Christmas Evil (1980) Review

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(More customer reviews)Christmas Evil holds a unique spot in the genre of Christmas slasher films. While a few individuals are murdered, there so little blood that I would not classify this as a slasher film at all. This is more of a psychological treatment that transcends horror of a primal nature. In its own special twisted way, Christmas Evil is really sort of touching, and I would argue that it actually does possess a measure of real Christmas spirit. Harry isn't a bad guy; his heart is in the right place - it's just a few of his toys of death that end up in wrong places such as someone else's neck. As a young child, Harry sees disturbing evidence before his very eyes that Santa Claus is not real, and this experience scars him for life. He does not let the Christmas spirit die in him, however; the spirit actually grows to the point that, as a forty-something year old man, he tries to become Santa Claus and spread joy to good little children. He spies on the neighborhood kids, writing down notes in his books of naught boys and girls. As a newly-promoted manager at a toy factory, he is dismayed to see inferior-quality toys rolling off the assembly line, his co-workers speak badly of the holidays, and a new hotshot executive puts forth a promotional campaign to send toys to a children's hospital without knowing or caring if there will be enough for the kids. Eventually, poor Harry snaps, dons a Santa suit, and goes out to spread Christmas spirit all around. Of course, a few adults have been very bad in his eyes, and a few of them end up dead.
Brandon Maggart is really quite good in the role of Harry. Some of his laughing fits early on are rather annoying, but his face really shows a lot of emotion and complexity, especially on those occasions when he is doing something that will make children happy and when he finally comes to grip with the idea that his plan to give everyone a real Santa has failed. Take away Harry's obvious mental unbalance and you are left with a weird sort of inspirational story, one that actually fits in to some degree with classic Christmas tales such as A Christmas Carol. I'm not saying this is a movie every family needs to watch every Christmas Eve - that is clearly not the case. However, Harry, in his own tragically disastrous way, does have the Christmas spirit and tries to keep it in his heart every single day, and that is what I will remember about him the most.

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Harry Stadling (Brandon Maggert) is obsessed with Christmas! In fact he wants to "be" the authentic Santa Claus, with a real suit, sleigh and reindeer. Ever since he learned the "truth" about Santa, he's tried to make Christmas a reality.Growing up a toy maker, Harry is met with naysayers and critics who mock him for his yuletide beliefs. but he wants people to get the presents they deserve, even if that means giving the gift of murder! Cynics and uptight hypocrites beware! Lewis Jackson's classic black comedy horror film, CHRISTMAS EVIL (aka YOU BETTER WATCH OUT!) is, according to cult film director/auteur John Waters, "the best seasonal film of all time. I wish I had kids.I'd make them watch it every year and, if they didn't like it, they'd be punished!"
Time to hang those stockings from the fireplace and get ready. the sadistic holiday chestnut CHRISTMAS EVIL is here in an all-new "Director's Cut" edition.Transferred from the director's own personal film elements, this version of CHRISTMAS EVIL is the original first cut of the film containing even more scenes and never-before-seen footage!

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My Bloody Valentine (1981) Review

