Directed by Mike Baronas
Review by David Carter


Released by Paura Productions
Running Time: 225 minutes
Rating: Not Rated
Color format: Color
Audio/Subtitles: 2.0 Stereo English and Italian/English Subtitles
Region Code: 1, NTSC
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen
16:9 Enhanced: No
Special Features: None
Trailer Online: Not the trailer, but all the info on the DVD you’ll need

Short Version: Get it while you can.

Lucio Fulci holds a special place in the hearts of horror fans. DON’T TORTURE A DUCKLING. ZOMBIE. THE BEYOND. The list goes on and on; dozens of films in dozens of genres, all with the unmistakable Fulci style. In fact, to say that Fulci is a master in the eyes of horror fans is a bit unnecessarily limiting. Fulci proved on countless occasions that he was a master of cinema—no genre qualifier needed. The unfortunate truth of the matter is mainstream historians and critics have forgotten—or worse, ignored—Fulci’s contributions to cinema. A handful of die-hard fans have kept Fulci’s films alive even after his too-early passing in 1996, however, and combined with a wave of new DVD releases the man’s work seems poised to start to get the recognition it deserves. One of these die-hard fans is Mike Baronas of Paura Productions and he has taken up the Fulci standard to make sure this recognition happens. He’s compiled an impressive roster of actors, technicians, and Italian directors to share their fondest memories of the maestro for the DVD PAURA: LUCIO FULCI REMEMBERED VOLUME 1.

PAURA is comprised entirely of brief interviews introduced by titles showing either the interviewee’s connection to Fulci or their most well known works. The disc is divided into three sections, Peers (fellow Italian horror/exploitation directors), and the cleverly titled Accomplices (technicians who worked with Fulci) and Victims (actors and actresses). To pick a specific interview to recount here would be difficult since the majority of them are great and delving too much into the DVD’s contents would be a disservice those of you eagerly awaiting a viewing. A wide array of impressions is on display here. The Fulci that people remember seems to be largely dictated by the capacity in which they knew him. A handful offer up specific anecdotes; most just give their general thoughts on the man. The sum is an overwhelmingly positive portrait of Fulci as cultured, funny, kind, and charming. Essentially, Fulci was the exact opposite of everything you’d be likely to imagine one of the most famous gore directors of all-time to be. Rather than lengthy interviews, each segment is about three minutes on average; lending itself easily to breaking up the three hours plus running time into multiple sittings.

Perhaps the most recurrent theme of the interviews is the across-the-board sentiment that Fulci is lamentably under recognized for his work. Several also express an appreciation to the makers of the DVD for putting together this tribute. I’d like to echo those sentiments. I’ve long been a fan of his, but I’ve never attempted to learn anything about the man behind the movies. I’d wager that most of you out there haven’t either, so PAURA is an excellent place to start. Sure, you can find more “academic” studies of Fulci, but those only offer examinations of his works and not the man. PAURA fills in those missing details. That being said, this disc is for current fans only—those of you new to Fulci will likely be lost. A limited print run (2,500 only) means the Fulci fans out there need to act fast if they want the definite work to date on one of Italian cinema’s greats.

For more information on Lucio Fulci, click on the link in the upper right hand corner for Film Fanaddict’s tribute to him. FF.com head honcho Mark Jason Murray is even thanked on PAURA’s credits—yet another reason to get your copy today!