New Year's Evil (1980) Blu-ray review

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 Uncle Sam (1996) winds up in my player every July 4th. Thankfully, New Year’s Evil (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.

It’s New Year’s Eve! And all the cool kids are celebrating at a taping of Hollywood Hotline, 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.

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 The A-Team (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.

If there’s one thing to remember the film by, however, it’s the title song; a damn catchy one, too. New Year’s Evil, 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”.



New Year’s Evil 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.

This is the Blu-ray debut for New Year’s Evil, 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.

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.

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.

“The Making of New Year’s Evil” 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.

The film’s theatrical trailer is included in HD.

X-Ray (1982)/Schizoid (1980) Blu-ray review

Of all the sub-genres that exist within horror, slashers have traditionally been a fan favorite. Though the subgenre (arguably) kicked off with 1974’s Black Christmas, it didn’t gain traction in cinemas until films like Halloween (1978) and Friday the 13th (1980) became major hits. And so began a “golden age” of sorts for the slasher film, which lasted right up until the mid-‘80s. For all the icons these films have produced, however, there have been countless others that have fallen by the wayside over the years. Shout! Factory has paired up two of them (likely since neither title would sell enough on its own to justify a release) – 1982’s X-Ray, and 1980’s Schizoid – in a fun, delightfully gory little package that should at least have minor appeal to fans of gloriously cheesy ‘80s stalk-and-slash fare.

Barbi Benton was quite the busy, busty Playmate in the ‘70s. Primarily known for her television work, X-Ray was one of only a handful of films she starred in during her career. Here she plays Susan Jeremy, a woman who visits her local hospital for a routine checkup required for a new job. But someone in the hospital has other plans for Susan! A someone who, 19 years earlier, she had scorned when he professed his unrequited love for her. He also killed a fellow child at the time, but apparently the police were really bad at their jobs back then, so he was never caught. Anyway, Susan’s results are faked to show she has a serious illness, leading another physician to strongly recommend she stay the night for further tests. As expected, the killer stalks the hallways of the most abandoned hospital seen on film since Halloween II (1981), brutally killing nurses, patients, and doctors alike with some nasty surgical implements.

Firstly, I have another titling issue with another Shout! release. X-Ray is technically the title of the heavily-cut version of the film, which runs around 77 minutes. This fully uncut version should really be titled Hospital Massacre, which is how it’s recognized on IMDB and Wikipedia. Or if Shout! wanted to get all kinds of crazy, they could’ve gone with the original pre-release title of Be My Valentine, or Else…, which is superior to the first title it had, Ward 13. Whew! So, just in case anyone who actually remembers all of that was concerned, this is indeed the full uncut version, just released under the cut name. Capiche?

Although it would be easy to objectively call the film a bit of a slog to get through, the fact is that it embodies much of what slasher fans love. The threadbare plot exists only to further the murderous rampage of Harold, whose identity is concealed well enough that his reveal is a minor surprise. Every doctor employed here acts like a creep, and every nurse treats Susan like a mental patient who missed her morning dose of pills. Among the small cast of characters is a hospital drunk – a clear red herring – who stumbles around with bottle in hand, while nurses shrug off his antics and remind him to return to his room. Everyone is so indifferent to her claims that I half expected them to reveal everyone was in on the plot to kill her.

The kills here are fairly nasty, with Harold making use of the many hospital tools at his disposal. And his victims make it really easy, too. Seriously, it seems like no one makes any kind of effort to, I don’t know, just turn and run. Most just stand there, apparently so consumed with fear that they’re unable to move. One guy is attacked with a corded surgical saw; a death that could have been avoided if he simply walked another foot or two away so the cord wouldn’t reach. But, again, this is the kind of nonsensical, nasty murdering fans should be expecting here. The film doesn’t skimp on the red stuff, ensuring that everyone’s demise is met with a crimson wave. Hell, Harold even manages to one-up My Bloody Valentine’s Harry Warden with his own take on a wrapped box of chocolates.

