Thursday, February 27, 2014

Limited Vinegar Syndrome Release On Sale Friday - Plus T-Shirts!

Vinegar Syndrome's limited edition Blu-ray combo of Jekyll & Hyde Portfolio and A Clockwork Blue will be on sale tomorrow morning:

Reminder: sometime tomorrow morning (New York time) the limited edition JEKYLL AND HYDE PORTFOLIO + A CLOCKWORK BLUE Blu-ray/DVD combo will be available for pre-order exclusively at VinegarSyndrome.com! This hand-numbered edition is limited to 1,000 and will be $24.98. Pre-orders will ship out the end of March.

Our first in a series of limited-edition Blu-ray combos, this hand-numbered release is limited to just 1,000 units. Exclusively available (for the time being) here on our website and at select conventions throughout the year until they are sold out. We’ll be at Cinema Wasteland in April and a few others TBD. Note: if you miss out on this Blu-ray, both JEKYLL and CLOCKWORK (non X rated cut) will be available as a drive-in DVD in April.




Vinegar Syndrome presents the notoriously rare sexploitation slasher THE JEKYLL & HYDE PORTFOLIO along with the lost sexploitation comedy, A CLOCKWORK BLUE! This will be your only opportunity to see both films on blu-ray as well as own the X rated cut of A CLOCKWORK BLUE!
THE JEKYLL AND HYDE PORTFOLIO (1971)
In this hybrid of slasher film and sexploitation, a mad killer is stalking the staff at a secluded nursing academy. Who will be the next victim and why does the killer carve a ‘V’ into the bodies of his beautiful female victims?
Director: Eric Jeffrey Haims / 81 minutes / Color / AR: 1.85:1
A CLOCKWORK BLUE (1972)
Hapless researcher Homer travels through time, jumping through the erotic history of civilization. From George Washington to Marie Antoinette, A CLOCKWORK BLUE is a ribald, slapstick delight presented here in its rare original X rated cut!
Director: Eric Jeffrey Haims / 86 minutes / Color / AR: 1.85:1
Features:
+ 2 Disc Combo (Blu-ray BD-50 & DVD-9) | Region Free | 1.85:1 AR | DTS-HD Master Audio
+ CLOCKWORK = restored in 4K from 35mm original camera negative
+ JEKYLL = restored in 2k from 35mm blowup negative


I also thought I'd point out that there are a limited number of Vinegar Syndrome T-Shirts and Hoodies available on the site as well. If you want one, go for it now, these won't last long. Not sure if they'll be offering more up in the future. Grab both the shirts and the Blu-ray here.

 

Clive Barker's Lord of Illusions Heading to Blu-ray



Looks like Nightbreed isn't the only Clive Barker title to look forward to this year, Scream Factory has just announced his 1995 film Lord of Illusions will getting the Blu-ray treatment as well this Fall:

1995's LORD OF ILLUSIONS will be coming to Blu-ray for the first time later this Fall as a Collector's Edition. The cat was let out of the bag from it's Director himself -- the legendary Clive Barker - today on his Facebook page.

We have no other details to report ay this time but we know a lot of you are excited about the news. More info will become more clearer in the Summer when we begin to work on the title.

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Jerry Goldsmith's The Omen Gets Glorious Vinyl Release From Mondo

"Arriving March 4th with artwork by Phantom City Creative (Halloween vinyl art), the product comes pressed on 180 Gram Black vinyl with randomly inserted “Mark Of The Beast Translucent Red” (limited to 200 copies).


This is the second Jerry Goldsmith score we have released, following last year’s Poltergeist. This is an expanded edition of the Original soundtrack, featuring tracks that have never before been released on vinyl (marked with asterisk*). It was mastered for vinyl by James Plotkin."




 It's coming from Mondo, so you know how that works. Watch their Twitter on March 4th all day until it goes on sale at a random time, and immediately head over to Mondo to frantically attempt to purchase a copy.
 
By the way, how metal is this album art? It's downright Deathspell Omega-ian.

 
Tracklist
01) Ave Satani (2:34)
02) On The Night (2:35)*
03) The New Ambassador (2:34)
04) Where Is He? (0:56)*
05) I Was There (2:26)*
06) Brokens Vows (2:10)*
07) Safari Park (3:23)
08) A Doctor Please (1:43)*
09) The Killer Storm (2:53)
10) The Fall (3:42)
11) Don’t Let Him (2:48)
12) The Day He Died (2:13)*
13) The Dogs Attack (5:53)
14) A Sad Message (1:44)
15) Beheaded (1:47)*
16) The Bed (1:07)*
17) 666 (0:44)*
18) The Demise Of Mrs. Baylock (2:53)
19) The Altar (2:04)
20) The Piper Dreams (2:39) – Lyrics by, Performer: Carol Goldsmith
*Never before released on vinyl




Tuesday, February 25, 2014

New Godzilla Trailer Is Epically Epic


Man, with every bit of Godzilla footage that comes out this is looking better and better. I'm so anxious to see this one now that I'm annoyed that I have to wait a couple and a half months before it comes out.


Monday, February 24, 2014

Jekyll and Hyde Portfolio+A Clock Work Blue - Limited Release From Vinegar Syndrome



"Might as well announce this one: We're doing a limited edition pressing of 1000 units to be sold exclusively off of our site and at various conventions (such as Cinema Wasteland) throughout the year. 

