NIGHTBREED (1990)
Collector’s Edition 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray
Label: Scream Factory
Region Code: Region-Free (UHD), A (Blu-ray)
Rating: R (Theatrical), Unrated (Director's Cut)
Duration: 102 Minutes (Theatrical Cut), 120 Minutes (Director's Cut)
Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo, 5.1 Surround with Optional English Subtitles
Video: Dolby Vision HDR10 2160p UHD Widescreen (1.78:1), 1080p HD Widescreen (1.78:1)
Director: Clive Barker
Cast: Craig Sheffer, Anne Bobby, David Cronenberg, Charles Haid
I remember seeing the tv spots for Clive Barker's Nightbreed (1990) on TV as a teen and getting pretty excited about from the get-go, this was a new horror creation from the director of Hellraiser - now that got my blood pumping. My ass was in the seat day one, towing my reluctant non-horror fan girlified with me as I often did. The early scenes of the sack-clothed masked serial killer with button eyes and a skewed zipper mouth stalking a family in their home had me on the edge of my seat, and being the kind of guy I was (and still am) I knew there was gonna be a good scare coming up so I poised my hand at the ready to grab my dates leg for a good startle. I miscalculated the timing though and when the violence erupted I let out a startled yelp myself! That in itself managed to scare my date, but I always remember that this dark horror-fantasy managed to give me a fright, me!
Anyway, Nightbreed (1990) is written and directed by Clive Barker (creator of Hellraiser) and based on his novel Cabal (which I still have not read, sorry Clive), it stars Craig Sheffer (A River Runs Through It) as a troubled young man suffering horrific nightmares of a place called Midian where monsters live. He's seeing a psychotherapist named Dr. Phillip Decker (David Cronenberg, Jason X) unaware that Decker is a masked serial killer and he's using his recorded conversations with Boone about his nightmares to frame him for a string of gruesome murders. Decker is also keenly interested in Boone's tales of Midian, believing it to be a real place, and that this young man is the key to finding and gaining entrance to the mythical sanctuary of the monsters of the world.
Eventually Boone is so convinced by Decker (with the help of some secretly administered LSD) that he's the culprit that he attempts to turn himself in for the string of slasher murders, but before he can do so is hit by a car and ends up at the hospital. There he meets an odd man named Narcisse (Hugh Ross, Hannibal Rising) whom he overhears whispering about Midian. The man tells Boone how to find Midian, right begore peeling of his face, and Boone escapes and heads towards Midian, pursued by the cops, who are joined by Decker who is pulling the strings of both Boone and the cops.
Meanwhile Boone's nightclub singer girlfriend Lori (Anne Bobby, Happiness) just cannot believe he's guilty, no matter how troubled he is she knows he couldn't be capable of such vicious evil, and heads to Midian as well to save him before the cops can kill him. Eventually all parties, including a hastily assembled armed militia, converge on a out-of-the-way cemetery that is home to the subterranean world of Midian. From here on in we get a practical effects and creature design heavy flick filled with fantastical elements and enough lore for about three films (especially the Director's Cut which really fleshes out the lore of the monsters) - though sadly we only got the one! The sheer amount of creature effects is staggering, memorable "monsters" include the toothy Peloquin, Kinski with a crescent moon-shaped head, the quilled Shuna Sassi, and the demon deity Baphomet - it's a stunning assortment of creatures in one film, especially for the early 90's.
Clive Barker's flick is pretty much a man vs monsters story that begs the question "who's really the monsters here?", it's not a perfect film, there are a few slow moments, but it fantastical journey into a strange world that lies just beyond the periphery of the known world and into the unknown, with impressive set pieces, matte paintings, practical effects, and a dazzling score by Danny Elfman that makes for an entertaining watch.
Regarding the Director's Cut of the film which is on this set in HD, I think I still prefer the Theatrical Cut as it's what I watched in the cinema and loved for years, but it does flesh out the mythology of the monsters and Midian quite nicely, there's certainly more depth to the characters and mythos, but I just prefer the original theatrical version, but I love having the option to watch the extended cut when the mood strikes me.
