Two More New Releases from Code Red - Out Now

EXORCISM'S DAUGHTER (aka HOUSE OF INSANE WOMEN)

Tania (Analia Gade), an asylum patient, is under a doctor's care while suffering raging behavioral effects following the death of her exorcised mother. This international overseas horror mishmash has a nasty prison, some familiar faces Francisco Rabal (SORCERER), Helga Line (THE VAMPIRE’S NIGHT ORGY), and is directed by Rafael Moreno Alba (BRIDE TO BE).
1974 / Rated R/ 1.78:1 16x9

NIGHT OF A 1,000 CATS

It's HUGO & DORGO'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURES! Hunkmaster Hugo (Hugo Stiglitz, TINTORERA) is a millionaire playboy who boogies down in Acapulco and picks up sexy young Euro babes in his private Air Chariot (helicopter). Hugo whisks them away to his secluded old castle, where he wines, dines and seduces them with his hot, bland look. With the aid of his little, bald mute helper Dorgo (professional wrestler Gerardo "El Romana" Zepeda, EL TOPO), he kills his dates, keeping their heads in a crystal cage and feeding their chopped up body parts to his 1,000-strong army of blood thirsty, flesh hungry cats. It's meowtime in Acapulco tonight! From Master of horror director Rene Cardona Jr.!
1972 / Rated R/ 2.35:1 16x9.

SWINGIN' SORORITY (1976)
A Don Trendall softcore classic as Poochie the Quarterback has sex problems. This schoolgirl has sex with a (John Ratzenberger clone) teacher to get high grades, and she is forced to have sex with 5 guys to become the homecoming queen....and homecoming hasn't had a queen in years! Rick Cassidy co-stars in another VCX title Code Red is releasing from its vaults! 16x9 35mm release!

Bill does pretty limited runs of his titles, so if you're interested in anything from Code Red it's always a good idea to snatch them up as soon as they come out. Grab them now.

Massage Parlor Murders - Blu-ray/DVD Combo Review

Massage Parlor Murders

For the Right Price They Never Rub You the Wrong Way!

Year: 1973-1976 - uh, it's complicated, be sure to read the DVD insert

Directors: Chester Fox, Alex Stevens
Starring: John Moser, Chris Jordan, Sandra Peabody, Brother Theodore

"A vicious serial killer is stalking the streets of New York City, murdering Times Square massage girls in a variety of brutal ways. It's up to a rogue detective team to solve the case as the body count continues to rise! Chock full of over the top sex and violence and complete with a high-speed car chase through Manhattan, Massage Parlor Murders is an exploitation film lover's dream movie. Featuring performances from Sandra Peabody (The Last House on the Left), Chris Jordan (Deep Throat 2), Brother Theodore (The 'Burbs),

and George Dzundza (The Deer Hunter) in one of his earliest appearances."

Mirror-smashed faces, women strangled with their own undergarments, and nude car chases, Massage Parlor Murders is another ultra-bizzare rarity lovingly restored by Vinegar Syndrome. Also known as Massage Parlor Hookers, Massage Parlor Murders is an entertaining, yet very uneven film that seems almost like it was patched together from a few different films. It's part religious fanatic murder mystery, part cop drama and part oddball comedy. At 80 minutes the film moves at a brisk pace, though it's frequently bogged down with pointless scenes of annoying quirkiness that add nothing to the plot, like a nudist pool party, or a scene where a portly German fellow strips down to a purple ballet outfit and dances with his masseuse. Though often obnoxious, the film's quirkiness does occasionally lead to awesomeness, like a wild scene featuring a deranged diatribe by 'Burbs scene-stealer Brother Theodore who overacts so much in his one scene I thought he was going to pass out.

In one of the film's highlights an unrelated pervert crashes a pool sex party that Jimmy the blond cop happens to be attending. The leads to a car chase with the cop chasing the pervy perp in a hi-jacked taxi while wearing nothing but a towel. This chase is a blast, very well shot and exciting, a welcome change of pace from the boring pool orgy scene that preceded it.

The murder scenes aren't very gory, but still very bloody and quite effective. A point of view shot lets us know we're about to see a murder take place, but even though we see it coming the hooker killings are usually sudden and shocking, especially a gut busting scene that takes place halfway through. The final death scene at the end is particularly nasty, this individual does not go out quietly. The blood-curdling screams will haunt my nightmares. Speaking of the ending, the final 2 or 3 minutes absolutely blew my mind and made me completely forgive the film's many missteps.  It's actually kind of a shame there were so many playfully quirky moments throughout the film because the finale is fucking epic and with a darker overall tone this could've really been something great.

Though there were several aimless scenes that prevented this from being a lost classic, Massage Parlor Murders is still well worth a purchase. There's enough naked women, gruesome splattery death and spasticated dialogue ("That's it, the guy's a religious nut!") to keep exploitation fans happy. And that ending...it is glorious, especially that final shot. I'd pay $20 just to be able to watch those 2 minutes over and over again.

