Sneak Peek Preview: Nemesis 5: The New Model

Well ladies and germs I have a treat for you today as I just got the sneak peek at the latest Dustin Ferguson movie. No, stop saying who. Dustin (Doll Killer, Die Sister, Die!, Gloved Murderess, Cheerleader Camp: To the Death and Invitation to Die) gets to finally stretch his limbs into the genre of Sci-Fi as he told me in our phone interview last year, it has been something he had been dreaming of and finally given the reins to do just that. This is Nemesis 5: The New Model.

He clearly admires a girl of that caliber. Gun humor.

Continuing the very series director Albert Pyun (Cyborg, Deceit, Brain Smasher...A Love Story, Spitfire, Heatseeker, Raven Hawk, Mean Guns, Postmortem) built but never quite finished to many fans dismay, Ferguson is on the case. We open with a tasteful text crawl in space, filling in the blanks for some of the fans of the series as it has been a bit since we tapped into the cyber saga.

Cut to a harsh desert teeming with life under what sounds like Rob Robinson's composition on synthesizer (Meathook Massacre II, Tales From the Grave and Nemesis 5: The New Model) and bringing scope and depth already so I was completely stoked for this.

Reprising her famous Alex role is Sue Price of Nemesis II: Nebula, Nemesis III: Prey Harder and Nemesis 4: Death Angel is back again fighting for humanity. A dilapidated building stages a firefight between her and a fully converted cyborg as a young girl watches on in curiosity, not horror.

 The year is 2089, Alex strolling through the wastelands defeating cyborgs in gunfights and hand-to-hand combat. L.A.P.D.and the Red Army Hammerheads went to war, claiming to be humanity's savor and neither able to stop the apocalypse.

Yes, the writer is checking out Sue Price's legs. What of it?

Time and wounds have taken their toll on her as she has fought the cyborgs for so long that even this DNA mutant warrior of past and future must prepare for the next adventure and pass the torch to a new generation.

With her biotech engineering and cybernetic upgrades Alex learned to be a ruthless killing machine but in return lost much of her potential humanity.  Alex raises the abandoned little girl and trains her to be vicious, intelligent, cunning yet focused on her goals.   The only way for the end to not come is to send Ari (Schuylar Craig of Blood Claws, Camp Blood 4, Blood Model and The Amityville Legacy) back to 2077 in order to stop the actions of the L.A.P.D.and the Red Army Hammerheads before it is too late. Unlike Alex, Ari is 100% human with no augmentations to assist her.

Good to see some regulars of the Ferguson stable getting some meat and potatoes roles.

Jennii Caroline (Escape to Black Tree Forest, Black Forest III, Doll Killer, Die Sister, Die!, Gloved Murderess, Camp Blood 4 and Meathook Massacre II) appears as a Red Army Hammerhead controller using the cyborgs to capture data for spin stories.   Edwin Garica (Meathook Massacre II, PHOBIA, Stuck and Stacked) as a resistance fighter,  Mark Popejoy (Die Sister, Die!, Gloved Murderess, Poet, Flat Waters Terror Volume 1 and Amityville Legacy) as Doom, transportation entrepreneur and Daniel Stier (Tales for the Campfire, Night of the Clown, Meathook Massacre II and Nemesis 5: The New Model) also a resistance fighter.

Those Black Friday sales are out of control!

Feeling as though the human and cyborg resistance fighters could actually succeed at their mission, it is believed that a Nebula enforcer combat model needs to chase Ari and her crew down and turn them in to meat sauce.

Some nice throwbacks and nods to the second film, we have the giggling blond assassin units again, strifing the place with laser bolts rather than the Desert Eagles of 1980 played by Breana Mitchell (Cheerleader Camp:To Death, Die Sister, Die!, Invitation to Die, Meathook Massacre, Blood Claws, Camp Blood 5 and Amityville Legacy) and Lia Havlena (Wrong Side of the Tracks and Nemesis 5: The New Model).

What really grips your attention is the amazing vocals of actress/vocalist Daiane Azura (Prison of Psychotic Damed: Terminal Remix, Paranoia and Nemesis 5: The New Model) of Pandora Black. A mixture of techno, pop and astounding v/o stylings, this blend of unique tracks and singing keeps up with the pace of the film.

Cinematography is unbearably awesome, some great zooms via drone cam, good hand held and the filters bring some real life into the regions, great cut scenes for editing pushes a compelling story.

