Reviews (12)

Long Live Jim Kelly
This title, as bad in production value as it is, definitely ranks up there with the most entertaining movies I've ever seen. I laughed so hard at times, I nearly cried. Either they were doing this tongue in cheek, which then makes it brilliant, or it was complete schlock. Either way, it's a keeper for the library.

NOTE: I bought the VHS version thinking it would contain the edited footage, but it does not. Seems there is no fully uncut version available, because someone wrote the DVD version is edited. Ripoff.

Jim Kelly is a classic, and when he delivers the line "your credibility has reached an all time low", he is unforgettable.

LOVE THE MOVIE, BUT THEY'VE CUT IT
I have the older video copy of this and it's BAD, but fun. Looks like the newer VHS and DVD copies have been badly cut. Too bad! We need an uncut version of this on DVD! Try to find older versions and enjoy the great fights and silly crap served up with the original [***], Kelly's colorful use of language and some good old fashion sex and violence. The "G rated" version they have out on DVD is absurd.

Maybe the worst movie ever - but a must see!
This is singlehandedly the worst movie I've ever seen. Some movies have bad acting. Some have bad direction, bad writing, or just a bad feel. Black Samurai has all of that in spades, and just as icing, bad sound editing, and bad action scenes. Don't waste your time on this movie if you're expecting a martial arts movie on par with.. well, real martial arts movies.

What this movie is, however, is absolutely, although unintentionally hilarious. I laughed so hard my eyes watered up several times. But let's be clear: there are no jokes in Black Samurai. Black Samurai IS the joke, and I think Jim Kelly was in on it.

First of all, the title is horribly misleading. Jim Kelly, while indeed black, is no samurai. There is one scene where Kelly practices with a katana and some nunchucks, but that was apparently just to keep him sharp for later movies; they never appear again.

Secondly, for a government agent, Black Samurai is one evil dude. Even though Kelly is apparently some manner of law-enforcement official, he doesn't arrest anyone. He deals out his own brand of justice: knocking most people out, while selecting a few at random for life-altering injury. In one instance, Kelly chooses a seemingly random opponent and yells THE single most classic line in '70s film: "You never gonna walk again, sucka!", whilst snapping his spine. You cold as ice, BS.

But you don't just have bad titling or random acts of evil to glean cheap laughs from! You still have the veritable treasure trove of laughter that is the sound editing and effects!

First, the punches and kicks for some reason sound just like gunshots. Actual gunshots sound like gunshots too, which sounds confusing, but when you're watching the movie trust me, it'll be the least of your concerns.

Here's the best part: there are entire scenes complete with dialog where nobodys mouths move. Yes, really. No, I'm not making this up. There's a five minute scene where Kelly and an opponent move around sizing each other up. They're talking the whole time, but no mouths move. Maybe they're doing it telepathically. Also, apparently Kelly saw the movie after it was filmed and refused to do the dubbing for his character, hoping the movie would die, because there are several occasions where Kelly is supposed to be talking, but someone else's voice comes out.

This isn't a B Movie. This is more like an H movie. It's WAY down on the chain. I'm buying it anyway! I want to show it to my kids someday when they tell me classics like Ferris Beuller and Spaceballs suck. "...no little Timmy, THIS sucks."

What a terrible film !!!!!!!!!!
First of all let me say I love Jim Kelly but this movie is just plain awful, the acting is the worst i have ever seen and even the fights not the best Jim has ever done.
I actually turned the film off half way through because I was so bored with the story line.
Thank god Jim did "Black Belt Jones" !!

Black Samurai ¿ Not to be Taken Seriously
When watching this DVD all conventional expectations of standard film making (decent acting, editing, direction etc.), should be put aside. Instead this DVD should be enjoyed for what it is a schlock B - grade cult/martial arts send up that is performed with tongue firmly in cheek. "Black Samurai" is directed by Al Adamson who knows his way around low budget action fare. This film stars Jim Kelly as a wealthy agent for the government organization D.R.A.G.O.N. Kelly is lured back into action when his girlfriend is kidnapped by a group of Haitian voodoo slavers. Things do go from the sublime to the ridiculous as Kelly is pitted against a vulture, a slew of diminutive bad guys and the evil warlock Janicott (Bill Roy) all while never messing up one hair of his immaculate afro. Also, there is a scene of Kelly donning a jet-pack to sneak up on the evil doers that has to be seen to be believed. Adamson keeps things from spiraling into an incoherent mess while keeping a brisk pace. The supporting cast is odd but will be familiar to cult movie buffs including D' Urville Martin ("Black Caesar"), Felix Silla (Cousin It from "The Addams Family"), Marilyn Joi ("Kentucky Fried Movie") and tough guy Aldo Ray ("We're No Angeles"). The primary reason to watch this DVD is for the choreographed fight scenes that are done well enough and really do showcase Kelly's martial arts ability. All in all this film is not going to be remembered as great cinema but the charm of its silliness makes it enjoyable. ... Read more

