Razors: The Return of Jack the Ripper

So last night I watched, as part of my ongoing research for the next book, Ian Powell's gay horror feature Seeing Heaven which was well-made but overlong and under-interesting. Checking on Powell's CV I find it's sparse but interesting. Twenty years ago he directed the wrap-around story for Elisar Cabrera's seminal anthology Virtual Terror. Then there's a 14-year gap to Seeing Heaven.

Turns out his third film is out in October (in the States) - it's called Razors: The Return of Jack the Ripper. About bloody time we had a new British Jack the Ripper film! This one sounds... interesting.

Synopsis
While attending an intensive writing workshop held in a crumbing Victorian building, young writer Ruth Walker is challenged to write the ultimate horror movie by enigmatic screenwriting guru, Professor Richard Wise. But what are his motives? What secrets are hidden inside the ancient building? And are the knives Ruth has discovered really those used by notorious serial killer Jack the Ripper? Ruth was told that the box of knives must never be opened, but the box goes missing and the killings begin. As the ghost of a young Victorian girl haunts Ruth and her fellow screenwriters, the Ripper of legend rises to renew his murderous spree. As bodies begin to pile up, it appears that everyone trapped in the building has a connection to the original mystery!

The cast includes Kelby Keenan, Andrew Shire, Vincent De Paul, Thomas Thoroe and Josh Myers (Psychosis, Zombie Diaries 2, Death Do Us Apart). Shot in June 2014 as just Razors the film will be released by Breaking Glass Pictures on 18th October. According to the film's website, it will hit the UK next year and is lined up for Brazilian and Pakistani release too. You can pre-order the US disc on Amazon. Here's the trailer:

Richard Driscoll says he's collaborating with Philip K Dick - WTF?

I’ll say one thing for Richard Driscoll. He never ceases to surprise.

Last week he relaunched the Indiegogo campaign for his long-in-development Blade Runner rip-off Blade Hunter. You will recall that the previous attempt at crowdfunding raised a magnificent $87.

What makes this new campaign different? Driscoll is now claiming that his crappy idea for a film was actually partly written by Philip K Dick.

Watch the video on the front page of the bhmovie.club website and tell me it’s not the funniest thing you’ve seen all week.

Tricky Dicky now reckons that he has teamed up with PKD’s widow Tessa B Dick to write a whole new novel, Do Androids Dream of Murder? - “a book PKD wanted to write but never did”! And he is claiming that the book actually includes “contributions from Philip K Dick.” (What, like full stops and commas?)

My absolute favourite part of this ridiculous video is about 30 seconds in when there is a quote from PKD, partly because it isn’t on screen long enough to read properly, but mostly because when you freeze-frame the video – well, see for yourself…

Magnificent work. I wonder whether Philipe K Dick s is some relative of that other famous author Edgar Allen Poe.

Clicking on the spoof pulp paperback cover on the BH website takes you to a page where Driscoll explains all this in more detail – and then presents us, for no obvious reason, with an entire cut-and-paste of PKD’s Wikipedia entry (he does acknowledge the source).

You may also enjoy checking out the perks supposedly available on the Indiegogo page. Driscoll is a huge movie fan and a wealthy man (as well as being a convicted fraudster and arguably the worst British film-maker of all time) so it is quite possible that he does own the various movie props he’s offering. Or perhaps he’s just blowing smoke. Since no-one believes a single word he says, it’s impossible to tell.

At time of writing, three backers have together pledged a magnificent $81 to the campaign, just six dollars less than last time, and just $59,919 short of Driscoll’s ambitious target.

If you’re thinking of chipping in, even for just a laugh, please bear these facts in mind. The decision is yours but caveat emptor.