Vinegar Syndrome Discussion Thread

[brainofj72]

Originally Posted by Vincent Dawn

It should be a VSU title: "‘major’ 80s and 90s titles that might not always fit into the regular VS milieu". I'm guessing they are using the same 2k restoration that Severin was going to release, and since it's not 4k they don't want to put it in the Ultra line.

The banner hint does look like it's inevitably going to be DDF:

[Show spoiler]

Yeah, agreed. Barring an elements issue, this movie seems tailor-made for the VSU line.

In any case, I’m not complaining. Count me as a subscriber who’s perfectly happy to receive DDF. I’ve never seen it, but I’m curious, especially after listening to the great episode of the How Did This Get Made? podcast about it.

[prkchopexpress]

hoping it’s not drop dead fred, but only because i think it would be hilarious if it wasn’t.

who’s going to do the research on other movies with fred in the title?

[whiteberry]

Originally Posted by prkchopexpress

who’s going to do the research on other movies with fred in the title?

[Mushi Minion]

Originally Posted by whiteberry

[Show spoiler]

The scariest movie VS has ever released

[xXx$uicide_Ma$terxXx]

Originally Posted by whiteberry

It better be a boxset

[Leeon0]

Originally Posted by bsend

We need Baby Sister on blu ray

I wouldn't rule out VS anymore for this one. A while back I would've said Baby Sister is not vinegarsyndromey enough, but things have changed because the label has evolved, and while some may be upset about it, I think it's good.

[TripleHBK]

Originally Posted by prkchopexpress

hoping it’s not drop dead fred, but only because i think it would be hilarious if it wasn’t.

who’s going to do the research on other movies with fred in the title?

This seems like it fits the clues.... It's all the full frontal that really convinced me this was the title.

[Cinema84]

Originally Posted by fuzzymctiger

Even though it fits in VSU in terms of the film, do remember that VSU is also a 4K line, and there’s a chance they didn’t think Drop Dead Fred didn’t look good enough or the elements/restoration weren’t good enough for it.

Or I could be wrong and it’ll be a surprise UHD that isn’t a VSU lol

Happy Death Day 2 U and Drop Dead Fred on UHD. Let the good times roll. Or not. Lol.

I second (or third) Baby Sister on Blu-ray. If Scorpion still have the rights I guess it's not happening.

[fuzzymctiger]

Also if I’m being entirely honest, it looks more like a KE than a RE

[Kakihara]

Originally Posted by Vincent Dawn

Carrie Fisher is the best part of DDF, but even she can't save it. Just an obnoxious, unfunny film that doesn't know if its for kids or for adults (granted I'm basing this off my memories from the 1990s). It definitely has a fan-base so they aren't being cheeky by calling it beloved.

When Severin pulled it from their releases I was really hoping it wasn't going to be VS that had it (or at least hoping it would not be part of the subscription).

I’m with you. I loathed this film when I saw it as a kid and would always change the channel when it aired repeatedly on cable. It was obnoxious like that Problem Child movie with John Ritter. I remember feeling embarrassed for Carrie and Phoebe being in it.

No offense to those of you who dug it, though! I guess it has its fans!

[The_Chex]

Repost from the 42nd Street Fever topic since this is a Vinegar Syndrome release. Be warned that the following is full of SPOILERS.

[Show spoiler]“I’m not like normal people, I’m obsessed with political struggle."

There's a sense of déjà vu as the decorative, pink credits flash across the screen against a montage of New York City in a homage to Rosemary's Baby. Is the world a different place since 1968? For Addie (Betsey Brown - Actors) and Noelle (Co-writer Madeline Quinn), some experiences are as nerve-wracking as ever like shopping for an apartment. A real fright would be comparing the price difference in apartments from 1968 and 2021. Total soul crushing reality. Addie and Noelle catch a break as the costly Manhattan home is cheap and too much of a good deal to pass on. That's how Little Caesars gets my business. It's soon made clear the friendship is one-sided as Noelle sees Addie merely as a bank account when pleading with her roommate to ask her sexually abusive father for money. That night, Addie suffers a horrendous nightmare as she sleeps in her new home. The next day, a blonde-haired woman known simply as "the Girl" (Director / co-writer Dasha Nekrasova) poses as a real estate agent to Noelle to gain access to the apartment. It isn't long before the girl drops the facade and admits she's investigating the previous owner---Jeffrey Epstein. Noelle and the girl bond over their discussions about the deceased sex offender and the people who wanted him silenced before he could talk. As they share pills and descend into a fantasy of maddening conspiracies while talking like a sub-reddit, Addie's grip on reality loosens as she takes on the personality of a thirteen-year-old victim who was sexually abused and tortured in the apartment.

Rarely scary, sometimes annoying and often hilarious, The Scary of Sixty-First is an experience like no other. It isn't uncommon for movies to portray recent real life figures, but it's usually done with a semblance of grace. No name changing here; it's pure exploitation filtered through a SOV-do-whatever attitude by utilizing the crimes of Jeffrey Epstein and his recent demise as the center of evil in this tale of secret societies and the occult. I doubt anyone will shed a tear about Epstein, but some may find Addie possessed by an unnamed victim as tasteless. This movie pulls no punches about who it offends or shocks and I haven't even talked about the self-gratification sequence in front of Epstein's old house. Then there's the other masturbation scene with blood and crumpled magazine photos that feels like a typical Friday night.

