Filthy Review - Deviling

Deviling (2011)

Review by Jude Felton

I’ve said it before, and will no doubt say it again, that some of the best cinema out there is in the short movie format. Short, sweet and to the point they quite often go to show that you can craft an effective tale without the excess flab that you sometimes get in a feature length production. Frequently overlooked in favor of a full length movie, as truth be known it isn’t always easy to track them down, yet oftentimes far more effective.

Deviling is the latest short movie from writer/director Michael Sharpe and Sharpe Edge Films, who previously brought us Monomaniacal in 2010. The plot of Deviling revolves around one man’s obsession with an ex-girlfriend. Robert Haulbrook plays Ronald, a mortician who has not taken kindly to the fact that his ex, Sharlene (Jodi Essex), has left him. He pesters her constantly on the phone, much to her annoyance, and the calls soon turn to threats.

The first thing I noticed about Deviling is that it looks absolutely fantastic. The images are incredibly sharp (no pun intended) and the camerawork is wonderfully smooth. The contrast between the scenes with Ronald in his morgue and Sharlene at her house are like night and day, with the color all but drained from the morgue scenes. The grey palette perfectly sums up Ronald’s demeanor with the warm colors that surround Sharlene having the same effect on her.

Regardless though of how a movie looks, let’s face it there are some wonderfully looking turds out there, it would mean nothing if there wasn’t any substance behind the story and the actors bringing said story to life. This is where Deviling really excels with Robert Haulbrook’s performance as Ronald being absolutely terrific. It’s an edgy, nervous energy that is brought to the screen with an underlying violence, which on occasion bubbles to the surface.

Running to a taut 14 minutes Deviling kept my attention throughout with no on-screen time wasted. It is a dark movie with the only humor being the blackest kind and from the mind of Ronald himself.

I definitely recommend you check out Deviling should you get the opportunity as it is quite excellent. Perfect Halloween viewing!

For more information on Deviling head on over to the movie's Facebook Page

DEVILING trailer (2011) from Sharpe Edge Films on Vimeo.

Anchor Bay Pick Up The Collapsed

Here's some great news for you. The Collapsed, which I reviewed here, has been picked up for distribution in its native Canada by Anchor Bay. This means that they will be looking after the movie's DVD and VOD release north of the border. Hopefully a US release will not be too far into the future. On a personal note I would just like to say that this news is well deserved and I look forward to ordering myself a copy from Canada once it drops.

Synopsis

In the wake of the end of the world, a family of four desperately tries to survive. Their goal: escaping the city and traveling to the rural community they once called home.

The constant threat of a violent death forcing them to stay as far away from civilization as possible, they take to the forest, soon to discover the danger posed by other survivors may be the least of their worries.

Will they survive? A dark and unpredictable horror/thriller.

New Stills From The Woman

With the October 14th theatrical release date of Lucky McKee's The Woman fast approaching I thought it would be nice to share some stills from this controversial movie. Enjoy!

Synopsis:

Directed by Lucky McKee, based on the bestselling novel by Jack Ketchum, written Ketchum and McKee by and produced by Andrew van den Houten and Robert Tonino for MODERNCINÉ, THE WOMANis a disturbing tale of torture and dirty little secrets that can haunt any seemingly harmless neighborhood. The story follows a successful country lawyer who captures and attempts to "civilize" the last remaining member of a violent clan that has roamed the Northeast in the wild for decades, thereby putting the lives of his family in extreme jeopardy.

Starring Pollyanna McIntosh, Sean Bridgers and Angela Bettis, the film prompted furious debates and walkouts during its world premiere in the Park City at Midnight program at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. Reports surfaced of people becoming sick while watching the graphic scenes and one irate Sundance audience member went so far as to say THE WOMAN “ought to be confiscated, burned. There's no value in showing this to anyone." Whether a “wonderfully bizarre tale” or an “inhumane degradation of women,” you’ll have to decide for yourself.

Rated R for “strong bloody violence, torture, a rape, disturbing behavior, some graphic nudity, and language" this film is sure to have viewers (and reviewers) squirming in their seats.

Filthy Giveaway! - Phase 7 - Closed

Greetings my filthy friends! October 4th see's the DVD, VOD and Digital release of Phase 7, which is part of the Bloody Disgusting Selects series of movies, and thanks to The Collective I have one copy to give away. All you need to do to be in with a chance of winning is send me an email to judefelton@hotmail.com, with Phase 7 Giveaway in the title and tell me the name of one other movie in the Bloody Disgusting Selects series. Also add your name and mailing address, otherwise it won't be going anywhere! I will draw one winner on October 7th. As usual my decision is final and all powerful!

