On Der Backlog: More Movies Than You Can Stick A Shake At

Posted on October 3, 2016 by geelw

Gah. More stuff to review, but not review in a few cases where that homework was already done. I did a few of these already based off of TCM showing them during the wee hours, so I’ll only need to do five of eight. Five of these are from Severin Films’ big sale last month after their publishing rights expired for Horror Express, The Baby, Bloody Birthday, The House of Seven Corpses, and Psychomania. I actually thought I’d reviewed HotSC already, but can’t locate the review, so I guess it’s one I dreamed I wrote or something. No big deal, as I’ve seen this enough to tap out impressions in my sleep.

Vamp is yet another Arrow Video screener I need to get to, Just Desserts I’ve seen already and need to write up (it’s brilliant), and MVD Visual sent over this lovely Unearthed Francesca set that includes a Blu-Ray/DVD and soundtrack from this recent retro giallo that, based on the trailer I just watched, REALLY looks as it was made in the 70’s. Anyway back in a bit with a review of something NOT here I think you’ll like.

-GW

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October’s Arrows Draw PLENTY of Blood

Posted on September 16, 2016 by geelw

Only three releases next month, but one is a SUPER biggie. That said, getting that that particular Arrow Video October release will be tough as hell for some budget-minded collectors unless they score a great online deal. Anyway, here’s what’s coming up soon:

Vamp [Blu-ray] (October 4th, $29.95 MSRP)

THE FIRST KISS COULD BE YOUR LAST!

Two fraternity pledges head to a seedy part of town to find some entertainment for their college friends but are faced with bloodthirsty vampires! Keith (Chris Makepeace, Meatballs) and AJ (Robert Rusler, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge) want to make the right impression at college and so they devise a plan to get them into the best frathouse on campus. They head to the After Dark Club where they want to find a stripper for a party their friends won’t forget, instead they find themselves among vampires led by Kinky Katrina (Grace Jones, A View to a Kill)!

Almost certainly an influence on From Dusk til Dawn, Vamp is superbly designed by many of Grace Jones’ own award-winning collaborators and features stunning effects by four-time Oscar winner Greg Cannom (The Lost Boys, Bram Stoker’s Dracula). Delivering laughs and scares in equal measure, with the added bonus of vampy sex appeal, Vamp is a comedy horror romp with real bite!

Bonus Materials
– High Definition digital transfer
– Original mono audio
– Subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
– One of those Nights: The Making of Vamp – a brand new documentary featuring interviews with director Richard Wenk, stars Robert Rusler, Dedee Pfeiffer, Gedde Watanabe
– Behind-the-scenes rehearsals
– Blooper Reel
– Image gallery
– Dracula Bites the Big Apple (1979) – Richard Wenk’s celebrated short film
– Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by the Twins of Evil
– First pressing only: Booklet featuring new writing on the film by critic Cullen Gallagher

More below the jump (MUCH more!)… Continue reading →

The Other 99: To Live And Die In Hell’s Way

Posted on August 25, 2016 by geelw

The Other 99 is a deadly first-person action-survival game. Ripped from your ordinary life you awaken on a desolate, windswept Hebridian island with nothing but a single note that reads, “The only way off the island is through The Other 99”.

The Other 99 will stretch your humanity to breaking point as you fight to gather food, water and weapons on an island where you have nothing, where you are nothing. You are not special.

It is up to you to make yourself into something. Will you brutally murder all those who stand in your way? Or will you move silently through the forests, eliminating anyone that crosses your path? Just remember each person is unique and has their own story to tell and their own pieces of the jigsaw that makes up The Other 99.

How far will you go to survive?

Who doesn’t love a good murder mystery? Well, The Other 99 kind of figuratively cuts to the chase by ditching the cheap detective stuff and makes you the one who has to figure out how to get the hell of an island full of other killers and back to civilization. This slice of harrowing, not for the kiddies survival game arrives today on Steam courtesy of UK developer Burning Arrow and publisher Deck 13. Condemned meets Battle Royale meets Manhunt with a dash of And Then There Were None (times ten, minus one), the game changes each time it’s played and if it’s done right, should provide some interesting replay value as well as plenty of conversation fodder.

Somewhat stabbier launch trailer below the jump for those of you not into the painful looking art of digital dispatch.
Continue reading →

This DOOM Trailer is a Feat of Clay

Posted on May 8, 2016 by geelw

So, yeah. DOOM comes out on May 13th and this 4th game can also be seen as a modern reboot of the seminal FPS franchise as well as a love letter by id Software to itself. While the official game trailer itself is quite NSFW, the very talented Claycat (or Lee Hardcastle) has whipped up a hilariously cartoon gory (and not for the kiddies) claymation version of one of the early trailers that’s a must-watch.

