I'd like to also say a big "Thank You" to all the marvelous reviewers, bloggers, and podcasters who both inspire and encourage me. Many of you I get to see twice a year at HorrorHound Weekends, and I look forward to the next one!
So let's get started... and what better place to start than with a look at the very beginning of gore? It was a pleasure, and serendipitous timing, to receive a copy of this to review for dvdsnapshot.com! This is a must-see, highly recommended documentary for any fan of genre cinema!
31 Flavors of Horror #1:
HERSCHELL GORDON LEWIS: THE GODFATHER
OF GORE
Official Synopsis:
Take an outrageous ride through the
wild world of exploitation films with this often-hilarious
documentary, Herschell Gordon Lewis, The Godfather of Gore!
Featuring interviews with cast, crew,
and critics such as director John Waters, drive-in movie critic Joe
Bob Briggs, and Herschell Gordon Lewis himself, The Godfather of Gore
traces Lewis' start in the innocent bare-naked world of “Nudie
Cuties” before he shocked the world with Blood Feast, the
first-ever gore film! Lewis then continued to assault audiences with
such audacious shockers as She-Devils on Wheels, Blast-Off
Girls, Just for the Hell of It, Two Thousand Maniacs!,
The Gruesome Twosome, The Gore Gore Girls, and the
incredible Wizard of Gore!
Experience a decade of motion-picture
madness – with tons of clips, rare outtakes, and testimony from the
people who were there – as Herschell Gordon Lewis, The Godfather
of Gore leaves you laughing and screaming at some of the most
amazing movies to ever play American movie theaters!
Our Take:
Blood Feast is a terribly made
movie. It's nonsensical, the actors aren't great, the effects are
awful, and it's technically inept. However, it was the first gore
film, and the stories behind it and it's makers are pretty
fascinating. It's the anchor around which Hershell Gordon Lewis,
The Godfather of Gore is built. Something Weird video's love
letter of a documentary to H.G. Lewis, perhaps the king of B-movie
cynicism and creativity – not to mention the father of direct
response marketing. He created the gore film, and was one of the
kings of biker films and “Nudie Cuties.” These nudist films seem
especially like curios, as they mostly consist of nude people walking
away from the camera. As a bad photographer who always misses the
moment, I can relate.
Here, Lewis reflects on his career and
inadvertent contributions to film history. He always approached movie
making as a business, not an art, but as a consummate storyteller, he
wins you over with his charm and has panache to spare. Taking the
time to share all sorts of anecdotes about his films and revisit
locations, The Godfather of Gore turns out to be a more
expansive documentary than you'd initially imagine. The filmmakers
even put together footage from an unfinished film called “An Eye
For An Eye” and include it here.
Beyond the interviews with the more
well-known John Waters, Joe Bob Briggs, and Frank Henenlotter are the
real gems here: chats with outsider arts pioneers Lewis, fetish
photographer Bunny Yeager and producer David Friedman. There's also a
collection of interviews with his collaborators, many of whom
charmingly recall their time on the silver screen. With lots footage
from his films and terrific stories, this is a must for fans of
independent and genre cinema.
Special Features:
The Godfather of Gore is
presented in Widescreen, with Dolby Digital 2.0 English audio, and
the source materials look and the best they probably ever have.
Included as extras are over an hour of deleted scenes, which further
expand on the stories shared in the feature and the short Hot
Night at the Go-Go Lounge! It's a curio alright, 10 minutes of
music and dancing, to which there seems to be no point to until the
shirts come off the go-go dancers. There's also a gallery of
advertising art and a collection of trailers to Lewis' movies, each
an exploitation masterpiece.
Conclusion:
A nostalgic look at the surprisingly
innocent history of breasts and blood in the movies, but probably for
genre fans only. Hershell Gordon Lewis, The Godfather of Gore
lets an American original tell his story, and his glee is infectious.
Overall Picture:
Movie: B
Extras: A-
No comments:
Post a Comment