Night Vision (1988) – Michael Krueger.

Naive, would-be scrivener (Stacy Carson) anxiously moves to the big bad city, meets (un-cutely)a shady diminutive skell(Tony Carpenter), falls for a cynical, yet ultimately humane video vixen (Shirley Ross), and is murderously possessed by the increasingly malign night emissions of a purloined satanic videotape! A lifetime of wallowing in a mire of B-movie incongruity has given me an almost preternatural ability to suspend disbelief, which proved immensely useful with Michael Krueger's loopy Lou Night Vision. While the pacing often feels sluggish, the script and performances are unexpectedly engaging in this goofily entertaining, yet undeniably hokey indie shocker. Granted, it takes a wee while to get going, the body splattering is largely off-camera, and despite its rather tame Mise-en-scène, Night Vision's frequently bizarre digressions proved mostly interesting. I'm hoping that the future looks brighter for Krueger's unfairly neglected tale of the devil's evilly tormenting terror tape, as Night Vision is absolutely deserving of rediscovery, perhaps even being given a limited Ed. (haunted) Big Box VHS re-release?

 Moonchild (1994) – Todd Sheets.

'I am Kronos and you two are dinner...an desert!!!!!!!!!!!

Set in an urban dystopian future (today?), lorded over by goofs in cheapnis garb (The Sidality), Jacob Stryker (Auggi Alvarez), a gene-spliced powerwolf hybrid, with greatly enhanced butt-kicking prowess desperately seeks his young son in high-spirited S.O.V Sci-actioner Moonchild. Inimitable schlock-slinger Todd Sheets is arguably one of the more prominent figures in S.O.V fandom, an able provider of mirthsome, micro-budgeted VHS vainglory, this indefatigable Ed Wood of the 90s may be surprised at howl long his Sci-fried Moonchild has held B-Mongs like me under its spazzoidal spell! Replete with with cherishable dialogue you'll want to dip in the milkiest chocolate and gift to loved ones on date night, hilariously happy-slappy bum-fights, and a lordly full metal'd soundtrack, Moonchild shall ALWAYS be the G.O.A.T. on bad movie marathons. If you have previously enjoyed a roustabout Sheets production, you will be aware of the endearingly low budget aesthetic, bubble gum dialogue, and 'enthusiastic' acting performances, and if not, this will either be hugely appealing, or not, but I dig it! Once again, Visual Vengeance are to be congratulated for adding yet another underground analogue blockbuster to their prodigiously rad roster of dynamite D.I.Y film-making legends. I don't subscribe to the notion that Visual Vengeance is an anti-boutique label, their titles are pricey, sweetly engorged with juicy extras, and, frankly, one has to be a legitimately deep-digging cognoscenti of bargain-binned bosh to be aware of these neglected vidiotic triumphs in the first place! For my sins, I used to have a sketchy VHS-rip of Moonchild, and, happily, this spankingly new edition meticulously maintains the splendidly rudimentary vibe throughout! Moonchild remains one splendiferously stupefying S.O.V classic! Retrograde media, or death!!!!!!

 Blood Run aka Outside The Law. (1994) – Boaz Davidson.

'Did you read him his rights, before, or after you threw him off the roof?!!!'

Blood Run has some hunky David Bradley, sultry Ashley Laurence, scrumptiously voluptuous Anna Thompson, ubiquitous DTV heavy Robert LaSardo action, all brightly wrapped up with slick Nuimage pizazz, so colour me interested, guy!!! This glossily neon-splashed, teasingly voyeuristic Basic Instinct retread proved to be a surprisingly thrilling affair. Boaz Davidson's saucy psycho-slasher features routine boozy cop tropes, lovingly curated T&A, suspense, credible performances, and a fabulously frenzied femme fatal finale! There are rare occasions when the judicious recycling of stock cliches, once ably reassembled, can provide robust exploitation value, and Blood Run does just that. A lovely score, solid supporting cast, and a bluesy, late night, Neo-Noirish edge that, for me, made Davidson's scintillating Blood Run an altogether satisfying distraction. If, like me, you are an overtly obsessive horror/B-Movie fan, you might dig on Bill Moseley turning up, albeit briefly, and its always fine to see another appearance from The Hidden's William Boyett!!!!

 Tales From The Crib : American Nightmare. (2018) – Rusty Cundieff/Darin Scott.

I somewhat reluctantly checked out this Horror anthology solely because of main man Trejo, but found myself enjoying much of it, doubly so when the legendary actor Clarence Williams III turned up, and single-handedly stole the show! My absolute love of anthology horror has often led me astray, but I'm certainly glad I gave this one a shot, and Mr Malevolent's (Trejo) creepy laugh is proper quality, mayte! You're very much still the man, Mr. Trejo!! It's a little too Zeitgeist-y for me to LOVE it, but the film is competently made, has a quality cast, delivers one, or two punchy scares, and is certainly playful enough to suggest that we shouldn't take this American Nightmare too seriously!

 Streetwalkin' (1985) – Joan Freeman.

A teenaged girl Cookie (Melissa Leo) and her younger brother seek refuge in NYC, malignly groomed by smooth talkin' skell Duke( Dale Midkiff), Cookie tries to leave him, but is violently pursued by the increasingly deranged Duke. Firebrand Melissa Leo delivers a gutsy, star-making performance in Freeman's gritty 80s New Concorde exploitation classic. I absolutely dig the fact this runaway teen shocker pretty much turns into an all-out slash-o-rama bloodbath by the memorably frantic final act! With an exceptionally fine supporting cast, righteously ear-wormy score, escalating suspense, and a gonzo climax, capably directed by the truly beauteous star of Elvis carny gem Roustabout, Streetwalkin' remains a thrilling, hugely rewatchable VHS-era gem. 

Eight Strikes of the Wildcat (1976) – Yi-Hsiu Lin.

A feisty young woman Shao Wa (Chi Dan-dan) seeks vengeance following her father's death at the feral hands of an outlaw gang. Enduring physically arduous training, painfully sinew stretching stratagems, and leavened with pleasantly comedic distractions, this determined, extraordinarily flexible heroine bravely confronts her murderous quarry in a bravura, ferociously fight-packed finale! Eight Strikes of the Wildcat is a bona fide vintage Kung Fu gem, generously brawl-packed, and remains a must-watch for Kung Fu addicts, or any that would greatly relish seeing a powerfully athletic female protagonist make bloody mincemeat out of the tyrannous Rat gang! Originally released on the now-legendary Vengeance Video DVD label, Yi-Hsiu Lin's thunderously thrilling Kung Fu Bobby Dazzler is a blisteringly bellicose battling babe bonanza that is due a well deserved restoration.

 Absolution (1978) – Anthony Page.

While I have seen Absolution many times over the years, I am still struck by the sheer majesty of it, Burton, composer Stanley Myers, and an exemplary cast lend an awesome gravitas to Shaffer's immaculate screenplay.