I love Lenzi's gialli offerings, or at least the one's I have experiences! I still need to see KNIFE OF ICE and A QUIET PLACE TO KILL. SPASMO and EYEBALL are some of my more favorite gialli viewings. Two very stylish yet, odd in nature but still very effective in the payoff!
It's been a long time since I first seen his SO SWEET... SO PERVERSE (1969), was that not just recently issued on DVD again??
I absolutely loved Freda's brilliant I VAMPRI! Now, what was the deal with Bava being uncredited for with this again? I know he had something to do with the overall direction, but what's the full story on that again?
Any opinions about this more recent giallo? I've heard some bad things but when I found it dirt cheap on eBay, I couldn't resist the temptation of picking it up. Figured I need to give some of the more recent horrer/thriller stuff a chance too. Still waiting for it to arrive and I'm not quite sure what to expect of it but at least it has a pretty good cast that includes famous transsexual Eva Robins from TENEBRAE (1982) and the good-looking Elisabetta Rocchietti, who has been cropping up in a lot of horror stuff like THE THREE FACES OF TERROR (2004), DO YOU LIKE HITCHCOCK? (2005) and THE LAST HOUSE IN THE WOODS (2006). Not to mention supporting roles by Florinda Bolkan and Franco Nero! Anyone here seen it?
Interesting looking film out of Italy with Irish/Spanish co-financiers. Directed by Italian SFX man Stefano Bessoni.
In the 1600s, long before the invention of photography, a scientist named Girolamo Fumagalli was obsessed with the idea of reproducing images. He discovered that by killing a victim and removing the victim's eyeballs, it was possible to reproduce on paper the last image imprinted on that person's retinas. He named this technique 'thanatography'. Today, the same kind of gruesome ritual and abominable crime recurs within the walls of an international school of cinema. -imdb.com
Also stars the daughter of Charlie Chapman, Geraldine Chaplin as well as her daughter Oona.
Well, it seems this is yet another Argento flick that is taking a beating in the review department. Even die hard fans are not too pleased with this outing. Anyhow, the PAL R2 DVD is now out via a Polish company that found it important to force the Polish subs!
Looks like this will be getting a UK release first via Arrow Films! I still haven't seen this, it was on my radar during last year's Midnight Madness during the Toronto Film Fest. The disc will be released March 15th..
I'd love to grab this, but for now I'm holding off on the Blu-Ray player for now, too unstable industry right now. Plus, the multi-region player are way too expensive!
( U.S.A / Spain / 1983 ) Review By-Paul Cooke Director: Matt Cimber Starring: Laurene Landon , Ramiro Oliveros , Maria Casal , Luis Lorenzo , Fernando Bilbao , Cihangir Gaffari , Tamara & Victor Gans Source : Subversive Cinema / Wide Screen 2:35
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( U.S.A / Spain / 1983 ) Review By-Paul Cooke Director: Matt Cimber Starring: Laurene Landon , Ramiro Oliveros , Maria Casal , Luis Lorenzo , Fernando Bilbao , Cihangir Gaffari , Tamara & Victor Gans Source : Subversive Cinema / Wide Screen 2:35:1 / Anamorphic 16:9 / Mono sound / Movie Length Audio Commentary Track With Director Matt Cimber & Star Laurene Landon / Cast & Crew Bios / Making Of Featurette / Trailers / Limited Edition Set Of First 5000 With Comic Book & Original Score CD From Ennio Morricone Of The Soundtrack
‘‘No man will ever penetrate my body !’’
Born of a barbarian age , in which man rapes and pillages throughout the land , the torch against tyranny is taken up by one fiery young warrior woman … Hundra !. Raised in the ways of weapons and fighting by an all female fraternity she is more than a match for a mere man. A physique of great prowess , in strength and agility , with an aptitude for sword and bow second to none. The time to use her skills befalls when she returns home from a morning hunt to discover her entire sisterhood has been slaughtered by an invading horde of barbarian men. She must seek out a suitable mate to sire her with female child in order to continue the lineage of women warriors. Before allowing one just man to forage her virginal field , however , she takes to task the sowing of her own just seeds of revenge.
Opening with a mighty sequence of bloody Action as the barbarians charge down on horseback upon the unsuspecting tribe of warrior women. Scything through the camp with malicious intent and extreme prejudice. Neither female adult nor child is spared. The savage attacking contingent do not overcome without fatality though as the brave breed of warriors slice and dice the barbarous battalion with bloody aplomb. Very much akin to the opening slaughter of its plagiarised counterpart ‘Conan The Barbarian’ this is striking Action at its very best. The Verde inspired musical charge of Ennio Morricone flaring out like fire from the nostrils of a Norse dragon striking against the steel tendons of an unyielding army of untold legend. The perfect blend of harmonised visuals empowered by the passion of classical musical prowess.
Laurene Landon is perfectly cast as the titular Hundra. Her feisty nature is encapsulated in the character , giving over to the belief that she is one tough lady not to mess with. She is an attractive young woman in peak physical condition here and her gutsy performance is enhanced by her ability , and insistence , to do all but one of her own stunt performances. Director Matt Cimber would have been a relieved man to have seen a stunt double stand in for that mighty scene where Hundra does a backwards fall from an hundred and eighty foot tall tower !.
The movie as a whole is perfect Eighties Action Adventure schlock that actually now having found a home on the modern DVD format plays even better than when first released. Subversive Cinema have done a sound job with the given material. Providing a well framed fully scoped picture , very well enhanced for the 16:9 home cinema experience. The picture itself is grainy but this actually adds to the view ability and actually enhances the credibility of the basically told tale. Threadbare the story may well be but the intended attention to entertainment is there to behold.
Laurene Landon is a sassy and very sexy lead. Her naked jaunt upon horse bearing stead , splashing about in the ocean , is a welcome treat and one that displays her finely honed body to perfection. Her agility with sword , knife , bow and arrow is entertainingly adroit , and to her great credit stands her as more than just a contender for a memorable female Action starlet.
Hundra rides the open plains with faithful wild dog Beast close at heal , kicking barbarian booty with regular abandon and only one man has the key she desires to her lady lock. Shot in the same Spanish region as ‘Conan The Barbarian’ and with a bulk of the purchased set dressing , along with costumes , there is more than a passing nod to this being a female Conan. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Italian mega producer Dino De Laurentiis apparently met with Laurene Landon , thinking her perfect for their own female warrior flick ‘Red Sonja’ (1985) , until they realised that the straight talking lady was none other than Hundra herself. How could Arnie be upstaged by a female Conan !?. Of course he couldn’t , and so the role went to Brigitte Neilsen. Laurene Landon went on to fulfil another Action leading role as Yellow Hair , again for Director Matt Cimber , in the 1984 made movie ‘Yellow Hair And The Fortress Of Gold’.
Subversive Cinema have gone the extra yard for fans of the Action / Fantasy genre here in producing a double disc print of the first 5000 off the DVD conveyor belt. Snap this up if you can as along with the main feature extras , that includes a very informative and enjoyable making of feature , the set comprises of a Hundra comic book and a bonus CD of the soundtrack by the legendary Ennio Morricone. A re-watch is inevitable to enjoy the movie length commentary track from Director Matt Cimber along with star Laurene Landon as well. So in summing up you need to be as fast as lightening , and react quicker than passing thunder , in order to secure yourself the guilty pleasure that is ‘Hundra’.
HUNDRA
Born of a barbarian age , in which man rapes and pillages throughout the land , the torch against tyranny is taken up by one fiery young warrior woman … Hundra !. Raised in the ways of weapons and fighting by an all female fraternity she is more than a match for a mere man. A physique of great prowess , in strength and agility , with an aptitude for sword and bow second to none. The time to use her skills befalls when she returns home from a morning hunt to discover her entire sisterhood has been slaughtered by an invading horde of barbarian men. She must seek out a suitable mate to sire her with female child in order to continue the lineage of women warriors. Before allowing one just man to forage her virginal field , however , she takes to task the sowing of her own just seeds of revenge. 
warrior women. Scything through the camp with malicious intent and extreme prejudice. Neither female adult nor child is spared. The savage attacking contingent do not overcome without fatality though as the brave breed of warriors slice and dice the barbarous battalion with bloody aplomb. Very much akin to the opening slaughter of its plagiarised counterpart ‘Conan The Barbarian’ this is striking Action at its very best. The Verde inspired musical charge of Ennio Morricone flaring out like fire from the nostrils of a Norse dragon striking against the steel tendons of an unyielding army of untold legend. The perfect blend of harmonised visuals empowered by the passion of classical musical prowess. 
Hundra rides the open plains with faithful wild dog Beast close at heal , kicking barbarian booty with regular abandon and only one man has the key she desires to her lady lock. Shot in the same Spanish region as ‘Conan The Barbarian’ and with a bulk of the purchased set dressing , along with costumes , there is more than a passing nod to this being a female Conan. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Italian mega producer Dino De Laurentiis apparently met with Laurene Landon , thinking her perfect for their own female warrior flick ‘Red Sonja’ (1985) , until they realised that the straight talking lady was none other than Hundra herself. How could Arnie be upstaged by a female Conan !?. Of course he couldn’t , and so the role went to Brigitte Neilsen. Laurene Landon went on to fulfil another Action leading role as Yellow Hair , again for Director Matt Cimber , in the 1984 made movie ‘Yellow Hair And The Fortress Of Gold’. 
