tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18007143800577548512024-03-04T21:04:52.502-08:00Welcome To My WritemareI am a lover of cinema, first and foremost; but, my tastes tend to lurk deep in the cluttered, nightmarish celluloid basement where evil dwells. Ghoulish and macabre pictures have always held my interest above all else. I grew up on a steady diet of Godzilla, Friday the 13th and any & every VHS tape to be found under the "Horror" banner at local video stores. Updates may not come frequently, but I'll at least do my best to be sure they're worthwhile. Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-59636946535542850482015-06-26T13:44:00.000-07:002015-06-26T13:44:10.674-07:00Scarecrows (1988) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi4LAyxSGPHkkW-f1_Ph9d8Zin3ndunIsXEUkoYgN-H1HP5iPHIl6Q879r6k-74d6t7tOklWKIX4JZiaE9k8bNLF-G_M31uy9EZsKKW2VgAZaeYcHFClfAkYPZjEmLdB6wYfCf2kQ27JGc/s1600/scarecrows-1988-shout-factory-blu-ray-7f.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi4LAyxSGPHkkW-f1_Ph9d8Zin3ndunIsXEUkoYgN-H1HP5iPHIl6Q879r6k-74d6t7tOklWKIX4JZiaE9k8bNLF-G_M31uy9EZsKKW2VgAZaeYcHFClfAkYPZjEmLdB6wYfCf2kQ27JGc/s320/scarecrows-1988-shout-factory-blu-ray-7f.png" /></a></div>
Chances are if something creeps, crawls, slashes, snarls, bites or brutalizes horror has produced dozens of films about it. Why, then, is there such a dearth of killer scarecrow movies? Perhaps it’s due to the fact that none made so far have been an outright success, but in terms of subject matter scarecrows are tailor-made for terror. Those straw men look nearly human, yet they lack most of the specific features – eyes, mouth, nose, etc. – that make us who we are. They exist very close to the “uncanny valley”; that place where Robert Zemeckis’ creepy CGI humanoids reign supreme. It would seem like horror should be rife with scarecrow pictures. Yet, as of 2015 there are only a handful of films featuring them - most of which aren’t even well liked. The apex of scarecrow horror is almost unquestionably <i>Dark Night of the Scarecrow</i> (1981), a TV movie that far exceeds expectations in every way – the acting, story, atmosphere and scares are outstanding. There’s also <i>Night of the Scarecrow</i> (1995) directed by one of my favorite B-movie helmers, Jeff Burr. A third film that fits nicely between those two is <i>Scarecrows</i> (1988), an underrated quasi-slasher full of nasty kills, creepy moments and unanswered questions. Barely seen upon release, it hasn’t even attained much of a cult following… although that might (and should) change thanks to a new Blu-ray release from Scream Factory.<br>
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A squad of former military officers pulls off a daring robbery at Camp Pendleton, CA and gets away with over $3 million in payroll money. The group escaped by hijacking a plane, with the intention of getting down to Mexico. The film likely assumes most people aren’t familiar with the geography of California, because a plane ride from Pendleton to Mexico would take all of twenty minutes. Anyway, as the plane passes over a cornfield Bert (B.J. Turner) decides to rip off his fellow criminals, stunning them with a grenade and parachuting out of the aircraft after dropping the loot. Bert lands in the cornfield and makes his way to an old dilapidated farmhouse. Nobody is home; the place looks like it’s been empty for years. Bert continues on, searching for the money, while his former buddies land the plane and disembark, looking to put a little hurt on ol’ Bert.<br>
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Eventually Bert finds the cash, but his fortunes are short lived when the field’s resident scarecrow trio suddenly disappear from their perches and begin stalking him, as well as the men on his trail. Soon, however, the game between thieves must end because everyone has a much bigger problem – ruthless scarecrows are killing and gutting whoever they catch, turning them into new, bloody scarecrows with the same intentions: death and dismemberment.<br>
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Director William Wesley and his cohorts produced this film on a shoestring budget, although you wouldn’t know it judging by the final product. The standard script is taken up a few notches thanks to brooding atmosphere and some particularly gruesome FX work, courtesy of Norman Cabrera. Nothing about the robbery group is all that compelling – even the sub-drama of the hostage pilot and his strong-willed daughter is stock material. The three main scarecrows and the mystery of their existence are what carry the film. Wesley provides zero backstory on the scarecrows in the way of traditional exposition. Instead, he does it all through repetition and suggestion; things to which modern horror pictures are blind. Upon entering the farmhouse viewers are shown an old photograph of three men – maybe brothers, maybe not – standing by the cornfields. They are never named or shown in any way other than through the photo, a shot that is repeated frequently. There are also three scarecrows. Wesley, bless his logic, rightly assumed any viewer could surmise these men and these scarecrows are one in the same. <i>But how?</i> That’s the lingering question Wesley refuses to answer, and the film is stronger because of his denial.<br>
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On the topic of the scarecrows, FX artist Norman Cabrera, a former student of Rick Baker’s, brings the trio to life with exquisitely sinister results. Each one has a burlap sack covering its head that hides a skeletal, almost demonic visage. Being from a farm, their weaponry ranges from scythes to rakes to daggers… and they do not kill their victims quickly. Late in the film, one of the men remarks that their getaway was <i>“too easy”</i> and they died in the escape; where they are now is simply a version of Hell. Maybe that’s true, because these men (and one woman, can’t leave the ladies out of a good disemboweling) are killed slowly, torturously, before being split open and stuffed with straw and money. Cabrera’s FX work is bloody and realistic. Stunning practical effects work could be done on films with next to no budget if the talent was there, something that is a rarity these days because a no-budget film will just opt for cheap CGI instead of a tangible piece of artistry. <i>Scarecrows</i> is a perfect example of strong artistic achievement elevating a feature.<br>
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In addition to the great FX, <i>Scarecrows</i> also excels in creating a tense atmosphere full of dread and claustrophobia despite taking place in an open cornfield. Cinematographer Peter Deming also lensed <i>Evil Dead II</i> (1987), <i>Mulholland Drive</i> (2001) and <i>Drag me to Hell</i> (2009), proving he knows a thing or two about shooting beautiful pictures. Then there’s also composer Terry Plumeri’s score, which uses low-end instrumentation to sell a sense of danger and overall spookiness. So, while the characters and most of the acting may not be the strongest (not that anyone is outright bad), the remaining elements of the film are operating on a high enough level to make a real lasting impression. <i>Scarecrows</i> is one of the better “unseen” gems of the ‘80s and it deserves every bit of praise for delivering such tremendous quality on a miniscule budget.<br>
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Those familiar with MGM’s previous DVD will find Scream Factory’s 1.85:1 1080p image to be the natural HD progression of that image, meaning no additional work has been done to alter the picture. Again, despite a low budget the film looks like a more expensive picture, due in great part to the lighting and effective set design. Grain is moderate and looks natural. Black levels are a bit faded, not much of a big deal. Color use is minimal, with the palette full of darker, earthy hues, nothing vibrant. Close-ups show off some impressive fine details, like beads of sweat or pores. There doesn’t appear to be an issue with compression either. Overall, a very good effort that offers a closer approximation of the film print.<br>
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Viewers have the choice of an English DTS-HD MA surround sound track, either in 5.1 surround sound or 2.0 stereo. The 5.1 track has a wider range and sounds a little fuller, but then again the film was originally mixed in Ultra Stereo so you really won’t be missing much by selecting the 2.0 track. The rears hardly get much use anyway. Dialogue sounds clean and is easy to understand. A lot of the film relies on subtlety and the film’s sound design adds in a plethora of nighttime farm sounds to heighten the tension. Subtitles are included in English.<br>
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The first audio commentary features director William Wesley and producer Cami Winikoff. Moderated by Rob G, this track stays on a solid pace throughout, with Wesley and Winikoff recalling stories about shooting schedules, cocaine, airline crashes and influences. The second audio commentary has co-screenwriter Richard Jeffries, D.P. Peter Deming and composer Terry Plumeri. This is actually a series of interviews conducted by Michael Felsher that play over the film for the entire running time. This approach works fine because none of the participants has a role that would necessarily require scene-specific commentary.<br>
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“The Last Straw with Norman Cabrera” has the film’s FX artist talking about the vibe of the shoot, how he got started in the industry, working with Rick Baker and more.<br>
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“Cornfield Commando with Ted Vernon”. Vernon, who also produced the film, spends as much time talking about his life’s achievements as he does talking about the film. He’s one of those “larger than life” types.<br>
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A reel of original storyboards, a still gallery and the film’s trailer (all in HD) are also included.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-44784331615726363122015-06-26T13:41:00.000-07:002015-06-26T13:41:19.258-07:00Mad Max (1979) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQchfmcFOlEc04JB9ItAZzbChIr-9zvx1voAvWyRKKwBelJC_wx0Wz5xv1nZ-H-2AFeh1FT2Lgcq2Dzm2ScNu8x1Fgqbxose0MzUcuoSJrbKQMBYYTsPgpGCcr07EcpG5_rSbikhL5hMyc/s1600/product_images_modal_MMBRCover72dpi.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQchfmcFOlEc04JB9ItAZzbChIr-9zvx1voAvWyRKKwBelJC_wx0Wz5xv1nZ-H-2AFeh1FT2Lgcq2Dzm2ScNu8x1Fgqbxose0MzUcuoSJrbKQMBYYTsPgpGCcr07EcpG5_rSbikhL5hMyc/s320/product_images_modal_MMBRCover72dpi.png" /></a></div>
Long before Mel Gibson was one of the biggest actors in the world, and long before post-apocalyptic films featuring marauding gangs of lunatics were churned out by the dozen, there was <i>Mad Max</i> (1979). In writer/director George Miller’s seminal film, the world hadn’t quite gone to hell yet – that would be saved for the (arguably) best film in the series, <i>Mad Max 2</i> (1981, a.k.a. <i>The Road Warrior</i>) – but the writing was seared onto the walls. Miller’s dystopian wasteland set a tone and visual palette that has seen more copies than a Xerox machine. And, really, where better to film such a sparse dust bowl future than the Australia of 1979? Half the country is one big desert already. What really gives <i>Mad Max</i> the power of longevity is the strong characterization, with each actor bringing a distinct flair to their respective roles. Additionally, there’s a real sense of danger here – anyone could be a victim at any moment, and even Max’s fate isn’t assured as he attempts to do his job amidst a maelstrom of violence.<br>
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Opening “a few years from now…” the film joins in on the hot pursuit of a wanted cop killer, known as the Nightrider (Vincent Gil), who so far has managed to successfully evade the Main Force Patrol (MFP) officers in tow. But he isn’t so lucky when Max Rockatansky (Mel Gibson) gets on his tail, ending with the Nightrider’s fiery death. An energy crisis has left much of the Outback low on fuel and sparsely populated, with motorcycle gangs patrolling the streets and terrorizing citizens. The MFP’s main directive is to keep the highways safe and stop the gangs by any means necessary. Their job is made very difficult, however, due to political red tape and crooked lawyers who lobby hard for their scummy clients. Max’s partner, Goose (Steve Bisley), loses his cool when a suspect he knows is guilty winds up being released due to a technicality. Later on, that same suspect, Johnny “the boy” Boyle (Tim Burns), is egged on by the gang’s leader, Toecutter (Hugh Keays-Byrne), to horribly burn Goose while trapped in a wrecked car they helped demolish. Max is stricken with grief after seeing his partner’s wounds and quits the force. He’d rather spend his days traveling with his wife (Joanna Samuel) and new baby, enjoying the countryside. But when an unexpected run-in with Toecutter and his gang rips Max’s idyllic world right in two, the former MFP officer becomes focused on only one thing – brutal and swift revenge.<br>
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If there’s one aspect of Miller’s film that helped make it a massive success (other than Gibson’s laconic, magnetic performance), it’s the stunt work. <i>Mad Max</i> has fast cars, lots of ‘em, and more often than not they wind up in a crumpled heap on the hot asphalt. Adding to the impact of those stunts is the very clear indication that many did not go as planned, but since they had one shot in some instances however the stunt went is how it wound up in the film. When the Nightrider’s car collides with a petrol truck, it’s pretty obvious the car veered off course and didn’t hit the mark, which actually makes the stunt even scarier. And then there are also the numerous motorcycle stunts. During one such stunt, as seen in slo-mo, a wheel smacks the back of the stuntman’s helmet so hard you’d think he died on set. He didn’t, but he was definitely worse for the wear. Miller managed to outdo the stunts seen here when he made this film’s sequel, but for a first-time director this was some big stuff.<br>
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It would be interesting to see how today’s audiences – especially those who seem to need every detail of backstory explained ad nauseum - would react to <i>Mad Max</i> were it released today. Aside from the opening scrawl explaining the energy crisis, there’s very little history provided for the MFP, Max or the vicious gangs. I feel this only strengthens the film. Miller provides a solid framework within which these characters operate, and any reasonably sharp viewer should be able to fill in any gaps and make sense of how we’ve arrived at this situation. Just like Max, viewers are thrust into this savage land where danger lurks around every bend in the road. In particular, the Toecutter is an enigmatic force who controls his henchman with a firm grasp despite very little violence on his part. It makes you wonder what his story is. I mean, the guy is called “Toecutter” yet we never see him actually cutting off any toes. This sort of ambiguity would carry on through the series, and Miller always handles it perfectly. Here’s to hoping Max’s resurrection (albeit in a new form) is just as thrilling in <i>Mad Max: Fury Road</i> (2015).<br>
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There’s been a great deal of scuttlebutt on the web regarding Scream Factory’s 2.35:1 1080p image. Specifically, whether or not it’s any better than MGM’s previous Blu-ray edition, which was perfectly serviceable but far from perfect. As far as anyone knows the negative has been lost, meaning it would be difficult to improve upon what’s already been released. Unless you’re an obsessive about picture quality and go through a film frame-by-frame analyzing individual hairs and shrubs in the background, chances are you’ll find this edition to be on par with MGM’s release, if not a tad lesser. It does appear that some mild DNR has been applied, leaving skin tones looking occasionally waxy, and the grain structure is… odd; it’s not a visual eyesore but it doesn’t exactly look natural. Still, contrast is generally strong, with good color saturation and appreciable detail in many shots.<br>
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There are three tracks from which to choose here – Australian DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound or 2.0, as well as the infamous(ly bad) English DTS-HD MA 2.0 dub. The multi-channel Aussie option is your best bet, offering up a dynamic experience featuring great panning of effects and engine roars along with a decent low end during some of the more bombastic sequences. Dialogue has a bit of a reverb thing going on at times, though it never happens often enough to be a problem. Subtitles are included in English.<br>
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The audio commentary doesn’t feature the names you’d probably prefer to see – specifically, Miller and Gibson – but it does offer up a perspective from art director John Dowding, director of photography David Eggby, special effects artist Chris Murray and film historian Tim Ridge. Given the jobs of the men involved here, this track offers up a great perspective on the film’s production on a much more technical level. With so many people on the track, the energy remains high and talk stays lively and informative.<br>
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“New Interviews with Mel Gibson, Joanne Samuel and Director of Photography David Eggby” (HD) runs for almost thirty minutes. Although nothing too revelatory comes out of these talks, it’s wonderful to hear Gibson speak about the role that launched his career. Mel is candid as ever, brimming with enthusiasm and seemingly stoked to be talking about this seminal film so many years later. Samuel has some great anecdotes about her casting, while Eggby discusses the film’s wild stunt work and dangerous environments.<br>
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“Mel Gibson: The Birth of a Superstar” (SD) is a featurette that was included on the previous MGM special editions and covers Mel’s career, from his humble beginnings in Australia right up to his massive career in Hollywood. There’s a lot of gushing and glad-handing, with talk of what makes Mel different from other stars.<br>
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“Mad Max: The Film Phenomenon” (SD) is another carryover, obviously focusing on Miller’s film and how it set off a chain reaction of productions centering on post-apocalyptic/dystopian future films.<br>
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Two theatrical trailers are included, along with TV spots and a large still gallery, all in HD.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-62740603561331562752015-06-26T13:37:00.000-07:002015-06-26T13:37:38.997-07:00The Voices (2014) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhApVD9hQLZvISI3Y5Su6sjUnJXPusGjhfuST2plBjcyOOO2LQe7lK1qIgmQn5GGdNYq0GeG-sOp_COrRdlJ7ePIAv75kBcDJG8RDcxXlJOkhvk-tDeJ05Qwf6Qq8I6ksGJP9L7u5frzfLk/s1600/-.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhApVD9hQLZvISI3Y5Su6sjUnJXPusGjhfuST2plBjcyOOO2LQe7lK1qIgmQn5GGdNYq0GeG-sOp_COrRdlJ7ePIAv75kBcDJG8RDcxXlJOkhvk-tDeJ05Qwf6Qq8I6ksGJP9L7u5frzfLk/s320/-.jpg" /></a></div>
Ryan Reynolds’ career seems to be in a constant state of flux. To be fair, that’s the story for many actors, but Reynolds has yet to catch a big cinematic break despite nabbing roles in some high profile pictures. Unfortunately, those pictures were titles such as <i>Green Lantern</i> (2011) or <i>X-Men Origins: Wolverine</i> (2009). And the less anyone ever says about <i>Blade: Trinity</i> (2004) the better. So, whether because of his big budget bombs or not, Reynolds has been delving into the world of DTV and killing it – literally. He dabbled in playing a mentally unstable character before, with <i>The Amityville Horror</i> (2005) remake, but in <i>The Voices</i> (2014) he veers off into full-on serial killer territory. Think of it as if Patrick Bateman moved out of NYC, got a minimum wage job at a factory and adopted a couple of pets. Add in copious amounts of pitch black humor and the end result is something that’s likely to hit my top ten list once the year is through.<br>
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There isn’t a lot to worry about when you’re living in Milton. The quiet suburb is home to a bustling fixtures factory, where Jerry (Ryan Reynolds) is just another happy cog in the corporate wheel. He’s a bit socially awkward but always well-meaning and willing to help out. When he’s asked to assist with planning a little corporate picnic, Jerry agrees; at the meeting he finds himself fawning over Fiona (Gemma Arterton), a hot British import who works in finance. A shrink Jerry sees thinks getting out would be a good thing… assuming he’s still taking his court mandated meds. You are taking your meds, right Jerry? Jerry asks Fiona out, and she agrees in the sort of way that a person who isn’t really interested but can’t quickly think of a good reason to say “no” does. This goes over Jerry’s head and he ramps up his excitement. Their date doesn’t go as planned at all, but when the night is through Jerry still manages to find himself on top of Fiona… sticking a knife in her chest. Whoops. Once he does his best to clean up the mess he made, his two best friends – Bosco and Mr. Whiskers (both voiced by Reynolds), his dog and cat, respectively – discuss with Jerry the ramifications of his actions and whether or not he should get back on his meds or just continue killing people because it seems to be what he does best.<br>
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This is one of those films where it isn’t a novel story that sucks you in but, instead, it’s the idiosyncrasies of our lead character that wholly carries it. Reynolds’ Jerry is a weird man who does a lot of very horrible, gruesome things to his very personable co-workers (even Fiona isn’t a <i>complete</i> bitch), but it’s because Reynolds exudes a boyish charm, aided by being easy on the eyes (or so my girlfriend constantly tells me) and you’ve got a serial killer who, again, is not dissimilar to Patrick Bateman in that you can find him almost sympathetic despite his actions. Unlike Bateman, though, Jerry is supposed to be taking meds due to a childhood incident. When he’s off them, that’s when the film immediately thrusts viewers into the dark, decrepit world in which Jerry truly lives. But that place is no fun! Jerry prefers to exist in a fantasy land where everything is in its rightful place, but it’s only visible when he’s not sucking down his prescribed dosage; plus taking those pills means his two best friends – the dog and cat – are nothing more than regular house pets. Jerry’s continually unstable mental state keeps the film feeling fresh right up to the end because his behavior is so unpredictable. Even when you’re expecting him to perform certain actions, watching how Jerry surveys a scene and comes to his decisions based on such ill logic is wonderfully displayed.<br>
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The supporting characters serve little function aside from moving the plot along and putting Jerry where he needs to be. Still, credit is due to Anna Kendrick for playing a potential love interest for Jerry, although Jerry is completely clueless in regard to picking up on her obvious hints. There’s usually something a bit too twee about Kendrick for me, but she’s perfect here and a great fit for Jerry since she seems a bit “off”, too. Of course, the film still finds a way to showcase her singing abilities; at least it’s done fittingly.<br>
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Who could’ve guessed something this grim and full of gallows humor would come from the Academy Award-nominated director of the French-Iranian animated film <i>Persepolis</i> (2007)? You might’ve if you caught producer Adi Shankar’s name on the back cover, too. He might look like someone opened an Ed Hardy factory in India, yet his filmography shows that he makes bold, original films that usually operate outside the traditional studio chum. <i>The Voices</i> is a dark comedy on the level of John Waters’ <i>Serial Mom</i> (1994), only more gruesome and unsettling. Ryan Reynolds gives a performance that I’d call his best yet and it ends with a choreographed dance for Jesus that is the perfect capper on this off kilter picture.<br>
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There’s little fault to be found in the film’s 2.35:1 1080p picture. Lionsgate’s transfer is highly detailed and crisp, displaying a great sense of depth and featuring strong detailing. Contrast is excellent – black levels remain dark and never look hazy. Jerry’s world is always vibrant and bright, with lots of pastels and colorful hues. In contrast, when reality is shown the picture switches to showcase squalid conditions and disgusting living conditions, using darker hues and less lighting. Under all conditions the image holds up beautifully. A few scenes look a tad soft; that’s about the worst I can say.<br>
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The English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track is tremendously effective and engaging. Right from the start the level of immersion is apparent and impressive. Sound effects are well-balanced and separated nicely to allow for audible spacing. The rear speakers are continually aflutter, especially during the thunderstorm when lighting is cracking and thunder booms intensely. The disc also includes a Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound track. Subtitles are included in English, English SDH and Spanish.<br>
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“<i>The Voices</i>: From Fridge to Frame” (HD) is more or less a typical EPK, just with a bit more information to go around. It doesn’t get too deep although there are interesting takeaways.<br>
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“VFX: The Making of Bosco and Mr. Whiskers” (HD) - The animals talk, their mouths move, and it was of the utmost importance that everything look seamless when shown on screen.<br>
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“VFX: Comparison Showreel” (HD) - Shot progressions are shown, from the in-camera image right up through once digital elements have been added.<br>
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“The Voices of Ryan Reynolds” (HD) - Reynolds makes some funny faces when voicing the film’s animals. Watch him do just that here.<br>
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A handful of deleted scenes (HD) are mostly little bits of exposition, with a lengthy scene that would’ve come near the end of the film where he “talks” to his dad.<br>
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Extended scenes (HD) add a bit more to Jerry’s job and his disastrous date with Fiona.<br>
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A reel of animatics (HD) shows off the film’s storyboards, with off-screen actors voicing the roles.<br>
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“Cast & Costume Sketch Gallery” (HD) shows off 18 images of the film’s characters and their looks.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-25709713641018662582015-06-26T13:34:00.000-07:002015-06-26T13:34:15.004-07:00From A Whisper To A Scream (1987) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh58O2Z9JCTPJ1HDYguqB7Ft_NxIRjy6q0AN6lhWJK0zj3Efr96lwbRexopw_KTtWUudsBnEsLPTH-tIF-5kzaMieYHsoquqYW7Z15nefgnmGmzFfjHPXE3zTf3PwdjRc4b1QnGYR3jpqAe/s1600/91gcCMgrP-L._SX425_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh58O2Z9JCTPJ1HDYguqB7Ft_NxIRjy6q0AN6lhWJK0zj3Efr96lwbRexopw_KTtWUudsBnEsLPTH-tIF-5kzaMieYHsoquqYW7Z15nefgnmGmzFfjHPXE3zTf3PwdjRc4b1QnGYR3jpqAe/s320/91gcCMgrP-L._SX425_.jpg" /></a></div>
Director Jeff Burr has helmed a handful of dubious cinematic achievements in the world of horror – nearly all of them sequels to popular titles – but the only horror film he’s ever directed that he feels is his and his alone would be <i>From a Whisper to a Scream</i> (1987 – a.k.a. <i>The Offspring</i>), his second feature. Personally, I’ve long had an appreciation for Burr’s work and I find him to be a genuinely affable, enthusiastic personality who is brimming with wonderful stories and good ol’ boy charm. <i>Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III</i> (1990) is still my favorite sequel in that series. But on that film, and others such as <i>Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings</i> (1993) and <i>The Stepfather II</i> (1989), Burr was hampered by studio executives, looming timelines and a near-total lack of creative input or control. The only time he’s enjoyed complete freedom on a horror picture was with <i>From a Whisper to a Scream</i>, a horror anthology that has aged quite well in addition to featuring one of the legendary Vincent Price’s final roles.<br>
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Oldfield, TN is a town with a rich history… of evil happenings. On the eve of a murderess’ execution, a local reporter (Susan Tyrell) pays a visit to the town’s historian, Julian White (Vincent Price), who happens to be the uncle of the newly-deceased woman. When pressed by the reporter about his niece’s history of violence, White seems apathetic and resigned. According to him, evil has had a foothold in Oldfield for a very long time and this is simply par for the course. He produces an old journal of tales long forgotten and schools the reporter on the town’s malevolent past.<br>
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The first tale, set in modern day, centers on Stanley Burnside (Clu Gulager), an awkward towhead living with his sister. Stanley is desperate for a woman, so he sets his sights high and asks out his boss, Grace (Megan McFarland), who for some reason agrees. After dinner, Stanley gets grabby in the car and, after being spurned, decides the best course of action would be to choke Grace to death. But he never got laid! No matter, once Grace’s funeral concludes Stanley brings some champagne to her coffin and drives in one final nail. But come nine months later he’s in for a shock.<br>
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Our second story goes back to the ‘50s, where Jesse (Terry Kiser), a small-time scoundrel, is hiding out from some gangsters he ripped off. Jesse makes a run for it but gets shot before managing to stumble into a rowboat and sail out into the swamp. He awakens in a ramshackle cabin, owned by a genial old black man (Harry Caesar) who nurses him back to health. When the man goes out to town, Jesse, being the scumbag he is, goes through the man’s belongings looking for loot. Instead he stumbles across a life-changing secret, one that he’s foolish enough to go after.<br>
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Next up, we travel further back to the ‘30s and visit a carnival, where glass eater Steven (Ron Brooks) performs with a sideshow of freaks. He’s in love with a local girl who has a mouthful of a name, Amarilliss (Didi Lanier), but the controlling owner of the carnival, Snakewoman (Rosalind Cash), refuses to allow him to leave. Steven and Amarilliss attempt to flee, but they both soon realize that Snakewoman’s voodoo powers can reach far beyond the borders of the circus tent.<br>
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Finally, the film goes way back to the Civil War, following a trio of men – led by Union Sgt. Gallen (Cameron Mitchell) – who come across a stronghold being commandeered by a group of children. At first they don’t take the children or their code of conduct seriously, but after witnessing what happens to those who disobey Gallen and his men (or, more appropriately, what’s left of them) beg for mercy.<br>
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I’ll admit to not being so hot on Burr’s film the first time I saw it. The pacing is deliberate and slow, which I suppose is apropos given the Southern setting, and the stories come across a bit half-baked and lacking succinctness. Upon second viewing, however, my opinion has changed. I found myself drawn into each of White’s tormented tales, appreciating how the film goes further back into the town’s legacy successively to establish a long pattern of weird, evil stuff. The stories are also unremittingly grim, stinging with final moments that barely give you enough time to mentally digest what’s just occurred before moving on to the next wicked tale. Burr and his co-writers each wrote distinct stories that are amazingly strong, given that none of them had ever worked on a feature before.<br>
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Additionally impressive is the cast that has been culled, anchored by Price and featuring a few other heavy hitters who were a bit past their prime but certainly added gravitas to what was a low-budget film by filmmakers who has no solid credentials – actors such as Cameron Mitchell, Clu Gulager, Lawrence Tierney and Harry Caesar. Nobody is phoning it in here, either; these guys took their roles seriously and the film is all the better for it. Ok, maybe Mitchell isn’t giving it his all but that’s also part of his twilight years-charm. Price may have later said he regretted taking his role, having grown tired of horror pictures, but his presence adds such prestige it can be seen as invaluable.<br>
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Burr and his cohorts may have been almost entirely green in the film industry, but they weren’t in over their heads making <i>From a Whisper to a Scream</i>. As one of the included documentaries shows, they had all been toiling away on Super 8 home movies for years, and this was simply the next logical step. Horror is often an “easy” introductory genre for those looking to break into feature filmmaking. Combining filmmaking know-how with twisted tales, peppered with taboo subjects few outside the European or exploitation market employed, this is a horror anthology that can stand tall among the big boys such as <i>Creepshow</i> (1982) or <i>Tales from the Crypt</i> (1972).<br>
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After making it past the opening optical credits, which experience some minor telecine judder, the film’s 1.85:1 1080p image stabilizes to show off a surprisingly strong 35mm picture. What’s most impressive about this transfer are the rich, stable black levels and consistent contrast. Film grain is very much apparent, and very thick, but it never looks clumpy or noisy. The print used here was kept in great shape, with only minor flecks appearing intermittently. To be honest, little imperfections such as those help maintain a filmic appearance, reminding viewers they’re watching a vintage 35mm print, albeit digitally. Bright and sunny daylight shots obviously enjoy the greatest exhibition of details and texture, while the darker shots (which are a majority of the film) do lack crispness and appear much softer. On the major plus side, the film’s practical effects are so awesome in that ‘80s a-step-or-two-above-homemade sort of way, and most manage to retain a level of quality in the jump to HD.<br>
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Despite the back cover’s claims, the audio here is not an English DTS-HD MA 2.0 track but, rather, an English LPCM uncompressed 2.0 offering. Does this matter much? It won’t for most. Personally, the most effective aspect to the sound was during the opening credits, when a beating heart quickens in pace as names appear. Jim Manzie’s score is great work because he had to compose distinct music for each of the time periods set within the film. His compositions perfectly complement every era. That aside, this is a fairly routine track featuring a good balance for the dialogue, modest separation and an adequate sound design. Subtitles are included in English.<br>
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“Return to Oldfield: The Making of <i>From a Whisper to a Scream</i>” (HD) is a documentary that runs for nearly two hours. Clocking in at almost twenty minutes longer than the film itself, this exhaustive piece uncovers every last bit of information known about all aspects of the film’s production, from start through finish. Burr and his childhood buddies turned fellow filmmakers talk about their respective roles on this film. Each has a lot to contribute, detailing how Burr’s idea to do a road movie somehow turned into a horror picture, the reasoning behind doing anthology, getting Burr’s brother involved to handle business affairs, securing Vincent Price (or almost not), shooting on short ends, and a crew mutiny that threatened the picture. This is easily one of the best making-of pieces Scream Factory has produced.<br>
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“A Decade Under the Influence” (HD) is another feature-length documentary, this one running for 1 hour and 17 minutes. Although a bit before my own time, this ode to Super 8 filmmaking still feels like childhood. Burr and his filmmaking friends recount the endless home videos they shot using the relatively inexpensive Super 8 cameras and film. There are lots of clips, in full HD, and they’re really awesome to watch. This is one of the cooler features to wind up on any Blu-ray.<br>
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Writer/director Jeff Burr delivers the first audio commentary. Those who have heard a Burr track before know he’s never at a loss for words and there’s so much information racing to come out of his mouth his excitement is palpable. He’s not as redundant as you might think given how much the documentary covers, so this is still worth listening to if you want to know it all.<br>
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Next up, writer/producer Darin Scott and writer C. Courtney Joyner are on hand for a track that is no less lively than Burr’s. After discussing actress Martine Beswick’s James Bond series past, these two delve deep into talk of topics ranging from using Roger Corman’s studios to who-knew-who-in-order-to-cast-who in the movie.<br>
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A plainly named “stills gallery” is actually a massive collection of every bit of ephemera related to the film, as introduced and commentated upon by Jeff Burr. There’s some really cool stuff in here.<br>
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A theatrical trailer is listed among the features yet selecting it yielded nothing but a blank screen. The TV spots, however, worked just fine.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-44768495424617574112015-03-22T17:07:00.000-07:002015-03-22T17:07:05.366-07:00The Babadook (2014) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYaAOvc29bblD5-hcQ7GDRZz_nyO51xp2TbeBtdVoJ6Tsg-F1YPW2PfiSzz3w9KmdDTFfyIhGuDVWD1YRXyfCkqw1PRdhHIi2CJcLa83CGmZoqj5vrvWcBUz59tZQ8l_omrFOd_2LSg_2k/s1600/babadook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYaAOvc29bblD5-hcQ7GDRZz_nyO51xp2TbeBtdVoJ6Tsg-F1YPW2PfiSzz3w9KmdDTFfyIhGuDVWD1YRXyfCkqw1PRdhHIi2CJcLa83CGmZoqj5vrvWcBUz59tZQ8l_omrFOd_2LSg_2k/s320/babadook.jpg" /></a></div>
One of the great joys of cinema is that unless a film is truly, irredeemably bad there’s always the chance that if you didn’t like it the first time around, maybe a second go will shift opinion. This was my experience with <i>The Babadook</i> (2014). It’s still the most overhyped film of last year by a considerable margin, and much of what’s been said about it comes across as hyperbole, but it is definitely not one of the worst films of last year… which is what I claimed when adding it to my Worst of 2014 list here on Dread Central. After taking into account all of the critical lauding and incredible praise (William Friedkin said he’s <i>“never seen a more terrifying film”</i>, not that he’s the foremost authority on horror), my initial viewing went poorly as the main child annoyed me to the point of near-insanity and the scares just never seemed to materialize. It seemed as though critics and audiences were so hungry for fresh, well-made horror that the first halfway decent picture to come along got hoisted up on everyone’s shoulders and paraded around town like the second coming.<br>
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So, it was with some trepidation that a second viewing came about when, like the titular character’s pop-up book, a review copy was left by my front door.<br>
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The story of <i>The Babadook</i> is that of grief, loss and trying to piece together a shattered life. Amelia (Essie Davis) is left to raise her behaviorally-challenged son, Samuel (Noah Wiseman), after her husband dies while they are en route to the hospital when she goes into labor. Her feelings of loss have not subsided in the seven years since the accident. Samuel, meanwhile, has grown into a child of considerable annoyance. He’s boisterous, loud, petulant and very protective of his mother, although he has no concept of being on his best behavior so she can maintain an air of sanity. Amelia is worn down to a nub, ceasing to live a meaningful life and merely eking out a pitiful existence. Samuel’s behavior constantly pushes the boundaries of acceptability, and eventually his antics get him kicked out of school.<br>
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Amelia decides what she and Samuel needs is a brief respite; a few days to recharge, aided by an understanding doctor’s prescription for a sleep aid. One night, Samuel selects a bedtime book that Amelia doesn’t recognize – “Mister Babadook”. The pop-up book proves nightmarish, leaving Samuel in a crumpled heap of tears and Amelia totally disturbed. She tears the book up and tosses it away, but the next day it reappears on her doorstep taped back together and sporting a few new pages. The story warns of the Babadook’s call, that you can’t get rid of it, and some of the pop-ups are an effigy of Amelia performing horrible acts. Considering the fractured state of her mental faculties, Amelia finds herself allowing the Babadook into her head, threatening both her and Samuel’s lives.<br>
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<i>The Babadook</i> is horror at its most basic – a parent must protect their child from a monster trying to invade their home. It’s been told a thousand and one times, and this film doesn’t differ from the countless others by a whole lot. What sets <i>The Babadook</i> apart is a mostly-good script and an absolutely searing performance from Essie Davis. I suppose credit is also due to Noah Wiseman as her incorrigible, intolerable son Samuel. Maybe his performance is easier to digest if you’ve already got kids, but, man, he is so incredibly snotty. Even his accent and facial mannerisms made me want to hurl him through a wall. This kid excels at pushing people to the point of seriously considering how much jail time you’d get for “accidentally” kicking him off a cliff. But that’s exactly how Samuel has to act in order to get Amelia where the film needs her, and so for those reasons he deserves applause for nailing it.<br>
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Davis is revelatory as Amelia. After experiencing a major trauma (the loss of her husband), she has no time to grieve, thrust immediately into childcare. In the seven years since the accident, she has developed a dichotomous personality, one which seems to both love and loathe Samuel. He isn’t the root of her current psychosis, but he’s a driving force in exacerbating it. The emotional rollercoaster Davis takes viewers on is palpable. Her character has a defined arc and we bear witness to her most primal moments of catharsis. Her performance ranks among the best of 2014 in any category, not just horror.<br>
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Where <i>The Babadook</i> managed to lose me was in symbolism and scares, the latter of which might as well be non-existent unless you’re the sort who rarely watches horror and is scared by any loud noise. The scares here are of the same sort you’d find in every other haunting movie, no exceptions. As for the symbolism, well, let’s just say anyone well-versed in cinema should have no problem understanding where the Babadook comes from and what it all means. The script is practically ham-fisted in its delivery, offering up allegories which are simply too on-the-nose to be appreciated. There isn’t any subtlety.<br>
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Overhyped to its own detriment, <i>The Babadook</i> is definitely a commendable achievement nonetheless, especially as a debut feature. The only reason I’m hesitant to sings its praises after a reevaluation is because, as I’ve said before, the DTV market is hot right now. Really hot. And there are so many awesome horror films coming out of it that it isn’t possible to say <i>The Babadook</i> stands above the rest; it is, however, one of the better horror films of last year and while it wouldn’t have made my top five it shouldn’t have been in the bottom, either.<br>
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Framed at 2.35:1, the film’s 1080p picture is visually fantastic. The picture was shot using the Arri Alexa digital camera, allowing for a crystal clear image with razor sharpness and a complete lack of grain. Colors are accurate, with the palette veering toward shades of blue, black and grey. Black levels look inky and rich. Detail stays strong, even when the scene is in complete darkness. There’s really nothing worth complaining about here.<br>
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Everyone knows a good score and sound mix are essential to any horror film, and the English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track used here is exemplary. The score, from composer Jed Kurzel, is ethereal and minimalist, punctuating only at precise moments. These scenes of serenity are interrupted by the booming presence of the Babadook, whose appearance is often preceded by big, loud knocks. They’re jolting, but it never feels like a cheap stinger. This is a strong, powerful present track that goes far in elevating the film’s effectiveness. A 2.0 stereo track is also included. Subtitles are available in English SDH and Spanish.<br>
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Jennifer Kent’s short film <i>Monster</i>, which she has called “baby Babadook”, is included here. It’s very similar in story and tone to the feature film and is worth watching either before or after <i>The Babadook</i>.<br>
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A trio of deleted scenes are presented in HD, which are mostly extra bits with Samuel.<br>
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“Creating the Book with Illustrator Alex Juhasz” features the talented guy behind the creepy pop-up book talking about how he got hired for this project and then showing off the “master hero” prop used in the film.<br>
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“A Tour of the House Set” discusses how the production team wanted a “storybook quality” to the home, to match some of the film’s themes, and this piece shows off what it took to put Amelia and Samuel’s residence together.<br>
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“The Stunts: Jumping the Stairs” is a quick piece that shows the team setting up the shot where Samuel is pulled upstairs.<br>
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“Special Effects: The Stabbing Scene” shows off one of the film’s minor FX moments. They used a leg of lamb in place of Davis’ thigh. It looked delicious.<br>
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“Behind the Scenes” is simply some B-roll from the film’s set.<br>
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“Cast & Crew Interviews” is a series of talks with actors Essie Davis, Daniel Henshall, Barbara West, Hayley McElhinney, director Jennifer Kent, costume designer Heather Wallace, and producers Kristina Ceyton and Kristian Moliere, running for just over an hour.<br>
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Two theatrical trailers are also included.<br>
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Scream Factory really steps up their game here by offering a very cool package for buyers of the special edition. A slick red slipcover is featured on initial pressings, with a flap on the front held by Velcro opening up to reveal a pop-up Babadook from right out of his signature book. It’s a great touch to nerd out on. The single disc itself is housed in a standard Blu-ray keepcase. The cover art is reversible.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-77143381933982242712015-03-21T20:55:00.000-07:002015-03-21T20:56:24.987-07:00Invaders From Mars (1986) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiA6t-0u3bJSIv9aNt2cpCXKW00CY1oZBRVNolxDkOK3xoFwUS-8cJ8nQ3t-4iqL4KZUhti8PgQLX1s6oZADSQziIEEzk5k_N3lcQjQEDC8fEQNDzFX74RuQ5VqPIzjvWSvQtdgcQUvtnr/s1600/invaders-from-mars-blu-ray.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiA6t-0u3bJSIv9aNt2cpCXKW00CY1oZBRVNolxDkOK3xoFwUS-8cJ8nQ3t-4iqL4KZUhti8PgQLX1s6oZADSQziIEEzk5k_N3lcQjQEDC8fEQNDzFX74RuQ5VqPIzjvWSvQtdgcQUvtnr/s320/invaders-from-mars-blu-ray.jpg" /></a></div>
The films of Tobe Hooper have long teetered on the precipice between compelling schlock and wasted opportunity – at least up until around 1986. He hasn’t made a worthwhile feature film in nearly thirty years. Setting aside <i>The Texas Chain Saw Massacre</i> (1974) – which is so perfect it’s like a fluke in his filmography – and <i>Poltergeist</i> (1982) – because… <i>you know</i> – the rest of his output during those twelve years is a mixed bag. <i>Eaten Alive</i> (1977) is a snoozy, campy creature feature. <i>The Funhouse</i> (1981) is arguably the second-best film Hooper has directed; it’s creepy and filled with menace. Post-<i>Poltergeist</i>, Hooper got set up with a plum deal over at Cannon Films, where mega-producer Menahem Golan signed him to a three-picture deal on the agreement that one of the films he made was a sequel to <i>The Texas Chain Saw Massacre</i>. The first of that pact, <i>Lifeforce</i> (1985), is frustratingly mediocre given the story has such a killer concept. And the merits (or lack thereof) of <i>The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2</i> (1986) have been widely debated in the years since its release. Despite doing a full turnaround from the original film, dropping the abject horror and veering the franchise into slapstick gallows humor territory, it’s refreshing to see a rare sequel which doesn’t hew so closely to its predecessor.<br>
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His second picture, <i>Invaders from Mars</i> (1986), is a remake of the 1953 sci-fi classic of the same name. The screenplay, co-written by Dan O’Bannon, is a faithfully reworked version of the original story written by John Tucker Battle. One night during a meteor shower, young David Gardner (Hunter Carson) sees a U.F.O. land in a field just over the hill from his house. He excitedly runs into his parent’s room to tell them what he’s witnessed, but his exclamation is written off as a plane or a meteorite. His dad, George (Timothy Bottoms), offers to go investigate in the morning. When David awakens, he heads downstairs where he’s met by his dad, who says there wasn’t anything to see over the hill. David’s curiosity only grows, however, when he sees a fresh bruise on the back of his father’s neck. George is also acting… strange, and eventually he goes missing for a day, prompting David’s mother (Laraine Newman) to call the cops. They decide to check for George over the hill. You can see where this is going. George has turned, the cops have turned, and now David’s mother has turned, too. It isn’t long before David isn’t sure who he can trust… unless he sees their neck first.<br>
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At school, David manages to befriend one of the few people to believe his story; the school’s nurse, Linda (Karen Black). He and Linda escape the clutches of turned citizens trying to bring them into the alien fold, eventually making their way to military headquarters and alerting the Marines. Led by Gen. Climet Wilson (James Karen), the soldiers set up base camp at David’s home and begin an all-out assault against the invader’s spaceship, which is buried deep under the ground just over the hill.<br>
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Hooper has described his <i>Invaders from Mars</i> as a “kid’s film”, and that seems appropriate given how much I enjoyed it as a kid. As an adult, however, the picture’s deficiencies become glaringly obvious. For starters, the direction is wholly bland and uninspired, like Hooper printed every first take and put little effort into bolstering the film with energy or tension or passion. Right from the start, this picture slogs along until the finale. The middle, in particular, is a vast wasteland of ennui galvanized only by the appearance of impressive FX work from masters Stan Winston and John Dykstra. Were it not for their contributions there would nothing to prevent this from being an all-out disaster. There’s no sense of wonder, no excitement of discovery.<br>
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It also doesn’t help that Hunter Carson is a terrible actor. Hollywood nepotism is the likely culprit here, as Carson is the son of writer L.M. Kit Carson and Karen Black, one of this film’s stars. Carson ranges from mediocre to terrible, sometimes within the same scene. The biggest issue is he never quite gets into character; every line he reads sounds like he’s acting, or trying to, leaving his dialogue cold and stilted. And he’s in just about every single scene.<br>
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The film’s saving grace is in the production design and creature effects. The subterranean alien ship is vast and labyrinthine, with dusty drilled-out walkways sporadically populated by ad hoc rooms set up for “turning” human subjects, weaponry and a command center where the leader resides. The tunnels have a wide berth to accommodate the bulky alien sentinels, who looks like meatballs with mouths. It’s an awkward design that perfectly fits the sci-fi mold of cheesy and creative. Once you learn the suits were operated by having a dwarf strapped to the back of a regular-sized person who was walking backward, it’s almost impossible not to imagine what’s going on inside whenever you watch them walk. The leader alien is rather phallic, with the head set upon a long, er, shaft that pushes out from behind an equally-genital-like opening. All of these aliens are completely impractical and ineffective from a world domination standpoint, but on film they look pretty cool. And, again, they’re the film’s highlight.<br>
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<i>Invaders from Mars</i> is exactly the kind of film I loved as a kid, so it’s disappointing that love doesn’t extend to my adult years. In more capable hands this might have been an ‘80s update of a ‘50s classic that nailed the tone, brought some tension and moved at a consistent clip to keep audiences invested. While Hooper’s vision is by no means a <i>bad</i> film, it’s simply a mediocre one that shows its age and constantly reminds viewers where things go wrong. Solid supporting roles filled by veterans like Black and Karen add necessary gravitas, but the task of carrying the film is placed upon Carson’s diminutive shoulders – and he buckles under the weight.<br>
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Previously issued by MGM on a muddy DVD in their now-defunct Midnight Movies line, Scream Factory brings <i>Invaders from Mars</i> to Blu-ray with a 2.35:1 1080p image that totally blows away that old release. Shot by cinematographer Daniel Pearl, the picture seen here is atmospheric and nicely captures a suitable ‘50s aesthetic in terms of shot composition and scope. Grain is much finer than on the DVD release, looking very filmic aside from a few interior shots where it spikes, becoming a bit noisy. Colors are bold and well-saturated, much more so than the DVD. Black levels are stable and dark. There is an inherent softness to the edges of the frame, due to the anamorphic shooting process, a minor problem that sometimes extends to the entire shot. Still, this is a major improvement over what came before and fans will be very pleased to see the film looking so sharp.<br>
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The original sound mix for the film was mono, and the last DVD has an Ultra Stereo track, but this new Blu-ray edition one-ups that with an English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track, as well as a 2.0 option, too. The multi-channel option is the clear winner, offering a fuller, robust listening experience. Composer Christopher Young’s score sounds like he’s channeling John Williams at times, lending Hooper’s pic an air of Spielberg to some degree. Wouldn’t be the first time… The track is clean and clear, free from hisses, and offers nicely separated effects across the front end. Rears don’t come into use much, if at all. Subtitles are available in English.<br>
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Director Tobe Hooper sits down for an audio commentary, wherein he slips into his casual Texas demeanor and languidly fields questions pertaining to his dealings with Menahem Golan, the genesis of the project, casting decisions and so forth. He comes off a bit spaced out at times, but his information and recollection are both sound.<br>
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“The Martians Are Coming! The Making of <i>Invaders from Mars</i>” runs for over 35 minutes. Hooper, FX creature man Alec Gillis and other members of the cast & crew were recently interviewed for this piece, looking back at the time spent on set. Gillis, in particular, has some amusing anecdotes regarding the creatures he helped operate. Featurettes like this are the Scream Factory supplemental bread & butter, and this one is just as good as any other.<br>
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“Production Illustrations Gallery from Artist William Stout” features glimpses of the art designed for the film, with the artist discussing how each piece fit into the film. There’s some really great stuff in here.<br>
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The film’s theatrical trailer, a TV spot, a collection of storyboards set to the film’s score, and a still gallery round out the extras.<br>
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Of note: the MGM Midnight Movies release contained two vintage featurettes on the making of the film, neither of which is included here. I watched both recently and, while a bit redundant, they’re worth fans’ time and feature some great behind-the-scenes footage. So if you are a bonus feature junkie, you’ll want to hang onto that old DVD.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-74491292859960587442015-03-17T16:45:00.000-07:002015-03-17T16:45:14.210-07:00Blacula (1972)/Scream Blacula Scream (1973) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2jYljiUVQ04_dDaJO2GYtvXVF6pwDCJd27Yo1WuQW1hZr6OjBMzXrwarrc_PJwbfDkptgXdr5S6F7tfj0ymUVxpiTwAy3l-lWfGv4rEmNjghyfooo5riFzNRgf9Lkj4AE7L0vO6gga-0y/s1600/blacula.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2jYljiUVQ04_dDaJO2GYtvXVF6pwDCJd27Yo1WuQW1hZr6OjBMzXrwarrc_PJwbfDkptgXdr5S6F7tfj0ymUVxpiTwAy3l-lWfGv4rEmNjghyfooo5riFzNRgf9Lkj4AE7L0vO6gga-0y/s320/blacula.jpg" /></a></div>
<i>“Say, man, that is one strange dude… who is he?”</i><br>
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He’s Blacula.<br>
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In the early ‘70s, black cinema exploded onto screens across the nation when hits such as <i>Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song</i> (1971) and <i>Shaft</i> (1971) proved there was an audience hungry for urban drama focused on African Americans, offering a glimpse into their world. By the following year of 1972, the number of “blaxploitation” films increased more than fourfold, spawning a new genre and giving a voice to black filmmakers and actors who now had a platform with which to tell their stories. The movement may have only lasted a few years (by 1977 titles were trickling out), but blaxploitation left an indelible mark on cinema and bestowed upon audiences a handful of classic pictures.<br>
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One such enduring film is <i>Blacula</i> (1972), the first blaxploitation horror picture. Heavy cues are taken from past Dracula adaptations, but this entry is firmly rooted in African American culture due to the prevalence of jive-talkin’, tweed jackets and afros aplenty. Classically trained actor William H. Marshall stars as the title character, whose actual name is Mamuwalde, an African prince who, in 1780, travels to Transylvania on a diplomatic mission to put an end to the slave trade. There, he meets with Dracula (Charles Macaulay), who not only refuses to help Mamuwalde in his quest but also attacks him and his wife, Luva (Vonetta McGee). Mamuwalde fights back fiercely, but a bite from Dracula seals his fate and, in an ironic twist, sees him turned into a slave who now seeks blood to quench his undying thirst. He’s also rechristened “Blacula” by Dracula, a name which is oddly enough never again uttered during the film. Mamuwalde is sealed up in a coffin, inside a crypt, along his wife, Luva, who eventually dies by her man’s side.<br>
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Cut to nearly two centuries later and the contents of Dracula’s castle have been put up for auction, purchased by a couple of interior decorators who have plans for these antiques back home in Los Angeles. Upon arrival, however, Mamuwalde is awakened and quickly dispatches the couple. At the funeral service for one of the men, Mamuwalde inconspicuously watches the mourners, with Tina (Vonetta Williams) catching his eye as the apparent reincarnation of his beloved Luva. When he’s not busy feeding on the citizens of L.A., Mamuwalde is at his charming best, seductively romancing Tina, who is falling under his hypnotic spell. One of Tina’s acquaintances, Dr. Gordon Thomas (Thalmus Rasulala), however, has found bite marks consistent with vampire lore on the neck of a victim, and is convinced there may be one of the undead on the city streets. When Gordon digs up a recently deceased victim and is met by a pair of snarling fangs, his suspicions are confirmed. Working with the police, Gordon takes down a warehouse filled with blood suckers, while Mamuwalde and Tina attempt to flee together and preserve their love.<br>
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First and foremost, the onus of the film’s success rests squarely on the broad shoulders of William H. Marshall. The actor’s imposing physique belies his Shakespearean line delivery and effortless charm, bolstered by a smooth baritone voice that should have been cutting slow jam records, a la Barry White. Of interesting note is that Marshall wanted Mamuwalde to be more than just “Black Dracula”, going so far as to see his character’s name was changed from the generic “Andrew Brown” and given a backstory rich in African culture and focused on his attempt to stop slavery. His noble intentions give the film its ironic twist of fate. As with most vampires, Mamuwalde is typical in that he can be oozing seduction one minute, then lapping at an oozing neck like a monster the next. There’s a clear dichotomy to the character, because once he’s in full-on vamp mode his actions are feral and instinctual; the amiable man is left entirely. There’s only one oddity to his performance… The man has been sealed up in a casket since 1780, and when he awakens in present day Los Angeles there isn’t a single scene of his amazement at how the world has changed. A whole helluva lot happened in two centuries, so you’d think the man would show some sense of wonder.<br>
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Also atypical for a horror picture is the film’s score, courtesy of composer Gene Page, an arranger for such hit acts as The Four Tops, The Temptations and Barry White. There isn’t a lick of traditional horror movie motifs to be heard. Instead, the score is filled almost exclusively with music endemic to blaxploitation and black culture, giving <i>Blacula</i> a more soulful, funky edge than any other genre picture up to that point. The main theme could have come right out of <i>Shaft</i>, or been on a Brothers Johnson album.<br>
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From the Saul Bass-esque title credits right up through the surprisingly gallant, bittersweet ending <i>Blacula</i> has long cemented its status as one of the seminal cult classics of all-time. Even the title has been elevated to use as a colloquialism; any black guy who dresses as a vampire is automatically Blacula. This reminds me of <i>The Simpsons</i> (1989-present) episode where Dr. Hibbert, dressed as a vampire, is called Blacula and exclaims, <i>“Oh, because I’m black and I’m Dracula, that makes me Blacula?”</i> It’s in the cultural lexicon to stay. Complaints the film is amateurish, poorly acted, weak or unsatisfying were made by people who clearly don’t want to have fun with a movie.<br>
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Where there’s a hit, there’s usually a sequel, and <i>Blacula</i> got its follow-up just one year later in the form of <i>Scream Blacula Scream</i> (1973). Marshall returns as Mamuwalde, with Pam Grier (who was in the midst of a major hot streak) joining the cast as a potential love interest for the undead prince. Grier plays Lisa, the chosen successor of a late high voodoo priestess who opts for her over Willis (Richard Lawson), the priestess’ immature son. Upset at his dead mother’s decision, Willis acquires the bones of Mamuwalde in hopes that a voodoo ritual will bring the vampire back to life, whereupon he’ll have Mamuwalde do his bidding. The ritual works – but not as Willis intended. Mamuwalde isn’t controllable, and in another ironic series twist Willis winds up the unwitting servant to his conjured Prince of Darkness.<br>
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As Willis increases the vamp stable in his home through nightly feedings, Mamuwalde is a man about town, winding up at a party thrown by former detective Justin Carter (Richard Lawson). Justin is showing off his collection of rare African artifacts which, unbeknownst to him, were excavated from the region where Mamuwalde was once prince. Also at this party is Lisa, Justin’s girlfriend and the burgeoning voodoo priestess. She immediately takes a liking to Mamuwalde, who reciprocates because Lisa is incredibly foxy, and because her voodoo powers may be his ticket to lifting the curse which Dracula placed upon him centuries ago. Justin, meanwhile, works with some of his local police buddies to find who’s responsible for a string of murders in the area – murders committed by Mamuwalde, Willis and their growing brood. Things naturally come to a head in the third act, where Justin & co. storm Willis’ home and fight the vampiric residents, while Mamuwalde and Lisa attempt to lift his eternal burden.<br>
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Though not as good as the first film, <i>Scream Blacula Scream</i> is a surprisingly worthwhile follow-up that employs another trait common to a handful of blaxploitation films: voodoo. This approach helps differentiate the film enough that it doesn’t feel like a total rehash of events. Stylistically, many similarities are apparent including the opening titles, musical score (by a different composer) and overall aesthetics. Marshall once again plays Mamuwalde with a strong sense of dignity and class, and he flips it completely around when the fangs are bared. This time around Mamuwalde gets to show off a bit of his muscle. In one of the film’s best scenes, a couple of muggers try to get rough with the dark prince. Both quickly learn this was a mistake. And finally, for the first time in the series Mamuwalde actually refers to himself as Blacula, although his declaration doesn’t come until the film is nearly over. It’s funny that he’s christened Blacula at the opening of the first film, yet the name is never heard again until there are around seven minutes left in the sequel.<br>
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<i>Blacula</i> and <i>Scream Blacula Scream</i> are both highly entertaining slices of vintage cinema, featuring much of what makes blaxploitation films so damn enjoyable. William H. Marshall adds more gravitas than anyone who hasn’t seen these films would expect, delivering a powerful nuanced performance that, frankly, could have carried into another film or two. All hail Scream Factory for putting together a solid double feature for fans of these funky bloodsuckers.<br>
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The 1.85:1 1080p images for both <i>Blacula</i> and <i>Scream Blacula Scream</i> are very similar, with each getting a major upgrade over previous DVD editions thanks to some spiffy HD transfers made at MGM. Each print is immaculate, with extremely few hints of dirt or debris. Detail is highly apparent in every scene, with little background elements enjoying increased clarity. Colors look sharp and well-saturated, and black levels remains mostly stable throughout – a few shot here and there look hazy, nothing terrible. Grain is left in place, giving both films the proper aged ‘70s aesthetic.<br>
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Each film features an English DTS-HD MA 2.0 mono track, both of which are clear, clean and free from any hisses or pops. The sound design on these films is hardly dynamic, with a minimum level of separation among different elements. Dialogue sounds a bit low during a couple scenes where location sound was clearly used, though the majority of the tracks present it balanced among effects and music. The musical numbers and source tracks used on the soundtrack sound full and have presence. Subtitles are included in English.<br>
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<i>Blacula</i> features a commentary with author/film historian/filmmaker David F. Walker. This guy is prepared, excited and immediately begins rattling off once the picture gets underway, joking that most listeners probably have no clue who he is but he’ll explain why he’s here in a bit. He does, and he also delivers a lot of background information on the film’s production and actors.<br>
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<i>Scream Blacula Scream</i> star Richard Lawson provides an interview, running for just over 13 minutes. The actor describes how he didn’t even get the part he eventually wound up playing. He’s also apparently very skilled at reading a light meter based solely on how hot it feels on his skin.<br>
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Both films also feature a photo gallery and trailer among their respective bonus features.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-13652379802692807142015-03-17T16:41:00.000-07:002015-03-17T16:41:45.719-07:00Exterminators Of The Year 3000 (1983) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBJaoRv0SiLWHXcKBxUXoj_abyVNZBIWYU_YaVVwF17OItP9TeJonEk8lCcTqj_IXr4XM4b-oGlCB0sS-z3AbS1PLpDOupH1vJUfmZVZFY6eHoB_I7byuhjLRu9YSHH5yIHoPLXpn-dcQI/s1600/ext3000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBJaoRv0SiLWHXcKBxUXoj_abyVNZBIWYU_YaVVwF17OItP9TeJonEk8lCcTqj_IXr4XM4b-oGlCB0sS-z3AbS1PLpDOupH1vJUfmZVZFY6eHoB_I7byuhjLRu9YSHH5yIHoPLXpn-dcQI/s320/ext3000.jpg" /></a></div>
Italian cinema has triumphed in many ways throughout the history of motion pictures, bestowing upon audiences celebrated directors, an entire subgenre of horror (<i>giallo</i>), timeless composers (e.g. Ennio Morricone) and unquestionably classic films. Yet, dubious as it may be, the country’s most notorious cinema comes in the form of cash-grab in-name-only sequels and blatant rip-offs of any acclaimed hit to make waves. If a Western/Horror/Shark film enjoyed any level of success in the ‘70s and ‘80s, you can be sure the Italians found a way to produce half a dozen illegitimate sequels, virtually all of which are a faint shadow of the original work. They’re also guilty of cannibalizing their own successes, as evidenced by the fact <i>Django</i> (1966) has more “sequels” than the James Bond series (1962-present) has films.<br>
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After George Miller’s <i>Mad Max</i> (1979) and <i>The Road Warrior</i> (1981) proved to be sizeable hits, it wasn’t long before a slew of Italian imitations hit the scene. Don’t get me wrong here – just because these films are taken whole cloth from other, often better productions doesn’t mean many aren’t awesome(ly bad) in their own special way. <i>1990: Bronx Warriors</i> (1982) kicks all sorts of scorched-earth ass, so who cares if you can see pedestrians and traffic off in the distance of “post-apocalyptic New York”? The plots of these films were generally identical most of the time anyway: a fairly benevolent group of people needs some resource, while another group of less friendly people wants to prevent them from obtaining it. Fights ensue. But where <i>Exterminators of the Year 3000</i> (1983) <i>slightly</i> differs is that it might as well be a remake of <i>The Road Warrior</i>, with only a few minor substitutions made to distinguish it in any way. It’s like watching a student film version of Miller’s masterpiece – all the elements are present, just on a much lesser scale.<br>
