Drive-In Madness!

Just watched this on the Dailymotion site. It has actor James Karen narrating about the drive-in experience and telling of his part in a small film called Hercules in New York which starred someone named Arnold Strong (actually Schwarzenegger) and Arnold Stang. He also intros plenty of trailers shown either on movie screens or television (those that mention the letter rating are most likely for the latter). And then there are interviews with actress Linnea Quigley, producer Samuel M. Sherman of Independent-International, and the crew of Night of the Living Dead: producer/actor Russell Streiner, writer John A. Russo, makeup artist Tom Savini, and director George A. Romero. Quite interesting, this documentary is, especially when many marquees of drive-in's are shown whether still operating or not. So on that note, Drive-In Madness! is well worth a look.

Drive-In Madness (1987)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

James Karen plays host and narrator to this "documentary" that has interviews with several famous faces wrapped around countless trailers from "B" movies. Tom Savini, Linnea Quigley, George Romero, John Russo, Bobbie Bresee, Forrest J. Ackerman, Russell Steiner and Samuel M. Sherman are among the people interviewed.

There are dozens of trailers show including those for: Dracula VS FRANKENSTEIN, SATAN'S SADIST, BLOOD CREATURE, BLOOD DRINKERS, BRIDES OF BLOOD, GIRLS FOR RENT, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, HORROR OF THE BLOOD MONSTERS, NURSE SHERRI, FRANKENSTEIN'S BLOODY TERROR, PSYCHOS IN LOVE, a few Hammer double features and much more.

If you're a fan of watching trailers then there are some pretty good items here to be viewed. The ones that really stand out were the Al Adamson films produced by Sherman. If you've seen these movies then you already know how bad they are yet when you see these trailers you really want to go watch them again. Say what you want about the films but the trailers are actually well-done and certainly build up an interest in the film. FRANKENSTEIN'S BLOODY TERROR, the alternate title to ASSIGNMENT TERROR is also well-made and sells the film perfectly.

As far as the interviews go, it's nice to have them but there's certainly nothing ground-breaking to them. Savini and Romero talk about what they remember of the drive-ins and they also talk about NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. Quigley talks about how she got into the business and tells a couple stories about SILENT NIGHT DEADLY NIGHT. Russo and Romero also talk about their second feature THERE'S ALWAYS VANILLA.

Drive-In Madness is a weird one, it's essentially 90 minutes of classic movie trailers ranging from the 1940's-1990's with the occasional documentary moment/interview interjected.

The interviews include the likes of Forrest J. Ackerman, Tom Savini & the late great George Romero. The interviews are great but be aware they are very very brief! I was awash with nostalgia watching the trailers but the majority are extremely obscure movies and not the b-movies you may be familiar with.

Narrated by the great James Karen (Who is somehow, someway still acting) he neatly wraps everything up and makes this a decent enough effort.

Despite it's glaring flaws this is watchable but don't go in expecting either a movie or a documentary as this simply isn't!

Honorable mention to Linnea Quigley in her interviews, a lady most well known for playing Trash in The Return Of The Living Dead (1985) the punk queen who spends half the movie nude dancing around in a graveyard. As you can imagine my young adolescent self really appreciated that performance! Entirely for her acting ability though, to suggest anything otherwise is unwarranted and I shall bid you a good day sir!

First watched this when it was released in 1989. At the time, it was a fascinating docu charting the "evolution" of exploitation films as they mutated from drive-in(or grindhouse) fare to straight-to-video releases. (Then-pertinent examples being Empire/Wizard "hits" like PSYCHOS in LOVE and FROM BEYOND). Now in the 21st century, DRIVE-IN MADNESS seems like an artifact from a (very) long-gone era, as even the video rental habit is moribund. Sounds sad? It is. There is irony in the idea that this tape, a lament/ tribute to the bygone era of drive-in schlock can now be seen as a wistful tribute to the time when there seemed to be a video store on almost every corner.

Oh, yeah, the video itself? Much of it chronicles Sam Sherman's Independent International Pictures, as well as the conception and success of Romero's NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. (John Russo, actor, author and writer, provides the link between the two entities.) Some of this stuff is priceless (Romero and Savini talking about the "disposable" nature of D-I movies, Russo and Russ Streiner on NIGHT, Sherman talking about the extremes of weather that D-I patrons faced), and the trailers just flippin' rule (GREEN SLIME, HUMAN DUPLICATORS, Dracula, PRINCE OF DARKNESS / PLAGUE OF ZOMBIES combo, DON'T OPEN THE WINDOW, GIRLS FOR RENT, etc).

NOTE: The version known as SCREEN SCARIES is not the same as D-I MADNESS. Judging from the review, there are more? but different trailers and it's about half the running time. Find this if you can.

Hosted / narrated by James Karen, and packed with genre luminaries (George A. Romero, Tom Savini, Linnea Quigley, Forrest J. Ackerman, et al.), DRIVE-IN MADNESS is a retrospective of classic horror and exploitation film trailers. Whether you remember the good old drive-in theater days, or you just wonder what it was like, this will give you an idea.

Filled with inside stories and anecdotes, it's informative and fun to watch. Of special interest to yours truly is the saga of Independent International Pictures, as well as the origin of ultra-schlock director, Al Adamson.

Plus, if you're looking for a list of terrifying, terrible, or just plain crazy movies, this is a great place to start! The "Previews of Coming Attractions" are the real stars. Many of the trailers are far better than the actual movies they promote!

Highly recommended for the cult / exploitation / horror / etc. Fanatic!...