Sunday, September 26, 2010

Timewarp to the mid 90's VHS galore!


As another video store closes it's doors in Vancouver, I can't help but reminisce about the Mom and Pop video and record stores that use to populate neighborhoods throughout Canada. Those stores were just awesome to hang out in and browse the selections. As a matter of fact, I had such a store myself back in 1994 in Fernwood, a small community in Victoria, BC. My store was called "Front Row Video" and we had an impressive selection of obscure titles and horror movies. The store was a hang-out for the horror crowd in Victoria, which was fairly small at the time. I had a "behind the counter" binder of titles that were deemed "banned in BC"...similar to the UK Video Nasty controversy, we had the same kind of "blacklist" including such fare as "Nekromantik" and "Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer", as well as HG Lewis titles, etc...the video store was a place both young and old couples could walk into and pick a movie or two...now you order it over the computer with the press of a button. The intimacy is gone and anything is available. There's no aura of mystery any longer and the days of video stores is soon to be a thing of the past. Even Blockbuster filed for bankruptcy protection in the USA, closing down 3000 of it's 4000 stores over the next few months! Blockbuster Canada is doing okay but with Netflix arriving here last week, Blockbuster is working overtime trying to fast track their own VOD and online streaming movie catalog to compete. I miss the days of VHS. I know the quality wasn't the greatest but at least it was a tangible item you could hold in your hand and the grainy picture only added to the movies anyhow. This hi-def insanity lets you see everything that the grain obscured. It works for porno's, but not movies where the FX budget was pocket change. I miss record stores. Being able to browse through cds and cassettes, vinyl, etc...again most music is digital downloads now with a few stores still stocking cds. I give cds another couple of years or so before they become extinct. With everything digital now, the consumer is forced to subscribe to high-speed internet access and have the best smart phones and memory on their laptops to receive the data. It seems like we're paying more now than a year ago for entertainment and there's no novelty, it's all so sterile. I never thought I'd say it but I sure do miss the 90's.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

My "CateGory III" Blog moves here from Gorezone!

For anyone who followed my "CateGory III" blog at fangoriasgorezone.com, please note that this is the new home of "CAT III". I don't know when that Gorezone site will be back up and running but in anycase, you can find me here from now on and I will be updating on a regular basis. Enjoy! I find myself watching anything and everything these days that will make me react. Be it good or bad, I find that a reaction is all I need to feel satisfied. A non-reaction is a cause for alarm. Let me reflect on a movie I recently watched, "The Hills Run Red"...first and foremost, I was looking forward to this one. I don't know if it was the marketing blitz and advance reviews that seemed to be positive or the simple fact that a "slasher in the woods" is simply something that in general is a reason for celebration. My first thoughts while watching "THRR" was, wow, 2:35 ratio, slick production and WB/Dark Castle as Producers; will I see anything really brutal and/or titallating? The short answer, YES. The fact that the both of the leading ladies don't shy away from getting naked which is awesome. We're usually treated to the one "slut" character obligatory tittie shot...but not in "THRR". So already, this had my attention. The gore and make-up effects were also plentiful. I was worried by the "R-Rated" edition that was released being light on the red stuff, this is not the case as we are treated to an onslaught of carnage. My thoughts while the credits rolled, brutal horror is alive and well. As I move past recent viewings, I want to give a
big thumbs up to Japanese Doom Metalers "Church of Misery". Their new album "House of the Unholy", out now on Metal Blade Records, is truly a barrage of heavy as all Hell, sludgy as all fuck riffs and vocals that will make your balls curl upside your asshole. "Church of Misery" first caught my attention way back with their serial killer themed doom metal and sick cover art such as "John Wayne Gacy's" mugshot and the most recent cover featuring Cannibal Killer "Albert Fish" being led into the courthouse.
If you're a fan of older "Clutch" sludge...you'll more than likely dig "Church of Misery" and their brain-numbing heaviness. Jumping across genres into what has been described as "Emo-rap", veteran underground rapper "Cage" has a new record entitled "Depart From Me" that kicks serious ass. Is it "Emo" inspired? I guess, but underground rap has always been anti-establishment and cutting-edge musically and lyrically. "Cage" has evolved. Fans of underground rap will remember "Cage's" debut album "Movies For The Blind" and it's "John Carpenter" inspired "They Live" cover art. And if you thought that art was sick, wait until you see the art for his new oneThis is a good thing. One of the most talented song-writers of our generation, he is getting the wider notice he desereves and the content is still very dark. Vocally, he's in top form. His hooks are inspired and El-P delivers the Def-Jux production which is underground hip-hops Midas Touch. How big is "Cage" getting? None other than "Transformers" own "Shia Labeouf directed "Cage's" new video "I Never New You", which has an unsetlling stalker theme throughout. Moving past music into literature...the new true crime soft cover book "Entering Hades" is something totally out of a Hollywood Movie. Considering the gory and very sordid tale takes place in the "City of Angels", one wonders how much longer it will be before someone in La La Land takes notice and makes a movie based on the madness contained within the pages of "Entering Hades". I don't want to go into too much detail, but an aspiring Hollywood screen-writer has a very bad habit. He murders prostitutes, strangling them with their own bras. The book is a page turner and author John Leake has captured the early 90's with all it's excess and facades. To summerize this blog let me just say that the state of horror is in good shape regardless of remakes and re-imagined works. There's alot to watch, even more to listen to and more than enough to read. So get at it!

