Welcome to another edition of Home Video Highlights, the column dedicated to the best and most exciting titles that are brand new to Blu-ray. The releases being highlighted this week are once again from Vinegar Syndrome, the boutique label dedicated to preserving the best of cult, underground, exploitation, and sexploitation, and it’s safe to say that all those bases are covered with these three releases.
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If you are a filmmaker – or an aspiring one – and looking for a little bit of inspiration, the first release that should absolutely be sought out is “Shot.” Filmed in 1973 in Champaign, IL, director Mitch Brown and producer Nate Kohn – college students at the time – raised $15,000 by holding campus film screenings. “Shot” is an ambitious 16mm crime flick for the budget and resources that Brown and Kohn had filled with shootouts, car chases, helicopter chases, and explosions. The performances – which were cast by mostly students, with older actors chosen from local community theater groups – are a little rough around the edges, but the way that Brown uses all the tools at their disposal, it’s impossible to tell that this film was shot for a budget this low.
The restoration is a 2k scan from the original 16mm negative. There’s a message before the film that mentions that some of the audio couldn’t entirely be salvaged and that there are occasional pops, but frankly, it’s not really noticeable. The disc is light on Special Features, but it has insightful interviews from Brown and Kohn (the latter is just an audio interview), and at 20 minutes a piece, you get a lot of information in regards to the production process. Lesson learned: if you have that film idea that you’re worried you can’t get made, there are always ways to work around that, and “Shot” is a prime example.
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The second of these new releases is “Dear Dead Delilah,” which if you’re of a certain age, it’s impossible to read that without inserting it to the tune of Plain White T’s “Hey There, Delilah.” Most notably, it’s the sole directorial effort from John Farris, author of “The Fury” (which Brian De Palma would later adapt), which explains why the film has one foot planted firmly in class, and another in crassness. Part of “Dear Dead Delilah” plays like an Agatha Christie novel: posh, mostly takes place in a single location, and has a whodunnit murder mystery at the center. At the same time, it’s also lurid, brutally violent, and doesn’t paint mental illness in the most favorable light, though the lead performance by Patricia Carmichael is unique and strange, to say the least (also the only performance she ever gave).
“Dear Dead Delilah” hits in that sweet spot of being a well-made and well-acted drive-in flick, and the enjoyment comes from how bizarre and captivating it is, not from how insane the filmmaking decisions are. The transfer is a 2k scan from the original 35mm negative and features an interview with director John Farris over the process of making his only feature. For those who love a good Hitchcockian murder mystery with a Southern twist, this film is highly recommended.
Finally, speaking of enjoying a film for its insane filmmaking decision, the last release – and the most highly recommended of these new releases – is “Wonder Women.” Not least of the film’s bizarre choices is the fact that it’s rated PG, despite copious amounts of violence and nudity. In a nutshell, the film is about an insurance investor (Ross Hagen) who ends up in The Philippines while attempting to solve the mysterious disappearance of an athlete, which leads him to a band of fighting female assassins – The “Wonder Women” – who have been kidnapping men for body part transplant experiments.
While the plot synopsis is elaborate, it doesn’t even scratch the surface of the strange, bonkers, and interesting turns that “Wonder Women” takes. Fitting that the movie that you will have the most to discuss when it ends is the one that is packed with Special Features. Restored in 2k from the 35mm negative, this disc has two versions of “Wonder Women” – the American version as well as the Extended European version, never before put to disc – as well as a commentary track from director Robert Vincent O’Neill, and a Q&A from a 2007 screening at the New Beverly Cinema with O’Neill, Hagen, Nancy Kwan, Roberta Collins, and Sid Haig. For fans of insane, well-meaning and well-made schlock that takes nonsensical turns but works regardless, “Wonder Women” is a film that should grace your shelf, be a mainstay at movie parties, and should be your lifelong quest to make sure every person in your life has experienced this craziness.
“Shot,” “Dead Dead Delilah,” and “Wonder Women” are all available for purchase, either directly from Vinegar Syndrome, or wherever boutique Blu-ray’s are sold. Until the next Home Video Highlights entry, seek out these exquisite slices of outsider cinema and enjoy.