What would a slasher be without some gratuitous T&A? Fear not. Benton was a former Playmate, after all. And one of her strange, lecherous doctors is more than willing to insist she strip down for an uncomfortably scintillating exam. Director Boaz Davidson mentions there was a full crew on set that day, and when Benton’s ample assets are pored over it’s easy to see why. X-Ray might not be a great film, or even good by some standards, but as a de facto slasher it’s got enough going for it to satisfy fans yearning for lesser-known ‘80s sleaze.

Schizoid, on the other hand, moves at a positively glacial pace. This 1980 turkey is paired up with a slasher, but in reality this film plays more like a giallo. Killer wears black gloves (nice nod to Argento)? Check. Red herrings a-plenty? Check. Overly-complicated plot? Sadly, no. This one is mostly mundane. Klaus Kinski – don’t get too excited, he isn’t playing crazy here – is Dr. Fales, a therapist who oversees a group of patients. One by one, the members of the group are being killed. Julie (Marianna Hill), a member of the group, has been receiving threatening letters at her office, where she works as an advice columnist for the local paper. What follows is a slow game of stalk-and-kill, and Julie has to figure out who’s behind it all before she’s next! It could be almost any member of the male cast. Maybe it is Dr. Fales, who despite being a trollish slug of a man beds every nubile female in his group. Or, perhaps Gilbert (a young, mustachioed Christopher Lloyd), the maintenance man who constantly stares at everyone in silent, creepy ways. No? How about Doug (Craig Wassom), Julie’s ex-husband who is clearly still infatuated with her? Oh, wait, I know, it’s got to be Dr. Fales daughter, Alison (Donna Wilkes). You know the one who remains mute for almost half of the movie before spending the second half pitching major fits at the dinner table and brandishing firearms. Maybe in some strange twist Julie is actually sending herself the lette- nah, that’s probably not it.

Despite the undeniable ennui that set in once this film got going, I can’t really say I totally disliked it. This is the kind of shit I grew up with, and despite having never seen this film before I could still appreciate it for what it tries to do. It’s almost laughable how many people are suspects in the cast. Literally half of the main players could be the killer, which is de rigueur for any giallo. And we’ve got quite a cast, too. Kinski is always great fun to watch, but here he’s just a weird old sexual deviant with a therapy practice; he’s not chewing scenery and crapping thunder like the days of old. Donna Wilkes seriously speaks two words in the first 45 minutes, then in the last half of the film she goes right off the rails. She’s also wears some bizarre, noir-ish outfit for the climax. Craig Wassom should be familiar to horror fans as Dr. Neil Gordon from A Nightmare on Elm St. 3: The Dream Warriors (1987). The film also features a young Christopher Lloyd, who looks very different with dark hair and a mustache. This was one of his earliest film credits, though he was already an established name thanks to his work on Taxi (1978-1983). Finally, the great Richard Herd is teamed up with Joe Regalbuto as a couple of cops who are actively investigating the case. This film could have easily fallen completely apart with a lesser cast, but everyone here turns in a good enough performance that the material is elevated.

The ending blows, though. It’s totally weak. I won’t spoil anything except to say that people seem to die in this movie very quickly from what would normally be minor and/or non-life threatening wounds. This is usually the norm for films of this ilk (we’re still years away from torture porn), but it totally kills any impact the finale might have had.

X-Ray sports a widescreen image that generally looks free of debris and damage, though grain is a bit on the thick side - on occasion it borders on noise, but aesthetics such as this tend to lend themselves well to old-school horror. Some scenes have a hazy appearance, almost like there was a little bit of smoke pumped on to the set. Black levels are anemic for the most part, usually never looking consistent or even totally dark. Colors are mostly good, however, and Barbi Benton’s lips look shinier than a freshly waxed car. The DTS-HD MA stereo track gets the job done with a soundtrack that sounds like a cross between Harry Manfredini’s cues for Friday the 13th (1980) and Goldsmith’s work on The Omen (1976). Dialogue sounds clear and is free of any hisses, pops, or crackling.

