I have to disagree. I think the effects are excellent in the films I’ve seen. Some of the best gore effects IMO
You’d probably know better than I. I would give Fulci credit as he did make his effects last longer but sometimes they look too plastic.
The effects are top notch in Fulci Horror films on the whole in my view. They are the icing on the cake. They linger, go on for a long time and thats what I like. No CGI crap aswell. One of my favourite gore moments is the throat cutting in The House By The Cemetery.
Part of the reason I don’t like his horror films is that I find them way over praised. And I mean, one reviewer sounded like he wanted to have sex with the film, love it, and it love him. It was WAY over praised!
[quote=“korano, post:100, topic:517”]@Autephex:
You got me too! :o And although I do suspend disbelief, with Fulci gore films, when I see something like the eye poking, it only goes to reinforce my reasoning behind my dislike of his horror films. Its just gore for the sake of gore. Not only that, but baaad gore effects too. Other film-makers definetly made better effects mostly in their believeability. Also, an eye being impaled does not involve disbelief suspension. It can happen, but if my eye were to be gouged out, I’d probably close it. ;)[/quote]
I think it’s pretty well made myself, especially for the epoch. I do feel his movies are mostly waiting for those few great moments of shock & gore. I’m watching COTLD right now & think the gore scenes with the worms & entrains being ejected orally are pretty gross.
The eye scene, although you can see the cut from actor to dummy, is pretty well shot. Especially when it cuts to her perspective. The build up is tense as well.
Met a few fans who feel like this, which is a little to much for me.
I don’t mind a bit of gore but, on the whole, I’m not a big fan of such things. What I enjoy more is suspense or an eery atmosphere. Fulci, when he wants to, can do this too and in fact can combine the two quite effectively.
My favourite scene in House by the Cemetery is a case in point. The annoying kid has gone into the cellar and got locked in. His mum tries all the keys in an attempt to let him out while he hammers on the door from the inside crying to be let out. Finally the key breaks in the lock. Dad comes home just in time and grabs the wood chopping hatchet from the kitchen to hack his way through the door. He tells the boy to stand back but just then the murderous zombie monster in the cellar reaches the boy and presses his head against the inside of the door. Cue Dad to start slamming the axe into the door. The blade misses the boy on the inside, first from one side, then the next while the boy yells and the monster’s slimy hand is pressed against his face.
I won’t say any more to avoid spoilers but that, for me, is a great set up and more effective than any eye gouging or disembowelling. As I think I’ve said in earlier posts, it is the anticipation of violence, not the act, which is most exciting.
Having said that, the stab wound which oozed maggots was quite fun :
The cellar scene you mention Phil is a good one, which gets pretty tense for me. But going back to the none gore moments in the film, I like it when the little lad keeps seeing the young girl (Mary I think) in the photo / picture. Very dreamy quality about it.
Yes, again an effective device which sets up a nice haunting feel to the movie.
I think this is a fairly well known story, but very funny…
Auretta Gay, who was the actress that did the scuba diving/shark/zombie scene in Zombi 2, didn’t know how to swim and Fulci got very upset about it. The Props guy, only barely able to swim himself, taught her a bit in the hotel pool. After a week, they went out to the ocean and basically threw her in with full scuba gear on, also with the props guy in the water. After splashing around a while, she clings to prop guy and since he cant swim well either, they both start struggling together and he pushes her away eventually. The captain of the boat then throws a hard life preserver out at the same time Al Cliver jumps in to help, and the preserver hits Cliver on the head.
Ian McCulloch yells “God save the Queen!”, dives in and hits his head on Auretta Gay’s air tank, later having to get 14 stitches on his head. Meanwhile, Fulci’s sitting on the boat saying “this crew isn’t worth shit”
[quote=“autephex, post:110, topic:517”]I think this is a fairly well known story, but very funny…
Auretta Gay, who was the actress that did the scuba diving/shark/zombie scene in Zombi 2, didn’t know how to swim and Fulci got very upset about it. The Props guy, only barely able to swim himself, taught her a bit in the hotel pool. After a week, they went out to the ocean and basically threw her in with full scuba gear on, also with the props guy in the water. After splashing around a while, she clings to prop guy and since he cant swim well either, they both start struggling together and he pushes her away eventually. The captain of the boat then throws a hard life preserver out at the same time Al Cliver jumps in to help, and the preserver hits Cliver on the head.
Ian McCulloch yells “God save the Queen!”, dives in and hits his head on Auretta Gay’s air tank, later having to get 14 stitches on his head. Meanwhile, Fulci’s sitting on the boat saying “this crew isn’t worth shit”[/quote]
HAHAHA The stuff Italian directors have to put up with.
Love MASSACRE TIME and i like FOUR OF THE APOCALYPSE quite a bit. And since i just picked up used copies of DON’T TORTURE A DUCKLING, CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD and HOUSE BY THE CEMETARY, i imagine i’ll be taking a crash course in Fulci when the mood strikes.
I am a fan of the late Fulci as well. I much rather watch his horror films than his westerns as Four of the Apocalypse is probably the worst I’ve seen. Yes there are probably worse ones but with the names attached and the so-called hype of this one it was a complete waste of my time.
Hey Spaghetti Monkey have you seen Zombie yet? that is my favorite movie by him - suspense filled, gore laden, and a really great horror film. What other movie has zombies strolling across the Brooklyn bridge at it’s conclusion?
I’ve only seen the two westerns so far. I’ll have to keep an eye out for ZOMBIE. Though at the moment, i’m most interested in DON’T TORTURE A DUCKLING. As i’ve never seen a gaillo, and i’ve heard good things about this one.
Don’t Torture A Duckling is a good one. Also check out New York Ripper as well.
I’d like to watch Don’t Torture A Duckling.
Really impressive scene considering they didn’t have any legal clearance to use the bridge
Spaghetti Monkey- in case you didn’t know, keep in mind it is released as both Zombie and Zombi 2… I almost made the mistake of buying Zombi thinking it was part 1 
yes I loved that aspect - you don’t have filmmakers now being that daring.
Thanks for that.
Have just finished viewing Murder Rock and glad to say it was a pleasant surprise. After reading a majority of negative reviews saying how boring it was, I was not expecting much. It is true that there is zero gore here, which I imagine has a lot to do with the negative reviews… But I believe this film is some of Fulci’s best work as a director. It did have some of the typical confusion which is characteristic of Fulci, and could use some trimming down on the dancing scenes. But these complaints aside, I enjoyed Murder Rock very much. It had a great look to it, with many interesting scenes and was generally shot the way I like 'em. The lack of gore really didn’t bother me at all and I thought a good amount of suspense was created despite the lack.
The Shreik Show DVD is top notch. Print looks great, features English, Italian and a commentary track from director of photography Giuseppe Pinoli. The commentary has English subtitles, so you can actually turn the subtitles on and watch the film with the normal dialog and commentary at the same time- a very nice feature. Have not got to the documentary on the bonus disc yet.