Description

Witness director Al Adamson’s disturbing and socially significant cinematic portrait of a biker gang’s anti-social rampage! Motorcycle maniacs on wheels terorrize the southwest! After this sadistic gang wreaks havoc on the patrons of roadside diner, a waitress and ex-marine are the only surviving witnesses.The pulse-pounding suspense inscreases rapidly as the duo find themselves pursued through the desert by The Satans in a bloodthirsty chase.This seventies cult hit features chilling performances by Russ Tamblyn and Greydon Clark as "Acid." ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Life Imitates Art
This movie is a classic example of "Life Imitates Art". Many a bike club was built on the premise of this and many other 60's scooter tramp flicks like this one. Own a piece of American counter-culture and add this jem to your library!

violent and sexy biker movie
The movie starts promisingly with a couple indulged in petting suddenly interrupted by a gang of bikers. They drug the girl and rape her, then set the forcibly drugged and drunk couple in their car and roll the car over the edge of a cliff.
And the action never stops in this fine drive-in classic biker movie dubbed by producer Sam SHERMAN as the "CITIZEN KANE of biker movies". Well, I don't agree to that (in my view the best biker film of all time is the Spanish THE MAD FOXES), but SATAN`S SADISTS is great fun nevertheless.
The further plot concerns a former marine hitchhiking through the California desert, who is offered a lift by a middle-aged couple, a cop and his wife on second honeymoon. They decide to have a meal at a roadside diner. Suddenly the biker gang arrive at the diner! You can probably guess, what happens next: the bikers make trouble, molesting the waitress and harrass the cop's wife, prompting the cop to draw a revolver. Things get nasty, resulting in the policeman's wife getting raped (unfortunately we don't get to see too much nudity here) and the death of the cop, his wife and the diner's owner. The ex-marine and the waitress escape in the desert, killing two bikers in the process. One guy meets a particularly nasty end by being drowned in the toilet! The furious bikers give chase and the couple must fight for their life...

WOW! They don't make movies like that anymore. SATAN`S SADISTS is a sleaze masterpiece, full of violence, nudity, violent sex and drug abuse. The film is rather anti-establishment, like many movies of the period. And the characters are really cool! Sure, the ex-marine is a bit boring as well as his new found girlfriend, the waitress. But the bikers deliver. Particularly Russ TAMBLYN is great as the cool but psychopathic gang's boss Anchor. He delivers a nice anti-establishment speech before shooting the cop and the other victims at the diner. And his accomplices are a rather weird bunch! Two of the gang members are handicapped, a biker is one-eyed (but wears sunglasses nonetheless), another even needs a hearing aid (!). The only concern of the bikers seems to be sex and getting stoned. And the dialogue is sometimes over the top - like when the bikers encounter three girls in the desert, one of them sunbathing topless, which prompts one biker to remark "She is keeping her milk warm."
Oh yeah, I really love this movie.

The DVD itself is filled with lots of extra features. First, there is an introduction to the movie vy producer Sam SHERMAN, who talks about how cool the film is and that it has gained a cult following worldwide. This segment however looks like it was shot 100 years ago.
Producer SHERMAN also appears in an interesting interview. This guy knows some stories to tell and it is fun to listen to him. The producer also provided an audiocommentary on which I can not comment, because I did not listen to it and I am generally not a fan of audiocommentaries. However I did listen to the radio interview with Regina CARROL, wife of director Al ADAMSON and staring in SATAN`S SADISTS as "freak-out girl". It is a promotional piece and again fun to listen to. There is also a gallery of behind-the-scenes photographs, presented in a way, as if they were shown in a drive-in theatre.
Then there is the film's trailer, which is outstanding. It starts with a disclaimer: THE SHOCKING SCENES YOU ARE ABOUT TO SEE ARE NOT SUGGESTED FOR THE WEAK OR IMMATURE. IF YOU CANNOT TAKE IT, WE ADVISE YOU TO NOW PATRONIZE THE CONCESSION STAND OR LOOK AWAY FROM THE SCREEN DURING THIS PREVIEW OF "SATAN'S SADISTS". The trailer promotes the film with the tagline A REBELLION OF HUMAN GARBAGE! Seeing is believing.
There are also 3 TV teaser trailers for the film as well as four additional trailers for other films, all directed by Al ADAMSON: DRACULA VS. FRANKENSTEIN (trashy beyond belief, only for diehard trash film fans), the slightly better zombie romp BLOOD OF GHASTLY HORROR, ANGELS WILD WOMEN (a promising looking exploitation flick) and GIRLS FOR RENT (titled erronously I SPIT ON YOUR CORPSE on the trailer menue) starring XXX actress Georgina SPELVIN of THE DEVIL IN MRS. JONES fame.
A great disc!

