Portable Grindhouse: The Lost Art of the VHS

by Kimberly Lindbergs | November 19, 2009

Categories | News, Books

I grew up in the video age and I’m still in awe of the technology that first allowed me to watch thousands of movies in the privacy of my own home. Call me sentimental and nostalgic, but when I first got wind of Jacques Boyreau’s upcoming book Portable Grindhouse: The Lost Art of the VHS Box it made me giddy with excitement. From the publisher (Fantagraphics) site:

“Harken back to those thrilling days of yesteryear when the advent of rental videos astonished the movie-going consumer who could only feed his addiction by going to the theater or watching chopped up movies in between commercials on TV. Like vinyl, here is the revenge of another analog cast-off: the VHS is once again insinuating itself into American culture, and this book celebrates the anarchic design art of those early VHS boxes.”

The design of the book is fantastic and Fantagraphics recently released a video that showcases the book’s impressive design that I’ve posted below:

Author Jacques BoyreauIf is responsible for one of my favorite film poster books, Trash: The Graphic Genius of Xploitation Movie Posters, so I suspect Portable Grindhouse: The Lost Art of the VHS will be just as good. If you want to know more about the book I recommend visiting Fantagraphics website where you can pre-order yourself a copy.

Many thanks to Cat for making me aware of the book!

Bonus Material:
- Read About My First VHS Purchase

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Ghost Story (1974) Comes to DVD

by Kimberly Lindbergs | November 6, 2009

Categories | News, Horror, British Cinema, Marianne Faithfull

Marianne Faithfull

Horror film lovers and Marianne Faithfull fans can rejoice! Stephen Weeks’ spooky British thriller Ghost Story (1974) is finally coming to DVD on November 16th from Nucleus Films in the UK. Unfortunately it will only be available in Britain as a Region 2 PAL disc but if you happen to own an all-region DVD player like myself, I recommend getting yourself a copy. Hopefully the film will be released in the US soon.

The new DVD is loaded with terrific extras including an all-new 60 minute featurette that contains interviews with director Stephen Weeks, composer Ron Geesin, actors Larry Dann, Murray Melvin and the fabulous British horror icon Barbara Shelley. Other extras include the film’s original theatrical trailer, an alternate opening credit sequence and 7 of Stephen Weeks’s previously unseen early short films. The film is presented in widescreen for the first time and undoubtedly looks much better than the awful VHS print that I watched when I reviewed the film two years ago.

My only complaint is where is the interview with Marianne Faithfull? I’d love to see what she had to say about the film so it’s a shame that Nucleus Films wasn’t able to convince Marianne to share her thoughts about the production.

It seems like I’ve spent an incredible amount of time focused on Marianne Faithfull here at Cinebeats in the past year but I’m not the only person with Marianne on my mind. Britain’s Q Magazine recently named Marianne the “Icon of the Year” during their annual awards ceremony in October. She’s also been doing a lot of interviews with the British press. I always enjoy reading what Marianne Faithfull has to say because she’s one of the few women in show business who has aged gracefully and is still making great records at age 65.

Last but not least, here are a few links that I thought other Faithfull fans might enjoy including a link to my review of Ghost Story written in 2007.

- My review of Stephen Weeks’ Ghost Story (1974)
- Official Nucleus Films site where you can order the DVD
- Marianne Faithfull is Q Magazine’s Icon of the Year
- A recent Interview with Marianne Faithfull

* Nov. 6th Update: Nucleus Films was kind enough to contact me and let me know that they tried to get in touch with Marianne Faithfull but weren’t able to. I suspected as much but I hope Marianne realizes how wonderful she was in the film and is able to do some kind of promotional interview about Ghost Story once the DVD is released.

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Nicolas Caesar’s Grindhouse Nov. 1-15th

by Kimberly Lindbergs | November 2, 2009

Categories | News, Rants & Raves

Live in the Southern California? Still in the Halloween spirit? Looking for a fun way to celebrate the Day of the Dead aka El Día de los Muertos or All Souls’ Day? Consider stopping by the Hyaena Gallery located in Burbank California Nov. 1-15th and you can enjoy a display of art by my net pal Nicolas Caesar dedicated to Grindhouse Cinema!