Schizoid looks a bit better, with far less grain (though it is still very much present) and a nice color palette. Fine details are slightly more apparent than they were on X-Ray, although I wouldn’t call this a sharp image by any means. Closeups do exhibit an appreciable amount of detail, though. Black levels are more rich and consistent here, too. Audio-wise this is no better than the first half of this double bill, but I will say that I dug the synth-heavy, funky electronic score here more than X-Ray’s derivative tones. Neither disc includes subtitles.

There’s one lone bonus feature on and that’s a 12 minute interview with director Boaz Davidson. The Israeli director (who also helmed The Last American Virgin, also released in ’82) talks about how this was not his typical kind of film, but he couldn’t turn down his hometown producers of Golan & Globus when they asked. He also speaks very highly of Benton’s work, especially her lengthy nude scene. Schizoid doesn’t get much more, as it contains an interview as well – this a 10 minute conversation with actress Donna Wilkes – and the film’s theatrical trailer. The interview is candid, with Wilkes discussing the most pertinent of topics: how big of a perv was Kinski on set. Answer: she got along with him fine, but he was not especially liked the virtually every other female on the crew. This set also includes a DVD copy containing both films and their respective bonus features.

Separately, they’re mediocre. But together, Shout! has provided a package worthy of any horror fan’s collection. Just the pedigree of both films having been released under the Cannon Films label and featuring production by the legendary Israel duo of Golan/Globus should be enough to convince people this is worth a spot on their shelf.

Ninja III: The Domination (1984) Blu-ray review

There is an inherent fear in watching some much-lauded, sleazy cult title for the first time, decades after it first came onto the scene. As an example, I worshiped the ground that Masters of the Universe (1987) was shot upon when I was 6 years old. To think, there was a time in my life when I considered that movie to be the greatest thing I'd ever laid eyes upon. 25 years of refining tastes have made it clear to me just how foolish my young mind was, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't enjoying the film through rose-tinted lenses every single time I found it on cable. If I showed it to someone who'd never seen it today, they'd probably bail out as soon as Gwildor started talking. Sometimes you just have to see something in the right moment to fully appreciate it, warts and all.

But sometimes, every so often, a film hits your radar that lives up to all of the hype. That film is Ninja III: The Domination (1984).

So, having known nothing about the film before it was announced by Shout! Factory, what appealed to me enough to warrant a blind buy? For one thing, this is a Cannon Films production. If you aren't familiar with their outstanding roster of '80s hits, think of titles like Breakin' (1984), Invasion U.S.A. (1985), Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986), and Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects (1989). Basically, if you were a fan of break dancing, Chuck Norris, Tobe Hooper horror, and Charles Bronson's late-'80s revenge run, this was the studio of your dreams. Of course, success can't be attributed to a faceless studio, which is where my second point of interest comes in: producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus. These two guys were not only responsible for nearly every film under the Cannon Films umbrella, but a host of others as well - pictures like 52 Pick-Up (1986) and Over the Top (1987). Their involvement almost always assures a winner in my book; I don't think I've ever seen a Golan/Globus production that didn't at the very least entertain me. I was already sold on the film purely based on the production studio, producers, and production year. As far as I'm concerned, anything patently '80s is worthy of a viewing. And then I kept reading about how V8 is used as an aphrodisiac, eliciting a completely-out-of-left-field sexual response. Review after review made mention of this, piquing my curiosity since I don't find V8 all that appealing and I figured these reviewers must be making a mountain out of a molehill.

It's like a healthier version of 9 1/2 Weeks.

Nope. This movie is fucking nuts. There's no other way to describe it. Director Sam Firstenberg, he of Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo fame, took the approach of packing the film with one moment of insanity after the next, never taking things too seriously, and never allowing it to lag. The opening sets a high bar when an Evil Ninja, who wears an awful lot of mascara, wreaks havoc on a gold course for seemingly no reason at all. At first it seems like a typical low-budget, moderately-choreographed, incredibly cheesy bloodbath... but once Evil Ninja throws a dart into the barrel of a dude's gun, causing it to explode in his face, then that's when shit got real. Evil Ninja keeps his massacre going full steam, plowing through dozens of cops until finally he disappears after getting pumped full of about, oh, 167 bullets of so. He should've considered a career in hip-hop. Too obvious? He reappears to the hottest phone company worker I've seen since some porno back in middle school, at which point he mumbles some ninja words and transfers his soul into Christie (Lucinda Dickey). And now it's an Evil Ninja Possession movie. Super.

Apparently, possession comes with mandatory eyeliner.

Christie's possessed, so now she can do things like fight off a hilariously stereotypical pack of meat-headed thugs who attempt to rape women from an aerobics class in broad daylight, right outside the gym where they are apparently members. And she also kills every cop Evil Ninja's mind remembers from the day he got shot a lot but didn't die. Luckily his memory gets a good jogging because Christie gets hooked up with Billy (Jordan Bennett), local cop and one of the most hirsute leading men since King Kong. Seriously, this guy could shave a design into his chest and it would look like he's just wearing a dark sweater. Christie picks off his buddies one by one until Billy starts to figure out what's up, at which point he brings her to Lo Pan from Big Trouble in Little China for an exorcism. That fails, but it does provide a great excuse for Christie to show off her gymnastic skills. That body wasn't made hard, right?

Sho Kosugi spends the entire film following Christie's bloody wake. He's less concerned with killing her, per se, as he just wants to steal Evil Ninja's corpse, then speak some Good Ninja words to get Evil Ninja's soul out of Christie and back into his somehow-not-decomposing lifeless body. Solid proposal, should work out just great. After a fierce battle through a downtown Arizona industrial complex, Kosugi manages to pull off the plan we all knew he would. Now we get an epic battle of ninja vs. ninja, which, thankfully, manages to bookend the film with nearly as much insanity as it began with. Even if you're a ninja, it takes a lot to kill an Evil Ninja.

Has this review sold you? Shit, it's sold me on watching this for the third time in a month. I really can't get enough, and it only rewards more upon subsequent viewings. Fiery possessed ninja swords clearly dangling from stage wires as it moves through the night air. Jacuzzi orgies with police officers that end in multiple deaths. Ninjas doing ninja stuff. It has every hallmark I'd want from a gooey slice of trashy mid-'80s cinema.

Shout! Factory did a wonderful job on the recent blu-ray release. As a new fan, I can't thank them enough for giving such lavish treatment to a film most studios would be embarrassed to admit is within their ranks. The 1.78:1 1080p/24fps AVC MPEG-4 encode looks stunning, with few deficiencies for such a low-budget film. The print used was clearly in great shape, allowing for excellent clarity and sharp, defined lines. Audio comes in the form of a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo track. It gets the job done with a relentless dance/synth score and plenty of terribly awesome '80s forgotten tunes that fans will eat up.

The disc includes a photo gallery in full 1080p, which features some poster art and other ephemera. Unfortunately, the trailer listed on the back isn't included because they were "unable to find suitable elements", or something to that effect. I find that excuse a bit lame since, frankly, I don't think anyone would've cared if they used a trailer that was a little worse for the wear. At least we do get a commentary, with director Sam Firstenberg and the film's stunt coordinator. I haven't had a chance to listen to it yet (sorry, I'm too hooked on just watching the film), but I plan to get to what I hear is a lively and informative track. Also cool: the packaging includes many alternate poster designs on the inner sleeve. Shout! is the only company that uses that space for images aside from, oddly enough, Sony.

Again, I can't really recommend this enough. I'm dying to see it with a crowd (I know L.A. had a screening recently), but even with yourself or one other person it plays like gangbusters. Must be seen to be believed. And if you're thinking of making it a date night, be sure to stock the fridge with V8. You never know.