The Last Horror Film (Tromatic Special Edition) Blu-ray Review

David Winters’ The Last Horror Film remains one of the hidden gems of early ’80s indie horror — a guerrilla-shot meta-slasher that somehow sneaks real Cannes Film Festival footage, unsuspecting celebrities, and a chainsaw-wielding maniac into the same frame as the stunning Caroline Munro, wearing one of the worst hairstyles from the decade. It’s sleazy, satirical, and completely irresistible. Over forty years later it still feels like a middle finger to the entire film industry. This new Tromatic special edition gives us the goods in high-definition if you missed out on Severin Films’ 4K UHD a couple years ago.

Joe Spinell, fresh off terrifying audiences in Maniac, delivers what might be his most personal performance as Vinny Durand. He plays a delusional New York cabbie who flies to Cannes convinced that scream queen Jana Bates (Munro) will star in his directorial debut, titled (what else?) The Last Horror Film. As bodies start piling up around the festival, Vinny’s fantasy and reality blur in increasingly deranged fashion. It’s a loose riff on Taxi Driver while taking direct inspiration from Ronald Reagan’s attempted assassin John Hinckley, as Hinckley’s insane obsession with actress Jodie Foster drove him off the deep end.

The Last Horror Film is essential viewing for anyone who loves sleazy, meta, guerrilla-filmmaking madness

Shot without permits during the actual 1981 Cannes festival, the movie is packed with real attendees, actual paparazzi footage, and real celebrities like Marcel Bozzuffi and Sharon Hughes wandering through the background wondering what the hell is going on. The sheer audacity of the production is intoxicating, seeping into every frame of the exploitation thriller. It owes a debt of gratitude to Italian gialli, borrowing their off-kilter energy and chaotic misdirection.

Joe Spinell is terrifyingly committed, sweating through every scene, alternating between pathetic mama’s boy and full-psycho intensity. Beyond Spinell’s shockingly adept performance, the movie’s secret weapon is Caroline Munro. By 1982 she was already b-movie royalty: the tragic beauty in Hammer’s Dracula A.D. 1972 and Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter (a personal favorite of mine), the exotic Margiana in The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, the lethal helicopter pilot Naomi in The Spy Who Loved Me (the only Bond girl to literally go out in a blaze of glory), the space-leather-clad Stella Star in Starcrash, and the brutally victimized photographer in Maniac.

Caroline Munro brought genuine star presence to everything she touched. Here she’s playing a glamorous, jaded version of herself — a film star attending premieres, dodging sleazy producers, and slowly realizing a lunatic is murdering everyone around her. She’s funny, tough, and completely believable as the kind of movie star who could drive a man like Vinny over the edge. Few performers could sell both the satire and terror as effortlessly as Caroline Munro.  She’s the linchpin in a deliberately trashy movie and makes the whole enterprise work.

Winters (a former West Side Story dancer turned exploitation hustler) keeps the pace breathless, the kills inventive (that head-in-the-projector kill is legendary), and the tone perfectly unbalanced between black comedy and genuine unease. The final reel goes full-on psycho in a way that predates the Scream-style self-awareness by over a decade. It’s no coincidence Wes Craven named his grand meta-horror masterpiece Scream, as that is the name of the project Munro promotes at Cannes in The Last Horror Film.

The film is messy, cheap, and absolutely alive in a way polished studio product rarely touches. The Cannes backdrop gives it an unreal documentary texture, the kills are nasty when they land, the humor is jet-black, and the final reel descent into total madness is legitimately unsettling. It’s essential 80s exploitation. The Last Horror Film is essential viewing for anyone who loves sleazy, meta, guerrilla-filmmaking madness, Joe Spinell at his most unhinged, and Caroline Munro at her most iconic.

Troma reissues The Last Horror Film on Blu-ray as their 2015 edition has long been out of print. Taken from the same 4K scan of the original 35mm negative, with censored gore scenes reintegrated from pristine 35mm print elements sourced from Cinémathèque Française that Severin Films used for their limited 4K UHD release, this 1080p transfer looks mostly satisfactory and occasionally striking for the 1981 production. Definition is mildly inconsistent with modestly crushed shadow delineation.

The main feature runs an uncut 87 minutes on a BD-50 in transparent AVC. The 1.85:1 presentation offers plenty of detail on Munro’s close-ups and the chaotic Cannes crowds. Flesh-tones are a bit off in select scenes. Night scenes and the infamous splatter moments have real weight and texture. Grain reproduction is adequate with a few edits manifesting mushier quality.

I’d wager most videophiles already own Severin Films’ UHD for The Last Horror Film. Troma isn’t known for their transfers and this BD provides serviceable video only. It’s definitely stronger than 88 Films’ UK release, which was sourced from an inferior print.

The original mono track is presented cleanly with no hiss or distortion in somewhat disappointing 2.0 Dolby Digital as Severin Films used lossless audio on their UHD. Dialogue is clear even in the noisy festival scenes, gore effects punch hard, and the library-music score has a decent presence. 80’s act Depeche Mode has several cues heard in the soundtrack.

Optional English SDH subtitles play in a white font.

Troma loads the disc with bonus features plucked from earlier releases, including the UHD. Three separate audio commentaries, including one by Caroline Munro herself. There are also the usual assortment of Troma-related goodies coming from Lloyd Kaufman and Dolphinman.

The disc is coded for all regions.

Audio Commentary by Joe Spinell’s assistant and associate producer Luke Walter & moderated by Troma Films’ Evan Husney

Audio Commentary by actress Caroline Munro & moderated by FrightFest’s Alan Jones

Audio Commentary Joe Spinell’s assistant and associate producer Luke Walter, moderated by Severin Films’ David Gregory

Introduction by Lloyd Kaufman (04:07 in SD)

Like a Father Figure: Sal Sirchia Remembers Joe Spinell interview (21:11 in HD)

The Last Horror Film: New York and Cannes Locations Visit – 2023 featurette hosted By Rue Morgue’s Michael Gingold and Severin Films’ David Gregory (14:23 in HD)

My Last Horror Film Ever: archival audio interview with producer Judd Hamilton (18:58 in HD)

MR. Robbie short film starring Joe Spinell (08:04 in SD)

Fanatic  Trailer (00:32 in HD)

Fanatic Trailer (00:31 in HD)

The Last Horror Film Trailer (00:57 in HD)

Highlights from Tromadance 2015 (05:21 in HD)

The Return of Dolphin Man short film (04:48 in HD)

Kabukiman’s Cocktail Corner episode (09:44 in HD)

Tromatic Trailers (5 in all)

Full disclosure: This Blu-ray was provided by the label for review. This has not materially affected DoBlu’s editorial process. For information on how we handle all review material, please visit DoBlu’s about us page.

The following six screen shots serve as samples for our subscription-exclusive set of 56 full resolution, uncompressed HD screen shots ripped directly from the Blu-ray: