September 6, 2020
may be centered around high-octane titles like Train to Busan and its sequel, you'll find something a bit different in 2019's Zombie for Sale (or The Odd Family: Zombie on Sale, as it was originally promoted), a quirky comedy about the gas station-owning Park family whose lives 
change forever when they come across an undead human test subject accidentally escaped from a nearby pharmaceutical lab. Thanks to a string of comedic incidents, the Parks decide that, thanks to a fortuitous bite on one of them, their new addition could help turn a profit for people who want to recapture their youth, Cronos-style. Unfortunately, the community turns out to be woefully unequipped for the consequences when the other shoe finally drops. Full of oddball gags and a recurring fixation with cabbage, this is an amusing addition to undead cinematic lore that's fully aware of its predecessors from George Romero to Edgar Wright. At nearly two hours the film indulges perhaps a bit too much at times with everyone clearly enjoying themselves and also delivering when the story takes a more action-packed, apocalyptic turn in the final stretch. Arrow Video's Blu-ray edition (available in the U.S. and U.K.) looks as great as you'd expect for a film of this recent vintage, albeit more shiny and slick than most zombie films; the Korean DTS-HD MA 5.1 track on the Blu-ray release is quite a treat with lots of fun split surround effects, and optional English subs are naturally provided Extras include a a new, zombie-centric audio commentary with filmmakers and critics Sam Ashurst and Dan Martin, a Q&A with director Lee Min-jae from a 2019 screening at Asian Pop-Up Cinema in Chicago moderated by film critic and author Darcy Paquet, an "Eat Together, Kill Together: The Family-in-Peril Comedy" video essay by critic and producer Pierce Conran (which will make you want to pair this up with Parasite), a standard making-of featurette, a reel of production footage, and a trailer, plus the usual reversible sleeve options including a new design by Mike Lee-Graham. Buy here. 
that's highly entertaining to watch but virtually impossible to describe, the single-location Why Don't You Just Die! from 2018 is a violent, goofy delight with a small group of characters stuck in an apartment that soon turns into a ridiculous bloodbath. Determined to free his girlfriend, 
Olga (Evgeniya Kregzhde), from her abusive cop father, Andrei (Vitaliy Khaev), young hammer-wielding Matvei (Aleksandur Kunznetsov) concocts a plan to get them all together in the same room and hopefully get his hands on some of the crooked officer's ill-gotten financial gains as well. As much of an excuse to show off first-time director Kiri Sokolov's flashy visual style as telling a story, capturing every crazed plot turn (some of it way out of chronological sequence) in vibrant widescreen with lots of aggressive sound effects to keep the action bouncing along. The quasi-spaghetti western score is a nice touch as well, which has led many to compare this to various strands of Italian genre films thanks to its vengeance storyline and flawed anti-hero. That approach carries over to the Arrow Video Blu-ray release (both U.S. and U.K.), which features an analysis by Kim Newman connecting it to various literary and cinematic predecessors from Nostromo to John Huston, A Simple Plan, and Shallow Grave. Also included are a behind-the-scenes reel of production footage and rehearsals, four Sokolov short films ("Could Be Worse," "The Outcome," "The Flame," and "Sisyphus Is Happy"), a trailer, and the complete storyboards as a BD-ROM bonus. The transfer itself looks great with enough blazing reds and oranges to keep your eyes dancing, and the DTS-HD MA 5.1 and 2.0 stereo audio options are both constantly active and bound to make you jump on a couple of occasions. Buy here.
to the great equalizer of home video and streaming, 
several homegrown indie labels have been able to get their projects out into the world without having to stick within the normal guardrails of genres. Case in point: Gemini Entertainment, which has gotten into the game with some interesting homegrown productions worth checking out. For example, Portland filmmaker Kate Karminski's The Barghest from 2001 is a nifty little black-and-white, shot on video character study/horror film about two very different sisters, buttoned-up Billie (Tameson Duffy) and goth wild child Harriet (Buffy Miller), who are brought together after the death of their father to handle his estate. Unfortunately, this tense family reunion also awakens a force within the house - or does it? - complete with ominous wailing noises and sleepless nights for Billie, while Harriet is more than a bit peeved at getting only a pittance from the inheritance. Of course, bloodshed is soon to follow. Running a nice and lean 75 minutes, this micro-budget little curio (which features a cast of three) never wears out its welcome and benefits for a particularly effective, guitar-laced score with a nice Jean Rollin vibe, which dominates the effective stereo mix on Gemini's MOD DVD release. The transfer looks fine for an SD video production, and the sole extra is a trailer (plus bonus ones for the company's other releases). Buy here. 
Karminski film out from the 
same label is the more unclassifiable Trip from 2008, which runs even shorter (55 minutes!) At a laundromat, the very introverted Tess (Miller again) sits in a hospital gown, popping medication and watching the machines. She's approached by the eccentric and aggressive Claire (Tamra Kisane), who's in dire need of quarters and suggests a road trip, followed by Denny (Keith D. Anctil). What follows is a trippy odyssey through back roads, diners, and convenience stores that turns into a total mess for everyone involved. Again lensed on video in B&W, this is another study in warped psychology but with a more experimental vibe and a thick vein of dark humor (plus another interesting experimental music track). Though it seems quite obvious what the big reveal will be at the end of the film, this one sidesteps that slightly with a bit more interesting resolution than you might expect. Of course, the budget is insanely low once again which causes more obvious harm in this case (namely some pretty painful green screen work during a few driving shots), but that's a small price to pay. Again the MOD DVD appears to be accurate to the source and comes with the same batch of trailers. Buy here. 
ranging from the comic to the pornographic. However, the reality of this film is very far from any scenario you could imagine as this 2019 indie from many of the personnel 
behind Tiny Cinema is actually about... well, let's start at the beginning, shall we? At the most hellish office imaginable, IT worker Chip Gutchell (writer-director Tyler Cornack) lives a deeply unfulfilling existence including a rote marital routine at home. After a yearly physical's prostate exam flips an unexpected switch in him, he realizes that he has very... unnatural physical capacity that he tries to keep under control. Nine years later, Chip has become an AA regular and becomes the sponsor of Russell Fox (Tyler Rice), a struggling detective with a fondness for brown leather jackets. As the two start to bond off site, Russell begins to suspect that Chip might have something to do with a missing child cold case... and that his addiction might have something to do with more than alcohol. Deliberately stylized and absurdist, this isn't even remotely as graphic as you might expect but does deliver some fun jolts including a bit of splashy gore. And that ending is... really something else. The various locations around North Hollywood and Los Feliz are effectively used as a backdrop that somehow grounds the ridiculous concept, with some crazily exaggerated lighting schemes turning up to give the film more production value than it came close to actually having. Also noteworthy is the great synthwave score, which keeps the film hovering in just the right area between procedural thriller and comedy. The Epic Pictures Blu-ray release is a good showcase for the film's striking visual design (including those wild bursts of color and some ambitious tracking shots), while the Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 tracks offer good listening options for a mix that isn't really designed to blast your home theater with anything too challenging. An audio commentary by Cornack, Rice, and co-writer and co-producer Ryan Cook offers an engaging look behind the scenes ranging from the shooting locations and casting to the identity of the film's occasionally used butt stand-in; also included are a 12-minute behind the scenes featurette (shot with the same crazy lighting as the movie), the trailer, a cleaner green band trailer, and bonus trailers for other Epic titles (Tainted, Transference, and Torpedo: U-235). Buy here.
you ever set foot in a video store between 1986 and 1990, there's no 
way you could avoid running into the New World VHS of Grunt! The Wrestling Movie, a mockumentary made a year after This Is Spinal Tap with an eye to do the same thing for wrestling that Rob Reiner's film did for rock music. Though nowhere near the level of that classic, this is a lighthearted change of pace for regular New World director Allan Holzman after Forbidden World and Out of Control, with far fewer production issues than those two predecessors. In the memorable opener, popular wrestler "Mad Dog" Joe DeCurso (Greg "Magic" Schwarz) gets carried away and accidentally beheads his opponent, Skull Crusher, which sets off a controversy that sends Joe into hiding. Now a documentary crew is trying to uncover whether Joe is really new wrestling sensation "The Mask," which leads to a string of (rather good) wrestling matches, public taunts, and catchy songs. The quasi-documentary format makes for a versatile way to tell the story with home movie footage, silly sports commentary, and other breaks in the normal narrative keeping you on your toes even if nothing is quite as outrageous as that gory curtain raiser. This film first popped up on DVD in 2013 from Image, though the option to go for is the 2020 Blu-ray from Scorpion Releasing featuring a nice, colorful HD transfer that doesn't try to scrub out the inherent grain that gives the film its texture. The DTS-HD MA English mono track is fine and pretty typical for the company's mixes at the time; optional English SDH subs are included along with a lo-res trailer and bonus ones for Omega Syndrome, Fraternity Vacation, Death Before Dishonor, Uphill All the Way, Delivery Boys, and Night Patrol. Buy here.
