Following ZOMBIE and THE BEYOND, French label Arts films is due to release another essential Lucio Fulci shocker in HD. Known in France as FRAYEURS (‘Fear’), CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD is in some ways the most nightmarish and grotesque of all Fulci zombie films. Like the previous entries in their Lucio Fulci collection, this Blu-ray/DVD combo will include an 80-page booklet under the supervision of Fulci scholar Lionel Grenier.
She was mysterious and seductive as Lorna in Jess Franco’s cult 1968 film NECRONOMICON a.k.a SUCCUBUS. Janine Reynaud also appeared in CASTLE OF THE CREEPING FLESH (original title: IM SCHLOß DER BLUTIGEN BEGIERDE) under the direction of Adrian Hoven. She was 88.
With just “a camera and freedom”, Jess Franco succeeded in showing his viewers another world. A world free from the myriad invisible constraints imposed by the outdated societal norms. His colourful, hypnotic cinema seduces you away from the tyrannical dogmas of good taste and normality into another, poetic and whimsical, realm. With very limited means and often working against massive odds, the Madrid-born auteur has revealed to us an un-PC world where desire and obsession reign. Therefore, Jess Franco is a freedom fighter. The films of Jess Franco’s remain a perfect antidote from the soulless calculated plastic “entertainment” that’s filling the dreary multiplexes of today. His rebel cinema lives on.
Going to the cinema nowadays can be deadly boring, unless you’re a rabid Marvel or Star Wars fan. Thankfully, there’s still a handful of places for non-mainstream film lovers in Berlin. Situated in Berlin-Moabit, Filmrauschpalast cinema has been hosting midnight film marathons under the WIR KINDER VOM BAHNHOFSKINO banner for over a year now, showing everything from 1980s Arnold Schwarzenegger epics to the works of Lucio Fulci, Lamberto Bava and Stuart Gordon. The latest, eighteenth, screening offered the audience a chance to revisit Argento’s classic Animal Trilogy.
Although the Bahnhofskino team are big lovers of analog medium and often screen rare 35mm prints, this time the three films were screened digitally in remastered versions. Still, there was one delightfully grainy trailer projected from celluloid film during the intermission.
Seeing Argento’s early films back-to-back gave one a clear sensation of witnessing three iterations of the same basic narrative. The fact that the same supporting actors (Fulvio Mingozzi, Umberto Raho, Jaques Stany, Tom Felleghy, etc.) pop up in all three films further added to the feeling of watching a seamless whole, one long giallo.
As per Bahnhofskino tradition, complimentary schnapps was served throughout the screening, keeping the audience’s spirits high and prompting more interaction with the screen.
THE BIRD WITH CRYSTAL PLUMAGE (1970) Comedy relief scenes with Werner Peters as the camp antiquarian and Mario Adorf as the cat-eating recluse went down great with the audience, with certain awkwardly-dubbed lines having the viewers in stitches.
THE CAT O’NINE TAILS (1971) It was great to revisit this underrated second entry into the trilogy. While the infamous static love scene was met with roaring laughter, the tense rooftop finale left the audience speechless. The viewers also had an opportunity to take home a Bluray of THE CAT O’NINE TAILS at a discount price.
FOUR FLIES ON GREY VELVET (1971) This gaudy, disjointed and over-indulgent giallo worked surprisingly well at 2 a.m. after another round of schnapps. Jean-Pierre Marielle as the hapless private investigator Arrosio positively steals the show from his younger and prettier co-stars. The overwrought finale with the killer’s redundant babbling monologue provided more chuckles.
Unlike their Tobe Hooper tribute screening, there was no surprise fourth feature to round off this night of kitschy thrills at the Filmrauschpalast. May there be many more such midnight screenings to come.
The 21st edition of German Underground and Obscure Film Festival is upon us. Held annually in Erlangen, Germany since over twenty years, this independently-funded film event is a unique opportunity for the curious viewer to learn more about daring new genre films that mainstream outlets stubbornly ignore. This year Weekend of Fear holds screenings of Ruggero Deodato’s (who turned 79 years old a few days ago) latest feature BALLAD IN BLOOD and Paul Naschy’s 1979 gem EL CAMINANTE a.k.a THE DEVIL INCARNATE. Another highlight is the micro-budget underground gore feature ZOMBIERCALYPSE from Psycho Productions. More information is available at the Weekend of Fear Official Page.
