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Trash Cinema's Four Ingredients
9 years ago
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THE FRIGHTFEST GUIDE TO EXPLOITATION MOVIES by Alan Jones (FAB Press, paperback, 2016)
https://www.amazon.com/Frightfest-Guide-Exploitation-Movies-Cinema/dp/1903254876/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1485570446&sr=1-1&keywords=frightfest+guide+to+exploitation+movies+by+alan+jones
FrightFest co-founder Alan Jones shows us that trash cinema's four ingredients -- crime, sex, action, and/or horror -- can be combined in unlimited ways, and that the results will almost always grab an audience's attention. Hucksters, their ad campaigns, and the subject matter may excite or disgust potential viewers (they often do both), but raising strong feelings about these films is the whole point. A bored or indifferent customer is no customer at all.
After a quick A-Z of exploitation genres, figureheads, and clichés (cannibalism, mad doctors, women in prisons, souped-up cars, etc.), Jones gets down to business with a chronological list of 200 trash cinema milestones, lavishly illustrated with movie posters and film stills. Already familiar with RE-ANIMATOR (1985), MICROWAVE MASSACRE (1983), and I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (1978)? How about THE ZEBRA KILLER (1974), in which a white racist goes on a murder spree after disguising himself with shoe polish and an Afro wig? CRIES OF ECSTASY, BLOWS OF DEATH (1973) is postapocalyptic martial arts sexploitation, deploying hypersexual karate chicks against bikers in gas masks. Speaking of bikers, THE PINK ANGELS (1971) is pure camp about "beefy transvestites on a road trip to a drag queen ball."
But why stop there? BLACK SHAMPOO (1976) features a studly black hairdresser who sexually satisfies his female customers AND takes down the Mob. ANGEL, ANGEL, DOWN WE GO (1969) concerns a decadent, Jim Morrison-type singer (with Lou Rawls and Roddy McDowell in his band) who sexually corrupts men and women in his race to the bottom. 'GATOR BAIT (1972) is DELIVERANCE with Playboy Playmate Claudia Jennings dishing out lethal Cajun-style justice; BRIDES OF BLOOD (1968) -- riffed by Cinematic Titanic as DANGER ON TIKI ISLAND -- has young Filipino women being sacrificed to a remarkably unconvincing jungle monster, and A COLT IS MY PASSPORT (1967) finds chubby-cheeked hitman Joe Shishido betrayed by his bosses and targeted for death by two formerly rival crime gangs.
True, I wish Jones had spotlighted more kung fu movies than just AMERICAN NINJA (1985) and SHANGHAI LIL & THE SUN LUCK KID (1973), but one can't have everything. No one watching these trashy movies, or reading this entertaining book about them, will be bored.
https://www.amazon.com/Frightfest-Guide-Exploitation-Movies-Cinema/dp/1903254876/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1485570446&sr=1-1&keywords=frightfest+guide+to+exploitation+movies+by+alan+jones
FrightFest co-founder Alan Jones shows us that trash cinema's four ingredients -- crime, sex, action, and/or horror -- can be combined in unlimited ways, and that the results will almost always grab an audience's attention. Hucksters, their ad campaigns, and the subject matter may excite or disgust potential viewers (they often do both), but raising strong feelings about these films is the whole point. A bored or indifferent customer is no customer at all.
After a quick A-Z of exploitation genres, figureheads, and clichés (cannibalism, mad doctors, women in prisons, souped-up cars, etc.), Jones gets down to business with a chronological list of 200 trash cinema milestones, lavishly illustrated with movie posters and film stills. Already familiar with RE-ANIMATOR (1985), MICROWAVE MASSACRE (1983), and I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (1978)? How about THE ZEBRA KILLER (1974), in which a white racist goes on a murder spree after disguising himself with shoe polish and an Afro wig? CRIES OF ECSTASY, BLOWS OF DEATH (1973) is postapocalyptic martial arts sexploitation, deploying hypersexual karate chicks against bikers in gas masks. Speaking of bikers, THE PINK ANGELS (1971) is pure camp about "beefy transvestites on a road trip to a drag queen ball."
But why stop there? BLACK SHAMPOO (1976) features a studly black hairdresser who sexually satisfies his female customers AND takes down the Mob. ANGEL, ANGEL, DOWN WE GO (1969) concerns a decadent, Jim Morrison-type singer (with Lou Rawls and Roddy McDowell in his band) who sexually corrupts men and women in his race to the bottom. 'GATOR BAIT (1972) is DELIVERANCE with Playboy Playmate Claudia Jennings dishing out lethal Cajun-style justice; BRIDES OF BLOOD (1968) -- riffed by Cinematic Titanic as DANGER ON TIKI ISLAND -- has young Filipino women being sacrificed to a remarkably unconvincing jungle monster, and A COLT IS MY PASSPORT (1967) finds chubby-cheeked hitman Joe Shishido betrayed by his bosses and targeted for death by two formerly rival crime gangs.
True, I wish Jones had spotlighted more kung fu movies than just AMERICAN NINJA (1985) and SHANGHAI LIL & THE SUN LUCK KID (1973), but one can't have everything. No one watching these trashy movies, or reading this entertaining book about them, will be bored.
OMG it's a real movie...
Major Matt Mason
~marmelmm
I'm partial to "Revenge of the Virgins," myself...
elkit
~elkit
...And let's not forget that it must be done on a low budget for best results!
