Starring - Peter Atkins (The Naked Monster), Doug Bradley (Hellraiser), and Anne Taylor (Night Gallery)
Release Date - !973 and 1978
Genre - Horror
Format - DVD (Personal Collection) (Screener)
Rating (out of 5):
When I was first getting into horror there was names I always came across. R.L Stine, Stephen King, George Romero, John Carpenter, and Clive Barker. Clive Barker made a name for himself in the horror community for writing and directing the now classic Hellraiser which spawned a widely popular franchise. Before he worked on Hellraiser he directed two shorts in 1973 and 1978. The first, Salome, was released in 1973 and actually featured a role by Doug Bradley who would go on to be known as Pinhead in the Hellraiser series. The next film, released in 1978, was The Forbidden and would also star Doug Bradley. These two shorts have been on my radar for years now but I never was able to check em out. That changed recently when MVD released the two shorts on DVD. They were kind enough to send a review copy my way. Thanks guys!
Salome is an experimental take on the play written by Oscar Wilde. This short follows Salome who dances for the devil so she could get the head of John the Baptist on a silver platter to appease her mother. The Forbidden follows the classic German tale Faust where a power hungry man makes a wager with Faust so he can gain more power and knowledge.
I'm not one for experimental films. I'm not that intelligent and most of the time this shit just goes right over my head. I prefer my horror more straight forward and simple. With that being said, I was always curious to see how these films turned out. I'm respect Hellraiser for what it is but I was not really a fan. I did really enjoyed Nightbreed so deep down I hoped that these two were more like that. Sadly, it was not. The acting in these is non-existent. The cast dances around and then acts over dramatic at times which does not make an entertaining experience. Some dialogue and a cast that actually acts would have helped this one out so much. The story for this one is all over the place. I can't figure out which what is going on or where the story is going. I had to actually read the synopsis for both shorts just to write my review. No direction and too much arthouse experimentation. Finally, the shorts do have a little death but they are ruined by the way the shorts were film. Gorehounds and fans of Barker that expect some great special effects will be very disappointed. Overall, Salome and The Forbidden are two shorts that need to be skipped. The imagery looks good but that is as far as I can give these shorts credit. Skip it and watch Nightbreed.
No comments:
Post a Comment