Radiance Films' tragic UNE FEMME DOUCE (review)

Robert Bresson strips down the high emotion of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's novella of a domineering husband reflecting on his wife's suicide in LA FEMME DOUCE, the debut of actress Dominique Sanda and Bresson's first film in color.

REVIEW LINK: Radiance Films (U.K.) Region B Blu-ray (DVDCompare)

UNE FEMME DOUCE Blu-ray specs:

• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.66:1 Widescreen
• French LPCM 1.0 Mono
• Optional English Subtitles
• Audio Commentary by film historian Michael Brooke
• 1969 television interview with director Robert Bresson by composer Pierre Boulez
• 1985 television interview with actress Dominique Sanda
• "Over Her Dead Body" visual essay by film historians Cristina Álvarez López and Adrian Martin
• Comes with a reversible cover. 

Radiance Films checks into NEW ROSE HOTEL (review)

Two corporate espionage agents set up a honey trap to lure away a scientist from a ruthless corporation but love and money make deadly bedfellows in this techno noir from Abel Ferrara starring Christopher Walken, Willem Dafoe, and Asia Argento.

REVIEW LINK: Radiance Films (U.K.) Region B Blu-ray (DVDCompare)

NEW ROSE HOTEL Blu-ray specs:

• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.85:1 Widescreen
• English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
• Optional English SDH Subtitles
• Audio Commentary by screenwriter Christ Zois
• "Abel Ferrara on NEW ROSE HOTEL" interview
• "Asia Argento on NEW ROSE HOTEL" interview
• "Wild and Woolly" interview with actor Willem Dafoe
• "Beatrice Loayza on NEW ROSE HOTEL" critic interview
• Theatrical Trailer
• Limited edition of 4,000 copies, presented in and full-height Scanavo packaging with removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings including a reversible sleeve featuring designs based on original promotional materials and booklet featuring new writing on the film by Brad Stevens, author of "Abel Ferrara: The Moral Vision". 

88 Films recruits Jackie Chan for the MAGNIFICENT BODYGUARDS in 3D (review)

Jackie Chan, James Tin, and Bruce Leung are the MAGNIFICENT BODYGUARDS escorting a beautiful lady, her sick brother, and lethal twin swords women across deadly mountain terrain teeming with bandits and witches in the first Hong Kong 3D production.  Directed by Lo Wei.

REVIEW LINK: 88 Films (U.S./U.K.) Region A/B Blu-ray (DVDCompare)

MAGNIFICENT BODYGUARDS Blu-ray specs:

• Two-disc set featuring Real3D 1080p24 MVC 2.35:1 widescreen and 2D 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 2.35:1 widescreen versions of the Film
• Cantonese, Mandarin, and English LPCM 2.0 Mono Tracks
• Alternate English LPCM 2.0 Mono Track with alternate music cues
• Optional English Subtitles
• Audio Commentary by NY Asian Film Festival's Frank Djeng and filmmaker F.J. DeSanto
• "Punching Into the 3rd Dimension - James Mudge on Magnificent Bodyguards"
• "Magnificent Bodyguards - A New Dimension in Action?" visual essay by film historian Steve Lawson
• Mandarin Theatrical Trailer
• English Theatrical Trailer  
• Comes with a reversible cover.

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Arrow Video exposes the corruption of SHOGUN'S NINJA (review)

Sonny Chiba passes the torch to Hiroyuki Sanada and takes the villainous role in this tale of intrigue and betrayal as a young man returns to Japan from China to avenge the massacre of his ninja clan.  This mix of historical fact and fictional liberties includes famous characters like the rebel thief Goemon Ishikawa and the notorious Hattori Hanzo, from the director of ROARING FIRE, SEX AND FURY, and SCHOOL OF THE HOLY BEAST.

REVIEW LINK: Arrow Video (U.S.) Region A Blu-ray (DVDCompare)

SHOGUN'S NINJA Blu-ray specs:

• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 2.35:1 Widescreen
• Japanese and English LPCM 1.0 Mono
• Optional English Subtitles
• Audio Commentary by film historian Chris Poggiali
• "The Rebirth of Japanese Action Cinema" interview with Japanese cinema expert Clément Rauger
• Comes in a slipcover with a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Chris Skinner, and a collectors’ booklet featuring "The Double Agents of SHOGUN'S NINJA" by Earl Jackson.

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Eureka Classics shudders from THE SCREAMING SKULL (review)

A mentally-fragile young bride is haunted by the memory of her husband's first wife which takes the form of a malevolent ghost.. or does it in THE SCREAMING SKULL, an AIP B-movie that anticipates the Roger Corman Poe Gothics to come.

REVIEW LINK: Eureka Video (U.K.) Region B Blu-ray (DVDCompare)

THE SCREAMING SKULL Blu-ray specs:

• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.85:1 Widescreen
• English LPCM 2.0 Mono
• Optional English SDH Subtitles
• Optional introduction by film historian Stephen Laws
• "Shrouded in Mystery" video essay by film and literature scholar Mary Going
• Theatrical Trailers
• The first 2,000 copies come with a limited edition O-card slipcase and interior packaging featuring new artwork by John Dunn and a collector’s booklet featuring "It May Kill You! Promotional Gimmickry and The Screaming Skull" by film historian Jon Towlson, author of "Subversive Horror Cinema" and "The Screaming Skull Conquers America: An Account of the Film's US Release History" by Christopher Stewardson. 

Cult Films celebrates at SALON KITTY (review)

THE DAMNED's Helmut Berger and Ingrid Thulin star with CALIGULA's Teresa Ann Savoy in this big-budget piece of Nazisploitation about the use of the brothel SALON KITTY by the Nazis to spy on their own soldiers with a team of twenty women trained in prostitution and espionage.  From director Tinto Brass.

REVIEW LINK: Cult Films (U.S.) Region ALL Blu-ray (DVDCompare)

SALON KITTY Blu-ray specs:

• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.85:1 Widescreen
• English and Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
• Optional English SDH subtitles (for English) and English (for Italian)
• Interview with director Tinto Brass
• U.S. Theatrical Trailer
• International Trailer
• Foldout Poster
• Reversible Cover
• Postcard
• First Pressing Slipcover

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Unearthed Films summons up BAKEMONO (review)

A dank, dark Airbnb hosts various Tokyo visitors and a flesh-eating demon in this practical effects-loaded indie gore flick.

REVIEW LINK: Unearthed Films (U.S.) Region ALL Blu-ray (DVDCompare)

BAKEMONO Blu-ray specs:

• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.90:1 Widescreen
• English/Japanese LPCM 2.0 Stereo
• Optional English Subtitles (foreign dialogue only) or full English SDH subtitles
• "Making the Practical FX: Bringing a Gruesome Monster to Life"
• "The Dark Side of Tokyo: The Meaning Behind the Film"
• "Principal Photography"
• "Bakemono Unleashed: Reactions and Surprises"
• German festival Q and A with director Doug Roos
• Photo Gallery
• Teaser #1
• Teaser #2
• Trailer for THE SKY HAS FALLEN
• First Pressing Slipcover

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