CANDYMAN (2021)

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(2+)

 

Nia Da Kosta nije Bernard Rouz (!); ovi neki crnci s neizgovorljivim imenima (Jahja Abdul Matin Drugi?!!) nisu ni prineti legendarnom Toniju Todu, niti je ovo malo bledunjavih belaca tu dostojno da donese kafu Virdžiniji Medsen; a to da novi Kendimen neće biti ozbiljna konkurencija starom bilo je jasno još od prvog trejlera. Ipak, nada umire poslednja…

Za moj groš, Rouzov Kendimen je izuzetan, skoro pa vrhunski primer spoja arty-autorskog i žanrovskog filma, „poruke“ i „zabave“, angažovanog filma koji je istovremeno i neprestano zabavan. Numerički gledano, to je jedna snažna četvorka, jaka kano klisurina. Od ovog novog isprtka nadao sam se bar nekakvoj trojčici kao maksimumu ovoga što se danas sve patetičnije naziva hororima. Avaj, čak ni do toga se nije dobacilo. Čak i to je ovima bilo nedosežno.

Pre svega i iznad svega želim da podvučem i naglasim ono što je izgleda samo meni truizam, jer se danas u Americi izgleda skoro nikome više ne podrazumeva onako kao meni: HOROR film bi trebalo da bude što je moguće više STRAŠAN. Jeziv. Napet. Uzbudljiv. Šokantan. Gadan. Gde god može i koliko god može. Trebalo bi da „isporuči“ ono svoje elementarno, žanrovsko, da strava u filmu strave bude SINE QUA NON, kao prvi korak – pa tek onda, u drugoj instanci, ako mu je baš do toga, da mi plasira neke filozofije, angažmane, „poruke“, satire, kritike, metafore.

Većina novih horora, a sa njima i ovaj Kendimen, sapliće se i glasno pada već na tom prvom stepeniku. U žurbi da nam isporuče svoje poruke, svoje strašno važne metafore i podtekste, oni skroz zaboravljaju na fucking TEKST: toliko zaokupljeni onim što bi trebalo da je između redova, oni zaborave da pruže supstancu u samim redovima! (Seća li se još iko one debilne, a hajpovane rasne parabole ANTEBELLUM? Ne? Pitam se zašto…)

Današnji horor je kao neki novopečeni ali izvikani fenser-pljeskavičar kod koga odeš i kupiš zapaprenu (po ceni) pljeskavicu, a lepinja sva nešto fensi, nakićena nekim susamima i zrncima, semenkama i kurcima, i priloga ima od dvajes' sorti, i ovoga i onoga, i salata, i preliva, i povrća, i lišća --- samo što je jebena „pljeskavica“ nešto tanko, spoj samlevenog kartona i soje. I sad, mase i rulje žvaću to, skroz zadovoljni, mljackaju, gutaju to sranje ubeđeni da su dobili poslasticu, i čak traže još, a samo ja vapijem u pustinji: „Alo, kamo ovde pljeskavica u ovoj pljeskavici?!“

Dakle, za početak, a time bi se ladno moglo i završiti – ovaj Kendimen, a za razliku od Rouzovog, UOPŠTE nije strašan. Scene „strave“ kratke su, prekratke, slabo tempirane, i – uglavnom ne isporučuju uopšte (stvar se desi offscreen, ili se ne desi uopšte), ili premalo. Ko od bede, odrađeno preko kurca (da ne kažem preko pičke, pošto je ovo žena režirala). Čak i scena koja sama od sebe priziva eksces – masovno prizivanje Kendimena od strane 5 srednjoškolki pred ogledalima školskog klozeta – „rešena“ je kroz „less is more / use your imagination“ pristup, tako što vidimo nešto malo krvi koja prska po podu, iz ugla jedne kenjačice u WC kabini, koja to posmatra kroz mali prostor u dnu vrata i kroz mikro-ogledalce.

Ali ne, ne, neee, ne shvatite me pogrešno: nije krvoločni Ghoul ostao nenapojen KRVI i krvopljusa kao takvog; odnosno, jeste i to, da se ne lažemo – ALI, ja sasvim poštujem „less is more / use your imagination“ pristup, kad je upotrebljen vešto i pametno. Mogla se ta scena rediteljski rešiti i bez naročitog splatera – da je reditelja uopšte zanimao HOROR SET-PIS, na primer kroz niz detalja tog mass-masakra, kroz rafalnu paljbu krupnih planova kuke koja zamahuje, izbečenih očiju i čega god, tela i delova tela i faca koje su bacane po tom klozetu, kako udaraju o ogledala, o lavaboe, o radijatore...

Međutim ne, horor se ovde svodi na RADIO DRAMA pristup: 30-ak sekundi „gledanja“ kroz zatvorena vrata u kašičicu krvi koja prsne po podu.

A nešto kasnije imamo još jednu scenu u ovom „stilu“, samo još kraću, još goru, ubačenu maltene kao po „ugovornoj obavezi“ – kao da je producent ili neki marketing expert zapovedio da, pošto se ovo narodu prodaje kao horor, mora na svakih 20 minuta da bude neka scena ubijanja, ali nije bio dovoljno mudar da insistira na trajanju i kvalitetu scene, pa je ova vajna Nia iskoristila rupu u ugovoru, i „isporučila“ mu scenu „horora“ koju, opet, gledamo kroz zatvorena vrata – ovog puta, iz ugla dečaka kojeg oteraju iz sobe u kojoj se priziva Kendimen, pa on samo načas naviri kroz procep unutra… Pa serem vam se u ovakav ton film!

Dobro, nije baš SVE u celom filmu ovakvo – ima ta polu-OK scena u galeriji (mada je i ona mogla da se bolje i više izmuze), ima to lepo, mada nedovoljno rađeno lebdenje Kendimena dok mu rojevi pčela prekrivaju lice (priznajem, imam fetiš na ljudska tela koja lebde u vazduhu, a la THE FURY, ili kad ih nešto nevidljivo baca po vazduhu, a la A NIGHTMARE…), ali sve je to premalo, nedovoljno, golicanje bez punog, pravog deliverovanja.

Na stranu horor („Kako to horor nije važan?!“) – a drama? Koja bre drama? Likovi su nepodnošljivo iritantni – najmišićaviji slikar u svekolikoj istoriji nabildovanih slikara pokušava da se dodvori nepodnošljivo karikiranom (naravno, belom) vlasniku galerije, fenser-hipsteru, i njegovoj družini pomodarskih ljigavaca, time što će da eksploatiše stvarnu/urbanu legendu iz, kako će se ispostaviti, svog rodnog, bednog dela grada (iako ga na početku vidimo u bogatom, skupom, fensi stanu).

