Women of the World (1963, Paolo Cavara, Gualtiero Jacopetti, Franco Prosperi)

One year after the Italian trio of Cavara, Jacopetti and Prosperi helmed their first "Mondo" (the Italian word for World) film - Mondo Cane, they followed it up with another film delving into controversial themes - this time focusing on "Women of the World".  After enjoying Mondo Cane so much, I thought a documentary (or shockumentary) on women would be great.

Women of the World gives the viewers a rare chance at seeing the many roles women play in different cultures and societies.  From the Las Vegas strip to Japan to Hollywood Boulevard to Hawaii to the jungles of Whereverthefuck, we see women as matriarchs, prostitutes, pearl divers, in-store bed models and even as the Treasurer of the United States!  It is all captured by the unflinching camera of the creators of the Mondo genre.

Women of the World (or La donna nel mondo in its native Italian) is another magnificent study in real life brought by one of the most controversial trio of film makers.  What I loved about this film is its travelogue feel - especially the scenes in 60s America.  Like Mondo Cane, much of the film's subject matter is very dated (sometimes with hilarious results) but the cinematography looks and feels like it was filmed yesterday.  I am a sucker for nostalgia and Women of the World has many scenes where you feel like you are transported back in time and are witnessing what is going on in the film first hand.  Another brilliant musical score by Riz Ortolani and Nino Oliviero helps give the film its "worldly" feel.  Blue Underground should be praised for bringing these Mondo films to DVD in assorted box sets and despite some print damage early on in the film, much of the transfer used is in astonishingly great shape.  Though not nearly as provocative as the Mondo films are known for (not a bad thing here), there are a few shocking scenes that might make you wince or look away (mostly surgery scenes).  For the most part though, Women of the World gives viewers a wonderful view into different cultures and the varying but always important role women play in each one.


RATING:  8/10

Mondo Cane (1962, Paolo Cavara, Gualtiero Jacopetti, Franco Prosperi)

Much has been written about Mondo Cane (pronounced Mondo Cah-Nay for those who want to impress their friends or not look like an idiot in front of them).  This film was the catalyst that started the whole "mondo" genre of shocking documentaries that feature footage of (mostly) real life rituals, oddities and atrocities performed around the world.  I have seen two other films by "shock-doc" film makers Jacopetti and Prosperi (Africa Addio and Goodbye Uncle Tom) and figured I should finally see the one that started it all.

Mondo Cane (Italian for Dog's World or Dog's Life) is a collection of random scenes from all over the world, displaying different cultures and their practices.  The main purpose of the film is to show that what one culture views as normal or second nature, another culture may view as shocking or disgusting.  In the film, you will see some interesting foods, rituals performed by aboriginal tribes, a pissed off bull kicking ass and taking names, Rudolph Valentino get de-clothed by a horde of women, some sea turtles beaching themselves, a woman breast feeding a pig, cows being massaged to make their beef more tender, and much more. 

As shocking as Mondo Cane was (or is rumored to be - it wasn't really), it was actually quite beautiful and breath-taking.  Riz Ortolani's Grammy/Oscar nominated score is one of the greatest I've ever heard in any film and the camerawork is also quite amazing.  I'm sure part of the directors' intentions were to take these revolting scenes and make them as beautiful as possible - perhaps to play with the viewers' senses or just to give them an unconventional experience.  Regardless of what their intentions were, Mondo Cane works.  It moves along at a steady pace with only a couple slow parts and is particularly well executed all around.  Some parts of the film feel as though they were made today (as opposed to 48 years ago) and some are a little more dated.  Despite some minor flaws, Mondo Cane is a film that cult and exploitation fans should love, if only to see where some of the genres got their ideas to shock (particularly the Italian Cannibal genre).

RATING:  8/10

Virginia Creepers (2009, Sean Kotz and Christopher Valluzzo)

Growing up in the 80's and 90's, I remember seeing horror hosts here and there on TV.  Of course there was Cassandra "Elvira" Peterson, Al "Grampa Munster" Lewis and even Rhonda Shear and Gilbert Gottfried on USA's Up All Night.  There were probably more that I used to watch that have long since been forgotten but to be honest, it wasn't until I was a teenager that I really got into horror.  Sure I loved the Universal Monsters but when it came to actually sitting through those movies, my attention span resisted.  I can't say that I know very much about the history of horror hosts buy they have always interested me and Virginia Creepers is a perfect introduction.

