Retro Slashers In HorrorHound Magazine

Check out the latest issue of HorrorHound, #22 It’s got A-Z retro slasher coverage and a retrospective on Media Home Entertainment, the company that brought many slasher delights to your VHS deck! Continue reading

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Proto-Slashers #12 – Blood Feast (1963)

Looking at the flicks that paved the way for Halloween and the heyday of slasher movies.

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“Blood Feast is like a Walt Whitman poem – it’s no good, but it’s the first of its type”.
– Blood Feast director Hershell Gordon Lewis

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Blood Feast is a joy. The world’s first splatter film delivers the goods and manages to have a sense of humour while seeming campy at the same time.

The story goes that HG Lewis and producer David Freidman were looking for something new in the exploitation market. Their previously successful nudies like The Adventures of Lucky Pierre and Boin-n-g couldn’t compete with the more explicit content being featured in the sex films being produced in the mid-60’s. So where could they turn? Horror was the answer. Why not up the gore quotient and see how it plays?

And so Blood Feast, the story of an insane Egyptian caterer who wants to revive his blood goddess through human sacrifice, was born. Former Playboy model Connie Mason stars as Suzette, a student of Egyptology.

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She’s dating Pete (William Kerwin), a detective who’s trying to figure out who’s hacking the female populace of Florida to bits. As Suzette’s birthday approaches, her mother arranges a surprise Egyptian feast through the catering services of the insane and devout Fuad Ramses (Mal Arnold). Ramp up the blood and put on your goggles.

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The plot doesn’t matter. What matters is a series of set pieces that are grisly yet unconvincing. The fact that they’re not exactly state of the art effects make them all the more entertaining. Adding to the enjoyment are some truly terrible performances (you can sometimes see actors reading their lines from awkwardly placed notes), and intentionally funny dialogue. The highlights are many… the deep red gore scenes, Mal Arnold’s over-the-top performance, Connie Mason’s complete lack of acting ability, the wonky soundtrack, the wacko dialogue, the faulty logic of the police department, the shoot-it-and-run filmmaking technique, the continuity errors. But these are all pluses in my book. Blood Feast is 67 minutes of entertainment. Watch it with a group of friends and I guarantee you’ll come up with your own favourite moments and quotes you’ll be boring each other with for weeks. I love Tony’s breakdown scene after his girlfriend has had her brain stolen. I love Trudy’s death speech and the music cue that signals her death; it sounds more like a fart than a death rattle. I love that it takes the cops so long to figure out that the mispronounced E-tar is actually the goddess Ishtar, even though one of them has just heard a lecture about her. I love the name of the book Ramses writes, “Ancient Weird Religious Rites”. I love the newspaper headline that screams: “LEGS CUT OFF”. I love… Well, you get the point. There’s plenty to love in Blood Feast country.

I met HG Lewis at a convention about 20 years ago. I asked him where Connie Mason was at that time, and his reply both surprised and delighted me. He said, “She probably crawled back under the rock she came out from under.” Amazing.

Go see Blood Feast if you haven’t already. Love it or hate it, it’s an absolute must for anyone who calls him/herself a horror fan.

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The Monster Squad remake is in the works

msquad1Platinum Dunes and Paramount are working on a remake of The Monster Squad.  Rob Cohen, one of the producers of the original, is set to direct for Michael Bay and company.  No word yet on who is handling the script or who might be in the cast.  Legend has it Liam Neeson was the original choice to play Dracula before Duncan Regehr got the role, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see Neeson don the cape for the remake.

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The Back Lot Murders (2002)

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Note:I originally wrote this review several years ago and it’s gone from site to site. As the years have passed, I’ve come to find this little ditty has grown on me, so there have been some edits. This might not be Corey Haim’s shining moment, but it’s not a bad little slasher either. RIP Corey. You were all kinds of awesome!

A really bad up and coming rock band head to a Universal movie studio lot to shoot their music video directed by an auteur of the highest order (Charles Fleischer – that’s right, the voice of Roger Rabbit!). The band’s bitchy agent Stephanie (Priscilla Barnes) tags along with some groupies and the obnoxious film crew, unaware that among them walks a killer in an Elvis costume! I’m not making this up! Corey Haim picks up a paycheck, barely making an appearance in yet another made for video horror movie trying to ride on the coattails of Scream.