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Nuclear war has ravaged Earth, leaving it a scorched, barren wasteland by the year 3000. A small encampment of remaining humans lives underground in a cave, where they use retro-future methods to grow lettuce and seemingly little else. Unfortunately, water is a scarcity now (gas probably is, too, but one problem at a time) and these people desperately need it if they are to survive any longer. One brave man volunteered to retrieve some, but he never returned and everyone figures he’s dead. In his stead another man, known as “Alien” (Robert Iannucci), offers to take up the task. He won’t be going alone. Tommy (Luca Venantini), the 10-year-old son of the guy who disappeared on his water run, wants to tag along. Tommy soon learns the dusty plains they must travel are no place for a young boy. Savages are everywhere, led by the murderous Crazy Bull (Fernando Bilbao), who has a grudge against Alien. A tough woman (and Alien’s ex), Trash (Alicia Moro), and a wily old man, Papillon (Luciano Pigozzi), join Alien and Tommy on their quest for water and aid in the fight against Crazy Bull and his stable of brutal warriors.<br>
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This movie is strictly for those who like their cheese thick. As easy as it would be to pick this film apart like a sundried carcass, the fact of the matter is it’s actually got a lot of flat-out ridiculous elements that work because they show sparks of creativity and passion. Alien uses a pair of bolas that can cut a man in two. Tommy, who we learn halfway through the film has a bionic arm, has that arm repaired and improved giving him the ability to throw a rock through someone’s head like it was made of butter. The water cache our heroes are searching for is guarded by a squad of deranged welders. An obvious miniature set explodes with all the ferocity of a Roman candle. If you’re going to make a picture and the budget is limited, this is how you do it – maximize the shit out of every dollar. Most of <i>Exterminators of the Year 3000</i> is utterly forgettable, but the producers wisely included a handful of scenes that are memorable enough to give it some lasting credit. Not much, but enough to keep viewers from falling asleep or checking their social media feeds. The opening car chase, which is a fantastic example of stunt driving, looks like something right out of a Stephen J. Cannell television production.<br>
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It’s likely anyone buying this latest Blu-ray release from Scream Factory - which was almost a double feature with <i>Cruel Jaws</i> (1995) until that was proven to be a rights nightmare, as it uses unauthorized footage from at least four other shark movies - knows what they’re getting into, so if you’re reading this review because you love all of those scrappy Italian nuclear wasteland films and want to know if this one is worth your time, the answer is… sure. It fits right into that wheelhouse.<br>
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Much like the film itself, <i>Exterminators of the Year 3000</i> arrives on Blu-ray with a 1.85:1 1080p picture that is gritty and rough around the edges. To be fair, technically the presentation is about as good as it’s going to get, plus this also marks the first time the film has been released on home video in its proper aspect ratio. Code Red had released a DVD edition in 2010 that was full frame, so enough said there. This hi-def release features a marginal uptick in quality over standard resolution, with only extreme closeups worthy of any sort of praise. In general, it’s a soft focus feature with accurately rendered colors, unspectacular details and a sunbaked color palette. In darkness, detail is completely swallowed; thankfully, very few scenes take place in such conditions. Fans will likely be happy enough just having the film in widescreen.<br>
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Once again, on a technical level there’s not much fault to be found within the English DTS-HD MA 2.0 mono audio track. Every trait of the sound mix, for better or worse, is cleanly carried over here. In the bonus features it’s made clear that the languages spoken on set were English, Italian and Spanish, and their vocalization wasn’t always done when cameras stopped rolling. Therefore, the entire film had to be dubbed. So expect lots of tin can dialogue, <i>“Look out, it’s Godzilla!”</i> lip synching and a near total lack of any presence whatsoever. Composer Detto Mariano gets a modicum of credit for crafting a catchy low-fi synth motif, but it gets so overused you’d think it was all he wrote. Subtitles are included in English.<br>
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If you’re able to withstand the moderation by Code Red’s Bill Olsen, then this audio commentary with actor Robert Iannucci may be worth a listen. Iannucci has many clear recollections from the set, speaking about the different nationalities participating in the production, eating snakes, the stunt work and so forth. Personally, Olsen is just a little too deprecating and hyper for my tastes, and his mania sours otherwise decent commentary tracks. Just my two cents.<br>
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“Boogie Down with the Alien: Interview with Robert Iannucci” runs for a little over 17 minutes. This footage looks rather old and is presented undated. The actor sits down to discuss his involvement with the project from casting to production and its legacy. Some info is redundant here if you’ve heard the commentary track.<br>
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The film’s trailer and a couple of TV spots are also included.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-73348471378924803542015-02-19T17:14:00.000-08:002015-02-19T17:14:32.627-08:00New Year's Evil (1980) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieUsdXsokzgWwDNzThWhxtbB1Q185HyVlf72QYobGXmN50qmVVd8GLIk8pIl2p8lQ0T0HBs7ErJHVimX1GSk0XCX6e8znhOrpBDWuZ838bfHZyAJogTkr4XGdqNv9ddkcTM_rmXT_l_QV9/s1600/91-44gDMPHL._SX425_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieUsdXsokzgWwDNzThWhxtbB1Q185HyVlf72QYobGXmN50qmVVd8GLIk8pIl2p8lQ0T0HBs7ErJHVimX1GSk0XCX6e8znhOrpBDWuZ838bfHZyAJogTkr4XGdqNv9ddkcTM_rmXT_l_QV9/s320/91-44gDMPHL._SX425_.jpg" /></a></div>
While Joe Six Pack might wait until Halloween to bust out the scary stuff, horror fans only have one time of year they watch fright films: all the time. Not that it ever gets old, but a sporadic way to break up the monotony is through holiday horrors. Odds are pretty good that if a film is set on a major holiday it’ll be getting a yearly viewing from most diehards… even if it’s terrible. This explains how <i>Uncle Sam</i> (1996) winds up in my player every July 4th. Thankfully, <i>New Year’s Evil</i> (1980) is not terrible, even if it is a fairly run-of-the-mill slasher. The film comes across slightly smarter than expected because it incorporates the normal festivities of New Year’s Eve into the plot, turning moments typically of celebration into fear. It also gets another bonus point for a third act reveal that is unexpected (if not a tad cliché) assuming you haven’t checked the cast list on IMDb and ruined it for yourself – which is exactly what I did.<br>
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It’s New Year’s Eve! And all the cool kids are celebrating at a taping of <i>Hollywood Hotline</i>, a punk rock & new wave show hosted by Diane “Blaze” Sullivan (Roz Kelly). The show is hosting a late-night countdown, with bands playing on stage and a dozen people standing by to take phone call requests. Diane gets a call from a “fan” who calls himself “Evil” and states that he will murder someone each time the clock strikes midnight in a different time zone, with her to be the final victim. Diane’s security team puts the building on lockdown and keeps her and her son, Derek (Grant Cramer), secured. Meanwhile, victims begin to arrive one per hour as the first stroke of midnight brings with it a nurse’s death. Evil records his crimes and call the show after the deed is done, playing back his promises. It isn’t long before the trail of bodies leads directly to Diane’s dressing room.<br>
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This was a fun movie, even for a first time viewer like me who has seen a hundred slashers. Is it original? Absolutely not, but it is very entertaining in a “14-year-old staying up late to watch USA’s “Up All Night” kind of way”. Having the killer strike at midnight works perfectly as a plot device, and it seems like such a natural choice to play up the film’s holiday ties. Perhaps one of the best aspects to the production is the decision to reveal the killer early on. I always find this a creepier approach than the boilerplate “hide in the shadows for 85 minutes” killers in the majority of slasher films. This guy is fairly debonair, too; think of Ted Bundy and you’re on the right track. Even better, he’s got a streak of John “Hannibal” Smith (leader of <i>The A-Team</i> (1983-1987), as played by George Peppard) in him because he shows up at each victim’s location wearing extremely convincing outfits. His third act skirmish with a biker gang (!) is so preposterous and deliciously B-grade cinema. Don’t forget, folks, this is a Cannon Films production – always expect the outrageous and then some.<br>
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If there’s one thing to remember the film by, however, it’s the title song; a damn catchy one, too. <i>New Year’s Evil</i>, as performed by Roxanne Seeman and Eduardo del Barrio, spent four days blaring the opening lines in my head before I could get it out. It plays on the Blu-ray’s menu, it opens the film and it may be used one other time; I’m not sure. It’s one of those infectious tunes that are impossible to shake. With all these vinyl companies putting out obscure soundtracks these days, someone please get this on a 7”.<br>
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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Jx9biPN6uRE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br>
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<i>New Year’s Evil</i> is a perfectly decent slasher movie while also being highly enjoyable to watch for the sheer ridiculousness of it all – making it the ideal choice to pop on with a group of wasted friends on its namesake holiday. Or, perhaps, by yourself, Smirnoff Ice in hand, lamenting another year gone by with no social life to show for it. Either way you’re destined for Fun City.<br>
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This is the Blu-ray debut for <i>New Year’s Evil</i>, having previously been issued on a burn-on-demand DVD from MGM. The film’s 1.78:1 1080p image appears to have been faithfully reproduced, for better or worse. This is not a good looking film by any means, but it’s about as cleaned up as it needs to be. The print sourced from MGM is in good shape, with the only real anomaly showing up in the form of a yellow vertical line appearing 1/3 of the way across the screen for three shots. It’s a very minor defect. Line work in the shadows tends to fade into a murky mess, and black levels get pretty noisy when it’s really dark. That’s all the bad stuff. On a positive note, closeups reveal nice little details in faces and clothing textures. Colors are nicely saturated. Other than some grain spikes during night scenes, the majority of the appearance is very filmic.<br>
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The English DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo track has exactly one issue with it, a high-pitched ringing that occurs for around ten seconds at approximately 30 minutes into the movie. That aside, this is a typically competent audible offering from Scream Factory. Dialogue is balanced and discernible, songs have a moderate presence and sound effects are given good weight. There could be a bit more oomph to the sourced music, especially that theme song, but this gets the job done just fine. Subtitles are included in English.<br>
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The film’s audio commentary features writer & director Emmett Alston, and it’s a bit on the dry side. Code Red’s Bill Olsen is on hand to moderate the proceedings, which delve into typical production speak about location shooting, budgetary concerns, how Alston got hooked up with Cannon, etc. It’s a subdued affair that even serious fans of the film may find boring.<br>
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“The Making of <i>New Year’s Evil</i>” is a behind-the-scenes piece that runs for nearly 40 minutes. This is yet another in a series of winning behind-the-scenes pieces from Scream Factory, featuring interviews with many cast & crew members who offer up all sorts of interesting anecdotes and reminisce fondly on their time making the movie. Stick around through the brief credits for a fun scene at the end.<br>
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The film’s theatrical trailer is included in HD.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-58879738388856611332015-02-16T18:58:00.000-08:002015-02-16T18:58:02.799-08:00The Phantom of the Opera: The Motion Picture (1989) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvOfgi-RmzQ21BkRUxAYV_yLJTMhLGZTj55c8r3H4W0hUbi09gtl7MkJYyNCebnoO1d6SH2vHdNwnNNRbVYzKRGikbrreiKTOgnorIj38MAU9HaTdE3KlLHsvQIhTMKU_YDawv7OW6_wR8/s1600/Phantom-Of-The-Opera-Blu-ray.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvOfgi-RmzQ21BkRUxAYV_yLJTMhLGZTj55c8r3H4W0hUbi09gtl7MkJYyNCebnoO1d6SH2vHdNwnNNRbVYzKRGikbrreiKTOgnorIj38MAU9HaTdE3KlLHsvQIhTMKU_YDawv7OW6_wR8/s320/Phantom-Of-The-Opera-Blu-ray.jpg" /></a></div>
Confession time: I have never liked theater. The scant few shows I have attended – one of which was a performance of “The Phantom of the Opera” at the Pantages – were well executed and marginally exciting, but there has never been a single time where I felt the urge to take in a show. This apathetic view has extended to cinematic adaptations of musicals, too, although there are unquestionably great films filled with songs. The purpose of this preface is to explain why I’d never watched <i>The Phantom of the Opera: The Motion Picture</i> (1989), despite being acutely aware of it since childhood. As a young horror fan, who wouldn’t have been drawn in by that cover art? It sold the movie as “Freddy: The Musical”, after all, complete with “Freddy” in bold letters on the cover and Englund’s partially-obscured visage looking an awful lot like his signature character. I must’ve passed it a thousand times on the video shelf as a kid and always had the same thought, <i>“Nope, not interested in a musical.”</i><br>
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Oh, what a youthful fool. First off, it isn’t really much of a musical at all. The Phantom’s compositions are obviously a main component of the film, but it isn’t like characters break out into song every time they have a monologue to deliver. And it’s good music, too. Misha Segal’s score has been singled out as one of the film’s strengths, deservedly so. Secondly, this is absolutely a horror movie. If Englund’s presence didn’t make that evident, the choice of Dwight H. Little (he of <i>Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers</i> (1988) fame) as director and the use of Kevin Yagher and John Carl Buechler for FX work should make it crystal clear – a great deal of blood will be spilled.<br>
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Opening in present day New York City (check out that Tower Records!), Christine (Jill Schoelen) is an opera singer who wants to find something unique to sing for her upcoming audition. She and her friend Meg (Molly Shannon, in her film debut) discover a piece written by Erik Destler, a composer who they learn may have been responsible for a spate of murders in 19th century London. No matter, it’s a great song. Christine sings the piece at her audition, but before she finishes a sandbag crashes down from overhead and knocks her out. She awakens in 1881 London as an operatic understudy to La Carlotta (Stephanie Lawrence), a diva headlining “Faust”. Visions of Erik Destler begin to plague Christine, in which he tells her that only she can sing Carlotta’s parts as they should be performed. An “unfortunate accident” prevents Carlotta from going on that night, and Christine receives a standing ovation after stepping in for her.<br>
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The parallels between “Faust” and Destler’s life are then revealed, as it is shown that Destler made a deal with the Devil to ensure his music would be eternal. The catch? His face would be permanently disfigured, allowing people to love him only for his music. He’s also given superhuman strength and is seemingly immortal, so maybe not such a bad deal after all? Destler’s obsession with Christine continues to mount, leaving a trail of bodies in his wake and culminating in an attack on his underground lair in hopes of finally stopping him. Post-attack, we’re whisked back to present day New York City where Christine is waking up from her audition accident to a familiar face…<br>
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Jill Schoelen mentions in the bonus features that the film’s failure at the box office was likely due to the fact most horror fans didn’t want to see a musical any more than musical fans wanted to see a horror movie. She’s right there; many horror/comedies fail at the box office for the same reason – genre confusion and disinterest. The stage version may be most closely associated with the title, but this film version hews more to Gaston Leroux’s source novel. The only major change is of locale, from Paris to London, a decision made to give the picture a more “Hammer Studios” aesthetic. Well, that and the signature chandelier scene, which was dropped because Menahem Golan ran out of money. Golan’s name alone should have clued genre fans in to what to expect; the man built a solid career with Cannon Pictures and its hyper-violent films.<br>
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One could easily view this film as “Freddy of the Opera” thanks to Destler’s crispy-fried features being brought to life by Kevin Yagher, who handled makeup duties on three <i>A Nightmare on Elm St.</i> films as well as <i>Freddy’s Nightmares</i> (1988-1989). For most of the film Destler hides under a mask made up of the skin from his victims’ faces (he’s skilled at flaying), something he stiches onto himself periodically. When that is removed, however, he looks like Freddy Krueger with extra skin. How could he not?<br>
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It’s a shame the planned <i>The Phantom of New York City</i> never came together because this film ends on a sequel-setting note that could have been a worthwhile continuance. I could kick my younger self for not giving this a shot and renting it all those years ago. Thanks to strong FX work, particularly nasty kills and solid performances from horror notables, <i>The Phantom of the Opera</i> is an elegantly vicious retelling of a well-trodden tale. If there’s any downside here, it’s that an unrated cut couldn’t be put together. Apparently much of the gore wound up on the cutting room floor (like, you know, every horror film made around this time) and it would’ve been great to see that FX reinstated. Still, what survives is certainly worth horror fans’ time.<br>
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I don’t mind sounding like a broken record in saying Scream Factory has once again delivered a faithful, albeit unspectacular, picture for a catalog release. Maybe not all of their titles get the 2K or 4K treatment, but on the other side of the coin at least they never employ DNR or aggressive new color timing to their releases either. <i>Phantom</i> sports a 1.85:1 1080p image that was sourced from a clean print, free of major defects, dirt and noise. Colors are nicely saturated, especially reds. Grain is moderate and filmic, though it does spike a bit when the scene is in total darkness. As a testament to the FX work, most of the latex skin holds up rather well under the intense scrutiny of HD.<br>
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Viewers are given the option of an English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track or a 2.0 stereo track. Truthfully, to my ears the stereo track appeared more focused and full, while the surround track spreads itself out too thin, resulting in a weak presence and less impact. The film was mixed in Ultra Stereo, making the loss of any rear speaker effects is negligible. Dialogue sounds a bit more present in the 2.0 track as well. The film’s songs carry a decent weight, filling out the front-end assembly nicely. Subtitles are included in English.<br>
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The audio commentary track features director Dwight H. Little and star Robert Englund. These two have a great rapport, covering every necessary base including location shooting, relationships with the other actors, the picture’s tone & look and so forth. Definitely recommended if you enjoyed the film.<br>
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“Behind the Mask: The Making of <i>The Phantom of the Opera</i>” is a great behind-the-scenes piece that runs for just under forty minutes. Many of the film’s principals – Little, Englund, Schoelen, etc. – are on hand to discuss the film. Scream Factory has a knack for pumping out these highly informative, in-depth pieces on making a film; just about every one they’ve produced has been a perfect complement to its corresponding movie. There’s a lot of history behind this production and the anecdotes fly left & right.<br>
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The film’s theatrical trailer, TV spot, two radio spots and a still gallery round out the extra features.<br>
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-88533958513611459762015-02-10T15:35:00.000-08:002015-02-10T15:35:09.369-08:00Love At First Bite (1979)/Once Bitten (1985) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir4sUwCD7l4AHQ5IixoB6zC3kCFDtBuP0O4_TTSC-kmXi5LMY5b246h0SHvC3M4w10OG03vb21nL0NSH3fbVhyEJnBPfgp5Et0hddjsoUr18fTAKflV0DtZsw9loQrlYBfvwIGHkSkMJ7_/s1600/lovebite.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir4sUwCD7l4AHQ5IixoB6zC3kCFDtBuP0O4_TTSC-kmXi5LMY5b246h0SHvC3M4w10OG03vb21nL0NSH3fbVhyEJnBPfgp5Et0hddjsoUr18fTAKflV0DtZsw9loQrlYBfvwIGHkSkMJ7_/s320/lovebite.jpg" /></a></div>
Horror and comedy pair so perfectly it’s almost hard to believe it took filmmakers until the 1980s to really start cranking out some pictures. All those years of pent-up humor exploded at that point, resulting in one movie after the next ditching attempts at absolute terror for a heavy injection of humor. It makes sense why the concept gained traction; after years of seeing horror icons taken so seriously many were plum for roasting. Dracula was one such easy target, what with his Eurotrash romanticism, Misfits devilock-esque ‘do and the roster of staples endemic to vampirism (crosses, garlic, etc.). He’d been indirectly blasted once before by Roman Polanksi in <i>The Fearless Vampire Killers</i> (1967), but 1979 would bring about his first real skewering (staking?).<br>
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Without delving too deeply into the specifics, know that 1979 was an atypical year for vampires. No less than seven (!) films on the subject saw release that year, three of which are labeled as “Disco Dracula” titles. Just think about that – not only is there a Disco Dracula subgenre, but it grew in triplicate during one year. Kind of amazing, especially when you consider disco was heavily declining by that time. Of those three films released in ’79, the only one that still has much of a cult following is <i>Love at First Bite</i>, starring walking skin cancer anomaly George Hamilton as Count Dracula. Just as Mel Brooks had done five years earlier with <i>Young Frankenstein</i> (1974), which spoofed the original <i>Frankenstein</i> (1931), <i>Love at First Bite</i> takes a direct swipe at Bela Lugosi’s <i>Dracula</i> (1931). It isn’t as precise as Brooks’ film, though, using only characters and concepts while ditching the Transylvanian landscape for New York City’s cluttered streets.<br>
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After being booted out of his castle to make way for an Olympic gymnastics training facility, Dracula (George Hamilton) and his faithful insectivore servant, Renfield (Arte Johnson), head off to start a new life in New York City. Not for no reason; Drac has a crush on a magazine cover model who lives there, Cindy Sondheim (Susan Saint James). A mix-up at the airport causes Dracula’s coffin to be temporarily switched with that of a recently deceased black man from Harlem – you know where that joke is headed. Things get sorted out and the Count hits the town in search of his bride-to-be, whom he is convinced he already loves. He & Cindy meet due to his magnetic personality and cocksure charm, but once her guard comes down it’s clear she’s a bit of a mess. She’s sloppy and neurotic and, yet, the Count doesn’t care because he sees her as the reincarnation of his long lost love, Mina Harker.<br>
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One fly in his ointment, however, is Cindy’s therapist – and part-time-lover – Rosenberg (Richard Benjamin), who also happens to be grandson to Dracula’s old nemesis Fritz van Helsing. When Rosenberg finds out who has been pursuing Cindy, he runs Dracula through the gamut of apocryphal methods that will supposedly kill the undead vamp. None finds much success. Rosenberg’s very public antics eventually get him arrested, despite his vocal protests that Dracula is a public menace. He’s only taken seriously when a rash of blood bank robberies and sporadic attacks get the attention of the police chief, who authorizes Rosenberg to get back on the trail of Dracula and Cindy.<br>
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First off, in case you weren’t aware this release has restored Alicia Bridges’ “I Love the Nightlife” during the show-stopping disco number. Considering that sequence is one of the film’s highlights – and, really, a perfect fit for this sort of film - it’s amazing anyone thought it was even remotely acceptable to remove it in the first place. Yea, I know… music clearances and all that. Still a boneheaded move.<br>
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Having never seen the film, I think what surprised me most was the love story, which I had assumed would be half baked so the focus remained on the humor. Instead, it’s a complicated relationship with some genuine ups-and-downs. Dracula is way into Cindy just based on her looks, but his superficial love is immediately tested when it’s shown that Cindy is far from the glamorous, put-together model he envisioned. She’s a lady with some major hang-ups in life. Truthfully, a whole lot of the humor in this film fell flat for me, and I got most of my enjoyment out of watching these two imperfect lovers try to develop an actual relationship.<br>
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Part of the humorlessness that pervades this film comes in the form of Richard Benjamin as Rosenberg. He’s just so… stiff, mono-emotive and not really a good actor. There’s a real lag during the second act when so much of the film is following his character around while Dracula takes a bit of a backseat in his own movie. At least Renfield provides some decent laughs; he’s a little less Dwight Fry and more Marty Feldman’s Igor. It’s a fun, albeit dated, film.<br>
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Outshining Hamilton’s bronze resplendence is pale Canadian Jim Carrey, in his first theatrical leading role with <i>Once Bitten</i> (1985). This one plays more like a ribald ‘80s teen comedy, full of horny virgins and plenty of un-p.c. humor. In a somewhat coincidental twist, this film sees an actual supermodel, Lauren Hutton, playing the role of a vampire known as Countess. She looks remarkable for someone who’s “400 if she’s a day”, according to her personal assistant Sebastian (Cleavon Little), but the upkeep on those to-die-for looks is a steady supply of virgin’s blood – three sips before Halloween to be precise. Only problem is, finding a virgin in a city like Los Angeles isn’t easy work. Luckily, one of Countess’ nights on the town coincides with high schooler Mark (Jim Carrey) and his buddies’ own evening of prospect searching. Mark’s girlfriend, Robin (Karen Kopins), refused to have sex with him the night before, so he quickly determines the next best option is to find a willing partner somewhere in Hollywood. Countess and Mark hit it off at a singles bar and the two head back to her place almost immediately.<br>
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They hook up, although Mark’s recollection of their steamy night is pretty foggy. Did they have sex? She claims so. But now he’s starting to feel weird and act very different. The sun seems too bright. His fashion sense is getting darker. He’s having incredibly bizarre dreams. And he eats raw meat and drinks animal blood without giving it a second thought. Robin is justifiably concerned. When Countess draws blood from Mark a second time, it leads directly to a dance-off face-off between Mark, Countess and Robin (set to an on-the-nose track entitled “Hands Off”). If Countess manages to siphon some virgin blood from Mark just one more time her beauty will endure, but Robin isn’t willing to let her guy go without a fight. It might be a <i>faux pas</i> now, but how can you not laugh at the stampede brought about by the cry of “Fag alert!”?<br>
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The humor in <i>Once Bitten</i> is typical of ‘80s teen comedies, but what puts it over the top are Jim Carrey’s physical mannerisms and wacky faces. Fans of his style will be cracking up watching him dance with a sweater, or when he hisses at a couple local kids, or during any of the vampiric nightmares he has throughout. His malleable punim and range of expressions are his bread-and-butter comedy, but he’s also just as able to handle the scenes of serious drama. Cleavon Little kills it here, too, as Countess’ snarky out-of-the-closet assistant who is lightning quick with his quips. Mark’s two eternally-horny buddies are so desperate to get laid it’ll make you cringe, especially when one of them continues to use his staple pickup line, which is the sort of thing a guy with no understanding of women would say to get laid. The scene in the locker room showers where the two of them are looking for a bite on Mark’s thigh, at the behest of Robin, had me rolling because it’s just so wrong.<br>
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<i>Love at First Bite</i> makes its Blu-ray debut on this double-feature disc, featuring a 1.85:1 1080p image that is undoubtedly a step up from previous releases. The print from which this transfer was sourced looks very clean, with only minor flecks here and there. The cinematography presents a decent level of depth which comes through clearly in HD. Detail is only moderate in medium or wide shots, but up close it’s very sharp and lifelike. Colors are accurate and saturation is where it should be. Black levels, too, are strong.<br>
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The situation is the same in regard to the 1.85:1 1080p image for <i>Once Bitten</i>. The majority of productions around this time tend to have similar aesthetics, so as long as the source materials are kept in great shape – which these were – the end result is pretty expected. No DNR was used on either film, leaving grain intact as a fine layer over the picture.<br>
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Both films feature an English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo track, and as you might’ve guessed both are more or less similar in terms of delivery, separation and overall presence. The sound design is typical of ‘80s comedies, with most of the focus on the dialogue and not much in the way of action. That’s not a complaint, just a fact. Luckily, Scream Factory has a knack for delivering solid stereo tracks, with dialogue clean, centered and well-balanced in the mix. Both films also feature source music that is presented with high fidelity, adding some weight to the track. “Once Bitten” has a little more in the way of discreet effects and separation, more dynamic, but otherwise these two are very similar. English subtitles are included for both films.<br>
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As far as extras go, there isn’t much here at all. Each film has its trailer, while <i>Love at First Bite</i> also gets a few radio spots.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-52576823953027180052015-02-01T14:25:00.001-08:002015-02-01T14:25:57.281-08:00Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings (1993) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgosyVKTTqAiZSBu28n_0u38DCTpoFvMdA-SuNFdw9bHr9KBVECCGcP5O4r9ddyPzKyGSCjINMAwvSzE5Y2kq5CogbpiH8mMJJyuOTrKvItOMSPjKiewGkKpFfzfXU_hty3fzK20f5_bbK5/s1600/phead2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgosyVKTTqAiZSBu28n_0u38DCTpoFvMdA-SuNFdw9bHr9KBVECCGcP5O4r9ddyPzKyGSCjINMAwvSzE5Y2kq5CogbpiH8mMJJyuOTrKvItOMSPjKiewGkKpFfzfXU_hty3fzK20f5_bbK5/s320/phead2.jpg" /></a></div>
Preface: For better or worse (usually worse), I am a child of ‘90s horror. Born in ’81, my formative viewing years were the mid-‘90s, when weekends were spent walking a couple miles to the nearest Wherehouse where I’d peruse the shelves for an entire afternoon. Those halcyon days before I developed discernible taste meant that any new release on the horror shelf was ripe fruit for picking. I rented with impunity. Many of those titles were so bad no one has even bothered to release them on DVD, but one of the “prestige” (comparatively speaking) titles I kinda loved was the sequel to one of my favorite childhood horrors: <i>Pumpkinhead</i> (1988). Not having great taste (when you’re still a kid, of course) is actually pretty awesome because the film world is your oyster; you tend to be less judge-y regarding what you’ll watch. And I watched <i>Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings</i> (1993) - a lot. But upon receiving Scream Factory’s latest Blu-ray it dawned on me that I haven’t seen the film in probably ten years… which may not have been such a bad thing.<br>
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It is not a good movie.<br>
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For starters, the script – which suffered at least four different writers – more or less ignores everything that made the first film so great, retconning Pumpkinhead’s history and giving the enigmatic demon one of the dumbest origins ever. This is mostly because it started off life as a non-Pumpkinhead vehicle. Here, he’s actually the father (let that sink in for a minute) of a young mentally-challenged boy named Thomas who likes to play with toy trucks. Back in the ‘50s, a group of hooligan kids thought it would be fun to chase Thomas through the woods, hang him from a hook over an old mine, beat him up and kill him. How else would you spend your afternoon? Thomas’ caretaker, an old witch not named Haggis (for whatever reason), watches over him and, eventually, over his grave after he’s killed. Cut to modern day, when Sheriff Braddock (Andrew Robinson) and his daughter, Jenny (‘90s horror heartthrob Ami Dolenz), move to town. He’s got a wife, too, but she’s basically wallpaper here. Jenny immediately strikes up a friendship with the local gang of misfits, led by Danny (J. Trevor Edmond), the son of local Judge Dixon (Steve Kanaly) and wearer of dated ‘90s bad boy outfits.<br>
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The group - which also includes former Punky Brewster, Soleil Moon Frye - goes out for a night of drinking and driving. Fun stuff. It ends poorly when Danny hits the old witch, Ms. Osie (Lilyan Chauvin), as she’s crossing the road. Concerned, they head over to her cabin and, rather than help her, Danny punches her out and steals a vial of blood so they can perform a ritual one of the girls read about literally seven seconds earlier. It works, and now Pumpkinhead is unleashed upon the town. Instead of killing the teens first, though, the creature stalks and kills a number of townsfolk who may or may not be related in some way (spoiler: they are). Sheriff Braddock seems to be their only hope, as he has a really lame connection to this malevolent demon that will surely come in handy during the climax.<br>
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Any shred of decency this film has should be chalked up to the tenacity of director Jeff Burr, a.k.a. the man you call when your horror film needs a sequel. After debuting with the creepy little anthology, <i>From a Whisper to a Scream</i> (released theatrically as <i>The Offspring</i>) (1987), Burr spent the next five years of his career helming sequels aplenty. I’ll always respect him because, even though it was hacked up by the studio, <i>Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III</i> (1990) rocks. <i>Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings</i> was no different from his other projects in that he was brought on board with precious little time to make sure his film was, you know, good. Burr even admits in the bonus features he felt the script needed a lot more work, but movies have deadlines and he had two options: make the film, or don’t. Who knows what he could have accomplished with a few more weeks to polish the script.<br>
