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Sex Murder Art: The Films Of Jorg Buttgereit

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    Ian Jane
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  • Sex Murder Art: The Films Of Jorg Buttgereit



    Released by: Cult Epics
    Released on: April 5th, 2014.
    Director: Jí¶rg Buttgereit
    Cast: Daktari Lorenz, Beatrice Manowski, Harald Lundt
    Year: Various
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    The Movie:

    Directed by Jí¶rg Buttgereit who co-wrote with Franz Rodenkirchen, 1988's Nekromantik is a seventy-one minute sickie that follows the story of a man named Rob (Daktari Lorenz, who also created the film's fantastic score) who, along with a few co-workers, carves out a meager living as a street cleaner who deals in the aftermaths of grisly car accidents. He lives with his girlfriend, Betty (Beatrice Manowski), and they share a morbid fascination, obsession even, with death that borders on the sexual.

    One day Rob decides to break down that border and make it happen so he brings home a corpse for one of the grisliest three-ways you can imagine. It goes off and they get off but soon enough, Rob gets canned and he and Betty split up. Making matters worse for him, she takes off with the corpse. Unable to move on or get over his obsession, he begins the search for a new partner to indulge his kink, be it an unsuspecting prostitute or someone else entirely. This won't end well for anyone… least of all Rob's cat.

    Nekromantik may be primitive by pretty much anyone's standards but it wears its low budget on its sleeve like a badge of honor. What the film lacks in technical panache it compensates for in spades with effectively disgusting practical effects, some remarkable gore and a whole lot of corpse licking. The movie does feature one particularly nasty scene of actual animal violence involving the skinning of a rabbit (shot on a farm where it would have happened anyway… but that doesn't make it any less unpleasant), so some may shy away from the film for that reason if the necrophilia hasn't already set off a few warning bells. Behind all of this, however, is a very obvious sense of twisted, pitch black humor that's hard to ignore and very much of what happens in Nekromantik is so absurd that you can't help but be in on the joke.

    The performances here are committed. Daktari Lorenz has this sort of strange, somber tone to him as Rob that keeps us interested in him and once Betty leaves him, his turn as the male lead becomes increasingly more desperate and manic as his search to replace what he had with her sees him take one wrong turn after the next. Beatrice Manowski (credited in the film as Beatrice M.) is sexy enough that we have no problem understanding why Rob would want to be with her and she too is bold and fearless in front of the camera, particularly in that infamous three-way scene in which she literally fucks the corpse that Rob has brought home to her the same way a goofy dog brings you a stuffed animal to play with. There really is that sense of naiveté to Rob's actions that make the taboo shattering reality of what he's doing seem almost like an afterthought.

    All of this is fairly well shot, though there are definitely parts of the movie where the crew's inexperience with lighting comes into play (the opening scene is infamously dark). Lorenz's score for the film (available on its own on this release as an alternate audio option) is actually very effective and quite impressive. This isn't ever a film that should earn mainstream appeal but for those with an appreciation for twisted horror and humor, Nekromantik is a minor masterpiece of German underground cinema.

    Made in between his two infamous Nekromantik films, Jorg Buttgereit's 1990 film Der Todesking (which translates to The Death King) isn't as well-known as those more infamous pictures but it's definitely one that his fans should appreciate. The concept behind the film is as morbid as you'd expect - here Buttgereit shows us seven different takes on death, more often than not by suicide, intercut with scenes of a corpse rapidly decaying. It's all done with the bizarre and melancholic arthouse style that is the director's trademark and, as is his way, it leaves very little to the imagination.

    There's not a whole lot here in terms of plot, we get one vignette for each of the seven days of the week. It's hard to say too much about each vignette without spoiling it but let it suffice to say that this is done more in the style of a low budget Ingmar Bergman than in the low budget gore film sense that you might expect. Buttgereit's fascination with death and with how it can and does affect what's left behind after the spirit does or does not pass onto the great beyond is made obvious here in the scenes where the corpse rots. The effects in these sequences are as icky as you could hope for, completely with dissolving innards and maggots aplenty, and they're quite effective for a movie that was (at times quite obviously) made with a very modest budget. So too are the effects featured in the chapters that make up the movie - there's enough here to appeal to gorehounds, but it moves slowly, deliberately and it tends to focus less on splatter than on the reasons each character finds death.

    Death is often depicted in the movie as a release, and there's a certain reverence to the way that each death in the film is shown. Again, we can go back to the rotting corpse where it's made very clear that, yes, this person has died - but while we watch that corpse rot we see how it begets new life, even if that new life is a horde of maggots feasting on what's left of the rancid flesh hanging off of the bones. Cheery stuff this is not, but there's a more obvious artistic intent behind it than in the film's Buttgereit made prior.

    There isn't a lot of dialogue here. Most of the vignettes play out with very little in the way of spoken words or narration. There are exceptions of course, but Buttgereit seems intent with this picture to let the visuals to the talking in place of the performers. This means that most of the cast members get their work across not through conversation but through body language and a sense of movement. For the most part, it not only works but it works well. That said, the visuals are what speak the loudest. Buttgereit does not sugar coat things, death is shown as the inevitable reality that we all know it is, able to reduce grown men to mere children when faced with it and something that will touch all of us no matter how long or short a period of time we spend on this planet. It's a grim film, at least on the surface, but the regeneration aspect that is very obviously a key part of what the director is trying to focus on, keeps the film from ever getting to be too much. It's not nearly as gory as his other pictures and while it does contain its fair share of unpleasant imagery, Der Todesking shows a far more mature and talented filmmaker at work than the more notorious entries in the director's catalogue are able to.

    Jí¶rg Buttgereit follows up his cult classic Nekromantik from 1987 with this low budget follow up, Nekromantik 2 - Return Of The Loving Dead. While the film doesn't move as quickly as the first entry, it does reflect a more mature side of Buttgereit's directorial ability and sports slightly better production values and special effects.

    The story starts right where the first film left off, and in fact, after a quick quote from Ted Bundy appears on screen (“I Want To Master Life And Death”), we're treated to some black and white flashback footage from the first film's ending. The opening credits play over top of Rob's suicide, his erection in full view as he stabs himself to death. The film then cuts to a woman, Monika (Monika M. reprising her role from the first movie), a female necrophiliac, digging up the protagonist from the first film to use as a sex object. Once this happens, we soon find out that Betty (Beatrice M., again from the first film) has decided she'd like to reclaim her man. Though she'd left him as a corpse in Nekromantik, she just can't quite him. But alas, she has waited too long.

    From here we witness Monika's journey into the depths of necrophilia and how it affects her attempt at a more conventional relationship… or more specifically, her inability to have a more conventional relationship. Strange things start cluing in her 'real life' boyfriend, Mark (Mark Reeder), that something might not be quite right. Little things, like her request that he not move at all during intercourse. What's she up to? How does he factor into all of this? What will be left of Rob when it's all said and done? And what about the poor seal? Ouch.

    Once again, much like the first movie, Buttgereit treats to a shockingly good ending that is not for the faint of heart. You could even go so far as to say that it outdoes the ending of the original film, and that's no small task. More likely to appeal to the art-house horror crowd than those looking for a fast paced, brainless gore fest, Nekromantik 2 moves at a very slow and languid pace. The film is notably absent of much dialogue, instead letting the camera and the soundtrack tell the story. The music and the cinematography work together exceptionally well, particularly during the movies climax. In that respect, this movie is far superior to the first one. Buttgereit had evolved as a director by this point and while he's still got a thing for pushing boundaries and smashing taboos, that growth makes for a more nuanced film - at least as nuanced as a film can be when dealing in graphic depictions of necrophilia and such.

    While this is definitely not a traditional gore film, thematically it's actually closer to a romance with heavy doses of black comedy. There is a very extreme gross out factor that the film has working in its favor (including that scene with the seal, a very real sequence involving animal violence that outdoes the rabbit scene from the film's predecessor - animal lovers, you are forewarned!), but there's more here than just some really effective scenes of shock value. Buttgereit hits us with these more shocking scenes but then cleverly uses nicely played dramatic moments to pull you back in, no matter how atypical the relationship we're looking at here really is. We get almost all of this from Monika's point of view, but as a framing device that works well. It really is her story more than anyone else.

    Shot on 16mm the film still has a very gritty, underground look to it but on the flip side it's considerably more polished than the first movie. The camera movements are smoother, the compositions a little more aesthetically pleasing and the use of color and of lighting a bit more professional. The effects are also impressive here, the rotting corpse in the bathtub standing as a sickening reminder of how good Buttgereit and company are at going for the gross out when they want to.