The back of the box claims The Back Lot Murders is not an ordinary genre film because of its unique combination of horror and humor (gee, I‘ve never seen that before!), but aside from Fleischer’s excellent improv skills and Barnes zero to ninety bitch-o-meter, there just isn’t much (intentional) humor to be had. I originally stated that perhaps the only laughing can be heard from the producers on their way to the bank! Oh, but I was being harsh (kinda)…

I originally found The Back Lot Murders to be oh-so-contrived. I’m normally a fan of those ‘rawk-n-horror’ combos, which I think are a can’t miss at least in a cheesy sort of way. And although I adore pretty much anything featuring Corey Haim (Demolition University, anyone?), even the big man hair and Haim’s short appearance couldn’t keep me interested. Fleischer and Barnes are by far the best part of the movie, but it’s not quite enough to save it. So much is poorly put together from the silly music, bloodless murders and silicone filled groupies. So, why do I find myself enjoying The Back Lot Murders more and more with each viewing? Simply because through all of the post-Scream pretensions, there is a fun (if not well made) movie to be had. The pacing is good, and like I said Barnes and Fleischer are kind of amazing. And at least it can be said this isn’t nearly as bad as Haim’s other DTV horror flick, Fever Lake (puke!) At least this film is watchable.

The secret to truly enjoying the Back Lot Murders is to watch it with a friend. I did upon my second viewing, and we laughed. And laughed. It’s a group film for sure. Perhaps it’s just too self-aware to be taken seriously (or to be watched alone), but with a few friends and a six pack, it’s got the potential to be really fun stuff. Can I give it a full hearted recommendation? No, that would be lying. But I can say it’s aged surprisingly well. Maybe that’s because so much crap has come out since 2002 (horrible shot on video horror I’m looking at you!), but there you go.

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Private Parts (1973)

ppartsCheryl (Ayn Ruymen), on the run after stealing her roomate’s cash, hides out at the King Edward Hotel run by her creepy Aunt Martha (Lucille Benson).  Other tenants include a kinky priest (Laurie Main) and George (John Ventantonio), a sinister photographer with a nasty addiction to blow-up dolls.  At night Cheryl hears mysterious noises coming from the empty room next to hers and later finds erotic presents left in her room by an unseen admirer.   Cheryl gets pulled deeper and deeper into a sensual game of cat and mouse never realizing some grown up games can be deadly.

 Private Parts is an obscure little proto-slasher that only could’ve  been made during the wild 70s when film censorship was at its lowest ebb.  Philip Kearney and Les Rendelstein’s script seems to be inspired by Psycho and Gothic mysteries.  The story of a young girl finding love and mystery while staying at a relatives hotel might’ve seemed rather ordinary if handled by a lesser director.  Thankfully, director Paul Bartel, the twisted genius behind the dark comedy classic Eating Raoul, throws in plenty of perversions and fetishes to make Private Parts a truly unique viewing experience.  Bartel centers the entire film around Cheryl’s exploration of the King Edward and the exploration of her growing sexuality.  In this way Bartel makes the viewer, not the unseen lover, into the real voyeur. 

The cast of Private Parts features a few familiar faces.  Lucille Benson is best known to slasher fans as Mrs. Elrod, the old lady making a sandwich for her husband in Halloween II.  Laurie Main was the host of the Winnie the Pooh show on the Disney Channel back in the early 80s.  Somehow I doubt he put this performance on his resume when he went to work for Mickey Mouse.  Stanely Livingston, one of the sons on My Three Sons, has a small part as a date for Cheryl but he provides clues to the “What happened to Alice” subplot that fuels some of the mystery surrounding the King Edward Hotel.  John Ventantonio seems to have vanished from Hollywood after portraying George, which is a shame considering the feverish performance he gives as the tortured photographer.

Ultimately, the strength of the film rests on the shoulders of Ayn Ruymen’s performance as Cheryl.  If the viewer doesn’t care about Cheryl the character then none of the other trappings matter.  Ruynen is totally believable as a teenage girl trying to grow up way to fast even though the actress was in her 20s when this was filmed.  The role allows Ruymen to show many facets; head-strong teenager, frightened young girl, juvenile delinquent, love sick youth, and sensual temptress.

Private Parts seems to have influenced several slashers from the golden age of the genre despite its obscurity.  Some of its story elements, especially the surprise twist at the end,  can be found in Funeral Home, Unhinged, and the first Sleepaway Camp.  The gory decapitation scene seems to have had a major effect on the career of Tom Savini.  After the victim’s head hits the floor there is a quick shot of the real actor’s hands twitching before the body drops to the floor.  If you’ve ever seen Friday the 13th or Eyes of a Stranger (just to name a few of Savini’s cinematic be-headings), then you know he loves showing the hands having spasms after the decapitation.  When Private Parts was released theatrically it bombed and quickly slipped into obscurity.  It deserves to be rediscovered, especially by fans who enjoy seeing early attempts at slasher films.  Paul Bartel’s directing, the strong performances by the lead actors, and a sleaze level cranked up to eleven makes Private Parts a very unique little proto-slasher

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Splatterbowl: The Shape vs Jason vs Leatherface

Back in the early 80s Fangoria held a Maniac Match-up contest.  Contestants were asked to create a comic strip featuring a duel to the death between The Shape, Jason, and Leatherface.  John Arnold and Linwood Sasser’s winning entry, 1st Fangoria Splatterbowl, was published in Fangoria #39.

