From Hell To Your Machine: Universal Monster Movies

One of my favourite DVD acquisitions over the years has been the Universal monster movie legacy set - with the busts of Bela Lugosi/Dracula, Lon Chaney Jnr/Wolf Man, and Boris Karloff/Frankenstein's creature visible through the transparent frontage, it looks absolutely cool on the film shelf.  Well finally Universal are putting out a package in the US of some of these films on Blu-ray in October of this year.  Containing Dracula (both the English language and South American versions), Frankenstein, Bride of..., The Mummy, Invisible Man, Creature from the Black Lagoon (in 3D believe it or not, allowing it to be seen as in its original theatrical projection so many decades ago), The Wolf Man, and Phantom of the Opera the nine film set is spread over eight BDs and comes with a 48 page book, plus there are plentiful extras (looking like they've been culled from the earlier DVDs).  Whilst this is very exciting, and the idea of seeing such classics as the Whale movies and Dracula mastered in full HD is positively mouth-watering, admittedly I've never been so bothered about the Creature... movie and Phantom..., although the idea of seeing the fifties monster movie in its native 3D (of course transferred for modern Real 3D technology) is interesting.  I would like to see some of the Dracula and Frankenstein sequels make it to Blu.  There is a similar boxed set coming out in the UK (1st October), which contains all of the above films including the Spanish Dracula, and very reasonably priced it is for pre-order.  Seems some of these are also getting individual Blu-ray releases in the UK around the same time.

On a related note, and similarly positive, is Universal's decision to release the spoofy but surprisingly effective Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein on Blu at the end of August, to include a featurette and commentary, plus DVD/Digital Copy of the film.  Of course this was previously released in the UK on DVD as part of a huge boxed set devoted to the duo, and on an individually available disc where it was coupled with the inferior ...Meet The Mummy.  Great disc nevertheless.

*Update: Universal are also releasing in the UK a limited edition Coffin Box of the above 8 disc set on Blu-ray, also on October 1st.  Looks pretty good.

From Hell To Your Machine: Black Sunday

As previously mentioned here, Redemption/Kino are exhuming Black Sunday for a restored Blu-ray release on September 18th.  This was, if I recall, the first video cassette I bought by the fledgling UK company back in the 90s, and the film grew on me to a point, around the turn of the millennium, where I decided not to watch it again.  Not because I had gotten bored with it; quite the opposite.  The dubbing drove me nuts, plus it was nastily cropped to fullscreen.  So I had the plan to wait until a version true to its source appeared on DVD - Image put out a nice edition in the early days of the digital format as part of their 'Mario Bava Collection', which was widescreen, but still dubbed in English!  It has also since been released by Anchor Bay as part of a boxed set, and very close to being definitive was a release in Italy by RHV (Ripley Home Video), which actually contained the Italian language track... BUT no English subtitles!!!  It also had a second disc of extras, and restored some previously lost footage to the film.  Here's hoping that Redemption have done their homework and get this one truly right.  They will also be putting out a double of Lisa and the Devil with both cuts so things look promising on the Bava front.

Prometheus

2012, US, Directed by Ridley Scott
Colour, Running Time: 124 minutes
Review Source: Cinema screening; Image: 2.35:1, Redcode RAW 3D (Digital)

So, was this film supposed to be a sequel to the Alien series? A prequel? Something vaguely related? Or something with nothing at all to do with the acid-blood monsters from the outer regions of the cosmos? Amidst the pre-release hype I began to lose track, thus - interested in the latest Ridley Scott sci-fi project either way - I stopped watching the trailers (which tend to show too much in my opinion) and finally sat back to enjoy a film whose direction I wasn't entirely sure of. To keep the plot down to spoiler-free level I would relay to potential viewers the following details: Towards the end of the 21st century two anthropologists have found further evidence in cave paintings that suggests ancient knowledge of planetary coordinates in the galaxy that could link mankind to his creator. Several years on and an intergalactic science mission is funded to determine the validity of the evidence - a long distance trip to another world aboard 'Prometheus'; in simple terms, a quest to meet the maker. Coming out of a two year hyper sleep, an exploratory expedition across the world's landscape does indeed reveal remains of alien activity on the surface (and beneath), however, the findings prove to be increasingly threatening and not quite as expected.

