Speck, for those gleefully uninformed, was a real nutjob who raped and murdered a bunch of student nurses back in the 1960's. The Asylum has purportedly found footage shot by a team of paranormal investigators who infiltrated Speck's kill-house a year or so ago. The footage is all that remains of their expedition. Check out the trailer below, then, if you dare, check out the film now on DVD, Blu-Ray and VOD.
With the release of Alien Origin, a found-footage sci-fi/action thriller that hits shelves today, you'd think The Asylum might wait a little while before unleashing another flick in the genre, but lo and behold, another title has appeared on the horizon, and this one takes the found-footage format back to its roots in good old-fashioned horror: 100 Ghost Street: The Return of Richard Speck.
For those of you unfamiliar with the name, Richard Speck was a real-life serial killer responsible for the death of 8 student nurses in Chicago in 1966. Dude was pretty heinous, so there's lots of scary material here. Check out the plot:
"In 2010, paranormal investigators tried to
film Richard Speck’s ghost at the site of his heinous killing spree.
The victims’ families have finally released the footage that documents
their last days."
This one sounds like a guaranteed scare-fest. Find out yourself when the film drops on DVD, Blu-Ray and VOD on July 24th.
Then there's Golden Winter, which we already knew was a tie-in to the Disney golden-retriever-puppy movies, but now we know the plot and stars. First the plot:
"A boy befriends a litter of homeless Golden Retrievers. Together, they help stop a bank robbery just in time for Christmas."
Aww. The film stars talented beauties Shannon Elizabeth (American Pie, Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back) and Haylie Duff (7th Heaven, Backwoods) and is written and directed by Tom Seidman, an Asylum newcomer. This one streets September 25th.
And as if all this wasn't enough, we also got a DVD date on The Asylum's star-studded movie Bigfoot: it'll be on DVD August 14th, following its SyFy debut on the 30th of this month. In case you've been living under a rock, the film - from director Bruce Davison off a script by Micho Rutare and Brian Brinkman - stars Barry Williams, Danny Bonaduce, Sherilyn Fenn, Andre Rojo, Howard Hesseman, Billy Idol and Alice Cooper. The plot:
"When Bigfoot attacks an 80s themed music
concert, a concert promoter and a hippie burnout will do anything to
protect the "endangered species."
I received a package in the
mail the other day, a parcel of found-footage from a military expedition
in South America that purports to have discovered the truth behind the
origins of human life on Earth.
While
the material is too sensitive to discuss openly like this, I've heard
the footage will be made available throughout the country this coming
Tuesday under the moniker Alien Origin, and distributed by our brave friends at The Asylum.
I
warn you, though, this footage is not for the faint of heart. This is a
pensive, intense, slowly-unfolding mystery whose ramifications change
everything about our biology; it is truly mind-bending, pulse-racing,
edge-of-your-seat information, rife with action, intrigue and suspense,
and I for one think it's vital we spread the word as far and wide as we
can, because this stuff is too history-altering to be kept secret any
longer. So look for this cover -
- on Tuesday, June 12 on DVD, Blu-Ray and VOD. This blogpost will self-destruct in 5...4...3...2...
In honor of Alien Origin,
a found-footage film that marks The Asylum's next release - this Tuesday, June 12th -
I thought to put together a list of Asylum found-footage films to date,
just to make sure you've seen them all. Enjoy.
"Actual footage of the events leading to
the 2008 "murder" of Samantha Finley. This DVD, released against the
wishes of the authorities, proves that nothing human caused Samantha's
death."
"John Wayne Gacy murdered 33 young men and
boys between 1972 and 1978 in suburban Chicago. 26 bodies were found in a
crawl space beneath his house and 3 others were buried in the backyard.
Although the house was completely demolished during the exhumation of
the bodies, on May 15, 2004 a group of paranormal investigators wired
the home that was built in its place with paranormal detection and
surveillance equipment. The outcome of the investigation was grisly,
terrifying and disturbing. "
"The shocking account of history's most
infamous case of demonic possession, compiled from the actual videotape
and film recordings from over 76 exorcisms.
"
The Asylum's next found-footage documentary, Alien Origin, won't be released for a couple weeks, but now we have a look at the trailer:
The
footage comes courtesy of an Adventure Journalist accompanying a
Special Forces team in Belize back in 2010. This, to anyone's knowledge,
will be the first time the footage has been made available to the
general public.
What world-shattering secrets has The Asylum unlocked this time? Find out Tuesday, June 12th, when Alien Origin hits DVD, Blu-Ray and VOD.
It's the film that a week ago, we didn't even know it existed, but now here it is, ready for its DVD release this coming Tuesday, the 1st of March: Anneliese: The Exorcist Tapes.*
As I believe all such found-footage films - documentary or narrative - are pretty much entirely spoilers, I'm going to make these notes intentionally vague, resorting mainly to the backstory of the film and the tapes within the film, as well as my emotional responses. The biggest spoiler in all found-footage films is: "is it real?" I'm not touching that at this point. After we've all had a chance to view it and form our opinions, I'll be happy to share my stance. But for now, all I'm saying is, "watch the movie and judge for yourself." I will say that the movie begins with a disclaimer stating the footage contained therein is real, has not been doctored, and was gathered for medical purposes. So...there's that.
There are two options on the start-up menu, "Play Tapes" and "Play Documentary." I only mention this because it confused me a little bit, so I thought I'd save you similar turmoil: "tapes" is the film itself; "documentary" is the film about the film, and only runs 9 minutes. What is not up for debate is the veracity of the story and the girl behind the film. As I've mentioned afewtimes, Anneliese Michel was a German teenager in the late 1960's, early 1970's who was purported to have been possessed by demons. After undergoing approximately 70 exorcisms (accounts vary from 66 to 72), Miss Michel died from exhaustion, dehydration and near-starvation. She was 34 years old. Her parents and the priests involved in her exorcisms were charged by the state with negligent homicide in her death, and at the trial, it is an acknowledged fact that tapes depicting the exorcisms of Anneliese Michel were shown.
No one in the general public had ever seen those tapes until, supposedly, now.
Discovered and compiled by Jude Gerard Prest, best known in these virtual pages as the Looney-award-winning supporting actor from Mega Piranha, but also an accomplished producer**, what we have here is a first -person filmed account of the poor girl's ordeal featuring Anneliese, her parents, the priests and a small American film crew. It's 90 minutes of visceral footage, emotional interviews, frightening sights and sounds and an on-going debate within the film to mirror the one no doubt most viewers will have: is this behavior real? is this girl possessed?
In short (and vaguely), this film is a disturbing, compelling, gut-wrenching experience, rife of images that won't soon leave your nightmares. And whether the girl on the tape is Anneliese Michel or not (whoever she is, man, does she scare the shit out of me, especially her eyes), that does not change the fact that Anneliese existed, she experienced horrible things in her short life, and this film, by all reports, is an accurate depiction of those experiences. Not for the faint of heart, or the wavering in faith; you're either all in or all out, there's no straddling the subject of this one. But whatever your stance, when you watch it, leave a light on, and if you're so inclined, a prayer or two probably wouldn't hurt.
* because of the rushed nature of this release, I feel compelled to explain for the first time how I get my hands on new releases, if only to assure my readers that I am not, nor do I condone, the illegal downloading or "pirating" of films. music, sure; films: no way. I work, as I've mentioned, in a video store, meaning we get next week's new releases several days early for preparation purposes. that's how I procure early peeks.
** including a pre-production supervising producer gig on "Deadliest Warrior," one of the most awesome shows in the history of visual media.
