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Martin
Directed by George Romero
Released: 1977
Starring: John Amplas, Lincoln Maazel and Christine Forrest
Running Time: 95 minutes
DVD Released By Lions Gate 2004
Released four years after
The Crazies, George Romero would turn in
a rather quiet film about a murderous young man who acts like a vampire
but claims he is not one. Definitely not as fast-paced or chaotic as
Romero’s best-known works, Martin
is no less a strong effort.
Martin Madahas (Toxic Zombies)
is a shy but deadly guy who lives with his “cousin” Tada Cuda in an old
industrial town in Pennsylvania. No matter where he is, Martin has an
attraction to tranquilizing women before he murders and sexually assaults
them. More as a reach for love than pure evil, you have some sympathy for
him even though he preys on the innocent.
Co-starring Christine Forrest (Creepshow)
as Christina in a part that Romero wrote for her (she and Romero were
dating at the time and would marry in 1981), she portrays a kind of naïve
openness to Martin. She doesn’t judge him and Martin respects that. Still,
Martin stalks around town looking for women to get it on with. Having
flashbacks (either in events that happened earlier in his life or in
vampire movies he’s seen), Martin is constantly reminded of what kinds of
consequences occur when he chases love.
As Romero has proven many times before, he takes material that is perfect
for b-movie camp and turns it into something thoughtful and smart. Is
Martin really a vampire or just a troubled kid? You don’t really know.
Romero makes a statement about how we overestimate people based on our own
fears of the dark side of life. Again, this is material ripe for one-note
characters and lowest common denominator clichés, but in the hands of
Romero, it’s not.
As an added bonus, the acting is pretty good all around. Even though most
of the actors would be better known for their work behind the scenes of
Romero’s later films, they bring something special here. Amplas is
especially strong as Martin with getting the audience on his side.
The DVD version comes with a short, ten-minute retrospective on the making
of the film. All of the living main players (save for Amplas) are present
and speak highly of their experiences. Those feelings are echoed in the
engaging commentary featuring Romero, actor/make-up artist Tom Savini,
producer Richard Rubinstein, composer Donald Rubenstein and director of
photography Michael Gornick. Definitely worth your while if you’re curious
to see Romero flex his muscles beyond his zombie flicks.
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