Following on from the glorious collection of sleazy and shocking seventies trailers (reviewed here), we have another compilation, this time focusing on the nineties output.
As with the previous collection, we have a veritable smorgasbord of condensed entertainment contained within the four-hour running time. Divided into two parts: ‘The Crackdown’ and ‘Stalk n’ Slash’, the trailers take in some of the best-known movies of the decade, as well as a whole load of obscure titles that just leave you dying to track down.
In the first section, we have the likes of revenge thrillers such as Ms. 45, Death Wish II, and The Exterminator rub sprockets with certified classics like The Thing, The Terminator, and RoboCop. A bunch of Lucio Fulci gems – The Beyond by far being the best – highlight the leanings of the early eighties to Euro-horror and splatter flicks, while the likes of Ice Pirates, Zone Troopers, and Space Raiders (nothing to do with the tasty corn-based snack) provide plenty of giggles in their low-budget ineptness.
As would be expected by the title of the second part, the remainder of the teasers cover those eighties phenomena – the slasher film. The first three Friday the 13th movies take centre stage, but there’s still lots to discover, particularly with lesser-known (to anyone who didn’t live through the VHS-era) treats such as Curtains, The Nesting, and Death Spa. We could sit for hours (and we did!) watching the outrageous hyperbole of these fantastic promo clips while keeping in mind that just around the corner, cinema would soon become much more shocking and explicit. They don’t sell the movies to us like this anymore.
Other curios include some movies that are ripe for rediscovery, Miracle Mile, anyone? While most of these trailers are readily available on YouTube and the like, it’s good to see them spruced up in high definition and packaged together like this.
The release – from Australia’s Umbrella Entertainment – is well worth tracking down, and is region-free so there’s no problem viewing anywhere in the world.
DRIVE-IN DELIRIUM: HI DEF HYSTERIA – MAXIMUM 80S OVERDRIVE / CERT: TBC / DIRECTOR & SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: VARIOUS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
