Thursday, May 7, 2009

None Of The Studios Love Mandy Lane

I thought this bit of information reported on sites like Shock Till You Drop and Slash Film was worth mentioning.

All The Boys Love Mandy Lane, a slasher film made and first debuted to rave reviews in 2006, has been pulled from its June release date. This is pretty unfortunate news. I've had the chance to see the film and its a great one. Based on the large amount of cash films like the Friday the 13th reboot made back in early 2009, the release of another slasher genre film would make sense. This move is speculated to be economy related.

According to the article on STYD, Mandy Lane isn't the only film from Senator Distribution that has been given a "TBD" next to its name under release date. The company is supposedly closing its New York office.

If the move is indeed related to lack of funds, the only problem I have is the unfortunate fact that it had to happen to this film -- again. The film was originally held by the Dimension Films label of The Weinstein Co. but had to be sold in 2007 after Grindhouse didn't make the Weinstein's the money they had hoped it did.

Mandy Lane is really one of the brightest films to come out of the slasher genre in the past few years. It's a smart throwback to the way horror films used to be made, as the film centers around killings surrounding the lust of the "perfect" girl. It's worlds better than the formulaic Friday the 13th remake. Hell it's better than most of the horror films studios release into theaters.

The true shame comes in the fact that a film like this just deserves a better fate. While this doesn't appear to be another Lionsgate fiasco, a company that repeatedly gives the shaft to well-made, unique films that aren't sure bets in the box office (like its Saw series), it is an unfortunate turn of events. If it really is an issue that has to do with the economy, then I can understand the distribution company's decision to hold off on releasing the film. That is out of anyone's hands.

The film is already available overseas. You can even buy it on DVD on Amazon.co.uk. Whether this film has been given the shaft again by poor fate or bad intention, it still remains one of the better unseen horror films in America. Much like the brilliant Spanish horror film [REC] being given a DVD release in America after its remake Quarantine got its release, this is another example of the unfortunate way the American studio system led by the large corporations controls absolutely everything, whether money is available or not.

1 comment:

Caroline Dearborn said...

I like how you tell us where the film is available, if we want to see it. Too bad about the budget problems.