Badmovies.org Forum

Just recently heard that Gulity Pleasures/Media Blasters is planning to release Ray Dennis Steckler's THE THRILL KILLERS (1963) and, are you ready for this, THE INCREDIBLY STRANGE CREATURES WHO STOPPED LIVING AND BECAME MIXED UP ZOMBIES (1963) on DVD in 2004. No word on the release date or special feature material as of now, however I do detect that Steckler would contribute a video interview and an audio commentary track. While I was somewhat disappointed by his commentary track for RAT PHINK A BOO BOO, yet impressed by his commentary for THE LEMON GROVE KIDS trilogy, I do hope the Guilty Pleasures/Media Blasters will get a moderator so as to make it a bit more interesting.

After Guilty Pleasures/Media Blasters DVD releases of RAT PHINK A BOO BOO (1965) and THE LEMON GROVE KIDS trilogy (1967-1969), I do hope that these upcoming Steckler releases will be restored to all their glory. And, I also hope that THE THRILL KILLERS and THE INCREDIBLY STRANGE CREATURES WHO STOPPED LIVING AND BECAME MIXED UP ZOMBIES will be in their correct Aspect Ratios of 1.85:1, I believe. THE LEMON GROVE KIDS trilogy suffered from not being presented in it's 1.85:1 ratio, and I do hope that it won't affect the next two Steckler films.

I'm already excited by this news.

steckler is a poor poor poor POOR filmaker and storyteller. the ISCWSBABMUZ's is an an example of how pathetic his films are. I awarded him no points for ruining my afternoon with his pathetic film and may god have mercy on his soul.

While I'm not stepping over on your opinion Dunners, I do feel you miss the point when it comes to Stecklers films. Steckler basically makes films to entertain, not for some kind of sophisticated art-form. After watching the Steckler interviews on the RAT PHINK A BOO BOO and THE LEMON GROVE KIDS trilogy DVDs, it's quite obvious that Steckler loves making movies. Steckler says in order to make a film you have to have the three 'E', which are 'Enthusiasim',  'Excitement', and 'Energy'. Not many filmmakers share his ambition and those who don't are only in it for the money or who gets closeup's or better lines, etc. and Steckler himself has experienced it all when he was working as a camera operator and assistant before he took a shot at directing, so the advice he is basically giving is don't pay attention to the ego's and concentrate on making a film. I really take Steckler's advice quite seriously as a young filmmaker myself. And, I guess some people dislike Steckler because he's not your typical pretencious director and it shows in his work.

As for the stories in his films, Steckler himself has admitted that his plots are weak, so he at least knows that he is not making any solid piece of art. Yet, in his films he does maintain to tell a decent story, regardless of how loopy the plot is or not. And besides, is a "strong plot" nessisary in a film called RAT PHINK A BOO BOO? Or THE INCREDIBLY STRANGE CREATURES WHO STOPPED LIVING AND BECAME MIXED UP ZOMBIES? Not really, Steckler knew he was making cheap, low-budget entertainment that doesn't reach any art-form. Now if you want to see Steckler at his most disappointing, I suggest you take a look at his film SINTHIA-THE DEVIL'S DOLL (1969) billing himself under the name 'Sven Christian', which tries to go so far as to reach an art-form and doesn't work. And then, if you want to see Steckler at his worst then search for THE MAD LOVE LIFE OF A HOT VAMPIRE and THE HORNY VAMPIRE (both 1971), two semi hard-core porno flicks under Stecklers 'Sven Hellstorm', then be my guest. I haven't seen them, but I am told they are truely terrible.

Not only that, but if you ever get the chance watch the Steckler interviews on the RAT PHINK A BOO BOO and THE LEMON GROVE KIDS trilogy (his best work, I might add) you might be suprised just how much Steckler knows about the Hollywood industry, his early partnership with future Academy Award nominated sound editor Keith A. Wester, how he has been shafted by it, and how he has MORE EXPERIENCE than any director of this decade, even though he is not well-known in the mainstream community. Oh well, I guess a director with ambition and excitement is always going to be overlooked by the over-budgeted mainstream. And to quote Steckler himself, "It's kinda' sad, isn't it." True that, Ray, true that.

And for a nice little trivia note: A very young Steven Speilberg actually tried to get some work in his early film career before directing, and Speilberg went to none other than Ray Dennis Steckler!

And another trivia note: When Keith A. Wester was working on the sound for WATERWORLD, about 11 of Wester's crew were all RAT PHINK A BOO BOO fans. And they couldn't believe that Wester knew Steckler and that he did the sound and film editing for RAT PHINK A BOO BOO! With that, Wester called Steckler and asked him to tell everybody that he worked with him.