Gross Movie Reviews #676

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Cyclone (DVD) – An odd disaster film from 1978 that has a shark on the cover and has you think you are getting sharks eating people the whole film? We don’t… as this boring but yet at the same time wildly interesting film goes in a whole other direction. Pretty much the movie opens with a warning of a bad storm coming so we witness a plane crash land at sea and two boats become stranded. The passengers of the plane of who survived are wounded and the sharks arrive for a feast but three days later as they still float at sea one of the boats find them with shortly after the bigger charter boat that is stranded because of no gas finds them. This sets the rest of the picture for some really long dull parts of survivors of the storm having no food or water. So cannibalism it is kids! First they eat the dog, and then they chop up a dude that just died! They carve pieces of him and throw it on top of the boat to dry out in the hot Caribbean Sea, yep shit gets real dark. The movie is around two hours and crazy dull with moments of really dark inhuman shit as I give this must see to believe oddity 2 stars.

Raiders of the Lost Shark (DVD) – A Canadian shark film where a shark is on the loose feeding on all who enter the water. Supposedly the shark is a product of something mysterious going on an island across the water so of course some college students say “cool beans” and go investigate! At the same time their professor is hired to kill this eating machine as she has had experience in the past but somehow there has been experiments going on at the island the whole time. The film was produced by Indie vet Brett Kelly and for me at least there is no in-between on the films he is involved with: either really good or like this one pretty bad. This film really just didn’t know how to be a killer shark film as it felt like a mish mash of several which I can only give it 1 out of 4 stars.

Killing Spree (Blu-ray) – Terrorvision put out a recent cool version of this early Tim Ritter flick that is packed full of extras, commentaries, and made me want to sit down and rewatch this classic again as I haven’t checked it out in over twenty years. We are introduced to Tom, an ordinary dude who works hard, tries to avoid the nosey neighbors, and hang with his hot wife at home. Sounds reasonable until work has cut his check by 40% which makes Tom think about a second job as he doesn’t want his wife Lisa going back to work. On top of that Tom believes his wife Lisa is boinking every dude that enters the house that eventually sends him on a “killing spree”! Even decades later this underground classic works as the downward spiral of the character Tom slipping into his madness is brilliant with the fun lighting of the killing moments and its inventive kills. But wait there is more but why spoil it if by some chance you haven’t had the pleasure of enjoying this Tim Ritter film that has a excellent payoff as I give it 4 out of 4 stars.

The Violence Movie Part One and Two (DVD) – Two SOV short films that were shot in 1988, then had some footage added in 2003, then scored by Harry Manfredini! WTF? These early shorts are from The Wilkinson Brothers, who one of them went to Hollywood to work on many projects but like many filmmakers in the 80s they loved ‘Friday the 13th’.  So they picked up a camera as teenagers, grabbed a friend, and made a masked killer slasher that included a goalie mask of course. The DVD includes commentary, alternate endings, deleted scenes, among other fun tidbits as I give the project 3 out of 4 stars.

Scream Park (DVD) – A forgotten 2012 moderately budget horror film that was made at an amusement park just north of Pittsburgh, Pa. The plot involves the “Fright Land Amusement Park” closing because of bankruptcy. The manager has a meeting with the skeleton crew of employees to explain how and why of the park’s closing. At the same time a mysterious dark van shows up in the parking lot that evening. Of course said manager is convinced to let the young employees’ party in the park since this it for all of them but the mystery thickens as each of them start to disappear and two masked figures roam the park. This is one of those films that probably had the best intentions on paper but once filming it all became a huge mess to say it kindly as you are not missing much with this project as I give it 1 star for the mere reason of Steve Rudzinski being casted in it.

Dinogore (DVD) – Friends head out to Uncle Dante’s cabin for the weekend as this project starts off really slow. But the party gets going with its three PBRs as it is interrupted by an earthquake that awakens a dinosaur who roams the woods to snack on humans. A lot of time is spent on the characters not wrapping their head around a dinosaur is trying to eat them but this might have just been an example of how hard it was to make a movie during COVID? I believe I have seen better from the filmmaker and from the cover of the movie you would expect it to be a lot of fun as I didn’t laugh once so I give the dud 0 out of 4 stars.

Lunchmeat (DVD-R) – This 1987 underground independent movie inspired quite a few filmmakers out there and what is weird this film still isn’t out there legit on any format other than the VHS many years ago as far as I can see? Six friends head to a cabin for the weekend of course only to be low on beer, food, and gas. After stopping at the burger joint and the film introducing two of the three hillbillies who are going to ruin their weekend it sets the stage for a low budget gorefest.  The hillbillies set a plan in motion to detour the group and hopefully use them as fresh meat to eat! From there it becomes a game of survival for both groups as they run around the woods trying to survive this low budget ordeal. Time hasn’t been kind to this grisly fun film but it is still a classic to many as I give it 3 out of 4 stars.

