Wholesale and Distribution Movie Reviews

Unlike the first two Erotic Witch Project movies, Witchbabe is far from enjoyable. Going back in time to see how Helena Pottsworth was ostracized by the community and branded the Erotic Witch struck me as a bad idea, and this movie proved to me that my doubts were justified. We begin in the present day as two frolicking youngsters bump up against a human skeleton in the woods. Authorities discover alongside the skeleton a journal (remarkably well preserved to have been lying in the woods for so many decades) apparently having belonged to the Erotic Witch herself. At this point we are taken back to the past to see how Helena Pottsworth saves the mayor's wife (from that cursed gorilla the writers insist on including in every EWP movie) and then begins instructing the women of the community in the ways of nature-this largely consists of the women shedding their clothes and conducting hands-on (as well as lips-on) research into the ways of the female body.

I have to say that the acting in this movie is horrible, especially that of the Erotic Witch herself. Then you have the prude of a mayor with his horribly, patently fake squeaky voice; his over-the-top performance takes this movie well beyond the limits of cinematic self-deprecating humor into the realms of the pitifully absurd. You would think things might improve when the characters begin concentrating on the whole erotic aspect of the story, but the movie is sadly lacking in this department, as well. Drowned under bad music, the erotic scenes are just uninspired and boring. Don't count on the reliable Darian Caine to overcome the blatantly obvious deficiencies of this movie, either, as her screen time is severely limited in this one. The Erotic Witch Project was a fun, enjoyable spoof of The Blair Witch Project, EWP 2 was a perfectly acceptable sequel, but Witchbabe: EWP 3 really has nothing to offer fans of the series.

Stick with the original EWP, it's a great parody with some lovely ladies (especially Katie Keane a.k.a. Laurie Wallace) She's the best.....which is more than I can say for this DVD. If you could rent it somewhere go for that or find a dummy who bought it and borrow theirs, it's worth watching once...but if you own a Pioneer DVD player it may not work! It would not play on mine and all DVDs play on mine. There's a glitch with this Witch!

First off, yes there are a few problems with this DVD. It wouldn't play in my XBOX, but did just fine in my friend's RCA player. It is VERY well worth it to get just the same though. Anytime you can see Laurie on-screen do it. She is such an awesome beauty. This is a prequel to The Erotic Witch Project. It takes place right when the Erotic Witch comes to Baccusville in the early 1800's. She quickly enslaves the Mayor's ignored wife with her witchcraft--not to mention her beauty. The wife (played by Laurie) then sets out to enslave the rest of the women in the community for the witch. I don't know of anybody else that has made two smash debuts like Paige Richards (see also My Vampire Lover). There are so many reasons to see it. So don't let a technical difficulty that may or may not affect you stop you from getting this Top 5 SC movie.

Just like the recently released CD of the same name, this DVD DOES NOT include any live material. It is a collection of 6 of their music videos which have been previously released elsewhere! Why they insist on labeling their mechandise with the "Farewell Tour" logo is beyond me. They should stop misleading their fans into thinking that it is actually LIVE material from their recent tour and label it for what it really is!!

This is a great DVD even though it only has a handful of videos on it. The video and audio quality are great. Between this and the already released Alabama Greatest Video Hits DVD, there are still several videos missing. Pass It On Down, Song of the South, Tar Top, She & I, High Cotton, Angels Among Us, In The Mood, She's Got That Look In Her Eyes, & How Do You Fall In Love are just to name a few. Hopefully, this release is just to hold us over until a full Alabama Videography is released on DVD.

I love this film so much. I bought one low-priced VHS copy on awhim and was pleasantly surprised to say the least. I thought the filmwas truly phenomenal! I then bought one of the DVD editions. 6 months later, I bought another. This low-priced DVD, as with all the other versions I own, is a travesty in terms of picture and sound quality (visible film print scratches, muddy blacks, gray whites, distant audio, audio pops, blurry images, overall lacking of detail throughout). I keep buying them hoping that someone will finally give this great film its proper due by finding a good negative and transferring it properly. No such luck as of yet (This might be due to the fact that the rights to this film may be shared by more than one distributor). Anyway, somewhere in existence there is a higher-priced VHS that looks much better than the "bargain" DVD's or VHS editions. I've seen it in a friend's personal video collection (...). This (...) film is a must-see. Why else would I keep buying it?

Yes, John Huston is known for "The Maltese Falcon," but that may or may not prepare you for this film. You see, "The Treasure of Sierra Madre" and "Key Largo" as well as "The Maltese Falcon" are a basis for this film. A complete rehash of formula? Absolutely not. Huston took "Across the Pacific" serious. "Beat The Devil" he did not. The capacity to understand this film lies in the many bent paradigms and scewed cliches that cause you to blink while watching it. I have seen it twice now. I have also shown it to my father and my step-father. Both love it, but not on a satire-level. They recognized it as a great film. You may not catch wind of the tongue-in-cheek quirks here, but this is a worthwhile movie. So buy it. Besides, look at the price.

This is the first Alpha Video DVD I have purchased and I must say, "you get what you pay for." Yes, this DVD is cheap, but it isn't entirely worthless. The source print for the DVD is from an Astor Pictures rerelease. There are several scratches, but the picture is pretty clear. The sound is not perfect, but typical of the Monogram pictures of the period. There are some annoying splices that break some of the dialogue.

The film itself is probably in the middle of the pack of Lugosi's Monogram programmers. Not the best, but certainly far superior to his two East Side Kids films. Lugosi plays a man leading a double life, one a college professor and the other as a ruthless gangster. Not really a true horror picture other than the drug addicted doctor that works for Lugosi.

Just a couple of more comments about Alpha Video. There are no extras on this DVD and there are only 4 chapters (and they don't even cover the entire film!). Also amusing is that the website listed on the back doesn't even take you to the Alpha Video website. The one positive is that the artwork on the DVD is very nice and will make collectors take notice.

Bela Lugosi is a distinguished professor but he also leads a dual life where he runs a mission for the Bowery homeless (reminds me of his Dark Eyes of London - 1939). His victims are disposed of in the basement, which is, laid out as a cemetery and beneath the graves lay a sub chamber where zombie like people are kept and in the end, that is where Bela tries to hide from the law. Not a good choice!

The quality of the DVD is fair.

I waited years to see this little epic and when I found it available on DVD, I snapped it up. Then I watched it. Well. I should have just given up. But no, I have a fondness for low budget horror movies. However, "Beast" is a curious failure and it broke my heart that it wasn't even enjoyable on a mere camp level. Lance Fuller brings new bride Charlotte Austin home and introduces her to his pet ape he keeps in the basement. He's a big game hunter. Austin and the ape develope an attraction for each other (no, really) and soon the gorilla is sneaking up to her room. Fuller catches the beast making passes at her (really!) and shoots it dead...to Austin's dismay. She goes under hypnosis from Fuller's friend and discovers she was a gorilla in a past life. Then they go on safari and she allows a big gorilla to abduct her and never goes back to Fuller. Way, way too much jungle stock footage kill the story. There are moments of hallucinatory silliness, yes, but the movie just doesn't hold up on it's own. I was so bummed out that it was, indeed, a "bomb" all the way that I walked out the next day and gave it to some guy I saw sitting on the curb. Now that's sad. And I love gorilla movies! Where's "GORILLA AT LARGE" on DVD? It's got Anne Bancroft getting carried away, it's in lurid color AND has Charlotte Austin in it! "Bride and the Beast" is too cheaply made to enjoy.

