|
Shockumentary
Mondo films are a subgenre of exploitation films and documentary films. Many mondo films are made in a way to resemble a pseudo-documentary and usually depicting sensational topics, scenes, or situations. Common traits of mondo films include portrayals of foreign cultures (which have drawn accusations of ethnocentrism or racism),Kerekes & Slater, p. 108. an emphasis on taboo subjects such as death and sex, and staged sequences presented as genuine documentary footage. Over time, the films have placed increasing emphasis on footage of the dead and dying (both real and fake). The term ''mondo'' is derived from the Italian word for "world". The term shockumentary is also used to describe the genre. Mondo films began to soar in popularity in the 1960s with the releases of ''Mondo Cane'' (1962), '' Women of the World'' (1963) and '' Africa Addio'' (1966). The genre arguably reached its peak with '' Faces of Death'' in 1978, a film that inspired myriad imitators, such as the '' Trac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Traces Of Death
''Traces of Death'' is a 1993 Z movie mondo shockumentary that consists of various scenes of stock footage depicting death and real scenes of violence. Unlike the earlier '' Faces of Death'' which included fake deaths and reenactments, ''Traces'' consists mostly of actual footage depicting death and injury, and consists also of public domain footage from other films. It was written and narrated by Damon Fox. Since its release, ''Traces of Death'' has been followed by four sequels. The first sequel, ''Traces of Death II'', was released in June 1994. This was followed by ''Traces of Death III'' in December 1994, ''Traces of Death IV: Resurrected'' in 1996 and ''Traces of Death V: Back in Action'' in April 2000. Film content In the first two films of the series, Damon Fox was the narrator. Darrin Ramage, who would later become the founder of Brain Damage Films, would become the host for the third, fourth and fifth volumes. Unlike ''Faces of Death'', the footage throughout the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Women Of The World
''Women of the World'' (original title ''La donna nel mondo'') is a 1963 Italian mondo film, also described as a "shockumentary", written and directed by filmmakers Gualtiero Jacopetti, Paolo Cavara and Franco Prosperi. It was rushed into release on 30 January, following the international box-office success achieved by its predecessor, the initial mondo film, ''Mondo Cane'', which premiered in Italy ten months earlier, 30 March 1962. The English language print was narrated by Peter Ustinov. Following the pattern set by the original concept and consisting mostly of leftover footage from the first film, ''Women of the World'' is, again, a series of travelogue vignettes which provide glimpses into the lives of its title subjects, with the intention of shocking or surprising Western film audiences. However, unlike the previous film which had no specific central subject matter, but rather presented a kaleidoscopic display of shocking content, the second film was marketed as directly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gualtiero Jacopetti
Gualtiero Jacopetti (4 September 1919 – 17 August 2011) was an Italian documentary film director. With Paolo Cavara and Franco Prosperi, he is considered the originator of mondo films, also called "shockumentaries". Early life Gualtiero Jacopetti was born in Barga, in Northern Tuscany, in 1919. During World War II, he served in the Italian Resistance to fascist dictator Benito Mussolini. After the war, on the advice of his friend and mentor Indro Montanelli, he began to work as a journalist. He co-founded the influential liberal newsweekly ''Cronache'' (considered to be a direct predecessor to ''l'Espresso'') in 1953, only to be forced to shut down production after publishing risque photographs of actress Sophia Loren which caused the paper to be charged with manufacturing and trading pornographic material (a charge which also earned Jacopetti a year-long prison sentence). He subsequently worked as a journalist, editor, newsreel writer, actor and short-subject film maker. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paolo Cavara
Paolo Cavara (4 July 1926 – 7 August 1982) was an Italian screenwriter and film director. He is best known for collaborating with Gualtiero Jacopetti and Franco E. Prosperi on the 1962 mondo film '' Mondo Cane'', and for directing the fiction film ''The Wild Eye'' (1967) and two giallo films, '' Black Belly of the Tarantula'' (1971) and '' Plot of Fear'' (1976). Biography During the 1950s, he studied architecture at the University of Florence, after which he produced documentaries for scientific voyages of exploration, and emerged as a pioneer of underwater cinematography (one of these voyages was the important 1951 expedition to Ceylon along with Franco Prosperi documented by local news, that anticipated Folco Quilici’s ''Sixth Continent'' experience). Next, Cavara worked on a series of Italian National TV films led by Giorgio Moser. He also worked as an assistant director (''Timbuctu'' and ''Naked Maya'', a 1958 production by Henry Koster). In 1962, Cavara conceived wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Exploitation Film
An exploitation film is a film that tries to succeed financially by exploiting current trends, niche genres, or lurid content. Exploitation films are generally low-quality "B movies", though some set trends, attract critical attention, become historically important, and even gain a cult following. History Exploitation films may feature suggestive or explicit sex, sensational violence, drug use, nudity, gore, destruction, rebellion, mayhem, and the bizarre. Such films were first seen in their modern form in the early 1920s, but they were popularized in the 60s and 70s with the general relaxing of censorship and cinematic taboos in the U.S. and Europe. An early example, the 1933 film Ecstasy, included nude scenes featuring the Austrian actress Hedy Lamarr. The film proved popular at the box office but caused concern for the American cinema trade association, the MPPDA. Hildegard Esper and Dwain Esper are husband and wife film directors and producers who made some of the most ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1962 In Film
The year 1962 in film involved some very significant events, with ''Lawrence of Arabia'' winning seven Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director. Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1962 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows: Events * February – Warner Bros. buy the film rights for ''My Fair Lady'' for the unprecedented sum of $5.5 million plus 47¼% of the gross over $20 million. * May – The Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards are officially founded by the Taiwanese government. * June 18 – MCA Inc. finalize their merger with Decca-Universal. * July 25 – Darryl F. Zanuck, one of the founders of 20th Century Fox, becomes president, replacing Spyros Skouras. Skouras becomes chairman of the board. * August 5 – Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe is found dead of a drug overdose. * September 7 – Filming of Sergei Bondarchuk's '' War and Peace'' begins and will continue for another 5 years. * October 5 – '' Dr. No'' laun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Russ Meyer
