DVD and Blu-ray Releases: May 24, 2016
Sean Brickley
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Welcome back, folks. If I were a baker, I’d tell you that we have a dozen releases to discuss this week. Thankfully I am not a baker, so I can tell you that we have thirteen releases hitting shelves instead.
First up is Sacrament (not to be confused with the Ti West movie), featuring Marilyn Burns of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre fame in her last movie before her death in 2014. This will be dropping on the 26th instead of the 24th. Speaking of movies that have abnormal release dates this week, Darling will be coming out on the 27th.
We have a few classics to talk about this week. The first comes in the way of 1986’s Manhunter coming to Blu-ray. William L. Peterson (pay attention, fans of “CSI”) gives one of the most over-dramatic performances of any of the movies related to Hannibal Lecter.
The other classic release is in our Collections section by means of the Killer Dames: Two Gothic Chillers by Emilio P. Miraglia double feature. This 4-disc limited special edition Blu-ray/DVD box set contains 2K restorations of two of the more obscure giallo films of the early70’s.
The rest of our releases this week are from the past two years or so, including the interest-piquing title Paranormal Sex Tape. The trailer looks, ummmm, fun… in a very awkward sort of way.
Have a wonderful week, friends. As always, pleasant viewing.
MOVIES
Alien Valley (2016)
Starring:
Matthew M. Baxter, Bryan Bonner, Chuck Zukowski
Synopsis:
There have been over thirty thousand cattle mutilations in Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico since the 1960’s- gruesome scenes where cows are found with surgical-like incisions, missing organs and completely drained of blood. Often, there are no predator tracks to be found. Despite the devastating impact on local ranchers and an FBI investigation, there have been zero mutilation related convictions. This has spawned a whole host of UFO tales and governmental conspiracies, and Colorado’s San Luis Valley is the epicenter for the phenomenon. Essentially Ghost Hunters gone wrong, Alien Valley is the story of Dave, a young cameraman for a paranormal reality show, who travels to the San Luis Valley to shoot an episode on cattle mutilations. He develops a friendship with Rose, their attractive BLM liaison, who accompanies them on their investigation. Rose has one mission: keep the crew off of the restricted BLM lands known as The Commons, the supposed location of a crashed UFO from the 1960’s. The show’s producer, Rob, presses forward his all too common formula. Interview the believers and skeptics. Conduct an intense nighttime investigation. And finally, reveal whether or not this paranormal mystery has been solved. When Dave meets a real mutilation expert who claims that there were extraterrestrial survivors from the UFO crash in the 60’s, he is thoroughly spooked. Suddenly, the episode’s chief contact goes missing. Without their contact’s ranch, the crew is without a location for the show’s nighttime investigation. Rob exploits Dave and Rose’s budding relationship and sneaks the crew onto The Commons for their stakeout. After entering the restricted lands, the crew finds they’ve actually breached an Air Force quarantine zone. It’s not long before they discover a mutilated cow and what killed it. As an alien predator picks off the crewmembers, Dave and Rose struggle to escape Alien Valley and one of our military’s most sinister secrets.
Purchase:
At Granny’s House (2016)
Starring:
Bill Oberst Jr., Rachel Alig, Les Mahoney, Glenda Morgan Brown
Synopsis:
At Granny’s House is about what happens when a young lady (Rebecca) moves in to be caregiver to Granny, a little old lady in a rural USA midwest town. Rebecca turns out to have her own dark secrets and agenda, and these play out as the movie develops, especially when Ted Steiner comes to visit Granny’s house. A typical Midwest house. A sweet little old lady. When a caretaker moves in to help out, Granny’s House becomes a macabre place of death – and love.
Purchase:
Camp Dread (2014)
Starring:
Eric Roberts, Danielle Harris, Felissa Rose
Synopsis:
The “Summer Camp” horror trilogy was one of the most popular franchises of the 1980s. However, the decade ended and so did director Julian Barrett’s career. Now Barrett plans to resurrect his gory series via a modern reboot patterned after reality filmmaking. With his former leading lady and an eclectic group of 10 young “contestants,” Barrett returns to the same locale where his old splatter-fests were filmed. When one of the campers is found savagely murdered, they realize there’s more at stake than just fame and fortune. Each of them is in a fight for their lives as they realize summer is over – forever.
Purchase:
Chocolate, Strawberry, Vanilla (2014)
Starring:
Glenn Maynard, Kyrie Capri, Aston Elliot, Louise Bremner, Benjamin Grant Mitchell
Synopsis:
Awkward, lonely ice-cream truck driver Warren Thompson has two major problems: an unhealthy obsession with a soap opera actress, and a gang of bullies who like to savagely beat him on a regular basis. As Warren slowly slips out of reality and into a psychotic fantasy world to escape his miserable life, a darker, deadlier Warren emerges to deal with his problems and put an end to his tormentors.
Purchase:
Darling (2016) (May 27th)
Starring:
Lauren Ashley Carter, Sean Young, Larry Fessenden, Brian Morvant
Synopsis:
A house sitting job will start a terrifying chain of events as a woman begins to have terrifying visions. From the producers of The Innkeepers and The House of the Devil comes what critics are calling explosive and absolutely brilliant.
