Stamps Movie Reviews

This is not the vampire movie with David Bowie, Susan Sarandon and Catherine Deneuve, but rather a collection of 4 episodes from the 1997-1998 and 1999-2000 Showtime series "The Hunger".

Produced by Ridley Scott (of "Blade Runner" and "Alien" fame) and his brother Tony, and hosted by Terence Stamp in the 1st season and David Bowie in the 2nd, the series was always well-filmed and produced but somewhat hit-or-miss in its scrips and acting. Nudity is a staple.

This DVD includes the follwing episodes:

1) Bridal Suite - stars Sally Kirkland as an innkeeper who welcomes a honeymooning couple to a bridal suite with a sinister bedroom. Based on a story by Graham Masterson.

2) Red Light - One of the world most sought after models, Natasha, begins to feel that the cameras are somehow damaging her, stealing her soul. She runs to the only place she knows she can be safe - back to the arms of her ex lover, McCabe, the photographer who's career collapsed when she abandoned him years ago. Will he provide a safe haven she seeks, or will the tempation to take one last picture of Natasha prove too great?

3) The River of Night's Dreaming - a desperate female prison escapee stumbles into the midst of some extremely strange and kinky goings-on

4) The Secret Shih-Tan - Jason Lee stars as a gourmet chef who is paid big bucks to read and prepare a meal included in an ancient cookbook called "Shih-Tan". After opening the book, he knows how much trouble he's in... Directed by "Highlander"s Russell Mulcahy from a story by Graham Masterson.

I really liked this movie. If you are a fan of the sci-fi, horror genre, you'll like this one. This is four short stories with surprise endings like the disappearence of the groom on the wedding night. Quite a bit of nudity so, if that's not for you, be warned.

I got this, expecting a horror movie, instead, I got a really badly done softcore porn film hiding behind some badly written wanna be horror stories. There are about 4 short stories, all with intros by Terence Stamp (who recently starred in the film, The Limey). The stories are poorly done, and seem like they're just excuses to show badly shot softcore sex scenes. If you're looking for a horror video with lots of short stories, check out the fiendishly fun Creepshow (1982). Heck, if you're looking for Softcore sex with a horror theme, try Vampire Call Girls or even the T&A flick Nudist Colony of the Dead! Anything but this! I hated it!

This disk contains four episodes of the Showtime series The Hunger. The episodes are placed back to back to avoid the annoying opening credits. Each story is introduced by Terrance Stamp.

In the first story, a traveling salesman with very little talent checks into a motel. But when he turns on the adult television programming, he finds a channel with a woman who first talks to him, seduces him, and commands him to do evil things.

The second story has a hitchhiker who gets picked up by a truck driver. When the truck breaks down in the middle of nowhere on a freezing night, the two take refuge in the back of the truck. The truck is carrying items of adult sex stores. Fantasies ensue with an interesting twist and revelations.

The third story has a man fleeing his past by becoming a lighthouse tender. There he obsesses about Monica while slowly going nutty. When he believes he can create objects with his mind, he tries to create the perfect woman with dangerous results.

The final story involves a woman carrying on an affair. She does not seem to be really into the affair, but she goes along with it. Then she does some kidnaping roleplaying to spice up the sex. But is it roleplaying?

Each episode is quite different with the final being the weakest as it had no real element of strange. This is a Showtime series so there is plenty of sex and nudity which makes it unsuitable for many viewers.

Last night I watched The Hunger. No, this isn't the vampire movie featuring David Bowie and Catherine Deneuve, but a collection of three erotic film shorts: Swords, Menage a Trois, and Necros. I really wasn't sure what to expect, but I figured the directors would let loose with their half-hour time allotments. Terence Stamp narrates through an arty collection of quickly-passing sepia-toned images. At first, the buzzing sounds and the flashing imagery was intriguing in a NIN-video sorta way. However, after a few dozen repetitions, it became annoying. Still, Terence Stamp's interludes weren't the meat of the entertainment. One odd thing that struck me about the three stories is the quality of the makeup. The women all have impeccable and glamourous cosmetics. Kudos to the makeup crew!

Swords is an interesting twist on the classic damosel in distress fairy tale. A knight in shining armour (the corrupt son of a cosmetics magnate) falls in love with a rather bizarre breed of ensorcelled princess (a freak show performer). Instead of slaying the dragon (the damosel's manager/pimp) with a sword, our knight in shining armour skulks away from the dragon's treasure trove in cowardice. The knight's self-absorption adds the final twist to this moral tale.

Menage a Trois is the best short of the trilogy. Music and lighting added suspense to an already perturbing story of sexual vampirism. I was intensely creeped-out, and films rarely do that to me. If Roald Dahl had written sexier stories, Menage a Trois could easily have been penned by him.

Necros was the last story, and the weakest. Although it isn't without its charm, it lacks the good pacing and acting of its predecessors. The theme can be summarized by the following question: Were women put on the earth to lead men to Hell? This is the most comic of the three tales.