Hollywood is the land of hopes and dreams, but for many, it’s also a place for abject failure. The promise of a future in fame and stardom is alluring but more often it results in finding out that there’s a seedy underside to “making it.” Hollywood 90028, otherwise previously known as Twisted Throats or Hollywood Hillside Strangler, is a film from director Christina Hornisher that focuses on its characters’ futility in Hollywood’s backdrop. The 1973 grindhouse feature is more aptly titled with Grindhouse Releasing’s restoration, since the film’s other names indicate a much more gruesome murderous tinge than truly displayed. Instead, Hornisher’s script (under pseudonym Craig Hansen) is steadfastly stoic in its approach to depicting two individuals attempting to find their way through Hollywood’s chew-em-up-and-spit-em-out atmosphere.
The film focuses on videographer Mark (Christopher Augustine), who has been working below his apparent standards on softcore porn shoots in Hollywood by day and meandering around LA streets at night looking for a willing woman to go home with. Before the credits, we’re treated to one of those nightly excursions wherein Mark goes back to a woman’s home, has passionate sex with her, and then promptly gets an urge that I like to call “strangly hands,” in that he can’t help himself but murder the woman with a forceful twisting of the throat. From there, Hornisher follows Mark around throughout the mundanities of his life – particularly that he can’t seem to perform up to his own expectations as a videographer, even attempting to get a job with a magazine before realizing that his sordid porn shoots might not be exactly the kind of work they’re looking for as reference material. Eventually he meets Michelle (Jeanette Dilger), one of the new cast mates at the porn studio Mark works for, and he starts dating her even though it’s clear she’s already seeing someone who might just be a bit more successful.
Hollywood 90028 is a gorgeous recreation of ’70s-era LA and surrounding areas, and Hornisher obviously makes use of all of its landmarks purposefully. Many scenes simply feature a meandering Mark walking along city streets – occasionally backdropped by street artwork in a nod to his own creative lull, sometimes accompanied by dialogue heavily critical of the urbanization of historical areas and the impossibility of living there. It’s an excellent look at a bygone era of Hollywood, and much like many grindhouse films showcasing 42nd Street NYC, Hornisher also works in the grimier side of LA as well. That’s pretty clear early on with Mark’s boss Jobal, a sweaty rotund fellow who seems to take a perverse liking to his porn shoots. While Hollywood 90028 features many nude scenes, most of them are less titillating and instead capture the seedier side of the work going on outside of the illustrious LA movie studios, and Michelle as a character embodies that as someone lured into the porn industry as a means to an end.
Interestingly, this makes Hollywood 90028 a much mellower film than it might appear on the surface and especially after its grisly opening murder. Rather than stick to the stranglings, Hornisher focuses on the budding – and ultimately failed – romance between Mark and Michelle. It also mostly refrains from pathologizing Mark besides his own inner failings; while he’s certainly in turmoil over his career, the overall impossibility of his life in Hollywood is really the only thing driving his murderous tendencies. Hornisher’s script is often sparse with dialogue, but when it is used, it’s often a bit too on the nose about its thematic leanings. The film relies on characters explicitly verbalizing their views (doomed character Gretchen is a perfect example) instead of naturally getting those points across, which can occasionally feel tedious and stilted.
More dynamic, though, is the relationship between Mark and Michelle, which comes to head when Michelle breaks it off in favor of her other boyfriend since she can’t see the two of them working out well. In a final act of commitment, Mark runs over to Michelle’s house and they enact passionate lovemaking, all shot through a distorted lens as Hornisher illustrates and foreshadows the fracture in their love. And then, in a great twist, it’s revealed that Mark really can’t escape his own self-destructive tendencies. I won’t ruin the moment, but it’s an excellent reveal.
And there’s shock value to the film’s final moments as well, including an impressive zoom out over Hollywood and its suburbs as a final imposing image of the city – especially considering Mark’s fate. Hollywood 90028 is a worthwhile watch even despite its more frustrating elements, with Hornisher tackling some heavy ideas and also effectively capturing the dingy look and feel of LA’s more unsavory aspects. Those looking for an outright grimy slasher will likely be disappointed, but as a commentary on the other side of the glitz and glamor, this a surprisingly poignant hidden gem – and not without some still-prescient thoughts.
Blu-ray
Grindhouse Releasing has done a new 4K restoration of Hollywood 90028 from the original 35mm camera negative, and the results are extremely impressive, especially considering the poor quality of releases this film has had previously under different titles. Grain is filmic and medium-heavy in makeup, much more noticeable in certain dark lighting or ambient lighting but never truly obstructive. While Hollywood 90028 does feature a number of soft shots, most of the detail is strong, showcased by various scenes including the deli menu in the first scene of the film, visible porn titles in the adult store, and the aforementioned shots of various street art throughout. One notable issue is the presence of judder that does come and go throughout the running time. However, everything else, including color timing, is exceptional, and fans of this film will likely be very happy with Grindhouse’s restoration, which gives a much cleaner, but still gritty, presentation of Hollywood 90028. And if you’re not convinced, just take a look at the much rougher version of Twisted Throats included on this Blu-ray as an extra.