Let's talk about our star, Schuylar Craig as clearly she has had some strength training, martial arts and even some stunt work. She got put through the paces and good for her, getting something this intense as a major project.

Hey wait a minute, what about our main villains? Barbie and the Hammerhead leader Mel?

Hey that's the lovely Dawna Lee Heising (Blade Runner, Kung Fu: The Movie, Forbidden Warrior, Waiting for Dracula, Legend of the Red Reaper, Samurai Cop 2: Deadly Vengeance and Meathook Massacre II) and hard working character actor Mel Novak (Game of Death, Cat in the Cage, An Eye for an Eye, Future War, Vampire Assassin, Samurai Cop 2: Deadly Vengeance, Check Point and Holy Terror)!

Clocking in at a 71 minutes, this bigger budgeted Ferguson film rocks. Post-production laser effects, excellent filtering, an amazing musical score and everyone busting ass bringing their all to this movie. A cyberpunk post-apocalypse that brings older fans back to the series and newer fans to dive right in.  A good blend of old and new.

Nice to see Dustin tackling a genre he has been a fan of for so long. 

Wind mill of death kick!

 

Dustin Ferguson Nemesis 5 Interview

Dustin Ferguson, writer/director/producer/editor/creator of Sinister Studios and owner and proprietor of Old Skool Video had plenty to say about his upcoming film, Nemesis 5. What? You think I saw the previous films last week had nothing to do with leading up to this interview?

Dustin was kind enough to re-schedule with me today as yesterday was a bust on my end.

I'm a special clown.

With Albert Pyun's(Cyborg, Deceit, Brain Smasher...A Love Story, Spitfire, Heatseeker, Raven Hawk, Mean Guns, Postmortem, Nemesis, Nemesis II: Nebula) start this franchise more than 20 years ago, Dustin was a huge fan of not only the genre but how the series was progressing with each sequel. A man after my own heart. So I sat down to chew the fat with him. August 28^th is the beginning of the filming.

Script by Mike Reeb has been approved by Albert Pyun is acting as executive producer this time around bringing a substantial budget. Sue Price (Nemesis II: Nebula, Nemesis III: Time Lapse, Nemesis IV: Death Angel) is scheduled to arrive in September for filming so yes, the original DNA mutant warrior is reprising her role but as mother to Schuylar Craig (Shockumentary, Blood Claws, Camp Blood 4, Camp Blood 5, The Amityville Legacy and Blood Model), our new lead to bring about destruction to the machines and possibly save humanity from its tyrannical yoke.

The most unkind cut of all.

Dustin taking the reins for the story after Nemesis 4, a slight remake the opening of Nemesis with a steamy scene with Craig and Daiane Azura (Big Trouble, Prison of the Psychotic Damned: Terminal Remix, Hate, 60 Seconds to Di3, Home Videos, O' Bloody Night and Stained Encounter) moving the story back to time and moving the vibe of the time travel aspect. Yes I bugged him about the mosaic time capsule but nothing definite yet to the traveling pod. Also we don't need that many spoilers do we? Veteran actors Aki Aleong (Never So Few, Gang Wars, V, Dragonfight, Babylon 5, Dark World, House Arrest adn Faster Than the Speed of Light) and Dawna Lee Heising (My Science Project, Big Trouble in Little China, Forbidden Warrior, Outworld, Tales from Dark Fall, Waiting for Dracula, The Famous Joe Project and Awesome Girl Gang Street Fighter) marking her third film with Ferguson along with Meathook Massacre II and Amityville: Evil Never Dies.

August to October editing allowed in November, Dustin is confident to have this out by the end of the year. Main theme and composure will be composed by Rob Robinson and Adian Casserly, along with original soundtrack with Velvet Acid Christ and Pandora Black. He told me he is in talks with Orgy as well so should be an astounding soundtrack.

Someone's getting an ax to the face.

 

SAG (Screen Actors Guild)card and SAG rules need to be followed so this isn't your typical Indie film shooting when they can and wherever they can. Not limited to Horror, as a fan of films can attest to at the larger variety found at the Old Skool Video store, He has done documentaries and horror films but simply can manage a story with a decent budget, time, great actors get gold frame by frame.

Schyular is undergoing training for the role of playing her bad ass character. Yes she will know Gun Fu. Whoa. Along with Zach Muhs (Nemesis 5: The New Model) who will be a re-occuring character in the series. No I am not giving that way. Well okay, let's just say you might seen an appearance of Nebula again.

I asked him if this was a huge leap into this genre being primarily a Horror director. Dustin feels certain that as a fan of Sci-fi and Action, that this was a natural progression to more difficult projects. Considering most of his projects are shot in a manner of days, he will have months to work it until he feels it's right. Electricity to the cyborgs, parts sparking, and the better budget will allow balance CGI and practical, which is a preference to myself.

Passionate filmmakers outside Hollywood have a better touchstone with the fans than a popcorn movie. It's not about marketing, the newest toy and lunchbox. It's about a quality flick people can enjoy and hopefully stand the test of time. With our comparable love of 70s and 80s Horror we both have the congruent take on the modern era. Jump scares aren't needed heavily in horror, atmosphere, music and suspense are the key. A decent pace, story easy enough to follow and some build up and boom. Creepy horror flick.

Producer/bookmaker/director deals with what stays and what goes. If you a giant space drill, it will still look hokey and you should work with in your means. It may sound great on paper but ultimately you need to know where to invest time, money and effort in.

James Brolin still stuck in the house.

If five does well he is looking to end the series successfully by capping it off and having a potential jump into new budgeted projects. Futuristic films are a definite and try to make originals and make it his own. John Carpenter and Dario Argento are great influences in his style of film making.

A confident director gets the actors he needs. He goes in to every project with a buoyancy needed for these films and has attracted his fair share of actors. Juggling all these ventures is impressive as hell and he has the moxie for it. Personally I cannot wait to see how this series will end and I know Dustin will knock this out of the ballpark.

Dustin, I still say you need to get Tiffany Shepis for a good creepy horror flick.

Summer Screamer Screener: The Dummy 2

Good day to you all. At the request of horror director Dustin Ferguson (Terror at Black Tree Forest, Escape to Black Tree Forest, Doll Killer, Die Sister, Die!, Gloved Murderess, Cheerleader Camp: To the Death and Invitation to Die) I attend a screener of his current works which is a sequel to the 1995 Dante Falconi's The Dummy, in which a newlywed couple decided it was be a kick to get their fortune told, for the hell of it. The gypsy woman goes into her spiel and low and behold the couple act like jerks deciding not to pay her, mock her and off they go. The gypsy woman summons dark forces to imbue into a ventriloquist dummy to slay anyone the couple speak with on their first anniversary.  But that was all just a movie and no way that could ever happen.  This is The Dummy 2.

So that is the director's cut to 2001.  Anyone still awake?

21 years ago, the very dummy that cut a bloody swath across the country is being sold to a couple on E-bay for a tidy but fair sum.. except the part where it is a killer doll and going to maim and murder again. A close zoom pan on said dummy's eyes almost hints to a feeling of betrayal until you realize he is being prepared with dark forces yet again. With a few eerie optical exposure effects, blue lighting and even a little warped incidental music it is a quiet flick allowing your brain to fill in the gaps as you will.

I do love the fact Ferguson took advantage of the existing state fair for shoots. That must have taken very little convincing. The 8 and half minute intro seemed unusually long until I realized Ferguson was recapping the previous film. Yes the metaphysics strike again. Our young foolhardy bunch decide to hold a seance with the creepy doll and see if anything is true about its gruesome origins. But not before some weed, dancing and beer first off. Typical twenty somethings distracted by everything and anything so they prepare for the party/seance in their own time. Wow did I just sound that old?   You damn kids git off my lawn!!!   Fans of Jennii Caroline and Schuylar Craig will be happy to see them both again.

When Craigslist hook ups go horribly wrong.

A few constant niches in Ferguson's films are at least one person smoking, a fair amount of long pan roads to travel down, low level mood lighting and the girls can actually tone down their makeup to the level yes, you can tell they are wearing some but it is not pornographic overboard paint jobs. Little tip Indie Horror directors, find girls like Ferguson has that can act and have the ability to understand how to apply makeup with a series of brushes and not a trowel.

Thought there was quite a few local store visits too many, kinda dragging the story but again this is the screener and he will or won't trim what's going on.

While Velvet Acid Christ did music for Gloved Murderess similar to Goblin in Dario Argento's many films, Hate Dept and Kevorkian Death Cycle put their spin on the film.

