The DTV Digest

Episode 162: Occupation: Rainfall, The Tomorrow War, Lapsis, Molly, Crazy Samurai 400 vs 1, The Soul Collector, The Dark and the Wicked, Witch Hunt, The Return of Dr Bees, Collision

In this episode Mike, Rich and Steve tackle another bumper crop of new releases, starting with four sci-fi movies:
We start with OCCUPATION: RAINFALL, the 2nd instalment of the Australian alien invasion franchise which a mixture of bitter grit and big flashy fx set-pieces. We follow this with another big-budget sci-fi movie, THE TOMORROW WAR starring Chris Pratt - this one is currently available to watch on Amazon Prime.
Our third sci-fi movie is LAPSIS, an off-kilter look at the plight of workers who are part of enabling a new level of technology.
Then it is off to a post-apocalyptic future in MOLLY, a sequel of sorts to a film we covered way back in episode 95 called Kill Mode. Molly features a 30 minute fight sequence made up of long takes as its finale. Meanwhile our next film goes even further. CRAZY SAMURAI: 400 vs 1 sees real-life samurai Musashi Miyamoto (Tak Sakaguchi) enter into a 77minute one-shot, unedited fight scene against 400 angry warriors! 
THE SOUL COLLECTOR (aka 8) is the first of three horror films discussed in this episode, a folk horror film set in South Africa. This is followed by the atmospheric THE DARK AND THE WICKED where supernatural shenanigans occur around a rural farm.
Finally, we discuss WITCH HUNT, a film which it is fair to say took all of us by surprise!
Our Short Shot this week is THE RETURN OF DR BEES, from animator Harry Partridge. We highly recommend you also check out his other DR Bees shorts, DR BEES and #CHANGETHEBEES!
And finally...in our DTV Throwback we stand around and gawp at COLLISION, in which a clean-shaven Frank Grillo and his femme fatale wife get caught up in a traffic accident in the Moroccan  desert! This is available on Amazon Prime but be warned there are key moments missing subtitles!
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!
 
 

Episode 161: Final Voyage, Endangered Species, My Heart Can't Beat Unless You Tell It To, Unearth, Ripper Untold, Triumph, Tyger Tyger, Somniphobia, Final Voyage

In this bumper episode Mike, Rich and Steve face something of an endurance test...
Kicking off with FINAL VOYAGE, a German sci-fi in which two men discover and repair an old space ship, only to struggle to decide where to travel to.
Then its off to Kenya for ENDANGERED SPECIES, in which a family make some terrible choices and end up facing the consequences. 
In MY HEART CAN'T BEAT UNLESS YOU TELL IT TO, we have a teen vampire a million miles removed from the Cullens of Twilight!
UNEARTH finds farmer Marc Blucas (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) struggling to make ends meet  and also suffering from some bad decisions when a fracking op unleashes some primordial ooze...
RIPPER UNTOLD is a low budget procedural which gives an interesting slant on a possible identity for "Saucy Jack"!
R. J. Mitte (The Oak Room) plays a highschool student with cerebral palsy who has to overcome many obstacles to achieve his goal of being on the wrestling team in TRIUMPH...
and finally, we venture into a drug fueled wilderness in TYGER TYGER...
 
Our Short Shot is the excellent SOMNIPHOBIA - grab yourself 25min and check out this excellent horror thriller!
And our DTV Throwback is FINAL VOYAGE - yes, our first and final films share the same name! This one stars Dylan Walsh, Ice T and Erika Elaniak in a Die Hard on a Cruise Liner movie! (available on Amazon Prime).
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!
 

Short Shots Ep 7 - The Stylist Short Cuts

In this episode Mike and Rich look at the winners of the Stylist Short Cuts competition, conducted by Arrow.
There are eight short films, showcasing the talents of female film-makers both in front of and behind the camera. The whole series of shorts are available on Arrow's streaming service, however we have put links below to those which are available on either Youtube or Vimeo:
ALCHEMIA Dir Natacha Thomas
ATTENTION dir Nora Unkel
BED BUG dir Zoe Holmes/Patrick McDonald
BLOODHOUND - Dir Sophia Cacciola
REPTILE HOUSE - Dir Tristan Risk
THE CURSE - Dir Ellie Stewart
TICKS - dir Chloe Carroll
UNSAFE SPACES - Dir Connor Sandheinrich
 
Click Here to learn more about the competition.
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!
 
 

Short Shots Ep 6: Etheria Special

In this episode, Mike and Rich take a look at the films selected for this year's Etheria Short Film Festival, which showcases films from female directors and filmmakers. 
As this is a live competition at this time we are unable to link to the actual films, however if you are a SHUDDER subscriber you will be able to see them between June 25 through July 25. 
There are nine films altogether, covering a diverse range of genre, from time travel, murderous rampage, post-apocalyptic nightmares, westerns, racial tensions and good old fashioned schlock. I dare say there is something for everyone here and not a weak link among them.
For more information about the films and the people who made them, CLICK HERE.
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!
 

Episode 160 - Edge of the World, Brighton, Skyjacked, Parallel, Metroid: Attack of Ridley, Men of War

This week Mike, Rich and Steve are joined by SEAN MALLOY of I Must Break This Podcast  to discuss this week's DTV Throwback!
But before that, we must review four current releases, starting with EDGE OF THE WORLD, based upon the real-life explorer Sir James Brooke, played here by Jonathan Rhys Meyers.
Then its time to get the deckchairs out and enjoy a bit of sunshine in BRIGHTON, based upon a play by Stephen Berkoff. 
Its been a while since we covered an Asylum movie so we rectify this with SKYJACKED, aka SKY BATTLE - the film is currently available on Amazon Prime under this title!
Our Short Shot is METROID: BATTLE OF RIDLEY which brought back memories of owning a Nintendo Game Cube for me!
Finally, as mentioned above, Sean Malloy of "I Must Break" This Podcast which looks at the filmography of Dolph Lundgren, joins us to talk about MEN OF WAR, now available on Amazon Prime.
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!

