MANIAC COP 2 (1990) (Blue Underground 4K UHD Review)

MANIAC COP 2 (1990) 

Label: Blue Underground

Region Code: Region-Free

Rating: R

Duration: 87 Minutes 

English: English Dolby Atmos; English DTS-HD MA 2.0 Stereo with Optional English SDH, Français Canadien, Español Latino Americano, Português do Brasil, Español Castellano, Français Parisien, Deutsch, Italiano, Mandarin (Traditional & Simplified), Korean, Japanese, Russian Subtitles 

Video: 2160p UHD Widescreen (1.85:1), 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)

Director: William Lustig 

Cast: Robert Davi, Claudia Christian, Michael Lerner, Bruce Campbell, Laurene Landon, Robert Z’Dar, Clarence Williams III, Leo Rossi, Charles Napier

You Have The Right To Remain Silent… FOREVER!

Matt Cordell the Maniac Cop returns from a watery grave in this action-packed sequel from director William Lustig (Maniac) alongside writer Larry Cohen (Q the Winged Serpent). Having somehow survived being impaled through the chest at the end of Maniac Cop (1989) the big guy is back on the beat and patrolling the streets of NYC with a vengeance. His first order of business is to interrupt a robbery in progress at a bodega where a junkie with the gnarliest teeth you've ever seen is holding a shotgun to the face of the cashier. When he finds that the cash drawer empty the junkie directs the cashier to start scratching off lottery tickets looking for an instant winner. Funnily enough the cashier scratches off a 5 grand instant winner, and that's when Cordell arrives on scene. The shopkeeper cannot believe this fortunate turns of events, and plans to pocket that winning ticket for himself, but things don't go the way he thought they would and the Maniac Cop blows him away, much to the surprise of the disbelieving junkie. As cop cars arrive the undead cop disappears leaving the armed junkie there trying to explain that he's not the one who killed the clerk, but the NYC cops blast him to pieces just the same. It's a great opener and the film rarely let's up from there.

Also returning from the last film are officers Jack Forrest (Bruce Campbell, Mindwarp) and Theresa Mallory (Laurene Landon, The Stuff), whom after passing a psych evaluation have been placed back on active duty by Commissioner Doyle (Michael Lerner, Barton Fink). Forrest is happy just to be back on duty but Mallory is convinced that Cordell will return again (and she's right!) and causes quite a fuss about it. For my tastes Campbell and Landon exit the film far too early at the hands of the grudge-holding Cordell, and they're replaced by new protagonists cop psychologist Susan Riley (Claudia Christian, The Hidden) and hard-boiled Detective McKinney (Robert Davi, The Goonies). 

Minor spoiler alert, Forrest is taken out by Cordell with his patented knife-baton, stabbing him through the neck in  brutal fashion, but Campbell deserved better! Afterward Cordell steals a vintage police cruiser and chases after Mallory and Riley, there's a great chase sequence with bare tire rims sending sparks flying off the street with plenty of vehicular carnage. In the aftermath the Maniac Cop snaps Mallory's, neck but only after she attacks Cordell with friggin' chainsaw! With Mallory out of the way Cordell handcuffs the psychiatrist to the steering wheel of the car and sends it careening out-of-control down a busy street!  The action sequences in this first sequel are fantastic, with a bit of a larger budget it's great fun to see what Lustig is able to throw up on the screen! 

There's an weird subplot with a serial killer named Turkell (Leo Rossi, Halloween II) who's murdering strippers around NYC, Maniac Cop shows up during one of his attacks and the two become fast friends, with the serial killer leading Cordell back to his pad for some psycho-bonding between like-minded killers, it's a weird team-up but somehow it works.  I have to hand it to Larry Cohen for a wacky but awesome script on this one. We have this weird buddy psycho-killer pairing and a demented Bride of Maniac Cop subplot here that never gets boring, it's weird as all get out but never dull. When Turkell eventually lands in a jail cell he tells the cops that his buddy Cordell is coming to bust him out and he ain't just blowing smoke up their asses. Maniac Cop arrives and completely destroys the police station, it's a bloody massacre with terrific action oodles of bloodshed and broken glass. Lustig seemed to really enjoy breaking glass in this film, and setting people on fire, but more on that in a minute.

Somehow all the major players end up back at Sing Sing Prison so that Cordell can have his revenge on the death row inmates who fucked-up his face and killed him in prison years earlier. It's during this killing spree that Maniac Cop is bombarded with Molotov cocktails and engulfed in flames, but that does not deter him in the slightest - he just keeps killing the inmates who mutilated him! The man-on-fire stunt work during the last 10 minutes of this film are worth the price of admission all on their own, it's awesome! Manic Cop 2 is a bad-ass revenger, and even when it gets a bit silly it never get's too silly for it's own good, I loved it. 

