Riddle me this: Do you care about sexploitation films? Horror? Blaxploitation? Basic pornography? Does anyone? Should anyone?
Yes, in fact. At least according to Joe Fay and Brandon Upson, guests on the most recent episode of “Deep Focus” on WNHH.
To listen to the full episode, which also includes a discussion on Best of Enemies between host Tom Breen and New Haven Independent writer Allan “former card-carry member of the SDS” Appel, click on the audio above or find the episode in iTunes or on any podcast app.
“At its basic level, exploitation movies are about exploiting sex and violence in a mixture that appeals to the prurient interest in all of us,” said Fay, event programmer at Lyric Hall. “They’re generally cheaply produced and distributed, usually filmed in a matter of days or weeks. But occasionally, they result in something that is quite far ahead and above what you would expect from a movie that was slapped together in such a way.”
“Other than silent films, exploitation cinema encompasses the largest amount of actual lost films,” added Upson, operations coordinator and lead restoration artist at the Bridgeport-based film archive Vinegar Syndrome. From sexploitation to horror to Blaxploitation to everything in between, he explained that Vinegar Syndrome strives to resuscitate movies that other restoration companies won’t touch with a ten-foot pole. Movies that are provocative, but also interesting, artful, and of serious cultural significance.
Both Fay and Upson are intent on raising the profile of this type of cinema in the eyes of the New Haven movie-going and movie-loving public. At Lyric Hall, Fay and Jose Oyola have been programming a number of different movie series, including Saloon Cinema and the upcoming Lyric Hall Cinema’s International Series. They’re also playing a Filipino kung-fu zombie flick called Raw Force this Thursday as part of a budding partnership with Vinegar Syndrome.
Movies referenced in this epode are as follows: Best of Enemies (2015); Dolemite (1975); Dungeon of Harrow (1962); Raw Force (1982); The Telephone Book (1971); Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974); Wake in Fright (1971). If you have any thoughts on the episode, or would like to reach out to the host, please send an email to deepfocusradio@gmail.com or send a message on Facebook to Deep Focus Radio.