Monday, July 21, 2008

TRAILERS FROM HELL

I'm not a great fan of microcinema; however, I'm not above spending an insomniatic hour or two trolling YouTube or fingerpopping to scopitones at Bedazzled TV, or even occasionally dipping into the Twitch Video Player. I certainly enjoy the Twitch Trailer Park for each year's Toronto International Film Festival.

And speaking of trailer parks,
Trailers From Hell—the brainchild of film director Joe Dante, new media entrepreneur Jonas Hudson, graphic artist Charlie Largent and producer Elizabeth Stanley, born out of their mutual love of classic films of all types, but particularly horror and exploitation films—has been rocking my late night world of late.

With an impressive list of "Grindhouse Gurus" to guide the way, Trailers From Hell offers up vintage trailers with contemporary commentary. Where else will you find Eli Roth enthusing over Alfred Hitchcock's trailer for The Birds? Or Jack Hill offering directorial insight into Foxy Brown? Or John Landis adding "scare-ewy" context to the careers of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein? Or Stuart Gordon extolling the carnivalesque geekdom of Nightmare Alley? And that is just a smidgin of the hellish delights offered at the site! Trailers From Hell is a wonderful project expertly administered. Insomnia has never looked so good!

Cross-published on
Twitch.