While the established notion of The Dummy only being a film, the story arc for its sequel takes its time again and builds up a bit of suspense. The cat in the trench coat was killing me with his leers. You will have some fun watching this as much as it looks like the cast had fun making it.

So that's how you get Schuylar to come over.  Huh.  Well I did wonder.

Dustin Ferguson: The Amityville Legacy

Welcome back everyone. Sorry for the no-show on Friday but it was my lady's day off and we decided to go out and do dating fun for the day. Now this next flick gets mixed reviews on IMDB. I have read everything from insensitive comments about a "Gay Agenda" to none of the crew or cast should ever give up their day job. Firstly, I have no idea what a gay agenda even means and secondly this cast and crew bust ass with a finite budget. To which I say to the naysayers, "Write it, direct and star in it if you can do so much better." Today's moving picture is linked with the ominious to the DeFeo home of Amityville in the form of an antique toy monkey once resided in said home. Soon enough it starts effecting the gifted and those around it. This is Amityville Legacy.

Hehe, ain't I a stinker?

It's 1974 and Mr. Defeo (Eric Moyer of Blood Rites, Flyover Country, Shivers Down Your Spine: Birthday Dinner, The Eyes of Isabelle, Cheerleader Camp: To the Death, Blood Claws and Camp Blood 5) is cleaning house with a 30.30 systematically blasting those that are sleeping snug in their beds or so it would be perceived. Yes I do feel some Wilhelm stock screams could assist or just the actors/actresses getting a good ADR scream going can always help but honestly that is just an afterthought as Defeo is making the rounds to every room, we finish hearing a little girl scream and another blast.

Okay campers, let's get to Perkins!

40 years later, a family get together is under way and with it all the usual tension as the kids and their significant others are heading home for a home cooked meal and celebrate their dad Mark's (Mark Popejoy of Die Sister, Die!, The Eyes of Isabelle, Gloved Murderess and Shivers Down Your Spine)50^th birthday.

Family roll call!  Aunt Cheyenne (Cheyenne King of Fist of the Vampire, Demons Rising, Scamelot, Terrible Angels and The Amityville Legacy) is a bit of a lush, young Britany (Britany Dailey of Blood Rites, Cheerleader Camp: To the Death, Shockumentary and The Amityville Legacy) appears to be 6 months along with child and gasp; no hubby, heart of gold and responsible one Julia (Julia Farrell of Flyover Country, The Eyes of Isabelle, Shivers Down Your Spine:Whispering Board, Cheerleader Camp: To the Death, Silent Night, Bloody Night 2: Revival and Demon Dolls) brother Tony (Terrorphobia, Camp Blood 4, The Amityville Legacy and the Coldest Blood)and his boyfriend Jade (Jade Michael LaFont of The Inherited, Night of the Demons, Wolvesbayne, Evil Deads 2, Evil Deeds 3, Evil Deeds: Full Circle, Camp Blood 4 and The Slayer) Jennii, the bad girl and budding lush (The Legacy of Boggy Creek, Silly Scaries, Escape to Black Tree Forest, Doll Killer, Die Sister, Die!, Gloved Murderess and Silent Night Bloody Night2: Revival) Breana (Breana Mitchell of Black Forest II, Doll Killer, Die Sister, Die!, Gloved Murderess, Cheerleader Camp: To the Death, Invitation to Die, Silent Night, Bloody Night 2: Revival, and Blood Claws)and her analytical boyfriend Dan (Daniel Steir of The Amityville Legacy) and mischievous cousin Schyular (Schyular Craig of Shockumentary, Blood Claws, Camp Blood 4, Camp Blood 5, The Amityville Legacy and Blood Model). Presents are doled out and yes as per usual he get at least one crappy tie. If you love your father, don't give the crappy tie. The eerie toy monkey makes to light and reminds Mark of the one he had as a boy.

Never....saw...Venice.

Mark starts seeing Defeo slipping into his madness and Defeo even offers him his 30.30 as a present to take them all out. The music and lighting get downright chilling. The flies start into Mark's mind as he is slowly going off the rails and his dead father visits him telling what a failure he is and how his family needs to die.

Love the red and blue lighting in the background, kind of an Argento feel to the movie, the synthesizer is a nice touch to add atmosphere and keep in mind, less violence is always better with psychological thriller and supernatural as your own brain fills in the blanks. The aerial shots looks like a drone being put to good use and maybe some cherry picker truck work really brings some great cinematography.

