THE DEVIL'S RAIN (1975) (Severin Blu-ray Review)

THE DEVIL'S RAIN (1975) 

Label: Severin Films
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 86 Minutes
Audio: English DTS-HD MA Mono 2.0 with Optional English Subtitles 
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.39:1) 
Director: Robert Fuest
Cast: William Shatner, Ernest Borgnine, Eddie Albert, Keenan Wynn, Tom Skerritt, Ida Lupino, John Travolta

I first caught up with this Satanic panic drive-in classic when it was released by Dark Sky Films back in 2006 on DVD, it totally caught be surprise, a cool little slice of satanic cinema with an all-star 70's cast and directed by Robert Fuest, a wonderful director who brought us The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971) and Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972), not to mention the involvement of Anton Lavey, the founder of the Church of Satan!

It all begins on a rainy night with Mark Preston (Star Trek's William Shatner) and his mother (Ida Lupino, The Food of the Gods) waiting for his father to return home, when he does he has no eyes and begins melting into a multi-colored glob of goo! Mark's mom is later kidnapped by a local Satanic cult led by Jonathon Corbis (Ernest Borgnine, Escape from New York)who wants a satanic tome that the Preston family has kept hidden away for years, it would grant the cult-leader favor with Beelzebub and make him all-powerful!

When Mark himself becomes ensnared by the cult his younger brother Tom (Tom Skerrit, M*A*S*H) comes to his aid, along with his wife Julie (Joan Prather, Big Bad Mama) and occult expert Dr. Richards, played by Eddie Albert of TV's Green Acres. Working against the group are the local sheriff played by Keenan Wynn (Piranha) who is in tight with the Satanist, including a very young John Travolta in his first movie, though it is a small role.

The satanic thrills come fast and furious in this briskly paced drive-in b-movie classic, aided by some very goopy and surprisingly grotesque special effects from Tom Burman  (Invasion of the Body Snatchers) and crew, including Borgnine being transformed into a horned, goat-headed manifestation of evil, who also gets his own goopy transformation. There's also a cool scene where Shatner is rendered eyeless, the make-up effects look quite a bit like the mask from Halloween (1978) which modeled after a Shatner/Captain Kirk Star Trek mask, I thought was pretty nifty. This one has always suffered a bit from a plot that seems to evaporate a bit, I always get list, not in the complicated plot, but in the lack of a clear one, but that's never deterred me from partaking in the satanic fun, plus we get some cool atmospheric and creepy cinematography from Álex Phillips Jr. (Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia). 

Audio/Video: The Devil's Rain (1975) arrives on Blu-ray from Severin Films, the new HD restoration (from an non-specific source) looks very nice, there's a nice but inconsistent layer of film grain, details aren't overly abundant and the image can be soft, but overall this is a nice upgrade compared to by 2006 DVD, even with a few unsightly emulsion scratches. Audio comes by way of an English language DTS-HD MA Mono 2.0 track with optional English subtitles. The audio is clean and crisp, I wouldn't say the mix was overly dynamic by any means but it does the job.

Onto the extras Severin have grabbed the devil by the horns with this one, offering up a plethora of extras, beginning with a director's commentary ported over from the 2006 Dark Sky release. Then onto the new stuff, brand new interviews with the cast and crew, including an 11-min chat with Skerritt who spins a tale of how he got started in the business, originally wanting to be a director, scoring a few writing gigs and his early career, making this movie and laughing quite a bit when asked about the involvement of Anton Lavey, which he seems to find mildly amusing. FX artist Tom Burman shows up for a brief 5-min interview discussing the goopy effects created for the film and how the melting people were achieved, it's cool.  

Well established Script Supervisor Ana Maria Quintana (Blade Runner, Jurassic Park) speaks about landing her first job as a script supervisor on this very film by pretty much conning her way into it, and also being bilingual helped, as the film was shot in Mexico with a Mexican crew and with an English director and an American cast. 

The Church of Satan gets some representation on two featurettes, one with the current High Priest and High Priestess of the Church of Satan speaking about Lavey's involvement on the film, plus LaVey Biographer Blanche Barton, speaking about her relationship with the Lavey, and his time on the film with the cast. There's also a vintage '75 interview with Shatner who speaks about the possibility of a Star Trek movie opportunity, and if that was something he'd be interested in, and what that might mean for his career... he made a wise move accepting the eventual offer! Another very cool extra is an interview with director/actor Daniel Roebuck (River's Edge) who showcases his vintage horror collection while detailing his own trip to the drive-in with his mom to see The Devil's Rain, and what his mom did for him to secure a prize at the screening, fun stuff. The disc is finished up with a theatrical trailer, TV spots and a poster and still gallery.    

This single-disc Blu-ray release comes housed in a standard Blu-ray keepcase with  sleeve of reversible artwork, which looks awesome on both sides, I believe the a-side is the original movie poster, with a cool variant on the b-side. 

Special Features:
- Audio Commentary With Director Robert Fuest
- Confessions Of Tom - Interview With Actor Tom Skerritt (11 min) HD
- The Devil's Makeup - Interview With Special FX Artist Tom Burman (5 min) HD - 1975 Archive Interview With Actor William Shatner (4 min) HD 
- First Stop Durango - Interview With Script Supervisor Ana Maria Quintana (15 min) HD 
- Consulting with the Devil - A Conversation with the High Priest and High Priestess of the Church of Satan (10 min) HD 
- Hail Satan! - Interview With Anton LaVey Biographer Blanche Barton (8 min) HD 
- Filmmaker / Horror Collector Daniel Roebuck On The Devil's Rain (11 min) HD 
- On Set Polaroid Gallery Of Script Supervisor Ana Maria Quintana Accompanied By Radio Spots (8 min) HD 
- Theatrical Trailer (3 min) HD
- TV Spots (2 min) HD 
- Poster/Still Gallery(8 min) HD 

The Devil's Rain (1975) is a fun slice of evil 70's cinema, it's not the strongest story but the performances are good and the special effects are surprisingly gooey, which is what makes this so memorable, trust me, it ain't the story! This would make a fun hail-Satan triple-feature with The Brotherhood of Satan (1971) and Race with the Devil (1975) or a fun Borgnine scenery-chewing triple play with Willard (1971) and Deadly Blessing (1981).  I never really thought I needed to upgrade my old DVD of this one, but watching this Severin Blu-ray I can say that the A/V upgrade is very nice and the plentiful extras actually make the movie more enjoyable. 

HAIL SATAN! Drive-in shocker THE DEVIL'S RAIN (1975) arrives on Blu-ray from SEVERIN FILMS!

THE DEVIL'S RAIN (1975) 

1500 Strictly Limited Numbered Slipcase Available

First HD Release Oozing With New Extras!

One Of The Most Notorious Drive-In Shockers Of The ‘70s

Now Restored In HD For The First Time Ever!

Severin Films invites you to spend your Halloween chanting “Hail Satan!” as they bring THE DEVIL’S RAIN pouring down onto home theater screens across North America, soaking horror fans in the wet, heavy bile excreted by the Devil himself! Each copy of the movie comes with reversible cover art and limited, numbered edition slipcase (only 1500 units) with alternate artwork are be available exclusively from the Severin webstore.

Take an all-star cast – including William Shatner, Ernest Borgnine, Eddie Albert, Keenan Wynn, Tom Skerritt, Ida Lupino and even John Travolta in his movie debut – at their most hellishly over-the- top. Add one of the most visually inventive filmmakers of the era – director Robert Fuest, of THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES fame – and thrust them into an insane tale of rural occult carnage, featuring Church of Satan founder Anton LaVey as Technical Advisor. Watch in infernal awe as it all hurtles towards the most eye-popping, flesh-melting finale in grindhouse history. Now experience this devilishly infamous classic as you’ve never seen or heard it before, restored in HD for the first time ever and oozing with all-new Extras approved by Lucifer himself!

In addition to this devilish release of the film, Severin has also collaborated with the Church of Satan and it’s merchandising operation iSatanist to produce a stylish pendant necklace recreating the stained glass window from the church seen in the film, available at the Severin Films store or as part of the Prince Of The Abyss bundle.

Pre-Order Available Now!

Prince of the Abyss Bundle Blu With Limited Slip Case & Pendant - $33.00
Devil's Rain Blu with Limited Slip Case - $23.99
Devil's Rain Blu + Pendant - $31.00
Devil's Rain Blu only - $19.99
Devil's Rain DVD - $17.99
Devil's Rain Corbus Pendant - $13.00

*Limited Edition (1,500) slipcase available only through www.Severin-Films.com

Special Features:
- Audio Commentary With Director Robert Fuest
- Confessions Of Tom - Interview With Actor Tom Skerritt
- The Devil's Makeup - Interview With Special FX Artist Tom Burman
- 1975 Archive Interview With Actor William Shatner
- First Stop Durango - Interview With Script Supervisor Ana Maria Quintana
- Consulting with the Devil - A Conversation with the High Priest & High Priestess of the Church of Satan
- Hail Satan! - Interview With Anton LaVey Biographer Blanche Barton
- Filmmaker / Horror Collector Daniel Roebuck On The Devil's Rain
- On Set Polaroid Gallery Of Script Supervisor Ana Maria Quintana Accompanied By Radio Spots
- Theatrical Trailer
- TV Spots
- Poster/Still Gallery

Corbis Pendant (Front)

Corbis Pendant (Back)

THE FOOD OF THE GODS (1976) / FROGS (1972) (Scream Factory Blu-ray Review)

THE FOOD OF THE GODS (1976) / FROGS (1972) 

SCREAM FACTORY DOUBLE FEATURE

Label: Scream Factory 
Release Date: May 26th 2015 
Region Code: A
Rating: PG
Duration: 88 Minutes, 91 Minutes 
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 
Video: 1080p Widescreen (1.85:1), (1.78:1)  
Director: Bert I. Gordon, George McCowan
Cast: Ida Lupino, Pamela Franklin, Marjoe Gortner, Belinda Balaski, Jon Cypher, Ralph Meeker,  Judy Pace, Ray Milland, Joan Van Ark, Adam Roarke, Sam Elliott, Lynn Borden

THE FOOD OF THE GODS (1976)

Pro footballer Morgan (Marjoe Gortner) and his pals are hunting on a remote island off British Columbia when one of them are attacked by enormous wasps the size of a small dog with wings. Morgan and the others don't witness the attack and are unaware of the oddity of the death, aside from the unusually swollen corpse. When the autopsy indicates he was injected with a near impossible amount of wasp venom Morgan and his friend Bryan (Jon Cypher) return to the island to find some answers. Once there they stumble upon a small farm house in the woods where Morgan is attacked by an 8 ft. tall rooster that's kept out in the barn, just narrowly avoiding having his eyes pecked out by the gigantic cock.

Mrs. Skinner (Ida Lupino), the elderly owner of the farm,  after some prodding reveals that she and her husband have found a substance bubbling up from the Earth, ome goo with the consistency of runny oatmeal which when eaten enables the animals to grow to an unnatural size, as evidenced by the 8ft rooster. Morgan puts two and two together and deduces that wasps must have eaten the substance and are loose in the area,  but Mrs. Skinner refuses to believe that their discovery could be something awful, what she doesn't know is that Mr. Skinner was torn apart by a horde of flesh-crazed rats who have also eaten the magic growth substance. 

Now we have Morgan and Bryan on the island in addition to a young couple expecting a child plus an unscrupulous owner of a dog food company who is bent on obtaining the substance for his own profit, alongside his somewhat adversarial bacteriologist assistant. Not completely sure why the owner of a dog food company needed a bacteriologist on staff but I do know that white-afro wearing Marjoe Gortner needed a love interest and she fit the bill. 

The idea of giant-sized animals and insects ingesting a strange substance who attack humans on a remote island might sound familiar to anyone who watched director Bert I. Gordon's Empire of the Ants (1971) just a few years earlier. The campy special affects are achieved through various means to varying degrees of success, a series of miniatures sets with real rodents that are hilarious, full size puppets, and a series of composite shot effects, which may not be the most impressive but are a lot of fun, particularly if you love bad movies or are nostalgic for these awesome creature-features from the '70s.

I love love love this film and always have and I always will, it's just a blast and hard not to enjoy for the cult-classic that it is, a movie loaded with giant-sized wasps, chickens, worms and a horde of deadly rodents who lay siege to the farmhouse. I just cannot get enough of this one and I am damn happy to see it get an HD release from Scream Factory with some new extras and improved A/V.   

The Food of the Gods shares space on a single-disc Blu-ray with the eco-terror Frogs, the HD transfer offers up improved clarity and detail over the standard-def DVD, which should be no surprise. Not the most impressive eye-popping 1080p on the market but for an almost 40 year old b-movie this one looked pretty solid. The English LPCM 2.0 audio is nicely balanced with no distortion, optional English subtitles are provided. 

