Plan9Crunch re-run -- 'Adjust Your Tracking' review

Review by Plan9Crunch co-blogger Doug Gibson

(Last summer we reviewed "Adjust Your Tracking," a documentary on the glory days of VHS, when the film was in the festival circuit. Now that it is out on DVD/VHS, we repeat the review.) There's a scene in "Adjust Your Tracking," the new micro-budget, partially funded by kickstarter.com, film documentary, from fans Levi Peretic and Dan Kinem, where Zack Carlson, former cult film master of Alamo Drafthouse turned Hollywood creative writer, perfectly encapsulates the addictive obsessions of the true VHS film collector. As Zack relates, he and his girlfriend were walking down a business avenue and observed a former video star, now locked and shuttered with the lights off. Zack observed through the window a few score abandoned VHS movies.

He proposed to his wife that he break into the forgotten store and rescue the VHS films. Because he was with a less obsessed companion, Zack's proposed felony was successfully rebuffed. But if he had been walking alone? Well ...

I'll be 50 in a couple in a couple of months and it's been a joy to experience the birth, rise and fall of the VHS era in my lifetime. I can relate to the two-score plus VHS film fans and collectors who relate the glory era of the neighborhood video store. Thirty years ago you could walk into the local video store and ponder the cover art of "Dr. Butcher M.D., Medical Deviate." Yeah, the film was sort of boring, in that ultra slow, ultra gory Italian Fulci-like style, but as one contributor to "Adjust Your Tracking" recalls, just the box art, with the clam shell, was worth it.

There were treasures in the mom and pop video store, courtesy of Wizard Video, Midnight Video and other long-gone labels. "Bloodthirsty Butchers" promised a gorefest with its clamshell, as did "Torture Dungeon." They turned out to be strange tales of dysfunctional families with fake gore. Today, both "Bloodthirsty ..." and "Torture ..." are among the most sought-after VHS horror tapes, commanding well above $100. (Steve Stones and I. co-bloggers, here, snagged "Torture Dungeon" for about $60 a few years ago.

The 1980s video store was really like a treasure hunt, where early John Waters tapes was next to "Smokey and the Bandit," where "Crazy Fat Ethel," "Criminally Insane" and that long forgotten student films tape of Stephen King stories were found close to "Friday the 13th." Other low-budget films made it on the shelves in those days: "The Lords of Magick," "Cain's Cutthroats," "Gallery of Horror," "Wizard of Mars," etc. I recall those days of leaving a large deposit -- the tapes cost $90 then -- since I had no credit card. I even spent $6 bucks or so renting VCR players at times. Before Blockbuster, the locals needed more tapes to fill up the stores' inventory. Cheap distributors flooded the stores with wonderful kitsch. And there was that section in a back room for, ahem, adult tapes.

Today, a VHS horror collector is more happy to find a VHS of "Woodchipper Massacre" than "Halloween." The more obscure, the more bizarre, the more perverse, are the most sought-after. According to the documentary, a very obscure little gorefest called "Tales From the Quadead Zone" is number one on the most-popular list, fetching $600-plus dollars on ebay.

However, as the interviewees remind us, "Quadead," and other 80s gems can sometimes be fetched for as low as $1 to $4 at a thrift store. To the VHS collectors, it's akin to "Indiana Jones" getting his pants dusty searching through boxes and shelves for hours, passing by 98 percent of old VHS and finally finding that gem. ( I digress here to recall my excitement when I came across a 90s VHS, director's cut, of Jack Hill's "Spider Baby," where Lon Chaney Jr.sings the title song.}

The documentary's interviews flow very well, moving through titled subjects and various idiosyncrasies. The collectors almost caress the films as they move among their VHS tapes' shelves. One fellow recreated, in his basement, a 1980s-era video store. The horror section was his favorite, of course. One fan started a VHS horror collectors fan site on Facebook, and it's great to see the group's growth and success lead to a small but well-attended convention on Pennsylvania.

This is a salty documentary. The F word flows freely, snippets of old tapes are gory enough for NC-17 and there's even some gay porn that finds its way into the film. I won't reveal how, but it's a hilarious anecdote. This genre film, playing in festivals around the nation, will please most viewers. VHS fans will love it. I saw it via a review code at Vimeo.com, but I await its future release ... on VHS, naturally.

