Entre Tinieblas (1983)

A nightclub singer is on the run after accidentally killing her boyfriend. She finds herself at the doors of a failing convent where the nuns have habits of their own to bide the time. Soon, the singer finds herself in the middle of a hair brained scheme for a last chance effort in getting the convent funded.

A beautiful little movie by Pedro Almodovar. I really liked it. It's a movie that's a lot about acceptance. Acceptance of your past, your faults, your talents and even your future. I also like how the nuns where handled. They're usually handled in an evil light as dirty sinful creatures. In this movie, their treated like you and I. We know they're plight and we're sympathetic to what's going on with them. You can't get a convent for wayward women going and your hands are tied thanks to church and law. Are you going to pray and suffer all day until someone plops on your doorstep? Hell no! It's better to use the time throwing wrists and writing trashy novels while trying to take care of the place. And we relate to that.

I wouldn't recommend giving this movie to people just starting out on Almodovar. This isn't an Almodovar virgin movie. A lot of his personal touches and color schemes might look gaudy at first, but it was the sign of the times really. The comedy is real subtle as well. You're not going to get some of the setups or scenes until you really think about them after a while. i mean, I'm thinking of the movie and I just now got the joke on a couple of things. So, if you want to start on Almodovar. Start at the top. That's an order soldier.

The disc is barebones. It only gives you the option of subtitles. It has some good audio and video. Do I wish it had more? Well yeah. Almodovar didn't think this was one of his high ranked pictures. Probably because it was his first studio picture and he felt very restricted at the time. It's a nice disc. Pick it up when you have a chance.

three stars.

Nasty Habits (1977)

A election for convent abbess in Philadelphia turns ugly when a bungled attempt at theft turns into blackmail, slander and uncovers a severe case of wiretapping.

This movie was a comedy built out of the affects of the Watergate Scandal. Most of the events reflect that. While this parody is good, I can't help but feel this movie hasn't aged well. I mean the comedy is great and all, but some of the tricks of camera and editing seem to date it. Not that it's a bad thing and all. The cast is wonderful with help from Eli Wallach, Jerry Stiller, Ann Meara (she'll always be our Gerald Ford now.) and Rip Torn even if some of them were on screen for at least a minute..

With that being said, I would not recommend this movie to someone who is a casual fan or who's just starting out to be part of the hardcore movie fanbase. While even though I'm young, I think I know where the comedy is coming from and going, but for someone who hasn't grown up around it, it can be quite baffling. Also, no one knows who all these characters portray these days. No one can point out who was Ford or who was Nixon or even G. Gordon Liddy for that matter. While the editing and the camera techniques do age it, I think that the story ages it as well. This was one of those movie that was made because it was "A good idea at the time." The problem being "...at the time". it was made on the fly to not reflect but to capture a moment. I don't fault the director or production company though. It was a hip thing at the time.

Nothing to report about the DVD. It's bare bones. The video and audio both seem to be ripped of a VHS tape. Rent this if you want to.

Two and a half stars.

Suor Omicidi (1978)

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Alucarda, La Hija de Las Tinieblas (1978)

Two orphan girls journey into an abandoned crypt and suddenly become possessed by an evil spirit. They then dwelve into devil worship and terrorize the convent they call home.

Now first of all, a lot of people like to call Alucarda a derivative and member of the Exorcist line of horror movies. It's not. What the director, Montezuma, was trying to do was reinvent Dracula and the vampire myth. Instead of the immortal euro trash male with fangs and a real thirst of blood, we got a "heliophobic demon." possessing two young girls. Even before the party gets started, we are introduced to Alucarda who comes off as somewhat of an emotional vampire who feeds off those around her. It's a really interesting picture. It was very atmospheric. Great use of locations as well.

What really makes the film work is the actors. Tina Romero really creeps up the place as Alucarda. Before and after being possessed. Someone who feeds of emotions, You can somewhat say she's a bit bipolar. She plays the character full to the hilt. You also got the great Claudio Brook doing double duty as the good doctor and what could be the villain. I'm not sure. Brook reminds me of some of the Hammer guys like Lee and Cushing. His acting is very natural. You think he's just part of the film. A true master.

