River and thus began a minor movement in the Italian film industry that would last a good 15 years or so. It never got to the point where cannibal films were being pumped out like spaghetti westerns or gialli were but   these movies became a way to make a little bit of money so on average a couple of films per year were shot in various exotic locations and packed with racial stereotypes, animal cruelty, nudity and plenty of gore. Some of these movies were poorly made and remain as examples as little more than cheap bandwagon filmmaking but others were made with skill and solid technique whether they had any artistic merit or not.

It's tough to say exactly when the height of popularity was for the cannibal genre as there weren't enough films made to really call it a boom period but if I was forced to put a label on it I'd say that CANNIBAL FEROX came out right at the end of the non-existant boom. I figure a year after Cannibal Holocaust is good enough reason as any to call it the end of height as there was no bigger or better film in the cycle than Cannibal Holocaust. FEROX certainly gives CH a run for its money in terms of boundary pushing though. Giovanni Lombardo Radice might not be quite as bad as the group in CH but he's no fucking angel. One genital slicing scene is enough to tell you that. The gore in FEROX is nasty with brains and balls being served up and breasts being impaled. You won't be finding these types of nipple piercings or prince alberts at your local Piercing Pagoda.

Umberto Lenzi is no slouch when it comes to directing films. The man made some fine films and FEROX is no different. No, it is not an important commentary and yes, it comes off as a big Cannibal Holocaust cash grab but it still features solid performances, good camera work and great special effects work with a script that is solid enough to keep things moving along at a nice pace. Add in a soundtrack that I find to be criminally underrated and overlooked by Budy Maglione and CANNIBAL FEROX is a film I really love. It's sleazy, it's sweaty and it certainly isn't for everybody.

The Audio & Video
Grindhouse Releasing has done it again with another stunning release. The 16x9 anamorphic widescreen transfer comes from a new 2K scan of the original camera negative. The image has a very film like quality with a natural looking grain structure. Detail levels are strong in surfaces and textures while skin tones are fleshy without any sign of waxiness. There's no edge enhancement or DNR noticeable and colors are vibrant. There are options for an Italian language track with the original mono mix or an English track with a new DTS-HD stereo mix. I opted for the English track and it sounds brilliantly crisp and clean. There's not a hint of damage and the audio comes across crystal clear with a perfect balance between the dialogue and soundtrack.

The Extras
Like a baked potato, or a stoner, or any other thing would be LOADED, this release is stacked... like Jenga or pancakes. Okay, enough of that.

-Audio commentary with Umberto Lenzi and Giovanni Lombardo Radice
-Deleted Footage lost for over 30 years (can be inserted into the film for seamless viewing!)
-"Eaten Alive: The Rise And Fall Of The Italian Cannibal Film" - A feature length documentary examining the Italian cannibal film cycle featuring the men and women who made the movies and various critics (a must watch!)
-Interviews with writer/director Umberto Lenzi, stars Giovanni Lombardo Radice, Danilo Mattei, Zora Kerowa and special effects master Gino DeRossi
-Original Italian theatrical trailers
-Original US theatrical trailers
-Original Germa theatrical trailers
-Extensive stills and poster art gallery
-Liner notes booklet
-Umberto Lenzi filmography
-Soundtrack CD
-Easter eggs

The Bottom Line
If there was a Mt. Rushmore for cult film home video labels Grindhouse Releasing would have a spot on that monument. With each release they further their legendary status as one of the premiere labels that all other labels strive to be and their release of CANNIBAL FEROX is no different.

CANNIBAL FEROX is available HERE

Mondo Cannibal (DVD Review) - Intervision

Italy/2004
Directed By: Bruno Mattei
Written By: Bruno Mattei, Giovanni Paolucci
Starring: Helena Wagner, Claudio Morales, Cindy Jelic Matic
Color/91 Minutes/Not Rated
Region 1
Release Date: November 11, 2014

The Film
A famous news reporter's network is on the verge of shutting down due to poor ratings when she gets the station and co-workers on board with a story that will take them into the heart of the jungle to a do a story on a tribe of cannibals. The story isn't juicy enough and the news group quickly takes advantage of their situation by faking stories, and terrorizing the natives by killing and raping them until the native tribe fights back.

I'm a big fan of cannibal and jungle horror films. I can overlook quite a bit of bullshit in them and simply enjoy their excess of gore, nudity and explicit content but there's just not a good movie hiding underneath the surface of MONDO CANNIBAL. This is a lazy and totally unexceptional jungle horror film that is weak and low rent even for Bruno Mattei standards. It looks cheap, it feels cheap and beyond that it is an obvious ripoff of every other cannibal horror film, even one done a year earlier by Mattei himself. It's more than a bit disappointing.

MONDO CANNIBAL is weaker than I could have ever hoped and certainly meets the lowest expectations I could imagine for an early 21st century cannibal horror film. There's some graphic content full of gore and sex that does give the film a bit of splatter factor including a forced C-Section that is rather nasty that gore hounds may enjoy but overall MONDO CANNIBAL isn't a good film.

The Audio & Video
Intervision gives MONDO CANNIBAL its North American debut on DVD with a 4x3 full frame transfer that maintains the film's original aspect ratio. The digital photography is middle of the road material. It looks decent but far from great or "film like". Sharpness is good and color reproduction is solid. Overall this early 2000s production takes advantage of cheaper production techniques and manages to look decent despite not being a truly proper aspect ratio. The 2.0 English audio track is a dub track, as the movie didn't record live sound. The track mixing is fine and while the audio is nothing special it gets the job done.

The Extras
A trailer for the film is the lone extra.

The Bottom Line
I'm a huge fan of jungle and cannibal horror and consider the Italian cannibal cycle one of my favorite cycles of film but MONDO CANNIBAL is simply a very weak film that I suggest only the biggest fans of the genre check out. 

MONDO CANNIBAL is available HERE

In The Land Of The Cannibals (DVD Review) - Intervision

Italy/2003
Directed By: Bruno Mattei
Written By: Bruno Mattei, Giovanni Paolucci
Starring: Claudio Morales, Lou Randall, Cindy Jelic Matic
Color/93 Minutes/Not Rated
Region 1
Release Date: November 11, 2014

The Film
A team of commandos head into the jungles of Brazil to rescue a politician's daughter who has been kidnapped by a cannibal tribe deep within. This team of hotheaded stereotypes joins up with a couple of locals including a guide and a man that looks to have been a person of a jungle tribe at one time or another. The teams heads in to the jungle armed to the teeth with a prisoner of their own to lead them to the tribe but quickly find that all of the combat training and automatic rifles in the world couldn't prepare them for the horrors found in these jungles.

IN THE LAND OF THE CANNIBALS is a modern day piece of sleaze that is straight out of the late 70s/early 80s cannibal film cycle that quickly rose to prominence in Italy. Filmed in the Philippines, Mattei uses his location to his advantage getting some great location shots, despite not really showing anything inherently terrifying about the jungles such as snakes, spiders or other dangerous wildlife until later in the film. The first half of the film not only feels like, but is a cheap retread of Cannibal Holocaust, undoubtedly the king of cannibal exploitation. Ruggero Deodato's classic scenes are ripped off one by one and I counted no less than a half dozen such scenes until I finally gave up and just watched the rest of the movie. I wouldn't say it hurt the film as IN THE LAND OF THE CANNIBALS isn't a particularly strong film either way, but it certainly made you realize just how cheap this movie really is.

Bruno Mattei is no stranger to cheap movies. Many of his films have ripped off far more impressive films in one way or another but that doesn't make me less of a fan. It just shows an exploitation filmmaker being exploitative, for better or worse. It almost gives me a laugh thinking about it. IN THE LAND OF THE CANNIBALS is pretty action packed however, with plenty of shoot outs, gory cannibal corpses, and all of the classic tropes of the genre you'd expect. Yes, even a snake meets its maker at one point which is a bit upsetting as this isn't the 1970s anymore when it could be argued that it would be a bit more acceptable. I'm not one to get up in arms about the animal cruelty in these types of cannibal horror films and I'll go as far as saying I think watching Cannibal Holocaust with the "Cruelty Free" version is sacrilege but those were different times in different circumstances. I highly doubt the cast of this film ate the snake that was brutalized in this film. If I'm wrong so be it.

