News

They say this town is ruled by fear. They say it’s all gloom these days when not outright doom. They say Hollywood just isn’t what it used to be. Not warm, not wild, not fun.

They may be right. But they obviously aren’t spending time in proximity to Colleen Camp, the if-you-know-you-know fairy godmother of the film business. A veteran character actress turned social networker extraordinaire turned indie producer, she’s close friends with seemingly every bold-faced name in the industry — from Jerry Bruckheimer to Da’Vine Joy Randolph (who name-checked her in her Oscar acceptance speech this year) — and who has in recent years built a reputation as one of Hollywood’s most influential awards-season players. Camp’s intimate, no-press-allowed screenings, high-powered parties, star-studded dinners and assorted taste-making receptions have already altered the trajectories of scores of Oscar campaigns.

“I’m an empath and an enthusiast,...

In his review of the new horror film Immaculate (you can read it Here), JoBlo’s own Chris Bumbray said the movie – which reunites Sydney Sweeney with Michael Mohan, who directed her in the erotic thriller The Voyeurs and the Netflix series Everything Sucks! – is “a decent throwback to Dario Argento-style Italian horror movies.” During a recent post-screening Q&a at Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Boston Seaport, Mohan also revealed that one particular scene in the movie was inspired by the work one of my favorite grindhouse era filmmakers, Jack Hill – and that same scene also had to be salvaged with the help of Saw X director Kevin Greutert!

Our friends at Bloody Disgusting shared the information from the Q&A, reporting that Mohan said, “The biggest scene that did not work and I’m still not happy with is the scene when Isabelle tries to drown Cecilia. I studied a...

“No, let me give you some advice, cop. You can beat us, chain us, lock us up. But we’re gonna be back, understand? And when we do, cop, you better keep your ass off our turf, or we’ll Blow It Off! Ya dig? We’re Jezebels, cop – remember that name. We’ll be back!”

Jack Hill’s Switchblade Sisters (1975) will be available on Blu-ray April 20th From Arrow Video

The Wildest Girl Gang That Ever Blasted The Streets!

From Jack Hill, legendary director of Spider Baby, Coffy, Foxy Brown, and The Swinging Cheerleaders comes another iconic cult classic, Switchblade Sisters!

Lace (Robbie Lee), the leader of inner city girl gang The Dagger Debs, meets her match when new girl Maggie (Joanne Nail) moves into the neighborhood. Mistrust and conflict turn to friendship as the girls end up in Juvenile Detention together at the mercy of abusive guards. Meanwhile,...

Arrow Video is excited to announce the bow of their new subscription-based Arrow platform, available in the US and Canada beginning October 1. Building on the success of the Arrow Video Channel and expanding its availability across multiple devices and countries, Arrow boasts a selection of cult classics, hidden gems and iconic horror films, all curated by the Arrow Video team.

Arrow Video Channel begins streaming this October with headliners The Deeper You Dig, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Crumbs, The Hatred, Cold Light of Day, Videoman and The Herschell Gordon Lewis Feast. Also immediately available are perennial Halloween hits Hellraiser 1 & 2, Elvira, Ringu, tthe complete Gamera series, as well as full collections from the Arrow archives packed with exclusive extras, rarely seen interviews and documentaries.

The Deeper You Dig, the latest feature written, directed by and starring filmmaking family The Adams Family, leads the lineup of Arrow's launch, joined by The Adams Family's The Hatred,...

In today's edition of Horror Highlights, we have details on the Arrow streaming platform, the trailer for Expulsion, and a Q&a with Jacob Bloomfield-Misrach to discuss his work on 12 Hour Shift:

Arrow Launches New Streaming Platform in North America in Time for Halloween: "London, UK - Arrow Video is excited to announce the bow of their new subscription-based Arrow platform, available in the US and Canada beginning October 1. Building on the success of the Arrow Video Channel and expanding its availability across multiple devices and countries, Arrow boasts a selection of cult classics, hidden gems and iconic horror films, all curated by the Arrow Video team.

Arrow begins streaming with headliners The Deeper You Dig, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Crumbs, The Hatred, Cold Light of Day, Videoman and The Herschell Gordon Lewis Feast. Also immediately available are perennial Halloween hits Hellraiser 1 & 2, Elvira, Ringu, tthe complete Gamera series,...

I’ve always been fascinated by the duality of Pre-Code cinema, which is talked up in classic film circles as a sin-fueled dungeon of excess, but in most cases simply uses outlandish scenarios to moralistic ends. Baby Face might be about a woman sleeping her way to the top of society, but Barbara Stanwyck still has to realize love is more important than all the riches she’s accrued. Scarface might glorify violence, but Paul Muni will still get his in the end. Indulgence and retreat; enjoy the highs, but shape up or be doomed. Similarly, in the 1970s, after the Motion Picture Production Code was shattered and a wave of sex-fueled odysseys came rushing to the screens, they tended to strike out familiar territory, using their exploitative qualities to reinforce the status quo. So it is with The Swinging Cheerleaders. Jack Hill’s 1974 cheapo gets high on its topless women and under-the-table groping,...

