The Bunny Game (2010)

The terror you witness on-screen of The Bunny Game is real. Let me clarify…it’s not just realistic…it actually happened. It’s like watching a snuff film, only no one really died during filming (as far as we know). The actors weren’t merely acting, but they were subjected to most everything you see on film. Ballsy actress Rodleen Getsic gives a graphic blowjob, pees in public, is shaved bald and is actually branded in the film, not to mention the preparation that went into her role as an emaciated, drug-addled prostitute. Getsic fasted for over a month to prepare for her role! As you probably have guessed by now, The Bunny Game isn’t your ordinary horror movie. In fact, it feels more like a brutal snuff film coupled with avant-garde performance art.

The film is about a hard-knock prostitute named Bunny (Getsic) who trolls the streets of LA turning tricks and snorting coke whenever she gets the chance. This prostitute certainly doesn’t have a heart of gold, but nonetheless you feel pretty bad for her as you watch her engage in graphic sexual acts, get high, get raped and get robbed. Things go from bad to worse when she is picked up by a trucker (Jeff F. Renfro) who takes her out to the desert and brutalizes her for days on end.

While the plot might make it seem like just another torture flick, let me assure you that The Bunny Game is anything but. Is there torture? Well, yes, but it’s more the nasty psychological kind that sticks with you for days, rather than straight-up blood and guts. And the intense psychological wringer that the film puts both the victim (Getsic) and viewer through makes the film seem that much more realistic, which, believe me, will further raise the audience’s anxiety! And after all the things the cast (namely Getsic) went through, it is no wonder the film feels so authentic!

Director Adam Rehmeier, who co-wrote the film with actress Getsic, says the film wasn’t written with a strict script (there is very little dialogue) and most of the performances came organically from the actors. They were just sorta let loose on one another and given license to go as dark as they could…and, boy, did they ever go dark! Not only were the performances spontaneous, but so was the camerawork. Most scenes were filmed in only one take (usually unheard of in a film), which only adds to the immediacy and realism of the film.

The film also has a very voyeuristic feel, which adds to the snuff-like, performance art quality of it. The shaky camera angles, the constant zooming in and out and so on really make you feel like you are right there with the characters. And no matter how hard you try and get away (or look away), you just can’t.

Despite its shocking brutality, there isn’t that much blood and gore, if that’s what you’re hoping for. Most of its terror comes from psychological torture. Bunny is just as mentally broken down by the trucker as she is physically abused. He locks her up for days and submits her to all kinds of torment – stripping her down, humiliating her body, flashing a spotlight in her eyes, chaining her up, taking her for walks on a leash, shaving her head, etc. And that doesn’t even begin to detail the physical and sexual abuse he perpetuates against her. It is this kind of damaging psychological horror that is most effective, at least in my opinion. Anyone can do gross-out blood and guts, but it takes real talent to get into the audience’s brains and truly disturb them.

Congratulations are in order for director/co-writer Rehmeier and co-writer Getsic, because they have crafted a hauntingly unsettling film! It may be intensely difficult to sit through, but at least it looks stunning and isn’t just a point-and-shoot affair. There are even some beautifully dynamic shots in the film that momentarily relieve you of the brutality on-screen. It is filmed completely in black and white, which gives it a monochromatic and artistic look.

However, even the way the film is shot echoes the manic madness of the film, for juxtaposed against the gorgeously framed shots are choppy, disorienting edits, frantic shaky cam shots, voyeuristic zooms and more to make the viewer experience even further discomfort. Even the music, which features chaotic metal in the first few scenes but devolves into a creepy score as the film progresses, adds heightened emotion to scenes that are already difficult to watch…And just when you think you can’t possibly take anymore the next scene comes up to further test your limits.

I can only use “disturbing”, “unsettling” and their derivatives so much to describe The Bunny Game, but hopefully by now you get the point. This film definitely isn’t for most people, but if you like challenging films that push limits, you should give The Bunny Game a view. It’s probably the closest you’ll ever get to a snuff film!

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Book Review: Vile Things - Extreme Deviations of Horror edited by Cheryl Mullenax

Horror anthologies are the perfect bite-sized treats to discover new authors as well as appreciate established ones. Though it’s always nice to see a story by a “master of horror” I much rather like discovering new talent within a good horror anthology. Much to my delight, there was plenty of “fresh blood” to be found within the pages of the horror anthology Vile Things – Extreme Deviations of Horror.

Unlike some horror anthologies, there is no clear theme of zombies or vampires in Vile Things – just solid short stories from the likes of Ramsey Campbell, Graham Masterton, C.J. Henderson and many other horror authors, including some new names I’m now glad to be acquainted with. All of the stories are not for the faint of heart, as many times I found myself squirming and cringing at the disturbing and disgusting tales of horror held between the anthology’s pages. The title of Vile Things definitely says it all! In this fast-paced collection of 15 stories, I thought all were horrific, but a few stood out more than the rest.

