The Daily Grindhouse: The Lashman (dir by Cameron McCasland)

Posted on June 18, 2015 by Lisa Marie Bowman

It’s been a while since I’ve down a Daily Grindhouse review here on the Shattered Lens and shame on me for that! Fortunately, I recently saw a film called The Lashman, a film that may have been released in 2014 but which serves as a tribute to the low-budget, wilderness slasher spectaculars that played at so many grindhouse and drive-in theaters in the 70s and 80s. After watching the film, I knew that I had seen the perfect film with which to relaunch this feature.

The Lashman was directed by Cameron McCasland and filmed in Kentucky. As I’ve said many times in the past, I love local horror films. These are films that are made on location, outside of Hollywood and which often utilize local talent, both behind and in front of the camera. Along with reminding us that no one location has a monopoly on American filmmaking talent, these locally made horror films also feel a lot more authentic than the slick, “mainstream” films coming out of Hollywood. This is horror taking place in the real world, as opposed to on a sound stage. “Authenticity,” that belief that what you’re watching could happen just as easily to you as it could to the people onscreen, is one of the keys of effective horror cinema. If you can’t relate to the fear of the characters or believe that the film’s threat — no matter how outlandish — might just happen to be waiting for you in the shadows, then the film is not going to work. Grindhouse horror films, with their rough edges and their cast of often unfamiliar faces, worked precisely because they felt authentic.

I think this especially true for slasher films. As unfairly critically reviled as they may be, the slasher film is based on a horror that we can all relate to. We all know that there are disturbed people out there. We all secretly suspect that we’re more vulnerable, both mentally and physically, than we like to pretend we are. And, as much as we like to shout back at the screen and complain about how slasher movie victims are always doing something stupid, we all know that we have no idea how we would react if we ever found ourselves in the same situation. Most of us secretly know that we’d never survive a slasher film. I know I wouldn’t. I’d be the girl wandering around outside in her underwear, saying, “This isn’t funny!,” and then spraining my ankle as soon as I tried to run away.

The Lashman is a throwback to those old grindhouse slasher films, a loving homage to films that may have never been critically embraced but which remain undeniably effective. The film’s story is simple. Five students spend the weekend at a cabin in the woods. Lashman, who is rumored to be the malevolent spirit of a man killed over 100 years before, shows up. People die.

Our five students are all traditional slasher movie victims. In fact, they share the same basic relationships as the five victims from the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. There’s two couples, Stacy (Stacy Dixon) and Billy (David Vaughn) and Daniel (Jeremy Jones) and Jan (Kaylee Williams) and then there’s Stacy’s awkward misfit of a brother, Bobby (Shawn C. Phillips). (Much like poor wheelchair-bound Franklin from Texas Chainsaw, Bobby spends a lot of time complaining.)

Out of the cast, Shawn Phillips is the one who I immediately recognized because he’s appeared in several low-budget and undeniably fun horror films, with Ghost Shark being a personal favorite. However, all five of the main cast members do a good job. I’m jealous of the screaming abilities of Stacy Dixon and Kaylee Williams and David Vaughn made for a good “nice guy” hero. However, special mention has to be made of Jeremy Jones. One of the unwritten rules of the slasher genre is that one of your main victims has to be a totally obnoxious jerk and Jeremy Jones deserves a lot of credit for the total commitment that he shows to that role.

The Lashman is a film that will best be appreciated by those who know their horror movies and who can appreciate that McCasland has essentially crafted this film to be a valentine to the entire genre. Everything about the film — from the beautifully shot opening where two anonymous teens fall victim while the moon beautifully glows down on a lake to the final chase through the woods between the Lashman and his suddenly partially undressed final prey — feels like a tribute to the classic grindhouse horror films of the past.

Finally, as I wrap up this review, allow me to share just a few more thoughts:

This film was produced by Red Headed Revolution Pictures. As a redhead, I appreciated that. It was also co-produced by Lee Vervoort, who was one of the directors on Volumes of Blood.

The token crazy old man character (every slasher film has one and nobody ever listens to him when he attempts to warn them) is played by an actor named Larry Underwood, who is a horror host (under the name Dr. Gangrene) and a Rondo-winning horror blogger. (That said, I should admit that the main reason that I initially smiled when I saw his name in the credits is because I just started reading Stephen King’s The Stand.)

Director Cameron McCasland has a cameo appearance in the film and is credited as playing Handsome Bartender.

The end credits declare, “A good cast is worth repeating!” If you’ve seen any the great Universal films from the 30s and 40s, you will immediately recognize the phrase. When I was a kid and I would watch any of the old monster movies, I always loved seeing that “a good cast is worth repeating!” In a weird way, it always made me feel happy for the cast.

