THE LAST HORROR FILM

(A.k.a. FANATIC)

A big-breasted blonde (J'Len Winters) disrobes and hops into her bubbling hot-tub at night. An unseen assailant sneaks up on her and cuts the fun short by tossing a live electrical wire into the water.

Alas, the action above is but a scene from the latest trashy horror film to screen at loser Vinny's (Joe Spinell) local cinema. As the lights go up, he's caught wanking over said death scene by a couple of lovers say behind him. "Weirdo", they exclaim.

They don't know the half of it. Vinny's a New York taxi driver who harbours dreams of one day becoming a great horror movie director. His mates hector him on street corners for burying his nose in the latest issue of "Starburst" magazine; his aged mother (Filomena Spagnuolo - Joe's real-life mum, billed here as Mary Spinell) berates him for not following his dreams.

Before long, he's holed up in his bedroom - the walls of which are literally covered in snapshots of scream queen Jana (Caroline Munro) - listening to radio reports of an assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan in an attempt to impress a young Jodie Foster, and reading a promotional pamphlet advertising who'll be appearing at the 1981 Cannes Film Festival. Guess what? Jana's due to appear...

The next we know, Jana is arriving at a French airport to an awaiting mob. Among them is Vinny, his visage hidden behind his handheld camera as he films her entrance. Or is he simply fantasising?

Following an attractive montage of 'typical' Cannes footage (disco parties; topless bathers; posters for the likes of POSSESSION, FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, POLYESTER, MEPHISTO and so on).

It transpires that Vinny is desperate to get Jana to star in his proposed horror film. So much so that he's not above calling her producer Bret (Glenn Jacobson) and begging for his script to be read. Of course, his pleas fall on deaf ears, Considering Vinny is only slightly more lighter in tone than Frank, Spinell's character in the not-too-dissimilar MANIAC, it's not such a good idea to reject his advances so callously...

Sure enough, Jana finds Bret beheaded later that evening. Furthermore, as she flees she catches sight of someone filming her terrified reaction.

Of course, by the time the police investigate, all trace of any crime in Bret's hotel room have been erased and so Jana's story is doubted by all. Her boyfriend dismisses Bret's disappearance as a "promotional stunt"!

People still don't seem overly concerned when Jana's "flamboyant" agent Marty (Devin Goldenberg) also goes missing. Which leaves her in a vulnerable position as a madman closes in on her under the relative anonymity of the Cannes fest's spectacle (onlookers mistake one chase scene for a publicity stunt)...

Plentiful soft female nudity, infernal red lighting schemes, bad 80s fashions, even crappier cheery pop tunes ... THE LAST HORROR FILM is very much a product of its time (1982). I love that a rock star friend of Jana's turns up later in the film and says he's off to Nassau to record his latest album: didn't EVERY rock band do that in the early 80s?!

It's also a lot of fun. Its post-modernist approach to the genre (a street priest using his examination of the effect of watching horror films as a pick-up line; the blurring of reality and fantasy in Cannes; the references to Jodie Foster and John Hinkley; dishonest telephone conversations Vinny shares with his mother, a la Rupert Pupkin, assuring her everyone loves his [unmade] film; the Jana Q&A where journalists debate the effect of violence in movies; the cheesy clips from bogus horror films, etc) are ahead of their time. Everything is delivered with a sly, ironic sense of humour too, the likes of which wasn't too evident in American genre pictures of the era.

Mixed with some surprisingly arty shots (Vinny's dream sequences, for example) and a keen sense of pace, director David Winters' THE LAST HORROR FILM is a lot better than its minor reputation suggests.

Spinell is, as always, great value for money. Whimpering, sweating, menacing, pathetic: he does it all with a nervous energy that many would struggle to convincingly pull off. Munro is Munro, of course: pretty, committed. The gore scenes are minor but fun in an old-school way (the bloodiest of these tend to be the scenes on the cinema screen). They're all inventively shot too, eschewing the bland lack of creation that was being found in generic slasher films by 1982.

Taut, inventive and pretty unique - the Cannes footage was all shot Guerrilla-style on location - THE LAST HORROR FILM is also by equal turns stylish, amusing and engaging. It's never scary and the overload of bad AOR tracks on the soundtrack can be a tad annoying, but ultimately these are tiny quibbles when measured against the enjoyment the film effortlessly provides.