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At least Burr makes his cast interesting. Andrew Robinson can always be counted on to do good work. Dolenz proves she’s more than just a pretty face; maybe not all that much more, but she’s got some decent chops. The smaller roles were hyped up most on the VHS back cover, including <i>Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III</i> alumni R.A. Mihaloff and Joe Unger, former (then current) Jason Voorhees, Kane Hodder, and scream queen Linnea Quigley. But the real player everyone came to see is the brother of Bubba, Roger Clinton, making his feature film debut. Why Burr didn’t just cast him as the lead is anyone’s guess…<br>
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For as much crapping on the film as this review has done, it is admittedly pretty entertaining. The Pumpkinhead design was tweaked a bit here, giving the beast a little more muscle and a menacing set of white eyes. Plus, unlike the recent abominations (read: sequels) that are now part of the series this creature was done practically; no CGI here. The kills look a little clunky at times, but Burr keeps the crimson river flowing freely enough that it’s all good fun. The dual revenge is a nice touch, too, ensuring we get a number of deaths across all demographics. And, to wax a bit nostalgic, there’s a certain feeling of childhood comfort that comes with watching it again all these years later. <i>Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings</i> is by no means a masterpiece (although compared to the third and fourth entries in the series…) but it’s entertaining enough that horror fans should have some fun watching it.<br>
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What was <i>not</i> entertaining was “Bloodwings: Pumpkinhead’s Revenge”, the PC game released for DOS in 1995. You are welcome to seek out those YouTube clips at your own risk.<br>
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For a low-budget ‘90s picture, the 1.85:1 1080p picture looks relatively strong. Despite having no restorative work done, detail is slightly above average and there’s a nice, fine grain structure that provides a filmic appearance. Colors look faithfully reproduced, even if they tend to lack vibrancy and pop. Black levels, however, are dark and stable. Some medium and wide shots look a tad soft, likely issues inherent to the source. It looks like a ‘90s DTV title, which isn’t such a bad thing. Also, this is the first time the film has been released in its original aspect ratio, as the previous Lionsgate DVD was full-frame.<br>
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The English DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo track is passable, though it’s certainly lacking any sort of real presence or range. Dialogue sounds a bit “canned” at times, but it’s presented clearly with no defects. Voices and discreet effects pan effectively across the front speakers, adding some sense of immersion to the soundtrack. There isn’t much support from the subwoofer, which remains mostly dormant throughout. It’s a competent, unimpressive effort that, much like the picture, is in keeping with the ‘90s DTV origins.<br>
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Director Jeff Burr is a fast talker on the audio commentary track, regaling listeners with stories from every step of the production. Burr has a wonderfully candid, unvarnished approach that is refreshing and makes his commentary tracks absolutely worth listening to for anyone interested in the nuts and bolts of low-budget filmmaking.<br>
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<i>Interview with director Jeff Burr</i> runs for just over an hour. Just as with his audio commentary, Burr is never at a loss for words. He speaks for the entire duration of this interview virtually non-stop. Some of the information is redundant if you’ve heard the commentary, but his frequent anecdotes and honest storytelling will have most viewers hooked in from the start.<br>
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<i>Re-creating the Monster – Interview with Special Effects Artists Greg Nicotero, Gino Crognale and actor Mark McCracken</i> - The FX guys talk about watching old behind-the-scenes footage from the making of <i>Pumpkinhead</i> so they could see how the previous animators brought the creature to life, then making subtle changes to that design to make their beast unique. McCracken, the man under the suit, talks about his work, which from the stories they tell involved a lot of on-set humor.<br>
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<i>Behind the Scenes Footage</i> is entirely camcorder footage of Pumpkinhead being operated and shot on set, along with some of the on-set gags Nicotero & co. spoke of in their interview.<br>
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This Blu-ray doesn’t carry over a featurette on the making of the film found on Lionsgate’s previous release, though what is included here mostly makes up for that. Still, it would have been nice to get some interviews with the cast just to hear their thoughts on the film twenty years later. I’m sure Roger Clinton would’ve been available.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-9985686043510240852015-02-01T13:57:00.000-08:002015-02-01T13:57:55.370-08:00Tales From the Crypt/Vault of Horror (1972/1973) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUipg15FARhRBOE6vMdJ52uSNwwZaPeo2tQlV9rr4R3YedgGV2E_VSsEcgYbFxp1XxaSPKclJzgPc4VuaNeSVqZJAcsQ3OdkEOHygEUhqxdzU92p5ypYzdI0dgQBtil3Fz8dVMxSodTtsE/s1600/tales-vault.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUipg15FARhRBOE6vMdJ52uSNwwZaPeo2tQlV9rr4R3YedgGV2E_VSsEcgYbFxp1XxaSPKclJzgPc4VuaNeSVqZJAcsQ3OdkEOHygEUhqxdzU92p5ypYzdI0dgQBtil3Fz8dVMxSodTtsE/s320/tales-vault.jpg" /></a></div>
When it comes to horror anthologies, no single studio stands out more than Amicus Productions. Though the company may have existed in the shadow of Hammer’s peak output period, their most valued contributions have been portmanteau pictures that were good enough to attract some of Hammer’s top talent. After successfully producing a handful of horror anthologies scripted by famed writer Robert Bloch, the studio looked across the Atlantic to America; specifically, New York City, home to EC Comics. Amicus co-founder Milton Subotsky was a long-time fan of their comics – titles such as “Tales from the Crypt”, “The Haunt of Fear” and “The Vault of Horror” - so he convinced one of his partners to acquire the rights to a handful of their tales. Their initial production, <i>Tales from the Crypt</i> (1972), proved so successful that a follow-up, <i>Vault of Horror</i> (1973, also known as <i>Tales from the Crypt II</i> in some markets), went into immediate production. Fans can debate which the superior film is (for me it’s <i>Tales</i>) but there’s no question that the winning combination of Amicus’ horror anthology acumen and EC Comics’ strong storytelling yielded two of the greatest multi-storied horror pictures conceived.<br>
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<i>Tales from the Crypt</i> begins with a wraparound wherein five strangers are inexplicably drawn to aging catacombs. There, they meet the Crypt Keeper (Ralph Richardson), an enigmatic, hooded individual who proceeds to tell each of them their eventual fate. Joanne (Joan Collins) is subjected to the terror of a deranged Santa Claus after killing her husband on Christmas Eve, leaving her unable to phone the police lest they discover her dead beau’s corpse. Carl (Ian Hendry) leaves his family behind to elope with a younger mistress, but their plans of future bliss are cut short due to a violent car crash, one which Carl only appears to have survived. The Elliotts – Edward (David Markham) and his unscrupulous son, James (Robin Phillips) – do everything in their power to rid the neighborhood of kindly old Mr. Grimsdyke (Peter Cushing), a lonely widower who takes great pleasure in fixing toys for the local kids and raising a stable of dogs. When their efforts succeed beyond their wildest dreams, a visitor from the grave ensures they won’t be around long to wallow in hateful bliss. Ralph (Richard Greene) and his wife, Enid (Barbara Murphy), have fallen on hard times. A Chinese figurine they discover claims to hold the power to grant them three wishes, hardly what they should consider a blessing given the outcome of the old “Monkey’s Paw” tale. Finally, a home for the blind is being run by newly-appointed head Major William Rogers (Nigel Patrick), a stern military type who rations everything from food to heating due to “economic concerns”; this despite the fact that he continues to live and eat like a king on the premises. The poorly-treated residents of the home don’t take kindly to his cruel rules, leading them to give the Major a taste of his own medicine. The film wraps up with the Crypt Keeper letting the five strangers in on a little secret, one which becomes clearer and clearer as the finale draws closer.<br>
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The greatest strength in <i>Tales</i> comes not from the acting or directing – both of which are perfectly sound – but in the rich stories culled from the comics. Somewhat ironically, most of the stories come not from <i>Tales</i> but some of EC’s other publications, though that’s more a minor bit of trivia than a condemnation. Each segment tells a full story in brief time, often with a morality angle and always ending poorly for the amoral characters who act as though they’re above reproach. Additionally, the film nails what many anthologies often don’t: the wraparound, which here is just as intriguing and mysterious as any one of the film’s stories. Also, maybe it’s the accents, but British horror pictures tend to have an air of regality about them that elevates the material ever so slightly; a touch more prestige, if you will. There’s also a great deal of wonderful practical FX on display, in particular the zombified Grimsdyke who isn’t on screen for nearly long enough. In fact, no segment overstays its welcome, ensuring the audience is hungry for more once the credits begin rolling.<br>
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And they remained hungry, so much so that Amicus quickly shuttled a sequel into production. <i>Vault of Horror</i> opened the following year, presenting a storyline virtually identical to its predecessor. Unlike <i>Tales</i>, which included a couple stories from its namesake comic, <i>Vault</i> pulled entirely from other publications; in fact, the majority of the stories are actually found in <i>Tales</i>. Not that any of this matters; it’s more about capturing the spirit of EC Comics’ publications than slavishly adapting them.<br>
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Here, five men find themselves on an elevator heading toward a destination none of them anticipated: the building’s sub-basement, where they find a posh room housing a large table and plenty of drinks. And, so, seemingly trapped here with time to kill each recounts a recurring nightmare they have experienced. The first, Harold (Daniel Massey), tells of visiting a mysterious village looking for his sister, who just inherited a large sum of money. He finds the townspeople odd and unhelpful, but eventually tracks down his sibling whom he promptly kills so the inheritance money will go to him. Death must cause considerable hunger because he heads to a local eatery for a bite, only to realize these are not normal people… and he’s just been added to the menu. Arthur Critchit (Terry-Thomas) is a fastidiously clean fellow, unlike his young wife, Eleanor (Glyns Johns), who is unable to meet his OCD demands. She’s such a nitwit that when she does try to earnestly clean, it only produces a bigger mess. And when Arthur gets home he erupts, finally pushing Eleanor to do some erupting of her own. Sebastian (Curd Jurgens) is a magician on vacation in India. He’s also a total dick who exposes fellow magicians to their rapt audiences. When he meets a woman who does extraordinary things with a rope (not <i>that</i> kind of extraordinary), naturally he decides the best way to acquire her skill is to kill her. What he doesn’t count on is the rope may not need the woman to perform its magic. A scam artist, Maitland (Michael Craig) concocts a scheme to collect insurance money on his own life by using a serum to give the illusion he has died. A friend of his is set to collect the money and, after burial, retrieve Maitland from the grave so he can live high on the hog for the rest of his days. Things, naturally, go poorly for all parties involved. Finally, Moore (Tom Baker), a painter in Haiti barely scraping by on his meager wages, learns his old art cohorts have sold his “worthless” paintings for a mint. Moore visits a voodoo priest and is given the power to use his artistic abilities for evil purposes, literally painting his enemies to their deaths. Moore, however, shows he’s a bit of a moron by painting a portrait of himself, which couldn’t possibly be damaged accidentally, could it?<br>
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The stories told in <i>Vault of Horror</i> are not quite as strong as those in its predecessor, but by no means is the film poor. It’s likely no accident the picture feels very much like an imitator of <i>Tales from the Crypt</i> given how popular that title was at the time. The tales aren’t redundant in any way, with each thematically different from the others. Conversely, three of the segments in <i>Tales</i> dealt with the living dead, whereas not a single one features a lumbering zombie here. Still, <i>Vault</i> can’t help but feeling a bit pedestrian, with no one story standing out as a clear winner. The onus of success then falls not on the writers but the actors, nearly all of whom turn in commendable performances. Terry-Thomas steals the show, if anyone does. His expressive face and trademark gap-toothed grin convey comedy and stern authority in equal parts. Plus, he was great in <i>Danger: Diabolik</i> (1968). The wraparound is the only piece that feels rehashed, though it’s still nicely done.<br>
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Let’s get to what’s really enticing for fans here: <i>Vault of Horror</i> is, at long last, available fully uncut. Horror fans know that often times literal frames can significantly impact a film’s, um, impact. This is absolutely the case with <i>Vault</i>, and the uncut version restores the neck tap, “odds & ends”, the result of a hammer blow and the aftermath of losing one’s hands. After watching the film for the first time, I cannot imagine having these crucial scenes trimmed. The big payoff in at least two of these stories would be greatly diminished had Scream Factory not made all the effort possible to make sure the film's integrity was restored.<br>
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<i>Tales</i> looks absolutely marvelous, with a sharp 1.78:1 1080p image that is outstanding. Definition is strong, thanks to the impeccable print from which it was sourced. Colors appear vibrant and strong; just look at the kaleidoscope of hues on display in Joan Collin’s home during the first story. Contrast handles well, though black levels do sporadically look a little hazy. Shadow delineation is perhaps the image’s only deficient area, with moving images nearly completely lost in dark shadows. But, thankfully, that issue crops up only once or twice. Surprisingly, there’s even a decent level of depth to the picture.<br>
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<i>Vault</i> also features a 1.78:1 1080p image, though it’s just a bit below <i>Tales</i> in terms of clarity. The print looks pretty clean, as expected given the work Scream Factory put into it. The biggest difference between the two films is <i>Vault</i> simply isn’t as sharp, often looking a tad softer than <i>Tales</i>. Grain is present and aids in a filmic look, with only minor specks appearing occasionally. Colors are saturated nicely, and black levels are stable.<br>
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Rarely does Scream Factory disappoint in the audio department, and neither of the English DTS-HD MA 2.0 tracks is problematic. Both <i>Tales</i> and <i>Vault</i> enjoy strong fidelity, with excellently balanced dialogue, notable depth & range for each of their respective scores, and sound effects that carry a real weight to them. Subtitles on both films are included in English.<br>
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Don’t act so surprised there’s virtually nothing in the way of bonus features; Scream Factory said on their Facebook page that nearly all of the budget for this release went into making sure <i>Vault of Horror</i> was presented uncut. Film always takes precedence over supplements, but they did sneak a couple of features onto <i>Vault</i>. Also, if you call it a bonus, there are actually <i>three</i> versions of <i>Vault of Horror</i> included.<br>
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<i>Tales from the Crypt</i> holds no bonus material, but <i>Vault of Horror</i> includes the following:<br>
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The film’s theatrical trailer, presented in black & white, and an alternate title sequence, this one carrying the <i>Tales from the Crypt II</i> title.<br>
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Most fans will likely forego watching either cut included here, but for the sake of completists <i>Vault of Horror</i> is included in both the PG-rated theatrical version and a rare open-matte version of the BFI uncut master. <br>
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-59521482500482700032015-02-01T10:45:00.001-08:002015-02-01T10:45:38.672-08:00Clive Barker's Lord of Illusions (1995) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjma0cD5uI9jpCe1mF4CQZ47H3SCiyIOhEdE0q-gF8SdVmSJ9TSv-Bafb7L7pnVqVd7HUDedLx5RUPjlKL0N_uek34gDl8NGlQlR4CO1D86UULv3i7f7gfVRZMt8Mu9hjG1B7g3frnEptVb/s1600/loi_cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjma0cD5uI9jpCe1mF4CQZ47H3SCiyIOhEdE0q-gF8SdVmSJ9TSv-Bafb7L7pnVqVd7HUDedLx5RUPjlKL0N_uek34gDl8NGlQlR4CO1D86UULv3i7f7gfVRZMt8Mu9hjG1B7g3frnEptVb/s320/loi_cover.jpg" /></a></div>
There exists an irony in Hollywood that is hardly obfuscated, and that is despite being a town built on creative concepts very few people in a position of power within the industry actually embrace the creative minds behind that art. Even those writers & directors & producers who are fortunate enough to get an unconventional picture green-lighted are subject to the whims of capricious studio heads. Unless you make them a mint, in which case the doors remain wide open… until you falter just once. For these reasons, some of the very people who should be producing films are essentially locked out. People like Clive Barker, whose mind lives in the strange & unusual places we, as horror fans, want to visit. His films may be undeniable cult classics now, but none of them managed to ignite the box office save for <i>Hellraiser</i>, which went on to produce sequel after please-god-make-them-stop sequel. <i>Nightbreed</i> (1990) bombed. Five years later, <i>Lord of Illusions</i> (1995) limped to a tepid finish, too. Perhaps coincidentally, both <i>Nightbreed</i> and <i>Lord of Illusions</i> were compromised films, in that Barker’s original vision was sliced & diced until the films were made more “commercially viable”. Whatever the reason for their failures, the sad takeaway from all of this is Barker hasn’t worked in Hollywood since. Oh, sure, Universal jerked him off for a few years like they were ever serious about making a film based on his Tortured Souls toy line, but did anyone genuinely think that was going to happen?<br>
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Barker’s work has been enjoying a minor renaissance this year. <i>Nightbreed</i> finally got released on Blu-ray the way Barker had intended. He’s also working on the you-knew-it-was-coming <i>Hellraiser</i> remake (hey, better him than some studio hack). And Scream Factory has rescued <i>Lord of Illusions</i> from MGM’s Vault Hell, cleaning up his director’s cut and bestowing it upon Barker fans that have already had a boon year. The wonderful thing about Clive’s films is that he rarely repeats himself; each of his three efforts feels fresh & original. <i>Lord of Illusions</i> blends two of my favorite genres: horror and noir. Theatrically, it was heavier on the latter and light on the former, thanks to studio meddling. In its director’s cut the balance is restored, though ultimately it remains a flawed picture.<br>
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Somewhere out in the Mojave Desert back in ’82, cult leader Nix (Daniel von Bargen) preaches in a squalid shack to his followers, with plans to sacrifice a young girl. His ritual of devilish magic is interrupted when Swann (Kevin J. O’Connor) and a few other former cult members infiltrate his compound. Nix is shot multiple times before Swann binds his face with some medieval fetish mask made of steel and buries him in the dirt. Jump to thirteen years later and Swann is a highly successful illusionist (don’t call him a magician) working in Los Angeles, with his face plastered all over town billboards. Whatever tricks he learned from Nix have served him well in the public’s eye. Meanwhile, New York City private investigator Harry D’Amour (Scott Bakula) is in town on an insurance fraud claim that leads him to the apartment of Quaid (Joseph Latimore), who is nearly dead from an attack by two of Nix’s acolytes – Butterfield (Barry Del Sherman) and a skinhead guy with skin problems and pointy teeth. Just before he dies, Quaid warns D’Amour that “the Puritan” is coming. When Swann learns of Quaid death, he has his wife Dorothea (Famke Janssen) hire D’Amour to investigate things further.<br>
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D’Amour is a natural fit, having always been drawn to both the light & dark side of life, though going deeper into the world of Nix leaves in it a wake of bodies and loads of danger. But then, danger is a given when there’s a woman thrown into the mix, greatly complicating matters between Swann and D’Amour. Swann saw to it that Nix was scorched from the earth all those years ago, however it seems like the time has come for Nix to make good on his promise of resurrection.<br>
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<i>Lord of Illusions</i> is the sort of film that I liked well enough in theaters and have only appreciated more and more each time I watch it on home video. Horror and noir are very complementary genres. Barker doesn’t allow one genre to overshadow the other either, making this a true dichotomy of investigative work and visceral terror. D’Amour is perfectly cast with Scott Bakula, who maybe isn’t the world’s most charismatic actor but he certainly fits the mold of an everyman struggling with his place in reality. It’s a shame we’ll never get to see more of his otherworldly adventures. Credit must be given to Daniel von Bargen, too, who is devilishly good as the nefarious Nix. The actor fell upon hard times a couple years back, attempting suicide after losing a leg to diabetes. No updates on his condition have been given since then, and I sincerely hope he’s on the mend.<br>
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The film isn’t often credited for its abundance of practical FX, which makes sense since they are secondary to the story, but Barker rounded up a serious who’s-who of the makeup world. Greg Nicotero, Tony Gardner, Howard Berger, Steve Johnson, Robert Kurtzman, and Gary Tunnicliffe all had a hand in bringing the film’s gruesome body horrors to life. Barker’s films have long been known for their gross-out gags, and every little bit of FX work done here is exemplary. There aren’t many big “showstopper” pieces, though Nix’s final form is impressively decayed and imposing. And you’ve gotta love the “over the top” brain zombie at the Magic Castle.<br>
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Even in its fully fleshed-out director’s cut, <i>Lord of Illusions</i> remains a flawed film, largely due in part to a third act that sort of peters out. The entire film builds up the return of Nix, and Barker’s cut restores many key scenes that heighten the anticipation of his resurrection, but once D’Amour and Swann descend upon the old desert shack the battle that ensues feels less thrilling what comes before it. Barker sows the seeds for a grand finale, yet either due to budgetary reasons or simply uneven writing the end result is a little underwhelming.<br>
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According to the disc’s specs, Scream Factory has given the film’s director’s cut an all-new high-definition transfer. The 1.78:1 1080p image is an improvement over the age-old DVD, though it’s far from reference quality material. Detail and definition are moderate, looking best when the camera grabs a close-up. Colors are nicely saturated and accurate, though at times they appear a bit drab. This could have been a stylistic decision to add to the noir atmosphere. Black levels are rich & dark, with no hazy shots. The print is clean overall, with no dirt or damage present. This isn’t going to wow anyone watching it on a high-end home video system, but there are no major issues of which to speak either. Maybe (and I stress maybe) a 4K scan could have improved the results; as it stands now, this is a great effort and it’s always a pleasure to see Scream Factory ponying up the dough to improve A/V quality.<br>
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<i>Lord of Illusions</i> features an aggressive sound mix, with the English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track conveying an aura of menace with traditional noir elements. Fidelity is strong, with the soundfield given ample range with which to play. Dialogue is presently clean and balanced, never lost in the shuffle of effects. Speaking of which, the rears are abuzz with activity frequently. There aren’t many moments of heavy bass, though when it is required its presence is clearly made known. Also included is a DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo track. Subtitles are available in English.<br>
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While this is ostensibly a collector’s edition, <i>Lord of Illusions</i> is a bit lighter in the extras department than many fans (myself included) will want to see. Wagering a guess, I’d assume the lion’s share of the film’s allocated budget went to restoring the picture, leaving little for the comprehensive, all-new extras many of Scream’s titles are known for. Still, they’ve packed in all existing material – both previously seen and unseen – they could, including an audio commentary, featurettes, deleted scenes, interviews and more.<br>
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Starting things off from the main menu is “A Note from Clive Barker”, in which the writer/director explains his director’s cut and how it restores his original vision.<br>
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Clive Barker also provides an audio commentary, one that has been around since the film’s Laserdisc days, and it’s just as insightful and engrossing as any other he’s recorded. The track is full of scene-specific notes, comparisons to the D’Amour stories, random musings and expectations for how audiences were to receive it.<br>
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“A Gathering of Magic” is another carryover from the Laserdisc, one that did not appear on the previous DVD. Here, Barker & Bakula talk about the film, while behind the scenes footage is shown and storyboards are presented.<br>
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The big beast here is the “Original Behind the Scenes Footage” featurette that runs for an hour and change. This never-before-seen piece features extensive interviews with Barker, who delves deep into the film’s story while puffing away on a fat cigar (something I’ll bet he now regrets). Considering no comprehensive piece was commissioned for this release, this is the next best thing.<br>
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A handful of deleted scenes are presented, with commentary from Barker, running for just over three minutes. There are a couple more bits with Nix’s cult, and a little more of D’Amour, too.<br>
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New to this release is “Interview with Storyboard Artist Martin Mercer”. Mercer tells of how he stayed with Barker for six months, at his home, to work on the film. Storyboards he drew are then shown and compared to the filmed scenes. They are impressively close in detail and direction.<br>
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A photo gallery rounds out the supplements.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-91546204293672725532015-02-01T10:41:00.000-08:002015-02-01T10:42:27.817-08:00Halloween - Complete Series Limited Edition Box Set (1978-2009) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij9SrtX9IyQFJtTGL_XWrx0Ba4K5NstOis7io5MEFPnyyoBIL-tQ3YNSF3dbacws-eCphVZuc9JFfsIaXD3bVdiV6lnn6VOg41PGzr00voIN3-TlRshInmOMU3DtqS62_FUb-19PbjU-Ra/s1600/halloween-box-set.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij9SrtX9IyQFJtTGL_XWrx0Ba4K5NstOis7io5MEFPnyyoBIL-tQ3YNSF3dbacws-eCphVZuc9JFfsIaXD3bVdiV6lnn6VOg41PGzr00voIN3-TlRshInmOMU3DtqS62_FUb-19PbjU-Ra/s320/halloween-box-set.png" /></a></div>
Horror fans, most of whom have long since grown weary of studios double-dipping on their favorite titles, finally have cause to celebrate. Rather than piecemeal releasing every film in a series ad nauseum (which they’ll still find a way to continue doing), many companies have begun to release complete series collections. This September alone sees the hi-def release of sets featuring every picture from franchises such as <i>The Exorcist</i>, <i>Saw</i>, <i>Leprechaun</i> and, most unexpectedly, <i>Halloween</i>. Considering the rights to various entries lie with different studios, it seemed highly unlikely a complete <i>Halloween</i> box set would ever be made available. Thanks to a joint, temporary partnership between Shout!/Scream Factory, Starz/Anchor Bay and the Weinstein Company, fans of The Shape can finally put all their eggs in one attractive little basket. The announcement was enough to whip fans into a frenzy, especially when it was announced the set would feature the home video debut for one of horror’s most sought-after holy grails: the legendary producer’s cut of “Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers” (1995).<br>
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Elation from that revelation aside, what else of value is here for fans? Finally seeing the oft-reviled sixth entry in a cleaner form than the ubiquitous bootlegs that littered the horror convention circuit is a major draw, but there’s got to be more than just a recut version of a tepid entry to entice people to cough up $100+ on redundancy. This set was made for hardcore Haddonfield fans, and more than likely the majority of them have purchased every film in the series numerous times on differing formats. Many of the discs included here are identical to current releases – releases likely sitting on fans’ shelves – and when excitement is held aside it looks an awful lot like people are dropping serious coin for an alternate cut of an unpopular entry and… that’s it?<br>
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Not exactly. It depends on how much of a bonus feature viewer you are. The set includes nearly all of the supplemental material found on prior releases (more on that later), along with newly-produced, in-depth featurettes that are absolutely fantastic. These new behind-the-scenes pieces dive deep, churning up all kinds of information on the sequels that will captivate fans eager to learn all they can.<br>
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This review will closely examine all of the new content presented, while taking a cursory pass at what is carried over. As previously mentioned, this set was made with fervent fans in mind; fans who likely own all of these films on Blu-ray already. For those of you who don’t, or if you only have the films on DVD and are looking to make the jump to hi-def, then just stop reading now and buy this set. It will not get any better than this; especially since Scream Factory has said the licensing agreements that made this set possible expire next year, meaning this deluxe limited edition might actually be limited after all. Regardless, odds are you know the films, you like them to varying degrees, and you just want the details on this hulking Blu-ray behemoth. What will follow is a disc-by-disc breakdown, covering what’s new, what’s old and what’s gone. And rather than review films in long form most have seen a hundred times, each one is getting a haiku (somewhere, a Dead Right Horror Trivia player just broke a sweat).<br>
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<b><u>Disc One: Halloween (1978)</b></u><br>
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<i>Little Mikey kills/Shatner face stalks all the girls/A franchise is born</i><br>
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Aside from the disc art, this is the exact same 35th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray Anchor Bay issued last year in an attractive DigiBook package.<br>
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The picture – 2.35:1 1080p - remains the same, and it contains the same robust English Dolby TrueHD 7.1 surround sound track found on that release, but this edition adds the original mono mix in, Dolby TrueHD, for those purists out there. Previous releases have offered a mono option, but they were either a downmix or taken from the revised audio, and not the true original mono track.<br>
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<b>What’s New:</b><br>
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Well, hey, look here - an audio commentary track, featuring director of photography Dean Cundey, production designer/editor/jack-of-all-trades Tommy Lee Wallace and The Shape himself, Nick Castle. Can I just say how refreshing it is to hear some perspectives on making the film not coming from Carpenter or Curtis? Not that they aren’t excellent commentators, but hearing from others who were involved allows for additional technical details and anecdotes, which are in no short supply between these three. Wallace keeps course here, asking questions of the other two while highlighting the many hats he wore on set. There’s such a great rapport between these old friends it’s palpable, making this an excellent track that is a must-listen.<br>
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<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
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- Audio commentary with co-writer/director John Carpenter and actress Jamie Lee Curtis
- <i>The Night She Came Home!!</i> featurette
- <i>On Location: 25 Years Later</i> featurette
- TV version insert scenes
- Trailer
- TV spots
- Radio spots<br>
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<b>Disc Two: Halloween (1978)</b></u><br>
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Anchor Bay must’ve had some old stock of the first Blu-ray released in 2007 lying around, because that’s what this disc is. It’s inclusion is a nice touch, not only because this features the controversial color timing that was “corrected” (quotes because some loved it while others abhorred it) for the 35th Anniversary Edition release – which will allow fans to watch the film transfer of their choosing - but there are some bonus features found on this disc that weren’t on that edition, too. The picture is presented in 2.35:1 1080p, while the audio offers a lossy English Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound track, uncompressed PCM 5.1, or a mono mix.<br>
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<b>What’s New:</b><br>
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Nothing.<br>
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<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
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- The old Criterion laserdisc audio commentary, featuring co-writer/director John Carpenter, actress Jamie Lee Curtis and producer Debra Hill
- <i>Halloween: A Cut Above the Rest</i> featurette
- Trailer
- TV spots
- Radio spots<br>
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<b><u>Disc Three: Halloween II (1981) – Theatrical Version</b></u><br>
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<i>I shot him six times/Less stalking and more slashing/Loomis and Michael go boom</i><br>
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If you are an owner of Scream Factory’s current disc, then you are also the owner of this disc, which is identical to what was released a few years back. Nothing has been added, nothing has been removed. Although, if you want to get technical it does lose the reversible cover art, electing to only offer the original theatrical key art. Tech specs remain unchanged – 2.35:1 1080p, with audio in English DTS-HD MA 5.1 or 2.0 options.<br>
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<b>What’s New:</b><br>
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Nothing.<br>
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<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
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- Audio commentary with director Rick Rosenthal and actor Leo Rossi
- Audio commentary with stunt coordinator/actor Dick Warlock
- <i>The Nightmare Isn’t Over – The Making of Halloween II</i> featurette
- Horror’s Hallowed Ground – The Locations of <i>Halloween II</i>
- Still gallery
- TV spots
- Radio spots
- Trailer
- Alternate ending with optional commentary by director Rick Rosenthal
- Deleted scenes with optional commentary by director Rick Rosenthal<br>
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<b><u>Disc Four: Halloween II (1981) – Television Version</b></u><br>
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This is the same DVD included with the previous issue of <i>Halloween II</i> by Scream Factory, featuring the TV cut of the film, presented in 1.33:1 4x3 with a Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo track.<br>
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<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
Nothing.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
<br>
- Download Film Script (stick the DVD in your PC and follow the instructions)<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Five: Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)</b></u><br>
<br>
<i>Tom gets all the girls/Six more days till Halloween/You’ve got to stop it!</i><br>
<br>
Do you own Scream Factory’s prior excellent release? Then you own this disc. Nothing new has been added, though it may irk some to know the reversible cover art has been done away with here, too. Tech specs remain unchanged – 2.35:1 1080p, with audio in English DTS-HD MA 5.1 or 2.0 options.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
Nothing.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
<br>
- Audio commentary with director Tommy Lee Wallace
- Audio commentary with actor Tom Atkins, moderated by Michael Felsher
- <i>Stand Alone: The Making of Halloween III: Season of the Witch</i>
- Horror’s Hallowed Grounds – The Locations of <i>Halloween III</i>
- Still gallery
- TV spots
- Trailer<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Six: Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988)</b></u><br>
<br>
<i>Back to Haddonfield/Michael is at it again/Loomis looks melted</i><br>
<br>
Anchor Bay issued both this film and its direct sequel on Blu-ray back in 2012. This disc sports the same 1.85:1 1080p image, along with an English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround sound track.<br>
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Unfortunately, it also features the same sound synch issues that affected the first release; a glaring problem which, according to reports, is actually exacerbated on this new release. The problems start around the 45:30 mark, when Jamie is wandering the streets alone, having lost her group of trick-or-treaters, before bumping into Rachael. The character’s lips are clearly not matching up with their words, some lines much more obviously than others. The issue persists for a good ten-minute chunk before correcting itself. Fans have brought this problem to the attention of both Scream Factory and Anchor Bay via their respective Facebook pages, and the response has been… less than helpful. The problem doesn’t lie with Scream Factory since Anchor Bay first issued the disc, and while AB acknowledges there is an issue their response essentially suggests fans “enjoy what is an otherwise great set.”<br>
<br>
I have to call bullshit on that. I understand a lot of time, effort, etc. went into culling this big box together, but paramount to everything – packaging, bonus features, what have you – should be A/V quality. Period. Fans may enjoy the bells and whistles, but they’re buying the films. Films that are going to get watched many, many times. To release a disc with a known audio defect simply because you didn’t want to pony up and pay to re-author it properly isn’t excusable; it’s lazy. I can only hope that by the time of this writing, there is an exchange program put into place that will allow fans to receive corrected copies of the film.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
Plenty, but those features have been saved for the bonus disc included in this collection.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
<br>
- Audio commentary with director Dwight Little & author Justin Beahm
- Audio commentary with actors Danielle Harris & Ellie Cornell
- Theatrical trailer<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Missing:</b><br>
<br>
A panel from the Halloween 25th anniversary convention covering both <i>Halloween 4 & 5</i>, which ran for nearly twenty minutes, has been excluded. Considering how much ground is covered in all the supplements included here, however, its loss is insignificant.<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Seven: Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989)</b></u><br>
<br>
<i>Kind loner heals Mike/Better stab him and get home/Who’s this Man in Black?</i><br>
<br>
Just like <i>Halloween 4</i>, this disc is identical to the previous Anchor Bay release. Tech specs remain unchanged with a 1.85:1 1080p picture and audio available in English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround sound. Thankfully, there are no audio defects to be heard here.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
As with <i>H4</i>, the new material is saved for the bonus disc.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
<br>
- Audio commentary with Don Shanks and author Justin Beahm
- Audio commentary with director Dominique Othenin-Girard and actors Danielle Harris & Jeffrey Landman
- <i>Halloween 5</i>: On Set featurette
- <i>Halloween 5</i>: Original Promo featurette
- Theatrical trailer<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Missing:</b><br>
<br>
Nothing from the prior Blu-ray, but if you’re a real stickler the Anchor Bay Divimax DVD contained an introduction to the film with Danielle Harris and Ellie Cornell.<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Eight: Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995) – Theatrical Version</b></u><br>
<br>
<i>New mythology?/Look, Mommy, it’s raining red/Bye, Dr. Loomis</i><br>
<br>
The sixth entry in Michael Myers’ story is part of the “Miramax trilogy” that also includes the two subsequent sequels, <i>H20</i> and <i>Resurrection</i>. Fans are already aware these films have often been given less-than-stellar (or even average) releases, both here in the U.S. and in Canada. Previous issues included a stand-alone release from Echo Bridge Entertainment, various double-and-triple-features with the following sequels, and a Canadian release from Alliance that crammed the all three films onto one Blu-ray disc. And all of these releases were in 1080i, with audio that was severely lacking.<br>
<br>
This new release is roughly on par with those prior editions, sporting a 1.78:1 1080p image and English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound and 2.0 stereo offerings. The picture enjoys a minor boost in quality thanks to this progressive (rather than interlaced) transfer, though it’s still far from exemplary. Colors look a little oversaturated, black levels suffer from crush sporadically, and there are telltale signs of edge enhancement application. Still, these are deficiencies most viewers might not even notice, let alone ruin their enjoyment of watching the film. Audio-wise, the multi-channel track features a wider range and a host of discreet effects, even if the rear speaker assembly isn’t employed as often as it should be. Of all the released editions of the film available in North America, this is undoubtedly the best presentation it has enjoyed, even if it’s far from perfect.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
To my knowledge, none of the previous editions have had any bonus features, so the little bits featured here are all new, even if they’re mainly ephemera.<br>
<br>
- Theatrical trailer
- TV spots
- Still gallery<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Nine: Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995) – Producer’s Cut</b></u><br>
<br>
<i>Now, the Holy Grail/This is what we waited for?/What are these dumb rocks?</i><br>
<br>
Here it is, folks: the unicorn of horror filmdom - <i>Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers</i> Producer’s Cut, presented in beautiful HD with improved audio and an absolute heaping helping of bonus goodies. You didn’t think this day would come, did you? Well, it has.<br>
<br>
Here’s the thing – it’s absolutely awesome that Scream Factory/Anchor Bay have teamed up to bring this rarely-seen gem to home video, giving fans the last jewel in the Michael Myers crown. This version only existed in whispers and apocryphal tales before becoming a denizen of the bootleg circuit, where rabid fans would gleefully exchange their hard-earned money for something that looked like it was recorded from a twelfth-generation VHS tape. All those years of frothing at the mouth imaging what could have been are now over with this release, which allows fans to compare both versions as presented in equal quality.<br>
<br>
Frankly, neither one is very good. Have you ever watched a movie as a kid, loved the hell out of it, and revisited it decades later only to discover what you had fallen in love with was actually a bad film? This producer’s cut invokes a similar feeling; all those years of pent-up demand, wondering what footage this mythical cut contained, and the experience of watching it ends with the same sense of deflation provided by the theatrical cut. Great modern example: the two differing cuts of the fourth entry in <i>The Exorcist</i> series, neither of which is worth anyone’s time. Shrader’s lost cut only held a semblance of promise until it was shown, when everyone realized it, too, sucked a great deal. These films aren’t <i>that</i> bad, but they’re far from satisfying.<br>
<br>
Personally, I’ve got a bit of a soft spot for the theatrical cut because it was the first <i>Halloween</i> film I saw in theaters. I remember <i>dying</i> to see the film after watching <i>Halloween 5</i> and being desperate to know who this Man in Black was. In fact, I can recall an interview with Joe Chappelle (I think?) in Fangoria, where he said the answer to the Man in Black’s identity was contained in the first film, which I then watched obsessively, scrutinizing every frame and bit of dialogue trying to yield some clues. It turns out Chappelle’s clue referred to a brief bit when Loomis is at Smith’s Grove and a “Dr. Wynn” is paged by the nurse. Totally obvious, right?? Anyway, even with my rose-tinted view I can say the theatrical cut is far from a good film. In the canon of the series, I’d rank it above <i>5</i>, <i>Resurrection</i> and both of Rob Zombie’s films.<br>
<br>
The producer’s cut is very different in terms of thematic content. The theatrical cut is much more a traditional slasher film, whereas the producer’s cut contains more of the rune/ritual stuff. The mid-‘90s were a time when many slasher icons were being redefined and taken to new places, eschewing the standard storylines they’d all followed up to that point. Freddy went meta. Jason disappeared for 90 minutes before getting dragged to Hell. Leatherface listened to heavy metal and learned how to read. Pinhead became an astronaut. Michael Myers joined a cult. Farrands’ script veers wildly off the trodden path, suggesting Michael has been under the control of a clandestine group of hooded druids who use him to do their bidding. Michael’s actions are controlled by his “caretaker” and lunar cycles and planets and… what? It gets convoluted. Origins are rarely fun, especially when they come this late in the game. Who cares why Michael kills? The producer’s cut makes odd choices, like keeping Jamie around past the opening (she dies in the TC) only to kill her off later on after serving no real purpose. And don’t even get me started on Paul Rudd’s rocks freezing Michael in place. Considering Michael is relegated to background player status for a lot of his own movie, I’d rather see the bloody, gratuitous theatrical cut. Still, this makes for an interesting, alternate oddity in the canon and its inclusion here is a huge selling point.<br>
<br>
In terms of A/V quality, the producer’s cut looks a bit better than the theatrical cut, featuring the same 1.78:1 1080p picture. Setting aside the fact that virtually anything would have looked better than what’s out there, the image here is highly defined, with a healthy layer of film grain and no visible print damage. Colors are accurate and black levels, though a little hazy at times, are generally strong. The fact that you’d be hard-pressed to tell this transfer from the theatrical cut should be an indicator as to how good it looks, relatively speaking. Audio quality is just as strong, with an English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track with clear & clean dialogue. Fidelity is good, with a decent range to the soundfield and nicely balanced effects. Surrounds don’t get as much use as they should, but the discreet effects used up front almost make up for it. Sure beats the VHS I’ve been playing for years, I’ll tell you that.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
Everything, and there’s so much of it. Most newly-produced, some vintage material.<br>
<br>
Kicking things off is a highly informative audio commentary track featuring screenwriter Daniel Farrands and composer Alan Howarth. Barring a commentary from Chappelle (that will never happen), this is a must-hear is you want to know everything detail major & minor about the making of this troubled production. Farrands talks about the original script, what was changed, what was kept, his ideas for the series, and so much more. Interesting note: he originally wrote the role of Dr. Wynn for Christopher Lee. How awesome would <i>that</i> have been? Howarth interjects with minimally, but with good anecdotes.<br>
<br>
<i>Acting Scared – A Look at the Film’s Cast</i> features interviews with both Mariah O’Brien and J.C. Brandy, with both actresses talking about their own careers, getting their respective roles and how they feel about the alternate cut of the film.<br>
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<i>The Shape of Things – A Look at Michael Myers’ Murder and Mayhem</i> is all about sculpting the film’s masks and creating the special FX.<br>
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<i>Haddonfield’s Horrors – The Sights of Halloween 6</i> takes a look at production design & cinematography. Of all the films in the series, I would arguably say this one nails the atmosphere of Halloween better than most.<br>
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<i>A Cursed “Curse” – An Interview with Producers Malek Akkad & Paul Freeman</i> features both men, interviewed separately, discussing getting the film together, story concepts, initial visions and more.<br>
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<i>Full Circle – An Interview with Composer Alan Howarth</i> finds the legendary composer discussing how he approached the score for this entry.<br>
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<i>Jamie’s Story – An Interview with the Original “Jamie” Actress Danielle Harris</i> features this film’s almost-Jamie discussing why she didn’t reprise her role here. Hint: $$$.<br>
<br>
<i>Cast & Crew Tribute to Donald Pleasence</i> is full of gushing about the late actor. There aren’t many stories, just lots of kind words.<br>
<br>
The original teaser trailer, released as <i>Halloween 666: The Origin of Michael Myers</i> is included. For those of us who vaguely remember seeing this on TV and swearing it was real, now you have eternal proof.<br>
<br>
<i>Archival Interviews & Behind the Scenes Footage</i> features vintage footage of the principal cast & crew talking about the project, along with some B-roll on-set shots.<br>
<br>
<i>Behind the Scenes Footage</i> is almost 25 minutes of footage shot by Farrands during the 1st week of production. It’s all handheld and very candid.<br>
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<i>Alternate Deleted Scenes (Not Present in Either Cut of the Film)</i> presents roughly seven minutes of footage that isn’t very revelatory or different, but those who want to see all they can will dig these odds and ends.<br>
<br>
Finally, there’s an <i>Electronic Press Kit</i> from 1995 with some interviews and the usual stuff found in those puff pieces.<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Ten: Halloween: H20 (1998)</b></u><br>
<br>
<i>Laurie Strode is back/That ending will never stick/Michael cannot die</i><br>
<br>
Now we move on to what may arguably be the best sequel in the series, <i>Halloween: H20</i>. Personally, because my opinion certainly matters, I give <i>Halloween II</i> the edge only because this film has some ‘90s teen horror moments that I hate. And before anyone says <i>Halloween III: Season of the Witch</i> is the best sequel, know you’re right. But I don’t consider it part of this series, really. It should just be retitled “John Carpenter’s Season of the Witch”. But I digress.<br>
<br>
<i>H20</i> has been released on Blu-ray before, but it was either the incorrect aspect ratio (Echo Bridge) or in 1080i (Alliance). This release restores the intended 2.35:1 aspect ratio and presents it in full 1080p. Anyone who prefers the “open” 1.78:1 image put out by Echo Bridge should understand that this film might have been shot on Super 35 but it was composed for scope. So the only picture information you are “losing” is the stuff the filmmakers meant to lose in the first place. As far as quality goes, this bests the Echo Bridge edition, though not by much. Detail is much stronger and colors appear more vibrant, but there’s still a murky veneer that infiltrates many of the nighttime images. A proper remaster may have helped here. The English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track utilizes a contemporary sound design that allows for great fidelity and a wide range for effects to be placed discreetly. Dialogue is balanced and clean, and there’s a decent low end to the mix.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
More or less, everything here is new. Previous Blu-ray releases held no bonus material, and what little was on the DVD release isn’t of importance.<br>
<br>
Remember that time this movie came out on DVD and it claimed to have an audio commentary track with director Steve Miner and actress Jamie Lee Curtis that wasn’t actually included? Well, here it is. The two are moderated by Repository of <i>Halloween</i> Knowledge Sean Clark, who knows when to let the main participants speak and when to chime in with questions to keep the track on… track. Curtis dominates, though, with few moments of silence heard.<br>
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<i>Blood is Thicker Than Water – The Making of Halloween: H20</i> is one of the main reasons fans should be buying this set. This in-depth piece – which runs nearly an hour - features interviews with Jamie Lee Curtis, Josh Harnett, and other members of the film’s cast & crew. Lots of ground is covered here, delving into aspects of the production both big and small. As a nice touch, archival interview clips with Moustapha Akkad and L.L. Cool J are included to help round out cast & crew thoughts on the film. There is also a good amount of time dedicated to talking about the many masks used during filming, which sometimes change from shot to shot. Capping off with Jamie’s role as Laurie Strode, the piece ends with some talk regarding her (weak) demise in <i>Resurrection</i>. Featurettes like this are exactly how bonus features should be done.<br>
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<i>Scenes with John Ottman’s Score</i> presents around 25 minutes of footage featuring original composer John Ottman’s compositions. Dialogue has not been mixed in, with the score being isolated completely.<br>
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<i>Vintage Interviews & Behind the Scenes Footage</i> contains over 45 minutes of on-set interviews as well as footage of the film being shot. Every principal gets some face time here – L.L., Miner, Curtis, Williams, Hartnett, etc.<br>
<br>
The disc also includes a theatrical trailer, TV spot and still gallery.<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Eleven: Halloween: Resurrection (2002)</b></u><br>
<br>
<i>Finally back home/”Trick or treat, muthafucka”/A franchise is dead</i><br>
<br>
Unsurprisingly, the final nail is the original series’ coffin is dumped here with little fanfare. <i>Resurrection</i> is truly a terrible film; an unredeemable sack of rancid meat that stinks worse each time you open the bag. <i>Maybe</i> it’s kind of cool that Myers has finally returned home. What isn’t cool is populating the film with some of the most annoying teens to ever grace the silver screen. Even worse, we have to contend with both Busta Rhymes and Tyra Banks, who we don’t even have the satisfaction of seeing killed. At the time, bringing Rosenthal probably seemed like a great idea; in hindsight, it was a death knell. The series should have remained dormant for a long while after the events of <i>H20</i>, but Moustapha Akkad absolutely refused to let Michael Myers die. Can’t blame the guy, it was his cash cow, after all. The film commits any number of cinematic atrocities, but the worst is killing off famed heroine Laurie Strode so ignominiously. Make it grand if you’re gonna do it.<br>
<br>
Tech specs are similar to what was released on Blu-ray by Echo Bridge, which was a surprisingly strong release considering their track record. The 2.35:1 1080p image here may actually be a little weaker than that release. Film grain appears overblown and noisy, moreso than before, and black levels definitely seem anemic. Colors look good for the most part, and detail is strong in close-up shots. Medium and wide shots, however, look a bit dull and drab. This has never been a particularly good looking entry in the series – and it isn’t likely to leave most fans’ sets – but expect little in the way of visual impressiveness despite being a newer entry. At least the audio handles well, with a strong English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track that provides a boisterous, enveloping soundfield to immerse viewers in the world of Dangertainment.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
<i>Vintage Interviews & Behind the Scenes Footage</i> hasn’t appeared on any previous Region 1 release, though it may be the same material that was found on Region 2 copies of the DVD. As you’d expect, it’s a bunch of talking heads and on-set footage. Nothing special, but its inclusion is appreciated.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
<br>
- Audio commentary with director Rick Rosenthal & editor Robert A. Ferretti
- Alternate endings with optional commentary by director Rick Rosenthal
- Deleted scenes with optional commentary by director Rick Rosenthal
- Web Cam Special with optional commentary by director Rick Rosenthal
- Featurette: Head Cam
- Storyboard Analysis
- Set tour with production designer Troy Hansen
- Set interview with Jamie Lee Curtis
- Theatrical trailer
- Home video TV spots
- Still gallery<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Missing:</b><br>
<br>
Other than a note of apology from Rick Rosenthal? Nothing, it seems.<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Twelve: Halloween (2007) – Director’s Cut</b></u><br>
<br>
<i>One good fucking scare/Michael fucking Myers, fuck/Man, fuck this movie</i><br>
<br>
Rob Zombie’s pastiche of white trash suburbia horror is easily the most divisive film in the series. He deserves a modicum of credit for getting exactly two things right: the production design is strong, and the Myers mask is easily the best to appear in the series since the first film. Otherwise, it’s half a movie featuring an origin nobody wanted, followed by compressing Carpenter’s original film into half its original running time. And, Christ, if Scout Taylor-Compton’s Laurie Strode isn’t one of the most annoying characters to ever appear on screen then I don’t want to know who is. Anyway, the less said here, the better.<br>
<br>
This is the same Blu-ray released by TWC, with a 2.35:1 1080p transfer and English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound audio.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
Mercifully, nothing.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
<br>
- Audio commentary with writer/director Rob Zombie
- Deleted scenes
- Alternate ending
- Bloopers
- The Many Masks of Michael Myers
- Re-Imagining Halloween
- Meet the Cast
- Casting Sessions
- Scout Taylor-Compton Screen Test (Laurie Strode)
- Theatrical trailer<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Missing:</b><br>
<br>
The theatrical cut, which should be considered the superior version simply because it doesn’t feature that horrendously gratuitous rape scene during Michael’s escape. It got a Blu-ray release in Canada, on a double-feature disc with the theatrical cut of its sequel, but in the U.S. it’s only ever been released on DVD. Personally, the best version of this film was the workprint that got floated around near the time of the film’s release, but even that is a mostly-unwatchable piece of crap.<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Thirteen: Halloween (2007) – Bonus Disc</b></u><br>
<br>
This disc houses exactly one extra, but it’s a big one: <i>Michael Lives: The Making of Halloween</i> is a gargantuan documentary that covers every conceivable aspect of the film’s production, clocking in at a whopping 4 hours and 20 minutes. It is arguably better than the film itself and well worth watching, even if you don’t like the movie.<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Fourteen: Halloween II (2009) – Director‘s Cut</b></u><br>
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<i>Transient Michael/An existential journey/Fucking fucking fuck</i><br>
<br>
The adventures of Hobo Myers continue. I’ve noticed some people who still hate Zombie’s first film have decided to give this one a major pass because he tries to do something different. He does, yet it’s still an abysmal failure; an incoherent mess full of puerile scripting, over-the-top brutal violence, and nonsensical hallucinatory sequences.<br>
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Once again, this is the same disc that was released before, with no new additions. Zombie switches up aspect ratios between films, shooting this with a tighter 1.85:1, and this disc features the same 1080p transfer previously issued. Audio, too, remains unchanged with an English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
Nothing.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
<br>
- Audio commentary with writer/director Rob Zombie
- Deleted & alternate scenes
- Blooper reel (which, surprisingly, doesn’t just play the entire film)
- Audition footage
- Make-up Test Footage
- Uncle Seymour Coffin’ Stand-Up Routines
- Captain Clegg & The Night Creatures Music Videos<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Missing:</b><br>
<br>
As with the last film, we don’t get the theatrical version here. This director’s cut runs around 14 minutes longer, and doesn’t feature added rape-y scenes, so it’s probably the one to watch if you’re feeling masochistic.<br>
<br>
<b><u>Disc Fifteen: Bonus Disc </b></u><br>
<br>
Here’s the treasure trove, people. Shoved unceremoniously into the casing of <i>Halloween II</i> (2009) is this disc, exclusive to the deluxe limited edition box set. Why wasn’t this given its own case? I mean, you’ve already got ten cases in this set, so what’s one more? Most people won’t even open up Zombie’s cinematic bowel movement of a sequel, meaning many may overlook the fact there’s a disc chock full of goodies stashed away in there. It’s a mix of new and vintage material, and not exactly well-organized in terms of menu, so let’s break it down.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s New:</b><br>
<br>
<i>The Making of Halloween 4</i> is another comprehensive warts-and-all featurette, running over 45 minutes, from the guys who put together the in-depth featurette for <i>H20</i>. Just about every major face shows up here to discuss their time on set, and there’s also talk about the problems the production faced regarding making the right mask. It’s almost hilarious how a mask that seems so simple in design has been a source of constant contention on the set of every single sequel.<br>
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<i>The Making of Halloween 5</i> also comes from the same team as the other two great featurettes. This featurette still manages to be interesting despite the fact the film isn’t all that great. One nice touch I liked: each of these featurettes has a custom carved pumpkin in the background, featuring the art for the film they’re discussing.<br>
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<i>Interview with Make-up Effects Artist Tom Burman on Halloween III: Season of the Witch</i> is a nice, unexpected piece, featuring the FX artist discussing his work on that sequel as well as his career in general. He also did <i>The Devil’s Rain</i> (1975)!<br>
<br>
There are also a handful of new Horror’s Hallowed Grounds episodes included here. While it would have been nice to have every episode either in one place (on this disc) or on a disc with their respective films, that would’ve required all kinds of re-authoring of discs and this was clearly the easiest option. Included here are new episodes for <i>Halloween 4</i>, <i>Halloween 5</i>, <i>Halloween 6</i>, and an extended cut of the original <i>Halloween</i> episode. As a bonus, there’s also an episode shot on the last day of the Halloween – 35 Years of Terror convention (which was co-produced by yours truly), featuring host Sean Clark and a handful of the series’ actors visiting the local filming locations in Pasadena, CA.<br>
<br>
<b>What’s Returning:</b><br>
<br>
<i>Halloween</i> (1978) Extended Version in HD (TV inserts in standard definition). I considered putting this in the “new” category, but it isn’t really new. It’s odd that it says “extended version in HD” when the extended scenes are in standard definition. Even worse, word is that Anchor Bay has the film elements for these additional scenes, meaning the only reason they aren’t in HD here is because it would have cost money; and, more likely, because they need something to hook fans into buying another edition of the film down the line. The HD version used here is the print from the 35th anniversary edition, with English DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio. The additional scenes don’t look all that bad, but clearly a bump to HD would have made them appear seamlessly within the film.<br>
<br>
- Halloween Unmasked 2000 featurette
- The Making of Halloween 4: Final Cut
- Inside Halloween 5
- Interview with producer Moustapha Akkad
- TV spots for <i>Halloween 4</i>, <i>Halloween 5</i>, <i>Halloween</i> (2007) and <i>Halloween II</i> (2009)
- Radio spots for <i>Halloween III: Season of the Witch</i>
- <i>Halloween</i>, <i>Halloween 4</i> and <i>Halloween 5</i> still galleries<br>
<br>
The set comes housed in a large, sturdy slipcase, with each film housed in a black Blu-ray eco case. There’s a thick booklet, full of production phots from the series and an essay by Fangoria’s Michael Gingold.<br>
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Is this the final, definitive set to end all sets? Of course not. There will always be a new angle to sell these films over and over, but for most fans this set represents the end of the line. Previous editions of the first three films and Zombie’s films covered all the ground they had to, and the bonus features afforded to the middle sequels has now done that job, too. I’m aware some people are still frothing at the mouth over Don May Jr.’s reels of outtakes and alternate scenes not being included here. Their inclusion would have been welcomed, but, really, hours of raw footage with no audio shouldn’t be a deal breaker for anyone. Fans can and will nitpick this set into oblivion, yet the fact remains that just getting all of this together was a monumental achievement.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-55517115181750873062015-02-01T10:27:00.000-08:002015-02-01T10:31:56.863-08:00Clive Barker's Nightbreed (1990) - Limited Edition Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1HHhhtGontwxokKqPMAjzGmulVvpfWiHHePa7RFCYlYnuNhtddOfcHBQzNoEqf3BjUI4DDhk6FsRXdqGtIBoQOfUrdCzTIHWcWqGOv1rpOZw0OTUMFYm6eFn5oVdqUXyumMlJt2IoPk-P/s1600/nbsept14blu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1HHhhtGontwxokKqPMAjzGmulVvpfWiHHePa7RFCYlYnuNhtddOfcHBQzNoEqf3BjUI4DDhk6FsRXdqGtIBoQOfUrdCzTIHWcWqGOv1rpOZw0OTUMFYm6eFn5oVdqUXyumMlJt2IoPk-P/s320/nbsept14blu.jpg" /></a></div>
<i>”I have seen the future of horror, and his name is Clive Barker.”</i><br>
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Nearly every horror fan is familiar with the above quote, taken from another one of the genre’s titans, Stephen King. This was said sometime in the mid-‘80s, when Barker’s “Books of Blood” were hitting paperback in the U.S., before he’d even crept into the film industry with <i>Hellraiser</i> (1987). King’s words weren’t just hyperbole designed to move copies of Barker’s books, however, because the promise was there. Clive was a visionary in so many ways. Even today, years after his most revered and cherished works have been released, Barker’s name hangs firmly in the upper echelon of horror. It’s a rare talent that can master so many mediums – art, literature, and cinema, specifically - with such a distinct vision that remains fully intact… usually. Of those three, cinema is easily the most fickle, as Barker quickly found out on his second film, <i>Nightbreed</i> (1990).<br>
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<i>Hellraiser</i>, his first foray into cinema, had a relatively small budget (about $2 million), with Barker being given almost total creative freedom to make the movie he wanted. Other than some cuts forced by the studio to tone down violence, the movie released to theaters was the film he intended to make. Well, to get a bit more technical the studio did also force him to change the film’s name from the original novella title, “The Hellbound Heart”, to something more horror-y. He encountered this exact same problem with <i>Nightbreed</i> - which was going to be called “Cabal” since, that too, was the original novella title. And this time around they gave him a lot more money – approximately $11 million. Armed with a sack of cash, a wealth of monstrous characters from his novella, a crew of England’s top special FX artists, and the expanse of venerable Pinewood Studios, Barker set out to make “the <i>Star Wars</i> of horror movies” as he put it. It was an ambitious undertaking. Barker was building an entire universe on screen. There were hundreds of characters, literally. Sure, the principal faces only numbered a dozen or so (which is still large), but all-in there are some 300 monsters in total. I know this because one of the bonus features included here mentions how <i>Nightbreed</i> held a Guinness World Record at one point in time for having the most made-up characters in a movie.<br>
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Once shooting was completed, Barker delivered his cut to the studio. They balked. Reshoots were done in Los Angeles to punch up some of the plot (mostly related to David Cronenberg’s character) and Barker recut the film once again. It still wasn’t accepted. At this point, original editor Richard Marden left, refusing to butcher the film further, and the top brass brought in another editor to chop it down to a final running time of 102 minutes with credits. A far cry from the 2+ hours Barker had originally assembled, and even further from the vision he had in mind. This watered down version was released to theaters during prime dumping season – February – where it didn’t even recoup its modest budget. A home video release followed and, while a strong cult following quickly developed, the door had effectively closed on the world of Midian.<br>