Adolfo Lastretti’s sharp face is a familiar one to Eurocult fans. The dark-eyed, intense actor had appeared alongside such stars as James Coburn and Alain Delon over the course of a 40-year film career. He was unforgettable as the corduroy-clad hitman Tatum in Umberto Lenzi’s underrated SPASMO. You may have seen him as a kindly Catholic priest who falls prey to violence in Lucio Fulci’s twisted western FOUR OF THE APOCALYPSE. Lastretti’s filmography amounts to around 40 film and TV appearances yet the man himself was more fond of stage work. Lastretti felt an actor’s artistic freedom was too limited with the cinematic medium. In his final years Adolfo Lastretti had retired from acting and enjoyed a peaceful life in the countryside. His last screen role was in the 1999 TV series VIVERE (“To live”). He was 81.
source: Notturno.it
Independent home video label The Ecstasy of Films is currently hard at work on the second title in their Lucio Fulci Collection. Following CONTRABAND (under its French title LA GUERRE DES GANGS), Fulci’s notoriously violent THE NEW YORK RIPPER (known in France as L’EVENTREUR DE NEW YORK) will be available as a Collector’s Edition Blu-ray in August 2018. What makes the release attractive to collectors is the inclusion of an 80-page booklet entitled L’Éventreur de New York – le giallo hard-gore et désespéré de Lucio Fulci (The New York Ripper – Lucio Fulci’s desperate hard-gore Giallo ).
This release, which is the film’s HD debut of in France, features the following extras:
– Ripping Rememberances : An interview with Antonella Fulci (22 mins).
– 42nd Street Memories: The Rise and Fall of America’s Most Notorious Street » by Calum Waddell (82 mins),
– The Ripper Files: A documentary with three original cast members:Howard Ross, Barbara Cupisti and Zora Kerowa. (24 mins)
– La Musique du sang (“The music of blood”): An interview with Daniele De Gemini, head of the legendary Italian label Beat Records. (18 mins)
– Deux ou trois choses que je sais de Lucio… (“Two or three things I know about Lucio…”) : An interview with prolific screenwriter Dardano Sacchetti (20 mins)
– Le peintre du diable (“The devilish painter”): An interview with poster artist Enzo Sciotti. (17 mins)
– Exclusive booklet by Lionel Grenier (luciofulci.fr) : L’Éventreur de New York – le giallo hard-gore et désespéré de Lucio Fulci. The booklet gives an overview of the controversial film’s production and offers as in-depth analysis of this unforgettable giallo.
Source: www.luciofulci.fr
Lucio Fulci fans and completists can now pre-order the Blu-ray/DVD combo of what many call Lucio Fulci’s ultimate masterpiece, the celebrated 1981 shocker THE BEYOND (known in France as L’AU-DELA) over at www.artusfilms.com.
Special Edition features:
– Full uncut version from a 2K restored master
– An 80-pages booklet «La Louisiane, territoire des morts (“Louisiana, territory of the dead”) with contributions by various French film critics supervised by Lionel Grenier (luciofulci.fr)
– Various extras
Coming soon from www.artusfilms.com
TENDER FLESH (1997)
Jess Franco Collection
Amaray 2 DVD
Paula (Amber Newman), a young nightclub stripper, is picked up by a couple of rich weirdos advocating free love. She’s invited to spend a few days with them in a palace on a tropical island. There, in the midst of luxury and depraved sex rites, Paula will discover that her hosts are crazy about hunting and feasting on human flesh.
Artus Films present Jess Franco’s final film to be shot on 35mm (allegedly co-financed by the owner of Berlin’s oldest video rental store, Videodrom) in an English-friendly 2-disc Special Edition. The second DVD features exclusive extras: extensive video footage of the Spanish master at work filming of TENDER FLESH and previously unpublished photos offering a glimpse into the world of Uncle Jess.
EXTRAS INCLUDE
– Introduction by frequent Jess Franco collaborator Alain Petit
– “From Malaga with love” (a Making of with 3 audio options)
– La bouchée du cardinal (“Delicacy”)
– Working with Jess
– Life is Shit (La vie est une merde)
– Psycho-lettes (a short film)
– Slide-show of promotional posters and stills
– Trailers for Artus Films’ Jess Franco collection
DVD specs :
Running Time : 91 minutes
English and Spanish audio options
French Subtitles
Colour, Original 1.66:1 aspect ratio
Legendary independent French home video label Artus Films is bringing Italian gore maestro’s most beloved shockers to High Definition in a Collector’s Edition Blu-Ray/DVD combo. The Lucio Fulci Collection is launched with the release of ZOMBIE, known in France as L’ENFER DES ZOMBIES. This edition boasts a fresh transfer from a 2K scan. The eagerly awaited release, originally announced for September 2017 (it took longer due to extra restoration work) includes an 80-page booklet entitled Fulci, zombies et opportunisme : quand les morts-vivants ont envahi le cinéma italien (“Fulci, zombies and opportunism: when the living dead took over Italian cinema”) featuring contributions by French film critics under the supervision of Lionel Grenier (the man behind the excellent luciofulci.fr website )
Bonus features include newly produced interviews with screenwriter Dardano Sacchetti and makeup artist Maurizio Trani. This region B locked release features Italian and French audio options and removable French subtitles. Artus is set to bring out THE BEYOND and CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD special editions later in the year.