Virginia Creepers is a documentary centered on the rise of television horror hosts in the 1950s in the Virginia/Washington DC area up to the present day.  Starting in 1958 with the Nightmare Theater featuring host Jonathan (John Willet), the film features in depth interviews with fans, crew members and the hosts themselves about how these shows came to be and feature vintage clips and footage, much of which has never been seen since it was originally aired.  As the film progresses, we see other hosts such as Jerry "Ronald" Sandford, Bill "The Bowman Body" Bowman, Sir Graves Ghastly, John "Dr. Sarcofiguy" Dimes, Karlos Borloff and one of the longest running horror hosts, Dick "Count Gore DeVol" Dyszel.

Virginia Creepers is an incredible look into the lives of an under-appreciated group of entertainers who touched the lives of many people who grew up watching them.  The interviews cover every minute detail of these shows and the old clips are a hoot.  Hearing about the classic days of television and seeing how history was being made was fascinating and even at 2 hours in length, the film kept my eyes glued to the screen the whole time.  The best part of the film was that you could tell how much each of the hosts truly loved what they were doing, and it was apparent that the film makers of this documentary (Horse Archer Productions) shared this love as well.

RATING:  10/10

Halloween Mix 2010 - DOWNLOAD NOW!

Here it is, almost Halloween and once again I have a spooky Halloween Mix for all of you boils and ghouls out there.  This years mix has a slightly harder edge than previous mixes but it should appease horror fans. 

Tell me what you think. You can download it here as a zipped folder:
https://www.yousendit.com/download/ZGJjc2ZEaytRWUpjR0E9PQ

1.     H.G. Lewis – It’s Almost Like Halloween

2.    The Bruisers – Gates of Hell

3.    Screamin’ Jay Hawkins – I Put a Spell on You  (Dance Version)

4.    The Gazmen – Rigomortise Rock

5.    Buck Owens – It’s a Monster’s Holiday

6.     T.S.O.L. – Blackmagic

7.    Texas OU Chili Cook off Winner

8.    Goo Goo Dolls – (Don’t Fear) The Reaper

9.     45 Grave – Surf Bat

10.  Devil’s Brigade – Vampire Girl

11.  Sylvester Stallone – Drinkin’stein

12. The Birthday Party – Release the Bats

13. D.I. – Richard Hung Himself

14. Angry Samoans – They Saved Hitler’s Cock

15. Social Distortion – The Creeps

16.  Hasil Adkins – She Said

17. Agent Orange – Voices (in the Night)

18. Aiden – Cry Little Sister (theme from Lost Boys 2: The Tribe)

The Lost Boys (1987, Joel Schumacher)

Ah, memories.  I can still remember watching Lost Boys for the first time.  I was sitting on my living room couch squeezed between my mother and two sisters watching an edited for television version of the film on prime time TV.  It must have been sometime in the late 80s/early 90s.  I don't remember much of the gore being cut out but I do remember the obvious overdubs when someone would swear.  The most memorable part of the film was when the first vampire got a stake through the heart and he started pouring blood and slime all over the vampire hunters.  The scene actually made me nauseous and I had to turn away from the TV.  I probably watched the film at least 10 times as a kid and can still pop the film in pretty much anytime.

The Lost Boys follows the Emerson family, young Sam (Corey Haim), teenage Michael (Jason Patric) and divorced mom Lucy (Dianne Wiest), who move from Phoenix, AZ to Santa Carla, CA to live with Lucy's Dad (Barnard Hughes).  Soon after arriving, Michael falls in love with Star (Jami Gertz) who is involved with a group of trouble making kids.  After some tension, the "Lost Boys" accept Michael and get him to join their gang.  What they didn't tell him though is that they are vampires and that now he was too.  I hate it when that happens.  It is up to Sam and his new found vampire hunter friends, the Frog brothers (Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander) to save Michael.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that The Lost Boys is my favorite Vampire movie of all time.  Yeah, there's Dracula and Romero's Martin, but for me The Lost Boys is where it's at.  The film has it all: a classic story, great acting, humor, gore and scares.  The locations used in the film, especially the boardwalk and the cave are perfect as is Joel Schumacher's lively, yet dark direction.  I really can't find anything negative to say about the film (except maybe some of the hairstyles and Corey Haim's wardrobe).  I definitely would have to say though that the best part of the film is the legendary Tim Cappello's boardwalk performance of I Still Believe.