The Daily Grindhouse: Revenge of the Zombies (dir by Steve Sekely)

Posted on April 12, 2015 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Last night, the Late Night Movie Crew and I watched the 1943 film, Revenge of the Zombies.

Revenge of the Zombies deals with the mysterious Dr. von Aldermann (John Carradine), who has a house on the Louisiana bayous and who is involved in weird, 1940s-style scientific experiments. As is evident from his name (but not particularly from Carradine’s disinterested performance), von Aldermann is from Germany and his experiments are designed to create an army of zombies who will destroy American from within for the benefit for the Third Reich. This is a pretty big deal and von Aldermann isn’t particularly subtle about his schemes but, as the film’s begins, nobody has figured out what’s going on.

I guess you can get away with anything on the bayous.

Von Aldermann’s wife Lila (Veda Ann Borg) has recently died but, thanks to the mad scientist, she’s still walking around Louisiana and leading an army of zombies. Lila’s brother (Robert Lowery) shows up with a private investigator (Mauritz Hugo) and yet another mad scientist (Barry Macollum) and they eventually figure out that something weird is happening. With the help of von Aldermann’s secretary (Gale Storm), they try to thwart von Aldermann’s plans and keep the world safe for democracy.

There are a few good points about Revenge of the Zombies. For one thing, the film is only 61 minutes long so the suffering is short. As with any low-budget John Carradine horror film, Revenge of the Zombies is fun to watch with a group of snarky friends. Historically, this film is significant for being one of the first zombie movies. It’s always interesting to see how non-threatening zombies were in the days before George Romero and The Walking Dead.

And then there’s the character of Jeff (Mantan Moreland), who is a chauffeur and who provides most of the film’s comic relief. It’s always difficult for contemporary audiences to deal with the racial attitudes displayed in the films and literature of the past. On the one hand, Jeff is written as a complete and total stereotype and, as you listen to his dialogue, you’re painfully aware of the fact that the goal was to get audiences to laugh at him as opposed to with him. On the other hand, Moreland is literally the only actor in the film who actually gives a good performance. Even when delivering the most cringe-worthy of dialogue, Moreland does so with a conviction and commitment that holds your interest. As you watch Revenge of the Zombies, you really don’t care what happens to most of the bland and interchangeable characters. But you really do want Jeff to survive.

And, ultimately, you do take some comfort in that. Moreland was given a role that, as written, was very demeaning but, in the end, Jeff is the only character that you care about.

As for the rest of Revenge of the Zombies, it’s short, it’s pretty bad but it’s not terrible, and you can watch it below!

The Daily Grindhouse: Project Nightmare (dir by Donald M. Jones)

Posted on March 28, 2015 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Earlier tonight, the Late Night Movie crew and I watched Project Nightmare, an obscure little film from 1987. (Actually, it would be more correct to say that the film was released in 1987. Judging from the clothes, the cars, and the hair, the film was actually made at some point in the 70s.)

The best word that I can think to describe Project Nightmare would be weird. This is just a weird and trippy movie.

The film opens with Gus (Charles Miller) and John (Seth Foster), two friends who played football in college and who are now in the air conditioning business together. Gus is insecure and angst-ridden. John is confident and spends almost the entire movie with his shirt becoming progressively more and more unbuttoned. Gus and John go on a camping trip. As the film opens, they are both running from something that they think attacked their camp site. They’re not quite sure what it was and their descriptions remain frustratingly vague. Even when their mysterious pursuer comes near, we never get a clear look at it. Instead, we just hear buzzing on the soundtrack while the sky changes colors.

Gus and John come across a house sitting in the middle of nowhere. Inside the house is Marcie (Elly Koslo). Marcie doesn’t have a telephone but she does have a bottle of Scotch. As Gus and John drink, they sit on the floor because Marcie doesn’t appear to have any furniture in their house. Their conversation is stiff and oddly stilted and we’re left to wonder if this is the result of bad acting or if it’s just another sign of the film’s overall surreal atmosphere. Gus admits that he wants to sleep with Marcie and then proceeds to tell her a long and confusing story about why he and John are such good friends. John, meanwhile, dreams of a little boy running in a cemetery while a priest makes unintelligible sounds.

The next morning, as the two men leave the house, we hear a howling wind and yet none of the surrounding plant life appears to be swaying. Was this just bad filmmaking or was it another example of the director trying to create a sense of unease? It’s not an easy question to answer but I’m willing to give director Donald Jones the benefit of the doubt.

The two men walk. A mysterious light pursues them. They come across a man sitting in a car. Gus and John get in the car. The man lays down in the back seat and promptly dies. They drive back to Marcie’s house and manage to get Marcie to come outside right before the entire house vanishes. Eventually, they somehow come across an airplane sitting in the middle of the desert. Gus gets in the plane and flies away, leaving John and Marcie behind. Both Marcie and the car vanish. John wanders alone.

And then the movie really starts to get weird…

How weird? I mean weird as in a character finding a pyramid in the middle of the desert. I mean weird like a room where a woman dances in slow motion while a group of shadowy men applaud. I mean weird like a big floating head that taunts those below it…

I mean weird.

And here’s another odd thing about Project Nightmare. I’ve done a google search, I’ve read what it says on the imdb, and there is next to no information out there about how this film came to be. As I previously stated, the film was obviously made nearly a decade before it was actually released. Director Donald Jones served a director, writer, and editor on this and three other films but hasn’t had a film released since 1993. Meanwhile, the film’s cast is also similarly obscure.

Project Nightmare is an enigma. Everything about this film — from the obscure storyline to the miniscule budget to the unnatural dialogue to the stiff acting — comes together to create an otherworldly viewing experience. And that’s why you simply must watch it at least once! Whether it was meant to be or not, Project Nightmare is something of a surrealistic masterpiece.

And guess what?

It’s on YouTube!

Watch it now before it gets taken down.

The Daily Grindhouse: Cruel Jaws (dir by Bruno Mattei)

Posted on March 22, 2015 by Lisa Marie Bowman

“Whattya say we go hunt some freaking sharks?” (picture credit: Mondo Exploito)

Believe it or not, Samson vs. The Vampire Women was not the only bad film that I watched with the Late Night Movie Gang on Saturday night. We also watched a movie from 1995 that was called Cruel Jaws. You might be able to guess from the title that the film is a rip-off of Jaws but this is no ordinary rip-off! This is literally the worst shark movie that I’ve ever seen.

And yet, it was so bad that it was also oddly fascinating. Listen, any director can rip-off Jaws. It happens all the time and, for the most part, the majority of Jaws rip-offs are forgettable. It takes true talent to make something like Cruel Jaws, a film that is so terrible that it cannot be forgotten!

After watching Cruel Jaws, I was inspired to look it up on the imdb and I was not particularly shocked to discover that it was directed by the infamous Italian filmmaker Bruno Mattei. Given that Mattei was notorious for reusing footage from previous films, I figured that I would reuse a paragraph that I originally wrote for a review of his 1984 film, Rats: Night of Terror:

“While it’s generally agreed that Mattei was responsible for making some of the worst films in history, I’ve always had a sneaky admiration for him. It’s hard not to love someone who defies the odds while pursuing his dream. Mattei’s dream was to make movies and he never allowed a thing like budget or talent to stand in his way. While Mattei is best known for taking over the direction of Zombi 3 after Lucio Fulci walked off the set, he was a prolific director who dabbled in every genre.”

If nothing else, Cruel Jaws was definitely a case of Mattei defying the odds. Critics might point out that the film is basically a scene-for-scene remake of Jaws that even features some of the exact same dialogue. Mattei says, “So? I’ll call the movie Cruel Jaws and we’ll pretend it’s a sequel.” Critics might say that no one in the film can act. Mattei says, “So? I’ll just make my hero a guy with platinum blonde hair and a Fu Manchu mustache and you’ll be so busy staring at him, you won’t even notice that he can’t act!” Critics might point out that Mattei made a film about a killer shark without actually investing in a shark. Mattei says, “So? I’ll just use stock footage and lift a lot of scenes from other shark movies!” Critics might complain that all of the stock footage and lifted scenes are edited together in such a haphazard way that the film is next to impossible to follow. Mattei says, “Shut up and listen to the score, which I literally lifted from Star Wars and Indiana Jones.” Critics might suggest that all of this involves some sort of copyright violation. Mattei says — well, by this point, Bruno would probably have left the building to count his money and have a good laugh.

“Check out that shark stock footage!” (picture credit: Mondo Exploito)

What really makes Cruel Jaws interesting is that, while 90% of the film is lifted from other films, the 10% that isn’t is truly weird. For instance, the film’s hero is named Dag Snerson and he owns a water park that is apparently made up of exactly two dolphins and a sea lion. His daughter is probably the most cheerful wheelchair-bound child ever. There’s a subplot involving the mafia. Two girls start yelling “Dickbrain” at two boys that they like.

It’s all pretty bad and pretty weird but it’s pure Bruno Mattei and therefore, it’s all oddly forgivable.

And guess what?

You can watch Cruel Jaws below!

The Daily Grindhouse: Samson vs. The Vampire Women (dir by Alfonso Corona Blake)

Posted on March 21, 2015 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Just a few hours ago, I gathered with my friends in the Late Night Movie Gang and we watched the classic Mexican “horror” film, Santo vs. las Mujeres Vampiro (or, as it was released over here in the states, Samson Vs. The Vampire Women.) You’ll notice that I put the word horror in quotes because there was really nothing traditionally scary about Samson Vs. The Vampire Women.

