The Prowler -aka- Rosemary's Killer 1981

Joseph Zito 'takes the path of least resistance' and delivers us something of an overrated plodding bug, but, we still mange to love it for all the right reasons. Of course, I'm speaking of Tom Savini's wonderful gore f/x. I guess Tom really did learn something in between fucking.

We start off in the early 40's with a girl named Rosemary who's writing a 'Dear John' letter to her boyfriend who happens to be away at war. Old Rose just can't seem to wait on him anymore and decides to cut his only lifeline, leaving him broken hearted. (Probably hoping he would incidently get caught in one of those 'blitzkreigs)

Well, the war ends. The good old boyfriend evidently survived, and is EXTREMELY angry. While the town holds a 'welcome home' party for the soldiers, 'mad Army man' finds 'backstabbing-bitch-girlfriend', and her 'Fuck him, I'll kill him too' lover making love outside in the dark. Of course, he does the only logical thing and shoves a pitchfork through the both of them.

Thirty-five years later, the same town is holding a party for a bunch of college graduates. I'll bet someone in an Army uniform (probably equipped with a pitchfork) will show up and pretend human bodies are hay.

All this sounds fairly good. And it is, but, it all happens within the first twenty minutes. The remainder of the movie features our two main leads (one who just so happpens to be named 'Rosemary'. hmmmm) plod around the area turning up clues as to who stalking the place. It really never elevates itself throughout the whole running time. It's kind of like a pair of pants that come half way down on your ass....you keep pulling them up, but they fall right back down, until eventually, they're around your ankles and everyone sees those zits on your ass. 'The Prowler' is what it is...one big zit that wants to pop, but there's just not enough pus in the corral to create the pressure.

All isn't lost. As I mentioned earlier, the f/x by Tom Savini are great. I wanted to like 'The Prowler' more than I do at this point. It has a sub-level of tension that barely allows you to stay awake through the film. It's painfully obvious who the killer is. Nevertheless, 'The Prowler' is one of those must see flicks if you're a fan of 70's-80's slashers. It's essential viewing. I think a lot of people have glamourized 'The Prowler' due to the special f/x - and the fact that it made the infamous Video Nasties list in the UK. Joseph Zito gave us a little more oomph with Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter in 1984, however.

So, what to do? Hell, don't as me.

Why, Cropsy? Why?

Wow, it's been over two months since my last post. I don't know why, really. I guess it could be described as lack of inspiration - but, I've managed to keep watching horror films and aimlessly waste my time in some way or another. So, in essence, nothing has changed.

The dog days of summer are haunching the legs of millions Americans - causing them to itch, whine, and bitch about how hot it is outside. It's the perfect weather to stay indoors and watch slasher movies. Imagine how Cropsy feels out there in that summer heat at Camp Blackfoot. The guy's smoldering anyway - ever since being the victim of a kids prank that left him charred from head to toe.




Old Cropsy can't seem to let things die, and his temper is hot. He's got a burning desire to get back at the kids who turned him into a roasted duck.(Not to be confused with Fulci's 'quacking' duck) The skin grafts at the hospital didn't take. No. No luck there. A proto-Freddy Kruger? Maybe?

C'mon, Cropsy! It's been five years since your accident. This group of kids had absolutely nothing to do with your little 'explosion' all those years back. Just leave 'em alone! I see there's no talking Cropsy out of sharpening his garden shears and stalking the camp once again. He knows Jason usually does the camp stalking, but he feels it necessary to prove a point.





Anyway, Cropsy kills. He does a little thing called the 'raft massacre' - Which is one of the most brutal scenes is slasher movie history. Tom Savini flaunts his stuff and catches another STD behind the scenes. There's George Costanza with hair, alongside the Fast Times At Ridgemont High nerd. There's a couple pairs of tits and a few asses. Yeah, we're doing good aren't we?

Great gore. Great score. Great atmosphere. Wonderful setting. Everything that makes a slasher movie a slasher movie. You can't call yourself George Costanza.

R.I.P. BRUNO MATTEI

As posted by the IMDB.

Bruno Mattei

Date of Birth

30 July 1931, Rome, Italy

Date of Death

21 May 2007, Ostia, Rome, Italy. (cancer)

Birth Name

Bruno Mattei

Mini Biography

Born in 1931, Bruno Mattei grew up in Rome, Italy where his father owned a small film editing studio. At age 20, Mattei started working odd jobs at his father's company as his assistant, then on to other small spots. Mattei wanted to follow in his father's footsteps as a film editor. Mattei found himself working as an editor for a number of directors whom included Roberto Bianchi Montero and Nick Nostro. Mattei claimed to have edited over 100 films in the 1960s and early 1970s.

After working with famed Spanish director Jess Franco, Mattei made his debut as a director with the drama, Armida, il dramma di una sposa (1970) under the alias Jordon B. Matthews. Mattei eventually had more pseudonyms then any working director in the world. He returned to editing before making another comeback in 1976 with two Nazi World War II exploitation films, Womens Camp 119 and SS Girls, both low-budget action dramas. Mattei followed this taboo-transgressing films with excursions into porno films and mondo "shockumentaries" all directed under his many pseudos. Concentrating on "shock value" with Mondo Erotico (1977), Libiodomania (1979) and Libidomania 2 (1980) to name a few. Always on the lookout for new exploitation, Mattei followed with "nunexploitation", with The True Story of the Nun of Monza (1980) a soft-core sex film, and The Other Hell (1980) a violent-sex thriller. Both of them involved a partnership with writer/director Claudio Fragasso who helped Mattei write and direct the back-to-back productions.

Starting under yet another alias, Vincent Dawn, Mattei directed _Virus (1981)_ (Hell of the Living Dead), a low-budged zombie horror picture inspired by other zombie cannibal movies such as Dawn of the Dead (1978) and Lucio Fulci's Zombie (1979) which was filmed in Spain with used jungle footage from New Guinea and a patch soundtrack from Goblins' Dawn of the Dead music, which was a minor hit in Italy and abroad.

After directing two women's prison films, starring Laura Gemser, Mattei moved to directing sword-and-sorcery flicks starting with _Seven Magnificent Gladiators, The (1983)_ . Both Mattei and Fragasso collaborated on the sci-fi/horror flick Rats - Notte di terrore (1984), inspired from the futuristic movies of the early 1980s which Mattei considers his best work despite working still with a low-budget. Mattei worked relentlessly through the 1980s with directing a pair of Spaghetti Westerns, some action flicks, and about half of Zombi 3 (1988) after Lucio Fulci was taken off production, though Mattei was not credited with directing it.

In the early 1990s, Mattei directed a series of erotic thrillers and a made-for-TV movie Cruel Jaws (1995) (TV) which was inspired by Steven Spielberg's own 1975 hit, 'Jaws'. Most recently, Mattei continues to direct with more than 50 Italian films to his credit. Though some people consider his films to be cheap, insipid, and technically inept from their low budgets and poor production values, Mattei remains an influential cult film director around the world for his radical filmmaking and willingness to direct anything new with any new taboo-breaking topic.

IMDb Mini Biography By:

Trivia

He is referred to in some circles as "The Italian Ed Wood" due to his constant usage of stock footage, soundtrack borrowing, bad acting and silly dialog within his productions.

Bruno Mattei is known for being a hack, but, true is true. The guy has given us a load full of cheese to ingest throughout his life. He will be missed.

TCM Interview (Paul Partain)

TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE PAUL PARTAIN



About four years ago, I got a chance to ask Paul Partain (Franklin - TCM) a few questions. You can also find the interview on Justin Kerswell's great slasher site, Hysteria-Lives.co.uk. It's a shame we lost Paul to that dreaded 'C' word in 2005. He'll be greatly missed. I'm honored I got a chance to hear his thoughts about his role in one of the scariest films of all time.

Lunchmeat: First of all Mr. Partain, I wanna thank you for following through with the interview.

Paul: My pleasure.

Lunchmeat: Texas Chainsaw Massacre is probably on everybody's top 10 list. It is definitely in mine.

Paul: E network says TCM is the #1, most recognizable title in the world. Even more recognizable than Debbie Does Dallas or Gone With The Wind.

Lunchmeat: As funny as it may sound, when I mention the film TCM to people who have already seen it, they always seem to bring up your character instead of Leatherface.
That sounds funny? Can’t imagine why. Leatherface was a big goober who never uttered a word. He merely grunted once or twice, wore his costume well and mostly didn’t drop the chainsaw.

Lunchmeat: I know you probably have been asked this before, but can you maybe give us a little insight on how you were chosen for the part of Franklyn?

