Tales from the QuadeaD Zone

Tales from the QuadeaD Zone (also stylized TALES From The QuadeaD Zone) is a 1987 American anthology blaxploitation horror film written, directed, and produced by Chester Novell Turner.[1][2] The film was originally released straight to VHS. VHS copies of the film have become collector's items due to the difficulty of locating them and the extremely limited quantities produced, with one copy selling for $2000 on eBay.[3]

Tales from the QuadeaD Zone
Original VHS cover
Directed byChester Novell Turner
Written byChester Novell Turner
Produced byChester Novell Turner
StarringShirley Jones
CinematographyChester Novell Turner
Edited byChester Novell Turner
Music byChester Novell Turner
Production
company
Erry Vision Film Co.
Distributed byBC Video (VHS)
Massacre Video (DVD)
Release dates
1987 (VHS)
2013 (DVD)
Running time
62 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Turner has expressed interest in creating a sequel and began writing the film's script in 2013.[4] Tales from the QuadeaD Zone was the only film produced by Erry Vision Film Co.

Since its release Tales From the QuadeaD Zone has received several public screenings, one of which was a 2016 symposium at the Yale University Library, Terror on Tape.[5]

It was given a DVD release in 2013 through Massacre Video.[3]

Synopsis

The film is composed of two stories (plus a third wraparound story): "Food For ?" and "The Brothers", both of which are narrated by a mother (Shirley L. Jones) reading the tales to her deceased son Bobby. "Food For ?" centers upon a family that is so poor that they are unable to afford food for every family member. Their only solution is to get rid of some of their family in order to increase the amount of dinner for everyone else. "The Brother" follows two brothers who have hated each other their entire lives and have each made cruel jokes and attacks against the other. When one of them dies, the living brother tries to have the last laugh by stealing his brother's corpse and making him look like a circus clown. Little does he know that his brother's spirit has returned to his body, unhappy with his brother's plans.

Cast

Food For ?

  • W.J. Rider
  • Doug Daverport
  • Johnnie Tanguy
  • Chris Calloway
  • Kim Nichols
  • Tammy Nichols
  • Jeff Miza
  • Ronda Rider

The Brothers

  • Keefe L. Turner as Ted Johnson
  • Larry Jones as Oscar
  • Lawrence R. Jones as Moby
  • William Jones as Fred Johnson
  • Tommy L. Miller as Man in Coffin

Unseen Vision

  • John W. Jones as Daryl
  • Richard Tanguy as 1st Police Officer
  • Dan Kugler as 2nd Police Officer
  • Patrick D. Tanguy as Bobby's Voice
  • Jamar E. Bankhead as Bobby
  • Shirley L. Jones as Bobby's Mother

Production

Work on Tales from the QuadeaD Zone began three years after Turner completed his first film, Black Devil Doll From Hell,[6] which was initially intended to be one of the anthology's stories.[7] Two of the film's stories, "Food For ?" and the wraparound story "Unseen Vision", were shot in Alabama while "The Brothers" was shot in Chicago.[7]

Release

As Turner released the film on his own, along with star Shirley L. Jones, Tales from the QuadeaD Zone was released in an extremely limited amount, estimated to be at or less than 100 copies.[7][8] The copies were only circulated in the Chicago area due to the cost of gas and travel required by Turner and Jones and it is believed that many of these copies have been lost.[4][7]

Reception and legacy

Horronews.net commented that although the video could be seen as a "complete and utter train wreck", the film was made during a point in time when amateur filmmaking would be cost prohibitive for the average person and the creation of Tales from the QuadeaD Zone was evidence of Turner's "heart and a dream to become a film maker".[9] Bloody Disgusting also reviewed the movie, stating that it was "a no-budget, SOV labor of mad love".[3] DVD Talk reviewed the movie as part of Massacre Video's box set and gave it a poor review, which they felt was weaker than Black Devil Doll From Hell.[10]

Over time the video achieved cult status and VHS copies became much sought after collector's items.[11] In 2011 one copy of the film sold for $665 on the online auction site eBay, a feat that was covered in the 2013 documentary Adjust Your Tracking.[8][4] The winning bidder later sold his copy of the movie for twice the amount paid.[4]

The price reached an all time high when a copy was sold on eBay for $2000.

In 2013, Massacre Video released the movie as part of a DVD box set along with Black Devil Doll From Hell.[12] The box set features commentary from Turner and Jackson, a documentary about both films, and the director's cut of Black Devil Doll From Hell, which upon release had been heavily edited from Turner's original version.[3]

References
  1. Ziemba, Joseph A. (June 1, 2005). "From Betacam to Big Box: Shot-on-Video Trash in the 1980s (Part II)". Bleeding Skull. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  2. Ziemba, Joseph A.; Choi, Annie (January 2, 2022). "Bleeding Skull 50: The Best Shot-on-Video Films". Bleeding Skull. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  3. Cooper, Patrick (2013-12-06). "[DVD Review] Massacre Video Resurrects the 'Films of Chester Novell Turner'". Bloody Disgusting!. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  4. Borrelli, Christopher (January 21, 2014). "Horror director Chester Turner's career back from dead". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  5. "Terror on Tape: An Interdisciplinary Symposium on the History of Horror on Video". Yale University Library. April 21, 2016. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  6. Kroes, Eli (September 10, 2013). "WEIRDO FLICKS: 'Tales from the Quadead Zone'". WTAQ. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  7. "RETURNING TO THE QUADEAD ZONE: THE RESURRECTION OF CHESTER N. TURNER". Daily Grindhouse. October 11, 2013. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  8. Rothman, Lily. "The Surprising Story Behind the World's Rarest VHS Tape". Time. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  9. "Film Review: Tales From The Quadead Zone (1987)". Horrornews.net. 2014-02-08. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  10. Gibron, Bill (November 12, 2013). "Black Devil Doll From Hell / Tales From The Quadead Zone Boxset". DVD Talk. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  11. "You should have kept your VHS collection". News.com.au. January 22, 2016. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  12. Piepenburg, Erik (2013-11-14). "Chester Novell Turner and 'Black Devil Doll' Are Back". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-08-16.
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