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Killer Party: Lost Gore Shots

Here are two kills you won’t see in the vhs version of Killer Party.  Maybe one day slasher fans will finally get to see this underrated slasher gem in uncut form.  But for now enjoy these pics and imagine what might have been if the gore scenes had been left intact.

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A Retro Slasher’s Salute to Keith Knight

kknightWith Valentine’s Day rapidly approaching I thought it would be a good time to reflect on the career of Keith Knight who portrayed Hollis in My Bloody Valentine.  Born in Ontario, Canada in 1956, Keith Knight spent his early acting career on the stage.  In 1979 Knight landed his first film role as Fink the hot dog eating champ in  Meatballs.  The comedy proved to be a huge hit at the box-office and provided Knight with his most recognizable role outside of the slasher genre.

My Bloody Valentine in 1981 gave Keith Knight the role that made him a fan favorite to slasher fans.  Hollis goes against the slasher victim stereotypes often cited by slasher hating critics.  Instead of a rich, unlikable  college kid, Hollis is a working class guy and the voice of reason when arguments erupt among his friends.  Knight’s performance helps the Hollis character come across as more than just a one dimensional character lined up for slaughter by a masked maniac.

A year later director Mark L. Lester cast Knight as Barnyard the enforcer in Class of 1884.  On the commentary track for Class of 1984 Lester reveals he wanted Barnyard to be similar to Chuck Mitchell’s Porky character in Bob Clark’s comedy.  Barnyard doesn’t have as much dialogue as Fink or Hollis but the character does allow Knight to play a mean bastard.  When he isn’t terrorizing Michael J Fox or beating the hell out of Perry King, Barnyard enjoys slam dancing to punk music and getting blasted with his friends.  One particularly brutal scene involves Barnyard and company raping Perry King’s wife, portrayed by actress Merrie Lynn Ross.  In an interview on the dvd for Class of 1984 Ross states Knight and the other actors apologized for treating her so rough during the filming of the scene.  She explains the characters were rotten but the actors were really gentlemen.

Knight has a brief cameo in the killer rat feature Of Unknown Origin as a helpful hardware salesman.  He only appears in two scenes but the second scene will be of interest to slasher fans.  Knight is desperately trying to sell Peter Weller every piece of junk in the store, including a miner’s helmet and gas mask.  Knight even offers to show Weller how the helmet’s light works.  On Of Unknown Origin’s commentary track Weller and director George P. Cosmatos reveal Knight ad libbed the whole scene and praise his acting ability.  This is speculation on my part but I suspect Knight was having a few My Bloody Valentine flashbacks when he grabbed the miner’s gear for a demonstration.

After the early 1980s Keith Knight drifted into voice over work for kid shows with only an occasional appearance in a Canadian film or television production.  On August 22, 2007 Keith Knight lost his battle with brain cancer.  For slasher fans Keith Knight will always be Hollis but his work in Meatballs and Class of 1984 is really strong and deserves attention.  If you’ve never seen those films, then I urge you to seek them out and give them a view.

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Early Details On Code Red’s Madman DVD (Updated)

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This week on Deadpit Radio, the legendary Paul Ehlers (Madman Marz himself) made a special announcement about an upcoming DVD re-release of the seminal 1982 slasher flick Madman. The bombastic axe-wielder told the Deadpit crew: “I found out from Gary Sales who was the owner and original producer of Madman that he had struck a deal with Code Red films to put out a new edition- a re-issue… So, we are going to be coming out with the original film on a re-issue DVD”. Ehlers goes on to say, “We are going to leave the original commentary track on the film…as far as other extras, we’ve decided to reach out to some of the fans of the film. What we’re thinking of doing is that through Deadpit.com, as a central hub for all this, we’re asking…if you (the fans) have a collection of anything to do with (the film) ‘Madman’…anything that you have that might be cool, please send over still photos or limited video of your collections to Deadpit.com. We’d love to take a look at it, and if we think it’s appropriate, we’d love to put it on the extras of the new release.”

That’s right folks, by sending photos or video of your Madman-related collections over to Deadpit Radio, you (or maybe just your stuff) could possibly wind up on a documentary for the upcoming re-release of the DVD! If you think you’ve got the goods, shoot us an email over at deadpit@gmail.com with your submissions. Good luck and beware the Madman Marz!

Update – CODE RED DVD is proud to announce the DVD re-release of the cult hit MADMAN! Once a holy grail for horror fans who didn’t buy the Anchor Bay release back in 2001, MADMAN is back! We have the same extras (commentary/trailers) from that earlier release, but this time it’s an anamorphic transfer, and there are some new on-camera interviews. The dvd will be a limited edition and once it’s gone, it’s gone. Don’t miss the opportunity to buy the film before it’s too late. More news to follow!

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Confessions Of A Slasher Movie Fan In The 80’S

A kid in the 70’s, I grew up like a Monster Kid was supposed to. I began with the Universal horror classics like Dracula, Frankenstein and The Mummy, and then graduated to Hammer Horror, Godzilla movies, etc. Support was provided by The Monster Times, Famous Monsters and all the Warren horror magazines, as well as Aurora monster model kits. Then, at the dawn of the 80’s, as I became a teenager, the slasher phenomenon happened and I was hooked.

These flicks were new. They pushed the envelope with their stalk-and-kill format, bringing a sense of reality to the horror movie. No longer were vampires, reanimated corpses and werewolves the creatures that stalked victims; now it was the all too real serial killer. One of the particular strengths of the horror movie is its continuing ability to examine whatever fear a society is experiencing at any given time: the atomic terrors of the 50’s, the fear of nature and what kids were turning into during the early and mid-70’s, today’s torture porn. In the 70’s, serial killers were becoming a more common phenomenon and really making an impact on the public’s psyche with the likes of Zodiac, Richard Ramirez, and the Son of Sam generating a general sense of unrest. It was only natural that they’d work their way to the forefront of the horror flick too.

After the low-budget Halloween was released in 1978 and became a hit, the slasher movie floodgates started to open. With the success of Friday the 13th two years later, anyone with a camera, an actress and a blood squib was suddenly hopping on the slasher mill. Hollywood wasn’t far behind either, each studio hoping to find their own Friday the 13th like Paramount was lucky enough to have done. Each week it seemed like a new slasher flick was showing up at my local small-town theatre, most of them named after some holiday or event in order to cash in on the formula established by Halloween then cemented by F13th. I mean, they brought Final Exam to town. Final Exam! If ever there was a sorry excuse for a slasher flick, it’s Final Exam.

Though I wasn’t old enough to be going to these R-rated beauties on my own at first, my friends and I would find ways to get into the theatre. Right at the peak of the slasher cycle, however, I turned 18 and getting in no longer required any imagination. What remained though, was the anticipation I felt each and every time before the lights would dim and the flick would begin. The thought that drove the excitement was, “What if this is the movie that REALLY freaks me out?!” Man, I miss that feeling.

The 80’s was an era when movie critics and community groups protested slasher flicks, adding to the attraction by making them seem forbidden. In their eyes, and in the minds of a lot of people who’d only heard about these dangerous flicks through the media, if you were a slasher fan, you were sick. The point that the anti-slasher lobbyists were missing is that, for the most part, slasher fans could tell the difference between fantasy and reality. Each gore effect was like a magic trick. We wanted to be fooled by the make-up artists’ illusions (All hail Tom Savini!). We also liked the suspense that lead to each attack, and we liked identifying with the final girl as she fought off the killer and survived through to the sequel.

Living in Canada, censorship was also an issue in the 80’s as numerous slasher flicks would show up cut. We weren’t quite as bad as the UK, but we were close. This censorship only drove the compulsion to seek out uncut versions of the edited movies. In some cases, this would take years. Add the damage done by Canada’s chopping block to the none-too-subtle self-censorship already imposed on filmmakers by the MPAA, and you could find some pretty bloodless slasher flicks circulating around the great White North in the Regan era. I can recall catching a screening of Mother’s Day wherein one of its lunatics is about to behead an unaware hippie. The axe swings, there’s an obvious cut in the image and on the soundtrack, and the hippie just disappears as the scene continues. Nice editing job. Though not a slasher flick, don’t even get me started on the cuts inflicted on George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead when I caught it during its original Canadian release. Let’s just say it was all tease.

Of the slasher flicks I went to see in the 80’s, the best audience response I experienced was during the original Friday the 13th, though When a Stranger Calls was a close second. Stranger, however, didn’t sustain the audience involvement the way F13th did. It’s hard to believe today, but the tension in the air at that F13th screening was palpable. Each kill was greeted with a communal scream from the audience, giving us non-screamers a rush as people everywhere around us lifted out of their seats. And that ending, stolen fresh from Carrie, ensured that everyone was talking about the movie as they left the theatre and into the next day at work/school.

Today, though that communal slasher movie theatre experience is for the most part gone, slasher flicks from their golden age are available uncut and pristine on DVD and Blu-ray anywhere. Can’t find them at your local retailer or rental shop? Just order them online. Flicks that even die hard slasher fans dismissed in the day are being reevaluated and enjoyed for what they have to offer (I’m talking to you, Pieces). And this, I think, is one of the great lessons we can learn from Retro Slashers: You never know what piece of today’s “trash” is going to be tomorrow’s treasure. Now go find a red leather zipper jacket to put on, drop the needle on some Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam, and pop Don’t Go Into the House into the VHS machine (or do you have Beta?). A gnarly experience is waiting.

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