highly unorthodox 
narrative structure that will be a make or break element for most viewers, but points definitely get credited for upending the usual template here. The film starts with shell-shocked vet Paul (Luke Sorge) staying the apartment belonging to his sister, Jill (Brenna Otts), who urges him to see pregnant therapist Cassie (Gena Shaw) to deal with his massive addiction and stability issues. She dishes out the unlikely therapy advice of going to a secret "Rondo Party" for unorthodox sexual proclivities, which turns out to be an even worse idea than it sounds when Paul witnesses the murder of two other participants. To spoil more than that would be heresy, but the film goes into seedy territory with a bunch of truly despicable villains and climaxes in an insane bloodbath that isn't for the easily offended. Technical aspects here are uneven, with some accomplished set pieces here and there (mainly the climax) contrasting with some very iffy sound recording and mixing at times; likewise, the performances are inconsistent but mostly on target when they need to be. Artsploitation has released this one on DVD only (though it's also out on VOD) featuring a good anamorphic transfer and a choice of 5.1 or 2.0 tracks, both okay in context with how this was originally mixed. An audio commentary features writer-director Drew Barnhardt and producer Guy Clark (not just the director as cited on the menu), which starts off noting the influence of Barry Lyndon(!) and balances out production info with their influences and artistic intentions. A selected scenes commentary is also featured with composer Ryan Franks, and other extras include two trailers, a 7-minute reel of deleted scenes with optional commentary, and an "artwork featurette" still gallery. Buy here.
welcome parade of Nikkatsu softcore classics making their English-friendly debuts from Impulse Pictures continued unabated with 1981's Tokyo Caligula (Tôkyô 
Karigyura fujin), also known as Madame Caligula and Lady Caligula in Tokyo. Experienced smut maven Kôyû Ohara (White Rose Campus, Fairy in a Cage, Wet and Rope) is back in familiar terrain here with the hour-long saga of Saori (Maiko Kazama), who keeps getting abrupt phone calls from the mistress of her husband who likes to do things like dump wine all over her in the bathtub. During a lackluster evening in the bedroom, Saori is appalled when said mistress intrudes expecting a threesome and plays some incriminating records to get them in the mood, which sends our poor housewife scrambling for the exit. She finds comfort with old school friend Shuran (Asami Ogawa), who's tied to a traumatic incident in Soari's past, but it turns out Shuran lives life on the very wild side. Soon poor Saori is getting pinballed through a string of perverse sexual encounters involving bondage, water sports, stag movies, and fascist fetishism, all before the typically crazed twist ending. As inappropriate and raunchy as you'd expect, this one delivers the goods with several jaw-dropping scenes executed with gusto by the cast (and an unusually diverse slate of ethnicities this time, too). The Impulse DVD features optional English subtitles but is otherwise at the lower end of the spectrum as far as their Nikkatsu titles go; it's taken from an older tape master and switches to 1.85:1 after the more spacious 2.35:1 opening titles. Still, how else are you gonna see this one? Buy here. 
Nikkatsu naughty nuttiness can be found in the later True Story of a Woman in Soapland: Tear!, which comes from late in the game in 1987 
and focuses on the titular Soaplands where prostitutes lather up their clients in bathing areas and, well, do their business. In this case the sex worker in question is Hasekura (Shinobu Wakana), who gets visited by old classmate and current lanky art teacher Kikuta (Kazuo Ôtani) when his wife ditches him over his constant philandering. Soon he's juggling his new fondness for soapy sex with his mistress and his now-pregnant wife, a situation that becomes more complicated by the minute as marital obligations and unrestrained kinks collide. The opening depiction of the soapy location is actually pretty fascinating (especially given the history behind the legalized houses of pleasure and their essentially extinct status now), plus it's the only film where you'll here a woman in ecstasy repeatedly demanding "Be my ponce!" Again this one's taken from an obviously dated tape master but will mark a first-time view for most audiences, and the no-frills DVD is watchable enough in sort of a lo-res retro sort of way. Buy here.
