American Horror Project: Vol. 1

This review was originally written for my website From the Mind of Tatlock. The product was provided for review.There is a bevy of unseen horror gems out in the wild, some that are many years old. Arrow Video has the means and the potential to find these flicks and bring them forth so we lucky horror fans can finally watch them. That is the entire basis for the American Horror Project. Arrow Video has found three films to bring to Blu-ray, in a stellar package full of extras. The three movies included are Malatesta’s Carnival of Blood, The Witch Who Came from the Sea, and finally The Premonition. However, the three flicks aren't the best movies around, resulting in some mixed feelings towards this otherwise wonderfully put together collection. Read on to see how each movie fares and what the box set is all about...Malatesta's Carnival of Blood:The first movie included in the box set is the absurdly wacky Malatesta’s Carnival of Blood. It's a convoluted mess of a movie, with randomly strung together scenes featuring a rundown carnival and a bunch of cannibals bordering on being zombies. The plot, which is almost nonexistent, involves a family setting up shop at a carnival to make some money. Unbeknownst to them, the carnival's owner, the creepy Malatesta, houses below the surface a bunch of cannibals. The movie attempts to provide a narrative involving the daughter getting abducted by the leader, but really, though, the movie doesn't have a story.Malatesta’s Carnival of Blood's plot when boiled down, is just a bunch of trippy looking set pieces, with scenes stitched together to get you from point A to B. The movie struggles to properly flow, throwing random nonsense your way, hoping to spook up a scare, but sadly fails. Malatesta’s Carnival of Blood is most certainly a shoestring budget flick, however, the film manages to use that small amount of money effectively to give the viewer an interesting movie to look at, having been shot at a rundown amusement park in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. The people behind the scenes went to town creating these wonderfully odd and frightening underground systems below the carnival, but even that wasn't enough to save this movie from being anything but a mess.The Witch Who Came from the Sea:The next movie is arguably the best of the three included films, much in thanks to a wonderful performance from Millie Perkins, and a story that keeps you interested. Molly (Perkins) is a woman on the edge of psychosis, all thanks to a traumatic past involving her father and the cruel acts he inflicted on her as a child. Molly lives in a fantasy world where she dreams of finding the perfect man, usually someone on TV, as she has an unhealthy obsession with television. She hopes to find someone who will love her, but her traumatic past takes hold and she feels she must bring these TV personalities down from the idolized perfection she has given them.The Witch Who Came from the Sea employs a plot that skirts the boundaries of reality and make-believe, making the viewer second guess everything that is happening. This is all possible thanks to Millie Perkins' performance, which teeters on the edge of innocence and insanity. It's rare that a film can make you feel empathy for a killer, but Director Matt Cimber does just that. In addition to wonderful acting and directing, the movie also has the added bonus of having the expertise of Dean Cundey (Halloween) as Director of Photography. He, as we already know from his several other amazing films, has a keen eye and his use of anamorphic wide lenses gives the movie a nice wide open look.The Premonition:The Premonition is the last movie in the box set and unfortunately, it just doesn't bring home the horror goods. More drama than horror, The Premonition is about a recently released psychiatric patient and her attempts at trying to take her daughter back from having to give her up five years ago. She teams up with the even more crazy Jude (Richard Lynch) and attempts at kidnapping the little girl. The new mother of the child starts having crazy visions involving the crazy mother, which hints at both a paranormal and metaphysical situation, but in the end, the movie is a drama, with a tiny bit of something more otherworldly happening.I will say this about The Premonition, it has some fantastic acting, with Richard Lynch as the psycho mime stealing the show. Sharon Farrell also does a wonderful job at playing the grief-stricken mother and Ellen Barber looks absolutely stunning in a red dress. It's also a flick that has a mesmerizing score provided by Henry Mollicone. The Premonition uses music as plot device, so having a fantastic composer was a must and Mr. Mollicone passed with flying colours.Blu-ray Opinion:The movies might not be the best around, but that doesn't stop Arrow Video from going crazy with special features, some wonderful video, and fantastic audio.The video for all three movies is a bit rough around the edges, but given the low budget state of these movies, it's completely acceptable and in my opinion, gives each movie a much-needed Grindhouse look and feel that only goes to enhance the viewing experience. According to the included booklet, the movies were in even rougher shape and to present the films in the state you see now, thousands of instances of dirt and debris were removed from the only available prints they could find. The audio fares the same, with a bit of distortion and hiss here and there, especially in The Witch Who Came from the Sea. It's nothing that is terribly awful, as the dialogue comes through nice and clear. Arrow Video has done a stunning job on the restorations and all three directors have given their approval, so you know what you're getting is the best it can be.The special features for the American Horror Project Vol 1 is to put it bluntly, fantastic. Each disc has a bevy of features, including several interviews with cast and crew. Also, each movie comes with an optional introduction by Stephen Thrower, who provides plenty of information on the movies. This is one person I could sit down and listen to all day.The biggest positive that comes out of watching the special features for each movie is the greater appreciation you have for the films. I may personally not have liked Malatesta’s Carnival of Blood, but after watching the interviews with Director Christopher Speeth and crew, I now have a better understanding of the work that went into making it and why it didn't turn out so great. The movie's script ended up being abandoned halfway through, which is never a healthy business practice. Thankfully, you can read the draft script when slapping the disc in a BD-ROM drive.If you end up liking The Premonition, you'll be happy to see that the disc has the most features on it. There is a nice interview with Director Robert Allen Schnitzer, musician Henry Mollicone, and cinematographer Victor Milt. There also a wonderful archive interview from 2005 with actor Richard Lynch, who was very passionate about all the work he did during his career as an actor. Also included are short films done by Schnitzer, which have nothing to do with the movie, but will provide Schnitzer fans more to watch.Rounding out the entire package is a nice cardboard sleeve housing the three movies, each coming in their own cases with reversible artwork. In addition to some nice packaging, you have a 60-page booklet to read, which contains a ton of information about the movies.Verdict:American Horror Project Vol 1 might not have the best movies around, but the passion that went into restoring the films, and with a mountain of special features to go through, the Blu-ray box set is definitely worth checking out. There will be something for everyone in this set, with my personal fav being The Witch Who Came from the Sea. Why not check it out and see which one you like the best.Rating:I may not have liked all the movies, but that doesn't mean it's not a fantastic release from Arrow Video.