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Cut to over two decades later and the artistic integrity of “Nightbreed” has finally been reclaimed. The story of how the ball got rolling is covered somewhat extensively within this package; watch the supplements, read the booklet, and learn the facts. Suffice it to say very few people ever thought this day would come, Clive among them. But to understand what makes the Director’s Cut work so well, we must first express why the theatrical cut does not. What it all boils down to is marketing and cold feet. Studios only love originality when it makes them money, but they’re afraid to embrace new things for fear of losing that money, causing them to stick to trodden paths. See the catch here? <i>Nightbreed</i> was simply too ambitious, which you would have thought the executives knew considering they greenlighted Barker’s film based on that vision.<br>
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The plot was “tightened” and focus shifted more toward Cronenberg’s Dr. Decker and his battle with Boone (Craig Sheffer), a patient who dreams of a world where monsters live - Midian. Decker tries to convince Boone he’s the one responsible for a spate of familial killings that have occurred recently, when the reality is it’s Decker doing the dirty work. Boone absconds to Midian, is initially spurned by the inhabitants (during one of the film’s best sequences… Peloquin (Oliver Parker) and Kinski’s (Nicholas Vince) introduction is fantastic), and winds up “dead” after a run-in with local law enforcement due to Decker’s meddling (<i>“He’s got a gun!”</i>). Because Peloquin gave him a chomp on the shoulder, however, Boone revives as one of the “Breed”, once again making his way back to Midian, where he is now welcomed with open arms. Boone’s girlfriend, Lori (Anne Bobby), also makes a visit to Midian and tries to find her man. She does, but she also finds Decker and the Nightbreed, who don’t take kindly to her being a “Natural”. Boone and the tribe clash over her presence, leading to both of them being banished by Lylesburg (Doug Bradley, but voiced by an unknown German actor), leader of the Breed. Boone can’t stay away, though, and soon law enforcement agents are brought in at the behest of Decker. What follows is an all-out war on Midian, with Boone galvanizing the typically-peaceful inhabitants to fight for their turf. And, of course, it all culminates in a showdown between Boone and Decker.<br>
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Barker had meant for this to be the story of two troubled lovers – Boone and Lori – and how they navigate the tribulations of the two worlds each inhabits. It wasn’t supposed to be the routine slasher/creature feature hybrid that wound up being the theatrical cut. Truly, if you watch both versions back-to-back it’s clear the studio cut is a desperate attempt to corral Barker’s imagination into something audiences were familiar with. Too much emphasis is placed on Decker, leaving other subplots to languish thanks to unscrupulous editing. The theatrical cut is not a <i>bad</i> film per se, but even fans agree it feels truncated and incomplete.<br>
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This brings us to the Director’s Cut – finally, right? All the proper film elements had been located, allowing Barker the ultra-rare opportunity to go back and re-cut the picture to his specifications. Unlike, say, the recently released <i>Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers</i> Producer’s Cut (1995), Barker had actually shot the film he wanted to make without great compromise; that part came during editing. Also unlike that film, this is truly something to be proud of. <i>Nightbreed</i>’s Director’s Cut is a wholly superior film in nearly every way. Barker added an additional 20 minutes of footage, as well as including 20 minutes of alternate takes, and the final product feels every bit like the film it always should have been. Decker’s storyline is now just one of a few major subplots, with more emphasis added to Boone and Lori’s relationship. There’s also much more in Midian, in particular the final assault which is replete with new monsters, new footage and a completely different ending… which I wasn’t totally nuts about. Without spoiling anything, I’ll simply say many characters are left in a place vastly different than the theatrical cut. The theatrical ending held promise for the future of Midian; this ending goes for something more intimate and less utilitarian. It’s not bad, just different and <i>maybe</i> not as good. But all of the additions to the film help a great deal. This is a remarkable achievement, both for Barker and for the film’s fans.<br>
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I do have one very minor qualm, though: there’s a weird edit at the end, when Lylesburg is preparing to release the Berserkers and one of the plaid-clad yokels pops his noggin with a rifle shot. In the theatrical cut the redneck sort of plays around with the red dot a bit before firing, whereas in the Director’s Cut nearly as soon as the dot appears on Lylesburg’s forehead the shot’s impact is shown. Barker’s choice? I don’t know; seems arbitrary. Most won’t notice this but I watched them back-to-back and it was glaring.<br>
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Much debate has been had over how this affair would look & sound. The theatrical cut has existed on DVD with a decent transfer for years. This new cut of the film began life as a VHS tape – under the moniker of “The Cabal Cut” - and it looked rough. Really rough. Because film elements were located, and because Scream Factory wisely put some money into new color timing and a new sound mix, the results are spectacular. It doesn’t look rough anywhere at all, and the audio is almost perfect, too. There were one or two scenes where it sounded like a tape source had been used for dialogue (specifically, when Lori meets Boone at the auto mechanic shop where he works near the beginning), but the quality didn’t dip to a level where it became unacceptable. These are minor complaints. In fact, the English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track is quite robust, with a strong presence and deep, resonating bass. It positively smokes the theatrical cut’s weak-by-comparison English DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo offering. Danny Elfman’s score was composed during his prime years, full of the wonderment and ethereal stoicism that are his trademarks. I’d say it’s arguably one of the finest scores he’s ever done. As strong as the track is for most of the film, it really kicks things up a notch once the big battle happens at the end. I swear my subwoofer rumbled for ten minutes straight. Visuals come in the form of a 1.78:1 1080p transfer. The theatrical cut came straight from an interpositive source, and it looks very good considering no real restoration work was done to it. Similarly, the director’s cut looks nearly identical. Detail is very strong during daylight scenes, of which there are actually quite a lot. Night shots are mostly stable, but can get a bit iffy when darkness really sets in. There’s a slight bit of crush in a few scenes, nothing too major. Honestly, I was just amazed the entire time that here’s this long lost cut of <i>Nightbreed</i> and it looks killer in HD. There are no glaring problems to nitpick.<br>
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Not content just to lovingly restore a cult classic, Scream Factory also spoils us with an embarrassment of riches in the bonus feature department. If you’re a serious Midian aficionado, you’ve probably pre-ordered the Limited Edition three-disc set. You will be pleased. Here’s the thing: I’m glad they included the theatrical cut of the film for the sake of posterity, but I’ll likely never watch it again. Barker’s vision is realized with this Director’s Cut. This <i>is</i> how it should have been. Looking back on the theatrical cut, it feels so inferior in light of how much Barker’s cut enhanced the picture. The theatrical cut will be reserved for those who watch it to waxy fondly on nostalgic memories, and even they might opt for the new cut nine out of ten times simply because it’s a better movie. Additionally, the Limited Edition also features a bonus Blu-ray disc full of exclusives. It’s all great stuff, featuring a mix of new interviews and old footage. But first, let’s dive into disc one…<br>
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Writer/director Clive Barker and restoration producer Mark Allan Miller collaborate on an audio commentary track that I would describe as lively and occasionally struggling for clarity. First off, I’m pleased to hear that Clive has a smoother speaking voice after having some throat problems in recent years. He now sounds very British and very old, despite not being very old. It’s the sort of voice that should be narrating the migration of birds on a BBC nature special or something. Both of these guys are exuberant about being there, finally watching what Clive had tried to make all those years ago. Miller, of course, recalls in detail all of the events which led to this historic moment. Clive, meanwhile, is so damned excited that he spends the entire track tripping over his words to get them out. Take a shot every time he says <i>“Um, um, um”</i> and you will die. You can’t blame him, though. It’s great to hear the man so enthused about the project and every frame of footage he was able to add back in, including that musical number, which is awesome by the way.<br>
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<i>Tribes of the Moon: The Making of Nightbreed</i> is a documentary that runs for over an hour. Barker, strangely, doesn’t participate here, but we do get Craig Sheffer, Anne Bobby, Doug Bradley, Hugh Ross (wearing his King Rocker shirt!) and a few other notable names. This lengthy piece gets in detail about what Midian means to these actors and in general, as well as discussing their respective characters. Bradley recalls a lot about Clive’s early days, when the two first became friends. Other topics include make-up application processes, the production design, marketing, Bradley’s voice being ADR’d out of the movie and this new cut of the film.<br>
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<i>Making Monsters: Interviews with Make-up Effects Artists</i> features over 40 minutes of interviews with artists Bob Keen, Martin Mercer and Paul Jones. The three, interviewed separately, talk about the wealth of ideas everyone had on set, designing the monsters (specifically the Berserkers) and the contribution of Tony Gardner to the film. Interesting takeaway: Clive insisted all the Berserkers have a large phallus, something I never noticed before seeing the clip included here.<br>
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<i>Fire! Fights! Stunts! – 2nd Unit Shooting</i> is an interview with Andy Armstrong who, as the title suggests, did all the second unit filming. His work was mostly capturing action, of which there was a lot considering the scope of the final battle. He worked well with Barker, and the two collaborated closely on making sure the action scenes looked big for a film with their modest budget.<br>
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The disc also includes the film’s theatrical trailer in HD.<br>
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That’s what you get with the regular Blu-ray edition. With the Limited Edition, you’ll also get a bonus disc that includes:<br>
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Deleted scenes. There’s around 23 minutes worth, most involving Lori, Detective Joyce, or Decker. There are some interesting moments in here, though most will agree all was wisely trimmed. Anything good is now back in the movie. The quality here ranges from Blu-ray to rough VHS, with some scenes employing both to piece events together. That can be a little jarring, but at least the audio is consistent, even if nearly all of it is tape-sourced.<br>
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<i>Monster Prosthetics Masterclass</i> is an interesting account of the process by which actors are made up into monsters, with Bob Keen detailing every step of their work. Some behind-the-scenes footage of Malcolm Smith being done up as Ashberry is shown along with his words.<br>
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<i>Cutting Compromise</i> is a really great interview with editor Mark Goldblatt, the man brought in by the studio to deliver a “tighter” film. Original editor Richard Marden is no longer with us, but it’s equally fascinating to hear from the guy responsible for chopping Barker’s vision down to size. Goldblatt has some good stories and speaks candidly, admitting right away that he felt Marden’s cut of the film needed work. He basically did what the studio told him, with no input from Barker.<br>
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<i>The Painted Landscape</i> is five minutes of artist Ralph McQuarrie’s artwork as compared to the final picture, set to the film’s score.<br>
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<i>Matte Painting Tests</i> features the actors walking around with the matte painting in place, similar to how it appears in the final film. This footage is also set to the score.<br>
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<i>Makeup Tests</i> is exactly what it sounds like, featuring footage of various characters being worked on. Again, set to the score.<br>
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<i>Stop Motion Lost Footage</i> briefly discusses the production’s aspiration to do more with stop-motion animation, but it was cut further and further due to budget. The Director’s Cut restores some of this footage, though it does feel a bit out of place but is by no means unwelcomed.<br>
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<i>Extended Torture Scene</i> is a full three-and-a-half minutes of the Crusade-like killings of the Breed as shown when Rachel tells her story.<br>
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<i>Rehearsal Test</i> made me laugh a little. It’s the actors doing the film’s opening run through the graveyard sans costumes. Weird seeing them out of character.<br>
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Finally, there are <i>Extensive Still Galleries</i> that look at Early Sketches, Deleted Scene, Poster & Pre-production Art, On the Set of <i>Nightbreed</i> and The Cast & Crew.<br>
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All the theatrical cut has on it is a trailer, the same one included on the Director’s Cut disc one.<br>
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Also in the package is a thick booklet, which includes an overview of how this Director’s Cut came to be, as written by Mark Allan Miller, along with some character spreads for the various Breed. Everything comes housed in a sturdy side-loading slipbox, with a separate Blu-ray case for each cut of the film.<br>
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This is the set <i>Nightbreed</i> fans have dreamed of owning. If there’s <i>maybe</i> one thing I would have liked to see, it’s a lengthy piece covering the process whereby this cut came to be, but all the facts are presented here in one form or another; a featurette may have felt redundant. Casual fans will have zero complaints about what’s included on the standard edition, while serious fans will be extremely pleased by the Limited Edition’s offerings.<br>
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Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-80552306596651488822014-09-12T13:30:00.000-07:002014-09-12T13:30:14.958-07:00Pumpkinhead (1988) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEOjT-tbwq-zlBvkegCxIQImgv04UwEvOUO4unXla20zxl2h0ZqnGSv3WkQQeMu2TnM4eECmer8d7YMB7inG4eAhZXMhlMGYWNhWT5f4RA2oQeCu88Vo-q8hTSO_BaC9qK9DR-8WLh48Fn/s1600/pumpkinheadbd.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEOjT-tbwq-zlBvkegCxIQImgv04UwEvOUO4unXla20zxl2h0ZqnGSv3WkQQeMu2TnM4eECmer8d7YMB7inG4eAhZXMhlMGYWNhWT5f4RA2oQeCu88Vo-q8hTSO_BaC9qK9DR-8WLh48Fn/s320/pumpkinheadbd.jpeg" /></a></div>
Despite the subjectivity of nearly every horror film in existence, there are a handful of titles that more or less remain above reproach because they’re just so damn beloved. These are the films that would make you question a person’s love of the genre if they claimed not to be a fan. When it comes to a title like <i>Pumpkinhead</i> (1988), horror fans should fall into one of two categories:<br>
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1. Those who love it.
2. Those who haven’t yet seen it.<br>
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After toiling away in Hollywood since the early ‘70s, special FX pioneer Stan Winston finally got the chance to direct his first feature length film (and it should have stayed his first and only, if you’ve seen his one other theatrical picture, 1990’s <i>A Gnome Named Gnorm</i>). Pulling from a concept screenwriter Gary Gerani had kicking around in his head since the late ‘70s, along with a poem written by Ed Justin, <i>Pumpkinhead</i> is a seminal supernatural creature feature; a morality tale pitting film’s two oldest foes against one another – good vs. evil. Swathed in atmosphere and anchored by a strong lead in Lance Henriksen, the true star here is the eponymous demon of vengeance, Pumpkinhead, who remains one of cinema’s most realized, emotive creations of latex and mechanics ever produced. Even heathens who only find the film to be decent can’t argue the beast Winston’s team conjured up isn’t an enduring icon of horror; its legacy only diluted by some truly atrocious sequels (although, being a child of ‘90s horror, I have to admit to fostering a soft spot for <i>Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings</i> (1994) despite the fact it is entirely unnecessary).<br>
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Ed Harley (Lance Henriksen) is a simple man. He lives in a modest cabin with his young son, Billy (Matthew Hurley), and their dog, Gypsy (who also played the Peltzer family pet in 1984’s <i>Gremlins</i>), since his wife passed away many years ago. By day, Ed and Billy run a local market & feed store by the roadside. One day, some city folk stop by on their way to a weekend getaway in the woods. Ed is forced to leave the shop when he forgets some feed for Mr. Wallace (played by John Carpenter crony George “Buck” Flower), leaving Billy “in charge” momentarily. And in that moment, Billy is run down and killed by Joel (John D’Aquino), a hothead dickhead who drinks constantly, thus ensuring that even when he does have a legitimate accident (see: Billy) he still has to go on the lam. Steve (Joel Hoffman), Joel’s brother, does the right thing by staying behind and trying to speak with Ed when he returns. As you might imagine, Ed is not thrilled.<br>
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Ed drives back down to the Wallace’s place, hoping to get in touch with an old woman who lives in these parts. She’s rumored to be able to conjure up something to even the score; a demon that Ed witnessed killing a man (Dick Warlock, in a very brief role) back when he was a young boy. One of Wallace’s kids shows him the way, down into the swamp where Haggis (Florence Schauffler) lives in a ramshackle cabin. Ed wants vengeance, which Haggis can provide… at a high price. Ed is instructed to dig up a malformed corpse from atop a small plateau within a pumpkin patch. He returns with the body, Haggis performs a ritual and the corpse transforms into the gargantuan demon of vengeance, Pumpkinhead. Numerous deaths follow.<br>
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It’s a tale as old as time – good vs. evil, revenge, justice, consequences. <i>Pumpkinhead</i> doesn’t succeed by doing things differently; it succeeds by getting a number of variables right, including the casting of Henriksen, who brings a strong sense of gravitas to the picture; delivering an atmospheric, almost gothic aesthetic set deep in the woods of Califo…er, the South; and, most importantly, Pumpkinhead as a character is unforgettable. Winston was mostly hands off during production because he had so much to manage running the ship. Thankfully, his shop contained a number of insanely talented individuals – Tom Woodruff Jr., Alec Gillis, Shannon Shea – that they were able to craft such amazing work in the span of several weeks. As a malevolent creature from another world, Pumpkinhead feels organic; it moves and emotes with as much realism as possible. Verisimilitude aside, the design is just flat-out spectacular, too. You almost can’t blame these producers for making sequels because it’s the kind of movie monster you want to see more of. Note I did say “almost”.<br>
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Henriksen is such a damn solid actor. He’s got this soulful charm to him, whether he’s playing a villain or a hero. It’s a magnetic presence. Side note: the guy is just like that in real life, too. Total class act. Here, as Ed Harley, he’s a man who makes a rash decision based upon raw emotion and a sense of total loss; he needs these kids to feel as he does, in this moment. Only after Ed is vicariously linked to Pumpkinhead does he understand the error of his choice, a wrong he desperately tries to right until the very end. It’s hard to imagine anyone doing a better job filling Harley’s boots.<br>
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The film’s road to theaters was not an easy one, fraught with studio change-ups, a poorly-timed wide release date and very few screens. Still, it thrived upon hitting home video, where mass audiences were finally able to appreciate the hard work Winston and co. had done. It’s possible for some this is one of those “rose-tinted memory” films that might not hold up for first-time viewers more accustomed to CGI creatures and hot-bodied teens in their horror. I stress “possible” because, really, you can’t love horror and not love everything about <i>Pumpkinhead</i>. It’s a brisk romp through the swamp, full of creepy creature moments and gorgeously lit, looking like a southern-fried Mario Bava flic.<br>
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Fans of <i>Pumpkinhead</i> have likely purchased this film at least a handful of times – VHS (which had the best cover art of any release), a full-frame DVD, a special edition widescreen DVD and now, finally, the reigning kings of horror on Blu-ray, Scream Factory, have delivered what should be taken as the definitive version, with a 1.85:1 1080p image that looks just great. Barring an extensive 4K restoration, this is the best the film will ever look on home video. There’s not much to complain about here. The picture relies heavily on colored lighting and a brooding atmosphere to heighten the horror, with many shots bathed in hues of red or blue. That blue, in particular, looks very effective when coupled with all the smoke pumped into the shots when our characters are trying to escape from the woods. Black levels are stable and rich; and they need to be because nearly the entirety of the film takes place in dimly-lit woods. Contrast takes a bit of a hit at night, when details tend to get obscured by shadow, though much of that lost detail is just inherent to such low lighting. Unsurprisingly, the image looks best during the daylight scenes, when finer details are able to more fully show themselves. No digital tweaking has been done here; no DNR or unnecessary tampering. Other than a few minor specks, the print used here is in great condition. Some minor compression issues pop up in the background of a few scenes; nothing major, though. I’ve seen this movie a hundred times on a half dozen formats on this is unquestionably the best it has ever looked.<br>
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As usual, fans have the choice of an English DTS-HD MA in either 5.1 surround sound track or 2.0 stereo. Now, the film was originally mixed in Ultra Stereo and the additional tracks added for a more immersive experience aren’t completely needed. The multi-channel option does sound a bit fuller than the stereo track, so this will simply come down to a matter of preference for most. Personally, unless a 5.1 channel track is terribly done it’s usually my go-to pick simply because the soundfield is expanded more fully. If you’re a purist, however, just know the 2.0 stereo track gets the job done nearly as well. Dialogue tends to sound a bit thin and flat on either track, lacking presence. Rears get some sporadic play during tense moments, never quite delivering enough audible cues to be totally immersive. The highlight here is composer Richard Stone’s score (someone get on a vinyl release, ASAP), which is perfectly constructed for the film. Stone uses a great deal of Southern instrumentation here, including some great pieces done with slide guitar and harmonica. There’s nothing generic about this score. Subtitles are included in English.<br>
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Continuing on with their mission to provide amazing releases, Scream Factory not only included ALL of the bonus materials found on the previous special edition DVD but they’ve also included newly-produced featurettes in an effort to absolutely pack every bit of space on this disc with awesome material. In addition to the returning audio commentary, documentary, trailers and featurettes, the disc also includes new interviews, a retrospective on Winston and an image gallery.<br>
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Ported over from the previous DVD is this audio commentary, featuring co-screenwriter Gary Gerani and creature FX creators Tom Woodruff Jr. and Alec Gillis, moderated by filmmaker (and super fan) Scott Spiegel. It’s a mostly-active session, with all participants getting plenty of time to discuss their respective contributions to the film. Everyone does quiet down on a few occasions, leaving awkward gaps of silence, and some info is redundant if you watch the other bonus features first. Still, if you want to know everything you possibly can about the production, this is an essential listen. <i>Pumpkinhead Unearthed</i> is a six-part documentary that runs just over an hour. No stone is left unturned here, as nearly every available principal cast & crew member is interviewed about their work on the film. This documentary was excellent when it arrived with the SE DVD, and here, presented in HD, it’s no less interesting to watch all over again. <i>Behind the Scenes</i> is a vaguely-titled piece that looks at the genesis of Pumpkinhead as a practical creation. Most of this footage consists of the special FX crew guys testing out a rough form of the Pumpkinhead suit, as well as sculpting the “hero” head and seeing the entire thing all put together on set. <i>Night of the Demon with Richard Weinman</i> is an interview with the veteran producer, who has some vivid recollections about working with Winston, including one moment of testosterone overload when he and producer Dino DeLaurentiis got into a screaming match. Dino, of course, won. <i>The Redemption of Joel with John D’Aquino</i> is an interview with the film’s big jerk. Ironically, he originally wanted to play the Jeff East good guy role, but wound up playing the heavy. He makes mention of his death scene being very painful due to the rig in which he was hoisted up. <i>The Boy with the Glasses with Matthew Hurley</i> is an interview with the actor who played Ed Harley’s son. Young Billy is all grown up, looking very much like you’d expect Older Billy to appear. Being so young during the time of filming, he’s got nothing but golden memories of his time on set. He points to Henriksen as making a great effort to keep him comfortable during the shoot. <i>Demonic Toys</i> is an interview with Jean St. Jean, sculptor at SOTA toys, who talks about the process by which he created the 20” tall Pumpkinhead figure that was put out many years back. It looks badass, but I’ll say this: it can’t stand for sh*t. Kids, leave most of your toys in the box. Trust me. <i>Remembering the Monster Kid – A Tribute to Stan Winston</i> is a slightly moving, slightly long remembrance of the FX legend. Stan was a major innovator in the film world; this is undeniable. Some of his contemporaries (mostly those who worked on this film) show up to wax fondly on how much they admired him. A couple tales of his temper are worked in, though nothing all that revelatory or shocking is told. This could’ve had more substance to it, but as an effusive tribute it’s not half bad. A still gallery containing 102 images and the film’s theatrical trailer, looking rather rough, complete the extra material.<br>
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The cover art is reversible, allowing for display of either newly-commissioned art (which is some of the best to grace a Scream Factory title) or the original theatrical key art, which, frankly, isn’t all <i>that</i> awesome. Nobody would’ve minded if they chose the VHS art, but this is a very minor quibble. A slipcover featuring the new art is included on first pressings.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-76884847174985938302014-08-31T13:51:00.000-07:002014-08-31T13:51:07.458-07:00The Legend Of Hell House (1973) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7PaCPujWGusKmwQebpAOmwyrRwDBkE1zRqGjZN8Cvxuwn0yJ5CjoeM4tGZodAgWIiYST5GM0bBOKQOJA-kgR6I9O4ORRu5QmWWD_V6kNqpIg_lIZ9Z2Z9jI6uSpfysGrQ1MczWAaF8iC4/s1600/hellhouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7PaCPujWGusKmwQebpAOmwyrRwDBkE1zRqGjZN8Cvxuwn0yJ5CjoeM4tGZodAgWIiYST5GM0bBOKQOJA-kgR6I9O4ORRu5QmWWD_V6kNqpIg_lIZ9Z2Z9jI6uSpfysGrQ1MczWAaF8iC4/s320/hellhouse.jpg" /></a></div>
There are a number of variables that can lead horror fans to make assumptions about a film’s quality before seeing a frame of footage, but none seems more arbitrary than the rating. Slap an “R” on a film and there’s a buzz of excitement in the air; garner a “PG-13” and almost immediately complaints pop up decrying that a film has been neutered for younger audiences. Sometimes the latter is true – and also foolish, since the 12-17 demographic that studios so desperately chase is a minor slice of the movie-going public pie – but, really, a film’s rating is not intrinsically linked to its quality. Just look to the past for ripe examples of horror films that are truly terrifying despite their (gasp!) “PG” rating. Of course, many of these examples were from an age before the advent of a “PG-13” rating. Still, the great thing about horror is that gore and nudity aren’t required to instill terror, and there is a subgenre that can skate by without either of those: hauntings. Going back to an era before these films relied almost entirely on jump scares, some of the most consistently lauded fright films are decades-old favorites such as <i>The Haunting</i> (1963) and <i>Poltergeist</i> (1982), both of which have “mild” ratings.<br>
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One film that seems to get overlooked on many lists is the British cult classic <i>The Legend of Hell House</i> (1973) which, personally, I’ve always found to be quite effective. The screenplay was written by famed literary icon Richard Matheson, based upon his own novel of the same name. The plot is very basic: four people are commissioned to stay in “the Mount Everest of haunted houses” in an effort to prove whether or not life continues after death. That’s it. There are no ulterior motives, no sneaky sinister characters, and no slow building of tension before culminating in a frenzied climax. Four people enter a home that is unquestionably teeming with paranormal activity and the spirits within endlessly torment them until the very end. Ably directed by John Hough, who has helmed many cult favorites during his career, the film stands as a strong example of using fear of the unknown (and unseen) to bolster scares without relying on graphic imagery. <br>
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The picture opens with the following text:<br>
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<i>“Although the story of this film is fictitious, the events depicted involving psychic phenomena are not only very much within the bounds of possibility, but could well be true.”</i> – Tom Corbett, Clairvoyant and Psychic Consultant to European Royalty.<br>
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Lionel Barrett (Clive Revill), a prominent physicist, has been tasked by an aging millionaire to investigate the Belasco House, site of a massacre many years ago. The massive mansion was constructed by Emeric “The Roaring Giant” Belasco, a six-foot-five mountain of a man who disappeared shortly after the killings in his home. It is said the house is haunted by the spirits of those who died there. Previous expeditions to prove the existence of the supernatural ended poorly, with nearly every person who set foot inside dying under mysterious circumstances. Barrett brings along his wife, Ann (Gayle Hunnicutt); a psychic medium, Florence (Pamela Franklin); and a physical medium, Benjamin Fischer (Roddy McDowell), the one survivor of the research team that was killed in the home. Barrett is convinced the phenomena seen inside can be explained away as unfocused electromagnetic energy, and he’s brought along a giant machine (which looks like an old prop from “Star Trek”) that can reverse the energy fields.<br>
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Ridding the home of its evil won’t be that easy, however, as the four soon find out. Almost immediately, the place is abuzz with activity, which Barrett thinks is nothing more than Tanner using her abilities to manifest phenomena. Fischer is simply along for the pay day, keeping up his mental walls so as not to allow the house any influence over his mind. The others aren’t so detuned, and Barrett’s wife finds herself continually under a hypnotic spell that causes her to unleash her restrained sexuality. Tanner, too, is heavily influenced by the spirit of whoever resides here. She is continually attacked both mentally and physically, the latter of which comes in the form of a sleek black cat that is unrelenting in its attacks. Fischer finally lowers his mental block and lets his mind focus on the home’s energy, which lets the group uncover some of its hidden secrets. But, ultimately, Barrett thinks only his machine can clear the evil out and end all of this madness. He may be right; however, arriving at such a conclusion requires confronting the evil forces head-on from their origin point in the heart of the house, the chapel. <br>
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<i>The Legend of Hell House</i> might seem tame by today’s standards, especially when you consider it lacks anything visceral. They still get away with quite a bit for a “PG” rating, including some decent side boob action, a few strong sexual moments and some mild, bloody imagery. Where the film succeeds is by presenting a constant stream of nefarious activity that occurs almost as soon as our team of four enters. The scares aren’t major, but there’s an eerie undercurrent that’s slightly unsettling because of that intangible, unknown entity causing chaos. Is there only one malevolent spirit? Several? Barrett and his team are under constant attack, both from outside and from within their own group. What’s more, Barrett is able to play the skeptic despite an abundance of clearly inhuman activity because he attributes all of it to electromagnetic energy, claims Tanner and Fischer find dubious. <br>
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The acting here is very… British; and by that, I mean kind of stuffy. It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that McDowell is the strongest player here, though I wish the script had exploited the angle of him being the sole survivor of previous investigations much more. Fischer seems to be the only logical person on this mission, knowing full well what awaits them in that place. He must be very hard-up for cash considering he voluntarily re-enters the place where his colleagues died in the name of scoring some extra scratch. Old millionaires must pay very handsomely. <br>
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Hough’s film plays, in many ways, like a Hammer picture, which makes perfect sense considering he spent a good deal of time directing at the venerable studio. <i>The Legend of Hell House</i> presents a solid ghost story along with a dreary, austere atmosphere. Again, the scares found here may seem tame in comparison to today’s haunting films, but there’s an undeniable charm in the ‘70s aesthetic and gothic setting. If there’s one complaint, it would be there are <i>way</i> too many title cards. On the last day in the home, the date and time must flash on screen a dozen times. If there’s a second complaint, it would be that the ending sort of fizzles out unexpectedly, especially considering the gravity of the secrets that are uncovered. When people ask me to recommend a good, scary horror film that they haven’t seen this has long been one of my go-to picks. Revisiting it now, some of the scares aren’t quite as impactful as I had remembered, though that doesn’t make the experience of watching it any less enjoyable.<br>