The opening minutes actually take place on a windswept alien domain and mysteriously set up a taster for what's to come: a humanoid consumes a compound that breaks down and transforms his genetic structure as a spacecraft takes off for the stars. This sequence combined with what follows epitomises what science fiction is all about in my eyes: it reinstates a sense of wonder about the future, the undiscovered universe, and its multitude of theoretically inhabitable planets. It creates such a tangible environment (no doubt helped along by the 3D projection - more on that below) that your consciousness is drawn into the world devised by the artists; you want to be a part of it. Despite the fact that it's a decidedly hostile terrain that is. There are some mutterings about this being a limited story, and that may be the case, but what it might lack in narrative complexity (which, as far as I'm concerned, isn't a cinematic pre-requisite anyway) it makes up for in wonderment and the sheer scope of its core concept. And to not be interested in such a concept - the question of mankind's origins (evolution is still only theory after all) - would require a head made of wood. Aside from the vastness of the question it asks, and partly attempts to answer, there are many science fiction trappings present and accounted for here, including the Alien series favourite, the inclusion of a human-like robot as part of the crew. Ironically, Michael Fassbender's android character is possibly the most fascinating out of the otherwise human crew - while his 'peers' are in hyper sleep he spends his months educating himself on human history. Essentially he's trying to find out as much as possible about his creators, just as they are about theirs. There are many more imaginative ideas revolving around technology (for example, the brilliant levitating reconnaissance devices that progressively build a holographic three dimensional map of any structure they're released in), the abundance of which endangers the focus of the film itself admittedly. Unlike many of today's Hollywood products, the characters aren't excessively dislikable (even the hard-hearted ship's commander played by Charlize Theron doesn't irritate like it should) and Noomi Rapace, who plays what is arguably the film's anchoring character, is refreshingly imperfect. The question you may be asking is, how does this film tie in to the Alien franchise? It's one I won't answer as I think this journey is far more rewarding when embarked upon without prior notice of what's likely to happen. I will, however, state that the final moments sent a cold chill through my nervous system: this is one film where I actually want there to be a sequel. It's pleasing to see Ridley Scott once again reshaping the science fiction genre, as he has on a couple of prominent occasions before.

Viewing this film as a digital 3D projection in a suitably advanced cinema is an incredibly gratifying experience (for the record I saw this at Birmingham's amazing Giant Screen, formerly branded as Imax) - the visuals and special effects of Prometheus are second to none, the planet and surrounding space created with inspiring design and realisation. A convincing landscape is made all the more so with the stunning addition of a natively shot third dimension (notably superior to a recent screening at the same cinema of the post-processed Avengers Assemble - or just Avengers to those outside England). With a potent surround mix this is a satisfyingly enveloping experience, one that should leave you walking out of the cinema feeling thrilled and in awe of what has been achieved here. This is something that is all too uncommon these days. Highly recommended as a cinema viewing, though I'll be in the queue for the Blu-ray too without a doubt.

The Dead

2010, UK, Directed by Howard J Ford, Jonathon Ford
Colour, Running Time: 105 minutes
Review Source: Blu-ray, Region B, Anchor Bay; Video: 1.78:1 1080p 24fps, Audio: Dolby TrueHD

There was a time when I was an obsessive zombie movie fan, tracking down just about anything on tape (this was the nineties by btw) where the flesh-devouring (or not) dead might be using up even a small amount of screen time. My obsession faded just prior to the time the phenomenon began taking off in a more commercial manner resulting in a proliferation of related movies to the point of saturation, and nowadays I specifically avoid anything containing walking cadavers. I recently broke the habit and picked this one up, however, as there were a few opinions that suggested it could stand out from the horde. Opening sequence is really promising: a shrouded man walks across an African desert; he looks dazed and exhausted by the heat (and whatever else he's had to face in the preceding hours). A reanimated corpse wanders by, attracted to living tissue, its near-severed leg barely carrying the weight above. The unperturbed man avoids it and carries on his journey, using his gun sparingly as he encounters more of The Dead. The days leading up to this situation are then recounted for the viewer: an outbreak of an unspecified infection has escalated the existing militaristic chaos in Africa, and the aforementioned survivor, Brian Murphy - an engineer for the U.S. forces - is on the last aircraft to make an escape attempt as bodies everywhere come back to life with a hunger for humankind. The plane goes down though, just off the coast, and Murphy has to retreat back to land amidst constant threat from the corpses that seem drawn to anything with warm blood. He finds an old car and gets the thing working again before taking off in search of another way out. Amidst altercations with walking corpses he picks up an African soldier, Sgt Dembele, the two reluctantly becoming friends on the adopted expedition of travelling to an airbase in the case of the American, whilst looking for the son of the African.