Er… Hey, that’s NOT blood, kids… it’s um, jelly! Take a look:

Yep, awesome, innit? Here’s the yuckier (content-wise) official trailer:

DOOM hits retail and digital on May 13, 2016. As the song says, “go to hell and see how you like it!”

Gallery: Lobo With Shotguns Looks Like A Total Blast From the Past

Posted on April 13, 2016 by geelw

If any game was a perfect example of “screenshots do NOT do this game justice!” it would be Lobo With Shotguns, coming sometime this year from talented indie developers Fat Panda Games Studio. Based in Yucatán, Mexico, the team has infused their upcoming non-stop action-packed game with a seriously awesome retro look that recalls 60’s and 70’s comic books as well as classic arcade game series such as Final Fight, Double Dragon, Streets of Rage, and even bits of Splatterhouse.

Hush, now about that icky grain in this screen. See the trailer below for what’s up with that…

As soon as I saw the screens and spectacular trailer, I think I let out a squeal that sounded like a car skidding on a wet highway then through a guard rail and off a cliff (BOOM!). Memories of the old Marvel Super Heroes cartoons from their 1970’s run on WPIX here in NY punched me in the head until I stopped laughing because I’d forgotten to breathe. I also got a whiff of ancient Mexican horror/hero movies at work here, but it’s not as obvious an influence. That said, if anyone was to do a series of side-scrolling Lucha games featuring the legendary Sancho character, I’d choose this team based on what’s here.

See what I mean?
Continue reading →

May’s Arrow Video Releases Are Pretty Sharp Stuff

Posted on April 10, 2016 by geelw

While there will be only three Arrow Video releases for May 2016 from MVD Entertainment Group, all should please fans of their respective genres. I’m all over this trio like a cheap suit on sale to a broke guy looking for work:

Nico Mastorakis’ and Peter Rader’s 1990 film Hired to Kill (MSRP: $39.95, May 17) was and is a total hoot. Between the wild action scenes and the awesome cast that includes Oliver Reed, George Kennedy, and Brian Thompson, this mid-budget “B” features Thompson as a merc posing as a fashion designer sent in to bump off an evil dictator type with the help of seven female assassins (posing as models of course!). Yep, it’s as silly as it sounds and double yep, Mastorakis makes it work well in his inimitable style. Bullets, bombs and bikinis all blazing in a 1990’s manner? Sign me up!

Bonus Materials

Brand new 2K restoration of the film, approved by writer-director Nico Mastorakis
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentations
Original Stereo audio (uncompressed PCM on the Blu-ray)
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
Audio Commentary with editor Barry Zetlin
Hired to Direct – a brand new interview with director Nico Mastorakis on the making of Hired to Kill
Undercover Mercenary – a brand new interview with star Brian Thompson
Original Theatrical Trailer
Stills Gallery
Original Screenplay, entitled Freedom or Death (BD/DVD-ROM Content)
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
Fully-illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by critic James Oliver

“But wait, there’s more!” Continue reading →

Blu-Ray Review: The Mutilator (Fall Break)

Posted on March 26, 2016 by geelw

If you missed out on Buddy Cooper’s amusing and gory slasher flick The Mutilator way back when it was in theaters or later on VHS, you’re in for a treat thanks to Arrow Video. This one’s got the goofy acting and eyebrow-raising plot holes you’d expect from the genre, but it’s the exceptionally nifty gore effects from Mark Shostrom (Videodrome, Evil Dead II) that will get most viewers on the hook (pun intended).

As for special features, Arrow packs the disc with a raft of bonus content that makes the film a lot more enjoyable thanks to all the great interviews with the cast and crew that participated. These extras are all a great thing as the story here is pretty standard genre wrangling saved by some humor and the aforementioned gore effects.

Ten years after accidentally shooting his mother, Ed Jr. (Matt Mitler) gets a phone call from his dad with a request to close up his beach condo for the winter. After his girlfriend Pam (Ruth Martinez), and school chums Ralph (Bill Hitchcock), Sue (Connie Rogers), Mike (Morey Lampley), and Linda (Frances Raines) invite themselves along for a little fun in the cool fall sun, they discover the condo in a rather messy state. Chalking it up to Big Ed being drunk with a few friends, two of the teens commence their usual getting drunk and splitting up for some alone time antics. Let’s just say Big Ed has a little (okay, somewhat large and sharp) axe to grind with his son… and his poor friends just so happen to be in the wrong place at the right time for him to get in some prime chop time. Continue reading →

GRIM DAWN Now on gog.com: Sunlight? What’s Sunlight?

