“You just like being shagged, you bitch!”
Well, that’s a bit harsh, isn’t it? Well, not when you are part of the golden age of exploitation…
Time for some sleazy, seedy and – YES – utterly MESMERIZING grindhouse classics – stay with me as I take you on a journey into film history – as the classic sexploitation craze continues – thanks in part to a unique brand of italian “PULP FICTION”!
Giallo – Read All About This “Yellow Pulp Fiction!”
What you see above you is an original “italian giallo” book – a unique blend of pulp fiction that was turned into a hugely successful collection of european films in the 70′s. The “SIN-ema” of the early 70′s was a unique type of film making. Lots of sex, nudity, blood and violence – all done with a certain “european” flair…
These films flooded the sleazy “grindhouse” theaters in the US in the early 70′s – movie theaters that stayed open all night, and where there was just as much action IN the seats as on the screen…movie going was a “survival” type of experience….
You can criticize, but you are missing the point…this was a very specific time in movie history – cheap european “giallo” films were helping pave the way for a more “adult” type of movie experience…these bloody “nudefests” were a unique style of exploitation:
Yes, it’s “women in peril” again, but that was the way they made them in the 70′s…
There has been a huge market opening up for these classic “giallo” films. Here are the latest classic exploitation films of the 70′s – now released for your enjoyment! And of course, the first one is based in New York!
Massage Parlor Murders!
This is one of the legendary grindhouse classics, now available in a pristine new blu-ray…first, check out the trailer:
Here’s what the promotional teaser has to say: “A vicious serial killer is stalking the streets of New York City, murdering Times Square massage girls in a variety of brutal ways. It’s up to a rogue detective team to solve the case as the body count continues to rise!”
“Chock full of over the top sex and violence and complete with high speed car chase through Manhattan, “MASSAGE PARLOR MURDERS” is an exploitation film lover’s dream movie.”
And yes, it was also released later as “Massage Parlor Hookers”. Movies like these were usually re-named and re-released to maximize their grindhouse potential…and to sucker idiots into seeing the same movie twice!
Did you notice in the trailer that the lead actress looks A LOT like a young Roseanna Arquette? Well, it’s not her, but the similarity is striking….
As you can see, the film is full of gratuitous sex and violence, but the movie captures the grit and seedy nature of New York in the early 70′s – and it’s an effective little thriller that evokes the best of the grindhouse of the time….at least the ones that were made in the US.
Time To Head To Europe!
And in case “Massage Parlor Murders” isn’t SLEAZY ENOUGH, try this classic EURO-SLEAZE on for size!
“You just like being shagged, you bitch!”
THE SISTER OF URSULA
Thanks once again to Severin Films for uncovering this infamous slice of Euro-Sleaze that repeatedly “thrusts at the abyss of bad taste!”
Here is the plot: In the wake of their father’s death, two beautiful sisters – sensitive Ursula and promiscuous Dagmar – come to a seaside resort for a relaxing vacation.
But their idyllic getaway will soon become a depraved nightmare of kinky exhibitionists, dope-sick lotharios, lust-crazed lesbians and a psychotic killer who tears women to pieces with – no kidding – a phallus of massive proportion.
Now THIS is euro-sleaze! “Ursula” is an eye-popping combination of sexploitation and vicious giallo, fully restored from original vault elements and presented uncut and uncensored for the first time ever in America.
These european shockers were cheaply made, full of sex and violence, and then full of more sex – particularly lesbian scenes, which seems to be “so european” for the time…
The “european” nature of these films was a selling point – offering nudity and sexual situations much more mature than the US…and the foreign posters made it clear there was going to be A LOT of flesh on display!
European exploitation, sexploitation and artsploitation films are fascinating to me, and I’ve posted about them before…
And if you need a primer on Italian giallo, check this out!
