Mad Ron’s Prevues From Hell (Horror Movie Trailer Compilation/Virgil DVD)

 

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: C     Compilation: C+

 

 

Another compilation of movie trailers has arrived, but it is actually an older one from the VHS era that calls itself Mad Ron’s Prevues From Hell.  Originally issued in 1987, the makers decided to host the trailers in a single-screen movie house and have almost everyone dress as zombies.  That part is boring and only for those in the mood for it, but the theater is furnished with some great posters and memorabilia tied to the genre of trailers shown.

 

That leaves the trailers, which include the following films:

 

I Drink Your Blood/I Eat Your Skin
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
Deranged
Three On A Meathook
The Corpse Grinders
The Undertaker & His Pals
Love Me Deadly
Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things
The Maniacs Are Loose (aka The Thrill Killers)
Cannibal Girls
Torso
The Blood Spattered Bride/I Dismember Mama
The Ghastly Ones
The Wizard Of Gore
Beyond The Door
Deep Red
Sisters (Brian De Palma’s first thriller)
The Devil's Nightmare
The House Of Exorcism (aka Lisa & The Devil)
Lady Frankenstein
Flesh Feast
Tales From The Crypt
The Vault Of Horror
Horror Of The Zombies (aka The Ghost Galleon)
Bloodeaters
Revenge Of The Living Dead/Curse Of The Living Dead/Fangs Of The Living Dead triple feature trailer
The Diabolical Dr. Z
Africa Blood & Guts (aka Africa Addio)
Night Of Bloody Horror
Silent Night, Evil Night (aka Black Christmas (1974))
The Mutations (aka The Freakmaker)
The House That Screamed
Blood & Lace
Two Thousand Maniacs
Night Of The Living Dead (1968)
God Told Me To (aka Demon)
Horror On Snape Island (aka Tower Of Evil)
Wildcat Women (aka Black Lolita)
Ilsa, She-Wolf Of The SS
Man From Deep River
The Last House On The Left (1972)
Carnage (aka Twitch Of The Death Nerve)
Color Me Blood Red
Mad Doctor Of Blood Island
Silent Night, Bloody Night
Bloody Pit Of Horror
Night Of The Bloody Apes

 

 

We have reviewed some of them, some are true horror classics, others are outright exploitation films and some are lesser-known films.  We hope to cover more of them soon.  A few are classics and some are forgotten but interesting early rip-offs of Texas Chain Saw Massacre that reminds us how successful the film was even then.  I would rate this higher without the comedy segments, but the DVD does not offer a trailers-only option in playback, but the collection of clips is valuable enough to sift through the rest of this and some may even like the whole thing.  At least it’s on DVD now.

 

 

The 1.33 X 1 image varies from the soft NTSC videotaping of the comedy footage to the color, definition and condition of the trailers, but they offer the best moments when they are in their best condition.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono varies throughout from the distorted mono of the old videotaping to the various optical mono of the trailers, but they can actually sound cleaner and clearer despite their age.  Extras include stills (including classic posters), more footage of the new videotaped shoot and a reunion of some of the makers of that part of this program.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo