Last Updated on August 26, 2025 by FANGORIA Staff
The weird, wild and wonderful world of Italian genre cinema of the 70s and 80s is getting the documentary that cult film fans have dreamed for, Masters of Mayhem from filmmakers Phillip Escott (Generation Terror, the FANGORIA Chainsaw Award-winning The Legacy of the Texas Chain Saw Massacre) and Eugenio Ercolani (Pretendo l'inferno), and we've got an exclusive trailer reveal for you today.
Masters of Mayhem will examine the incredible achievements of the Italian cinema scene at this time, how it achieved global domination, and the fall that followed. The documentary features interviews with some of the biggest names in Italian cult cinema including Sergio Martino, Ruggero Deodato, Claudio Fragasso, Luigi Cozzi, Sergio Stivaletti and Lamberto Bava, as well as unseen interviews with David Warbeck, Umberto Lenzi and Bruno Mattei.
From Masters of Mayhem‘s official press release:
For decades Italian genre cinema dominated the world and before changing beyond recognition it went to unthinkable places. Giants don't die quietly however and this is the story of an industry's most absurd, extreme, blood-soaked fight for survival.
Through dozens of brand new interviews, and never-before-seen archival materials, with the men and women who were there during one of the most unique moments in film history, MASTERS OF MAYHEM tells their stories of scandal, contradictions, drama and outrage.
Speaking with FANGORIA, Escott (whose work with Second Sight Films surely makes up a huge amount of any horror fan's physical media shelves) expressed his excitement for Masters of Mayhem, and the road it's taken to get here:
This has been a passion project for both of us, we’ve been working on this film for some time now, in fact it’s been over 7 years in the making! But we’re thrilled to say we’re nearly there and we’re thrilled to be able to share this with Italian genre fans in the near future.
Having both worked on numerous physical media releases of so many Italian genre classics, we can’t wait to share the craziness of what went on behind the scenes with fellow fans.
Masters of Mayhem is set for release in 2025. For more updates, follow the film on X (@MastsofMayhem), Instagram (@mastsofmayhem) and Facebook.
