New Blu-ray/DVD Releases

[Monsters For Sale]

Aw, shuckins! It weren't nuthin'!

I was just thinking the same thing.

[horrorhunter]

Mill Creek To Release THE CREEPING FLESH and TORTURE GARDEN On Blu-ray!



Mill Creek Entertainment is releasing a "Psycho Circus" Blu-ray on April 4, which will contain the HD debuts of Freddie Francis' THE CREEPING FLESH (1973) starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing, and the second Amicus anthology (also directed by Francis) TORTURE GARDEN (1967) starring Burgess Meredith, Jack Palance and Peter Cushing. The Blu-ray will also contain the previously released THE BROTHERHOOD OF SATAN starring Strother Martin. This release will retail for well under $20, and you can expect to see a full review of it here in a few months.

http://www.dvddrive-in.com/index.htm

Looks good. It probably won't have extras, but it'll be cheap. And, even though the quality may not be that of most BDs it still should look much better than our old DVDs. I'm in.

[Mike Scott]

I wonder why it doesn't include the movie PSYCHO-CIRCUS (aka, "Circus of Fear" 1966)?

[horrorhunter]

Here's a review of the new When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth Blu-ray thanks to DVD Drive-IN:




WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH (1970) Blu-ray
Director: Val Guest
Warner Archive Collection
The Warner Archive Collection surprises everyone with the sudden announcement of an uncut WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH Blu-ray, giving Hammer fans reason to rejoice at the start of the New Year and giving hope that they'll release more titles from "the studio that dripped blood" in the immediate future.

In prehistoric times, a primitive rock tribe of brunettes is about to sacrifice a group of blonde females (something to do with their inferiority) to the Sun. The ceremony is soon interrupted with the formation of the Moon, and one beautiful would-be sacrifice, Sanna (Victoria Vetri, INVASION OF THE BEE GIRLS) is swept out into the violent waves of the ocean. Sanna is then rescued by Tara (Robin Hawdon, ZETA ONE), a friendly caveman from the rival tribe. Sanna and Tara fall in love, but the relationship causes friction amongst their people and the two lovers find themselves in various deadly perils and facing a number of intimidating creatures of enormous sizes. Their never-ending fight for survival finds them split apart and then reunited again.

WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH was produced after Hammer Films had an enormous success with ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. several years earlier. Again, Hammer relied on the formula of meticulously designed stop motion effects mixed with scantily clad cave babes, with the end results here being mostly successful. With a bigger budget than what was usually allotted for a Hammer film, WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH also took longer to complete than any of their prior productions. Location shooting in the Canary Islands started in the Fall of 1968, with studio work being completed back at Shepperton in England in the beginning of 1969. The effects took many months to complete, taking the production well into 1970, and it was released in England that Fall. American theatergoers didn't see it until the Spring of 1971, when it was trimmed to receive a child-friendly G rating.

Although Hammer's production team wanted effects master Ray Harryhausen back from ONE MILLION YEARS B.C., his busy schedule caused them to instead go with the very capable and young fellow American Jim Danforth. It was a wise choice, even though Danforth's intricate work took a painstaking 17 months to complete, bringing the picture way behind schedule, yet earning the effects an Oscar nod in 1972. Danforth's stop motion dinosaurs are some of the finest ever seen on the big screen, even rivaling Harryhausen's work in many instances. He was assisted by Roger Dicken (SCARS OF DRACULA, THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT) and the late, great Dave Allen (FLESH GORDON, THE CRATER LAKE MONSTER), with some of the impressive mattes being done by Hammer's perennial effects and props man, Les Bowie (THE LEGEND OF THE 7 GOLDEN VAMPIRES). Unfortunately, some of the intended effects had to be axed (including a bit with giant ants) and some organic lizard battles from Irwin Allen's THE LOST WORLD (a 1960 film which was actually shot in Scope) are awkwardly spliced in the film on occasion.

WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH has the simple premise of the conflicts between primitive cave people and the creatures they encounter, and director Val Guest (THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT, THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN) wrote the screenplay based on a treatment by novelist J.B. Ballard. Guest also concocted the caveman dialect (no English is spoken except for some opening narration) and apparently wasn't happy with the final film. The plotline is actually a very tired one, and the silly caveman shenanigans don't help matters, but it's got an infectious sort of energy about it, making the combination of mesmerizing jiggle and giant monsters irresistible. Though not a breakout star in the tradition of Ursula Andress or Raquel Welch, American born Playboy playmate Victoria Vetri is an absolutely stunning cavegirl, filling out her animal skin bikini (just barely!) with to-die-for curves. Along with Vetri are other luscious cavebabes played by Polish-born Magda Konopka (SATANIK, BLINDMAN), "The Countess of Cleavage" Imogen Hassel (who sadly, took her own life a decade later) and Jan Rossini (THE OBLONG BOX, CRY OF THE BANSHEE). Veteran actor Patrick Allen (NIGHT CREATURES, NIGHT OF THE BIG HEAT) is good as the bearded zealot-like heavy, giving constant opposition to the young lovers (with his distinct voice, Allen also did the opening narration).

When Warner released WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH on DVD in 2008 on a disc that also included Hammer's MOON ZERO TWO (initially a Best Buy store exclusive) they released the fully uncut 100-minute British version, even though the packaging carried a "G" rating. This was quite a surprise, as the previous VHS and laserdisc releases of the film where the "G" version, and the DVD was eventually pulled and quickly went out of print (of course causing inflated seller prices on eBay and the like). When Warner Archive Collection announced this Blu-ray, they assured us that it would be the uncut version and it sure is (the back of the packaging even carries a "NOT RATED" labeling and an advisory that this is "the original International Theatrical release version which contains nudity"). So as as with the previous DVD, this is the full uncut British version, clocking in at close to 100 minutes, restoring nudity (courtesy of Vetri and Jan Rossini) and other bits not present in the shorter American 96-minute cut. The previous DVD looked very good to begin with, but the Blu-ray offers a noticeable improvement, presenting the film in 1080p HD in a suitable 1.78:1 aspect ratio. Detail is very sharp, and except for some minor blemishes (mostly during optical effects), the image is extremely clean. The tanned and oiled skin tones and bright blue skies make for strong colors (even though the film's palette is somewhat limited), and textures are clear and distinct, and grain is replicated perfectly throughout the gorgeous presentation. The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track properly brings out Mario Nascimbene's grandiose score and the caveman grunts and dino roars to good effect. An optional English SDH subtitle track is included (literally transcribing the unintelligible Stone Age jargon). The only extra is the original theatrical trailer. (George R. Reis)



 


 

[horrorhunter]

And, here's a review of the new One Million Years B.C. Blu-ray thanks again to DVD Drive-In:




ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. (1966) Blu-ray
Director: Don Chaffey
Kino Lorber Studio Classics
While not historically or scientifically accurate by any means, ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. is a timeless fantasy of epic proportions. It made an international sex symbol and poster pin-up girl out of Raquel Welch, allowed animator Ray Harryhausen to create some of his best visual effects ever, and became Hammer Films' most mainstream excursion, bringing in a lot of box office mula for U.S. distributor 20th Century Fox. Like any Ray Harryhausen or Hammer title, ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. has been a top-want on Blu-ray for quite some time, and now Kino Lorber has redeemed Fox's previous DVD release with this two-disc HD presentation.

Produced by Michael Carreras with associate producer Aida Young, ONE MILLION YEARS B.C.'s plot is a simple one. Illustrating the earth in its infancy, there's a tribe of rock people who are on the savage side—greedy and great hunters. Tumak (John Richardson, BLACK SUNDAY, TORSO) leaves the tribe's dark cave after a spar with his father Akhoba (Robert Brown, DEMONS OF THE BOND, THE SPY WHO LOVED ME), the acknowledged leader and his rival brother Sakana (Percy Herbert, MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, ISLAND OF THE BURNING DAMNED). After confronting the swelling sun and horrific creatures of varying sizes, he is rescued by the lovely Loana (Raquel Welch, FANTASTIC VOYAGE, HANNIE CAULDER) who shows him the refined, cultured ways of her shell tribe. Tumak tries to fit in and saves a little girl from a flesh-hungry Allosaurus, but is soon banished from the cave after ticking off one of the leaders. Greatly attracted to him, Loana takes off with Tumak, journeying back to the tribe from which he came from, and facing further perils of the prehistoric kind.

Itself a remake of a 1940 Hal Roach film starring Victor Mature and Carole Landis (and Lon Chaney), ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. is by no means perfect but it still has all the ingredients for an entertaining popcorn movie. Harryhausen's effects are as usual, top notch, even for today's standards, and only let down by the brief inclusion of a real tarantula and iguana, unconvincingly exhibited as mammoth sized. The convincing Harryhausen creatures include a giant turtle, an Allosaurus (the battle between it and the spear-wielding cavemen is a grand sight to behold), a Brontosaurus, a Triceratops, and some Pterodactyls; one which takes off with Ms. Welch. With her unforgettable animal-skin bikini, staggering body and false eyelashes, Raquel (in a role originally offered to Ursula Andress) is no doubt the most stunning cavegirl ever to grace the screen (her voice was re-dubbed here by Nikki Van der Zyl, a common practice with Hammer actresses). The film was shot mostly on location in the Canary Islands (with interior studio stuff done at Elstree rather than the tiny confines of Bray, Hammer's usual homestead of the period), giving it an epic and surreal landscape, enhanced by Don Chaffey's (JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS) competent direction and Mario Nascimbene's superb music score. Hammer attempted the prehistoric/cavepeople angle a few times more, most successfully with 1970's WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH (also due out on Blu-ray, uncut, through the Warner Archive Collection). Chaffey was also responsible for the disastrous CREATURES THE WORLD FORGOT, which omitted the dinosaurs in exchange for triple doses of boredom.

When 20th Century Fox Home Video first released ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. on DVD in 2004, they gave us the shorter, U.S. theatrical version of the film, which is missing a full nine minutes of footage. This was a huge disappointment, as the full 100-minute "international" version had previously been released on laserdisc in 1996. Thankfully, Kino's Blu-ray carries the uncut 100-minute cut as well as the shorter 91-minute cut on a separate disc. Some of the footage missing from the 91-minute (and restored in the 100-minute cut) include where brunette cavegirl Nupondi (Martine Beswick, PREHISTORIC WOMEN, DR. JEKYLL AND SISTER HYDE) performs a sexy tribal dance, violence during a fight between some savage troglodytes, and a good chunk of Harryhausen's animation. Of course it's great to have both versions for the sake of comparison, but we unquestionably recommend the 100-minute cut for your viewing pleasure.

Kino presents the uncut version of ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. in a 4K restoration which looks to be the same source released by StudioCanal on Blu-ray in the U.K. last year. The film has been mastered in 1080p HD in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio, and looks spectacular. The source elements have been meticulously restored, resulting in a very clean, dirt-free image. Grain is consistently strong yet never excessive, and colors are nicely saturated, while skin tones are natural and the detail exhibits some terrific textures, especially in facial characteristics. Of course there some inevitable drops in quality when special effects and processing shots are on screen, but it's never a big issue and scenes with cavemen juxtaposed with giant animated creatures actually look better than ever. Black levels are also strong, and it's obvious that no DNR or other digital tampering has been applied, making for a striking organic image. The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track is also has a nice mix, with sound effects, dialogue (mostly grunts and a limited caveman vocabulary) and the music all being spot on. The U.S. cut (found on Disc 2) is pretty much identical in picture quality and sound (it opens with a 20th Century Fox logo). No subtitles options are included.

For Disc 1 and the uncut "international" version, there's an audio commentary with Tim Lucas where he commences by mentioning that ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. was Hammer's most commercially successful film and that it influenced Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (Kubrick would also use footage from this film for a fantasy sequence in A CLOCKWORK ORANGE). Lucas covers just about every aspect of the production including Hammer's effects man Les Bowie's participation (most of which was not used), comparisons with the original 1940 version, the main and supporting cast, the behind-the-camera personnel, and of course the elaborate special effects. Lucas delves deeply into the plot and the characters (which will help those confused by the dialogue-deprived proceedings) as well as the terrific score, and he also deciphers the cave talk and points out all the footage removed from the U.S. version (and that only one stop motion scene survived without cuts) which is now of course restored. This is a thoroughly informative and entertaining commentary, and Lucas also injects some subtle humor from time to time (briefly making a connection to The Three Stooges for example). Other extras on the first disc are a montage of posters (from all over the world) and images, and the original UK trailer (full frame and not restored).