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(More customer reviews)Remember those heady days in the late 1970s and early 1980s when films like "Halloween" and "Friday the 13th" attained stellar success at the box office, resulting in a slew of holiday themed copycats? Movies like "April Fool's Day," "My Bloody Valentine," and "Graduation Day" arrived on the scene and dropped off the radar just as rapidly. Thanks to the appearance of DVD players, these films are reappearing with a disturbing rapidity. Unfortunately, the movies aren't much better than they were when they first came out. This is especially true for Paramount's release of the 1981 slasher film "My Bloody Valentine." At the time, Paramount demanded a mountain of cuts from director George Mihalka in order to avoid a dreaded 'X' rating for graphic violence. That's acceptable for a theatrical release, but a DVD version should reinsert all of the gory footage. Well, this release is the boring old 'R' rated version, and to make matters worse Paramount technicians included nothing else with the movie: no stills, no commentaries, no behind the scenes stuff, and no trailers. Get with the program, Paramount! The customer who will buy this movie on DVD is a genre fan; they want to see all of those gory killings you lopped off with indifference.
"My Bloody Valentine" takes place in a little mining town called Valentine Bluffs. We don't really know the location of the town, but the accents of the some of the characters hint at a Canadian setting somewhere near Quebec. Some years before a terrible mining accident resulting in the deaths of several miners caused Harry Warden to snap. Warden went on a killing spree through the town on the night of the Valentine's Day dance. Ever since then, the authorities in Valentine Bluffs banned parties on Valentine's Day, ever mindful of Harry Warden's threat to wreak bloody havoc on the town if they held another dance. Harry Warden, for the record, was one of the survivors of the mining accident, an accident caused by negligence on the part of two of the supervisors. After his murderous spree, Warden ended up in an insane asylum and the town slowly forgot his grim threats.
Now it's the present (or at least 1981), and the mineworkers want to have another holiday party. The authorities, which include a neurotic mayor and a police chief who looks like Steve McQueen from a distance, are willing to go along with the idea of a celebration. Then the valentines start showing up, one of which contains a bloody human heart. The mayor and police chief initially try to keep the threat hush-hush, but a few more murders persuade them to cancel the dance. The young people in town throw a fit, deciding that they will still have a party but hold it at the mine instead. You can guess what happens from this point on: bodies drop like flies as a madman in mining gear (gas mask, helmet, black clothing, and pickax) works his way through the group of bubbleheads. As the chief desperately attempts to track down the whereabouts of Harry Warden, a group of especially idiotic partygoers head down into the mine for a few yucks. The last twenty minutes of the film take place in the darkly atmospheric mine, as the killer picks off several of the kids in the quarry. There's a twist ending that achieves only a moderate level of interest, and then the whole thing ends.
"My Bloody Valentine" is a major rip off of other slasher films. This movie even has its own version of "Crazy Ralph" from "Friday the 13th" in the form of a testy bar owner who continually spouts stories about Harry Warden and the foolishness of throwing another party. You just know this guy is going to get his, and he does, but I kept wondering how he got any business. Who wants to go to a place where the proprietor keeps talking about gruesome murders? The other characters fall into typical slasher movie typecasting as well: the two guys fighting over the girl, the ineffective police chief and mayor who try to ignore the warning signs until it's too late, and the omnipresent killer. When it comes to original and engaging characters, "My Bloody Valentine" doesn't offer much except stereotypes with bad haircuts. Horror movie buffs should take note of Ray Sager's name (as first assistant director) in the credits: Sager played Montag the Magnificent in H.G. Lewis's "The Wizard of Gore."
At first, the gore seems to promise that "My Bloody Valentine" is a step above your typical slasher film. The heart in the box is gruesome, but after that initial shocker the movie steps back into rather banal exercises in the sauce department. The heavy handed editing is to blame here, as nearly every murder that takes place either happens completely off camera (the idea of it!), or cuts away before the serious bloodletting starts. There are places where you can discover what Paramount removed to get that all-important 'R' rating, and it's obvious that this film would have been much better if we could have seen the full effect of the killer's actions. A boiled face, a hook through the head, and a body in a laundromat dryer sound great on paper, but the execution suffers horribly because we never get the full, grotesque effect. It's the equivalent of watching a Richard Pryor concert with all of the profanity bleeped out. I pray Paramount comes to their senses and finally releases this film, along with the first eight "Friday the 13th" movies, in uncut formats. "My Bloody Valentine," as it stands now, falls squarely into the "rent, not buy" category: an interesting film with great promise, but an ultimate failure due to circumstances beyond the control of the cast and crew.

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Item Name: My Bloody Valentine; Studio:Lions Gate

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Friday The 13th (1980) Review

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(More customer reviews)I was working in a cinema in 1980 when this film was first released, No one expected it to take a light and it opened in one of the complex's smallest screens. Big mistake. From day one queues formed for this film and many wannabe punters were somewhat peeved for being turned away. Those who got in though experienced a genuinely scary horror film and it remains one of the best audience participation films that I have ever seen. Throughout the film, the suspense runs along and builds up to a crescendo prior to each slaying or to a false moment of fear.
The ending, however is something else. Sure it ain't exactly original but boy is it effective. I have never seen an audience scream so loudly and in total unison, and have some people visibly shaken and in tears sometimes afterwards.... Night after night, the result was the same and Friday The 13th became one of the 'sleepers' of 1980. Watch out too for a young Kevin Bacon as one of the teens in peril.
The passage of time has seen it take its place in the pantheon of really scary horror films and deservedly so. If you have not yet seen this film, then give it a go. Enjoy and be prepared to be scared.

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Terror and suspense abound in this 24-hour nightmare of blood. Camp Crystal Lake has been shuttered for over 20 years due to several vicious and unsolved murders. The camp's new owner and several young counselors are readying the property for re-opening despite warnings of a "death curse" by local residents. The curse proves true on Friday the 13th as one by one each of the counselors is stalked by a violent killer. This film is widely acclaimed for its horrifying and creative murder sequences.

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Halloween - The Curse of Michael Myers (1995) Review

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(More customer reviews)An okay transfer of the movie on a bare-bones DVD.
Unfortunately, the makers of this disc decided NOT to include the alternate version that contains VERY interesting deleted and alternate scenes.
Check out the differneces here:
http://www.stomptokyo.com/movies/h/halloween6-pcr.html
Hopefully a Special Edition of this film will be released that will feature both the Theatrical and Producer's Cut versions of this film.

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For pulse-pounding suspense and relentless thrills, nothing can match HALLOWEEN: THE CURSE OF MICHAEL MYERS -- one of the most frightening chapters in the chilling HALLOWEEN series! In a single horrifying night, Michael Myers' masked reign of terror changed Halloween forever! Now, six years after he was presumed dead in a fire, Myers has returned to kill again -- and this time there's no escape! As the homicidal fury builds to a spine-tingling cliimax, the long-hidden secrets of the screen's most maniacal murderer are revealed ... with shocking results! Starring a thrilling cast including legendary Donald Pleasence (HALLOWEEN, THE ADVOCATE) and Paul Rudd (THE CIDER HOUSE RULES, CLUELESS).

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Friday the 13th, Part 3, 3-D (Deluxe Edition) Review

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(More customer reviews)If Paramount's A-movie franchise was Star Trek, then their B-movie franchise would definitely be Friday The 13th. A total of eight were made and, with the exception of '83, there was a Friday The 13th for every year in the Eighties, with the TV series debuting in '87.
They were tacky, badly made and infrequently showed any professionalism, or dynamic filmmaking. But they sure had their moments and Part 3 is definitely the best of the first four, Part 5 being the joker in the pack and 6-8 the second instalment of the Jason Voorhees legacy.
Apparently, not getting enough of butchering teenagers with the first sequel, director Steve Miner returns for more unlucky day murders. While his first outing was almost the exact same as the original, only with a different killer, Part 3 reinvents the franchise and totally solidifies Jason as a horror movie icon.
Chris (Dana Kimmel) has had a difficult past few years and she decides to spend a long weekend at Higgins Haven with her friends. Too bad for them that Jason (Richard Brooker) is lurking in the woods. He and Chris have had a scuffle in the past and she's afraid to go out there alone.
Her friends are an unusual bunch. There are a couple of stoners, Shelly, a fat kid who just wants to be loved (Larry Zerner), a pregnant friend (Tracie Savage) and her hunky squeeze (Paul Kratka). These are not the typical goofball sex-mad teenagers of the early Eighties. For some reason, the writers have made them somewhat subdued and realistic. They seriously want a quiet weekend - no partying, no loud music. It helps that we like them, because in most other occasions we can't wait for them to get slaughtered.
And they aren't the only ones in trouble. A non-threatening biker gang plan to cause havoc at Higgins Haven, because Shelly knocked over their scooters, and end up regretting it. If anything, they make for some light comedy - intentional, or not.
Halfway through, Shelly pulls a joke on the girl he fancies. He leaps out of the water wearing a hockey mask and brandishing a harpoon. Five minutes later Jason gets his hands on them. And ever since, the image of the hockey mask has been the trademark of the series.
In every other sequel, Jason is a walking monolith. [...], show Michael Myers a thing or two about the art of teenage massacre and somehow be able to maintain his cool and make it all seems effortless. This is the only time you will see him for what he really is - a retarded hillbilly. He evens smiles! Twice!!
Miner would return later to the same location in Lake Placid. Here, he successfully portrays Crystal Lake as a tranquil, peaceful place and manages, in the final scenes, to infuse it with atmospheric excitement, all without the use of rain, or lightning.
It wouldn't be hard to make a sequel superior to the original Friday The 13th. Miner failed with Part 2, but excels in Part 3. It has a lighter tone and different feel from the others. In fact, it shouldn't be viewed as a horror film at all. It's an adventure movie, set in the woods, with one of the best villains ever.

