Here’s the trailer for Babylon!
I have to admit that my interesting in this film goes up and down. I was intrigued when I first heard about it. This trailer, to be honest, is a bit too frantic for me and a lot of it feels like the sort of thing that would have been mind-blowing in 2007 but, today, we’ve kind of been inundated with films about Hollywood’s decadent past.
That said, I’m still looking forward to seeing and judging the film for myself.
Albert Pyun (1953 — 2022)
I just heard the sad news that director Albert Pyun has passed away at the age of 69.
In honor of Pyun’s career, it’s time for a special edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse and Exploitation Film trailers! The six trailers below were all designed to promote films directed by the great Albert Pyun.
Albert Pyun made his directorial debut with this film, which starred Richard Lynch. The Sword and the Sorcerer was Pyun’s most financially successful film.
2. Dangerously Close (1986)
In 1986, Albert Pyun directed the teen vigilante classic, Dangerously Close.
3. Cyborg (1989)
Due to the presence of Jean-Claude Van Damme in the leading role, Cyborg remains one of Pyun’s best-known films.
4. Captain America (1990)
20 years before Kevin Feige and the MCU, Albert Pyun brought Captain America to the big screen!
5. Omega Doom (1996)
In 1996, Albert Pyun was responsible for this post-apocalyptic western, starring Rutger Hauer.
6. Tales of an Ancient Empire (2011)
Finally, in 2011, Pyun directed his long-awaited sequel to The Sword and the Sorcerer, Tales of An Ancient Empire.
Rest in Peace, Albert Pyun.
Albert Pyun Films That We Have Reviewed:
You know, way back in 2010, I took a lot of grief for not particularly liking the first Avatar.
In the years since then, it’s become a lot more common to hear people making the exact same criticism of the film that I made in 2010. What’s strange though is that the anti-Avatar discourse has gotten so obnoxious that it’s cause me to go from hating the movie to being one of those people who is like, “Okay, it wasn’t that bad.” Because, seriously, it’s one thing to dislike a film and it’s another thing to make that dislike into your entire personality.
To the shock of perhaps everyone who has knows me, I’m actually rooting for the Avatar sequel now. I hope it’s good. I hope it makes a ton of money. Take that, you snobs!
Anyway, here’s the latest trailer for Avatar: The Way of Water.
For today’s Halloween edition of Lisa’s Marie Favorite Grindhouse Trailers, I present to you, without comment, 6 trailers for six horror films that I feel are unfairly overlooked. If you’re still looking for something to watch this Halloween night, I recommend any of the films below!
Happy Halloween!
1. Lisa (1989)
2. A Field in England (2013)
2. Two Orphan Vampires (1996)
3. Scream and Scream Again (1970)
4. Messiah of Evil (1973)
6. Lisa Lisa (1977)
It’s the day before Halloween.
Are you still struggling to get into the mood?
Well, have no fear! The latest edition is Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse Trailers is here to help you out!
Presented without comment, here are 6 classic trailers for the day before Halloween….
2. Night of the Living Dead (1968)
3. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
4. Halloween (1978)
5. Dawn of the Dead (1978)
6. Zombie (1979) (a.k.a. Zombi 2)
7 more days of Horrorfest.
7 more days of Halloween.
And you know what that means, right?
It’s time for a new edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse Trailers!
It’s a double feature like none other! The majority of the trailer (understandably, in my opinion) is devoted to clips from I Drink Your Blood. What is I Drink Your Blood about? It’s about a little kid who gets rid of a bunch of annoying hippies by giving them food that has been infected with rabies!
2. Grizzly (1976)
Wow, I wonder where they got the idea for this movie from!
3. The Crater Lake Monster (1977)
Awwww! What a cute monster!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jv4cNQOSQs
4. Cathy’s Curse (1977)
Beware of Cathy …. and her doll too!
5. Jennifer (1978)
A bullied teenage girl has psychic powers …. hmmmm, this sounds familiar….
6. The Children (1980)
“Something terrifying has happened to the Children!” This actually a pretty scary film but somehow, the trailer is even scarier.
It’s Sunday and it’s October and that means that it’s time for another edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse trailers! For today, we have six trailers from the early 80s! These where the years when the only thing bigger than the Italian zombie boom was the American slasher boom. And we’ve got the trailers to prove it!
1. Friday the 13th (1980)
Needless to say, if you’re going to talk about American horror in the early 80s, you have to start with Friday the 13th. Interestingly enough, the first Friday the 13th was less a traditional slasher film and more an American take on the giallo genre.
2. Halloween II (1981)
The 80s were also the year that Hollywood learned to love the sequel. As a result, Michael Myers returned and so did Dr. Loomis. The current franchise claims that all of this never happened but we all know better.
