Notable Cast: Jimmy
Wang Yu, Chin Ping, Ivy Ling Po, Lo Lieh, Petrina Fung Bo Bo
After finally finishing one
whole movie by watching two whole
movies to start off this series (you can read my reviews for the first film Temple of the Red Lotus and for the
second film The Twin Swords at the
links provided for further explanation on that remark), I was ready for this
third one to finish things off. The Sword
and the Lute is, in its own way, the most complete film of the series as it
can stand on its own as an entry without relying fully on the previous films.
This makes it already better than the other two just in concept, but (and this
is unfortunate) it also happens to still be a rather mixed bag of execution.
It’s not nearly as in depth and complicated emotionally as Temple and it lacks the relentless fun of Twin Swords, but it does ride as a combination of the two. It works
as your basic wuxia flick and doesn’t really rise too much above that.
“This is war. It is
like war. A solider fires, the good Lord carries the bullets.”
Going into a film blind can be an adventure in itself. While
the director of The Strange Case of Dr.
Jekyll and Miss Osbourne was more or less known for his work in the French
erotic film industry of the 70s and not for horror, I attempted to go into this
cult film with an open mind. There had to be a reason that Arrow Video went to
extensive lengths with their original negative scanning for this latest
release. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll
and Miss Osbourne (which I will refer to as Jekyll from here on out because I worry about the finger fatigue
that repeatedly typing the full title will bring on) is a film that takes a
rather dream like approach to the simplistic spin on the classic tale of dual
identity and the blend of artistic moments and the exploitative horror is
impressive to say the least.
It’s the celebratory dinner for the engagement of Dr. Jekyll (Kier)
and Miss Osbourne (Pierro), a couple very much in love and ready for the next step of
their lives and all of the big guests are invited. Scientific colleagues, a
priest, a general, it’s going to be a small, but grand affair. That is until an
unexpected guest going by the name of Mr. Hyde (Zalcberg) shows up – and the body count
starts to rise.
Based on the basic synopsis of the film, one could very well
make the assumption that Jekyll is a
straight up slasher film. It certainly has all the right ingredients to be of
the slasher genre: plentiful and creative kills, a confined and isolated setting,
nudity/sexual elements, and a unique and memorable killer. In many ways, Jekyll is the kind of film that really
boils itself down to being a Mr. Hyde itself with a script that includes barbaric and
abrasive animal like elements that borderline the exploitation tag. They even
throw in poison tipped arrows that will obviously be used for at least one death
sequence later down the line, it’s that slasher-ish. This is partnered with a
rather erotic streak for the movie that’s manifested by Mr. Hyde using sexual
acts to kill a handful of his victims.
While The Strange Case
of Dr. Jekyll and Miss Osbourne is not an easy film to consume with a first
act that tends to drag a bit and a case of some irritating plot holes (why isn’t
anyone really trying to get outside help?), the resulting mix of artistic
execution and horrific foundations make for a truly unique film experience. I’ve
seen a ton of adaptions of this classic tale, but none of them affected me
quite like this one did. Perhaps it was going into the film blind, but Jekyll is a wild ride for a horror film
and quite deserving of its cult standing – and the utterly beautiful new
release.
Written By Matt Reifschneider
Pick up one of the best best restorations of the year for one of the biggest cult films of all time at the link below!
“Satan’s Blade” is one of the many films from my childhood
that I remember drawing me in on the video store shelf due to its eerie cover
artwork of a devilish figure clutching a dagger. Being a child of the video
store generation I knew that a majority of the time cover artwork was far better
than the film lurking behind the cardboard sleeve and that is especially true
with “Satan’s Blade” as it is not only a turd of a Slasher film but one of
the worst slasher films I have ever seen.
The film opens with a lesbian couple robbing a bank,
brutally killing the two tellers and driving up into the snowcapped mountains
to hide out in a ski lodge. They end up being murdered by an unseen killer.
Jump ahead to a husband and wife couple and a group of young women renting side-by-side
sky lodges, one happening to be of the afore mentioned murder and according to
the dialogue, a murder that occurred 14
years prior. Of course they too become the target of our knife clutching
stalker.