If you like entertaining, violent, politically incorrect B-movies, buy it! You won't be disappointed.

Overrated
This is the most overrated film I've seen in a while. I hoped for a violent, sexist, stark, disturbing biker film, and I got cheese. The motorcycles are awful, some of them are like dirt bikes and others no self-respecting biker would ever ride. The Satans colors look like iron-on patches. The violence is very antiseptic, with very litte gore, almost no nudity, and no realism. The plot and continuation are pathetic; could someone explain to me how the manniken-haired "good guy" got up that mountain so quick at the end to fight Firewater, or better yet, why? Also, the picture and sound quality are abyssmal, rendering whole sections of the movie unwatchable. A total waste of time and money, and completely misrepresented by anyone who gives it a good review.

from Fringe Video Fanzine Issue #005
One of the greatest biker films of all time. Very nasty, raw and violent. "...Released during the height of the biker film craze, the film made enough money to finance several more movies..." The simple western good guys vs. Bad guys type plot consists of a bike gang who "...terrorize some people at a desert diner until the gang is done in by a drifting Vietnam vet..." This is Al Adamson's breakthrough film, which propelled him and partner Sam Sherman into business with the introduction of a company called Independent International Pictures Corp. The film was intended to be the jewel which they would market to the drive-in crowd. "...not at all typical Adamson fare... It contained no footage from other movies..." Extreme for the time, the film starts with the rape of a large breasted women, and later LSD being forced to unwitting girls before they are raped and murdered. Miles away from the usual Hollywood type exploitation biker movies that regulars like Casey Kasem [Cycle Savages (1969) / Wild Wheels (1969) acted in. This is a film that strayed far away from the mainstream, and found an audience amongst the anti-establishment film going crowd who were eating up such films as: The Wild Angels (1966) or Easy Rider (1969). Said to be "...the Citizen Cane (1941) of biker films..." So extreme that many say that the film almost ruined the career of the main star Russ Tamblyn [West Side Story (1961) Twin Peaks (1990 - 91). The anti-police speech Tamblyn does, as he sits on top the car is probably the highlight of the movie. Shot in 16mm and blown up to 35mm to save money for the casting. Al Adamson managed to hire such notables as John 'Bud' Cardos [Hells Angels on Wheels (1967) / Psych-Out (1968)], Greydon Clark [Skinheads (1989)], and Regina Carrol [Beat Generation (1959) / Viva Las Vegas (1964)] who later married director Al Adamson. Audio commentary on the disc by Sam Sherman, also features a radio interview with Regina Carrol, some behind the scenes photos, and short documentary called 'Producing Schlock'

An Excellent movie!
This 60's biker movie is a lot of fun. Rampaging biker gang with psycho leader, older couple on vacation, good-guy marine and the young waitress - priceless. I could have done without the rape scenes, but the camera didn't dwell on them too long.

The acting really couldn't be much better. Excellent characters. Apparently filmed in 11 days. Doesn't get much better for b-biker flicks. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Tough biker babes stomp a couple of vicious racist rapists and then cool their heels in a rural commune while the men hit the road for a biker rally (they actually spend most of their time getting drunk and passing out). The vacation is short-lived when the women discover the seemingly peace-loving guru is actually a drug kingpin with a vicious gang and a side business in human sacrifices. That's just one of the unexplained twists in this oddball thriller made at the end of the biker-movie craze. When the genre died, according to producer Sam Sherman, they couldn't give the film away so director Al Adamson reshot it to cash in on the explosion of female-centered action pictures. The result is a schizophrenic production, a biker buddy film full of macho posturing and brutal violence against women that suddenly gives way to girl-gang vengeance. Cameraman Gary Graver (Orson Welles's F for Fake) uses the California desert and back roads to good effect and frees his camera to leap into the dynamic free-for-all brawl and the high-powered chase that climaxes the film. But for all the wild, butt-kicking energy of the Angels' women, it's the men to the rescue.

The DVD features a commentary by producer Sam Sherman, along with a newly recorded introduction, a profile taken from the cable TV series Split Screen, and trailers to this and four other Al Adamson-Sam Sherman collaborations. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Vro-o-om, vro-o-om
An independent biker film with cheap production values and a swiss cheese plot that will probably become a cult classic in a few years. Hard to follow the theme in some places. Utterly forgettable. I will probably give my copy away.

End of an Era
Al Adamson was always much better at making action films, especially those starring bikers, than the horror films he is mostly known for. "Satan's Sadists", for example, is still one of the best biker films ever made. However, in the early 1970s he found himself stuck with a just completed biker film at a time when the public had grown bored with biker films and stopped attending. So, seeing the success of films about groups of tough women like Roger Corman and Jack Hill's Pam Grier prison films, he decided to change the emphasis of the film and its marketing. Thus Angels' Wild Women was created, placing greater focus on the women in the bike group and ads greatly exaggerating how tough and mean they are were released.

Actually, the bikers in the film are quite tame. In contrast to Al's classic "Satan's Sadists", this film provides a positive perspective on bikers. The men do get into a bit of macho posturing, but otherwise they're nice folk looking for fun and freedom.

The plot of this film is quite worthwhile, however, and provides an excellent look at the end of an era. When the film was made, the Manson family trials had just occurred, which led those equating Manson's family with the hippies to declare that the hippy movement was dead. This movie, which was largely shot at the Spahn ranch, out of which Manson operated, taps into this.

The plot is simple: The females of the Angels gang are left on their own while the men attend a convention with another gang. One of the Angels gets involved with a love cult run by a sadist while visiting a ranch, and it is up to the other women to try to get her out after she learns that the leader is a criminal. Thus tragedy enters the Angels' attempt at creating a new society based on love and freedom. The women are all portrayed strongly and positively, however, it is up to the men to come to their rescue in the end. As with most of Adamson's action films, not all the good guys survive, and a certain level of sadness underlines the fun and excitement.

Though a well acted and directed movie with a decent script, Angels' Wild Women is more like a good action movie than great art like "Easy Rider", but is similar in its bitter-sweet examination of the end of an era.

Decent, but falls short
Biker gangs cruising around, causing little trouble.

Having scene Satan's Sadists first, I was not as impressed with AWW. The chicks could have been a little meaner and some more violence might have helped. Dragged at several spots. ... Read more

Description

Cult director Al Adamson brings The kings of horror together in one film - they meet in a fight of fright! Judith Fontaine (Regina Carrol) is looking for her sister Joanie, who has apparently disappeared into the hippie community of Venice, California. As it turns out, Joanie has become the victim of Groton (Lon Chaney Jr.), an axe-wielding homicidal maniac. Dr. Durray (J. Carrol Naish), the last of the Frankensteins' bloodline, is now running a house of horrors by the beach and has been performing experiments on Groton's victims. One night, Count Dracula (Zandor Vorkov) visits the doctor, showing him the original Frankenstein creation that was buried in a nearby graveyard. With Dracula's help, the doctor painstakingly revives Frankenstein, and uses it to take revenge on his professional rivals.This entry in Troma Team Video’s Al Adamson collection comes with a commentary track by producer Sam Sherman and a featurette "Producing Schlock." ... Read more

Description

Human brain transplants and blood-soaked operations highlight this saga filled with blood, shock, and sheer fright, featuring mad doctor antics, an evil dwarf ("Freaks'" Angelo Rossitto), and a pure gold drive-in cast including Kent Taylor (The Mighty Gorga), Grant Williams (The Incredible Shrinking Man), Regina Carrol (Dracula vs. Frankenstein), and Vicki Volante (Horror of the Blood Monsters). Inspired by the wildly popular success of the "Blood Island" series, this follow up (shot in Hollywood) follows the tradition of those Philippine favorites with cult filmmakers Al Adamson and Sam Sherman bringing you an unforgettable whirlpool of horror featuring a deformed and lumbering monster, a basement filled with chained women, and an entire country trapped in this horrific struggle! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Re-discovery of a closet classick
I first saw this movie back in 1978 on a little b+w television on the late night horror film (hosted by Detroit/Toledo icon "The Ghoul"). Over the years all I could remember of the movie was image of the evil dwarf drawing blood from the female victims chained up in the baesment...
Well, I finaly figured out that "Brain of Blood" was that movie which I ordered and watched last night.
What a treat, this is standard but classic early 70's blood schlock.
Brain of Blood has plenty of enjoyable/expected cliches...
a mad doctor, evil dwarf, big dumb oaf, busty blond, a twisted political plot, brain transplants, plastic ray guns, rubber spiders, and lots of thick, red movie blood.
The story is silly, but there's enough of a storyline to require the viewer to pay attention in order to follow it.

Other than the blood which may unsettle the very squeamish the movie is fine for family viewing (PG). There's no sex (real or implied) and no foul language (although some of the trailers may show a brief flash of nudity).
Plenty of good disc extras make this package all the sweeter.

Al Adamson strikes again
This is another in a long line of films made by the late great Al Adamson. The story is about a scientist who transplants the brain of a dying leader of a foreign country into the body of his hulking mentally retarded helper. You get a lot of gory brain surgery footage and a really mixed up plot involving government cover up's, sadism, spies, torture, and chained women. The cast is very good it includes Kent Taylor, Regina Carroll (Al's Wife), John Bloom and Grant Williams.
I happen to like Adamson's films a lot and this is really no better or worse than any of them. If you like verteran actors playing monsters and dress up, you'll like this film. ... Read more

Description

Al Adamson brings his far-out school of cult moviemaking to the Dracula legend in this gruesome blend of sorcery, witchcraft, and vampirism, featuring screen favorites John Carradine and Donald Barry. Prominent author John Wainwright claims to be the reincarnation of infamous mind controller Svengali; using black magic, he stages the ritual sacrifice of his latest Trilby and ignites a confrontation with the strange Dr. Gregorio--actually the long undead Count Dracula himself! Leaving drained corpses and female vampire slaves in his wake, Gregorio embarks on an endless, evil journey in this startling shocker! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Blaxploitation Cheese from Al Adamson!
Here's a slice of '70s Blaxpoitation cheese that manages to pack a sizeable wallop for its miniscule budget. Tough African-American detective Kicks Carter (Timothy Brown) is out to break up a pair of bottom-feeder crooks and stop a guns-for-drugs trade organized by a black mobster improbably named Guido. Along the way there's plenty of clumsily choreographed (and often poorly-lit) fight scenes and shoot-outs, a smattering of sex and nudity (like when Kicks makes sweet love to his TV reporter girlfriend Tanya Boyd), a fair amount of sleaze (like when a woman with a gambling problem is gang-raped by four sweaty redneck card sharps; the fact that this woman resembles a young version of "That '70s Show"'s Debra Jo Rupp only adds to the scene's nastiness) and stilted dialog so awkwardly peppered with jive talk it's obvious the script was written by white people. Still, schlock director Al Adamson is in peak form with this one, keeping the action moving and making sure to hit all the right buttons to please his audience--even including a little bit of lesbian action, again involving our hapless gambling addict. The cast also includes Adamson regulars Russ Tamblyn (who plays a bug-eyed, low-rent mobster named Ziggy) and aging blond bombshell (and Adamson's wife) Regina Carrol. The movie runs out of steam by the final ten minutes, but all in all, "Black Heat" is pretty hot. Just don't be fooled by the updated cover art on the DVD: "Black Heat" is a '70s movie through and through, from Timothy Brown's huge afro down to his crotch-molding, (...) tight jeans.

"KICKIN'!"
Black Heat is not as hard to find as one might think. I was in Hollywood video browsing the action section and it jumped off the bottom shelf and kicked me in the shin. It hurt like a muther!

So bad it's good!
Yet another pick from classic 1970s blaxploitation. It's definitely not Dolemite, but it had enough action to keep me occupied for all 96 minutes. This one's hard to find in regular video stores. Amazon is about the only place I know that even carries this film. A great addition! ... Read more

Amazon.com

Director Al Adamson and producer Sam Sherman picked a suitably vague title for their incoherent horror film about jewel thieves, a psychotic Vietnam vet with an electronic brain, and a vengeful killer with a bright blue zombie henchman. Laden with flashbacks and sidetracks, this was another of Adamson's do-overs, an unfinished picture reborn with new scenes and an entirely new story. "It's a little choppy," says Sam Sherman with deadpan understatement in his introduction. "If you fall asleep I swear you'll think you've woken up in two different movies." Only two?

Former Disney star Tommy Kirk stars as the tough detective who gets a severed head in the mail, Regina Carrol (Adamson's wife) is an innocent targeted by the mad killer with revenge on his mind, and John Carradine receives top billing for what must be a single day's work as Dr. Van Ard, whose misguided science project starts the whole mess. It's not hard to see where the two films--the heist picture and the horror film--were stitched together because the seams are glaring, but that's hardly the worst Blood of Ghastly Horror has to offer. Wooden performances, clumsy drama, bizarre dialogue ("Dr. Van Ard died a much more horrible death than he really deserved," eulogizes Kirk), awkward editing, and the worst camera work ever attributed to future Oscar winner Vilmos Zsigmond (Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Deer Hunter) all contribute to this mind-boggling mess.