Paul: I am more than happy to tell you all I know about it. Quite simply, I auditioned and auditioned and auditioned. The very first I heard about the project was from a lady at Theatre Unlimited, a dinner theater in Austin where I spent most of my free time acting or working on any crew that would have me. I now know they were reading mostly to fill the Hitchhiker role and indeed, that is the role I went to audition for. Alan Danziger had worked with Tobe Hooper on his prior feature, Eggshells, and Alan was pretty solidly cast as Jerry before I got there. Marilyn had locked up the Sally role, Jim was on board for the Father (He’s just the cook) and that left the Hitchhiker, Kirk, Pam and Franklin. Deciding on Kirk and Pam, as I recall, seemed to go rather quickly. There were several good looking pairs of “university age” actors to pick from and in listening to the readings and seeing who was read over and over again it seemed to me that Bill and Terri had a good shot at getting their parts after the first audition. As I mentioned, I went to the audition to try for Hitchhiker (I was told they were looking for a weird and crazy kind of guy….I can be weird and crazy, so why not). Although I am, and was even at that tender age, the world’s greatest actor, Hitchhiker was not for me and I found myself reading the parts that fed the lines to the actors who were reading for Hitchhiker, mainly our buddy, Franklin. Now, at this time, I had no way of knowing that Tobe and Kim had a friend of theirs in mind to play Franklin and that the part was all but cast. As the auditions went on and on, I found myself growing into the Franklin role and understanding him more and more and I think that Tobe and Kim were liking the directions I was taking Franklin in the readings, so they kept asking me to come back. One day, they decided, and viola, there it is, Franklin was forever wedded to Paul Partain.



Lunchmeat: The thing that I love about 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" is the gritty, docu-style approach in which it was filmed. Many of the scenes actually looked real. It seems as if I heard somewhere that you guys went through some pretty rough extremes to complete some portions of the film. I'm just curious....what were some of the most grueling moments during the filming of 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'?

Paul: Grueling? Surely you jest. I am a native Texan. Born and bred in heat and sizzle of the Llano Estacato. I thrive on rolling around the state in 100degree temperatures in an unairconditoned econovan with seven other sweating persons, chewing on raw sausage because some twit of a production assistant didn’t know she was supposed to buy the cooked kind. Grueling? Nay. Hot, yes. Add thousands of watts of light to an already hot dry windless set filled with decaying chicken bones and other pleasant set decorations and you have Gonzo Film Making! Could have been worse. I could have been in Tobe’s shoes, hanging upside down from the rafters in all of that trying to get just the right camera angle. Or I could have been one of the crew members enduring the same stuff as the cast, but unable at times to even breathe, finding that the back side of the lights gets damned hot and you have to move them to set up for the next shot and even if they cool down to room ambient, they are still above 100 degrees. I digress… There is a good line from a Johnny Rodriguez song that goes “ …yea it’s hot down in Texas,..but I call this my home. If I ain’t happy here, I ain’t happy nowhere…” Note to all northerners…if you can’t stand the heat. stay the hell out of Texas.




Lunchmeat: Excuse me if this question is a little personal, but there is this little rumor that you and co-star Marilyn Burns (Sally Hardesty) didn't see eye to eye on some things during the making of the film. Can you maybe give us a little insight on this?

Paul: You should never listen to rumors. The two roles were written to have that sibling rivalry going on. When Marilyn and I were on the set we were working. There was not a lot of downtime and chances for interaction. I think you should go back to your source and question that information. Remember, the good guys and the bad guys were separated throughout the filming so if you heard a story about the bad guys from one of the good guys question it. Same goes for the bad guys spreading rumors about things they were never in a position to know anything about. Marilyn and I happen to be friends. We had worked together on a film the winter before Chainsaw. Be careful what rumors you choose to repeat. Big difference between actors being in character and staying in character and the personal interaction or lack thereof that may or may not be witnessed by an outsider. Anyway, Franklin, on the set was supposed to be a whiny bastard and that is exactly what Franklin was…Paul Partain ain’t like that.….phbttttttt! so there!



Lunchmeat: In my opinion you had some of the best 'dialog' from the film. I was just wondering, in your acting mode did you add lib any of your lines or were they originally written in the script?