Audio/Video: Blue Underground previously issued Maniac Cop 2 (1990) on a 2-disc Blu-ray back in 2013, this utilizes the same 4K scan of the OCN with the benefit of Dolby Vision HDR 10 color-grading supervised by Director of Photography James Lemmo. The first thing that struck me was how nice the grain structure looks, with very nicely resolved, details and textures that are more defined and the primaries have a nice HDR pop to them, but not in an overcooked sort of way. Additionally the HDR offers deeper blacks and better more layered contrast, slightly improving depth over the Blu-ray counterpart. 

We get a Dolby Atmos remix that is robust, offering a fully immersive experience that comes to life during the action sequences, plus Jay Chattaway's creepy and atmospheric score sounds great. Also included is an uncompressed DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo with optional English subtitles.  Fans of the score will enjoy the isolated music track on the disc presented in uncompressed DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo. 

Blue Underground carryover the archival extras from past releases beginning with an Audio Commentary with Director William Lustig and Filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn, plus the Back On The Beat - The Making Of Maniac Cop 2 making-of documentary featuring director William Lustig, writer Larry Cohen, actors Robert Davi, Leo Rossi, Robert Z'Dar, Michael Lerner, Claudia Christian and composer Jay Chattaway. Davi is great fun as he talks about being hoodwinked into taking on the role by Lustig, while Lerner laughs about playing an Irishman. Director Lustig and actress Claudia Christian sorta take a few jabs at each other during their interviews, neither seem enamored with the other. During the Cinefamily Q&A from back in 2012 Lustig let's loose a ton of great anecdotes about Larry Cohen, Joe Spinell, Leo Rossi and Robert Z'Dar plus the great crew who worked on the film and the possibility of a sequel/reboot. 

Finishing-up the special features we have Trailers, a deleted scene featuring Sam Raimi (Evil Dead), a Gallery of posters and pics plus an uncompressed Isolated Music Track and it's D-Box Motion Code Enabled. Sadly no booklet with words from Michael Gingold celebrating the film or soundtrack CD to accompany this one, but still a great set of archival extras. 

The 2-disc UHD/BD combo arrives in an oversized black Scanavo keepcase with a single-sided sleeve of artwork. It also includes an embossed slipcover, basically the same design as the 2013 Blu-ray edition this with the same artwork on the discs inside. 

Special Features: 

Disc 1 (4K UHD Blu-ray) Feature Film + Extras:

- Audio Commentary with Director William Lustig and Filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn

- Theatrical Trailers: International Trailer (2 min), UK Teaser Trailer  (1 min), French Trailer (2 min), German Trailer (2 min)

- Isolated Music Track (DTS-HD MA 2.0) 

Disc 2 (Blu-ray) Feature Film + Extras:

- Audio Commentary with Director William Lustig and Filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn

- Back On The Beat - The Making Of MANIAC COP 2 (47 min) 

- Cinefamily Q&A with Director William Lustig (29 min) 

- Deleted Scene (2 min) 

- Theatrical Trailers: International Trailer (2 min), UK Teaser Trailer  (1 min), French Trailer (2 min), German Trailer (2 min)

- Poster & Still Gallery

- Isolated Music Track (DTS-HD MA 2.0) 

Maniac Cop 2 (1990) is a fun, violent and kick-ass revenger with some fantastic action, brutal deaths and a finale that's engulfed in flames. This sucker is action-packed from start to finish and a shit-ton of fun, this is definitely a 90's horror entry that doesn't gets it's proper due! As with all of the Blue Underground 4K UHD catalog upgrades this another gorgeous presentation that is to please fans, and hopefully it will earn it some fresh eyes from those who haven't seen it yet. 

TALES FROM THE HOOD (1995) (Scream Factory Blu-ray Review)

TALES FROM THE HOOD (1995)
Collector's Edition Blu-ray 

Label: Scream Factory 

Region Code: A

Rating: R

Duration: 96 Minutes

Audio: English DTS-HD MA 2.0 Stereo, Alternate DTS-HD MA 2.0 with Optional English Subtitles

Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)

Director: Rusty Cundieff

Cast: Anthony Griffith, Corbin Bernsen, David Alan Grier, Clarence Williams III, Michael Massee, Duane Whitaker, Joe Torry. Paula Jai Parker, Rosalind Cash, Rusty Cundieff, Wings Hauser

Synopsis: It’s a place where your worst fears can come to life. A place where it’s hard to tell nightmares from reality. A place where you will discover Tales from the Hood. Lauded for its take on complex social issues like police brutality and domestic abuse, this cult horror anthology from director Rusty Cundieff and executive producer Spike Lee. In Tales from the Hood. Stack, Ball and Bulldog arrive at a local funeral parlor to retrieve a lost drug stash held by the mortician Mr. Simms (Clarence Williams III). But Mr. Simms has plans for the boys. He leads them on a tour of his establishment, introducing them to his corpses. Even the dead have tales to tell and Mr. Simms is willing to tell them all. And you better listen – because when you’re in the ‘hood, even everyday life can lead to extraordinary terror.

When I first saw this horror anthology back on cable TV in the 90s the segment that stuck with me was the wrap-around story, a device all great anthologies use, and this is one of the very best, in my opinion. We open with a trio of South Central L.A. wannabe gang-bangers arriving at a funeral home in the dead of night to purchase illicit drugs from the eccentric funeral director, a creepy mortician by the name of Mr. Simms, played with delicious weirdness by Clarence Williams III (Maniac Cop 2), his toothy grin and the way he says "the shit" in reference to the drugs is so damn odd.  After unnerving the knuckleheads with his creepy ways the mortician offers a tour of the mortuary, pointing out the freshly deceased, each in a coffin, and the film is comprised of each of their stories, with Simms acting as the crypt keeper to this twisted urban tale of urban evil involving cop corruption, racisms, domestic violence and gang violence. 

The first segment "Rogue Cop Revelation" tackles the corruption of the police, with a good guy rookie cop Clarence Smith (Anthony Griffith) and his new partner, Newton (Michael Massee, Lost Highway) roll-up on a stop in progress by a pair of veteran officers, Billy (Duane Whitaker, Pulp Fiction) and Strom (Wings Hauser, Mutant), who are beating the snot out of black man Martin Moorehouse (Tom Wright, Creepshow 2), a prominent civil rights leader, who has been exposing crooked cops in the area. The rookie speaks up against the behavior but turns a blind eye, only to find out that the crooked cops killed Moorehouse and made it look like a heroin overdose. Eventually Moorehouse comes back from beyond the grave as a zombie to hand out punishment to the crooked cops. It's great stuff, Tom Wight played the Hitchhiker in Creepshow 2, manages to be even more terrifying here as the undead spectre out to off the racist cops in L.A.. It's a great segment, the use of Billie Holiday's mournful classic "Strange Fruit", which plays during Moorhouse's brutal killing, was a nice touch. 

Up next, "Boys Do Get Bruised" features kind hearted grade school teacher Richard Garvy, played director/writer Rusty Cundieff, who notices some strange bruising on the arm of one of his pupils, Walter (Brandon Hammond, Mars Attacks!), who tells him that a monster did it, showing him a crayon drawing of the monster. Teach heads to the kids home he speaks with his mom (Paula Jai Parker, Friday) who attributes the bruising to the boy's clumsiness, but it soon becomes apparent that the real monster is her abusive boyfriend, played by David Alan Grier of TV's In Living Color!. Not sure I bought the funnyman as an abusive type, and the segment gets a bit silly with an arc having to do with the boys ability to make what is depicted in his crayon drawings happen in reality, bit still a decent entry, and the abusive boyfriend gets a brutal comeuppance, as he is horribly contorted and burned, all the the while spouting off a verbal tirade of hatred.   

Back at the mortuary, Mr. Simms open a casket to reveal a doll, introducing the story "KKK Comeuppance", one of the more notorious segments of the anthology, featuring Corbin Bernsen (Major League) as Duke Metger, a white racist southern politician, and former member of the KKK, who has taken up residence in a former slave plantation, said to be haunted by the "negro dolls" containing the spirits of slaves who died there. There's a painting of the former owner, Miss Cobbs, an elderly black woman, sitting in a rocking chair, surrounded by little black dolls, which plays into the story. While Jewish and African-American protesters gather outside the plantation, Metger and his African-American image-consultant Rhodie (Roger Guenveur Smith), work on a new campaign ad, until the the uncle-tom Rhodie falls down the stairs to his death. After the funeral Metger returns to the plantation, noticing that some of the dolls in the painting have disappeared, leaving behind a blank white space on the canvas, soon he finds himself fighting for his racist life, screaming at the little "nigglins", draping himself in the American flag while trying to beat down the dolls. I love the slave-dolls, they're a bit on the goofy side, but the Chiodo Brothers (Killer Klowns from Outer Space) creations brought to mind the Zuni dolls segment of the TV anthology Trilogy of Terror (1975), lots of fun, and a deliciously twisted segment. 

The last of the main stories is "Hard-Core Convert" featuring an unrepentant gang-banger named Crazy K (Lamont Bentley, TV's Moesha) who is sent to prison after murdering multiple people, all of it black-on-black street violence. In prison he meets a murderous white supremacist who tells him of the end-of-days for black people, but also tells him that he might be spared, as the two have one thing in common, they have both only killed black people. One day Dr. Cushing (Rosalind Cash, The Omega Man) arrives and has Crazy K transferred to a different facility, where he is told that he has been given the opportunity to be rehabilitated, to learn the consequences of his actions, to show remorse for his crimes against his own people, including the innocents he has gunned down along the way. The experiment involves Clockwork Orange slide shows of racism, lynching and gang violence in addition to a deprivation chamber, where he must face the demons of the mind, his victims, which were pretty harrowing. The whole movie smacks of social commentary, I always found this one to be the most poignant and unpleasant, but it has powerful message. 

Now we come to the finale, the completion of the warp-a-round story with Mr. Simms and the knuckle headed wannabe gang-bangers, who have come for the "shit", which they get in spades, and as promised, they are "knee-deep in the shit" with Mr. Simms  transforming into Satan, cackling with glee as the truth about the trio's fate is revealed, a classic end to a classic horror anthology. 

Tales From The Hood (1995) is a wonderful horror anthology, one of the highlights of 90s horror and in the upper echelon of horror anthologies, it's right up there with Creepshow (1982), Torture Garden (1967), Trick R Treat (2007), Tales from The Crypt (1972) and Tales from The Darkside (1983), it's that good, and now that it is again widely available it's stature among horror fans will only grow. The stories are a nice mix of goofy horror and brutal social commentary, the effects are quite good, brutal, and only marred by some slight early CGI used to morph some of the effects, but this is the good shit, I promise.  

Audio/Video: Tales From the Hood has long out-of-print on DVD, it finally arrives on Blu-ray from Scream Factory looking spiffy, shot in the 90s the source looks crisp and clean for the most part, there's a bit of softness throughout, but overall we get nicely managed grain, good fine detail, and the colors are vibrant. The old DVD was cropped on all four sides, this is a huge improvement, and the clarity is impressive. Audio on the disc is handled by English DTS-HD MA Stereo 2.0 track that is crisp and powerful. Dialogue, effects and the awesome Christopher Yong score come through  nicely balanced and free of any distortion, optional English subtitles are provided. There's an alternate stereo track, not sure what the source is, but it seems muted and much less dynamic, compared to the main audio track, I switched back and forth a few times wondering if perhaps there were different music cues, but I didn't notice anything. If anyone can clue me into what this alternate track is I would appreciate it.

Onto the extras we begin with the sole NEW extra, a brand new documentary Welcome to Hell: The Making of Tales from the Hood, which features new interviews with director/writer Rusty Cundieff, producer/writer Darin Scott, actors Corbin Bernsen, Wings Hauser and Anthony Griffith, special effects supervisor Kenneth Hall, doll effects supervisors Charles Chiodo and Edward Chiodo; it's a great watch with plenty of input from everyone, who all seemed to genuinely enjoy making the anthology, writer director/writer Rusty Cundieff, producer/writer Darin Scott are funny guys, the Chiodo Brothers offers some dun insights into creating a few of the special effects used in the film. There's also a vintage making-of featurette narrated by the character of Mr. Simms, plus the director's audio commentary from the laserdisc is included, as is the original theatrical trailer and a series of TV spots, plus a gallery of images including stills, behind-the-scenes, sketches, and promotional lobby cards for the movie. 

Notably, while I was listening to the Shockwaves podcast a few weeks ago writer Darren Scott said a new commentary was recorded for the movie but was lost due to a technical glitch, which is a serious bummer.  

The single-disc Collector's Edition Blu-ray comes housed in a standard blue keepcase with a sleeve of reversible artwork featuring the original one-sheet poster art and a new colorful illustration by Joel Robinson, wjo also did some vibrant artwork for Scream Factory releases of The Exorcist II, Black Christmas and The Serpent and the Rainbow. The alternate artwork is also featured on the limited edition o-ring (slipcover).  

Special Features:
- NEW Welcome to Hell: The Making of Tales from the Hood – featuring interviews with director/writer Rusty Cundieff, producer/writer Darin Scott, actors Corbin Bernsen Wings Hauser and Anthony Griffith, special effects supervisor Kenneth Hall, doll effects supervisors Charles Chiodo and Edward Chiodo (56 min) HD 
- Audio Commentary with director/writer Rusty Cundieff
- Vintage “Making of” Featurette (6 min) 
- Original Theatrical Trailer (2 min)
- Original TV Spots (3 min) 
- Still Gallery (10 min) HD 

It's been a long time coming for Tales from Hood to arrive on Blu-ray, the DVD has been out of print for years, and I was beginning to think it would never happen, but Scream Factory have come through with a wonderful Blu-ray with some cool extras, the A/V looks nice and the movie's blend of goofy horror and brutal social commentary truly is "the shit", worth the price of purchase alone for the performance from Clarence Williams III in the wrap-a-round, everything else is just the cherry on top!  4/5