There was a time back in the day when finding a copy of Olaf Ittenbach's The Burning Moon was not an easy thing to do. Shot in Germany back in 1997, this nasty little flick was revered as somewhat of a masterpiece in disgust and extreme cinema, a blood-soaked gem that would have even the most well-versed gore fans staring in utter disbelief as to what they were witnessing. The film was very rare to hunt down and not many were able to get their hands on it, leaving the rest of us to sit there wondering about all the fun we were missing. Then in February 2012, a relatively new company called Intervision Picture Corp. finally released an uncut DVD of The Burning Moon, and all was right with the world. It felt like Christmas morning to finally pop a copy of this in the DVD player.
Let me just say this: For those of you who are like me and have been dying to get a copy of this one for years, going into ANY film with that kind of hype is a recipe for disappointment. Not to say I was disappointed by any means, but remember that The Burning Moon was shot on VHS quality with a low budget and only the best of intentions. Dear Lord there is a lot of gore, but there is also a lot of cheese. True horror fans and lovers of B-level cinema and shot-on-VHS glory will know what they're getting into. For someone raised in the era where Hostel is considered "torture porn" and the be all end all of disgust, you may be a bit shocked when you see this bad boy. Please, do not let that deter you in any way. This is definitely a must-see for anyone interested in extreme horror, and one of the few films that truly live up to its reputation.
The fim is told as a series of bed time stories. An angry, young, drug addicted punk (played by Ittenbach) is forced to stay home one night and babysit his younger sister while his parents go out on the town. Not happy at all with these arrangements, he decides to read her a couple of violent bedtime stories just to be a dick. We witness these bedtime stories acted out, and that is essentially how this film plays out, skipping back and forth between the bedtime story and the subplot with the brother and sister reading in bed. The first story, "Julia's Love", is the tale of a serial killer who escapes the looney bin and winds up going on a date with a girl he meets. They have a great time, but when she is waiting in his car towards the end of the date for him to run in and get something (or something along those lines), she hears the story on the radio about the escaped killer and his car description. She puts two and two together, and decides to bolt. Of course this dumb-ass leaves her wallet in the car with her ID and address in it. And of course the killer wilds up stalking her back to her house, violently murdering her family and trying to make her his wife. The plot is simple, but who really watches this for the plot? This first segment is ladled with blood and the story only exists as a playground for Ittenbach and his crew to lay down some serious gore effects and other such degrees of fucked-upness. On this level, it succeeds.
As I'm sitting there watching this movie, bowl of popcorn in hand and snuggling with my kitten, at this point I began to feel a little disappointed. Sure, the film was violent. But with the kind of reputation I had been reading about for so long, was this it? Oh no my friends. Strap yourself in for the second story, "The Purity". This second story is where the film got its reputation, particularly the last 15 minutes. This story focuses on a small town priest, whose extracurricular hobbies include worshipping satan, murder, and rape. The villagers blame the dirty deeds on a poor guy whom they don't like, and they decide to become vigilantes and kill him. Needless to say, the guy extracts his revenge from the grave when he decides to drag the priest and the bastards who did this to him down to hell. The last 15 minutes, Ittenbach's depiction of hell, is uncompromising. All disappointment was gone as Ittenbach delivers some of the most impressive, low budget schlock of a torture fest ever committed to celluloid. When I review a film, I don't always focus 100% on how "good" the actual movie was, because a lot of low budget horror is great, but in a not-so-good kind of way, and as horror fans we appreciate this. I like to look at what the crew was able to do within the confines of their budget as well, and with that being said Ittenbach deserves a standing ovation for what he was able to accomplish. THIS, my friends, is a low budget masterpiece in my eyes, Now that this DVD is widely available, you have no excuse. Get out there and experience one of the finest examples of German underground horror. Just don't shut it off before the last 15 minutes.
4 1/2 OUT OF 5 STARS
**** 1/2 out of *****
Let me just say this: For those of you who are like me and have been dying to get a copy of this one for years, going into ANY film with that kind of hype is a recipe for disappointment. Not to say I was disappointed by any means, but remember that The Burning Moon was shot on VHS quality with a low budget and only the best of intentions. Dear Lord there is a lot of gore, but there is also a lot of cheese. True horror fans and lovers of B-level cinema and shot-on-VHS glory will know what they're getting into. For someone raised in the era where Hostel is considered "torture porn" and the be all end all of disgust, you may be a bit shocked when you see this bad boy. Please, do not let that deter you in any way. This is definitely a must-see for anyone interested in extreme horror, and one of the few films that truly live up to its reputation.
The fim is told as a series of bed time stories. An angry, young, drug addicted punk (played by Ittenbach) is forced to stay home one night and babysit his younger sister while his parents go out on the town. Not happy at all with these arrangements, he decides to read her a couple of violent bedtime stories just to be a dick. We witness these bedtime stories acted out, and that is essentially how this film plays out, skipping back and forth between the bedtime story and the subplot with the brother and sister reading in bed. The first story, "Julia's Love", is the tale of a serial killer who escapes the looney bin and winds up going on a date with a girl he meets. They have a great time, but when she is waiting in his car towards the end of the date for him to run in and get something (or something along those lines), she hears the story on the radio about the escaped killer and his car description. She puts two and two together, and decides to bolt. Of course this dumb-ass leaves her wallet in the car with her ID and address in it. And of course the killer wilds up stalking her back to her house, violently murdering her family and trying to make her his wife. The plot is simple, but who really watches this for the plot? This first segment is ladled with blood and the story only exists as a playground for Ittenbach and his crew to lay down some serious gore effects and other such degrees of fucked-upness. On this level, it succeeds.
As I'm sitting there watching this movie, bowl of popcorn in hand and snuggling with my kitten, at this point I began to feel a little disappointed. Sure, the film was violent. But with the kind of reputation I had been reading about for so long, was this it? Oh no my friends. Strap yourself in for the second story, "The Purity". This second story is where the film got its reputation, particularly the last 15 minutes. This story focuses on a small town priest, whose extracurricular hobbies include worshipping satan, murder, and rape. The villagers blame the dirty deeds on a poor guy whom they don't like, and they decide to become vigilantes and kill him. Needless to say, the guy extracts his revenge from the grave when he decides to drag the priest and the bastards who did this to him down to hell. The last 15 minutes, Ittenbach's depiction of hell, is uncompromising. All disappointment was gone as Ittenbach delivers some of the most impressive, low budget schlock of a torture fest ever committed to celluloid. When I review a film, I don't always focus 100% on how "good" the actual movie was, because a lot of low budget horror is great, but in a not-so-good kind of way, and as horror fans we appreciate this. I like to look at what the crew was able to do within the confines of their budget as well, and with that being said Ittenbach deserves a standing ovation for what he was able to accomplish. THIS, my friends, is a low budget masterpiece in my eyes, Now that this DVD is widely available, you have no excuse. Get out there and experience one of the finest examples of German underground horror. Just don't shut it off before the last 15 minutes.
4 1/2 OUT OF 5 STARS
**** 1/2 out of *****