Gabe Powers

Before VCD and DVD took over the home video market and Ringu-inspired kaidan became the export of choice, a home-grown, straight-to-video underground splatter movement reintroduced Japan to cult horror audiences. Characterized by short runtimes, sloppy gore, and mega-ambitious, do-it-yourself special effects, the movement is largely tied the legendary Guinea Pig series, but also produced more likeable films, like Akihiro Kashima’s Biotherapy (1986), Takuro Fukuda’s Conton (aka: Legend of the...

In the annals of legendary martial arts weapons, no sword, spear, staff, or axe can compare to the violent esoteric mechanics of the fabled “flying guillotine.” Supposedly invented during the Qing Dynasty (221 to 206 BC), the flying guillotine was a folding cage attached to a chain that was designed to be thrown onto the head of an enemy. Following a successful lassoing, the chain would be pulled, activating buzzsaw blades around the base, severing the victim’s head, and capturing it within...

All genre trends have their peak year when the most applicable films are released in theaters and few regions embraced genre trends like the Italians did between the 1950s and 1980s. For example, the pepla peaked around 1964, the spaghetti westerns around 1968, the poliziotteschi around 1980 (I haven’t done the actual math on that one), and the post-apocalyptic movies around 1983. Between January and December of 1971, at least 42 gialli and giallo-adjacent thrillers were released in Italy and...