The film opens with a bunch of vampire women waking up after being asleep for hundreds of years. When we first see the vampire women, they all look like they have really bad skin and could really use some moisturizer. However, once they drink some blood and say some magic words, they all suddenly look really pretty and they get to wear these really nice white dresses as well.

The queen of the vampires, Thorina (Lorena Valesquez), has been tasked with finding a bride for the Evil One and her pick is Diana (Maria Duval), who is the daughter of Prof. Orlof (Augusto Benedico). We know that Orlof is intelligent because he wears glasses, has a beard, and his English-language dialogue has been dubbed by an actor who has a deep, intellectual voice. However, despite being brilliant, Orlof is totally ineffectual when it comes to protecting his daughter from being turned into a vampire.

(Diana, we’re told, is on the verge of turning 21. She looks like she’s closer to 40.)

And, of course, we get all of the things that you would expect from a low-budget, black-and-white vampire movie. Bats fly by on strings. Whenever Thorina needs to hypnotize someone, we get a closeup of her eyes. Whenever the sun shines, all of the vampires scream and run out of the room. It’s all pretty typical and, as a result, not particularly scary.

What is scary, however, is the man who Orlof summons to protect his daughter. Not only can Samson (played by real-life Mexican wrestler Santo) fight vampires and communicate with people via television but he’s a professional wrestler as well! In fact, Diana would probably have nothing to worry about if not for the fact that Samson has to balance protecting her with his lucrative wrestling career.

What I’m saying here is that there’s a lot of wrestling in Samson vs. The Vampire Women. Not only does Samson wrestle with vampires but he also wrestles with ordinary, every day wrestlers. Even when he’s not wrestling, Samson runs around in his wrestling outfit — mask, cape, manties, and bulge.

(Oddly enough, none of the vampire women ever think to maybe kick Samson in that bulge, which is probably what I would do if I was ever suddenly approached by someone dressed like Samson…)

Now, I know what you’re wondering. And the answer is no. We never get to see what Samson looks like under the mask. I assume that he looked like Jack Black but who knows for sure?

Anyway, Samson vs. The Vampire Women is probably one of those films that everyone should see at least once, if just because that way you won’t be left out of any inside jokes that may develop between your friends once they’ve actually experienced it for themselves. It’s not a particularly good film but it’s certainly an odd one and there’s definitely something to be said for that.

You can watch it below!

6 Undead Trailers For Halloween

Posted on October 31, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to the last part of this special Halloween edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Film Trailers! The Trailer Kitties have been out and busy and they’ve returned with 6 trailers that celebrate the undead!

1) White Zombie (1932)

2) I Walked With A Zombie (1943)

3) The Astro-Zombies (1968)

4) Deathdream (1972)

5) Shock Waves (1977)

6) The Erotic Nights of the Living Dead (1980)

What do you think, Trailer Kitties?

6 Scary Trailers For Halloween

Posted on October 30, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to the latest Halloween edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Film trailers! The Trailer Kitties swear that these trailers are scary! Let’s see if they’re correct.

1) The Vampire and the Ballerina (1960)

Sorry, this one isn’t really that scary but it does feature a lot of dancing, so I like it.

2) Mary,Mary, Bloody Mary (1975)

3) Corruption (1968)

Oh no! Not Peter Cushing!

4) I Drink Your Blood/I Eat Your Skin (1970)

5) The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

6) The Flesh and Blood Show (1972)

Those weren’t very scary, Trailer Kitty!

6 Mummified Trailers For Halloween

Posted on October 29, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

For our latest Halloween edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Trailers, the Trailer Kitties have gone digging and have braved many ancient curses and broken a few international laws! Let’s see what they’ve brought back to us.

1) The Mummy (1932)

2) The Mummy’s Hand (1940)

3) The Mummy’s Tomb (1942)

4) The Mummy’s Ghost (1944)

5) The Mummy’s Curse (1944)

6) Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb (1964)

What do you think, Trailer Kitty?

6 Bloodsucking Trailers For Halloween

Posted on October 28, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Here is today’s special Halloween edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Film Trailers! For today’s edition, the Trailer Kitties took a special trip to old Transylvania. Let’s see what they brought back!

1) Dracula (1931)

2) Dracula’s Daughter (1936)

3) Son of Dracula (1943)

4) House of Dracula (1945)

5) Horror of Dracula (1958)

6) Son of Dracula (1973)

What do you think, Trailer Kitty?

Bad trailer kitty!

6 Madly Scientific Trailers for Halloween

Posted on October 27, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

It’s been way too long since we posted a new edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Film Trailers! Personally, I blame the Trailer Kitties. You know how they can be! But, earlier today, I sent them out and I told them to come back with 6 trailer for Halloween!

This is what they returned with!

1) Frankenstein (1931)