Movie spotlight
Mayhem
In 1983, filmmaker and poet Abigail Child cut up old footage from Between Times, a documentary profile of high school girls in Minneapolis which she had produced for WNET/PBS back in 1975. That footage would then be integrated into work of a drastically different kind: The film was called Mutiny which, by its very name, signaled her abandonment of the humanist documentary tradition to which Between Times belonged, to become, in her words, “a prismatic rhythmic pinwheel” born of the artistic and political necessity to radically rethink form. Mutiny, in turn, stood as one of the most densely woven in a series of bold experiments that came to be known as Is This What You Were Born For?
Insights
Plot Summary
A compilation of violent clips from various low-budget horror films, presented as a standalone work. It focuses on graphic and often gratuitous scenes of violence and gore, lacking a cohesive narrative or original content.
Critical Reception
As a compilation of existing footage rather than an original film, 'Mayhem' did not receive traditional critical reviews. Its release was primarily targeted at fans of extreme horror and exploitation cinema, where its shock value was the main draw.
What Reviewers Say
Not applicable as it's a compilation of existing clips.
Appeals to a niche audience seeking extreme gore.
Lacks narrative coherence or original artistic merit.
Google audience: Due to its nature as a compilation of existing violent footage from other films, there is no specific audience review data for 'Mayhem' as a standalone work on platforms like Google.
Fun Fact
Many low-budget horror compilations like 'Mayhem' were created in the 1980s and 90s to capitalize on the growing market for VHS horror, often featuring heavily edited or repackaged scenes from obscure or even mainstream horror films.
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