THE BEST OF TROMADANCE FILM FESTIVAL: VOLUME 4

The only truly independent film festival in Park City, Utah, spawns yet another collection of offbeat and out-there short films. Volume 4 contains 15 short films, all of which have their own special flavor. The most Tromatic has to be LE BAGMAN, a 20-minute gorefest that features clever homemade special effects and a completely twisted sense of humor. Other highlights include the killer comedy EMILY, the detective parody JOHNSON 2: THE PASSION OF THE JOHNSON, the mini-documentary DOOMED TO FAILURE, the self-explanatory TEENAGE BIKINI VAMPIRE, and the animated PASSION OF THE KINGDOM REBELS, which finally brings the phrase "Bukkake Hooray!" to the masses. Check out the DVD Talk review!

THE SEDUCTION OF A NERD

A largely forgotten gem from 1970 starring the original Catwoman (Julie Newmar) and the original Underdog (not the actual cartoon dog, but the guy who did his voice: Wally Cox). A tale of toys, titties, and corporate greed, all set to a swinging score by Oscar nominee, and co-author of "We Are The World," Quincy Jones. The DVD features a brand-new exclusive interview with star Julie Newmar. Check out the DVD Talk review!

THEY CALL ME MACHO WOMAN

To commemorate the twenty-third anniversary of the disappointing failure of the Equal Rights Amendment for women in 1982, Troma is finally releasing one of our most famous titles, in which one pissed-off chick fights back against the patriarchy. The DVD also features Troma's Lesbian Hall of Fame featurette, to further strengthen the message of female empowerment through a bit of titillation. (Yay, boobies!).

MERCHANTS OF DEATH

'Tis the season for shameless consumerism, so Troma has stuck in its satiric claws by re-releasing this '80s thriller about selling body parts on the black market, starring Ross Hagen (also of the amazingly titled flick SUPERCOCK), Russ Tamblyn (who has been in almost as many Troma movies as Toxie, not to mention TWIN PEAKS), Clint Howard (who looks like his brother Ron, but uglier, balder, more vicious, and more depraved... well, maybe not balder), and Clint's ROCK N ROLL HIGH SCHOOL costar P.J. SOLES.

THE FIGHTING WESTERNER

Randolph Scott stars in this classic Western, taken from a Zane Grey story, also known as ROCKY MOUNTAIN MYSTERY. The flick also stars the hot-for-a-dead-chick actress Ann Sheridan. And the DVD features the opening chapters from the exciting Roan serials THE LAST FRONTIER and ZORRO'S BLACK WHIP.

TOUCH ME IN THE MORNING

If you liked TRAILER TOWN and DRIBBLE (from BEST OF TROMADANCE, VOLUME 3) -- and even if you didn't, you'll probably get a kick out of this movie not simply directed by, but also starring Giuseppe Andrews (so all you screaming teenyboppers out there will have more fodder to throb your heart to every night before you go to sleep). That, and there's crotchety old Bill Nowlin in a thong for most of the movie -- and if that's wrong, then Lord, I don't want to be right! People have compared Giuseppe's flicks to early John Waters, but he's blazing his own trail through the world of digital cinema. Click the poster to watch the preview!

TROMA'S EDGE TV PRESENTS TUBE TOP TV COMEDY DOUBLE FEATURE: BACON HEAD/VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED

Because of the massive title on this release, I have been asked to decode it:

• "TROMA" is the company whose website you are looking at now.
• "'S" signifies ownership or possession.
• "EDGE TV" means bold, outlandish television.
• "PRESENTS" means gifts -- it is the holiday season, after all.
• "TUBE TOP" refers to a form of clothing that accentuates a woman's mammaries. Also, the usage here is a pun referring to a TV's picture tube, hopefully reminding people of such wacky sketch comedy movies as THE GROOVE TUBE and THE BOOB TUBE.
• "TV COM" is a hip phrase the kids on the street are using to refer to "TV comedy"
• "EDY" is made up of two nonsense filler syllables. Ignore these.
• "DOUBLE FEATURE" means two movies.
• "BACON HEAD/VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED" means two wacky sketch comedy movies, in the vein of THE GROOVE TUBE and THE BOOB TUBE. Here, they are separated by a "/" to remind people of such classic backslash movies like "FACE/OFF," which has nothing to do with either of these films.

MAX ALLAN COLLINS: THE BLACK BOX COLLECTION

4 DVD's of neo-film-noir nastiness from the creator of ROAD TO PERDITION: MOMMY and MOMMY 2: MOMMY'S DAY, starring THE BAD SEED's Patty McCormack; the multi-angle disc REAL TIME: SIEGE AT LUCAS MARKET; and the brand-new anthology SHADES OF NOIR, which features a long-lost noir TV pilot written and directed by film legend Blake Edwards. The two MOMMY discs feature brand-new commentaries, where M.A.C. compares the filmmaking experience of those independent films with his experience on the big-budget ROAD TO PERDITION. And of course there is also a slew of behind-the-scenes and supplemental material.

WITCHCRAFT 666: THE DEVIL'S MISTRESS

Nothing is more frustrating to an audience than having to sit through all sorts of "story" to get to a movie's nude scenes (this is one of the reasons I think Spielberg didn't win the Oscar for SCHINDLER'S LIST). That is why Troma's DVD of WITCHCRAFT 666: THE DEVIL'S MISTRESS has a nudity selection feature to allow you to jump to the sexiest and nakedest parts so quickly and easily you won't have to worry about your lube drying out.

SLAUGHTER PARTY

You may be asking yourself, what is SLAUGHTER PARTY about? I ask myself that same question, and I have watched it five times. There's a mad doctor and a midget, and some foul-mouthed ladies who have a beach party and get murdered. I think it was based on Proust's A LA RECHERCHE DU TEMPS PERDU, but with all the original intended murder, anal sex, and midget tomfoolery added back in. Also, the DVD will feature exclusive interviews with costars Felissa Rose and Adam "Seymore Butts" Glasser.

RAGIN' CAJUN

This kick boxing action drama, starring David Heavener, Sam Bottoms, Samantha Eggar, and Charlene Tilton, is guaranteed to be the biggest thing to hit New Orleans since Katrina and the Waves. (You may scoff at my poor taste, but it is a little known fact that the Katrina and the Waves song "Walking on Sunshine" was particularly popular in The Big Easy.)