Blu-ray Review: THOU SHALT NOT KILL... EXCEPT (1985)

THOU SHALT NOT KILL... EXCEPT (1985)

Blu-ray/DVD Combo

Label: Synapse Films
Region: All Regions
Duration: 83 minutes
Rating: Unrated
Video: 16:9 Widescreen (1.66:1)
Audio: English DTS-HD 2.0 Mono, Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Director: Josh Becker
Cast: Sam Raimi, Ted Raimi, Scott Spiegel, Brian Schulz
Tagline: When Violence Demands Revenge

Synopsis: Vietnam, 1969. War is Hell. For Marine Sergeant Jack Stryker (Brian Schulz), however, Hell is just the beginning. Trapped outside a Viet Cong village, Stryker takes two bullets to the leg. Sent home from the war, he discovers his ex-girlfriend (Cheryl Hausen) has been kidnapped by a religious cult with a vicious Manson-like leader (played by The Evil Dead and Spider-Man trilogy director, Sam Raimi). Stryker teams up with some marine friends to form an assassination squad and annihilate the gang of crazed killers.

Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except (1985) is a pretty obscure mid-80' low-budget grinder that kicks off in right in the thick of 'Nam '69 where we meet the cigar chompin' Sgt. Jack Stryker (Brian Schulz) and his small band of Marines. With the assistance of some well-placed stock-footage 'Nam inserts the backwoods of Michigan are transformed into a 'Nam jungle, sorta. The visual trickery is not 100% successful but the effort on the part of the filmmakers is appreciated and quite a bit more successful than the plastic rat we catch a glimpse of. The small band of soldiers find themselves miserably outnumbered and are mowed down in a hail of bullets and explosions. It's full-on high energy excitement with lots of fiery explosions and gruesome violence which includes splattery gunshot wounds and a brutal punji trap through the chest. During the assault Sgt. Stryker takes two crippling gunshots to the leg ending his military career. In the ensuing weeks Stryker partially recovers from his injuries and is discharged from the military returning to his small town life in the States and to his rustic cabin in the woods where he eeks out a living with his dog "Whiskey". Picking up the pieces of his civilian life he starts to rekindle a romance with his high school sweetheart Sally (Cheryl Hansen), things are starting to look up for the Vet until Cheryl's kidnapped by a religious cult of bloodthirsty hippies lead by a maniacal nut played with delicious fervor by none other than director Sam Raimi (Evil Dead, Spider-Man).

For me the highlight and star of this exploitation nugget would have to be Raimi as the truly bug-nuts insane cult leader who believes himself to be the rebirth of Jesus Christ. A delirious and obvious riff on Charles Manson - it's just amazing to watch and a ton of fun. He's chewing on the scenery in a way that just suits this lo-fi grinder to perfection, worth the price of admission on it's own.

Stryker is joined in his war on the blood cult by his military buddies; "Love Machine" (Timothy Patrick Quill, the blacksmith from Army of Darkness), Sgt. Jackson (Robert Rickman, a former Mr. T impersonator), Lt. Miller (John Manfredi, Real Steel) who just happen to arrive on scene to visit their  former Lt. and they're a fun bunch of guys. Before they arrive at the cabin they find themselves in the company of a trio of jail bait they pick-up outside a liquor store followed by some sleazy backseat shenanigans and then right into a biker bar where a full-on brawl  spills out to the back alleyway, it's fun stuff and is the perfect b-movie filler to pad out the film until they face off against the bloodthirsty hippies, surely it superfluous but it's entertaining.

The final showdown with the cult in the woods is pretty fantastic, an orgy of bloodletting and shotguns blasts with fun kills that are well-staged and executed with much spilled blood. Highlights include Stryker's beloved dog Whiskey skinned on a spit, some brutal shotgun blasts, impalement's and my personal favorite - death by lawn darts which is amazing!

Blu-ray: Synapse Films offers up Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except with an all-new 2K high-definition transfer from the original negative, painstaking restored and cleaned-up in the best possible way. This 16mm cult classic has never looked better and the restoration leaves the film's grain structure wonderfully intact, this is a grain-lovers paradise and a very fine example of how you restore a film without running it through the Digital Noise Reduction (DNR) wringer. Synapse are transfer pros and cinema devotees who fully appreciate the grain inherent in celluloid. The DTS-HD MA English and Dolby Digital English 2.0 Mono audio options are limited in their fidelity but sound pretty great with special mention to Joe LoDuca's great war-themed score, it's above and beyond what one might expect from a budget-strapped grinder.

