Ekimmu: The Dead Lust, Fascination American Style

Jean Rollin's Fascination is an arty and subtle trek into surreal vengeance. Andy Koontz' "Ekimmu: The Dead Lust" is a loud and bloody intrusion into the demented mind.  Both films are erotic and horrific. Rollin's film is enhanced by a beautiful and subdued classical-type score. Mr. Koontz, who crafts his own score, is aided by an ominous and pounding melody. Both filmmakers delve into the taboo. Both Koontz and Rollin send us the same warning, when beauty and allure come calling...RUN!

Beth and Sarah

Beth (Chloe Francis) and Mike (Ethan Hoyt) are so cute. Young lovers, totally drawn into each other. Knowing this is a horror flick, we fear for them.  From the outset a menacing demon (Nina Tomica) sets her sights on them.  This demon seems to mock their plight and soon asserts herself in between their wills.  In addition to Beth and Mike's love, something else is going on, and it is gory and horrible. Murder and mayhem...but who are the victims and killers? Enter Sarah (Carissa Becker). Who is she? A victim? Perhaps.

Demon

Sarah's entry into the lives of our young lovers isn't by chance. Sarah has her sights on sultry Beth...but why? No spoilers here. Also enter Steven (Jeff Argubright). He pursues Sarah with a vengeance. Does he want to kill Sarah, and if so why? As helpless and vulnerable as Sarah seems, Steven pleads with Mike to beware and avoid her at all costs. Too late!  Just when you get hold of where the plot is going, the intensity and gore are turned up several degrees. As our aforementioned demon seems to strengthen her foothold in Mike and Beth's lives, Steven's desperation to capture Sarah intensifies. Where does this leave our lovebirds?

Sarah

Will Mike and Beth survive the onslaught of evil and gore and continue their torrid love affair? Will demonic forces and monstrous killings put an end to young love? Just who is Sarah and what are her intentions for the nubile Sarah? Indie filmmaker Andy Koontz has crafted an intense and bloody tale of fate, demonic intrusion, and...well...you'll see. For you young lovers out there, there is so much for you to learn, take "Ekimmu: The Dead Lust" as a warning. Chilling, vicious and blood curdling, this film will seduce and scare the pants off you.
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Revolt of the Zombies, The Undead of Cambodia

In the 1970s, Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge swept through Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh. The Khmer Rouge murdered a few million peaceful Cambodians to set up an anti-western civilization utopia. Anyone who Pol Pot saw as a threat, which ended up being anyone with schooling, were butchered along with their families. Fearing Pol Pot might set his sights eastward, the Vietnamese needed to act fast. Fresh from a victory over the Americans, the Vietnamese army rolled into Phnom Penh and drove the Khmer Rouge into the wilderness toward the Thai border. The 1970s were not a decade of justice and mass murderer Pol Pot was tried by the United Nations and would die peacefully under house arrest. In 1936, the horror of the killing fields had not yet occurred, but Cambodia contained another, more classic horror...zombies! Hence 1936's "Revolt of the Zombies."

Cambodian zombies at the front

To help defeat Germany in The Great War (World War 1), the French bring a brigade of Franco-Cambodian troops to fight on the border with Austria.  The Cambodians have been turned into zombie fighting machines by a demented monk and are immune to German bullets. The Cambodian undead then shred the Germans.  Realizing this battle tactic could spell doom for the human race, the French send a team to Cambodia to find the secret of the zombies and destroy it. Captain Louque (Dean Jagger) is a handsome officer on this mission who falls in love with the general's daughter, Claire (Dorothy Stone). Uh oh, after the two fall in love, Claire discards Louque for the more callous Grayson (Robert Noland). Scorned and humiliated, Louque comes up with an evil plan.

Love triangle

On his own accord, Louque sneaks in to the temple in Angkor and discovers the secret of turning men into zombies. He ends up turning all of Cambodia into his zombie slaves and threatens to kill Grayson unless Claire marries him.  As the death count mounts and a peaceful third world nation again falls to French interference, there seems no stopping Louque.  The beautiful blonde Claire has only two weapons...her sex-appeal and an undying love for the brute Grayson.