Bloody Pit of Horror – Beware The Writings of Marquis de Sade!

By Steve D. Stones

The opening credits of Bloody Pit of Horror (1965) (directed by Massimo Pupillo) mention that the film is based on the writings of the Marquis De Sade. A man known as the crimson executioner is taken to a torture chamber of a castle in the 17^th century. As he is placed in an iron maiden to die, he tells his executioners that he will someday come back to life to seek revenge. Sound familiar? Mario Bava’s 1960 masterpiece -“Black Sunday” also employed a similar plot.

A writer of horror novels, a photographer and five beautiful models stop at an old castle after a long day of traveling. The photographer wishes to have a photo shoot in the castle for book covers. The owner of the castle does not like visitors, so he asks the photographer to leave. After discovering the photographer has a group of beautiful women with him, the owner of the castle asks them to stay, but for only one night.

The photographer, writer and crew are particularly interested in the torture chambers below the castle grounds.  They immediately set up shop and begin photographing the women in the torture chamber.

While posing for a series of cheesecake pictures with torture devices, a male model named Perry is accidentally killed. A photograph of the accident reveals a strange shadowy image of a shirtless man with a red mask in the background.

Another model named Suzy is found dead in the iron maiden used to kill the crimson executioner three centuries earlier.  A third model is found stuck in a giant spider web triggered with poison arrows. Most of the crew is killed off one by one.  The crimson executioner tortures some of the girls in the group in his executioner chamber below the castle.

The crimson executioner and owner of the castle are played by muscle man Mickey Hargitay, who was married to Jayne Mansfield at the time. Hargitay had just put the finishing touches on another Italian film – Primitive Love. The newspaper ads for the film claimed “my vengeance needs blood!”

Bloody Pit of Horror was marketed under eight other titles – Castle of Artena, The Red Hangman, The Crimson Executioner, Some Virgins for the Hangman, Virgins for the Hangman, The Scarlet Hangman, The Scarlet Executioner and a Tale of Torture. Did you catch all of that? Happy viewing. 

Questions for Barbara Payton's biographer John O'Dowd -- Part 2

By Doug Gibson

Recently, at Plan9Crunch, I reviewed John O'Dowd's biography of the ill-fated 1950s movie star Barbara Payton (seen above), "Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye: The Barbara Payton Story." (Buy) You can read the Plan9Crunch review here. (I also wrote a review for my newspaper, The Standard-Examiner, here.)

The reviews were popular reads, and O'Dowd was kind enough to agree to my request for an interview. I asked him 10 questions. The first five questions and answers were published several days ago (here). Here is part of the interview, which focuses more on Payton's slide into a hellish existence as an addict and a street prostitute in the 1960s. So read on, and enjoy! Photo above is courtesy of O'Dowd.
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6)         Plan9Crunch: Why didn't anyone from "the business," former lovers, co-stars, friends, lawyer, anyone, help this woman, particularly when that tragic "autobiography" came out in 1963?

O'Dowd: By that time in her life, Barbara had become extremely resistant to accepting anyone’s help. I am convinced of that. Barbara was immersed in her feelings of self-loathing, and sick as it sounds, I believe she felt a sort of comfort in that lonely and isolated place. She was stranded on a very stony path that she may not have even wanted to leave, as it justified her feelings of wanting to punish herself. Barbara’s life by then was all about hating and hurting herself, and trying to destroy her health, and I know that sounds sad and gruesome, but I believe it to be true. Barbara’s sister-in-law and best friend, Jan Redfield, told me that she tried to help her many times, as did a few other friends and family members, but most times, Barbara would not allow it. She would often disappear, or, she would listen to these people, and agree to seek help, and then would never follow through afterward. Dealing with her back then grew to be maddening to Jan and a few other people who really loved her, and many of them told me they finally had to walk away to keep their own minds and lives intact. No matter how you look at it, Barbara’s life is a huge tragedy…not only to her, but also to all the people who loved her and couldn’t save her.

7)       7)        Plan9Crunch: Why didn't her family, so close to her in Southern California, never make an effort to have her committed?

