I hadn’t planned on Fatman being the film to break a month-long drought of cinema, but as it turns out, it wasn’t a bad way to ease back in. A good time was had! It’s pitch-black comedy verges on the border of nihilism at times, but a handful of moments expose a warm, beating heart at the centre (thanks due in no small part to a wonderful turn from Marianne Jean-Baptise). I was pleasantly surprised, having anticipated an atrocity, but found a lot to like in Fatman’s lean and mean take on the Santa legend.

The strongest Joe D’Amato effort I’ve seen thus far. I was impressed with the tone and atmosphere, which leant gothic, but am pleased to say that it doesn’t stinge on the gore, especially during an early evisceration that had me feeling squeamish (no small feat). D’Amato might not have as many home-runs as some of his less prolific genre counterparts, but Beyond the Darkness is one example of why his legacy is often fondly remembered by exploitation fans.

Some of Fulci’s collaborators in his final years share memories of working with the maestro in his final years. The presentation is extremely dry, and therefore not particularly enjoyable, and the insights are mostly surface level.

88 Films blu-ray supplementary feature

Murder as art. Art as murder. Engineering. Architecture. Heaven and hell. The tiger. The lamb. The dark light. The noble rot. 
There will be lots of words about this to come.