The plot is thin, but that seems to go with the territory in this subgenre - it's all about survival in the face of a relentless, fearsome enemy that is effectively a dead version of ourselves. The fact that death has become manifest is not enough though, as the sheer volume makes the problem ever more potent (indeed, with Earth's population reaching ridiculous levels, the idea of all living people eventually turning involuntarily to the opposing side poses an astronomical threat to remaining survivors). It could be argued that the plot is too thin: sometimes Murphy would appear to be heading from one encounter with reactivated corpses to another, the idea that he becomes aware of an airbase a couple of hundred miles away being of little significance to storyline depth. But, as I say, this goes with the territory; any random selection of the subgenre classics - Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Zombi II, etc. - is not likely to be especially different. What is apparent, in this era of super-slick film-making, is that this film does not appear to be aiming for über-cool style. Murphy himself is a middle aged guy of intelligence, but not one who would stand out in any crowd. He is, by his own admission, just trying to survive. He's not trying to show off to his unseen audience - there are no slow-mo shots (and thankfully shaky cam is kept to what it's best for - the action scenes - rather than being irresponsibly adopted to depict just about anything including someone drinking a cup of tea, as often seems to be the case in cinema/TV nowadays), no flashy poses, and no one-liners. In light of all this, the films feels all the more realistic. If there was a zombie apocalypse then it would probably be like this. The final act is rendered in a powerful splat of hopelessness, resulting in a shiver running through the nerves - the likes of which I've not experienced watching a zombie film for a very long time.

The film is executed in a technically proficient manner, with strong gore effects, some pleasing landscape photography, and a handful of well orchestrated scare sequences. The Blu-ray itself is fairly average - the image is certainly good (it looks like it was shot digitally, but the imdb says otherwise) filling a widescreen TV (or projected image in my case), while the high resolution audio track is excellent: the atmospherics of the African wilderness really draw you in, coupled with an outstanding score by Imran Ahmad (making aggressive use of all five/six speakers). But those seeking extras will be disappointed to find a measly deleted scene, a poxy four minute featurette, and an audio commentary (all the same as the US disc if you think looking elsewhere will yield rewards). Not having enough time to go through the extras I already have for other films I'm not majorly concerned about this, but it does suggest lack of effort/interest on the part of Anchor Bay, who released it both here in the UK and the US. For a film that feels quite different from the norm (mainly due to the unusual location, à la District 9) with a couple of affecting central performances, and creepy, older fashioned slow-moving corpses, The Dead is certainly a dramatic, involving example of the genre that you might want to check out on Blu-ray (or DVD if you still haven't made the HD jump).

Two Evil Eyes

1990, US/Italy, Directed by George A Romero, Dario Argento
Colour, Running Time: 120 minutes
Review Source: Satellite Broadcast; Video: 1.78:1, Audio: Stereo

When it was announced back in the late eighties that George Romero and Dario Argento - who had previously collaborated to legendary effect on Dawn of the Dead - were to re-unite in the production of a horror based on the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, fans were understandably excited.  Neither were considered particularly to be in decline at that point.  Most recently Romero had bestowed the world with the wonderful Day of the Dead - okay, not well received upon initial release it would later go on to be appreciated and understood as a great piece of cinema by many - and the pretty decent Monkey Shines, a fairly original and engaging take on the man-vs-animal sub genre.  Meanwhile Argento had experimented with crossing the supernatural with his forte, the giallo, to materialise with some success Phenomena, soon drifting back into stylish giallo territory for Opera.  Not only that but the guys were bringing along special effects master Tom Savini (who'd worked on the last couple of Dead films at that point, amongst many other fine examples of the genre).  What the hell could go wrong?  Well, how about almost everything?  The film was a disappointment of the highest order, but it lingered around on video for years, then DVD from the likes of Anchor Bay (and more recently Arrow, whose disc strangely split the film into two distinct options from the menu rather than allowing viewing of the movie in its intended entirety), while nowadays it's available from Blue Underground on what looks to be a well produced Blu-ray.  Years after that initial drop in enthusiasm (I caught it on video rental around '92) I'd considered buying it a few times, thinking that it couldn't have been as boring as I originally remembered.  A recent satellite broadcast gave me the opportunity to check it out again without risking a few quid...

Comprised of two adaptations of Poe stories, Romero takes on the first - 'The Facts in the Case of Mr Valdemar', about a scheming wife and her illegitimate lover who are more than a little interested in the woman's dying husband's vast fortune.  Allowing the old codger to die prematurely before the legal issues have been ironed out they cart the body down into the (grim) cellar where a handy chest freezer becomes the poor guy's home for the next few days.  What they don't expect is to hear his whining voice haunting them from beyond the grave, followed by his eventual lumbering awakening as his corpse is apparently controlled by dark spirits in a quest for vengeance.  This opening story, stretching out its bareness to around an hour, is seat-fidgetingly boring.  The cast, crew, and eventual editor (Pasquale Buba, who surprisingly had previously edited the much more efficient Day of the Dead) appear to be in a trance-like state, and I hate to say but Romero's direction exhibits none of the drive that had previously been evident in virtually everything from Night of the Living Dead onwards.  None of the characters are likable, which doesn't help the maintenance of viewer consciousness, and even a handful of superior gore effects from Savini cannot save this piece.  The near ubiquitous scoring becomes infuriating, implemented in a distinctly unprofessional manner, and the whole thing smells like a bad TV movie.  An increase in pace, sparing use of a score composed by someone else, along with a substantial reduction in running time could have resulted in an improved film all round.

