News

‘I Spit On Your Grave’ Comes to Brutal Collector’s Blu-Ray Box Set

Published

3 years ago

November 16, 2020

I Spit On Your Grave, AKA, Day of the Woman, is a savagely tough watch. Any rape/revenge based film should be. The primary reason for I Spit On Your Grave being one of the all time toughest films in this particular subgenre is because, for me, I don’t feel like this is specifically exploitation. It doesn’t execute things in the same way a lot of other films in this dangerous category cheaply reach for. I Spit On Your Grave takes this material one hundred percent seriously and unlike a lot of other films, this one has a lot to say about powerful waves of feminism.

I Spit On Your Grave follows Jennifer Hills, a beautiful young self assured writer, who heads out to vacation in the boonies in order to get some piece an quiet – to write her first full length novel. It doesn’t take long to catch the perverse and dangerous eye of a local group of chauvinist men. The group of men slowly stalks Hills, at first harassing from afar, before a full on sexual assault that leaves Hills for dead. Following her traumatic secluded recovery, Hills sets out to take exacting revenge on the group of men that did this to her.

Spit

Ronin Flix has gone all out on this blu-ray set. It comes with some fantastic newly commissioned artwork by Adam Stothard. The original 1978 I Spit On Your Grave feature, fully and beautifully restored with a 4K scan. It also comes with the sequel, I Spit On Your Grave Deja Vu; also from a gorgeous 4k restoration. In addition, the blu-ray set comes with a fantastic deep dive documentary titled Growing Up with I Spit On Your Grave. The doc directed by Terry Zarchi explores the film’s themes and all the controversy surrounding it and beyond.

For the die hard collector, the set also comes with two 16 x 20 posters. One with the cover art for I Spit On Your Grave Déjà vu and a reverse side with savage art work by Stothard. The second poster is a one sided print with the original theatrical artwork from the first film. The set also comes with a collectible booklette that features a brilliant piece by author, Meagan Navarro. Navarro quickly gets to the dark heart of I Spit On Your Grave in her writing. It’s a perfect companion piece to the film and a must read.

The duology, comes with a commentary track from none other than movie host Joe Bob Briggs. As you would expect, Briggs comes at you with all sorts of insight. Everything from filming locations, to the tid bits about the actors. Most, importantly, he plays a bit of a game that tries to narrow down one of two things. Is I Spit On Your Grave the most “sick disgusting movie of all time” like Siskel and Ebert said it was? Or, is this actually one of the most feminist movies? The whole commentary is entertaining as heck and gave me a lot to think about when it comes to films that get dubbed “disgusting” for coming out screaming the war cry of feminism from a different approach.

In my youth, I remember picking up I Spit On Your Grave to throw in with Friday the 13^th and Nightmare On Elm Street. The box art was that now notorious shot of a half dressed woman in bloodied and tattered clothing clutching a big butcher knife with a lot of her behind exposed. So, I thought it was just another normal weekend of horror movie rentals and fun, I expected this to be a slasher. Except, this time with I Spit On Your Grave’s addition, it wasn’t going to be just another pleasant weekend of horror movies and snacks. This was going to peel back my skin and leave me bear for days.

The Meir Zarchi directed film is a reckoning. It’s a mean fucking movie, but one that gives the audience a chance to experience full on, justified revenge but maybe not for the reason that you think initially.

Zarchi’s film was met with a lot of hate. Audiences were upset with the subject matter, and critics only saw a trash film without any redeeming factors what so ever. In fact, some critics never made it past that infamous poster. There was no need for them to look past that or god forbid, themselves. The majority of male critics simply hated the film and that opinion was one that became a dogpile – as these things sometimes do. Oddly enough, at the same time, there were indeed people going to see the film maybe not a lot, but there were people going and low and behold, some of those people were predominantly women.

