You know, In the space I had between last week and starting my new job this week, I wanted to watch as many movies and write as many reviews as I possibly could, just to get my site a lil more beefed up before I would have to begin neglecting it again. Well it's now Tuesday, I'm at work and I am only just beginning to write this first review. What a slacker. And you know how many movies I watched last week? Two.

Let us begin with the Burning. I had always had a slight interest in this film due to the cover always being pretty graphic, and that the make-up effects were done by Tom Savini. But lets be honest here. If I were a guy I would have a total hard on over the "teenagers in the woods get slaughtered". I'm a real old school slasher fan. So sue me. (Never mind the fact that I just purchased the Mighty Ducks Box set...that's a secret fetish).

Where were we? Oh yes, the Burning. made in 1981 (just like me or thereabouts). One of the things that really caught me about this flick is that it actually does contain real teenagers!! Not all of them - but there are some in there. (I felt the need to look this up after seeing Tiger - a surprisingly young looking female in the movie smoking a cigarette...she was 15 at the time...tsk tsk.) The film also has some other notable totables, being that nerd guy from Fast Times at Ridgemont High (that guy is just doomed to look nerdy forever and will forever play a nerd) and also Jason Alexander...very very pre Seinfeld and also sporting a healthy teenage libido and full head of hair. The girls seemed to like him, but personally, I couldn't go him, he will always be George Costanza to me.

As I said earlier, the film takes place at a camp, well two actually. It starts at a summer camp where a group of young boys plan to play a prank on Cropsy, the freaky old alcoholic caretaker who was obviously named after a pet bunny rabbit. Cropsy. Not very imposing is it. Cropsy. "Grrr!!! I'm Cropsy!!! Fear my wrath!!!" Nope. Not gettin it. Anywhoo, their prank backfires and Cropsy catches on fire and is sent to hospital where he remained for five years (check out the crash helmet on the burning Cropsy). They let him out, without thinking that this grossly disfigured man may have some mental scarring after five years of skin grafts that didn't take, and he butchers a...erm, lady of the night. Cut to a new camp and a new bunch of snot nosed kids!! YAY!! I want them all to die! There's about half an hour of fake scares before anyone at the camp finally bites the big one, but when we get to that point! Boy do we get the carnage candy! Hello Dad! I'm in Jail! (Did I mention I also watched Pump Up The Volume?)

The UK video release was cut by 19 seconds to remove various scenes of violence, particularly some finger snipping. Although the original UK release by Thorn EMI was the cut cinema version, it was released uncut in error. Thorn EMI recalled the tapes, and replaced them with the cut version. Cut versions have a date stamp on the tape label, all other packaging is identical. The uncut version was prosecuted under the obscene publications act, and banned as a "video nasty". In late 2002, VIPCO in the UK finally released the uncut version of The Burning on VHS and DVD after it was passed by the BBFC with no cuts. This version is distinguished by the "uncut" label on it, but was later found to still have some cuts in the movie.

The US theatrical release was sloppily cut by approximately 45 seconds to achieve an "R" rating. Gore shots that were shortened or deleted altogether. The uncut version was finally released on video in the USA in 2001 under an exclusive Amazon.com label which can only be purchased over the Internet (although Amazon.com mistakenly advertise it as the R version).

The Australian cinema version was slightly trimmed by the film's distributor prior to submission to the censorship board. However, the video version (incredibly) passed the Australian censors complete and uncut, and remains a highly sought after item. (I have it! YEAH!) The Uncut version is also available on DVD from German distributors Dragon, however due to German censorship laws which restrict the availability of uncut releases, it is a little difficult to track down. 

Heres some boring trivia from IMDB. We don't wanna read this stuff!! We wanna hear how that guy is a recovering crack addict and that chick shot her mother!! Where's the juicy goss! We started out good with that underage smoking stuff - are you guys sure she didn't progress to crack?

Feature film debut of Jason Alexander, Fisher Stevens, and Holly Hunter.

Many people also claim that there was an early appearance by Laurence Fishburne, (My note: It looks nothing like Laurence Fishburne!!) as the hospital orderly whose arm is grabbed by Cropsy's horrifically burnt hand just before the opening title sequence. This actor was actually Mansoor Najeeullah

This the film that launched the careers of acclaimed producers Harvey Weinstein and Bob Weinstein. Their mother Miriam Weinstein is also as a pre-production assistant on the film.