Audio/Video: Nightbreed (1990) arrives on 4-disc 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray from Scream Factory, we get the Theatrical cut in 4K and HD, while the Director's cut gets only an HD presentation. The Theatrical cut in UHD looks terrific, advertised quite honestly as a "NEW 2023 4K scan of the best surviving film elements In Dolby Vision (HDR-10 Compatible)" I found the 4K resolution to bring out some additional depth and detail not present on the Blu-ray, and textures are improved. Grain is well-managed and look quite wonderful as well. The biggest benefit here though is easily the Dolby Vision WCG color-grading, for starters the black levels are deeper and and more layered, making those low-light Midian sequences look better than ever before. Contrast is also superior, far surpassing the Blu-ray, and colors are lifted with deeper Dolby Vision HDR10 infused hues. The Director's cut does not get the 4K upgrade unfortunately, but still looks solid, while keeping in mind the obvious source limitations used to construct it, but still being quite a remarkable restoration, presented here on a separate dedicated Blu-ray disc, as is the Theatrical cut.
Audio on both versions, including the 4K Theatrical cut, comes by way of English DTS-HD MA 2.0 and 5.1 surround with optional English subtitles. The sounds mighty fine, the Danny Elfman (Mar's Attacks) score benefits greatly from the sourroudn presentation, which also features some atmospheric use of the discreet channels. The stereo track is also top-notch. The Director's Cut does have some very minor issues in the audio department, but is still a a miraculous gift to fans, same as the previous Limited Edition Blu-ray.
From what I can gather by a cursor comparison all the previous Scream Factory Limited Edition are carried-over which is excellent, but new to this edition are the Arrow Video exclusive extras from the UK release, which makes this an easy upgrade even just for the extras in my opinion. The Arrow produced extras come by way of the 30-min - Memories of Midian – an interview with actor Nicholas Vince, the 24-min Walking the Line Between Heaven and Hell – interview with critic Kat Ellinger, and the 18-min Speaking Up for the Monsters – an interview with critic Kim Newman. Whenever I see Newman or Ellinger included as extras on pretty much any release I add it to my must-own list of flicks, so I appreciate their inclusion here.
The four-disc set arrives in an oversized black keepcase with a pair of flipper trays holding the four discs, with a reversible sleeve of artwork featuring a pair of original movie posters artworks. The four discs inside each feature a different character from the film. This comes housed inside a standard issue semi-gloss slipcover featuring the same main artwork as the wrap, no raised lettering or embossed features. This might be the first release to feature the Shout! Studios logo instead of the Shout! Factory logo. I have the previous Scream Factory Limited Edition release and I was curious if this set would fit comfortably inside the rigid slipbox that set came in, the way that the 4K of Creepshow fit snugly into that rigid slipbox of the previous Blu-ray release, sadly it does not, but I am sure if you're creative enough you could make it work somehow.
Special Features:
Disc 1: 4K UHD (Theatrical Cut)
- NEW 2023 4K scan of the best surviving film elements
In Dolby Vision (HDR-10 Compatible)
- Audio Commentary with film critics Adrian J. Smith and David Flint
Disc 2: Blu-ray (Theatrical Cut)
- NEW 2023 4K scan of the best surviving film elements
- Audio Commentary with film critics Adrian J. Smith and David Flint
- Memories of Midian – an interview with actor Nicholas Vince (30:32)
- Walking the Line Between Heaven and Hell – interview with critic Kat Ellinger (23:30)
- Speaking Up for the Monsters – an interview with critic Kim Newman (18:15)
- Theatrical Trailer (1:06)
Disc 3: Blu-ray (Director’s Cut)
- Audio Commentary with writer director Clive Barker and restoration producer Mark Allan Miller
- Tribes of the Moon: The Making of NIGHTBREED – a 72-minute documentary on the production (82:17)
- Making Monsters – a look at the special makeup effects (42:11)
- Fire! Fights! Stunts! - a look at the second unit shoot (20:20)
Disc 4 – Special Features Bonus Disc (Blu-ray):
- Deleted Scenes (22:48)
- Monster Prosthetics Masterclass (11:11)
- Cutting Compromise (13:55)
- The Painted Landscape (5:08)
- Matte Painting Tests (8:57)
- Makeup Tests (4:52)
- Stop Motion Lost Footage (7:01)
- Rehearsal Test (2:56)
- Still Galleries – sketches, deleted scene photos, poster and pre-production, on-the-set images.