Paul: Franklin was probably the most well written of all the characters. Personal opinion. We didn’t deviate from the script very much. Sometimes, once we had the scripted scene complete, we would get to improvise. The best example of that is the scene in the old “Franklin house” where Franklin has a heck of a time getting in and then looks up at the noise upstairs and then goes rolling around the downstairs in a snit. The first part of that was scripted. The remainder, Tobe and I made up as we went along . That is an actor’s definition of fun.

Lunchmeat: I am not quiet sure if you can give me the info I'm looking for, but it is obvious that "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' was filmed on a somewhat constrained budget. Would you have any idea how the money for TCM was raised and maybe give us some of the ages of the other cast members at the time of the shoot?
Paul: How the money was raised was not something I had anything to do with. There are some good pieces of reporting out there on the subject. I recommend you take a look at David Gregory’s TCM The Shocking Truth. I think he gets it right.

As to the ages of the cast members, OK, here goes: Jim Siedow was probably mid forties or so. Marilyn and Teri, well, womenfolk don’t always come right out with their age, but Marilyn was a college graduate plus a year or two, Teri was either a Junior or Senior at St. Edwards University. Bill and Alan were a couple of years out of UT. Gunnar was about the same age. Ed Neal had graduated and been into and out of the Army (ours). Grandpa John was 17. Everyone at the graveyard scene in the back of the pick-up is now dead, as is the cowboy who says “ I’m gonna steal your girl”, Jerry Green. Most of those folks at the graveyard came from the contact at Theatre Unlimited. Just remembered, Ed Neal had the lead there in the play Bell Book and Candle a few months before Chainsaw. Think I worked lights on that show, or perhaps I just played with the lighting director lady…the memory fades.

Lunchmeat: Tobe Hooper is one of my favorite directors.

Paul: Mine too.

Lunchmeat: What kind of experience was it to work with Tobe?

Paul: I found Tobe to be (I always wanted to start a sentence like that …..Tobe, to be) a most focused and enthusiastic individual. Tobe had the vision and he had the ability to transmit that vision to the people who got to implement the nuts and bolts of the filming. Quite a trick.

Lunchmeat: The scene involving Franklyn, Leatherface, and Sally as you get ousted in the wheel chair is classic. Can you maybe tell us how this scene was accomplished? It looked so realistic.

Paul: That it looked realistic is hats off to Tobe and the crew. The whole thing was orchestrated and choreographed to the nth detail. The chainsaw was disabled, the clutch was out. I tested this on Tobe’s finger prior to shooting. Good sport. ……..Let me get back there in that place. …. It was a night shoot. The temperature had dropped off to the mid nienties. First part of the night was Marilyn running through the mesquite trees. Dangerous thorns about an inch to two inches long and sharp as needles all along the branches of the mesquite. Skimpy clothing, not much protection at all. Disastrous results that left everyone feeling her very real pain and left Marilyn wishing she had been blessed with a more boyish figure when navigating the thorn breaks. The path that Marilyn and I were trying to maneuver the wheelchair through was truly a rough trail. It was a very real struggle to get that chair to move and of course Tobe milked the scene for all it was worth. Marilyn and I were truly working hard and getting frustrated and were thankful when we got to the part where we actually had some lines to say and then out of the darkness comes the sound of that big saw cranking up and then there is the most God awful sight you ever want to see, eleven foot twenty seven inches tall, leather apron, somebody else’s face for a mask and that damned smokin’ chainsaw coming right at you. I am an actor, and so is Ms. Burns, but we did not have to do a lot of acting at that point. Marilyn hooked ‘em to parts unknown and I screamed my ass off. The shot, the first time we saw Leatherface, was as close to real as we all could make it. Now when the close up came for old Franklin’s demise, that was a bunch of fun. The camera was looking over my left shoulder. Most of the lighting was coming from a “sun gun” flash light in my hand. The deal was that Leatherface was to come into the light with the saw and take a swipe at Franklin again and again. Dottie Pearl, our make up lady was squatted off camera on my left and Tobe was in the same position off camera on my right. We all three had a mouth-full of red Karo Syrup (blood) and every time Leatherface came into the light, we would spit. The result is that with each pass, the apron and saw gets more and more bloody. If you look really close you can see drops of blood in the air. Very effective. At the end, Tobe had a cup full of blood and he threw the contents . Said it could have been when they hit the heart… As I recall that scene was a lot of fun and everyone was laughing when it was done.

Lunchmeat: At the release of TCM in 1974, did you have any idea that it would become the cult Icon in horror entertainment that it has become today?

