Duke Mitchell's "Gone With The Pope"

Hardcore B-list fans might remember Duke Mitchell as part of the 50's Lewis and Martin knock off comedy act Mitchell and Petrillo who starred in the putrid film Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla (1952). Subsequent to ditching Petrillo, Mitchell went on to write and direct Massacre Mafia Style aka "The Executioner" in 1974. I had the pleasure of watching this abomination during it's limited theater release in my salad days in White Plains at the Colony Theater. Most likely had a head full of snow at the time. Surfing El blog Ausente this afternoon I espied the poster for Mitchell's unreleased masterpiece "Gone With The Pope" (1976) and was stoked to hear that it has been released by Grindhouse Releasing's Film's Bob Murawski (most recently up for an Oscar as editor of "The Hurt Locker").

Murawski is unabashedly proud of this labor of love. "Of all the films I have been involved with, the one that I am most proud of is Gone with the Pope. Duke Mitchell didn't live to see this masterpiece finished. I am honored to be the person to finish it for him. Completing this movie was a 15-year labor of love. No expense or effort was spared in rescuing this classic from cinematic oblivion and finishing it with the utmost quality. Our beautiful new 35mm print stands as a testament to Duke Mitchell's unique and explosively entertaining vision."

Bravo. Limited run in LA, hopefully followed by a DVD release.

Dread Central has more details.



I'd post the trailer but it's very raw and DF might ban my ass for linking it. Search You Tube if you want to rot your brain further.