Sleepaway Camp Screening Tonight at Midnight

Scary Film Review (ME) and my new girlfriend Amanda will be at the midnight showing of Sleepaway Camp tonight at midnight! If you are in the Los Angeles Area, you have to show up. Not to meet me or my lovely lady, but rather to watch one of the best 80's camp horror movies ever made. I have no idea who the special guest will be, but it should be fun. I have my tickets, do you?

It should be noted that I am NOT affiliated with the performance in any way, but I know there has to be someone out there in the Los Angeles area that wants to get in on this madness with me and my friends.

I'm sure there are a million other things to do than to see a 30 year old movie, but come on, you know you want to see this? I know I will be there, popcorn and soda in hand. Or at least the hand of my beloved....nevermind.

NUART
1272 Santa Monica Boulevard, just west of the 405 Freeway
West Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 281-8223

Sleepaway Camp
July 29, 2011
11:59 PM
W/ Special Guests TBD

The Dead and the Damned Review

Have you ever seen a movie where the company you see it with is far better than the movie itself? This happened to me during my viewing of this film. The production company sent me The Dead and the Damned, and wow, it wasn’t half bad upon first glance, but it wouldn’t be the greatest movie told, especially as the story and plot unfolded. I do recommend seeing horror movies with a woman, especially one that is lovely enough to put up with bad cinema, I am very blessed to have found someone willing and cheery about watching such a film.

The movie opens with a gunfight, and immediately starts to get on my nerves. The unfortunate part about the film is that they use cg blood throughout. It’s painfully obvious that they aren’t using real blood effects, which plagues the production and visualizations during the scenes here and throughout the zombie scopes.

The Wild West is no place for zombies, and that’s what we see as the film progresses. There are a few plot points, mainly dealing with a bounty hunter searching his next bounty. This sequence, the journey to the bounty, the process of getting bait, and traveling is painstakingly shown in what seems like slow motion. There are a lot of points in this film that have no dialogue, and despite the “Western” theme, the music is modern, rock, and samples that just seem way too forced.

The good stuff starts amidst the bounty being taken, as a weird rock emits a gas that turns everyone in a small mining town into flesh eaters. The zombies are fast, relatively dumb, and range from insane to smart. They go down differently than some zombies. At one point a zombie is punched in the face, and that kills him…yep!

As far as zombie movies go, this is a lackluster attempt to capitalize on the genre. However, mixing western with horror is great, and there are some great points with the cinematography in tact. I liked the locales, and liked a few of the shots, but the whole monologue section between the Indian and the cowboy just seemed forced, and with no flash back type frame set, the character building seemed tired.

The Dead and the Damned was not a great movie by any stretch, and is one of my least favorite zombie films. However, the director and writers tried their hand at a unique slice of horror pie. I for one, at least watch the whole thing, and it was made a little better by my amazing friend, that sat with me through this, and made me popcorn too. She’s dreamy, this film is not.

Mad Dog Killer Review

Beast With A Gun is the original name of this film, and I only saw it because the tag line said, “The Most Violence You Can Shove into 90 Minutes possible”. I wrestled with this film, and even was talked out of it by a video store clerk last week, but it turns out this one is worth checking out. It’s often found called The Mad Dog Killer and it is quite interesting, although less horrific as the movie and plot unfold.

The basis of the film is simple, four killers escape from prison and go on a crime spree of murder, rape and more. The rape seen is odd, awkward, and hits you hard up front, like many other exploitation films from 1970’s. However, there is one man that has the villains number, one rogue inspector that is not going to take any guff.

Helmut Berger stars and he really takes the role seriously, looking badass throughout the entire film. He is of course thwarted by Richard Harrison, playing a inspector who knows martial arts and isn’t going to take any kind of crap from the villain.

The acting is alright, nothing too bad here. The film is dated, and terribly dated in some spots, but the plot moves forward so fast, that all things are worth while here. It’s a straight forward Cop exploitation film, with the majority of the parts dealing with the villains and their extreme violence, knocking over places, killing, and the opening rape scene that will leave some numb and others scratching their head. The ending of the film resembles a kung fu movie far more than anything else, and is quite interesting to follow, if only for the visual aesthetics of the villain getting taken out in martial arts fashion by this random white guy.