Na papiru to zvuči kao potentna stvar: uspešni, prilično prosperitetni crnac, umjetnik, a zapravo lizač belačkog fensi čanka, otkrije da je zapravo potekao od neke sirotinje, i ode da čačka po svojim korenima i po legendi iz svog neupamćenog kraja, sad još propalijeg no ikad, kako bi belcima prodao parče svog autentičnog, neprepoznatog bitka, kao pomodni komoditi koji će nedelju dana biti hit među hipsterima i art crowdu da ga tapšu po ramenima i obasipaju ga parama i 15-minutnom slavom. Međutim, ova je tema vrlo loše artikulisana, ja sam je ovde, u par rečenica, verovatno bolje i jasnije prikazao nego što se to u filmu vidi – a, svejedno, film ne uradi baš ništa samosvesno, pametno ili nadahnuto od tog njegovog čeprkanja, od tog suočavanja s time ko je, zapravo, i odakle.

SLEDE SPOJLERI:

Tvist je zanimljiv na nivou premise – ispadne da je naš slikar zapravo odrastao iz one bebe koju je Kendimen u Rouzovom filmu hteo da spali na lomači. Ali, šta s tim? Ništa!

A kad na kraju taj slikar bude pretvoren u novog Kendimena, tu postoje najmanje DVA problema:

1) Konotativno, ŠTA to jebeno znači, zapravo? Koja je poenta toga? U Barkerovim pričama iz KNJIGA KRVI čest je bio rezultat da onaj koji čeprka po mraku na kraju postane deo tog mraka, ko se upliće sa čudovištima na kraju postane čudovište – što, uglavnom, bude na neki način ispunjujuće, transgresivno i transcendentno iskustvo. Ovde se, valjda, htelo tako nešto – samo što je klimava putanja tog konkretnog lika: kako baš on, zašto baš on da postane „monstrum“? Ne kažem da, čak ni unutar nazora i intencija ovog filma, to nije moglo biti osmišljeno – npr. da čankolizac belaca spozna svoje crne korene i na kraju postane Pošast za njih, neko čije će ime sa strahom izgovarati dok se gledaju u ogledalu – ali to, prosto, nije artikulisano tako. Ovaj zaplet nam zapravo sugeriše da nisu crnca u monstruma pretvorile zle bele sile belačkog opresivnog poretka, nego nekakva natprirodna predodređenost – još kao bebu Kendimen je hteo baš njega, i sad je samo došao po svoje. Toliko o značenjima, satiri, simbolici…

2) Ok, u redu, slikar je postao novi Kendimen. Ali šta je sa starim? Neko/nešto je definitivno ubijalo i pre njega – to sigurno nije bila „urbana legenda“ nego delatni stvor kojega smo videli u nekoliko scena pre toga (često kroz zatvorena vrata, ali ne baš uvek!). I kakvo je sad ovo udvajanje? Da li se ovime stvara podloga za nastavak, KENDIMEN PROTIV KENDIMENA? Abdul Džabar Mula Jusuf Drugi protiv Tonija Toda?

Da li će sad svaki „probuđeni“ crnac koji osvesti svoje ropstvo u belačkom poretku da postane novi Kendimen? Da li je u toku stvaranje ARMIJE Slatkišara? I da li je to, prema autorima, uopšte dobro? Poželjno? Jel’ on sad neki kao junak crne rase? Ipak ga na kraju vidimo kako kolje gomilu (naravno, rasističkih, sirovih i surovih) belačkih pajkana, pa prema tome mora da je heroj. A one tinejdžerke u klozetu? A ona deca u dečjim sobama što se igraju „Kendimen Kendimen Kendimen Kendimen Kendimen“ pred ogledalom? Šta s tim?

 

Nažalost, ovaj film nije nikakva angažovana umetnost, nego samo nova, 21-vekovna forma BLAXPLOATACIJE. Oni raniji su se crncima dodvoravali kroz B-filmove, BLACULE i BLACKENSTEINE, ali oni su barem igrali za publiku, za masu, za one proletere, potlačene, nezaposlene, u vašljivim bioskopima u getoima i na periferiji, u kojima su budili ponos prikazujući im crne likove s kojima su ovi mogli da se identifikuju. Ovi današnji su mnogo gori, podmukliji: oni pripadaju nižim ešalonima A-filma, sa ozbiljnijim budžetima i pedigreom (da li sam već pomenuo da je Oskarovac, Džordan Pil, koscenarista i producent ovoga?), ali njihova ciljna grupa nije ona crnačka sirotinja koja je pre 50 godina navijala za Blekulu (i preko čijih bi glava ova dosadna drama sa jedva dvije žlice „horora“ proletela uz glasno ZZZZZZ) – nego publika multipleksa, crni imućni hipsteri, poput glavnih junaka ovog filma (i poput njegovih tvoraca), a još više su im cilj kvaziliberalni belci, takođe fenser-hipster provenijencije, koji smatraju da je tako IN, tako cool, i tako slobodoumno i velikodušno s njihove strane, da se by proxy valjaju u nekoj kao griži savesti zbog ropstva i svega prema crncima, ali i da se osete malo lakše, čistije, kad izađu s ovakvog filma, misleći da su participirali u nečemu strašno naprednom i širokoumnom.

(Poštenja radi, da podsetim: Pil, ako ništa drugo, barem u sopstvenim filmovima, pokušava, pa i uspeva, da izazove jezu, stravu užas; ali ne baš i u onima koje producira.)

A zapravo su tvorci ovog filma isti kao naš mišićavi slikar-zabavljač, exploatator svojih korena i svoje rasne traume, a publika koja se ovim nedokuvanim, nedomišljenim filmom oduševljava i diže mu hajp zapravo je identična onoj fensi rulji koja u filmu pijucka skupa bela vina dok u galeriji zuri u nekakve mazarije koje im se prodaju uz obilje praznoslovlja o značenjima i porukama. Blaxploatacija je nekada davno prodavala katarzu crnačkoj sirotinjskoj populaciji; ova današnja Blaxploatacija prodaje katarzu pozerima „belačke krivice“.

Na kraju, ono što me kao velikog ljubitelja i poštovaoca izvornog KENDIMENA naročito nervira, jeste slepačko, plitko nadovezivanje ovog filma na njega. Jer, ovaj se sasvim nepošteno i netačno zove samo KENDIMEN. Pošten i tačan naslov trebalo bi da glasi CANDYMAN 4: THE REINVENTION, jer ovo je NASTAVAK, a ne nova priča – nastavak koji s pravom ignoriše poludupasti II i nebitni III deo, ali zato nedosledno, i bez pravog razumevanja pokušava da se šlepa na I deo.

Prema ovom filmu dešavanja iz I dela zaista su se desila, ALI onda on neobjašnjivo reši da ignoriše Tonija Toda i njegovog Kendimena – hej, šta se desilo s njim? umesto njega ovde imamo novi „origin story“, umesto slikara iz 19. veka imamo polusumanutog beskućnika koji je deci delio bombone a zli beli policajci ga zatukli misleći da je decoubica – a iako referiše i na Heleninu priču, ignoriše njen epilog, u kojem ONA postaje nova urbana legenda. 

Pritom se Tod pojavi besmisleno superimponiran preko face novog Kendimena u poslednjem kadru (WTF? WHYYY?!!), čujemo i par njegovih memorabilnih rečenica iz I dela („What’s blood for if not for shedding, itd“), koje u ovom kontextu zvuče sasvim random (exploatacija nostalgije za originalom), inače narativno-konotativno besmislene. Virdžiniji omaž plate time što su je angažovali za voice-acting (čujemo je nešto malo i nebitno s jedne kasete). A posebno patetičan je muzički skor u ovom nastavku, koji zvuči kao da je neko nekada davno čuo odličnu temu Filipa Glasa, pa sad pokušava po sećanju da rekonstruiše njen ugođaj, ali na jedan sasvim nizak, nekreativan, jednobrazan način, ravno i neupečatljivo; a kome to nije bilo dovoljno, uz odjavnu špicu ide zapravo kaver-verzija te teme, koja čak i nije tako loša – ali je, i kao takva, svedočanstvo o poštapanju, šlepanju, referentnosti bez sopstvenog JA.

I da ne ulazim sad u raspredanje svake besmislice u motivacijama i ponašanjima likova – npr. slikara ujede pčela za šaku, ova počne da truli i deformiše se u jezivim razmerama, toliko da mu ta trula koža obuzme čitavu desnu ruku i još ramena, vrat, pola obraza, a on na sve to belo gleda; a kad na kraju ode kod doktora, zapravo nikom ništa, šalili smo se, popijte aspirin, nema veze što izgledate kao Brundlefly!

I baš kad sam se u sebi glasno nasmejao pomislivši – jebote, ovaj film mutira u bizaran omaž MUVI, da li će ovaj slikar sad da se pretvori u džinovskog čoveka-pčelu, u PČELAMENA, THE BEEMANa, vidi ga na šta liči ovako deformisan – kad ovaj, ladno, bez trunke srama, krene, baš kao u MUVI, polako, u krupnom planu, da sebi skida čitav jedan nokat s prsta! Pa ovo je nemreš bolivit koliko su ovi ljudi, ovi crni fenseri izgubljeni, koliko ne znaju šta rade! Ima tu i drugih krađa, kvazi-omaža, npr. pčela koja postoji samo s one strane ogledala (kao što beše u rimejku RINGA sa muvom iza ekrana, čini mi se), ali sve je to toliko random da je i ovoliko reči koje prosuh više nego što ovaj film zaslužuje. Ipak, kao predstavnik nekih tendencija i opšteraširenih problema današnjeg horora, neka posluži bar kao „studija slučaja“.

Uostalom, ko ne razlikuje pravu mesnatu pljeskavicu od one od soje i kartona, nek se sladi ovom drugom, zasenjen prilozima u vidu sličica-mrdalica kojima se, debilno, tokom filma pripoveda Kendimenova istorija, a uz odjavnu špicu nam se kroz njih prepriča ceo film, sve što smo dotad već videli: valjda svesni koliko je zaboravljiv njihov produkt, tvorci nam na kraju sve to ponove u dajdžestu, kao da bi tako da nam ga urežu u pamćenje. Uzaman, kažem ja. Džaba ste krečili!

SRPSKI HORORI OSVAJAJU SVET!

Najzad je stvar i zvanično obznanjena, pa mogu i ja, ovde, da podelim sa vama detalje o nečem što se, najblaže i najskromnije rečeno, može nazvati SPEKTAKULARNIM.

Ali prvo kratki UVOD, iz kojeg je ova veća stvar izrasla.

Pisao sam već ovde na blogu da sam imao tu čast da učestvujem kao jedan od sagovornika u dokumentarcu WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED: A HISTORY OF FOLK HORROR rediteljke Kier-La Janisse. Ovaj dokumentarni film pokriva podžanr „folk horora“ na filmu (uključujući TV i kratke filmove), u kinematografijama širom sveta. 

Da, najveći naglasak je na Anglofonom svetu, što je i prirodno, jer tu je taj podžanr dao mnoge od najvrednijih predstavnika na filmu: ipak, govori se tu i o Japancima, Nordijcima, Česima, Rusima i… Srbima!

Tu sam upao ja, da kažem koju o LEPTIRICI, ali i o folk-hororu uopšte, budući da je to žanr koji prilično volim i poznajem – ali znam ga ne samo kao ljubitelj i proučavalac, nego i kao stvaralac, budući da moj roman ZAVODNIK definitivno spada u taj podžanr.

Eto, bila mi je čast da učestvujem u filmu jedne istaknute autorke, odavno dokazane u svetu horora (pored ostalog, napisala je izuzetnu, unikatnu knjigu HOUSE OF PSYCHOTIC WOMEN) i da budem jedan od govornika na mestu gde se, u spektakularnom TROČASOVNOM filmu, oglašava još 50-ak najeminentnijih stvaralaca i stručnjaka, kao što su Piers Haggard (director, Blood on Satan’s Claw), Lawrence Gordon Clark (director, A Ghost Story for Christmas series), Jeremy Dyson (co-founder, The League of Gentlemen), Alice Lowe (director, Prevenge), Robert Eggers (director, The Witch), Jonathan Rigby (author, American Gothic), Adam Scovell (author, Folk Horror: Hours Dreadful and Things Strange), Andy Paciorek (founder, Folk Horror Revival), Howard David Ingham (author, We Don’t Go Back: A Watcher’s Guide to Folk Horror), Alexandra Heller-Nicholas (Author, 1000 Women in Horror), Kat Ellinger (Editor, Diabolique Magazine), Maisha Wester (Author, African American Gothic) – a u arhivskim intervjuima tu još govore i Robin Hardy (director, The Wicker Man) i Anthony Shaffer (writer, The Wicker Man).

Međutim, to NIJE SVE!

„Severin Films“ će početkom decembra objaviti neverovatan „box“ pod naslovom ALL THE HAUNTS BE OURS: A COMPENDIUM OF FOLK HORROR! U njemu je dokumentarac WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED „samo“ okosnica, poveznica, kičma, ali u njemu će na 12 blu-rej diskova (+ 3 CD-a i u jednoj KNJIZI) biti objavljeno 20 folk horor filmova, praćenih brojnim dodacima (kratki filmovi, video intervjui, itd).

Dobro, baš lepo, ali – gde su tu „SRPSKI HORORI“ i kako to „OSVAJAJU SVET“?

Evo šta i kako!

DISK 3 u ovoj „kutiji“ sadrži tri klasična horor gotika u režiji Đorđa Kadijevića, koji se po prvi put predstavljaju Anglofonom svetu. Istina, LEPTIRICA je pre par godina izašla na blu-reju u Nemačkoj, sa opcijom engleskih titlova; ali to izdanje su, izvan Nemačke, primetili samo najzagriženiji i najmalobrojniji frikovi Engleske i Amerike. Ovog puta, LEPTIRICA će im biti ponuđena u okviru pakovanja koje je apsolutno nemoguće prevideti, ignorisati, ne primetiti. U društvu nekih izuzetnih, svetski relevatnih filmova. I praćena adekvatnim, ozbiljnim extra materijalima (kakve švapsko Ghoul-free izdanje nije imalo)!

Evo šta na tom disku ima.

 

LEPTIRICA
Djordje Kadijevic, Serbia, 1973

65 mins | 1.33:1 | Color | Region Free
Serbian mono with optional English subtitles
HD master from Public Service Media Radio Television of Serbia

Based loosely on Milovan Glišić’s classic 1880 Serbian vampire story „After Ninety Years“ – which preceded Bram Stoker’s Dracula by nearly two decades – Djordje Kadijevic’s adaptation is a subversive, darkly erotic take on Glišić’s pastoral tale of a group of rural villagers beset upon by the infamous vampire Sava Savanovic, who has taken up residence in their local flour mill. 

Special Features:

Radical Fairy Tales — Interview With Director Djordje Kadijevic 

Plus bonus short films newly remastered in HD from archival film elements at Public Service Media Radio Television of Serbia:

Štićenik (Djordje Kadijevic,1973) (45 mins)
A terrified young man is being pursued by a mysterious man in black. He hides out in nearby mental hospital, but can he escape his fate?

Diary Of An Inmate (10 mins)
An interview with Štićenik actor Milan Mihailovic

Devičanska Svirka (Djordje Kadijevic,1973) (60 mins)
A man travelling through the countryside is drawn to a strange castle, which is reputed by the locals to be haunted. There he meets a beguiling young woman who ensnares him in her world of secrets.

Prisoner Of Song
An interview with Devičanska Svirka actor Goran Sultanovic

            Koja je bila moja uloga u ovome?

            Prvo, rediteljka Kir-La je za LEPTIRICU već znala od ranije, ali kad me je pitala da joj preporučim još neki srpski (kraći) horor film koji bi mogao da ide uz taj film na disku, kao dodatak, ja sam joj otkrio Kadijevićeva dva manje znana horora iz iste godine, ŠTIĆENIKA i DEVIČANSKU SVIRKU. Teško mi je bilo da odlučim koji od njih da joj preporučim, pa sam joj poslao Jutjub linkove sa oba. Mislim da su oba imala eng. titlove. Na svu sreću, njoj su se oba toliko dopala da je promenila plan, i umesto samo jednog, od RTS-a je otkupila oba!

            Drugo, angažovala me je da organizujem i produciram intervjue sa relevantnim sagovornicima iz sva tri filma. U saradnji sa prijateljem i kolegom, Igorom Stanojevićem (koji je ovde bio direktor fotografije, a donekle i organizator i još ponešto) uradili smo intervjue sa Kadijevićem, i sa dvojicom glavnih aktera u druga dva filma, Cacijem Mihajlovićem iz ŠTIĆENIKA i Goranom Sultanovićem iz SVIRKE.

            Inicijalna ideja mi je bila da intervjuišemo Oliveru Katarinu, i uz mnogo muke uspeli smo da dođemo do nje, ali ona je posle nekog oklevanja i odlaganja na kraju odbila, rekavši da je to što je imala da kaže – rekla svojom ulogom. Bez uvrede, ali javlja mi se (imam čvrstih razloga da verujem) da je intervju koji smo dobili od Sultanovića sadržajniji nego što bi njen bio. Naravno, pitanja sagovornicima u sva tri intervjua sročio sam ja. Takođe sam odgovoran za njihove prevode na engleski, kao i za adaptaciju i titlovanje.

            A ni to nije sve!

            Osim diskova i filmova, deo ovog paketa je i bogato ilustrovana knjiga.

            Evo kako je „Severin“ najavljuje i opisuje:

ALL THE HAUNTS BE OURS 

— 126+ Page Book

Curated by Kier-La Janisse, this beautifully-illustrated book designed by Luke Insect features new writing by Andy Paciorek, Stephen Volk, Mitch Horowitz, Dawn Keetley, Sarah Chavez, Stephen R. Bissette and Dejan Ognjanović alongside a selection of illuminating archival pieces and a breakdown of all the films in the set.

            Moj esej u ovoj knjizi posvećen je SRPSKIM VAMPIRIMA, odnosno osobenostima koje u našem narodnom verovanju, prozi i na filmu ima ovo stvorenje, u kontrastu prema zapadnjačkom poimanju vampira.

            Raduje me što se ovde u istim koricama nalazim sa ljudima čiji rad poznajem i poštujem: Paćorek je stara kajla u svetu folk horora, i za RUE MORGUE sam već (povoljno) prikazao njegovu antologiju eseja Folk Horror Revival: Field Studies; zatim, tu je Stiven Volk kojega sam za RM već intervjuisao povodom njegovog scenarija za film GOTHIC, a tu je i Stiven Bizet, o čijoj sam izuzetno vanredno genijalnoj knjizi THE BROOD (o Kronenbergovom filmu) takođe pisao hvalospev u RM, a i ovde na blogu sam joj dao Zlatnog Ghoula.

            Dakle, društvo malo, ali odabrano. I u njemu – srpski vampiri, i srpski horori.

            Ovo je, bez ikakve sumnje i konkurencije, najveći i najvažniji prodor i plasman srpskih horor filmova u svetu, još od programa SUBVERSIVE SERBIA koji sam 2010. priredio (sa Mičom Dejvisom) na najboljem horor festivalu na svetu, Fantaziji u Montrealu. (Uzgred, i Kir-Lu sam tamo upoznao, i intervjuisao.) Izveštaje odatle imate i ovde na blogu, 1. deo i 2. deo.

            Ali čekajte, ni to nije sve!

            U najnovijem broju magazina RUE MORGUE inicirao sam kod urednice ideju da upravo folk horror bude naslovna priča, povodom gorepomenutog dokumentarca i pratećeg „boxa“. U okviru tog temata nalazi se i moj esej o SRPSKIM VAMPIRIMA – ali drugačiji od onoga u knjizi ALL THE HAUNTS BE OURS. Dobro, ima nekih neizbežnih preklapanja, ali ovo je popularnije pisano, i sa drugačijim uglom i akcentom, iako je i tu LEPTIRICA u okosnici.

            Dakle, SERBIAN VAMPIRES su na korici (i u unutrašnjosti) najboljeg horor magazina na svetu: u broju 202 za sept-okt (to je duplo veći, obimniji Halloween issue)! Njegovo štampano izdanje u prodaju kreće 1. septembra, a digitalno možete kupiti već sada, odmah, ovog časa!

            Šta sve ima u tom broju, piše OVDE – a na istom mestu ga možete i poručiti.

 

A ni to nije sve!

Uskoro ću vam obznaniti i detalje o američkom izdanju blu-reja sa filmom DAVITELJ PROTIV DAVITELJA, na kojem je Dr Ghoulstein takođe radio sa svojim vernim asistentom Igorom… Samo polako.

 

            A šta sve ima u Severinovom folk horor paketu, osim srpskih horora?

            Evo toga na njihovom sajtu OVDE.

            A koga mrzi da klikće i ide odavde, sve je to preneseno i na ovaj blog.

            Pre zvanične najave, kratki Ghoul komentari: 1) izbor filmova je IZUZETAN, i sadrži neke od mojih omiljenih filmova (npr. DARK WATERS). 2) koliko je odličan izbor vidi se i po tome što mnoge od ovih filmova nikad nisam ni gledao – za neke sam znao, ali mi nisu bili dostupni, neke sam imao u nekim šugavim VHS ripovima koji mi se nisu gledali, a za nekolicinu prvi put čujem! 3) Vanredno poštujem što se zagazilo poprilično izvan Anglofone sfere, u svet slovenskog i nordijskog horora, sa izletima do daleke Australije, itd. 4) Sa svim pratećim dodacima, i sa svim ovim na jednom mestu, ovo je toliko izuzetna stvar da joj maltene nema parnjaka u svetu horor specijalnih izdanja, i biti deo TOGA zaista je od velike važnosti.

            Deo čega?

            Deo - OVOGA:

 

 

ALL THE HAUNTS BE OURS: A COMPENDIUM OF FOLK HORROR

[BLU-RAY BOX SET]

(PRE-ORDER 12/7)

Region Free

 

This box is limited to 4000 units. Pre-order yours today!

Here’s everything you need to know…

“On December 7th, Severin Films is digging up haunted soil to unearth a truly unprecedented box set – All the Haunts Be Ours: A Compendium of Folk Horror. Curated and produced by acclaimed author and WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED: A HISTORY OF FOLK HORROR director Kier-La Janisse, this definitive collection – anchored by Janisse’s award-winning documentary – includes 20 feature films, 3 CDs, a 126-page book, 15+ hours of short films, featurettes and more.

“In addition to the box set, Severin will also offer standalone editions of both EYES OF FIRE and WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED.

“The most comprehensive collection of its kind begins with the definitive genre documentary of our time, Kier-La Janisse’s award-winning WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED. From there, experience 19 of the best-known, least-known, rarely-seen and thought-lost classics of folk horror from around the world, all restored from the best available vault elements with Special Features that include short films, audio commentaries and exclusive featurettes.

“The ultimate genre exploration continues with the original WOODLANDS soundtrack by Jim Williams and a reading of the classic short story ‘The White People’ by actress Linda Hayden, as well as a 126-page illustrated book curated by Janisse and designed by Luke Insect featuring all-new writings by renowned film scholars, authors and historians.”

 

The most comprehensive collection of its kind begins with the definitive genre documentary of our time, Kier-La Janisse’s award-winning WOODLANDS DARK & DAYS BEWITCHED. From there, experience 19 of the best-known, least-known, rarely-seen and thought-lost classics of folk horror from around the world, all restored from the best available vault elements with Special Features that include short films, audio commentaries and exclusive featurettes. The ultimate genre exploration continues with the original WOODLANDS soundtrack by Jim Williams and a reading of the classic short story ‘The White People’ by actress Linda Hayden, as well as a 126-page illustrated book curated by Janisse and designed by Luke Insect featuring all-new writings by renowned film scholars, authors and historians.

 

DISC 1:

WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED
Kier-La Janisse, USA, 2021

192 mins | 1.85 | Color | Region Free
English and Portuguese with English subtitles
Stereo
HD Digital Master 

WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED explores the folk horror phenomenon and its culturally specific manifestations in international horror, from its first wave in the 1970s to today.

Special Features:

Video Introduction By Writer/Director/Producer Kier-La Janisse (9 mins)

Animating Folk Horror — A Conversation with Ashley Thorpe (12 mins)
Animator Ashley Thorpe discusses his processes and inspirations for the animated sequences he created for the film. 

Outtake: What is Folk Horror? (2 mins)
Expanded definitions of folk horror cut from the film’s introductory sequence.

Outtake: Harvest Hymns — The Sounds and Signals of Folk Horror (22 mins)
Historians and Composers—including Marc Wilkinson, John Cameron, Jim Williams, Pentagram Home Video and more—weigh in on the sounds of folk horror from trad to electronica. 

Outtake: Terra Assombrada — Expressions of Folk Horror in Brazil (7 mins)
Filmmaker Dennison Ramalho and Scholars Carlos Primati and Laura Loguercio Cánepa discuss the impact of Brazilian folk literature and songs on folk horror. 

Folk Poetry (5 mins)
WITCHFINDER GENERAL star Ian Ogilvy and BLOOD ON SATAN’S CLAW’s Linda Hayden recite classic folk poems set to Super 8 footage. 

Trailer

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DISC 2:

EYES OF FIRE
Avery Crounse, USA, 1983

86 mins | 1.85:1 | Color | Region Free
English Stereo | Closed Captions
4K restoration from the original negative

The seminal American folk horror film, unavailable on home video for decades, now debuts in a new 4K restoration. A rogue 18th century preacher and his followers make their way downriver to establish a new settlement beyond the western frontier and encounter a forest enchanted by strange spirits that will bring an apocalyptic madness upon them.

Special Features: 

Audio Commentary With Colin Dickey, Author of “Ghostland: An American History In Haunted Places”

The Secret Is In The Trees — “Nightmare USA” Author Stephen Thrower Interviews Avery Crounse (29 mins)

Crying Blue Sky
Alternate Longer Cut restored in 2K from Director’s personal 35mm answer print

Plus Bonus Short Films:

The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow (Sam Weiss, USA 1972) (13 mins)
Genre icon John Carradine narrates this atmospheric animated adaptation of Washington Irving’s classic story, newly scanned from 16mm for this release by educational film archive AV Geeks. Courtesy of Pyramid Films.

