It’s not a slasher, but any retro horror release from Code Red is cause for celebration. Beyond The Door (1974) is commonly belittled as a Euro Exorcist clone. Is that a fair assessment? I’ll be grabbing the DVD to find out for myself. Might even watch it back-to-back with Exorcist 3: Cries And Shadows (mmhmm). Streets September 16th, now let’s laundry list the specs:
16×9 1:85:1 widescreen presentation of the uncut European version, an audio commentary with director Ovidio G. Assonitis and Mondo Digital writer Nathaniel Thompson, moderated by Lee Christian, a second audio commentary with star Juliet Mills, HOSTEL producer Scott Spiegel and film historian Darren Gross, “Englishman In Italy” – a video interview with Richard Johnson conducted by Pete Tombs, “Beyond The Door, 35 Years Later” – a featurette with writer Alex (INCREDIBLE MELTING MAN) Rebar, director Ovidio Assonitis and stars Juliet Mills and Richard Johnson, original trailers and still gallery.
A redux I’m looking forward to is Rogue Pictures’ take on The Last House On The Left. I’m a huge fan of the original (isn’t everyone?) and aren’t miffed they’re giving it another go-around. Why? Because Last House itself was a retelling of Ingmar Bergman’s The Virgin Spring (1960) plus I think the almost stage-like format of a few characters in two segregated locations lends itself to multiple interpretations. I’m glad they didn’t go with a David Hess look-a-like which would have been bad move numero uno. Instead they have Krug being played by Garret Dillahunt (left) – who I’ve grown to be a fan of for his kicking all kinds of arse over on the Terminator TV Series. Bring it.
Many months ago, a few goodies appeared on the web – a spoiler-filled review of a test screening, and elsewhere the first publicity photo. A while back I discovered that the two sites that hosted each exclusive goody had mysteriously hit the delete button – in both cases. Probably due to the usual PR team aiming to completely control the flow of information on such a free and open medium as the internet. Blah blah blah. Anyway, we’ll see if the coffee has cooled because I’m reprinting the review below (there may have been several changes made since), as well as the photo (original website’s watermark cropped out for their own protection!). If this post disappears, you know why (send cops & chickens!).
Marie Antoinette practically made losing your head in vogue and my how it’s lasted through the years! Undoubtedly one of the worst ways to go, our favorite genre films kept rolling (ha!) with the punches, supplying one gratuitous decapitation after another. And how we love them!
1. The Omen (1976) – Without a doubt, the greatest decapitation scene brought to celluloid, David Warner’s infamous death left audiences in horror rapture.
2. Friday the 13th – Mrs. Vorhees’ gruesome decapitation really needs no introductions. It would have come in first, if the Omen hadn’t of been so damn GOOD.
3. Blood Diner (1987) – “Ever heard of battered girlfriends,” is the question Mike Tutman poses before he deep fries his victim’s cranium and when she’s breaded to perfection, he knocks it off with a broomstick! It brings new meaning to the words Hush Puppy!
4. Halloween H20 (1998) – Perhaps the most shocking beheading, originally Laurie was to have ended Michael Myer’s reign with a swift axe move. Unfortunately, the box office dictated otherwise, and it turns out Michael’s baby sis had accidentally killed an innocent man. It’s still one of the best should-have-been endings of any franchise series.
5. Prom Night (1980) – Heads literally roll in this silly and endlessly enduring slasher classic. Lou, the school bully literally loses his mind when his ex wins Prom Queen. He decides to rain on her parade though and his noggin ends up on the dance floor during the festivities. Ah Lou, we hardly new ya!
6. Hide and Go Shriek (1988) – As if it wasn’t enough that poor Kimmy had to wear stonewashed denim shorts, she’s also beheaded in a nasty elevator mishap. Then to add insult to injury, her head gets kicked by a potential victim attempting to get away!
7. Trauma (1993) – Horror master Dario Argento crafts a fun, if not mind-blowing, movie all about losing one’s head. Best scene – a recently beheaded man speaks moments before the end. Creepy.
8. Nightmare (1981) – If watching heads getting cut off is your bag, check out the underrated grindhouse classic The Nightmare Never Ends. There’s only one beheading but it’s played over and over again with such gratuitous and gleeful gluttony, it’s a memorable experience. Aka Nightmares in a Damaged Brain
9. Macabro (1980) – Not only do you get an awesome decapitation (in slow mo no less!), Macabro is all about the noggin. Literally. When a philandering wife loses her lover’s head, she loses her mind. A must see.
10. Madman (1982) – An underrated slasher, Madman goes as far as to decapitate a woman via a truck hood, leaving a little gift for the next hapless victim!
Honorable Mention: Getting you block knocked off
Friday the 13th Part 8: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989) – Jason punches Julian’s head off his shoulders and off the building!
Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988)– Klown exacts revenge on bully. YAY!
Deadly Friend (1986) – Kristy Swanson commits a foul against Anne Ramsey during a not-so-spirited game of basketball
Se7en(1995) – You never see the decapitation, but I’ll be damned if you don’t remember Kevin Spacey’s little gift to Brad Pitt.
Writers & Directors get all the credit and blame for films, but the role of the editor is vastly underappreciated. Especially when it comes to retro slashers and retro horror. Due to the efforts of people like editor Jim Markovic (Dr. Butcher MD) and producer Sam Sherman (Raiders of The Living Dead), many films deemed unmarketable or unreleasable in their existing formats were recreated from the ground up, re-arranging footage, deleting some, looping audio, and sometimes shooting new stuff altogether.