88 Films continue to build a most impressive roster of cult movies with this world premiere blu-ray release of THE LAST HORROR FILM.

It opens to an animated main menu page which employs a highly attractive red hue atop a montage of fast-paced clips from the film, all set to the smile-inducing strains of the movie's chief disco tune: "tell me darlin' ... do you ever feel satisfied?!". Nice.

From there, pop-up menus include a scene selection menu allowing access to THE LAST HORROR FILM via 8 chapters.

The film itself is presented uncut and in 1080p HD, in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and enhanced for 16x9 televisions. The print used on this MPEG4-AVC file is largely clean and, thanks to warm colours and natural flesh-tones, is bright enough to accentuate a healthy amount of detail without seeming digitally compromised. It should be stressed that this is a composite from various sources, including the original negative, so quality does waver occasionally (some faded and worn scenes for example, and the odd instance of "shrunken" film causing the image to hiccup - this occurs very infrequently, don't worry).

A fine layer of natural grain can be evidenced throughout; deep blacks for the most part and a pleasing lack of compression further contribute to this being, overall, a really satisfying transfer. It's not a film that was shot prettily in many scenes anyhow, so it's worth taking that in consideration - along with the disclaimer on the disc warning of the varying sources used - when you're affixing your expectations. Occasional haze and softness of image are inherent of the era and style of filming, and remain true to the film's original look. The only instance of VHS-sourced material I recall were 10 seconds of gore footage (from one of the fake film-within-a-films) about 47 minutes into proceedings.

Despite any doubts the above comments may inspire in you, this is easily the best this film has ever looked.

The film opens with a FANATIC title card, and then plays out the original THE LAST HORROR FILM opening titles after the short pre-credits sequence in the cinema.

English LPCM mono audio is clean, clear and consistent throughout.

Extras kick off with an entertaining audio commentary track from associate producer Luke Walter, who introduces himself as "Joe Spinell's pal". Moderated by Troma affiliate Evan Husney. Minor details (background players; photos and posters hidden at the back of shots, etc) are picked up on, in-between plentiful amusing anecdotes from the refreshingly down-to-earth Walter. Husney picks up the pauses on occasion with pertinent questions, but for the most part the wisecracking, sincere Walter needs little prompting.

A 3-and-a-half minute video introduction from Lloyd Kaufman was originally shot for their US Special Edition DVD from a few years ago, where the Troma head honcho manages to get the film's date of production wrong by three years. This is, some will be pleased to hear, optional.

"My Best Maniac" is 24 minutes with Walter, giving us a guided tour of old haunts that he and Spinell used to hang out at. He's full of honest, earthy stories about his late buddy. Walter's an emotional host, his passion for big Joe coming through via energetic impersonations, copious swearing and unflinching sincerity.

MANIAC 2: MISTER ROBBIE has been available on a few DVD releases in the past but it's always good to see Buddy Giovinazzo's 8-minute short in which Spinell plays a serial killing children's entertainer with a proclivity for brutalising abusive parents. It's cheap, it's trashy, it's gory fun.

An interview with MANIAC director William Lustig runs for just under 4 minutes and sees the big guy highlighting the links between his film and Winters'.

Next we get an 11-minute audience Q&A session with Munro recorded after a screening of SLAUGHTER HIGH at Glasgow Film Theatre in 2011. The actress is on fine form as she warms her crowd with stories of making the transition from modelling to acting, coping with sexy attire in the 70s and so on.

We also get 3 US TV spots all bearing the title FANATIC.

Finally, of course, there is a 22-minute trailer reel of other titles available from 88 Films: PUPPET MASTER, THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM, DEMONIC TOYS, BLOODY BIRTHDAY, TWO MOON JUNCTION, DOLLMAN, BLOODSUCKING FREAKS, PUPPET MASTER 2, PUPPET MASTER 3: TOULON'S REVENGE, TOURIST TRAP and CASTLE FREAK - all in high definition.

THE LAST HORROR FILM probably plays better now than it did 30 years ago. Spinell is quality, the film references are rife and the whole thing still feels surprisingly original in concept. If it lacks a little bite, well, that's a drawback that can and should be overcome: this is a great little film, ripe for rediscovery on 88 Films' impressive blu-ray.

Review by Stuart Willis