Project: Trailer Trash!

I've loved movie trailers ever since I can remember. Regardless of how the movie was at the theater you could almost always rely on seeing one of the trailers that looked really promising that would almost guarantee your return trip. As a kid in the 70s and a teen of the early 80s, the theater was about the only way you could see them. By the mid to late 80s I found some catalog companies (like Sinister Cinema) that sold VHS trailer compilations. I was in heaven. A whole new world opened up to me of movies I needed to see, many of which I'd never heard of. It wasn't long before I was searching for and watching all kinds of shit I never knew existed. Those trailer compilations were my gateway drug to every corner of cinema from art to trash and I've never looked back.


Over the years I've accumulated nearly 200 trailer compilations. Some are so-so while others are cinematic treasure chests into worlds you can't imagine. Most of them are geared toward a particular genre like Spaghetti Western, Sword & Sandal, Sci-Fi, Horror, etc, while other are more broad like the 42nd STREET FOREVER Grindhouse discs released by Synapse (I LOVE those). I've got some dedicated to Godzilla, Blaxpoloitation, 70s XXX, 3D, Pinky Violence, Sexploitation, Nigeriansploitation, Mexican Kiddie Films, Film Noir, Martial Arts and just about any genre you can think of. I've seen nearly all of them and most of those are highly entertaining. They're great to slap on during a party or before movie night with friends. Hell, there've been many times I threw one on after the movies were over and we'd stay up for hours drinking and having a blast. If you don't like one, the beauty of it is you just have to wait a minute or two and another one completely different will be on.


I always thought how fun it would be to watch every movie on some of these and, after some inspiration from someone who did just that (well, he announced he was doing it but rarely updated the movies he saw, leaving me with the impression that he'd given up on it), I decided I was going to do it and the first disc to get that treatment was volume 1 of 10 from Something Weird Video called, DUSK TO DAWN DRIVE-IN TRASH-O-RAMA SHOW. It took a year but I watched every film I could get my hands on. There was a lot of shit to wade through but I did find a couple of gems which keeps you motivated to keep going. I discovered the hard way that often times the trailers are far superior to the films they're married to.


So, rather than neglect listing these fine compilations on the blog, I'm going to list them here. Just click on each one to see every film contained on it along with trailers and whatever I had to say about those flicks. I frequently turn to these discs when looking for something to watch. It's my gift...it's my curse.


I recently came across a great resource for trailer compilations that have been released on commercially available DVDs. It's called, THE TRAILER COMPILATION DATABASE, and it's a valuable resource for anyone who wants to add to their collection without knowing where to get them (see, 'cause you need to know the titles in order to look).


1) 42nd Street Forever Vol. 1 - A great start to a multi-volume series released by Synapse featuring 48 Grindhouse classics covering a large variety of genres. STATUS: COMPLETED

2) Dusk to Dawn Drive-In Trash-O-Rama Show Vol. 1 - This is the first of 10 volumes of trash covering a large variety of genres. This is the first disc where I've seen everything I could get my hands on and it was a tough ride getting through the 75 films. STATUS: COMPLETED

3) Sword & Sandal Trailers Vol. 1 - This is the first of 3 volumes I transferred from the Sinister Video VHS tapes to DVD. Great Peplum fun! 23 trailers.

4) A Fistful of Trailers - EXCELLENT comp of 36 Spaghetti Western trailers released by Wild East. It was so successful that they made a sequel, For a Few Trailers More, both of which are sadly out of print. This is one of my favorite comps.

5) Sci-Fi Trailers Volumes 9 & 10 - I bought a bunch of these off a vendor from eBay many, many years ago. The quality is crap but it's the content that make them worth owning. 48 trailers.

6) 42nd Street Forever Vol. 2: The Deuce - 56 more grindhouse trailers that are all over the genre map.

7) Blaxploiteasin' - 30 Blaxploitation classic trailers that are sure to get you longing for the 70s, hookers, cocaine, loud-ass clothes, pimped-up rides, lots of sex and plenty of action!

8) Drive-In Delirium Vol. 1 - It's the fucking motherload of grindhouse movie trailers! There are 340 trailers spread out over 4 DVDs for a total of 12 hours of pure bliss. The best part about it is there's a volume 2 with a third one due by the end of 2011!!!

9) Drive-In Delirium Vol. 2 - O.M.F.G.! Now Umbrella Entertainment in Australia has given the world 24 hours of trailer fun.  This volume is much like the first - 4 DVDs, 307 trailers of a plethora of genres and it lasts more than 12 hours!

10) Stephen Romano Presents Shock Festival - This compilation is unlike any other.  It's got 34 minutes of fake trailers plus tons of grindhouse era 70s and 80s trailers which include 2 commentaries.  It's also got tons of movie trailers for TV and a third disc of 312 radio trailers.  They really went the extra mile on this one and it shows. Fantastic!