A short while back I wrote a review of the recent Lionsgate DVD release of director Nick Palumbo's Murder-Set-Pieces. No sooner was it up did I receive an email from Mr. Palumbo, or somebody claiming to be Mr. Palumbo. I have no way of verifying his identity one way or the other. I have decided to believe that it actually is him, as I like the idea that the people whose work I review are reading my work. Actually, I am just happy to have some sort of feedback that shows that I am being read at all.
Anyway, it seems that Mr. Palumbo did not care for my review of his film. I cannot say that I particularly cared for his film, but I also cannot say that I regretted the time I spent with it. Well, Mr. Palumbo has laid down a "challenge" of sorts. He closed his email wondering if I had the "guts" to print the truth. I am not quite sure what he believes the truth to be, but okay...
Below is the email that I received from Mr. Palumbo. Go ahead and read it, I'll be back after it ends. Warning: the included links are not safe for work, so take that into consideration as you read and decide whether or not to follow them.
Subject: Re: Hello from Director Nick Palumbo--"Murder-Set-Pieces"....To Chris Beaumont... (who did the cut Lion's Gate review of my film "Murder-Set-Pieces")
Chris Beaumont said: "I am certain the cut material would have given this
a little more to go on, but I doubt it would be enough to save it"....You, my friend...have given yourself away with this little review:
IGNORANCE.You CANNOT judge ANY film, based on a heavily edited version.
YES, the film has been CUT by Lion's Gate for the "R" rating.......the
original is NC-17......it has been cut by 23 minutes!!!...(a record in the
history of motion picture film).....(the NC-17 version makes "Hostel" and
"Saw 3" look like Walt Disney films).....Murder-Set-Pieces" was NEVER intended to be an "R" rated film. It was
made with the "NC-17" rating firmly in mind from the beginning.
Article comments
1 - Triniman
Good response, Chris.
2 - Iloz Zoc
I don't know Chris; the Arrow in the Head review was much more caustic and negative than your assessment. So far I'm not seeing any positive spin on this film. Though, to be honest, I've not seen it yet. However, with all this critical vitriol, I'm not putting it high on my queue list.
3 - T. Rigney
Great reply, Chris.
This is typical Palumbo behavior. Anyone who's witnessed his questionable marketing gimmicks on various horror-related websites is well aware of the guy's childish and often egotistical antics. The best way to handle him is to stand firm and ignore future correspondence.
4 - Iloz Zoc
Hey Rigney, I enjoyed your review on The Shunned. I gave up on Anchor Bay after The Tooth Fairy, so they don't send me screeners anymore. Glad I missed that one.
What's especially funny is that they add extras with the directors usually describing what film they wanted to make, and the film they got. Go figure.
5 - alessandro nicolo
Good stuff.
6 - Matt Paprocki
The cut scenes are up on "uselessjunk.com." Oh the irony.
7 - Dave Springer
The Unrated/NC-17 Fright Flix version of "Murder-Set-Pieces" has been available for over a year now. It is NOT out of print.
"Murder-Set-Pieces" was heavily cut due to graphic sexual violence, child murder, and gore not because of excess filler footage. The tumultuous history of this film has been well documented for almost fours years, so it is perplexing that you would bother with an R rated version of a horror film that was released theatrically NC-17. The MPAA was not paid for this rating as it would have prevented the producers from being able to advertise the film in newspapers and magazines nationwide. Also, on the marquee in NYC the rating was NC-17 for "Murder-Set-Pieces."
In summation, the Lions Gate version of M-S-P is inferior in every aspect. You should have looked into this film further, because your review would have been useful to casual horror fans that are unaware of this dark gem of cinema.
8 - Alyse
Very well phrased rebuttal.
Semi-pointless info: filmmakers cannot just "take" an Alan Smithee credit. You must petition the guild to allow it.
Can't please everyone
9 - Joe
This movie was beyond lame. The way some of the actors were made to suffer in this movie, as revealed in the commentary, is beneath contempt as are the lame attempts at getting attention through the intentional shock value and methods of promoting the film. If curiosity gets the better of you, look for it on bittorrent. This is not something that deserves to profit.
10 - Alex
I posted a video review of Murder Set Pieces to YouTube and Nick Palumbo had my video removed from the site. He also got a strike put on my YouTube account for violating copyright rules. I included clips of the film in my negative review. I've posted hundreds of movie reviews, and besides Vincent Gallo, no director has gone to the extent of asking YouTube to remove a video. I've been thanked by a handful of independent film directors for basically making advertisements for relatively unknown horror films. I can take my lumps, I did break copyright rules, but I can't help but think of Palumbo as being kind of a jerk. The commentary track on the unrated Murder Set Pieces DVD is one of the most unintentionally hilarious things I've ever heard. The audio track, not the movie, should become a cult classic. Oh, and the long version of the movie sucks more than the edited one. Palumbo's work is embarrassing, like watching a bad comedian.
11 - FulciLives
I totally agree with Nick Palumbo and i dont understand y he catches so much flack for his promotional techniques. Hes doin the same things the directors of the oldschool did ie. William Friedkin having the theators provide barf bags for the viewing of the Exorcist. As long as the movie lives up to the hype i see no problem with it whatsoever. I actually think it brings some excitment to the genre if anything. Judging Murder Set Pieces by its HEAVILY CUT R rated version is extremely ignorent on your part. They are two totally different movies