Cinemassacre Cinematic Catastrophes (2001-2010)
Cinematic Catastrophes (2001-2010)
So many of you might know him as his character The Angry Video Game Nerd, his name is James Rolfe, and long before he put on the white shirt and played the character of the Angry Video Game Nerd, he was a filmmaker. Rolfe first got interested in making films as a child, and when he was able to start using the family camcorder, his career as a filmmaker started its long wild road. Many of his early films were just him and his friends, and even just himself, he developed interesting filming, editing, and production techniques, and in time attended filmmaking classes, and finally got a BA in filmmaking. Cinematic Catastrophes collects 6 films that James Rolfe had made between 2001-2010, some of the films were no budget home movies made with just him and his friends, and some of the other films that he made in college and after, showcased some rather adept filmmaking skills. I would love to see what he could do if given a major studio and financial backing, I think that he could create some rather amazing films. The films in this collection employ the Roger Corman school of filmmaking, where it is DIY, made quick and cheap, and some of these films are quite effective films. For this review I will be breaking it up and looking at each of the six films individually in the order that they appear on the 2 DVD set.
Cinemassacre 200, is exactly what the title suggest, James' 200th film, which is a documentary about his life and filmmaking. This is a really interesting short film about the challenges of making no budget DIY films at home, without the benefit of fancy equipment, basically using a video camera and two VCRs for editing, and a hand held tape player for music. This is an excellent shot film for anyone who has an interest in filmmaking, and is an inspiring film for those who dream of making movies but don't feel like they can. This short was written, directed, and produced by James Rolfe. in 2008.
Kung Fu Werewolf From Outer Space, is a short film directed, edited, written, and produced by James Rolfe in 2001. The film was shot on VHS and edited on two VCRs is a sci-fi horror and martial arts film. This film tells the story of a martial arts master who meets an alien and teaches him martial arts, but then the alien is attacked by a werewolf and attacks his master before leaving to go back to space. This film is ridiculous and fun, and other than the narrator it has no dialogue. The film stars Kevin Finn as The Gay Sensei, Rob Worton as the alien, Dave Livsy as The Werewolf, James Rolfe as Voice Of Ninjas (narrator), and Mike Depasquale as The Thug. This was a fun film, definitely low budget, but with a few decent effects, it definitely has the vibe of a film made at home with your friends.
It Came From The Toilet is a short comedic horror film written, directed, produced, and edited by James Rolfe in 2001. The film tells the story of...I realize this sounds insane and juvenile...a man who is attacked and murdered by a shit monster that came out of his toilet, the shit then leaves his apartment and takes over the world. This film is a parody of 1950s creature feature films, and was shot entirely in black and white. To be honest this is a fun shit-joke that somehow didn't go too far, and actually works. It Came From The Toilet is really a fun little shitty movie, and it comes across as some friends who decided to have some fun and make a short film. The short stars Mike Matei as the main character, and James Rolfe as the face in the dark. Fans of Cinemassacre are familiar with Mike Matei, as until very recently he was a big part of the channel, and was instrumental in getting The Angry Video Game Nerd on the internet. I feel like this is the weakest of the films in the collection, though it has better film production, and overall quality than Kungfu Werewolves From Outer Space, it still just comes across as a juvenile shit joke. I enjoyed this silly film, but there were some genuinely great films in the collection that were far superior.
The Dragon In My Dreams is one of the most sentimental of James Rolfe's films. This 2010 documentary is about a reoccurring dream that Rolfe has about a dragon on a playground. While talking to his mother about it, he finds out that there was a dragon water fountain sculpture at a playground that he loved to play at as a very young child. So in this film he sets out to find this dragon that has haunted his dreams, and explore why this dragon has always had such a hold on him. This is a wonderful heartfelt documentary, and one that I felt really moved by. In this film he shows that his skills as a filmmaker and writer go beyond the comedy and horror that he is most noted for, and he can also make a very beautiful, genuinely sentimental and insightful film. This might be one of the best ones in the collection, it definitely shows the heart of the artist, and packs a strong emotional punch.
Cinemaphobia is a psychological horror film from 2001 that was directed, written, produced, and stars James Rolfe. Rolfe plays an actor who seems to be having a nervous breakdown, and he imagines(?) that he is being haunted by a video camera, that it is stalking him. On the surface the storyline sounds quite silly, but the way that Rolfe does this film is quite amazing. This film might be one the best in the collection, and showcases what a powerful and effective filmmaker that James Rolfe truly is. This film works a psychological horror story, the way that James Rolfe plays the character with sincerity, and the way that he directs this film, shows that he is honestly a great filmmaker. This is obviously a film school production that he made while in college, but it is honestly a really well done film, and it is sad honestly that this film wasn't his big break into the movie industry. I feel like this film proves that if he had a big budget backing, and a big production company and crew to back him that he has the ability to make quality horror films, and though I am sure we are all thankful for the Angry Video Game Nerd bringing James Rolfe into the public's eye, and making it possible to distribute these films, I wish that I had instead found him through this film, and that he was given the opportunity to make serious films like this for a living. I highly recommend checking out this film, it touched me on an emotional level, as well as being a truly unnerving and terrifying film about a man who seems to be losing his mind. This is just a genuinely great film.
The Curse Of The Cat Lover's Grave is a short horror film in three acts, from 2003. This film feels like a film school project, in the film James Rolfe uses one ongoing story to illustrate three different styles of horror films, The Chiller, The Shocker, The Splatter. The film tells a story about a man who digs up a grave to get a cat artifact that was buried with the deceased person. Though when he brings it home and calls his connection who he bargains for a selling price, something strange starts to happen and the man begins to be haunted by some unseen entity. Then in the second act things start getting intense and his friend he called gets murdered, and when he goes to put the artifact back in the grave he is confronted with cat cultists, and from here the film switches gears from being a serious horror film to being a gorefest. This film has some true and intense horror elements, but also has some parts that are so over the top that they are funny. The Curse Of The Cat Lover's Grave was written, directed, produced, and edited by James Rolfe. The film stars Jesse Gorham-Engard as Miles, Dan Kelly as Steve, Bladimir Perez as Cat Monk 1 and 2, Gary Hanna as Cat Monk 3, and James Rolfe as man eating pasta. This is definitely a film worth watching.
Cinemassacre Cinematic Catastrophes as a whole is a really enjoyable collection of films. I guess if you want to know if you should watch this film, maybe ask yourself, does the idea of watching film student projects sound like a good fun time? If the answer is yes, then I want to be your friend, because I totally agree with you, but if you answered yes to that question, then this is a film that you might really enjoy. This isn't the type of thing that everyone will be into, but for those of us who love artsy b-films, and who feel like Ed Wood, and Roger Corman are some of the best directors in the movie business, then this is a collection of films for you. I loved this collection, from worst to best, they were all fun, and effective horror films. I also just want to say, that if you watch this collection, and think to yourself that "I can make better movies than this guy", then get off your lazy ass and do it. Filmmakers like James Rolfe, Ed Wood, and Roger Corman are like the Ramones of filmmaking, they show you that if you want to make films, you CAN do it, you can do it yourself, you just need passion and creativity, and a basic knowledge of how to use a camera and how to edit. These films are cheap, they are amature, but the point is that James Rolfe has passion and drive, and couple that with a creative imagination and the result are these fantastic films that are effective as horror films, and they make great emotional contact with the viewer, if you get past the fact that Cinephobia was made with a very small budget in his backyard, you might find that what you have is a legitimately great psychological horror film, that makes a strong emotional connection with its viewers. If The Dragon Of My Dreams doesn't pull at your heartstrings and make you feel something, then I question if there is something wrong with you, just as a whole each of these films are great short films, and they prove that with passion a filmmaker can make movies even with little to no budget. I look forward to see what future films that writer, director, producer, and actor James Rolfe will release. As much as I appreciate his web series Angry Video Game Nerd, I feel like where he is the best is when he is making actual movies, and talking about films. I think I was attracted to Cinemassacre because of AVGN, but it was his horror movie reviews that urged me to follow him, and then when they were doing the Video Store reviews those appealed to me much more than the AVGN series. I will definitely be doing more Cinemassacre films in the future, so if you are a fan keep an eye out for those.
I highly recommend going over to cinemassacre.com and purchasing a copy of this film, and the other great films released by cinemassacre. Support independent filmmakers whenever you can.
Note: I wish there was a trailer for this DVD that I could post, but when I was looking all I could find were the full films, so if you do decide to watch them on Youtube, make sure that you subscribe to their channel, so that they do get paid by Youtube for your viewing. I do however highly recommend actually purchasing the DVD copy though, because there are extras and special features that totally make it worth it.
Kung Fu Werewolf From Outer Space, is a short film directed, edited, written, and produced by James Rolfe in 2001. The film was shot on VHS and edited on two VCRs is a sci-fi horror and martial arts film. This film tells the story of a martial arts master who meets an alien and teaches him martial arts, but then the alien is attacked by a werewolf and attacks his master before leaving to go back to space. This film is ridiculous and fun, and other than the narrator it has no dialogue. The film stars Kevin Finn as The Gay Sensei, Rob Worton as the alien, Dave Livsy as The Werewolf, James Rolfe as Voice Of Ninjas (narrator), and Mike Depasquale as The Thug. This was a fun film, definitely low budget, but with a few decent effects, it definitely has the vibe of a film made at home with your friends.
It Came From The Toilet is a short comedic horror film written, directed, produced, and edited by James Rolfe in 2001. The film tells the story of...I realize this sounds insane and juvenile...a man who is attacked and murdered by a shit monster that came out of his toilet, the shit then leaves his apartment and takes over the world. This film is a parody of 1950s creature feature films, and was shot entirely in black and white. To be honest this is a fun shit-joke that somehow didn't go too far, and actually works. It Came From The Toilet is really a fun little shitty movie, and it comes across as some friends who decided to have some fun and make a short film. The short stars Mike Matei as the main character, and James Rolfe as the face in the dark. Fans of Cinemassacre are familiar with Mike Matei, as until very recently he was a big part of the channel, and was instrumental in getting The Angry Video Game Nerd on the internet. I feel like this is the weakest of the films in the collection, though it has better film production, and overall quality than Kungfu Werewolves From Outer Space, it still just comes across as a juvenile shit joke. I enjoyed this silly film, but there were some genuinely great films in the collection that were far superior.
The Dragon In My Dreams is one of the most sentimental of James Rolfe's films. This 2010 documentary is about a reoccurring dream that Rolfe has about a dragon on a playground. While talking to his mother about it, he finds out that there was a dragon water fountain sculpture at a playground that he loved to play at as a very young child. So in this film he sets out to find this dragon that has haunted his dreams, and explore why this dragon has always had such a hold on him. This is a wonderful heartfelt documentary, and one that I felt really moved by. In this film he shows that his skills as a filmmaker and writer go beyond the comedy and horror that he is most noted for, and he can also make a very beautiful, genuinely sentimental and insightful film. This might be one of the best ones in the collection, it definitely shows the heart of the artist, and packs a strong emotional punch.
Cinemaphobia is a psychological horror film from 2001 that was directed, written, produced, and stars James Rolfe. Rolfe plays an actor who seems to be having a nervous breakdown, and he imagines(?) that he is being haunted by a video camera, that it is stalking him. On the surface the storyline sounds quite silly, but the way that Rolfe does this film is quite amazing. This film might be one the best in the collection, and showcases what a powerful and effective filmmaker that James Rolfe truly is. This film works a psychological horror story, the way that James Rolfe plays the character with sincerity, and the way that he directs this film, shows that he is honestly a great filmmaker. This is obviously a film school production that he made while in college, but it is honestly a really well done film, and it is sad honestly that this film wasn't his big break into the movie industry. I feel like this film proves that if he had a big budget backing, and a big production company and crew to back him that he has the ability to make quality horror films, and though I am sure we are all thankful for the Angry Video Game Nerd bringing James Rolfe into the public's eye, and making it possible to distribute these films, I wish that I had instead found him through this film, and that he was given the opportunity to make serious films like this for a living. I highly recommend checking out this film, it touched me on an emotional level, as well as being a truly unnerving and terrifying film about a man who seems to be losing his mind. This is just a genuinely great film.
The Curse Of The Cat Lover's Grave is a short horror film in three acts, from 2003. This film feels like a film school project, in the film James Rolfe uses one ongoing story to illustrate three different styles of horror films, The Chiller, The Shocker, The Splatter. The film tells a story about a man who digs up a grave to get a cat artifact that was buried with the deceased person. Though when he brings it home and calls his connection who he bargains for a selling price, something strange starts to happen and the man begins to be haunted by some unseen entity. Then in the second act things start getting intense and his friend he called gets murdered, and when he goes to put the artifact back in the grave he is confronted with cat cultists, and from here the film switches gears from being a serious horror film to being a gorefest. This film has some true and intense horror elements, but also has some parts that are so over the top that they are funny. The Curse Of The Cat Lover's Grave was written, directed, produced, and edited by James Rolfe. The film stars Jesse Gorham-Engard as Miles, Dan Kelly as Steve, Bladimir Perez as Cat Monk 1 and 2, Gary Hanna as Cat Monk 3, and James Rolfe as man eating pasta. This is definitely a film worth watching.
Cinemassacre Cinematic Catastrophes as a whole is a really enjoyable collection of films. I guess if you want to know if you should watch this film, maybe ask yourself, does the idea of watching film student projects sound like a good fun time? If the answer is yes, then I want to be your friend, because I totally agree with you, but if you answered yes to that question, then this is a film that you might really enjoy. This isn't the type of thing that everyone will be into, but for those of us who love artsy b-films, and who feel like Ed Wood, and Roger Corman are some of the best directors in the movie business, then this is a collection of films for you. I loved this collection, from worst to best, they were all fun, and effective horror films. I also just want to say, that if you watch this collection, and think to yourself that "I can make better movies than this guy", then get off your lazy ass and do it. Filmmakers like James Rolfe, Ed Wood, and Roger Corman are like the Ramones of filmmaking, they show you that if you want to make films, you CAN do it, you can do it yourself, you just need passion and creativity, and a basic knowledge of how to use a camera and how to edit. These films are cheap, they are amature, but the point is that James Rolfe has passion and drive, and couple that with a creative imagination and the result are these fantastic films that are effective as horror films, and they make great emotional contact with the viewer, if you get past the fact that Cinephobia was made with a very small budget in his backyard, you might find that what you have is a legitimately great psychological horror film, that makes a strong emotional connection with its viewers. If The Dragon Of My Dreams doesn't pull at your heartstrings and make you feel something, then I question if there is something wrong with you, just as a whole each of these films are great short films, and they prove that with passion a filmmaker can make movies even with little to no budget. I look forward to see what future films that writer, director, producer, and actor James Rolfe will release. As much as I appreciate his web series Angry Video Game Nerd, I feel like where he is the best is when he is making actual movies, and talking about films. I think I was attracted to Cinemassacre because of AVGN, but it was his horror movie reviews that urged me to follow him, and then when they were doing the Video Store reviews those appealed to me much more than the AVGN series. I will definitely be doing more Cinemassacre films in the future, so if you are a fan keep an eye out for those.
I highly recommend going over to cinemassacre.com and purchasing a copy of this film, and the other great films released by cinemassacre. Support independent filmmakers whenever you can.
Note: I wish there was a trailer for this DVD that I could post, but when I was looking all I could find were the full films, so if you do decide to watch them on Youtube, make sure that you subscribe to their channel, so that they do get paid by Youtube for your viewing. I do however highly recommend actually purchasing the DVD copy though, because there are extras and special features that totally make it worth it.
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