A quirky miasma of art and cheap thrills ...

Movie reviews and images from the seedy underbelly of world cinema. May Definitely does contain offensive language, sex scenes, graphic violence, drug use, horror, gratuitous nudity, and/or traces of nuts.

The Sorcerer and the White Snake. China/HK, 2011

I guess The Sorcerer and the White Snake is the Chinese equivalent of a blockbuster. Big name stars, melodramatic romance, talking animals. Usually not my bag at all. But this is one amazing-looking spectacle and as far as blockbuster entertainment goes you could do a lot worse ... Read more

Helldriver. Japan, 2011

Zombie-dispensing mayhem with the usual top notch splatter effects mixed with equally amateurish ones. There are moments of visual brilliance, some great set pieces, and enough blood and severed body parts to fill 382 Olympic-sized swimming pools. It's extremely over-the-top, contrived to shock, and very, very silly ... Read more

The Evil Dead. USA, 1981

Unfairly referred to on release as a 'video nasty', it's far better than that description might suggest, and is a highly accomplished genre film that pushed the creative envelope in many directions, despite its low-budget origins ... Read more

Cold Fish. Japan, 2011

It was with much anticipation that I caught Sion Sono's latest flick at a Film Festival this weekend. I was expecting something surreal and gory, and I knew it was based on a real-life serial killer. But what I didn't expect was the funniest movie I've seen this year... Read more

The Raquel Welch Project. One Million Years B.C, 1966

While the search for a good Raquel Welch movie continues, I had a pretty good idea this was not likely to be one of them. Nevertheless, this is the movie that launched her as an international sex symbol, and the source of the infamous loinskin bikini ... Read more

Nicole Kidman to star in Park Chan-wook's next

Korean director Park Chan-wook is slated to helm his first Western movie, Stoker, which is now in pre-production. And Nicole Kidman has been cast in the lead. A strange casting choice I thought, so out of interest I canvassed readers for their opinion on the actress. Results inside

The Hokusai Manga aka Edo Porn. Japan, 1981

An Academy Award-winning film that features Tentacle Porn? Not likely right? Well, it is when its the Japanese Academy Awards! This historical drama about famed artist Katsushika Hokusai is a quality historical drama with its fair share of titillation ... Read more

Braindead aka Dead-Alive. New Zealand, 1992

Before Peter Jackson won Oscar glory with Lord of the Rings, he was the Splatter King of B-Movies. This balls-out orgy of zombie mayhem may well be the single greatest achievement in B-grade zombie cinema, and incredibly funny for those with a twisted sense of humor ... Read more

Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City. Japan, 2010

Takashi Miike, Sho Aikawa, Miniskirt police and a godzilla-sized green alien with a deadly fart ray. What more do you need to know? ... Read more

Enter the Void. France, 2009

A twisted, visceral, mind-blowing experience with huge ambitions that no doubt will prove far too edgy for the Oscars, even though its now firmly in front-running for my movie of the year. Hallucinogenic, sexy, transcendent, experimental, in-your-face, and brutal by turns - its not for everyone ... Read more

Angst. Austria, 1983

For fans of true crime, and anyone seeking a more authentic psycho killer experience this surely rates as one of the most successful of its type. It's nasty, it's seedy, it's disturbing - just like the crime itself. What was the film's biggest downfall is also its greatest asset - it's honesty ... Read more

XX: Beautiful Hunter. Japan, 1994

From famed Japanese Pinku director Masaru Konuma comes this mid-90's Girls with Guns genre piece, fully stocked with guns, sex, blood and a touch of S&M-themed torture thrown in for good measure ... Read more

Vanilla Sky. USA, 2001

The film that Vanilla Sky is based on, Alejandro Amenabar's Abre los Ojos (Open Your Eyes) is one of my all-time favourite films. And amazingly enough, so is this. Cameron Crowe took the opportunity to not only remake the movie, but to try and improve upon it as well. I still can't decide which of the two films I like better. Read more

School of the Holy Beast. Japan, 1974

Nunsploitation. What the fuck, right? It makes me laugh just to say it! But if you're looking for the Rolls-Royce of exploitation films, then this surely must be it. Despite the gorgeous visuals, the story doesn't shirk the exploitation factor, and has all the gratuitous and lurid content you could hope for. Read more

Angel Heart. USA, 1987

To take a break from the usual cult trash, obscure oddities and hyper-crazy foreign flicks, this week we revisit a true classic - one of my all time favourite films, Alan Parker's voodoo-infused neo-noir horror, Angel Heart. A unique and fascinating film, enhanced considerably by a top notch cast and incredible production values Read more

Candy, USA 1968

As a naive and trusting coed with a heart of gold, Candy is unaware of the effect she has on men, and seems like a bewildered Alice, in a Wonderland populated with sleazy, horny men. Light-hearted bawdy fun, and a worthwhile cinematic trip back to the 60's.
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Boxer's Omen, Hong Kong 1983

I've seen more than my share of utterly bat-shit movies in my time, but this may be one of THE most twisted movies I've ever seen. Starting out as a martial arts movie, it segues into a triad theme, introduces a supernatural ghost-monk, and cuts to a gratuitous sex scene ... all within the first 15 minutes!
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Black Dynamite, USA 2009

A hilariously cheesy throwback to the golden era of 70s blaxploitation - complete with the requisite sexism, racism, macho posturing and kung fu! Some jive turkey has killed his brother and its up to Black Dynamite to find out who is responsible!
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Thirst, Korea 2009

What can one of the most exciting directors in Asia bring to the well-established, and frequently all too predictable, vampire genre? Well rest assured there's loads of sex and blood, and the odd bit of ultra-violence thrown in for good measure ...
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Angel-A, France 2005

The stunning cinematography around picturesque Paris, combined with the decision to film in black and white lends the film an artistic and classy aesthetic, however the delivery is anything but pretentious. Instead director Luc Besson has delivered a mature and sexy comedy/fantasy that is enjoyable from start to finish ...
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