           

          O'Dowd: Barbara’s younger brother, Frank Redfield, has admitted to me that he was locked in his own prodigious battle with alcohol abuse at the time, and that as a result, he wasn’t able to fully comprehend how badly Barbara needed help. Their parents, Lee and Mabel Redfield, were also severe alcoholics, and maybe they too, couldn’t see past themselves to help Barbara. I know that might sound incredible to many people who read this, but one needs to understand that this was a family who were deep in the throes of a longstanding addiction to alcohol. Frank’s wife, Jan, was not an alcoholic, but being the only sober person in the family, she had her hands full trying to raise her and Frank’s four children, as well as being a caretaker to her husband and her in-laws. That woman deserves a medal for all she endured back then. I know that if things had been different, Jan would have moved heaven and earth to help Barbara…she loved her very much (and she still does).

8)         Plan9Crunch: Was the faux morality, predatory media coverage that Payton received the norm back then, or was she a particular target of venom?

O'Dowd: All you have to do is read some of the front covers of the tabloid rags of the 1950s (like Confidential and Exposed) and you’ll see that society’s faux morality, and its insatiable need to punish those celebrities who misbehaved in their private lives, was a very potent force in those days. Barbara was absolutely a kind of fall guy back then for the tabloids and media’s wrath; mainly, because she wasn’t a big star…and mostly, because she was a woman who thumbed her nose at convention by openly leading a very unconventional lifestyle. Barbara became totally expendable to WB Studios when she refused to rein in her personal life, and in time, the media followed suit and crucified Barbara in print. With the kind of life that Barbara insisted on leading back then, she never stood a chance.

9)              Plan9Crunch: Describe the key events in her life that turned Payton into a person who hated her self so much that she slid downhill so fast and for so long?

O'Dowd: The single most damaging event in Barbara’s life, in my opinion, was her losing custody of her son (and especially, of her being kept away from him afterward, and never seeing him again). I think that compounded Barbara’s guilt and self-loathing one hundred fold, and caused her to disconnect even further from any desire she may have had to lead a respectable life. Earlier, the brawl between Franchot Tone and Tom Neal had laid a huge guilt trip on Barbara. (Immediately after it happened, Barbara cut her hair very short, and I have long felt that she did that as a response to what had happened. I think she was trying, in a way, to make herself less desirable to men, as she knew that was the source of most of the problems in her life, and especially, the cause of the brawl.) Barbara’s completely thoughtless shuffling of Tone’s and Neal’s affections, and the anguish it had caused them, probably also added to her feelings of self-hatred. I have come to believe that Barbara was not just troubled, but severely emotionally ill. And I think her emotional illness only grew stronger as the years (and her other personal problems) progressed.

           

10)       Plan9Crunch: What are some unanswered questions about her life?

O'Dowd: One of the things I often wonder about is what happened to Barbara in her “lost years” (from about 1959, right up to her death in 1967). We know about some of those events, but I have long had the feeling that the rest of what she experienced is probably far worse than anyone of us could ever imagine. What we do know is pretty horrific, but I think the rest of her story might actually be even uglier and sadder. (And if that’s the case, maybe it’s best that we don’t know.) I would also like to know why she felt she was so unworthy of help. How could she feel that bad about who she was? I am also confused about her father’s treatment of Barbara. Was it due to something inappropriate happening between them, or was it that he was sickened by (and ashamed of) her rampant promiscuity? I’m pretty sure we will never know the answer to that question. Barbara and her father know, however, and I believe that wherever their souls exist now, that healing between them has taken place. That’s one of the things I really believe. Another is that Barbara is now in a place of perfect peace and comfort and enlightenment. Her life was not for naught. After all she went through, here on earth (most of which, she put herself through), Barbara has experienced healing, and I know her story has the ability to heal others, too. At least, that’s what I’ve always hoped for (and will continue to hope for).     

Thanks so much, John O'Dowd, for this really interesting interview about the life of Barbara Payton, who remains iconic despite the tragedy of her life.                

Questions for Barbara Payton's biographer John O'Dowd -- Part 1

By Doug Gibson

Recently, at Plan9Crunch, I reviewed John O'Dowd's biography of the ill-fated 1950s movie star Barbara Payton (seen above), "Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye: The Barbara Payton Story." (Buy) You can read the Plan9Crunch review here. (I also wrote a review for my newspaper, The Standard-Examiner, here.)