The Blu-ray/DVD combo pack features two versions of the movie, the Standard Version and the Re-release Version. I say skip the standard version and check out the re-release. The only difference is the re-release drops a dull 6 minute long opening scene that really tested my patience. I'll save you six minutes and just recap here. A chubby man who calls himself Irving haggles with a masseuse/hooker to try and get her naked. She offers to drop her top for $20, this fat bastard offers $10. A hooker is not a pawn shop, there is no bargaining in prostitution. So, they go back and forth with this for several minutes. He haggles enough to get her down to her panties, she offers him a $45 handjob (Jesus, that's an expensive 70's handjob), he cheaps out and leaves. This whole scene was very tedious and led to NOTHING. Well, nothing but titties, but there are dozens of those in this film so that isn't all that big of a deal. The girl from this scene does show up again later in an important scene, but even if we didn't see her in this opening scene the later scene would've still worked out the same. This was a bad, bad way to start a film. You want to start with a bang to suck the viewer in, a brutal murder scene is often a popular way to do this. A long comedy-less comedy scene in a non-comedy with no payoff is a terrible way to do this. I actually hated the movie for this first six minutes, but it does get better.

Anyway, the transfer is beautiful for the most part. Some scratches and a tiny bit of print damage here and there, but overall pretty spectacular given the obscurity. Also included on the disc are a couple of trailers and about 8 minutes of outtakes. Chris Poggiali of Temple of Schlock provides very detailed and interesting liner notes on the insert.

For those of you outside the US, fear not, this release is region free. You can buy it directly from Vinegar Syndrome or Amazon.

Things to watch for:

Irving McMantits
Brazierre Strangulation
Friend of Henenlotter Beverly Bonner
Slo-mo Bitch Slap

Note: These screenshots are from the DVD. My Blu-ray drive went tits up, and my new one won't be here until Monday or Tuesday. I wanted to get the review posted, so I just threw a few DVD caps up for now, I'll update with Blu-ray caps when my drive shows up.

House on Straw Hill/The House of Seven Corpses from Severin June 11th

LOS ANGELES, CA, March 29th, 2013 – Severin Films have announced the long awaited June 11th Blu-ray + DVD combo US debut release of the controversial shocker HOUSE ON STRAW HILL and the creepy classic THE HOUSE OF SEVEN CORPSES.

HOUSE ON STRAW HILL: Banned in Britain as a Video Nasty for thirty years! A shockingly violent and erotic tale of seduction, brutality and revenge. Cult movie icon Udo Kier (MARK OF THE DEVIL, FLESH FOR FRANKENSTEIN) stars as a successful novelist suffering from writer’s block, who rents a country cottage with his wife (British 70s sex sensation Fiona Richmond) in the hope of finding inspiration. But the arrival of a sensual secretary, played by Linda Hayden (BLOOD ON SATAN’S CLAW, TASTE THE BLOOD OF DRACULA) sets in motion a chain of events that culminate in an unrestrained explosion of sex and savagery. Film elements were long thought lost or destroyed on this sleazy gem but the original camera negative was unearthed in a barn in rural England and painstakingly restored for this first official uncut release anywhere in the world. Director commentary and cast and crew interviews will round out the package.

THE HOUSE OF SEVEN CORPSES: “Eight graves! Seven bodies!” screamed the ads, “One killer… and he’s already dead!” Hollywood legends John Ireland (RED RIVER, SATAN’S CHEERLEADERS), John Carradine (THE GRAPES OF WRATH, VAMPIRE HOOKERS) and Howard Hughes’ paramour Faith Domergue (CULT OF THE COBRA,THIS ISLAND EARTH) star in this much-loved ‘70s shocker about a film crew shooting an occult drama in a sinister manor with its own grisly history of family bloodshed. Previously released with often badly cropped, censored and muddy transfers, the film will finally be available in HD, transferred from original vault materials and featuring an exclusive archive interview with legendary horror icon Carradine (a DVD/Blu-Ray first as far as we’re aware) and a revealing new audio commentary with Co-Producer Gary Kent & Film Historian Lars Nilsen.

.

Get Trashed in Hi-Def on 6/11/13

From Synapse:

Street Trash Meltdown Edition (Blu-Ray All Region)
 
In the sleazy, foreboding world of winos, derelicts and drifters in lower Manhattan, two young runaways – eighteen-year-old Fred (Mike Lackey) and his younger brother, Kevin (Mark Sferrazza) – live in a tire hut in the back of an auto wrecking yard.  Life is hard, but the most lethal threat to the boys is the mysterious case of “Tenafly Viper” wine in Ed’s liquor store window.  The stuff is forty years old… and it’s gone bad.  REAL bad!  Anyone who drinks it melts in seconds, and it’s only a dollar a bottle!

The subversive cult classic/horror comedy STREET TRASH rode the last wave of super-gore films in the late ‘80s before cinema entered the era of safe R-Rated horror and unoriginal remakes.  Beautifully re-mastered in high-definition, STREET TRASH will melt your eyes and ears with stunning picture and sound.

Blu-Ray All Region
DTS-HD MA 5.1 Surround
Widescreen Anamorphic 1.85:1
High-Definition Transfer from the Original Camera Negative
5.1 Surround Remix Created Specifically for Home Theatre Environments
Two Audio Commentaries Featuring Producer Roy Frumkes and Director James Muro
THE MELTDOWN MEMOIRS – Feature Length Documentary on the History and Making of STREET TRASH
The Original STREET TRASH 16mm Short Film That Inspired the Movie
The Original STREET TRASH Promotional Teaser
Original Theatrical Trailer
ALL-NEW BLU-RAY EXCLUSIVES: Jane Arakawa Video Interview and Deleted Scenes
Create Your Own Bottle of “Tenafly Viper” Wine with the Enclosed Label Sticker

Possessed/Demon Witch Child from Code Red

The latest from Code Red has just been released, a double feature of the 1974 Charles Nizet film Possessed (also known by the hilarious title Help Me...I'm Possessed) and Armando de Ossorio's Demon Witch Child from 1975.

POSSESSED

A mad doctor (Bill Greer, who also wrote the screenplay) runs a sanitarium in the desert, where his hunchbacked servant (Pierre Agostino) whips women who are chained in the basement and cuts the legs off bodies so they'll fit in the caskets! INSANE! INCREDIBLE! OUTRAGEOUS! Directed by Charles Nizet (SLAVES OF LOVE).


Rated PG / 1.78:1 16x9 / COLOR

DEMON WITCH CHILD

Spanish horror icon Amando de Ossorio directed this shocking horror film about a possessed little girl (Marian Salgado), looking older than her age, who cuts off her mother's boyfriend’s cock, and then gives it to her mother. Spanish character actor Fernando Sancho and Julian Mateos (COLD EYES OF FEAR) as an avant-garde priest all boogie down into a wild cockfight of good versus evil in this Spanish mishmash of exorcism! The beginning credits are so good, that the American distributor shows some of it twice!

Rated R / 1.78:1 16x9 / COLOR

Get it directly from Code Red here. I put in my order this morning, so I'll be reviewing this one when I get it. Bill has also added a ton of older Code Red double features to the site, so you can grab any you might've missed before.

New Releases 3/26

Big day for Shout/Scream Factory releases:

From Beyond Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack

ALL-NEW SCREAM FACTORY EXTRAS:

Audio Commentary with writer Denis Paoli

Multiple Dimensions – A look at the film’s extensive Make-Up & Creature Effects with Special Effects Creators John Buechler, Anthony Doublin, John Naulin, and Mark Shostrom (20 mins)

Paging Dr. McMichaels – An interview with Actress Barbara Crampton (15 mins)

A Tortured Soul – An interview with Actor Jeffrey Combs (15 mins)

An Empire Production – An interview with Executive Producer Charles Band (5 mins)

EXTRAS CARRIED OVER FROM THE MGM 2007 DVD RELEASE:

Audio Commentary with director Stuart Gordon and the cast

The Director's Perspective - interview with Stuart Gordon

The Editing Room: Lost And Found - Gordon Stuart and MGM restoration team interview

Interview with composer Richard Band

Storyboard to Film Comparisions with Introduction

Two photo galleries

Order from Shout directly and get a free 18x24 poster while supplies last. Or Amazon.

Phantasm II Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack

Bonus Features:

Audio Commentary with director/writer Don Coscarelli and actors Angus Scrimm and Reggie Banister

“The Ball is Back!” Documentary – featuring new interviews with writer/director Don Coscarelli, actors Reggie Banister, Angus Scrimm, Paula Irvine, Samantha Phillips and more!

Vintage Behind the Scenes footage: Makeup Effects

Vintage Behind the Scenes footage: On the Set

“The Gory Days with Greg Nicotero” Featurette

Deleted Scenes from archival film elements from Don Coscarelli’s archive

Additional Scenes – alternate takes and deleted gore footage from the workprint

Original TV Spots

Trailers for Phantasm , Phantasm II & Phantasm III

Still Galleries (Behind the Scenes, Make-up Effects, Poster and Still Gallery)

Rare short film starring Rory Guy (aka Angus Scrimm) as Abraham Lincoln

Again, if you order this one directly from Shout  you can get a free 18x24 poster while supplies last. Or from Amazon, minus the poster.

Futureworld Blu-ray

Do you remember that disaster at Delos a few years ago when the “Westworld” robots went out of control and killed a few guests? Well, the entire resort has now been rebuilt and redesigned to be completely fail-safe.

To combat the lingering adverse publicity, Duffy, the Delos representative, has offered the IMC Communication Network exclusive rights to the “new” Delos story. Tracy Ballard (Blythe Danner), the network’s top commentator, has been assigned the story with Chuck Browning (Peter Fonda), the newspaper reporter who broke the original “Westworld” disaster story.

But as Tracy and Chuck’s private tour starts, they get the feeling the entire resort might not be as safe as Delos thinks…

Shout it out! Or Amazon it out.

Mystery Science Theater 3000 Volume XXVI

For this 26th volume of MST3K, an introduction could well be pared down to “one cult TV series with two guys, two robots, four movies and 10,000 jokes.” This new collection of previously unreleased episodes picks up where the last 25 left off — seating you next to the funniest peanut gallery in television history. It’s a deep dive into the human instinct for survival, where our warped warriors aboard the Satellite of Love find the funny in the tragic…or at least the cheesy. In fact, it’s not too hyperbolic to insist that what Joel, Mike, Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot do, as they defend us against the slings and arrows of outrageously unfortunate movies, is nothing less than keep us sane. If you don’t agree, you’re obviously crazy.

See what we did there?
 