My favorite short story was Maggots by Tim Curran. Set during the Napoleonic Wars, both on the killing fields as well as the main character’s hometown of Paris, Maggots is a grotesque tale of cannibalism and possession. Except that instead of a demon taking possession of the main character’s body, the host’s body is invaded and taken over by maggots that force him to eat the putrefied remains of humans. There is a lot of gore within this particular story, all made all the more disturbing in the detailed descriptions the author gives of the main character feasting on the bloated and rotting remains of corpses, all the while all too fully aware of the atrocities he is committing.

Another one of my favorites was Z.F. Kilgore’s tale, The Devil Lives in Jersey. I love Jersey Devil stories and this one definitely doesn’t disappoint. An ex-police detective moves to the Pine Barrens after inheriting a house from his deceased grandparents hoping to give himself and his son a fresh start. Soon, though, the town’s dark secrets involving a witch burning, mysterious disappearances and grisly murders come to the surface, and the ex-detective discovers his family is inexplicably linked to the town’s bloody past…and now it seems that something is killing again. This short story was extremely well-written, with heaps of disturbing imagery (characters eating baby corpses and a witch having sex with something otherworldly, among other graphic scenes) and felt like it had so much to offer that it would be better suited as its own book. I hear that Kilgore, a retired police detective himself, has more short stories planned around the main character, and I eagerly await them!

Other favorites included the cheeky Tenant’s Rights by Sean Logan, in which an off-kilter, nerdy tenant gets revenge on his playboy roommate/landlord, but with disastrous results. I loved seeing the arrogant landlord get his comeuppance, but it was also satisfying to watch the creepy roommate get his at the end of the story! I also enjoyed Coquettrice, by Angel Leigh McCoy, a disturbing look at a satanic cult hatching their very own cockatrice…and watching the main character change from innocent to deviant was pretty jarring as well! What You Wish For by Garry Bushell was an extremely satisfying tale as well, and much like Tenant’s Rights, we get to watch a vile character meet her bloody end.

I’ve only mentioned a few outstanding stories, but with few exceptions all the tales within Vile Things are marvelously macabre! They will make you feel nauseous (Fungoid by Randy Chandler), give you the creeps (The Worm by John Bruni) or just plain scare you (Again by Ramsey Campbell). The anthology’s stories contain incest, rape, deformities, abnormalities, the disabled, infestations, demons, monsters and plenty of graphic gore, blood and other bodily fluids that will have you wishing you read it on an empty stomach! The book definitely lives up to its title of Vile Things – Extreme Deviations of Horror so prepare to be disturbed and make sure you have a barf bag handy before reading!

Buy it on Amazon!

Interview with Museum of Death Co-Founder Cathee Shultz

The Museum of Death, located at 6031 Hollywood Blvd in Hollywood, California, is a private museum dedicated to all aspects of death. The museum boasts a large collection of serial killer artwork and correspondence, Victorian mourning items, mortuary equipment, accident/suicide/murder photography and videos of death, a menagerie of taxidermy animals, execution implements and many other curios and death memorabilia, including actual “souvenirs” from Heaven’s Gate cult mass suicide.

The Museum of Death is a fascinating place, owned by the very friendly and enthusiastic Cathee Shultz and JD Healy. With the stories these two could tell, they would make absolutely fascinating dinner guests! So it was my absolute pleasure to visit The Museum of Death and interview Cathee about her love of the macabre, how the museum began and her most shocking and bizarre encounters while working there!

Fatally Yours: How did you two meet and were you both already interested in the macabre when you started dating?

Cathee Shultz: JD and I met working at a French restaurant in Scottsdale, AZ., in 1983 he was baking the croissants and sold the cappuccino’s. It was lust-at-first sight! I went to his house on Sunday and moved in by Thursday. We got married 2 weeks later on “a day that would live in infamy”, December 7, Pearl Harbor Day. Neither one of us can recall being interesting in the macabre prior to meeting. I think together we had common interest of unusual things and we built upon that.

Fatally Yours: When did your fascination with death begin?

Cathee: We opened an art studio in San Diego in 1988 named Tohubohu (meaning an extreme disorder or chaos) through the years it morphed into other entities, the Rita Dean Gallery being one. In the gallery we did shows with the major taboo subjects- Sex, Death, Religion, Drugs, and Money. The Rita Dean was located in an old mortuary built in 1894 so we decided to take that theme and expand upon it and make a museum. This is when our true fascination started with Death! Once we opened and people started asking questions about Death, as responsible museum curators we needed to know the answers so we started our life long quest of DEATH!

Fatally Yours: What was some of the first death memorabilia you acquired?

Cathee: The first items we acquired were some artworks and letters from serial killers. We had an exhibit in 1992 called the Death Row Art Show and we purchased some paintings and drawings by Gacy, Manson and Otis Toole and soon afterwards began writing to assorted notorious killers. We amassed quite a collection this way and started exhibiting our own collection. The year before we opened the Museum of Death we did an exhibit titled “Exotic Weapons” in which JD and some colleagues made life size replicas of execution devices, another collection that would find a home in the Museum of Death.

Fatally Yours: What made you want to found the Museum of Death?

Cathee: It is difficult to make a living with an art gallery especially in San Diego. After doing the gallery for 7 years we wanted to branch out and move forward and we thought a museum was the next best thing.

Fatally Yours: You recently opened a new location in Hollywood after a far-too long hiatus. What happened with the old location and why was the opening of your new location delayed?

Cathee: Yes we did just re-open our new location in Hollywood at 6031 Hollywood Blvd., We had been trying to raise the capital to re-open the MOD for 7 long years and finally met an incredible couple who were willing to help fund the new MOD! We truly anticipated opening sooner but many factors caused the delay. After being closed for 7 long years I can’t really remember one reason that is important enough to mention here. We are just focusing on the future. And pretty much the reason we closed our former Hollywood location was under capitalization and an ASSHOLE for a landlord! Yes, most landlords are assholes but this guy was a hemorrhoid!! He basically put us out of business but once again we would rather just focus on our cool new location! How cool is it that The Wall by Pink Floyd was recorded here!

Fatally Yours: Where did you store all the museum’s items while you were in the process of moving?

Cathee: We had a terrific old house in the Highland Park section of Los Angeles, and it had 3 stories, so we just loaded it up, closets, basement, and we even kept a few things out to enjoy. The electric chair was at the head of the dining room table, the 9 foot giraffe neck and skull were in the office, and our stuffed pets were always in sight!

Fatally Yours: What has been the hardest item to acquire for the museum’s collection and what is the story behind it?

Cathee: I truly cannot think of any specific item that was hard to come by, most artifacts walk through the front door! I guess since I actually had to write letters and deal with asshole murderers, the serial killer art took more time and energy.

Fatally Yours: With displays of pretty controversial exhibits like the serial killer artwork, have there ever been any threats against you or the museum?

Cathee: As a matter of fact there have been threats against us. Not so much against the museum but when we did the Death Row Art Show at the Rita Dean Gallery some one called in and said they were going to “burn us down” and another one said “you will burn in Hell for this” and a few other similar calls. We do get people upset with the museum but generally if I get there anger before they leave the MOD I try and find out exactly what they are upset with and talk them through it. Are they mad at me or the images in the MOD? Are they angry at the fact that serial killers exist? Are they upset at man’s inhumanity to man? Are the pissed off our culture is so lacking in death/life education? Do they really think history should not be told?

Fatally Yours: Have you ever had any artifacts stolen or purposefully destroyed by others?

Cathee: Yes there have unfortunately been some thefts in the MOD. In the War display we had a Nazi dagger with sheath, and unfortunately some asshole took only the dagger and left the sheath! We hate thieves, especially ones that destroy history, the dagger is not as important without the other half but anyone stupid enough to steal from a museum is obviously too ignorant to know that! We used to have a hand in a jar (a schizophrenic cut his own hand off with a circular saw while he read the passage in the Bible “if your hand offends you, cut it off” ) and JD would set it on the front counter with a sign “This is from the last person who stole from the MOD!!” It was quite the deterrent, but we eventually passed it along to a new caretaker but we still have an impressive photo of the hand. Also some other idiot tried to take the TV out of the casket entertainment center and it pretty much fell on him, he ran away but had we actually caught him we might have had our first “Rotting Corpse” display!!

Fatally Yours: How do you go about finding specimens for the museum?

Cathee: We find specimens many places, antique stores, flea markets, swap meets, Ebay, and more than anything, friends that know we collect, find stuff for us!

Fatally Yours: Out of all the pieces in your collection, what is your favorite and why?

Cathee: I think you will get two entirely different answers from JD and I but since I am writing this…you get mine, although I don’t have ONE favorite because there are too many good things! My NEWEST favorite is Chaos the pig our newest taxidermied item! Chaos was our pet pig for 16 years, and we put him down (a nice way to say we killed him) last October (old age) and it took exactly 1 year to get him back! Next would be the memorial photos of the infants. There are 2 photos in particular, it is the same baby in both photos, one is of the baby with its eyes open so still looking alive and the next photo is the baby with its eyes closed, clearly deceased! I’m sure it sounds morbid but to me they are the most beautiful photos we own!