Dark Match (Shudder) – This is the latest from Lowell Dean who gave us ‘Wolf Cop’ and because of that this dude he will always have my attention with any project. Set in the late 80s wrestling world where “SAW” wrestling promotion has made a name for itself but has seen its better days in Canada. They are contacted to do a show for big money in the middle of nowhere and their shady ass promoter isn’t going to turn it down. So the wrestlers pack up the trucks and drive to the middle of nowhere only to walk into some oddness. Along the way a featured bad guy or girl in this case ‘Miss Behave’ is having dreams or visions of satanic rituals, fire, and the championship belt? Things get real weird after a night of drugged induced mischief and the bad guys are being guarded in a locked room by armed guards during the event. Five matches, five sacrifices, to make the ritual happen or so says the “Prophet” a former wrestler from the past who feels wronged by SAW. Cults, wrestling, gore, and the possibility of Satan what isn’t there to enjoy as I give this feature 3 stars.

Creature from the Hillbilly Lagoon (DVD) – Oh this was a fun independent feature as to me it comes off as ‘Humanoids from the Deep’ remade as a comedy, on a low budget, with a great creature costume! This 2007 film features a story about a local professor and her students out on a field trip of sorts to test the local waterway for toxins. The reason for this is there have been reports of toxic dumping from a giant corporation years ago along with some recent toxic dumping by others. They want to know how polluted is it? There have been rumors of mutations but never proven. The field trip is going well until one of them is bitten by something mysterious underwater. As he slowly changes hillbillies roaming the shoreline are being slaughtered by a disgusting creature and if by some chance they survive the attack they become deformed and change. From beginning to end this project is hilarious with a great cast that plays up the hillbilly parts just right but the star has to be the impressive creature they cobbled together as I give this entertaining creature feature 3 ½ out of 4 stars.

Movies to Watch on a Rainy Afternoon: Troma Edition (Blu-ray) – Now I checked this out 2019 when Addison just released this fun edition on DVD so with the new Blu-ray, it was time for me to check this out again with my daughter who is a huge fan of Mr. Binek’s projects. Now Addison being the smart dude he is didn’t just go for any Troma titles he went for the second tier kids! Here is the list he tackles: Rabid Grannies, Hectic Knife, B.C. Butcher, Troma’s War, Getting Lucky, Redneck Zombies, Slaughter Party, and Star Worms II: Attack of the Pleasure Pods. Over two hours of Troma hilarity. Addison goes with masks, a Troma cake, low budget fireworks, spitting up, jumbo being stapled to a wig to explain a brain, and reading a Fangoria with his feet to get his riffs over on these features. There are times I literally laughed out loud especially during B.C. Butcher and Hectic Knife (which Addison’s good friend is behind that project). Redneck Zombies seem to be the tough one out of the bunch but that didn’t stop Addison riffing on it and making fun of himself doing it. The beauty of this edition is instead of Lloyd condemning or being upset by this he embraces Addison’s fandom, ideals, and intelligence to put together a great product for not just Troma fans to enjoy but movie lovers as once again I give this entertaining project 4 out of 4 stars.

Any comments please send to grossmoviereview@verizon.net or www.facebook.com/grossmoviereviews .

Plus you can always go to the greatest T-shirt place online or if you are in Texas visit the store of “Fast Custom Shirts” where T-shirt Joe is the only place you should purchase your horror T-shirts: Go to www.fastcustomshirts.com and support!

Gross Movie Reviews #583

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Bad Ass Monster Killer (DVD) – For this Indy exploitation we have Jimmy who is a part of some kind of secret government Supernatural security that is trying to keep the streets safe form the unnatural. There is some black magic, demons, strip clubs, gangs of supernatural beings and CG effects that are the background of the film throughout. I enjoyed the passion put into the project but the film felt like there was something missing and it went too long. I felt this would have made a much better impact if it ran maybe like a short film (25 minutes) but I still enjoyed it as I give it 2 stars.

Scary Story Slumber Party (DVD) – Say that title several times in a row! Anyway three young women are watching a lame film and decide to turn off the TV and tell each other scary stories. Several stories are told and most are quick little flicks that I am sure some of yinz will enjoy but nothing stands out where you’ll be talking about it in six weeks. A solid collection of independent short films but would have liked more be done with the wrap around starring the three young women telling the stories. If you are into anthologies it will most likely appeal to you as I give it 2 ½ stars.

