Ever have an Egyptian feast? No? Well, you are in for a treat because in this film we have the incredible coincidence of an Egyptian caterer who wants to prepare an Egyptian blood feast and the mother of a student of Egyptian cults who wants to give her a special taste of Egypt. But, little does she know, this might result in a variety of gruesome murders.
Herschell Gordon Lewis is the godfather of gore. This is a well-known fact and I could sing his praises here for paragraphs at a time... but I will not. Instead, I want to give credit to Mal Arnold, the actor who played Fuad Ramses. He was quirky, weird-looking and creepy. His acting was pretty awful, but compared to the acting of everyone else he seemed the most professional. (It is actually really funny how forced most of the dialogue seems.) As pointed out in my review for "Wizard of Gore", Lewis loves eyes and Ramses has the perfect "wild eyes".
I am curious about who was going to eat the feast before the party came to Ramses' attention. He was already preparing it. So, like, does he just ask random customers if they are looking for an Egyptian feast and hopes that one will take him up on the offer? And should I care that this film constantly references Egypt while the god they refer to (Ishtar) is actually Babylonian with no Egyptian connection? I should care, but frankly, I do not.
And here is why: the blood. Sure, the blood was paint-like... but it was also awesome. The color schemes in the 1960s make the bright blood of "Blood Feast" appropriate. Today it would look silly, but at the time it is actually rather gross, which is the intended goal when you are a gore master, I assume. Plenty of hacked up people (legs, tongues and more removed on screen).
I have written that "Blood Feast" is on par with "Wizard of Gore" as far as being his masterpiece. So if you are looking for a taste of Lewis-style carnage, this is a great place to start. From the bloody beginning to the bone-crushing end, this is a tale of massacre and incompetent police that low-budget horror fans eat up like fava beans.
As of September 2011, you can have this film in your collection on Blu-Ray, thanks to Image Entertainment. Besides the new technology, there are commentaries from Lewis and producer David Friedman, as well as plenty of special goodies. I would strongly urge anyone to pick it up.
Herschell Gordon Lewis is the godfather of gore. This is a well-known fact and I could sing his praises here for paragraphs at a time... but I will not. Instead, I want to give credit to Mal Arnold, the actor who played Fuad Ramses. He was quirky, weird-looking and creepy. His acting was pretty awful, but compared to the acting of everyone else he seemed the most professional. (It is actually really funny how forced most of the dialogue seems.) As pointed out in my review for "Wizard of Gore", Lewis loves eyes and Ramses has the perfect "wild eyes".
I am curious about who was going to eat the feast before the party came to Ramses' attention. He was already preparing it. So, like, does he just ask random customers if they are looking for an Egyptian feast and hopes that one will take him up on the offer? And should I care that this film constantly references Egypt while the god they refer to (Ishtar) is actually Babylonian with no Egyptian connection? I should care, but frankly, I do not.
And here is why: the blood. Sure, the blood was paint-like... but it was also awesome. The color schemes in the 1960s make the bright blood of "Blood Feast" appropriate. Today it would look silly, but at the time it is actually rather gross, which is the intended goal when you are a gore master, I assume. Plenty of hacked up people (legs, tongues and more removed on screen).
I have written that "Blood Feast" is on par with "Wizard of Gore" as far as being his masterpiece. So if you are looking for a taste of Lewis-style carnage, this is a great place to start. From the bloody beginning to the bone-crushing end, this is a tale of massacre and incompetent police that low-budget horror fans eat up like fava beans.
As of September 2011, you can have this film in your collection on Blu-Ray, thanks to Image Entertainment. Besides the new technology, there are commentaries from Lewis and producer David Friedman, as well as plenty of special goodies. I would strongly urge anyone to pick it up.