Fatally Yours: Of all the things you’ve seen relating to death, what has been the most shocking, upsetting, and/or morbid?

Cathee: One of the most disturbing things I was exposed to was a photograph of a sexually molested corpse at a body research facility. VERY Disturbing!

Fatally Yours: Is there anything you’ve come across that you refused to exhibit because it was just too shocking?

Cathee: There have been a few items over the years that we chose not to pursue or exhibit. The aforementioned photo and the dress Rebecca Schaefer was buried in. She is the actress who was murdered by a stalker, and many stalking laws were enacted throughout the country based on her murder. The story we know is, when her body was exhumed her mother wanted her re-interred in a different outfit, and somehow the original dress made its way to the MOD. There were questionable circumstances surrounding the dress and JD felt it inappropriate to have. Any item known to be stolen or graveyard defacing items are NEVER welcome at the MOD!

Fatally Yours: Is there anything relating to death that you would never feature in your museum because it “crosses the line?”

Cathee: “Crossing the line” is a broad statement. The line we have set for ourselves at the MOD may be an entirely different line someone whose family was brutally murdered by a serial killer! Once again it would not be because an item is TOO graphic but because there area questionable circumstances surrounding the item.

Fatally Yours: If you could choose how you were going to die, how would you go?

Cathee: That’s easy……SPECTACULARLY!!!!!!!!!!!

The Devil's Music (2008)

As a horror fan, you are probably well aware that the mainstream loves to point fingers at our genre whenever a tragic, violent act (like a school shooting, etc.) occurs in which the perpetrator happened to own some horror DVDs. The media is quick to assume that those films adversely affected the individual and caused them to act out violently, placing blame squarely on the filmmakers. I also find it pretty insulting when other people label a person as a deviant capable of committing heinous acts just because they happen to enjoy horror movies.

The same misconceptions are often held against people that listen to metal music. Recently, the House of Blues in Anaheim, California (which happens to sit right across from Disneyland) abruptly canceled all their metal shows and banned any future shows with metal bands. Sure, rap and punk bands can still play there, but they didn’t like the type of crowd that the metal shows were drawing, especially with the proximity of the “Happiest Place on Earth.”

The point is, fans of both horror films and metal music face some serious biases and mistaken assumptions from those outside the respective communities. The film The Devil’s Music manages to tackle this issue in regards to each medium, while doing so in an entirely creative, faux rockumentary way.

The film is about Erika Spawn (Victoria Hopkins), lead singer behind the shock-rock band named after her. The band was shooting to stardom with its explicit lyrics and gory stage shows, but it drew ire from many concerned parents and the “moral majority” in England. These people insist that the band is corrupting the youth. Still, despite the controversy surrounding the band, it continued gaining popularity.

Against the gory backdrop of Erika Spawn, we are introduced to sappy crooner Robin Harris (Scott Thomas), who is the complete opposite of Erika Spawn and vied with the band for the top of the charts. Yet, we find out later in the documentary that Harris is inexplicably linked to Erika by a groupie the band takes on tour with them.

One night after a show, this groupie, named Stef Regan (Lucy Dunn) found her way backstage. Erika took a liking to her and brought the young girl on tour. Everyone agreed the teen was a bit strange, but Erika really liked her so she stayed…and would later contribute to Erika’s mysterious disappearance.

The Devil’s Music is shot like a rockumentary and in interview segments we are introduced to Erika’s band mates, the brash Adele Black (Jess-Luisa Flynn) and the mellow ZC (Alan Ronald), as well as the band’s manager Eddie Meachum (Cy Henty) and others. We are shown television spots with Erika as well as concert and backstage footage. We are never told the whole story up front, but rather tension is created by not knowing exactly where the story is going.

I am familiar with Jinx Media and thoroughly enjoyed their last film, KillerKiller, but I believe that The Devil’s Music is even better and really showcases writer/director Pat Higgins’ talents! Everything, from the clever way the film was presented to the stellar acting from all of the actors, was top notch and really shows how far Pat Higgins has come as both a writer and a director.

First, the documentary style of the film is flawless. It’s hard to pull off an effective documentary, but Higgins does indeed succeed with The Devil’s Music! From the opening statements by the band’s manager to the mysterious “shadow footage” played at the end, I was hooked all the way through! The interviews and the concert/backstage footage flowed perfectly together and it really does look like a real rockumentary you might see on FUSE, MTV or VH1!

As for the story, it unfolds in a very effective, yet mysterious manner. When the film first begins, you don’t have the whole story of Erika Spawn and only have an ominous feeling that something is going to befall her. As the film progresses, we are given hints as to Erika’s fate, but it’s not until close to the end where everything is revealed and things take a turn for the violent and supernatural (this IS a horror movie!)! I’ll stop there, because this is a film that works better going in cold, so I don’t want to give too much away!