Titles Include:
The Magic Sword
 Alien From L.A.
 Danger!! Death Ray
 The Mole People

Bonus features: New Interview with The Magic Sword director Bert I. Gordon New Interview With Alien From L.A. director Albert Pyun Untitled The Mole People Doc Life After MST3K: Mike Nelson 4 Exclusive Mini-Posters By Artist Steve Vance

	Order from Shout. Or grab it at Amazon.
	And even more Robot goodness, Johnny Sokko and His Flying Robot: The Complete Series.
	“Robot, attack! Robot, destroy!” These commands launched a thousand sci-fi fantasies for budding fans of the genre, just as they brought Johnny Sokko’s Giant Robot into imminent battle action! Under the voice control of young Johnny Sokko, the massive, flying metal behemoth would bring his fiery breath, laser eyes, finger-launched missiles and, above all, his physical strength into battle with countless menacing monsters bent on destroying the Earth! This epic fantasy series from Toei Studios aired from 1967 – 1968 and garnered even more fans in after-school reruns throughout the 70s. Collected here for the first time on DVD are all 26 episodes of explosive kaiju battles, nefarious alien takeover plots and mind-blowing heroics from jet-packed Johnny Sokko and his equally airborne friend and protector: Giant Robot! Get it from Shout, or Amazon.

Eddie The Sleepwalking Cannibal Gets South Parkian Poster

I kind of don't like this poster as it really looks like South Park art. I'm much more partial to this:

 Hope the poster doesn't turn off any potential viewers as this is actually a pretty great movie, funny and gruesome, but heartfelt and even a bit sad at times. You'll be able to see for yourself in a couple of weeks when it's released theatrically and on VOD.

When Lars’s art dealer Ronny arranges a teaching job in a small town as a “therapeutic measure” to stir up his creative juices, things don't quite turn out as planned. At first, life in the peaceful small town seems rosy, as he settles in and impresses beautiful fellow colleague Leslie (Georgina Reilly) by taking in the brawny, mute Eddie (Dylan Smith) after the latter’s caregiver passes away. But Lars soon discovers that the façade of serenity hides something unimaginable: Eddie suffers from a rare form of sleepwalking that transforms him from a docile, cereal-obsessed art student into a ravenous sleepwalking cannibal. Initially horrified by Eddie’s dark secret, Lars becomes enthralled by the not-so-gentle giant. Exceptional art comes at a very high price...and how far is Lars willing to go for his next masterpiece?

Review Archive

This is all stuff some of you have probably already seen, but I've been going through the last several years of posts trying to get all my reviews in one place.

A-F
Alienator - Shout! Factory's 4-Action Packed Movie Marathon DVD
American Mary

Anatomy of a Psycho - Vinegar Syndrome DVD
The Burning - Scream Factory Blu-ray/DVD Combo
Chopping Mall
Cold Prey II - Shout! Factory DVD
Cyclone - Shout! Factory's 4-Action Packed Movie Marathon DVD
Double Dragon
Dario Argento's Dracula
Dead Sushi - Blu-ray Review
Death by Invitation - Vinegar Syndrome DVD 
Dracula vs. Frankenstein - Shriek Show DVD 
Drive-In Collection: Dungeon of Harrow/Death By Invitation
The Exterminator 2 - Shout! Factory's 4-Action Packed Movie Marathon DVD
Eye of the Tiger - Shout! Factory's 4-Action Packed Movie Marathon DVD
Fatal Games  
Frankenhooker - Synapse Blu-ray

G-N
The Geek
Hobo With A Shotgun - Magnet Blu-ray
The Howling - Scream Factory Blu-ray
A Labor of Love - Vinegar Syndrome 
Lifeforce - Scream Factory Blu-ray 
The Lonely Sex - Vinegar Syndrome DVD
Manborg
The Marine
Massage Parlor Murders - Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray
The Monster Squad - Lionsgate DVD
Motel Hell - Arrow Video Blu-ray 
Mystery Science Theater 3000 - The Beast of Yucca Flats
Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Earth vs. The Spider
Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Escape 2000
Mystery Science Theater 3000 - The Horrors of Spider Island 
Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Robot Holocaust
Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Squirm
Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Shout! Factory Volume XXVI DVD 
The Nest - Scream Factory Blu-ray 
Ninja III - Scream Factory Blu-ray

O-P
Pet Sematary
Phantasm II - Scream Factory Blu-ray/DVD Combo
Roller Boogie
Savage Water - Vinegar Syndrome DVD
Sexcula - Impulse Pictures DVD
The Simpsons Movie
Slumber Party Massacre 2
Stay Tuned
Stitches
Survival of the Dead
Terrorvision - Scream Factory Blu-ray
The Taint
The Telephone Book - Blu-ray/DVD Combo 
Tokyo Species 
The Town That Dreaded Sundown - Scream Factory Blu-ray/DVD Combo
The Vampire Lovers - Scream Factory Blu-ray
The Video Dead - Scream Factory Blu-ray
Weird Science
The Wizard of Gore
Zombie Holocaust - Shriek Show Blu-ray

Comics
Chuck Norris Karate Kommandos

Sexcula - Impulse Pictures DVD Review

Sexcula

"The stories about this place would curl your pubes."