From the gallery site:

On Exhibit: Nicolas Caesar’s Grindhouse

Nov. 1 - Nov. 15, 2009

Opening Reception:
Saturday, November 7th 8pm-midnight

Outsider Artist and Hyaena favorite, Nicolas Caesar, returns with a celebration of Cinephelia and Trash Comics. Take a time machine back to yesteryear when Creature Features were king and comics were off the rails. Matango, Frogs, Terrorvision, The Angry Red Planet and Evil Dead 2 are just a few of the films made tribute to. Plus the premier of Ceasar’s comic anthology “Mosquito & Spider.”

Nicolas Caesar is the 2009 artistic equivalent to the Midnight Movies and Sleeze Cinema of the 70s, a guilty pleasure to be revisited often.

Also…We’ll be featuring DVD giveaways all night from Video search of Miami (www.vsom.com)

Original Artwork & Prints Available for Sale

Location:
Hyaena Gallery
1928 W. Olive Ave. Burbank, CA 91506
Tel: 1-818-972-2448

Hours of Operation:
Tue - Sat = 11am - 7pm
Sun = Noon - 5pm
Mon = Closed

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Ennio Morricone’s My Dear Killer OST

by Kimberly Lindbergs | October 21, 2009

Categories | News, Soundtracks, Composers, Giallo, Ennio Morricone, George Hilton

George Hilton in My Dear Killer aka Mio Caro Assassino (1972)

This month Digitmovies is scheduled to release Ennio Morricone’s incredible score for the excellent giallo thriller My Dear Killer aka Mio Caro Assassino (1972). This will be the 9th volume from Italy’s Digitmovies devoted to the original soundtrack recordings of Ennio Morricone and if it’s as good as their previous releases Morricone fans are in for a real treat!

My Dear Killer happens to be one of my favorite giallo films and it was directed by Tonino Valerii who made some great Italian westerns such as My Name is Nobody (1973), but he is probably best known for his work as an assistant director to Sergio Leone during the making of A Fistful of Dollars (1964) and For a Few Dollars More (1965). My Dear Killer was Tonino Valerii’s only giallo film but it’s a smart, creative and surprising thriller that offered its talented star (George Hilton) one of his best roles. In the film Hilton plays a police inspector trying to solve a gruesome series of crimes that may or may not be connected to the kidnapping and murder of a young girl that took place years earlier. Besides George Hilton’s standout performance as Inspector Luca Peretti, My Dear Killer also features one of Ennio Morricone’s most creepy and effective scores.

A few of the tracks from Morricone’s soundtrack for My Dear Killer have been released before on compilation CDs, but the upcoming Digitmovies CD will mark the first time that Morricone’s complete score for My Dear Killer has been made available in any form.

This impressive soundtrack includes haunting vocals provided by the brilliant Edda Dell’Orso who worked closely with the composer on many of his best film scores. All together the CD contains a total of 17 remastered tracks and it’s available just in time for Halloween. If you’re a Morricone fan or just enjoy genuinely eerie film soundtracks you’re definitely going to want to pick up a copy of the My Dear Killer OST.

You can currently purchase new and used copies of the soundtrack for My Dear Killer aka Mio Caro Assassino at Amazon. At the moment these CDs are a little hard to come by since they’re imported from Italy but Digitmovies is still in the process of shipping out orders so check back at Amazon often.

The film is also available on DVD from Amazon and you should be able to rent it at Netflix.com or Greencine.com

I’ve posted the trailer for My Dear Killer aka Mio Caro Assassino below since it also features samples of Ennio Morricone’s score, but if you’ve never seen the movie before you might want to avoid watching it. It’s a great clip (not exactly work safe) but it also happens to be one of the most spoiler filled trailers I’ve ever seen.

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On DVD This Week: Left Bank!

by Kimberly Lindbergs | October 16, 2009

Categories | News, Horror, Modern Mondays

Left Bank (aka Linkeroever) has been released on DVD from IFC Films/MPI Home Video just in time for Halloween! I was thrilled to find a quote by yours truly gracing the DVD cover that lets potential viewers know that I thought Left Bank was “Just as important as LET THE RIGHT ONE” and “One of the Best Horror Films of the Past 10 Years.”

These quotes all come from my earlier review of Left Bank and I proudly stand behind both of my statements. It’s unfortunate that Left Bank didn’t get the same kind of critical attention that Let the Right One got when it was initially released in 2008, but not too surprising. Left Bank is an unusual and atypical horror movie that borrows ideas from some of horror cinema’s most esoteric films. I suspect that it will never appeal to the same wide reaching audience that appreciated Let the Right One In, but I think horror film enthusiasts with eclectic tastes will find Left Bank to be an exciting and worthwhile viewing experience. Hopefully this new DVD release will introduce the film to a much wider and more appreciative audience.