Masaru Konuma) as we get a woman locked in a wooden box, urination in a bucket, and toe sucking all before the main titles finish r
olling. Yep, it's one of those. The action takes place at a ski resort where the creepy, recently widowed manager alternates his time between dishing out meals for the wholesome guests and keeping naked women confined in his dark, secret dungeon, occasionally shipping them back to the city where he can keep his perversions going back home. He also takes advantage of the married female guests by getting their husbands drunk to the point of blacking out, but the ante gets upped when he becomes fixated on the posh Hiroki (Shihori Nagasaka) and criminally arranges to get her stranded at his resort. Meanwhile his sister, Kazumi (Miyuki Kawamura), has her own form of family therapy planned out. Though not as extreme overall as its predecessor, this one features some exceptionally thick atmosphere thanks to its snowy setting (including a pretty unforgettable final scene) and is beautifully shot with a look that feels like a horror film, which is appropriate given the subject matter. The DVD from Impulse is again taken from an older master, watchable enough for what it is; there's also a wild amount of pixellation deliberately applied to some frontal shots that should get a chuckle out of anyone who's watched more than a couple of these before. Buy here. 
Welles himself). In fact, this one amps up the Welles connection with producer Ted Paramore 
credited as "Harry Lime," much to the amusement of The Third Man fans everywhere. This one is a fairly accomplished buddy road movie of sorts from the era's late golden age with R. Bolla, a.k.a. Cannibal Holocaust's Robert Kerman, slapping on a crazy Italian accent as shouty fashion photographer (and apparent Marx Brothers fan) Tony who has multiple women in his life including girlfriend Lilah (Veronica Hart), whose company he enjoys even in the middle of disco-fueled photo shoots, and secretary June (Jessie St. James). When his buddy Ted has marriage problems, Tony invites him on a "Model for a Day" photo shoot in the company van with the ladies. Along the way they all have sexual awakenings of one kind or another (including the obligatory lesbian interlude and a funny, oddball third act detour involving Georgina Spelvin). Thoughtful and witty, the film looks great (with Graver serving as his own cinematographer as usual) and features spirited performances as well as a roster of familiar faces in the supporting cast like Arcadia Lake, Victoria Knoll, and Tigr. As usual, the Vinegar Syndrome release (a Blu-ray/DVD combo) looks terrific with a fresh scan from the original camera negative including the extended (and utterly harmless) bondage session that was trimmed down on earlier video releases. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided along with the theatrical trailer. Buy here. 
"couples film" at the time thanks to its striking, glossy look courtesy of director Paul G. Vatelli and a focus on the pleasure of its female characters (also including Little Oral Annie, Linda Shaw, Lisa DeLeeuw, and Patricia Manning among others). It's also the one that solidified leading man status for Mike Horner, still credited here under his early "Don Hart" name, as Monet's fiance who has no idea that their presumed plan to save each other for marriage is actually stifling her intense sexual curiosity that she's keen to explore while staying at her aunt's upstate mansion. Despite the title, voyeurism doesn't really play into the film all that much (unless it's referring to the audience!) The plot is mostly an excuse for a high number of sex scenes, but it's all visually interesting with unexpected touches like an attic scene involving mannequins that feels like a dirty outtake from Tourist Trap. This one makes its Blu-ray debut from Vinegar Syndrome (as a combo pack with a DVD) looking just gorgeous with a fresh scan from the original 35mm negative, easily blowing away the old Caballero master we've had to put up with for decades. A trailer is also included, but you also get a welcome second feature from Vatelli, the earlier Sorority Sweethearts from 1983. (Tragically, Vatelli would pass away from AIDS three years later while still in his thirties.) There's less of a plot here with many of the same cast members popping up (including Monet, Shaw, and Horner) as house mother Lisa De Leeuw oversees a sorority filled with libidinous college students who are all doing the nasty behind closed doors -- except for virginal Monet, who of course gets her own awakening over the course of the film. Though nowhere near as stylized as the first feature, this one is a breezy and entertaining watch, looking like a million bucks here and far more reputable than the older Caballero transfer. Buy here.
sultan (John Leslie and Francois Papillon 
respectively). That's the framework for what amounts to an all-star collection of sexual encounters from the industry's familiar faces, none of them making the slightest attempt to make convincing Arabs-- such as De Leeuw, Nina Hartley, Mai Lin, Joey Silvera, Jade Wong, Herschell Savage, Tigr, Paul Thomas, Jamie Gillis, Keli Richards, Steve Drake, Kristara Barrington, and Bunny Bleu. Hey, it ain't Pasolini. Both films are the handiwork of director Stephen Lucas (a.k.a. Edwin Brown) and his wife/producer Summer Brown, who are probably best known for the great Irresistible and various capacities on the classic Every Woman Has a Fantasy films. Both films manage to be colorful and oddly chintzy at the same time with costumes that feel swiped from a high school play, but it's a kick to see this many major faces together in a pair of anthologies that focus way more on carnal activity than following any of the narratives from their source. (That said, they get the story specifics right when they're needed.) The first one is stronger overall, though the second ratchets up the kink factor including a final third that's so anachronistic you'll think you've wandered into Gwendoline by mistake. Both films look great with fresh scans from the original camera negatives and come with their original theatrical trailers. Buy here.
