EF Presents: The Guilty Pleasures Marathon Part VI
Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 2 PM – 11:30 PM
Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers
2548 Central Park Ave, Yonkers, New York 10710
Exhumed Films is thrilled to once again return to Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers for our annual Guilty Pleasures Marathon, featuring five of the craziest movies we have ever screened, back-to-back in an all-day assault of outrageousness! Here are five fan favorites, films that have had our audiences laughing, cheering, and screaming–sometimes all at once–when they played at our past marathon screenings such as eX-Fest or the 24 Hour Horror-thon. The movies are mostly low-budget affairs, but because of earnest filmmaking, tongue-in-cheek performances, and sheer audacity, they rise above their limitations and epitomize everything that is joyous about cinema.
THE KEEP
1983 / 35mm / Dir. Michael Mann / 96 minutes
Unlike some of the other films on the bill, THE KEEP is anything but low-budget bunk: directed by Michael Mann (as a follow-up to his breakthrough debut, THIEF) and based on a best-selling novel by F. Paul Wilson, THE KEEP is a big studio production with stunning cinematography, a top-notch cast, and a haunting score by Tangerine Dream. At its heart, though, it’s still just a weird little monster movie. During World War II, a Nazi battalion (led by Gabriel Byrne and Jurgen Prochnow) inadvertently unleashes an ancient evil from its prison. They must turn, ironically, to a Jewish scholar (Ian McKellen) in order to find a way to return the vengeful demon to the depths of its dungeon. While apparent studio interference in the film editing process keeps Mann’s film from being completely comprehensible, THE KEEP is nonetheless an interesting, underrated horror movie.
THE LAST SHARK
1982 / 35mm / Dir. Enzo G. Castellari / 88 minutes / Subtitled in English
If there’s one thing Italian genre filmmakers know how to do, it is to completely rip off successful American movies and create bastardized remakes for European audiences. This trend has given us wonderful retreads of DAWN OF THE DEAD (Lucio Fulci’s ZOMBI 2), ALIEN (Luigi Cozzi’s ALIEN CONTAMINATION), and countless others. But the king of the Italian imitators may very well be Enzo G. Castellari, who made multiple knock offs of MAD MAX, THE WARRIORS, and–most infamously–JAWS. Castellari’s film THE LAST SHARK was clearly inspired by both Spielberg’s blockbuster and its sequel, JAWS 2. In fact, THE LAST SHARK bears such a similarity to the plot of those films that Universal successfully sued to have the American edit of the movie (re-titled GREAT WHITE) banned in the states. Here we present the original European version of THE LAST SHARK, projected from an Italian-language print and soft-subtitled in English. The plot should surely sound familiar: when a series of shark attacks plague a seaside American town–and the local politicians are loathe to do much about it–it is up to a heroic novelist (James Franciscus) and a crusty seaman (Vic Morrow, doing his best Robert Shaw impersonation) to kill the beast before it turns the annual regatta competition into a floating smorgasbord! THE LAST SHARK is gory, ridiculous, and not to be missed.
BOARDINGHOUSE
1982 / 35mm / Dir. John Wintergate / 98 minutes
Speaking of ridiculous, few genre films are more utterly insane–and insanely entertaining–than BOARDINGHOUSE. This fright flick fever dream brought down the house when we showed it years ago for the 24 Hour Horror-thon, and it makes its triumphant Exhumed Films return at Guilty Pleasures VI! BOARDINGHOUSE is the quintessential low-budget horror film, shot on video (yet shockingly blown up to 35mm for a theatrical release!) and written/produced/directed by the star of the film, who cast himself as an irresistable ladies man and his real-life girlfriend as a glamorous pop star.The story involves a New Age playboy (who also happens to have psychic powers) buying a house where a spate of brutal murders once took place. He turns the building into a boardinghouse, which he shares with a bunch of sexy, scantily clad ladies. The whole thing seems like the setup for a bad porno until the housemates are besieged by a supernatural force that tries to possess their bodies and steal their souls. If there was ever a movie that could make the viewer question whether someone had slipped a hallucinogen into his or her drink, that movie is BOARDINGHOUSE, which must be seen to be disbelieved.
FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE SPACE MONSTER
1965 / 35mm / Dir. Robert Gaffney / 79 minutes
The sole film in the lineup which has never previously screened at an Exhumed event, FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE SPACE MONSTER is yet another example of a Frankenstein movie that doesn’t actually feature a creature called Frankenstein. (See also: FRANKENSTEIN’S BLOODY TERROR.) Originally given the much more interesting title MARS INVADES PUERTO RICO, this is a wonderful little morsel of 1960s schlock sci-fi. A young James Karen (RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD, POLTERGEIST) appears as a scientist who has created an android astronaut to serve in space missions that are too dangerous for humans to undertake. But on the android’s first flight, he (it?) is shot out of the sky by a Martians who have come to Earth on a quest to capture our women and repopulate their own planet. The android survives, but is disfigured and malfunctioning after the crash. Before long, the “Frankenstein” robot must do battle with the vicious monster the Martians brought along to help take over the world. If FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE SPACE MONSTERsounds silly and convoluted, that’s because it is–but it is also tons of fun. Fun fact: the Jon Lovitz-like Martian henchman, appropriately named Dr. Nadir, is played by veteran character actor Lou Martell, who is best known as “The Assman” from “Seinfeld” and Amazing Larry from PEE WEE’S BIG ADVENTURE.
FATAL TERMINATION
1990 / 35mm / Dir. Andrew Kam / 89 minutes
While the first half of this Hong Kong action/martial arts/crime film may seem a bit slow going to some, take our advice: do NOT leave the marathon early. FATAL TERMINATION blew minds when it closed out eX-Fest 2018. And audience members who snuck out during the opening minutes were kicking themselves later when they realized what they missed, because the film kicks into high gear at the midway point and never lets go! The plot involves two terrorist groups vying for a cache of deadly weapons. But when police officers, gangsters, and innocent civilians all get pulled into the plot, things soon turn deadly–and absolutely insane. If you have never seen this film before, do yourself a favor and do not watch any trailers or read anything about FATAL TERMINATION before the screening. That way, at the Guilty Pleasures marathon you can just sit back, enjoy, and get ready to have a heart attack.
Exhumed Films and the Lightbox Presents…
The Masters of Horror Marathon
Sunday, October 6. Doors at 11 AM, movies at 12 PM
Tickets: $30 general admission / $25 Lightbox members
Kick off the Halloween season with a celebration of five of our favorite horror directors, filmmakers who forever changed cinema with their shocking, groundbreaking visions. Our all-day marathon features some of the greatest achievements in horror movie history, presented here in 35mm for a rare theatrical event. Join us to honor the art and influence of some of the finest–and most provocative–filmmakers in the realm of genre cinema.
THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE
1974 / 35mm / Dir. Tobe Hooper / 83 minutes
Tobe Hooper’s shocking, brutal film THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE terrified audiences and outraged critics upon its initial release. In the decades that have followed, however, the movie that was once deemed “despicable” and “vile” has been rightly heralded as one of the most influential horror films of all time. A group of teenagers on a road trip pick up a hitchhiker, who soon proves to be much more bizarre and frightening than expected. Before long, the young people find themselves in the clutches of a cannibalistic clan, and the movie goes from being unsettling to outright horrifying. Come see who will survive, and what will be left of them!
IT’S ALIVE
1974 / 35mm / Dir. Larry Cohen / 91 minutes
Aided by a simple-but-effective advertising campaign, New York independent filmmaker Larry Cohen’s IT’S ALIVE was a low-budget box office success when it was released just a few weeks after TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE. Unlike the grim Grand Guignol of Hooper’s film, IT’S ALIVE bears a sly, satirical tone that permeates much of Cohen’s work. A young couple is horrified when their newborn baby is born as a monstrous mutant. And despite the family’s best efforts to control and contain him, Junior soon makes it perfectly clear that he’s interested in eating more than just baby food! Frightening and funny at the same time, IT’S ALIVE also features early effects work from Rick Baker, who created and puppeted the infamous infant.
