American Horror Project: Volume 1
Details by Film
Malatesta's Carnival of Blood
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The Witch Who Came from the Sea
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The Premonition
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Malatesta's Carnival of Blood
Roll up, roll up! Step right up for Malatesta's Carnival of Blood, the grisliest freakiest show in town! Virtually impossible to find until its revival on DVD in the early 2000s, this 1973 cult oddity, from one-time director Christopher Speeth, is a cinematic experience like no other.
Arriving at a creepy, dilapidated fairground under the premise of looking for work, the Norris family are hoping to track down their missing son, who, they believe, is somewhere in the park. But it's not long before they find themselves at the mercy of the fairground's fiendish proprietors and the cannibalistic ghouls lurking in the caverns below.
Filmed at the Willow Grove amusement park in Pennsylvania, Malatesta's Carnival of Blood is a mind-melting phantasmagoria of carnie craziness which blends elements of Night of the Living Dead and Carnival of Souls, adding an (un)healthy dose of Herschell Gordon Lewis-style gore for good
The Witch Who Came from the Sea
Representing something of an anomaly in the career of director Matt Cimber (whose other credits include such Blaxploitation fare as The Candy Tangerine Man) The Witch Who Came from the Sea is an unnerving journey into madness and murder starring Millie Perkins (The Diary of Anne Frank).
Molly (Perkins) experiences violent fantasies in which she ties muscular men up before bloodily dispatching them with a razor. But when a news report announces the shocking double-murder of two football players which strongly echoes one of Molly’s most recent depraved flights of fancy, the fantasy starts to bleed into reality—literally.
Written by Perkins’ late husband Robert Thom (Death Race 2000), The Witch Who Came from the Sea features early cinematography from SOP Dean Cundey, who would go on to expand his genre credentials with his work on Escape from New York and The Thing, before achieving mainstream exposure with the likes of Jurassic Park and Apollo 13.
The Premonition
Everyone knows the classic American horror titles: Night of the Living Dead, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and A Nightmare on Elm Street, to name but a few. But we want to tell you a different story - a story of the unsung heroes of American terror... Whether it's a film that has languished in obscurity, or a movie that's at risk of being lost due to lack of source materials, American Horror Project is here to ensure that these unique slices of the American Nightmare are brought back into the public consciousness and preserved for all to enjoy. Volume I of this series presents three tales of violence and madness from the 1970s. Malatesta's Carnival of Blood (Christopher Speeth, 1973) sees a family arrive at a creepy, dilapidated fairground in search of their missing daughter, only to find themselves at the mercy of cannibalistic ghouls lurking beneath the park. Meanwhile, The Witch Who Came from the Sea (Matt Cimber, 1976), stars Mollie Perkins (The Diary of Anne Frank) as a young woman whose bizarre and violent fantasies start to bleed into reality - literally. Lastly, every parent's worst nightmare comes true in The Premonition (Robert Allen Schnitzer, 1976), a tale of psychic terror in which five-year-old Janie is snatched away by a strange woman claiming to be her long-lost mother. Newly remastered from the best surviving elements and contextualised with brand new supplementary material, with American Horror Project we can re-evaluate an alternative history of American horror and film heritage.
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Supplements
- Introduction to Malatesta's Carnival of Blood by Nightmare USA author Stephen Thrower
- Introduction to The Witch Who Came from the Sea by Nightmare USA author Stephen Thrower
- Introduction to The Premonition by Nightmare USA author Stephen Thrower
- Booklet featuring an introduction by Stephen Thrower and essays by Kim Newman, Kier-La Janisse, and Brian Albright
- Audio commentary by film historian Richard Harland Smith
- Audio commentary with director Matt Cimber, actress Millie Perkins and director of photography Dean Cundy
- Isolated Score
- Brand new interview with director Christopher Speeth
- Tides and Nightmares - brand new making-of documentary featuring interviews with Matt Cimber, Millie Perkins, Dean Cundy and actor John Goff
- Audio commentary with producer-director Robert Allen Schnitzer
- Brand new interview with writer Werner Liepolt
- A Maiden's Voyage - archive featurette comprising interviews with Matt Cimber, Millie Perkins and Dean Cundy
- Pictures from a Premonition - brand new making-of documentary featuring interviews with Robert Allen Schnitzer, composer Henry Mollicone and cinematographer Victor Milt
- Maltesta's Underground - art directors Richard Stange and Alan Johnson discuss the weird, mysterious world of Malatesta's underground
- Lost at Sea - director Matt Cimber reflects on his notorious cult classic
- Archive interview with Robert Allen Schnitzer
- Outtakes
- Archive interview with star Richard Lynch
- Draft script
- Three Robert Allen Schnitzer short films: 'Vernal Equinox', 'Terminal Point' and 'A Rumbling in the Land'
- Stills gallery for Malatesta's Carnival of Blood
- 4 Peace Spots