Monday, October 14, 2013

City of the Living Dead [Blu-ray] [1980]



LUCIO = MAESTRO
the negative reviews are missing the point as usual because this is one of Fulci's Golden Greats. of course there's some plot holes and cheesy moments but they are few and far between, and the majority of movie is all guts and gory. all good Fulci movies establish hellish creeping dread that is punctuated by beautiful women, a few laugh out loud moments (some intentional, some not) and many gorious glorious death setpieces natch

although it's not a patch on The Beyond, I love this movie from start to finish, conceding that yes the last 15 minutes of this film is somewhat sketchily presented. howver the end scenes are in keeping with the logic of the narrative to that point, and really, if you've paid attention to a relatively (for Fulci) unconvoluted plot then the last 15 seconds shouldn't leave you "scratching your head". City of the Living Dead is masterful with several classic scenes, and there's few horror directors that have such a deft and entertaining touch when it...

Extreme, Effective Fulci Gorefest
CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD is a beautiful Fulci film, expertly directed and gorgeously photographed. The performances are top notch considering the genre and foreign origins of the film.

Also known as GATES OF HELL, CotLD opens revolves around the suicide of a priest which opens the gates of Hell. A woman with a link to the beyond and a reporter (Christopher George from PIECES!) are drawn into the bizarre happenings surrounding this turn of events and the blood begins to flow. And does it ever flow: from the eyes of those who are unfortunate enough to stare down the undead, from the mouths of those vomiting their entrails, from the brains of those who don't mind their head when the zombies are around, and from the cheeks of poor old Bob who was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, specifically between a huge drill and a very angry man.

Needless to say, these images amount to some of the most unforgettable Fulci imagery, topping even the...

Buckets of blood, heaps of guts, that crazy Lucio!
Fulci's follow-up to his enjoyable bloodbath Zombie(1979) is euro-trash sleaze on the outside but multiple viewings have revealed a surreal, scary horror film with a few good ideas, and dripping with gothic atmosphere. A priest hangs himself in Dunwitch, Mass and starts off a deadly chain of events leading up to the end of the world. Only gruff reporter Christopher George, and Medium-returned-from-the-dead Catherine McColl can stop the carnage. Some generaly haunting scenes such as when the priest's ghost appears just before someone gets kacked, and a little boy pursued by the spirit of his dead sister through the deserted streets. Once again, if you can't handle the gore, better stay clear. This features brain squashing, eyeball popping, intestine-barfing, head drilling, and a giant crucifix thrust into a guy's knads. Ouch.

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