GURU THE MAD MONK (1970) & THE BODY BENEATH (1970) DVD

Description: Andy Milligan (1929-1991) is considered one of the most iconoclastic filmmakers to come out of the Sixties. Taking inspiration from the work of Andy Warhol, he began making low-budget, independent movies in 1965. They attracted the attention of exploitation distributor William Mishkin, who admired Milligan’s ability to create sophisticated (yet bloody) tales of terror with almost no money. It was Mishkin who would finance and distribute the director’s most notorious films, including The Body Beneath and Guru, the Mad Monk, which screened as a double feature on New York’s 42nd Street grindhouse circuit. Though Milligan tragically died of AIDS at the age of 62, his influence is still felt among “trash cinema” legends like John Waters and Lloyd Kaufman. Now you can watch these scream-chillers for yourself in this awesome DOUBLE SHOCK SHOW!!!! First off we have this thriller from 1970..... GURU THE MAD MONK - 1970 On the island of Mortavia in the 15th century, the insane Father Guru runs a decaying prison with an iron fist. The lunatic blackmails a prison guard, Carl, into becoming his personal assassin. Soon he is executing the mad monk’s enemies right and left. But all is not what it seems, and Guru slowly realizes to his horror that his servant is now his master...Milligan’s first movie shot on 35mm, Guru, the Mad Monk was filmed completely at St. Peter’s Church in New York City. I found this Andy Milligan-directed horror movie fascinating with the constant pounding score and Dragnet-like stilted dialogue abounding throughout. Having said that, I actually found the story pretty entertaining and I found myself partially caring for the sympathetic characters. Many of the gore scenes, while very amateurish, were also fun to watch in a can-you-believe-their-doing-this way. And having a hunchback that sometimes speaks clearly was also a hoot! Cruel, evil, haughty schizophrenic holy man Guru (a deliciously over the top performance by Neil Flanagan) resides on the remote island of Mortavia. Guru gets his sadistic jollies out of killing and maiming thieves, voyeurs, witches and various other sinners. Crazed lesbian vampire lady Olga (the seriously strange Jaqueline Webb) and meek, whimpering one-eyed hunchback Igor (an uproariously geeky turn by Jack Spencer) assist Guru with his heinous misdeeds. Meanwhile, kindly jailer Carl (the extremely fey Paul Lieber) tries to save condemned fair maiden Nadja (pretty blonde Judith Israel) from Guru's foul clutches. Legendary Do-It-Yourself dime store indie Staten Island schlockmeister Andy Milligan really outdoes himself with this astonishingly awful, yet often amusing and oddly entertaining period Gothic horror atrocity. The drippy'n'droning stock film library score, ratty, ugly, scratched-up cinematography (Andy gleefully indulges in his ghastly penchant for drab static master shots to an appalling degree), the outrageously tasteless plot, ripely hammy eye-rolling histrionic acting from a game no-name cast (many of whom talk with heavy New York accents), cynical misanthropic sensibility, cheesy gore, the hysterical bloodbath conclusion, and the gut-busting abundant anachronisms (one villager is clearly wearing corduroy pants!) all ensure that this spectacularly shoddy swill is absolutely sidesplitting from stinky start to fumbled finish. So on that note, I'm recommending Guru, the Mad Monk to horror movie buffs everywhere. Next up on this horror infested double feature is this little gem, also from 1970.... THE BODY BENEATH - 1970 Reverend Algernon Ford arrives in England, looking to reopen the Old Souls Church near Carfax Abbey. The Reverend is in reality a centuries-old vampire, hoping to draw his descendents to this house of worship. It is only them upon which he can he can feed and sustain his immortality. The plan succeeds beyond his wildest dreams. His great-granddaughter, Susan, is pregnant. Through mystical means, the Reverend prepares to reincarnate inside the unborn child...extending his power and lifespan for another thousand millenia. The Body Beneath was shot at Sarum Chase, the same British mansion seen on the sleeve of the Rolling Stones Beggars Banquet album. An odd one in Milligan's filmography, this was one of the few "real" movies he attempted. By "real" I mean less concerned with stagy, screaming, off-Broadway plots (let's face it, Milligan at his best, at least by the standards of his own movies). This is an eccentric vampire film unlike any other. Very similar to "Guru, the Mad Monk", it is one of the few Milligan films to feature a dominant performance by a lead actor (Gavin Reed, one of the more professional actors Milligan worked with) with no scheming, bitchy females in sight. Not quite as slow as some of Milligan's other British-era films, it moves along at a nice clip, and the final vampire/cannibal feast manages, at moments, to be atmospheric (though the annoying use of inappropriate stock music is a distraction). The internet is interesting, I first saw a Milligan movie when I was a kid , "The Rats are Coming, the Werewolves Are Here", and have been, well, interested in Milligan ever since. While I'm sure the recent Milligan biography has introduced more people to him, thanks to the internet I now know that, judging by some of the reactions to some of his films, there are at least 25 other people on Earth who appreciate Milligan as I do. Kind of neat. One of The better Milligan films that actually sort of works if you give it a a few allowances. One of Milligan's English films, this movie is actually a good story of vampires and such trying to get new blood into their family. That maybe giving too much away, or not since the movie doesn't wholly make sense....which is why I love Andy Milligan films!! Technically competent which only has to survive the need to keep all of the actors in close huddle and some make up that would be too thick even on stage, this is a decent drama/thriller that's actually one of the few Milligan movies I can recommend on any level. Sure it dances the fine line around being a bad movie (and crosses over into that territory a few times) but its the sort of time killer you may actually watch to the end. Both better and worse than I'm making this out to be, just understand what you're getting yourself into.....it is Andy Milligan after all!!! So sit back...grab your popcorn...turn down the lights...and get ready for some good old fashion 1970's horror flicks!! They don't make them like these anymore!!! HAPPY SCREAMING!!!!!!!!! This DVD is BRAND NEW...NEVER OPENED...STILL SEALED. Will be shipped VERY SECURELY!! PAYMENT THRU PAYPAL THANKS FOR LOOKING!!!!! "Not all prisoners are executed. Some have their eyes put out or their hands cut off for lesser crimes!!

Price: 15.95 USD

Location: Lake Stevens, Washington

End Time: 2025-01-07T03:00:05.000Z

Shipping Cost: 4.95 USD