of the film’s history by director Meir Zarchi. The only real complaint to be made is that the original incorrect body count listed on the cover art has been corrected!
THE GORE-MET Sleep With the Fishes
UP FROM THE DEPTHS (1979) DVD Starring Sam Bottoms, Susanne Reed and Virgil Frye
Directed by Charles B. Griffith Written by Alfred M. Sweeney and Anne Dyer
DEMON OF PARADISE (1987) DVD Starring Kathryn Witt, William Steis and Laura Banks
Directed by Cirio H. Santiago Written by C.J. Santiago and Frederick Bailey Shout! Factory
Much as we love Roger Corman, there’s no
denying that many of his lesser-known efforts are lesser known for valid reasons; Corman himself would be the first to admit it, so it’s not like I’m full-on blaspheming here. Furthermore, while I ap- plaud Shout! Factory’s ongoing Roger Corman Classics reissue line, these two schlockers illus- trate why I can’t recommend the entire series with a clear conscience. So why stick them on
Ebert & Raper
I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (1978) Blu-ray Starring Camille Keaton, Eron Tabor and Richard Pace
Written and directed by Meir Zarchi Anchor Bay
Concurrent with the home video release of
2010’s I Spit on Your Grave remake is this hi-def debut of the original 1978 ver- sion. This exploitation landmark is one of the most misunder- stood and unfairly maligned films ever made, having been censored, banned or con- demned sight-unseen many times since its release. In his zero-star review, Roger Ebert described it as “a vile bag of garbage” and “an expression of the most diseased and per- verted darker human natures.” Curiously, similarly themed films Dirty Harry (1971) and Death Wish (1974) were granted three stars each and a fair amount of praise. Central to all three films is vigilantism, with I
Spit on Your Grave being the most intimate. Camille Keaton delivers a bravura performance as Jennifer Hills, a writer who rents a remote cot- tage to complete a novel, unwittingly attracting
RM44 R E I S S U E S
the attention of a quartet of local lowlifes who stalk and horrifically violate her. The 25-minute rape sequence (not the “hour of rapes” cited by Ebert), in which Jennifer is repeatedly assaulted, is a harrowing and likely accurate depiction of what rape is – dirty, ugly and humiliating. It’s as far from titillating as a cinematic depiction of the crime could be, and as strong as it is, it’s essen- tial to elevating the film above a mere “geek show” (Ebert again). The difference is that Jennifer
is not an alpha male dispensing street justice through a surro- gate penis; she’s the women’s lib movement ideal of the ’70s – a confident, successful woman, comfortable with her body – who is viciously at- tacked for it. Despairing of see- ing justice in a patriarchal society, she takes matters into her own hands, using her inner strength and sexuality to punish her tormentors. And if it takes a
sliced-off penis, a hanging and a little hatchet work to satiate her need for revenge, so be it! Of course, the Blu-ray sports a fantastic trans-
fer, and the raft of supplements from Elite Enter- tainment’s 2002 Millennium Edition DVD have all been carried forward; the sole new extra is The Value of Vengeance, a 29-minute reminiscence
the same disc, rather than pair them up sepa- rately with better Corman films? Well, both of these post-Jaws cheapies fea- ture aquatic beasties, both are set in Hawaii, both have subplots in- volving unscrupulous re- sort owners and both have further subplots involving bimbettes being photographed topless for magazine layouts. Unfortunately, both also fea- ture monsters so poorly designed that we’re never allowed to see them for more than a few seconds, both are rife with ill-advised attempts at comic re- lief and – a cardinal sin for any Corman film – both are absolutely dead fucking boring. Up From the Depths has a beach resort being
terrorized – very slowly – after an undersea earth- quake unleashes a big, butt-ugly fish that looks like a great white shark genetically mashed up with a grouper. It kills someone. Then nothing hap- pens for a long time. Then it kills someone else. Then nothing happens for almost as long. Rinse. Repeat. Then a chick finally takes her top off, after which the final showdown between the monster fish, locals and tourists gets underway, although it couldn’t quite match the excitement I experienced when the closing credits rolled. Reputedly a remake of Corman’s own Creature
From the Haunted Sea (1961), Demon of Paradise has a mythical man/lizard/maybe fish/I really can’t be bothered-thingie awakened from its ancient watery slumber by illegal dynamite fishing. It kills someone. Then nothing happens for a long time. Repeat. Chick removes top, etc. I’m tempted to
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