The DVD features a commentary by producer Sam Sherman, along with a newly recorded introduction, a profile taken from the cable TV series Split Screen, and trailers to this and four other Al Adamson-Sam Sherman collaborations. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Description

One of cult movie director Al Adamson's most popular films, known for its use of weird color effects by "Spectrum-X," stars horror icon John Carradine as scientist Dr. Rynning, who leads a space journey to a distant planet of blood-sucking vampires intent on contaminating Earth. While exploring the planet, the crew becomes entrapped by warring tribes of primitive vampire-like men and, in order to escape bloody death, must battle snake-men, bat-demons, and the other hideous denizens of this evil world! ... Read more

Description

Judith Fontaine (Regina Carrol) is looking for her sister Joanie, who has apparently disappeared into the hippie community of Venice, California. As it turns out, Joanie has become the victim of Groton (Lon Chaney Jr.), an axe-wielding homicidal maniac.Dr. Durray (J. Carrol Naish), the last of the Frankensteins' bloodline, is now running a house of horrors by the beach and has been performing experiments on Groton's victims. One night, Count Dracula (Zandor Vorkov) visits the doctor, showing him the original Frankenstein creation that was buried in a nearby graveyard. With Dracula's help, the doctor painstakingly revives Frankenstein, and uses it to take revenge on his professional rivals. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Adamson's Blaxploitation Whammy
No one watches an Al Adamson movie with high expectations, but the director has been known to turn out some entertaining movies despite modest talents and miniscule budgets. With "Black Voodoo," things get off to a promising start as we join a religious cult out in the Southern California desert (I've only recently started watching Adamson's work, but it seems like ALL his movies start in the SoCal desert). At the guidance of their leader, Reanhaur (toothy Bill Roy), cult members are trying to bring a dead member back to life by chanting "Rise, William, rise!" Then Reanhaur suffers a heart attack. Rather than chant "Rise, Reanhauer, rise," an ambulance is called. But the old kook dies on the operating table. His body may be dead, but Reanhauer's spirit is very much alive. After Sherri (Jill Jacobson)--a nurse at the hospital where the cult leader was taken--is left alone by her doctor/boyfriend, an animated green blob emerges through Sherri's bedroom door and has its way with her. Perhaps the worst special effect ever for its time, this scene in which Sherri gets possessed is the movie's laugh-out-loud high point.

Things go downhill from there. Possessed by the Reanhaur's spirit, Sherri goes on a killing spree that would make Andy Milligan proud. Her doctor/boyfriend (whiny-voiced Geoffrey Land) thinks she's having an affair, but a blinded football player (Prentiss Moulden) who was raised by--get this--a voodoo priestess knows what Sherri's *real* problem is. He knows how to stop Sherri, if Nurse Tara (Marilyn Joi), who's got the hots for him, is willing to do some grave robbing for the good of mankind.

Supposedly this movie was originally conceived as a ripoff of Roger Corman's sexploitation pic "The Student Nurses," but after producer Sam Sherman saw "Carrie" he decided to turn this into a horror movie. To make room for the spooky stuff, the sex scenes were cut, which explains why all the nurses in "Black Voodoo" are particularly libidinous ("Beth, you want to put Ed's stethoscope back in his pants?"), yet seldom act on their spoken desires. It probably explains why the busty Jacobson got the lead: She was expected to open her blouse, not her mouth. Unfortunately with the new horror story, she has to summon up some emotions but is unable to find any. Land, who delivers all his lines as if making an aspirin commercial, isn't much better. And it's obvious scenes were made with minimal takes as there are several instances were actors stumble over their lines. The pace is leaden through much of the movie (sex scenes were cut to make room for Reanhaur's three-minute ambulance ride?), and there is one scene that's so dark the viewer has no clue what's going on. With this type movie I expect bad acting, silly dialog and ridiculous narratives, but I can't forgive its being boring. And to think this was actually a hit with drive-in audiences!

Furthermore, "Black Voodoo" isn't really blaxploitation. Oh, there are some African American characters (and Xenon Entertainment is sure to use all their pictures on the box cover), but they're supporting players. No, this was originally titled "Nurse Sherri," and just retitled to get a few extra dollars from black audiences. The movie has been retitled again, as "The Possession of Nurse Sherri," in its DVD incarnation and is perhaps the better version to see. Not only does it feature commentary by Sam Sherman, but the disc also includes an unreleased cut of the movie featuring the excised sex scenes. Maybe that cut restores the movie's entertainment value as well.

dont buy this DVD
i was led astray thinking that the show might be something worth seeing,unfortunately not. I really regret buying this show as the story line sucks and there was only one nude scene. What a joke. Dont buy this and u have been warned.