This release will be a blu-ray/DVD combo pack and will include the X rated version of A CLOCKWORK BLUE that won't be available anywhere else."

The Legend of Hell House & Motel Hell Coming From Scream Factory



Scream Factory has just announced a couple of new titles due out this summer:

"**NEW TITLE ANNOUNCEMENTS! THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE & MOTEL HELL ON BLU-RAY IN THE U.S. FOR THE FIRST TIME!!**

Our “Summer of Fear” release slate continues to get scarier with two more films added: 1973’s THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE (starring Roddy McDowell) and 1980’s slasher romp MOTEL HELL will both be coming to Blu-ray in August. MOTEL will be getting our “Collector’s Edition” treatment with slipcover and the newly-designed artwork is already in the works.

No other details to report at this time but more will be revealed in May/June as to the specifics."


I haven't seen Legend of Hell House in years, so I'm looking forward to seeing that one again. I just saw Motel Hell less than a year ago with Arrow's release, and I just don't think that one holds up all that well. I mean, Rory Calhoun is amazing, Nina Axelrod is beautiful, Nancy Parsons is wonderfully evil, and the visual of Vince holding a chainsaw while wearing a pig's head is absolutely iconic, but I have to say overall I find the movie to be pretty so-so. Just my opinion of course, this is a great announcement for fans who weren't able to pick up the Arrow release.

Harold Ramis Has Died At The Age of 69

There have been way too many celebrity deaths already this year, but goddammit, news of this one almost killed me.



From The Chicago Tribune:

"Ramis, a longtime North Shore resident, was surrounded by family when he died at 12:53 a.m. from complications of autoimmune inflammatory vasculitis, a rare disease that involves swelling of the blood vessels, his wife Erica Mann Ramis said. He was 69.

Ramis' serious health struggles began in May 2010 with an infection that led to complications related to the autoimmune disease, his wife said. Ramis had to relearn to walk but suffered a relapse of the vasculitis in late 2011, said Laurel Ward, vice president of development at Ramis' Ocean Pictures production company.

Ramis leaves behind a formidable body of work, with writing credits on such enduring comedies as "National Lampoon's Animal House" (which upon its 1978 release catapulted the film career of John Belushi, with whom Ramis acted at Second City), "Stripes" (1981) and "Ghostbusters" (in which Ramis also co-starred) plus such directing efforts as "Caddyshack" (1980), "National Lampoon's Vacation" (1983), "Groundhog Day" and "Analyze This."



Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Arrow Video's Second Quarter Lineup Is Incredible

Arrow Video has just posted their 2nd quarter line-up on their Facebook page. There's so much good stuff due out from these guys in the next few months it's almost ridiculous:


WHAT THE DEVIL HATH JOINED TOGETHER LET NO MAN CUT ASUNDER!

Before 1973, Brian De Palma was impossible to pigeonhole: he made comedies, political satires and openly experimental pieces. But with Sisters (originally released as Blood Sisters in the UK) he turned to the suspense thriller and discovered his natural home - and a style that would lead directly to later masterpieces like Carrie, Dressed to Kill and Blow Out.

When Danielle (Margot Kidder) meets potential boyfriend Philip (Lisle Wilson) after appearing on the TV show Peeping Toms (a nod to the Michael Powell shocker), she invites him home, only to attract the ire of her twin sister Dominique. From across the courtyard, Rear Window style, reporter Grace (Jennifer Salt) witnesses Philip being murdered by one of the twins - but the police find no body or any physical evidence. Naturally, Grace takes things into her own hands, and discovers more about the sisters’ relationship than she bargained for…

Strongly influenced by Alfred Hitchcock and Roman Polanski, and with a score by the great Bernard Herrmann (Citizen Kane, Psycho), Sisters was the first true “Brian De Palma” film.

Special Edition Contents:
- High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 14 April 2014

Koyaanisqatsi+Powaqqatsi [2-Disc Blu-ray]

ko●yaa●nis●qatsi (from the Hopi language)

n., 1. crazy life 2. life in turmoil 3. life out of balance 4. life disintegrating 5. a state of life that calls for another way of living

po●waq●qa●tsi (from the Hopi language, powaq sorcerer + qatsi life)

n., an entity, a way of life, that consumes the life forces of other beings in order to further its own life

Told without dialogue, narration, cast or characters, Koyaanisqatsi and Powaqqatsi are dizzying, hypnotic examples of cinema set to extraordinary scores by Philip Glass. The first instalment concentrates on the United States, contrasting its natural beauty with a population ever more dependent on modern technology. The second switches to the Southern hemisphere and focuses on cultures and traditions that are slowly eroding away as the modern world takes over.

Special Edition Contents:
- New, restored digital transfers of both films, approved by director Godfrey Reggio
- 5.1 DTS-HD Master audio
- Newly created exclusive content
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 21 April 2014


 
The Delta Force [Blu-ray]

THE HIJACK....THE ORDEAL....THE RESCUE...

Cannon Films are known for producing some of the most enjoyable and eccentric action flicks of the ’80s – but The Delta Force, which boasts scenes of Chuck Norris flying through the air on a missile-mounted motorbike, surely stands as one of their most entertaining efforts.

