Scream Factory plays with the WITCHBOARD (review)

Kevin S. Tenney's memorable feature debut WITCHBOARD, the film that made a whole new generation of viewers afraid to use the Ouija alone, hits special edition Blu-ray/DVD combo courtesy of Scream Factory with brand new extras including the participation of Tenney, actors Todd Allen, Tawny Kitaen, Stephen Nicholas, Kathleen Wilhoite, and James W. Quinn (the voice of possessed Angela in the NIGHT OF THE DEMONS series).

REVIEW LINK: Scream Factory/Shout! Factory (US) Region A Blu-ray/Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

WITCHBOARD Blu-ray/DVD combo specs:

• Blu-ray:
• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.78:1 widescreen
• English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono
• DVD:
• 16:9 anamorphic 1.78:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
• Audio Commentary by writer/director Kevin S. Tenney and actors Kathleen Wilhoite, Stephen Nichols, and James W. Quinn
• Audio Commentary by writer/director Kevin S. Tenney and producers Walter Josten and Jeff Geoffray
• "Progressive Entrapment: The Making of WITCHBOARD" (45 minutes)
• Vingate Featurettes:
• Making-of featurette
• Cast Interviews
• On Set with Todd Allen and Stephen Nichols
• On Set with the Makers of WITCHBOARD
• Life on the Set
• Constructing the world of WITCHBOARD
• Outtakes
• Theatrical Trailer and TV Spots
• Still Galleries:
• Behind the Scenes
• Promo Gallery

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88 Films has nightmares courtesy of MARA (review)

In this Swedish slasher thriller, lovely Jenny hasn't returned to her family's country home since her unstable mother murdered her father ten years before.  When she, her cousin, and their friends have a weekend house party there, Jenny starts to sense that they are not alone.  Is her insane mother stalking them or has Jenny gone over the deep end?

REVIEW LINK: 88 Films (UK) Region 0 PAL DVD (DVDBeaver)

MARA DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 2.35:1 widescreen
• Swedish Dolby Digital 5.1 audio
• Optional English subtitles
• Behind the Scenes (74 minutes)
• Interview with Angelica Jansson
• Casting Featurette

More 88 Films and Full Moon reviews at Update the Tags: 88 Films.

Shout! Factory unveils THE SHADOW (review)

Alec Baldwin, John Lone, and Penelope Ann Miller star in HIGHLANDER director Russell Mulcahy's ultra-stylish 1994 superhero action tale.  Debonair Lamont Cranston has the secret identity of The Shadow who has the power to cloud men's minds which he uses to root out New York's villains.  When the last descendent of Genghis Khan appears in New York bent on global domination, Cranston faces a skilled adversary with the same training and powers.

REVIEW LINK: Shout Factory (US) Region A Blu-ray (DVD Drive-in)

THE SHADOW Blu-ray specs:

• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.85:1 widescreen
• English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 stereo
• Optional English SDH subtitles
• Looking Back at THE SHADOW featurette
• Photo Gallery
• Theatrical Trailer

More Shout! Factory reviews at Update the Tags: Shout Factory.

Strand Releasing's I USED TO BE DARKER (review)

Matt Porterfield's follow-up to his experimental drama PUTTY HILL finds troubled Irish runaway Taryn showing up on the doorstep of her American relatives.  Their familial unit is coming apart at the seams, and Taryn's presence fills emotional gaps but ultimately creates even more tension between mother, father, and daughter.

REVIEW LINK: Strand Releasing (US) Region 1 NTSC (DVDBeaver)

I USED TO BE DARKER DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 2.28:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 5.1
• Optional English SDH subtitles
• Deleted Scenes
• Music Videos
• Interview with director Matt Porterfield
• Theatrical Trailer
• Strand Releasing Trailers

More Strand Releasing reviews at Update the Tags: Strand Releasing.

Scream Factory celebrates the NIGHT OF THE DEMONS (review)

Angela is throwing a hell of a party in Kevin Tenney's gory, rocking eighties monster pic NIGHT OF THE DEMONS.  When a gaggle of teenagers decide to hold a Halloween party in long abandoned funeral home Hull House, their seance unleashes an evil force that transforms them one by one into demons bent on gorily dispatching their human buddies.

REVIEW LINK: Scream Factory (US) Region A Blu-ray/Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

NIGHT OF THE DEMONS Blu-ray/DVD combo specs:

• Blu-ray:
• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.85:1 widescreen
• English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 stereo
• DVD:
• 16:9 anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 stereo
• Optional English subtitles
• Audio Commentary by director Kevin Tenney, actors Cathy Podewell, Billy Gallo, Hal Havins, and special make-up effects creator Steve Johnson 
• Audio Commentary by director Kevin TEnney, producer Jeff Geoffrey, and executive producer Walter Josten 
• "You're Invited: The Making of Night of the Demons" (71 minutes)
• Interview with actress Amelia Kinkade
• "Allison Barron's Demon Memories"
• Theatrical Trailer
• Video Trailer
• 3 TV Spots
• Radio Spot
• Promo Reel
• Still Galleries:
• Behind the Scenes
• Special Effects and Make-up
• Photo Gallery
• Posters and Storyboards

More Scream Factory reviews at Update the Tags: Scream Factory

Film Movement assists in THE DEFLOWERING OF EVA VAN END (review)

In this Dutch black comic take on Pier Paolo Pasolini's TEOREMA, a German exchange student who is seemingly perfect in every way upsets the household of a dysfunctional Dutch family and has them re-examing and reinventing themselves; but is it for the better?

REVIEW LINK: Film Movement (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

THE DEFLOWERING OF EVA VAN END DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen
• Dutch/German Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 stereo
• Optional English subtitles (English closed captioning also available)
• Interview with director Michiel Ten Horn
• Director Biography
• Two short films by Michiel Ten Horn
• Theatrical Trailer
• Film Movement Trailers

More Film Movement reviews at Update the Tags: Film Movement.

Breaking Glass Pictures takes a JUMP (review)

The lives of several Irish revelers become tragically and comically entwined on New Year's Eve in JUMP.

REVIEW LINK: Breaking Glass Pictures (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

JUMP DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 2.35:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo
• English closed-captioning
• Audio Commentary by director Kieron J. Walsh and producer Brendan J. Byrne
• Cast and Crew Interviews (94 minutes)
• Storyboards
• Trailers
• Breaking Glass Trailers

More Breaking Glass reviews at Update the Tags: Breaking Glass Pictures.

Breaking Glass Pictures works LEATHER (review)

When his long estranged father dies, graduate student Andy and his flighty boyfriend travel up to the Castkills only to discover that eccentric childhood friend Birch is not only inhabiting his father's cabin but has also been the man's caregiver for several years.  Unable to believe Birch's stories of his father's transformation into a less angry and more open-minded person, Andy and his boyfriend begin to suspect a more unwholesome relationship between the two men.

REVIEW LINK: QC Cinema/Breaking Glass Pictures (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

LEATHER DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 1.78:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo
• English closed captioning
• Deleted Scenes
• Outtakes
• "Making Leather Sandals" featurette
• Trailer
• Alternate Trailer
• Breaking Glass Trailers

More Breaking Glass reviews at Update the Tags: Breaking Glass Pictures.

Film Movement meets GARIBALDI'S LOVERS (review)

The lives of a widowed plumber - whose wife's ghost turns up nightly to rehash the day's events - his moody children, a struggling artist, an abrasive landlord become entangled in shady legal maneuvers and the pursuit of a stork named Agostina in Silvio Soldini's quirky comedy GARIBALDI'S LOVERS.

REVIEW LINK: Film Movement (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

GARIBALDI'S LOVERS DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 2.40:1 widescreen
• Italian Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 stereo
• Optional English subtitles (English closed captioning also avaialble)
• Director Biography
• Theatrical Trailer
• Short Film "The Kiosk" by Anete Melece
• Film Movement Trailers

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Code Red makes LOVE BY APPOINTMENT (review)

BELLE DE JOUR's Francoise Fabian is the madam of a very special escort service of "holiday hookers" in this Italian erotic drama from producer Alfredo Leone (HOUSE OF EXORCISM) and cinematographer/director Armando Nanuzzi (THE DAMNED) starring Ernest Borgnine (MARTY), Robert Alda (THE DEVIL'S HAND), Corinne Clery (THE STORY OF O), and Silvia Dionisio (MURDER OBSESSION).

