Each year they plunder one fifth of our food, spread our deadliest diseases and destroy billions of dollars worth of homes and property.
Grain contaminated with steroids produce large black rats that begin feeding on the citizens of Toronto. A college basketball coach (Sam Groom, The Baby Maker) teams up with a local health inspector (Sara Botsford, The Fog 2005) to uncover the source of the mysterious giant rats. When they discover that the rats are living in the subway, they try to prevent a new subway line from opening before all hell breaks loose underground. This is man’s last desperate, bloody battle to preserve the existence of the human race!
Based on the novel The Rats by James Herbert with a screenplay by Charles Eglee (Dexter, The Walking Dead), this nail-biting thriller is directed by Robert Clouse (Enter The Dragon) and co-stars Scatman Crothers (The Shining), Lisa Langlois (The Nest) and Lesleh Donaldson (Happy Birthday To Me, Curtains).
Buy it: Amazon, Scream
Lock and load your Blu-ray player – it’s time for a double-barreled blast of high-octane, high-definition action from Shout! Factory. This pair of hard-to-find action/adventure classics, available for the first time on Blu-ray, are a sure-fire night of entertainment for those who like their meat – and their movies – raw.
THE FINAL OPTION (1982), Widescreen (1.78:1), R: An elite Special Air Service captain takes the ultimate risk when he infiltrates a terrorist organization in order to thwart a plan to take several dignitaries hostage. Inspired by the real-life operations of counter-terrorist forces, this military movie favorite (also known as Who Dares Wins) stars Lewis Collins, Edward Woodward (The Equalizer), and Oscar® nominee Judy Davis.
I ESCAPED FROM DEVIL’S ISLAND (1973), Full Frame, Not Rated: Sentenced to life in the world’s most notorious prison colony, two tougher-than-nails inmates enact the ultimate jail break…but find that trying to survive in the outside world is every bit as hellish as it was in the slammer. Football superstar Jim Brown and drive-in movie mainstay Christopher George star in this gritty actioner from the legendary Roger Corman.
Grab it at Amazon
The Final Option and I Escaped From Devil's Island are also available on a 4-film Action Adventure Movie Marathon DVD set with two other films; Shake Hands With The Devil and Treasure of the Four Crowns.
I ESCAPED FROM DEVIL’S ISLAND: 1973/Color/R/87 minutes/Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)/ Dolby Digital Mono
Sentenced to life in the world’s most notorious prison colony, two inmates enact the ultimate jail break…but find that life on the outside can be every bit as deadly. Football superstar Jim Brown and drive-in movie mainstay Christopher George star in this gritty actioner from the legendary Roger Corman.
FINAL OPTION: 1982/Color/R/126 minutes/Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)/ Dolby Digital Mono
An elite Special Air Service captain takes the ultimate risk when he infiltrates a terrorist organization in order to thwart a plan to take several dignitaries hostage. Inspired by the real-life operations of counter-terrorist forces, this military movie favorite finally makes its explosive debut on DVD in North America.
SHAKE HANDS WITH THE DEVIL: 1959/B&W/Not Rated/111 minutes/Full Frame/ Dolby Digital Mono
All-time Hollywood favorite James Cagney stars in a gripping tale of the struggle between the Irish Republican Army and the British Black and Tans. When an Irish-American medical student (Don Murray) loses his best friend to violence, he abandons his apolitical stance and takes up arms with the rebellion…but he is soon tempted by a comely British hostage.
TREASURE OF THE FOUR CROWNS: 1983/Color/PG/105 minutes/Full Frame/ Dolby Digital Stereo
When a set of mystical artifacts falls into the hands of a diabolical cult leader with plans for world domination, it’s up to devil-may-care mercenary J.T. Striker to reclaim them. Assembling a ragtag team of adventurers, Striker sets out on a mission where the stakes may be nothing less than the balance between good and evil.
BONUS FEATURE: Audio Commentary With Pop Culture Historian Russell Dyball.
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David Cronenberg's Scanners is making its US Blu-ray debut from Criterion, loaded up with tons of features. I recommend getting this one from Barnes & Noble. They're right in the middle of their Summer Criterion sale where all Criterion titles are 50% Off, which makes Scanners $20. If you sign up for a free 2-month trial membership you get an extra 10% Off, plus there are coupons available on this thread at DVDTalk that can potentially bring the price down even lower. This is really dependent upon the cashier who checks you out, some people have luck with the coupons, others, not so much. Certainly worth a shot, just remember to cancel your trial before the 2 months is up so you aren't charged.
The title of this David Cronenberg sci-fi horror film refers to a group of people who have telekinetic powers that allow them to read minds and give them the ability to make other people's heads explode. The children of a group of women who took an experimental tranquilizer during their pregnancies, the scanners are now adults and have become outcasts from society. But Darryl (Michael Ironside) decides to create an army of scanners to take over the world. The only person who can stop him is his brother Cameron (Stephen Lack), who wants to forget that he was ever a scanner. Winner of the International Fantasy Film Award at the 1983 Fantasporto Film Festival, Scanners was followed by a pair of sequels, neither of which involved Cronenberg.
DIRECTOR-APPROVED DUAL-FORMAT BLU-RAY AND DVD SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
A voluptuous woman of unknown origin (Johansson) combs the highways in search of isolated or forsaken men, luring a succession of lost souls into an otherworldly lair. They are seduced, stripped of their humanity, and never heard from again. Based on the novel by Michel Faber, Under the Skin examines human experience from the perspective of an unforgettable heroine who grows too comfortable in her borrowed skin, until she is abducted into humanity with devastating results.
I actually drove about 30 miles out of town to see this one when it was in the theater, and I highly recommend renting this one before you buy. Personally, I enjoyed it quite a bit. It's SLOW, one of the slowest movies I've seen actually - probably too slow for most people to make it through - but I found it pretty fascinating and I couldn't take my eyes off the screen - and not just because Scarlett is absolutely nude several times. You'll either enjoy this, or you will absolutely fucking hate it, like the many people who turned it off half way through but still felt the need to give it a 1-star review on Amazon.