Sam Sherman commentary makes this a Great! DVD!
Great movie! Really has stood the test of time! I originally saw this movie under the name "Black Voodoo". But this is the version you want! This DVD has all the bells and whistles! A very creative TV spot, kind of a strange one, but very different. The Sam Sherman commentary really adds to it, you are let in on the process of the making of the film. It is a honest commentary, from a visionary, inspiring, great man. I can listen to Sherman talk all day! If you have seen this movie before, get this version for the commentary, if you haven't seen it, get it for actors Marilyn Joi and JC Wells. A truly inspired film! Sam Sherman is a person I would like to meet and chat with in my lifetime. Great all around DVD, worth every penny...

Possession of Nurse Sherri, The... (1977) d: Adamson, Al
Taking ideas from the Roger Corman produced; Stephanie Rothman film Student Nurses (1970), and cashing in on the success of Brian De Palma's Carrie (1976) legendary exploitation filmmakers Al Adamson / Sam Sherman evolved these genres to once again please the drive-in crowd. The plot consists of a Guru cult leader who takes ill, and is taken to the hospital for an unwanted operation. Before dying under the knife, his soul manages to possess... You guessed it!... Nurse Sherri. Of course, the spirit uses the Nurse [Jill Jacobsen] to wipe out the medical personal who failed to save him. Trying hard to give the audience both sex, and thrills the evil Nurse begins to kill off many of the other characters. "...Along the way she gets to speak in a man's voice Exoricist (1973) style and whack people with cleavers and pitchforks Andy Milligan-style, while treating the viewer to some welcome T&A as well..." The movie moves along quickly, and uses it's budget well. Considering the time... Adamson, and Sherman films where very racially aware, and featured many Afro-Americans in them. The subplot in Nurse Sherri, consisting of a black football player who turns up with a voodoo amulet doesn't have much to do with the film, however it played well to a new film going audience. '...From a doomed medical operation - to - a returned evil soul" The Possession of Nurse Sherri is a great film which I'm more than pleased is available on DVD. An excellent job on this disc from shock-o-rama.com, my only complaint is lack of any original artwork. Producer Sam Sherman explains the production of the film in-depth on the commentary track, sadly Adamson doesn't appear. In August of 1995 the police found his body buried under four tons of cement, with his skull broken by a heavy object. Fred Fulford, a handyman who had been doing some remodelling was arrested and sentenced to 25 years and life in prison. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Two parts don't make a whole.
"Mean Mother" is actually two films in one. Infamously awful director Al Adamson once again took a foreign film and then shot some new footage to combine with it.

The old movie was an Italian film with a cast made up entirely of white people. Adamson decided to somehow make it into a blaxploitation/Vietnam Veteran film. One of the stars, "Clifton Brown", was in reality a somewhat popular recording artist at the time named Dobie Gray.

Anyway, the film is an unmitigated disaster. As you can imagine, the tone of the film is wildly uneven and the acting "talent" is undeniably bad. Why this was released on DVD is beyond me.

A cheap way to make movies.
This movie is a mixture of two different films and neither of them is any good. Klimovsky edited his 1970`s film El Hombre que Vino del Odio and merged it with a new film directed by Al Adamson which is filled with violence and nudity but not enough length to rate it as a feature film. So both directors try to seel us these separate stories as a brand new one but the lack of continuity makes evident this is not an original release. Mean Mother`s only attraction is the presence of Luciana Paluzzi who saves this boring picture in the few scenes she appears. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Director Al Adamson and producer Sam Sherman were never ones for subtlety. The original name for this low-budget drive-in action thriller was Girls for Rent, but according to Sherman (who introduces the film with a few anecdotes) the title was changed when it went to video, and it stuck. And why not? It's an appropriately incendiary title for a violent, raw production. Legendary X-rated star Georgina Spelvin (Behind the Green Door) stars as a hard-bitten hit woman sprung from a Mexican prison by a mob boss with big plans. Her first job is the murder of a blackmailing politician, but when a witness flees in panic Spelvin and tough-as-nails partner in crime Rosalind Miles hit the road to silence her for good. Shot on the cheap by longtime collaborator Gary Graver (who also photographed Orson Welles's last films), it's a lean, brutal film with some unexpectedly affecting moments. Spelvin is awkward with dialogue but makes a wicked psycho killer, cackling with maniacal glee as she murders her way through the California desert. Miles has charisma to spare as the more calculating of the pair. Unlike many of Adamson's productions, it's a coherent film from start to finish with a hard, vicious edge and a nihilistic twist rarely seen in the low-budget action films made today.