Paul: Absolutely not. When it was released, I was amazed first of all that it got released, and then that it was as good as it was. It was good but films just don’t live for thirty years and still have the same effect on people. Chainsaw does. To this day, people see Chainsaw for the first time and are blown away. Me too.

Lunchmeat: There are millions of horror fans in the world today. I would imagine that portraying such a character in such a famous landmarked horror film would lead to a following. Do people seem to recognize you when you go out in public as being Franklyn from that 'Chainsaw' movie?

It helps that I am not in my twenties any more. When I was in my thirties, I had dropped a hundred pounds, grown back my mustache and had a full beard all the time from 79 to 95. Didn’t look much like the guy in the wheel chair. Still, some folks would hear my voice or place the name and then not really know what to do with their newly acquired information. I enjoy going to Fan conventions these days.. Been to two so far and it is wonderful to see fans of all ages come up and tell me all about how and when and where they were when Chainsaw scared the pants off of them. Remember, the people walking around today being called Grandpa and Grandma were the first to appreciate Chainsaw or as Tobe says to “enjoy the buzzzzz”. Last year the local paper did an article about Chainsaw and one of the ladies from my church put the clipping on the choir room bulletin board. Can’t say the singers or the deacons look at me quite the same any more.

Lunchmeat: Do you by any chance remain in contact with any of the original cast members?
Paul: Not by chance, on purpose.

Lunchmeat: I was just curious, when you're not getting cut to bits by a guy with a chainsaw, just what does Mr. Partain do in his spare time? Any future projects?

Paul: Thank goodness I am staying busy. Working all the time. For the last thirty something years I have been in the electronics business. It has been very good to me but this summer it was just time to try something different. I now have a fledgling construction business which allows me the luxury of once again auditioning for movies when they come along and plays when I can spare the extreme amount of time required. I am loving it all. I recently had a very small part in Kevin Spacey’s new film and almost auditioned well enough to get into The Rookie (truth be told, I blew the audition at The Rookie. Director John Lee Hancock turned my interpretation of one character around and I just did not shift gears fast enough) That same guy, John Lee Hancock, is directing the new production of The Alamo now and if I can get the chance to get in front of him again I will have the most greased set of acting wheels he has ever seen. Once an actor, always an actor. It’s kind of a disease.
Lunchmeat: And last but not least....what are your 10 favorite horror films?

Paul: 10 favorite? OK Chainsaw has to be on top. Silence of the Lambs is in there (we’re kin by producers). I really enjoyed Hannibal and Red Dragon. Watching the old Godzilla flicks is still a hoot! The Thing scared the stuffing out of me when I rode my bike to the Palace Theater downtown Georgetown Texas. I have a broad band-pass when it comes to film. I really like it and there just aren’t a lot of films that I don’t like something about. I think that is the key. If you really enjoy film, you can have a ball at any theater in any genre. Especially film that is made with a passion, a vision. Tobe once said about Chainsaw, that he and Kim just wanted to do a horror film right. I think they succeeded beyond our wildest imagination. Enjoy the buzzzzzzzz! Paul Partain, Austin, Texas` December, twenty ought two.


Lunchmeat: Mr. Partain, it has been an honor for me and everyone else to conduct this interview. You have gave us all many hours of entertainment. I wish you and your family the best in life and always remember...'The Saw if Family'.

Lunch's new tattoo

Well, it's not NEW, but it's not too old. What is it? Well, it's a demon head on a stick. Think 'mid evil'.

Canadian Slasher #4

HUMONGOUS starts out during a party in 1946 where a woman is raped by a drunk sex freak who intends to show his victim ''what she's been missing''. One of her male counterparts opens the kennel and her German Shepherd's come to the rescue, tearing the guy to shreds. Sure, he deserved it.

We skip down the road about thirty odd years while Sandy, Eric (David Wallace), Nick (Nick Wild), Carla, and Joy are at the end of their week-end getaway at their father's lake front home. They finish cleaning everything up and enter their father's yacht for the ride back.

As nightfall sets in, the fog rolls and makes way for some hard navigating. They soon see a shot from a flare gun and try and navigate the large boat towards the distress signal. To make a long story short, they hit some rocks after Big brother and Little prick brother fight over who has the bigger dick and Ka-Boom! The boat blows to pieces sending the passengers on board flying off into the water.

