Customer Reviews

Red Midnight

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Every once in a blue moon a picture comes along that is made on such a shoestring budget that you can't help but feel for the filmmakers. Sometimes you feel bad for them due to the lack of resources they had, but sometimes you feel great for them because they clearly accomplished what they set out to do on a miniscule budget and were successful at it. Case in point: RED MIDNIGHT. With a budget of $6,000 this film manages to deliver the goods where other big budget flicks fail miserably. In the past two years or so there seems to have been an influx of gay horror films such as HELLBENT and the upcoming GAY BED & BREAKFAST OF TERROR and even websites such as QueerHorror.com that are solely dedicated to the minority that make up gay horror fans. I am gay. I am proud. I am a proud, gay horror fan! At the age of 19, I can finally say that unabashedly. Being the outsider I was forced to be in high school and only coming out in my senior year, I often found it difficult to find entertainment that suited my unique tastes. Homosexuality and mainstream horror have never exactly gone hand in hand. [..] It is because of people like Mr. Zaso that I find myself at a point in my life where I believe the film business may be for me. People like Joe Zaso only help me reach for my dreams a bit further. I have been a fan of his since the early days of my pubescent years and the beautiful human specimen that is Joe Zaso has gotten me though more days and nights than I care to recall. It was always a comfort to know that I could come home after a torturous day at school after being bullied and beaten upon and find pure enjoyment in some of Zaso's earlier work such as RAGE OF THE WEREWOLF and ALIEN AGENDA. It is great to know that his work continues to this day. RED MIDNIGHT is his newest offering and is, in my humble opinion, his best. My only teeny, tiny complaint is that the entire film wasn't strictly gay horror. The film is an anthology made up of three chilling tales and the first segment (save for a gratuitous shot of an attractive Asian man's rear end) is relatively straight laced (no pun intended). It isn't until the film's second segment, "The Creation of Dr. Grecoz ," directed by the gorgeous sweetheart Brian Michael Finn, that the film's gay colors really shine through. The relationship between the young boy and the older man with all of its sexual undercurrents was beautiful and nearly left me with a tear in my eye. I only wish that this tale would have been longer. A beautiful, openly gay story that deserves to be seen by all, gay or straight. Brian Michael Finn is definitely one to watch in the future in the gay horror community. The final segment of the film, "Pilgrimage," stars none other than Joe Zaso himself and proves to be the best of the bunch. Shot on location in Italy, it boasts the most production value and truly has some eerie moments. [..]

Despite what the other reviewer said, this is a horror film, not a gay film. There are no obviously gay characters, but there is some full male rear nudity and partial female frontal nudity.

This is a trilogy of horror in the manner of "Creepshow" or the 1972 "Tales from the Crypt" (not HBO). The outside story is only worth 1 star. It is cheesy, but the only purpose is to tie the 3 stories together, so it doesn't need to be great. Each segment has a different director.

The first Story, "Anathema" I'd give 4 stars. I was the only one of the group of us that watched it that picked up that the voiceovers that happened while they gave their definition of anathema and credits, were an exposition to what happened in John's past (played by Roger Woo), so I guess it wasn't obvious. (they said there was a definition, so they thought it was quotes.) Of course it took me a while to figure out the vampire he saw was really his wife's ghost (played by Jasi Cotton Lanier). This segment is pretty spooky & well done. They have some cute extras, where you can see the profiles of the people who used the "Soulmatch" dating service on DVD ROM.

The second segment, "The Creation of Dr. Grecoz" was okay. 2 stars. It was predictable and not very supernatural. One of those "Ironic twist" type horrors. I found the dad/doctor's (played by Hugh Daly who was also one of the directors of photography for other segments) voice whiney & grating, which is the main reason I found it less enjoyable. The make-up effects were good, but I only liked this a bit better than the wraparound story.

The Third story, "Pilgrimage" was excellent. 5 Stars. Could be a whole movie by itself. It starts off with a call to FBI agent Lt. Angelo Santana (played by Joseph Zaso also the producer) called to investigate some strange goings on in Rome. Why FBI & not CIA or private investigator I don't know. But other than a brief comment that the FBI has no authority outside the U.S. it didn't distract. It was actually filmed in Rome and the photography is beautiful. It also follows a blind nun and her kidnapping which the Lieutenant will soon investigate. This had the best acting and make-up effects and the most surprising twists. It blew us away. Even if the rest of the DVD was trash (which it is not) this would be worth the price of the DVD.

The extras are pretty good with full commentaries by the different directors, and some behind the scene stuff. All in all, it is a pretty fun DVD.

This is the best episode of the DVD.....its totally interesting and engrossing and the leading man Joe Zaso is GORGEOUS and is totally right for the part both looks and acting.

Nice gore, and a really cool story with an unexpected twist. The second story Anathena is worth a look as well. I jumped a couple of times.