From the Left Bank DVD Description:
“In this graphically shocking and internationally acclaimed debut feature by Belgian writer/director Peter Van Hees, Eline Kuppens stars as a dedicated professional runner sidelined by an infection. But when she impulsively decides to move into her new boyfriend s high-rise apartment on the outskirts of Antwerp, she will discover that his perfect home may hold strange powers and even darker secrets: Their sexual passion becomes extreme. Her body undergoes bizarre changes. The previous tenant disappeared under mysterious circumstances. And deep within the building s dark basement lurks an ancient evil that waits to be reborn. Welcome to a neighborhood where obsession meets madness, history is written in blood, and modern horror is alive and well in a place called LEFT BANK.”

This new NTSC DVD release features a widescreen print of the film as well as English and Spanish subtitles. You can currently purchase the DVD from Amazon and it should be available for rent from Netflix as well as other DVD rental outlets.

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Lee Marvin Goes Retro

by Kimberly Lindbergs | September 25, 2009

Categories | News, Actors, Cinema Retro, Lee Marvin

The latest issue of Cinema Retro arrived in my mailbox yesterday and it boasts a colorful picture of Lee Marvin during the making of Prime Cut (1972) that literally jumps right off the cover. As a long time Lee Marvin devotee I was thrilled to discover that the magazine had unearthed a lengthy interview with Marvin that had never been published before. The interview was conducted by writer Steve Mori during the making of The Klansman in 1974. Marvin offers up lots of insightful antidotes about his film career and it’s a pleasure to read. He was an incredibly smart man who lived a fascinating life and he obviously loved his job. Acting came naturally to Lee Marvin and he brought an honesty and edginess to his roles that is also on display during the interviews he did.

In Steve Mori ’s interview with Marvin the actor shares some great stories about working with other actors such as Toshiro Mifune on the set of the excellent WW2 drama Hell in the Pacific (1968). He also doesn’t shy away from discussing the disagreements he had with studios or other actors such as Paul Newman during the making of Pocket Money (1972). If you’re even the slightest bit interested in Lee Marvin the new issue of Cinema Retro is a must read!

Besides the interview with Lee Marvin, other highlights from the new issue of Cinema Retro include Steve Saragossi’s detailed look at the terrific Lee Marvin film Prime Cut, a nice overview of the Christopher Lee’s Fu Manchu films, an interview with British actress Shirley Anne Field, an interesting take on John Schlesinger’s Billy Liar (1962). It also features lots of film news, DVD and soundtrack reviews as well as many follow-up articles to pieces from previous issues such as the second part of Steve Saragossi’s interview with American actor James Caan and an ongoing look at The Man from U.N.C.L.E. films.

You can purchase the latest issue of Cinema Retro at their official website: cinemaretro.com

Lee Marvin fans might also enjoy checking out a new interview with director Jim Jarmusch that was recently posted at the Criterion Collection film site. In one of the clips Jarmusch humorously discusses his association with The Sons of Lee Marvin.

Recommended Read:
- Previous Lee Marvin coverage here at Cinebeats

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New Blog: Mid-Century Living

by Kimberly Lindbergs | September 22, 2009

Categories | News

Yes, you read that right. I’ve created a another blog. Since I can’t seem to focus on anything but my up coming move and the prospect of finally owning my own home, I’ve decided to share my experiences and various other stuff at a new blog I’m calling Mid-Century Living. This does not mean I’m going to stop updating Cinebeats. It simply means that my true love is writing and I really enjoy blogging so if you’re utterly bored or happen to enjoy mid-century design and want some house hunting tips, decor ideas, etc. please feel free to stop by my latest blog project and say hello!

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Jim Carroll 1949-2009

by Kimberly Lindbergs | September 14, 2009

Categories | News

“I’m lost again as I am waking
as a wave would wake had it reached the shore:
It’s like movement, something which bores us terribly,
but remains for a time to be never forgotten. ”
- Jim Carroll (from Living At the Movies)

Recommended Links:
- Jim reading “Just Visiting” from The Book of Nods
- His obituary in the NY Times
- Catholic Boy

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