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For a film that’s over 40 years old, <i>The Legend of Hell House</i> sports a 1.85:1 image that is fairly strong for a low-budget affair. Film grain is very evident throughout, mostly lending the cinematic aesthetic it should, but occasionally it turns to noise and the image quality suffers. This mostly happens during some interior shots. The print itself looks to have been well-preserved, with only minor flecks & dirt apparent. Hough uses extreme close-ups quite often, which not only adds to the sense of claustrophobia even in a huge mansion, but the image detail gets to shine through more than ever. When the camera is shooting medium or wide, though, the picture is softer than a moldy piece of fruit. Black levels hold strong, with only a couple instances of looking hazy. Colors look a tad on the faded side; nothing much pops here. Contrast is stable, but under the weight of shadows image details are swallowed up. This is the kind of transfer that punches up every aspect of the picture as much as it can, even if the results aren’t eye-popping. It would require extensive restoration work to look much better. <br>
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There’s not much to be said about the English DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo track. It’s clean, free of hisses & pops and carries the dialogue with good fidelity. The real standout here is the electronic score by Delia Derbyshire and Brian Hodgson. It’s an atypical score that delivers an aura of foreboding, full of low-end instrumentation (think contrabassoon) and bursts of energy when the house comes alive. With so many labels churning out film soundtracks these days, someone should get on giving this its first proper commercial release. It’s absolutely fantastic. Subtitles are included in English.<br>
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Actress Pamela Franklin is the lone participant on the audio commentary track, which may just be a repurposed interview cut to use as a commentary. When selected, the disc starts off around five minutes into the movie, when Franklin’s character first appears. She’s pretty lively and quick with the anecdotes, but there are also many gaps of silence. This might’ve been better presented as a sit-down interview. The best extra included here is the <i>Interview with director John Hough</i> (1080p), which features the veteran director candidly talking about his style of shooting pictures, efforts to build suspense, the film’s energy, and he mentions they even had psychic advisors on set to make sure events were being presented correctly. He’s had a long, strong career and hearing him speak about his craft is a joy. The film’s theatrical trailer, a photo gallery, and a handful of radio spots conclude the supplements.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-30163418078110444282014-08-31T13:48:00.000-07:002014-08-31T13:48:06.739-07:00Ginger Snaps (2000) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk2Tjt6xnJV4DeYbZ3HV0WRFRocATN1GfdtMqRuDQxfyT1Tq4N9nyWU42Bvv6ZVWwA76gSbKC7nuQvdayJn301P50LL_MHYz3Da2dX7SyjUgC-1_LJlG4pJWjdvm6fEOxH8YiZPMWBZ3YN/s1600/ginger.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk2Tjt6xnJV4DeYbZ3HV0WRFRocATN1GfdtMqRuDQxfyT1Tq4N9nyWU42Bvv6ZVWwA76gSbKC7nuQvdayJn301P50LL_MHYz3Da2dX7SyjUgC-1_LJlG4pJWjdvm6fEOxH8YiZPMWBZ3YN/s320/ginger.jpg" /></a></div>
It could be argued that despite the lycanthropic lore of shape-shifters existing in mainstream cinemas since 1935’s <i>Werewolf of London</i>, the subgenre has yet to fully reach its pinnacle. <i>An American Werewolf in London</i> (1982) is often cited as the best werewolf film ever made, and rightfully so, but even with Rick Baker’s astounding make-up FX work there are inherent limitations preventing the film from showing off the rampaging beast in all its glory. The werewolf design is iconic, instantly recognizable, and the transformation Naughton undergoes is breathtaking every single time you see it. But the wolf trudges along like an ‘80s animatronic, incapable of the organic kinetic movement required to sell that this is a massive creature of considerable power. From there, every film in the subgenre is of wildly varying quality. Rob Bottin nailed the Eddie Quist transformation scene in Joe Dante’s <i>The Howling</i> (1981), yet the majority of that film isn’t exactly thrilling. Some films, like <i>The Wolf Man</i> (1941, 2010), forego turning their leading actors into a total creature and make them into literal wolf men. This effect can look incredible (Jack Pierce was a master of his craft back in those days) but viewers still aren’t seeing a “complete” transformation. Others go for broke and attempt to use practical FX to construct hulking furry behemoths that, more often than not, wind up looking disappointing on screen. Or when they do look amazing, such as in the much maligned <i>Bad Moon</i> (1996, and a film I happen to really dig), the story suffers. The point of all this rambling is that for such a beloved sector of horror, werewolf fans have always had to accept a certain degree of deficiency in nearly every film.<br>
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<i>Ginger Snaps</i> (2000) sets itself apart from the pack by doing something different that still operates within the wheelhouse of werewolf lore. In fact, to show how much it’s trying to be unique the word “werewolf” is never spoken once; they’re referred to as “lycanthropes”. This is as feminist a take on the werewolf tradition as anything ever done before, or since, using a young girl’s coming of age (getting “the curse”) as a metaphor to explain her drastic changes from sweet & innocent to savage & beastly. Writer Karen Walton only wanted to tackle this subject matter if it could be done in an atypical way, outside the genre norm and focused on horrors of the body – both natural and unnatural. This approach gives “Ginger Snaps” a very Cronenberg sensibility, which is no coincidence as both Walton and director John Fawcett cite the legendary Canadian auteur’s early efforts as a direct influence. The relationship between Ginger and Brigitte is similar to that of Elliot and Beverly Mantle (Jeremy Irons) in <i>Dead Ringers</i> (1988). These qualities are what make “Ginger Snaps” an aberration, since outside of the well-crafted story of two sisters there isn’t much else to laud. <br>
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Ginger (Katherine Isabelle) and Brigitte (Emily Perkins) are two sisters with as close a relationship as any could have, and they are both obsessed with death. Their favorite pastime is to stage morbid, grisly death scenes, which they photograph for personal and, sometimes, school use. A string of dog attacks has had everyone in the neighborhood on high alert, but Ginger & Brigitte see the gruesome deaths as an opportunity to produce art. While out in the park one night, they come across a still-warm canine corpse, which comes apart messily as they try to move it. Brigitte notices Ginger gets some blood on her leg, but it turns out she’s just caught her first wave in the crimson tide. As soon as the revelation is made clear, Ginger is savagely attacked from out of nowhere by some…thing. Brigitte is able to wrestle her away from the beast, which is then struck by an oncoming van driven by Sam (Kris Lemche), a local pot dealer who also knows a thing or two about lycanthropy. The two girls head home, since Ginger refuses medical treatment, and Brigitte is shocked to see her sister’s grievous wounds have already begun to heal.<br>
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Now that she is inflicted with a new curse, Ginger’s behavior begins to radically change. She’s aggressive. She begins to flirt with the boys. And she starts to alienate herself from Brigitte. Concerned for her sister, Brigitte works together with Sam to understand her problem, namely, her gradual metamorphosis into something inhuman. Sam thinks that monkshood, a perennial plant, may hold the key to controlling Ginger’s urges, which are only intensifying. It wasn’t enough that she knowingly infected another boy with her disease, but she’s now moved on to killing local dogs and anyone who is foolish enough to cross her. The events lead up to a massive party on Halloween night, when Brigitte and Sam search for Ginger, who is quickly beginning to assume a more lupine form. Their mother, Pam (Mimi Rogers) attempts to help her daughters, as does Sam, but ultimately it all ends with an expected showdown between the two siblings.<br>
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<i>Ginger Snaps</i> unquestionably succeeds in presenting strong, developed characters that anchor the picture. Ginger and Brigitte aren’t the usually paper-thin female archetypes employed in most horror films. They have depth and meaning, giving events that occur later in the film weight because we’re emotionally invested on more than a base level. The girls talk like real teenagers (which means an abundance of “fucks” throughout the picture) and it’s easy to empathize with their outcast status. Underneath the veneer of death photographs and morbid obsession, they’re just another two female adolescents trying to find their way in life while transitioning into womanhood. Now, clearly, there are a number of inferences to be drawn from the conceit of a young girl becoming a woman juxtaposed with literally turning into a snarling, fanged beast. Walton was trying to horrifically visualize the feeling of a woman’s body “betraying” her via the changes that come with a certain age. Again, this is all very Cronenberg-esque stuff – the terror of seeing the vessel you inhabit, the flesh you trust, taking on a life of its own and becoming something unfamiliar. Isabelle turns in a solid performance that has her running the gamut of emotions, sometimes drastically within key scenes. Perkins, likewise, is equally adept at delivering the necessary pathos for viewers to connect to her character.<br>
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But, man, is that damn wig on her ever distracting.<br>
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On the lycanthropic side of things, well, most of that is left off screen. And that’s probably for the best. Fawcett wanted to do all of the film’s effects using practical make-up, a decision more directors should try sticking with, but this was also filmed around the turn of the century. At that time, CGI was still a bit rough if you didn’t have a massive budget (which this film did not), and had <i>Ginger Snaps</i> gone the CGI route it would have almost undoubtedly looked atrocious. Still, the lycanthrope presented here isn’t the strongest example ever seen in film. Maybe not the worst, either, but (unfortunately) it’s pretty close. The design doesn’t look like an organic creature; it’s more like a static sculpt that stands in one location and has limited mobility. It would be more at home in Knott’s Scary Farm than a feature film. Props for giving it boobs, though; you don’t see that too often. The film also gets some kudos for shaking up the werewolf mythology by eschewing cinematic traits like full moon shape shifting, silver bullets, and how the disease is contracted. Pro tip: if you’re going to have sex with a she-wolf, wear a condom.<br>
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While it might not be a total success as a true werewolf film, <i>Ginger Snaps</i> succeeds in a number of areas. Characters are well-written… as long as they’re female. Reciprocation doesn’t extend to the male actors, who are either totally absent in character (i.e. the girls’ father) or pander to expected male high school stereotypes (horny, pushy, jock-ish). The idea of bodily betrayal, and not conforming to the usual werewolf tropes, is also refreshing. The film is proof that strict adherence to unwritten genre guidelines isn’t necessary, and often times going outside those boundaries yields something that can galvanize genre fans. The only major downside here, really, is a lack of strong werewolf FX that could have capped this off on a stronger note. As it stands, <i>Ginger Snaps</i> is inventive horror filmmaking that managed to rise above most of the muck being churned out during its time period.<br>
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It could be easy to find fault in the 1.78:1 1080p image Scream Factory has presented here on Blu-ray, but let’s remember the home video history of <i>Ginger Snaps</i>. The original DVD release was unceremoniously dumped on fans in 2003, with a full-frame transfer and a total lack of extra features. Keen buyers might have snatched up the Canadian DVD, which was in the proper aspect ratio and loaded with bonus goodies. Both discs, however, lacked in the video & audio department by featuring some truly ugly, muddied visuals.<br>
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This latest release is unarguably the best the film has ever looked, as dubious a distinction as that may be. There’s a fine grain structure present throughout that looks very filmic, never noisy or too heavy. The print is in reasonably good shape, though white flecks and some dirt is noticeable. Colors appear warmly saturated, with red being a pervasive hue that pops off the screen quite well. Black levels are consistent and dark, though there are a number of moments when they do look a bit hazy. Contrast is acceptable, but it’s much stronger in exterior shots than interiors, where things get a little muddled. Definition is strongest in close-up shots, while medium and wide shots look slightly above average at best. Background elements are also lacking in minute detail, appearing soft and unfocused more often than not. On the plus side, no post-processing has been done here – no DNR or edge enhancement to ruin the picture. This is a suitable image for a low-budget production. <br>
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The biggest boost the film receives is in the audio, where the English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track exhibits excellent fidelity to deliver a solid presentation. First off, Mike Shields’ score is absolutely exquisite, with the main leitmotif sounding very dramatic and operatic in execution. This is a film score that can stand independent of the feature and play wonderfully on its own. Dialogue is clean and always discernible, perfectly balanced alongside a bevy of sound effects and source music. Speaking of which, prepare to hear some horrifically dated tunes, especially during the Halloween party. There’s little activity in the rear assembly, giving this track a range that isn’t too expansive and lacks total immersion. The lycanthrope snarls and howls, however, sound beefy and thick; perfectly selling that what we are hearing is no ordinary wolf. An English DTS-HD MA 2.0 track is also included. Subtitles are available in English. <br>
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Fear not, owners of the Canadian SE DVD, because Scream Factory has ported over nearly all the good stuff as well as including some new features that are well worth your time. There are multiple audio commentaries, a documentary, featurettes galore, deleted scenes, cast auditions, trailers, and more. <br>
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Director John Fawcett delivers the first audio commentary, and he’s never at a loss for words. He dives right in, talking about the location shooting and finding somewhere to house a suitably bleak atmosphere. He also discusses the sheer terror he felt when it was discovered Emily Perkins had cut off nearly all of her hair just before being cast, requiring her to wear a wig that he clearly is no fan of. There’s a constant flow of solid information here. The second audio commentary is with writer Karen Walton. She delivers a track full of insight into the script, discussing her original ideas, thoughts on differing POVs in the film, and examining horror through a feminist lens. Fawcett’s track is a bit more in depth regarding the shoot as a whole, but this is no slog to get through.<br>
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<i>Ginger Snaps: Blood, Teeth and Fur</i> is a documentary that runs for over an hour. As you might guess based on the length this kitchen-sink-and-all piece looks back at the film’s early beginnings, when it was almost sunk due to backlash over “teen violence” films post-Columbine, to the casting, location shooting, FX work, scripting and much, much more. Katherine Isabelle is notably absent here, which may or may not be due to the fact she’s stated in interviews that she isn’t a horror fan and only used it as a springboard to get a bigger career. Whether that’s entirely true or not, her lack of appearance is conspicuous. Emily Perkins does participate, and, wow, has she ever grown up into quite the lovely young lady. <i>Growing Pains: Puberty in Horror Films</i> is an excellent, unexpected piece that looks at the horrors of coming of age with four notable female horror luminaries – writer Kristy Jett, filmmaker Axelle Carolyn, writer Heidi Honeycutt, and Fangoria’s Rebekah McKendry. The foursome looks back at films that have dealt with puberty, with some obvious and obscure selections for fans to consider. A reel of deleted scenes runs for around 25 minutes, but, annoyingly, these cannot be selected individually. Viewers have the option of watching them with the original audio, or with audio commentary from either director John Fawcett or writer Karen Walton. <i>Featurette</i> is the EPK that was found on the Canadian DVD, covering the usual bases. <i>Cast Auditions & Rehearsals</i> features Isabelle and Perkins during the process leading up to filming. Perkins is nearly unrecognizable with her shorn locks. <i>Creation of the Beast</i> looks at the design and sculpting process of making the lycanthrope seen during the film’s climax. <i>Being John Fawcett</i> is a silly, short video diary the director shot while on set. Theatrical trailers & TV spots are also included, and the disc is rounded out with a look at some of the production design artwork.<br>
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The cover art is reversible, allowing for display of either the newly created artwork (which is striking), or the original key art (which is sort of bland). A slipcover featuring the new art is included on initial pressings.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-36204270069326055372014-08-29T15:15:00.001-07:002014-08-29T15:15:50.786-07:00Under The Skin (2013) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ilNUL5nKB01x3ldd4p_ztxXeuX4VzSSbP_tzG1E4RN6XVhn2jFvbdAy_bCiBwk8q3u0cm98e0WtLYYgMJYEG1GSQN7428Rd0FmKvN3mvbTaAWSUWntNEAYvnXyvyjOLPIG_cZ1NHx35q/s1600/102816_slip.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ilNUL5nKB01x3ldd4p_ztxXeuX4VzSSbP_tzG1E4RN6XVhn2jFvbdAy_bCiBwk8q3u0cm98e0WtLYYgMJYEG1GSQN7428Rd0FmKvN3mvbTaAWSUWntNEAYvnXyvyjOLPIG_cZ1NHx35q/s320/102816_slip.jpg" /></a></div>
Nearly every ardent film aficionado understands that cinema is highly subjective, with most pictures garnering an equal number of supporters and detractors. Sometimes, half the fun in seeing a new movie is the post-viewing discussion that breaks out among friends over what did and didn’t work. Few films, though, can divide audiences more rapidly than art house movies. Where some viewers key in on subtleties and nuance, others see a pretentious mess that could bore a person to death. You don’t run across many people who have a “meh” reaction to something intrinsically artistic – either they love it and praise it endlessly, or they hate it and can’t spew enough vitriol. One such film that has recently divided filmgoers is writer/director Jonathan Glazer’s <i>Under the Skin</i> (2013). Adapted from the 2000 novel of the same name, which was written by Michel Faber, it’s the tale of an interstellar succubus that travels to Earth for the purpose of luring in lonely men and denuding their bones of flesh via an… unusual method. It has been met with stirring acclaim – it currently holds an 87% “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes - though there seems to be an equal number of critics who found it to be a pointless exercise of languid cinema. While at a cursory glance it may be easy to see where they’re coming from, the fact is Glazer’s film is purposely unconventional and a bit obtuse, requiring much deeper thought if viewers want to gain knowledge of its true nature. Nothing is overtly spelled out; it’s all in the subtext.<br>
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An alien (Scarlett Johansson) arrives on Earth to take the place of her predecessor, who has died under unknown circumstances. What these two “women” share are attractive features that would interest most hot-blooded men, which is essential to their purpose. Johansson (her character is never named) drives the streets of Scotland at night, attempting to pick up on single, unattached men who are more than eager to follow her back to her flat. Once inside the austere, blackened tomb where she resides the men strip down and follow her sultry figure across the room before being enveloped by a viscous liquid that preserves them alive, yet slowly softens their skin before sucking the flesh from their bones. It is not a pleasant way to go, even when you consider their final view of her curvaceous backside. She views humans from an objective perspective, with little regard for their lives and emotions; she is merely a tool here to do a job. <br>
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Her nightly endeavors hit a snag when she meets a young, deformed man (Adam Pearson, who looks not unlike the legendary Elephant Man, Joseph Merrick) who is shy and unaccustomed to attention from such a beauty. His grotesque exterior belies the gentle person under the skin, and, so, she begins to learn there is more to humans than just their outward appearance. She decides to let him go. Her experience with this young man changes her perception of not only those around her, but herself; of the body she inhabits. This leads her on a journey of self-reflection and stark realization; a trial through which she attempts to assimilate within the human world, experimenting with food and relationships and sex; things which were once so foreign to her. Constantly shadowed by a male of her species, one who maintains a constant vigil over her affairs and cleans up any messes, she is eventually resigned to the fact that despite her best efforts, she will never enjoy the pleasures our world has to offer. <br>
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Plot is secondary here; the story is more concerned with capturing the existential journey an alien takes when confronted with the possibility of becoming something more than what it is. Much like the people around her, viewers are kept at a distance, merely observing her actions without becoming deeply involved. Her purpose on Earth is only vaguely defined – we don’t exactly know why she’s seducing and liquefying these men. So much of the film is left open to interpretation that viewers with a short attention span (i.e., sadly, most of the younger generation) will probably check out early on without considering the messages being conveyed. The title has a double meaning, as it not only refers to there being something more under the skin of Johansson’s character, but also of the film’s depth. A reasonable comparison might be the work of David Lynch (though this film never reaches those lofty heights) because without a deeper evaluation of what’s being shown it would be all too easy to casually dismiss it as artsy, theoretical garbage.<br>
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It’s hard to believe any man wouldn’t jump into a vehicle if propositioned by Johansson, but many of the men she preys upon are either uninterested or oblivious to her intentions. If some of the reactions seem rather candid and genuine, that’s because they are. Many of her nightly escapades were shot using hidden consumer-grade cameras mounted in a van, with the actress calling out random men on the street that were only told of the ruse after the shots were completed. It’s a subtle touch that adds an extra layer of realism. Even many of the film’s characters (none of whom are given screen names) were portrayed by untrained actors. The aforementioned young man with severe facial disfigurement? That’s his real face, and his casting is testament to the realism Glazer attempted to achieve. The alien “cleaner” who shadows Johansson’s every move isn’t an actor at all, but a world-class motorcycle racer. The role required someone who could drive at high speeds on slick roads, and rather than use a stunt double Glazer simply hired Jeremy McWilliams, an Irish professional racer, to don the helmet. As a result of these casting decisions, and the fact that most have very little dialogue, the film’s veracity is greatly heightened.<br>
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A good film can almost always be elevated by a great score, and the work done here by Mica Levi, aka Micachu (of Micachu & The Shapes), is exemplary. Droning bass lines are punctuated by bursts of Fox string sounds, a technique that has been used for decades to heighten tension and emotion. The score incorporates elements of electronic and acoustic instruments, giving the entire affair an appropriately alien feel. Levi’s leitmotif used during the film’s sequences of seduction is mysterious and sexy, like a lure that emanates from within and puts these men into autopilot. The atonal compositions are hypnotic, easily lulling viewers into a trance. It’s certainly one of the best film scores of the year thus far. <br>
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Despite a dearth of major activity, I never found myself bored while watching the film. Sure, Glazer lets himself veer into Terrence Malick territory at times, with long, sweeping wide shots that linger in a fixed position for lengthy periods of time. Thankfully, the Scottish landscape where they shot is so gorgeous that few will be bothered by witnessing its consistent beauty. If some find the film to be cold, well, that was intentional. This is a cold world to an alien being – it’s even cold to those who aren’t alien - and it succeeds in never allowing viewers to feel much comfort. <i>Under the Skin</i> is a stoic reflection of humanity through the lens of the ultimate foreign body. Some of Glazer’s directorial decisions are rather puzzling - with many questions left entirely unanswered - but for those who enjoy films that aren’t wrapped up in a neat package by the time credits begin rolling this is a cerebral experience that feels satisfactory. It may not be perfect, but it certainly is unique in a sea of homogenized cinema.<br>
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Viewers must keep in mind that the film’s 1.85:1 1080p image was produced using a variety of cameras, and so the results are going to vary from scene to scene. The color palette veers toward steely, blue hues with saturation stripped down in other colors. The muted aesthetic was intentional, as was the decision to shroud most of the film in a state of near-darkness. Black levels are inky and deep, aside from a few cases where contrast was boosted on purpose, rendering them a bit hazy. The nightly encounters with men on the street were captured using GoPro-style cameras, and they look about as reasonable as can be expected – grainy, not very detailed, and like a home video. Although much of what we see is bleak, the Scottish vistas look simply gorgeous and haunting. This might be far from what Blu-ray aficionados consider “reference quality”, but it is no doubt presented just as accurately as Glazer and his collaborators intended. <br>
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A great deal of the English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound track rests on the compositions of Levi because there isn’t a lot of dialogue to be heard. When characters are speaking, it is presented cleanly and balanced, though good luck making out what half the Scots here are saying. Those brogues are thick as a brick. The most boisterous moments come when Johansson enters a nightclub, with bass thumping and the sound of patrons echoing all around. Otherwise, the track comes to life only when Levi’s score is slowly working its magic to immerse listeners. Rears come to life for added ambiance, but this is a very minimal sound design that keeps viewers focused more on the images on screen and less on what they’re hearing. Subtitles are included in English SDH and Spanish.<br>
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The back cover sells the supplements a bit short, claiming to hold only one featurette. That one featurette is actually several shorter pieces that together form a nice making-of that runs over 40 minutes, focusing on camera, casting, editing, locations, music, poster design, production design, script, sound, and VFX. An insert containing a code for digital Ultraviolet HD download is included in the package.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-14918817486607841572014-08-29T15:13:00.000-07:002014-08-29T15:13:06.514-07:00Leviathan (1989) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIRINm65ROwV4csRd79FYCJ4VINPmF6fyMbW6gZ92nUw4fFdYlper_ZLJleQ3fOuWSekLA2TJSGx6CaBVTd5PFVKFJWjJ8FufbFrlbmc6eFpWy5WUE6T_QHmzt3yE0ncF3HydzBApSBEnj/s1600/leviathan_ver1_xlg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIRINm65ROwV4csRd79FYCJ4VINPmF6fyMbW6gZ92nUw4fFdYlper_ZLJleQ3fOuWSekLA2TJSGx6CaBVTd5PFVKFJWjJ8FufbFrlbmc6eFpWy5WUE6T_QHmzt3yE0ncF3HydzBApSBEnj/s320/leviathan_ver1_xlg.jpg" /></a></div>
It’s nothing new to have studios release competing pictures with similar storylines in theaters within a given year; in filmmaking parlance they are known as “twin films”. It is, however, a bit unprecedented to have five movies with the same theme released within a calendar year. That was the case in 1989, when theaters and home video shelves were deluged by titles such as <i>DeepStar Six</i>, </i>The Evil Below</i>, <i>Lords of the Deep</i>, <i>The Abyss</i> and <i>Leviathan</i> – all films dealing with underwater crews discovering sea creatures that, with the exception of <i>The Abyss</i>, are far from benevolent. Of course, none of them was much of a commercial or critical success outside of <i>The Abyss</i> (and even that wasn’t a huge success), but both <i>DeepStar Six</i> and <i>Leviathan</i> have enjoyed moderate cult classic status on home video in the years since, with the latter generally seen as the better of the two. Director George P. Cosmatos’ film is a treasure trove of talent, both in front of and behind the camera – featuring actors Peter Weller, Ernie Hudson, Daniel Stern, Hector Elizondo, Richard Crenna, and Meg Foster; special FX make-up by Stan Winston, with assistance from Tom Woodruff, Jr. and Alec Gillis; score composed by the legendary Jerry Goldsmith… that is one helluva impressive roster. If the talent isn’t enough to lure in viewers, a basic description of the plot should be – it’s <i>Alien</i> (1979) meets <i>The Thing</i> (1982) underwater. <br>
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An eclectic crew of undersea miners has only three days left before their six-month mining operation for Tri-Oceanic Corp. is complete. During a routine maintenance run, Sixpack (Daniel Stern), falls off a sea ridge and stumbles upon a downed Russian ship, from which he pilfers a safe. When Sixpack returns to the crew’s underwater habitat, Dr. Glen “Doc” Thompson (Richard Crenna) translates the ship’s name – <i>Leviathan</i> – as well as a video log left by the captain, wherein he talks about a strange illness afflicting his crew. As everyone pores over the contents of the safe, Sixpack quietly slips a flask of vodka found inside into his pocket. Later that night, he shares a drink of vodka with Bowman (Lisa Eilbacher) in their quarters. The next day Sixpack is feeling under the weather, so he goes to see Doc, who discovers a rash on his skin. Not long after the exam, Sixpack lies dead on his hospital bed. Well, dead-ish. Whatever was in that vodka has started to … change his body. Bowman begins feeling the effects, too, and she eventually (unwittingly) winds up in the room with Sixpack’s body, where the two begin to grotesquely merge.<br>
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Doc and Beck (Peter Weller) want to avoid alarming the crew, so they wrap “both” bodies up in a bag and get the rest of the group to help flush it out of the station. Well, that plan doesn’t work so well when the bag starts moving and DeJesus (Michael Carmine) opens it up thinking someone is alive, at which point the newly-formed creature takes a swipe at Cobb (Hector Elizondo) and claws his chest pretty good. Everyone is able to force the creature into the “swamp”, a platform used to lower the workers to the ocean floor, but not before a piece of it wriggles out and remains on board. It soon begins to mutate into a lamprey-like creature, attacking crew members and assimilating their bodies, turning into a hulking, menacing beast. The few crew members who are left alive have to figure out a way to either kill it or escape, but with Tri-Oceanic’s CEO Martin (Meg Foster) unable to extract them things are looking dire. <br>
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<i>Leviathan</i> works, but the obvious influence of both <i>Alien</i> and <i>The Thing</i> are impossible to ignore; the film is wholly derivative of both, right down to Beck’s final line to the creature echoing both Kurt Russell from Carpenter’s film and Roy Scheider in <i>Jaws</i> (1975). The station’s design is awfully reminiscent of the Nostromo, the crew here is just as varied and distinct as those found in Scott’s film, and the idea of an ever-evolving, regenerative creature screams of Bottin’s work. But there are certainly worse projects to be cribbing from. About the only elements of this film that feel unique are the underwater setting and the concept behind how the creature came to be, neither of which are all that novel. Still, the film succeeds because of the sheer amount of talent involved; and because David Peoples and Jeb Stuart’s script maintains a good pace with commendable intrigue and action to prevent ennui from setting in. Other than some clumsy exposition, where characters make incredibly educated guesses as to the creature’s origins that magically fit together, there isn’t too much to roll your eyes at. These are smart, professional people who make mostly smart, professional decisions when faced with a lumbering beast consuming co-workers. <br>
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The film world lost a GIANT when Stan Winston passed in 2008. Creature design hasn’t been the same since. Now, we’re stuck with guys like Neville Page who, while very talented, tends to create creatures that have little variance from film to film. Everything looks like it comes from the same taxonomy. To list all of Winston’s achievements would be (and should be) needless to genre fans; his work is inimitable and easy to spot. The creature design for <i>Leviathan</i>, however, could probably be considered one of his lesser efforts. Both Tom Woodruff, Jr. and Alec Gillis discuss the difficulties of putting the final form together in the supplements on this disc; there were many. Many of the film’s “smaller” effects actually look quite good and convincing, and by peppering them in at short intervals throughout the film it excuses the fact that the main beast is only glimpsed in shadow until the very end of the picture. Once it’s seen, the result looks a bit like, as Ernie Hudson puts it in his interview, “a big chicken monster”. If you look at production shots, it actually doesn’t look all <i>that</i> bad, but the way it’s shot on film doesn’t do the design much justice. Admittedly, though, it does look cobbled together and not entirely congruent, which may or may not have been intentional. <br>
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<i>Leviathan</i> is a fun late ‘80s thriller, brimming with talent and bolstered by a strong score, courtesy of maestro Jerry Goldsmith, who weaves some atypical sounds into his representative work. So what if the film is derivative of other, greater works? Plenty of films can be seen as riffing on old ideas; it’s what Hollywood does. At least this film had the decency to pull from two of the most lauded genre pictures of all-time. <br>
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Scream Factory has been getting some flack online about their video transfers lately, some of which may be justifiable. Picture quality should always be of paramount importance, not that I’m implying they don’t care about image quality. Sometimes you just can’t do more with what you’re given, especially on a budget. Anyway, throw all that talk out the window because <i>Leviathan</i> is one of their best-looking efforts this year. The 2.35:1 1080p image is stellar, obviously sourced from a recently-mastered version of the film. MGM tends to do well on their horror titles when HD masters are made. The print used here is in great shape, very clean, with nary a hint of dirt of white flecks. Definition in the station interiors is superb, with fine details appearing especially strong. You can count the individual beads of sweat perspiring on DeJesus’ face, or count the crags on Richard Crenna’s. Cinematographer Alex Thomson makes some smart lighting decisions here, allowing for strong clarity and a good sense of depth in these close quarters. Colors are accurate and black levels hold strong. There’s a slight softness to the edges of the picture, which is simply a byproduct of shooting with anamorphic lenses. The only weakness in the picture comes during the “underwater” scenes, which weren’t actually underwater but shot on a soundstage at Cinecitta Studios in Italy. The set was bathed in oceanic hues, cameras were overcranked to give the sense of slow movement in water, and particles were fanned into the air to give the illusion of sediment on the sea floor. I don’t think it would surprise anyone to know this wasn’t shot underwater. The image often looks murky and soft during these shots, which only occur sporadically during the film. These are sources issues, though, and aren’t because of a bad transfer. Not a big deal and the majority of the film looks so good most won’t even care. <br>
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The disc offers the choice of an English DTS-HD MA surround sound track with either a remixed 5.1 or original 2.0 stereo option. The stereo track is a little tighter and more focused, but the expanded 5.1 track has better range and sounds fuller. Your choice will simply come down to preference. Goldsmith’s score isn’t his best work by any stretch, but the man was a master of mood setting and knowing how to manipulate emotions through music. He also loved using atypical sounds and styles, such as the bits of whales singing during the opening credits. Dialogue here is clean, centered and balanced within the mix. Fidelity is strong. The LFE track provides some deep, rumbling bass to convey the fury of the sea. Subtitles are available in English.<br>
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<i>Leviathan – Monster Melting Pot</i> features a handful of the film’s cast & crew (minus Weller) interviewed about their time on the set. Mention is made of all the underwater films of 1989, and how this one was done on a very short schedule. Tom Woodruff, Jr. notes that this was, by far, the worst suit he’s ever had to wear on screen, since it forced him to stand in a hunched over position for hours at a time. This is a little long, but there’s good info to be heard. <i>Dissecting Cobb with Hector Elizondo</i> is an interview with the actor, who has a vivid memory and an endless supply of humor, talking candidly about his time on the movie. <i>Surviving Leviathan with Ernie Hudson</i> is an ironically titled interview with Hudson, who is almost always second banana in his movies. He loved shooting the film in Rome, which meant he could bring his family on a great vacation. But he did not like all the swimming. Or the monster’s design. And he really hated the ending. The film’s theatrical trailer, along with a handful of other Scream Factory title trailers, closes out the supplements.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-91816371132811027262014-08-29T15:09:00.000-07:002014-08-29T15:10:11.239-07:00Motel Hell (1980) Blu-ray review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLI01_upuDjgTarJfl0U6_LHx7qGBxfaRCsJ93tUdDheTalq5xc5ILVpjnZ8JJmDFq-LFkXLcs7xKnn60IvLw4MFS9ZlgWtpTgkcan6OJfSUcLbnYQUJpCjIaTBVITE5iw9bGBm3cgF-Gw/s1600/MHBRCover72dpi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLI01_upuDjgTarJfl0U6_LHx7qGBxfaRCsJ93tUdDheTalq5xc5ILVpjnZ8JJmDFq-LFkXLcs7xKnn60IvLw4MFS9ZlgWtpTgkcan6OJfSUcLbnYQUJpCjIaTBVITE5iw9bGBm3cgF-Gw/s320/MHBRCover72dpi.jpg" /></a></div>
Of all the genres in cinema, the two that elicit perhaps the greatest response from audiences are horror and comedy. Fear and laughter are universal, but they can also be two of the most difficult emotions to properly provoke in large numbers. Unsurprisingly, as far as genre mashups go, few complement each other as well as these two. Many of horror’s most celebrated films are darkly humorous – <i>Evil Dead II: Dead By Dawn</i> (1987), <i>Re-Animator</i> (1985), <i>Return of the Living Dead</i> (1985), to name but a few. Some films play it straight, others keep it grim, but the ones that eschew tongue-in-cheek humor usually wind up playing more horrifically. Films that produce those moments of gallows humor so pitch black you aren’t sure whether to be disturbed or delirious with laughter. A perfect example of this would be Tobe Hooper’s seminal landmark of horror, <i>The Texas Chain Saw Massacre</i> (1974), where the comedy is so dark, peppered in between scenes of sheer terror, that for some viewers it simply goes right over their heads. When Drayton is zapping Sally with that cattle prod, he exhibits a wry smile, which should break the tension and allow for a bit of levity, yet it’s done with such subtly we aren’t sure whether to admonish his actions or laugh along with him. Hooper never plays the comedic aspects overtly, a trait that made him the perfect candidate for a similar film being set up at Universal some years later.<br>
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Of course, he never wound up directing that film, <i>Motel Hell</i> (1980), mainly due to the fact that Universal backed out after finding the script to be too bizarre and dark; and, also, because the subject matter was very similar to what he’d done just a few years earlier with <i>Chain Saw</i>. The project went into turnaround for a couple of years before being offered to English director Kevin Connor, who took on the job with one stipulation: that it be made as a black comedy. The film’s producers agreed, and Connor delivered a darkly humorous film, played straight, replete with equal parts hilarity and horror. Anchored by two stellar performances, especially the late Rory Calhoun as Farmer Vincent, the picture has been a strongly supported cult classic for over three decades. <br>
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Nobody smokes meat like Farmer Vincent, and it takes all kinds of critters to make his fritters. Vincent (Rory Calhoun) and his sister, Ida (Nancy Parsons), run the Motel Hello (the “O” flickers out an awful lot), a quaint little property on a farm, surrounded by trees and nature. It’s a countryside gem, supported by the profits generated from Vincent’s meat smoking business. The secret is in the meat, which happens to be human flesh. In order to keep a steady supply of flesh on hand, Vincent has booby trapped the land around his motel, catching passersby and tourists using various devices. But he doesn’t kill them right away; oh no. Vince has to make sure his meat stays fresh, and he does this by knocking his victims out with chloroform, burying them up to the neck in dirt, and slicing their vocal chords so the only sounds they can make are gurgling & guttural. Out on the hunt one night, he shoots out the tires on a motorcycle and takes out a couple. The man he decides to “plant” for use later, but the woman, Terry (Nina Axelrod), sure is purty. He takes her back home and cares for her, nursing her back to health. When she asks him about her companion, Vince says he died quickly and was buried the next morning, even taking her to his (false) gravesite. <br>
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Vincent and Ida’s younger brother, Bruce (Paul Linke), the town sheriff, stops by and immediately takes a liking to Terry, too. It would seem Bruce is in on the family business, but in reality he’s just a complete dimwit who is oblivious to his brother’s actions. Not that you can blame him, since Vincent is the most affable, altruistic old man this side of the Mississippi. Terry, despite seeming completely healed, decides to stay on at the motel a while longer, giving Vincent the idea that she’d be perfect to take over the family business. Bruce, however, also finds Terry to be an ideal mate, leading to a quarrel between the brothers. This should be an easy decision for Terry, however, since her one date with Bruce ended with him attempting to pretty much rape her before leaving to answer a distress call. And then Terry tells him she “had a good time” at the end of the night! Talk about mixed signals. Vincent arranges for him and Terry to get married, but Ida gets jealous, leading to a wild night of double crosses, escaped victims uprising against their captors, and the best damn chainsaw duel ever committed to celluloid.<br>
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<i>“Meat’s meat and a man’s gotta eat!”</i> Words to live by; words that Vincent lived by. Each of the film’s principal cast members are perfectly fit for their respective roles, but Calhoun is the one who carries this picture. The loveable ol’ cowboy was best known for his role on CBS’ “The Texan”, which ran from 1958-1960. Calhoun had a recognizable face and minor acclaim, but he never quite rose above the ranks of B-level status. In that respect, it seems fitting he would appear in a string of B-movies during the twilight years of his career, which included roles in the infamous killer rabbit opus <i>Night of the Lepus</i> (1972) and everyone’s second-favorite Roddy Piper film, <i>Hell Comes to Frogtown</i> (1987). As Farmer Vincent, he’s sweet as a peach, approaching every situation with an ever-present smile… even, and especially, when he’s about to off someone. It’d be like if you found out your sweet old grandpa was in reality a deranged maniac. Vincent sets his victims at ease before quietly gassing them out and then it’s off to the garden. The onus of success rests squarely on his broad shoulders, and Calhoun delivers. Speaking of delivery, he unquestionably has the greatest line of the film, delivered just before the credits roll, when he makes a startling confession. <br>
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Almost forgot, I’d be remiss not to mention the late, great DJ Wolfman Jack’s appearance as a TV evangelist who dresses to the nines in pure white. He, too, has one of the film’s best moments when he confiscates a copy of Hustler from Bruce, offering to “dispose of it properly” for him. Wolfman’s role is very minor, but certainly memorable.<br>
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Director Kevin Connor had already helmed a few notable genre releases in his native England before moving over to America for his stateside debut on <i>Motel Hell</i>. His feature film debut was the well-received Amicus horror anthology, <i>From Beyond the Grave</i> (1974), which was followed by minor cult classics like <i>The Land That Time Forgot</i> (1975), its sequel <i>The People That Time Forgot</i> (1977), and <i>At the Earth’s Core</i> (1976). Surprisingly (or maybe not, if he was looking to avoid being pigeonholed), he only made one other horror film after <i>Motel Hell</i>, 1982’s <i>The House Where Evil Dwells</i>, before dropping off the cinematic radar entirely for a long career in television. His decision to shoot the humor of <i>Motel Hell</i> seriously is a large part of why it has held up so well, because this could have easily been a goofy affair were it not for the deadpan delivery and ambiguous humor. Just as with <i>The Texas Chain Saw Massacre</i>, the humor runs as an undercurrent through the picture, always present but never directly pandering to audiences, until, perhaps, the very end. In many ways, <i>Motel Hell</i> is the perfect companion film to Hooper’s masterpiece, with an ending no less memorable. Even those who have never seen the film know the one iconic image it produced – Farmer Vincent, wearing an oversized severed pig’s head, wielding a massive chainsaw. <br>
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<i>Motel Hell</i> received a solid Blu-ray release just recently, from Arrow Video over in the UK, and this edition looks to be using the same transfer, which is a good thing. The film’s 1.85:1 1080p picture is heads above the previous R1 DVD release. The print used is in great shape, exhibiting only minor white flecks that appear very sporadically. Given the low-budget roots, this is likely the best it could ever hope to look. A moderate sheen of grain covers the image, maintaining the lo-fi aesthetic nicely. Colors are reproduced well, though perhaps they’re a bit muted at times. Black levels look slightly hazy during some scenes, though in others they’re perfectly acceptable and dark. Daylight shots look best, allowing for maximum detail to show through. Definition gets the biggest boost here, from the sharp lines on Vincent’s red pickup truck to a pair of leather boots or the texture on a burlap sack. There is no evidence of DNR or any other post-processing attempt to clean up the image artificially. <br>
<br>
Scream Factory makes the most of the English DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo track, even if the end result is still a bit thin and flat. While it may lack in presence, the track does offer up good - not great – fidelity, with dialogue presented clean & clear, even if it is a little low in the mix at times. The real treat here is composer Lance Rubin’s score, which is a hodgepodge of sweet ol’ Southern twang, electronic synth cues and frenzied action once the climax has been reached. The source music country tracks are a perfect fit for this deep fried black comedy. What it lacks in range and immersion, it makes up for in style and substance. Subtitles are included in English. <br>
<br>
Now, on to the real meat of this package: the supplements. If you’re a current owner of the MGM Midnight Movies double feature DVD, then you will rejoice at the wealth of bonus material here; however, if you went ahead and bought the Arrow BD release then you’re likely wondering if there’s anything new, missing or ported over. And the answer is yes. <br>
<br>
This disc brings over all of the bonus materials found on Arrow’s release save for one (maybe two, if you’re picky): a retrospective featurette featuring filmmaker Dave Parker talking about <i>Motel Hell</i>, and a commentary track with director Kevin Connor moderated by Calum Waddell. The latter feature barely counts since this disc also has a commentary with Connor, just with a different moderator. Additionally, there are plenty of interviews, featurettes, trailers, and more included here. <br>
<br>
An audio commentary with director Kevin Connor, moderated by Dave Parker, kicks things off. This is a solid track, with Parker asking the right questions to coax a great deal of anecdotal information out of Connor, such as the fact he wanted Harry Dean Stanton for the lead role of Farmer Vincent but he got turned down. Parker is clearly a huge fan of the film, and his infectious enthusiasm for the project imbues the track with a good energy. <i>It Takes All Kinds – The Making of Motel Hell</i> covers all of the requisite behind-the-scenes basics of getting the film made, from the initial start as a very sinister, dark script right up to Connor’s involvement and everything after. <i>Shooting Old School with Thomas del Ruth</i> is an interview with the film’s director of photography, who gets very personal here, starting off with discussing how his wife’s death caused him to just delve deep into his work. From there, the discussion turns to how he shot this film, lighting decisions, etc. <i>Ida, Be Thy Name – The Frightful Females of Fear</i> features a handful of females who work in the horror industry discussing the roles of women in horror, focused specifically on the personality and appearance of Ida. <i>From Glamour to Gore – Rosanne Katon Remembers Motel Hell</i> is an interview with the actress. Here, she reminisces about how her career got started, what it was like working on the film; typical coverage but still good to hear. <i>Another Head on the Chopping Block – An Interview with Paul Linke</i> features Bruce, the clueless brother, who recalls his time on set. It seems the part was written for him specifically, whereas none of the other parts were written for the actors who got the role. It sounds like he had a fun time based on his stories. The film’s trailer is included, along with image galleries of behind-the-scenes and poster & production shots. The cover artwork is reversible, allowing for display of either newly commissioned art or the original key art. A slipcover of the new art is included on first pressings.
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-88599668658006071262014-05-23T13:02:00.002-07:002014-05-23T13:02:22.966-07:00Darkman (1990)<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Long before Sam
Raimi became the creatively bankrupt Hollywood big shot some genre fans have
grown to dislike, he was spilling his creativity onto the screen with some of
the most inventive projects in cinema. Coming hot off the heels of “Evil Dead
II” (1987), a film that garnered a positive response from both audiences and
critics, Raimi was given the proverbial keys to the kingdom and called up to
the majors (in this case, Universal Studios) to make a picture with something
he frequently lacked: money. He had interest in helming adaptations of either
“The Shadow” (which Universal already had in development with another team) or
“Batman” (we know who had that at the time). Undeterred by these dead ends,
Raimi did what creative directors do: he created a character that embodied the
qualities he admired in The Shadow and Batman, but also one that would have
been right at home with Universal’s classic monsters of the 1930s. His creation
was The Darkman, a character whose origin story went through over a dozen
drafts before “Darkman” (1990) was given a go from the studio brass. The
resulting picture was Raimi operating within his wheelhouse, using his
signature camera work and frenetic action to tell a gothic love story that,
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<br /></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Dr. Peyton Westlake
(Liam Neeson) is a scientist working on a synthetic skin to help burn victims,
operating out of his lab near the river in L.A. His girlfriend, Julie (Francis
McDormand), is an attorney who uncovers corruption within the city’s largest
real estate developer, run by Louis Strack (Colin Friels), when she
inadvertently finds a document detailing bribery. She confronts Strack, who
does the rational thing by sending his henchman, Robert Durant (Larry Drake),
and some thugs to retrieve the document and kill everyone in the vicinity. At
the time, that happens to be Peyton and his lab partner. Durant has his goons
disfigure Westlake before setting a time bomb and blasting his charred body
into the river. Presumed dead, Peyton somehow survived the blast, with
horrifying burns covering almost half his body. Doctors performed a procedure
that neutralized any pain he could feel, but as a side effect it allows his
adrenaline to go unchecked and his mental state to become unstable. Peyton
escapes from the hospital and rebuilds his lab in an abandoned factory. The
synthetic skin he’s been working on only lasts for 100 minutes in sunlight, but
that’s all the time he needs (usually) to disguise himself as Durant and his
toughs. He rechristens himself Darkman, dedicating all of his efforts to
seeking vengeance against all those who were responsible for creating him.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Raimi came up with
an awesome story that could only have worked in his hands. He and director of
photography Bill Pope, frankly, shot the shit out of this thing. There hadn’t
been a movie since “Creepshow” (1982) that so emulated and perfectly captured
the essence of a comic book. Raimi’s work had always showcased impressive
camera movements and acumen for visual style, but the massive increase in
budget afforded to him on “Darkman” meant nearly any of his lofty ideas could
be achieved. All of the crazy shots that made “Evil Dead II” so memorable are
accounted for here. I love when Darkman goes into a fit of rage and we feel
like we’re inside his mind as fiery cracks appear in his head, everything goes
red, and the camera moves in a hypnotic/nauseating way. There’s so much life in
the camera that cause scenes to pop and stick in your mind more than any
standard direction could have done. The scene of Peyton’s attack is
particularly impressive, with Neeson’s face smashed into glass cabinets as we
watch from within. The camera swoops and zooms and pulls all around as he’s
tossed, burned, nearly drowned, and finally blow sky high and into the river. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">That scene also
showed just a small indication of make-up artist Tony Garder’s excellent work
to come, when Peyton grabs two poles that look like they belong in “Phantasm”
(1979) and his hands melt away down to the muscle and bone. They did it the
old-fashioned way: stop-motion. And it looks great. Gardner’s prosthetic work
here should have earned him an Oscar nomination because it can be hard to tell
where Darkman ends and Liam Neeson begins. For such a large piece worn over a
head, the result is something so lifelike you’ll forget there’s a man
underneath. The movement is about as fluid as a guy with no lips and a
well-done face can get. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Speaking of which,
Neeson really gives his all here as a once noble man who so desperately wants
revenge because these guys ruined his chance at having just a normal life.
That’s all he wanted. He has to live knowing he’s a hideous freak while his
girlfriend is out there, alone, and he knows they can never be together. At its
core, “Darkman” is just as much a love story as anything else. And to make that
work, you need a guy who can do sympathetic and “I will find you and I will
kill you”. And that guy is Liam Neeson. As Peyton, he’s jokey and casual, just
happy to be alive and doing a little bit of good in the world. As Darkman, all
of his inner rage comes bubbling to the surface like liquid hot magma and he
has little control over the beast he’s become. Neeson portrayed the character
with a genuine sincerity, giving him the ultimate tortured soul. He even went
so far as to make sure the FX department had the teeth in tight so they
wouldn’t move while he spoke, since it would compromise the authenticity. His
performance is a standout in a film full of memorable roles. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Lots of credit needs
to be given to Larry Drake, Nicholas Worth and Dan Bell, who are all
“impersonated” by Darkman using his synthetic skin masks. I use quotations
because these guys all do such a phenomenal job of playing their doppelgangers,
who we’re supposed to believe are actually Peyton when he’s trying to trick the
mob. Drake is especially good, showing two very different sides to Durant at
the same time. I really love how Raimi used this as a plot device because it’s
so damned fun watching Peyton use his skills to screw with everyone. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">All these years
later, “Darkman” holds up exceptionally well as one of the greatest comic book
movies to ever hit the screen, and it’s not even based on one. Raimi was in his
prime here, using all of his abilities to make the film not only memorable from
a story standpoint, but just as unforgettable thanks to a wide range of visual
flair. The excellent casting is anchored by strong performances from Neeson,
McDormand, and Drake. Gardner’s makeup is outstanding is every scene. Elfman’s
score is typical, but great if you forget all the stuff he did that sounds like
it since. It’s superb. Since Universal doesn’t see it that way, though, Scream
Factory has come along to deliver a package full of features that should please
fans. </span></div>
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-63137276036031392742014-05-23T13:01:00.001-07:002014-05-23T13:01:28.110-07:00The Slumber Party Massacre (1982)<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">As an avid, lifelong
slasher film fan it almost embarrasses me to say I’ve never fully watched “The
Slumber Party Massacre” (1982). I can vaguely recall seeing bits & pieces
of it (or one of its sequels) on USA’s Up All Night with Rhonda Shear sometime
in the early ‘90s. Those viewings, however, were more than likely focused on
spying whatever softcore T&A managed to evade network censors. There wasn’t
a wealth of nudie content for a 12-year-old kid to peruse back in the
pre-internet days. Once I got older and developed a cinematic taste, I
(foolishly) looked at the film as what would likely be a low-budget throwaway
slasher more interested in showing off boobs than anything else. Not that
there’s anything wrong with that… Point being, the series was written off in my
mind. And what a mistake that was because director Amy Jones’ debut is a
riotous slice of trash cinema every horror fan should watch. It’s purposely
full of every cliché in the book, playing more like a parody of early’80s
slasher films than anything. And that’s because the script started as a parody.
Only the filmmakers decided to shoot it straight without playing up the
humorous elements, giving this film the unique distinction of playing up every
aspect of slasher film fans wanted to see while at the same time riffing on it
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">As we learn via a
newspaper headline seen during the opening, mass murderer Russ Thorn has
escaped from a mental institution and is on the loose. Trish (Michelle
Michaels), a high school senior on the basketball team, decides to throw a
slumber party since her parents are going away for the weekend. All of the
girls agree to come, except for Valerie (Robin Stille), the new girl, because
Diane (Gina Hunter) is a stuck-up bitch. Trish’s parents left their neighbor,
Mr. Contant (Rigg Kennedy), in charge of looking over the girls. Surely, with
his watchful eye nothing bad will happen. But Russ Thorn has plans. Big,
drill-killing plans; and it isn’t very long at all before girls are impaled by
his two-foot power drill. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">It’s hard to watch
“The Slumber Party Massacre” and not immediately consider the obvious phallic
implications here. Crazy Russ Thorn, who looks like he couldn’t get a date if
he paid for it, runs wild like a madman sticking his massively oversized drill
into any hot young co-ed unlucky enough to be in his vicinity. Freud would have
a field day with this one. To be fair, Russ isn’t discriminatory when it comes
to who gets the business end of his drill because more than a couple guys are
subjected to brutal facial disfigurement. That poor pizza guy…</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Rita Mae Brown’s
script originally started life as “Don’t Open the Door”, a straight-up parody
of all things slasher. What’s interesting about that is slashers were really in
their prime at this time, so to have someone scripting a send-up was a bit
novel. Most of the popular slasher parody films didn’t start hitting until a
few years later. Although, her decision to riff on the teen slasher craze was
probably due to the fact she was a feminist who had tired of seeing women in
constant distress or undress. Director Amy Jones got her start in the business
by coming across Brown’s script, noticing the original prologue had key scenes
she could film for a demo. She shot the opening pages with only $1000 and went
to Roger Corman, King of the B-Movies, who said she had a career if she could
do so much with so little. Jones actually turned down an opportunity to edit
Spielberg’s “E.T.” (1982) so she could make her directorial debut here. And in
true workhorse fashion, rather than trying to mitigate the amount of T&A
usually required in a Corman picture, she went all-out and delivered all the
goods. In her commentary, she makes mention of how if this is what Corman
wanted, then she was going to deliver it in spades. Bless her. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The film benefits
from having a woman both at the pen and at the helm, because the relationship
between the girls feels genuine. When Diane starts complaining loudly about how
lame Valerie is, the other girls on the team don’t immediately chime in and
agree with her. In fact, Trish gets downright upset and blasts her for harping
on the new girl. It’s refreshing to see a cast full of women who aren’t
constantly catty or slutty, but, rather, acting like normal high school girls
who hang out and bicker and just want some innocent fun. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The only odd one of
the bunch, who isn’t even part of the basketball team, is Valerie’s younger
sister, Courtney (Jennifer Meyers). Her character is… unusual. I’m guessing
Meyers was older than the role called for, but rather than just accept that and
play it straight she acts like a teenager/20-something pretending to be an
adolescent. It’s weird. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Kudos to Michael
Villella for making Russ Thorn so damn intense as a killer. Thorn prefers the
method acting approach, and he made the wise decision to have zero contact with
the girls during filming so there would be a disconnect between them. He only
got talkative once their characters had been killed. According to the internet,
cordless drills became more widespread in the early ‘80s, though I find it hard
to believe Thorn could find one so massive that it could run for hours,
churning chunks of flesh and bone, without needing a charge. But, man, who can
argue that drill isn’t a seriously heavy piece of human wrecking power. Thorn
is silent throughout the entire film, right up to the climax, but even then all
he mostly says it how “pretty” the remaining girls are. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Humor is present
throughout, whether intentional or not. The fact that the film was shot
straight, rather than playing these hijinks up, is exactly what lends such a
bizarre tonality to the picture. The obvious gags are what bring the levity,
though. Like that fridge gag, which took just the right amount of time to
deliver the payoff. But my favorite line from the film comes when the girls are
crouched over the dead pizza guy’s body and one girl touches him, saying “He’s
so cold!” causing another to question, “Is the pizza?” </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“The Slumber Party
Massacre” is fabulous trash cinema at its best. Nearly every scene is so
outrageously over the top one can’t help but feel like they’re part of a joke
that may or may not be intentional. Major kudos to Scream Factory for
preserving raucous gems like this that are usually best viewed with a large,
drunken audience but play just as well at home if you’re into this type of
tripe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1800714380057754851.post-36882157393578724972014-05-23T13:00:00.002-07:002014-05-23T13:00:36.438-07:00Scorned (2013)<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The phrase “Hell
hath no fury like a woman scorned” has been part of the cultural lexicon since
the 15<sup>th</sup> century. The line is paraphrased from William Congreve’s
1697 play, “The Mourning Bride”, and the full quote is actually “Heaven has no
rage like love to hatred turned, nor hell a fury like a woman scorned.” Slightly
less well known is “Hell hath no fury like a film reviewer scorned”, in this
case that reviewer being me and the scorn having originated from Anchor Bay’s
latest DTV endeavor, “Scorned” (2013). If the title wasn’t indication enough
that the film you are about to watch is a love story gone awry, then the image
of lead actress AnnaLynne McCord holding a knife up to her lips should get the
message across. Tales of jilted lovers have been story fodder for ages, usually
playing well to… ahem, scorned lovers who want some trashy cinema to
vicariously live through at a depressing moment. I can’t think of an occasion
more fitting to sit through this waste of 86 minutes than that, but even those
who are on the rocks would be better suited to find some real entertainment to
kill time. Writer & director Mark Jones’ utterly banal tale of cheating and
revenge is so by-the-numbers you’d swear it was written using a Mad Libs for
Scripts book. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The film opens with
quite possibly the lamest expository dialogue ever seen, with text messages
scrawling across a black screen saying “Do U want 2 B inside me?” and “I can’t
wait 4 U” or some other juvenile crap like that. I get that they’re setting up
the fact someone is cheating, but what grown man actually texts “U” to a
person? The picture begins en media res as we see Sadie (AnnaLynne McCord) has
drugged her boyfriend Kevin (Billy Zane) and is about to get medieval on his
ass after snooping through his phone and finding out he’s been cheating. The
film then flashes back a whole 28 hours to quickly establish the BBF4ever
relationship between Sadie and her “friend since 2<sup>nd</sup> grade” Jennifer
(Viva Bianca), which feels about as real as a pair of fake tits. When Sadie and
Kevin embark upon a romantic weekend at Kevin’s ultra-modern playboy pad in the
woods, she’s convinced he’s going to ask for her hand in marriage. That is,
until she peeks through his cell phone and learns Kevin has been banging
Jennifer on the side. As the audience, we learn Kevin is a total moron because
who doesn’t put a passcode on their phone? Dude… Anyway, she pepper sprays his
junk and knocks him out with a log before tying him up and force feeding him
pills to keep him docile. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">At this point, Sadie
decides it’s a good idea to make Jennifer believe she’s left for the weekend so
the two of them can get it on behind her back, so she sends her a text from
Kevin’s phone inviting her up. She arrives, Sadie incapacitates her, and we
then get into a tepid rendition of “Saw”-lite, wherein Sadie tortures the two
secret lovers via a variety of household means. The filmmakers may have
realized we’ve had literally nothing of substance up to this point, so they
throw in the subplot of an escaped convict who just ditched the nearby prison.
Cops in this town must be one step away from stupid because this guy is
hitchhiking on main roads and yet they can’t seem to find him. This will be
somewhat relevant later. But first, back to the “action”. Some flashbacks to
her childhood reveal Sadie has always been crazy. In fact, she seems pretty
damn nuts even before she goes off her rocker, making me question just how much
thinking Kevin’s larger head was doing. You want to nail a crazy chick, roll
the dice. But dating one? After making that decision AND leaving his phone
unprotected I have zero sympathy for the guy. The punishments go on for some
time before Jennifer finally makes an escape after hitting Sadie over the head.
An escape that lasts a whopping few minutes since Sadie has the quickest
recovery abilities outside of Wolverine and Jennifer is impossibly slow to get
away. I’m hesitant to spoil anything – yes, ever for this insipid slice of crap
– but needless to say, the film wraps itself up in the worst way possible. It
conclusively proves the local police are sharing a single brain, and that Sadie
is able to get away with literal murder despite, like, a dozen clear signs
she’s psycho. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">But, man, is she
ever gorgeous. AnnaLynne McCord has been steaming up TVs since her debut on
FX’s ran-too-long series “Nip/Tuck” (2003-2010), but some of her best work came
from “Excision” (2012). That film was a perversely twisted tale of a girl with
serious mental issues who continually fought against her sadistic urges. And
she was really solid in the lead. I can’t say she’s delivering bad acting here
– because she does play crazy way too convincingly – it’s just the material
she’s given is so callow. She gets kudos for managing to elevate it
ever-so-slightly. I thought she chose scripts more carefully, which is why I
had been expecting “Scorned” to be better than the cover and synopsis would
suggest. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The biggest surprise
is that this wasn’t written by a novice filmmaker. This picture had “green
behind the ears” written all over it, but the man behind the pen and the lens
is Mark Jones, a veteran of the business since the ‘80s. The man wrote for
“ALF” (1987-1989), but he’s best known to horror fans for writing and directing
“Leprechaun” (1993). It’s hard to believe someone who has survived in the
business so long turned in such an amateur piece of work. This has the
fingerprints of a weary, doing-it-for-the-money director all over it. I get
that, people gotta eat, but if you can get a film greenlighted in this town at
least try to make it memorable for the right reasons. </span></div>
Anthonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01994990020300479657noreply@blogger.com0