The Weekend It Lives / Ax'Em (1992)

forlornjackalope
Lost Media Veteran

I just wanted to be Steve McQueen, with my horses of English racing green.

Posts: 1,064

The Weekend It Lives / Ax'Em (1992) Jun 13, 2019 1:55:11 GMT

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Post by forlornjackalope on Jun 13, 2019 1:55:11 GMT

I've been at work prepping a zine about obscure and lost horror media, and while I was skimming the Wiki to see if there was anything I overlooked that I could add to my future reading log, Ax'Em caught my attention and I was interested to learn more. I saw the film, well half of it, years ago and I had no idea there was more to the mystery about this infamous "so bad, it's bad" SOV film. With all of this in mind, I'm very curious to know if any new findings have come up or if any fellow horror fans would be interested in starting a search to see if something comes up.

I haven't hear Michael Mfume's name come up in what feels like a decade, so I don't know if he just lives a private life or he has since passed away. Thus far, the most I've been able to see while I'm poking around is that York Entertainment has a LinkedIn page (whether or not it's legitimate) and rapper Willie D has a photo on his Facebook page from 2015 of him with Mfume, unless the name is a total coincidence. I intend on reaching out to Paul at VHSCollector to see if he or anyone from the site knows more about York Entertainment, Mfume's wherabouts, or the rumors about the original cut of the film. I don't expect to get a response back since I get the impression Paul is super busy with managing the site, but I can hope for the best.

Even if we ultimately reach a dead end with Mfume debunking the speculation, at least we'd be getting somewhere.

forlornjackalope
Lost Media Veteran

I just wanted to be Steve McQueen, with my horses of English racing green.

Posts: 1,064

The Weekend It Lives / Ax'Em (1992) Jun 24, 2019 18:30:42 GMT via mobile

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Post by forlornjackalope on Jun 24, 2019 18:30:42 GMT

6/24/19 Update

So, this is only a small update to say that I'm still trying to ask around to see if anyone remembers the film or knows about the original cut of the film.

I took to the horror subreddit, and I did get a response from someone who said that the original cut more than likely exists, given that there's reviews on IMDb from those who claim to have seen it in the early 90s during its limited theatrical run in Baltimore. I talked to said person more, and that were both coming to the conclusion that the cuts made by York Entertainment were done for practical reasons, as they were probably so poor in quality that it was impossible to make out what happened; both visually and audibly.

With that said, I'm wondering if it's still worth trying to track down Michael Mfume or someone who worked with him on a project to see if he or anyone still has a copy of the film. I said before that my one fear is that he has since passed away, but it's looking more certain that he's still alive - given that a photo of him (or someone who resembles him) was in a photo with Willie D four years ago and he [Willie D] said Mfume directed some of his videos a few years ago.

The way I'm seeing things going if were going to unearth this is to reach out to Willie D to see if he has Mfume's contact information and go from there. LinkedIn wasn't worth the time, but it anyone utilizes the site a lot, you might have better luck than I have. I also haven't heard back from the VHS Collector team through e-mail, so I might have to try by way of Facebook. Worst case scenario is that Mfume doesn't answer. Bummer situation is that he does and says that the version genuinely doesn't exist or it does and he doesn't have his copy anymore.

forlornjackalope
Lost Media Veteran

I just wanted to be Steve McQueen, with my horses of English racing green.

Posts: 1,064

The Weekend It Lives / Ax'Em (1992) Oct 5, 2019 22:56:24 GMT via mobile

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Post by forlornjackalope on Oct 5, 2019 22:56:24 GMT

Hey y'all, long time no talk.

I've been dealing with a ton of technical issues, so I haven't been able to get some articles made that I said I would a while ago on top of battling some health issues. But, I'm back to say a bit more about the current status of Ax'Em.

I haven't heard anything else from the Reddit thread, which has been really our only lead this far. The consensus I got with the user I talked with is that there is an original version of the film, as some reviews of those who saw it during it's limited run have corroborated that there are some scenes that were cut from the DVD version, namely a campfire story scene that probably drew inspiration from Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter. It can be assumed that this was scrapped entirely by York Entertainment because the audio/visual quality was so poor that they had to do the sloppily done opening title card system.

I also had no luck with trying to get in touch with York Entertainment through LinkedIn, which was a major bust. I was ready to give up again when the film crossed my mind a few days ago, and I saw that someone has reuploaded the film to YouTube. This is good for two reasons.

The first is that this can be a test to see if Michael Mfume is still alive, as he's had the movie taken off of YouTube before over ten years ago for copyright infringement. If this one gets taken down, it's very likely it was him. From there, we can at least know that there's a chance someone can reach out to him directly about it.

The second is that while I was rewatching it, I stuck around for the credits to look for any notable names of anyone who has a history of working with Mfume that could provide some leads. One of the things that got my attention was that the SFX department is credited to Full Moon, presumably Charles Band's company. I shot them an email regarding the situation and to see if this was, in fact, one of their credits and if anyone knows more about it. I heard it's customary for people to usually receive props or master copies of the film as gifts, so it would be interesting to know if they have one and if they'd be willing to share stills or possibly release it with Mfume's blessing.

So, that's where we're at right now. We're inching a bit closer to possibly getting more answers. I'd be perfectly satisfied with a few stills, the script, or a grainy quality cut of the alleged campfire scene as evidence if it means getting it out of the unverified existence category and towards lost or hoax.

Post by forlornjackalope on Jun 13, 2019 1:55:11 GMT

Post by forlornjackalope on Jun 24, 2019 18:30:42 GMT

Post by forlornjackalope on Oct 5, 2019 22:56:24 GMT

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