Synopsis:

PHASE 7 mixes satire, humor, horror and social commentary in a way that reminds viewers of the arch SHAUN OF THE DEAD and the savvy claustrophobia of [rec].  In the film, Coco (Hendler) has just moved to a new apartment with his wife Pipi (Stuart), who’s seven months pregnant.  At first, they don’t seem to notice the growing chaos around them, but when authorities quarantine their building after a deadly pandemic breaks out, Coco joins forces with his off-kilter, but well-prepared and stocked next-door neighbor Horacio to defend his refrigerator and keep Pipi safe.  Meanwhile, outside the building, Buenos Aires—and the world as the apartment denizens know it, is disappearing. The world is ending; got ammo?

Directed and written by Nicolás Goldbart; produced by Sebastian Aloi; executive produced by Steven Schneider (Insidious, Paranormal Activity); starring Daniel Hendler (LOST EMBRACE); Jazmín Stuart (THE PARANOIDS); Yayo Guridi (LOS RODRIGUEZ); and Federico Luppi (PAN’S LABYRINTH)

Filthy Review - Scream 4

Scream 4 (2011)

Review by Jude Felton

It’s a funny old world we live in, one where everyone apparently loves to watch a scary movie yet horror flicks, more often than not fail at the Box Office. Of course there are occasions where the big bucks do roll in, but what is rarer still is for a horror film, or franchise, to break into the mainstream psyche. It does happen from time to time, The Exorcist, The Sixth Sense or The Blair Witch Project are just three examples. Director Wes Craven has managed this trick not once but twice. First was with the Nightmare on Elm Street movies, although you could argue that the mass appeal and media saturation didn’t really happen until Pt 3, with Freddy Krueger popping up absolutely everywhere. Then, in 1996, it happened again with Scream, a franchise he has been involved with since the first movie, having directed all of them unlike the Elm Street flicks where he flitted in and out of the series.

Scream really was a blast of fresh air, it was funny, gory and witty, and it took the world by storm. Over the following four years two sequels were spawned, and although they weren’t up to the standard of the first movie they were still decent flicks. Then, it all went quiet. That is until Craven and, Part’s 1 & 2 screenwriter, Kevin Williamson reunited to make a fourth film. Did they leave it too long? Could they bring the magic back once more?

In Scream 4 we are taken back to the picture perfect little town of Woodsboro, the setting of the first movie, for the scares once again, and it was like putting on a pair of comfortable shoes. The feel of this movie was far more in keeping with the first movie than the second and third film. Officer Dewey (David Arquette) is now Sheriff Riley, Gale Weathers (Courtney Cox) has retired from journalism in order to write her biography and Sidney Prescott is on a book tour to promote her book on being a survivor, with the last stop being her home town. That’s pretty much all you need to know about the plot, aside from the fact that Ghost Face turns up again to start butchering folk….again.

Oh, and you have a savvy cast that help bring the self-referential script to life. So self-referential in fact that aside from talk of sequels, remakes, torture porn and social networking sites, it even plays off its earlier movie. Clever in places, a little forced at times, but fun to watch nonetheless. The Stab movies, which are the in movie dramatizations of the events portrayed are now up to Stab 7 so we know that the filmmakers are deliberately playing into their own movie never-ending circle.

I did get the feeling whilst watching this movie that it was the beginning of a new saga. Whilst it was good to see the likes of Arquette, Cox and Campbell back in familiar roles it almost felt as though they weren’t needed, in particular Cox. Still, they played their roles well and balanced out nicely with their new and younger, for the most part, co-stars.

Whether this film was needed is a moot point, I enjoyed the hell out of it and I am sure many others will. Of course the cynics will snarl and grumble about it. What else would they do? After all, this film takes pot-shots at them too. This is a good film in which it is quite obvious that Craven and Williamson have put a lot of thought into it, maybe too much in places. And you only need to compare this to Craven’s previous movie to see the difference in quality.

Maybe there is a little nostalgia creeping in on my behalf, maybe not. Scream 4 is a more enjoyable movie than the previous two sequels, and whilst it isn’t close to matching the first film it still hits most of the right spots. It’s bloody, funny and at times surprising, even when you see something coming a mile away.

At the end of the day this is a sequel, albeit a good one, so you are automatically going to making comparisons and judgments about it, I know I did. There is plenty of new and original horror out there to find if you look for it. In the meantime I am going to enjoy revisiting some old friends in Woodsboro. 

