Movies
Autonomy Pictures Comes Out Playing ‘The Bunny Game’
When we last heard any news about Adam Rehmeier’s The Bunny Game, it had been rejected for home video release by the BBFC who stated, “It is the Board’s carefully considered view that to issue a certificate to this work, even if confined to adults, would be inconsistent with the Board’s Guidelines, would risk potential harm within the terms of the Video Recordings Act, and would accordingly be unacceptable to the public.”
Rehmeier responded to Bloody Disgusting at the time stating: “I think ‘The Bunny Game’ is way less disturbing than ‘Pretty Woman’. Somehow it’s more socially acceptable to glamorize prostitution under the guise of a rags-to-riches fairy tale where Richard Gere falls in love with the whore by the end of the film.” He continues, “Rodleen and I didn’t make ‘The Bunny Game’ to glamorize prostitution. It is far from an erotic film. It is a modern cautionary tale grounded in reality.”
The film was eventually released in the UK and will hit the US in July from new distributor Autonomy, who will make the film their first release. Per Screen Daily, “Derek Curl, David Gregory and Lewis Tice’s new distributor aims to release “uncompromising cinema on a worldwide scale” and will handle four films this year, starting with Adam Rehmeier’s torture porn. “‘The Bunny Game’ is the last word on the torture-porn sub-genre,” Autonomy president Curl said. “I was shocked by its audacity and the raw honesty that it depicted, making me question our collective enjoyment of extreme violence in cinema. At Autonomy Pictures we are not afraid to release such a film, which will undoubtedly inspire heated reaction, because it will allow audiences to make up their own minds.”
Bunny Games follows a female prostitute (Rodleen Getsic) who hitches a lift with a truck driver. The truck driver (Jeff Renfro) kidnaps the woman, restrains and forcibly strips her, and proceeds to physically and sexually abuse and humiliate her.
Julian Richards negotiated the deal on behalf of the filmmakers, ““It’s great to see the launch of the new genre label Autonomy Pictures. And I think that the acquisition of Adam Rehmeier’s uber-controversial The Bunny Game is a bold statement of intent.”
Grandma is back from the dead and ready to commit murder in Unholy Night, and our exclusive teaser debut gives a glimpse at some of the Christmas Eve carnage.
Unholy Night is set to make its World Premiere at the Fantasia International Film Festival, where writer/director Michael Gabriele‘s horror short “Get Away” won the Gold Audience Award for Best International Short in 2023.
In Unholy Night, “Gino’s traditional family Christmas Eve turns into a bloody battle for survival when his long-dead grandma drops by and goes on a murderous rampage. Amid the chaos, Gino reunites with his ex and the dysfunctional duo must avoid his dead Italian relatives popping up all around the neighbourhood as they search for a way to get rid of these Yuletide revenants and survive his family Christmas.”
Marc Bendavid (“Dark Matter”), Shailene Garnett (“Shadowhunters”), Al Sapienza (“The Sopranos”), Ron Lea (“Orphan Black”), Toni Ellwand (“Hannibal”), Cristina Rosato (Mother!), Jacqueline Robbins (“A Series of Unfortunate Events”), and Joe Pingue (Antiviral) star.
Gabriele, making his feature debut, drew inspiration for his bloody holiday horror movie from growing up in an Italian family. “Unholy Night was crafted to deliver not only a captivating horror experience but also to serve as a poignant exploration of cultural complexities and the universal quest for identity and respect,” the filmmaker said in his director’s statement.
Unholy Night was produced by Gabriele alongside Jenna MacMillan of Club Red Productions and Jason Levangie and Marc Tetreault of Shut Up & Colour Pictures (Kids vs Aliens). Executive producers are Tina Carbone, Jef Burnham, Mike Chapman, and Fatima Hayward.
The chaos of an Italian Christmas Eve gets dialed up to a zany, violent degree in the new teaser and images below. Stay tuned for more on Unholy Night and more when Fantasia kicks off later this month.
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