There's only one defender of the law that counts... and his name is ARBITRARY JUSTICE!

‎"The Reason is bigger than you!"

I discovered the Italian superhero GIUSTIZIA ARBITRARIA ("Arbitrary Justice" in English) completely by chance when surfing thru unknown blog land some months back. As far as I know the comic is the work of the blog author and the series isn't published outside that particular blog - which is a complete shame as ARBITRARY JUSTICE is AWESOME! The series is very funny and of course completely anarchistic; Arbitrary Justice upholds the law against you!! Hahaha. I've translated one of the stories and you can check more here (but they're only in Italian). Click on the scan twice to see it in full size.



Title: "Arbitrary Justice against self-esteem"
Text under headline: "Based on a true story"

Frame 1: From now on enough with the bullshit... We put everything back in line!

Frame 2: Say it! Say that you're a piece of shit!!!

Frame 3: I'm... I'm a piece of shit!

Frame 5: Then you die!!!

Frame 6: I hate shit...




Thanks to Francesco Maria Zaghini for a couple of corrections in regards to the translation.

Truly bad times!

If you've followed this blog for a while you'll remember my posts about our good friend Bill Barounis of the one-man run Onar Films in Greece (who only release more or less lost Turkish movies of the wild sort) and his difficult situation after his health went bad just over a year ago.

I'm not familiar with the details of his first "situation" but I believe he had a kind of seizure of the brain due to too much stress. He spent two weeks in hospital, came home, got a bit better, but was then diagnosed with brain tumour. He began getting treatments and this has been going for about a year now. Then about a week ago I got word from Miltos (head of Cinehound forum and also located in Athens) who told me Bill's condition had deteriorated but that he didn't have any specific details.

Today, Bill posted a brief piece of info on his Onar website to explain, and unfortunately he suffered a stroke last month! This is indeed terrible, terrible news!!!

Bill has always talked about how much of a jinx he is and how everything always goes wrong in his life in regards to Onar. The stories he's written about it have always been insane; stuff like he sent a guy to pick up a print but he fell down an elevator shaft! And someone else who was to do something for Onar got chased by gangsters. And one time there was a ghostly sound on a print and nobody in the sound studio could explain it. And lots more. And of course the worst thing was Bill's friend and Onar label mate Metin Demirhan (co-author of the book "Fantastic Turkish Cinema") who died untimely.



One time Bill said he wasn't going to post on Cinehound anymore cos he didn't want anything bad to happen to the forum since he was a jinx. I always laughed it off but, hell, maybe it's not so far fetched! It seems bad luck just haunts the poor guy. I can't tell you how truly and utterly sorry I am to learn about this latest chapter of Bill's condition! He truly deserves some good luck now! Bill, my friend, I wish you a full recovery and all the best.


From the Onar website today:

YOU MAY CARE TO KNOW THE LAST MONTH I SUFFERED A STROKE.
I SPENT MOST OF THE DAYS IN THE HOSPITAL.
NOW I CAME HOME ON A WHEELCHAIR. MY WIFE WE'LL TAKE OF THE UNSHIPPED STUFF.
SORRY. DON'T KNOW ANYMORE WHEN ZAGOR WILL COME OUT.

Photos: I haven't posted the two bottom pictures before. They are from an interview with Bill that was posted on a Turkish language website in 2008. You can read it here (or at least look at it). You'll notice they use Bill's Greek name, Vassilis Barounis.

The Abandoned - trailer

I watched the American horror movie THE ABANDONED quite a few years ago; It was around 2007 and I had the pleasure of watching it on eXtase editor (and Doomed Denmark promoter) Nils Markvardsen's big projector screen during a video night at his abode in Copenhagen. The film is really good. I haven't re-watched it since that initial screening so I'm definitely looking forward to it (which makes it a good thing I received it on DVD today, LOL). It was part of the first season of "8 Films to die for".

Noice, mate. Cheers!