The second story is based (again, loosely) on 'The Black Cat', and directed with more flair by king of the roving camera, Argento.  A flamboyant artist is repeatedly bugged by the black cat that his partner has let into their apartment - no matter what he does he can't get rid of the persistent moggie.  Following the butchering of his partner the artist walls her into a concealed section of their home, but getting away with murder will be cast under the shadow of a meddling cat... The centre performance by Harvey Keitel is suitably angry, and pushes this one a bit closer to 'entertainment' than Romero's segment ever got.  Argento also displays a touch of style here and there (e.g. the pendulum perspective in the opening minutes), reminding us of the presence of an auteur.  Aside from similar issues with the music and to a lesser extent the overall pace, the main problem is probably caused by the first story - by the time the second one kicks off the viewer is already bored to hell and not especially interested in anything that the screen might throw at them next.  I get the impression that each director was granted an hour time slot and they possibly had to fill it regardless, and with threadbare materials this was always going to result in a slow lumbering blob of a film.  The fact that neither director has managed to put out much worth a damn since Two Evil Eyes also suggests that both had in fact begun their decline into mediocrity around this point, a factor entirely symbolised by the effect (or lack thereof) of this film.  I'm glad I saved my money.

Upcoming stuff (Shout Factory etc)

Shout Factory look like becoming one of the forerunners in Blu-ray exploitation: it's been a while since their line of Roger Corman B movies arrived (a great selection that included Forbidden World and Galaxy of Terror) but new announcements under its 'Scream Factory' brand include (note that this is all in the US territory, and they may be region locked as were the former Corman discs) Halloween II and Halloween III Season of the Witch (haven't seen this for nearly twenty years) special editions in September, with audio commentaries and featurettes on each disc, plus both containing limited edition posters in the first 500 copies (surprisingly II also contains an additional disc - DVD - of a rarely seen television version of the movie).  Beyond that they will be bringing John Carpenter's They Live to Blu (let's hope they pick up Prince of Darkness too), the slasher crazed Terror Train (something I'll be picking up), Tobe Hooper's pretty decent Funhouse (already got the Arrow of this one), Phantasm II (the rights to this series in the US are spread all over the place, so a boxed set seems unlikely - still cherish my old Anchor Bay UK DVD set), and one of Wes Craven's boring flicks - Deadly Blessing.  There are a couple of other minor titles to be released in the same series: The Island (Peter Benchley's 1980 pirates-on-a-mysterious-island film rather than Michael Bay's slicker science fiction action ride) and the 1982 serial killer-stalking-mother/boyfriend/son film Death Valley.  Shout are to be commended for digging up some of the less likely stuff for HD restoration, that's for sure!

I'm hoping to catch Prometheus at Birmingham's Giant Screen (formerly branded as an IMAX cinema) in the next couple of weeks, but pre-orders are being taken for various editions of this over at Amazon.com already (nothing on Amazon UK as yet).  It was of course shot in 3D (as the film world goes kinda 3D crazy) so there'll be all sorts of permutations on this one.  On the subject of Ridley Scott Bladerunner is being released (US again) in a 45th anniversary incarnation - I thought my five disc f**king set was the ultimate edition!  Anyway, upgrades on the previous set appear to be minor in disc content at the moment (though the book packaging looks kinda nice).

Remember Riccardo Freda?  He was part of the golden age Italian Gothic horror movement, being involved as he was with the direction of I Vampiri (which appeared towards the end of the fifties) and The Ghost.  One of his most notorious films has never been properly available on disc: The Terror of Dr Hichcock, with Barbara Steele in a pretty classic Gothic tale of the supernatural and suggested necrophiliac lust.  There is an Italian only disc on the Medusa label, and I believe there was a lacking DVD of the short version floating around the US from a company called Video Dimensions.  I used to own the UK Stablecane video cassette before selling it as VHS effectively died at the end of the nineties, and have been eagerly awaiting a decent digital release of this ever since.  Well it could be on the horizon, but who has picked it up?  Bloody Mya Communication, the company with so many interesting films in their roster, almost all of which have been pretty roughly treated.  And with those guys we may as well forget about a Blu-ray.  Oh well, be thankful for small blessings - looks like forking out a lot of money for substandard product... (I hope I'm proved wrong).