Disc 2 (which carries the U.S. cut of the film) includes an interview with Welch, not the recent one from StudioCanal 2016 U.K. Blu-ray/DVD release, but a 2002 featurette originally produced for the British DVD. "Raquel Welch: In the Valley of the Dinosaurs" (7:45) has the actress recalling getting the call from Fox head Dick Zanuck to do the film which she did with some hesitation (she was under contract), consenting to do "this turkey" to visit "Swinging London" and the Canary Islands. She mentions the freezing conditions in the Canary Islands (and coming down with tonsillitis), working with director Chaffey and co-stars Beswick and Richardson, the pterodactyl scene and how her whole life changed because of this movie. The interview with Martine Beswick (16:36) is indeed the recent one carried over from the 2016 U.K. release, as she recalls answering an ad while living in Jamaica and eventually getting a role in FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE. She joyously recalls working for Hammer in ONE MILLION YEARS B.C., her experiences on the location shoot, her admiration for Ray Harryhausen, reacting on film to dinosaurs that would be added in later, the skimpy costumes, her fight scene with Raquel, and meeting John Richardson (they were married soon after). Also picked up from 2002 U.K. is an interview with the late Harryhausen (12:29), expressing his lifelong interest in dinosaurs and how tough it was for him to initially break into the film business before collaborating with George Pal. On ONE MILLION YEARS B.C., he talks about working with the live lizard, how the actors had to react to "poles" acting as dinosaurs, and goes on to demonstrate the "stop motion" process with the actual Allosaurus model used in the film (he also shows off one of the model Pterodactyls and the remains of a Triceratops). The U.S. theatrical trailer (remastered and looking great) is the final extra on the second Blu-ray. (George R. Reis)






 

[horrorhunter]

DVD Drive-In review for the new A*P*E (1976) Blu-ray:



A*P*E (1976) Blu-ray
Director: Paul Leder
Kino Lorber Studio Classics 
The 1976 KING KONG is not out on domestic Blu-ray yet, but that's OK 'cause we now have A*P*E. Made in 1976 in anticipation of Dino De Laurentiis' well-publicized, big budget remake of the 1933 RKO "Kong", A*P*E was shot in Korea by the director who gave us I DISMEMBER MAMA, and presented by Jack H. Harris (who also did the same for John Landis' SCHLOCK). It's terrible, but it's terribly fun at the same time.

The film's gripping poster promised all sorts of sensational thrills (even making reference to JAWS), but in the first few minutes, a guy in a cut-rate gorilla suit escapes the prison den of a toy boat, only to do battle with (or actually dance with) a lifeless shark (Ah, that would make it "giant" too, wouldn't it? Scaling issues prevail throughout) in a dark swimming pool. The 36-foot simian then makes his way to the shores of Seoul, crushing cardboard buildings, terrifying a bunch of hoodlum kids breaking into an amusement park, tossing a harmless snake (in order to live up to the poster's promise of "See A*P*E... vanquish Monster Reptile") and disrupting the shooting of the latest cheapo martial arts flick. In the meantime, blonde Hollywood actress Marilyn Baker (lovely Joanna DeVarona, later known as Joanna Kerns of TV's "Growing Pains" fame) is in town to make a movie (usually shooting scenes where she's chased and about to be raped), but is literally swept off her feet by the overstuffed monkey so she can scream at the top off her lungs and do her best Fay Wray impersonation ("be gentle big fella").

Soap star Rod Arrants (LINDA LOVELACE FOR PRESIDENT) plays a macho reporter who wants to marry Marilyn, and the late Alex Nicol (he directed and starred in THE SCREAMING SKULL) is Colonel Davis, a cranky American military man stationed in Korea. Nicol (seen mostly yelling at other officials on the telephone from his paneled office) shouts lines like "...kill that hairy son of a bitch" and "Let's see him dance for his organ grinder now!" You wonder if the movie is meant to be a spoof or if they just added snickers at the last minute, realizing how shoddy this was going to turn out. There are references to King Kong and Charlton Heston, the ape flips the bird to the military (after smacking around some helicopters) and a director in the film (played by Leder, who resembles comic character actor Herb Edelman) is called Dino (get it?). But that's not nearly as funny as hundreds of Korean extras running (from nothing) through the streets of Seoul (reminiscent of earlier Japanese Toho romps, or more like Korea's own YONGARY), the ape peeping through a window at a Korean prostitute and her American businessman John, and pitiful rear projection that makes the ape resemble a giant ink blotch. Since the film was originally shot in 3D, we get to witness Tonka tanks, boulders, shooting missiles, etc., hurdled towards the camera (on highly noticeable wires) in an erratic manner.

Image Entertainment first released A*P*E on DVD way back in 2001, and now in the age of 3D Blu-rays, Kino has picked up the film for Blu-ray in both 3-D and 2-D presentations. There is enough three dimensional shenanigans on the screen to be had here, and much of it would make SCTV's Dr. Tongue and Bruno blush. We are not able to screen the 3-D version since we only have a standard setup at present, but here's the rundown on the 2-D version: it's presented in 1080p in the original 2.35:1 aspect ratio. There is no hiding that this is a very cheaply made movie (reportedly $23,000 if that's even possible!) but detail is good, colors are acceptable (a bit faded on occasion) and grain is healthy and filmic, with only some slight wear on the source print. The audio is presented in a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track and sounds serviceable enough, as the poor production values results in popping, camera cranking noise and you can even hear the director yelling "cut" at the end of one scene! No subtitle options are offered.