3. The Beyond (1981)
While the Americans were dealing with slashers, the Italians were committing themselves to the zombies. Though Lucio Fulci’s The Beyond was not widely appreciated when first released, it’s reputation has grown over the years.
4. The House By The Cemetery (1981)
Eventually, Fulci combined both zombies and slashers with The House By The Cemetery.
5. Poltergeist (1982)
Of course, not every horror film that came out in the early 80s was about a slasher or a zombie. Poltergeist was a haunted house story. Though the trailer says “Steven Spielberg production,” the film was directed by Tobe Hooper.
6. Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)
Even the Halloween franchise tried to do something new with the third film in the series. Like The Beyond, this is a film that was underappreciated when released but which has since become a horror classic.
It’s Sunday and it’s October and that means that it’s time for another edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse trailers! For today, we have six trailers from the early 70s. This was the era when horror started to truly get …. well, horrific!
First off, we have the blood and scream-filled trailer for Dario Argento’s The Bird With The Crystal Plumage. This Italian thriller made quite a splash when it was released in America. Indeed, for many Americans, this was their first exposure to the giallo genre. This would go on to become Argento’s first (and, so far, only) film to be nominated for a Golden Globe. (Read my review here!)
2. House of Dark Shadows (1970)
Speaking of blood and screaming, 1970 also saw the release of House of Dark Shadows. Personally, I think this is one of the best vampire films ever. The trailer is heavy on atmosphere.
3. The Devils (1971)
In 1971, British director Ken Russell scandalized audiences with The Devils, a film so shocking that it will probably never been in its full, uncut form.
4. Tombs of the Blind Dead (1972)
Italy was not the only country sending horror films over to the United States. From Spain came the Tombs of the Blind Dead.
5. The Last House on the Left (1972)
Speaking of controversy, Wes Craven made his directorial debut with the infamous The Last House On The Left. The trailer featured one of the greatest and most-repeated horror tag lines of all time.
6. Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972)
Finally, even as horror cinema changed and became more extreme, Hammer Studios continued to tell the long and twisted story of Count Dracula. They brought him into the present age and dropped him in the middle of hippie-infested London. No matter how much the rest of the world changed, Dracula remained Dracula.
With Horrorthon underway, it’s time for a special October edition of Lisa Marie’s Favorite Grindhouse Trailers! Today, I bring you 6 spine-tingling trailers from the 30s and the 40s! Say hello to old school horror at its best!
First off, here is the original trailer for the 1931 version of Dracula! Yes, it’s a bit grainy and it’s a bit creaky and …. well, it’s old. But listen, if I had been around in 1931 and I saw this trailer, I definitely would have been at the theater on opening day. “Do vampires exist?” the trailer asks. No, they do not but who knows? Maybe the trailer would have made me question my beliefs for at least a day or two.
Apparently, the odd scene with Edward Van Sloan and the mirror was taken from an outtake. The scene itself is not in the film and presumably, that mirror was not supposed to fall off the wall. Also, it’s interesting to note that Dracula was not a Halloween film but instead, it was released just in time for Valentine’s Day!
2. Frankenstein (1931)
Of course, Universal followed Dracula from Frankenstein. Again, this is one of the original trailers for the film and not a trailer that was put together and released in later years. The trailer does, at one point, say, “It’s coming back!,” so I’m assuming that this version was sent to theaters where the film had played previously. The trailer features a few scenes that were cut from the film and also a few alternate takes,
3. Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
If you have a weak heart …. you better leave now! The early Universal horror films are not necessarily thought of as being grindhouse films but this trailer is pure grindhouse.
4. The Wolf Man (1941)
In the 40s, Dracula and Frankenstein’s Monster were joined by a werewolf named Larry. Here is the original trailer for The Wolf Man.
5. Cat People (1943)
In 1943, horror took a new, psychological turn with the original Cat People!
6. House of Frankenstein (1944)
Finally, in 1944, all of the great monster came together. Before The Avengers, before the Justice League, before the Snyder cut, there was the House of Frankenstein!
Next week …. more horror trailers!
To be absolutely honest, I would probably be dismissive of the trailer for Smile if not for the effort that Paramount Pictures has put into promoting this damn thing. Apparently, this weekend, they sent people out to sporting events and had them sit motionlessly in the stands and smile for the entire game. Not only did it look creepy but it probably ruined the experience of everyone who was sitting near them. Of course, the people sitting near them actually paid money to get good seats for the game. Imagine spending a few hundred dollars, just to have to deal with this:
Or this:
I mean, seriously, that’s a bold move! I thought re-releasing Morbius just because people on twitter were making fun of it was going to be the boldest studio move of 2022 but Paramount might take the title. Now that we’ve annoyed you, come see our movie. That’s an interesting gimmick.
Anyway, here’s the final trailer for Smile. The movie comes out on the 30th.
Through the Shattered Lens 