Transformations (Barbara Hirschfeld, USA 1972) (8.5 mins)
A fascinating feminist experimental film shot on location in Vermont about a group of witches performing white magic. Courtesy of the Vermont Archive Movie Project (VAMP). vamp.vtiff.org

Backwoods (Ryan Mackfall, UK 2018) (15 mins)
A scholar drifts from his path and finds himself in a house he takes for deserted. Based on H.P. Lovecraft’s “The Picture In The House.” Courtesy of Myskatonic Films.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DISC 3:

LEPTIRICA
Djordje Kadijevic, Serbia, 1973

65 mins | 1.33:1 | Color | Region Free
Serbian mono with optional English subtitles
HD master from Public Service Media Radio Television of Serbia

Based loosely on Milovan Glišić’s classic 1880 Serbian vampire story After Ninety Years – which preceded Bram Stoker’s Dracula by nearly two decades – Djordje Kadijevic’s adaptation is a subversive, darkly erotic take on Glišić’s pastoral tale of a group of rural villagers beset upon by the infamous vampire Sava Savanovic, who has taken up residence in their local flour mill. 

Special Features:

Radical Fairy Tales — Interview With Director Djordje Kadijevic 

Plus bonus short films newly remastered in HD from archival film elements at Public Service Media Radio Television of Serbia:

Štićenik (Djordje Kadijevic,1973) (45 mins)
A terrified young man is being pursued by a mysterious man in black. He hides out in nearby mental hospital, but can he escape his fate?

Diary Of An Inmate (10 mins)
An interview with Štićenik actor Milan Mihailovic

Devičanska Svirka (Djordje Kadijevic,1973) (60 mins)
A man travelling through the countryside is drawn to a strange castle, which is reputed by the locals to be haunted. There he meets a beguiling young woman who ensnares him in her world of secrets.

Prisoner Of Song
An interview with Devičanska Svirka actor Goran Sultanovic

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DISC 4:

WITCHHAMMER
Otakar Vávra, Czechoslovakia, 1970

107 mins | 2:35:1 | Color | Region Free
Czech mono with optional English subtitles
HD restored master supplied by the Czech Film Center

Otakar Vávra’s film about 17th century witch hunter Jindřich František Boblig and the horrors he visited on the small village of Velké Losiny has been called an Eastern European counterpart to Michael Reeves’ WITCHFINDER GENERAL and Michael Armstrong’s MARK OF THE DEVIL. 

Special Features: 

Audio Commentary With Czech Film Historian And Curator Irena Kovarova

The Womb Of Woman Is The Gateway To Hell (22.5 mins)
A filmed appreciation by essayist and critic Kat Ellinger and film historian Michael Brooke. Courtesy of Second Run Films.

The Projection Booth Podcast (62 mins)
The renowned film podcast’s episode on WITCHHAMMER, with host Mike White and guest critics Samm Deighan and Rahne Alexander.

————————

VIY
Konstantin Ershov, Georgiy Kropachyov, Soviet Union, 1967

76 mins | 1.33:1 | Color | Region Free
Russian mono with optional English subtitles / English mono
HD restored master supplied by Mosfilm

Based on the classic novella by Nikolai Gogol, VIY remains the height of Soviet fantasy cinema. In 19th century Russia, a seminary student is forced to spend three nights with the corpse of a beautiful young witch. But when she rises from the dead to test his faith, it will summon a nightmare of fear, desire and the ultimate demonic mayhem. 

Special Features:

From The Woods To The Cosmos — John Leman Riley On The History Of Soviet Fantasy And Sci-Fi Film (34 mins)

Trailer

Plus Bonus Silent Short Films: Satan Exultant (1917, 20 mins), The Queen of Spades (1916, 16 mins) and The Portrait (1915, 8 mins) 

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DISC 5:

LAKE OF THE DEAD
Kåre Bergstrøm, Norway, 1958

77 mins | 2.40:1 | B/W | Region Free
Norwegian mono with optional English subtitles
Restored in 2K from the original negative

Considered a classic of Norwegian cinema, a group of colleagues venture to a remote cabin to look for a missing friend and are spooked by an old legend: that the cabin had belonged to a man who killed his sister and her lover and then drowned himself in the lake. Since then, it is said that anyone who stays in the cabin will be driven to the same fate.

Special Features:

Audio Commentary With Film Historians Jonathan Rigby And Kevin Lyons

————————

TILBURY
Viðar Víkingsson, Iceland, 1987

57 mins | 1.33:1 | Color | Region Free
Icelandic mono with optional English subtitles
Restored in 2K from the original negative at the Film Museum of Iceland

This made-for-TV film shares the Icelandic lore of the Tilbury, a creature who could be summoned by women in times of financial hardship and starvation. But the gifts of the Tilbury come with their own brand of destruction. Set in 1940, during the British occupation, a country boy discovers his childhood sweetheart is having an affair with a British soldier, but suspects it could be one of the evil creatures.

Special Features:

Audio Commentary With Director Viðar Víkingsson And Screenwriter Þórarinn Eldjárn, Moderated By Film Scholar Gudrun D. Whitehead

With Enough Tilbury Butter, Anything Is Good — Interview With Karl Ágúst Úlfsson 

A Boy From The Country — Interview With Kristján Franklin Magnúss 

White Spot In The Back Of The Head (Viðar Víkingsson, 1979) (33 mins)
This early student film from the director of TILBURY transposes the ghostly Icelandic legend of The Deacon of Dark River to 1970s France.

“The Moon Fades, Death Rides”
Viðar Víkingsson discusses the folkloric origins of White Spot In The Back Of The Head

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DISC 6:

THE DREAMING
Mario Andreacchio, Australia, 1988

90 mins | 1.85:1 | Color | Region Free
English mono | Closed Captions
Restored in 2K from best surviving 35mm positive print 

When a group of Indigenous activists attempt to repatriate ancestral artifacts found in a cave on Australia’s Kangaroo Island, one of them is shot evading police and taken to a local hospital. When the patient dies in her care, the doctor attending to her experiences strange visions relating to violent events from the past. 

Special Features:

Audio Commentary With Director Mario Andreacchio, Moderated By Film Historian Jarret Gahan

Trailer

————————

KADAICHA
James Bogle, Australia 1988

88 mins | 1.85:1 | Color | Region Free
English mono | Closed Captions
Mastered from only surviving broadcast quality video master

Though conceived as a commercial horror film, this tale of teens being condemned to death in their dreams by an Aboriginal magician as recompense for a housing development having been built on a sacred burial ground also serves as an admission of national guilt.

