L.A. AIDS Jabber (1990s Filthy Exploitation Blood Horror)
Whoo-ee! Let’s take ourselves for a ride on the wild side with Visual Vengeance’s new release of Drew Godderis’ truly obscure, obscene and absolutely vile (NOTE: I’m paying it a compliment) shot-on-video opus L.A. AIDS Jabber (Released on video in the 90’s as Jabber.) Is this worth your money? Is this as wild as I’m making it out to be? Was this really made by humans? You’d better believe it. Jason Majik gives a ferocious performance as Jeff, a seemingly average young man who finds himself in a horrible predicament. As a result of availing the services of a local prostitute, Jeff discovers he is HIV positive. After a moment of soul searching, he hits upon an idea that makes sense in his warped mind. Going completely mad, Jeff chooses to share the love with the rest of the world with the aid of a dirty hypodermic needle tainted with his blood. Yes, the summary is completely true. Yes, somebody actually made this movie and thought it would shift a lot of units. Yes, by virtue of sheer tastelessness and a willingness to go to the absolute bottom of the barrel in order to entertain, this thing is a total classic almost completely by accident. The need for sleaze is sated to the point of intoxication with this one.
Kudos to Wild Eye offshoot Visual Vengeance for daring to unleash L.A. AIDS Jabber unto the world in a packed special edition that other studios could take a lesson from. While the film itself will never look and sound all that great, they did a terrific job presenting it on it’s best behavior in a solid new transfer taken directly from the master tapes. Honestly, a film like this can only benefit from such a shabby and grungy look and sound. The only thing missing is video noise and the occasional flicker. Where this edition excels is in the special features, which truly are on the level of Criterion. The first and most impressive is an insightful audio commentary with director Drew Godderis, who does an exemplary job explaining both the genesis of this project and his reluctance to exploit homophobic attitudes in the prospective audience. Godderis is an engaging speaker, and this disc allows him to truly shine. After the film is over, take a dive into both the extended “Making Of” documentary as well as interviews with select cast and crew, most notably Jason Majik and the infamous Jackie Kong of Blood Diner infamy. The package also comes with a thorough booklet and a really cool poster. Visual Vengeance are well worth following for this exemplary release.
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Written by David, Comptroller of Your Last Scrap of Existence
L.A AIDS Jabber (2022, Blu-ray)
Drew Godderis
5 / 5