Monday, April 13, 2009

The "Horror" of it all!

It's mid-April 2009 and I have many updates for my Plotdigger friends. First and foremost..."Hanger" missed the Philly Cinefest. Why? A variety of technical issues is the simple answer. But most importantly, I didn't want to bring something less than great to the Fest. I'm sure the Fest was a success and hopefully they've moved past their initial anger and disappointment at the cancellation. TLA is a great group of people and hopefully we'll work together again. Speaking of "Hanger", the movie is going to kickass! The soundtrack is insane. "NoMeansNo", "Bison", "SpreadEagle", "Invasives", "Grass City" and "The Golers" are on the soundtrack...the songs they've allowed us to use are totally perfect for "Hanger" and I've kept with the theme of not only using 100% Canadian music...but 100% local Vancouver based bands. NomeansNo
I grew up slamdancing to NoMeansNo and it's an honour to say the least that John and Rob Wright's legendary punkrock genious has been added to the soundtrack. Now, people are asking "when will "Hanger" be ready?" The answer isn't simple...for one-thing, it will come out in Germany, dubbed in German...no English tracks...in June. This is for certain, the German distributor will put it out both Uncut and cut. They did a great job with the Special Uncut Edition of "Gutterballs", so I have no doubt that it will kick ass there. I won't know when it will be available in North America for a couple of months at least. The "Live Feed: Cat III Ltd. Ed" and "Torched: The Director's Cut" will be out before "Hanger"...I know alot of people have been waiting for these special edition dvd's and I promise, I won't disappoint. Moving on...as some may have noticed, the Plotdigger website has been down and up like a yo-yo. I'm trying to create a great site and changes are made from time to time...this is why it's been up and down. Hopefully it will stay up and the changes and/or additions won't effect it's online status. The store will be open soon!! I'm in the final stages of adding some new products and then it will be up. I will be taking pre-orders for "Live Feed: Cat III" and "Torched: The Director's Cut" as soon as the store opens. These are limited to 1000 copies, signed and numbered. So they will go pretty fast. I have a t-shirt and hoody line and some OOP goodies that will be up as well. For my NYC peeps, I'll be at the Fangoria Weekend of Horrors in June 05-07 with some exclusive "Hanger" clips to show. So that's about it for now...I'll try and post a new blog often and keep checking back because the Plotdigger store will be open soon! Bye for now! RY.