Alas, that is the type of film we're dealing with. IN THE LAND OF THE CANNIBALS is nothing more than cheap entertainment at its best, a ripoff of better films and the going for the wrong side of exploitation filmmaking but I can't say I didn't enjoy it for what it was- cheap, sleazy and of questionable nature.

The Audio & Video
This movie was shot on decent quality digital cameras that seem to be a bit above typical consumer level cameras of the time but nothing I'd venture to call "professional level" equipment. Intervision Picture Corp. has released the debut DVD in a 1.33:1 full frame aspect ratio that seems to be the original filming aspect ratio. The picture has a good sharpness to it taking in to consideration the equipment used along with solid detail levels and color representation. It certainly isn't film but I can't really complain about the PQ too much. The audio track, a 2.0 English dub track as Mattei didn't film with live sound,  which is probably for the best, sounds good with no background noise or audio hiccups (obviously). A live audio track would have meant dealing with all of the distractions present while filming and the Italian film industry classically didn't film with live sound so I think of it as a nice little throwback to the heyday of these cannibal films.

The Extras
A trailer for the film is the lone extra.

The Bottom Line
This cheap ripoff of classic exploitation does hold some value as time wasting entertainment. It provides enough gore and guts to satisfy the appetites of fans of the messy stuff. Recommended for die hard fans of jungle horror.

IN THE LAND OF THE CANNIBALS is available HERE

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (40th Anniversary Blu-ray Review) - Dark Sky Films

USA/1974
Directed By: Tobe Hooper
Written By: Kim Henkel, Tobe Hooper
Starring: Marilyn Burns, Edwin Neal, Allen Danziger
Color/84 Minutes/R
Region A
Release Date: September 16, 2014

The Film
What can I say about THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE that hasn't been said a thousand times already? This maniacal film about a group of young adults looking for a fun weekend at their grandparents old house who are terrorized and tortured by a depraved cannibal family in a small secluded Texas town is among my top 15 favorite films of all time. It is a perfect film in every way. It is violent and sick but notably light on blood or gore. There's no need for shock value here as all of the film's scares lie in the writing and performances by a group that was being driven to the brink of insanity by an endlessly oppressive Texas summer heatwave and the stench of real rotting animal corpses dressing the set. This actual madness that the cast had descended into is easily felt through the screen by the audience and I'm hard pressed to come up with another film quite like it in that way.

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE is as scary, weird and gross as it was 40 years ago when it was unleashed on the world. It is also as perfect in every way. Age has not cracked the film's shell and exposed flaws or dated it in any way. This film is timeless and I have no doubt it will be as effectively horrifying at its 80th anniversary as it is today at 40.

This film has received incredible amounts of merchandising over the years from video games on the Atari system to action figures, drink mugs, artwork, t-shirts, Halloween costumes and more. Of course home video releases rule and THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE has been released on every format from Betamax to Laserdisc and even had a CED release. Perhaps most of all though, it has had numerous releases on DVD and Blu-ray including Collector's Editions, Anniversary Editions, Ultimate Editions, Special Editions... you name it and it probably had an edition. I've owned a few of these editions and while many of them are quite nice as far as technical presentation of the film and special features are concerned, none of them hold a candle to this new 40th Anniversary Collector's Edition Blu-ray set.

The Audio & Video
Dark Sky Films has done great work with TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE in their past editions of the film but they've now given us the definitive edition. The new 4K presentation of the film takes the pretty damn good looking previous Blu-ray and blows it out of the water. There's a beautiful film quality to the picture which has a very sharp look with a lovely natural color palette. Skin tones look fleshy and healthy and the anamorphic widescreen 1.78:1 transfer has come from source material that was in excellent and very clean condition. There are a number of audio options, including a Dolby TrueHD 7.1, 5.1, 2.0 and the original Mono mix. Depending on if you want to work out your home theater system or listen to the original mix you're in for a treat. The mixes are all well done and crystal clear. There's never any instances of levels fluctuating and there's no annoying background noise or popping or crackling. I'll sum up my thoughts on the A/V with a resounding "hell yes!"