REVIEW LINK: Code Red Releasing (US) Region 0 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

LOVE BY APPOINTMENT DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 1.78:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
• Interview with executive producer Alfredo Leone

More Code Red reviews at Update the Tags: Code Red Releasing.

Code Red hops aboard THE DEVIL'S EXPRESS (review)

Marial artist Warhawk Tanzania (BLACK FORCE) hops the DEVIL'S EXPRESS to do battle with a demonic force that has followed him back to New York from China and is picking off subway workers and passengers in search of a powerful medallion in this funky seventies horror/blaxploitation pic.

REVIEW LINK: Code Red Releasing (US) Region 0 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

DEVIL'S EXPRESS DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 1.78:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
• Theatrical Trailer
• Alternate GANG WARS Trailer
• Code Red Releasing Trailers

More Code Red reviews at Update the Tags: Code Red Releasing.

Code Red romances THE LOVE BUTCHER (review)

THE LOVE BUTCHER "turns a quite neighborhood into a slaughterhouse" in this seventies psycho-chiller.  The desperate housewives of a Los Angeles suburb are being gruesomely murdered by an unknown assailant.  Is it bug-eyed gimpy gardener Caleb or his suave, vain brother Lester?  Directed by Don Jones (SCHOOLGIRLS IN CHAINS, THE FOREST).

REVIEW LINK: Code Red Releasing (US) Region 0 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

THE LOVE BUTCHER DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 2.35:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
• Audio Commentary by director Don Jones and film historian R.A. Thorburn, moderated by Lee Christian

More Code Red reviews at Update the Tags: Code Red Releasing.

Vinegar Syndrome EVIL COME, EVIL GO/OH! YOU BEAUTIFUL DOLL/WIDOW BLUE (review)

Vinegar Syndrome presents three aggressively bizarre sexploitation films from obscure auteur Walt Davis.  In EVIL COME EVIL GO, Sister Sarah Jane takes it upon herself to "rid the world of pleasureable sex and EVIL men!" in this gory sex film.  In WIDOW BLUE!, a young woman and her lover plot against her bisexual husband who is having an affair with her brother.  An orgy leads to nightmarish bloodshed.  In OH! YOU BEAUTIFUL "DOLL", Hollywood hasbeen Gaye Roman uses her acting classes to seduce young men while her director friend conducts nude auditions with female hopeful starlets.

REVIEW LINK: Vinegar Syndrome (US) Region 0 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

EVIL COME EVIL GO/WIDOW BLUE!/OH! YOU BEAUTIFUL "DOLL"! DVD specs:

• 4:3 non-anamorphic 1.33:1 original aspect ratio transfers from 2K scans of the original negatives
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono audio
• Interview with producer Bob Chinn
• Theatrical Trailers for EVIL COME EVIL GO and OH! YOU BEAUTIFUL "DOLL"
• Outtakes from WIDOW BLUE!

More Vinegar Syndrome reviews at Update the Tags: Vinegar Syndrome.

Vinegar Syndrome witnesses the ABDUCTION OF AN AMERICAN PLAYGIRL in WINTER HEAT (review)

In the first of Vinegar Syndrome's PEEKARAMA BIG 2 UNIT SHOW! double features, Will and Fred get more than they bargained for when they kidnap heiress Julie for sex and ransom in ABDUCTION OF AN AMERICAN PLAYGIRL.  Eric Edwards, Alan Marlow, and Darby Lloyd Rains star.  In WINTER HEAT, Jamie Gillis leads a quartet of ex-cons who happen upon a trio of vulnerable young women in a snowbound cabin.

REVIEW LINK: Vinegar Syndrome (US) Region 0 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

ABDUCTION OF AN AMERICAN PLAYGIRL/WINTER HEAT DVD specs:

• 4:3 non-anamorphic 1.33:1 fullscreen (from 2K scans of 35mm materials)
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
• Theatrical Trailer for ABDUCTION OF AN AMERICAN PLAYGIRL

More Vinegar Syndrome reviews at Update the Tags: Vinegar Syndrome.

