Kind of a low key week but there are still some new exploitation and horror releases we need to hit in addition to Donnie Yen back to do some damage and the return of The Mistress of the Dark. The juice is a bit low this morning due to a late night of screening BLOODY BIRTHDAY, listening to the commentary track of NIGHTMARES (both are out 6/28 from Severn Films) and watching TRUE GRIT with the little lady so this is going to be short, sweet, and a little bloody. So what do ya say? Let's boogie.
Our release of the week is SWEET KARMA, the feature film debut from Andrew Thomas Hunt. Though it was made in 2009 this is just now getting a stateside release. We saw this earlier in the year and it is a 100% pure revenge tale with huge re-watch. Shera Bechard plays Karma Balint an intensely shy, mute Russian girl whose sister has moved to Canada to make some quick cash for them. Karma then learns that Anna has been killed by the Russian mafia and the shit is ON!
This is Bechard's first film, and her debut is stunning. She conveys so much emotion through her eyes and actions, really impressive and I am looking forward to seeing what she does next. Plus she is 12 kinds of hot which is always a plus. In the "mute Russian infiltrates a sex ring to bring loads of revenge" genre, this one owns all kinds of ass.
Outside of a theatrical trailer this release doesn't have much unless there is something not officially listed. Would love to get a commentary track on this to learn about Hunt's influences.
Grab this from TLA Cult here: http://bit.ly/lEmTY6
If anybody can fill the shoes of Bruce Lee, you could do a whole lot worse than Donnie Yen. In the role that Lee made famous in FIST OF FURY, Yen plays Chen Zhen in LEGEND OF THE FIST: THE RETURN OF CHEN ZHEN. We haven't seen this one yet but I hope it is better than IP MAN 2, which I dug, just not as much as some of you.
Grab this from Amazon here: http://amzn.to/mpjIzV
Another debut, this time from Frank Sabatella. The trailer looks like a good old fashioned slasher film, almost a throwback to a simple and classic plot. Excited to see this.
Grab this from TLA Cult here: http://bit.ly/ijlm9V
If there was one video that was NEVER on the shelf long back in the video store days, it was THE IMAGE. I have only seen this film twice, once as a horny teen, and again a few years ago where I was able to appreciate the relationships a little bit more. This is a hot film, but it is also complex in the way these characters develop. This isn't a trashy little splash of erotica, it's a really interesting film. Having said that, yeah it has it's fair share of gettin'-it-oooon!
Grab this from TLA Cult here: http://bit.ly/dXEXC4
ELVIRA IS BACK! Bow down you worthless dog!
I dig the hell out of the next two releases. The world is a better place when Elvira is on the shelf ready to corrupt some young and impressionable minds while saluting classic horror and laying waste to the terrible. First up is Romero's classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD followed by Del Tenney's I EAT YOUR SKIN. Guess which one we like more.
You can grab this from TLA Cult here: http://bit.ly/kqS05l
The next disc features THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA followed by THE WEREWOLF IN WASHINGTON. SATANIC RITES was Lee's last time in a Hammer film as Dracula so that alone makes it a better film than WEREWOLF IN WASHINGTON which is a bit of a crapfest.
You can grab this from TLA Cult here: http://bit.ly/mCrL2X
That's it for this week kids, the tank is officially empty. Next week is slow but we have 10 VIOLENT WOMEN, WOMEN IN CAGES COLLECTION, RAT PACK and a few others.
Until then...
Here's to good watching this week, salute!
See you on forty deuce,
G
