April Fool's Day and Slaughter High AKA April Fool's Day

 

Happy April Fool's day y'all! And no, this is not a joke, I am actually updating the blog for the first time in what seems like an aeon. Now I'd hoped to have time to write a more in-depth piece on these two films but alas I got called into work unexpectedly earlier today, so the clock has been against me (note to self: don't leave stuff till the last minute!)... perhaps this is for the best though... as this will be briefer than I'd ideally like you'll hopefully be spared my characteristic waffling. Anyway, enough arm-waving... onto the films!

First up is the movie that's probably the better known of the pair and the one that was actually released under the April Fool's Day title. As with most slashers the set-up is simplicity itself: a bunch of friends head to the secluded island home of one Muffy St. John (Deborah Foreman) for the weekend where they inevitably start falling prey to a crazed killer. And in case anyone reading this hasn't seen the film I won't say more than that. To be honest this is one of those movies that is kind of hard to talk about without giving too much away. All I'll say is that the makers put their cards on the table fairly early on, so I'm sure most will see where this going anyway.

While I'm still not particularly crazy about this one at present (and I should state here I'm planning on re-watching both movies this evening so this could all change very soon), I'll admit it's growing on me quite a lot with repeat viewings. And for slasher fans there's certainly a lot to love and admire. First of all, it's clear there was a fair bit of money behind this, as it looks beautiful, so kudos to director Fred Walton (of When a Stranger Calls, which criminally I still haven't seen) and DoP Charles Minsky for making the most of the budget. And speaking of cast and crew who also have slasher credentials... there's an effective score from Charles Bernstein of A Nightmare on Elm St. fame, and the film also features two lovely ladies who have both done other work in the genre. The unfortunately named Muffy is played by Deborah Foreman who would appear two years later in the supernatural sort-of-slasher Waxwork, and we also have fan favourite final girl Amy Steel from Friday the 13th Part 2. And the rest of the cast are also uniformly likeable and engaging. All I'll say for the benefit of the uninitiated who may be wondering whether to check this out or not is this: if you're after a fun slasher that shouldn't be taken too seriously, yet also does something a bit different with the formula, then this is just the ticket.

Released the same year, and originally sharing the same title until Paramount saw its potential for profit and bought it from the makers, Slaughter High is another slasher that is both arch-typically simple in its set-up but also somewhat unique. And what I mean by the latter is that it has a bit of a different vibe to many American examples of the genre... and that's probably because it was filmed in Britain. Co-directed and co-written by a team of three, and featuring actors from both sides of the Atlantic (though mostly from the UK, if I'm not mistaken) the film attempts to present itself as being set State-side (like another movie from Slaughter High's producers Steve Minasian and Dick Randall funnily enough, which is 1982's gloriously gory and unhinged giallo-slasher Pieces), and this sort of works... but you can certainly sense something is a bit off... which I actually quite like... it gives the film a bizarre, slightly unreal atmosphere... which may actually be more appropriate to it from a story standpoint than is apparent at first glance.

Like April Fool's Day, the film has it's own slasher credentials. As everyone and their dog has observed, scream queen Caroline Munro (from Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter, Maniac, Jess Franco's Faceless among many others) is obviously way too old to be playing a high school student... but frankly who cares... for me it's simply one more factor that adds to that delicious undercurrent of unreality the film has. And also the movie has not one, but two connections to the Friday the 13th franchise, in the form of the aforementioned Steve Minasian and composer Harry Manfredini, who contributes a unique, almost annoyingly catchy score, which while something of an acquired taste I'll admit, I enjoy quite a bit... especially the cheese-tastic, rockin' theme song. The rest of the cast are all decent enough, but no one particularly stands out for me... though they all have their share of amusing moments. But while talking about Slaughter High I would be seriously remiss if I didn't briefly mention the contribution of Simon Scuddamore as Marty, the nerd who is humiliated and later scarred in a prank gone awry during the film's first reel. This was the actor's only credit, owing to a severe drug problem that led to an intentional overdose not long after the making of the film. And once you're aware of that tragic fact, it makes it hard to watch without feeling a slightly eerie frisson hanging over the whole thing... which for me makes it all the more effective and affecting. All that aside the guy should be commended not only for being so game about portraying Marty's initial ordeal in the girl's locker room, but also for generally playing the role with a degree of gusto... though the stereotypical nerd shtick may be a little broad for some tastes. Which is all a long-winded way of saying that it's indeed sad that the man didn't get to make any other films than this. 

Despite this admittedly sad subtext haunting the film, it's still a lot of fun and somewhat on the sillier side of the slasher spectrum. Also, it's even a little bit creepy in parts, due mainly to the decaying building it's largely set in (which might even have been an old asylum if memory serves correctly) and the iconic jester mask, which is actually quite unsettling. 

Basically, if you're in the market for a fun but off-beat slasher or two this evening, then I'd highly recommend both of these. Finally, as a slight caveat to all this, I should mention there's another movie from 1986 that was also originally called April Fool's Day and was re-titled as Killer Party (cheers for the heads up Brad!). I've yet to see it but will make it my mission to acquire it in time for next year's April Fool's Day shenanigans!

Blood and Black Lace - Fifty Years Old Today

Going under the (potentially erroneous) assumption that the date on IMDb is correct, it seems that Mario Bava's seminal thriller was released in Italy a whole half century ago today. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this monumental movie has been discussed and dissected to death already, so there's not much I can really bring to the proverbial table... but nevertheless, I couldn't let such an anniversary pass without posting a few words of appreciation for the film.

For the uninitiated, Blood and Black Lace is generally considered to be the first fully formed example of an Italian exploitation sub-genre known as the giallo. Basically this is the Italian word for yellow and became synonymous with a series of murder mystery pulp magazines whose covers were said colour. Bava's earlier black and white film The Girl Who Knew Too Much is commonly referred to as the first giallo... however, it turns out this is probably not really the case. As Jay Slater states in the liner notes for Arrow Video's Blu-Ray release of yet another seminal Bava flick, A Bay of Blood aka Twitch of the Death Nerve (etc, etc): "No one is entirely sure as to who did [make the first giallo], but Delitto al Luna Park (1952) by Renato Polselli [...] is a possible candidate." 

Also for the benefit of those unfamiliar, a few quick words about the plot... In a nutshell, the film is a whodunnit set in a fashion house where the models are being taken out one by one. There are suggestions of blackmail, drug abuse, abortions and other shady shenanigans... and nearly everyone seems like a potential suspect... and that really is all you need to know... the plot essentially being a jumping off point for a series of masterfully staged and sublimely photographed murder set-pieces.... As its original title, Sei donne per l'assassino (Six Women for the Murderer) suggests, Blood and Black Lace is a body count movie, and perhaps the very first... hence its huge importance to the horror canon. But rather than being a mere exercise in lurid exploitation (though much of the film's advertising would probably suggest differently), the movie might also be the first to conjure that strange, almost paradoxical blend of beauty and brutality that would become a hallmark of countless giallo murder set-pieces to come... As Tim Lucas suggests in his superlative DVD commentary for the film, Blood and Black Lace could be seen as being, among other things, about "beauty and its ruination"... Which reminds me of that oft-quoted line from Edgar Allan Poe: "the death then of a beautiful woman is unquestionably the most poetical topic in the world". 

Even if you don't really care for horror films or murder mysteries, the film is undoubtedly worth seeing for the visuals alone.... It's just a shame there isn't anything approaching a definitive DVD version out there yet... The VCI disc I have looks good but is far from ideal (and also regrettably non-anamorphic), the German disc (from which most of these screenshots are taken, if I'm not mistaken) looks better and is apparently more accurately framed but is pretty expensive to acquire these days... I'm not holding my breath on seeing one appear anytime soon, but I imagine a Blu-Ray of this would look eye-poppingly spectacular... Still, in any form you can check it out currently, this is a visual feast from beginning to end.

While this is undoubtedly Bava's show, it certainly wouldn't be the same film without his uniformly excellent cast and crew. The former is one of the best one can find in the maestro's canon, featuring such talents as Cameron Mitchell (who worked with Bava several times... it seems the two shared a mutual respect and admiration for each other), Eva Bartok, Thomas Reiner, Mary Arden, and other repeat Bava players such as Dante DiPaolo (who died late last year it seems) Luciano Pigozzi and Harriette White Medin. Kudos are also definitely due to cinematographer Ubaldo Terzano (who sadly parted ways with Bava after this... Tim Lucas suggests he felt his contributions weren't fully appreciated due to the director's formidable reputation) and composer Carlo Rustichelli, who contributes a memorable and effective score, its main theme hinting at the mix of intrigue and melancholy that suffuses much of the film. While I wouldn't necessarily recommend this to those completely unfamiliar with Italian horror (something like Suspiria or The Beyond is probably a better candidate... though I suppose it really depends on one's tolerance for/appreciation of older films), for sheer sensory satisfaction alone you can't really go wrong... as far as the plot is concerned in Bava's films, I've found that I only really start to appreciate them on that level after a couple of viewings or so... and that's not to say they are narratively weak... in fact if anything, I'd say that Bava is often quite subtle when it comes to story...

Anyway, I've gone on and pontificated at much greater length than I initially intended, so I'll simply say Happy Fiftieth Blood and Black Lace! And if you haven't seen it, then now is obviously an ideal time to take the plunge... and if you have seen it, watch it again! 

Chilling at Christmas: Silent Night, Bloody Night (Theodore Gershuny, 1973) - 40th Anniversary Restored DVD Review

Happy New Year y'all! 

Well, 2013, like most years, was a bit of a funny one, with its various highs and low... and on the film front it was a bit of a contradiction too... on the one hand I somehow managed to get through the entire year without ever once stepping into a cinema (my last visit was for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in December 2012), yet I also ended up watching more new (as in new to me) movies than I have during any previous year. Yup, this was the year I became a complete and utter movie marathon maniac.

Now, I realise I'm stretching this a bit, seeing as Christmas is pretty much dead and buried now, but apparently it's Twelfth Night so I can just about get away with this. I'd originally intended to get quite a few posts out during December but frankly working in retail during the festive season, maintaining some semblance of a social life and keeping one's blog regularly updated was probably a tad overambitious.... oh well, there's always next year... 

For now though here's some thoughts on the recently released, restored DVD of a movie that celebrated its 40th anniversary last year, and one we looked at briefly during my last post... Silent Night, Bloody Night...

For the uninitiated (and without giving anything away about the plot... sorry folks, if you want a synopsis hit up IMDb or something) this is a proto-slasher with giallo elements that pre-dates both Halloween and Black Christmas. In fact, some have suggested this is the first fully formed example of what the slasher would become, a notion which I'd be hard pressed to disagree with. Though having said that, this is perhaps something of an oversimplification as it still feels somewhat unique... even after seeing ten million movies that came after and used many of the same tropes...

Part of this is, I think, due to the fact that the film is, as I said in my previous post, more complexly structured than most slashers; as I also mentioned before, in this respect it feels more in line with two other American movies of a similar vintage, Let's Scare Jessica to Death and Messiah of Evil, in that all three utilise a flashback framing device with an accompanying voice-over. They also arguably share a similarly doomed, melancholic atmosphere. And add to all this the fact that it sort-of calls forward to a couple of Fulci films (namely The House by the Cemetery and The Beyond) and you have yourself a slasher with an almost singular atmosphere... 

I watched this movie for the first time in early December, and then twice more later in the month. The first two viewings were courtesy of the full-frame copy found in the Mill Creek Chilling Classics 50 movie pack, and the last was via this restored version. 

