Bartel's Twisted Past

Paul Bartel had a varied career as successful actor, writer and director. His 1972 debut behind the lens, Private Parts, is a sleazy black comedy which follows a virginal teenager fleeing her squat and into the care of a distant aunt who runs a decrepit hotel populated with a bunch of perverts and weirdos but as the young girl settles in, her attachment to a creepy photographer puts her in jeopardy. The acting is piss poor and there's barely enough comedy to justify it’s existence but it does have a sort of grubby charm and an enthusiasm to offend (even if it does seem tame by today’s standards) so it’s not a complete waste of time.
Eating Raoul followed a ten years later and is much more accomplished dish of bad taste chuckles. Bartel himself plays one half of a professional couple who come up with a unique method for funding the culinary ambitions however their peculiar plan becomes unstuck with the arrival of a young handsome confederate. The script is much tighter than Private P and despite the murderous lunacy of the main characters Bartel still, somehow, manages to elicit some sympathy. Sure it looks terrible and the shock has paled over the years but it’s a decent watch
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Slumping Scares

Nailbiter is a low budget horror about a mother and her daughters getting caught in a hurricane mid roadtrip and their unfortunate decision to retreat to a nearby basement for shelter only to find it's already got a toothy, quite peckish inhabitant. There's a smidge of tension, a little gore and I quite liked the set up but it's soured by some shonky acting and a rapid descent into predictability. I suppose it deserves some merits for having a mostly female cast but their characters are thumbnails and the plot keeps them on well trod paths.

The Sender is strange little horror film about a suicidal amnesiac admitted to a mental ward who apparently can, quite vigorously, project his consciousness into the minds of those around him. It's decidedly 80's with ropey acting, comic sfx and a cheesy script but there's plenty of chuckles to be had as John Doe's power wreaks some er 'unusual' havoc among patients and staff alike. Still the premise is at least somewhat original and it's kind of carried along by it's misplaced confidence so much so I ended up quite liking it. Out of the two I'd say Sender's worth a watch, at least it has the decency to be so bad it's good.