Combat Shock 25th Anniversary Edition

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4/5The Film

Troma's new Tromasterpiece Collection release contains the theatrical cut of Combat Shock and the original uncut American Nightmares version of the film. The differences are that the Combat Shock cut has more professional looking credits and a lot of Vietnam stock footage added in and has some of the seedier aspects and more violent bits taken out. Both films have their merits and although the director's cut is a noticeably stronger film it's nice to have each version contained in this set.

When the film begins, we see a soldier named Frankie (Rick Giovinazzo) in the midst of a firefight in the Vietnam War where he guns down a group of Vietcong. Cut to the present, or at least the early eighties, and Frankie and his wife (Veronica Stork) aren't doing so well. He's been out of work a long time and their baby, born a mutant thanks to his father's exposure to unknown chemicals during his tour of duty, needs to eat. She pressures him to call his dad and ask him to help them out but Frankie's got his pride and so instead he puts on his worn overcoat and heads out into the ghetto of Staten Island to check out the employment center.

As Frankie travels across town, he meets up with his old pal Mike, a junkie who wants him to help mug a woman at the train station but Frankie doesn't want any part of that. Instead he keeps trudging towards the employment center even after almost getting beaten up by some thugs that he owes money to. Of course, there are no jobs for Frankie, his trip was in vein, but he knew that ahead of time. As he heads back and has to deal with his ever increasing war flashbacks, an understandable and constant source of stress, circumstances arise that cause Frankie to take some rather drastic measures and to ultimately do what he thinks is best for his family.

As bleak and desperate a film as anything else out there and far more grim than you can probably imagine, Combat Shock (or, if you prefer, American Nightmares in its director's cut) is an incredibly depressing slice of life. Shot on a miniscule budget with an amateur cast, the film lets its authentically seedy locations stink up the film with the aroma of piss and garbage. It's a gritty, dirty, ugly film that hits you like a brick but it's also incredibly well made and remarkably effective, particularly when you consider that the film, at its core, is really little more than a man walking across town for ninety minutes. That said, it's the voyage and not the destination. It's made perfectly clear very early on just how desperate Frankie is and Rick Giovinazzo's completely convincing performance is bound to hit home for anyone who has ever had to worry about taking care of a family and dealing with ever increasing stress. We know from the onset that Frankie is going to snap, we just don't know what ‘s going to be the straw that breaks this particular camel's back or what's going to happen once he does go over the abyss.

Shot on 16mm, the film is a sea of dirt, a wash of urban decay and a fascinating character study about a man at the end of his rope. A raw and honest look at just how bad things can and do get for some people, it's a deadly serious picture that more in common with the works of Lynch or Scorsese than it does with the Cannon Films output that its original marketing plan made it out to resemble. This isn't an action film despite a couple of tense scenes, it's a dramatic and serious piece that holds up incredibly well in today's day and age, where we're not lacking for unappreciated veterans or socio-economic turmoil in the least.

2.5/5Video

The American Nightmares version of the film was transferred from the original 16mm answer print while the theatrical R-rated cut looks to be pretty damn close to the previous DVD release from Troma. In short, neither version looks great. Granted, they look as good as they ever have here but as it was with Troma's release of The Last Horror Film, this is a grainy, gritty and sometimes rather murky looking transfer. The elements just weren't in great shape to begin with and while the image is always at least watchable enough, it's not going to really impress anyone. That said, the semi-faded colors and gritty look of the movie do add something to its tone and ambience. The look of the film suits the depressing storyline almost perfectly.

2.5/5Audio

The English language Dolby Digital Stereo track doesn't sound too far removed from a mono mix save for a bit of movement in the score for the film. Dialogue is occasionally muffed and there is a bit of hiss here and there but the quality acceptable enough even if it won't wow you.

5/5Extras

Aside from the theatrical and unrated cuts of the film, the first disc includes the commentary with Buddy Giovinazzo who is, for some reason, joined by Jorg Buttgereit, the man who directed Nekromantik who really only chimes in occasionally, opting wisely to let Buddy do most of the talking. He tells us where he got some of the ideas from, how he cast the film and made it in Staten Island on a microscopic budget and how some of the effects and set pieces were crafted. There are some interesting stories here as he shot the whole movie guerilla style without any permits and relied on friends and family rather than a large professional crew to get this picture finished.

The second disc starts off with an interesting half hour long documentary entitled Post-Traumatic: An American Nightmare which is a retrospective piece that talks about the film's success and influence. Featuring interviews with the likes of Bill Lustig, Jim Van Bebber, Roy Frumkes, Richard Stanley, John McNaughton and others this is an interesting if unapologetically lauding piece that talks about the impact that the film had when it was first unleashed upon the public in the eighties and how that impact hasn't lessened one bit over the years.

Buddy gets in the spotlight next for a four minute interview as is Rick in his own separate six minute piece. The pair talk about their work on the film, what it was like working so closely with each other on this picture, and what they were really trying to get across with this picture. Buddy pops up again for a second interview, recorded by Lloyd Kaufman during a 2006 Troma Film Festival in Germany. Shot around the same time is another talk between Buddy and Jorg Buttereit.

Also well worth checking out is the Short Films of Buddy Giovinazzo section, starting with the rather infamous Mr. Robbie/Maniac 2 footage that Buddy Giovinazzo shot with Spinell before he passed away. This ten minute short was originally shot in 1989 as a promo to help secure financing for the proposed film, but obviously Spinell's death from a heart attack later that year wound up making completing the picture impossible. The footage doesn't really have much to do with the story of the original film, but it's definitely worth a watch as it has that great, seedy feel and it features Spinell going all out. Also found in here is a cool vampire short called Jonathan Of The Night where a vampire and his sister cruise the neighborhood looking for prey. Subconscious Realities is a document of one man's bad trip caused by eating some food laced with drugs while The Lobotomy demonstrates one rather unorthodox way of curing a man of his addiction to sex. The Christmas Album is an interesting short where a man gets the urge to kill after listening to a record that he receives as a Christmas gift. Also included are three music videos that Buddy made for the band Circus 2000 A.D., which he was in with his brother

Rounding out the extra features are the film's original theatrical trailer, an interesting segment called Hellscapes that compares the locations then to how they appear now, trailers for other Troma releases (Mad Dog Morgan, The Last Horror Film, The Story Of A Junkie, Blood Boobs And Beasts and Troma's War), animated menus and chapter selection. Inside the keepcase on the flip side of the cover art are some interesting liner notes from Shock Cinema's editor in chief, Steve Puchalski, who writes about the history and impact of the movie.

4/5Overall

While the movie doesn't look or sound pristine, it probably shouldn't and Troma is to be commended for really rolling out the red carpet with this two disc set and presenting Combat Shock uncut and with loads of interesting and appropriate extra features.

Want more info? Check out the Tromasterpiece line by clicking here!

Film Rating		DVD Rating
Director:	Buddy Giovinazzo	Film:
Writer:	Buddy Giovinazzo	Video:
Released:	1986	Audio:
Cast:	Rick Giovinazzo, Veronica Stork, Mitch Maglio, Michael Tierno	Extras:
		Overall: