Early 70s insanity
"This is classic drive in exploitation stupidity, with performances straight out of community theater. The included DeCoteau commentary is a fantastic bonus."
Details
Sold Out / OOP
While on the run from the law, two criminals decide to hide out in a small Florida town. The ringleader, Paul, concocts a plan to pretend to be his child-like accomplice Stanley's estranged Aunt Martha. Taking over a large old house, Paul and Stanley attempt to lay low, but trouble soon arises when a local girl takes a liking to Stanley and invites him out with her friends. Paul, becoming increasingly paranoid, decides that the only way they can maintain their cover is by murdering everyone who has even the slightest suspicion of what's really going on, but Stanley isn't so sure he wants to keep on hiding...
This bizarre, Florida shot regional film made by one-time director Thomas Casey is less a horror movie than a hybrid of crime thriller and vaguely homoerotic relationship drama, with some bloody death scenes and moments of T&A thrown in for good measure. Nearly impossible to see for years, Vinegar Syndrome and AGFA bring this totally unique piece of low-rent trash to DVD, in its proper aspect ratio for the very first time. Also featuring a new commentary track with cult filmmaker David DeCoteau (rapidheart.com) and film historian Nathaniel Thompson (mondo-digital.com).
Director: Thomas Casey
Actors: Abe Zwick, Wayne Crawford, Robin Hughes, Yanka Mann
1971 / Color / 95 minutes / 1.85:1
- DVD | Region Free | 1.85:1 OAR
- Scanned and restored in 2k from the American Genre Film Archive's 35mm theatrical print
- Historical commentary track by David DeCoteau (rapidheart.com) & Nathaniel Thompson (mondo-digital.com)
Overall rating: 4.2222223 / 5 from 18 reviews.
AI Generated Review Summary
Summary topics
Review topics: ["mother","ride","paul","movie","film","characters","features"].
Review highlights
Reviews
Twisted Mind
"This was among the first Weird Wednesdays to make a real impression on me, so I was curious about whether I'd like it as much as I did in '12 when I was a much less seasoned viewer of these kinds of oddities (which is not to suggest this particular movie is not a set of one). Nope, not quite, but I still love the mad comedy of this, impossible without Abe Zwick as Aunt Martha / Paul, who is more and more hilarious the angrier he gets (and he gets very angry). Weird thing, though: I found myself having an inverted reaction to it compared to the audience, laughing at stuff nobody else laughed at and not laughing at stuff that got big laughs from the crowd. Maybe I'm just homesick."
Reminded me a lot of John Waters films.
"I was expecting based on the name something in the vain of Crazy Fat Ethel but little did I know that this is a gay / queer crime thriller. Wow! It reminded me a lot of John Waters films. The film was surprisingly classy in terms of production design, filmography and performances. It's not particularly exploitative which was a shame."
Sometimes...
"What a title! Can the movie live up to it? Well... kind of. It's pretty funny in places and the whole setup is so absurd that it can't help but make you smile at times. To me it felt far too long, as the joke starts to wear a little thin and can't be stretched to 95 minutes. The characters are very interesting as is their relationship, but at times it feels as though the whole thing could've been slightly better. It's certainly no masterpiece as far as film making is concerned, but I'd definitely recommend it to people who enjoy slightly different movies."
Twisted Family Relations
"“Aunt Martha” has a secret — and it’s not just that she’s really a man, baby! Paul and Stanley are fugitives hiding in the suburbs, with Paul posing as Stanley’s Aunt Martha. Paul henpecks Stanley to be more discreet, but Stanley just wants to hang with chicks. Threatened by Stanley’s indiscretions, Paul’s ire rises and the bodies start to pile up. Eventually, the appearance of a drug user who might recognize Paul also threatens to upend everything sending the two fugitives into a spiral of despair. With stolen jewels up for grabs and one dead pregnant mom later, it’s revealed who the real murdered is and the exact feelings Paul has for Stanley are made known. A wild ride full of excessive performances — especially Abe Zwick as Paul, this is one for the ages. Recommended!"
This pairs well with Whatever Happened to Baby Jane
"I love a good double feature, and this helped make a fun movie night."
AGFA
"Excellent release and restoration."
Sometimes..
"This film is probably not for everyone. The release itself is very barebones. I believe the Bluray also available from VS has a few bonus features which this DVD doesn't have. I got this very cheap when VS was clearing out the DVDs and at that price it was worth it for me but I would not pay some high secondhand price now that this is OOP."
Fun weird little film
"What a fun ride this was. I took a chance on the 5 dollar dvd sale VS was having and grabbed this title. Simple dvd package with very little features."
Awesome!!
"One hell of a ride from this low budg AGFA horror flick. Killer characters and loaded nonus features."