No other company has done more of Australian cinema than Umbrella Entertainment – the home of Ozploitaion, but the Melbourne-based label is also responsible for some of the most random and outrageous Blu-ray releases on the market.
Guy Pearce once said in an interview with Craig Ferguson that Adelaide supposedly closed all the mental asylums and let all patients go free, implying the capital of South Australia is literally insane. While I don’t agree with the former Neighbours heartthrob, a new-age slasher with an edge of madness has sprung forth from the …
We eagerly awaited for Bruce Lee to unleash in The Big Boss as he played a quiet worker who swore against violence, but in his follow up feature Fist of Fury, his wrath is almost relentless in what became Hong Kong’s biggest hit before Lee’s third feature Way of the Dragon. Now available on Blu-ray …
My social studies teacher once said that driving, or even just being a passenger, is the most dangerous thing one can do each day, due to the ever-present risk of a collision with a fellow motorist that easily has the potential to be fatal. While many would heed that warning, there are others who find …
I remember being obsessed with Bruce Lee for a short while during childhood (somewhere between the Incredible Crash Dummies and Mighty Max) as the martial artist was enjoying a resurgence in popularity following the release of Dragon: The Bruce Lee “Story”. Hollywood’s take on the iconic figure has always been very summarised, but Umbrella Entertainment …
Beyond Genres was a sub-label conceived and launched in 2018 by Umbrella Entertainment, with the aim to champion specific genre titles that are more seminal than most, such as Re-Animator and Razorback for example. Now among the latest batch of releases is the Australian ‘almost cult classic’ Undead; a product of 80s horror that ran …
I grew up on stereotypes, with the term, ‘Wog’, in my vocabulary, often used by my father in both an affectionate and derogatory manner, which was sometimes simultaneous. While I often laughed at the many blanket notions made towards certain ethnic groups, mainly Greeks and Italians, I was always fascinated by different cultures and traditions. …
Sam Neill has a remarkably large following, not only in Australia but overseas. His filmography speaks from itself, from Australian indie cinema to Jurassic Park, and he was once in line to play James Bond before Timothy Dalton was eventually cast. Neill also has a repertoire for playing some very strange and frightening characters. Fresh …
In the tradition of classics like The Most Dangerous Game, films in which people are hunted for sport and sadistic pleasure, Brian Trenchard-Smith takes the very mean spirited idea to the next level with his dystopian nightmare, Turkey Shoot, that’s out on Blu-ray under the revamped Ozploitation Classics sub-label from Umbrella Entertainment. Set in the …
I don’t look back on my high school experience very often, but watching Malcolm for Year 8 English remains a fond memory of lessons in character study and storytelling. Now over twenty years later I sit down once again to pen my thoughts and some observations on this charming classic from director Nadia Tass and …
If you’ve never seen Breaker Morant, you’re likely familiar with the film’s defiant last words shouted by Edward Woodward as the stoic lead. Now you can discover or re-visit the film that’s topped more lists about Australian cinema than any other, thanks to Umbrella Entertainment who added the classic to their Sunburnt Screens sub-label earlier …