Special features for this obscure cult classic are abundant beginning with my personal favorite feature, the original Super 8mm film Stryker's War, an early version of the film featuring none other than Mr. Big Chin himself Bruce Campbell (Army of Darkness) in the role of Jack Stryker, a role created for him but when the opportunity arose for director Josh Becker to film Thou Shalt Not Kill...Except he was unavailable to partake in the project. Definitely a loss for Campbell fans but fear not for we have this fine 8mm document. It's interesting to note that the filmmaker didn't stray to far from the 8mm original when scripting Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except.

Up next is Made In Michigan: The Making of Though Shalt Not Kill... Except (35:16) a mini-doc featuring interviews with director Josh Becker, producer (and director in his own right) Scott Spiegel, actors John Menfredi (Lt. Miller), Tim Quill (LCpl. Ttyler) , Robert Rickman (Sgt. Jackson), production assistant Brian Rae and Production manager David Goodman. Tons of tasty nuggets are discussed including the early super 8mm films, why Bruce Campbell did not return to reprise his role as Sgt. Stryker, the budget and the Joe LoDuca's fantastic score, which is pretty great. Whether your a newcomer to the film or a fan there's a ton to enjoy here.

We also have not one but two Audio Commentaries from director Josh Becker, actor Bruce Campbell and star Brian Schulz, Deleted Scenes, Alternate Title Sequence (1:19), a Theatrical Trailer and an on-camera Interview with Bruce Campbell (8:47) in his backyard discussing the filmmakers early 8mm films and the making of Stryker's War. As special features go this is perhaps above and beyond what this obscure title would demand but that's why I love Synapse; they love cult and exploitation cinema and if it's worth doing it's worth doing right and they do it right every time.

[Reversible Cover Art]

Special Features
•All-New High-Definition 2K Digital Restoration from the Original Negative
•The Original Super 8mm Short film, STRYKER’S WAR Short Film, starring Bruce Campbell! (48:16) 4:3
•Made in Michigan: The Making of THOU SHALT NOT KILL… EXCEPT - Featurette (31:56) 16:9
•Two Audio Commentaries Featuring Director Josh Becker, Bruce Campbell and Star Brian Schulz
•All-New Video Interview with Bruce Campbell (8:47) 16:9
•Deleted Scene with Optional Director’s Commentary (0:45) 16:9
•Alternate Title Sequence (1:19) 16:9
•Original Theatrical Trailer 16:9
•Reversible Cover Artwork

Verdict: Thou Shalt Not Kill...Except is a tasty nugget of amped-up mid-80's exploitation cinema that's a suitably gruesome and gritty affair well-stocked with moments of off-kilter humor pitting 'Nam vets against a bloodthirsty religious cult in the woods, it's just entertaining stuff. Obviously shot on a shoe-string budget but made with the same heart and lo-fi ingenuity we've seen from director Josh Becker's cohorts Sam Raimi (Evil Dead) and Scott Spiegel (Intruder), if you're a fan of either of those cult classics there's gonna be a ton to love with Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except. Great job from Synapse on the great special features and fantastic transfer which shouldn't be a surprise at all. 2.5 outta 5

Blu-ray Review: INTRUDER (1988)

INTRUDER - DIRECTOR'S CUT (1988)

 Blu-ray/DVD Combo

LABEL: Synapse Films
REGION: Region FREE
DURATION: 88 minutes
VIDEO: 16:9 Widescreen (1.78:1)
AUDIO: DTS-HD MA English 2.0 Mono, Dolby Digital English 2.0 Mono
DIRECTOR: Scott Spiegel
CAST: Sam Raimi, Ted Raimi, Bruce Campbell, Elizabeth Cox, Danny Hicks, Renée Estevez
TAGLINE: Tonight, This Supermarket is Having a Sale... ALL HEADS HALF-OFF!