Audio is a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono track, and this sounds great with consistent, clear dialogue volume as well as a prominent soundtrack presentation. This doesn’t suffer from any sibilance or distortion issues, and overall features no issues. English subtitles are also included.
Extra features are robust on this 2-disc release. On the feature film disc, a new audio commentary with Marc E. Heuck & Heidi Honeycutt dives into various themes of the movie, with both pointing out various cinematographic and script elements that highlight Hornisher’s masterful helm as director. Another new audio commentary with Shawn Langrick delivers a lot of facts regarding the LA locations featured in the film, historical data about urban development, and focus on specific properties and buildings in the area; this does run the full length of the feature. Due to the subject matter, there were a couple of X-rated scenes cut from the film (though you can still see some evidence of them when Mark is viewing the negatives), and this release collects the three mild cut scenes in standard definition. A collection of outtakes, various trailers and radio spots, and still galleries are also included, as well as the aforementioned standard definition Twisted Throats version. There are also a couple of easter eggs, one an interview with Buddy Giovinazzo (on Setup menu, hit down) and the other an American Cinematheque Q&A (on Chapters menu, hit down).
The second disc is solely extras. First and foremost is the lengthy “Hollywood Dreams,” an hour-long making-of featurette that includes interviews with Christopher Augustine, Jeanette Dilger (now Sears), Gayle Davis, and more. This is a great watch, diving into the makings of the film, working with Hornisher, and how the Manson murders inspired the darkness of the movie. There’s also a 38 minute interview session with Christopher Augustine at the New Beverly from 2022, along with an interview with Tom DeSimone who talks about his friendship with Hornisher and their days at UCLA. The disc collects four experimental short films by Hornisher, along with a new short locations featurette that shows both the LA of 1970 and those same venues in 2024. The extras disc also has a couple of hidden features, including Gayle Davis discussing her work with the Action Faction dancers (interviews menu, press up on “The Making of Hollywood 90028”), a short film called “The Erotic Director” (main menu, press up on the word “Interviews”), and a clip with Frank Zappa on John Zacherle’s show (on the Production Credits menu, press any button).
A bonus CD with restored soundtrack from Basil Poledouris and an essay booklet featuring writing from Marc E. Heuck, David Szulkin, Richard Kraft, and Jim VanBebber make up this physical portion of the extras; the booklet features essays ranging from a background on Hornisher, to a biography on Jobal actor Dick Glass, to an ode to Basil Poledouris and his soundtracks. This also comes with reversible cover artwork and slipbox.
Extra Features
- NEW 4K restoration created from the original 35mm camera negative
- NEW Hollywood Dreams: The Making of Hollywood 90028 (1080p; 1:08:31)
- NEW Christopher Augustine Q&A at the New Beverly (1080p; 38:29)
- NEW Tom & Tina: The Early Years (1080p; 24:47)
- NEW Audio commentary by Marc E. Heuck & Heidi Honeycutt
- NEW Audio commentary by Shawn Langrick
- NEW Los Angeles: Here & Gone location featurette (1080p; 4:14)
- Alternate scenes from the original X-rated version
- The Simple Story (480i; 2:53)
- Darkroom 2 (480i; 1:55)
- Love Montage (1080i; 3:45)
- Experimental 16mm short films by Christina Hornisher
- 4 X 8 = 16 (1080p; 2:52)
- The Sun is Long (1080p; 6:00)
- And On the Sixth Day (1080p; 5:11)
- Sister of the Bride (1080p; 21:17)
- The Cameraman Outtakes (1080p; 3:12)
- Still galleries
- Publicity (chapter breaks)
- Drive-In Asylum Newspaper Ad Gallery (no chapter breaks; 4:35)
- Christina Hornisher (chapter breaks)
- Cast photos (chapter breaks)
- Cover art by Jerry Martinez (chapter breaks)
- Adult bookshop (chapter breaks)
- Hollywood 90028 trailer (1080p; 1:40)
- Hollywood Hillside Strangler trailer (1080p; 0:35)
- Hollywood Hillside Stranger radio spot (1080p; 0:58)
- American Cinematheque Q&A (hidden; 1080p; 47:03)
- Buddy Giovinazzo virtual interview (hidden; 720p; 3:38)
- Twisted Throats cut (480i; 1:24:46)
- NEW Interview about Action Faction Dancers on Something Else variety show (hidden; 1080p; 6:00)
- The Erotic Director short film (hidden; 1080p; 30:17)
- John Zacherle with Frank Zappa (hidden; 480i; 7:21)
- NEW Liner notes by cinema historians Marc E. Heuck, David Szulkin, Richard Kraft and Jim VanBebber
- NEW BONUS CD – original soundtrack album by Basil Poledouris – newly remastered in stunning 24 bit/192khz sound from the original master tapes
Verdict
Hollywood 90028 is not particularly liberal with its slayings but does a great job of dispelling some of the allure of Hollywood. This Blu-ray from Grindhouse revitalizes the film with an excellent transfer, plenty of extras both visible and hidden, and generous packaging materials. Recommended.
