Archives for November, 2007
Directed by Jess Franco
Starring Al Cliver, Lina Romay
I love Jess Franco. He did some really fun exploitation films form the 60′s and 70′s but he also did some very bad films too. He reminds me of Takeshi Miike, my favorite Japanese director making modern horror films.
Miike does so many films in a year that there’s no way they can all be good. He has a few key films each year that are great and the others are made to help fund the good ones. I don’t know if that’s why some of Franco’s movies are really bad but some of them really are. None of Franco’s films aren’t “classics” but when all cylinders are firing he can create some of the best in the exploitation genre.
The Movie
With all of that said I was thrilled to see a Franco film from Blue Underground. I had high hopes for a fun romp. What I ended up with is something that’s entertaining but entertaining for the wrong reasons.
Like so many films of this type the story starts with Jeremy taking his wife and daughter with him on an expedition into the jungle. This is where things get entertaining. A bunch of natives that look oddly Euro (hilarious) attack the boat, kill Jeremy’s wife, kidnap his daughter, and cut off his arm and eat it. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen African tribesmen played by Caucasians. My favorite instance, which is slightly funnier than this instance, is an Ilsa movie where a group of sheiks are played by Hispanic and Italian guys.
Jeremy heads back to New York, recovers from his injury, bounces around town for a few years, and finally decides to head back to the jungle to search for his kidnapped daughter. Upon his return to the jungle Jeremy discovers that his daughter has been taken as a white queen (hence one of the original names of this film White Cannibal Queen) and is worshiped by the tribe that kidnapped her. So bizarre action follows.
Had the box not had Franco’s name on it I wouldn’t have realized he made this film. His best films are far from perfect but he does have a way with cinematography and I’ve always loved his use of color. None of that is present here. His films often feel very lavish and this one comes off cheap. Did he make it for a quick buck? Probably. On top of the low budget look of the film the acting is also bad and so is the script. You’ll get characters with no depth and that appear from nowhere and the assembly is bear amateur quality.
Cannibals is funny in that really bad MST3K way that could be fun to watch in a group but it will disappoint true Franco fans.
4/10
The Video
This anamorphic widescreen presentation probably looks better than the film actually deserves. The presentation is consistent even if the source film isn’t. Some shots are much more crisp and clear than others but not due to the transfer but due to the source material. Detail is pretty good even through the grain and artifacting. It’s no hi def presentation but it’s a pretty solid one considering the age of the film and the quality of it.
7/10
The Audio
This English mono dub is a pretty basic presentation but it gets the job done. It may make you laugh along with everything else because the film will remind you of old Kun Fu films where the dub doesn’t even try to match the lip movements of the actors. There’s no dynamic range but everything is fairly clean and easy to hear.
5/10
The Packaging and Bonus Features
The packaging here is pretty basic and the art isn’t as inspired as what we’ve come to expect from Blue Underground. Franco Holocaust nearly makes this DVD worth owning. This is a fairly long interview with director Jess Franco discussing the cannibal film genre and his experiences making this film. His stories are interesting and surprisingly honest.
Other than the interview there’s a theatrical trailer.
5/10
Overall (Not an Average) 5/10
The Review
The Movie 4/10
The Video 7/10
The Audio 5/10
The Packaging and Bonus Features 5/10
Overall (Not an Average) 5/10
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Directed by Eloy de la Iglesia
Starring Vicente Parra Emma Cohen
OK, this is a film we’ve seen before but never reviewed so now’s our chance, and yours, to check it out. Anchor Bay had previously released this film to DVD but that version isn’t worth seeking out as this one is nearly identical.
The Movie
This film follows Marcus, a man who of course works in a dirty slaughterhouse and has a rocky relationship with his fiancée. Marcus is a man on the verge of a mental break and a fight with a cab driver is just what it takes to push Marcus over the edge. He beats the cab driver to death and stashes the body. Marcus’ fiancée begins to feel bad about the murder and wants to go to the police. She gets paid back with one last romp in the sack and is killed.
The chain continues as people constantly visit Marcus and he must hide his fiancées’ body and Marcus’ nosey neighbor watches everything happen. The box art and promotion of this film is definitely misleading. Gore hounds and exploitation fans looking for their bread and butter here will starve because that’s not all that this film is about. There is a bit of gore and sexual situations but it’s all pretty minor, and the “cannibalism” we expect due to the name of the film is extremely minor in the film and mostly insinuated rather than visual. This film is more about Marcus’ spiral into madness. It’s very Hitchcock in presentation with more emphasis on suspense and character than visceral visuals.
8/10
The Video
The anamorphic widescreen presentation looks pretty solid but there is some grain, print damage, and darker scenes get really muddy. This isn’t Criterion but it’s pretty good, and likely to be the best we’ll ever see this film look.
6/10
The Audio
OK, all we get here is a Dolby Digital Mono English track. Dialogue is expectedly flat in this dub and there’s nearly no dynamic range in the presentation. It’s listenable but not mind blowing.
5/10
The Packaging and Bonus Features
The box art for this single disc release is eye catching but I don’t think it truly represents the film. The only bonus feature here is a trailer….
Cannibal Man is better than you’d expect and should be checked out by fans of great thrillers. It’s unfortunate that the presentation here is so basic with no bonus materials.
Overall (Not an Average) 6/10
The Review
The Movie 8/10
The Video 6/10
The Audio 5/10
The Packaging and Bonus Features 7.5/10
Overall (Not an Average) 6/10