Louque turns Cambodians into zombies

Will Louque successfully harness his power over Cambodia to marry the fair Claire?  Is this film a metaphor for western European chauvenism over the free will of the fairer sex? Is this movie a pre-cursor to the anti-western sentiment in southeast Asia which led to the expelling of the French? Cambodia is a beautiful country but even today danger lurks. The remnants of the Khmer Rouge survive near the Thai border. Let us hope these fiends do not find the secrets within the temple at Angkor. For a nice companion piece to "White Zombie," enjoy "Revolt of the Zombies," directed by Victor Halperin.

2020 Texas Gladiators, Lone Star Apocalypse

"Creating a permanent home from the ruins of a nuclear apocalypse is complicated," utters the beautiful Sabrina Siani in 1992's "2020 Texas Gladiators." Those of us who have done just that know the wisdom in which Ms. Siani's character speaks.  You remember Ms. Siani from my review of Ten Zan: The Ultimate Mission . Ms. Siani, for that film, traveled to North Korea to make a film for, and crafted by Kim Jong Il. Say what you want about that enigmatic dictator, he does make better films than "Jupiter Ascending" and "Thor." Though Jesus Franco labelled Ms. Siani as one of the worst actresses he ever met, this blonde beauty makes terrific films and is more talented than either Mila Kunis or Diane Keaton.

Evil marauder approaches Miada

Nuclear apocalypse decimates the world and evil storm-trooper type marauders rape and pillage any vestiges of civilization. As the sultry Maida (Siani) witnesses her friends pillaged and she is almost raped, Nisus (Al Cliver) saves her. Nisus is a ranger, part of a group of noble wasteland warriors. Maida, sensing potential mate material, brings Nisus back to her colony. This colony is a refinery which harnesses a new energy source which may be key in reconstituting a post nuclear society. Bad news, the evil marauders attack, kill Nisus, grab Maida, and sell her as a sex slave to a Texas gunfighter.

Miada looks for revenge

Because Maida is so good looking, more rangers come and rescue her. This time, Maida and her new ranger buddies are chased into the forest where they team up with grouchy Indians. Now Maida is mad and through being raped and sold as meat. She grabs a shotgun and joins the Indians and rangers as they head back to re-take to refinery from the evil forces who dress like Nazis.  With Maida pumping her shotgun, and rangers with machine-guns and rifles, and Indians with bows and arrows, our ragtag army must defeat a heavily equipped fighting force in order to restore goodness to an apocalyptic wasteland.

Miada and her ranger buddies

Will the ultimate winner earn the affections of Maida? Will the Indians fight nobly and again be cheated out of their land? If Jesus Franco saw this film, would he change his opinion of Ms. Saini? Is Mr. Franco's opinion of Ms. Siani heavily influenced by the fact that she refused to have sex with him? Instead of paying big bucks to see the newest "Transformers" bore-a-thon, take in this Italian exploitation epic "2020 Texas Gladiators," directed by Joe D'Amato.

Patrick Still Lives, Telekinetic Doom for Nude Women

Not much good comes out of being alive long after death comes calling. Being attached to machines and stuck in a coma really messes up one's social life. After a few days, friends stop visiting and even the doctors and nurses don't empty your bedpan as often.  However, if a mad scientist takes you under his wing, there is hope. In the case of Patrick, a coma after a severe head injury hardly interferes with a young man's quest to rape and murder. Hence 1980's horror film from Italy, "Patrick Still Lives."

The Senator and Cheryl

A freak accident puts Patrick (Gianni Dei) in a coma for the rest of his life. Fortunately for him ,his dad is Dr. Herschel...mad scientist. At his country villa, Herschel has a lab where he maintains Patrick and three other schmucks in comas. Herschel then invites five guests to his villa. Invite? Actually the five guests were blackmailed into visiting. The guests: the over sexed nymphomaniac Stella (Mariangela Giordano), her stud beau Peter (John Benedy), Italian senator Lyndon (Franco Silva) and his whore wife Cheryl (Carmen Russo). Dr. Herschel has plans for them...and he will use Patrick to enact them. Herschel has figured out a way in which Patrick can maim and murder while in a coma using telekinetic powers. Patrick has refined his abilities to rip clothes off buxom women and rape his dad's pretty secretary, Lydia (Andrea Belfiore).