    While the pacing of the film isn't as quick and the black comedy isn't quite as thick, Nekromantik 2 is a very worthy follow up to the first film. It's also interesting to note that, ironically, Rob ultimately does get the relationship he wanted so badly in the first film.

    If Buttgereit remains best known for his two Nekromantik films but his (at the time of this writing, at least) last feature length motion picture, Schramm, might just be his most accomplished work. A grim tale of a serial killer and the prostitute he loves, this isn't exactly a happy film but it is very well made and more than just a little though provoking - it's also incredibly dark, and incredibly disturbing.

    When we first meet Lothar Schramm (Florian Koerner von Gustorf) he's laying on his side, wearing nothing but a pair of boxer shorts. He's bleeding from the nose and has fallen into a puddle of white paint. As he lies there, the life draining quickly from his body, the last few days of his twisted existence pass before him. From there we learn that he was a cab driver and that he ran in the odd marathon but that he spent most of his time alone in his apartment, pining away for the woman next door, a prostitute named Marianne (Monika M. of Nekromantik 2). When a female evangelist and her male partner show up at his door to tell him about Jesus Christ, he let's them in only to slaughter them and then photograph their naked corpses in rather precarious positions.

    One night, Lothar hears Monika with one of her clients and imagines himself with her, using an inflatable love doll of sorts in her place as he listens in through the air ducts. His mental state is slipping and it's slipping fast, but Monika doesn't realize this when she asks him to escort her to a job the next day. Some eccentric rich old men have hired her to dress up in front of their video camera and play servant girl for the day. She knows it's odd, but tells him that she's done far worse things for far worse paychecks. He agrees, and the next night she takes him out for dinner in return. When he tries to have a real conversation with her and tell her about a nightmare that has been haunting him, she could seem to care less and at this point he snaps again. He drugs her, he takes her home and strips her, and he photographs her only to put her back in her apartment so that when she wakes up the next day she's none the wiser. It's all downhill from here as Lothar's tenuous grip on reality finally lets go.

    As grim a movie as one can imagine, Schramm is also extremely well mad and very well acted. It's minimalist in that the sets are plain and the dialogue is sparse but there's very definitely a well-structured story here as well as two fairly complex characters. Florian Koerner von Gustorf is excellent in the lead. He's not only completely suspicious looking and at times a little dirty in appearance and in action, he is never the less able to bring a fair amount of sympathy to the character. While Buttgereit doesn't ask us to pity Lothar - he is a killer and a pervert after all - he does portray him as very human, at least for the time being. The opening line, 'today I am dirty… tomorrow I will be nothing but dirt' isn't exactly subtle in its foreshadowing. We do witness some very intimate experiences from the last few days of his life. We see him with the inflatable doll, we see him take matters into his own hands while Marianne is in his apartment and drugged and, in the film's most infamous scene, we see him drive a nail into his foreskin - completely accentuating the fact that he's lost his mind and has entered a very dangerous place. Monika M. is also quite good in her part, better here than she was in Buttgereit's earlier Nekromantik 2. She plays things with considerable subtlety and she's sexy enough that we can see why Lothar likes her but not so glamorous as to exceed the character's lifestyle and personality. She handles the shallowness of the part very well, and as we get to know her we also get to know why Lothar becomes so frustrated in his relationship (or lack thereof) with her.

    The cinematography is interesting in the movie in that at times it's quite fancy (the scene where Lothar imagines he and Marianne dancing together, for example) and other times it is blunt and very straight forward. It's also quite gritty looking thanks to the 16mm shooting, which adds a certain layer of grain (or, dirt) to the movie that accentuates its unclean feeling. It's not a film for everyone, it's not even a film for many, but for some Schramm will have impact and it will leave a lasting impression. Buttgereit doesn't spell everything all out for us and instead asks us to think things over for ourselves as to Lothar's worth as a person and the reasons for his descent. It's a challenging film that pulls not punches but one that will stick with the viewer for some time to come.

    Video/Audio/Extras:

    Nekromantik debuts on Blu-ray from Cult Epics transferred in AVC encoded 1080p high definition from the original 8mm negative in its original 1.33.1 fullframe aspect ratio. There's some mild print damage throughout but this scruffy little production definitely does benefit from the high definition upgrade it receives here. While you can't expect it to offer the same amount of detail as 16mm or 35mm productions and should in turn expect some softness due to the elements used, there's definitely better depth, texture and detail here than was present on the previous DVD release from long, gone Barrel Entertainment that came out years ago. Colors are a tiny bit on the dark side but otherwise well reproduced - this probably looks about as good as realistically possible without a frame by frame clean up job.

    Der Todesking arrives on Blu-ray in its proper fullframe aspect ratio in an AVC encoded 1080p high definition transfer taken from the original 16mm negative. This is, all things considered, a pretty solid transfer. It offers up a substantial improvement over past releases (it never did get a domestic DVD release but it got a DVD release in Japan and possibly some other territories) both in terms of detail and clarity. There's considerably more depth here and the darker scenes have much stronger shadow detail. Color reproduction looks to be pretty good if slightly and the image is free of any noise reduction or obvious edge enhancement. As such, expect a good amount of nice, natural looking film grain to be present throughout. As far as actual print damage is concerned, it's there to be sure, mostly white specks and what not rather than harsh scratches, but it's not all that distracting.

    Nekromantik 2 debuts on Blu-ray from Cult Epics in a 1.33.1 fullframe transfer presented AVC encoded high definition taken from the original 16mm negative. The director approved transfer provides a really nice upgrade over the previous DVD release in terms of depth, detail and color reproduction. This still very much looks like the low budget 16mm production that it is but the higher bit rate and resolution do very nice things indeed for the picture quality. Grain is plentiful and constant but never artificially clumpy or really all that distracting while print damage is kept to a minimum. Some minor compression artifacts can be spotted in a couple of spots but if you're not looking for them you probably won't see them. Edge enhancement and noise reduction are complete non-issues while texture and shadow detail are strong. This seems like a pretty accurate representation of the source.

    Schramm, being the newest of the four features, looks a bit cleaner and more detailed than the others. It's presented in 1.33.1, also courtesy of an AVC encoded 1080p transfer, but it's a bit more colorful than the other films despite the fact that it too features some pretty gritty, grimy locations.

    Audio for the first three films is presented in your choice of Dolby Digital 2.0 or Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound, both tracks in the film's native German language with optional English subtitles. A lossless 2.0 track would have been ideal but that didn't happen. The 5.1 mix spreads things out a bit as you'd expect, mostly just the score and a few effects here and there, while keeping the dialogue up front. Both tracks are well balanced and pretty clean. Schramm actually gets a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track, which is encouraging as it sees Cult Epics offering lossless audio for one of Buttgereit's movies where in the past they have not. There's a bit more depth and clarity here when compared to the three earlier films in the set. A German language Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo track is also included for Schramm.

    Extras on the Nekromantik disc are pretty plentiful, starting with what Cult Epics are calling a 'Grindhouse Version' which is literally a new high definition transfer taken from the theatrical 35mm print with German Dolby Digital 2.0 audio. This transfer is definitely a lot more worn and tattered than the version taken from the negative but, as Buttgereit points out in his introduction to this version, it does closer replicate what the original theatrical viewing experience would have been like. While not without its charm, the movie is easier to appreciate in the version taken from the negative but this definitely has a grittier, dirtier, filthier feel to it.

    Carried over from the aforementioned DVD release is the audio commentary by Jí¶rg Buttgereit and Franz Rodenkirchen. This is a fun track, the two offer up plenty of interesting stories from the set and talk about where some of the ideas came from but also make some amusing quips about the director's cameo in the film, the practical effects work and the effectiveness thereof, and about how and why the movie turned out the way it did and was made with the people involved in it. They also address the animal violence and, of course, the film's infamous finale. The twelve minute long The Making Of Nekromantik featurette from the old DVD release is here too and it's worth revisiting.

    New to this disc is an extensive forty minute Q&A session that was conducted with Buttgereit at a screening of the film that took place at The American Cinematheque in 2013. This repeats some of the details relayed in the commentary track but it's a bit more fun to get to see the director as well as hear him as he talks about the origin of the picture, distribution quirks and problems, trying to find an actual, honest-to-God necrophiliac and working on the picture with a small cast and crew of friends. Also new to the disc is a nine minute Nekromantik Featurette, a vintage piece that sees a very young Buttgereit hard at work editing the picture as he talks about censorship issues and why this film exists in the first place. Some amusing clips from the film are featured here to accentuate his points.

    Cult Epics have also included Buttgereit's half hour minute long short film from 1985, Hot Love, released in North American for the first time on this disc and it's available with an optional commentary from the filmmaker. The plot of this one follows a young man (Daktari Lorenz) who meets and then falls in love with young woman. When he catches her with another man (Jí¶rg Buttgereit) things get bad quickly and through a series of twisted circumstances she gets impregnated after a rape and gives birth to… something. It all goes downhill from there. It's a pretty messed up little movie and while it's rudimentary in nature and at times a bit amateurish in its production values, its inclusion here is very welcome. It definitely lets you see where the director's work was headed in the not too distant future and if you appreciate the dark humor that runs throughout most of his films, you'll like enjoy seeing this. A quick four minute featurette on the making of this short is also included on the disc, shot at a theatrical screening.

    Rounding out the extras on the disc is an extensive still gallery of behind the scenes and production photos, an isolated score option, trailers for Nekromantik, Nekromantik 2, Schramm, Hot Love, and Der Tí¶desking, menus and chapter selection.

    Extras on the disc start off with an audio commentary by Jorg Buttgereit and the film's co-author Franz Rodenkirchen. Jorg Buttgereit also provides a quick video introduction you can watch before the movie if you like. The commentary, which is in English, covers the origins of the project, what went into writing the movie, the effects work, how and why the different cast members who are in the film are in the film in the first place, why the film deals with suicide in the manner that it does and where a lot of the concepts and ideas come from. The commentary is surprisingly cheery given the subject matter of the film as the two participants drill down and explain what they were going for here. There's some interesting stories about dealing with the low budget shoot, the effects featured in it and some of the locations used for the shoot among other topics. The intro is 1:15 and Buttgereit gives quick rundown about his feelings on the movie and what sets it apart, the inclusion of Corpse Fucking Art and that's more or less it.

    Also included on the disc is the sixty minute Corpse Fucking Art documentary that was made in 1987. This is quite an in-depth look at Buttgereit's filmmaking style and process as dictated by the man himself. It gives us a look at how both Nekromentik films were put together as well as some insight into what went into making Der Todesking. There's a lot of emphasis here on the effects work that is featured so prominently in his movies and there's a load of behind the scenes material seen here that really helps to let us witness firsthand what it would have been like to work on these low budget pictures with a director obviously quite dedicated to his craft and his personal vision. It's essentially presented as batches of outtakes and footage shot on set with Buttgereit providing commentary over top to give it all context.

    The Making of Der Todesking runs sixteen minutes and features Buttgereit speaking in English over footage from the movie talking about how he and his crew had to do something atypical after Nekromentik. There's then dialogue about the premise of the movie, how certain ideas were tossed around and then later took shape in the film, and more. This plays out over behind the scenes footage and clips from the feature. This is basically the portion on Der Todesking from Corpse Fucking Art excised from that longer documentary, which is kind of superfluous.

    Rounding out the extras is a pretty extensive gallery of still photographs, a selection of trailers for other Buttgereit movies including the feature as well as Nekromantik and Nekromentik 2 (all in HD), and the film's original soundtrack available as an isolated score option off of the menu.

    Extras for the second film start off with a running commentary with Jí¶rg Buttgereit, co-author Franz Rodenkirchen, and actors Monika M. and Mark Reeder. It's spoken in English and although at times it is a slight bit tricky to make out what's being said because of the accents, for the most part it's quite easy to follow and there is a lot of great information divulged within. Monika's thoughts on what she had to do in front of the camera are quite interesting while Buttgereit and Rodenkirchen expand on what went into creating the story and exploring the themes and ideas laid out in the earlier first movie.

    From there, check out The Making Of Nekromantik 2, running 26:37 and covering quite a bit of detail on how the film came to be. Here Buttgereit and some cast members speak over the video and it's interesting to see the cast and crew being so candid behind the scenes. This serves as quite a contrast to the film's subject matter. Buttgereit talks about how the film was going to play in Austria at a woman's film festival, Monika talks about how she views herself as a liberated woman, and others offer up their thoughts on the picture. While this goes on we see different scenes being shot, different effects pieces being put together and more.

    The still gallery on the disc is in slideshow format and runs 13:31 with over 100 images that were taken from the private collections of Buttgereit and Manfred Janinski. Most of these are behind the scenes shots but there are some nice promotional pieces in here as well including video release art and theatrical posters. There is also an outtake reel that runs 11:04 without any sound behind it. It's mostly comprised of short, cutaway scenes but there are a few gory bits in here as well as a few other strange pieces that make it worth taking a look at.

    Moving right along, we get HD trailers for Nekromantik, Nekromantik 2, Der Todesking, Schramm and Hot Love before segueing into a '20th Anniversary Live Concert Performed By Monika M. And Friends.' This runs 11:44 and here we see Buttgereit introduce a twentieth anniversary screening of the movie with Monika and a few other musicians in attendance providing live musical accompaniment.

    A Moment Of Silence At The Grave Of Ed Gein is a shot film made by Buttgereit that runs 2:14. Here we see Buttgereit's camera visit the scene of the crime in Plainfield, Wisconsin where the infamous mass murderer was laid to rest in an unmarked grave. It really is as simple as that. Half Girl - Lemmy I'm A Feminist is a music video directed by Buttgereit. Motorhead's frontman would approve for sure.

    Rounding out the extras are the film's original soundtrack available as an isolated score, the film's score performed live (presumably by Ms. M and company), a newly recorded 2014 introduction to the film from Buttgereit, menus and chapter selection.

    Extras for Schramm? They start off with a commentary track with director Jorg Buttgereit and co-writer Franz Rodenkirchen. The two participants speak in English and while it takes a little while to get used to the German accents, once you do you'll find that they're quite well spoken and have a lot to say about the movie. They explain where some of the ideas for the story came from, while Buttgereit talks more specifically about working with some of the actors and why they were cast in addition to what he was going for in certain scenes and why. It's an interesting discussion that anyone interested in the film will want to take the time to listen to.

    A second commentary track is also included on the disc with the two stars of the film, Koerner von Gustorf and co-star Monika M.. These two have obviously got a really good working relationship with one another as they are constantly joking around and having a good time here. This makes for an enjoyable track to skim though even if it isn't as informative as the first discussion is. They do tell some interesting stories though, particularly in relation to some of the more infamous moments that are in the film.

    Nicely complimenting the commentary tracks is the thirty-five minute documentary, The Making Of Schramm. This documentary is almost as strange as the feature it's examining and through some great behind the scenes footage and some very unusual interviews with Koerner von Gustorf it does a strange job of informing us about the history of the production and the shoot. It's very light compared to the movie itself, but that's probably a good thing.

    Also included here are a few of Buttgereit's short films - Horror Heaven (presented in HD with optional commentary from the director), Blutige Exzesse Im Furherbunker (also presented in HD) and Mein Papi.

    Rounding out the extras on Schramm are a quick introduction to the film from Buttgereit, a still gallery, a collection of trailers for the other releases and the feature, and the film's soundtrack available as an isolated score.

    Aside from what is on the four Blu-ray discs in the set, we also get two compact discs featuring complete soundtracks for each movie:

    CD ONE:

    NEKROMANTIK:

    Nekromantik / At Home / Surprise / Menage A Trois / Pas De Deux / Supper / At Home Extended Katzi / Autopsy / Menage A Trois (Monster Version) / Drunk / Gardner / Pas De Deux (Studio Version) / Jellyface / Home (Domina Version) / Deafmusic For A Grey Movie / Dream Surgery / Sapor Sanguinus / Nekromantik (Reprise) / Menage A Trois (First Play)

    DER TODESKING:

    Die Farhri Ins Reich Der Menschentrummer I (String) / Die Farhri Ins Reich Der Menschentrummer II (Organ) / Petrified / Poison / Fish / Die Farhri Ins Reich Der Menschentrummer III / Ich Liebe Meine Frau / Fruend Hein / Sie Fangt An Zu Weinen / Die Farhri Ins Reich Der Menschentrummer IV / Endtitel / Der Todesking

    CD TWO:

    NEKROMANTIK 2:

    Nekro Intro / Pure / Scelette Intrumental / Porno Sounds / Work / Home (Domestic Version) / Betty's Return / The Wheel Of Love / The Missing Genital / Supersonic Tonic / Scelette Delicieux / Nekrowalz / "Franzoisch" In E-Moll / Magnum-Bar-Mix 2000 Plus / Nekromantik 1991 / Sex With A Saw

    SCHRAMM:

    Schramm Ist Tot (Intro) / Schramm Lauft / Waschbecken / Die Gluklichen Tage Der Kindheit / Schon Weit Auf / Lothar's Leibsubung / ...Uns Glucklich Machen / Musik Fur Im Hintergrund Bei Gemuseulze / Vagina Dentata Max / Nageln / Auf Einem Bein Kann Man Nicht Stehen / Kundschaft / Le Nekromantique / Vereint Mit Marianne / Das Sieht Aber Gar Nicht Gut Aus / TK-Gerichte / Nimm Mich / Due Hure / Vor Dem Hernn / Weggucken / Schramm Ist Tot (Finale)






    These are included in the same slipcase that also holds a full color insert booklet that contains a written introduction by Cult Epics' own Nico B., an interview with Buttgereit conducted by Jack Stevenson of Film Threat, an interview with Buttgereit and Florian Koerner conducted by David Kerekes, some writing on the short films contained in this set, a filmography for Buttgereit and a plethora of color stills.

    The Final Word:

    Cult Epics has gone all out with this set, reissuing the three individual discs with the new Schramm Blu-ray and including some great soundtrack CDs and an impressive insert booklet. The films won't be to all tastes, of course, and those who already own the earlier single disc releases may not feel the need to double dip, but this is an impressive package of some genuinely challenging cinema that deftly blends arthouse sensibilities with gutter trash exploitation tactics in deliriously confrontational ways.

    Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps (some of which are completely spoilery and absolutely not safe for work) from the negative transfer of Nekromantik!































    And some caps from the 35mm transfer!











    Screen caps from Der Todesking!





















    Some caps from Nekromantik 2!



































    Screen caps from Schramm!




















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      Cast: Thierry de Carbonnières, Jean-Marc Maurel, Denis Karvil, Lillemour Jonsson
      Year: 1985
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      Death Squad – Movie Review:

      Also known as Brigade Of Death, French sleaze auteur Max Pecas’ 1985 film, Death Squad, opens with a night time scene outside of Paris in the Bois de Boulogne Forest where cars pass by a small gang of transsexual
      ...
      03-22-2024, 11:46 AM
    • Roommates (Quality X) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Quality X
      Released on: February 28th, 2024.
      Director: Chuck Vincent
      Cast: Samantha Fox, Vernoica Hart, Kelly Nichols, Jerry Butler, Jamie Gillis
      Year: 1982
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      Roommates – Movie Review:

      Directed by Chuck Vincent and released in 1982, Roommates opens with a scene where a young woman named Joan Harmon (Veronica Hart) gets a hotel room with an older man named Ken (Don Peterson, credited as Phil Smith),
      ...
      03-15-2024, 01:10 PM
    • Night Of The Blood Monster (Blue Underground) UHD/Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Blue Underground
      Released on: March 26th, 2024.
      Director: Jess Franco
      Cast: Christopher Lee, Maria Rohm, Dennis Price
      Year: 1970
      Purchase From Amazon

      Night Of The Blood Monster – Movie Review:

      Directed by Jess Franco, The Bloody Judge (or, Night Of The Blood Monster, as it is going by on this new release from Blue Underground) isn't quite the salacious exercise in Eurotrash you might expect it to be, and while it
      ...
      03-15-2024, 01:07 PM
    • Phase IV (Vinegar Syndrome) UHD/Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Vinegar Syndrome
      Released on: March 26th, 2024.
      Director: Saul Bass
      Cast: Nigel Davenport, Michael Murphy, Lynne Frederick, Alan Gifford, Robert Henderson, Helen Horton
      Year: 1974
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      Phase IV – Movie Review:

      Saul Bass’ 1974 sci-fi/thriller Phase IV is an interesting blend of nature run amuck stereotypes and Natural Geographic style nature footage mixed into one delicious cocktail of suspense and
      ...
      03-15-2024, 01:02 PM
    • The Bounty Hunter Trilogy (Radiance Films) Blu-ray Review
      Ian Jane
      Administrator
      by Ian Jane


      Released by: Radiance Films
      Released on: March 26th, 2024.
      Director: Shigehiro Ozawa, Eiichi Kudo
      Cast: Tomisaburo Wakayama, Minoru Ôki, Arashi Kanjuro, Bin Amatsu, Chiezo Kataoka
      Year: 1969-1972
      Purchase From Amazon

      The Bounty Hunter Trilogy – Movie Review:

      Radiance Films gathers together the three films in Toie Studios’ Bounty Hunter Trilogy, starring the inimitable Tomisaburo Wakayama. Here’s how the three movies in this
      ...
      03-13-2024, 11:30 AM
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