These days the spirit of the era is alive and well in fan Dustin Ferguson. Not content to wait for companies to provide the editions he wants, he edits uncut footage back into some films, and to others completely changes their context by re-editing them, adding new titles and visual effects. These are not replacements for the official releases but merely alternatives for the day-dreamers out there that always wondered “What if?” You can check Dustin’s website Retro Horror Remix (which is hosted on Freewebs ’cause he’s so hardcore retro).
What sort of software and tricks do you use to create your edits?
When I first started I used “Windows Movie Maker”. All of the edits created using that software never were released. The options were limited, and I think the edits turned out too amateur. I then started using Sony’s Vegas. It’s full of cool little things you can use such as color-treatment, film damage, bizarre effects, etc. With some edits, a cut I make may seem awkward so it can sometimes help to apply additional music or a sound effect during the transition to make the film change less noticable. Color-treatment is something I began experiementing with during my “Vintage VHS Edition” series, and is something I now use with every edit.
Can you tell us some of your favorite edits, or ones that turned out really well?
Some of my absolute favorite edits are “Asylum of Satan”, “Friday The 13th X”, “House of 1000 Corpses VINTAGE VHS”, “Carnival of Bloody Horrors” and the upcoming “A Nightmare on Elm Street 4”. All of those have something unique about them, they are all rather experiemental, and I think the flow of each edit is just perfect. These were all also downloaded the most.
What are some of the more controversial choices or edits you’ve made that you might have come under fire for?
Oh god, where to start. Back when I first started releasing these it was in conjunction with the infamous “fanedit.org”. I broke a lot of rules on that site over time and eventually got banned. A few edits that raised HELL there were “A Nightmare On Elm Street 0”, both “Friday The 13th” edits, and I was eventually banned over “The Town That Dreaded Sundown”! “A Nightmare on Elm Street 0” was pretty much hated for it’s quality. The source I used for the edit was a TV rip, which once converted a couple more times got kind of pixeled in parts. That was a big issue. Both “Friday The 13th” edits were trashed to hell for their length. Each cut just barely 20 minutes long. However, I had the most fun making those 2 edits (as they were the biggest challenges), but got the worst feedback for those. Later, I made a “preservation” of a rare widescreen version of “The Town That Dreaded Sundown”. It is believed by most that this is a public domain film. So, after many requests for a physical copy (for those who can’t download) I decided to sell 1 copy of Ebay. It went for 9 dollars. The next day it was posted on fanedit.org that all of my edits were removed from the site for “getting caught selling a fanedit”, which is illegal. Well, it’s not exactly a “fanedit”, and the film is public domain, so I never understood the issue as there are atleast 10 bootleg copies on Ebay at any given time. Regardless, I was banned and I think it was for the best.
Can you explain the concept behind your “Vintage VHS Editions”?
When I came up with this idea, it was after the “Grindhouse” editions had just finished. I needed to do something unique that would bring the spice back to Retro Horror Remix. Usually, I only edit older horror films, but this time I would take NEW horror films and revert them to retro-paced flicks. New movies like “House of 1000 Corpses”, “Abominable” and “Evil Remains” were all made in a retro style. However, they had many modern elemnets which I felt brought them down. I would remove those (such as cell phone use, modern music, flashy cuts etc.) to create a new version that looks like it was ACTUALLY made in 1982. I over-cropped the widescreen images to give a old pan-and-scan look, added grain and brought out the reds and blues in the film. I had a lot of fun making these, and may return with more in the near future.
What’s the deal with your Scalps 2: Return Of DJ?
“Scalps 2” is a fan film I made in 2007. The original film by Fred Olen Ray promised a sequel in the credits which never actually happened. Well, SCALPS is one of my all time favorite films, so I felt a sequel was due. After I announced this online, Fred emailed me himself to make sure I wouldn’t be distributing this for profit. Once I assured him it was being released FOR FREE, he seemed very excited about it and in a way this is the only unofficial, official sequel. It’s only 20 minutes long, and the actors were people from my place of work. We filmed at a real Indian Cave, and it features music from the original film. The story takes place 20 years later, 4 teens head off to do some exploring. Once one finds an Indian Arrow Head buried, it awakens DJ, the final girl from the original. She attacks and kills the friends leaving one girl left to carry on the legacy of Blackclaw. It was a blast to make, and someday if I had a budget, I’d like to make a better, longer version.
What are some of your ultimate “dream cuts” you’d like to put together someday?
The uncut “House of 1000 Corpses”. I have a couple deleted scenes on a DVD, but it’s not all of them, so many scenes would still be missing. To see a full version of that WOULD be a dream! Also, a composite of “Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3” using workprint footage. I don’t have the time right now to painstakingly edit that all together, but I probably will in the future. The workprint of that film is awesome, but the quality sucks. I’d like to replace the scenes I could with DVD-quality scenes and insert the workprint footage troughout. When I have more free time that’s something I could really get involved with…
It’s not a slasher, but any retro horror release from Code Red is cause for celebration. Beyond The Door (1974) is commonly belittled as a Euro Exorcist clone. Is that a fair assessment? I’ll be grabbing the DVD to find out for myself. Might even watch it back-to-back with Exorcist 3: Cries And Shadows (mmhmm). Streets September 16th, now let’s laundry list the specs:
