3 For the Asylum

So, I used to be under the impression that The Asylum (the production/distribution compay headed by David Michael Latt, David Rimawi, and Sherri Strain) was basically a Roger Corman type entity in that they only really produced remakes of public domain stuff (War of the Worlds, Frankenstein) and ripoffs of big budget horror-thrillers (666: The Child, Hillside Cannibals, Beast of Bray Road, etc...).

Guess I was wrong, but not by much: every preview trailer on each of the three DVDs under review was for a remake or a ripoff. Seems like I inadvertently chose the only three original ideas the company has produced. By far, King of the Ants was the clear winner of the three. A really, really good flick from the team of Stuart Gordon and George Wendt that is original, chilling, and boldly gory.

The other two flicks were piffle at best.

The Reviews:
Jolly Roger
King of the Ants
Legion of the Dead

The wikipedia article for The Asylum contains a brief synopsis of the company and (like I just finished doing) points out the ripoffs angle of the company. One more note before I move on: it seems to me that David Michael Latt is the "brains" behind the operation. He's the guy you see in all of the behind the scenes featurettes interviewing everyone. All in all, he's done a good job of getting the company out there and noticed, and has produced at least one excellent film, which is more than I can say for many of these low-budget direct-to-DVD companies that have sprung up like a fungus plague these last 10 years.