In Search of Darkness: Part II (Shudder) – The sequel to one of the most talked about documentaries the past few years where they dive deeper into the 80s to make horror fan’s wet dreams come true. Lots of interviews, fun facts, and why we are all so fascinated with 80s horror films as I give this 4 ½ hour epic 4 stars!

Hi-Death (DVD) – A sequel anthology to the popular independent project “Hi-8” that has Todd Sheets, Brad Sykes, Tim Ritter, Amanda Payton, Anthony Catanese all back with new short film installments. This time around to keep the films rolling you have two young ladies in Hollywood who decide to do the “Terror Tour”… The first two stories are slow but stick it out folks because the last three: ‘Night Drop’ is a lot of fun, ‘Cold Read’ ups the intensity, and Todd Sheets ‘The Muse’ is just pure wicked weirdness that Indy horror fans will be so happy with as I give the anthology 2 ½ stars.

Subsurface (YouTube) – A slick short film from writer Kyle Patrick about a young man who is trapped in his own mind and may see a sliver of light at the end of the tunnel? What’s funny this short film has an intriguing look and feel that I believe you could have ten different critics watch and review and get ten completely different takes on this. So Kyle I would say you have accomplished your goal with this project as I give it 3 ½ out of 4 stars as you leave me intrigued what is next for you.

Satan’s Little Helper (Blu-ray) – Synapse Films is at it again digging around for a horror film that may have never gotten its due during its original release. Jeff Lieberman  a horror fan favorite over the years unleashed this little Halloween horror in the early 2000s and since then has gathered a little cult following. The Halloween story revolves around a boy who loves his video game “Satan’s Little Helper” and dresses as the helper for Halloween eagerly awaiting his sister for trick or treating. Upset over the sister bringing a young man home the young boy ventures into the neighborhood to witness someone decorating a home with what looks like very real props. Unknown to the boy this man is a serial killer who has just finished up and likes to pose his victims. The boy being naïve believes it is Satan just like his video game and scoring points killing real people on his favorite day of the year Halloween! Satan and the boy become quick friends and give the film an awkward quirkiness as the boy takes Satan home as the story just gets a little odder from there. Remember Douglas the young boy, believes this is all part of the game until his father is gutted in front of him by this Satan character. An entertaining oddity of Halloween horror that fans are still discovering that has an ending makes you want the sequel that doesn’t exist. The Blu-ray extras has a commentary with Jeff Lieberman, tour of the filming locations, behind-the-scenes, and a making of segment which has a recent interview with Jeff Lieberman that is some entertaining stuff for the horror fans to eat up as I give this fun little Halloween package 3 ½ out of 4 stars. You can find it at www.synapse-films.com .

Any comments please send to grossmoviereview@verizon.net or www.facebook.com/grossmoviereviews .

Plus you can always go to the greatest T-shirt place online or if you are in Texas visit the store of “Fast Custom Shirts” where T-shirt Joe is the only place you should purchase your horror T-shirts: Go to www.fastcustomshirts.com and support!

Gross Movie Reviews reads a book… again!

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Gross Movie Reviews reads a book… again!

 

By Tim Gross

 

This time around it’s a book project I have been waiting a couple years for. The book is “Exploring the Underground: The Mainstream Viewer’s Guide to Low Budget Horror Cinema” from writer/fellow film lover Mario Dominick. The project has been at least four years in the making reason I have been waiting so long and remember having conversations with Mario about doing a book. But Mario wanted to do something different, something that isn’t talked about much or I should say followed as close as maybe mainstream film, but also something weird people unlike Mario and me would easily understand and get the idea. So Mario who may be the biggest fan of independent film I have ever met made it his goal to sit down and interview quite a few of the popular, possibly unknown, and groundbreaking filmmakers who are behind these no budget underground films and their companies. Mario goes into great depth with their projects, scripts, characters, etc. hoping to give even the most mainstream film viewer a peak behind the curtain of what it is like to be an independent filmmaker and their passion for it. Mario takes you deep inside the mind of people like Fred Vogel from Toe Tag Pictures, Mike and Amy Watt (Lynn Best) from Happy Cloud Pictures, Chris Seaver of the now defunct Low Budget Pictures, and Bill Zebub from Bill Zebub Productions and many more. And Mario’s writing style allows even the most jaded film fan to enjoy the structure of the 458 page book. You don’t have to read it in order as the book is structured to allow you the reader to skip around chapters if you like? But Mario not only tries to educate you about these very talented people but hopes you will think twice and maybe show a little support by giving their projects a second look. Mario Domnick’s book is absolutely brilliant! Be proud my friend as I already started reading the book again and believe I have even more respect if possible for independent film and the people behind it… and for that I give this must have book 4 out of 4 stars.

 

You can purchase the book through Toe Tag Pictures website: www.toetag.biz

Mario