American Travel Ways Flight 282 has been hijacked by a group of terrorists claiming to represent the New World Revolutionary Organisation. The Delta Force, under the leadership of Captain Scott McCoy (Chuck Norris), is called in to handle the situation. Still smarting from an ill-fated hostage rescue mission several years prior, this elite squad of special forces are determined to succeed in their mission this time – and assert the might of the American military once and for all.

Drawing on a number of true-life terrorist incidents for inspiration, most notably the 1985 hijacking of TWA Flight 847, The Delta Force is a non-stop thrill ride which culminates in one of the most explosive action flick finales of all time. With Chuck Norris on hand to provide the muscle and gravelly-voiced Lee Marvin (The Killers) in his last ever screen role, The Delta Force is one mission you can’t afford not to accept.

Special Edition Contents:
- High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 28 April 2014


 
Theatre of Blood [Blu-ray]

VINCENT PRICE HAS RESERVED A SEAT FOR YOU IN THE “THEATRE OF BLOOD”

It's never been tougher to be a critic than in THEATRE OF BLOOD, one of the greatest horror comedies of all time. Vincent Price gives a career best performance as Edward Lionhart, a veteran Shakespearean actor who, when passed over for the coveted Critic's Circle award for Best Actor takes deadly revenge on the critics who snubbed him.

With one of the greatest ensemble casts ever assembled for a horror film including Diana Rigg, Harry Andrews, Jack Hawkins and Arthur Lowe, THEATRE OF BLOOD is an dementedly funny and deliciously macarbe cult classic.

Special Edition Contents:
- High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 28 April 2014


Also available in Steelbook form:


The Beast Within [Dual Format Blu-ray and DVD]

KILL ME, PLEASE KILL ME… BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE

Late one full moon-lit night, a woman stands alone on the roadside waiting for her husband to return to their broken-down car. Suddenly she’s pounced upon, dragged into the dark woods and savaged by a barely-glimpsed assailant – something barely human. But this is only the beginning of the terrors in The Beast Within…

Seventeen years on, and the devoted parents of teenager Michael are at their wits end. Their son lies in a hospital bed, his body wracked by a mysterious illness. With doctors unable to offer any diagnosis, Michael’s desperate parents are forced to seek out the answer themselves – by digging up traumatic past events and confronting the true nature of their son’s conception.

The Beast Within stands apart from other creature features due to its decidedly grim tone – the scenes in which the monster violates his victims have proven too strong for some critics – and standout transformation sequence courtesy of makeup artist Tom Hoerber (My Bloody Valentine). Add to these the strong lead performances from Paul Clemens and Ronny Cox (Deliverance, The Car, RoboCop), alongside a stunning score by the late, great Les Baxter, and you have yourself one absolute beast of a movie!

Special Edition Contents:
- High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Marc Schoenbach of Sadist Art Designs
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 5th May 2014



Porky’s [Blu-ray]

YOU’LL BE GLAD YOU CAME!

Long before American Pie and Superbad came the original and best sex comedy. A firm favourite of teen movie fans, Porky’s introduced audiences to Kim Cattrall (Police Academy, Big Trouble in Little China) and made an absolute killing at the box-office.

It’s 1954 and the sex-obsessed boys of Angel Beach High School are looking to get laid. Porky’s is their destination, local nightclub and whorehouse. Only its redneck owner has other plans, as does his sheriff brother. Will Meat, Mickey, Tommy and the other guys in the gang get their own back? And will the barely-endowed Pee Wee finally lose his virginity?

Having established his credentials as one of Canada’s top horror filmmakers with the likes of Black Christmas and Dead of Night, Bob Clark took an unexpected turn into the world of the teenage sex comedy and inadvertently made the most successful Canadian motion picture of all time, an honour it still holds today.

Special Edition Contents:
- High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 26 May 2014


Steelbook:


The Complete Dr Phibes [2-Disc Blu-ray]

“Nine killed her, nine shall die, nine eternities in doom!”

Horror legend Vincent Price (The Fall of the House of Usher, Theatre of Blood) is Dr. Phibes, former musician, current murderer. Seeking revenge from the medical staff that left his wife for dead, he sets about knocking them off one-by-one in a series of elaborate murders based upon a Ten Plagues of Egypt. Death by bats, by boils, by blood and more await the nurse and surgeons who failed to save the life of the beloved Victoria Regina Phibes!

A camp classic, The Abominable Dr. Phibes sets itself apart from the seventies horror crowd with its knowing humour and art deco sets, and also prefigures the Saw movies with its increasingly fiendish set of murder devices.

Pairing the original film with sequel Dr. Phibes Rises Again, The Complete Dr. Phibes provides viewers with a double diabolical dose of macabre thrills and black comedy.

Special Edition Contents:
- High Definition digital transfers of both films
- Newly created exclusive content
- Deluxe Edition collector’s Box featuring original artwork
- 100-Page Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 9 June 2014

 
Milano Calibro 9 [Dual Format Blu-ray and DVD]

“You can’t backstab someone like Ugo Piazza! You’d better not even touch someone like Ugo Piazza!”

