Ganja & Hess
1973
Upstate, NY
Bill Gunn
Trippy Art Horror
What’s it all about: Duane Jones’s upstate mansion has no TV, so houseguests like Bill Gunn and Marlene Clark must pass the time with sex, poetry, attempted murder and stories about snowball fights.
First Encounter: first viewing
Prostitute Index: high
Death By: the shadow of a cross
Relics: toe rings, rattan peacock chairs, hunt-and-peck typing, dialing a rotary phone with a pen
Hoops: crying out to let us know the love making is really good
Heartthrobs: Duane Jones, Marlene Clark, Richard Marrow
LoFi Magic: quality time in furs and jeans by the fireplace; audio cues for when the need for blood is coming; the Myrthian headdress
Makes me want to: find out where the pimp dress code originated (Iceberg Slim), and where it stands today (Snoop Dogg)
Candotti Take: “They had two hours to explain what was going on, and they failed.” / “And with this tomato-juice blood, this is a very low-cost movie.”
Saúl Take: (after a couple of naps) “Successful attempt at a black utopian quasi-vampire isolated reality. Very sensual at time, disjointed at others—acidly most of them.”
Worth a watch/rewatch: Yes
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