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DVD Releases: 07/25/2006 (part 1)
By John Marrone
Jul 25, 2006, 23:14

The release list is 35 titles long this week, and is in two parts.  This is what your hands look like after typing and cutting and pasting and clicking for 8 hours straight.  Next week Ill be typing with my toes.  Anyone wanna lend a hand?  A finger?  Five people, a finger each?  Ah the hell with it.  Ill just use my stubs...  

The Amicus Collection: And Now the Screaming Starts! (1973) (Review)

Plot Synopsis:  This creepy, atmospheric horror film from England's Amicus Productions dispenses with much of the tongue-in-cheek presentation of their popular '70s horror anthologies (such as Asylum and Dr. Terror's House of Horrors) in favor of a more adult-oriented approach. The story begins in the 18th century, as a young stable hand tries to prevent nobleman Fengriffen (Herbert Lom) from raping a young servant girl -- who happens to be the stable hand's wife -- and for this transgression has his hand lopped off. Flash forward to the present, where Fengriffen's ancestor (Ian Ogilvy) and his wife (Stephanie Beacham), now living on the ancestral estate, are haunted by the servant's vengeful spirit, as well as the severed hand itself, which roams the gloomy corridors of the mansion. Most video versions are taken from the TV print, which is missing some scenes of violence and nudity. ~ All Movie Guide

DVD Features:  Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
Commentary by director Roy Ward Baker and actress Stephanie Beacham
Commentary by actor Ian Ogilvy
Bios and liner notes
Trailers
Still gallery   
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com

The Amicus Collection: Asylum (1972) (Review)

Plot Synopsis:  A young psychiatrist interviews four inmates in a mental asylum to satisfy a requirement for employment. He hears stories about 1) the revenge of a murdered wife, 2) a tailor who makes a suit with some highly unusual qualities, 3) a woman who questions her sanity when it appears that her brother is conspiring against her, and 4) a man who builds tiny toy robots with lifelike human heads. ~ Amazon.com

DVD Features:  Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
Commentary by director Roy Ward Baker and cameraman Neil Binney
"Inside the Fear Factory" featurette
Cast and crew bios
Liner notes
Trailers
Still gallery    
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Anatomy of a Psycho (1960)

Plot Synopsis:  In this extremely low-budget exploitation film, directed and produced by Boris Petroff (as Brooke L. Peters), a psychotic killer murders all who were supposedly involved in his brother's execution. This seedy, bloody film attempts to capitalize on the success of Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho, which has been released the previous year. Indifferently directed, with a cast of unknowns, Anatomy of a Psycho has little to recommend it. ~ All Movie Guide

DVD Features:  Region 0
Keep Case
Audio:
(unspecified) - English    
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Angel Guts: Red Vertigo

Plot Synopsis:  The Angel Guts films were given their name by manga writer and director Takashi Ishii, who intended them to be a tribute to victimized women, Angels with Guts.  After being attacked by terminal patients at the hospital where she works, Nami rushes home to her lover only to find him cheating on her with another woman. Fleeing in despair, Nami is knocked over by disgraced stockbroker Muraki who is running from his own problems. Fired from his job, deserted by his wife and in serious debt, he attempts to retake control of his life by abducting and raping Nami. In this, his first film, director Takashi Ishii deals with people at their most vulnerable and appalling, and finds compassion and humanity within this seemingly most arid territory. ~ Amazon.com

DVD Features:  n/a     
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Angus Valley Farms (2004)

Plot Synopsis:  I looked everywhere and could find absolutely nothing on this film.  Nothing in Fangoria.  No descrips on any sites whatsoever.  Couldnt even find a site for Pro-Active Entertainment, the company that distributed it.  This is truly a pot-luck pick if youre looking for a new horror piece to purchase.

DVD Features:  Keep Case
Audio:
(unspecified) - English     
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

The Beast Must Die (1974) (Review)

Plot Synopsis:  In this little horror film a wealthy sportsman (Calvin Lockhart) invites a house full of guests to a big-game hunt that he's devised. He's sure that one of the guests is a werewolf and he intends to stalk it, find it, and kill it.  As a film viewer, you are alerted at the outset that a mystery awaits and that clues will be unveiled that can point to the identity of the werewolf.  In fact, near the conclusion, the film has inserted a thirty-second interlude during which you must decide once and for all, who the hunted beast is.  This film is based upon a story by James Blish, titled "There Shall Be No Darkness." ~ All Movie Guide

DVD Features:  Keep Case
Full Frame -
1.33
Audio:
Dolby Digital Mono - English    
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Blood O Rama (2005)

Plot Synopsis:  An all-night horrorthon of terror! Settle in for a special blood lood marathon as these four chillers unravel your nerves. Cringe before the Claw of Terror (1973), a.k.a. Matthew, with a hook-handed killer hell-bent on mayhem (and a pre-Phantasm Angus Scrimm)! Watch out for the Black Mamba (1974), the movie with John Ashley most notorious for featuring a human autopsy as part of the proceedings! See the Move House Massacre (1984) where audiences are just dying to get in! Then rest your bones in the Torture Chamber of Dr. Sadism (1967) as horror great Christopher Lee gleefully torments his enemies. It's non-stop nightmares as these ghouls come out to play for a long, jittery night! ~ VideoUniverse.com

DVD Features:  Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
Commentary by director Paul Arnett
"Directing The Beast" featurette
Paul Arnett's tribute to Peter Cushing
Cast and crew bios
Liner notes
Trailers
Still gallery     
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Cello (2005)

Plot Synopsis:  Directed with a sure hand by Woo-Cheol Lee, this complex and suspenseful Korean horror thriller tells the story of Mi-ju, a virtuoso cellist who survives a brutal car accident and decides to spend more time with her family, becoming a music teacher. But just when her life seems to be in order, a series of eerie and alarming events--involving her mute daughter, a creepy new housekeeper, and a dangerously obsessed former student--makes it clear that all is not well. ~ VideoUniverse.com

DVD Features:  NTSC
Keep Case
Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1 - Korean
Subtitles - English, Spanish - Optional    
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Dark Shadows DVD Collection 25 (1966)

Plot Synopsis:  Originally a daytime soap opera, Dark Shadows garnered a huge cult following during its original 1966-1971 run and separated itself from its peers by dealing with increasingly bizarre and daring story lines. The central figure was the tortured vampire Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid), who was part of a family around which strange events seemed to circulate.  Volume 25 of the series, includes episodes 1143-1185 of the series. ~ VideoUniverse.com

DVD Features:  Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
Bonus interviews with actors David Selby, John Karlen and Lana Parker and costume designer Mary McKinley
Recreation of the only lost episode of the series, hosted by Lara Parker
Fold-out episode guide
Collectible postcard   
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Dogs (1975)

Plot Synopsis:  On the quiet campus of the remotely-located SouthWestern University, something strange is happening. All of the dogs in the area, once loyal, gentle pets, are now banding together in wild packs and hunting down their former masters. Could the strange transformation have anything to do with the secret government experiements being conducted in the school's physics laboratory? More importantly, can the dogs be stopped before it's too late? ~ IMDB.com

DVD Features:  n/a  
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Feed (2004)
- trailer (quicktime)
- HoH review
- clip "Are you a betting man?"
- clip "Look at it!"
- clip "Feed me!"

Plot Synopsis:  While policing the underbelly of the internet, Phillip - a hot shot cyber crime investigator, finds a suspicious website for Feeders & Gainers - the weird world of fat erotica - a sexual subculture where fat-admiring men (Feeders) seek out obese women (Gainers).  But one of these men may be going too far - feeding his charges to death and publishing details online.  Phillip tracks him to Toledo, Ohio, and goes there determined to uncover the sinister underworld.  What he discovers may cost him his life ... or his sanity. ~ ShowcaseVenues.co.uk

DVD Features:  Available Subtitles: English
Available Audio Tracks: English (DTS), English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
10 Deleted Scenes
Alternate Ending
Final Day Interview with Director Brett Leonard
Interviews with Alex O'Loughlin, Jack Thompson and producer Melissa Beauford
"Feed In Philadelphia: the North American Premiere" featurette
Behind-the-scenes footage
Infomercial 
  
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Final Destination 3 (Full Screen 2-Disc Special Edition) (2006)
- trailer (quicktime)

Plot Synopsis:  James Wong (The One), who directed the original Final Destination film, returns to direct the third installment in the series. High-school senior Wendy (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) is enjoying senior night at the amusement park and taking photos for the school yearbook. A control freak, she's not particularly fond of rides--especially the roller coaster. Despite her fear, Wendy decides to go on the coaster, but is soon traumatized by a vision that a fatal accident is about to occur. She and a group of other riders disembark from the ride--and the rest of the riders do indeed suffer a horrific fate. Having cheated death once, Wendy is tormented by an ominous feeling that something is very wrong. Her classmate, Kevin (Ryan Merriman), does some research and learns that something similar has happened before: a high-school student had a premonition that a plane filled with his classmates was doomed, a group of them refused to board, and the plane exploded in flight. Following that incident, the survivors all died under mysterious circumstances and in the order that they died in the premonition. Soon, Wendy and Kevin realize that the same fate is about to befall those who got off the roller coaster and survived. Perhaps more disturbing is that clues to the impending deaths seem to lie in the photos that Wendy took on the evening of the accident. In an instant, innocuous situations and common objects become fatal, causing particularly gruesome deaths. Ultimately, the real question becomes whether or not Wendy and Kevin can save their classmates--and themselves--from impending doom before it's too late. ~ Amazon.com