The reviews were popular reads, and O'Dowd was kind enough to agree to my request for an interview. I asked him 10 questions. The first five questions and answers are below. In several days Plan9Crunch will publish the second half of the interview. So read on, and enjoy! Photo above is courtesy of O'Dowd.

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PLAN9CRUNCH: What do you think Payton's finest film performance was?

         
          O'DOWD: I think Barbara’s finest acting performance was in her first WB film, “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye”. Although she had only been acting professionally for two years, Barbara’s performance in the film was strong and nuanced and totally believable. Barbara worked extremely well with the film’s director, Gordon Douglas, and if she had been able to rein in her personal life during that time and had concentrated more on her acting career, she might have stayed at WB for several years (instead of for just a little over a year), and worked with Douglas a lot more times. Gordon Douglas really pulled a great performance out of her in KTG…more so, I think, than he was able to do in Barbara’s film with Gregory Peck, “Only The Valiant”. (Barbara seemed really distracted in that picture, but then again, her role in the film was quite small and I’m not sure how much more she could have done with what little she had been given to do in it.) But, getting back to “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye”, Barbara very believably took her character through several personality changes, according to the requirements of the script. Her character of Holiday Carleton started out as a very naïve and impressionable young woman, but as she fell deeper under the spell of the character that James Cagney played in the film (that of a sadistic and unregenerate criminal named Ralph Cotter), she gradually transitioned into a greedy and reckless person who came to completely overlook Cotter’s evil ways. Several people who knew Barbara have told me that her real-life personality was closest to the character she played in KTG. Barbara, it seems, was naïve, trusting, thrill-seeking and reckless throughout her entire life. She was inherently goodhearted (like Holiday), but also tragically drawn to the very unhealthy influences which usually surrounded her. Knowing this, it has made watching her work in KTG even more fascinating.

PLAN9CRUNCH: What contemporary star is most like Payton as an actress?

O'DOWD: I’m not sure I can answer that question as I am nearly completely unfamiliar with the work (and even the names) of most contemporary film actresses (especially those in their 20s and 30s). There is a film project on Barbara’s life (titled “Bad Blonde”) that is currently in development in Los Angeles, and I am trusting that the two producers who are shepherding the project (Ira Besserman and Barrett Stuart) know a lot more about today’s actresses than I do, because unfortunately, I know very little. I am not a big fan of the majority of today’s films, as they seem to concentrate more on special effects than on character-driven storylines (which is what I prefer). I am far more interested in, and have more knowledge of, the films and stars of Classic Hollywood.

 PLAN9CRUNCH: What was Payton's top feature as an actress or as someone that would appeal to fans and be a star?

          

          O'DOWD: I believe Barbara was a very effective performer who was usually responsive and totally present if she felt connected to the material she had been given. In “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye” and “Murder is My Beat”, for instance, which are two of her better films, there is an innate honesty and intelligence in both Barbara’s line readings and in her facial expressions, that is very apparent. I really wish she had been given the opportunity to work a lot more and to build up her film credits with good projects, because I think she would have surprised a lot of people with the strength and scope of her acting talent.

PLAN9CRUNCH: Who was the greatest positive influence in Payton's life?

            

          O'DOWD: Unequivocally, that person would have to be her son, John Lee Payton. Every person I interviewed for the book who knew Barbara personally, stressed to me how much she loved and cherished him. That she would end up losing custody of him (and, in fact, would never see him again for the rest of her life) makes that, of course, a huge irony. While she truly loved John Lee, and never treated him with anything other than the utmost warmth and kindness, Barbara was severely devoid of proper parenting skills. Amazingly, when John Lee was just a child, Barbara not only regularly exposed him to her horrendous lifestyle of indiscriminate sex, drug use and excessive drinking, she also often left him alone for long periods of time. No matter how you look at it, that is unforgivably irresponsible of her. However, over time, I have come to understand just how skewed Barbara’s thinking was, and while she doesn’t get a pass from me for this really terrible behavior, I do “get” it (and her), and John Lee does, too. In fact, he has long ago forgiven her for all the mistakes she made in raising him, and has remained totally loyal and loving to his mother’s memory. I believe that says a lot for the man himself, as well as the positive and lasting influences of the people who greatly picked up the slack for Barbara, and helped raise John Lee (mainly, Jan Redfield and her family, and John Payton, Sr.)

PLAN9CRUNCH: Who was the great love in her life and why?

O'DOWD: Again, I would have to say, her son, John Lee. But then again, that was a pure,            maternal love. In terms of whom she loved romantically, I have to believe the greatest love          of her life was Tom Neal. Then again, that may have also been the sickest and unhealthiest          relationship she was ever involved in, as well. The dynamic there was very strong, very              passionate, and more than a bit sado-masochistic. Barbara was drawn to Neal’s intrinsic “bad boy” qualities, and I think she wanted him to stay that way every bit as much as she wanted to tame him. They were drawn to each other in an almost feral way, and the fever-pitch of their relationship, I think, doomed it from the start. They shared a big and messy life together and they had to burn out in a big and messy way, which they did. I don’t believe, though, that Barbara ever got over Tom Neal. I am not certain if he ever got over her, but I tend to think their breaking up added a few layers to the damage in Barbara that was already there. Her behavior certainly grew more unhealthy after Neal exited her life…that’s for sure.

Surf back to Plan9Crunch soon, readers, to read part 2 of our interview with Barbara Payton biographer, John O'Dowd. One question focuses on why no one was able to successfully help Payton as she spiraled into a living hell.

The Larry Semon silent Wizard of Oz, a bizarre, somewhat offensive curio

By Doug Gibson

Ever heard of Larry Semon? That's all right. He's not nearly as popular as his peers. He was a silent movie comic. His physical comedy and sad sack face made him very popular in one- and two-reelers, but his character had a tough time creating pathos with viewers. He needed to be seen in small doses.

Semon had ambition, though, and in the mid 1920s he worked with the son of the late L. Frank Baum, to bring Baum's Wizard of Oz series to the big screen. The 1925 film (versions range from 72 to 81 minutes) is a curio. A huge flop at the box office -- it more or less ruined Semon's career -- it is nevertheless fascinating. It's a so-bad-it's-interesting ego trip from a star who desperately needed a director other than himself. Still, there are moments -- particularly at the beginning of the film -- that feature talented slapstick comedy. Yet, in this film are Semon, of course, big fat slapstick veteran Frank Alexander, a very young Oliver Hardy and Semon's very pretty wife, Dorothy Dwan.

Here's the film in a few paragraphs: We start in Oz, where Prince Kynd (Bryant Washburn) and the citizens are upset with corrupt leaders, including Prime Minister Kruel. The bad leaders consult the Wizard, a con man, who suggests they bring the lost Princess Dorothy back. We cut now to Kansas, where the womanly Dorothy (Dwan) lives with Aunt Em, (Mary Carr) a limp dishrag of a woman, and Uncle Henry (Alexander) a big, fat domestic abuser. He literally punches anyone he meets.

Competing for Dorothy's love are farmhands Semon and Hardy. There is a black farmhand named Snowball. Be advised the film is very racist and the character, played by actor Spencer Bell, is billed as "G. Howe Black." (Later in the film, Semon's character lets loose with a tasteless racist jab at Bell's character) Ths racism was unfortunately the norm for those times.

The film meanders on coherently while the characters are in Kansas. It's cliche-ridden, but there are talented, physical slapstick gags with Semon, Hardy and Alexander. There's a funny bit with bees, and another with a swing. But once the main characters are blown to Oz in a shack it loses all sense. The first nonsensical twist is having Aunt Em -- who is in the wind-guided shack -- disappear when they arrive. It gets worse: Semon turns into the Scarecrow, Hardy the Tin Man and Bell the cowardly lion, but they really aren't these characters. They are disguises. Alexander briefly turns into a good guy, then reverts to being a bad guy. Incomprehensibly, Hardy's Tin Man turns bad too.

Finally, Dwan's Dorothy more or less disappears from the film, becomes betrothed to Prince Kynd, and wants to see Semon's Scarecrow done away with, too! In fact, the film degenerates into a series of bad slapstick gags designed to showcase Semon trying to outwit the Oz folk who want to capture him. The Wizard (Charles Murray) is still hanging around. By then it's really no longer Baum's Wizard of Oz. It's just an overlong, badly paced Semon slapstick show.