Special Features:

Audio Commentary With Director James Bogle, Moderated By Veteran Film Journalist Michael Helms (Fatal Visions)

The Final Girl Of KADAICHA (13 mins)
An audio interview with actress Zoe Carides, conducted by film historian Jarret Gahan.

Composing KADAICHA (17.5 mins)
An audio interview with composer Peter Westheimer, conducted by film historian Jarret Gahan.

Behind The Scenes Of KADAICHA (7 mins)
Recently-unearthed footage of director James Bogle and the cast and crew in a typical day on set.

Trailer

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DISC 7:

CELIA
Ann Turner, Australia, 1989

103 mins | 1.85:1 | Color | Region Free
English mono | Closed Captions
Restored in 2K from 35mm original negative

In 1950s Australia, after 9-year-old Celia hears the disturbing fairy tale of “The Hobyahs” in school, it colors her interpretation of real life conflicts such as her parents’ struggling relationship, the threat of communism and the country’s plague of rabbits. Ann Turner’s award-winning film paints a disquieting picture of innocence trying to make sense of the harsh and complex world around her through escape into dark fantasy.

Special Features: 

CELIA And Me (40 mins)
A new interview with director Ann Turner

From Crawfords To CELIA (17 mins)
An interview with veteran editor Ken Sallows  

The Rabbit In Australia (24 mins)
This short documentary produced by Australia’s national science agency CSIRO in 1979 traces the introduction of the European rabbit to Australia and subsequent attempts to control its population, which includes the rabbit cull of the 1950s that serves as the backdrop for Ann Turner’s CELIA.

————————

ALISON’S BIRTHDAY
Ian Coughlan, Australia, 1981

97 mins | 1.85:1 | Color | Region Free
English mono | Closed Captions
Restored in 2K from 16mm CRI

Getting its first official release since the VHS era, this Australian paranormal cult is unearthed! During a Ouija board session with her teenaged friends, 16-year-old Alison gets a message from beyond the grave not to go home for her 19th birthday. Fast forward three years later to the week of her 19th: she gets a call from her mother that they’re having a party to celebrate and they want her there… alone. 

Special Features: 

Extended Interviews From NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD With Producer David Hannay And Cast Members Joanne Samuel And Belinda Giblin

The Devil Down Under — Satanic Panic In Australia From Rosaleen Norton To ALISON’S BIRTHDAY
A new video essay narrated by film scholar Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, based on her chapter of the same name from the book “Satanic Panic: Pop-Cultural Paranoia in the 1980s.”

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DISC 8:

WILCZYCA
Marek Piestrak, Poland, 1983

103 mins | 1.33:1 | Color | Region Free
Polish mono with optional English subtitles
Restored in HD from original negative by WFDIF in Warsaw

A domestic hit in Poland on first release, Marek Piestrak’s stunning wintry werewolf film is a sexually-charged folktale that pits a 19th century Polish patriot against the ghost of his unfaithful wife, who haunts him from beyond the grave as a she-wolf.

Special Features:

Unleashing The She-Wolf — An Interview With Director Marek Piestrak 

————————

LOKIS: A MANUSCRIPT OF PROFESSOR WITTEMBACH
Janusz Majewski, Poland, 1970

100 mins | 1:66:1 | Color | Region Free
Polish mono with optional English subtitles
Restored in HD from original negative by WFDIF in Warsaw

A pastor and ethnographer visits a remote corner of 19th century Lithuania where folk customs associated with the area’s pagan past still have a hold on the population. There he finds himself the guest of a strange old family consisting of a sadistic Count and his mad mother, who—legend has it—was raped by a bear on her wedding night; the Count himself reputed to be the product of this bestial assault.

Special Features:

Wild Country Of The Were-Bear — An Interview With Director Janusz Majewski

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DISC 9:

CLEARCUT
Ryszard Bugajski, Canada, 1991

98 mins | 2.35:1 | Color | Region Free
English 5.1 / English 2.0 | Closed Captions
Restored in 4K from 35mm answer print

A white lawyer arrives to a remote area in Northern Ontario to defend Indigenous activists who are blocking a logging company’s clearcut of old growth on their land. A pacifist by nature, and perceiving himself as sympathetic to Indigenous concerns, he finds his values shaken when he is paired with an angry, rogue Indigenous activist named Arthur (Graham Greene) who insists on kidnapping the head of the logging company to take him deep into the forest—where he hopes to teach him the price of his destruction. 

Special Features: 

Archival Video Introduction By Director Ryszard Bugajski
Courtesy of Maria Mamona

Audio Commentary With Scholar And Anthropologist Shaawano Chad Uran (White Earth Anishinaabe)

Plus Bonus Short films:

The Ballad Of Crowfoot (Willie Dunn, 1968) (10 mins)
Often referred to as Canada’s first music video, Mi’kmaq/Scottish folk singer and activist Willie Dunn’s The Ballad Of Crowfoot is a powerful look at colonial betrayals, told through a striking montage of archival images and a ballad composed by Dunn himself about the legendary 19th-century Siksika (Blackfoot) chief who negotiated Treaty 7 on behalf of the Blackfoot Confederacy. 

Audio Commentary For The Ballad of Crowfoot With Kevin Howes And Lawrence Dunn, Co-Producers Of Creation Never Sleeps, Creation Never Dies: The Willie Dunn Anthology

You Are On Indian Land (Michael Kanentakeron Mitchell, 1969) (32 mins)
A landmark film that documents a 1969 protest by the Kanien’kéhaka (Mohawk) of Akwesasne, a territory that straddles the Canada–U.S. border. You Are On Indian Land screened extensively across the continent, helping to mobilize a new wave of Indigenous activism. It notably was shown at the 1970 occupation of Alcatraz.

Consume (Mike Peterson, 2017) (20 mins)
Inspired by true events, residential school survivor Jacob Wematim (Julian Black Antelope) struggles to hang onto his land and Indigenous identity as his personal demons resurface and manifest in the form of the Wendigo spirit. 

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DISC 10:

IL DEMONIO
Brunello Rondi, Italy, 1963

98 mins | 1.85:1 | B/W | Region Free
Italian mono with optional English subtitles
Restored from the original negative at RAI TV in Rome

A stunning story of obsessive love, set in a rural Southern Italian village where Christianity has integrated many of the old superstitious beliefs. Daliah Lavi (THE WHIP AND THE BODY) plays Purif, who is distraught when her lover is betrothed to another. Her erratic behavior is interpreted as demonic possession—leading the villagers to turn against her with physical and sexual violence. 