Russell Albion Meyer (March 21, 1922 – September 18, 2004) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, and editor. He is known primarily for writing and directing a series of successful sexploitation films that featured campy humor, sly satire and large-breasted women, such as '' Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!''. Meyer often named '' Beyond the Valley of the Dolls'' (1970) as his definitive work. Early years Russ Meyer was born in San Leandro, California, the son of Lydia Lucinda (Hauck) and William Arthur Meyer, an Oakland police officer. His parents were both of German descent. Meyer's parents divorced soon after he was born, and Meyer was to have virtually no contact with his father during his life. When he was 14 years old, his mother pawned her wedding ring in order to buy him an 8 mm film camera. He made a number of amateur films at the age of 15, and served during World War II as a U.S. Army combat cameraman for the 166th Signal Photo Com ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The War Game
''The War Game'' is a 1966 British pseudo-documentary film that depicts a nuclear war and its aftermath. Written, directed and produced by Peter Watkins for the BBC, it caused dismay within the BBC and also within government, and was subsequently withdrawn before the provisional screening date of 6 October 1965. The corporation said that "the effect of the film has been judged by the BBC to be too horrifying for the medium of broadcasting. It will, however, be shown to invited audiences..." The film eventually premiered at the National Film Theatre in London, on 13 April 1966, where it ran until 3 May. It was then shown abroad at several film festivals, including the Venice one where it won the Special Prize. It also won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 1967. The film was eventually televised in Great Britain on 31 July 1985, during the week before the fortieth anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing, the day before a repeat screening of '' Threads''. Synopsis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Last House On The Left (1972 Film)
''The Last House on the Left'' is a 1972 American exploitation horror film written and directed by Wes Craven in his directorial debut and produced by Sean S. Cunningham. It stars Sandra Peabody, Lucy Grantham, and David Hess. The film is about Mari Collingwood, a hippie teenager who gets abducted, raped, and tortured by a fugitive family on her seventeenth birthday. When they unwittingly seek refuge in her home, the killers face the vengeance of her parents. The film was controversial upon release for its marketing—with a tagline "Can a movie go too far?," advertising its violence. Craven based the film on a Swedish film, '' The Virgin Spring'' (1960), directed by Ingmar Bergman, which in turn is an adaptation of a Swedish ballad, " Töres döttrar i Wänge." Craven developed the film with producer Sean S. Cunningham after working with him on ''Together'' (1971) and once the filmmakers obtained small funding from Hallmark Releasing to make another feature film. Crave ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wes Craven
Wesley Earl Craven (August 2, 1939 – August 30, 2015) was an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and editor. Craven has commonly been recognized as one of the greatest masters of the horror genre due to the cultural impact and influence of his work. Amongst his prolific filmography, Craven was best known for his pioneering work in the horror genre, particularly slasher films, where he mixed horror cliches with humor and satire. Craven created the ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'' franchise (1984–2010), specifically writing and directing the first film, co-writing and producing the third, '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors'' (1987), and writing and directing the seventh, '' Wes Craven's New Nightmare'' (1994). He additionally directed the first four films in the ''Scream'' franchise (1996–2011). He also directed cult classics ''The Last House on the Left'' (1972) and ''The Hills Have Eyes'' (1977), the horror comedy '' The People Under th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mondo Keyhole
''Mondo Keyhole'' is a 1966 film directed by Jack Hill in his directorial debut. A sexploitation drama, it covers themes such as the pornography business, drug-taking, rape, martial arts and revenge Revenge is committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Francis Bacon described revenge as a kind of "wild justice" that "does... offend the law ndputteth the law out of office." P .... Plot Howard Thorne is a rapist in Los Angeles: he meets women at work and at parties or he sees them walking down the street, and he follows them, terrifies them, and assaults them. He also dreams about these assaults, and he's unclear how much of what he's done is real and how much is fantasy. He ignores his heroin-using wife, Vicki, who tries everything she can think of to get his sexual attention. Howard and Vicki go separately to a costume party where she learns the full truth about his nature and where he is stalked by one of his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mondo Trasho
''Mondo Trasho'' is a 1969 American 16mm mondo black comedy film by John Waters. The film stars Divine, Mary Vivian Pearce, David Lochary and Mink Stole. It contains very little dialogue, the story being told mostly through musical cues. Plot After an introductory sequence during which chickens are beheaded on a chopping block, the main action begins. Platinum blond bombshell Mary Vivian Pearce begins her day by riding the bus and reading Kenneth Anger's ''Hollywood Babylon''. Bombshell is later seduced by a hippie degenerate "shrimper" ( foot fetishist), who starts molesting her feet while she fantasizes about being Cinderella. She is then hit by a car driven by Divine, a portly blonde who was trying to pick up an attractive hitchhiker whom she imagines naked. Divine places her in the car and drives distractedly around Baltimore experiencing bizarre situations, such as repeated visits by the Blessed Virgin Mary (Margie Skidmore)—during which Divine exclaims, "Oh Mary ... t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_-_cropped.jpg "Click for more on -> Russ Meyer")