SYNOPSIS: "It’s 10 pm and the employees of Michigan’s Walnut Lake Supermarket are in for a really bad night. The place is shutting its doors for good, and the night crew has a long shift ahead of them… longer than they think! The lovely check-out girl has a deranged ex-boyfriend, the store’s phone lines are cut, and the employees start dying in the most stomach-churning ways imaginable (courtesy of Academy Award®-winning KNB EFX Group). A deranged killer is on the loose in the grocery store! Can anyone stop this murderous intruder?"

Scott Spiegel's probably best know as the co-writer of Sam Raimi's EVIL DEAD 2 (1987) and the producer of the HOSTEL film series but some of you fiends out there may recall him as the director of the late 80's splatter classic INTRUDER (1988), a film that's probably best remembered for it's extreme gore courtesy of the pre-KNB EFX team of Howard Berger, Robert Kurtzman and Greg Nicotero who were willing to do the effects on the film for a song to help launch their new effects group and what a calling card it was, the gore effects are outstanding even two decades later and under the scrutiny of 1080p high-definition, they're ingenious, blood soaked and fucking awesome.

It's been a few years since I last watched the film and what struck me aside from the effects and how great the transfer is were the crazy amount of POV camerawork from director Spiegel, these are some of the nuttiest POV shots ever committed to film with odd views from a rotary phone, a milk crate, a wine bottle and a shopping cart, not once but twice. The inventive visual gags not just look great but create a quirky sense of atmosphere that's hard to peg down. The script is pretty witty and the film is nearly a comedy in some respects, perhaps even a send-up of the genre which by the late 80's had really run it's due course.

Looking at the characters I wouldn't say we get a lot of development but I've never been one to require much of it when I throw on a slasher either. What we do get is quite serviceable with appearances from EVIL DEAD alumni Sam Raimi, Ted Raimi and Danny Hicks with a cameo from Bruce Campbell. Without spoiling the killer's identity I'll just say that I really enjoyed how unwound and bat-shit crazy the culprit becomes, really unhinged stuff. At one point he's puppeteering a decapitated head and then beating down a victim with it in the next scene, that's just entertainment pure and simple. The film is definitely offbeat which I think might throw a few folks off but the humor is dark and demented just the way I crave it and really delivers the goods, so it worked for me.

I have to once again give it up to the KNB EFX Group who really shower the film with scene after scene of bloody death. There's just so much to choose from here, we get a head crushed in a cardboard compactor, machetes flying everywhere, a nice eye-skewering, a meat hook through the neck and what must surely be the centerpiece of the film; a head grotesquely sawn in half with a band saw sending brains, teeth and meat everywhere, it's a showstopper and sickening brutal.

Great slashers were slicing through the cinemas in the early to mid 80's but to find a really brutal, well done slasher in 1988 seems a rare feat indeed. Scott Spiegel deserves some major love for this late entry in the game particularly when you consider what was to come to the cinema post-SCREAM just a few years later. Unfortunately Spiegel didn't go onto direct a ton of films but I'm pretty amped to see him back in the director's chair with HOSTEL III after taking this in.

BLU-RAY: Synapse's brand-new 2K HD transfer of INTRUDER is presented in 16:9 widescreen (1.78:1) - this is the uncut director's version of the film with all the tasty extreme gore presented in all it's splatteriffic glory - the KNB FX shots are nasty effective, gore hounds are gonna be delighted. The transfer looks pretty sharp, colors are vibrant and the film's fine grain is nicely intact, no unnecessary DNR scrubbing here folks, par for Synapse the transfer is pretty phenomenal considering that this shoestring budget splatter classic was filmed using 35mm short ends. Audiowise we get a DTS-HD MA English 2.0 mono track on the Blu-ray that sounds very nice, dialogue, score and effects sound very good, the mono soundtrack doesn't offer much depth of separation but seems accurate and decently robust.