Bride and the Beast, co-produced by Adrian Weiss (ex B-movie editor/producer) and (father?) Lewis Weiss (ex silent and cheapie western producer), and scripted by Edward D. Wood Jr., never really replicates the manic delirium of Wood's directorial efforts (Plan 9, Glen or Glenda, Night of the Ghouls, etc.) Unlike those films, the fun here results not so much from breathless incompetence as from the ludicrousness of the overall concept. Bride and the Beast is a campy, immensely entertaining melange of jungle thrills, domestic melodrama, and past-life regression/reincarnation hokum, with a touch of implied bestiality thrown in to give it that Woodian je ne sais quoi. Lance Fuller moves up from his supporting role in the equally enjoyable jungle-horror opus Voodoo Woman to star as Dan Fuller, big-game hunter, who returns home to his jungle "mansion" with newlywed bride Laura, played by gorgeous, sultry Charlotte Austin (Gorilla at Large, Daddy Long Legs, Frankenstein 1970). Johnny Roth is houseboy/guide Taro, one of those Natives of Indeterminate Ethnic Makeup (apparently a member of that B-movie caste who refer to white men as "bwana," Taro's skin color varies throughout, he has Caucasian features, and wears a turban). Veteran monkey-suiters Steve Calvert and Ray "Crash" Corrigan play the gorillas. The excitement starts as soon as the honeymoon begins: Laura reveals her fur fetish to Dan; she and his full-grown pet gorilla, Spanky, are strangely affected/attracted by each other; Laura has disturbing dreams about gorillas; Spanky breaks out of his cage during a thunderstorm to menace (?) her; Dan awakes, shoots and kills Spanky, then later takes Laura to a shrink who hypnotically regresses her and determines that she was a gorilla in a previous life! (Hypnotic regression was a hot topic at the time because of the famous Bridey Murphy case; see Corman's The Undead, I Was a Teenage Werewolf, Fright, etc.) Progressing from a man-eating tiger hunt in the jungle to Laura's abduction by a pair of horny gorillas (one is blonde like White Pongo) and final showdown at Bronson's Canyon, Bride ultimately surprises with an incredible ahead-of-its time 'downbeat' ending. Crazy as it sounds, Bride and the Beast really isn't a knee-slapping Bad Film atrocity; in spite (or perhaps because) of the offbeat subject matter I actually found it quite absorbing, yet hugely entertaining on a camp level as well. The younger Weiss's actually fairly competent, if pedestrian, direction keeps the plot moving along briskly, and the substantial stock footage is integrated into the movie rather well for a cheapie of this type. (People with animal-cruelty sensitivities may be offended by a few clips.) The musical score is by an apparently slumming Les Baxter (famous for his 'exotica' LPs and numerous AIP soundtracks) and Harry Thomas (Frankenstein's Daughter, Night of the Ghouls) did the makeup. Highly recommended for fans of cheesy jungle thrillers, gorilla freaks, and Ed Wood completists. Makes a great co-feature with Curt Siodmak's Bride of the Gorilla.
With the Allied Artists catalog in DVD limbo due to Warner Home Video's apparent indifference and foot-dragging, this will likely be the only disc release of this movie in the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, the transfer appears to be from a 16mm source print, and while the tonal values range from very good to excellent (a little worse in some of the stock footage) and the black level and shadow/highlight detail are pretty acceptable, the print has a slightly soft, dupey look; no worse than a typical TV print, but probably a bit of a letdown to those spoiled by the typically tack-sharp Image/Wade Williams DVDs. Fortunately, physical damage is limited to some light speckling and spotting, leaving the picture very watchable overall. The mono audio is clear and the included 35mm trailer looks generally excellent, if also a bit soft and exhibiting some light speckling and lining. Six chapter stops and a nicely done if somewhat skimpy gallery of about a dozen stills and lobby cards (accompanied by some jarringly inappropriate music) are also provided. Another 'bonus' is a pretty awful (bad acting, unfunny 'comedy') 3.5-minute sequence from the aborted Wood-scripted Beach Blanket Bloodbath, featuring Forrest J Ackerman and Bobbie Bresee, which completists may care about but that will probably not impress anyone else. Also (dis)gracing the disc is an interview with and some shorts by one David "The Rock" Nelson, whose miserable home videos (that have insanely been compared by some to Ed Wood movies) are so embarassingly putrid they make Beast of Yucca Flats look like Citizen Kane. A complete waste (I fast-forwarded through most of it) and definitely INessential; consider yourself warned. In total an acceptable if less than ultimate package that will have to tide gorilla fans over till someone digs up and transfers some crisp 35mm elements (don't hold your breath).

I was disappointed with the "Calzonzin Inspector" DVD. It is shorter than the original and, in some point, you miss the pace of the original film that ironicaly, was also projected in open mexican television with minor cuts.

If you want the ORIGINAL "Calzonzin Inspector", don't waste your money until the FULL version appears.

In the other side, the image quality is excelent, but I have the feeling that also the actual audio was censored.

Although this is one of the funniest movies depicting government corruption in Mexico (so accurately in fact that its release was limited and it remained coomercially unavailable until today) this DVD is release is missing many scenes, which is unfortunate. I sincerely hope they release the full 2 hours.

Three video clips from German TV , lots of swirling backgrounds and colours but lots of Live Deep Purple too.This release could be considered worth the purchase price for the version of No,no,no alone, where Richie Blackmore shows he is a very underated player indeed as he kicks this tune along with consumate ease. He just makes playing the guitar look effortless.The version of Highway star suffers a little from Ian Gillan fooling around with the lyrics and tune but both this and Hallelujah are sure to be of interest to Purple fans.
The DVD jukebox would have been better without the cheap and uninspiring advertising that almost ruins Emerson Lake and Palmer and stops me from watching more than 10 seconds of any one else.Shoddy.