Perhaps the one true film noir to emerge from Italy, Milano Calibro 9 is a gritty, ultra-violent masterpiece and an essential entry in the cannon of Italian crime cinema. Centering on the character of ex-con Ugo Piazza (played with stone-cold precision by Gastone Moschin) the film also benefits from the presence of giallo regular Barbara Bouchet and her considerable charms.

Released after a three-year term in prison for a bungled robbery, Ugo Piazza plans to lead the straight life for a while. But no sooner is he back on the street than he’s picked up by a bunch of hoodlums under the employ of his former boss, the ‘Americano’ – among them, the psychopathic Rocco – who are convinced that Ugo stole $300,000 before his incarceration. The gang forces Ugo to resume working for them in the hope that he’ll eventually lead them to their missing cash.

The first part in director Fernando Di Leo’s Milieu Trilogy, Milano Calibro 9 is an early example of the poliziotteschi – Italian crime films –which proliferated in the 1970s. Di Leo eschews the sleazy, more exploitative approach of some his contemporary filmmakers for a more serious take on his subject matter – although he’s not averse to show-stopping gun fights and long, lingering shots of the lovely Barbara Bouchet.

Special Edition Contents:
- High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 16 June 2014

 HE’S A MAN OF PEACE IN A SAVAGE LAND… SUBURBIA.

The films of director Joe Dante have taken us to some strange places – a mysterious Chinatown antique store in Gremlins; a secluded resort populated by werewolves in The Howling; even deep inside the human body in Innerspace. But now he takes us to the strangest place of all – surburbia!

Family man Ray Peterson (Tom Hanks) is looking forward to a week of putting his feet up at home in the quiet, leafy cul-de-sac of Mayfield Place. But his plans are scuppered by the arrival of new next-door neighbours, The Klopeks, whose behaviour and habits are more than just a little kooky. But things go from kooky to downright sinister when local old boy Walter disappears, leading Ray and his buddies to suspect their new neighbours of killing and eating him! Sure, the Klopeks are a strange bunch what with their digging up the backyard in the middle of the night – but they’re not devil-worshipping cannibal killers… are they?

If you’re looking for a knowing slice of tongue-in-cheek terror then look no further than The ’Burbs. A standout horror comedy from a director who has given us more than his fair share of fun frighteners, The ’Burbs assembles a superb cast including Tom Hanks, Bruce Dern, Carrie Fisher and Corey Feldman in a tall tale of small-town terror. You’ll never look at those eccentric neighbours in the same way again!

Special Edition Contents:
- High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 23 June 2014


Steelbook!



Camera Obscura: The Walerian Borowczyk Collection

Synopsis:

This groundbreaking collection brings together Walerian Borowczyk’s key films from a twenty-five-year period stretching from 1959 through to 1984.

This unique release includes five of Borowczyk’s provocative feature films: Theatre de M et Mme Kabal, Goto, l’ile d’amour, Blanche, Contes Immoraux and La Bete as well as his groundbreaking short films from this period.

Not only are many of these films available on Blu-ray and DVD for the first time, but also in new digital high definition restorations approved by the director’s widow, Ligia Branice.

In addition to exclusive documentaries featuring cast and crew, an hour long portrait of Borowczyk is to be included, featuring the director’s musings on painting, animation and sex.

Accompanying this seminal release is a book edited by Borowczyk experts Daniel Bird and Michael Brooke featuring newly commissioned essays on Borowczyk’s films and art, as well as an account of the meticulous restoration process involved.

To round off the release is, for the first time, an English translation of Borowczyk’s 1992 collection of short stories, Anatomy of the Devil, translated by the director's assistant, Michael Levy.

Arrow Academy’s Walerian Borowczyk Collection is a vital addition to anyone interested in either world cinema, animation or experimental film.

Limited Edition collection featuring five feature films:
- Theatre of Mr & Mrs Kabal (1967)
- Goto, Isle of Love (1968)
- Blanche (1971)
- Immoral Tales (1974)
- The Beast (1975)
- And the short films:
- The Astronauts (1959)
- The Concert (1962)
- Grandmother's Encyclopaedia (1963)
- Renaissance (1963)
- Angels' Games (1964)
- Joachim's Dictionary (1965)
- Rosalie (1966)
- Gavotte (1967)
- Diptych (1967)
- The Phonograph (1969)
- A Private Collection (1973)
- Venus on the Half-Shell (1975)
- The Greatest Love of All Time (1978)
- Scherzo Infernal (1984)

Special Edition Contents:
- Brand new 2K restorations of Borowczyk’s films
- Newly created exclusive content
- Extensive collector’s booklet featuring limited edition exclusive content, new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 30 June 2014
 
 Pit and the Pendulum [Blu-ray]

THE GREATEST TERROR TALE EVER TOLD!

A horse-drawn carriage pulls up on a deserted beach. A sombre figure dismounts and gazes up towards his destination – a foreboding cliff-top castle perched high above the crashing waves. Thus the perfect Gothic scene is set for Pit and the Pendulum, the second of Roger Corman’s celebrated Poe adaptations once again starring the ever-reliable Vincent Price (The Fall of the House of Usher, Theatre of Blood) alongside the bewitching Barbara Steele (Black Sunday).

Having learned of the sudden death of his sister Elizabeth (Steele), Francis Barnard (John Kerr) sets out to the castle of his brother-in-law, Nicholas Medina, to uncover the cause of her untimely demise. A distraught, grief-stricken Nicholas (Price) can offer only the vaguest explanations as to Elizabeth’s death – at first citing “something in her blood”, but later asserting that she quite literally “died of fright”. What sort of unspeakable horrors are buried within the walls of this castle that could cause one’s heart to stop so? With Francis determined to get to the bottom of this mystery, the terrible truth will not stay buried for long.

Right from its brooding kaleidoscopic opening titles, Pit and Pendulum draws you into its world of cobwebs, secret passageways and dusty suits of armour. All the necessary elements are present and correct and, along with one of Vincent Price’s most tortured performances, make Pit and the Pendulum every inch the Gothic melodrama.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 12 May 2014
 
Steelbook:
 

L'ASSASSINO

Arrow Academy is proud to present L’Assassino, the debut feature of the late Italian director Elio Petri, a man whose films have often been unjustly overlooked in favour of other more heralded filmmakers.

L’Assassino tells the story of 30-something antiques dealer Alfredo Martelli (Marcello Mastroianni) who, at the film’s outset, finds himself under suspicion for murdering his wealthy older lover. As the investigation presses on, a series of flashbacks gives us an insight into Alfredo’s character and the nature of his relationship with his now deceased lover Adalgisa (Micheline Presle).

With its Kafkaesque mood and distincly political bent, Petri’s first film bears many of the hallmarks of his later work. In the director’s own words, “L’Assassino reflected the changes wrought by the early 60s. [What it was about] was a new generation of upstarts who lacked any kind of moral scruple.”

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- New 2K digital restoration from the Cineteca di Bologna
- Newly created exclusive content
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

Release Date: 19 May 2014
 
For licensing reasons all of these releases are Region B locked. You can preorder all of these titles directly from Arrow Video.

Monday, February 17, 2014

Amazing New Trailer For Soccer-Zombie Film Goal of the Dead


The two-part film centers around a French Olympic football team who visits a small village in Northern France to play a crucial game in the run-up to the World Cup. But as the Apocalypse looms, an epidemic quickly spreads and transforms the players, spectators and inhabitants into strange and enraged creatures.

Check out the trailer below. I think this might be the first time I've ever seen a zombie beaten with a pair of soccer cleats:


Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Larry Cohen's Stuff From Arrow March 10th

The specs for THE STUFF have now been finalised! Check out the full lineup below and pre-order your copy here: http://bit.ly/1eQFmdQ

SPECIAL FEATURES:
-New High Definition restoration of the film from a brand new 2K scan of the original camera negative
-High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentation of the film
-Original stereo 2.0 audio (uncompressed PCM on the Blu-ray)
-Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
-Can’t Get Enough of The Stuff: Making Larry Cohen’s Classic Creature Feature – Documentary featuring Larry Cohen, producer Paul Kurta, actress Andrea Marcovicci, Steve Neill (mechanical makeup effects) and Kim Newman
-Introduction and trailer commentary by director and The Stuff fan Darren Bousman (Saw II, Saw III)
-Original Trailer
-Reversible sleeve with original and newly commissioned artwork by Gary Pullin
-Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Joel Harley, illustrated with original stills and promotional materials

Region: B/2
Rating: 15
Cat No: FCD897
Duration: 87 mins
Language: English
Subtitles: English SDH
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audio: Stereo 2.0
Colour: Colour

Monsters The Complete Series Is Out February 25 - Check Out The Cover Art


Across 72 episodes of this 9-disc collectors’ set, Emmy and Academy Award-winning make-up effects artist Dick Smith (The Exorcist, The Godfather, Amadeus) brings to life the monsters that nightmares are made of – from the gruesome and grotesque to mutations beyond your wildest dreams, Monsters’ horrifying creatures haunt each of the modern-day fables of fear and stories of unearthly terror that comprise the suspenseful cult-classic series. Monsters features adaptations by horror masters Stephen King and Robert Bloch and includes an enviable cast of guest stars, including Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Lily Taylor (The Conjuring), Chris Noth (Sex and the City), Deborah Harry (Blondie) and many more!

Preorder now at Amazon



The Wonder Years Also Finally Hitting DVD in 2014


First it was announced that we'd finally be getting the Batman series this year, and now, apparently The Wonder Years is coming too - with the original music intact.

I watched the show when it originally aired and the show ended when I was 11, so when I revisited the show on Netflix last year I honestly didn't really notice many song changes during the episodes because I didn't remember the show enough to even be aware of what songs were changed. The only thing noticeable to me, and anyone with ears was the horrendous cover of Joe Cocker's cover of The Beatles' 'With a Little Help From My Friends'. I have no idea who did the cover song cover, and I don't care enough to actually look it up, but yikes and gadzooks.

From TVShowsOnDVD:
"FAIRFAX, VA - In 2014, StarVista Entertainment/Time Life - the premiere marketer of classic TV on DVD - will release THE WONDER YEARS: THE COMPLETE SERIES to the home entertainment marketplace. The most requested TV series never to be released on DVD, which ran on ABC from 1988-1993, garnered multiple Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe and a Peabody, and was named by TV Guide as one of the "Top 20 Shows of the '80s" will make its very long-awaited debut in the second half of 2014. To best serve the numerous fans of the program, StarVista Entertainment/Time Life has launched WonderYearsDVDs.com, the official site for all updates, exclusive content and pre-orders.