The non-existent plot could be workable for a slasher film
if writer/director/producer L. Scott Castillo Jr. had any idea on how to make a
film. His pedestrian directing is bland with poor shot setups and even the boom
mike poking its way into the picture on multiple occasions. Also the film has
literally 3 locations: the sky lodge, the check-in counter and the bank. This
mixed with the sapless dialogue is guaranteed to cause utter boredom. Our two
leading men constantly talking about passing the bar exam seriously almost pushed
me over the edge into pure insanity and made me wonder if this film was ever
used in foreign countries as a substitute for waterboarding torture.
Is there anything to keep this film from me giving it a zero
blood drop rating? Well the synthesizer score is nostalgic, not particularly
good, but it brought back good memories of 80s flicks and a short dream sequence
a half hour in is rather creepy (though it really has no relevance to the plot).
I also somewhat dug the supernatural twist to the plot, and though it may be a
laughable, it at least tried to do something different from others in the genre
(the Excalibur “lady in the lake” sequence is especially hilarious).
This incredibly low budget slasher is rarely talked about
and there is a reason… it fucking blows. Everything from the directing, the
acting to the writing is absolutely the lowest common-denominator of filmmaking. There's not even a gore quotent to help keep attention. Though shot on 35mm for theatrical release, the film ended on debuting on video
to rot on video store rental shelves where it belonged. The production quality
and all around effort of the output reminds me of shot-on-video tape slashers
ala “Boardinghouse” and “Sledgehammer”… yes it literally sucks that bad. “Satan’s
Blade” made its unwelcome debut on DVD and Blu-ray from a small time new
company called “Slasher // Video” and they did a tremendous job cleaning the
film up. Still it proves no matter how much you polish a turd, it still smells
like shit.
Every once in a blue moon a DVD/Blu release of a film I have
been dying to see escapes my radar. One of such film was of the 1979 World War
II critical and financial bomb “Escape to Athena” which was finally released on
DVD back in July thanks to Hen’s Tooth Home Video but escaped me until last
week. Being an avid fan of Roger Moore, Telly Savalas, World War II, 70s
Cinema, and viewing anything/everything that was a box office bomb I had to
make this part of my collection. Like expected it was a lesser WWII film entry
but definitely not worthy of all the shit that piled on it by the public and
critics back in 1979.
The plot is simple, prisoners of war on a Greek island archeological
dig (over seen by Nazi Roger Moore) team up with an underground rebel resistance
army to take down a covert Nazi hideout and perhaps plunder some treasure along the way – very typical of films of this genre.
I love all-star casts and the cast is superb and diverse
here, including but not limited to Roger “James Bond” Moore, Telly “Kojack”
Savalas, Richard “Shaft” Roundtree, David Nivan and Elliot Gould. However many
of the cast members are hopelessly miscast and none-more than Roger Moore as
our Nazi camp commandant. He is just wishy-washy in the role, neither
threatening nor likeable. Sonny Bono’s Italian chef, Richard Roundtree’s
soldier, Michael Sheard’s sergeant and Telly Savalas’ rebel resistance leader
are all low brow caricatures and nothing to set them apart from other
characters in the genre. Elliot Gould however shines as a civilian USO
entertainer whose plane gets shot down and unwittingly ends up in the POW camp.
Other than conventional characters and miscasting, another
problem director George P. Casmatos (“Rambo: First Blood Part II”) has is he
can’t seem to make up his mind to make this comedy or action/adventure WWII
yarn. It starts off slow with emphasis on comedy and later on becomes a full
blown action flick with impressive sequences towards the end. But even the good
action sequences are predictable and seem to copy-cat other films of the ilk.
“Escape from Athena” is an offbeat war film, I will give it
that, and it is well made with gutsy camera shots (shown by the opening title
sequence), exotic Greek island locals and a rousing score by Lalo Schifrin but
the filmmakers can’t make up their minds on the tone of the film and seem
desperately to take bits and pieces of superior WWII pictures like “The Guns of
Navarone”, “Kelly’s Heroes” and “The Great Escape” and mix them to no avail. Is
it as bad as people made it out to be on its release? No, but it does have more
than its fair share of flaws but should appease fans looking for a World War II
flick that’s a little different.
Notable Cast: Jo
Shishido, Tatsuya Fuji, Jiro Okazaki, Takashi Kanda, Hideaki Nitani, Ken
Sanders, Tamaki Sawa, Yoko Yamamoto
Arrow Video Features:
* Limited Edition Blu-ray (3000 copies only)
* Restored High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD
presentation, on Blu-ray for the first time in the world!