Ok, so you may pass this one up because there's only 3 Purple tunes, and let's face it, "Hallelujah" isn't one of their best. But, it IS the first song the classic Mk II lineup recorded and its a never before released promo at that. You know, it shows where they began, and that's real rock'n'roll history for sure. If its any consolation, Gillan's vocals are superlative and this opened the doors to his 'Jesus Christ Superstar' fame. The other two songs, "No No No" and "Highway Star" are real interesting with the former, in this version, given a helluva fun treatment that lays waste to the plodding 'Fireball' version. It just oozes confident attitude and slides on a slippery bedstone of Purple funkiness, the kind that fit their sound to a tee. Gillan improvises effotlessly with Blackmore, spouting off amusing asides. They in the pocket! As for "Highway", we get to see the band fearlessly rip through an incomplete version that's still very close to the 'Machine Head' version in many respects, excepting that Blackmore's and Lord's solos are still wholly improvised at this point. Gillan sings more rougher and higher, an interesting contrast to what we know, and his off-the-top-of-the-head lyrics involving Steve McQueen, Bridget thingy(Bardot probably), and "Micky Mouse(mentioned in "No No No" as well, so was he a wee tipsy? heheh)and all that love"(? lol). This is Purple really enjoying themselves and yes, Gillan and Blackmore clearly are having fun together here. So where else are you gonna find this true classic rock footage, with DTS sound option at that? There are these pointless promotional video excerpts of older artists tacked on, nothing to do with Purple. I mean Procol Harum was great, but there's only Gary Brooker and Mathew Fischer left in this later clip they show, and well,none of these things matter. Get it for Purple. It would have been nice if the promo for "Black Night" was included, even if they've finally released it on the 'Machine Head' video. For Purple freaks, but you already knew that, didn't ya?

Steve Harvey is not on this DVD. Def Comedy Jam and Cedrice the Entertainer but no Steve Harvey. I'm afraid to order it again. If Steve Harvey is not one of the comedian then I think you should remove his name and his picture--right away!That's the only reason why I rated this product so low. Other than the "missing Steve Harvey", this dvd was funny and exceptional.

If you like comedy you'll enjoy this

The obvious attitude of the producers of this mess was clearly one of superiority. I mean, "After all, we're shooting in IMAX 3D instead of the nefarious over/under format!" Well, whoopdeedoo! I'll take THE BUBBLE, METALSTORM, or AMITYVILLE 3D any day over this. There is some nice computer graphics work here, but there's really no story to speak of. And their so-called "history of 3D presentation" is superficial at best. While surely impressive in Imax, ENCOUNTER looks stupid on your TV screen 'cause everything is covered in a long shot or a medium long shot. Yes, that may work on the giant behemoth Imax screen, but reduce it in size to your TV (even my big 36-inch JVC) and it's pretty unimpressive. Not only that, but if you're watching it in alternating-field 3D with liquid crystal glasses, then you're watching it in half the normal resolution you normally see on your NTSC screen -- so there's next to NO picture detail. If you want a good 3D DVD movie, search the web for one of the alternating field DVD's of something like IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE, HOUSE OF WAX, or DIAL M FOR MURDER (sadly only available in 3D via pirated editions because the US distributors don't care enough to bother -- so were only left with legit DVD's of crap like ENCOUNTERS and amatuer videos of murderous clowns on the rampage). I would have given this two stars because it features (very briefly) Cassandra "Elvira" Peterson -- BUT THEY COVERED HER ONLY IN LONG SHOT TOO! They were REALLY stooopid, so they get one star. Boo!

This video uses the style of Mystery Science Theater, in that your host interacts with a smart-aleck computer/robot. Elvira makes a guest appearance, but the flaws come in where examples of films shot in 3D are shown; there are wonderful examples of 3D films, i.e., the Creature Of The Black Lagoon, the 3 Stooges,
House of Wax.

Instead, we get Top Banana for goodness' sake.

I thought I was getting a DVD of a movie called "Exposure," about a photographer as portrayed by Peter Coyote. I thought the Coyote movie was excellent and really enjoyable, with great acting in some of the secondary roles. This DVD of a more recent movie named "Exposure" stars Ron Silver as a photographer. I thought this version was terrible and would not recommend it to anyone. The actors did a decent job, but plot was dull and predictable. A One Star rating is too high in my opinion.

Update: This film is NOT the Peter Coyote film, reviewed as follows.

Peter Coyote plays an ex-pat photographer, roaming the streets of Brazil. The opening scenes show not only his fascination with street life, but also some flashes of unclad prostitutes as his models, one of whom ends up dead. He becomes a suspect while he tracks the real killer through a Fellini-esque landscape, and still finds time to interact with his European girl friend.

This was mildly titillating - memorable mostly for the street scenes and attractive hookers who keep getting bumped off, and some interesting knife fights. Shot on location with some Portuguese dialect (!), this well-made film, with a thin but interesting plot and somewhat predictable storyline, is pleasing to the eye. I'd rather watch this than TV on a bored night at home.

The Coyote film if great...just be sure which one you're buying.