Phil's Horror Watch: THE GREEN INFERNO (2015) from Universal Pictures - June 19, 2016

THE GREEN INFERNO Blu-Ray (2016)

THE GREEN INFERNO
Starring: Lorenza Izzo, Ariel Levy, Daryl Sabara, Kirby Bliss Blanton, Magda Apanowicz, Sky Ferreira, Nicolás Martínez, Aaron Burns, Ignacia Allamand, Ramón Llao, Matías López
Written by Eli Roth & Guillermo Amoedo
Cinematography by Antonio Quercia
Edited by Ernesto Díaz Espinoza
Directed by Eli Roth
Distributed by Universal Pictures

In 1996, filmmaker Eli Roth made his big screen debut with CABIN FEVER, his goretastic homage to Sam Raimi's 1981 horror classic EVIL DEAD. Then he went one to become one of the members of the "Splat Pack" in the early 2000's with his films HOSTEL and HOSTEL 2. Now, Roth has returned with his new movie that is, once again, a homage film. However, this time he's paying tribute to the great Italian director Ruggero Deodato and his infamous 1980 film CANNIBAL HALOCAUST. His new movie THE GREEN INFERNO follows in the grand tradition of the Italian cannibal genre.

The film's official synopsis: In New York, college student Justine joins a group of activists led by Alejandro and travels to Peru to protest against a timber industry that is destroying the Amazon rain forest. When the group is returning to civilization, the plane blows-up and crashes into the forest. Soon the survivors discover that they are not alone and they are abducted by a tribe of cannibals.

Theatrical Movie Poster (2015)

What I loved about the film is that it shows how much Roth has grown as a director. His visuals, his style of directing and his vision are leaps and bounds from his first film. It's very grand and very large in scope that it's beautifully captured that you almost forget that it's a horror movie. Not too many of these kinds of films are still being made.

With talking about the cast, I'd have to start this off with our leading lady Lorenza Izzo, who portrays Justine in the film. Her character means well, wants to make a difference in the world somehow, and naively, joins an activist group to help save an Amazon rainforest. She's you're typical young college student who is not sure where she's going. Even though her rich dad is paying for her schooling, she wants to do more. Izzo's performance was fantastic as she and her character were put through some of the most extreme scenes and situations. Ariel Levy who plays out antagonist Alejandro, who is one of the biggest foreign douchebags to grace the silver screen since those other douchebags from Roth's HOSTEL films. He says he means will but his true colors are brightly shown during the film. 

THE GREEN INFERNO is a worthy entry into the celebrated and beloved cannibal genre! The film is a genuine and horrifying tribute to those great Italian cannibal films of yesteryear that captured our curiosity when we the fans would rent them at our local mom & pop video stores and haunted our nightmares after we saw them! I dare you to watch this movie with the lights off! 4 out of 5 stars!! Recommend viewing!!

THE GREEN INFERNO is currently available on DVD at your local retailer or online at the Amazon website. It is also available on Video On Demand, digital download and Amazon Prime. 

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the show!

Phil's Horror Watch, Day 19: Phil watches SUSPIRIA (1977)-October 19, 2011

My horror movie marathon continues with Day Nineteen! Now you might be asking yourself how in the world do I have time to watch all these great horror films? And how many do I own? I'll answer them both for you: I go to bed late and a lot! Ok, now that we've gotten the Q&A session out of the way, it's time to talk about tonight's film. Directed by Italian filmmaker Dario Argento, SUSPIRIA is one of the most frightening films ever made!

Theatrical Movie Poster (1977)

The film stars Jessica Harper as Suzy Bannion, an American ballerina who has come to Munich, Germany on a terrible stormy night to study at the prestigious Tans Dance Academy in Freiburg, which is run by the mysterious Madame Blanc (Joan Bennett) and Miss Tanner (Alida Valli). But when a series of bizarre incidents and horrific crimes turn the school into a waking nightmare of the damned, Suzy must escape the academy's unspeakable secret of supernatural evil.

