“Other writers, producers, and directors of low-budget films would often put down the film they were making, saying it was just something to make money with. I never felt that. If I took the assignment, I’d give it my best shot.”
— Roger Corman
I don’t know what makes a bad movie great, but I love a lot of absolutely shitty movies, and I think they’re all amazing.
I grew up watching VHS horror flicks. I was raised on Jason, Freddy, Michael and Leatherface. I saw absolutely every one of their sequels throughout the 80’s and 90’s, as well as their 00’s remakes. I saw Faces of Death and I Spit on Your Grave. I don’t know why, but I was allowed to see a lot of movies a child should not see.
Many of these films burrowed their mark deep inside my impressionable young mind and remain absolute favorites of mine, to this day, despite being objectively not good movies. One of which I recently sought out on Blu Ray, Slaughterhouse Rock…really bad, but fuck…I love it.
As a kid, and into my teens, I devoured every title in the horror section of my Pick-A-Flick. Eventually the home rental market started to die and gave rise to the whole DVD home ownership market. To say that I embraced this would be an understatement.
I took a long break from the home vide market. But as of late, I’ve fallen right back into stride. In doing so, I don’t find myself seeking out the latest and greatest from the Hollywood machine, I find myself scouring for the best version of those nefarious titles that graced the shelves at my local video stores.
And thankfully due to companies like Vinegar Syndrom, Severin Films, Synapse Films, Code Red, Massacre Video, and many others…these otherwise forgotten films are being meticulously revived, restored, and made available to us today.
At this very moment, I’m watching Vinegar Syndrome’s release of the absolutely terrible—and amazing—Spookies, and I can’t help but pine for the days in which these god-awful VHS gems proliferated.
Sure, I love truly fine filmmaking. I love cinema.
But goddamnit, shitty movies forever have a home in my heart. And, I wish more of us loved them.
I want to sit amongst a gathering of many and laugh at the absurdity—and utter bravery—of films like Blood Games, Psychos In Love, Nekromantik, and Body Melt. These movies deserve audiences, are best experienced with others. And yet, without the likes of these daring distribution companies, most of these titles would be utterly lost to us.
I am ever so grateful for the men and women working behind the scenes of these companies, and so many others than I failed to cite—and perhaps, sadly don’t even know exist. You are truly doing the best work in cinema today, you are keeping alive these amazingly terrible movies.
You are doing Lucifer’s work.
And, when COVID finally becomes a shadow in our collective existence, I’ll gather with a few close friends and we’ll watch the Severin Films release of Lucio Fulci’s “The Devil’s Honey”.
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After that, we’ll watch the upcoming 4K UHD release of Dial Code Santa Claus from Vinegar Syndrome.
