Return to Return to Nuke Em' High: Blu-Ray Review

This is the second part of Lloyd Kaufman’s “Return to Nuke Em High. Yes, I did a video review of this film late last year but finally after waiting what feels like ten or twenty years, I managed to finally got the chance to pick up the blu-ray “Return to Return to Nuke Em High” to give it the full blu-ray review.

The film picks up where the first film left where the two lovers Crissy and Lauren are forced to finally confront the evil CEO of Tromaganic Foodstuff Conglomerate. If that wasn’t worse Crissy gives birth to a half duck/ half human and the Cretins formally the glee club is terrorizing Tromavile High School. Yes, this is the plot for this film. Can Crissy and Lauren stop the cretins and Tromaganic Foodstuff Conglomerate in this explosive final part to “Return to Nuke Em’ High”.

After seeing this film separately as its own film compared to watching both parts back to back, I can firmly say “Return to Return Nuke Em’ High aka vol 2” is a stepdown from Vol 1. Still, it’s a good film but I was hoping more of the same as the first film but this felt different and it felt like Lloyd was getting in the way of the story of the first film.

Kaufman’s direction was as good as the first film. He does a good job making sure the film moves at a good pace even when there is an annoying gag in the film which I’ll get into in the screenplay portion that slows it down only. The action came off as chaotic which is what makes Kaufman’s films always fun to watch as I had fun with this film.

He also does a good making sure the acting is good enough to keep you having fun watching this film even though the screenplay has flaws. Both Catherine Corcoran and Asta Paredes are very good in the film and I also enjoy Lloyd performance even though there was too much of him in this film.

The screenplay written by Kaufman, Travis Campbell, Derek Dressler and Gabriel Feidman was the film’s weak point. One of the problems that I had with this film was all the Talking Tromaville cut ins. I felt it was annoying after the second time. I get the joke but I don’t like being hit in the head with the same joke too many times. It slows the film down and it’s something I don’t like in comedies because it becomes repetitive. It hurts the momentum of the film. The other thing that I didn’t like was it focuses on Lloyd’s character too much. Don’t get me wrong, I love Lloyd Kaufman but I think his character takes up much time in the story with the whole retconning of “Class of Nuke Em’ High” to him having too much screen time that it loses focus on the two main characters Chrissy and Lauren.

There was also some good things in the screenplay. The screenplay does a great job breaking the fourth wall a couple of times with an editing room scene fight plus a scene changing from dialogue to director’s commentary. Both of those scenes are the funniest scenes in this film and felt different and inventive. The film also does a very good job making sure the action had an intense and gory feel to it that you’ll have a fun time enjoying this film and forgive the film’s screenplay miscues.    

Like every Lloyd Kaufman film, the blu-ray is loaded. The extras on the first disc features a very funny introduction to the film, short films including the weirdly entertaining Mr. Topps, Merry Christmas to My Wife’s Butt and Radiation March and trailers for Return to Nuke Em High vol 1&2, Troma Now and Lloyd Kaufman’s upcoming film Shakespeare Shitstorm. 

Disc 2 is as loaded. The disc starts off with the documentary 2 Girls, 1 Duck. This is a feature length documentaon the making of the film. This is usually the best part of a Lloyd Kaufman film on blu-ray as this documentary gives you an all access look in the making “Return to Nuke Em High” Volumes 1 and 2. It’s a very good look at how an independent film is made as it’s not all glitz and glamour. You get to see how hard it is to make two films at once. It’s definitely worth checking out if you ever want to know what it takes to direct and produce an indie horror film. The only thing that was missing was the audio commentary which would also been nice to have on this disc.

After that there is two very good featurettes Make Your Own Shower Scene and Make Your Own Green Screen in a Bentley. Both of those featurettes can be very helpful if you’re a filmmaker looking to cut corners in making your indie horror film. Beside those, you also have the short documentary From Festival to Fascism and TroMoMA Vol 1. Honored at the MoMA, NY and tributes to Stan Lee, Lemmy and Joe Fleshaker.

This is a step down from Return to Nuke Em’ High but “Return to Return to Nuke Em High has enough good action and solid lead performances that makes this film fun given its flaws.

Film Review Rating: Four Stars

Blu-Ray Extras: Four stars  

"Dangerous People" Blu-Ray Review

Sometimes at conventions, you come across films that you like enough that you want to write about when the release date comes along. I came across “Dangerous People” when I went to a screening of the film at Scare-A-Con New England after hearing about the film through one of my friends over at Dark Discussions Podcast.

The film is about two killers (Garo Nigoghossian, Vincent Stalba) who stumble into a bar. There, they meet a beautiful woman (Angelina Leigh) who decides to go with them to their apartment. The killers take her hostage, but their plan takes a vicious turn when they find out she’s not like their other victims. Who will make out alive in this twisted film?

This was one of those films where I didn’t know what to expect as I went to it the first time blind. After watching this for a second time recently, I enjoyed the film even more.

Garo Nigoghossian’s direction was very good. What I liked about his direction was the way he approaches his direction. He does a great job making sure the film move at a good pace. Whether it was the way he makes sure the action scene had a horrific tone to the way the gore effects were handled, everything is done in a way that makes horrifying elements work. The other thing that I liked about the direction was the way that he directs his cast including himself. Each of the three main people in the film had a very good chemistry with each other. It helped moved the film considering there’s a lot of dialogue in the film. It’s one of the better acted micro budgeted films current out on DVD, VOD and Blu-Ray.

The screenplay also written by Nigoghossian had a very trippy and sleazy feel to it which made it feel like a grindhouse film from the seventies. One of the things that he does well to make sure that this story has grindhouse feel to it. From the exploitative elements of the late sixties/ early seventies tone to the surrealism that he uses to make his story work, everything is written well to the point that it comes off as shocking. It helped gave the film its sleazy tone. The other thing that I liked about Nigoghossian’s screenplay was the way that he approaches the film’s dialogue. I liked how he keeps the scenes moving with the offbeat dialogue. It moved the pace of the story and made the scenes between the three main characters interesting considering most of the film takes place in either in one room or in flashbacks sequences. It made all the craziness that goes on works very well as I was into this from start to finish.

If that wasn’t enough, the film also has very good cinematography work from Wheat and a trippy soundtrack from Palm Tree Lumberjacks, J.D. Blackfoot and Bren Scott.

The first featurette on disc 1 is the behind the scenes featurette. The featurette features on set footage from the filming. It’s an interesting look at the filming process of this film. The first disc wraps up with the film’s official trailer.

Disc 2 stars with the film’s audio commentary track. The track features star/writer/director Garo Nigoghossian, actress Angelina Leigh, actor Vincent Stalba and moderator Hunter Duesing from the Midnight Movie Cowboys podcast. This was a very good track as it goes into various aspects of the film’s production while diving into some stories that took place while filming. This track moves at very good pace as moderator Hunter Duesing does a very good job making sure the conversation keeps moving throughout the film. It allows the track to be informative while being entertained.

The next featurette is “Critiquing Raw Footage”. It was an interesting look at one of the film’s shocking scenes. Nigoghossian shows some of the do’s and don’ts when filming and creating a scene while also going into his thought process. It shows the pain taking process of getting the right shots for a scene to work. Interesting featurette for people into the process of film making.

After that it’s “Angelina’s Naked Storytelling”. It’s very similar to the film’s behind the scenes featurette as it show how one of the film’s dialogue scenes being filmed from its direction to completion.

The disc wraps up with extended, alternate and deleted scenes, a thirty plus minute NSFW photo gallery, teaser and red band trailers for Dangerous People and a trailer for “Actress Apocalypse”.

This is one of those films that plays very well to fans to grindhouse inspired films. The blu-ray is one of the most loaded indie releases that I’ve ever seen as there is a lot material on this disc.  I was happy that I took the chance with “Dangerous People” as this is one of the better micro budgeted releases that I’ve seen this year.

