Dementia

Starring: Adrienne Barrett & Bruno Ve Sota Director: John Parker

DVD Features:

Additional Release Materials:

• Additional Feature - 1. DAUGHTER OF HORROR (60 min., 1957)
• Theatrical Trailer

Interactive Features:

• Scene Access
• Interactive Menus

Text/Photo Galleries:

• Photo Gallery

Description by OLDIES.com:

An entirely unique and utterly bizarre rediscovery, John J. Parker's Dementia is a 1950s-style foray into the mind of psycho-sexual madness. Set entirely in a nocturnal twilight zone that blends dream imagery with the cinematic stylings of film noir, Dementia follows the tormented existence of a young woman haunted by the horrors of her youth, which transformed her into a stiletto-wielding, man-hating beatnik.

Accompanied by George Antheil's sci-fi score, the camera follows a "Gamin" (Adrienne Barrett) on a surreal sleepwalk through B-Movie hell, populated by prostitutes, pimps and would-be molesters - all photographed by William Thompson (Plan 9 From Outer Space, Maniac, Glen or Glenda?).

Two years after its original release, a narration track of foreboding psychobabble (diabolically spoken by Ed McMahon) was added to Dementia, some controversial scenes were cut, and the title was changed to the more sensational Daughter of Horror. For 45 years, only this revamped version has ever shown. This Kino on Video edition presents the original cut of Dementia, digitally mastered from the 35mm negative, as well as the complete Daughter of Horror (from a 35mm print), a theatrical trailer and other rare souvenirs of this most peculiar motion picture achievement.

Product Description:

John J. Parker's wonderfully unsettling first film has been unavailable in its original form since its release. Until the release of this video, it had been seen only in a heavily edited version titled DAUGHTER OF HORROR, which is also included in this release, with narration by Ed McMahon. The original version of the film is completely silent, excepting the eerie George Antheil score, and follows a dreamlike twisted logic as it details the existence of a tormented young woman, Gamin, who is clearly insane. Waking from a night in a cheap hotel, Gamin goes on a hellish journey through skid row, where she experiences many nightmarish encounters with pimps, winos, molesters, and other unsavory characters. Increasingly haunted by remembrances of her tormented childhood, Gamin moves deeper into her dementia as the night wears on, transforming into a knife wielding bohemian who despises men.

Plot Keywords:

Cult Film | Dreams | Horror | Mystery | Prostitutes / Whores | Prostitution | Surreal

Cast and Crew: