Hulu and Netflix are fine for most tastes, but for the true trash connoisseur, reality-TV reruns and the occasional Jess Franco movie are never quite enough. These particular consumers will be pleased to hear of the impending launch of Exploitation.tv, a streaming service created by the exploitation distribution company Vinegar Syndrome. Launched with the Blu-ray release of three previously lost sexploitation films by Herschell Gordon Lewis, over the past few years Vinegar Syndrome has expanded to include all manner of exploitation films, from horror to hardcore to completely bonkers action, all dating from the ’60s to the ’80s.
Originally called VinegarSyndrome.Tv, the service was funded by an Indiegogo campaign earlier this year that teased “one of the most important and technically advanced digital preservation efforts in the history of independent film,” stressing the uniqueness and high quality of the company’s preservation efforts and the need for support from dedicated fans. (Doing 1080p HD restorations of nearly forgotten ’70s sex films isn’t a huge moneymaker, as it turns out.)
Now a date has (finally) been set for the service, which will include more than 250 feature films—including the entire Vinegar Syndrome catalog, titles from “a few partner labels,” and ”over 80 previously unreleased films”—upon launch. Some of those titles might be hard to sit through for all but the most seasoned of B-movie aficionados, but others might be the most transcendently tawdry film-watching experience of your life. That’s kind of how it goes with these things.
Exploitation.TV will launch online and on Roku devices on August 20, with iOS and Android apps launching later this year. The service is expected to cost $10 per month.