The Mondo Macabro disc is Divine. It comes with a small documentary about Montezuma, a biography, a filmography, a Montezuma interview, an interview with Guillermo del Toro about how Montezuma influenced him, stills and a kick ass trailer. This disc is a fracking treasure trove. The only complaint is that there is a slight hum in the audio. It's not annoying. just there. But an awesome DVD none the less.

three and a half stars.

Seiju Gakuen (1974)

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Flavia, La Monaca Musulmana (1974)

Flavia, daughter of a nobleman, finds herself in a convent, forced to become a nun. After an escape attempt goes sour, she plans her revenge against mankind and seeks a way out of her enslavement, even when it comes at a high cost.

To say this is an euro exploitation movie is an understatement. While it does make time for the explicit gore, the film is well thought out and the characters are well developed. The story takes somewhat of a feminist feel, but given the times this movie characterizes, it's not as preachy as it seems. Florinda Bolkan really makes the title character her own. I mean she totally runs the ball. She makes you feel the oppression she's felt. The film is beautifully shot. Even the surreal and explicit scenes felt like they have a place. And the music. The music is very good. It's really works with the movie and without. I found myself humming a few bars.

What's the downside of the film? Well, besides the real horse castration (God, that hurts just typing that. Look away guys. Look away. I'll be ok. Gimme a sec.). Besides the c-word on a male horse, it did feel a bit overdrawn somewhat. Now, I know everything needed to be set up correctly, but I was finding myself nodding midway through. Not a good sign.

Synapse does a great job cleaning up and putting together the full movie on DVD. The audio and video defiantly gets high marks. The cool thing is they didn't brighten the colors. They were supposed to be washed out. That's how it was filmed. They also added a posters and stills gallery that's nice. There's also an interview with Ms. Bolkan on how the filming process was and where she was taking the character. This a good DVD that Nunsploitation fans need and general film fans can have as a proud part of the collection.

minus the horse castration.

Three and a half stars.

È Tornato Sabata... Hai Chiuso Un'altra Volta (1971)

Sabata returns to America as a "Shoot artist" and teams up with an old war buddy to find out if a robber baron with the penchant to tax everything under the sun is actually using the money for city improvement or lining his own pockets.

As the poster says, "The Man With The Gun Sight Eyes Is Back". Van Cleef returns to the role he made and relishes every moment of it. This movie almost out trumps the Wild, Wild West series. The only thing that holds it back a bit is the legitimacy of the palm pistol. that gun is Bad Azz. No "s"s, "z"s. That's how bad ass that gun is. Over the top action. Total popcorn. loved every minute of it.

With all that being said, I'd like to say that this movie had the same set up as the first two. "A little help for my friends except one can double cross me at any moment." Doing that twice is forgivable. Doing that three times can cause damage to a possible franchise. They tried to make to make the movie more interesting by adding a few more twists and turns, but painting a few extra colors on a peacock doesn't make the peacock any more special. It's still a peacock. I mean really, I can do the same review for all three of these movies, but it wouldn't be fun for me or you now would it? You'd be quite annoyed about it. other then that, it's a pretty solid popcorn flick. leave your mind at the door. it's fun.

As always, this box set was not up to par. The only good thing I do have to say about it is that the audio is great and the video is very nice. It's cleaned up nice yet hasn't lost it's age. I like stuff like that.

Three stars.

Indio Sabata (1971)

Sabata hangs out in Mexico, helping the people fight Maxmillian's men. He sets out with men to find the Austrian war chest so that they can supply Mexico's army.

This was supposed to be a stand alone movie, but with the "Sabata" name was a big sell, so they packaged the movie around it. Yul Brynner takes Van Cleef's place and he totally makes the character his own. That's good and bad in a way, I think. It's a comic book western in a way. It's fun, no need for thought and very colorful. This is a total popcorn movie. Anything totally out there is in this movie.

I think the problem with this movie is that it's almost the same movie as Sabata. All that made it different was a few extra characters. Brynner's Sabata is totally different then Van Cleef's. If the company was pushing these two as the same guy, it's totally wrong. If I were to sell this, I'd sell it more as the characters are different and the only thing that links them is the name Sabata. Like the Sabata family, y'know? It totally devolves into one mess of a gunfight. Nothing wrong with that, just that after a while, it's gets a bit long.

As I said in the first installment, this is a box set that could have put out a little something special for the fans, but MGM totally drops the ball on it. Get this if you want to, but wait for a better substitute.

Two and a half stars.