For the fourth Bad Movie Club bad movie night we started with 'The Gardener' aka 'Seeds of Evil' aka 'Garden of Death'. We probably should have started with something a little more exciting because this was about as boring as they come. Joe Dallesandro starred as the titular gardener and, as per usual in his films, he walked around shirtless and didn't say a whole lot. A rich woman found him stimulating and she often went to parties. The gardener had some seemingly magical connection with the plants that didn't amount to very much until the last scene which made the movie worth it. For the most part, this movie was just about mind-numbingly uninteresting, rich, white people and the boring (occasionally inaudible) conversations they have in different places.
2. The Love Butcher
'The Love Butcher' is one of those movies you can't help but fall in love with. Erik Stern stars as Caleb - a frail, old gardener who could dearly use a cold glass of water, and who couldn't hurt a fly if he wanted to. Constantly belittled by the well-to-do types he works for, Caleb occasionally becomes Lester, his split personality (who was also his twin brother who died as a child). Lester is strong and handsome and mean, and he doesn't have any trouble cutting up those awful people who give Caleb a hard time. Lester is also mean to Caleb though, and the two struggle for control over Caleb's body. Meanwhile the cops are completely befuddled and nobody suspects Caleb even though he happens to be the gardener for each of Lester's victims. An overzealous reporter manages to put the pieces together and tries to convince the police before it is too late. Even though 'The Love Butcher' is a terrible movie, Erik Stern's performance is so wonderful that I think everyone should watch it.
3. They Don't Cut The Grass Anymore
The final movie of our fourth bad movie night was Nathan Schiff's classic 'They Don't Cut The Grass Anymore'. I'm a huge Nathan Schiff fan, and I don't really believe any of his movies are bad, but when the theme is 'gardeners', good or bad, right or wrong, you should always show 'They Don't Cut The Grass Anymore'. Schiff made his first feature, 'Weasels Rip My Flesh', with a budget of $400 and although the production value is much better with this film, I would guess that the budget wasn't much higher than that. It features a pair of hillbilly gardeners who become fed up with the way the yuppies they work for treat them, so they decide to start murdering and mutilating their way to a new profession. With the finest and goriest effects a few hundred bucks can buy, the gardeners leave no limbs or skin attached and revel in finding new ways to mutilate human bodies. I highly recommend this film to everyone. I suggest you go out and buy all of Nathan Schiff's films on DVD right now ('Weasels Rip My Flesh', 'Long Island Cannibal Massacre', 'They Don't Cut The Grass Anymore')! Unfortunately, 'Vermilion Eyes' is still not available on DVD, but when it eventually gets released, buy it too!
For the fourth Bad Movie Club bad movie night we started with 'The Gardener' aka 'Seeds of Evil' aka 'Garden of Death'. We probably should have started with something a little more exciting because this was about as boring as they come. Joe Dallesandro starred as the titular gardener and, as per usual in his films, he walked around shirtless and didn't say a whole lot. A rich woman found him stimulating and she often went to parties. The gardener had some seemingly magical connection with the plants that didn't amount to very much until the last scene which made the movie worth it. For the most part, this movie was just about mind-numbingly uninteresting, rich, white people and the boring (occasionally inaudible) conversations they have in different places.
'The Love Butcher' is one of those movies you can't help but fall in love with. Erik Stern stars as Caleb - a frail, old gardener who could dearly use a cold glass of water, and who couldn't hurt a fly if he wanted to. Constantly belittled by the well-to-do types he works for, Caleb occasionally becomes Lester, his split personality (who was also his twin brother who died as a child). Lester is strong and handsome and mean, and he doesn't have any trouble cutting up those awful people who give Caleb a hard time. Lester is also mean to Caleb though, and the two struggle for control over Caleb's body. Meanwhile the cops are completely befuddled and nobody suspects Caleb even though he happens to be the gardener for each of Lester's victims. An overzealous reporter manages to put the pieces together and tries to convince the police before it is too late. Even though 'The Love Butcher' is a terrible movie, Erik Stern's performance is so wonderful that I think everyone should watch it.
The final movie of our fourth bad movie night was Nathan Schiff's classic 'They Don't Cut The Grass Anymore'. I'm a huge Nathan Schiff fan, and I don't really believe any of his movies are bad, but when the theme is 'gardeners', good or bad, right or wrong, you should always show 'They Don't Cut The Grass Anymore'. Schiff made his first feature, 'Weasels Rip My Flesh', with a budget of $400 and although the production value is much better with this film, I would guess that the budget wasn't much higher than that. It features a pair of hillbilly gardeners who become fed up with the way the yuppies they work for treat them, so they decide to start murdering and mutilating their way to a new profession. With the finest and goriest effects a few hundred bucks can buy, the gardeners leave no limbs or skin attached and revel in finding new ways to mutilate human bodies. I highly recommend this film to everyone. I suggest you go out and buy all of Nathan Schiff's films on DVD right now ('Weasels Rip My Flesh', 'Long Island Cannibal Massacre', 'They Don't Cut The Grass Anymore')! Unfortunately, 'Vermilion Eyes' is still not available on DVD, but when it eventually gets released, buy it too!