Using a kaleidoscope of colors, SUSPIRIA is the most beautiful horror film ever made. Every single frame of this film is expertly lit and colorful. With this technique Argento manages to create an almost unbearable amount of tension and the extremely brutal and bloody murder sequences look so good one can only admire their beauty. The music score by Goblin is one of the most effective score ever to grace a horror movie.

The film was also the first chapter in Argento's infamous "The Three Mothers" trilogy, which included 1980's INFERNO and 2007's MOTHER OF TEARS. There are three Fates and three Graces and there are three Sorrows: "Mater Lacrymarum, Our Lady of Tears," "Mater Suspiriorum, Our Lady of Sighs," and "Mater Tenebrarum, Our Lady of Darkness." This would become the basis for the trilogy.

Shock rocker Alice Copper has said that the film is one of his top three films of all time. The Village Voice ranked the film #100 on their list of the 100 Greatest Films Made During the 20th Century. Entertainment Weekly ranked SUSPIRIA #18 on their list of the 25 Scariest Films Of All Time. Argento's films have been shown at retrospectives all over the globe, and this film has been the centerpiece of his career. The film was released in Italy on February 1, 1977. It would be released to American theaters on August 12th of that same year.

SUSPIRIA is one of the scariest films you will ever see! Honestly, it is that terrifying. In this age of CGI, forgettable sequels and lame remakes, take a journey and visit the house that Argento bulit. Then compare SUSPIRIA with all the other supposed "horror" films and see which one will give you nightmares tonight. But don't worry, it will all over before the dawn.

SUSPIRIA is available on DVD from the masters of horror over at Blue Underground. To purchase a copy, visit their website at www.blue-underground.com

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the show!

Phil's Horror Watch, Day 11: Phil watches THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY (1981)-October 11, 2011

Welcome back my friends to Day Eleven of my horror movie marathon! Tonight I decided to visit my old friend Lucio Fulci one more time and watched another one of his classic films, THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY. With Fulci, you can always count on being scared out of your mind and grossed out all at the same time!

Original Theatrical Poster (1984)

 Dr. Norman Boyle (Paolo Malco) moves his wife Lucy (Catriona MacColl) and his son (Giovanni Frezza) out of their tiny, cramped New York apartment and into a beautiful old New England home. However, unknown to the new owners, the previous owner, the deranged Dr. Jacob Freudstein (Giovanni De Nava), who has been living in the house's basement for the past 100 years, feeding on the flesh of those who found themselves at the wrong place at the wrong time.

The film was Fulci's final installment of what has been called his unofficial Gates of Hell trilogy, which also includes CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD and THE BEYOND. The camerawork is careful, creating atmosphere as well as a sense of polish. The makeup and gore effects are also well-crafted, and the Dr. Freudstein character is fairly creepy to see. Also, there are fewer splatter scenes, and they come more out of the story than any gratuitous attempts to add gore.

Italian Movie Poster (1981)

While many have said that the film was not one of his best, the film has genuine creepiness and scares that will make you shiver. However, the film ran into censorship issues, thus the film suffered several and severe edits to. Eventually the film was restored to its original gory version when it was released in 2001 by Anchor Bay Entertainment. The film was released in Italy in 1981. The film was released here in America on March 1, 1984.

THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY is a Fulci film that will forever stand the test of time as a horror classic! What's impressive that 30 years after the film's original Italian release, we are still talking about the film, and thus, keeping alive the film legacy of Lucio Fulci alive, as well as his name. This Halloween, treat yourself to this Italian shocker. I promise you that after watching the film, you will never go downstairs into a basement ever again.

THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY will be released on Blu-Ray and DVD special editions on October 25, 2011 courtesy of Blue Underground. To pre-order your copy, visit their website at www.blue-underground.com

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the show!