Karl Brezdin of "Fist of B-list" blog posted this description of my other blog When the Vietnam War Raged... in the Philippines a few days ago:

When the Vietnam War raged... in the Philippines - One of the most unique editorial concepts you’re likely to find in the wide world of genre film blogging, executed to absolute perfection. Fantastic reading.

Needless to say it warms me ol'e cynical heart when other bloggers write stuff like that. Thanks so much, Karl, you're the best!! xD xD xD

Santo and the Blue Demon Versus the Monsters - review

Check out Paul Cooke's fun (and sureal weird) review of SANTO Y BLUE DEMON VS LOS MONSTROUS which I posted the trailer for in my last post. As I'm sure you know Paul does the Ballistic Blood Bullets blog. xD

Everything!!!

Yes, I've posted this trailer before but it's necessary that I post it again! SANTO Y BLUE DEMON VS LOS MONSTROUS has everything!

Three OOP Eddie Romero films re-released on DVD

Here's some more multo bene interessanto info that I've just picked up today: The three Eddie Romero directed Filipino films, BEYOND ATLANTIS, BEAST OF THE YELLOW NIGHT, and TWILIGHT PEOPLE have been re-released on reg. 1 DVD by VCA as part of a 12 film box set called SCREAM THEATER: THE SADISTIC 70S.

This is certainly brilliant news as these films are way outta print! There are two new copies of BEYOND ATLANTIS listed on Amazon.com right now, and the cheapest one is $95!! The cheapest second hand copy is 42 bucks. Retromedia's DVD release of BEAST OF THE YELLOW NIGHT is still available on Amazon fairly cheap (around $10) and it's a lbx print too. However, TWILIGHT PEOPLE is also rather expensive, retailing for around $40 for a new copy.

The 12 films are on 4 discs so there could be compression issues, however, a couple of gents on Dvdmanicas were nice enough and informed me that the picture quality is good on all three films. Charlie_G of Dvdmanicas sent me some screen grabs from BEYOND ATLANTIS and they certainly look alright. Obviously I don't know about compression and shit or how they'll look on a 50" TV set but when you (like me) are used to shit fullscreen pixellating VCDs from Malaysia and 5th generation video dupes then you'll think this is like watching films from Heaven. LOL.




The full set consists of these films:

Alice Sweet Alice (1977)
Beast Of The Yellow Night (1971)
Beyond Atlantis (1973)
Death Game (1976)
Don’t Open The Door (1975)
House Of The Living Dead (1976)
The Night Creature (1978)
Scream Bloody Murder (1973)
Sisters Of Death (1978)
Twilight People (1972)
The Vampire Happening (1971)
Young Hannah: Queen Of The Vampires (1972)

The set isn't listed on Amazon but it's available directly from VCI for just under $15 + postage. They do ship overseas. I already have the old releases so I won't be ordering this set but the films are cool and if you haven't got them you can certainly save a lot on this instead of coughing up for the OOP versions. I paid $40 for my copy of BEYOND ATLANTIS a couple of years back. >_<


Thanks to Ken & Charlie for the info.

Films from the future

Well, "from" the future cos somehow I still live in 1988! Argh. And I remember how I used to look forward to 1999 wondering whether the moon would really disappear from its orbit around the Earth - and if we would have proper space ships then. Obviously none of that happened. The new shiny futuristic world that most sci-fi authors imagined we would have just never happened. We still live in the same crappy dirty old world. I'd say it's even gone from crappy to worse. Oh well. At least we still have the moon to look at at night time (unless you live in smog filled places).

Anyway, I watch all kinds of old cinema from many countries so I often miss out on new American (and other Anglo/Euro) horror films but I'd like to rectify that. But it'll take a while obviously. Over on Dvdmanicas there's been two ongoing threads where the members post their favourite POST 2000 HORROR FILMS and I've simply collected all titles into one list.

If any of you have UBER FAVES that you think I should start with please do make a comment. Films you can't live without! (NB: some obvious films are missing from the list! I decided not to include the ones I've already got). Feel free to list new horror films that aren't on the list if you think they deserve it (i.e. they have to be among your faves - it's not enough they are new!). Cheers.

And yes, I should have included the ones I've already got cos you don't know which ones they are. Doh!


Abandoned , the ✓
Abominable (2006) ✓
Alien Raiders
All the Boys Love Mandy Lane
All about evil
Alone
BATMAN VS. DRACULA ✓
Below
Blood Rain
Blood Night: The Legend Of Mary Hatchet
Blood: The Last Vampire ✓
Bruiser
Brutal River
Bubba Ho Tep
Bug
Calvaire
Cannibal (Marian Dora)
Chasing Sleep
Children , the
Cloverfield (2008)
Cold Prey
Colic
Collector , the
Coraline (2009)
Dagon (2001)
Daybreakers
Deadwood Park (2007)
Death Note/Death Note: The Last Name (2006)
DEATH PROOF
Deathwatch ✓
Devil's Backbone +
DORIAN GRAY
Dorm
Drag Me To Hell (2009) ✓
Exorcism Of Emily Rose , the
Fat Girl (2001)
Final Destination
Forbidden Door
FRAILTY 2001 +
Freeze Me
Frontier(s) ✓
GINGER SNAPS 2: UNLEASHED.
Girl Next Door , the + ✓
God's Left Hand Devil's Right Hand
Gozu
Grindhouse
HANNIBAL 2001
Happiness of the Katikuris , the
Hatchet
Headless Hero
Heartless
Hole , the
HORSEMAN , the
Host , the
House Of The Devil , the
I Sell the Dead
Inland Empire (2006) ✓
King of the Ants
LAID TO REST
Legion
Let The Right One In
Lost , the
Loved Ones , the
MALEFIQUE
Marebito +
Meatball Machine
Midnight Meat Train , the
Mist , the +
MR BROOKS 2007
Mum and Dad
My Little Eye
natures grave
Night of the Living Dorks
Noriko's Dinner Table
Orphanage , the
P
Pan's Labyrinth
PARANORMAL ACTIVITY
Pontypool
Pyrokinesis
Rampo Noir
Red White And Blue +
Rogue
Ruins , the
Salvage ✓
Scrapbook
See No Evil: The Moors Murders (2006) (TV)
Session 9
Shadow of the Vampire (2000)
Shadow: Dead Riot
Sheitan
Shortcut , the
Signal , the
Signs (2002)
Splinter
Strangers , the
Subconscious Cruelty
Suicide Circle
Sweeney Todd
Teeth ✓
Tormented
Triangle ✓
TRICK 'R' TREAT ✓
Trick or treat
Trouble Every Day
Vampire Hunter D +
Visitor Q (2001)
Wendigo
Wolfman , the
Zodiac

Got Axed! Sweeeet!!

I posted the trailer for the new Aussie zombie film AXED the other day (here) and just before the weekend I received a copy of the DVD from the director. Niice! Review soon. xD




PS: the scary ghostlike face on the left side of the cover isn't actually on the cover. It's the reflection of yours truly's haunting mug, LOLZ.

Holy mackerel, Batman!! The cover for the upcoming FLY ME / COVERGIRL MODELS dvd is here!!!

From Backyard Asia blog:

The DVD cover for SHOUT! FACTORY's upcoming DVD release of CIRIO H. SANTIAGO's two Filipino films, FLY ME and COVERGIRL MODELS is finally here! And with that it should (hopefully) be dead sure that we WILL be getting FLY ME on DVD!

As I reported recently, SHOUT! had actually at first cancelled including FLY ME because they didn't think the print was good enough. I asked label head guy Cliff Mac (in a forum post on Dvdmaniacs) to include the film despite the less than perfect picture quality and I guess the men in charge at SHOUT! pay attention to the opinion of BACKYARD ASIA blog because they soon after decided to include the film after all (or am I putting too much confidence into my own powers and this blog? Naah!).

The third film in the set is Roger Corman's American-Italian co-production THE ARENA starring PAM GRIER.

I don't have a release date yet.