DVD and Blu-ray Releases: February 27, 2018
Sean Brickley
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Greetings again, my friends. We have a bit shorter of a list this week, but like always, there are some decent grabs coming to us. First, our discrepancies….
I made a mistake last week, reporting that Gate II was hitting shelves then. I found out afterward that it would not be available until this week. Please accept my apologies for getting anyone’s hopes up.
Scalpel may have dropped last week, but it also shows up on my radar for this week. In any case you should be able to find it now.
My pick for favorite release of the week would have to go to Basket Case. I saw this movie as a kid and loved how weird and gritty and strange it was. Now the Museum of Modern Art is doing its part in preserving this horror classic. You can read more about that here.
Don’t forget to check out the rest of this week’s list, including Lost Creek and The Sect. As always, I hope you enjoy whatever tickles your fancy this week. Pleasant viewing.
MOVIES
78/52: Hitchcock’s Shower Scene (2017)
Starring:
Jamie Lee Curtis, Guillermo del Toro, Peter Bogdanovich, Danny Elfman
Synopsis:
An unprecedented look at the iconic shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, the “man behind the curtain,” and the screen murder that profoundly changed the course of world cinema.
Basket Case (1982) (Limited Edition)
Starring:
Kevin Van Hentenryck, Terri Susan Smith, Beverly Bonner
Synopsis:
THE TENANT IN ROOM 7 IS VERY SMALL, VERY TWISTED, AND VERY MAD.
The feature debut of director Frank Henenlotter (Brain Damage, Frankenhooker), 1982’s Basket Case is perhaps his most revered – a riotous and blood-spattered midnight movie experience, now immortalized in a lavish new 4K restoration by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).
Duane Bradley is a pretty ordinary guy. His formerly conjoined twin Belial, on the other hand, is a deformed, fleshy lump whom he carries around in a wicker basket. Arriving in the Big Apple and taking up a room at the seedy Hotel Broslin, the pair set about hunting down and butchering the surgeons responsible for their separation. But tensions flare up when Duane starts spending time with a pretty blonde secretary, and Belial’s homicidal tendencies reach bloody new extremes.
Filmed on a shoestring budget against the backdrop of 1980s New York (where the movie would become a staple of the infamous 42nd Street grindhouse circuit), Basket Case has clawed its way from its humble origins to become one of the most celebrated cult movies of all time.
Brainiac, The (1962)
Starring:
Abel Salazar, Ariadna Welter, David Silva
Synopsis:
In 1661 Mexico, the Baron Vitelius of Astara is sentenced to be burned alive by the Holy Inquisition of Mexico for witchcraft, necromancy, and other crimes. As he dies, the Baron swears vengeance against the descendants of the Inquisitors. More then 300 years later, a comet that was passing overhead on the night of the Baron’s execution returns to earth, bringing with it the Baron in the form of a horrible, brain-eating hideous monster that terrorizes the Inquisitor’s descendants for all eternity.
Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970)
Starring:
Eric Braeden, Susan Clark
Synopsis:
The ultimate computer creates the ultimate terror in this chillingly real sci-fi suspense thriller. When electronics genius Charles Forbin creates a massive computer complex that is capable of independently regulating the national defense of the United States, it appears that no enemy will ever be able to penetrate its sovereign borders.
But such a promising thought turns into a stunning nightmare when it’s discovered the Russians have built an equally sophisticated computer and that these two “doomsday machines”, have linked, sharing classified information and top secrets. Desperately, Forbin and his Soviet counterparts try to stop the all-knowing monster computers from seizing command of the world’s nuclear missile stockpiles.
Gate II (1992)
Starring:
Pamela Segall, Simon Reynolds
Synopsis:
Not all minions are cute and cuddly …
This supercharged sequel to the horror classic The Gate comes alive with unearthly creatures, heart-stopping action and incredible special effects.
Gate II picks up again with Terry, the teenage sorcerer who summons beings from the other side whose powers can be used to grant any wish. Unfortunately, before the Gate closes again, a “minion” – a tiny disciple of Satan himself – manages to slip through to our dimension. When the creature is kidnapped – all hell breaks loose.