Scream 4 is released on Blu-ray and DVD on October 4th through Anchor Bay Entertainment

Coming Soon - The Collective II

Not so longed ago I reviewed The Collective Vol 1 (review here) from JABB Pictures. The outline was simple: 10 Filmmakers, 10 Short films (10 mins each) and 1 Synopsis. The Meat Eater was the synopsis for Volume 1, and now JABB are back with Volume 2 with a cardboard box being the central idea. What the individual filmmakers come up with is sure to be fascinating if the first release is anything to go by.

There are some familiar faces returning from Volume 1 as well as a couple of new creative teams as you will see below. The release date for The Collective II is November 11th at the Cincinatti Horrorhound Weekend. Just take my word for it and buy yourself a copy.

The Collective is by far, the most unique independent

short film collection on the market today. The Collective Vol.1 features 10 - 10 minute short films, all by a different independent filmmaker yet all based on the same synopsis.

With each filmmaker putting their own unique twist on the idea.

This time around it’s 10 Filmmakers - 10 Short Films - 1 Object.

That’s right, all 10 films center around the same single object.

Each filmmaker received a small, plain cardboard box to base their 10 minute short film around. They were free to decorate it in any way that fit their storyline. An unassuming premise that in the end shows, it doesn’t take a huge budget to make a great film. It only requires huge imagination.

The Collective Vol. 2 contains 10 completely unique films

that range from intimate to insane. It is the perfect format for showcasing the best up and coming filmmakers in the horror genre while also providing an easy way for fans of independent films to get them all in one place for only $10. That’s only $1 per film!

You will not find a better deal in the world of independent cinema.

This collection is the embodiment of JABB pictures war cry

“Support Independent Horror!”

JABB pictures
(Spike 2009, “Polly” 2010, The Meat Eater 2011)
jabbpictures.com

So – So Pix
(Snow Angel 2011)
redpanicbuttonfilms-sosopix.com

Liberty or Death Productions
(Wannabe 2009, Zracne Vile 2011, To Haunt You 2011)
libertyordeathprod.com

Quattro Venti Scott Productions
(Post Mortem America 2021- 2011, Graveyard Blues 2011)
pma2021.com

Red Panic Button Films
(14 year old Dakota Meyer, Corn Fed 2011)
redpanicbuttonfilms-sosopix.com

Grue Opus Films
(It Crawls Back In 2011)
facebook.com/jaymattingly

Susie Does Horror
Edward X Young
(Emerging Past, Mr. Hush 2011)
facebook.com/edwardxyoung

Graphik 13 Films
(Dead Moines 2009, Whistling Past the Graveyard 2011)
myspace.com/deadmoinesfilm

Death Hug Films
(5 Minutes 2011)
facebook.com/deathhugfilms

Over Analyzed Productions
(Revenge Radio 2011)
overanalyzedproductions.com

Coming Soon - Faces In The Crowd

Serial killer flick Faces in the Crowd, which stars Milla Jovovich and is directed by Julien Magnet, is set for release on October 25th. It will be available on Blu-ray, DVD and Blu-ray + DVD + Digital combo pack from Millennium Entertainment.

Anna (Jovovich) may be the only survivor of serial killer Tearjerk Jack’s horrendous reign, but left with “face blindness,” she is completely unable to identify him – or anyone else. Now, with only a loyal detective’s (Julian McMahon) face familiar to her, she cannot trust anyone as she struggles to resume her normal life, and, plagued by fear and a vindictive Jack, struggles to survive.

Stills from the movie, as well as the trailer, are below for your perusal.

Toronto After Dark Film Festival 2011 - Final 10 Films Announced!

The folk at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival, which runs Oct 20-27, have announced the final selection of films to be screened. Two of which are world premieres. I posted about the initial selection of movies here, and it already looked impressive. Now you can add to that roster the quite excellent The Woman, Ti West's The Innkeepers, the world premieres of VS and War of the Dead, the terrific Absentia, vampire flick Midnight Son, The Corridor, Manborg, Some Guy Who Kills People (which I really want to see) and A Lonely Place To Die, which is again another flick I need to see.

You can read more at the Official Site and check out the trailers below (including the new Redline trailer). All in all this looks to be an incredibly good line-up and I am truly pissed I cannot make it there. If you are in Toronto you owe it to yourself to get tickets!

New Online Sci-Fi Series - RCVR

A new series from Machinima.com has debuted online that is sure to appeal to fans of The X-Files and shows of that ilk. Each episode runs at about 11 minutes and are well worth checking out. I've included the first three episodes below, with a new one being posted online every Wednesday.

