Scream Greats Vol. 1 is an entertaining, if slightly sloppy, video documentary about makeup fx maestro Tom Savini. There's plenty of interview footage and some good behind-the-scenes stuff, as well as some good, though brief, appearances by George Romero. Fangoria editors Bob Martin and David Everett also show up, probably just because their magazine sponsored the tape.
The clips are plentiful and gory, taking us through most of Savini's career up until Day of the Dead, though for some reason his first two movies, Deathdream and Deranged, are skipped, implying Martin was his first assignment. Savini himself is very entertaining, and we seem to get a good portrait of the man.
It's a bit haphazardly constructed (director Damon Santostefano also made Fangoria Films' dreadful Severed Ties) but the great interviews and an amazing array of gory clips from Savini's filmography more than make up for it. Scream Greats Vol. 1 doesn't challenge Dario Argento's World of Horror as the best ever horror movie documentary, but it's well worth tracking down for fans (if you can find it!) and certainly a lot better than Scream Greats Vol. 2.
The clips are plentiful and gory, taking us through most of Savini's career up until Day of the Dead, though for some reason his first two movies, Deathdream and Deranged, are skipped, implying Martin was his first assignment. Savini himself is very entertaining, and we seem to get a good portrait of the man.
It's a bit haphazardly constructed (director Damon Santostefano also made Fangoria Films' dreadful Severed Ties) but the great interviews and an amazing array of gory clips from Savini's filmography more than make up for it. Scream Greats Vol. 1 doesn't challenge Dario Argento's World of Horror as the best ever horror movie documentary, but it's well worth tracking down for fans (if you can find it!) and certainly a lot better than Scream Greats Vol. 2.