The Extras
Disc 1:
-Audio commentary with: Tobe Hooper, actor Gunnar Hansen, Cinematographer Daniel Pearl
-Audio commentary with: Actors Marilyn Burns, Allen Danziger and Paul A Partain and Production Designer Robert Burns
-New audio commentary with Tobe Hooper
-New audio commentary with Daniel Pearl, Editor J. Larry Carroll and Sound Recordist Ted Nicolaou

Disc 2:
-The Texas Chain Saw Massacre: The Shocking Truth
-Flesh Wounds: Seven Stories Of The Saw
-A Tour Of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre House with Gunnar Hansen
-Off The Hook with Teri McMinn
-The Business Of Chain Saw: An interview with Production Manager Ron Bozman
-New deleted scenes and outtakes
-Grandpa's Tales: An interview with John Dugan
-Cutting Chain Saw: An interview with Editor J. Larry Carroll
-Deleted scenes and outtakes
-Blooper reel
-Outtakes from "The Shocking Truth"
-Horror's Hallowed Grounds
-Dr. W.E. Barnes Presents "Making Grandpa"
-Still gallery
-Trailer selection
-TV spots
-Radio spots

Discs 3 and 4 are DVD versions of the film and special features

The Bottom Line
By now do you need to hear anything else? I sure hope not because a perfect film with a damn near perfect presentation and a metric shit ton of extras shouldn't take too much thought. Go get it. 

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 40TH ANNIVERSARY COLLECTOR'S EDITION BLU-RAY is available HERE

Cannibal Holocaust (Blu-ray Review) - Grindhouse Releasing

Italy/1980
Directed By: Ruggero Deodato
Written Gianfranco Clerici
Starring: Robert Kerman, Francesca Ciardi, Perry Pirkanen
Color/95 Minutes/Unrated
Region FREE
Release Date: July 1, 2014

The Film
There are few films in the world with a reputation like CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST. Few films have been banned for their grotesque nature and brutality they show on screen yet so heavily praised for being an expertly crafted piece of cinema with a far deeper meaning than its shock cinema label will let you believe. A first time viewing of CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST will definitely leave you with a memory of the film. From the extreme violence, and gory effects to the completely real killing of animals on screen. Your stomach will turn, you'll want to look away, and perhaps you will. If you're watching the film for the first time with more than violence and shock on your mind maybe you will begin to see the true depth to CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST.

CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST is absolutely an exploitation picture. It goes all the way and back again. Ruggero Deodato was even put on trial for murdering cast members and he had to prove their existence to escape conviction. It was that believable. It is no surprise that even to this day audiences are in shock and awe over this film and may not be entirely sure exactly what is real but beyond the savages, the gunning down of natives, the extreme ways in which people are killed, the beheading and shooting of animals, the people being impaled and general jungle horror within the film, lies a single question at the end of the film - "I wonder who the real cannibals are?".

CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST is brilliant in every way. Ruggero Deodato was no stranger to the cannibal film at this time having previously made Last Cannibal World (aka Jungle Holocaust) in 1977 but this time he made something bigger than an exploitation film. The late Riz Ortolani produced a beautiful and at times haunting score for the film. The cast was pushed to their limits, literally in tears at times during the production over things they had to do. It was an all around effort by everyone involved to give 100% and make this film and although Deodato has said in recent years that he wishes he hadn't made the film I think the world of film, and perhaps in a small way the world itself would be a bit worse off if that was the case. It is true that despicable things were done in the film. Did animals need to die on screen? No, but they did. And they were eaten. It doesn't make it any less horrific but the impact it has on the viewer on a visceral level can't be measured. And that impact leads to deeper thinking and the importance the film brings.

The Audio & Video
Grindhouse Releasing gives CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST its first uncut Blu-ray ever with a stunningly gorgeous anamorphic widescreen transfer. Detail levels are incredibly strong from faces to textures of clothing and other items. Colors are simply stunning, from the lush green jungles to the brown skin of the natives and bright blue skies. Even the 16mm handheld camera footage looks very good, without question the best it ever has. Thankfully Grindhouse Releasing knows what they're doing and didn't destroy the film by scrubbing it clean. This Blu-ray is still grainy but it's a natural and attractive film grain, and not dirt and damage. The DTS-HDMA 2.0 track is in English, the natural langauge of the film, and sounds magnificent. The mix, of dialogue, score and surrounding sounds of the jungle are all handled skillfully as to compliment each other without ever becoming intrusive even at their most extreme. Levels are stable and the crispness to this audio track is just lovely. 

The Extras
I could go on and on about the special features presented here in this 3 disc set, instead I'll simply break down each disc's content.

Blu-ray disc 1:
-Original uncut version of the film
-"Animal friendly" version of the film
-Audio commentary with director Ruggero Deodato and star Robert Kerman
-Audio commentary with stars Carl Yorke and Francesca Ciardi
-Large selection of trailers for Cannibal Holocaust

Blu-ray disc 2:
-11 interviews with key cast and crew members
-Large selection of extensive still galleries
-Selection of additional Grindhouse Releasing trailers

CD soundtrack

The Bottom Line
It is official, there is no better way to watch CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST than this release unless you have a pristine 35mm copy and place to project it. I can't come up with a single flaw against this release, from the brilliant A/V quality to loads of special features and the inclusion of the entire soundtrack. This will go down as one of, if not the best release of 2014 by any company anywhere in the world. 

CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST is available HERE

2014 Exploitation/B-Movie Challenge - Day 1

It snuck up on me this year but it is time again for another DVD Talk April Exploitation/B-Movie/Drive-In Challenge. Just like the October horror challenge that I participate in over at DVD Talk and branch out to over here to discuss the movies I watch I do the same with the April exploitation challenge. You know the drill, I've done it before and I'm back again. If you want to participate head on over the DVD Talk and sign up and have fun talking about the various types of movies this challenge celebrates.

The challenge technically started at dusk on 3/31 so I was able to start my challenge before bed...

WHITE CANNIBAL QUEEN was first, one of the Italian jungle horror films that has eluded me until now. The opening credits deserve mention as they open with "A Film by Franco Prosperi" and closed with "Directed by Jess Franco". Yes it is co-directed by the pair but I don't think I've ever seen the names split up like that. It made me chuckle. As for the film itself it isn't great. It has all the classic tropes of the genre but without the skill, art or sleaze that makes the better entries special. It seemed like Prosperi and Franco were satisfied to be average in every way with this one. Jungle horror fans should seek it out and I did enjoy it enough but there are plenty of better examples to seek out first. 5/10

The challenge started out with another film that is an exceedingly middle of the road example fo the genre. CJAMANGO is one of the lesser known spaghetti westerns that caught my attention in my early days of discovering the genre several years ago. This has everything to do with the title, which is an obvious play on Django (it was one of the dozens of films that would receive an alternate "Django" title). CJAMANGO wins some stolen gold in a card game, the gold is stolen back and so begins the problems. Filled with plenty of shoot outs, double crossing and even the spaghetti western's own version of Short Round (yes, I realize this film was 20 years before Short Round) and you have CJAMANGO. It isn't bad but it does nothing to separate itself from the masses. 5/10

The first star of the challenge is another film I've been interested in checking out for some time. The Kung-Fu genre is one I enjoy greatly. Hell, Celluloid Terror's first image on Facebook was a picture from 5 Deadly Venoms. The thing is, I've been very slow and/or patient in digging deeper into the genre. THE 8 DIAGRAM POLE FIGHTER is a title I've heard great things about forever. I always heard that it was up to par with The 36th Chamber Of Shaolin or the aforementioned 5 Deadly Venoms. Well fate and timing shone down upon me as I found a copy of the DVD for $5 just a couple days ago. I instantly grabbed it and tonight I popped it in hoping that my high expectations wouldn't overshadow my enjoyment. They did not. I don't think I could have expectations so high that this film wouldn't live up to them. If the top tier of Kung-Fu films is 5 or 6 movies then there has to be room for THE 8 DIAGRAM POLE FIGHTER on that tier. From the moody and atmospheric opening battle that sets the stage for this tale of revenge to the final 10 minute climactic battle scene that left me hooting and hollering at the screen, (or as wrestling fans would know it - I marked out, hard.) The final fight scene might be the best and my personal favorite fight scene of any film. Only time will tell but it certainly will be among my favorites. 9/10