RCVRs are humanity's greatest assets and it is the job of Agent Luke Weber to track them down. In doing so, Weber is also tasked with conducting one of the most important disinformation campaigns in American history. But the cover up is about to get even more difficult for Agent Weber. 

Chillerama To Hit VOD This Week!

I would hazard a guess that Chillerama, the anthology from director's Adam Green, Tim Sullivan, Joe Lynch and adam Rifkin, is one of the most anticipated genre release's of 2011. Image Entertainment quite obviously believe this as they have decided to release it to VOD on September 29th. Yes, that is this Thursday! So now you won't need to wait until November 29th, which is when it is due to hit the old shiny's.

Produced by ArieScope Pictures and in the spirit of classic “omnibus” films like Dead of Night, Tales From the Crypt, Creepshow and Twilight Zone: The Movie, with four vignettes that not only celebrate the golden age of B horror schlock but also nearly the entire history of horror cinema itself, CHILLERAMA offers something for every bad taste.  With titles like “Wadzilla,” “I Was A Teenage Werebear,” The Diary of Anne Frankenstein,” and “Zom-B-Movie,” CHILLERAMA features appearances by Joel David Moore (Avatar, Hatchet), Lin Shaye (Insidious), Ray Wise (X-Men: First Class), Kane Hodder (Hatchet and Hatchet II), Eric Roberts (The Dark Knight, Sharktopus) and more cameos than one can (body)count. From the depraved minds of directors Adam Rifkin (Detroit Rock City, The Dark Backward), Tim Sullivan (2001 Maniacs, Driftwood), Adam Green (Hatchet, Frozen), and Joe Lynch (Wrong Turn 2, Knights of Badassdom), CHILLERAMA is a festival of gore, guts, goofiness and good times.

Oranges & Sunshine Gets New Poster

Following on from my previous post about director Jim Loach's debut movie Oranges & Sunshine, which you can find here for synopsis etc, I now have the new poster to share with you all. For those that haven't heard of Jim Loach, it is after all his first feature film, he was previously a busy young bee in British TV, having directed episodes of Casualty, Holby City, Footballers Wives and The Bill, all of which had millions of viewers each week.

Palisades Tartan Revamp Some Older Releases

The folk over at Palisades Tartan have taken fours movies from their back catalogue and revamped the artwork and changed the titles in an attempt to bring the movies to a wider audience. These new releases are due to hit the stores on October 4th. Of the four movies being released I already have an original Tartan release of Bad Blood, which I do recommend checking out when it hits as Blood Curse, as well as Carved which will now been known as The Slit-Mouthed Woman. The other two releases are Root of Evil, formerly Acacia, and The Hillside Stranglings which was previously released as The Hillside Strangler. All four are set to retail for $14.98

Check out the full press release below for details on each flick, plus above is the shiny new artwork for Blood Curse.

HOT HALLOWEEN HORROR

AVAILABLE ON DVD OCTOBER 11^th, 2011

NEW YORK (September 22, 2011) -- Haunted houses, evil spirits, creepy ghosts, psycho killers and possessed trees – this Halloween Palisades Tartan has it all! In an effort to introduce a new audience to some of its best horror titles, Palisades Tartan will be releasing BLOOD CURSE (formerly BAD BLOOD), THE HILLSIDE STRANGLINGS UNRATED (formerly THE HILLSIDE STRANGLER), ROOT OF EVIL (formerly ACACIA) and THE SLIT-MOUTHED WOMAN (formerly CARVED) with revamped key art and special low prices. So if you haven’t completed your DVD horror collection yet, make sure you check out these grizzly tales on October 11.

“Lingers Long After The Last Frame Has Played.”

TwitchFilms

BLOOD CURSE

Unrated, 2006, Portuguese, 97 min,

Palisades Tartan Extreme

After inheriting a home in the countryside, a family learns they have also inherited a dark and menacing curse.

SPECIAL FEATURES: The Making of Blood Curse, Original Theatrical Trailer

Catalog #: PTT-DV-4043 ; UPC: 842498000267

“Impossible to look away from.”

Dana Stevens, New York Times

THE HILLSIDE STRANGLINGS – UNRATED

English, 2004, 98 min,

Palisades Tartan Extreme

A frank, no-hold-barred, account of the chilling true story of the brutal killing spree that brought L.A. to its knees.

SPECIAL FEATURES: Director Commentary, Deleted Scenes, Interview with C. Thomas Howell, Original Theatrical Trailer

Catalog #: PTT-DV-4003 ; UPC: 842498000304

“Guaranteed to keep you awake at night.”