Special features include a brand new Audio Commentary With Director Bert I. Gordon moderated by Kevin Sean Michaels, a fun interview with Actress Belinda Balaski whom recalls actress Ida Lupino informing the director she had written her own death scene and was leaving the set in a few hours, having to scramble to get the scene finished before she left. Additionally there are radio spots, a trailer, a photo gallery and trailers for Empire of the Ants and Jaws of Satan, also available as a double-feature from Scream Factory 

Special Features
- New Audio Commentary With Director Bert I. Gordon
- New Interview With Actress Belinda Balaski (12 Mins) 
- Radio Spot (1 Min) 
- Photo Gallery (4 Mins) 
- Theatrical Trailer (1 Min) 

FROGS (1972)

Frogs is one of those films I caught on TV quite a bit in the early '80s but could just never get into at the time, an environmental horror film starring Sam Elliot sans his signature mustache, which was weird. Elliot is wildlife photographer Pickett Smith who is canoeing around the bayou snapping pics of wildlife and pollution when his canoe is overturned by the wake of a careless speed boater. The speed boat circles back around and pulls him from the water, inside are Clint (Adam Roarke) and his sister Karen (Joan Van Ark), whom invite him back to their island estate for some celebratory fun, as they're celebrating not just the 4th of July but the birthday of their wheelchair bound grandfather Jason Rocket (Ray Milland), a stubborn southern man. 

Soon after the creatures of the bayou seemingly begin to rise up against humanity, beginning with a deadly snakebite in the swamp.  In very short order the birds, rattlesnakes, tarantulas, alligators, snapping turtles and frogs are hunting the humans. The movie is a classic example of '70s slow-burn cinema from start to finish, deliberately paced with some decent tension and creepiness punctuated by a few death scenes involving swampy critters with an attitude.  

Sam Elliot's Pickett Smith is the voice of reason among the humans, but for the most part his warnings to vacate the island fall on deaf ears, particularly the patriarch Jason Crockett who is one grade a stubborn son of a bitch. The kills sequences are fun with some cool shots of frogs gathering in great numbers outside the family mansion, which is sort of creepy but only to a point. There are venomous snakes hanging from trees, and a pretty cool scene of tarantulas descending from the mossy canopy onto a victim who has immobilized himself with a shotgun blast to the leg, while it's not quite up to par with that one scene in Lucio Fulci's The Beyond is is creepy. 

I just happen to enjoy a good slow-burn and creature features, but this one is pretty damn slow with most of the scenes of animals stalking their prey just clips of snakes or spiders spliced into a scene separate from the victim, which hurts it, but there's no denying the building sense of dread and creepiness of this one, but it never quite pans out in the end. While I didn't care for it much as a youth it has grown on me quite a bit, but I can see how many would rather watch paint dry, it's slow. 

The disc from Scream Factory looks good, a definite step up over the MGM DVD from a few years back with improved depth and clarity, skin tones are accurate, but some compression issues take away from the overall score, not too shabby, but not a stunner. The English LPCM 2.0 audio  is clean and well-balanced, again not a stunner, but probably true to the source material and free of distortion, optional English subtitles are provided. 

Special features include a 10-minute interview with star Joan Van Ark who is candid about the film, her love of the director and he obvious pleasure of working alongside Sam Elliot. Funnily she mentions that she is often mistaken for co star Lynn Borden, and is often presented photos of Borden to sign. Other extras include a trailer, a radio spot and a photo gallery. 

Special Features
- New Interview With Actress Joan Van Ark (10 Mins) 
- Radio Spot (1 Min) 
- Photo Gallery (3 Mins) 
- Theatrical Trailer (2 Mins) 

I am loving these Scream Factory double features which seem to be carrying on the b-movie tradition of the classic MGM Midnite Movies double-features, they're not all golden nuggets of cult-cinema but they are certainly entertaining slices of b-movie cinema and I am happy to see them being preserved in HD. The Food of the Gods is the clear winner of this double feature, director Bert I. Gordon mad quite a few entertaining movies and this is one of his best he made. Both films have decent PQ and we get some new interviews and an audio commentary on top of that, for the right price this is a fun double-feature of angry and over sized critters. *** 3/5