Stella

As the guests lounge around, have lots of sex, and prance around nude...Patrick begins his wrath. The death scenes remarkable, One of them will be boiled in the swimming pool, and the women? Let us just say the makers of this film were incredibly misogynistic. One woman will have her sex organs chewed off by German Shepherds and another one will have a large spike hammered up her...well, you'll see. Oh yes, this film has one of the best cat-fights ever put on film. As people die horribly, it is obvious Patrick has more in mind than just homicide.

Major league cat-fight

What common bond do the guests have which called them to the villa? What will be the fate of Patrick's sexual plaything, Lydia? Will Dr. Herschel meet a similar fate as most mad scientists, that of having their own experiments turn on them? Decapitations and sexual debauchery rule this sexual-horror flick. Directed by Mario Landi, "Patrick Still Lives" is one of the most misogynistic horror films you'll see this week.

Evils of the Night, Space Vampires Ginger and Cat Woman vs. Nymphomaniacs

A hospital run by alien doctors which include Julie Newmar, Tina Louise, and John Carradine. This trio are aided by alien lesbian space babes acting as nurses, and who love to make-out with each other. Their objects of desire? Nubile bikini babes and their hunk boyfriends. These babes and hunks have lots of pre-marital sex and partake in lots of skinny-dipping. Oh yes, the babes like to rub lotion all over their topless cohorts.  I know, you're thinking, "how did I miss this one?!" Hence 1985's "Evils of the Night."

Alien lesbian spacebabe nurses 

Space aliens have taken up in an abandoned hospital in order to collect college students for the purpose of draining their blood.  This alien race needs the youngsters' blood to save their own race. Cora (Tina Louise), space-babe, hires two redneck mechanics (Neville Brand and Aldo Ray) to collect the hunks and babes. These two drooling perverts are only too happy to satisfy the beauty from outer space, as they also get to rape the bikini gals.  A nearby lake is where the students hang out and pre-marital sex, gratuitous suntan lotion rubbing, and skinny dipping rule the day. As the two head aliens, Dr. Kozmar (Carradine) and Dr. Zorma (Newmar) demand more nubile teens, lesbian space babe nurses prep the students for blood letting.

Cat Woman and Ginger in the lab

As beautiful nymphomaniacs fall to the aliens, Nancy (Karie Emerson) escapes from her hospital room. Nancy will have to overpower these space-babe lesbian nurses, which she does, and run to safety for help. Also, two blonde beauties (G.T. Taylor and Bridget Hollomon) and their hunk beau must free themselves from their bindings at the garage of the two rednecks before the gals are raped and turned over to Cora.  As Zorma and Kozmar fret that they still don't have enough blood to save their planet, Cora does her best to secure the teens.  As Nancy makes a break, her and Cora will engage in some nice cat-fights, and the future of the human race is dependent on Nancy prevailing.

Prepping babes for rape and blood letting

Who will survive and who will perish?  The answer might surprise you as the plot doesn't follow the classic horror script.  Can Nancy fight off the lesbian space-babe nurses and Cora to help her friends and the rest of mankind?  Will Cat Woman and Ginger engage in an erotic cat-fight? Are alien-lesbian-space-babe-nurses the most underused plot device in cinematic history? Heavy of gratuitous sex and nudity, "Evils of the Night" is the perfect film for B horror film fans.  Fans of the TV shows "Batman" and  "Gilligan's Island" will love seeing Ginger and Cat Woman team up to conquer humanity.

72 Hours, The Length of a Zombie Apocalypse

Andrea Dean Van Scoyoc is one of my favorite short horror film makers. Last November I reviewed her very short film Border Patrol on this blog. A zombie film? Yes! ...I mean no.  I mean, yeah, the smelly unmentionables were looming just beyond the camera, but that film was more about what becomes of us, the pseudo-survivors. How long does it take for us to lose all hope after the dearly departed show up for an encore? Hence Andrea Dean Van Scoyoc's "72 Hours."

