★ 9 / 10
A well-assembled compilation of the most humorously entertaining
filmresidue
A well-assembled compilation of the most humorously entertaining trailers committed onto disc. 42nd Street Forever focuses on the absurd and envelope-pushing…
A well-assembled compilation of the most humorously entertaining trailers committed onto disc. 42nd Street Forever focuses on the absurd and envelope-pushing tastelessness of grindhouse films. In some cases, the trailers are more worth your time than the films themselves.
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Good Trailer Collection If Slightly Disappointing
jrd_73
I was psyched to view this three-and-a-half-hour trailer collection from Synapse. True, I owned the first two volumes of 42nd Street Forever on DVD, and most…
I was psyched to view this three-and-a-half-hour trailer collection from Synapse. True, I owned the first two volumes of 42nd Street Forever on DVD, and most (but not all) the trailers come from those discs. However, I was excited by the boost in picture quality. Even more exciting was the inclusion of a commentary track by my three favorite commentariats for schlock: Edwin Samuelson, Michael Gingold, and Chris Poggiali. I had loved their commentaries for the DVD volumes three and four and was looking forward to this commentary.In the end, I was certainly satisfied but not ecstatic with the blu-ray.First, the disc does a good job at providing an overview of the various exploitation genres of the late 1960's to the early 1980's. Unfortunately, I just don't have a lot of interest in some of those films. I am a horror movie fan who also likes some science fiction, fantasy, action, and martial arts movies. No surprise then, a lot of the sexploitation titles left me cold and some of the trailers went on for a long time. I had seen (and liked) The Teacher and The Centerfold Girls, and after watching the collection, I would like to see I, a Woman and Invitation to Ruin, if an uncut print of the original film ever surfaces. However, The Pom Pom Girls, Street Girls, The Tale of the Dean's Wife and some of the others had little interest to me. These trailers were not helped by their (over) length.Finally, I got to mention the commentary, which is what I was most interested in getting the collection for. The commentary was curious. First, the commentary for the Dark Star trailer was clearly just Edwin Samuelson reading from a prepared editorial. I have no idea why. Did the other speakers take a bathroom break? Was there a problem with the recording? Were the statements libelous and removed? One does not know, but the commentary for that trailer is certainly unusual.As for the others, I noticed a declining interest in the participants as the three-and-a-half-hour commentary went on. The speakers had less and less to say. True, some of the films even early on do get short-changed. Unfortunately, there are almost no comments for They Call Her One Eye because the guys are still talking about the preceding trailer, Ms. 45. At least that was because they guys loved Ms. 45 (a film I like as well). Alas, by the end, I thought their sparse comments was the result of tiredness rather than being excited about a preceding film.I was also surprised that there were films on this trailer collection the speakers had not seen (Chappaqua for instance). It spoiled my illusion that these guys had seen everything.Even more surprising than that was that some of the trailers produced a gut reflex in the speakers. These guys, these guys, have weak stomachs? Perhaps I am a jaded viewer that has seen too many of these type of movies, but I was not surprised by the animal killings in the trailers for the mondo movies (Secret Africa, Shocking Asia). I did not care for those shots, but I certainly was not as grossed out by them the way some of the speakers on the commentary were. Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom drew basically a big silence. I like the film (with some reservations), so I was taken aback by the speakers stunned silence to its trailer. The Crippled Masters also drew some flinching remarks. I am not a big fan of the film, but I have seen it twice. It did not seem as exploitative to me as the speakers made it out. Yes, The Crippled Masters is in poor taste, but nearly all of the films on this disc set are in poor taste.So, the commentary was a mixed bag. I am glad I listened to it, but it was not the equal of the ones on 42nd Street Forever volumes 3 and 4.In the end, I would recommend 42nd Street Forever Blu-ray Edition. For all of my complaining, it features some great trailers. After watching the disc set, I wanted to see Chained Heat, The Dark, I, a Woman, and The .44 Specialist. The disc also made me want to re-watch The Blood Spattered Bride, Mansion of Madness, Shogun Assassin, and They Call Her One Eye. The commentary was good too and well worth a listen, even if it was not as great as I had hoped and expected.Synapse clearly gives a buyer his money's worth with this trailer collection.
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7.3/10
120
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@1488Gang - It's nonsense. He made up a goofy sounding name just to confuse people and get responses like yours...though you have to admit...that could have been an interesting film.