C.H.U.D. (Blu-ray)
Anthony Arrigo
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Starring John Heard, Daniel Stern, Christopher Curry, Kim Greist
Directed by Douglas Cheek
Distributed by Arrow Video
How did C.H.U.D. (1984) segue from minor cult hit to esoteric pop culture punchline? The film has been referenced on “The Simpsons” (1989-present) more than once, as well as being name-dropped on other high profile shows, too. In 2011, the Criterion Collection, filmdom’s gold standard for home video labels, jokingly announced the film would be added to their lineup. The acronym spawned a website, Cinematic Happening Under Development. Rob Zombie threatened to produce a remake at one point in time. The feature has even popped up in video games, with a cameo in Tony Hawk’s Underground. I can also think of a few times when “Chud” was used as pejorative to describe someone particularly unsightly. Cult films with twice the prestige haven’t received referencing this frequent. So, what gives? Why C.H.U.D.?
Who can say? Really. There isn’t anything particularly noteworthy or unique about the picture – radioactive waste is released into the NYC sewer system, people mutate into choady bipeds with glowing eyes and then they eat other people. The only source of actual notoriety to which the film can lay claim is that it is a “skeleton in the closet” for a lot of well-known actors. There are two Home Alone (1990) alumni – John Heard and Daniel Stern – and a host of familiar faces that includes John Goodman, Jon Polito, Patricia Richardson, Sam McMurray, and a few more. There isn’t a single scene in the movie where you don’t think ”Hey, I know that person from somewhere…”
George (John Heard) is a photographer who lives with his beautiful model girlfriend, Lauren (Kim Greist), and has a steady gig shooting fashion. Or he did. George despises the corporate world, so much so that he has chosen to devote his work to highlighting the plight of New York City’s homeless, producing a series of photographs featuring the city’s subterranean dwellers. But a lot of his regulars have gone missing lately – regulars that were also known to A.J. (Daniel Stern), a former criminal who now runs a soup kitchen. An old foil of A.J.’s, Capt. Bosch (Christopher Curry), has come to his kitchen looking for answers but instead all he hears are stories. Stories about creatures running wild in the abandoned subway lines and sewer channels, attacking street urchins and leaving them dead, wounded, or missing.
Thanks to his city hall connections Bosch is able to get a meeting with his superiors and Wilson (George Martin), a slimy scumbag who works for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Although Wilson denies any wrongdoing on the part of the NRC A.J. and Bosch know better than to trust his lies and threaten to alert the media. Finally, after much needling – and the knowledge that a C.H.U.D. has likely killed Bosch’s missing wife – Wilson comes clean: nuclear waste has been dumped into the sewers, causing the residents down there to mutate into bloodthirsty savages. And with their numbers swelling it is only a matter of time before they stop hiding in the shadows and start venturing out into the city streets in numbers too large to ignore.
C.H.U.D. is not a good movie. It is, however, a film that is a lot of fun despite the fact I can’t exactly pinpoint the source of that enjoyment. Maybe it is seeing all those familiar faces putting in legwork for low-budget horror, long considered the easiest route to break into the industry. This may have been early days for most, but a good actor is a good actor and the performances here are impassioned and authentic; that elevates the film to some degree. The C.H.U.D. themselves are a swollen bunch of mutants, far from anything truly iconic. Hell, the film barely even shows them in close-up for any extended period of time – a wise move. Their most unique feature is a pair of glowing eyes that are the window to their Chernobyl souls.
The movie also ends on a real downer of a note. Forget about who lives or dies by the time credits start rolling, the real takeaway is that everyone who survived in is for a long, painful death. Per the picture, radiation levels have spiked far above acceptable levels down in the sewers, and they get even higher when a C.H.U.D. comes into the fray. Our heroes spend an awful lot of time down in those sewers. In street clothes. With no protective elements of any kind whatsoever. So, sure they may vanquish the C.H.U.D. city deep beneath NYC but who’s going to foot the bill when they all get cancer in three weeks?
This is a good time to be a C.H.U.D. fan, since not only has Arrow Video delivered the goods with this Blu-ray release but Lionsgate, finally stepping into the specialty label arena with their own Vestron Video line of titles, has released C.H.U.D. II: Bud the C.H.U.D. (1989) on the same day. Not that the two films necessarily have all that much in common but, you know, there’s a fun double feature so laden with cheese it could be sold as a nacho plate.
Arrow Video has included a note in their booklet stating that the master used for C.H.U.D. was struck from a low-contrast 35mm print. As such, some expectations should be tempered for the 1.85:1 1080p image, although I kinda doubt many viewers are anticipating a flawless presentation. The grimy, gritty aesthetics of New York City and its underbelly remain preserved, while colors enjoy a slight boost in saturation and detail gets a nice uptick over the old DVD. Black levels are mostly solid, if not a little on the hazy side, and shadow detail holds up well enough under the weight of a frequently dark picture. Grain runs on the thicker side and can appear a bit clumpy. This is probably the best C.H.U.D. can look and is definitely the best it should look.
Audio comes in the no-frills form of an English LPCM 1.0 mono track. I found no problem with the dialogue or sound effects in terms of hissing or level issues. The real standout is Martin Cooper & David A. Hughes’ (credited as “Cooper Hughes”) powerhouse synth score, which recently enjoyed a remastered release (on manhole picture disc vinyl!) courtesy of Waxwork Records.
Arrow has gone the extra mile and included two cuts of the film here – theatrical and integral, the latter of which runs longer and features some extra character bits and gore. I can’t imagine why anyone would choose the truncated version but it’s there if you want it.
There are two audio commentary tracks – the first with cast & crew (John Heard, Daniel Stern, Christopher Curry, Douglas Cheek, and Shep Abbott), while the second features an audio interview with the film’s composers as moderated by Michael Felsher.
“A Dirty Look” features an interview with production designer William Bilowit.
“Dweller Designs” is an interview with make-up effects artist & creature designer John Caglione, Jr.
“Notes From Above Ground: The N.Y.C. Locations of C.H.U.D.” is a Horror’s Hallowed Grounds-esque look at the film’s locations as they stand today, with filmmakers Ted Geoghegan and Michael Gingold.
A “Behind-the-Scenes Gallery” features plenty of production and promotion photos.
The “Extended Shower Scene” is only worth watching if you’re dying to see more of Kim Greist topless.
A trailer is also included.
Additionally, there is a booklet for first pressings with essays and photographs.
Special Features:
- Brand new restoration from original film elements
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
- Original Uncompressed Mono PCM audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio commentary by director Douglas Cheek, writer Shepard Abbott, and actors John Heard, Daniel Stern and Christopher Curry
- Brand new crew interviews
- Original Theatrical Trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Dan Mumford
- FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film
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C.H.U.D.
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Special Features
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