Another aspect that assists this film in its awesomeness is the acting. Every single one of the actors does a fantastic job and there isn’t a weak one in the bunch. I really enjoyed seeing Cy Henty as the manager as he’s been in other Pat Higgins’ films. Victoria Hopkins was marvelous as Erika Spawn and completely sold me on her character. She was a complete rock star and I don’t doubt for a minute that she could fill arenas with fans. I wish Erika Spawn was a real band that I could go see! Also, Jess-Luisa Flynn was amazing as the smack-talking, rude, “realist” Adele Black. I loved every second she was on-screen! Lucy Dunn was great as groupie Stef Regan. Her performance made you both revile and pity her character.

Like mentioned in the slight diatribe in the first few paragraphs, I enjoyed how the film made you question preconceived notions about certain people (namely people who enjoy a good, bloody show like you or me). Not everyone that wears black, listens to metal or watches horror movies is guaranteed to be dangerous or want to kill others. The film really turns the tables on this silly stereotype for a very satisfying conclusion.
Jinx Media will release The Devil’s Music in the UK on March 30, 2008, but you may also be able to find it making the rounds on the festival circuit. If you are able to catch this film, you’re in for a wickedly thrilling treat!

Available from Amazon!

Who Can Kill a Child? (1976)

It is usually very taboo for a film, any film, to show children getting killed. The daring Who Can Kill A Child? decided to break that taboo and prominently features children getting shot and beaten to death. It also shows real footage of suffering children during the horrors of the Holocaust, the Vietnam War, the Korean War and many African civil wars. There is very graphic footage of starving, wounded, dying and dead children that is sad and shocking to see.

The film aspires to show us how children are usually the ones that suffer most during famine, war, natural and man-made disasters. Why shouldn’t children turn on the very people that are supposed to protect them but fail to do so? What would happen if children banded together to stand up against adults and fought back against the many years of cruelty and neglect? Could you really kill a child if you had to, if it meant the little tyke’s life or yours?

An English couple is taking a vacation in Spain. The woman is pregnant and wants some peace and relaxation, so her husband suggests the island of Almanzora, which he has fond memories of. The two set off by themselves in a small powerboat for the island, but when they arrive, it’s not as the husband remembered it. It is utterly devoid of grown-ups, though there are plenty of children frolicking around. Assuming that there is a big fiesta on the other side of the island, the two stay and wait for the grown-ups to come back. Except that there is no one left alive on the island except for the children, who’ve gone mad and murdered all the adults. Can the couple save themselves or will they be forced to kill a child (or two or three) to survive?

Who Can Kill a Child? is a fantastic film made in 1976 and it has recently been released on DVD for the first time by the wonderful Dark Sky Films. With its disturbingly shocking story and beautiful direction by Narciso Ibanez Serrador (who also penned the script from a novel by Juan Jose Plans called “El Juego”) the film works wonderfully. The setting of the Spanish isle of Almanzora is gorgeous. The bright, white Mediterranean-style village, bright blue skies and sparkling waters create a contrasting backdrop to the horrors that unfold on-screen. It’s also interesting to note that most of the killings occur in broad daylight, with the hot sun relentlessly beating down on the victims. Not many films that are set during the day can pull off a creepy vibe, but in Who Can Kill a Child? it works like a charm, making events even more uncomfortable because they occur right out in the open.

Another aspect that makes the film work so effectively is the acting. All of the children (and there are A LOT of them) are wonderful in the film. Every single one of them oozes hatred out of their dark and stormy eyes; just one look and we know they mean business. The acting is so realistic that it’s chilling! Perhaps one of the most effective scenes involves a wife of a fisherman who lives on the other side of Almanzora with her children and their grandmother. Two children from the village “infect” the wife’s children with their pure hatred, and as the woman calls them into dinner, they silently defy her. As we see her perplexed expression, we also see all of the children in the village ominously emerge from the cliffs above her home.

The film does have its faults, most noticeably in believability. After the couple witnesses a little girl who kills an old man by beating him with his own cane and children using a dead body as a piñata, it may seem wise to get the heck off the island! But do they leave? No, they opt to stick around to rescue a Dutch teenager who is hiding out somewhere on the island and keeps tracking them down with phone calls. Another quibble is with the color of the blood, which looks almost orange in color! If you are going to prominently feature children getting killed in your film, at least make it realistic! The “blood” that was used looked more like thick orange-ish paint that was splashed and dribbled on the victims. Still, these are small problems compared to the remarkable story and taboo subject the film deals with.

Dark Sky Films have done a spectacular job with this release – the original 1:8.5.1 anamorphic widescreen has been restored and the picture looks absolutely stunning and clean. I usually don’t mention these technical aspects, but I felt that Dark Sky did such a great job with this film that they deserved mention. This film probably hasn’t looked this good since its original theatrical release!

Who Can Kill a Child? is a superb film that shouldn’t be missed. Its notorious scenes of child murder aren’t all that shocking nowadays, but they still pack a punch, especially when other films usually won’t touch the taboo subject.

Available on Amazon!

Video Violence (1987)

Ah, I remember being a wee tot in the ‘80s and standing in awe at our local mom and pop video store, staring at the tall stacks of VHS copies and the peeling posters on the walls. Whenever I could, I would sneak into the horror section, the ultimate forbidden zone, and just stand and stare at all the deliciously horrifying boxes. I was enthralled by pictures on the VHS boxes’ - blood and guts, the frozen screams on the faces of the pretty women that graced the covers and the menacing stances of the killers.

Back then, the VHS craze was in full swing, with straight-to-video, shot-on-video flicks cramming the shelves of the new video stores that were popping up all over the country. It seemed that everyone was picking up a bulky camcorder and making their own movies, or at least that’s what some of the movies looked like. While this might have been deemed no-budget trash back then, straight-to-video flicks nowadays make me sweetly reminisce about the golden age of VHS and being a kid again.

The Video Violence films, released recently by Camp Motion Pictures, take us down memory lane to revisit the down ‘n’ dirty shot-on-video horror films. Video Violence…When Renting is Not Enough is the first film in the series that warmed the cold cockles of my heart. A city couple moves to a small town to “get away from it all” and open their own video store. The video cassette has just been introduced to the public, but, oddly enough, everyone in this small town already owns a VHS player. Also odd is that the townsfolk only like to rent violent horror films, gory slasher flicks and the occasional triple X’er. Things take a sharp turn for the bizarre when a home video is returned to the video store...the owner and his employee decide to pop the tape in but soon find themselves watching a snuff film in which the hosts, Eli and Howard, torture and kill the local postmaster (who has supposedly retired to Florida). The owner, Steven, heads straight to the police, but when he gets back to the store he finds both the tape and his employee missing! The police don’t take him seriously, of course, so it’s up to Steven and wife Rachel to get to the bottom of the tape and the townspeople’s odd behavior.

In the second film on the disc, entitled Video Violence 2: The Exploitation, Eli and Howard, the two main killers in the first movie, return with their own pirated cable show in which they torture their guest, have skits and play clips for the audience.

The Video Violence movies are not for everyone, but those that want a big heaping serving of ‘80s cheesy goodness are highly encouraged to check these films out!! This is a shot-on-video movie from the ‘80s with a miniscule budget, so of course it is going to feature bad acting, horrible quality, silly gore and plot holes galore! See, though, that’s all part of its kitschy charm. Where else will you get to see a severed human arm sliced up in a deli as bologna?

Still, don’t expect crazy amounts of gore…I went in expecting to see ridiculously bloody scene after scene, but that ain’t happening on these slim-to-no budget affairs (rumor has it that Video Violence 2 was made for a measly $28…about the cost to go see a movie in the theater nowadays). Sure, you get your share of exploding heads, bodies being chopped to bits, electrocutions, poisonings and a fair amount of blood, but it’s just not enough for the average gore fiend.

While I enjoyed both films for their kicky kitsch, viewers should be warned (again) that the pacing is slow, the plot is silly, the acting can be cringe-worthy and the red stuff doesn’t flow as steadily or as often as one would like. There is one “skit” in Video Violence 2 that is a perfect example of what you are in for. A group of scantily clad women are having a sleep-over when they decide that they will kill the pizza deliver man when he arrives. They gab on and on about how they are going to do him in, but when he arrives, they decide to ease their way into the killing by offering him a joint, drinking some alcohol and having a dance party in their living room that, for some ungodly reason, was filmed in slow-mo. The good-looking pizza boy starts taking it off while the girls dance around him, and while I appreciated that there was FINALLY a male victim stripping down in a horror movie before getting killed, I just wished they would get on with it! When the frizzy-haired gals finally do get around the killing the pizza hunk, they don’t even show any of the good stuff!! That’s right, no blood, no gore, just a fade to black! These kinds of annoyances pepper the film, so consider yourselves warned!

Still, I enjoyed both Video Violence and Video Violence 2 for their ability to transport me back to the ‘80s. They made me feel like it was 1987 again and I had snuck Video Violence past my parents and watched it in secret with some pilfered snacks from the pantry. Ah, those were the days…

If you’d like to relieve some fond ‘80s memories by watching a bad movie, it can’t get any better than Video Violence and Video Violence 2!

Available on Amazon!