THE BROOD
1979 / 35mm / Dir. David Cronenberg / 92 minutes
The theme of killer children continues in David Cronenberg’s unsettling portait of broken families, THE BROOD. The iconoclastic Canadian filmmaker had already established himself as a unique voice in genre cinema with his previous works SHIVERS and RABID. With THE BROOD, Cronenberg continued the fascination with “body horror” that has so defined his career. The plot concerns a man engaged in a custody battle with his mentally ill ex-wife, who is under the care of a controversial, mysterious psychotherapist. When their daughter comes home from a visit with the mother bearing cuts and bruises, the man tries to cut off all contact between his wife and their child. Soon after, though, a rash of violent attacks from unseen assailants threaten the safety and the sanity of both father and daughter. THE BROOD is dark, disturbing, and uncompromising, and is also one of Cronenberg’s finest films.
THE THING
1982 / 35mm / Dir. John Carpenter / 109 minutes
Thanks to box office blockbusters like HALLOWEEN, THE FOG, and ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK, John Carpenter was annointed as the new king of genre cinema during the late 70’s/early 80’s. But in 1982, Carpenter’s remake of a 1950’s sci-fi classic was met with hostile reviews and mediocre box office. Despite the initial response, THE THING has since been reevaluated and recognized as perhaps the greatest modern-day monster movie, thanks in no small part to the stunning special effects work of Rob Bottin, which still holds up nearly 40 years later. Like the movie and the novella it is based on, THE THING concerns an American research base in Antarctica that is infiltrated by an alien presence which has been thawed out and revived from its millenia-long hibernation. The evil E.T. has the ability to infect and take the form of other living creatures, which leads to paranoia and chaos amidst the team of scientists and technicians as they struggle to determine who is still human and who has been turned into a “thing.”
HELLRAISER
1987 / 35mm / Dir. Clive Barker / 94 minutes
In the mid 1980’s, British author and artist Clive Barker was described as the “future of horror” by no less an authority than the most successful horror novelist of all time, Stephen King. Frustrated as he watched several of his screenplays bastardized and turned into to mediocre (or worse) feature films, Barker decided to take on the directorial chores for his next big-screen attempt. The result was the now-classic HELLRAISER, an adaptation of the author’s own novella, “The Hellbound Heart.” Full of perverse imagery and a stunningly original take on traditional movie monsters, HELLRAISER was an auspicious cinematic debut for Barker and a welcome respite from the repetitive slasher films which glutted the horror genre during the decade. The story involves a sadist whose pursuit of pain and pleasure leads him to an alternate dimension where he is tortured by the Cenobites, a group of supernatural, self-mutilated “demons.” Back on Earth, the man’s brother and his family are drawn into a hellish fate–both willingly and unwillingly–as they confront secret passions and make dangerous alliances while trying to stay out of the grip of the sinister Cenobites!
Exhumed Films and the Unnamed Film Festival Presents….
Lemora: A Child’s Tale of the Supernatural
Wednesday, September 25, 2019 at 10:15 PM
2223.fish 2223 E Dauphin St, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19125
Exhumed Films joins PUFF for a screening of the 1973 vampire film, Lemora: A Child’s Tale of the Supernatural on 16mm. We will also be awarding Exhumed with the PUFF Legacy Award.
Director Richard Blackburn will be in attendance schedule permitting.
This is a Pre-PUFF event. #PUFF4 badges will not be honored. Gold badges will be accepted.
Exhumed Films and the Lightbox Presents….
24 Hour Horror-thon Part XIII:
Oct 26 at 12 PM – Oct 27 at 12 PM
SOLD OUT !
For the past twelve years, Exhumed Films has proudly partnered with International House Philadelphia and Lightbox Film Center to present the biggest Halloween event in Philadelphia: the annual 24 Hour Horror-thon, a full day of nonstop horror mayhem! Sadly, all good things must come to an end, and with the imminent sale of the International House building, this will almost certainly be the final Horror-thon at that location, and quite possibly the last Horror-thon ever. So join us for one last horrific hurrah and celebration of sinful cinema!
We’ll start at noon on Saturday and go straight through until noon on Sunday–or beyond! As always, the lineup of films is being kept secret–people who come to the show will only find out what the features are as they unspool onto the screen. The show will be a combination of some popular horror titles mixed with some really rare gems. Plus we’ll run tons of classic trailers, shorts, and other oddities, all projected on 16mm or 35mm film. Can you stay awake for the entire 24 hours? Who will survive, and what will be left of them? Be here on October 26th to find out!
Doors open at 11:00am, screenings begin at noon
