Video Home Invasion: Arrow Video Exploitation and the Far East

One part of Arrow Video's collection that we have not explored are the great exploitation titles they currently offer.  They don't quite qualify as Video Nasties, however, they are no less entertaining and, in some cases, important to the history of exploitation film.  Unfortunately for the UK, exploitation cinema is somewhat underrepresented in the home video market.  Here in the US we have several labels solely dedicated to the proliferation and salvation of these films.  The UK has not been so lucky.  So, when a label like Arrow Video decides that these films are worth showing, it is certainly welcome. 
 
In this column we'll also explore a couple of upcoming releases, including Arrow Video's first visits to the Far East to deliver some films that will surely get fans (like me) drooling!

So far, Arrow Video's exploitation offerings include three really great titles.  One is a big budget disaster that inspires either devotion or repulsion in its viewers, Caligula, which is available for the first time on Blu-ray in the UK.  Another is a milestone of 80's underground exploitation cinema and a film that is almost universally loved by sleaze aficionados, Street Trash.   The third is a somewhat forgotten gem featuring multiple Bond villains called Jaguar Lives, also making its first appearance on UK DVD.

Caligula has a very spotty history on home video, and I'm sure its content has a lot to do with that.  The story of the film itself is worthy of several books, even if you don't like the end result.  I will say that the film holds an important place in cinema history as probably the largest porn production of the 70's, even if that isn't how it started out.  Arrow Video has chosen to include only the longest of the cuts, the infamous glorified porno partly directed by Bob Guccione after he decided that Tinto Brass' version wasn't sleazy enough.  This is an interesting decision.  I own the US Imperial Edition on DVD mainly because it has both the hardcore and softcore versions of the film, in addition to some interesting extras.  I won't be getting rid of that one in exchange for this one, but I'll certainly hold on to both for different reasons.  One of the main reasons to own this film, apart from the beautiful Helen Mirren, is to see just how wrong a massively ambitious a film can go, and in HD even!  The package contains a number of bonus features, most of which are found on the other recent Imperial Edition DVD sets, but the real selling points of this film are, again, paper based.  Namely, another booklet featuring an exclusive and very candid interview with star Malcolm McDowell, as well as the customary four cover arts and fold out poster.  This may be my least favorite of Arrow Video's collection, but even so it is nothing to sneeze at.  It is like trying to choose one's least favorite donut.  They are all good, but some must be better than others.

Speaking of better releases, Arrow Video have also finally given Street Trash a very solid DVD debut in the UK with their release.  There are two main selling points of this package, the first is the film itself, and if you've ever seen Street Trash, you know what I'm talking about.  From start to finish the film doesn't stop moving, giving the viewer one delightfully repugnant moment after another.  It is trashy, giddy fun of the absolute best kind!  I remember the first time I saw this film was when I was in high school and had just started getting into underground film, it was a turning point for me.  It combined my love of trashy gore and special effects with my even greater love of John Waters styled trash aesthetic and dialogue.  It is a perfect exploitation film.  In addition to the film, Arrow Video have also included the same full-length Meltdown Memoirs making-of documentary from the Synapse Films edition already available in the US, a worthwhile watch for anyone and at least as enjoyable as the film itself, as well as the reversible cover art and an exclusive collector's booklet with a 15 page look back at the making of Street Trash and the usual full color two sided poster reproduction.  This edition may be missing a few things from the Synapse Films special edition, but for our UK and European readers, it is definitely a worthwhile release!

The last title currently available in Arrow Video's catalog is Jaguar Lives, a James Bond knock off designed to scrape a couple more bucks out of the pockets of a Bond-hungry viewing audience.  It may have passed on into the annals of history for most viewers, but its combination of Kung-fu, evil super villains, heroin smuggling, and beautiful women, makes it a very entertaining time pass.  Arrow Video gives it a solid treatment with the reversible cover and poster art as well as a ridiculous 28 page booklet!  Well worth your time.

There is at least one more exploitation title up Arrow Video's sleeve, and it is another bona fide Video Nasty, plucked from the list by AV to restore to its deserved glory.   Osvaldo de Oliveira's Bare Behind Bars was banned as a Video Nasty in 1994, but Arrow has picked it up with an eye toward releasing it uncut for the first time in the UK.  This will be Arrow Video's first Women in Prison film, but it certainly fits their style, and I'm excited to see what they make of it, there is no tentative release yet.

There also two new horror releases in the works, one of which is also an original Video Nasty that has just recently, as in 3 weeks ago, finally been passed uncut by the BBFC, Island of Death by Greek Renaissance man Nico Mastorakis.  The film really has no redeeming social value, and there was no purpose in its creation for Mastorakis apart from creating something that would truly shock viewers.  I haven't seen it yet, but by all means he succeeded in this 1975 cannibal/sexploitation film.  Arrow Video have been in direct contact with Mastorakis regarding the brand new transfer and completion of their disc, so I would expect it to be special, they are also sponsoring the first theatrical screening of the film in Glasgow, Scotland later this month, it should be interesting.  On the complete other end of the horror spectrum, Arrow Video have also picked up Grace Jones starrer, Vamp.  Now, I haven't seen this film, but it does have a reputation for being entertaining.  I suppose that either you like Grace Jones for what she is, or you don't.  I find her amusing, and I'll be interested to see what they do with it.

So far, Arrow Video has focused on the American and European film scene, but they are expanding to the great wonderland of out-there cinema that is Japan very soon. Their initial foray into Japanese cinema is Takashi Miike's gonzo-styled gangster epic and Riki Takeuchi showpiece, Deadly Outlaw: Rekka.  Arrow Video's release will feature a brand new, improved transfer with similarly brand new and improved English subtitles.  Also in the package is an interview with Miike about the making of the film and a featurette with Miike talking us through some key scenes in the film, hopefully that bazooka scene is included in this one.  Another truly excellent inclusion is a booklet essay by Tom Mes, writer of Agitator: The Cinema of Takashi Miike and general Japanese film know-it-all, which is sure to be an excellent read.  I'm really looking forward to this one, of all of  Miike's work, this is one of the more fun films.

Arrow Video has at least one more excursion to the Far East in the works, it is no secret, but I do think it is worthy of its own post, so stick around for that one later in the day...