Short Shots Ep 5: The Collector, Tiger Man, Lady (1&2), Redemption

Its all about action in this episode! Mike and Rich start with one of prolific director Godefroy Ryckewaert's latest films, THE COLLECTOR (I would say latest but he is so prolific he's probably made at least one more since we recorded!). If you're not familiar with Godefroy's work we highly recommend you check out his Youtube channel!
We follow this with TIGER MAN in which Elvis Presley shows off his skills while rehearsing in Las Vegas!
Stephanie Pham co-directs and stars in our next film, LADY 2  in which a mysterious lady comes to the aid of some women abducted by sex traffickers. 
Finally we have REDEMPTION, a classy action short boasting strong production values although some of its narrative is a bit wooly. 
 
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!

Episode 159 - Imprisoned, Elyse,Safe Inside, Agony, It's Me Billy, Eighth Wonder, Blunt Force Trauma

In this episode Mike, Rich and Steve look at a couple of films involving comatose characters!
First though, there's IMPRISONED (aka Night Walk), where a wrongfully imprisoned man seeks both redemption and vengeance. Mickey Rourke makes a brief appearance as a drug dealer who lords over the other inmates, so naturally he gets prominence on the DVD Cover!
ELYSE is an arthouse film in which an emotionally struggling woman battles for her marriage and sanity, and features a short appearance from Anthony Hopkins...
SAFE INSIDE sees an American couple in France, whose experience working as labourers on a country estate  goes awry...
Asia Argento stars in AGONY, as a woman who discovers her mother has just died, despite being told that she had died decades before...
ITS ME, BILLY is a fan-made sequel to the original Black Christmas, set in the present day. Click the link to watch the whole 42minute film!
Our Short Shot is EIGHTH WONDER, from JKK Films - we highly recommend you check out this short as well as some of their other work!
Finally, our DTV Throwback is BLUNT FORCE TRAUMA, one of my all-time favourites! Will Rich and Steve enjoy it too??
 
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!

Episode 158 - Search and Destroy, The Fifth Execution, Cargo, Shakedown

This episode was originally recorded in Jan 2021.
 
Mike and Rich take a look at SEARCH AND DESTROY and have a very interesting debate on whether:
a. The film is MEANT to be toungue-in-cheek, and/or
b. The film is the most overtly gay-coded action flick made so far.
Check out the film on Amazon Prime and let us know if we are barking up the right trees on this one!
 
There's more confusion on our part with our next film, the totally bonkers THE FIFTH EXECUTION, which is definitely a film suffering from multiple personality disorders! Check out our review to hear us try and analyze just what the heck is going on in this film! (Also available on Prime as of time of publishing). 
Our Short Shot is CARGO, in which a new employee makes an unwitting and terrifying discovery on his first day!
Finally, our DTV Throwback is SHAKEDOWN, starring Erika Elaniak, Ron Perlman and Scott Wolf. Unfortunately, since recording this episode the film has been removed from Prime's library - For Shame, Prime! It can be picked up for a pittance though, and I thoroughly recommend doing so! (This is also a really bad trailer!)
 
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!

Episode 157: Vanquish, No Man's Land, A Reckoning, Behind The Trees, Oasis, Beowulf

In this episode Mike, Rich, Steve and Will take a look at four new films. We kick off with VANQUISH, in which Ruby Rose is forced to act as a courier for retired, wheelchair-bound dirty cop Morgan Freeman.
Then it's off to the Mexican border for NO MAN'S LAND, which finds a young man fleeing for his life after a bit of vigilante border patrolling goes horribly wrong.
Lance Henriksen pops up briefly in A RECKONING, a low budget western in which a widow takes it upon herself to track down her husband's killer.
Finally, we're off to India for BEHIND THE TREES, in which an American couple meddle with local beliefs and supernatural forces.
 
Our Short Shot is OASIS, a very visually stunning film set in a desert where water has odd properties. This is from the same people who made Bad Hit, which we covered a few episodes ago!
 
Finally, our DTV Throwback is BEOWULF - starring Christopher Lambert and Rhona Mitra. This is set in a post-apocalyptic land which has reverted back to the days of swords and armour. It's certainly an odd one!
 
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!

Episode 156: Justice League: Snyder Cut, Batman: Dying is Easy, Darkman 2: The Return of Durant

Mike and Rich embark on the 4 hour marathon which is the JUSTICE LEAGUE SNYDER CUT and are pretty impressed by the sights along the way! In keeping with the superhero theme, our Short Shot is a Batman fan film called DYING IS EASY. The company behind this short are called Bat In The Sun and we recommend you check out some of their other shorts!
To round things off, our DTV Throwback is a DTV sequel to Sam Raimi's Darkman. In DARKMAN 2: THE RETURN OF DURANT, Arnold Vosloo takes over from Liam Neeson. Cue melting faces and big explosions!
Follow the Short Shots TWITTER page, where we will be linking to a short film every day! 
Don't forget to also check out our main show, the DTV DIGEST on TWITTER and FACEBOOK!