Oh Amsterdam. What a beautiful place. The beautiful architecture, the cosy cafe's and the wonderful nightlife. All of these pale in comparison of course to the wonderful canals. Ah yes, those canals where couples can have a romantic couple of hours on or off the water. Those wonderful canals where no matter who you are, you have a wonderful chance of getting butchered by one of the local divers. Wait... what? Ah yes! Amsterdamned, a film directed by Dick Maas in 1988. Set against the backdrop of the stunning streets of Amsterdam, there's a killer on the loose roaming the canals and attacking all those that are unlucky enough to be basking in the delight of the seemingly tranquil waters. Essentially this is a rather contemporary take on the "who did it" gialloesque films of the 60's and 70's. However, this isn't a homage or a film that just follows the same old formula. We have excitement including a rather fantastic speedboat chase. I could leave the review here as to say anymore would be giving away too much. Shameless where kind enough to send me a copy of this film so let's not stop there. Have a look at these screen grabs:
What we have here is another great release from Shameless. Although this isn't one of those "first time on UK DVD" releases (you can find an already existing release from Nouveax Pictures from 2009) it is presented nicely and has the high standard as most Shameless releases. The special features on this disc are a rather extensive making of feature which shows how much hard work went into this picture (who the Hell needs CGI?), a selection of trailers for the film as well as the typical Shameless trailers which are always welcome. On the presentation front, this is a great release and if you have only ever seen this film on VHS or have never seen this film before (like me) then you should definitely pick this edition up when it's released because it's worth every penny.
That being said, the film itself wasn't bad but not the greatest. I appreciate this film more from the technical and film making aspect as this film looks great and once you see how some scenes where filmed, you will be pleasantly surprised. I also like the fact that this isn't really a sleazy flick as there is little no female nudity or sexual content which is refreshing for a film of this genre. The thrills and the gore are there but maybe I need a second viewing to truly appreciate the film itself but overall, if you are a lover of giallo films and European cinema then this title could very well be for you. Once again I applaud Shameless on this release, I may not have really liked the film but the hard work that went into this release makes this a great edition for fans of the film. It's a lot better than the recent output of a certain other company here in the UK.
The film will be released on the 22nd October by Shameless Screen Entertainment.
If you want more information on this film please check out the Shameless page:
Amsterdamned Official Shameless Page
PDx
That being said, the film itself wasn't bad but not the greatest. I appreciate this film more from the technical and film making aspect as this film looks great and once you see how some scenes where filmed, you will be pleasantly surprised. I also like the fact that this isn't really a sleazy flick as there is little no female nudity or sexual content which is refreshing for a film of this genre. The thrills and the gore are there but maybe I need a second viewing to truly appreciate the film itself but overall, if you are a lover of giallo films and European cinema then this title could very well be for you. Once again I applaud Shameless on this release, I may not have really liked the film but the hard work that went into this release makes this a great edition for fans of the film. It's a lot better than the recent output of a certain other company here in the UK.
The film will be released on the 22nd October by Shameless Screen Entertainment.
If you want more information on this film please check out the Shameless page:
Amsterdamned Official Shameless Page
PDx
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