RATING:  10/10

The Lost Skeleton Returns Again (2009, Larry Blamire)

Since I'm sure you just read my review for Larry Blamire's The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra , you probably already know that this is a sequel to that film, which surprisingly took 5 years to make.  Back are pretty much the entire cast of the first film as well as that hilariously smarmy skeleton.  Recently released on DVD by Shout! Factory, along with Blamire's haunted house spoof Dark and Stormy Night, I knew it was going to be another hilarious take on the old fashioned sci fi and monster movies.

Dr. Paul Armstrong (Larry Blamire) is now an alcoholic living in the Amazon jungle when his wife Betty (Fay Masterson) and Reet Pappin (Frank Dietz) find him while on a search for an important rock called Jeranium 90.  Unfortunately another scientist, Dr. Ellamy Royne (Trish Geiger) is also heading a group on the hunt for this precious rock, which is infiltrated by two aliens (Andrew Parks and Susan McConnel) from the first film.  Throw in an Amazon queen, a trip to a "colorized" lost world and that darn skeleton of Cadavra and you've got quite the little adventure.

The Lost Skeleton Returns Again is a decent follow up to the first Lost Skeleton film with a few laugh out loud parts ("DROP IT...slow-ly").  Overall though the film loses some steam in the second half and starts to try the audiences patience.  Fans of the first will definitely want to check it out though because overall it's worth a watch.  The production value definitely seems a little higher and the film switches from black and white to color about half way through.  The film also tries to branch out a little from the tried and true formula of Cadavra, which works sometimes.  The cast is great all around and its good to see a continuation of the characters from the first film.

RATING:  6/10

The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra (2001, Larry Blamire)

 

 Much like in my last review for House of the Wolf Man, here we have another throwback to the good old days of black and white thrillers.  Though where House of the Wolf Man was trying to make a film that really looked and felt like it was made a long time ago, The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra is more of a send up, focusing on the absurdity of those films and magnifying it.  I first read about this film recently in an interview with director/writer/star Larry Blamire in a piece about the sequel to this film, The Lost Skeleton Returns Again and its accompanying haunted house homage Dark and Stormy Night.  Blamire's vision intrigued me enough to seek out his films.

The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra stars writer/director Larry Blamire as Dr. Paul Armstrong, a scientist looking for a meteor containing the precious element atmosphereum, with his wife Betty (Fay Masterson).  They end up finding the meteor and bring the atmosphereum back to the cabin they are renting in the mountains near the meteor.  Nearby is another scientist, Dr. Roger Fleming (Brian Howe) searching for the legendary Lost Skeleton of Cadavra, which he finds in a cave and is telepathically instructed by the Skeleton to find some atmosphereum to bring him it to life.  A spaceship carrying two aliens and a mutant also land nearby and must search for atmosphereum to get their ship running.  Needless to say, the three groups meet up and must fight for the atmosphereum.

Last Skeleteon of Cadavra was a hilarious, silly little film made by someone who obviously knows and loves the genre he is poking fun at.  There are plenty of things to laugh at in some of the old sci fi/monster/adventure films of yesteryear but it is all unintentional.  Here, Blamire makes those things intentional and the outcome is a huge success.  I found myself laughing out loud at several parts, either dialogue, kooky characters or ridiculous monsters.  The real star of the film though (as obvious as you think it would be) is the Lost Skeleton himself.  I don't want to give too much away but his snarky attitude and one liners had me in hysterics.  For anyone who loves old B movies and doesn't get sand in their vagina when people laugh at the unintentionally funny parts, I highly recommend this film.

RATING:  8/10