Everyone is accounted for except for Carla, but she's found the next day hiding in a boat. In the mean time, some giant bohemeth lurks the island and is quiet hungry. It seems as if his only source of survival (His mother) has died and the little problem of starvation comes into play. The sound of dogs once echoed throughout the island, but now every thing's dead quiet. Did he get hungry?

Humongous. Humongous. What to make of you. Paul Lynch (Prom Night) seems to have forgotten the fact that night scenes need SOME lighting. The night scenes are so dark that it's damn near impossible to tell what's going on. This is a big hindrance to what otherwise could have been a good viewing experience. Don't get me wrong, HUMONGOUS isn't THAT bad, but it's not that damn good either.

There are a few decent stalk and slash sequences and when punk-ass baby brother Nick gets his, it'll make you jump. It's hard to believe the makers of Friday the 13th part 2 didn't sue Lynch for his downright copied and pasted ending that involves our stalked final girl turning her back and pretending to be the killer's mother. She sweet talks him a bit and the rest is the equivalent of taking a shit in a dry toilet. You know you gotta, but you don't wanna.

There's not much to write home about. This venture just proves tho show that Paul Lynch couldn't make a good slasher movie if it bit him in the ass and sang the theme song to My Bloody Valentine to him. I know there's some die hard Prom Night fans reading this, and I seriously don't mean any disrespect, but true is true. It's not that good. Neither is Humongous.

Those damn Canadians are too confusing. If you're in the mood for a violent version of Scooby Doo that's too hard to see, then pick up HUMONGOUS.

I Drink Your Blood 1970

A band of Satanist hippies lead by Horace Bones roll into a town and begin terrorizing the local folk, raping a local girl after she sneaks in one of of their satanic rituals. Grandpa goes after the bunch of filthy hippies, but the hippies corner Grandpa, force feeding him a little LSD. His grandson doesn't take to highly by this and decides to get back at the hippies by feeding them meat pies infected with blood from a rabid dog. They turn into crazed lunatics and begin killing and/or infecting everything in their path.

Where to begin with this one. This is probably the most filthy grimy drive-in flick I've ever had the pleasure (or displeasure) of watching. I don't hate the film. The whole scenario is something that's made in a cheese factory, but the 'nastiness' of the film as a whole makes one want to take a shower after watching.

Bashkar (who was incidentally paralyzed not too long after I Drink Your Blood was made. He has since passed away) plays the ludicrous Horace Bones who's pretty much a man hell bent on power play using satanic rituals to brainwash his followers. They make their way into town and move into an abandoned house that's soon to be torn down anyway. The house is infested with rats and the group of hippies go from room to room impaling the rats on anything they could find, roasting them and eating them for a meal. Some nasty shit.

The scene where Grandpa comes home fried on LSD and hold kitchen utensils against his forehead constituting a set of horns is quiet humerous, but quiet disturbing once you shower off the layer of cheese.

Also known as Phobia, I Drink Your Blood had a pretty good run at the Drive-In back in the day and has since gained a small cult following. Is this film worth watching? Well, yes, if only once. The whole premise makes this one strange pile of dirt. This will definitely leave a layer of filth on ya folks.

Sure, go ahead and give it a whirl. OR, you could go outside and roll around in the dirt for a hour and a half and have the same experience.

Bloodstalkers (1979) on DVD

Anyone ever seen this? Ever even heard of it? A horror movie about a group of tourists in Florida who are attacked by a chilling group of backwoods psychopaths?

This 1978 slasher film is better than it should be. This could very well be the granddaddy of the backwoods slasher film. Deliverance (by many) helped kick-start the 'crazy backwoods family' plot line, but Bloodstalkers did it even before Friday the 13th. Now, I'm referring mainly to the kill scenes and the setup thereof, as we have a number of death scenes that were copied in some Friday the 13th flicks.

It's safe to say that the director of Bloodstalkers (Robert W. Morgan) was influenced by Italian horror guru, Mario Bava, as a couple of scenes were downright copied from such films as Bay of Blood.

This post isn't meant to be a review, but a catalyst to spark your interests. The director himself is now offering a newly released dvd of Bloodstalkers - complete with a personal autograph and blurb of your choice. The film also has a few extras and comes with a copy of the day to day diary of the shoot compiled and written by director Robert W. Morgan. All for just $19.95 - and this includes shipping.

Here's a link to the main site where you can purchase or order the dvd.

http://dvddrive-in.com/reviews/a-d/bloodstalkerspromo.htm

John Friedrich (Zorich) is Alive And Well!

Remember Zorich from The Final Terror? I did a post on him and what ever happened to John Friedrich sometime ago. Here's a cool article I've posted along with a recent pic of Friedrich.

If John Friedrich wants to revive a once-flourishing acting career, he's on his way. At the University of Hawaii Tuesday night, the youthful-looking 49-year-old attracted a crowd to analyze clips from his movies and unearth tidbits about major stars in the 1970s and early '80s. He hinted at his reasons for leaving Hollywood more than two decades ago and confessed his desire to return to what he considers "an unfinished chapter" in his life.

Sitting next to facilitator and UH professor Marc Moody and wearing gray slacks, a black shirt and the requisite lei, Friedrich shared behind-the-scenes stories about the acting process and working with some of Hollywood's biggest names in a stream-of-consciousness style that drew the audience from one anecdote to the next.

The peak of his career was the role of Frank Cleary in "The Thorn Birds" with Richard Chamberlain, Jean Simmons, Barbara Stanwyck and Rachel Ward. "'The Thorn Birds' was like you had finally gotten into the Ferrari," Friedrich recalled of the 1983 miniseries. "The level of acting was substantially higher. It's one of my great memories. Richard was one of the reasons I became an actor," he said of Chamberlain, whose work on the stage first inspired Friedrich.

The part had been offered to Friedrich's good friend Brad Davis, a household name at the time. "They were looking for a star, and I was not at that level yet," he said. But Davis ("Midnight Express") refused the plum role, insisting Friedrich would be better. The two had become close on the set of the iconic cop show "Baretta" and the movie "A Small Circle of Friends," Rob Cohen's ill-fated directorial debut.

Friedrich also recalled his brief time with Lana Turner and considered Stanwyck and Turner "a dying breed, just royalty. They really had a presence or a charisma that I haven't seen since. You can't not look at it."

An amusing story arose from the set of "Thank God It's Friday," about a dinner with Donna Summer. "So you sing disco songs?" he said to the mega-star at the time, who answered incredulously, "You really don't know who I am!" A friendship with Debra Winger also blossomed during that film. Later, Winger often called while shooting "Urban Cowboy," worried that nobody on the set liked her.

John Travolta traveled with an entourage even when he and Friedrich filmed "The Boy in the Plastic Bubble." But Friedrich said Travolta told his assistants to leave when it was time to shoot a scene, and focused intently "so that working with him was an absolute pleasure."

Friedrich got his start in 1975 at age 16 with Robert Blake on "Baretta." The rebellious teen left home the moment he started making a living as an actor. "My life took a 90-degree turn from that point," he said. "I got a good agent, and my ability to get work really took off."

Ambitions to attend Yale faded as offers flowed. He could go to college any time, his fellow actors told him. Consequently, he never went, something he still regrets. Had he attended college first, "I think my ability to last in the business would have been greatly enhanced."

When viewing clips from his movies in sequence, his range is especially evident in his ability to master accents totally unfamiliar to him.

For example: the role of Joey, an Italian kid from the Bronx, in "The Wanderers," a 1979 flop with Karen Allen that became a cult classic. Friedrich, a self-described kid from the San Fernando Valley, recalled that he'd never even visited New York City until he got the part.

"Those were just a terrifying first few days," he recalled, feeling sure the director would fire him. "I cried in the bathtub on many occasions."

Despite his impressive performance, shooting turned out to be a struggle. To make matters worse, the movie disappeared from theaters in about a month.

After "The Thorn Birds" and "The Final Terror" in 1983, he moved to New Mexico, met his wife and started a family, worked as a financial consultant and settled into what most people might call a normal life.

Gradually, evidence that he should consider reviving what he'd left behind began to emerge.

When "The Wanderers" was re-released on DVD two years ago, director Philip Kaufman publicly appealed to Friedrich to get in touch with him.

"Did I call him?" Friedrich asked the audience, laughing. "No!"

Asked what inspired such a dramatic departure, he answered, "Life happened." He indicated that his psychological state during a less-than-ideal youth was "tied to my ability to express myself as an actor; I came to the party because I liked the mask. This became more untenable as I matured."

But the fire never died. "I thought I could get the actor out of me, but I really couldn't," he said. Recently, he returned to the stage, playing the Donald Sutherland role in "Ordinary People" in an Albuquerque theater. About this time the unexpected letter from Moody arrived, inviting him to Hawaii.

"How do I reconnect with these talents and these gifts?" he asked rhetorically.

The first step, he's discovering, is to say yes.

It's good to know that John Friedrich is alive and well. I'm sure we'll be seeing him behind the camera soon. Probably talk shows first, then a return to acting.

Satan's Blade 1984

Once in a while the cinematic guru's of the world will come across a film that forever changes their lives. Not really, but it may change the next few minutes, but soon enough, we're back to behaving like we're three instead of in our mid-twenties, breaking social ties one has had for years just because we can - Going into cursing tirades for no reason and taking it extra hard on your sparring partner in Jui Jitsu class.

The first time I heard of Satan's Blade was on the mighty Justin Kerswell's site, Hysteria-Lives! I read the review and realized it took place during a snowy setting and that was all she wrote. At the time, I thought the old ma and pa video store in the next town might have a copy. I thought I had remembered seeing it there.

I finally got around to visiting the video store and sure enough there it was in its big box glory. What a great cover. Of course, we all know that the home video market is full of gorgeous flicks on the outside, but when the truth finally sets us free, we're left sitting there feeling dirty and alone like after the hooker leaves and takes your wallet with her.

So, I picked up the flick and done a little shopping with my wife. We ate some greasy chicken McNugget's and it was off to pop the tape in the vcr. Right away, the screen turns red for a moment. In a split second afterwards, we see a glimpse of a man talking. It was almost like an interview. Then, the screen turns black and everything looks like a movie.

To get to the point, Satan's Blade had a profound affect on me. Sure, the movie is as low budget as you can get. I have no idea why the director shot on 35mm instead of 16mm. Like some of the cast members have stated, Scott Castillo Jr.(director) spent more time trying to look like a big time director than actually putting the money where it needed to be.

Reading reviews on this movie, you would think there were no fans who liked cheesy horror. Satan's Blade is more than cheesy horror tho. The acting sucks and there's not much of a storyline, but Satan's Blade is still a disturbing slasher flick.

We open with a wonderful twist bank robbery. It really threw me for a loop. The robbers make their way to a snowy resort in the hills where they hope to hide out for a while and meet their third partner. A double cross ensues and we set the cheese cycle in motion.

Of course, we have to have a bunch of horny females and two cute couples who just so happen to make their way to the same snowy resort. They enter the resort where there's an old woman at the front desk telling the legend of 'The Mountain Man'.

To cut to the chase, what sets Satan's Blade apart from other cheese-fests is that the director takes an ultra-serious approach to the stalk and slash sequences. There's a ton of Halloweenesque scenes that really hold up well when taking the movie in the right context.

The snowy landscape adds a ton of atmosphere. If the movie was set during the summer with a masked maniac on the loose, it wouldn't have had near the same effect. I've always been a big fan of a 'snowy slasher' and maybe this plays a big part in why I like the film so much, but like I said, there's a number of genuinely disturbing scenes that take place when the action starts.

The weapon of choice is obviously a knife, 'Satan's Blade' to be exact, and when the killer stabs his victims, the camera lingers steadily as the victim writhes in pain. It might sound like I'm giving this film more credit than it deserves. This is probably right, but when there's something good in a flick, there's no denying it. Aside from all the bad acting and straight forward camera-work, I actually turned the light on. I haven't did that with a flick in a long time.

While talking about Satan's Blade, one can't forget the piano score that's heard throughout the films running time. It's redundant, but alongside the location, the score is one of it's cornerstones.

One of the actresses in the film said that by the time the shoot was over, the film ended up costing around a million dollars. I'm not sure if this has been confirmed, but she also stated that a lot of money went into production no-no's. She stated that the director insisted on shooting in 35mm which by any standard shouldn't have been the way to go with a film of this caliber. Who knows, that may be the very thing that helps the movie out. The male lead said he never saw a dime. They weren't sure if the film had even been picked up by a distributor, not alone been released overseas.

Satan's Blade in an enigma wrapped up in a piece of ham and a depressing layer of mustard. You know there shouldn't be anything scary about it, but when scary scenes come about, it's just that more alluring.

In a nutshell - For the slasher completest, this is a must see. Whether you like it or not, you'll find one thing's for certain, every other film out there's no 'Satan's Blade'. A rare find for the rare mind.