What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Mojo]

BLOOD SUCKERS ( 1971 )
Peter Cushing leads a group of friends searching for a missing Oxford college professor in Greece. They soon realise he?s caught up in a web of superstition, voodoo and strange vampirism.
It?s well known this was quite a troubled production and it certainly seems like there are two or three different films edited together at times. But it does have a good cast ( including Edward Woodward, who appears in it for about two minutes ! ). And, of course, dear Peter Cushing is always worth watching.
Severin?s lovely looking Blu Ray also features the longest cut of the movie, including the previously lost full orgy scene, in all its hippy drippy glory.

BRIGHT HAIR ( 1997 )
Troubled schoolgirl Ann ( played by Emilia Fox ) stumbles upon a gruesome murder near her home, resulting in her dark moods and blackouts getting worse. As more murders ensue and her behaviour becomes more erratic and bizarre, does she know a little more than she is letting on?
Stumbled upon this one on Talking Pictures tv and thoroughly enjoyed it, right up to its gripping finale. Central to this is Emilia Fox in the lead role, who gives a terrific performance of a girl who clearly doesn?t know what is real or not.
Great direction and eerie sound effects help make this a little gem of a movie. Recommended.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Mojo

BLOOD SUCKERS ( 1971 )
Peter Cushing leads a group of friends searching for a missing Oxford college professor in Greece. They soon realise he?s caught up in a web of superstition, voodoo and strange vampirism.
It?s well known this was quite a troubled production and it certainly seems like there are two or three different films edited together at times. But it does have a good cast ( including Edward Woodward, who appears in it for about two minutes ! ). And, of course, dear Peter Cushing is always worth watching.
Severin?s lovely looking Blu Ray also features the longest cut of the movie, including the previously lost full orgy scene, in all its hippy drippy glory.

The orgy scene is on the dvd i have. But as an extra rather than as part of the film.

[nosferatu42]

Originally Posted by Nosferatu@Cult Labs

Stendahl Syndrome.

I never thought of it being a real thing that would happen to holidaymakers on a regular basis, just a fabricated plot point in one of Dario Argento's lesser films.

I'm into art and try to do art that expresses my mentality, i've experienced this to a lesser extent than Dem on numerous occasions.
Not totally swooning or becoming detached from reality but seeing a piece of art and being overwhelmed by it, to the point where you think you need to move on as your brain is spinning out.

Some obvious ones were optical art, others were just being confronted by a picture that enraptured me, there was a extra large one by Titian that he did when his sight was going and the looseness of it caught me in a spell, seeing a Francis Bacon picture that made me recollect my childhood, or just being caught up in brushstrokes.

Maybe this is why i've always liked Dario's film and think it's one of his better later films.

You can't deny that art played a massive part in his earlier films, the gallery in Bird with a crystal Plumage, the Deep Red painting reveal of the killer, The sculpture at the end of Tenebrae.
That's why to me Stendahl seems like an important Argento film, it's more personal even if it doesn't always work at times.

[Mojo]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

The orgy scene is on the dvd i have. But as an extra rather than as part of the film.

Ah right - I was under the impression this was an extended scene. The back of the Blu ray states “now scanned in 2k from the original negative with additional elements from a recently discovered 35mm vault print - including the uncut psychedelic orgy sequence - for the first time ever” .

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Mojo

Ah right - I was under the impression this was an extended scene. The back of the Blu ray states ?now scanned in 2k from the original negative with additional elements from a recently discovered 35mm vault print - including the uncut psychedelic orgy sequence - for the first time ever? .

It's the film Hartford Davis totally disowned and even had his name removed from it.

Does he feature on any of the extras on your Blu...if there are any?

[Mojo]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

It's the film Hartford Davis totally disowned and even had his name removed from it.

Does he feature on any of the extras on your Blu...if there are any?

There?s an interview with his daughter Jean Hartford - Davis, as well as an interview with ( uncredited ) Francoise Pascal, sound recordist Tony Dawe, Hartford - Davis short film STRANGER IN THE CITY and author John Hamilton on Robert Hartford Davis, plus a couple of audio commentaries.
I?ve watched all the extras ( bar the commentaries ) and found them all very informative and entertaining.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Mojo

There?s an interview with his daughter Jean Hartford - Davis, as well as an interview with ( uncredited ) Francoise Pascal, sound recordist Tony Dawe, Hartford - Davis short film STRANGER IN THE CITY and author John Hamilton on Robert Hartford Davis, plus a couple of audio commentaries.
I?ve watched all the extras ( bar the commentaries ) and found them all very informative and entertaining.

Sounds good, Mojo. I'll have to look out for the Blu.

Is it Severin?

Here's the dvd spec from DvdCompare

R0 United Kingdom - Prism Direct/Leisure [2003 Release]
Extras: Deleted scene (the satanic orgy sequence) (6:45)
Theatrical trailer (2:10)
Image allery (2:36)
Peter Cushing Filmography (19 text pages)
Patrick MacNee Filmography (10 text pages)
Patrick Mower Filmography (5 text pages)
Subtitles:None
Aspect Ratio:1.33:1
Picture Format: Non-Anamorphic
TV System: PAL
Soundtrack(s):English Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Case type:Special Case
Notes: DVD title: "Blood Suckers".
Onscreen title: "Bloodsuckers".
An open-matte presentation.
The image gallery contains six B&W images from Virgin Witch preceded and followed by colour images from Bloodsuckers.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Two Orphan Vampires (1997)

Two teenage girls, both of whom are blind by day, go to stay with a doctor who is investigating their problem, but when the sun goes down, they roam the streets and graveyards to quench their thirst for blood.

Two Orphan Vampires is almost a companion piece to Rollin's 1973 film The Iron Rose thanks to it's non-reliance on the usual Rollin tropes of nudity and bloodshed of which there's very little here. It's the lengthy cemetery scenes that remind of The Iron Rose and it's here that Rollin comes into his own. He allows his camera to linger lovingly among the graves often pausing to study specific aspects of the chilling surroundings - gravestones, iron railings etc. here Rollin uses the cemetery as an extra character, creating a wonderfully atmospheric ambience as the girls skip along the cold gravestones. The overall effect makes Two Orphan Vampires play in the realms of a surreal adult fairy tale.

As well as The Iron Rose the film does seem to use the same locations away from the graves as his earlier film Lost in New York, even the same railway sidings, it's this familiarity together with the obligatory cameo from Brigitte Lahaie that makes Two Orphan Vampires feel like a Rollin greatest hits movie.

Finally a special mention to debutants Isabelle Teboul and Alexandra Pic as the orphans. Unknown then and unknown now but both quite remarkable in this.

[SymbioticFunction]

I watched two Friday the 13th films back-to back, New Blood and Jason Takes Manhattan. Picked up the UK F13th blu-ray set just for those 2 films (I already owned bds of the others). Watched with headphones whilst my wife was reading in the back of the room - we usually have similar tastes but I think Peggy would struggle with 3+ hours of Friday the 13th on just one afternoon. I've always seen these as two lesser entries in the franchise but I had great fun revisiting them. The big surprise was Jason Takes Manhattan, I've previously been very dismissive of it but today, I had a great time with it, really enjoyed myself.

[Mojo]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

Sounds good, Mojo. I'll have to look out for the Blu.

Is it Severin?

Here's the dvd spec from DvdCompare

Yeah - it’s part of Severin’s Cushing Curiosities Blu Ray set.
I’d never seen any of the films on this set before! ( apart from a crappy truncated BLOOD SUCKERS dvd from years ago ).
The Cushing BBC Sherlock Holmes episodes have been great too.
Definitely recommended.