Street Trash (1987)

Street Trash is a wonderfully offensive, trashy and gooey film that features people who melt into Technicolor puddles, a penis pick-up football game, bum fights, necrophilia, tons of great comedy and violence. It’s a hard-knock life…

A liquor store owner finds a case of old hooch in his basement. He decides to sell it for $1 a pop, the perfect price for the large homeless community that lives on skid row. Unfortunately, anyone who drinks the stuff immediately starts melting into blues, purples, greens, yellows and reds and their remains end up looking like crayons that were left too long in the sun. There are also several sub-plots involving two homeless brothers and the junk yard where they live, a girl who tries to help them out, a cop’s involvement in the suspicious death of a mob boss’ girlfriend and a particularly crazy and violent Vietnam vet who rules over the homeless class by sheer brutality.

I absolutely loved this movie! Its offensive comedy along with the great gore scenes won me over, even if it did feature some questionable acting and paper-thin plot. It is just a fun, entertaining ride through the mean streets of the ‘80s. It reminded me a lot of something Troma might make today, because no big budget film could get away with Street Trash’s decidedly un-PC viewpoints. Everyone is ragged on, from cops to the homeless and everyone in between.

One part that I did not enjoy was the portrayal of women in the film. Sure, pretty much everyone was portrayed in a bad light, but to me the women got the worst of it. First there’s the Vietnam vet’s companion, who is pretty much his slave and gets slapped around a whole lot. Then there is the mob boss’ girlfriend, who is drunk and gets taken to the junkyard to be raped, beaten and killed, only to be raped again. The only redeeming female character was perhaps the girl who works at the junk yard and tries to help the two homeless brothers. The exploitation of women in B-movies is nothing new, but it still rubs me the wrong way no matter how good the rest of the film is. Still, this was my only major complaint with the film.

The melting scenes are classic and the special effects are spectacular, especially considering the film’s low-budget. Two memorable scenes include one man who slowly melts into a toilet and another man who swells and then explodes in a shower of flesh and blood. Street Trash definitely delivers the goods in the “Ewwwww!” department.

For those interested, the social commentary of the film is also something to look into. The 1980’s were a prosperous time, but not for everyone. Government cutbacks on welfare and social programs left many people out in the street. This film reflects this and in turn shows us how bad it was for people who were forced to live on the street.

Street Trash is an amazing, one-of-a-kind gem of a film in the horror genre. It has many classic scenes and memorable lines that you’ll be repeating days (and most likely years) after viewing it. This B-movie may not be for anyone, but its cult status is cemented in cinematic history.

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Red Room (1999)

Gore? Gore? Where did all the gore go?!

Touted as a nasty, gory torture flick, I rushed out to watch Red Room only to be vastly disappointed with this strictly unentertaining, misogynistic film.

Straight outta Japan from director Daisuke Yamanouchi's twisted mind, Red Room is pretty nasty, but scenes of repeated and violent rape, annoying characters and a thin storyline had me reaching for the fast forward button multiple times. Four people, a 17 year old, a young woman and a married couple, play the King Game for a chance to win 10 million yen. They are locked in a dingy, red-lit room and made to play a card game where whomever pulls the king card gets to have the other players commit horrible acts upon one another. The object is to be the last person standing, therefore winning the 10 million. Things start innocently enough, with a girl being spun around and around in a chair for five minutes straight until she pukes. From there, things escalate and we get multiple violent rapes, including one where the man shoves a lightbulb into a woman's vagina until it breaks inside of her, a woman having to drink pee as one of the players pisses on her, the couple beating the stuffing out of each other, a penis being bitten off and tons more depravity.

Now, I like my depravity as much as the next horror fan, but I just couldn't enjoy myself during this flick. Shot on video, it already looks like an amateur porno, and that's what it felt like for the most part. The thin storyline and the exposition scenes involving the card game felt like they were just there to connect the scenes of rape and torture. It's just too much "shock for shock value," which I find incredibly cheap and just plain boring. Also, it was mostly a splatter flick, using lottsa blood, but kinda lacking in the gore department.

Many fans of the Guinea Pig films or other extreme Japanese cinema will enjoy this, however. If your interest was piqued by the synopsis, by all means check out the Unearthed release of Red Room, but don't say I didn't warn ya!

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Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

What better way to spend a chilly Saturday night than to have some friends over for pizza, Pacifico and a viewing of Cannibal Holocaust? There is no better way, believe you me...

The movie begins with a report on an intrepid documentary film crew who entered the Amazonian jungle in search of cannibals. No one has heard from them in more than two months so noted anthropologist Professor Harold Monroe is sent to look for them. He finds them alright, mounted on some kind of altar with their camera equipment and their bones picked clean! He also finds two warring cannibal tribes, but succeeds in getting along with both, thus avoiding becoming dinner.