Spit

Actress, Camille Keaton who plays Hills is a true force. It’s sad that the film drove critics and audiences away from its subject matter alone. Because, Keaton really puts herself into this role. Transcending a vengeful angel by way of villainous Disney Queen. The harder bits of sexual assault and the following trauma are a true raw nerve that you can feel due to Keaton’s depth. More impressively is how that pain is followed by Keaton becoming a harder version of Schwarzenegger’s The Terminator. Keaton has this rare ability to say everything in just one stare. It’s uncanny and is definitely a performance that should be seen more.

Ebert was outspoken in saying that this film makes you side with the rapists. But, I can’t even begin to see that angle. I’m not sure how there is another way to look at I Spit On Your Grave. It has a lot at play and it places femininity and the power of said femininity in the spotlight. Perhaps, that’s the real reason a lot of largely male critics didn’t approve.

The film has gained a cult following over the years and Ronin Flix put together a collection that is fully deserving of all aspects of that cult film. Now, rather you see them as artful and full of meaning or not is up to you.

Spit

While there are a ton of exploitation films dealing with rape/revenge, at the end of the day they were exactly that – exploitation. There are a few of them though, like I Spit on Your Grave or Deliverance that do have a lot to say and aren’t just sitting and strictly exploiting the subject matter. Ronin Flix knew that there was a lot to be explored here, and I think that’s why such care was taken in releasing a finished product that is timely, and somehow exists both in the light of important social commentary and within the arena of exploitation horror.

You can head over to Ronin Flix here to get your limited set while they last.

Check out Ronin Flix’s special edition blu-ray release of Haunt right here.

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News

Melissa Barrera Says Her ‘Scream’ Contract Never Included a Third Movie

Published

14 hours ago

April 15, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The Scream franchise has done a major overhaul to its original script for Scream VII after its two main leads departed production. Jenna Ortega who played Tara Carpenter left because she was overly booked and blessed while her co-star Melissa Barrera was fired after making political comments on social media.

But Barrera isn’t regretting any of it. In fact, she is happy where the character arc left off. She played Samantha Carpenter, the latest focus of the Ghostface killer.

Barrera did an exclusive interview with Collider. During their talk, the 33-year-old says she fulfilled her contract and her character Samantha’s arc finished at a good spot, even though it was meant to be a trilogy.

“I feel like the ending of [ Scream VI ] was a very good ending, and so I don’t feel like ‘Ugh, I got left in the middle.’ No, I think people, the fans, were wanting a third movie to continue that arc, and apparently, the plan was a trilogy, even though I was only contracted for two movies.

So, I did my two movies, and I’m fine. I’m good with that. I got two – that’s more than most people get. When you’re on a TV show, and it gets canceled, you can’t harp on things, you gotta move on.

That’s the nature of this industry too, I get excited for the next job, I get excited for the next skin I get to put on. It’s exciting to create a different character. So yeah, I feel good. I did what I set out to do. It was always meant to be two movies for me, ’cause that was my contract, and so everything is perfect.”

The entire production of the original seventh entry has moved on from the Carpenter’s storyline. With a new director and new script, production will resume, including the return of Neve Campbell and Courtney Cox.

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News

Read Reviews For ‘Abigail’ The Latest From Radio Silence

Published

18 hours ago

April 15, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The review embargo has lifted for the vampire horror movie Abigail and the reviews are abundantly positive.

Matt Bettinelli– Olpin and Tyler Gillett of Radio Silence are getting early praise for their latest horror movie which opens on April 19. Unless you’re Barbie or Oppenheimer the name of the game in Hollywood is about what kind of box office numbers you pull on opening weekend and how much they drop thereafter. Abigail could be this year’s sleeper.

Radio Silence is no stranger to opening big, their Scream reboot and sequel packed fans into seats on their respective opening dates. The duo are currently working on another reboot, that of 1981’s Kurt Russel cult favorite Escape From New York.