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FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 3 (DELUXE EDITIO - DVD Movie

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Friday the 13th, Part VII - The New Blood (1988) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is easily one of the better efforts in the Friday series but it suffers just like the rest of them from cuts, cuts, cuts. This is, apparently, one of the most cut entries by far as the MPAA rejected many of the more elaborate gore effects. Director John Carl Buechler is a respected makeup effects man and was a good choice to helm a Friday flick. A lot was put into the effects, especially for Jason. This marks Kane Hodder's first turn as the hockey-masked killer, and he gets the best makeup effects for the role.
The New Blood's Jason is a full-blown, rotting, hulking zombie. Check out the exposed ribs and spinal column under the shredded clothes. We also get a look at Jason's face, or what's left of it (including a big hole in the cheek, exposed teeth, rotting flesh, etc). That alone is enough for fans to check out the film, even if you're just a casual horror fan.
The ::ahem:: story involves Tina (Lar Park Lincoln), a Carrie-like teen girl who travels back to Crystal Lake years after an unfortunate and uncontrolled episode with her telekinetic powers led to her father's death. Accompanying her are her mother and her psychiatrist. The latter is played by none other than Terry Kiser, aka Bernie Lomax from Weekend at Bernie's(!) Being a psychiatrist in a horror film, he's naturally evil, trying to exploit the girl's powers for his own gains. (At one point Tina finds newspaper clippings about Jason and the murders in the doctor's desk along with a gun. It's never made entirely clear whether he was concerned and afraid of their surroundings or if he wanted to use Tina to raise Jason from the dead).
Next door to the not-so-happy family, of course, a house full of young, stupid, would-be victims. (Apparently the brutal murders occuring regularly around the lake still don't detract vacationers!)
Well, once Tina raises Jason from the dead (involuntarily) the action gets under way. And he's quite busy, as this has easily one of the highest Friday body counts. Ch-ch-ch-ah-ah-ah... Our young vacationers are dispatched with a lovely array of sharp objects, gardening tools, and even a plastic party horn(!) Jason also repeats himself a bit by simply throwing one girl out the window, and crushing some poor sap's head. All of the murders are edited down until there's little blood and gore. What sets this Friday apart from the others in terms of cutting is the fact that Buechler himself has tried hard to petition Paramount to release a proper DVD version of the film with all of the material he had to cut for an R rating restored.
This, of course, is NOT that DVD.
Among the blood and guts left on the cutting room floor (ha!) is the death of good 'ol Bernie Lomax. Jason gets all handyman on us when he employs some kind of weed-wacker with a big circular saw blade on the doctor. You see almost nothing on this DVD, but apparently this was all quite grisly with innards flying everywhere. Supposedly one of--if not the--best effects in the film was trimmed as well. That would be the axe-in-the-face effect on that cheesy preppy guy by the lake. Melissa's death (by axe to head) was also quite special, according to Buechler.
Sure, it's sick. But isn't that why we watch these films? Why won't Paramount give us all a fair shake? And for a director of one of these classics to come out and lobby hard for a restored release--how great is that?
This is definitely one of my favorite Friday flicks. I would just love to see the rest of it. The tone of these films is dampened by all of the cuts and choppy edits in the murder portions.
This DVD is not recommended unless you reeeally want it or if you've worn out your VHS copy. Also, what the heck is going on with the artwork on these DVDs?! Check out the cover of this, or of Part VI. What's up? They can't get the original artwork? Completely, utterly lame.

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Ever since homicidal maniac Jason Voorhees got trapped in chains at the bottom of Crystal Lake, the nearby summer camp has operated without a hitch . . . without a murder. But one of this season's happy campers has brought along a deadly secret.
Tina Shepherd can see the future and levitate objects. Her doctor knows just how dangerous telekinesis can be, but he's out to exploit her, not help her. And now it's too late. Tina has accidentally unchained Jason from his watery grave, and the bloodbath is underway.
Tina's special powers are her only hope for survival. But what chance does a teenage girl have against an axe-wielding maniac?

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