Jake West’s Video Nasties documentaries cover a lot of the
same ground David Gregory’s Ban the Sadist Videos series did. West isn’t as good of a documentarian as
Gregory, and therefore, his films aren’t quite as compact and concise. Despite that, this first installment has several
strengths and remains an entertaining look at banned ‘80s horrors.
I liked the brief segment early on that details the video
wars of the early ‘80s. Anyone who ever
owned a Beta machine can’t help but feel a little misty-eyed over this
sequence. The montage that counts down
all 72 of the Video Nasties and shows money shot after money shot of each title
is awesome too. I just wish there were
more footage from the films throughout the picture.
West repeats a lot of the old archival footage that Gregory
used for his film, so you might get a sense of déjà vu while watching it. He does however find a few new angles to work
with. The shots of videos being burned
by officials are quite shocking and are likened to Nazi book burnings. West also interviews newer directors like
Neil Marshall who were influenced by those films. Hearing Marshall talk about watching I Spit
on Your Grave for the first time is a real treat.
While I give Gregory’s documentaries the slight edge over
this one, West still did a fine job. He
champions the gory films and condemns their eventual censorship. Both series are must-sees for anyone who’s
ever watched a Video Nasty.
AKA: Video
Nasties: The Definitive Guide.
No comments:
Post a Comment