Did I just give away the ending?

But wait there’s more!

No, not really. This film is cool, I liked it. It’s not slick, it’s not impressive, it just kept my attention somehow, far more than most, and that’s always a plus. You can pick up this film from a variety of sources, and most are under the name Mad Dog Killer.

Support this blog by buying Mad Dog Killer here.

Martyrs Review

Ah yes, modern horror, it’s so random to see good pieces of horror in the modern era. I can count on my hands how many films I’ve seen that have been good from modern times. Then again, I’ve reviewed a lot of bad movies on this site from yesteryear, so maybe I’m just tired. This 2008 horror film that was produced by the French is one of the most brutal pieces of film making I’ve seen in a while. The film I will try to review, because we all know I’m a terrible reviewer is Martyrs.

The film begins with a creepy scene, a woman is running from what appears to be a prison or a warehouse and she has been terribly abused from the looks of it. When placed in an orphanage our heroine meets a friend, and the two friends have a weird kind of relationship. The movie turns quickly into a revenge plot with identity crisis thrown into the mix. Lucie (the opening victim) finds the people that did her wrong and with the help of Anna goes through a killing spree of epic proportions. This type of brutality and gore is sick, and sometimes just uncalled for. The problem I had with it was not so much how graphic the film was, but rather how there was the use of a “demon” that was only visible by one of the girls. I didn’t know what to make of that part of the film, and actually felt a bit odd about the whole thing.

As the scenario progresses a secret room is found and alongside the underground of this home are lines of chambers with women that are disfigured and bloody, abused and sickening. I couldn’t believe that the film took this sort of turn because it seemed to have ended with the aforementioned revenge plot. As the film continues Anna becomes the latest subject in what seems to be an insane experiment, and we get treated to more gore the likes that Hostel 2 wouldn’t even know what to do with.

The ending left me stupefied, and I was ready to hit the television. I didn’t like the stupid ending and the use of gore to prove that there is some sort of scary side of dying. Oh right, the last sequence was cool, I won’t give it away, but there is a message to the film that really plays with your head to the point where you’re going to wonder why you saw what you saw, and what the message truly is. I’m assuming Alex Jones would love the ending because he would twist it to say that is exactly what the New World Order and Illuminati are doing.

Martyrs is the hardest hitting movie I’ve seen in a long time. It seriously tore the house down with gore, sick and punishing gore, revenge, and all from a female perspective. Not since “Run Bitch Run” have I cheered so much for the women in the film. But after all the cheering, the movie takes one of the most sinister turns, making it a sick and twisted journey of the mind. The final credits were disturbing, and well, the film does pack one hell of a punch. I couldn’t believe I missed this one, and you’ll most likely enjoy it. They are making a remake of this one, so look out for water downed American version from the guys that brought you Twilight. Otherwise, wow, what a sick movie, a sure winner for Scary Film Review, that’s for sure.

The Netflix Scare

I went through it, many of you probably went through it as well. The Netflix scare! They are adding up the prices to the simple streaming plans, and it can cost an arm and a leg for some.

My first reaction was to cancel it.

Then I did some thinking, and I realized that I need their services to run this blog and that the ad revenue from this blog is just enough to pay for it.

So with that in mind, I have a couple of requests:

1. Patronize the Sponsor - If you are going to buy horror movie t-shirts please buy them from the Horror Shop links. I don't have any other sponsors right now, but I'm always on the look out.

2. Links - If you have a site, and you want to buy a link, you can do so at a low price.

3. Requests - Send me your requests! I decided to upgrade my Netflix account to 3 at a time, so I am going to deliver far more reviews than ever before, so please throw some ideas at me.

And now, back to your regularly scheduled program.

Retroactive Review

This post has been bought/sold for an upcoming Time Travel book, sorry folks.

Sleepaway Camp Midnight Screening July 29 Join Scary Film

Scary Film Review, The Smoking Siren, and possibly Little Dee Dee Ramone will be live and in person in line at the Sleepaway Camp Midnight Screening on July 29th 2011! If you or anyone of your idiot friends wants to meet me, or just wants to watch the film, you have to get your tickets. I am not sure who is the special guest, but the Nuart in Los Angeles is going to be having a special guest tbd, I'm banking on the star of the film, others are banking on the director, I just know it's going to be sick!

It should be noted that I am NOT affiliated with the performance in any way, but I know there has to be someone out there in the Los Angeles area that wants to get in on this madness with me and my friends.

Here's the info, and I'll put up a reminder later in the month. DO NOT MISS THIS! You can meet me, bug me, yell at me, hug me, and if you're single maybe date me. But even better you can see Sleepaway Camp in a full film print with surround sound in one of the finest midnight theaters in Los Angeles! Come on!

NUART
1272 Santa Monica Boulevard, just west of the 405 Freeway
West Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 281-8223

Sleepaway Camp
July 29, 2011
11:59 PM
W/ Special Guests TBD

Tickets are on sale now, just visit the Nuart Site.

If you buy tickets and are going, email me sirjorge AT gmail dot com and let me know, and we can meet up and shake hands, and for you single ladies, what's up?!?!

Anyways, it should be a great night full of horror nostalgia with one of my personal favorite movies.

Robo Vampire Review

Can Kung fu and horror mix well? The answer is an emphatic YES! This classic take on the mythos of vampirism takes a whole new meaning when in the hands of a kung fu director. Mixing elements of both exploitation and kung fu genres, this film mash up creates quite the compelling entry into the reviews of this site. Robo Vampire might be the best thing I’ve seen in a long time, and that’s saying a lot, because I see so much it’s ridiculous.

Vampires are the focal point of the film, as a heroin trade is relying heavily on the undead zombie like creatures to transport the drugs. But when law enforcement teams up with vigilantes a Robotic Vampire is created and he’s badass. Think of Robocop but Asian and less graphically and mechanically designed.

The film is quite interesting with a wide variety of different themes. The majority of the film is spent going through different spots where drugs are being transported, and then mixed in are fight scenes with either zombie vampires or robots. The martial arts is not great, the editing is poor, and the dubbing? Well the dubbing is not a whole lot better.

The movie is presented in Widescreen and the transfer is not half bad. There are some comical moments, and some random scenes of swimming in a pond or lake for no apparent reason. The movie really has a lackluster sense of plotting, and really gest tiring after a while. Despite the second act being laughable and even close to soft-core, the rest of the film has enough merit to mention.



The vampires, zombies and robotic elements create a unique spin on the classic vampire tale. Voodoo is introduced at one point, which is mixed with a magic set of kung fu weapons. The third act is confusing, and at one point the main characters are flying around, and just starting to throw out all the stops. I didn’t mind it, I liked being mindlessly entertained, and this film has a little bit of everything. It’s two movies with separate plots thrown together to make an interesting title somewhat feasible. I don’t know if I would recommend this film to everyone, but for my money, Robo Vampire is the best of both horror and kung fu…even if it does lack in the pacing, and editing, and well…plot. Who cares, I loved it.

P.S. Yes, I am well aware that this 1980's film is a complete rip off of Robo Cop, but do I care? Nope!

Seven Deaths In The Cat's Eye Review

Aw yes, another cool cover gets thrown at me by the horror dvd market, and what happens? I end up missing out on something else, because I believe the tag lines and promotional things on the cover. Seven Deaths In The Cat’s Eye is not fun, it’s a boring romp through a variety of different points. I’ve seen a lot of movies, and this one is probably one of the slowest ones I’ve seen.

In 1973 this movie might have been a good idea, and Antonio Margheriti directed this movie about a small village where a cat controls the deaths of anyone that comes by a castle. The cat haunts the area, killing anybody that moves through the area, and alas, horror movie fans have to watch and wait for the ending. It’s sad, such a cool cover for such a boring movie.

The pacing is slow. The visuals are just substandard, and while I like the music, editing, and idea of the film, it really does leave me with a sense of time wasted. Once again, As it is, another bad movie gets the unroyal treatment here. I understand why this could be in the horror genre, and I understand why it can be seen as a good movie, but I just can’t get behind it. I’ve seen far better from the same decade from the same area (Italy) and dare I say, from the same director. If you can withstand the pacing, you might like this one, otherwise, stay away.