Forum Closed
The forum is now to new posts. All the historical content is still available to browse.
if you are looking for musicians to play with, please view the Bands Seeking Musicians list, or use the Musicians Directory
You can use our pages on social media to connect:
SHOCK CORRIDOR CINEMA PRESENTS TWO GORE CLASSICS: The Films of Herschell Gordon Lewis. Tuesday, August 12th @ the fifty fifty arts collective
| Message Board > Up n' Coming! (aka Shameless Promotion) > SHOCK CORRIDOR CINEMA PRESENTS TWO GORE CLASSICS: The Films of Herschell Gordon Lewis. Tuesday, August 12th @ the fifty fifty arts collective |
| film programer User Info... | SHOCK CORRIDOR CINEMA PRESENTS: THE FILMS OF HERSCHELL GORDON LEWIS (2 works from the infamous "Blood Trilogy") Presented in Drive-in Mono!! only at: the fifty fifty arts collective 416 Craigflower rd. Tuesday, August 12th @ 9pm $2 Admission "Herschell Gordon Lewis managed to break new ground in nudies and gore films in the early sixties, proving with two-men crews and self-slated actors that production values had absolutely nothing to do with consumption, that there is an audience that will continually seek out sensational titillation at the expense of high fallutin� aesthetics." -----Brian Hansen "Peckinpah shoots people, we dismember them." -----Herschell Gordon Lewis While hardcore Italian horror fans have always referred to the late Lucio Fulci as �the godfather of gore�, the entire gore genre tradition really owes a debt of gratitude to schlock auteur Herschell Gordon Lewis and his production colleague, David Friedman. Together, these two B film mavericks composed a myriad of gore and nudie films for independent circulation at a pivotal time in the early 60s when the conservative production code of Hollywood was lifted. Often lifting headlines from newspapers as their source, the H.G. Lewis/Friedman team worked to titillate audiences with explicit material never before seen, executed by low budgets that would entice, rather than hamper economical creativity. Filmed on the fly at a furious pace, Lewis' films remain the high water mark of the poorly acted (Playboy Playmate, Connie Mason of Two Thousand Maniacs not withstanding), yet highly entertaining exploitation film that would fill the Drive-In programs of the 1960s and leave audiences screaming and laughing in the same breath. While the same might be said of the works of Ed Wood and Roger Corman, Lewis' schlock titillation is far superior both in the film's look and attention to thematic details. Although most of Lewis� kitchen sink special effects may appear tame in comparison to modern day horror films (this tends to break the film's realism and thus provides a significant amount of critical distance for the nostalgic viewer - - -one of the many levels in which contemporary viewers can enjoy these works) the films thematic concerns and aesthetic strategies (voyeurism, cannibalism, disposable characters, disclosed sexuality) would become a central influence on future horror filmmkaers working both within and outside of the studio system: George Romero (The Living Dead trilogy); Tobe Hopper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) and John Carpenter (Halloween), to name a few. The films presented tonite are not simply additional fodder for Mystery Science Theatre 3000 but should be seen as the high water mark of the B film, a significant body of work that has quietly been co-opted by the studios over the past 20 years. The Beacon Hill B-Film Festival this is not! Two Thousand Maniacs (1964; 75 min.) Perhaps Lewis' most notorious film, and the second in his highly praised "Blood Trilogy" (comprised of "Color Me Blood Red" and "Blood Feast", the latter of which will additionally be screened in this program). Two Thousand Maniacs is a kitchy parody on American Nationalism, the divide between the North and the South and familiar Redneck stereotypes. In an effort to mark the centennial of their town becoming a bloodbath of execution from oppressive Northerners 100 years prior, a small Florida town takes revenge by luring tourist yankees into their village for the town's festivities. What these ignorant Northerns are not privy to is their deaths will become the main attraction of the town's celebration by way of celebrated public executions. While at times morbid and celebratory of the macabre (the film's creative murder sequences would inevitably become a central influence on the slasher film's highly charged death scenes), the film is underscored by loony musical interludes, a striking criticism of bourgeois moralism and a challenge to the problematic stereotypes of the American rural citizen. Clearly, it is the elitist northerners who are not in the know, making for some hilarious moments for the informed viewer. Simply put, the revenge film has never been this fun. Blood Feast (1963; 70 min.) Blood Feast is the story of Fuad Ramses an Egyptian caterer and author of the book "Ancient Weird Religious Rites" (which occasionally figures into the film�s plot � but only when it�s convenient). Fuad�s a worshipper of the ancient evil Egyptian goddess Ishtar; a goddess who demands a feast in her honor, interpreted by the reclusive protagonist as a meal composed of various body parts taken from nubile young girls. Things certainly heat up when Fuad gets booked to cater a party for young debutante Suzette Fremont (played by the overstated keener, Connie Mason of Playboy Magazine). Sensing that this is his big chance to have his blood feast, Ramses sets out to procure the necessary ingredients while the stoic police chief frantically works to stop him. The creepy guy in the bushes staking out the bikini clad ladies of the middle class suburbs is a convention invoked here and would eventually inform so many horror films to follow in the U.S. Marked by bourgeois excess and subversive references to cannibalism, Blood Feast is a Drive-In classic that includes a much praised, dirty garbage truck death sequence. Like many of the Lewis works, the filmmaker scored the film himself, filling the movie with a spacious soundtrack comprised of organ arpeggios, cello, and drums. In some parts, it almost feels like you�re watching a silent film with the organist playing in front of the screen. One of the many curious charms of this highly entertaining film. - Sun, 10 Aug 2003 10:39pm | ||
| Gman User Info... | I cannot believe I will be missing the blood fest down there. Any chance I can request copies for viewing upon Frog Eyes' return from tour? Hope it goes goodly. Gman - Mon, 11 Aug 2003 12:47pm | ||
| film programer User Info... | yes. and i hope the tour goes goodly as well. perhaps you can provide an update in my email box at some point. i'm afriad the band will also miss the brakhage memorial, happening on august 21st. - Mon, 11 Aug 2003 6:33pm | ||
|
|||
Not logged in
Log In / Register (optional)
Featured Events
Featured Historical Events
Featured Article
Newest Profiles
West Coast REACH Association
Utilizing music & the other performing arts for social good
722 Cormorant St. Victoria BC
Open / Operational
Thursday Night Jam at The Loft
Cancelled - no jam. Drummer's head wouldn't fit through the ...
229 Gorge Road East Victoria BC
Closed / Inactive
First Metropolitan United Fellowship Hall
Large hall in the First Metropolitan Church Building.
Open / Operational