in the history of adult films and far less 
typical is 1975's The Naughty Victorians, or to go by its full title, The Naughty Victorians: An Erotic Tale of a Maiden's Revenge. For much of its running time, you might wonder whether this is a bona fide hardcore film at all as it plays out more like a particularly naughty chamber drama a la Inserts with society lady Alice (Susan Sloan, giving off a very Elisabeth Moss vibe) finding out that her beau, Jack (Beerbohn Tree), has a dark secret... namely a soundproof S&M den built in his home where he can indulge in his most perverse photographic fantasies. A shackled session awakens Alice to the fact that she actually likes this whole domination thing, so she decides to join along in recruiting others into their secret sex games. However, as the title implies, things take a completely insane turn in the final scene that must have had raincoat audiences wondering exactly what on earth they'd stumbled into. Strange and stylized, the film a surprising directorial debut for Chicago theater legend Robert Sickinger, who mentored talents like David Mamet and relocated to New York (where this was shot) by the early '70s. This was his sole hardcore venture, and the amount of explicit footage is very limited (but startling when it hits, despite the use of obvious body doubles in some shots). The sumptuous production design is a major asset as well thanks to Francis J. Pezza (who went on to several Hollywood productions and lots of TV shows like Miami Vice) and moody cinematography by Joseph Mangine, who went on to Alone in the Dark, Squirm, Mother's Day, and Neon Maniacs. In short, this one is more for fans of directors like Radley Metzger and Walerian Borowczyk than standard porn, and Vinegar Syndrome has treated it well with an uncensored Blu-ray/DVD set featuring a pleasing 2K scan of the 35mm negative. Dr. Laura Helen Marks provides an interesting audio commentary touching on all things Victorian erotica and touching on the references in the film as well as its portrayal of sexual attitudes at the time, not to mention the obvious themes of gender power dynamics and taboo artistic representation. Also included are two trailers, a French title sequence, and a gallery of stills and press coverage. Buy here.
Teaser and made for a decent dose of Rene at her peak. Surprisingly, 
Vinegar Syndrome managed to unearth a stronger hardcore version that makes its home video debut as a double feature with another interesting discovery, but more on that in a moment. The plot here is pretty simple: seductive and successful nightclub performer Frankie (Bond) hooks up with computer worker Johnnie (Lutz) at his office and treats him after hours, after which they become an item tested by infidelity, Johnnie's passion for cars, and the occasional group erotic encounter. The chance to see Bond sing in some Vegas-style outfits is a nice extra here, as is the presence of softcore vet Cyndee Summers as the trigger to tragedy in the central relationship. What's interesting about the stronger variant on the Vinegar Syndrome release (cited as being from 35mm elements and looking good here framed at 1.85:1) is that the explicit footage is quite brief and appears to be performed by stand-ins, despite the fact that both Bond and Lutze had already been going all the way on camera quite regularly by this point. In any case, it's a welcome variant but fans of Bond should hang on to their SW DVDs for the familiar softcore version. Sharing space on the Vinegar Syndrome DVD is The Mislayed Genie, a very silly 1973 sex comedy fantasy about a very horny young man, David (smut regular Franklin Anthony), who finds out that rubbing himself in the tub summons a switch-hitting genie (Tobar Mayo, later seen in Schizoid and Abar) who can grant his every wish. With only one thing on his mind, David embarks on a wish-crazy series of sexual escapades that envelops his friends and classmates including a gangster detour and a sex ed classroom free for all with Bond back again as the teacher. This one's floated around for years in a transfer mostly sourced from a print used by Something Weird that, as it turns out, was augmented with a lot of hardcore insert footage that also wiped out some material original to this film. It looks like this is the first time the original version of the film has been available on home video, and it plays much better this way. The content still veers extremely close to hardcore (and sort of crosses it in one scene), but it's all genial fun and nice to have in its intended form; the fresh scan (from 16mm elements, according to the packaging) is also a substantial upgrade. Buy here. PREVIOUS SICK PICKS:
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