Yet Another Shameless Plug

I have just started a new blog, offering my opinion on sleazy films. It's called 42nd Street Cinema
SO GO CHECK IT OUT!

Note: Bloody Italiana as of now is practically defunct. We may make a return. But we will be closing the option to comment. If you would like to reach either me or Herman (Nigel) directly our email addresses are noted below.

For spam reasons I have broke the email, use a '@' and '.' in their respective places.
James: crimsonghost at tiscali dot co dot uk
Herman: hermanandpauline at talktalk dot net

Thanks for all of your support. We have met some great people on here.

Another Shameless Plug

Added another blog to my ever expanding list of side projects which I will continue with until I am ready to continue reviewing here as I go through this minor Tin Machine phase. I am writing a bit of nostalgia stuff with my friend Lizzie.

The Pyrates At Play blog is a blog for all those who grew up into the VHS era by two people who did just that in Britain and America. Not necesarily a movie blog but one that hopefully will bring back fond memories to those old enough to appreciate the coming of VHS and for younger people a chance to laugh at us oldies and what we got up to.

So here is that link again-

Pyrates At Play

Bloody Italiana hits a hiatus

We will come back.
I just don't know when...

I Spit On Your Taste

From today I will be writing for I Spit On Your Taste which will be more fanboy fawning to exploitation cinema. If you are a blogger and I haven't added your blog to the blogroll there, I will, it just takes time to move links across.

For Me, The Journey Ends Here

Well it has been over a year of writing for Bloody Italiana and I have had a great time, watched some fabulous movies and most importantly I have made some great friends on here. I wouldn't have done it any other way and I hope that some got something out of what I wrote because I only did all this to maybe allow people to become aware of the delightful films Italy had to offer in its exploitation film heyday and that there was a golden age of film and that Italy made a massive contribution to this. I hope people remember this when watching yet another formulaic, identikit teen horror film that is cut together like some MTV promo. It doesn't have to be that way. If the studios think thats what you want that is what you get.

So anyway for me, the watch and review format of Bloody Italiana has been taken as far as it can go, I was never ther worlds most natural reviewer anyway and I am aware that most of my posts came across as fanboy fawning - they should, in truth that is what they were.

It is unlikely now that I will write any more for Bloody Italiana and would just like to say a big thank you to fellow contributors and those who commented on posts for sharing insights and making me aware of what is out there- I have bought so many films after first learning of them in the comments on this blog.

I will be continuing to blog but will probably take a less rigid approach to the subject matter than the watch and review format and will now be writing a blog entitled I Spit On Your Taste where not only will I be writing under my real name for a change but write about films beyond Italy and will be writing for the next few months about Gator Bait, LoveLetters Of A Portugese Nun, Blacksnake, Ilsa She Wolf Of The SS and a few of my Italian obsessions including first of all To Be Twenty.

So to paraphrase Colonel Brian Horne in Deodato's Cut And Run

"For me, the journey ends here"

Ciao.

Alberto De Martino's Blazing Magnums (1977) Review

A Special Magnum for Tony Saitta is a movie that may prove to be a bit of a surprise to the casual viewer as it proves to be as much a giallo as a poliziotteschi and probably should be considered a hybrid movie. So this is more What Have They Done to Your Daughters? than Blood And Black Lace. The film could prove a disappointment to purist fans of one another genre but those willing to compromise will be entertained by top notch cast including genre cinema veterans John Saxon and Tisa Farrow and lead roles from Stuart Whitman and Martin "Space 1999" Landau.



While to be fair this film plays a little like a violent episode of Columbo as Captain Tony Saitta (Whitman) investigates the death of his sister genre fans will find a few absolutely inspired moments that set this out from the run of the mill including a wild brawl at a private transvestite club that in some ways plays like the Pam Grier gets tough at the lesbian bar scene in Foxy Brown where she displays her black belt in barstools. Though featuring some needlessly homophobic violence with the implied rear insertion of a pair of smoking hot tongs.



We also get possibly one of the great car chases of all time with some out of this world stunt driving.



While I am as yet undecided about whether this a movie with a great deal of replay value this is not to say it is bad, just as I probably wouldn't watch an episode of Columbo over and over so it is this one, because truth to tell even the interest of the transvestite brawl and even with some way cool stuntwork fails to raise this genre piece to the status of classic for as a hybrid it compromised far too much of the genre thematics and stylings to be considered a true gem. That said the set pieces themselves are spot on, just not sure I was overly engaged with what went on in between.

Bruno Mattei's Cruel Jaws (1995) Review

For my second horror review of the Gialloween 2008 I thought I would look at some fishy terror with Bruno Mattei.

The credits to this movie suggest that this movie is directed by William Snyder but don't be fooled as it becomes clear from this stock footage laden effort that we are in Bruno Mattei territory here. William Snyder is Bruno Mattei and Cruel Jaws is also Jaws 5 which I think is a better title as the plot is so heavily borrowed from other Jaws movies as is some of the dialogue. Writing credits go to Peter Benchley.

So since we know this is a Mattei movie, and its stock footage laden Jaws rip off we should know what to expect, we should expect this to be great fun. It is too.



What is also a pleasant surprise aside from the expected cliches such as the mayor refusing to close the beach is that after about an hour the film suddeny starts showing the action sequences from the equally zany and fun Great White aka Last Shark. In recommending this film, which I do without reservation, I am aware that this is unlikely to be available on DVD any time soon so I'd suggest that maybe anyone wishing to get a copy tries one of the cult DVD R suppliers such as Trash Online who I have no problem recommending having secured a number of almost impossible to get hold of titles from these guys in the past.





If you like shark movies or just want a bit of fun watching a Hulk Hogan lookalike spouting cliches or reacting to stock footage I suggest you get a copy of this one. Its the most fun you can have with your clothes on. Oh and what maybe fun also is watching this back to back with Last Shark to see identical footage, including a shark vs helicopter scene and a shark drags a pier scene!! Last Shark is now available on DVD by the way so now you have no excuses.