Sam Sherman's commentary is full of production anecdotes, notably including a "revolt" on the set by the actresses and a pair of lawsuits launched by two of the actors, and once again he gives a tutorial on practical low-budget shooting. The DVD also features a newly recorded introduction, a profile taken from the cable TV series Split Screen, and trailers to this and four other Al Adamson-Sam Sherman collaborations. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (5)

A Trash Treasure from Al Adamson
I've just recently started checking out the works of Al Adamson after reading the his bio "Schlock-O-Rama," by David Konow. In a brief chapter in that book about "I Spit on Your Corpse" (originally released as "Girls for Rent"), Konow describes how it contains the most offensive scene Adamson ever filmed, in which Georgina Spelvin's character sexually torments (and worse) a mentally handicapped character. So, right away, I knew I had to see it (movies described as "vile," "offensive," "shocking" usually attract my interest). But "I Spit on Your Corpse" is also a pretty entertaining action/exploitation pic. Oh, sure, it's not technically refined and has plenty of those laughable elements movies of this type are known for: continuity errors (like how Spelvin is barefoot when doing roadwork as a prisoner, then has shoes for her escape a few minutes later), cheap sets (an obviously abandoned gas station is used for several scenes), and, of course, bad acting. But it's also a tighter tale than Adamson's more popular "Satan's Sadists." And a lot meaner, too, thanks largely to porn star Spelvin, a far more effective villain than "Sadists"' Russ Tamblyn. Looking more like an angry PTA president than sexpot (even if she is wearing her shirts unbuttoned well past her bra-less breasts), Spelvin fully embodies her tough-as-nails role, showing herself to be the best actress of the bunch. Curiously, though the movie largely trades on Spelvin's notoriety as a porn star, she has only one sex scene, and with the exception of occasionally exposing her breasts, she's usually clothed. Don't worry, though, there are plenty of other women around to provide the requisite T&A, most notably the T&A of Susan McIver.

The DVD's extras include commentary by the late director's friend and business partner, producer Sam Sherman, trailers for other Adamson movies ("Angel's Wild Women," "Dracula vs. Frankenstein," "Blood of Ghastly Horror") and a "documentary" entitled "Making Schlock!", although it's really nothing more than an interview with Sam Sherman.

If you're looking for slick production, deep characters and witty dialog, buy a different DVD. If, however, you enjoy David Friedmans' '60s roughies and producer Harry Novak's sexy action movies like "A Scream in the Streets," "I Spit on Your Corpse" is just what you need to round out your collection.

A True Drive-In Classic!!!
This drive-in classic finally gets the full DVD treatment from Troma!!! This is a true relic of the past!!! Lots of action!!! A Great commentary track by Sam Sherman. A cool documentary, trailers and more!!! This movie was directed by the late Al Adamson(He was sadly murdered in 1995). A seventies classic!!!

Sure, It's Pretty Bad...
But I wish people would leave Al Adamson alone. As Sam Sherman states in the dvd's honest and illuminating commentary, this is nothing more than a drive-in movie, aimed at a drive-in audience. Its value lies in the sociological import such films (inadvertently) carry, capturing an era that has since completely vanished, and, as such, it's pretty entertaining. The only differance between films like this one and the latest STAR WARS film (as but one example) is about 100 million dollars, and I'd argue the performances, energy, and inventiveness of the worst of Adamson outshine the best of the equally exploitative Lucas.

Why?!
Let's face it - cheesy movies definitely have their place in society. Who hasn't wasted away an evening with frozen pizza, beer and a movie? And once the beer begins to make its mark it really doesn't matter what the little people on your tv are saying and doing. So, in this respect, "I Spit On Your Corpse" is a worthy enough movie to fill this niche. But for crying out loud - don't buy the DVD! Just ... rent it as you will not be wanting to watch it twice.

This is on DVD?
It's hard to believe that a movie like "I Spit On Your Corpse" is coming to the general public in digital format, while most normal people would love to see real films like "Star Wars", "Indiana Jones" and heck, even "Puff The Magic Dragon" show up on DVD. But instead we get this? The only reason I even know this movie exists is because my brother and I were bored one night and decided to grab pizza, beer and the worst-looking movie we could find at the video store. This one won, of course. In fact, until this very moment I was convinced that we were the only two people on earth that had ever even heard of this movie. It's about half-naked women that escape from prison (I think) and get involved in shady mob work, chasing one of their former members after she witnessed a murder, got scared, and ran off. So the rest of the film is a chase scene pretty much. It's soft-core porn at its most uninteresting, I'm guessing (not too familiar with the genre). The parts that are supposed to be funny (both of them) aren't and the rest of it is. As far as acting, plot and other more esoteric film elements go, I have seen worse. But most of the time I've sure seen a lot better. Unless you were personally in this movie and would like to have a copy for archival purposes, I wouldn't suggest buying it. In fact, if you have even seen this movie once in your life, I'd highly recommend hypnotherapy to get rid of the memories. However, if you literally have every other movie in existence, and you have plenty of money to blow on nothing better, I suppose I can't stop you from getting this one as well. ... Read more