Routinely praised for high-quality TV DVD collections, an archivist's attention to detail, and specially produced bonus programming on releases such as Get Smart, The Carol Burnett Show and China Beach, StarVista Entertainment/Time Life is planning a deluxe release of the The Wonder Years, which starred Fred Savage, Danica McKellar, Dan Lauria, Alley Mills, Jason Hervey, Olivia d'Abo, Josh Saviano and Daniel Stern, and featured as a theme song Joe Cocker's unforgettable rendition of the Beatles' "With A Little Help From My Friends."

"The Wonder Years has long been the most requested TV show yet to be released on DVD, and we're thrilled to have the incredible opportunity to bring this iconic show to its many fans," says Jeffrey Peisch, the Senior Vice President, Entertainment Programming & Marketing for StarVista Entertainment/Time Life. "As we've done with many other classic TV shows, the series will be treated with the care and attention it fully deserves after all these years, with deluxe packaging, robust extras and a lot more. We're really big fans of the series, too."

As it did for China Beach, StarVista Entertainment/Time Life is painstakingly securing the rights for virtually every song in The Wonder Years. From Cocker's theme song, to hundreds of other memorable and classic soul, rock and pop songs, including classics from The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Smokey Robinson, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison and many others, StarVista /Time Life recognizes the necessity to release the series as it was initially broadcast, un-edited and untouched from original broadcast masters.

The Wonder Years was created by Neal Marlens and Carol Black in association with New World Television, which was acquired in 1997 by 21st Century Fox (then News Corporation), the parent company of Twentieth Century Fox Television."

New This Week 2.11.14 - French Vampires & Japanese Sex Nurses

Kino has bundled 4 Jean Rollin vampire films into one 4-disc box set:

As the constraints of censorship began to see in the late 1960's and early '70's, visionary French filmmaker Jean Rollin created a series of mesmerizing thrillers that injected the Gothic vampire film with a more contemporary strain of eroticism. Fluctuating between visual poetry and shocking violence, Rollin's deeply personal films have come to be recognized as classics of the horror genre, and are presented here in deluxe editions, mastered in HD from the original 35mm negatives, and accompanied by printed essays by Tim Lucas (Video Watchdog).

This box set contains:
THE RAPE OF THE VAMPIRE
THE NUDE VAMPIRE
THE SHIVER OF THE VAMPIRES
REQUIEM FOR A VAMPIRE

Buy it


Scorpion was able to wrangle this title away from Code Red



From the director and producer of the greatest martial art film of all time ENTER THE DRAGON comes FORCE: FIVE! A martial-art expert leads his team of fellow martial artists to rescue a senator's daughter from an island ruled by the evil leader of a religious cult in this action packed film, starring some of the greatest martial art stars ever assembled! JOE LEWIS (Jaguar Lives!), BENNY THE JET URIQUIDEZ (undefeated 27 year Kickboxing champion) , RICHARD NORTON (The Octagon), SONNY BARNES (Black Belt jones) takes on MASTER BON SOO HAN (Kentucky Friend Movie) in a fight to the death! Now see this martial art classic in glorious widescreen from a brand new HD master! 
Support Scorpion, grab this one today.
The zombie comedy schtick has been done to death at this point, but I know Synapse wouldn't waste their time releasing a movie that sucks, so I trust Reel Zombies will be worth a look. 
Independent underground filmmakers Mike Masters and David J. Francis (playing themselves) are eager to complete the third film in their ZOMBIE NIGHT film trilogy, a series of rather unsuccessful low-budget, shot-on-video gore fests. The problem, however, is a recent zombie apocalypse has taken over the world since their series began. The dead are rising from their graves and eating the living... for real this time! Masters and Francis embark on the production of their newest masterpiece anyway, only to discover shooting in a post-apocalyptic world offers many unforeseen challenges. Instead of giving up, they decide to capitalize on the cannibalistic catastrophe. No need for latex and fake blood when there's an entire world of flesh eating undead to add realism to their film, and help save money on special effects costs! Touching upon the real-life headaches of low-budget filmmaking, with numerous nods to the zombie film genre, REEL ZOMBIES is a satirical mockumentary feature that dives head-first into self-parody and an improbable but inspiring lesson in film craft proving that passion and dedication can overcome all obstacles even the ones that want to chomp your brain out! (Simon Laperrière, Fantasia Film Festival)

Special Features:

  • Over 40 Minutes Of Deleted Scenes
  • Trailer
  • Audio Commentary
 Amazon


Abigail Breslin (Ender s Game, Zombieland) stars in HAUNTER, a unique take on the traditional haunted house story from director Vincenzo Natali (Splice, Cube). In 1986, teenager Lisa (Breslin) and her family died in their home under sinister circumstances. Unable to move on, their spirits continued to roam the house during the intervening years. Now, over a period of six days , Lisa must reach out from beyond the grave to help her living counterpart Olivia avoid the same fate that Lisa and her family suffered long ago. Uniquely unsettling and shocking, HAUNTER is a one-of-a-kind reverse ghost story that chills long after the final frame. 
Haunter is currently available on Amazon at the suspiciously low release date price of $10. 
Vinegar Syndrome is continuing their new Peek-A-Rama line with this double feature of Deep Roots and Starlet Nights:
DEEP ROOTS (1978): an American Indian journeys from his reservation to the lust capital of Hollywood where he finds himself surrounded by his wildest fantasies! Featuring Andy Warhol superstar, Liz Renay! STARLET NIGHTS (1978): this sexy retelling of Snow White stars Leslie Bovee as a beautiful, but wicked, stepmother trying to ruin the virginal reputation of her stunning stepdaughter, Snow. Vinegar Syndrome presents both films freshly transferred and restored in 2K from 35mm original elements!
Get it direct from Vinegar Syndrome.


Impulse continues their wildly popular Nikkatsu Collection with the absurdly titled Nurse Girl Dorm: Sticky Fingers from director Yoshihiro Kawasaki.
There's a new group of young ladies working at St. Elizabeth Hospital and they're all looking for love. These nurses are watched over by a fairly strict dorm supervisor, but with the help of the mysterious Yuki, they are able to sneak in their boyfriends at night. Yuki is a terrible influence on the girls, but she sure knows how to have fun! When a bandaged man walks into the hospital looking for Yuki, her past is revealed. His name is Tadao and he was secretly married to Yuki. He wants to rekindle their failed relationship, but she has other ideas. On one strange night, the boyfriends, Tadao and many others all converge at the hospital for the evening. NURSE GIRL DORM: STICKY FINGERS mixes madcap comedy and jaw-dropping scenes that only Nikkatsu studios could unleash.
Special Features:
  • Newly Translated Removable English Subtitles
  • Original Trailer
  • Liner Notes
 Buy it!


Also from Impulse is the less ridiculously (though still ridiculous) titled Sex Hunter: 1980 from Toshiharu Ikeda:

Miki, a young and talented ballet dancer is accepted into an exclusive and very private academy run by a mysterious woman named Kaibara Akiko. Miki wants to further her dance education and rekindle her relationship with her boyfriend, but soon discovers all the horrible things forced upon the academy students. She is subjected to constant torture and realizes there may be no escape! With similar tones to Italian horror maestro Dario Argento's masterwork SUSPIRIA, SEX HUNTER: 1980 is one of the more controversial entries in the Nikkatsu Erotic Films Collection.
Special Features:
  • Newly Translated Removable English Subtitles
  • Original Trailer
  • Liner Notes 
Buy it!


And finally, from Anchor Bay comes this comedic slasher film from directing duo Chris Freeman & Justin Jones

An isolated town full of sexy college girls. A tough big-city cop investigating a series of unsolved disappearances. A psychotic killer with a taste for terror, torture and sorority sister torment. But when this party gets started, will all of them receive an advanced degree in extreme horror? Tom Downey, Kevin Sorbo(Hercules: The Legendary Journeys), Ed O'Ross (Six Feet Under), Leslie Easterbrook (THE DEVIL'S REJECTS), Richard Moll (HOUSE), adult film legend Ron Jeremy and new Scream Queens Marissa Skell, Eve Mauro and Yvette Yates co-star in this twisted shocker that Screen Spotlight raves, delivers red hot naked women and gruesome murders... SORORITY PARTY MASSACRE is a surefire winner! 

Like Haunter, this one is also currently only $10 on Amazon

Friday, February 07, 2014

Psychotic Practitioners - Macabre Movie Poster Madness

Up first is this Dr. Phibes poster I'd never seen until about 4 minutes ago. I love the little speech balloon from Vulnavia, it's so delightfully punny.

The Abominable Dr. Phibes
And now a double bill of Night of the Witches and Dr. Frankenstein on Campus - which is totally a real movie.
Night of the Witches/Dr. Frankenstein On Campus

Carrying on with this wonderfully French poster for Dr. Orloff's Invisible Monster, which I think is more commonly known as Orloff And The Invisible Man. Or Orloff et l'homme invisible, if you're French.

Dr. Orloff's Invisible Monster

Here's one for Dr. Cyclops from Most Dangerous Game director Ernest B. Schoedsack. This is an Italian Double Panel poster under the way more awesome title of Il Lucifero Dell'era Atomica, which Google tells me roughly translates to Lucifer of the Atomic Age.

Dr. Cyclops - Italian Double Panel


From the 1967 film The Torture Chamber of Dr. Sadism is this fantastic Italian poster:

The Torture Chamber of Dr. Sadism (Adamo, Late 1960s). Italian 2 - Foglio

And the last, and certainly most terrifying is this Polish poster from the 1984 German film Arztinnen (aka Woman Doctors) from Czech director Horst Seemann - sweet Christ, what a name!

Nurse 3D Available on VOD Today!

 

Just a heads up that Doug Aarniokoski's long delayed Nurse 3D is out on Video On Demand today. It's actually getting solid reviews - I haven't seen it yet, but Bloody Disgusting loved it. Click here to find it on VOD. Also available in a very select few theaters. How few? 10.

If you need a reason to watch this one, here's a little Paz de la Huerta on Katrina Bowden action:


Ms. 45 & The Visitor Blu-ray Details and Release Dates

Next month Drafthouse will be releasing the awesome Ms. 45 and the actually quite terrible, but really goddamn funny 1979 film The Visitor on Blu-ray and DVD, and the bonus features and release dates for both have been announced.

 
MS. 45 - Out March 4th
• Interviews with Ferrara, composer Joe Delia and creative consultant Jack McIntyre
• ZOË XO and ZOË RISING, two short films about Lund by AMERICAN HARDCORE director Paul Rachman
• Theatrical trailer
• 32-page booklet featuring essays by Lund, Ferrara biographer Brad Stevens and HOUSE OF PSYCHOTIC WOMEN author Kier-la Janisse
• Digital download

THE VISITOR - Out March 25th
• Interviews with Henriksen, screenwriter Lou Comici and cinematographer Ennio Guarnieri
• Theatrical trailer
• 16-page booklet
• Digital download option




Thursday, February 06, 2014

Bazillion Points Books Presents HEAVY METAL MOVIES: Guitar Barbarians, Mutant Bimbos & Cult Zombies Amok in the 666 Most Ear- and Eye-Ripping Big-Scream Films Ever!

Wow, that's got to be a book title length record, doesn't it? This isn't out until May, but this looks like it should easily be the most entertaining movie-related book to come out all year. Get a look at this cover, then check out the line-up of movies featured in the book, shit, this looks amazing.

HEAVY METAL MOVIES: Guitar Barbarians, Mutant Bimbos &
Cult Zombies Amok in the 666 Most Ear- and Eye-Ripping
Big-Scream Films Ever!; Mike "McBeardo" McPadden's Book
Now Available for Pre-Order; Ships May 2014 w/Artisan Barf Bag!
Bazillion Points Books is proud to announce the May 2014 release of HEAVY METAL MOVIES, by Mike "McBeardo" McPadden [ISBN 978-1-935950-06-6]. Lavishly illustrated, gruesomely executed, and featuring well over 1000 of the most intense and headbanging movies ever produced, HEAVY METAL MOVIES is the ultimate guidebook to the complete molten musical cinema experience. Pre-orders are now available, and will ship in May with bonus fabric patch and artisan barf bag!
***
Years in the making, HEAVY METAL MOVIES is an apocalyptic overview of a century of loud, inspiring, groundbreaking, taboo, revolutionary, disgusting, and uplifting cinema fused at the roots to the DNA of heavy metal and its million offshoots. What began as a simple quest to identify the 666 heaviest films of all time exploded in the hands of Mike McPadden (Esquire, Penthouse) into an overwhelming bible of apocalyptic slasher festivals and full metal worship.
The final masterpiece weighs in at 576 pages, complete with color section and original cover artwork by Andrei Bouzikov. As always, we have created exclusive bonus treasure for pre-orders, in this case a color fabric patch (for your denim movie vest) and a super-powerful hand-crafted artisan barf bag for your protection against the shocking secrets of HEAVY METAL MOVIES. Please pre-order today, for May 2014 delivery—and thank you for spreading the word and letting everyone know about our latest metallic literary creation!
“Heavy Metal Movies is the head banging-est, ear bleeding-est tribute to the world’s two finest inventions: heavy metal and the movies!”—John Fasano (Zombie Nightmare, Black Roses, Rock ‘N' Roll Nightmare)
Exploding with over 666 of the most intense movies of all-time, featuring:
Headbanger classics: This Is Spinal Tap, Heavy Metal Parking Lot, Trick or Treat, Black Roses, Black Sabbath, The Decline and Fall of Western Civilization 2: The Metal Years, Rock ‘N Roll Nightmare, The Dungeonmaster, River’s Edge, Gummo, Lord of the Rings, Over the Edge, RoboCop, Saw, Savage Streets, The Toxic Avenger, Hard Rock Zombies, The Phantom of Paradise, Airheads, Evilspeak, Evil Dead, The Devil’s Rejects, Monster Dog, The Wicker Man…
Disturbing documentaries: Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey, Some Kind of Monster, Paradise Lost, Faces of Death…
Bulging barbarians: Conan the Destroyer, Clash of the Titans, The Sword and The Sorcerer…
Satanic shockers: The Exorcist, Rosemary’s Baby, The Devils, House of 1000 Corpses…
Splattery slashers: Maniac, Halloween, My Bloody Valentine, Sleepaway Camp…
Post-nuke dystopias: Mad Max, Blade Runner, The Road Warrior, Megaforce, Zardoz, Land of Doom, Death Race 2000, Planet of the Apes…
Carnivorous chunk-blowers: Cannibal Holocaust, Cannibal Ferox, Bloodsucking Freaks…
Undead gut-munchers: Zombie, Dawn of the Dead, Burial Ground, Dead/Alive…
Midnight mind-benders: Eraserhead, The Holy Mountain, Caligula, The Warriors, Repo: The Genetic Opera…
Concert films and cameo performances: Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, White Zombie, Alice Cooper, Helmet, Cannibal Corpse, Kiss, Powermad…
Plus witches, werewolves, bikers, aliens, lesbian vampires, and vengeful vikings galore!
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