After he obtains the film crew's film footage, he hightails it back to New York City where he is invited to show his findings on television, because the public has a right to know what happened, dammit! From that point on, we are treated to the documentary crew's film footage (a la Blair Witch Project) and it ain't pretty. It seems the film crew would do anything to garner fame and success, even terrorizing peaceful Amazonian tribes to get dramatic footage. They stage some pretty grisly scenes for their precious documentary, blaming it on rival tribes in the footage. In the end though, the tribes show their stuff to prove you don't mess with cannibals!

This was definitely a brutal movie, more brutal than Cannibal Ferox. There are numerous animal deaths, including the stabbing of a muskrat, the shooting of a pig, and the chopping up and general disassembly of a turtle. These are all real, mind you, and not for the squeamish. The animal deaths are much more violent and explicit than in Ferox. Ye be warned...

Holocaust also has much more violence towards women. In a ritualistic tribal punishment, a woman is taken far from the village by one man, then raped, then raped with a sharp knife, then raped with a torture device that can be compared with a softball studded with nails. She is then bludgeoned to death. In another scene, the males of the film crew take turns raping a native while the others hold her down. Then, in perhaps the most iconic scene of this film, the woman is shoved onto a pole so that the pole extends out of her mouth.

The members of the film crew finally get their just desserts when they are surrounded by the cannibalistic tribe. One guy gets severely beaten, strung up, has his genitals chopped off, then gets hacked to bits. The lone woman of the crew is beaten and viciously raped by several members of the tribe. The rest of the crew is finished off in a spectacular bloodbath.

The end of the film leaves us with a question - who are the real savages here? The cannibals and their primitive way of life or the film crew and Western civilization? There is some social commentary here, and it does make one think...which is a good thing, darlings!

The film was directed by Ruggero Deodato and came out in 1980, a year before Cannibal Ferox appeared. It is an intense, grueling, disturbing film that feels very real at times. I highly recommend it to those that like to watch very controversial films, films with lots of "ewwwwww" moments, gorehounds and, of course, those that hold a special place in their hearts for cannibals.

Please be warned, though...it is an extremely graphic and serious film.

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Cannibal Ferox (1981)

On the recommendation of Warren over at 150 Days of Sodom (check his site out if you haven't already; it's great!), I decided to view the infamous Cannibal Ferox.

I had always thought of Cannibal Ferox as the ultimate in gore and torture, so I shied away from it for so many years...until now! I could not be held back any longer from its grisly allure.

Does Cannibal Ferox live up to the hype? For me, a first-time watcher of these exploitative cannibal movies, it certainly did. I thoroughly enjoyed this film, perhaps because of my low expectations going into it. Nonetheless, I thought it was a well made and entertaining film.

The story is simple...in New York City, both the mob and police are out to find a couple of guys (Mike and Joe) who have skipped off with a considerable amount of the mob's dough. Meanwhile, three college kids (siblings Rudy and Gloria and their friend Pat) are in the Amazon, trying to disprove that cannibalism exists for Gloria's thesis. They venture deep into the Amazon jungle to try to find a small village no one has heard of but could prove their theory.

They run into Mike and Joe deep in the heart of the jungle, who tell them they have been attacked by cannibals. Joe has been injured and their guides have been killed. After deciding to stick together, the group stumbles upon the village and the carnage left there. It seems the only villagers left are the old people and the younger children. The group decides to take refuge in the village's huts to try to care for Joe, who is now dying. Joe tells Gloria and Rudy that Mike has lied to them about being attacked by cannibals. The truth is, Mike and Joe were after precious emeralds that the villagers possessed. When they wouldn't hand the emeralds over, Mike tortured and killed some villagers while most of the male villagers were on a fishing expedition. Now, the male villagers could return at any time!

After learning this information, Gloria and Rudy try to get Pat to get out, but find that she has left with Mike. They flee, but are soon captured by the returning male villagers. Now, the villagers seek retribution for what was done to them and to their village...

This is an exploitation gem! Yes, it is extremely violent and some parts are difficult to watch. There is mutilation, castration, decapitation, humiliation, cannibalism, shots of real animals being killed (something I DO NOT condone but is still shocking and disturbing) and so on. The animal deaths were very difficult to watch, just because I knew they were real. Even for standards nowadays, this film is still pretty brutal - just watch for the castration scene(s) and the scene where Pat is hung on meat hooks by her breasts.

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this movie. It really kept up the tension, even though it did switch back from the Amazonian jungle to New York City every few scenes. I was very impressed with this film, and wouldn't mind adding it to my DVD collection.

If you haven't checked this film out yet and can handle excessive torture and real animal deaths (even I had to cover my eyes a bit), then get this movie! It's worth it...

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