soggycow

"Zombiethon" is basically a plotless compilation of much of the gore and nudity from various zombie movies. Clips are shown from "Zombie," "Astro-Zombies," "The Invisible Dead," "Zombie Lake," "Zombie 4: After Death," "Fear" (which actually does not contain zombies), and "Oasis of the Zombies." The clips for each of these movies vary in length. If the zombie sub-genre is a personal favorite, then this is truly a treat, but for most people this is not worthwhile.

The "plot" tells of a bunch of zombies in a movie theater watching zombie movies. This really just acts for linkage between the previously mentioned clips. From "Zombie," the shark scene, the infamous eye scene, and most of the rest of the zombie carnage are shown (along with the topless scuba diving and the scene in which Olga Karlatos takes a shower). From "Astro-Zombies," many pathetic looking scenes are shown, all of which lack gore and nudity. From "Zombie Lake," the scene in which a busload of girls go skinny dipping only to be fondled by the rising Nazi undead is shown. Clips from "Invisible Dead" bring many shots of nude women being fondled and undressed by an invisible force, and also give away the ending. The clips from the rest of the movies are in the same vein.

The few original scenes seem to have been well directed, there is no original script to judge, and acting varies based on what clips you are watching. The gore effects made specifically for this movie are campy and obviously fake, and, once again, gore effects taken from other movies vary (Zombie outshines everything else in this department).

"Zombiethon" is meant for those with a love for the zombie sub-genre. My rating: six out of ten.

"Laboratory of the Devil" is one of the sickest movies ever made, though it's not as bad as its predecessor. It also lacks the sense of realism that "Men Behind the Sun" had because it replaces documentary style filmmaking with stylish camera work. It also goes for plot and character development instead of just showing the horrors of the camp. This is not to say "Laboratory..." isn't violent; it's just that the violence does not have the impact of that in "Men...".

The plot follows a man who is enlisted in the infamous squadron 731 in Japan. He is also forced to leave behind his fiance, and due to the secrecy involved with the location of squadron 731, he cannot have any kind of contact with her or any of the outside world. As he is forced to kill the Chinese, his mental state begins to deteriorate. "Laboratory..." has many scenes of various inhuman deeds being performed, which include the "skin-ripping" seen in the first film, a VERY detailed "autopsy" on a living person, and people being given lethal injections just to see how long it takes to kill them. All of these scenes are extremely realistic, and are bound to sicken even those with the strongest stomachs.

Had "Laboratory..." had the documentary style of "Men...," it easily could have surpassed it. Godfrey Ho's direction is once again very solid, and the special effects are almost too realistic, which really adds to the film. The acting is also very good. Like "Men...," this film also suffers from terrible dubbing (It sounds like those dubbing the film are talking through a mouth full of food). Like the first one, this film is not all about violence; it has a very strong message about Japanese WWII war tactics (They kidnapped numerous Chinese off the streets and killed them inhumanly in experiments. The Japanese have not apologized to this day for their actions against the Chinese.).

This film is for those with strong stomachs who want more than just violence in their films and also is for gorehounds. My rating: Seven out of ten.

"Reincarnation of Isabel" is a great example of good Euro-trash. It triumphs over its obviously low budget through a combination of gore, unintentional humor, a great score, flashy camera work, and large amounts of gratuitous nudity. It is surprising that this movie has not received a cult status yet, being that it is better than many cult movies. Thanks must be given to Redemption (the company that put this out) for finding a print of this movie, which was long considered lost, and giving it its first domestic release ever.

The "plot" is as follows: A woman named Isabel is burned at the stake when the Inquisition comes to her small village. Apparently they are not too far off, either, because she actually was a witch. Her husband and another local take her body and put it in the dungeon of a castle. Flip to present day: The husband and some of the locals who were on his side have been reincarnated (no explanation is given), and through some twist of fate know it. The husband then attempts to reincarnate Isabel with the hearts of young virgins in some satanic ritual. There is actually much more to the plot (something to do with vampires, and many unnecessary characters), but it all becomes a confused mess. This lack of plot can be forgiven, though, because the plot is not what the movie is trying for.

"Reincarnation of Isabel" is one of the most enjoyable Euro-trash movies, containing everything one has come to expect from this genre. Well, not quite everything. This movie unfortunately lacks in violence and gore. After the violent opening, the movie contains no more realistic effects (it does, however, contain some unrealistic effects. For example, a few "witches" are scratched with sticks, which is fine and dandy (they were topless, after all), but the effect was so cheap it was unintentionally humorous. It was achieved through the use of rubbing a blunt club with wet paint on the end against the skin of the two "witches."). The fake violence was not the only source of unintentional humor; the subtitles were actually much funnier. On the plus side, the acting was surprisingly good and solid, the music was decent, and the direction was pretty solid. It should also be noted that "Reincarnation..." gets better with every viewing. It should be viewed at least twice to get the wanted effect.

Recommended for all fans of Eurohorror. My rating: 7 out of 10.