As I mentioned, the film bombed. Semon's career was almost ruined. He puttered around in films for a few more years, then died young. Many believe stress over his bankruptcy contributed to his death. For a long time this film was considered obscure and very hard to find. Lately, though it has popped up on DVD, either as an extra to the 1939 The Wizard of Oz, or as the feature attraction in a DVD of silent versions of Baum's Oz tales (there are several as far back as 1910). It has also been shown recently on Turner Classic Movies. In fact, it airs tonight (June 8, 2014).

I will say one good thing about the silent Wizard of Oz. Semon's Scarecrow very much resembles in looks and mannerisms of Ray Bolger's much-lauded Scarecrow in the later classic. It seems clear that Bolger did borrow from Semon's portrayal and also managed to bring the empathy to the character that Semon could not achieve. Cult movies fans should note that many of Semon's silent shorts can be purchased today via brick-and-mortar and online stores.

Very odd likely unauthorized Mexican remake of Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein is out there

By Doug Gibson

I came across a film, released via DVD by Image Entertainment Latino, called Frankestein (sic), El Vampiro, y Compania," made in 1962 by Cinematografica Calderon S.A., a Mexican film company which still exists. The movie is a comedy and a blatant remake of the Abbott & Costello classic "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein." That is about the only admirable quality of the film. It's bottom-of-the-barrel low and the comedy is of the crude, unfunny type where the "funny man" screams and mugs his face up and generally does a sixth-rate imitation of Huntz Hall.

And this is a bad film. Frankly, it's very obscure and there is no English dubbing available. On IMDB it declares the dubbed version lost, but I wonder if the film was never dubbed because the producers were worried they'd be sued by Universal, which produced the Abbott and Costello film. My DVD is of course only Spanish. I am fluent in Spanish but the film can be followed by anyone familiar with Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein. In that sense it can be fun to watch, but boy it's mediocre and unfunny.

The original film has Bud and Lou as inept shippers of big packages and crates. While unloading crates containing the original Dracula and Frankenstein monster for a spook show owner, it turns out the monsters are genuine. They escape and Bud and Lou are arrested for having lost the merchandise. They are bailed out by a sexy insurance investigator who hopes the boys can lead her to the merchandise. Rotund Lou is being romanced by a sexy doctor who is helping Dracula resurrect the Frankenstein monster. The wolf man contact the boys, hoping to stop Dracula. It all ends in a party and then a castle where Dracula and Lou's paramour hope to place Costello's brain in the head of the monster. There's a subplot involving a romance between the insurance investigator and Dracula's assistant at the castle (he doesn't know about the nefarious plans) and the usually funny gags with Abbott being frustrated at Costello's "success" with the women.

The remake, Frankestein, El Vampiro, y Compania," stays pretty faithful except for these changes, which were probably due to budget constraints. There is no insurance investigator. Her role is instead played by a new character, the daughter of the spook show owner. And Dracula has no assistant. The daughter makes eyes at the Mexican version of Bud Abbott. Also, the wolfman has little to do, which is not too bad because his mask is pathetic. It looks like a $9.99 mask one could find at any store.

The "funny man" in the film, the Lou Costello character, is played by a Mexican comic named Manuel "Loco" Valdez. His name is Paco As mentioned, he's more Huntz Hall than Lou Costello. The Abbott character, not really comic, is played by Jose Jasso and called Agapito. The best part of the film is the healthy amount of attractive, dark-haired, voluptuous Mexican starlets. They look healthier than the monsters, particularly El Vampiro, played by a painfully thin, noodle-necked seventh-rate John Carradine named Quintin Bulnes. The Frankestein monster is adequate for a college film and as mentioned, the Wolfman is an ill-costumed afterthought.

One of the problems with low-budget poorly scripted, badly acted spooks comedies is that the monsters are played as ridiculous and worthy of being laughed at. The vampire in this film tries to be funny and ridiculous, mugging and jerking around. In Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein, the monsters retain their dignity and the comics are funny solely by their reactions to the monsters.

Other stars include Nora Veryan as the sexy doctor who entices Paco to the castle. It's worth a look, particularly if you want to see what other filmmakers did with the famous Abbott and Costello. As mentioned, no English dubbing is known to exist, but if you can get this cheap, enjoy. The IMDB page is here.