Posted on March 18, 2016 by geelw

While Crate Entertainment’s completed release version of its ARPG GRIM DAWN has been officially out on Steam since February 25, it’s just arrived on gog.com at a slight discount off the already low $24.99 price. The game has been in development for a while and while I’ve been tracking its progress from the shadows, I didn’t participate in the pre-release playable versions because I wanted to wait until the game was actually done and ready to buy. Some of the handful of folks on the dev team also worked on the great Titan Quest, so it was a no-brainer that GD would be flat out superb. Well, the problem now is if I buy it NOW, when the heck will I find time to PLAY it? My backlog is pretty massive as it is and I still need to pick up Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen for PC because I want to see how well it runs at 60fps and it was absolutely one of my favorite games of the previous console cycle.

Hmmm. Time for a coin toss, it seems. If it lands as it should, I may never see the light of day again. Well, for a few months at least.

PC Review: The Count Lucanor

Posted on March 17, 2016 by geelw

Platform: PC (via Steam)

Developer/Publisher: Baroque Decay Games

# of Players: 1

MSRP: $9.99

ESRB Rating: N/A (but it’s NOT for the kiddies!)

Official Site

Score: A- (90%)

When a game’s press info mentions classics The Legend of Zelda and Silent Hill as inspirations, it’s either going to be really great or really lousy. Fortunately, Baroque Decay’s excellent The Count Lucanor is not only really great, it’s one of those smartly designed “retro” games that does pretty much everything right. The game is funny, a bit frightening (and best played in the darkness) and definitely disturbing on a few fronts. While it’s not a lengthy experience at all, the about 5 hours it takes to play (which is your average 8 or 16-bit game length, not counting RPG or strategy titles) means it won’t wear out its welcome when all is said and done. Five different endings mean there’s replay value to be had if you want to see every possible outcome, but you can mildly abuse the save system if you don’t want to start from the beginning each time. Continue reading →

Arrow Video’s April Showers of Awesome Flicks

Posted on March 16, 2016 by geelw

If you’re an Arrow Video collector here in the U.S., things are about to get even more interesting in your library thanks to the company’s SIX April releases through MVD Entertainment Group.

The month of solid releases kicks off April 5th with Death Walks Twice: Two Films By Luciano Ercoli – Limited Edition Boxset (MSRP $69.95), a Blu-Ray/DVD combo featuring two films, Death Walks on High Heels (1971) and Death Walks at Midnight (1972). Both films star the lovely Nieves Navarro (billed as Susan Scott) and are two seminal giallo classics worth snapping up.

Only 3000 of this set will be made and as usual, Arrow is packing that LE box with both films and special features galore:

LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS

Limited Edition boxed-set (3000 copies) containing Death Walks on High Heels and Death Walks at Midnight
Brand new 2K restorations of the films from original film elements
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentations
Original Italian and English soundtracks in mono audio
Newly translated English subtitles for the Italian soundtracks
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtracks
Limited Edition 60-page booklet containing new writing on the films from authors Danny Shipka (Perverse Titillation: The Exploitation Cinema of Italy, Spain and France), Troy Howarth (So Deadly, So Perverse: 50 Years of Italian Giallo Films) and writer Leonard Jacobs

DEATH WALKS ON HIGH HEELS

Audio commentary by film critic Tim Lucas
Introduction to the film by screenwriter Ernesto Gastaldi
From Spain with Love – featurette comprising newly-edited archive footage of director Luciano Ercoli and actress Nieves Navarro, interviewed at their home in Barcelona
Master of Giallo – screenwriter Gastaldi on Death Walks on High Heels and how to write a successful giallo
Death Walks to the Beat – a career-spanning interview with High Heels composer Stelvio Cipriani
Original Italian and English trailers
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx

DEATH WALKS AT MIDNIGHT

Audio commentary by film critic Tim Lucas
Introduction to the film by screenwriter Ernesto Gastaldi
Extended TV version of the feature
Crime Does Pay – screenwriter Gastaldi reflects on his career in the crime film-writing business, including a look at Death Walks at Midnight
Desperately Seeking Susan – visual essay by Michael Mackenzie exploring the distinctive giallo collaborations between director Luciano Ercoli and star Nieves Navarro
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx

And that’s only the first of six great genre films and film sets coming next month… Continue reading →