Island of Death

Nico Mastoraki's 'Island of Death' was one of the few films from the video nastie era that always seemed to elude me and as it was a somewhat elusive video release (with stories of its content enhancing its reputation) I had long hoped it would make it's DVD debut. Thankfully Mastorakis himself took the initiative and helped this much anticipated DVD see the light of day, but after so many years of waiting would the curious horror community be treated to a long lost hidden delight?

The film itself is a low budget mix of scenes of perverse violence and filler travelogue shots of the Greek island locations where it was filmed. The main protagonists are two wooden Londoners who come to Greece to indulge in their decadent pastime of mutual masturbation and obliteration of those that they decree to be morally damaged (the usual mix of homosexuals, sexual deviants and goats !?) Mastorakis himself in the bonus documentary included on the disc openly states what he had planned with this production and it is exactly what he intended it to be...a money making slice of low budget exploitation cinema.

Following seeing Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Mastorakis set out to come up with as many scenarios of sleazy violence and patch them together in this hodge podge of genre viewing. On the main it's actually quite enjoyable in an oddball kinda way but there are elements that many will find plain irritating. The two deviant leads are played by two of the most despairingly bad actors I've seen in many years. Perhaps intentionally there is no emotive link that the viewer can make with anyone onscreen as they are all so despicable, but to be honest within ten minutes of the film beginning I just wanted to slap both leads and prayed that they would swiftly meet their end. Mastorakis shows up himself in the movie as a sleuth come mystery writer on the tale of the twisted leads and although he himself balks at his own wooden performance it actually adds some welcome levity to the proceedings. But the golden gong for best performance in the movie has to go to the finales sheep herder who sums things up nicely when he raises his leg and trumpets anally (we would hope) his blatant disregard to what has gone on before!

That said, there is much to praise this film for and that is specifically the scenes of depraved exploitation that hold the film together. Depravity fans will whoop with delight at the mayhem that unfolds with urination, sheep shagging, crucifixion, face flaming etc to keep most chuckling in amusement. And Mastorakis' direction is actually at times very impressive, more so considering this to be one of his early cinematic works. The film at times reminded me of some of Jess Franco's work (albeit with a more hefty sleazy edge) and most likely will appeal to fans of films like 'She Killed in Ecstasy'.

Another impressive consideration for this particular release is the disc itself. The film print has cleaned up very well indeed and is sharp and colourful throughout with no visible glitches on either the image or audio tracks. Extras wise, there's three bonus music tracks from the film's soundtrack - one of which is backed with a still gallery whilst the other two are matched with scenes from the film. Best of all though is the inclusion of a 25 minute documentary starring Mastorakis himself who goes into great length discussing the film itself and its production, as well as his thoughts on censorship here in the UK. The documentary is fascinating and actually does enhance your appreciation for the film itself, especially when you rewatch with Mastoraki's honest appraisal in mind.

This debut disc from Allstar Pictures is an impressive one but don't be misled by the Vipco-esque packaging, in today's world of sick exploitation cinema the film actually isn't as strong as you'd be led to believe! A somewhat mixed bag of sleaze cinema and although perhaps a bit of an anti-climax for those new to the film, 'Island of Death' is a true genre oddity that that is sure to offend some folk still. Still, I'm glad to have finally seen it and I'm sure many of you will take the plunge too...check it out!

Review by Alan Simpson