Todd D. Schwartz, CBS Radio

ROOT OF EVIL

Unrated, 2003, Korean, 102 min

Palisades Tartan Asia Extreme

After a couple’s adopted son disappears, a number of strange occurrences and dead bodies pile up, all seemingly centered around a mysterious Acacia tree.

SPECIAL FEATURES: Making of, Cast Interviews, Original Theatrical Trailer, TV Spots

Catalog #: PTT-DV-4021; UPC: 842498000250

“An instant horror classic”

Screem Magazine

THE SLIT-MOUTHED WOMAN

Unrated, 2006, Japanese, 90 min

Palisades Tartan Asia Extreme

A town is terrorized by the spirit of a grotesquely disfigured woman with unfinished business.

SPECIAL FEATURES: The Making of The Slit-Mouthed Woman, Cast Interview, Original Theatrical Trailer, TV Spots

Catalog #: PTT-DV-4054; UPC: 842498000472

Filthy Review - The Stool Pigeon

The Stool Pigeon (2010)

Review Jude Felton

The Stool Pigeon, from director Dante Lam, is a tough and uncompromising thriller from the mean streets of Hong Kong. There are no buddy-buddy wisecracks to break up the flow of the movie, just a good honest crime thriller. This shouldn’t come as a surprise though seeing as Asian cinema continues to pump out quality entertainment in just about every genre.

Detective Don Lee, played by Nick Leung, depends on his informants, or stool pigeons, in order to carry out his work. After once such informant falls foul of the crooks he is trying to bust he finds that he is on the lookout for another such character. Racked with guilt over what happened he tries his best to protect his informant, which is not always an easy task. The new stool pigeon is Ghost Jr. (Nicolas Tse), and together they try to work together to bring down the local mob boss.

Although the story is fairly simplistic at its very core there are many more layers to proceedings. These are slowly revealed to the viewer over the course of the movie and only serve to add a greater emotional punch to proceedings. Make no mistake The Stool Pigeon is a dark and at times very violent movie. There are no flashy fight scenes though or Woo-style gunplay, just dirty and gritty violence. When the machetes come out, and they do a few times, you will feel every hack and slash. Gunshots hurt and offer up one of the films “holy shit” moments. This is a film that packs a mean punch.

With all this talk of cops and violence you may be forgiven for thinking that it is a straight out action flick, but rest assured it isn’t. Yes, there is plenty of action for those that seek out that sort of thing, but that is not what drives this movie along. Instead that is left to the strength of the characters on display here. The two leads, Leung and Tse, are both superb in their roles as guilt-ridden cop and criminal. They are the glue that holds the movie together, along with some great supporting turns from the likes of Lunmei Kwai, as the tough girl Dee, and Philip Keung as the terrifying Tai Ping.

Dark, and at times almost depressing, The Stool Pigeon is not a movie that will lift your spirits if you are feeling down. However, even with the tone of the movie it never seemed to lag, and as with all good movies the time just seemed to fly by. It may have gotten just a little melodramatic towards the end, yet not enough to undo all the good work that went before.

The Stool Pigeon really is a terrific movie and one that I recommend not only to fans of Asian cinema or crime thrillers, but to fans of good quality cinema full-stop. I would be very surprised if this doesn’t make my top ten movies of 2011, I really think it is that good.

The Stool Pigeon is released on Blu-ray + DVD combo pack and DVD by Well Go USA on September 27th

Helldriver - Blu-ray and DVD Release Info

Bloody soon indeed. Helldriver, from production company Sushi Typhoon and director Yoshihiro Nishimura, is all geared up for a Novemeber 22nd release from Well Go USA. The movie will be released on a Blu-ray + DVD combo pack as well as a lonesome DVD release. The extras included look well worth checking out too, including as they do three short movies from the Helldriver universe as well as an interview, trailers and featurettes. 

I have to say that Well Go USA continue to deliver the goods and this looks to be no exception, especially if you like your movies on the bloody side!

Synopsis:

A meteorite crashes into Japan, releasing a toxic ash that turns inhabitants in the northern half of the country into bloodthirsty zombies. Some time later, with the north now walled off from the rest of Japan, a young woman (Yumiko Hara) is charged with leading a group of ragtag soldiers into the infected region to kill the "zombie queen" (Shiina) - who also happens to be her homicidal mother.

Bonus Features Include:

§  Director Interview with Yoshihiro Nishimura

§  “The Making of Helldriver” featurette

§  "Sushi Typhoon: Tokyo Invasion!" featurette

§  Short Films

o   Helldriver Dokata

o   Catch Me If You Can!

o   Bailout!

§  Trailers

Helldriver has a runtime of approximately 114 minutes and is not rated.