The highly spoken of homage to all things Giallo is finally coming your way.
The 2009 French horror-thriller Amer, an eroticized homage to 1970s Italian “giallo” horror films, is coming to Blu-ray and DVD on Oct. 4 from Olive Films.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
PEEPHOLE REVIEW: Women in Prison Triple Pack from Synapse
Chained Heat; Red Heat; and Jungle Warriors
Do I really need to right up a critique on this? Something about the socio-political undertones of female sexuality in bondage to a male dominated society? Something about the sudden wrath of female empowerment crashing forth in the heat of the macho environments of prison and jungles?
How about I entice you this way... Sylvia Kristel, Sybil Danning, Stella Stevens, and Linda Blair. And for good measure, there's nudity, explosions, violence, and blood. And don't forget nudity... after all, it's being released under the new label from Mr. Skin.
Synapse Films and Mr. Skin have joined forces to bring you three of the most popular titles in the 80s woman in chains tradition.
CHAINED HEAT – Linda Blair (The Exorcist) stars as a woman sentenced to federal prison after accidentally killing a man. She has to deal with ean Wormer himself -- John Vernon, and two rival gangs fighting a race war. Can she survive her remaining days in the sleazy slammer. Also starring the sizzling Sybil Danning. Chained Heathas been newly re-mastered in anamorphic widescreen and presented totally uncut for the first time in North America!
RED HEAT – Linda Blair returns, this time finding herself wrongly and sentenced to three years in a brutal East German penitentiary. Tormented by the evil prisoner Sofia (Sylvia Kristel, Emmanuelle), she must fight for her life as her fiancée tries to rescue her from the sadistic hell behind bars. Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen.
JUNGLE WARRIORS – A group of hot models travel to South America for a sizzling photo session. When their plane is shot down, the models are imprisoned and subjected to horrible torture and rape by an evil drug lord. The girls go al grrl power and grab some firepower and shoot and love their way to freedom! Stars Sybil Danning and John Vernon. Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen.
Hurry quick to Synapse Films to grab this tongue-wagger.
How about I entice you this way... Sylvia Kristel, Sybil Danning, Stella Stevens, and Linda Blair. And for good measure, there's nudity, explosions, violence, and blood. And don't forget nudity... after all, it's being released under the new label from Mr. Skin.
 |
| You had me at "grab your socks" |
CHAINED HEAT – Linda Blair (The Exorcist) stars as a woman sentenced to federal prison after accidentally killing a man. She has to deal with ean Wormer himself -- John Vernon, and two rival gangs fighting a race war. Can she survive her remaining days in the sleazy slammer. Also starring the sizzling Sybil Danning. Chained Heathas been newly re-mastered in anamorphic widescreen and presented totally uncut for the first time in North America!
RED HEAT – Linda Blair returns, this time finding herself wrongly and sentenced to three years in a brutal East German penitentiary. Tormented by the evil prisoner Sofia (Sylvia Kristel, Emmanuelle), she must fight for her life as her fiancée tries to rescue her from the sadistic hell behind bars. Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen.
JUNGLE WARRIORS – A group of hot models travel to South America for a sizzling photo session. When their plane is shot down, the models are imprisoned and subjected to horrible torture and rape by an evil drug lord. The girls go al grrl power and grab some firepower and shoot and love their way to freedom! Stars Sybil Danning and John Vernon. Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen.
 |
| Hush hush, keep it down now... voices carry |
Hurry quick to Synapse Films to grab this tongue-wagger.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
PEEPHOLE REVIEW: Disingenuous -- the Movie (2011)
The Truth Will Set Them Free...
It's anyone's darkest nightmare... being taken away from our everyday comforts, and locked away for reasons unknown. This is the plight of the everyman central character of Disingenuous, a short film by new comer Scott Fitzgerald and Fair Port Pictures.
A Plumber awakes in a dark, dank, desolate warehouse, chained to a wall and sitting alone at a solitary table. He has no recollection of how he got there, and the silence of the vast darkness drives his mad. From the shadows steps a silent cloaked figure, accompanying a bald-headed brute of a man. The man speaks quietly -- and with a questionable German accent -- asking the plumber to confess his transgressions, as the plumber rapt in fear, tries to figure out just what the hell is going on. It's like the Marathon Man moment, when Olivier insists, quietly, that Hoffman answer the question: "Is it safe?" To up the ante, another hostage is introduced -- the plumber's... podiatrist? With more grilling from the brute, the two men unwillingly confess, to each other, their transgressions. Some of these moment are decidedly light, laced with quotes from Rowen & Martin's Laugh-In and Airplane, but then, just when the satire is ripe, the retribution comes, with the blow of a hammer.
First time filmmaker Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates nicely that he knows how to deliver a story. He proves, also, that he has a sly sense of humor, tossing pop references in that sort of plop down, not really asking to be recognized so much as waiting to see if you'll pick up on them. There are so many amateur filmmaking pitfalls that Fitzgerald dodges (virtually all of them, as far as I can tell), and his ability to let the satire play, instead of banging it into the viewers head, is one of his strengths. He laces puns and pop references in without a wink. It's because he recognizes that the gags aren't the key to the film -- there is a relevancy in them, for sure, but it's all a part of the whole.
With the subtle humor is the dark drama. And that drama is played well by the cast Christopher Clark (podiatrist), Jesse Conklin (bald brute), Gary Sundown (cloaked guy), and Dave Conley (the plumber). Fitzgerald (who also wrote and edited the film) does well keeping his cast focused, and true to the situation.
But the other big star of Disingenuous is the cinematography by Derrick Petrush. How I have craved to see high contrast cinematography return to my genre films!! As video begins to overshadow film more and more, it seems that the shadows in the movies have all but disappeared. Noir simply, it seems, is a label for a genre, and no longer is it considered a filmic technique. With high tech video cameras, cinematographers reveled in the ability to expose the darkest of the dark shadows, areas that film could not expose. And so night scenes became almost as visible as any of the daylight scenes. Good for technology! But bad for the thrills and chills the storytellers were trying to convey. Petrush brings back those necessary shadows, with pitch black contrasts, that this story uses to convey its secretive mood. This isn't the clearly viewed skuzziness of a Saw film, where dark colored props and art effects are used. No. Real darkness prevails. Shadows and dark corners present the necessary mood here.
Disingenuous is high contrast suspenseful drama that skewers our daily fears and the personal paranoia we wouldn't even speak of in our diary. The subtle humor and dark drama take the audience on a ride, one where we question every turn, wondering where the hell we're going... until the hammer comes down on a climax that will rip everything apart. Disingenuous is genuine fun.... But, whatever you do, don't spill the beans...
Disingenuous is now making the rounds at various festivals. Stick close to their FaceBook page to learn when and where you will be able to see it.
Watch the trailer:
It's anyone's darkest nightmare... being taken away from our everyday comforts, and locked away for reasons unknown. This is the plight of the everyman central character of Disingenuous, a short film by new comer Scott Fitzgerald and Fair Port Pictures.
A Plumber awakes in a dark, dank, desolate warehouse, chained to a wall and sitting alone at a solitary table. He has no recollection of how he got there, and the silence of the vast darkness drives his mad. From the shadows steps a silent cloaked figure, accompanying a bald-headed brute of a man. The man speaks quietly -- and with a questionable German accent -- asking the plumber to confess his transgressions, as the plumber rapt in fear, tries to figure out just what the hell is going on. It's like the Marathon Man moment, when Olivier insists, quietly, that Hoffman answer the question: "Is it safe?" To up the ante, another hostage is introduced -- the plumber's... podiatrist? With more grilling from the brute, the two men unwillingly confess, to each other, their transgressions. Some of these moment are decidedly light, laced with quotes from Rowen & Martin's Laugh-In and Airplane, but then, just when the satire is ripe, the retribution comes, with the blow of a hammer.
 |
| It's hammer time... sorry |
First time filmmaker Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates nicely that he knows how to deliver a story. He proves, also, that he has a sly sense of humor, tossing pop references in that sort of plop down, not really asking to be recognized so much as waiting to see if you'll pick up on them. There are so many amateur filmmaking pitfalls that Fitzgerald dodges (virtually all of them, as far as I can tell), and his ability to let the satire play, instead of banging it into the viewers head, is one of his strengths. He laces puns and pop references in without a wink. It's because he recognizes that the gags aren't the key to the film -- there is a relevancy in them, for sure, but it's all a part of the whole.
With the subtle humor is the dark drama. And that drama is played well by the cast Christopher Clark (podiatrist), Jesse Conklin (bald brute), Gary Sundown (cloaked guy), and Dave Conley (the plumber). Fitzgerald (who also wrote and edited the film) does well keeping his cast focused, and true to the situation.
But the other big star of Disingenuous is the cinematography by Derrick Petrush. How I have craved to see high contrast cinematography return to my genre films!! As video begins to overshadow film more and more, it seems that the shadows in the movies have all but disappeared. Noir simply, it seems, is a label for a genre, and no longer is it considered a filmic technique. With high tech video cameras, cinematographers reveled in the ability to expose the darkest of the dark shadows, areas that film could not expose. And so night scenes became almost as visible as any of the daylight scenes. Good for technology! But bad for the thrills and chills the storytellers were trying to convey. Petrush brings back those necessary shadows, with pitch black contrasts, that this story uses to convey its secretive mood. This isn't the clearly viewed skuzziness of a Saw film, where dark colored props and art effects are used. No. Real darkness prevails. Shadows and dark corners present the necessary mood here.
 |
| You simply are not you ready for this |
Disingenuous is high contrast suspenseful drama that skewers our daily fears and the personal paranoia we wouldn't even speak of in our diary. The subtle humor and dark drama take the audience on a ride, one where we question every turn, wondering where the hell we're going... until the hammer comes down on a climax that will rip everything apart. Disingenuous is genuine fun.... But, whatever you do, don't spill the beans...
Disingenuous is now making the rounds at various festivals. Stick close to their FaceBook page to learn when and where you will be able to see it.
Watch the trailer:
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
BAD RONALD says Screw Netflix!
SCREW YOU NETFLIX!!
