Growing up, one had to actually go out into the world to find the content he or she wanted to watch (insane, right?). It was a world of rummaging racks of VHS tapes—clam shells, Be Kind Rewind stickers, and all! The greatest horror finds were always in a dusty, dank corner, untouched by the masses. Even rarer than discovering a Munchies or a Chopping Mall was the compilation tape, a film that strung together the greatest deaths, chase scenes, or in the case of Mad Ron’s Prevues from Hell, B- and C-level genre trailers that aired side-by-side for our viewing pleasure, horror…and yes, laughter.
Now available to stream on Netflix, Mad Ron’s opens to a decrepit theater wallpapered with horror posters from years past, as deranged projectionist Mad Ron shows a room full of rowdy zombies a diverse assortment of horror and exploitation film trailers from his private collection. Ventriloquist Nick Pawlow and his foul-mouthed zombie-dummy (you read that right) Happy Goldsplatt provide lowbrow comic relief, akin to Mystery Science Theater 3,000 except far worse and way less witty. It’s unintentionally hilarious though, keeping you wide-eyed and in complete shock that this setup is actually happening to your face. Just take a look at these two:
Yep. I know.
Think you’re getting antsy? The horde of zombies craves fresh flesh and somehow the cinematic bloodshed isn’t enough to keep them satisfied…but what doesn’t satisfy the undead theater-goers will certainly satisfy the horror fan. Silly segues aside, the real treat is delivered in 3-5 minute trailers of movies you either grew up loving or loathing, or ones you’ve never heard of, and for good reason. The trailers are relentlessly presented back to back, only letting up for brief check-ins with Nick and Happy that are equal parts mind-boggling and nauseating, and seemingly the only pieces of recorded film that could possibly be crummier than some of the trailers you’re already watching…but I say that with love!
Mad Ron’s has a charm to it, one that only die-hard horror and B-movie aficionados will appreciate. But it’s not all obscure. We and the zombies are treated to previews of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Night of the Living Dead, Last House on the Left and Black Christmas, all mainstream mainstays for anyone who’s into the classics. Interspersed between are the real gems—grindhouse staples from the 60’s and 70’s, like Silent Night, Bloody Night, Three on a Meathook, and The Wizard of Gore. You can bet your ass that MST3K fave Manos: Hands of Fate makes an appearance, too. (I can’t imagine that all these films are readily available or even in print, though I did find Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things at my local library on a whim. The magic of a rare find—score!)
Viewers ping-pong from zombie flicks to satanic rituals to slashers to ghostly haunts, and there’s really no rhyme or reason for the ordering of horror haps. It’s all thrown in your face like a bucket of pig’s blood on prom night. The trailers hold nothing back, too. We enjoy the true beauty of every sub-genre, with gore, carnage and nudity happening left and right, like one boss Greatest Hits collection. It’s an uncensored smorgasbord through some of horror’s best, worst and rarest exploitation flicks and grindhouse fare.
What’s great about Mad Ron’s, besides its cheeky host segments and iffy effects, is the authenticity in quality. Trailers are shown in their original grainy format with mono audio, shaky footage and questionable acting. Everything that made all of these films unique, scary or terrible bursts through, and it’s a kick to see these vintage ads that are gift-wrapped in nostalgia and adorned with low-budget gore effects and cheesy dialogue. It’s film history in the making, people! And frankly, it’s just amazing that some of these movies are kept alive today, if only through their 3-minute “prevues.”
And let’s lets just say…you’ll love to hate ol’ Happy Goldsplatt. Or maybe even hate to love him.
Grade: B+
