News

“I think I oughta say something about that song now,” Don Williams would tell concertgoers between the tunes he’d play while seated on a stool, guitar in hand. “I’ll think of something and say it later.” The joke being that country’s “Gentle Giant” would rarely get around to saying much, preferring instead to let the lyrics, and his warm, blanketing baritone do the talking, with his onstage motion mostly limited to moving effortlessly from one familiar hit to the next. Williams, who died in 2017 at 78, will be...

In September and October 1970, Nashville songwriter, producer, music publisher and record-label executive “Cowboy” Jack Clement added independent film producer to his long list of credits, as he and a New York-Hollywood film crew descended upon the grounds of a sprawling estate in the tony Nashville suburb of Brentwood and set about making a low-budget horror flick called Dear Dead Delilah. Seen as a logical extension of his J-m-i Records label, which had launched in late summer 1971, the Motion Picture Division was formed – and its first project secured – well before Clement...

The early ‘70s were really just the hung over ‘60s; idealism had turned to realism as Vietnam marched on and acid dreams turned to lysergic comedowns. And that cutting pall was definitely there in the mainstream culture; TV sitcoms like All in the Family took on bigotry and racism with a sharpened blade and cynical tongue. Meanwhile in the underground, transgressive art was alive and well and still hitting its marks; sordid, seedy, and sprinkled with a devious sense of humor, Paul Bartel’s feature length debut Private Parts (1972) tried to bring that sensibility above ground to an audience not quite ready for its peculiar charms.

Released in September by MGM (!), Private Parts never even received much of a chance to offend mom and pop, as the title prevented it from being advertised in several newspapers and it quickly faded away. Such would be the directorial course of much of Bartel’s career,...

The matriarchal psychodramas of the ’60s bled into the ’70s with alliteration-laden (and questioning) efforts such as Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?, What’s the Matter With Helen?, and the sole directorial effort from noted horror author John Farris, Dear Dead Delilah (1972). Vinegar Syndrome has brought this entertaining Southern Gothic back from the grave with a solid new Blu-ray release that's sure to please fans of ripe, pithy dialogue and surprising splatter.

Dear Dead Delilah starts out with the reveal that teenaged Luddy has murdered her mom because she didn’t want her heading out to see any fellas; we then flash forward 25 years and a now middle-aged Luddy (Patricia Carmichael – Petticoat Junction) has been released from the sanitarium; walking around, she is hit by a stray football in a park belonging to a member of the wealthy Charles clan, and whisked back to their estate. There Luddy is introduced to the family,...

Welcome to another edition of Home Video Highlights, the column dedicated to the best and most exciting titles that are brand new to Blu-ray. The releases being highlighted this week are once again from Vinegar Syndrome, the boutique label dedicated to preserving the best of cult, underground, exploitation, and sexploitation, and it’s safe to say that all those bases are covered with these three releases.

Read More: 55 Must-See Films: The 2018 Fall Movie Preview

If you are a filmmaker – or an aspiring one – and looking for a little bit of inspiration, the first release that should absolutely be sought out is “Shot.” Filmed in 1973 in Champaign, Il, director Mitch Brown and producer Nate Kohn – college students at the time – raised $15,000 by holding campus film screenings.

Continue reading Three Slices of Strange 70’s Sleaze: ‘Shot,’ ‘Dear Dead Delilah,’ & ‘Wonder Women’ at The Playlist.

Classic monster movies fans, get those wallets ready, because Tuesday has plenty of awesomeness on tap for you that you’re not going to want to miss out on. Universal Studios Home Entertainment has an abundance of titles arriving on August 28th, led by their brand new Universal Classic Monsters: Complete 30-Film Collection, as well as the Complete Legacy Collections for both the original The Creature From the Black Lagoon and The Invisible Man film series.

As if that wasn’t enough, Universal is also reissuing a bunch of other titles, including four different Child’s Play sequels, three Psycho follow-ups, and the latest from Leigh Whannell, Upgrade, featuring Logan Marshall-Green doing all sorts of badass things to a bunch of bad guys.

Scream Factory has given the cult classic Brainscan the HD treatment this week, Mvd is shining the spotlight on Bram Stoker’s Shadowbuilder with their Blu/DVD combo pack,...

"So you met someone and now you know how it feels. Goody, goody." Starring Shelley Winters and the great Debbie Reynolds, What's the Matter with Helen (1971) is coming to Blu-ray on March 28th from Scream Factory, and we've been provided with three Blu-ray copies to give away to lucky Daily Dead readers.

————

Prize Details: (3) Winners will receive (1) Blu-ray copy of What's the Matter with Helen?

How to Enter: We're giving Daily Dead readers multiple chances to enter and win:

1. Instagram: Following us on Instagram during the contest period will give you an automatic contest entry. Make sure to follow us at:

https://www.instagram.com/dailydead/

2. Email: For a chance to win via email, send an email to contest@dailydead.com with the subject “What's the Matter with Helen Contest”. Be sure to include your name and mailing address.

Entry Details: The contest will end at 12:01am Est on April 2nd.

All that glitters is not gold in Curtis Harrington's What's the Matter with Helen, starring Shelley Winters and the late Debbie Reynolds, and you can heck out high-def Blu-ray clips and the original trailer for the film ahead of its new home media release on March 28th from Scream Factory.

What's the Matter with Helen Blu-ray: "Debbie Reynolds and Shelley Winters star in this stylish shocker set in 1930s Hollywood about two women who come to Tinseltown to start an idyllic new life and end up in a terrifying nightmare. Directed by Curtis Harrington (Queen Of Blood, Games), this relentlessly frightening film also stars Dennis Weaver (McCloud), Agnes Moorehead (Bewitched, Dear Dead Delilah) and Yvette Vickers (Attack of the Giant Leeches, Attack of the 50ft Woman).

Bonus Features

New High-Definition Transfer From The Interpositive Original Theatrical Trailer Original Radio Spot Still Gallery"

The post What’S The Matter With Helen?...

Two mothers seeking an escape from the murderous deeds of their sons settle down in Hollywood, but the horrors they left behind soon follow them to their new home in Curtis Harrington's What's the Matter with Helen? This past Halloween, Scream Factory announced that they would release the 1971 horror thriller on Blu-ray, and they've now revealed a March release date and cover art for the film.

From Scream Factory: "We are now taking pre-orders for our upcoming release of the 1971 psychological What’S The Matter With Helen? which makes its Blu-ray format debut in the U.S. & Canada! Release date is planned for March 28th.

Debbie Reynolds and Shelley Winters star in this stylish shocker set in 1930s Hollywood about two women who come to Tinseltown to start an idyllic new life and end up in a terrifying nightmare. Directed by Curtis Harrington (Queen Of Blood, Games), this...

1978 cast a long shadow in the world of horror. From Dawn of the Dead to Halloween, the landscape was abundant with everything from the socially relevant to the singularly terrifying, from superior remakes (Invasion of the Body Snatchers) to quirky haunted houses (The Evil). And then there’s the red headed stepchild that no one talks about: Brian DePalma’s The Fury. Frenetic, action packed, and gruesome, The Fury never gets the love from even most DePalma fanatics. What a shame – it’s never less than entertaining, and at its best showcases the director’s mesmerizing visual touch.

Released in March by Twentieth Century Fox, The Fury made $24 million against its $5.5 million budget. That’s good green, folks, and DePalma received favorable reviews, still basking in a critical glow left over from his previous effort, Carrie (’76). So why is it so easily dismissed, ranked along the lines of efforts like Wise Guys,...