Les frénétiques

Crude, low budget shocker is undeniably fascinating for its setting, and its portrayal of the movie business. It reunites the two stars of "Maniac", Joe Spinell and Caroline Munro, in a story of NYC cabbie Vinny Durand (Spinell), a pathetic aspiring filmmaker who's obsessed with horror film star Jana Bates (Munro), tailing her to the Cannes Film Festival where she's promoting her latest film. In between Vinnys' desperate attempts to make contact with Jana, a psychotic killer is at work brutally dispatching various people in Janas' life. The film is co-written by Judd Hamilton, then married to Munro, and director David Winters, along with Tom Klassen, and Hamilton and Winters also play film directors on screen. Winters is more ambitious with his ideas and set ups than one would think, going for the surreal and laying on the creepy imagery at select points, and his framing is likewise interesting. The non stop pop / rock soundtrack helps to keep "The Last Horror Film" moving forward adequately, and there are some genuinely effective sequences, such as when a terrified Jana flees in terror from Vinny, clad in only a towel, and bemused onlookers think she's merely participating in a publicity stunt. Use of gore is entertaining - there's not a whole lot of it, but we do see a fair bit of the red stuff spilling. Cameos include June Chadwick and Robin Leach, and one truly compelling facet of this movie is the way it works as a snapshot of a particular place at a particular time, with many shots of posters of then current productions. Intriguing at every turn, "The Last Horror Film" also has a certain seedy ambiance going for it, with some nudity to go with its lurid thrills. Spinells' own mother Mary is hilarious as Vinnys' overbearing ma, and Munro is as gorgeous and appealing as she's ever been, but ultimately this is a vehicle for Spinell, who proves once again his ability to elicit some feelings of sympathy even when playing a disturbed character. This is not up to "Maniac", but it's not bad, and worth a look for fans of the stars. The final scene is especially funny, ending the movie on an irresistible high note. Seven out of 10.

I had put off seeing this for a long time because, although an admirer of Joe Spinell and Caroline Munro, I am NOT a fan of gore. When the only video store in my area with a copy told me they would be closing, I finally gave in and rented it, knowing it may very well be my last chance. I was pleasantly surprised to see how little gore there was (and what WAS there was either too brief to really disturb me, or was obviously "movie-within-movie" fake), and by the cleverness of the script. The brilliant performance by Joe Spinell, however, came as no surprise. Playing an obsessed fan and would-be director, Spinell was both pathetic and sympathetic. I found myself feeling sorry for this desperate loser, even as I dreaded what he might do.

The Cannes Film Festival setting makes this a must-see for movie buffs, who will enjoy going frame-by-frame through the montages of movie posters and marquees.

This film is freely based on a true incident that happened in the early 1980s when a weird fan did an assault on US-president Ronald Reagan, just to impress his fave actress Jodie Foster whom he saw her in Martin Scorsese´s cult classic. Now, Joe Spinell plays a quite strange taxi driver who´s possessed by the idea to shoot a movie that stars his beloved horror star Jana Bates (as sexy as ever: Caroline Munro!). As soon as he arrives at the film festival in Cannes/France some bloody murders shatter the surroundings of the actress...

I know that this film was released in Germany under the title "Maniac 2: Love to Kill", however until its two main actors "The Last Horror Film" has got nothing to do with William Lustig´s explosive shocker! The gore keeps within the limits, some sedate humor is brought on and the sleaze factor is satisfied by some naked chicks running over the screen. Some surreal impressions are given by a few film-in-film-interruptions, the atmosphere of glamorous Cannes reminded me on a soap opera, though quite likeable at all, and the ending features a pretty surprise! Don´t expect a second "Maniac" or you´ll surely be disappointed! Enjoy this nice little horror thriller for the amazing appearance of great Caroline Munro and you´ll worship her like a Godess!!!

Plot: Joe Spinell plays a guy who desperately wants to make a movie with his dream-girl a famous actress portrayed by Caroline Munro. His mom thinks the idea` is cuckoo but he travels to Cannes anyway to make his movie......

Form: The acting is splendid. The story has twists and hints all the way through and the ending, the finale, it`s eminent. Lovely movie by all means.

Who is it for?: Sensitive viewers should be advised, the movie is pretty harsh and contains violent images and a haunting atmosphere in the horror-filled scenes. It is not suitable for kids. Adult horror-fans with a taste for blood will probably enjoy this movie a lot.

Grade: 7 out of 10

Who knew watching a lonesome daydreaming New York cabbie Vinny with desires of being a famous filmmaker obsessively lament over a beautiful well-known horror scarlet to appear in his first film, while running around after her at the Cannes film festival could be so entertaining? To go along with that some unknown deranged serial killer staying in the shadows begins knocking off her entourage while filming it. Could they both be linked or is it pure coincidence?

"THE LAST HORROR FILM" wasn't what I expected it to be, mainly due to the unhinged tonal shifts. From an underlining comedic edge, it can turn depressingly downbeat to nastily macabre then back to kooky again. It's not over-the-top, but it sticks out because it puts a clever spin on the material, as it lures you into thinking it's something it is not. I kind of liked how the story evolved, being quite a delirious cocktail, as it kept you on your toes. Never too sure what direction it was heading. This led to an oddball climax to only be topped off by an enjoyably absurd ending that I don't see how anyone could predict. In all a very unorthodox experience.

What really came to the forefront is its true-to-the-facts information of the times it was shot to use as sort of a satirical social commentary of the influences of film on violence, where the script in more than one way was taking a shot at the narrow-minded assumption of those who see violent films to be blamed for the unstable descent of society instead of being a reflection of it. So with this viewpoint, making it the more interesting is having it set in Cannes, where the shot-on-location atmosphere added to the buzz. Still even with that feverish glitz of searching for stardom with a beautiful French Riviera backdrop, it's soaked in sleaze, unpleasant gore and a lingering dinginess when the killer hits the scene.

Then there's Joe Spinell. As he showed in "MANIAC", he's a live-wire that you simply work around. Just let him go, sweat and all, as his instinctive presence emits such weirdness, yet stays strangely appealing (when interacting with his real-life mom) in spite of being an emotional wreck leading to some crazy visions, and disturbing encounters in his on-going fascination towards the actress (the very capable Caroline Munro).