Special Features: 

Audio Commentary By Film Historian Kat Ellinger

“The Kid From A Kibbutz” — Daliah Lavi And The Road To IL DEMONIO (27.5 mins)
A newly-commissioned video essay written and narrated by film historian Tim Lucas and edited by filmmaker and programmer Chris O’Neill

Once Upon A Time In Basilicata
Brunello Rondi biographer Alberto Pezzotta looks at IL DEMONIO and the themes that dominated the director’s eclectic career 

————————

DARK WATERS
Mariano Baino, Russia/UK/Ukraine/Italy, 1993

89 minutes | 1.85:1 | Color | Region Free
Italian stereo with optional English subtitles
Mastered in HD from the original negative

In Mariano Baino’s groundbreaking debut, a young Englishwoman drawn to an island in the Black Sea in an attempt to discover her mysterious connection to a remote convent—a crumbling edifice that has been constructed over a labyrinth of Lovecraftian horrors. 

Special Features:

Audio Commentary With Writer/Director Mariano Baino 

Deep Into The DARK WATERS (50 mins)
The cast and crew recall the making of DARK WATERS in this archival documentary featurette.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DISC 11:

A FIELD IN ENGLAND
Ben Wheatley, UK, 2012

90 mins | 2.35:1 | B/W | Region A
English 5.1 / English 2.0 | Closed Captions
HD Digital Master

During the Civil War in 17th-Century England, a small group of deserters flee from a raging battle and are captured by an alchemist who forces them to help him find a hidden treasure. Crossing a vast mushroom circle, which provides their first meal, the group succumbs to the terrifying energies trapped inside the field. 

Special Features:

Audio Commentary With Director Ben Wheatley, Producer Andy Starke And Sound Editor Martin Pavey

Letterboxd Magic Hour Episode One: Kier-La Janisse X Ben Wheatley (45 mins)
Ben Wheatley talks folk horror with WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED director Kier-La Janisse in this special online interview conducted for the release of Wheatley’s IN THE EARTH.

Please Hear Me — The Music of A FIELD IN ENGLAND (6 mins)
Composer Jim Williams and Ben Wheatley discuss the sounds and musical influences of A FIELD IN ENGLAND.

Ben Wheatley In Conversation With Pete Tombs (23 mins)
A fascinating discussion between Wheatley and film historian/author (“Immoral Tales,” “Mondo Macabro”) Pete Tombs that gets deep into the DNA of A FIELD IN ENGLAND.

Camera Tests (10.5 mins)

Trailer

————————

ANCHORESS
Chris Newby, UK, 1993

108 mins | 1.66:1 | B/W | Region A
Closed Captions
Mastered in HD by the British Film Institute

Based on the true story of Christine Carpenter, a 14th-century peasant who becomes transfixed by a statue of the Virgin Mary, and petitions to be walled into a cell attached to the church as a religious hermit. Alone in her cell she receives dark and sensual visions, while in the outside world, her defiant mother (played by musician Toyah Wilcox) is accused of witchcraft.

Special Features:

Lockdown 1329 (13.5 mins)
A new video essay by ANCHORESS director Chris Newby that explores parallels between COVID lockdown in the UK and Christine Carpenter’s experience as an anchoress, featuring outtakes from the film.

A Short Trip To Shere (2.5 mins)
ANCHORESS director Chris Newby documents the location of the real Christine Carpenter’s anchoress cell at St. James’ Church in Shere, England.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DISC 12:

PENDA’S FEN
Alan Clarke, UK, 1974

90 mins | 1:33:1 | Color | Region A
English mono | Closed Captions
Mastered in HD by the British Film Institute

Alan Clark (Scum) directs David Rudkin’s epic tale of myth and identity whereby a sanctimonious Vicar’s son has a spiritual and sexual awakening after being visited by a series of angels, gargoyles, and the ghosts of Edward Elgar and a long-dead Pagan King. Penda’s Fen is the most magical of ALL British Folk Horror films, what Scholar Sukhdev Sandhu called “A lasting vision of heresy and pastoral horror.”

Special Features:

Audio Commentary by James Machin and Matthew Hale, Editors of the book “Of Mud & Flame: The Penda’s Fen Sourcebook”

The Landscape of Feelings: The Road to Penda’s Fen (16 mins)                                                                                                                                                     A Documentary on the making of Rudkin and Clarke’s groundbreaking Drama, featuring interviews with Writer David Rudkin and Producer David Rose as well as contributions from Clarke collaborators such as Writer David Yallop, Actor Sean Chapman and Playwright David Leland. Courtesy of The British Film Institute.

Plus Bonus Short Film:

The Pledge (Digby Rumsey, 1982) (22 mins)                                                                                                                                                                                      Based on the short story by early 20th Century Fantasy Writer Lord Dunsany, The Pledge concerns a group of Highwaymen who make a pact to save the should of their  hanged partner. A dark, luscious film co-edited by an uncredited Peter Greenaway and featuring music by Michael Nyman. Courtesy of The British Film Institute.

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ROBIN REDBREAST
James MacTaggart, UK, 1970

76 mins| 1:33:1 | B/W | Region A
English mono | Closed Captions
Mastered from BBC protection tape master, the only surviving element

Veteran British chiller writer John Bowen penned this legendarily terrifying BBC teleplay, now considered a precursor to THE WICKER MAN. Nora Palmer moves to a quiet village in England after a break-up. The locals are warm enough at first, but their sinister intentions are gradually revealed. Is Nora paranoid or is she the center of a wicked pagan plot of indescribable horror?

Special Features:

Audio Commentary With William Fowler And Vic Pratt, Curators And Authors Of “The Bodies Beneath: The Flipside of British Film & Television”

Interview With John Bowen (12 mins)
The celebrated writer discusses his career and the origins of ROBIN REDBREAST. Courtesy of the British Film Institute.

Plus bonus short film:

The Sermon (Dean Puckett, 2018) (12 mins) In an isolated church community in the English countryside, a powerful hate preacher prepares to deliver a sermon to his flock, but his daughter has a secret that could destroy them all.

 

BONUS CDs:

WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED
ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK
Composed by Jim Williams 

THE WHITE PEOPLE
By Arthur Machen
Read by Linda Hayden
Music by Timothy Fife and Missionary Work

Arthur Machen’s hugely influential short story, first published in 1904, in which a discussion between two men on the nature of evil leads to the revelation of a mysterious Green Book—the diary of a young girl, in which she describes her initiation into a secret world of folklore and magic. Here the story is brought vividly to life with an incredible reading by Linda Hayden (BLOOD ON SATAN’S CLAW) and a remarkable original score.

ALL THE HAUNTS BE OURS — 126+ Page Book

Curated by Kier-La Janisse, this beautifully-illustrated book designed by Luke Insect features new writing by Andy Paciorek, Stephen Volk, Mitch Horowitz, Dawn Keetley, Sarah Chavez, Stephen R. Bissette and Dejan Ognjanović alongside a selection of illuminating archival pieces and a breakdown of all the films in the set.

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