Year: 1974

Director: John Holbrook

Writer: David F. Hurry

Starring: Debbie Collins, Jamie Orlando, John Alexander

Lost for nearly 40 years, the super obscure Canadian Gothic horror porn film Sexcula has been unearthed and released by the fiends at Synapse Films under their Impulse Pictures line. Available for purchase April 9th, you can preorder it now directly from Synapse. Or Amazon.

"SEXCULA is a skin flick of legendary lost status. Shot in Vancouver, British Columbia, it was screened once before disappearing and sought after by cult aficionados for decades. Now, Impulse Pictures is proud to bring you the world premiere of SEXCULA.  Sex film fans can finally get a look at this elusive crazy Canadian erotic/horror hybrid for the first time ever.

Starring a Marilyn Chambers lookalike in dual roles as Countess Sexcula, a buxom cutie with no qualms about lying nude on a table for the entire movie, and a horny bride who can’t wait for her ring.  The nudity and sex are delivered nonstop in this campy horror romp. Watch in amazement at the naked picnic, the “girl-on-gorilla” strip tease, and stare in awe as a female pleasure-robot puts the plot into a time warp!
Bizarre only begins to describe… SEXCULA!"

Jeff Lieberman's Remote Control 25th Anniversary Blu-Ray & DVD

REMOTE CONTROL
Fully-Remastered All-Region DVD & Blu-ray

Features
  - New 2K HD transfer
  - All-new commentary with writer-director
    Jeff Lieberman
  - Publicity Still Gallery

1.85:1 widescreen / English 2.0 / 88 minutes
Rated R

Each brand-new, factory-pressed copy will be autographed and numbered by writer-director Jeff Lieberman.   (Factory shrink wrapping will be removed to facilitate the signing process.)

Earth 1987.   The height of the home video revolution...

The Alien invasion begins as an extraterrestrial signal implanted into thousands of VHS video tapes.

Earth 2013.   The Aliens have digitized the signal...

The invasion is now complete!

To commemorate its 25th anniversary, Jeff Lieberman's REMOTE CONTROL is now available for the first time ever in its original aspect ratio in limited edition, fully re-mastered Blu-ray and DVD, each individually numbered and signed by writer and director Jeff Lieberman.   This limited release is only available here!

Now available for immediate shipping.  Order your copy today!

You Can't Control Yourself!

  

The price is $30 for the DVD, $35 for the Blu-Ray. This is a very cool movie but I'm not quite willing to pay $35 for it. Very tempting though...

The Telephone Book - Blu-Ray/DVD Combo from Vinegar Syndrome 5/7/13

Release date: 5/7/13.

A major, though forgotten, work from New York’s underground film scene of the late 60s and early 70s, Nelson Lyon’s The Telephone Book tells the story of Alice, a sex-obsessed hippie who falls in love with the world’s greatest obscene phone caller and embarks on a quest to find him. Her journey introduces her to an avant-garde stag filmmaker, a manipulative psychiatrist, a lesbian housewife, and more. Photographed in high-contrast black-and-white, and punctuated with a remarkable, surreal color animated sequence, The Telephone Book is one of the greatest cult films you’ve probably never heard of.
Features Include:
+ Blu-Ray/DVD Combo Pack | Region Free | 1.85:1 AR | MONO
+ Restored in 2K from a 35mm archival print
+ Commentary track by Producer Merv Bloch
+ Two theatrical trailers
+ Radio spots
+ Still gallery

4 Action-Packed Movie Marathon

Shout! Factory has just unleashed a low-priced 2-disc Action-Packed Movie Marathon set featuring 4 Crapsterpieces released between 1983 and 1990. Disc 1 offers up a pair of schlocky films directed by Fred Olen Ray and written by Paul Garson - both of which feature Robert Quarry comically getting shot to death. Cyclone, a 1987 kick-ass-deathcycle film with Jeffrey Combs and Heather Thomas, and the 1990 film Alienator, about a intergalactic bounty hunter tracking down a space fugitive who has crash landed on Earth.

Shit gets real on Disc 2 which features films with a grittier, darker tone. Eye of the Tiger is a 1986 film directed by Richard C. Sarafian (Vanishing Point), starring Gary Busey as a man trying to stop evil bikers from destroying his town. Exterminator 2 is Mark Buntzman's 1983 followup to James Glickenhaus' original, further following the misdaventures of John Eastland and his trusty flamethrower.

Hatchet III from Dark Sky June 14th

“The film continues the tale of the now-iconic villain Victor Crowley (Kane Hodder). As a search and recovery team heads into the haunted swamp to pick up the pieces and carnage left behind from the first two films, Marybeth (Danielle Harris) hunts down the true secret to ending the voodoo curse that has left the ghost of Victor Crowley haunting and terrorizing Honey Island Swamp for decades.“

I think I forgot Hatchet III was happening. I've enjoyed the first couple, so I'll be there for this one. Adam Green is out as director, prolific steadicam operator (can you use the word prolific for a steadicam operator?) BJ McDonnell is in for his directorial debut.

I'm always happy to see Danielle Harris, she has become like the queen of horror sequels these last few years. She did Halloween 4 and Halloween 5 early in her career, then stayed away from horror for a while. Then she was in Rob Zombie's Halloween 2, Hatchet II, Hatchet III, Laid to Rest 2...this chick really loves horror sequels.

The Dungeon of Harrow/Death by Invitation from Vinegar Syndrome 5/7

NOTE: Pre-orders will start soon. Release date: 5/7/13.
Two grimy, low-rent, regional sleaze-fests guaranteed to leave even the most jaded genre film fans scratching their heads in disbelief.
THE DUNGEON OF HARROW (1962)
This lurid Texas shot gem, in the vein of Corman’s THE TERROR, follows two survivors of a shipwreck as they find themselves trapped on a remote island, run by a mad baron keen on torture.
Director: Pat Boyette
87 minutes | Color | AR 1.85:1

DEATH BY INVITATION (1971)
One of producer Leonard Kirtman’s odd ventures into horror filmmaking, ‘Death’ is an effectively gritty tale of 20th century witchery toped off with a pleasant touch of psychedelia.
Director: Ken Friedman
81 minutes | Color | AR 1.85:1
Features Include:
+ Dual Layer DVD-9 | Region Free | 16:9 Anamorphic | 1.85:1 AR | MONO
+ 2k scan from archival film elements
+ Commentary track by The Hysteria Continues for DBI

Dario Argento's Dracula 3D - Review

Director: Dario Argento 

Writers: Dario Argento (screenplay), Enrique Cerezo (screenplay)

Stars: Asia Argento, Rutger Hauer, Thomas Kretschmann

The story: Jonathan Harker travels to...you know what, I don't think this part is necessary, it's fucking Dracula. See Tod Browning's Dracula, John Badham's Dracula, Francis Ford Coppola's Bram Stoker's Dracula, etc. We've seen this dozens of times now, it's the same basic story with the same basic characters. Only much, much worse this time.

Aside from Sleepless I haven't really enjoyed an Argento film in some time. Not since Opera way back in  1987? Granted I haven't seen all of his recent stuff like Giallo or The Card Player, so maybe those are decent, but ever since Phantom of the Opera I've been really reluctant to give a lot of his current films a chance. I think I first saw the trailer for this about a year ago. Once I saw the huge CGI praying mantis in the trailer I knew two things; 1) this was going to suck and 2) I was going to have to check it out the second I had a chance.

Dario Argento's attempt at a 3D Dracula film is kind of a mess. It features awkward acting, stilted dialog, cheap production design and truly awful CGI. There's really just an overall air of stupidity about the whole production. That said this is not quite as awful as I'd heard. Don't get me wrong, it blows, just not as hard as I thought it would after seeing the trailer and reading some early reviews.  

Gothic Puppet Horror - The Mill At Calder's End

I wanted to share something really cool I've discovered on Kickstarter. The Mill at Calder's End is described by creator Kevin McTurk as a ghost story puppet film. He's hoping to make it to $60,000, and they're about $5,000 shy of making the goal.

"The Mill at Calder's End is a gothic ghost story in the spirit of Edgar Allan Poe and H.P. Lovecraft that will be told with 30 inch tall bunraku puppets and old fashioned in-camera special effects. Featuring the voices of Jason Flemyng (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,X-Men:First Class) and horror legend Barbara Steele (Black Sunday,The Pit and the Pendulum) , this film celebrates two of my great loves: the art of puppetry and gothic horror.

From my experience working as a special effects artist in Hollywood for over twenty years and now collaborating with some of the most talented creature effects artists,concept artists, and puppeteers in the industry, The Mill at Calder's End will be unlike any puppet film you have ever seen before.

The Mill at Calder's End is a passion project that is heavily influenced by the classic Hammer horror films of the 1960s and the films of Mario Bava (most notably, his gothic masterpiece Black Sunday). I have also always had a great love of puppetry and traditional in-camera special effects. The work of Jim Henson (The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, and his Storyteller television series) is a great inspiration to me and I am hoping to bring his sense of wonderment and artistry to The Mill at Calder's End. 

In 2012, I was honored to work with Heather Henson (Jim's youngest daughter) on my first film. Heather produced The Narrative of Victor Karloch as one of the short films for her Handmade Puppet Dreams Film Series and was a guiding force in helping me create the haunted world of Victor Karloch. 

The Mill at Calder's End is a gothic tale that will be told with the traditional Japanese theater puppetry technique known as bunraku. Each puppet figure is controlled by three (or more) puppeteers dressed in black and hidden behind each character. It is my goal to make a film that celebrates practical effects and therefore there will be almost no computer generated imagery in the final film. In my first film, The Narrative of Victor Karloch, I utilized several silent film era camera techniques, such as a shot of a miniature ship on a stormswept ocean (which, in fact, was made up of painted flowing garbage bags). I plan to continue to use many more of these techniques to give a hand crafted look to The Mill at Calder's End." 

To learn more about the project and the gift rewards offered head over to Kickstarter.

13 Eerie with Katharine Isabelle and Brendan Fehr

 Coming to DVD April 2nd from Entertainment One. This looks a lot like a slasher, what with the Friday the 13th knockoff font (a font I've decided is called Thursday The 12th) and the woods and all. But this is actually a zombie film set in the woods (Video Dead?). Then, the tagline is "We Prey For You", so that's a dead giveaway it's about zombies. Either way, the first name on the poster is Katharine Isabelle, so I'm sold. Especially after her excellent performance in American Mary, I'll watch pretty much any horror film she signs onto.