Let's take a look at four of Arrow Video USA's latest Blu-ray releases. First up is the Us Blu-ray debut of Gilles Penso's Ray Harryhausen: Special Effects Titan, next up we have sci-fi spoof Return of the Killer Tomatoes, then Jack Hill's The Swinging Cheerleaders, and finally my pick of the litter, long overlooked '93 American indie thriller Suture....

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

Mvd Entertainment Group furthers the distribution of "Arrow Video" in the Us with several new home video titles available July 2016, including "The Swinging Cheerleaders" [Blu-ray + DVD] (July 5th),  "Crimes Of Passion [Blu-ray + DVD] (July 12th) and "Female Prisoner Scorpion: The Complete Collection" [Blu-ray + DVD] (July 26th):

"The Swinging Cheerleaders" [Blu-ray + DVD] (July 5th): 

"'Kate', an undergraduate at 'Mesa University', goes undercover as a cheerleader for her college newspaper in order to expose 'female exploitation in contemporary society'. But instead of oppression she finds love, friendship and a bigger fish to fry: namely corruption in the football team, headed up by the coach and his pals..."

Cast includes Colleen Camp ("Wayne's World"), Rainbeaux Smith ("Caged Heat") and Playboy Playmate Rosanne Katon.

Bonus Materials include : 

- Brand new 2K restoration from original film materials

- High Definition (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD Presentations

- Optional subtitles 

- Audio commentary

- Brand new interview with Jack Hill

-...

Can’t get enough looks at Independence Day: Resurgence before its release on June 24th? Four new behind-the-scenes videos have dropped, giving us a look at some pivotal scenes in the film as well as a profile of director Roland Emmerich. Also: a Ghoster concept trailer, details on three new Arrow Video Us releases, and info on the Dances with Films screening of Beacon Point.

Watch Four New Independence Day: Resurgence Videos: “We always knew they were coming back. After Independence Day redefined the event movie genre, the next epic chapter delivers global spectacle on an unimaginable scale. Using recovered alien technology, the nations of Earth have collaborated on an immense defense program to protect the planet. But nothing can prepare us for the aliens’ advanced and unprecedented force. Only the ingenuity of a few brave men and women can bring our world back from the brink of extinction.

Directed by Roland Emmerich,...

Arrow Video has announced their July releases and in a not-so-shocking turn of events, they’re awesome. First up is The Swinging Cheerleaders. I’ve never seen this but I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, the more Jack Hill on Blu-ray the better. A week later Arrow will follow that up with Ken Russell’s Crimes […]...

Veteran casting director Patrick “Geno” Havens, whose credits include the Steve Martin classic The Jerk but who might most fondly be remembered for such ’70s cult classics as Switchblade Sisters, The Swinging Cheerleaders and Brian de Palma’s The Phantom of the Paradise, died Thursday at USC Medical Center in Los Angeles. He was 75 and had recently suffered a stroke. Though he had a few acting and producing credits, it was as a casting director that Havens left his mark…...

In this episode of Off The Shelf, Ryan and Brian take a look at the new DVD and Blu-ray releases for Tuesday, April 12th 2016.

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Follow-Up Star Wars: Rogue One trailer / Rebels News Arrow Video: The Swinging Cheerleaders, Crimes of Passion, Female Prisoner Scorpion: The Complete Collection, + Blood and Black Lace (Us only) & Satan’s Blade (UK Only). Arrow Academy: Effi Briest, Fox and His Friends, The Ox-Bow Incident Criterion: McCabe & Mrs. Miller Kino Lorber: One Million Years B.C., Cry of the City Shout Factory: Death Wish II (w/ Unrated cut) Twilight Time: July & August Line-up and Sale Mill Creek: 2 William Castle Double Features Universal: Black Dog Links to Amazon A Prayer for the Dying Bride of Re-Animator Chato’s Land Cutter’s Way Destroyer / Edge of Sanity Heroes Reborn: Event Series In the French Style It Follows Julia Justice League...

The Austin Film Society hosted a Moviemaker Dialogue last week with Austin film editor  Sandra Adair. Chale Nafus moderated the conversation, interviewing Adair and teasing her about his being cut out of Waking Life. 

Adair told us that as a kid she wanted to paint, but in high school, she became inspired by her older brother's student film. Her first film job was as apprentice editor on Memory of Us in 1974. She'd moved up to assistant editor for her next movie, The Swinging Cheerleaders* (heh). She lived in Austin for a period of time -- during which she synced dailies as assistant editor on Outlaw Blues -- but moved back to L.A. soon afterwards. 

The 1991 recession brought Adair back to our fair city. A connection at Texas Motion Pictures Services (which she said used to be located in a building behind Capital Plaza in northeast Austin) told her about...