They warned me that my eyes would fall out someday if I kept watching this crap...

My friends!

Another slow month, but rehearsals for The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail down in WV have kept me occupied during the times when I wasn’t bashing away at HIDDEN HORROR (which is taking shape slowly but surely, and a shapely lass she is). But for the most part what we saw was worth seeing, and now it’s time to clear the plate before diving into the abyss that is the October Movie Challenge! I don’t expect this year to be nearly as bonkers as the past two (where I topped the century mark both times) – too much on the plate these days to do a full-on Scare-A-Thon, although I might take a stab at it in an alternate month in 2014, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, as always, feel free to leave your two cents worth – we’ll make sure you get some change back.

Enjoy!


HORROR:

Adam Chaplin: Violent Avenger (2011) (1st viewing) d. De Santi, Emanuele (Italy)

**CLICK HERE FOR FULL REVIEW**

Bunny Game, The (2010) (1st viewing) d. Rehmeier, Adam (USA)

**CLICK HERE FOR FULL REVIEW**

Mirror Mirror (1990) (1st viewing) d. Sargenti, Marina (USA)

**CLICK HERE FOR FULL REVIEW**

Prince of Darkness (1987) (3rd viewing) d. Carpenter, John (USA)

**CLICK HERE FOR FULL REVIEW**

Resolution (2012) (2nd viewing) d. Benson, Justin / Moorhead, Aaron (USA)

**CLICK HERE FOR FULL REVIEW**

Villa Captive (2011) (1st viewing) d. Silvestre, Emmanuel (France)

**FULL REVIEW COMING SOON**





ONCE UPON A TIME, THERE WAS A HOUSE...

Amityville Horror, The (1979) (4th viewing) d. Rosenberg, Stuart (USA)

Amityville II: The Possession (1982) (2nd viewing) d. Damiano, Damiani (USA)

Amityville 3D (1983) (2nd viewing) d. Fleischer, Richard (USA)

**CLICK HERE FOR FULL REVIEW OF TRILOGY**




CIVILIAN:

Diary of a Chambermaid (1964) (1st viewing) d. Buñuel, Luis (France)

Le sex politics
Gorgeously shot and performed
Sharp and chilly fun

Fight Club (1999) (5th viewing) d. Fincher, David (USA)

I am Tyler's Jack
Career bests from most involved
Never fails to please

Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical (2005) (1st viewing) d. Fickman, Andy (USA)

Cumming comes to town
Spreads fiery fear about weed
Great flick deserves views

Righting Wrongs (aka Above the Law) (1986) (1st viewing) d. Yuen, Corey (Hong Kong)

Rothrock is tough cop
Tracking Yuen’s idealist
Wow-worthy fight scenes


2013 Totals to date: 220 films, 190 1st time views, 130 horror, 61 cinema

Adam Chaplin: Violent Avenger (2011) d. De Santi, Emanuele (Italy)

Remember when the Italians were the masters of splatter? The ’80s heyday of Fulci, Argento, Lenzi and Deodato is long behind us, but there’s a new fellow in town named Emanuele De Santi who invites happy comparisons to these past masters of the red sauce. One catches a glimpse of the man’s work ethic in his chiseled abs and bulging biceps (he stars as well as writing and directing), but this is clearly no empty-headed Chippendale dancer. Santi unloads a double helping of stylish gore and gory style in his debut feature, a jaw-dropping (and jaw shattering) extravaganza that evokes an especially bloodsoaked manga, complete with stark, panel-ready imagery.

Through a deliciously nonlinear narrative, we learn the story of our titular protagonist: After merciless masked gangster Denny (Christian Riva) makes a gruesome example of Adam’s cash-strapped bride (Valeria Sannino), our hulking flaxen-haired hero invokes a croaking demon that takes up residence behind his right shoulder. The portal takes the shape of an inverted cross and has the messy habit of oozing copious amounts of hemoglobin whenever Adam gets riled...which is often. Tearing a bloody path through petty criminals, cops and goons alike, the demigod careens ever closer to his misshapen quarry, shattering flesh and bone on a grand scale.

It goes without saying that the flashy splatter moments (visual effects supervisor Giulio De Santi engaging practical effects sweetened by newfangled CGI technology that actually – believe it or not – resembles blood) are the highlights, and anyone who’s already seen the ultraviolent trailer has had a taste of the sanguinary goodness in store.

The violence reaches outlandish heights, with Adam’s fists cracking villains’ skulls in twain, limbs wrenched from their sockets, and cleavers used with lethal precision, cartoonish enough to evoke cheers but messy enough to tickle viewers’ gag reflexes.

It’s a gorehound’s (very) wet dream, the likes of which we haven’t seen in ages, and that gives us reason to rejoice. It might be too early to announce a new Italian Renaissance, but Santi at least represents a glimmer on the horizon.

Adam Chaplin: Violent Avenger is available for pre-order from Autonomy Pictures with a street date of October 8. You won't want to miss it.

--Aaron Christensen, HorrorHound Magazine