 Popejoy truly looks like he is coming apart at the seams and hellbent to remove anything and everything out of his way.   It pays homage to the series and there was no crappy 3-D effects or a satanic lamp trying to do everyone in so honestly pretty enjoyable.    Oh FYI, that evil lamp comment was not a joke.  Amityville: The Evil Escapes (1989)   Yup, a producer spent money on that idea.  

I sat through The Amityville Terror with a budget gauged at $500,000 and while the cast and crew were competent, the film had no set pace or real direction sense. Yet this movie with a limited budget, collective alumni of Ferguson and time constraints due to lives being lived still manages to deliver.

Seriously this house needs an exorcist!

Dustin Ferguson: Shockumentary

Welcome back all! We have made it to Day 4 of Dustin Ferguson Week and you will note that it has been a pretty easy case of big ideas and tiny budget still making the grade. This time around in the true fashion of Mondo cane or Faces of Death, a gathering of teens hellbent to party, neck and enjoy films find a rare creation that hasn't been distributed in a wide range. This is Shockumentary.

The look of a girl just noticing her boy wears Axe.  Pity her.

Quick clarification before you all drop by my pad and pelt me with rotten vegetables, this is NOT the ICP (Isane Clown Posse) goofiness that happened in 1997. Relax, I am not sadistic nor that masochistic. Our collective college kids decide to kick the tires this Fall break and decide to rent some horror films, drink a few beers, get some mad munchies and prep for a fun night. Apparently in this universe, video stores still exist and kick butt. So our young happy-go-lucky gang split up and divide the party chores.

The boys Chris (Christopher Christiansen of Shockumentary and Camp Blood 4) and Justice (Justice Strong of Shockumentary and Meathook Massacre) are in charge of getting something terrifying and disturbing. Guess Faces of Death Part 8 will not cut it. The girls Sky (Schuylar Craig of Shockumentary, Blood Claws, Camp Blood 4, Camp Blood 5 and The Amityville Legacy) and Brit Brit (Britany Dailey of Blood Rites, Cheerleader Camp: To the Death, Shockumentary and The Amityville Legacy) are off for snacks, beverages and probably a fair degree of condoms and lubes. Hey, you don't know! Watch the flick yourself! Sheesh. The guys hit a mom and pop video shop (Would that not be a great name for a store?) and they find a clam box with permanent marker describing the title Shockumentary. They figure what the hell and grab it.

Wait, why did you put in Scream 4, dude?

No sooner are they all in for the night, bad food and drinks galore as they watch depictions of graphic gore and execution style murders. Looks as feasible as a Umberto Lenzi flick like Cannibal Holocaust but to each their own I say. I'm more of a Lenzi's Eaten Alive fan myself. An unusual theme in the film is two guys dressed in Halloween hoods and skull masks doing in a girl that appears to be flailing and screaming for her life. Everyone is really impressed with her performance.

Later on the news and after seeing a few local flyers, Brit Brit recognizes the girl missing as one of the victims on the movie and she is convinced it is an actual snuff film. Justice, Sky and Chris remain a bit skeptical but agree to go find out a little more about the movie. They make their way back to mom and pop video shop (Now I can't stop writing that!) to get some inside info on the flick itself. IMDB was absolutely worthless for my search lemme tell you. The video store owner is real reluctant to even talk about it, exclaiming some things are better left alone, stay off the moors and it's only a movie!

The kids aren't sure what to do at this point. Do they go to the cops with only the VHS as proof and wouldn't that be easily argued it looks like a shot on video nonsense to the likes of Savage Vengeance? Yeah that was a painful flick. Paranoia starts to set in as our youngsters realize they are making waves and creating a stir. Will the maniacs find them? What pain and torture awaits them? Will they be forced to sit through an Eli Roth marathon???

This film is kinda reminiscent of Lucio Fulchi's A Lizard in a Woman's Skin or Ruggero Deodato's Cannibal Holocaust in the sense of they have a great premise and rolled with it..minus animal killings of course. Hmm, this may have been poor examples.   Not too different to a crappy shot-on-video Gary P. Cohen's master flop VHS film called Video Violence but vastly more believable camera work, digital captured with the good performances given by our cast, the eerie ass music following them about and the atmosphere giving a sense of it is only a matter of time.   Ferguson gets old school scare and manages to bring that in easily enough. 

Hostel 4: The Midwest Edition.