Code Red gets TRICK OR TREATS (review)

Halloween stops being fun when a maniac escapes from the local mental institution and stalks lovely babysitter Linda while she's taking care of prankster Christopher.  Jacqueline Giroux, Peter Jason, Carrie Snodgress, Steve Railsback, and David Carradine star.  Directed by exploitation vet cinematographer Gary Graver.

REVIEW LINK: Code Red Releasing (US) Region 0 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

TRICK OR TREATS DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 1.78:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
• Audio Commentary by stars Jacqueline Giroux, Peter Jason and Christopher Graver, and cinematographer R. Michael Stringer (moderated by Sean Graver)
• Photo Gallery
• Audio Interview with actor Steve Railsback
• Code Red Trailers

More Code Red reviews at Update the Tags: Code Red Releasing.

Scream Factory puts out fire with gasoline in CAT PEOPLE (review)

Paul Schrader's gory, sexy Universal remake of Jacques Tourneur's horror classic CAT PEOPLE finally hits Blu-ray stateside courtesy of Scream Factory.

REVIEW LINK: Scream Factory/Shout! Factory (US) Region A Blu-ray (DVD Drive-in)

CAT PEOPLE Blu-ray specs:

• 1080p24 MPEG-4 AVC 1.85:1 widescreen
• English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 stereo 
• Optional English SDH subtitles 
• Interviews:
• director Paul Schrader
• composer Giorgio Moroder
• stars Nastassja Kinski, John Heard, Malcolm McDowell, Annette O'Toole, and Lynn Lowry
• Still Gallery
• Theatrical Trailer
• TV Spot

More Scream Factory reviews at Update the Tags: Scream Factory

Vinegar Syndrome's JUDY meets THE NIGHT HUSTLERS (review)

In the latest Drive-in Collection double bill from Vinegar Syndrome, a hard-boiled detective tracks down a serial rapist whose last victim may be JUDY.  Also, a writer seeks inspiration from his work from the tales of THE NIGHT HUSTLERS who offer up all vices for sale.

REVIEW LINK: Vinegar Syndrome (US) Region 0 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

JUDY!/THE NIGHT HUSTLERS DVD specs:

• Judy (1970)
• 4:3 non-anamorphic 1.33:1 fullscreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
• The Night Hustlers (1968)
• 16:9 anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
More Vinegar Syndrome reviews at Update the Tags: Vinegar Syndrome.

Shout! Factory CULT MOVIE MARATHON VOLUME ONE (review)

In volume one of Shout! Factory's Cult Movie Marathon (click HERE for Cult Movie Marathon Volume 2), a cult of genetically modified housewives love their men (and other women's) to death in INVASION OF THE BEE GIRLS.  Christopher George leads THE DEVIL'S 8 to take down a powerful bootlegger.  Claudia Jennings (SISTERS OF DEATH) joins the UNHOLY ROLLERS in a roller derby battle to the death, and the VICIOUS LIPS fight monsters, cannibals, and aliens in their journey across the galaxy in search of intergalactic stardom.

REVIEW LINK: Shout! Factory (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

CULT MOVIE MARATHON VOLUME ONE DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen presentations of all four films
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono (2.0 stereo on VICIOUS LIPS)
• INVASION OF THE BEE GIRLS Theatrical Trailer

More Shout! Factory reviews at Update the Tags: Shout Factory.

Vinegar Syndrome and Wakefield Poole present BIBLE! (review)

In porn director Wakefield Poole's artful softcore send-up of biblical epics BIBLE!, the director explores the motivations of three of religions most notorious women: Eve, Bathsheba (played by THE DEVIL IN MISS JONES' Georgina Spelvin), and Delilah in three wonderfully avant-garde vignettes.  Vinegar Syndrome's DVD is packed with extras include director's commentary, interviews, and screen tests.

