Vinegar Syndrome Selects

Vinegar Syndrome Selects

Seeing as how we've been showcasing so many films from films-like-nothing-else restoration heroes Vinegar Syndrome, we thought it was high time we had them scour our vaults and put together a collection of their favourite films on ARROW. So, here is Vinegar Syndrome co-founder Joe Rubin with a half-dozen of his top picks - all now showing on ARROW. Take it away, Joe!

"From the bounty of riches offered here, I’ve selected a few favorites. Each of these films is not only a standout in its genre but a masterful piece of exploitation/horror filmmaking."

DON’T TORTURE A DUCKLING
My favorite giallo. Fulci has never been more cynical or angry, while still loading each scene with astutely executed nuance and subtext, amounting to a powerful indictment of rural Italian superstition and blind faith. This film blows me away each time I watch it.

THE WITCH WHO CAME FROM THE SEA
Of all the quintessentially 70s psycho-thrillers, few are more poignant than this one. A great deal of thanks is due to the icy scope photography by master lensmen Ken Gibb, aided by a young Dean Cundey, and Millie Perkins' absolutely haunting starring performance.

THE CHILD
I love no-budget regional horror. THE CHILD is much more than a straight zombie film; rather a borderline surreal waking nightmare. The not-quite-on dubbing, weird camera angles, and sweeping score all enhance the out-there mood.

TOYS ARE NOT FOR CHILDREN
This one is hard to describe without giving too much away, but suffice it to say, there are few exploitation films out there with a more perverse premise or horrifying payoff.

THE BABY
A film which somehow makes its off-the-wall concept completely believable while building believable and complex characters. Although structured almost as a filmed play, THE BABY remains highly cinematic and suspenseful.

KILLER NUN (USA and Canada only)
An exceptional (easy top ten) giallo, laced with pervasive and wholly relatable sadness that makes its twists and revelations all the more effective. Although often dismissed as a salacious shock pic, there’s actually a lot to chew on.

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Vinegar Syndrome Selects
  • Don't Torture A Duckling

    From Lucio Fulci, the godfather of gore (The Psychic, The Beyond), comes one of the most powerful and unsettling giallo thrillers ever produced: his 1972 masterpiece Don't Torture a Duckling.

    When the sleepy rural village of Accendura is rocked by a series of murders of young boys, the supersti...

  • The Witch Who Came From The Sea

    Molly really knows how to cut men down to size. Representing something of an anomaly in the career of director Matt Cimber (whose other credits include such blaxploitation fare as The Candy Tangerine Man) The Witch Who Came from the Sea is an unnerving journey into madness and murder starring Mil...

  • The Child

    1977 ・ United States ・ Directed by Robert Voskanian

    From The Bad Seed to Bloody Birthday, the killer kid movie has long been a staple of the horror genre - but they don't come quite as devilish or downright delirious as 1977's The Child! Young Alicianne arrives at an isolated old farmhouse to lo...

  • Toys Are Not For Children

    Psychological trauma and aberrant sexuality abound in this twisted 1972 tale of a young woman whose severe daddy issues send her on an unforgettably bleak downward spiral. Yearning for the love of her absentee father, Jamie inhabits an infantilised world surrounded by toys, including those which ...

  • The Baby

    Still traumatised by the loss of her husband, well-meaning social worker Ann Gentry (Anjanette Comer: The Loved One) throws herself into her latest assignment: the case of "Baby", a 21-year-old man with the mind of an infant - who crawls, cries and has yet to make it out of nappies. But Baby's fa...

  • Killer Nun

    1979 • Italy • Directed by Giulio Berruti

    Aging blonde-bombshell Anita Ekberg ('La Dolce Vita', 'Pick-up Alley') gives a full-bodied performance as a sex-crazed sister with some seriously bad habits in the lurid cult classic 'Killer Nun'. One of the most notorious 'nunsploitation' films, 'Killer...