* Original uncompressed mono PCM audio
* Newly translated English subtitles
* Brand new interview with star Jo Shishido
* Interview with renowned critic and historian Tony Rayns
* Original theatrical trailer
* Gallery featuring rare promotional images
* Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Ian MacEwan
* Booklet featuring new writing on the film by Japanese cinema expert Jasper
Sharp, newly illustrated by Ian MacEwan and featuring original archive stills
Reversible cover artwork on the Blu Ray.
If there is anything to be said about Arrow Video making its
way to US shores, it’s that it will be introducing some delightful rare treats
to a whole set of new eyes. Among those is the rather rare work of director
Yasuharu Hasebe. While he was predominately known for his later work in the ‘violent
pink’ genre that garnered just as much ire as it did acclaim in the world of
genre films, Arrow Video deemed it fit to bring over one of his earlier yakuza
films, Massacre Gun, beautifully
restored for the first time on Blu Ray. Now most US residents are at least somewhat
familiar with the film noir style popularized by gangster and detective films of
the 40s and 50s. However, Japan had its fair share of success with the style
for a brief stint and films like Massacre
Gun are the pinnacle of what they had to offer. It’s drenched in atmosphere
with plenty of torn characters, bluesy tones, and bursts of violence to make it
a true underground gem.
Kuroda (Shishido) is assigned by his yakuza boss to execute
his lover. After the fact, a state of apathy towards his position in life is
fueled into rebellion by his brash brothers and the three of them look to start
an all-out war with the gangsters. Those caught in the way may not survive
their vengeance.
It's the smoky atmosphere...
If there is any one word to really describe Massacre Gun, I would be tempted to say
it’s ‘efficient.’ The film is subtle in its world building with the three
brothers and their various plots within the larger confines of the yakuza war
that is escalating, but running at a sparse 89 minutes Massacre Gun is all about keeping the plot, dialogue, and action
cut and dry on the base level. Rarely does the plot over-complicate itself with
needless side characters or subplots that are left hanging by the end of the
movie and it’s this sort of simplicity that allows director Hasebe and his
impressive cast to build a lot of nuance into the film. The twists of the film
are simple (and often time fairly predictable), but it’s the execution of these
beats that makes it so effective.
"I'd but the red wire, but it's all black and white!"
If there were a second word for Massacre Gun, I would follow up that
first one with ‘melancholic.’ Despite the fact that there are bursts of
violence in the movie, particularly in the explosive and violent third act with
its western inspired showdown on an unfinished highway complete with barrels
and blowing debris, the film remains well grounded in an atmospheric forlorn
state of regret for ghosts of the past. The film is driven by the oldest
brother of the trio played with a heavy sadness by Jo Shishido who just happens
to own a smoky blues and jazz bar that remains one of the major sets for the
film. While he is countered by one hot tempered brother who lives in the moment
(manically portrayed by Tatsuya Fuji) and an aspiring and decently naïve boxer (Jiro
Okazaki), the film retains a sort of suffocating atmosphere of missed
opportunities and a future that’s as grey as possible in a film crafted in
gorgeous monochrome. In a shockingly artistic way, the three brothers represent
the past, present, and future and it makes for some very unique character
interactions to build the atmosphere. All of this is hammered home by a
stunning score of blues and jazz music that’s perfectly set to punctuate the feeling
of any particular scene whether it’s an almost dialogue free assassination
scene to kick off the film or the eerily empty scoreless sound of the final
shootout.
Sharp shooter.
Granted, Massacre Gun
isn’t the kind of film for everyone. It’s slower pace for the first two-thirds
might seem a bit too slow for a lot of modern audiences and there is a sort of
overzealous dramatic flair to some of the characters that might seem a bit
cheesy to those not necessarily familiar with the film noir genre or its
various off shoots. However, if you are a cinephile looking for a film caked in
atmosphere with plenty of gangster warfare and deep thoughtful
characters then look no further than this long missed Hasebe classic.
Written By Matt Reifschneider
You need Massacre Gun in your collection. Immediately. Rectify this by picking up one of the limited amount of copies at the link below.
Director: Hsu Cheng
Hung