Lost Creek (2016)
Starring:
Oliver Stockman, Brynna Bartoo, Henry Stockman, Lisa Coruzzi, Matthew Lovlie
Synopsis:
In the wake of a messy divorce, 11-year-old Peter moves with his mother to a new town. A strange and unfamiliar place, the only upside is that he’s closer to his best friend, Bill. Coming to terms with this adjustment, Peter finds comfort playing at nearby Lost Creek. There, he meets Maggie; a mysterious girl who quickly becomes close to Peter. But, with this comes the slow realization that something in the town is wrong. Adults are disappearing, and Peter is plagued by nightmares that are becoming more and more real with each passing night. With Halloween approaching, Peter, Maggie and Bill must band together to face their fears and uncover the dark secrets of Lost Creek before it’s too late. Lost Creek is a ghost story about the magical and frightening adventure of childhood, and the bittersweet feeling of coming to the end of that journey.
Scalpel (1977) (Special Edition)
Starring:
Robert Lansing, Sandy Martin, Judith Chapman, Arlen Dean Snyder
Synopsis:
HE LOST THE FACE OF THE WOMAN HE LOVED… SO HE GAVE IT TO SOMEONE ELSE.
US television staple Robert Lansing (Star Trek, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Twilight Zone) stars as a deranged surgeon in this twisty-turny psychological thriller from Blood Rage director John Grissmer.
In Scalpel, Lansing plays Dr. Phillip Reynolds, a man whose daughter Heather (Judith Chapman, As the World Turns, General Hospital) has run away from home a year prior following the suspicious death of her boyfriend. When he happens across a young woman one night, her face beaten beyond recognition, the unhinged Reynolds sees his an opportunity to put his trusty scalpel to use – hatching a plan to ”reconstruct” her face in the image of his missing daughter, and so claim her sizeable inheritance.
Photographed by celebrated cinematographer Edward Lachman, who would go on to serve as DP on the likes of Erin Brockovich and The Virgin Suicides, Scalpel is an exemplary slice of Southern-fried gothic, filled finally rescued from VHS obscurity in this revelatory new Blu-ray edition from Arrow Video.
Sect, The (1991)
Starring:
Kelly Curtis, Herbert Lom, Maria Angela Giordano, Michel Adatte, Carla Cassola
Synopsis:
There’s fear around every corner with a diabolical sect on the loose! Kelly Lee Curtis (sister of Jamie Lee) stars as Miriam, an American schoolteacher relocated to Germany in an area plagued by a satanic cult that murders and tears out the hearts of anyone who betrays it. One afternoon Miriam accidentally hits an elderly pedestrian, Moebius (Herbert Lom, The Pink Panther, The Dead Zone), standing in the middle of the road; alarmed, she takes him back to her house to recuperate, only for him to secretly drug her and then secrete a hallucinogenic insect in her nostril. Clearly targeting Miriam for a sinister plan, Moebius triggers an uncanny string of events in Miriam’s life involving nightmares, a diabolical cult leader, Damon (The Church’s Tomas Arana), her magic pet rabbit, and a dark well filled with mystical water. Directed by Michele Soavi (The Church, Stagefright) and produced by maestro Dario Argento (Suspiria, Opera), this hallucinatory shocker now merges from the darkness with a new HD transfer!
Serpent’s Lair (1995)
Starring:
Jeff Fahey, Lisa Barbuscia, Patrick Bauchau, Jack Kehler, Taylor Nichols
Synopsis:
Tom (Jeff Fahey, The Lawnmower Man, Body Parts, Psycho III) and Alex (Heather Medway, TV’s Viper, Models Inc., Fear) are a young couple who move into an apartment where a mysterious suicide has just taken place. Almost immediately their lives take a strange turn as Tom is seduced by a mysterious woman (Lisa Barbuscia, Highlander, Endgame, Almost Heroes) who turns out to be a seductive succubus! Patrick Bauchau (Phenomena, TV’s The Pretender), Jack Kehler (The Big Lebowski, Men in Black II), Taylor Nichols (Barcelona, Jurassic Park III) and soap legend Kathleen Noone (TV’s All My Children and Knots Landing) also stars in this spine-tingling thriller! Directed by veteran TV director Jeffrey Reiner (Trouble Bound).
COLLECTIONS
Lon Chaney Collection
Starring:
Lon Chaney
Synopsis:
Celebrating the virtuosity of the man of a thousand faces! Includes: The Ace Of Hearts, Laugh, Clown, Laugh, The Unknown, and a photo-reconstruction of London After Midnight
Categorized:News