Before the story reaches the first moment of supernatural shenanigans, most viewers will contemplate tuning out because of Noelle's selfish and abusive personality. She's a villain and it's made clear when the Girl enters her life. The besties scroll through google photos of Epstein's island, watch youtube clips and toss theories around that go no deeper than the pool at a Motel 6. They have no scruples as they belittle Addie while digging through her personal belongings out of boredom. As they ignore Addie's obvious emotional issues and personality change, Noelle and the Girl are shown to be absolute hypocrites and serve as a harsh metaphor for conspiracists who spend all their time patronizing the world for letting terrible people get away with crimes while turning a blind eye to victims close by. This all sounds more coherent and straightforward than the movie portrays it as. It isn't. The story opens with an homage to Rosemary's Baby and ends with the exact same secret society letter warning from Eyes Wide Shut. Of course, their behavior is partially validated by being correct and there really is a conspiracy.

The Scary of Sixty-First may carry a disturbing vibe due in part to the eerie score and grainy 16mm visuals, but it's messy and often runs the gamut between unsettling and hysterical. Some laughs are intentional such as the Girl's constant demeaning of Addie's boyfriend, but there's a hypocritical layer to it since she calls him homophobic slurs after she's slept with Noelle. Other funny moments are from singular expression performances and dialog that probably sounded better on paper than how it comes out. While the aforementioned masturbation sequence could be terrifying as Addie writhes around in public in front of Epstein's former home, it's comical the film even goes to that level of depravity let alone the performance. Betsey Brown deserves applause for going through with it and also saying "**** me like we're on a Boeing 747" with a straight face.

It's sloppy in execution with too many ideas and not enough focus, but the movie is captivating in how unapologetic it is. The commentary on society's reaction to major news and our disconnect from the people in our lives is genuinely truth hitting but mixing it with a powerful, secret elite organization and the occult becomes too much to juggle. Any air of mystery as to what's reality and what is the psychological breakdown of an emotionally scarred abuse victim and drug-fueled redditors is quickly tossed aside leaving only outlandish moments of debauchery driven by amusing acting and character decisions that surpasses itself with each following scene. Yet I can't stop thinking about it several days later.

[vortexx]

Originally Posted by jmilo61

Sure does seem like Drop Dead Fred.

Considering you can only see parts of the letters, it would be funny if it was something completely different from DDF.

[vortexx]

Originally Posted by Americanhorrorgorey

SONY the gold standard? I wouldn't go that far. They are pretty much DEAD in JAPAN. I haven't bought a SONY product since 1985. Earnings are down, and they don't even sell electronics anymore. They make shit spiderman movies, PS5's and basically sell image sensors to Apple. They sold off the PC division years ago. More like the kings of dead formats.. mini disc? memorystick? UMD disc? Digital tape (WTF) Atrac compression? come on. 4K UHD is the future and MANY companies have their hands in it Panasonic is the gold standard making the best players, and the LG OLED forget it. SONY? your talking outta your ass son.

Lots of things are too expensive to actually make them in Japan. Sometimes they are designed in Japan and go into production in a country where labor is cheap.

[locomotive]

Originally Posted by DaveyJoe

I'm a subscriber that wants nothing to do with Drop Dead Fred.

Can i have your copy for a price

Love this one also release geusthouse paradiso great movie still don't know why it isn't on blu ray.

[buggenhagen]

Subscriber here and really hope that the clue is just a clever wind up by VS and they're not putting out DDF as part of the main sub package (VSU would be fine). For me it just doesn't fit the VS bill at all, far too mainstream for my liking. I was in my mid-teens when it came out and thought it was too much of a kids film at the time. Full manic Rik Mayall always really annoyed me too - he was on TV all the time here so it was just overload.

On top of all that it's been available on blu-ray here for years, the 25th anniversary edition is less than £10 everywhere. It's also streaming on Netflix.

If it is part of the main sub package then it could well be the first VS release that I sell on without even cracking open the cellophane. Still, that's the gamble I took becoming a subscriber, can't win em all.

[HorrorBlu]

To all the DROP DEAD FRED haters here, you all haven't got husbands and you've got stupid haircuts.

[Steedeel]

I wonder if VS give us a hint about what they are releasing for the Valentine’s sale when they reveal their regular titles on the 1st.

[trucide]

Originally Posted by buggenhagen

Still, that's the gamble I took becoming a subscriber, can't win em all.

I disagree : this kind of movies are not part of the gamble I took when I subscribed to VS, period. I'm all for them stretching the definition of Horror and Exploitation, but I certainly don't expect mainstream kid movie from the subscription. For me it certainly could be the last straw that make me unsubscribe next year (I was on the verge this year because of the delirious price of the sub, and two month in, I already have regret )

[buggenhagen]

Originally Posted by trucide

I disagree : this kind of movies are not part of the gamble I took when I subscribed to VS, period. I'm all for them stretching the definition of Horror and Exploitation, but I certainly don't expect mainstream kid movie from the subscription. For me it certainly could be the last straw that make me unsubscribe next year (I was on the verge this year because of the delirious price of the sub, and two month in, I already have regret )

I am with you that DDF shouldn't be a main VS release at all, 100%, I'm more trying to soften the blow in my head if it does turn out to be right. It doesn't remotely fit the bill for me. I don't expect to like all the releases that come with the sub but yes, they should at least tangentially be in the horror/exploitation orbit, which DDF certainly is not. With the current exchange rate the sub cost me a whopping £760.

Very much hoping that the clue is just a misdirect but it does look unlikely at this moment in time.

[gbm82]

I'm looking forward to the new Vinegar Kidrome line