Netflix is at it again. It's not so bad that they wanna raise their prices, but they're not just raising them -- they're screwing the customer!!
Remember that sweet plan that let you loan out one DVD at a time, while letting you watch as many movies from their streaming catalog as you could in a months time for a fair $9.99? Say buh-bye to that! Now they want you to pay a hike of 60% with their new plans -- $7.99 for just streaming, and then another $7.99 for just one DVD at a time. Yup, that would be a mere 2 bucks less to get just one of the plans. Together, they offer NO DISCOUNT -- $15.98 for the plan that used to cost $9.99.
And that's the not the worst part (well, it is really, but) -- have you taken a look at their streaming catalog? For one, it pales in numbers, compatred to their DVD loan catalog. So, the fact that both catalogs share the same price is hardly fair. Second, go ahead and start watching that TV show you've always wanted to watch, via Netflix's streaming catalog. Good show, huh? Season One and Two were great, right? Bet you can't wait to watch the other seasons, no? Wait.... what? They remaining seasons are only available via the DVD catalog?! What dee fudge!!
Good enough reason to tell Netflix to go screw itself... speak out!!
Netflix is at it again. It's not so bad that they wanna raise their prices, but they're not just raising them -- they're screwing the customer!!
Remember that sweet plan that let you loan out one DVD at a time, while letting you watch as many movies from their streaming catalog as you could in a months time for a fair $9.99? Say buh-bye to that! Now they want you to pay a hike of 60% with their new plans -- $7.99 for just streaming, and then another $7.99 for just one DVD at a time. Yup, that would be a mere 2 bucks less to get just one of the plans. Together, they offer NO DISCOUNT -- $15.98 for the plan that used to cost $9.99.
And that's the not the worst part (well, it is really, but) -- have you taken a look at their streaming catalog? For one, it pales in numbers, compatred to their DVD loan catalog. So, the fact that both catalogs share the same price is hardly fair. Second, go ahead and start watching that TV show you've always wanted to watch, via Netflix's streaming catalog. Good show, huh? Season One and Two were great, right? Bet you can't wait to watch the other seasons, no? Wait.... what? They remaining seasons are only available via the DVD catalog?! What dee fudge!!
Good enough reason to tell Netflix to go screw itself... speak out!!
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Monday, July 11, 2011
PEEPHOLE REVIEW: The Reef (2010)
Pray That You Drown First!
The Aussies and New Zealanders have always been good for a thrill (The Long Weekend, The Last Wave, Wolf Creek, Dead Alive...), so picking up this latest open water chiller was a given. And just as the Ausies like to do, the story is heavy on character, and slow on the boil.
The Reef snags you fairly well with some zolting thrills, and some great bloody kill shots. However, as a whole, it doesn't keep the suspense up as well as it could. The shark doesn't enter the picture until the final reel -- not that that's a problem. The best of thriller/suspense flicks have held off the boogeyman until late in the game. The suspense bobs about, at times, looking for something to react to. The floaters have to retrieve this, or quarrel about that, but the ominous music that injects every small moment sorta kills the mood. I mean, he's swimming after a wake board 30 feet away, for Pete's sake. It's not that thrilling a moment!
With that said, the character interaction and the final bloody reel, The Reef does do well at upping your blood pressure a few points. It doesn't sink, but sorta bobs around a bit, and gets fun when a wave comes by every so often. Just try not to get queasy as you wait.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
BAD RONALD WALL BUSTERS: The Woman gets a distributor
repost of article for Variety, written by Dave McNary
Collective, BloodyDisgusting nab 'Woman'
AMC partnership brings Sundance horror pic to 15 markets
 |
| Pollyanna McIntosh in "The Woman" |
Horror pic will be distributed theatrically in at least 15 key markets through the Collective and Bloody Disgusting's partnership with AMC Theaters.
Lucky McKee directed "The Woman" from a screenplay he wrote with Jack Ketchum. It's produced by Andrew van den Houten and Robert Tonino for Moderncine.
Story centers on a successful country lawyer who captures and attempts to "civilize" the last remaining member of a violent clan that has roamed the Northeast coast for decades, thereby putting the lives of his family in extreme jeopardy.
"We are excited to bring this groundbreaking and terrifying film to moviegoers everywhere," said Gary Binkow, a partner at the Collective. "It's a key part of our mission at the Collective to ensure that original, creative voices like Lucky and Jack's can achieve a national platform for their work, and we look forward to the intense conversation this film is sure to ignite."
Pic, starring Pollyanna McIntosh, Sean Bridgers and Angela Bettis, has been rated R for strong bloody violence, torture, rape, disturbing behavior, graphic nudity and language.
The Collective and Bloody Disgusting launched their distribution partnership with AMC for horror and thriller titles earlier this year.The deal was negotiated by Binkow and The Collective's Director of Acquisitions, Roxanne Benjamin with Rob Rader of Schwarcz, Rimberg, Boyd & Rader. John Sloss of Cinetic Media and Jerry Dasti of Sloss Eckhouse LawCo represented the filmmakers.
Read the original Variety article, written by Dave McNary: http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118039455
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