DVD Review: AMERICAN GRINDHOUSE and NIGHTMARES IN RED, WHITE, AND BLUE double feature

  
I recently had the chance to check out a great set of documentaries from Lorber Films.  This was a 2 disc set consisting of the films AMERICAN GRINDHOUSE and NIGHTMARES IN RED, WHITE, AND BLUE.  Here are they synopsis' for each film from imdb.com:

AMERICAN GRINDHOUSE:
This documentary explores the hidden history of the American Exploitation Film. The movie digs deep into this often overlooked category of U.S. cinema and unearths the shameless and occasionally shocking origins of this popular entertainment

NIGHTMARES IN RED, WHITE, AND BLUE:
An exploration of the appeal of horror films, with interviews of many legendary directors in the genre.

Well, that is a pretty straightforward synopsis, but that is really all you need to know.   These films are simple, but very detailed at the same time.  I love documentaries about film, especially horror films, and I have seen quite a few.  These two films are easily the best horror documentaries I have ever seen.  AMERICAN GRINDHOUSE deals with more of the exploitation films than the pure horror films, and contains interviews with some of the top names in the business including John Landis, Joe Dante, Fred Olen Ray, and Herschell Gordon Lewis.   NIGHTMARES IN RED, WHITE,  AND BLUE focus' more on the true horror film including all the mainstream, well known films, to some you might not of ever heard of.  I learned about a film called ONE DARK NIGHT that I have never even heard of before.  A scene from that film looked so good that I immediately went and bought a copy off of ebay.  I'm sure there might be some references to films you might not know about either.

One thing that really sets these films apart from other horror docs is the production value.  These movies look excellent with animated menus and stats when put up on screen.  Also, unlike some other horror docs that just talk about a film and maybe show you a screen shot of that film, both of these films actually show you footage and scenes from the films they are discussing.  This is a huge thing that has really bugged me in the past with some horror docs.  Talking about the films is good, but to actually see the scene they are discussing is a huge help.    

These film are so much fun, I especially liked NIGHTMARES IN RED, WHITE, AND BLUE because it was like seeing a "greatest hits" ,so to speak, of all my favorite horror films.    These are must have films in my opinion and while they are available separately, you can get them together in a double feature set that is a great value for these 2 excellent films.


CLICK HERE to watch the trailer for AMERICAN GRINDHOUSE
CLICK HERE to watch the trailer for NIGHTMARES IN RED, WHITE, AND BLUE
CLICK HERE to purchase the double feature DVD