REVIEW LINK: Vinegar Syndrome (US) Region 0 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

WAKEFIELD POOLE'S BIBLE! DVD specs:

• 4:3 non-anamorphic 1.33:1 fullscreen
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono
• Audio Commentary by director Wakefield Poole 
• Optional introduction by director Wakefield Poole
• "Women of Bible" interviews:
• actress Georgina Spelvin
• actress Gloria Grant
• "Emerald City" interview with Wakefield Poole on public access cable TV, 1977
• "Bible" Screen Tests:
• actor tests
• costume tests
• effects and set tests
• Still Gallery
• Theatrical Trailer

More Vinegar Syndrome reviews at Update the Tags: Vinegar Syndrome.

Breaking Glass Pictures reads THE FALLS: TESTAMENT OF LOVE (review)

REVIEW LINK: QC Cinema/Breaking Glass Pictures (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

THE FALLS: TESTAMENT OF LOVE DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 2.00:1 widescreen
• English Dolby Digital 5.1
• English Closed-Captioning
• Deleted Scenes
• Q and A from World Premiere at Portland Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
• Behind the Scenes
• Extended Behind the Scenes and Outtakes from THE FALLS 1
• Photo Gallery
• Trailer
• Breaking Glass Trailers

More Breaking Glass reviews at Update the Tags: Breaking Glass Pictures.

Scream Factory presents a duo of TV TERRORS (review)

Scream Factory brings nostalgic viewers a double feature of memorable seventies TV chillers.  In THE INITIATION OF SARAH, outcast Sarah pledges a sorority with a mysterious past and a house mother who plots to use the girl's special powers in a deadly ritual.  Kay Lenz, Morgan Fairchild, Robert Hays, and Shelley Winters star.  In ARE YOU IN THE HOUSE ALONE?, high school student Gail becomes the target of obscene phone calls and threatening notes that no one else takes seriously until it is too late; then Gail take it upon herself to bring her attacker to justice.  Kathleen Beller, Dennis Quaid, Tony Bill, and Blythe Danner star.

REVIEW LINK: Scream Factory/Shout! Factory (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVD Drive-in)

TV TERRORS DVD specs:

• 4:3 non-anamorphic 1.33:1 fullscreen (original aspect ratio)
• English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono

More Scream Factory reviews at Update the Tags: Scream Factory.

Strand Releasing pines for PARADISE: LOVE (review)

In the first part of Ulrich Seidl's PARADISE trilogy, middle-aged Austrian nurse Theresa takes a vacation to Kenya in search of love amidst the country's sexual tourism trade with other vacationing sugar mamas in this provocative, scandalous, but ultimately despairing portrait of human needs and urges.

REVIEW LINK: Strand Releasing (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

PARADISE: LOVE DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen
• German Dolby Digital 5.1
• Burnt-in English subtitles
• Photo Gallery
• Trailers for the PARADISE trilogy
• Strand Releasing Trailers

More Strand Releasing reviews at Update the Tags: Strand Releasing.

Strand Releasing finds PARADISE: HOPE (review)

In the final installment of Ulrich Seidl's PARADISE trilogy, while her mother is sampling sexual tourism in Kenya and her aunt is out on a mission to restore Catholicism to Austria, young Melanie is shipped off to a fitness camp where here burgeoning sexuality becomes entangled with her need for paternal affection in the form of the camp's physician.

REVIEW LINK: Breaking Glass Pictures (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

PARADISE: HOPE DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen
• German Dolby Digital 5.1
• Burnt-in English subtitles
• Photo Gallery
• Trailers for the PARADISE trilogy
• Strand Releasing Trailers

More Strand Releasing reviews at Update the Tags: Strand Releasing.

Film Movement brings you the KEY OF LIFE (review)

After failing to commit suicide, lonely, jilted, out of work actor Sakurai trades identities with Kondo, who has slipped on soap in a bathhouse and lost his memory.  As Kondo attempts to piece his life (as Sakurai) back together with the help of a magazine editor in search of a husband (before her already set wedding date), Sakurai discovers that his new identity is as a hitman who is in deep with the mob. 


REVIEW LINK: Film Movement (US) Region 1 NTSC DVD (DVDBeaver)

KEY OF LIFE DVD specs:

• 16:9 anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen
• Japanese Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 stereo
• Optional English subtitles and Closed Captioning
• Biographies
• Trailer
• Short Film "Finale"

More Film Movement reviews at Update the Tags: Film Movement.