What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

All I know of Lizzie Borden is that she was axe killer who, as you say, killed her mother and stepfather. I probably only know that much because there is a rhyme, possibly mentioned in a film with people skipping, and because it is an American story which is famous in the US.

"Lizzie Borden took an axe.
She gave her mother 40 whacks.
When she saw what she had done
She gave her father 41"

The film sounds interesting – if it is cheap, I'll think about a blind buy.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Nosferatu@Cult Labs

All I know of Lizzie Borden is that she was axe killer who, as you say, killed her mother and stepfather. I probably only know that much because there is a rhyme, possibly mentioned in a film with people skipping, and because it is an American story which is famous in the US.

"Lizzie Borden took an axe.
She gave her mother 40 whacks.
When she saw what she had done
She gave her father 41"

The film sounds interesting – if it is cheap, I'll think about a blind buy.

Yes the rhyme comes in during the final shot which was nicely done with Lizzie looking out from her window as children skip.

[Frankie Teardrop]

BEYOND THE GATES – 'Beyond the Gates' shares similarities with a few recent indie horrors in that it seems to set itself up almost as a relationships drama before throwing in the bloodbath. 'Honeymoon', 'We Are Still Here' etc all do something like that, and there are other examples too. In this case, BTG opens with two brothers who are clearing out their dad's abandoned video store, a real relic stuck in the VHS era. Dad disappeared under strange circumstances, so things are difficult. But they get even more difficult after the brothers find an eighties video role playing board game type thing in their father's office and it turns out to be a portal into a supernatural realm where the usual bad stuff lurks waiting to happen. 'Beyond The Gates' is an interesting flick and is definitely worth a watch. I don't know how successful it is compared to a film like 'Spring', for example, where the horror is worked into the drama quite subtly, because BTG feels more like a crude cut and shut, bringing together something quite poignant and well-rendered with something much coarser – you have to admit, there is an aspect of 'never the twain' if you're trying to relate well observed nuanced indie drama to garish eighties-inspired horror, and that really shows here. I for one quite like that in itself, sort of, although it does make for a slightly jarring experience. And I have to say that, despite the presence of Barbara Crampton as the witchy host of the video game and some pretty good gore, the horror aspects are overshadowed by the build up, which is all about unspoken antagonisms, shadowy pasts and the melancholy of returning to your home town. This is carried really well by the players, with all of the main performers doing good here. If you can get your head around the tonal shift from downbeat drama to over-ripe gore, I'd say 'Beyond The Gates' is one to check out.

EVIL DEAD 3: ARMY OF DARKNESS – Yeah, back to that comedy horror thing. I don't like it generally, especially when it's broad. Black comedy's one thing, but you can't play horror for laughs. However, I've contradicted myself too many times over the years on this point to be unabashed in saying I really like 'Army of Darkness'. I guess it's the level of invention – Sam Raimi's movies were always crazily imaginative back then, and there are some great moments here, like the eye-in-the-shoulder homage to 'The Manster' or whatever, a mere drop in the ocean of a myriad other such visual gags, most of which I can't recall as it's a pretty fast paced flick whose zaniness never really lets up. For the uninformed, Bruce C has been zapped back to medieval times where he has to confront the same dark forces at work in parts one and two, except that this time there's a whole battalion of them. He might not be as iconic in his 'grooviness' as he was in 'Evil Dead 2', but Ash can still work some magic with that stump of his, and his battle scenes with loads and loads of stop motion undead are pretty impressive. And that of course is the bigger part of the draw here – it's just a movie about mashing up skeletons. That's pretty cool – what horror nerd wouldn't want to be in that position, you know, “I've just blown $xmillion on a Ray Harryhausen wet dream”. There's something charming and infectious about those kind of enthusiasms, even now.

[Susan Foreman]

Originally Posted by Nosferatu@Cult Labs

All I know of Lizzie Borden is that she was axe killer who, as you say, killed her mother and stepfather. I probably only know that much because there is a rhyme, possibly mentioned in a film with people skipping, and because it is an American story which is famous in the US.

"Lizzie Borden took an axe.
She gave her mother 40 whacks.
When she saw what she had done
She gave her father 41"

In some versions, the rhyme continues with another two lines:

"Lizzie Borden got away
For the crime, she didn't pay"

[Mojo]

AMUCK!
Barbara Bouchet stars as a woman investigating the disappearance of her best friend, centering on the home of a writer, whose sex / mind games with his guests appear to have got out of hand. Rosalba Neri also stars as one of the guests in this really enjoyable giallo, that makes its long awaited debut on blu ray via 88 Films Italian Collection.
Having only ever seen this one on grey market dvd, this is a big step up quality wise. There are some great extras on here too.
I really hope 88 pick up director Silvio Amadio's other little seen giallo SMILE BEFORE DEATH ( which also stars Ms Neri ) - another enjoyable thriller with plenty of plot twists and an equally catchy score.

[Make Them Die Slowly]

Lethal Weapon 3

Mad Mel wanks off a dog and shit blows up!

[Nordicdusk]

Originally Posted by Make Them Die Slowly

Lethal Weapon 3

Mad Mel wanks off a dog and shit blows up!

That the Japanese release ?

51eJyYbl6SL.jpg

[Make Them Die Slowly]

Originally Posted by Nordicdusk

That the Japanese release ?

Attachment 188287

Haha! Yeah but the whole dog is pixilated to remove any offensive hair other than Mel's mullet.

[Nordicdusk]

Originally Posted by Make Them Die Slowly

Haha! Yeah but the whole dog is pixilated to remove any offensive hair other than Mel's mullet.

[Demoncrat]

Sokdier Boyz (1995, Louis Morneau)
Dudikoff gets asked to save some bint. No sweat. Cause as many international incidents as I can along the way? No problem. Also this 'revolving door policy' in our prisons needs tweaking. If you are scratching your head Now ... wait til you see this undemanding actioner...or not cough.