Phil writes Fango Flashback: HELL COMES TO FROGTOWN-May 2, 2012

Theatrical Movie Poster (1988)

Fango Flashback: “HELL COMES TO FROGTOWN”

Hello again everybody! My new Fango Flashback article on director Donald G. Jackson's 1988 cult film HELL COMES TO FROGTOWN for the Fangoria website is now up. So for those who don't know, Fango Flashback articles are about horror and cult films that have been released: synopsis, trivia, release dates, etc. They're fun history lessons for you film buffs. Just click on the link above and have fun reading it! I'll also be working on several more articles for them so keep your eyes peeled here for more!

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the show!

Phil reviews the SHOCKORAMA DOUBLE FEATURE DVD for Fangoria-November 8, 2011

So I was recently given the task to review a new DVD from my good friends at Fangoria, the home for all things horror. Here is a review that I just recently wrote for them, which I thought that it would be fun for you fine folks to read as well!

Original DVD Cover (2011

The marriage of exploitation and horror films has been part of cinema for decades. However, during the 1960s this union had an unprecedented amount of offsprings. And like most children, some were good, some were bad, and then there were some that were just plain awful. In this case, the newly released SHOCKORAMA double feature DVD offers to of these abominations, courtesy from the folks at Cheezy Flicks.

The DVD package consists of two movies on two discs. Disc one contains BILLY THE KID VS. DRACULA, which as the Prince of Darkness himself (portrayed by John Carradine) traveling to the Old West, posing as an uncle to the young and naïve Elizabeth Bentley (Melinda Plowman). She introduces her “Uncle James” to her fiancée William Bonney (Chuck Courtney), who is better known as Billy the Kid. When strange supernatural occurrences begin to happen on the ranch, Billy suspects that Uncle James is a vampire, and tries to prevent him from turning his blushing bride into an unholy creature of the night.

With JESSE JAMES MEETS FRANKENSTEIN’S DAUGHTER on disc two, the legendary outlaw Jesse James (John Lupton) and his slow-witted sidekick Hank (Cal Bolder) are on the run from the local sheriff after a foiled stagecoach heist. Seeking shelter, the duo hide in the castle belonging to Dr. Maria Frankenstein (Narda Onyx), the granddaughter of Dr. Baron Von Frankenstein. Determined to carry on her grandfather’s legacy, she uses Hank for her experiment, thus transforming him into a walking bald monstrosity which she names Igor. Soon it’s up to Jesse to stop Maria and to end the Frankenstein curse.

Both films were directed by William Beaudine, better known as “One Shot” Beaudine because of his refusal to do more than one take of any scene. Both films were shot in 1966, and contain the basic ingredients of a bad, B-movie, horror flick: terrible acting, horrible dialogue, plausible storyline, and bland directing. While all these examples add up to two atrocious films, the transfer of these films was even more laughable.

The people behind Cheezy Flicks never disguised the fact that these films were obviously transferred from really bad and apparently really old VHS tapes that also contained early drive-in intermission commercials. The blatant scribble lines found at the bottom of the screen, fading picture quality, and muffled audio soundtrack shows a lack of quality and care. Even the DVD cover art for it looks like it was done on someone’s personal home computer. As for the DVD extras, both discs contain the same features: a chapter menu, and a director bio.

Overall, Cheezy Films’ SHOCKORAMA double feature is a lack luster release that won’t hold anyone’s attention, let alone grab any attention. While both films are nothing more than forgotten cinema trash, they at least deserve a better fate (and release) than this.

SHOCKORAMA Double Feature DVD is currently available at your local retailer. You can order a copy at the Cheezy Flicks website at http://cheezyflicks.com/shop/

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the show!

Phil reflects on HORROR HIGH for fangoria.com-July 13, 2011

Hello again everybody! Here's a flashback article that I wrote for the Fangoria website not that long ago. I thought it would be fun to have it reposted here for your enjoyment. I love horror films, especially the ones from my childhood. I would sneak into theaters, watch them on cable after my folks were asleep. or rent them with my friends. I am very lucky to be a contributing writer for them, and get to share my love for the horror genre. Hope you have fun reading it!

By 1989, the slasher film genre was declared officially dead. The idea of a deranged maniac going on a killing spree had been done to death, and fans and critics alike were bored. However, it was at this point that a little slasher film was released that, unfortunately, fell through the cracks. HELL HIGH, directed and co-written by Douglas Grossman, is one of the more original examples of the subgenre: it follows the specific criteria, but at the same time adds some new ingredients to the mix.

Theatrical Move Poster (1989)

Science teacher Brooke Storm (Maureen Mooney) is still haunted by the deaths of two teenagers that she accidently caused as a young girl. She crosses into insanity when four high-schoolers-deranged delinquent Dickens (portrayed brilliantly by Christopher Stryker), Jon-Jon (Christopher Cousins), Queenie (Millie Prezioso), and Smiler (Jason Brill)-start harassing her and then attack her in her home. While the premise of the film sounds like your typical killathon, the end results are not.

First, there is no "final girl"left at the end of the movie, but rather a final guy. Second, there is Jon-Jon, who is one of the best male screamers in horror history. Another noteworthy twist is that instead of an adult stalking teenagers, it is the teenagers who stalk and attack the adult, who only later turns the tables on her juvenile assailants. The film also touches on hot-button subjects as lesbianism to teenage peer pressure.

While it's common for big-name actors to get their start by being cast in horror films, HELL HIGH had the distinct honor of stalling some of its participants' careers. It was the only film that Grossman ever directed, and neither Prezioso nor Brill ever acted in another film. However, both Mooney and Cousins escaped the curse and had successful careers as soap opera stars. Mooney played Ann Jeffers on GUIDING LIGHT and Stacy Coles on ALL MY CHILDREN, while Cousins portrayed Cain Rogan on ONE LIFE TO LIVE, and had recurring roles on LIPSTICK JUNGLE, BREAKING BAD, and the new FX show TERRIERS. Unfortunately, Stryker, who could have been the film's breakout star, died of AIDS on September 22, 1987 at the age of 27.

Also titled RAGING FURY and filmed as WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO TONIGHT? in 1986, the film wasn't released until May 12, 1989, which proved to be a fatal delay, and it was banished into genre-film obscurity. However, the fine folks at Media Blasters resurrected the film on DVD back in 2004, with commentary by drive-in critic Joe Bob Briggs and Grossman himself. The DVD also boasts an introduction by Briggs, an interview with co-writer Leo Evans and Grossman, theatrical trailers and TV spots.

After years of being suspended, HELL HIGH can now be rediscovered by a new generation of slasher fans for its originality and gruesome death scenes. Twenty-two years after the film's original release, it still speaks to the disenchanted youth of today. Like Dickens says in the film, "There's nothing after high school. There is only more stink." Words to live by.

HELL HIGH is currently available on DVD only. To purchase a copy, visit http://www.amazon.com/ref=gno_logo

To learn more about Fangoria and everything that's horror, visit their website at http://www.fangoria.com/

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the show!

Phil reviews DEATH ANGEL DECEMBER: VENGEANCE KILL for fangoria.com-June 21, 2011

Hello again my friends. I thought it would be fun if I posted my recent review that I did for the Fangoria website. Just in case you've never heard of it, Fangoria is a monthly horror magazine that covers and reports everything horror related. From films to comic books to music and novels, Fangoria has been around since 1979. On their website they have up to the minute horror news, and yours truly gets to review films and DVDs for them. However, with every one good film, I see a lot of bad ones, and this month's was no exception!

Now as you may or may not know, I love movies, especially horror and exploitation films. Within the exploitation genre, there are numerous subgeneres: nunsploitation, sexploitation, nudie cuties, the roughies, and the ever popular revenge genre. Classic films such as MS. 45, I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE, and THEY CALL HER ONE EYE are perfect examples of this and have influenced many Hollywood directors as well as indie filmmakers as well. Some pay tribute to these films (look no further than recent releases like GRINDHOUSE, MACHETE, and HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN), which leads me to DEATH ANGEL DECEMBER: VENGEANCE KILL, the newest release by Chemical Burn Entertainment.  While the story synopsis sounded promising, the actual execution of the film is a total and utter let down.

The story itself is simple enough, and it's a story that has been told numerous times. As a young child December witnessed the rape and brutal murder of her mother and her younger brother. Throughout her young adult life she tried to bury her inner turmoil, until she herself is raped by her boyfriend. After learning the fundamentals of self defense and firearms, she stalks the streets at night and dishes out her bloody brand of vigilante justice. Years later, the men responsible for her family's death resurfaces. She stalks and kills them one by one, leading up to an orgy of mayhem, carnage, and  death. It is a fitting and blood soaked finale to the death.

Like I said, it's a simple story but the execution of it was just atrocious. The cinematography looked like it was shot on someone's cellphone. The entire soundtrack was muffled and unlistenable and it was painfully obvious that the sound crew didn't have a boom mic. For some strange reason, almost every other scene ended with a freeze frame image, which I found very annoying. Lightning was non-existent throughout the film. The story was all over the place, with the backstory told in both black and white and in color. I was so confused during parts of the film because I didn't know what was real time or a flashback sequence. And last but not least, the acting was just about one notch above a high school drama club play. None of the actors brought any kind of depth to their respective characters, nor did I care about our heroine. We are supposed to sympathize with her for her loss and cheer for her when she takes out her revenge. Unfortunately those emotions where nowhere to be found.

DEATH ANGEL DECEMBER: VENGEANCE KILL is just plain awful, a sorry excuse for an exploitation/revenge film. Filled with bad acting, low production values, inept dialogue, and an abysmal script, the film makes PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE look like CITIZEN KANE. Sometimes when I find myself watch a really bad movie, I'm reminded a joke from my favorite TV show MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000, which goes something like this, "In the future, can there be a law that says that films have to be made by filmmakers?" After watching this film, I whole-heartedly concur with that statement.

DEATH ANGEL DECEMBER: VENGEANCE KILL is currently available for pre-orders. To learn more about Chemical Burn Entertainment, visit their website at http://www.chemicalburn.org/

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the show!