A young wife is holed up in her bathroom. We have to give her credit. She and her husband were 100% correct to prepare for a zombie apocalypse. After all, Noah's neighbors thought he was insane...then the skies opened up. Sure, this couple stored food and supplies. For us the viewer, we have the young wife's account of the last three days...or the first three days of the end of the world. A good plan usually doesn't survive the first gunshot of a battle, and this adage is true even for a zombie apocalypse. Sadly, as gunshots ring out in the background and severed limbs and loose intestines stink up the living room, all is not good for our lady heroine.

What happens next? "72 Hours" shows us the creeping deterioration of the human psyche after all goes to hell.  No matter how much preparation and strategy exist in this household, the deadly and rotting reality always has the upper hand.  Grim, terrifying, and ominous, like "Border Patrol," this is not really a zombie film, but a story of what becomes of good people after all appears to be gone. Unlike "Border Patrol," where we see the deterioration of person hood some time after the end, "72 Hours" shows the toll on a young woman after a very short period of time. This isn't the feel good film of the millennium, but "72 Hours" will cause you to think about the tenets that hold you together and how precarious those tenets are.  
To view "72 Hours" on YouTube, click this link  72 Hours

Something is Creeping in the Dark, Orgies and Seances

The sultry vixen prances in circles around an all white room as the breeze pushes her thin, white gown against her body. She wants sex with the carnal beast of a man who has entered. He lustfully examines her dance and he himself dances in circles, following her around this white chamber. She teases and flirts but he catches the babe and slaps her silly. She likes it and continues to tease and dance...again he catches her.  Both yearning for sex he begins to slap her again, but this time she repeatedly plunges a dagger into his belly as his blood spatters all the walls. Instead of yelping in pain he laughs hysterically, mocking her as she continues to plunge the edged weapon into his gut.  The white vixen is now humiliated. If that scene appeals to you, I give you another Italian horror film, 1971's "Something is Creeping in the Dark."

Sylvia and Spike's death dance

Sheila Marlow, a bisexual satanist, into the occult and various other black arts, died a year ago. Her mansion is tended to by pseudo-hippy Joe( Gianni Medici), a free-love sort and his paramour (Giulia Revai). On a stormy night assorted weirdos seek refuge from floods at this mansion, but Joe is not hospitable. No matter, a detective with a gun orders him to allow entry and he brings in his homicidal prisoner, Spike (Farley Granger). Also arriving is the nymphomaniac Sylvia (Lucia Bose) and her dull husband Donald (Giacomo Rossi Stuart), Dr. Williams (Stelvio Rosi) and his nubile but prudish secretary Susan (Mia Genberg)...and a few more. Everyone is bickering and tense so Sylvia suggests an orgy (...I guess she isn't into Pictionary). Despite her sultry looks, no one takes her up on it. Her next suggestion finds some takers...a seance to chat with the dead bisexual satanic beauty. Great, nothing can possibly go wrong.

Anyone for an orgy?

Of course Sheila's spirit comes back and starts possessing people. At one point Sylvia approaches the prudish Susan and inspects her lingerie. Then Susan is possessed and she seduces the doctor as they have some wild sex. Then the possessions turn violent and people begin to assume room temperature. As Sylvia fantasizes about sex with Spike, her husband gets jealous and he himself then gets possessed. More death and violence as our two vixens may either be in great danger or the cause of the peril.

Susan seduces the doctor

Made in Italy and high in eroticism and violence, "Something is Creeping in the Dark" will satisfy fans of horror from Italy. Will the ghost of Sheila either have sex with everyone in the house or kill them all?  Is Sylvia's desire for rough sex with a homicidal maniac more of a threat to her than the ghost of the satanist bisexual? If Trivial Pursuit had been invented in the early 1970s, would all of this carnage have been avoided?  Erotic and chilling, enjoy "Something is Creeping in the Dark."