7th September 2010
For the first time in a quarter of a century, I’m not going to the Sitges Film Festival in Spain this year. Sure, I’ll miss my festival friends like Arrow in the Head’s John Fallon, and the chance to hang out with FrightFest alumnae Howard and Jon Ford whose THE DEAD is one of the many movies from our August programme featured in the line-up. I’ll miss the sandy beaches, the dinners at the Santa Maria restaurant on the main promenade, and all the new pedestrian areas that have made the resort even more charming. But I’ve seen so many of the films in competition – apart from John Carpenter’s THE WARD – thanks to FrightFest screening duties it seemed a slightly redundant visit this time.
So I’m heading off to the MOTELx festival (‘Where Horror is Welcome’) in Lisbon, Portugal, instead, which is just before Sitges date-wise. Many of you may have met MOTELx co-director Pedro Souto as he’s a regular FrightFester and this year he’s organised something of a British Invasion strand as Chris Smith, Johannes Roberts, Paul Andrew Williams, and hopefully Neil Marshall will all be in residence by the River Tagus. Plus Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani will be there too with AMER, the three of us becoming something of a giallo road-show attraction. Oh, and someone called George Romero is the guest of honour! I’m on the short film jury (Paul has just fainted with shock!) and let’s hope I see something as good as Fernando Alle’s PAPA WRESTLING which was discovered at MOTELx last year.
Lisbon has a particular place in my heart as I used to go there a lot because of a relationship I had in the 70s. The 19-mile beach at Caparica on the outskirts of the capital really is something else. And it’s where I saw so many classic exploitation films in the cinema. Every time I went over there was something wonderful showing at the sleazy fleapits in the city centre. I’d scour the daily newspaper, Diario Das Noticias, while drinking pineapple Sumol and eating those delicious Pasteis de Belem cakes, and tick off everything you couldn’t see back in Blighty. Like Rino Di Silvestro’s DEPORTED WOMEN OF THE SS SPECIAL SECTION, which still features one of the most shocking scenes I can ever recall: a prisoner putting a cork studded with razor blades inside her vagina so the next Nazi officer who raped her would slash his penis to ribbons. Happy days! I think that’s when the relationship soured a bit actually because I distinctly recall dragging a crowd along to see that.
Another indelible downtown Lisbon memory was catching the sexploitation gem TOYS ARE NOT FOR CHILDREN. This ‘I, A Prostitute’ saga dragged it all in; incest, lesbian action, sick violence, yet I adored its almost transcendent soap opera purity, like a sexed up imitation of IMITATION OF LIFE. Portugal in the late 70s really was like my hometown of Portsmouth in the mid 60s when I’d venture into the thrilling darkness of that ‘forbidden’ movie palace by the docks my father warned me about to see MONDO CANE, WITCHRAFT and THE PARTY’S OVER. And I loved it. London seemed so boring in comparison although of course most of this celluloid flotsam and jetsam would fuel the Video Nasty debate just waiting in the wings to ignite.
My hope is that MOTELx actually takes place in a refurbished cinema of my cherished Portuguese past. The Sao Jorge centre of activity is not a familiar name so I won’t know if it was indeed where I haunted the backstreets of Lisbon until I’m inside the auditorium. Another strange coincidence is that Portugal is where I’ve done a lot of my ‘Disco: Discharge’ 8 CD set interviews and publicity. They love the collection there it seems. Terror and Disco, my kind of town. So I’m really looking forward to going back and seeing how the place has changed, to meet Portuguese horror fans and check out another very popular fantasy festival. A full report will feature here upon my return. Adeus for now.
Alan Jones
___________________________________________
© London FrightFest Ltd. 2000-2010
|
