Uncle Sleazo's Toxic and Terrifying TV Hour

Director - Lucky Cerruti (Kindness of Strangers, Freak)

Release Date - 2022

Genre - Horror/Comedy

Format - Streaming (Online Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     I find a lot of indie horror shorts and films from browsing through social media.  A good bit of them have been absolutely fantastic but some others were a bit disappointing.  A few years back I came across posts in different horror groups for the indie horror short Kindness of Strangers from director Lucky Cerruti and his production company Dead Vision Productions.  I enjoyed it and quickly befriended the director on Facebook.  Since then they have released other films from various filmmakers and a slasher from Cerruti titled Freak.  I absolutely loved Freak which only made the announcement for his newest film even more exciting.  When Cerruti announced the crowd funding campaign for his new anthology film Uncle Sleazo's Toxic and Terrifying TV Hour I was all for it.  I fucking love anthologies and couldn't wait to see what Cerruti brings our way.  It's been a few months since the crowd funding campaign and the film has slipped my mind until he reached out to me to check it out for the site.  I was quick to accept the invitation.  Thanks Lucky!

     The film follows a local televised broadcast of the Uncle Sleazo's Toxic and Terrifying TV Hour.  This special episode features three tales along with a series of commercials and infomercials.  The first tale follows a motorist that stops on a lone stretch of road only to find himself bit by an unknown dog.  Later he finds himself at an usual kennel with a strange man who wants to use wolvesbayne to turn him into a wolf permanently so he can be the alpha of a wolf pack.  The second story follows a young woman who visits a fortune teller.  She receives some rather grave and heartbreaking news.  She returns home and tries to summon a spirit and gets more than she bargained for.  The third tale follows a young man who receives a ghastly visit from someone very unexpected.

     I was very much looking forward to this anthology.  I'm a huge fan of horror films that try to capture that look and feel of films that I grew up with.  The wave of nostalgia is always welcomed.  Uncle Sleazo's tried to capture that look and feel of a late night horror host that so many genre fans grew up with in the 80s and 90s.  Sadly, my area didn't have those but that didn't stop me from renting the Elvira releases from my local video store just to get a little glimpse into it.  I wish my local TV stations had something like this growing up but living in Appalachia I was limited to reruns of The Red Green Show and religious programming.  Regardless, I really liked the idea and execution that Uncle Sleazo's delivers.  The acting in this one is solid enough for the film but the cast does show some inexperience.  It's not bad but there is a few scenes that is a little awkward at times.  I liked the characters and how the cast approached their roles but a little more experience would have went a long way.  The stories for this one are inconsistent but the overall film is worth your time.  I loved the angle of using a late night horror host as a way to tie the shorts together.  However, the shorts are very hit and miss with me.  I really liked the first one about the werewolf.  I would have preferred if it was a little more campy but it was still entertaining as it is.  The second story is solid but does show a little bit of a transition point for the film.  I liked it but it is a little weaker.  Then we dive into the final segment which was not that enjoyable in my opinion.  It had the best effects of the entire film but the story just wasn't there for me.  When you combine all this together with the wrap around segment and the faux commercials you find yourself having a lot of fun.  Finally, the film has some fun gory moments with great effects and some no so great effects.  Budget does dictate what you can work with so this no budget feature didn't have a lot to work with but they were still able to deliver some gore that I found to be very impressive.  Some of the make-up effects did get a laugh out of me but they still had a long way to go.  Overall, Uncle Sleazo's Toxic and Terrifying TV Hour is a horror anthology that many genre fans will truly appreciate.  The film has some room for improvements but it's still a fun indie horror feature.  I highly recommend checking this one out if you get the chance.  You will not be disappointed.