Garden of Love (2003)

AKA The Haunting of Rebecca Verlaine and Born Undead 

Although he'll likely never be given credit for it by detractors who see him as nothing more than a schlocky goremiester, Olaf Ittenbach is far from a one-note filmmaker. As one of the forefathers of German splatter, of course Ittenbach is going to be best known for his incredible special effects work and the man himself has even stated in interviews that his main purpose with his films is to entertain. Nevertheless, it's clear to anyone actually paying attention to his films that Ittenbach has more on his mind than just gore. One key thread that runs throughout a good chunk of Ittenbach's filmography is the concept of family, and especially families in conflict, going all the way back to Ittenbach's first feature Black Past (1989) where Ittenbach himself played an angsty teenager constantly at odds with his father and sisters. The Burning Moon (1992) also saw Ittenbach play the role of a mad at the world, junkie teen who comes to physical blows with his family. Ittenbach later took the family concept into grotesque comedic territory with Family Saga (2006), or Familienradgeber and its sequel Familienradgeber 2 (2009). Familial ties also play significant roles in the narratives of Chain Reaction (2006), Dard Divorce (2007) and No Reason (2010). One of Ittenbach's best films, 2003's Garden of Love saw Ittenbach put a supernatural spin on the theme along with a few other surprises.

In 1990, the inhabitants of the Verlaine compound, a commune of hippies led by rock star Gabriel Verlaine were brutally murdered by a masked madman, the lone survivor being Gabriel's young daughter Rebecca who slipped into a coma and was subsequently raised by her aunt and uncle with no memory of the murders. Years later, Rebecca (Natacza Boon), a well-adjusted student begins receiving strange messages from horribly disfigured ghostly figures who reveal themselves to be her father and the victims of the massacre, urging Rebecca to seek out those responsible for the killings, luring victims to the vengeful spirits at the compound, uncovering the truth about her past and the murders in the process.

Despite the rather bland re-titling the film “The Haunting of Rebecca Verlaine” for its DVD release, Garden of Love, named for a Gabriel Verlaine song in the film, is far from being a bland haunting film. The film may be a ghost story first and foremost, but in a wonderful display of cross-subgenre pollination, Ittenbach also delivers a revenge film from the vantage point of the ghosts, but what's at the heart of the film is the character study of Rebecca. Easily sympathetic, Ittenbach puts in extra effort to develop her character throughout, making the various narrative twists all the more potent. The twists are quite nasty and giallo-esque, which take the film into the realms of a “drive-the-woman-crazy” type of film such as Umberto Lenzi's Orgasmo/Paranoia (1969). And the film is, of course, a splatter film, through many will be surprised by the fact that the film really only contains three major gore set-pieces, the main highlight being the slaughter of an entire SWAT team by the hands of the ghosts, one of the most memorable scenes in all of Ittenbach's oeuvre. The effects work is, as always with Ittenbach, outstanding and innovative. The ghosts themselves look fantastic and Cenobite-esque with Ittenbach channeling his love of Hellraiser (1987) during their appearances which are all incredibly stylish and give moments of the film a thick atmosphere, Ittenbach also managing to avoid cheap jump-scare tactics. Ittenbach's warped sense of humor is also featured in a hilarious infomerical parody featuring the ghost of Rebecca's father.

All of the emotional weight of the film rests on the shoulders of lead actress Natacza Boon who, along with having an interesting Shelley Duvall-esque look to her, is also a more than capable actress who's performance really elevates the material. Garden of Love was Boon's second film with Ittenbach, having previously featured in the second segment of Ittenbach's anthology Beyond the Limits (2003) where her character also gave the story a bit of heart. While being interviewed for the Beyond the Limits DVD, Ittenbach praised Boon saying “I think with Natacza I had the most fun on the set, you know. She's totally funny, she's totally crazy and she's absolutely cool.” Strange since they had such a strong rapport that they only did two films together. Unlike so many Ittenbach titles, who still face draconian censorship for their home video releases, particularly in Ittenbach's homeland of Germany, Garden of Love also his the distinction of having an easily available uncut DVD release, albeit under the anonymous sounding re-title “The Haunting of Rebecca Verlaine”. The film was also released under the wildly misleading title of “Born Undead” with equally misleading cover art. Titles aside, Garden of Love is a gem of a post-2000 horror movie with Ittenbach not only finding new and clever ways to splash the screen with blood, but crafting an intriguing storyline to go along with his trademark splatter effects.

Beyond the Limits (2003)

Anthology films have long been a way for directors to have fun within a shorter format and also serve as a nice way for younger filmmakers to further hone their craft. Always fertile in the horror genre, the anthology format has become especially popular in recent years with the stories contained within the films often centering around a common thread. While the multi-director anthology films always present interesting concepts, what's just as interesting and can sometimes be even moreso is how a single director approaches an anthology film. Some of the obvious examples include Mario Bava's Black Sabbath (1963), Freddie Francis' Tales from the Crypt (1972), Dan Curtis' Trilogy of Terror (1975) and of course George Romero's Creepshow (1982). Walerian Borowczyk also proved himself to be adept at anthologies firstly with Immoral Tales (1974) and later with Immoral Women (1979). Borowczyk would also feature in another erotic anthology, Private Collection (1979) alongside Shūji Terayama and Just Jaeckin. Another director who proved to handle the anthology concept quite well is German splatter heavyweight Olaf Ittenbach, who's second feature, the infamous shot-on-video anthology The Burning Moon (1992) became an immediate underground favorite and solidified Ittenbach's reputation among fans of extreme gore effects. Ittenbach would return to the format in 2003 with Beyond the Limits, one of the most ambitious works in the realm of German splatter and certainty one of the bloodiest anthology offerings around.

Vivian, a young journalist seeks out Frederick, the caretaker of a centuries old cemetery for an interview. Frederick agrees and begins to tell her two stories about his “customers”, as he reefers to them as, the main thread tying both tales together being an ancient relic known as the “eternal heart”, a human heart said to grant immortality to whomever possesses it. The first, a contemporary story involving double-crossing gangsters, a coke deal gone bad and a dinner party interrupted by two sadistic hitmen while the second story goes back to the middle ages and the origin of the heart, centering on David Deming, a renegade inquisitor obsessed with obtaining the heart and James Flynn, a true believer desperate to stop Deming.

Beyond the Limits couldn't have been a more appropriate title. As is often the case with Ittenbach, the film could be labeled as “extreme”, though not just in the violence and gore departments, which are pretty extraordinary. Virtually everything in the film is heightened, from the exaggerated performances, the gangster story becoming downright histrionic at times, the acidic dialogue spouted in both segments and flashy camerawork, with Ittenbach really flexing his directorial muscles throughout the film. Yet that's precisely how a film such as Beyond the Limits needs to operate. As an actual anthology film, the film works thanks not only to the concept of the “eternal heart”, which is a unique idea in and of itself, but the clever twist Ittenbach tosses in at the end tying both stories together with the interview wrap-around. Both stories would have worked equally with or without the wrap-around segments and both have more to offer than just focusing on the heart. The gangster segment in particular has a pretty involving side plot involving revenge and the modern setting gives the violence an especially vicious kick. The medieval story plays out like a more classical tale and like the first also features several interesting asides, including a love story that amazingly works within the context of the segment and doesn't feel out of place. The segment also features a bit of sword-fighting action and Ittenbach sneaks in some of his morbid humor amidst the excessive bloodshed splashed throughout the segment, Ittenbach's effects work astonishing as always.

Beyond the Limits was co-written by Ittenbach and Thomas Reitmair, who was Ittenbach's right hand man in a number of departments for many years going all the way back to Ittenbach's debut feature Black Past (1989). It was the second screenplay Reitmair collaborated with Ittenbach on following Riverplay (2001) and the two would also co-write Garden of Love (2003) and Chain Reaction (2006). Reitmair has also appeared on screen in several of Ittenbach's films, most notably in Beyond the Limits as one if the hitmen in the first story but Reitmair also features in Premutos: The Fallen Angel (1997), Riverplay, Garden of Love, Chain Reaction, Dard Divorce (2007), No Reason (2010) and Legend of Hell (2012). Reitmair has also written music for Black Past, Premutos, Riverplay, Garden of Love and Chain Reaction as well as serving as Ittenbach's assistant director on Riverplay, Legion of the Dead (2001), Beyond the Limits, Garden of Love and Chain Reaction. Like so many of Ittenbach's films, Beyond the Limits has also fallen victim to draconian censorship laws, resulting many cut DVD releases. By far the best release is the steelbook, which, along with containing the complete film also features a hefty bunch of behind-the-scenes footage showing that even when working with a slightly larger budget and bigger crew, Ittenbach's approach is always hands-on, making Beyond the Limits one of the more quality horror films from the 2000's.