Butchery & Ballyhoo

Butchery & Ballyhoo (2016)

**** (out of 4)

Here's another excellent documentary from director David Gregory. This focus here is on Terry Levine who ran Aquarius Releasing back during the Golden Era of 42nd Street when trash pictures were being released weekly to a select crowd who couldn't get enough. If you're a fan of this era then you've probably seen a lot of documentaries on the subject but Gregory once again works his magic and really delivers something wonderfully entertaining and full of great information. Levine does a terrific job at talking about what it took to make a film successful on 42nd Street and we get some marvelous stories about how they would try to sell movies like DOCTOR BUTCHER, M.D., SEVEN DOORS OF DEATH and MAKE THEM DIE SLOWLY. We even get a very good story dealing with MISSISSIPPI MERMAID and how the film was a hit on 42nd Street but it flopped when they tried to show it anywhere else in the state. There are clips to all of the movies show as well as some wonderful ads. Fans of the legendary street will certainly love this interview.