This movie figured itself out in the first 20 minutes, because someone "looked on the internet".  The plot was bogus as hell, even as a reprint of the first two films, it offers nothing new and bored me to death.  Where Final Destination 2 increased the mystery and had an outstanding opening highway disaster, this roller coaster crap just falls flat.  One thing though, the gore ruled, and I love the blood.  Detailed, grizzly deaths that hold nothing back.  Gore hounds, a definite watcher.  Final Destination fans, or people looking for a story, skip at all costs.  I didn't hang out with nerdy preps like this in high school.  Whats to care about this movie, I have no idea - geeks like these (especially Wendy and her male companion) should all die slow deaths - multiple times over.

DVD Features:  Available Subtitles: English, Spanish
Available Audio Tracks: English (DTS 6.1 ES), English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
Commentary by: filmmakers Unknown Format
"Choose Their Fate" feature--New interactive feature lets YOU decide the fate of the characters
Additional scenes
Alternate endings
10-part documentary "Kill Shot: The Making of FD3"
Featurette: "Dead Teenager Movie" - in-depth look at a sub-genre of horror films
Original animated short "It's All Around You"
"Planned Accidents" a look at the making of the rollercoaster
  
CLICK HERE to purchase the Full Screen 2-Disc version from Amazon.com
or CLICK HERE to purchase the Final Destination 1-3 Thrill-Pack 3-Pack 

The Fly/Planet of the Apes
- The Fly trailer (windows media)
- Planet of the Apes trailer (windows media)

Plot Synopsis: 

The Fly:  Seth Brundle, a brilliant but eccentric scientist attempts to woo investigative journalist Veronica Quaife by offering her a scoop on his latest research in the field of matter transportation, which against all the expectations of the scientific establishment have proved successful. Up to a point. Brundle thinks he has ironed out the last problem when he successfully transports a living creature, but when he attempts to teleport himself a fly enters one of the transmission booths, and Brundle finds he is a changed man. This science-gone-mad film is the source of the quotable quote, "Be afraid. Be very afraid."

Planet of the Apes:   Charlton Heston and two other astronauts come out of deep hibernation to find that their ship has crashed. Escaping with little more than clothes they find that they have landed on a planet where men are pre-lingual and uncivilized while apes have learned speech and technology. Heston is captured and taken to the city of the apes after damaging his throat so that he is silent and cannot communicate with the apes. ~ Amazon.com

DVD Features:  3-Disc Set - Back to Back
Audio: (unspecified) - English
Discs 1 & 2: THE FLY - Collector's Edition
Disc 3: PLANET OF THE APES (1968) - Single Disc Version
  
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Fortress (1985)
- trailer (windows media)

Plot Synopsis:  The story of a small classroom that gets kidnapped by a group of men in crazy masks gets crazier and crazier the entire way through. It is much better than that crappy, newer version that always tricks me when I flip past the guide on cable. The teacher, Sally, is getting paid roughly a nickel per month, because she has to shack up at the farm house of two of her students' parents. The farm gets attacked by coyotes - or mutants, I can't remember - and one of the kids, Sidney, has to stay up late to kill. It's foreshadowing people! His younger brother, Tommy, has a penchant for mutilating dead animals capriciously. Ahem, foreshadowing. Anyway, the whole classroom gets abducted, including the fat, moron Derek who teases the little kid, the dumpy chick Norrelle who gets her period half way through the movie, and an assorted cast of other pointless characters. They all know school house songs and dances, a ton of other useless garbage, and only Sid and Tommy know anything about nature, hiking, swimming, or making a fire. They get shoved in an underground cave, and their adventure is just beginning. They find secret caverns and passageways, and have to swim to their freedom. Sid gets to see his teacher almost naked, which was clearly one of the high-points of a great movie (before she almost swallowed 5 gallons of water). In the end the kids and the teacher decide to stop running from four douchebags in Halloween masks. The group makes their stand by setting up traps, pulling night-guard, and preparing for the slaughter. The climax is awesome, and the brutality knows no end. All the kids end up emotionally scarred, hating Christmas, afraid of mice, and going to juvie later on in life. ~ Amazon.com

DVD Features:  Closed Captioned
Standard Screen
Soundtrack English   
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Gypsy Vampire/Saturn Avenger vs the Terror Robot

Plot Synopsis: 

Gypsy Vampire: One-eyed vampire Count Lugo is determined to resurrect his beloved blood-sucking wife, Ilsa, who perished in 1727 after biting a holy man. Lugo enlists the help of Dr. Cabasa, but the shady medico needs gallons of blood to reanimate the sexy woman's corpse. A parade of strange characters become potential donors for the Count and Cabasa, including daffy filmmakers, clueless gravediggers, a star-struck prostitute and a weed-smoking hippie. Starring Conrad Brooks and Bruce "Porkchop" Lindsay; Written and Directed by Conrad Brooks.