Special features are plentiful beginning with a feature length commentary from director Scott Spiegel and producer Lawrence Bender, it's a fun commentary with tons of great behind-the-scenes anecdotes from financing the film on through to the MPAA butchering of the films upon it's initial VHS release. There's also a great half hour featurette featuring interviews with most of the principal cast, director, producer and executive producer Charles Band with clips from the 8mm short film NIGHT CREW and actress Elizabeth Cox is kind enough to demonstrate her various screams as heard in the film providing commentary about the subtle variations, good stuff. On top of that we get over 10 minutes of extended murder scenes from the workprint, nearly seven minutes of outtakes from the NIGHT CREW short, a picture gallery, two trailers and a featurette wherein the director of A BETTER PLACE tells of his experience renting the VHS only to find the gory bits as seen in Fangoria were missing. It's a jam-packed Blu-ray and there's a DVD edition of the film included with all the same special features which is a always nice value add when considering a purchase, don't think too hard though, just buy it. Clearly Synapse have done right by this film and an upgrade is easily recommended if you own the previous DVD edition because this 1080p presentation is gonna blow you away when compared to that murky mess.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- All-New 2K Digital Restoration of the Original Uncensored Director's Cut
- Audio Commentary with Writer/Director Scott Spiegel and Producer Lawrence Bender
- Slashing of Intruder (3:26)
- Slashed Prices - The Making of Intruder (38:22)
- Never-Before-Seen Extended "Murder" Sequences from the Original Workprint (10:25)
- Outtakes from the Now-Lost Short Film, NIGHT CREW (6:47)
- Original Cast Audition Footage (11:04)
-Behind-the-Scenes Still Gallery (4:20)
-Original Theatrical Trailer (1:19)
- NIGHT CREW Trailer (1:19)

VERDICT: INTRUDER is an entertaining, visually imaginative splatter-flick filled with nutty gore that's in need of some serious attention, a classic deserving of some shelf space for any serious gore fan. Sure, it's a bit silly and quirky but above all else it's a super-gory slasher that's finally been given a gorgeous release courtesy of Synapse Films, a must own. 3.5 outta 5

Exploitation Classic THOU SHALT NOT KILL... EXCEPT coming to Synapse Films DVD/Blu-ray Combo!

SYNAPSE FILMS PRESENTS 

JOSH BECKER'S EXPLOITATION CLASSIC

THOU SHALT NOT KILL... EXCEPT

STARRING ★SAM RAIMI★ AS A MANSON-LIKE HIPPIE CULT LEADER!

THOU SHALT NOT KILL... EXCEPT

[Blu-ray/DVD Combo]

RELEASE DATE: March 13, 2012

REGION CODE: All Regions

DURATION: 83 mins
DIRECTOR: Josh Becker
CAST: Sam Raimi, Ted Raimi, Scott Spiegel, Brian Schul
VIDEO: 16:9 Widescreen (1.66:1)
TAGLINE:When Violence Demands Revenge...

THE EXPLOITATION ACTION CLASSIC FROM THE PEOPLE WHO BROUGHT YOU THE EVIL DEAD AND EVIL DEAD 2!

Vietnam, 1969. War is Hell. For Marine Sergeant Jack Stryker (Brian Schulz), however, Hell is just the beginning. Trapped outside a Viet Cong village, Stryker takes two bullets to the leg. Sent home from the war, he discovers his ex-girlfriend (Cheryl Hausen) has been kidnapped by a religious cult with a vicious Manson-like leader (played by THE EVIL DEAD and SPIDER-MAN trilogy director, Sam Raimi). Stryker teams up with some marine friends to form an assassination squad and annihilate the gang of crazed killers.

Synapse Films is proud to present THOU SHALT NOT KILL… EXCEPT in an all-new 2K high-definition transfer from the original negative. Directed by Josh Becker, this “must-see” (Detroit Free Press) cult classic features many of the people responsible for THE EVIL DEAD, including co-writer Bruce Campbell, writer/producer Scott Spiegel, composer Joseph LoDuca, and actor Ted Raimi.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
• All-New High-Definition 2K Digital Restoration from the Original Negative
• The Original Super 8mm Short film, STRYKER’S WAR, starring Bruce Campbell!
• Made in Michigan: The Making of THOU SHALT NOT KILL… EXCEPT – Featurette
• Two Audio Commentaries featuring Director Josh Becker, Bruce Campbell, and Star Brian Schulz
• All-New Video Interview with Actor/Writer Bruce Campbell
• Deleted Scene with Optional Director's Commentary
• Alternate Title Sequence
• Original Theatrical Trailer
• Reversible Alternate Cover Artwork

Reversible Artwork