DEATH CURSE OF TARTU (1966)/STING OF DEATH (1965)
Director: William Grefe
Something Weird Video/Image Entertainment

Joining the legions of other independent drive-in directors to have their work represented on DVD, it's none other than William Grefe. Like H.G. Lewis and Barry Mahon, Grefe worked out of Florida, and the two films presented on this disc (also his first two horror films) were shot entirely on location in the Florida Everglades and actually played together on a mid 60s drive-in double bill. Hindered by amateurish actors, Grefe still manages to make the most of the uncomfortable surroundings, and some picturesque camera work is on display as well.

The first feature (and more familiar one) is DEATH CURSE OF TARTU and concerns the title character, a 100-year-old witch doctor resting in an ancient burial ground in the Florida swamps. A professor, his wife and four students come along and desecrate the place. Tartu comes back to life to bump them off, converting himself into a snake, a shark and an alligator to do so. The makeup on the mummified Tartu--created by Doug Hobart, who also plays him--is pretty memorable. There's some cheap gore (a mutilated human arm) and some laughable props (a phony spider in a cave), and the soundtrack is extremely grating on the nerves.

The other feature is the rarely seen STING OF DEATH. The film starts out like an average 60s beach movie, with lots of bikini-clad rumps shaking to Neil Sedaka's sissified "Do The Jellyfish." But most of the cast is killed by a disfigured marine biologist named Egon (John Vella) who changes into a walking jellyfish monster. A boat full of teens is capsized and they're all attacked by jellyfish that appear to be painted Ziploc bags! The jellyfish monster is an actor (Doug Hobart again) in a modified diver suit and an inflated trash bag over his head. He falls in love, captures a pretty girl (Karen Richardson) but she's saved by Grefe regular Joe (aka Quinn) Morrison. Deanna Lund (later a star of Irwin Allen's classic "Land of the Giants" TV series) is one of the party gals.

As far as the transfers go, DEATH CURSE OF TARTU looks acceptable, slightly better than it looked on VHS and during its infrequent TV airings. Colors look acceptable, but sometimes the image is soft or grainy with minor wear on the source print. STING OF DEATH, on the other hand, was newly remastered from the original 35mm negative, and it looks fabulous. The colors have a Technicolor-like intensity to them, and the transfer is remarkably clean, with crisp sound. Both titles are full frame (1.33:1).

Both films feature the first two audio commentaries by director Grefe, moderated by an unbilled Frank Henenlotter. Grefe has a fine sense of humor, and Henenlotter delightfully brings this out with his vast knowledge of drive-in and grindhouse cinema. Not only does Grefe talk about the harsh conditions of making two horror flicks in the Everglades, but he also tells great anecdotes about name stars that he later worked with, such as William Shatner, Ruth Roman, and Harold "Odd Job" Sakata.

Other extras include about 30 minutes from an obscure Florida-lensed oddity called LOVE GODDESSES OF BLOOD ISLAND from STING OF DEATH producer Richard S. Flinkis. This one's got beautiful women in gold bikinis capturing and torturing men. One guy is completely dismembered using graphic H.G. Lewis style gore tactics. Whoever does the narration is the same actor that does a lot of voices for the K. Gordon Murray dubbed versions of those Mexican horror classics!

There's a short subject called "Miami or Bust," which appears to be a boring travelogue until a woman starts stripping in a swimming pool. There's also trailer for the two features, as well as other Grefe films: THE WILD REBELS, RACING FEVER, MAKO: JAWS OF DEATH, and STANLEY. The packaging lists two other extras: "Gallery of Horror Drive-In Exploitation Art" and "Horrorama Radio-Spot Rarities," but they're nowhere to be found and were most likely discarded at the last minute. (George R. Reis)

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