^Abigail

Now that ticket sales for GodzillaxKong, Dune 2, and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire have gathered patina, Abigail could knock A24’s current powerhouse Civil War from the top spot, especially if ticket buyers base their purchase off reviews. If it is successful, it could be temporary, since Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone’s action comedy The Fall Guy opens on May 3, just two weeks later.

We have gathered pull quotes (good & bad) from some genre critics on Rotten Tomatoes (score for Abigail currently sits at 85%) to give you an indicator of how they are skewing ahead of its release this weekend. First, the good:

“Abigail is a fun, bloody ride. It also has the most lovable ensemble of morally grey characters this year. The film introduces a new favorite monster into the genre and gives her room to take the biggest swings possible. I lived!” — Sharai Bohannon: A Nightmare On Fierce Street Podcast

“The standout is Weir, commanding the screen despite her small stature and effortlessly switching from apparently helpless, terrified child to savage predator with a mordant sense of humor.” — Michael Gingold: Rue Morgue Magazine

“‘Abigail’ sets the bar as the most fun you can have with a horror movie of the year. In other words, “Abigail” is horror on pointe.” — BJ Colangelo: Slashfilm

“In what may become one of the greatest vampire movies of all time, Abigail provides an extremely bloody, fun, humorous & fresh take on the subgenre.” — Jordan Williams: Screen Rant

“Radio Silence have proven themselves as one of the most exciting, and crucially, fun, voices in the horror genre and Abigail takes this to the next level.” — Rosie Fletcher: Den of Geek

Now, the not-so-good:

“It’s not badly made, just uninspired and played out.” — Simon Abrams: RogerEbert.com

A ‘Ready or Not’ redux running on half the steam, this one-location misfire has plenty of parts that work but its namesake isn’t among them.” –Alison Foreman: indieWire

Let us know if you are planning to see Abigail. If or when you do, give us your hot take in the comments.

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Movies

Ernie Hudson To Star In ‘Oswald: Down The Rabbit Hole’

Published

4 days ago

April 12, 2024

Elijah Turner

This is some exciting news! Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters 1984, The Crow 1994) is set to star in the upcoming horror film titled Oswald: Down The Rabbit Hole. Hudson is set to play the character Oswald Jebediah Coleman who is a brilliant animator that is locked away in a terrifying magical prison. No release date has been announced yet. Check out the announcement trailer and more about the film below.

ANNOUNCEMENT TRAILER FOR OSWALD: DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE

The film follows the story of “Art and some of his closest friends as they help track down his long-lost family lineage. When they find and explore his Great-Grandpa Oswald’s abandoned home, they encounter a magical TV that teleports them to a place lost in time, shrouded by dark Hollywood Magic. The group finds that they are not alone when they discover Oswald’s come-to-life cartoon Rabbit, a dark entity that decides their souls are it’s for the taking. Art and his friends must work together to escape their magical prison before the Rabbit gets to them first.”

First Look Image at Oswald: Down the Rabbit Hole

Ernie Hudson stated that “I am excited to work with everyone on this production. It’s an incredibly creative and smart project.”

Director Stewart also added “I had a very specific vision for Oswald’s character and knew I wanted Ernie for this role from the start, as I’ve always admired iconic cinematic legacy. Ernie is going to bring Oswald’s unique and vengeful spirit to life in the best way possible.”

Lilton Stewart III and Lucinda Bruce are teaming up to write and direct the film. It stars actors Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters 1984, The Crow 1994), Topher Hall (Single Drunk Female 2022), and Yasha Rayzberg (A Rainbow in the Dark 2021). Mana Animation Studio is helping produce the animation, Tandem Post House for post-production, and VFX supervisor Bob Homami is also helping. The budget for the film currently sits at $4.5M.

Official Teaser Poster for Oswald: Down the Rabbit Hole

This is one of many classic childhood stories that are being turned into horror films. This list includes Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 2, Bambi: The Reckoning, Mickey’s Mouse Trap, The Return of Steamboat Willie, and many more. Are you more interested in the film now that Ernie Hudson is attached to star in it? Let us know in the comments below.

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