Christmas will be here sooner than you think and you've been watching too many movies and not doing enough shopping, so here's a quick list of suggested gifts, for your movie-loving friends and family, or maybe just for yourself...
SUSPIRIA (1977)
4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray Combo
The John Wick series starring Keanue Reeves is one of the most hard-hitting, action-packed and solidly entertaining film series to come along in some time, and this third entry is my favorite of the series. It looks absolutely breathtaking on 4K Ultra HD, highly recommended and it's an easy buy for about $20 right now on Amazon.
The beloved kinder-trauma book series Scary Stories To Tell in the Dark has been adapted into a pretty great film that I think I would make a terrific starter-horror film for young young teens who dig the scary stuff. The PG-13 film is not bloody or gory but it is a creepy thrill-ride that made me think back to the way that I felt when I first watched Ghostbusters when I was eleven, so be the cool uncle or whatever and get this one for the kids.
When it comes to childhood favorites that helped shape my love of horror Joe Dante's Christmas-terror classic Gremlins (1984), is right up there with Ghostbusters (1984) as formative kinder-trauma viewing. The 4K Ultra HD release from WB looks absolutely fantastic, every family needs this movie in their collection, so be the one that puts it on their shelf in 4K!
Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now (1979) is easily one of the best film sever made and this ridiculously low priced - only $13! - six-disc set contains four versions of the film in 4K Ultra HD plus a wealth of new and vintage extras, with an awesome 4K upgrade that make this easily a contender for 4K release of the year.
I am starting off with the big-one, Dario Argento's witchy masterpiece Suspiria has arrived on 4K Ultra HD from independent distributor Synapse Films, it's their debut UHD release and it's a stunner! With a gorgeous new HDR color-grading and a new Atmos remix this is far and away the release of the year! The already gorgeous restoration has been given new vibrancy, if you have a horror fan on your gift list this year this is the gotta-have-it item this year, Argento's pulse-pounding frightener has never looked better and I don't think it ever will.
JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 3 - PARABELLUM (2019)
4K Ultra HD+Blu-ray+Digital
SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK (2019)
4K Ultra HD+Blu-ray+Digital
The beloved kinder-trauma book series Scary Stories To Tell in the Dark has been adapted into a pretty great film that I think I would make a terrific starter-horror film for young young teens who dig the scary stuff. The PG-13 film is not bloody or gory but it is a creepy thrill-ride that made me think back to the way that I felt when I first watched Ghostbusters when I was eleven, so be the cool uncle or whatever and get this one for the kids.
GREMLINS (1984)
4K Ultra HD+Blu-ray+Digital HD
APOCALYPSE NOW - FINAL CUT (1979)
4K Ultra HD+Blu-ray+Digital HD
ULTRASEVEN: THE COMPLETE SERIES (1967-1968)
Blu-ray+Digital SteelBook Edition
ULTRAMAN ORB: SERIES & MOVIE (2016-2017) Blu-ray+Digital Combo
ULTRAMAN GEED: SERIES & MOVIE (2017)
Blu-ray+Digital Combo
Mill Creek Entertainment have continued to spread the joy of Japanese superhero TV show Ultraman and it's many spin-offs this year with these several new collections from various decades. If you love vintage sci-fi, alien-invasion and kaiju battling superhero stuff then I recommend these sets, I think they mght even appeal to kids who dig Power Rangers type stuff, but just know that these sets are in Japanese with English subtitles, so it might limit the appeal to the kids. I'll make special mention of the UltraSeven Complete Series SteelBook edition which is just a gorgeous release, a hefty set with a cool-looking design and attractive clear slipcover. Inside there's a episode guide detailing the production, the heroes, plus a look at the kaiju and tech of the series. I definitely lean more towards the vintage 60's Ultraman, Ultraman Q and UltraSeven series more so than the the more recent incarnations of the show which to my getting-older eyes just feels a bit too Power Rangers-esque for my tastes, but I dig the vintage series a bunch and MCE have released them in some great looking, and budget-minded, sets.
