What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[MrBarlow]

Originally Posted by Demoncrat

Through The Fire (1988, G.D. Marcum)


The things I watch.
Imagine if you will, a place where cultists can relax and play darts in their lair, whilst a dipsomaniac ex beauty queen pleads with a police officer to "work for her in your spare time". This. is. not. porn.
You know when you try and blend two genres and it just ... separates on you? Strap in then. Now revisiting Premutos as a palate cleanser.

Is this the film that was made by Americans yet strangely looks Italian and a cash in sequel Fulci's Gates Of Hell??

[Demoncrat]

Originally Posted by MrBarlow

Is this the film that was made by Americans yet strangely looks Italian and a cash in sequel Fulci's Gates Of Hell??

Apparently. Though a blind man could tell the difference tbh

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Blood Bath (1966)

A beatnik artist who thinks he's a vampire in Venice Beach, California, murders his muses by lowering them into a boiling vat of wax.

A film with a history that's far more entertaining than the film itself. Beginning life as an East European spy thriller produced by Roger Corman titled Operation: Titian but seen to be basically unreleasable to US audiences, Corman hired writer director Jack Hill to incorporate footage from Operation: Titian into a new production called Portrait of Terror. However Portrait of Terror was also deemed rubbish (I can verify this as i watched it alongside Blood Bath last night and it was pretty awful, seemingly more a half baked thriller based on German Krimi films than horror film). Corman then hired Stephanie Rothman to film additional sequences which were also added to the film whilst removing huge swathes of footage altogether bringing the run time down from 90 minutes to a mere 60 odd minutes.

So what you eventually see on screen is the product of three writer / directors in Corman, Hill and Rothman who all shot unrelated scenes that were thrown together by Corman to create Blood Bath.

The Beatnik artist scenes which feature a young Sid Haig who was a walking continuity error are ridiculous as is the fact the artist as originally played by actor William Campbell is now basically played by two people as Campbell wasn't re-hired for the vampire sequences. Meanwhile Operation Titian's lead actor Patrick Magee was cut altogether from Blood Bath.

Despite being a total mess Blood Bath does have scenes of interest, including a few dazzling murder set pieces, not to mention Lori Saunders who is equally dazzling in her numerous beach scenes. However with the film being so crudely assembled the narrative never flows and it's all so disjointed. For every sequence that works there are two that make you doubt your sanity as to why they are there. But what Corman, Hill and Rothman did achieve was putting something into US drive-ins that can only be described as the ultimate in exploitation - that exploitation being of the viewer themselves.

[Susan Foreman]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

Blood Bath (1966)

A beatnik artist who thinks he's a vampire in Venice Beach, California, murders his muses by lowering them into a boiling vat of wax.

A film with a history that's far more entertaining than the film itself. Beginning life as an East European spy thriller produced by Roger Corman titled Operation: Titian but seen to be basically unreleasable to US audiences, Corman hired writer director Jack Hill to incorporate footage from Operation: Titian into a new production called Portrait of Terror. However Portrait of Terror was also deemed rubbish (I can verify this as i watched it alongside Blood Bath last night and it was pretty awful, seemingly more a half baked thriller based on German Krimi films than horror film). Corman then hired Stephanie Rothman to film additional sequences which were also added to the film whilst removing huge swathes of footage altogether bringing the run time down from 90 minutes to a mere 60 odd minutes

If you have got the Arrow release, you also get the 80 minute 'Track Of The Vampire' version as well as the three mentioned above!

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Susan Foreman

If you have got the Arrow release, you also get the 80 minute 'Track Of The Vampire' version as well as the three mentioned above!

I fast forwarded through that version, only stopping to watch six minutes of Lori Saunders dancing on the beach.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Body Puzzle (1992)

Starring Joanna Pacula as a recently widowed woman caught in a game of cat and mouse with a killer who leaves body parts from his victims at her address.

Fearful for her life she gets help (and more) from detective Tomas Arana, who discovers the murders have more to do with Pacula than at first realised.

A fun if inessential late Giallo from Lamberto Bava which features a fine cast - both Pacula and Arana are very good, and there's a nice elongated cameo from Giovanni Lombardo Radice - a cool twist i didn't see coming (Clearly i'd forgotten this when i watched the 88 Films Blu-ray last night even though i've owned the film on dvd for years) and some decidedly wonky plot devices - That freezer sequence. F*ck me! That was stupid, not to mention the sexy teacher who has her eyeballs removed in front of her class who don't seem to notice and the lifeguard gutted in the swimming pool without losing any blood.

Bava's use of music is also ridiculously OTT when the killer is about to strike. Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain crashes through the speakers each time he appears in the most inappropriate way possible.

I know it sounds too dumb to take seriously but Body Puzzle still works in that crazy Giallo way and is an enjoyable way to spend 100 minutes.

[Demoncrat]

The Hole In The Ground (2019, Lee Cronin)

When a mother and son move to a new location, for once, the house is "unoccupied" .... but still ...
Decent enough debut from that Evil Dead Rise helmer, more or less a two hander, it builds up tension reasonably even if it's nothing you haven't seen in one form or another. Recommended? Well, twas only 90 mins. Hmmm.

[Demoncrat]

Yannick (2023, Quentin Dupieux)

Another excursion into Quentinland.
Ever been to the theatre and wanted to tell the folk on stage what you really think?
Then here's a film just for you tee hee.
Whilst not as mad AF as his last effort, this is still quite bonkers. 66 mins!!

[nicholasrope]

Gremlins 2: New Batch

Gizmo is rescued by Billy and Kate from a Research Facility run by Christopher Lee that's located in a Skyscraper owned by John Glover (Doing his best Ted Turner). When he gets wet, the monstrous (And quite funny) Gremlins appear and the fun hijinks begin.

This was so entertaining, the meta stuff is just incredible and even though this was one of the earliest Videos I owned and watched it many times, there was stuff that I picked up now that I'm older. Christopher Lee is brilliant as the Scientist who is disappointed that a bottle of Rabies turned up instead of something else.

I do wonder if they'll do a third Film but I'm wondering if a TV Show a la Cobra Kai (With the nostalgia) is the way to go.

Top Squad (AKA The Inspector Wears Skirts)

I know that Top Squad isn't the official name but it was the title used on the Trailer I saw back in the day and TBH, it's a better title anyway.

This is a Comedy/Action Film in which follows the training of an elite Police Unit consisting of Women. A male unit is training near by and the rivalry between the 2 units starts with some really funny scenes and one liners (The 2 out of 3 competition is hilarious) and there are some incredible Martial Art sequences as well. Cynthia Rothrock is in it but she isn't the main star.

The bloopers at the end shows that a stunt involving Gasoline almost got out of hand.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Pigs (1973)

An interesting regional film set somewhere in rural California that doesn't take the path you imagine it will.

This is not a killer pigs film it's a study of a psychotic woman on the run from an asylum who takes refuge at Zambrini's diner and is offered a job by the owner. Now Zambrini does have twelve pigs and he does feed them human corpses but rather than offing attendees of the diner he robs freshly dug graves. Until the girl goes on her own bloody rampage that is.

A film more suited to it's alternate title of Daddy's Deadly Darling than Pigs. There's a rustic charm to it all especially the songs that breeze through the soundtrack....

I'm not feeling this review at all, it's garbage. The film however is not, i really liked it and would recommend it to any who like low budget seventies regional horror.