 Six ambitious forensic undergrads are pitted against one another on a scientific expedition to a remote island, vying to win an esteemed trainee position with the FBI. Unbeknownst to everyone, the site was formally used as an illegal biological testing grounds for life-term criminals who were left for dead. Behind the mission is Professor Tomkins, who together with FBI agent Veneziano have devised a series of experiments to test the would-be agents to their limits. Three mutilated cadavers taken from the medical labs have been planted around the island in a reconstructive test which the undergrads will be assigned tasks in order to discover what may have caused the fatal injuries.

Even before the undergrads have started their experiments, the zombie criminal convicts are systematically hunting them down and what started as a fight for an esteemed career in the FBI is now a fight for their very lives.

I think if you're going to use a font that similar to the Friday the 13th font you should at least try not to have 13 in your title.

I love this shot of Katharine, anyone think she looks a lot like Virginia Madsen in this picture?

Scream Factory does The Incredible Melting Man

Shout has just announced that their Scream Factory line will be releasing classic melted guy film The Incredible Melting Man on Blu-ray. Directed by William Sachs. Melting Man effects provided by one Rick Baker, the man behind the effects for classics like American Werewolf in London and Norbit.

Good to see they're sticking with the classic artwork. Look for this release sometime this Summer. Official date, extras, etc. to be announced later.

For the hell of it, here's my old custom DVD I made several years ago, obviously I'm a fan of that original poster artwork:

The Burning + The Town That Dreaded Sundown Full Press Release

A Harvey Weinstein Production

THE BURNING COLLECTOR’S EDITION

Featuring early film appearances by Fisher Stevens, Jason Alexander, Holly Hunter

blu-ray™ + dvd combo pack

&

A Film by Charles B. Pierce

THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN

 Starring Ben Johnson, Andrew Prine and Dawn Wells

blu-ray™ + dvd combo pack includes

the debut of cult classic the evictors on dvd!

TWO SPECIAL BLU-RAY™ + DVD COMBO PACKS

HIT HOME ENTERTAINMENT SHELVES EVERYWHERE

ON MAY 21, 2013 FROM SHOUT! FACTORY

Pre-Order These Definitive Home Entertainment Collections Today!

Disfigured and hooded mad killers are on the loose this spring as SCREAM FACTORY™ invites loyal fans and collectors to embark on a nostalgic trip filled with edge-of-your-seat suspense and terror! On May 21, 2013, the gory summer camp slasher The BURNING created and produced by Harvey Weinstein and features Fisher Stevens (The Cove), Jason Alexander  (Seinfeld)  and Holly Hunter  (The Piano) in their early film roles and Charles B. Pierce’s long sought-after THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN starring  Oscar®-winner Ben Johnson and Dawn Wells  (Gilligan's Island) , arrive on home entertainment shelves everywhere from Shout! Factory. 

Both movies debut for the first time on Blu-ray™. The BURNING will be presented as a Collector’s Edition Blu-ray™ + DVD Combo pack that boasts insightful bonus content, and a reversible wrap with original theatrical key art. THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN Blu-ray™ + DVD Combo Pack contains director Charles B. Pierce’s rare cult movie classic THE EVICTOR as a bonus movie presentation on the DVD plus more extras to be announced at a later date.   

The BURNING Collector’s Edition Blu-ray™ + DVD combo pack is priced to own at $29.93; THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN Blu-ray™ + DVD combo pack (including THE EVICTORS on DVD) has a suggested retail price of $26.99.

*** Avid movie fans and collectors take note: those who order The BURNING Collector’s Edition Blu-ray™ + DVD combo pack from ShoutFactory.com will receive the exclusive 18”x 24” poster featuring the newly commissioned artwork! Only 300 posters will be printed, so these are only available while supplies last.***

Fans and collectors can preorder these exciting SCREAM FACTORY™ collections now at ShoutFactory.com or Amazon.com

Pre-order links: 

The Burning [Collector's Edition]:

https://www.shoutfactory.com/?q=node/216912

http://www.amazon.com/Burning-Collectors-Edition-BluRay-Blu- ray/dp/B00BCMSY80/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363275407&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+BURNING

The Town That Dreaded Sundown:

https://www.shoutfactory.com/?q=node/216915

http://www.amazon.com/Town-Dreaded-Sundown-BluRay-Combo/dp/B00BCMT2BI/ref=pd_bxgy_mov_img_y

The BURNING Collector’s Edition Blu-ray™ + DVD Combo Pack

Gather around the campfire to die!

A group of summer camp pranksters get the scare of their lives when they target the camp's creepy caretaker...and he takes bloody revenge! "Gruesome" (The Hollywood Reporter) and "stomach-churning" (Boxoffice), this terrifying tale is "a brilliant slasher flick [and] gory as hell" (slasherpool.com)!

After a cruel joke goes awry, severely burning him and subjecting him to five years of intensive, unsuccessful skin graft treatments, Cropsy (Lou David) is back at camp...and ready to wreak havoc on those who scarred him! With his hedge clippers in hand, he terrorizes the camp and systematically mutilates each victim. Can a few courageous campers save themselves and destroy this demented madman before he kills them all?

Starring Brian Matthews (Crime Stopper), Leah Ayres (Bloodsport), Brian Backer (Fast Times At Ridgemont High), Larry Joshua (Dances With Wolves) and featuring early film appearances by Fisher Stevens (Short Circuit), Jason Alexander (Seinfeld) and Holly Hunter (Raising Arizona), The Burning is a “grim and nasty movie [that] gets under your skin” (efilmcritic.com)!

JEAN UBAND,  MICHAEL COHL,  CORKY BURGER Present

A HARVEY WEINSTEIN Production

“THE BURNING”

BRIAN MATTHEWS, LEAH AYRES, BRIAN BACKER,

LARRY JOSHUA and LOU DAVID as Cropsy

Associate Producer DANY UBAND,  Director of Photography HARVEY HARRISON, BBC

Musical Director ALAN BRAWER,  Music Composed and Performed by RICK WAKEMAN

Special Makeup and Effects by TOM SAVINI

Executive Producers JEAN UBAND, MICHAEL COHL, ANDRE DJAOUI

Story by HARVEY WEINSTEIN, TONY MAYLAM, BRAD GRAY

Screenplay by PETER LAWRENCE and BOB WEINSTEIN

Created and Produced by HARVEY WEINSTEIN

Directed by TONY MAYLAM

Anamorphic Widescreen (1.85:1)/DTS-HD Master Audio Mono (BD)/Dolby Digital Mono (DVD)/1981/Color/91 minutes

The BURNING Collector’s Edition Blu-ray™ + DVD Combo Pack

SPECIAL FEATURES

·       Audio Commentary with Director Tony Maylam and International Film Journalist Alan Jones

·       Audio Commentary with stars Shelley Bruce and Bonnie Deroski

·       Blood ‘n’ Fire Memories – A detailed look at the creation of the film’s make-up effects with Special Effects Artist Tom Savini

·       Slash & Cut – An interview with editor Jack Sholder

·       Cropsy Speaks – An interview with actor Lou David

·       Summer Camp Nightmare – An interview with actress Leah Ayres

·       Behind-the-Scenes Footage

·       Theatrical Trailer

·       Make-Up Effects Still Gallery

·       Poster & Still Gallery

THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN Blu-ray+DVD Combo Pack (including the debut of THE EVICTORS on DVD!)
Don’t get caught in this town after sundown!

When two young lovers are savagely beaten and tortured on a back country road in Texarkana, local police are baffled. Three weeks later, two more people are slain in a similar setting and Deputy Norman Ramsey fears a pattern might be developing. Texas Ranger J.D. Morales (Ben Johnson, The Wild Bunch) is brought in to help. The two officers must find “the Phantom Killer” before he can kill again. Also starring Andrew Prine (Grizzly) and Dawn Wells (Gilligan’s Island), directed by Charles B. Pierce (The Legend Of Boggy Creek), and based on one of America’s most baffling murder cases, this horrifying suspense thriller is a shocking experience you’ll never forget.

A CHARLES B. PIERCE Film

“THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN”

Starring BEN JOHNSON, ANDREW PRINE, DAWN WELLS as “Helen Reed”

Music Composed by JAMIE MENDOSA-NAVA

Written by EARL E. SMITH

Produced and Directed by CHARLES B. PIERCE

Color by TECHNICOLOR®

An AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL Release

Blu-ray: 1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1)/DTS-HD Master Audio Mono

DVD: Anamorphic Widescreen/Dolby Digital Mono

THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN Blu-ray™ + DVD Combo Pack

SPECIAL FEATURES

• Audio Commentary with Justin Beahm and Historian Jim Presley
• Small Town Lawman – An Interview with actor Andrew Prine
• Survivor Stories – An Interview with actress Dawn Wells
• Eye of the Beholder – An Interview with Director of Photography James Roberson
• Theatrical Trailer
• Essay by writer Brian Albright
• Poster & Still Gallery

Special Bonus Movie Presentation:

Charles B. Pierce’s The Evictors (DVD ONLY)

Synopsis

A nice young couple move into an eerie house located in a small Louisiana town, unaware of its violent history. Soon they find themselves tormented by the previous owners. Vic Morrow (Combat!, Humanoids From The Deep), Michael Parks (Django Unchained, Argo) and Jessica Harper (Suspiria, Phantom Of The Paradise) star in this chilling horror film.

A CHARLES B. PIERCE Film

“THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN”

Starring BEN JOHNSON  ANDREW PRINE  DAWN WELLS as “Helen Reed”

Music Composed by JAMIE MENDOSA-NAVA

Written by EARL E. SMITH

Produced and Directed by CHARLES B. PIERCE

Color by TECHNICOLOR®

The Town That Dreaded Sundown (Blu-ray and DVD): 1977/Color/86 minutes/R

The Evictors (DVD Only): 1979/Color/92 minutes/PG

Blu-ray: 1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1)/DTS-HD Master Audio Mono

DVD: Anamorphic Widescreen/Dolby Digital Mono

As excitement builds for these two SCREAM FACTORY™  home entertainment collections, Shout! Factory will announce in-depth final bonus content and additional news in forthcoming months.