Extras include an audio commentary with film buffs Chris Alexander and Hillary Hess. Alexander (watching a non 3-D print while doing the commentary) mentions that the non-actors playing the sailors in the opening scene were drunk (and had their voices re-dubbed), describes how the film nondescriptly made the cover of Famous Monsters in 1978, and points out the film's overall ineptness throughout. Hess, a champion of the original KING KONG, briefly joins the conversation about 30 minutes in, telling of the discovery of a 35mm 3-D print and how the film is much more intriguing in the (Spacevision) 3-D format. Alexander then comes back and talks about how the film originally ran under an hour (and was padded out to make the proper running time), how he tried to get in touch with director Leder's daughter Mimi (who was assistant director on the film) before the commentary was conducted and stretches the conversation (which goes a bit in circles) as best he can. The original A*P*E trailer is included (1080p and 1.78:1) which tells us "Not to be confused with KING KONG", as well as trailers for some of Kino's other 3-D Blu-ray releases: THE BUBBLE, GOG, THE MASK and the upcoming SEPTEMBER STORM. (George R. Reis)



 

[Memphremagog]

Coming this summer from Scream Factory on Blu-ray:




Note: This cover is from the UK version as the cover for the Region 1 edition has not been finalized yet. Still great news though..release date to come!

[horrorhunter]

News from DVD Drive-In:

Warner Archive Collection to Release THE VALLEY OF GWANGI On Blu-ray!




The Warner Archive Collection has been on a roll lately, as they just announced a Blu-ray of THE VALLEY OF GWANGI (1969), the only major Ray Harryhausen stop-motion-animated feature never given a domestic Blu-ray release. The disc will boast a new 1080p HD remaster (in the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio) with DTS HD-Master English 2.0 Mono audio (and English SDH subtitles). Extras will include the "Return to the Valley" featurette with the late, great SFX wizard Ray Harryhausen as well as the theatrical trailer (HD). Warner Archive Collection has also announced Blu-ray of Donald Cammell's DEMON SEED (1977) starring Julie Christie and the 1950s science fiction adventure WORLD WITHOUT END (1956) starring Hugh Marlowe and Rod Taylor. Expect these Blu-rays to appear in March, and they should retail for under $20.

I'm in for Gwangi at least. (we need a dino emoticon  )

[Memphremagog]

I was just watching the trailer for DEMON SEED and thinking about getting the dvd now I'll hold out for the Blu-ray.

[Memphremagog]

Available May 16th on Blu-ray:



Also the complete Universal Dracula series as well! 

[Mike Scott]

I wasn't going to buy the Frank and Wolf set till I saw that they were going to do all the sets. Now I know. Creature and IM, next! Don't need a Phantom "set".

[Mord]

I wasn't going to buy the Frank and Wolf set till I saw that they were going to do all the sets. Now I know. Creature and IM, next! Don't need a Phantom "set".

They could/should do a proper Phantom set (the '25 classic, the '29  reissue, the '43 remake, and the sixties Hammer version). Universal owns all of them (minus the Chaney one, which is public domain).

[Mike Scott]

They could/should do a proper Phantom set

They won't, so I'm not buying a Blu-Ray of the '43 Phantom when I've already got one.

[horrorhunter]

I wasn't going to buy the Frank and Wolf set till I saw that they were going to do all the sets. Now I know. Creature and IM, next! Don't need a Phantom "set".

Yeah, and eventually the big boxed BD set that will end up being much cheaper than buying them separately. The same old song and dance we've seen over and over. I'll just wait until they're all really cheap like I did with the 30 Film DVD Set. Keep milkin' that cow, Universal. When all of these are offered in a big BD set she runs dry. Of course they could always try to market lame variant packaging but they won't get any money from me for that foolishness. 

[Monsters For Sale]

Yeah, and eventually the big boxed BD set that will end up being much cheaper than buying them separately. The same old song and dance we've seen over and over. I'll just wait until they're all really cheap like I did with the 30 Film DVD Set. Keep milkin' that cow, Universal. When all of these are offered in a big BD set she runs dry. Of course they could always try to market lame variant packaging but they won't get any money from me for that foolishness. 

When you finally have them all, Universal will announce the coming Classic Monsters in 4K!