The Saturn Avenger Vs. The Terror Robot: The Galactic Patrol must rid the universe of Boltar the Conqueror and his thuggish Manglers. On a vast sand dune planet, a gorilla-like beast, an alien mutant, a tribe of leopard skin clad beauties, a monstrous android and pie-plate flying saucers attack Doc, Skip and their robot friend. With lightning fast hands, fast feet and superior intelligence, the masked Saturn Avenger must save the day. Starring Conrad Brooks; Narrated by Rick Martel; Written and Directed by Kai Wada.  ~ Oldies.com

DVD Features:  n/a 
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (Divimax Edition) (1988)
- trailer (windows media)

Plot Synopsis:  And still they come? This fourth entry in the Halloween franchise focuses on Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris), the niece of ubiquitous masked-killer Michael Myers (George P. Wilbur). Jamie tries to lead a normal life, but she can't escape the vengeance of her "funny uncle," who once more escapes from the looney bin.  The only echo of the original Halloween -- and a faint one at that -- is the casting of Donald Pleasence as Dr. Loomis, who manages to get through his "We must stop him!" scenes as if mouthing the words for the first time.  Though as predictable as they come, Halloween 4 etc. is at least well acted, directed and photographed.  For the record, the German version of the film had to be shorn of practically all its gore before the censors would permit a general release. ~ All Movie Guide

DVD Features:  Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)
Commentary by actors Ellie Cornell and Danielle Harris
Commentary by writer Alan B. McElroy
"Halloween 4: Final Cut" making-of featurette
Trailer    
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Halloween 5 (Divimax Edition) (1989)
- trailer (quicktime)

Plot Synopsis:  In Halloween 5, one of the less successful of the series of sequels to the original Halloween, the infamous Michael Myers (Donald Shanks), returns to stalk his niece and kill her. Jamie (Danielle Harris) is hospitalized and unable to speak because of her trauma during Michael's last killing spree. She has visions of where Michael will appear and kill again and he intends to stop her. Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence) is working with Jamie to help her find Michael and lock him away. But, there is also another mysterious stranger following Michael. Halloween 5 is a routine slasher film and adds little that hasn't been done before in this series. But, it has its moments and has a gory, flashy ending that will be remembered. ~ All Movie Guide

DVD Features:  Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
Commentary by director Dominique Othenin-Girard and actors Danielle Harris and Jeffrey Landman
Introduction by stars Danielle Harris and Ellie Cornell
"Inside Halloween 5" featurette
"On The Set of Halloween 5" footage
Trailer   
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com 

Halloween: 25 Years of Terror (2006)

Plot Synopsis:  The night everyone came home!  The definitive Halloween documentary narrated By P.J. Soles In 1978, his horrific rampage through the town of Haddonfield changed movie history forever. His name was Michael Myers…and the night was Halloween. Eight films and a quarter of a century later, discover the triumphs, controversies and groundbreaking influence of the series with the most comprehensive Halloween documentary ever produced. This is the true story behind every film in the franchise, featuring rare behind-the-scenes footage and over 80 interviews with cast and crew including John Carpenter, Debra Hill, Jamie Lee Curtis, Moustapha Akkad, Tom Atkins, Danielle Harris, Kathleen Kinmont, Nancy Loomis, Greg Nicotero, Joseph Wolf, John Carl Buechler, Nick Castle, Ellie Cornell, Dean Cundey, Jodi Lyn O’Keefe, Rick Rosenthal, Tommy Lee Wallace, Allan Howarth and more, plus fans like Rob Zombie, Clive Barker, Kim Newman, Edgar Wright and everyone at the Return To Haddonfield Convention. The evil that began that night will never die: Michael Myers lives on in Halloween: 25 Years of Terror!  ~ IMDB.com

Wasnt Halloween made in 78?  Wasnt that 28 years ago?  What year is this?

DVD Features:  Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
"Horror's Hallowed Ground" featurette
"Fans of Halloween" featurette
Halloween II and Halloween III extended interviews
Extended celebrity interviews
Halloween 5 On-Set Footage
Halloween Convention Montage
Halloween panel discussion
Halloween II panel discussion
Halloween 6 panel discussion
Ellie Cornell panel discussion
Dean Cundey panel discussion
Halloween producers panel discussion
Halloween location still gallery
Halloween Convention Behind-The-Scenes gallery
Original artwork gallery
Exclusive comic book inspired by the series   
 
CLICK HERE to purchase from Amazon.com

See Part II of this weeks DVD Releases