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Released by: VCI Entertainment
Released on:10/31/2006
Director: Thomas L. Dyke, William Dear
Cast: Bikers, lots and lots of bikers.
Year: 1976
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Movie:
Biker movies seemed to be a dime a dozen in the wake of Easy Rider's success but few of them took the genre to such grim heights as this low budget 16mm production, Northville Cemetery Massacre, directed by Thomas L. Dyke, William Dear in and around the Detroit and area starring an actual Detroit based motorcycle gang, the Scorpions.
When the movie begins, our gang of motorcylce mongoloids calling themselves The Spirits swoop down on a stalled car. The two elderly inhabitants look on in terror as crazed, hairy guys with big glasses and sleevless denim vests circle them like lions circling their prey. Then, all of a sudden, the biker's stop goofing off, fix the couple's tire, and go on their way. We know early on that these guys might look scary on the outside and maybe their ways are not our own, but if they're willing to help out an old couple stranded at the side of the road, they certainly can't be completely evil. And they're not. Make no mistake, these guys are a mean bunch of hairy dudes, but they have a primtive code of honor that they stick to and odds are pretty good that if you leave them alone, they're not going to mess with you.
While cruising down the highway our intrepid bikers stop to pick up a guy named Chris who needs a lift into town to meet up with his old lady, Lynn. Shortly after this, they're all tossed into jail by the lame-o cops in town but they make the most of the situation as Chris produces a bag of weed and another guy starts singing a song. They're let go the next day and off they go to a field where they're going to have a wedding for one of the members and where Chris is going to make it in a barn with his girl. Sadly, the cops, lead by Putnam, show up and make trouble when they rape poor Lynn and send her to the hospital. Of course, Lynn's dad figures it was The Spirits who did the dirty deed and Putnam plays along - before you know it, they've got themselves a helicopter and plenty of ammo and they're having themselves a biker-hunt. The biker's aren't going to take this lying down, however, and once they grab themselves some guns and a few grenades, everyone has themselves a grand old time as the movie takes a drastic right hand turn into Squibsville and the bodies and blood flies across the screen in all its Peckinpah-style slow motion glory.
Video/Audio/Extras:
VCI has restored the film and presents it here in a nice 1.33.1 fullframe transfer which looks to be the proper aspect ratio. Color reproduction is strong as are the black levels. There's a fair bit of grain (likely due to the fact that it was shot on 16mm) and some print damage throughout but otherwise the picture looks quite good on this DVD. There's a surprising amount of both foreground and background detail in the image which is nice to see, and flesh tones look lifelike and natural.
The movie arrives in it's original Dolby Digital 2.0 English language mono track with optional Spanish subtitles. There's a bit of background hiss in a couple of scenes but otherwise things are fine here. You won't have any problem understanding the dialogue overtop of the score or the sound effects and the levels are properly balanced throughout.
Surprisingly enough, VCI has loaded this disc up with extra features starting with a commentary track from co-director Thomas Dyke. Very scholarly and quite rigid in its structure, this talk is very informative and gets fairly technical in spots. Dyke explains the locations and the technique behind various aspects of the production and also about its release history.
A second commentary from co-director William Dear is up next and his take on the subject matter is quite different than Dyke's. Much more relaxed in its delivery, this talk covers much of the same material but in a more casual fashion and without the emphasis on the technical side of things. Dear is a good speakers and is able to relate a few really interesting stories about working with the bikers on the picture and about co-ordinating the finale of the movie.
A third (!!) commentary track is also here and it features members of the Scorpions Motorcycle Club of Detroit with Dyke serving as a semi-moderator. This is a really amusing track even if it gets really chaotic in spots with certain participants talking over one another from time to time. If you're okay with that, however, this track is a kick. It's fun to hear the biker's discuss their work on the movie decades after the fact and to hear them share stories about what it was like on set and working with the crew.
Rounding out the disc are two separate still galleries, the first of which features a wealth of behind the scenes pictures set to some narration from Dyke who explains further how the project came together and what it was like working with the Scorpions, the second of which features posters, lobby cards and home video release cover art. Animated menus are provided for the feature as are chapter stops. VCI has also included some text biographies for the two directors and a history of the Scorpions, trailers for a few other unrelated DVDs (The Windsplitter, The Killing Device, and Murder Rap) but the trailer for the feature itself is missing (if it existed in the first place).
The Final Word:
A surprisingly grim and nasty little piece of biker/exploitation cinema, Northville Cemetery Massacre gets a very solid release from VCI.
War is heck poster
Biker wedding
Helicopter death from above
Drive-in
Nuclear bunker gunfreak with a nice lawn and Patton flag
Bonus extra biker gang
Bonus trucker with bonus trucker song: "If you've got the animals, I've got the ark."
70s freeze-frame ending
Mike Nesmith soundtrack
100% cemetery massacre satisfaction
I liked this a lot.