Now, this new edition isn't exactly revelatory or anything, but it's certainly an improvement... for one, it's nice to now be able to see it in widescreen. There are some segments which still look a bit rough, and there are one or two bits that still display some serious damage... but having said that, I don't think it's anything that will spoil your enjoyment of the movie. And on the flip side, there are plenty of parts which look very clean and free from wear and tear. A mixed bag to be sure but at any rate this is a must buy for slasher and giallo fans, whether you've seen it already or not.

Finally, here's some (spoiler-free) screen-caps from said DVD for your delectation...

Chilling at Christmas: A Six Pack of Christmas Chillers

Despite a recent sustained procrastination binge on the part of yours truly, I can still assure you, constant reader, that I haven't forgotten about gialli and promise you (and you can hold me to this one) that I'll be heading back to Italy early in the New Year...

In the meantime, seeing as it's the season, I figured I'd spend the remainder of 2013's blogging time looking at some creepy Christmas movies, and other assorted goodies. 

To kick off the Yuletide shenanigans, here's some quick capsule reviews of some festive flicks I've checked out recently, the majority of them for the first time... 

Silent Night, Bloody Night (Theodore Gershuny, 1973)

The first of four movies I saw for the first time recently, this was also undoubtedly the best of them. It's got unsung classic written all over it, and I'm kicking myself for not checking it out sooner... thanks are definitely due, as always, to Brad of Yellow Razor for giving me the heads up. I don't want to get too deep into it right now, as I'm currently waiting until I've had chance to check out the recently released 40th anniversary restored DVD of the film, but I'd say it felt almost as though Lucio Fulci somehow snuck into the early 70s American indie movie scene and then proceeded to make a proto-slasher/giallo, with a vibe not dissimilar in parts to both Let's Scare Jessica to Death and Messiah of Evil (it also shares somewhat similar uses of voiceover and flashback framing to both). It's frankly crazy to think this film pre-dates both Halloween and Black Christmas and yet is somehow so seemingly obscure... though I suppose the fact that it's less neatly and simply plotted than either of those better known films may have something to do with it. I'll be returning to this one in the none too distant, when said DVD arrives (which was today as it happens, full review coming soon)... all I'll say for now is this is an absolute must for fans of slashers and gialli.

Silent Night (Steven C. Miller, 2012) 

An extremely loose "remake" of Silent Night, Deadly Night (more on that one very soon...), Silent Night  is at least similar to its progenitor in so far as both have a tone that varies from tongue in cheek to cynical to sombre... something which admittedly makes for an occasionally odd viewing experience, and frankly, it may put off some entirely. Also, I'll admit I'm still a little unclear on some of the finer details of the plot, even after seeing it twice now... but honestly, this is not the sort of movie one should be reading into deeply anyway... just a bit of silly, trashy fun really, but delivers pretty much everything you'd expect from a Yuletide slasher circa 2012 co-starring Malcolm McDowell sort-of channelling Dr. Loomis Mark-II (as in Rob Zombie's Halloween II) and generally giving all that tasty looking multi-coloured scenery a good chewing... and I mean that in the best way possible. 

Silent Night, Deadly Night (Charles E. Sellier, Jr. 1984)

Undoubtedly the most controversial movie on this list, Silent Night, Deadly Night pissed off parents and politicians aplenty when it first appeared. Now, while this movie is far from PC to be fair, and pretty trashy at times (not a criticism of course) if we're honest, one wonders how the hell anyone could ever take this seriously. After watching it a few times now I'd say this is probably a must for fans of slashers and generally off-beat horror flicks, but personally, it's not one I've found to stand up to repeat viewings so well. I can't particularly find many specific faults with it as it's all fairly serviceable really, but as I suggested with the "remake", and even more so here, it's hard to get a proper handle on what kind of tone the makers were going for... that is, sometimes it's transparent when their tongue is in their collective cheek, and other times it's harder to call... though as I also said about the new Silent Night, it'd probably be somewhat foolish to think too long and hard about this one anyway.

Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (Jalmari Helander, 2010)

A feature-length remake of some shorts (which apparently attracted a bit of attention online when they appeared) made by a Finnish advertising firm, Rare Exports is another one that's hard to sum up, as yet again the tone veers sufficiently at times to keep one on their toes, so to speak. If I had to attempt a comparison for the uninitiated, I guess I'd say it's sort of like if you took John Carpenter's The Thing and Home Alone (and probably some other elements too), smashed the scripts together and then shot the results in Finland... as always, I realise that's an absurdly reductive (and somewhat inaccurate) comparison, but it'll suffice for now. At any rate, it's certainly unique and worth checking out at least once... and with its lean running time it never overstays its welcome.

Don't Open Till Christmas (Edmund Purdom, 1984)

This was another new one to me this year... as in I'd never heard of it until last month some time... and holy shit, where has this movie been all my life? Most of the titles we've looked at so far have concerned killer or deadly Santas... but this time around, anyone dressed as the jolly red fat man better watch out themselves! Something of a giallo/slasher hybrid, it's hard to believe this was made both in Britain and by a respected Thespian (though I figure he was a long way from the days of Royal Shakespeare stuff by then, having also appeared in the similarly and wonderfully lurid Pieces a couple of years before). This is by no means a "good" movie, but I give it my highest recommendation nonetheless, especially to slasher fans. I don't really wanna say anymore than that for now though, lest I ruin any of the delightful surprises contained within.

Santa's Slay (David Steiman, 2005)

Ever wondered about the curious fact than Santa is an anagram of Satan? Then this is the movie for you! Though to be fair we could probably say that about a few films on this list... At any rate, this is another, like Don't Open Till Christmas, that's ripe for watching over the festive period with a few friends and a few beers. And more so than any movie I've discussed so far, I'd say you could probably show this to non-horror fans and they'd still get a kick out of it. Furthermore, it'd be a good gateway one for those in their early teens looking to get into some of these "alternative" holiday flicks... i.e. this isn't Gremlins or anything and while it's got its share of gore and carnage, it's never particularly graphic or gruelling. To keep things brief, all I'll say for now is that though I only just watched this for the first time last night, I frankly can't wait to watch it again... like many of these movies it provided a much needed antidote to all the saccharine and sanctimony that's going around this time of year. 

First Impressions: Berberian Sound Studio (Peter Strickland, 2012)

Apologies for the lack of recent updates people... free time and more importantly energy have been in short supply these past few weeks. I haven't forgotten about the yellow stuff and will be getting back to all that in due course, but in the mean time I just wanted to share some of my initial thoughts about a recent British movie I watched for the first time last week, and it just so happens to be heavily concerned with Italian horror cinema...

Sometime during the 1970s, Gilderoy (Toby Jones), a soft-spoken, seemingly sheltered English sound engineer travels to Italy to work on a curiously titled film, The Equestrian Vortex. Upon arriving, he is immediately made to feel ill-at-ease thanks to a chilly reception from the eponymous studio's secretary and an overly warm one (to this rather reserved chap) from his producer and, a bit later on, the director. All this social anxiety and travel-induced discomfort is just a prelude though, as Gilderoy soon discovers when he finally lays eyes on some footage of the film he will be working on. We don't see any of this ourselves, but from the scene descriptions delivered to the performers before each session and the sound effects the Foley artists are creating, it's fairly obvious what sort of movie this is. To offer an admittedly reductive and frankly somewhat inaccurate comparison, it seems like it would be something akin to the crazed, bastard offspring of an unholy union between Dario Argento's Suspiria and Ken Russell's The Devils. 

I really don't know where to begin with this one, and to be honest I'll need to re-watch it before I can start to get a proper handle on it... but nevertheless, I'll attempt to give you my current thoughts. To cut to the chase, I think it's probably a stretch to call this a tribute to Italian horror and gialli. Now don't get me wrong, Strickland and company certainly demonstrate an awareness of and perhaps even a slight appreciation for these movies, but there seems to be much more going on here than mere genre riffing, and one wonders if the makers actually like the films they're referencing or not...

A fairly apt label that has come up quite a few times in reference to Berberian Sound Studio (and one that might even have been banded around it its PR material, if memory serves) is "anti-horror film"... and while that doesn't fully sum up the film either, it certainly strikes at the heart of what I found somewhat troubling about it. In short, it seems to suggest that for the right or wrong people (depending which way you look at it), certain types of films can be potentially destabilising and perhaps even poisonous (a proposition that will no doubt strike a particular nerve with horror fans). Writing these words I realise that sounds potentially hyperbolic, but when you look at what happens to Gilderoy throughout the narrative, this is pretty much exactly what occurs... although past the half-way point and into the third act, the movie seems to go somewhere else entirely... 

As a slight side note, the film reminds me of an equally disturbing book I read a few years back, Flicker by Theodore Roszak, which treads some similar territory. Both are highly recommended to cinephiles and horror fans, but be warned... you'll never be able to watch a film (and especially a horror one) in quite the same way ever again.

As I've suggested, I'm still chewing on and digesting the intellectual/philosophical meat of this film, and I'll most definitely be returning to it when I've had chance to dig a bit deeper. But all this aside, I have to say I think it's undeniably well crafted and acted. Hats off especially to Toby Jones (son of Freddie) for a compelling, believable and highly affecting performance. The man is an extremely prolific character actor and more often seen in supporting roles, but he gets a real chance to shine here... and for me, the sheer strength of his performance really made the movie, though credit is certainly due to all the other artists and technicians who worked on it as well... every element, from direction, through sound design and music to cinematography and production design (and so on) is superlatively handled.

I'm looking forward to revisiting Berberian Sound Studio in the none too distant future so I can hopefully gain some further clarity on the issues I raised earlier. At any rate, film buffs, and especially Italian horror and giallo aficionados should definitely give this a shot, but I'm not sure I'd really recommend it to anyone else. If anyone reading this has seen it, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Halloween Hootenanny - Belated Postscript & Coming Attractions...

Just a quick post to both make sure I can still operate a computer keyboard and also to assure anyone who's checking this blog periodically that I haven't died/been shanghaied etc. 

As with last year's October blogathon, the month just gone was a highly enjoyable ride but also somewhat exhausting (especially by the end), so after Halloween I frankly needed a bit of a break.

Many thanks to everyone who stopped by and read anything/commented etc. And special thanks are especially due to two particularly generous gentlemen. Firstly, to Brad Hogue of Yellow Razor... I am truly in your debt sir; last month's 'thon would have been vastly different and no doubt much less interesting without your assistance. And secondly to Kevin J. Olson of Hugo Stiglitz Makes Movies for organising the Italian Horror Blogathon (click here to find links to all of Kevin's own contributions)... I had a blast tagging along and am looking forward to next year's already, so thank you for taking the time to oversee the proceedings again. If y'all haven't already, head on over to Kevin's site and check out the veritable cornucopia of Italian horror goodness posted by him, yours truly and many other fine bloggers. 

I'll be returning with a proper post sometime in the next few days, and perhaps unsurprisingly, it looks like I'll be staying in Italy for another couple of weeks. I went on a complete giallo bender for the best part of a week at the beginning of this month (which is one of the other reasons I haven't posted), so I've got quite a few notes that now need writing up. But before I get to those, yet on the same subject, I'll finally be covering the second part of my Italian Horror/Giallo Double Dayer moviethon (click here for part one).

So to get us all in the mood, here's some random pictures of some good ole' genre staples... and for all the J&B pictures I'm indebted to the J&B in the Movies webpage... I swear, this stuff probably has even more screen credits than most prolific actors and actresses!