Phil's Horror Watch, Day 10: Phil watches ZOMBIE (1979)-October 10, 2011

Hello folks and welcome back to day ten of my horror movie marathon! After seeing THE DEAD yesterday, I decided to go on a zombie binge. So for tonight I visited the land of Italy, home to some of the most intense, gruesome, gory, and celebrated horror films of all time! If you don't believe, then you have never seen the film ZOMBIE. If you have, then you are one of the brave ones, because this is a very sick and disgusting film. And I love it!!

Original Theatrical Poster (1980)

Directed by infamous Italian filmmaker Lucio Fulci, the film begins when what appears to be an abandoned boat is found in the harbor of New York City. Soon the local police units investigates the boat when an undead zombie attacks them and then plunges into the harbor waters below, leaving the living with a big mystery on their hands, which news reporter Peter West (Ian McCulloch) smells a story and decides to go investigate. Soon Peter teams up with Anne Bowels (Tisa Farrow), the daughter of a scientist said to have gone missing in the Caribbean some time ago. Together they dive deeper into the mystery, meeting and traveling with another couple (Al Cliver and Auretta Gay) to a remote region of the Antilles Islands. There they hope to discover the answers, however for them, they only thing they will find is desolate place where the dead walk once again to feed on all that still live.

Sounds like a very intriguing film indeed, but the backstory of the film is even more fascinating. In 1977, American filmmaker George Romero teamed up with Italian filmmaker Dario Argento, who would help with the financing to make DAWN OF THE DEAD. In exchange Argento would distribute the film in Europe, where it was retitled as ZOMBI. Director Fulci decided to capitalize on the film's success by making his own gore-infested, living dead film. Thanks to a legal loophole, Fulci was able to slap a sequel number to his film, allowing moviegoers to think that his film was an actual follow up to Romero's film. Unbelievably true, but in the end Fulci's ZOMBI 2 did phenomenal at the European boxoffice. When the film was imported to America, it was retitled ZOMBIE, as to not confuse American audiences.

Original Italian Poster (1979)

The film itself is highly regarded as Fulci's best film ever, and a welcomed entry to the annals of horror. The special effects by F/X wizard Gianetto de Rossi are very impressive, and they still hold up to this very day. When Auretta Gay has her throat torn out is just gore-tastic. The scene when Olga Karlatos' eye is shoved into a large piece wood splinter is just so gruesome and painful to watch that I dare you to not look away. And of course, the film's most famous scene is when a zombie attacks and eats a shark. Yes my friends, that is a REAL person fighting a REAL shark! There is no CGI in this film people! Real sharks, real special effects, and real gore drenched the screen as it has never before. The Italians very much celebrated gore and violence, and in the process, made it into an art form that has influenced several big name horror directors. From Sam Raimi and Sean Cunningham to Eli Roth and James Wan, the Italian horror films from the late 70's to the mid 80's had a huge impact here in America. Films like SAW and HOSTEL owe a debt to the theses Italian shockers, especially with this film. The film was released in Italy on August 25, 1979. It was imported and released to theaters here in America on July 18, 1980.

ZOMBIE is one of the all-time greatest zombie films ever made! For it's shock value and sheer madness, no other zombie film can compare to nor come close to it. With this film, director Fulci was given the mantle "The Maestro of Gore." It is without hesitation to say that, after its initial release 32 years later, it is a title that no one has come close to achieving. When Luci passed away on March 13, 1996 at the age of 68, the world mourned the loss of a true artist. But in the end, Lucio Fulci continues to live on his films, which are not only his legacy, but a gift to us to enjoy over and over again. So Mr. Fulci, where ever you are, I just wanted to say, "Thank you."

ZOMBIE will be released on Blu- Ray and DVD special editions courtesy of Blue Underground on October 25, 2011. To pre-order your copy, visit their website at www.blue-underground.com. To those of you who would like to see the film on the big screen, Blue Underground will be having the film released to select theaters this Halloween! For those in San Francisco, the film will be playing at the Roxie Theater on October 29-31! Buy your tickets on their website at www.roxie.com

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the show!