Frightmare (Blu-ray Review) - Kino Redemption

England/1974
Directed By: Pete Walker
Written By: David McGillivray
Starring: Sheila Keith, Rupert Davies, Deborah Fairfax
Color and B&W/86 Minutes/Rated R
Region A
Release Date: March 18, 2014

The Film
Dorothy Yates and her husband Edmund are freed from a mental institution after years of treatment after she committed acts murder and cannibalism. Now Dorothy has guests visit their isolated farm home for tarot card readings. Their eldest daughter Jackie also visits hoping to keep her mother sane with the help of her father. Jackie has to deal with her younger sister Debbie who hangs around a biker gang and is generally a nasty brat of an adolescent. Jackie keeps their parents a secret from Debbie, fearing the relationship will be toxic. Unfortunately for Debbie, and her father who is in the middle of a disastrous mess, Jackie is well aware of her mother and they both despise Debbie for keeping them apart.

FRIGHTMARE is a brilliant psychological slow burn from the underrated genre director Pete Walker. Sheila Keith is wonderful as the disturbed mother as is her on-screen husband Rupert Davies who is lost in the mix of a family torn apart by broken minds. Walker's direction is tight, and the story is far from just pure psychological horror as it features some rather nasty murder scenes. If you've never seen FRIGHTMARE you're doing yourself a disservice as it is one of the best horror films to come out of the UK in the 1970s and it gets better with with each viewing.

The Audio & Video
What can I really say about this Blu-ray besides "YES!"? Kino Redemption has delivered a stunning looking and sounding disc. I dare say it is a near perfect presentation. The 1.66:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer is gorgeous, with strong detail, lifelike skin tones, vivid but natural colors and no edge enhancement or DNR. The soundtrack is pristine with no background noise, crackling or popping. The mix is spot on and I doubt this will ever sound better on home video. It is weird to smile during a film such as FRIGHTMARE but when you first experience this disc you will be ear to ear.

The Extras
There are several special features on the disc including:

-Audio commentary with Pete Walker and DP Peter Jessop conducted by Steve Chiball, author of "Making Mischief: The Cult Films Of Pete Walker"
-"For The Sake Of Cannibalism" - An interview with Pete Walker by Elijah Drenner
-"Sheila Keith: A Nice Old Lady?" - A profile on the late actress featuring interviews with former collaborators
-Original theatrical trailer

The Bottom Line
This release isn't a FRIGHTMARE or even a nightmare, it is much closer to a dream come true. From the film that has always been excellent, to the new HD transfer that is the definitive home video presentation of the film, this is a must own.

FRIGHTMARE is available HERE

We Are What We Are (2010)

With the release of an American remake imminent, I decided to watch the original Spanish production of WE ARE WHAT WE ARE (Somos Lo Que Hay).

After the sudden death of their father, Alfredo, Julian and their sister Sabina must rise above their negative, gloom and doom mother to keep the family, and its traditions together. Alfredo is the oldest and smart, but shy and naive and is next in line to be the man of the house. It doesn't take long for the family to reveal that they are cannibals. However the fact that they live in a busy city is a bit different from the normal backwoods, or jungle cannibal family.

Most of the potential for thrilling, scary or exciting situations based on the setting and plot are wasted as the film revolves around the families incredibly grating Lifetime Channel drama. I wanted nothing more than the mother to get slapped across the face for being an obnoxious piece of shit throughout the entire film. For a starving family of cannibals she sure is a picky bitch when it comes down to what type of person she'll eat. There is also a half assed police investigation subplot that never comes together to make the screen time it uses worth it. The brother Alfredo and his sister Sabina are the bright spot of the film, as he deals with who he is in the face of trying to provide for his family in this insane scenario and she is the brains of the family trying to play puppet master to everyone to make it work.

WE ARE WHAT WE ARE is directed by Jorge Michel Grau in his feature debut. He is perhaps best known now for his entry into The ABCs Of Death with the entry for the letter I, which apparently didn't stick with me for better or worse as it doesn't ring a bell to me at all. This movie is capably directed but again, it is a wasted opportunity. While not terrible, it does leave the door open for the American remake to surpass it. I'll be interested in checking that out when it is released.

5/10