Purchase:
The Devil’s Woods (2015)
Starring:
Stephen Cromwell, Aoife King, Sandra Hayden Mason
Synopsis:
A group of friends trying to repair their strained relationships decide to spend the weekend camping at a music festival. En route they stop off at a small town in the middle of rural Ireland. However, this seemingly idyllic country town is darkened by a history of strange events. Can a town that is inherently evil literally tear them apart? Can they survive…. The Devil’s Woods?
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Dusk (2016)
Starring:
John McGlothlin, Ford D’Aprix, Todd Litzinger, Ron Kidd
Synopsis:
John Whitmore’s world is turned upside down when he wakes one morning to find that his wife has been kidnapped. A mysterious recording left in her place demands that he contact a man who will escort him to a cabin deep in the woods. If he follows the plan exactly, John will be reunited with Anne in exchange for his life savings. As they set out for the cabin, John begins to question not only those involved, but his own sanity as well. It becomes clear that he must take a stand to save his wife… and quite possibly himself.
Purchase:
Manhunter (1986)
Starring:
William Petersen, Tom Noonan, Brian Cox, Joan Allen
Synopsis:
An ex-FBI sleuth returns to psych out a full-moon ritual killer as only he can.
Purchase:
Paranormal Sex Tape (2016)
Starring:
Various
Synopsis:
Based on real events that occurred in Europe in 2010. There are over 25,000 demonic possessions reported each year – many of those claim to be possessed during sexual intercourse. After a steamy night captured on video, a couple watches their sex tape – but they discover something ancient and very evil on the tape, something that’s watching them – following them – possessing them.
Purchase:
Sacrament (2016) (May 26th)
Starring:
Marilyn Burns, Dakota Buchanan, Stan-Lee Ray Baker
Synopsis:
Sinners for Dinner… Sacrament is rated #5 in Horror-Writers.net Top Ten Horror Movies Of The Year. The film stars the late horror icon Marilyn Burns (lead actress in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), in her last film before her death last year. Leaving the city behind for a weekend of booze and bonding, seven friends find themselves stranded in the countryside when a storm ruins their plans. The remote town of Middle Spring, located in the middle of the Texas bible belt, is more than happy to welcome them. The townsfolk are slap-bang in the middle of BBQ season, and there’s always room at their table for a few more warm bodies… especially when the visitors are top of the menu and the religious folk believe they’re doing God’s work. One of the best indie horror films Horror Blogspot Sacrament is a rare thing: a splatter flick with a message. It is both tremendously entertaining and extremely witty Hickey’s House of Horrors.
Purchase:
Specters (2015)
Starring:
Jessica Morris, Kaiwi Lyman, Jeff Adler, Jamie Bernadette
Synopsis:
Struggling filmmakers – Kennedy, Cory and James – finally catch the break they were looking for when they are hired to shoot a ‘behind-the-scenes’ documentary for a major studio production. But their dream job quickly turns into a nightmare when they explore the legendary, haunted location and find something far worse than anything Hollywood could create. Terror becomes reality for the filmmakers as they uncover the malevolent secrets of the hospital, and the sinister doctor who once ran it. Trapped inside the hospital with no apparent way out, our crew is tormented by the evil, unspeakable fear. Producer: Charles Band. Director: Danny Draven. Jessica Morris, Jeffrey Adler, Kaiwi Lyman, Michael Cline, and Galen Howard star.
Purchase:
Subject 0: Shattered Memories (2016)
Starring:
Tiziano Cella, Cristina Lizzul, Stefano Patti
Synopsis:
Robert Williams is called by the police during a business meeting. His wife Lauren is in shock, after finding a dead man in her home. More dead bodies are found in the city the day after. The modus operandi looks the same but there’s something not quite right. Is it the same killer or a copycat? Police start investigating the mysterious murders, but it looks like someone has unleashed the perfect prototype. The question is… will they be able to keep everything under control?
Purchase:
COLLECTIONS
Killer Dames: Two Gothic Chillers by Emilio P. Miraglia
Starring:
Sybil Danning, Anthony Steffen, Marina Malfatti, Erika Blanc, Barbara Bouchet
Synopsis:
At the height of the Italian giallo boom in the early 1970s, scores of filmmakers turned their hand to crafting their own unique takes on these lurid murder-mystery thrillers. This limited edition double pack features two distinctive offerings by Emilio P. Miraglia, which meld twisty whodunit narratives with gothic chills.
In The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave, troubled aristocrat Alan Cunningham (Anthony Steffen, Django the B*stard), haunted by the death of his first wife Evelyn, tries to move on by marrying the seductive Gladys (Marina Malfatti, All the Colours of the Dark). Marital bliss is short-lived, however, as various relatives meet untimely and gruesome deaths, prompting speculation that a vengeful Evelyn has risen from the grave…
Meanwhile, in The Red Queen Kills Seven Times, an age-old family curse hits sisters Kitty (Barbara Bouchet, Milano Calibro 9) and Franziska (Marina Malfatti) following the death of their grandfather Tobias (Rudolf Schündler, The Exorcist, Suspiria). Every hundred years, so the legend goes, the bloodthirsty Red Queen returns and claims seven fresh victims. Was Tobias just the first… and are Kitty and Franziska next?
With both films making their worldwide Blu-ray debuts in stunning new 2K restorations, there has never been a better time to explore these little-seen giallo gems!
Purchase:
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