Review Rating: Five Stars
Extras: Five Stars

“The Stendhal Syndrome” Blu-Ray Review

Dario Argento has always been one of my favorite director. When I heard that “The Stendhal Syndrome” was coming in a big 3 disc set, I figured maybe it would a good time to check out this film out since I’m big fan of this work.

The film focuses on a police detective (Asia Argento) who’s trying to stop a series of murders caused by an attractive man. During the case, she starts to develop a mental illness where she starts seeing any works of art that causes her to lose her mind. As she further descends into madness, the bodies start piling up as she struggles to keep her sanity and find out who is behind these killings. The film also stars Thomas Kretschmann (Avengers: Age of Ultron, King Kong) and Marco Leonardi (Cinema Paradiso).

Going into this film, I’ve loved Argento’s previous works like “Suspira”, “Inferno” and “Tenebre” as I consider them his best works. “The Stendhal Sysdrome” is one that I wouldn’t put up there with those films even though this is a very good film. The film falls between “Opera” and “Dracula” which I liked a lot for its gothic tone and take heat for liking it. Thankfully, it wasn’t like the god awful “Giallo” which is his worst by far. Yes, it’s really a bad film and one of the worst I’ve seen.

Dario Argento does a very good job with the way that he directs this film. Whether it was the way that he directs the action to how he makes everything in the film feel very dark and dreary, it’s done to give an uneasy feel to what you are watching. I was feeling creeped out by some of the scenes, as it felt graphic and uneasy to watch. It also helps that he has a great score from composer Ennio Morricone. The other thing he does very well is to get the performances that makes this good. I liked he’s able to make sure the performances have a dark tone to it. Argento takes his time as he makes sure that his cast’s performances fit the film’s dark and surreal tone. It added to the creepiness that this film has going for it.

Speaking of acting, I thought Asia Argento’s (who’s also Dario’s daughter) performance was great here. She does a great job making sure that her character has this very dark and troubled look. It made her character very interesting to watch as she struggles to keep her sanity and how she begins to crumble. It made her character very interesting as she does a great job with her performance as the film’s very troubled main character.

The screenplay written by Dario Argento and Franco Ferrini was good. The screenplay does a great job focusing on the main character and her state of mind. They made sure that it was one of the focal points as they spend a lot developing the trauma and the effects the main character is going through because of it. It’s makes the character an interesting one kept going throughout. The other thing that they do very well is to make everything dark from start to finish. Whether it was the surreal images that we see to the film’s uneasy action, its done in a way to project a horrific tone that stays with this after seeing it. It’s what makes all the horror aspects work in this film.

The three disc set is pretty loaded. The first two discs include the DVD and Blu-Ray of the film. The discs also boasts news extra. First, the film’s audio commentary track with author Troy Howarth (So Deadly, So Pervesre). This is a great track as Howarth does a very good job going over the history and facts of the production and give good analysis on some of the scenes. Another thing that I liked was that he also goes into the history of the principals involved. It keeps the track moving and you’re given some good information about them that you might have not known.

Next, there are three new interviews on the disc which all total over forty minutes. “Three Shades of Asia – New interview with Asia Argento”. “Prisoner of Art – New interview with Franco Ferrini” and “Sharpe as a Razor – New interview with special effects artist Franco Casagni”. All very good interviews as you get a look at the production of the film and their thoughts about making this. It’s worth checking especially if you’re a fan of the film. After that the first disc wraps up with the film’s theatrical trailer and poster and stills gallery.

The release also includes a bonus disc of more interviews taken from Blue Undergrounds 2007 disc. It features interviews from director Dario Argento, psychological consultant and author of which this film is based on Graziella Magherini, special effects artist Sergio Sticaletti, assistant director Luigi Cozzi and production designer Massimo Antonello Geleng. This was very good as there were a lot of information on the production. Whether it’s about the disorder known as Stendhal Syndrome to stories about the making of the film to the relationships that each of them had with Dario, everything is interesting and worth watching if you’re into the works of Dario Argento.

This 3 disc set might be the most definite edition of “The Stendhal Sysdrome” to come out on blu-ray as Blue Underground does a great job with this release. The film is one of those films that is so disturbing to watch and is Argento’s most disturbing film. With its great extras and very disturbing film that will shock you, this will be please fans of Argento’s earlier work.

Review Rating: Four Stars

Extras: Five Stars

"Feed the Light" Blu-Ray Review

David Lynch’s recent relaunch of “Twin Peaks” has gotten me into the mood of watching films that have a very surrealist and bizarre tone to them. My renewed interested in surrealistic films coupled with the fact that the film is based on the H.P. Lovecraft story “The Colour Out of Space”, it was safe to say that I needed to check out not caring if this is a Swedish horror film or the fact that it has subtitles . I was seeing this no matter what.

The film is about a mother who is looking for her daughter after she is taken from her by her ex-husband. She tracks them to an institution where unexplained things are happening causing people to disappear. What she finds is an underworld that feeds off people as its trying and turning everything into darkness. Can she find a way to escape with her daughter before she is trapped in the darkness forever?

Going into “Feed the Light”, as I was expecting this to be one of those films that would grab me since it’s the tone and the looked so surreal. I enjoyed this film a lot. This was easily one of the most surreal films that I’ve seen this year as it’s a very dark and haunting film.

One of the reasons that I enjoyed this was the cinematography and directing from Henrik Moller. He does a very good job creating this surreal world through the way he approaches his screenplay and the way that he films the scenes. It helped gives this film a very bizarre tone that helps make the action work and how the images are seen. Also, I liked how he’s able to make sure the pictures has a film has a bleak black and white feel to them with splashes of bloody red for most of the film. This help added to film’s gothic and bizarre tone. Muller also does a good job with the way that he directs the cast. He makes sure that his cast has this frantic and dark tone to their performances. It helps drive home the film’s action and makes this a surreal experience.

The screenplay written by Moller and Martin Jirham does very good job making sure the screenplay focuses on its main character. Whether it’s her struggle to find her daughter to her struggles to survive, they do a good job making sure that she is the focus. This made the story very interesting. The other thing that I liked about the screenplay was the fact that they makes sure that the surrealism makes sense with the story. Sometimes I’ll see films were the surrealism makes you feel like you’re lost and don’t know what’s going on. This film doesn’t do that as it sticks to the film’s story and makes sense with what happens.

The blu-ray doesn't have many features as it has a behind the scenes featurette that features interviews from the cast and crew and “The Lovecraft Influence” an interview with director Henrik Moller.

This is definitely a film that you should check out, if you’re into surreal horror. “Feed The Light” is a surreal trip that you should check out.

Review Rating: Four Stars

Extras: Two Stars

"Retro Puppet Master" Blu-Ray Review

When “Retro Puppet Master” was released on blu-ray, I was kind of surprised that this got a blu-ray release considering not many of the post paramount films have been hitting blu-ray. Also, this film was released before “Curse of the Puppet Master” on blu-ray. The film is the seventh film of the “Puppet Master” and most different from the others.

The film focuses on a young Andre Toulon (Greg Sestero) who is running his puppet shows with the help of his friends. During one of his shows, he meets the daughter of a Swiss diplomat whom he falls for. His life is turned upside down when a mysterious sorcerer on the run shows up on his doorstep with the ancient secrets of Sutekh. Now with the secrets, Toulon and his puppets must stop Sutekh and his servants before he carries out his evil plans.

It’s been a while since I’ve seen “Retro Puppet Master”. I remember first seeing this on DVD through the local video and feeling happy that it was better than the abysmal “Curse of the Puppet Master” where I was outraged at that film’s lazy attempt at making a horror film. This film holds up from the last time I saw it.

One of the reason that I enjoyed this was David Decoteau’s direction. He does a good job making sure this feels different from all the other Puppet Master films. Decoteau does that by making sure the dialogue scenes move at a good pace and not rely heavily on stock film like the sixth Puppet Master” did. It made this entry more enjoyable as it felt like a real film and something that would fit the crazy mythology. I also liked how the film’s villains also had a nice creepy look to them. Even though they feel practical and cheap, it has a nice zombie/ creepy “Dark City” vibe to them. Decoteau also did a good job making sure the acting is good here. I liked how he manages to make sure the performances have a different feel from previous films. It’s more low-key but effective as I was into them.

The screenplay written by Benjamin Carr was good. What I liked about this screenplay was that it had a different tone compared to the other films. The other films felt it had more of a horror tone to them with the way its focuses on the blood. This film however focuses more on the backstory of the series main character Andre Toulon and how he met his wife. It was a nice change of the pace from the first six films. The other thing that I liked about it was the fact that we got to the beginning years of Toulon and how he acquired the magic to make the puppet walk and kill. It gives more background information of the character. It’s nice to have a different kind of “Puppet Master” film considering the sixth one really sucked. The extras on the blu-ray starts off with the film’s commentary track featuring director David Decoteau and the film star Greg Setero. This was a very good one. I liked how the both of them do into detail about the making of the film and stories that had happened on set. It’s one of the better full moon commentaries that they’ve done. The disc then wraps up with the film’s original videozone and two hours of raw behind the scenes footage with or without commentary from David Decoteau.

This is seventh best film in the series as I have this just behind “Axis Termination”, but it’s still a good film. “Retro Puppet Master” is different from the other entry from the other films in the series but it was nice to have a different entry that focuses on Toulon and not the puppets so much.

Review Rating: Three and a Half stars

Extras: Three Stars

Blu-Ray Review: "Creepozoids"

When I first discovered “Creepozoids”, I was looking into some Linnea Quigley work after liking her in films like “Night of the Demons” and “The Return of the Living Dead”. When I came across “Creepozoid”, I also noticed that it was David Decoteau who directed one of my favorite Full Moon films “Puppet Master 3: Toulon’s Revenge”. It was a no brainer to check this film out.

The film is about five people who deserted the army during a nuclear war. They come across an abandoned building to avoid the acid rain. They soon discover that they are not alone as there are mutant monsters lurking from every corner turning people into hideous creatures. Can they survive the storm before they become monsters themselves?

I enjoyed “Creepozoids” from start to finish. Decoteau’s direction was very good from start to finish. What makes his directing good was the way that he makes the action move at an intense pace. Whether it was the way that he makes sure the action has an intense feel to making sure this film has an energy to it, Decoteau makes sure the action is there to keep the film moving and keep you engaged with everything on screen. It helped made this a fun and intense film considering its budget. The other thing that makes his direction so good was the fact that the acting is good enough to keep you interested in the performances. He makes sure that his cast is making their performances good enough so that it makes you interested in the characters and the gory action that takes place. It helped with my enjoyment of the film, as it this was one of those fun 80’s B-movies.

The screenplay written by Decoteau and Buffalo Hauser was a fun one. One of the things that I liked about the screenplay was the fact that it builds up the suspense and terror. They made sure that they build up every intense scene. Whether it was through the false scares or making sure the creatures are terrifying, it was done in a way that it didn’t rushed. When that happens, it allows for good build up and development. The other thing I liked about this was the fact there was some good action sequences. The writers did a good job making sure that those scenes had an intense and gory feel to them. It gave that intense feel that I like seeing in low budget horror films where it makes you forget the cheap scenery.

If there was one thing that I didn’t like about this, it was the fact this film is short with its seventy-two minute running time. It was one of those films that I wished was a little longer because the running time flies by and like this film a lot. It’s the only complaint that I have with this film. The extras start off with the director’s commentary track from director David Decoteau. It’s a rarity for a Full Moon release to have one of these but it very welcomed here as there wasn’t any interviews on this disc. Decoteau does a good job going into the various facts about the production on this. It makes up for the lack of any interviews. After that, there’s rare production stills for the film and trailers for this film and other Full Moon releases. It was better than previous releases.

Creepozoids” was one of those films that I enjoyed a lot and made me want explore more of David Decoteau films as I would’ve never seen and enjoyed films like “Nightmare Sisters” and “Sorority Babes in the Slimeball Bowl-O-Rama” which also starred Linnea Quigley. “Creepozoids” is a fun an intense 80’s B movie that will creep you out.

Review Rating: Four Stars
Extras: Two Stars

Blu-Ray Review: "Mark of the Devil"

“Mark of the Devil” marks the first release from Arrow Video that I was able to watch. I was very curious about this label over the years after hearing how they give their British releases the Criterion treatment. This was the first released that I was interested in because of I’m into those types of films about exploitation films of British cinema and witches in general.

The film is about a witchfinder’s apprentice (Udo Kier) who comes to a small Austrian village where he falls in love with a girl. When his master (Herbert Lom) arrives in town, his faith in him is tested when his master deems the girl to be a witch. If matters isn’t worse for him, the town witchmaster general (Reggie Nalder) is a sadistic person that rushes to judgement and want to burn her at the stake. Now caught in the middle, can he find a way to help her escape a violent death before she ends up dead?

“Mark of the Devil” is surprisingly a good film given its subject matter. Director Michael Armstrong does a very good job making the material of the film interesting and shocking. Whether it was the way that the scenes were filmed to how he makes the images feel and look so horrifying, it kept me on edge. The other thing that Armstrong does well, he makes sure that the acting fits the film’s demented tone. He does a very good making sure that most of the main characters performances are villainous. It helped gave me the reaction that I wanted towards them as most of the characters in the film are sick and repulsive. Armstrong also makes sure that his cast had great chemistry with each other. The scenes between Herbery Lom and Udo Keir were great here. Both of the actors had great chemistry with each other. It helped made me more interested in this film especially towards the end.

The screenplay written by Sergio Sasstner and Perry Parker does a very good job making sure that this was horrifying. One of the things that makes this good was the way they made sure the story was very dark from the start. All the horror scene had a certain level of shock to them. Whether it was the execution scenes to the interrogations scenes, everything generated a reaction. It helped made all the horror aspects of the film work well, as those scenes left me horrified and made me turn away from the screen. The other thing that I liked about the screenplay was the way it develops its main characters. I liked the how the writers do a good job focusing on Lom and Keir’s characters and the beliefs that each of those characters have during the course of the film. Even though they weren’t good, at least one of the characters changes during the course of the film. It makes for some very good exchanges and tension between Keir and Lom’s characters.

The special features start out with the audio commentary track with director Michael Armstrong moderated by Calum Waddell. This was a very good track. I liked how both Armstrong and Waddell cover a lot of things from the production of the film to some of the film’s subject matter to the film’s release and other films of this nature. It made for a very good and interesting track.

The next feature is “Hallmark of the Devil”: an interview with Fangoria editor Michael Gingold. The feature talks about the original release of the film and the gimmicks and retitles that Hallmark Films used on other exploitation releases that made those films successful. It was an interesting interview on the history of those films and how it became successful. It’s worth checking out if you’re into those exploitation films of that era.

After that, is “Mark of the Devil: Then and Now”. This featurette showcases the locations used in the film and how it looks now. Not a bad featurette as it was nice to revisit the film’s locations from the time the film was filmed to now.

The next featurette on the disc is “Mark of the Time”. This featurette was about the new wave of British horror in the sixties and seventies. It’s an interesting documentary on the British films that were released during that period of British horror cinema. The interviews were interesting enough to keep my interest.

After that the disc wraps with interviews from most of the cast, outtakes, trailer and a photo gallery.

“Mark of the Devil” is one of those films that does a great job frightening you with its shock value. It also worth watching for the direction of Michael Armstrong and performances of Hebert Lom and Udo Keir.

Review Rating: Four Stars.

Extras: Four Stars