ARROW VIDEO SUMMER TITLES: SISTERS, THE 'BURBS, VINCENT PRICE, PORKY'S AND MORE!

UK distributor Arrow Video have quite a summer line-up so far beginning with a Blu-ray release of Brian De Palma's seminal psycho-thriller SISTERS (1973) starring Margot Kiddo. The label has been illing it with a long string of De Palma releases this past year and I am pleased to see this streak continue. Vncent Price also continues to get the deluxe treatment with Blu-rays of THEATRE OF BLOOD (1973), THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM (1961) and both of the classic DR. PHIBES films on a 2-disc set. Scream Factory released a sweet 4-disc Vincent Price Collection last year on Blu-ray but this is a first-time on Blu-ray release for PHIBES sequel and my favorite price feature THEATRE OF BLOOD!

Then we have the eighties actioner DELTA FORCE (1986) with bad-asses Chick Norris and Lee Marvin, Philip Mora's creature feature THE BEAST WITHIN (1982) and comedy cult-classics PORKY's (1982) and THE 'BURBS (1986) - many of these are also available as Steelbook editions!

Checkout the artwork, extras and pre-orders below. Which is your most anticipated Arrow Video titles of the Summer? 

SISTERS (1973) 

Release Date: April 28th  2014
Format: Dual Format Blu-ray + DVD
Starring: Margot Kidder, Jennifer Salt, Charles Durning
Directed by: Brian De Palma

Synopsis: WHAT THE DEVIL HATH JOINED TOGETHER LET NO MAN CUT ASUNDER!

Before 1973, Brian De Palma was impossible to pigeonhole: he made comedies, political satires and openly experimental pieces. But with Sisters (originally released as Blood Sisters in the UK) he turned to the suspense thriller and discovered his natural home - and a style that would lead directly to later masterpieces like Carrie, Dressed to Kill and Blow Out.

When Danielle (Margot Kidder) meets potential boyfriend Philip (Lisle Wilson) after appearing on the TV show Peeping Toms (a nod to the Michael Powell shocker), she invites him home, only to attract the ire of her twin sister Dominique. From across the courtyard, Rear Window style, reporter Grace (Jennifer Salt) witnesses Philip being murdered by one of the twins - but the police find no body or any physical evidence. Naturally, Grace takes things into her own hands, and discovers more about the sisters’ relationship than she bargained for…

Strongly influenced by Alfred Hitchcock and Roman Polanski, and with a score by the great Bernard Herrmann (Citizen Kane, Psycho), Sisters was the first true “Brian De Palma” film.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Brand new High Definition digital transfer
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentation
- Original Mono audio (uncompressed PCM on the Blu-ray)
- What the Devil Hath Joined Together: Brian De Palma’s Sisters – A visual essay by author Justin Humphreys
- All new interviews with co-writer Louisa Rose, actress Jennifer Salt, editor Paul Hirsch and unit manager Jeffrey Hayes
- The De Palma Digest – a film-by-film guide to the director’s career by critic Mike Sutton
- Archive audio interview with star William Finley (excerpt)
- Theatrical Trailer
- Gallery of Sisters promotional material from around the world
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by author Kier-La Janisse (House of Psychotic Women) as well as -Brian De Palma’s original 1973 Village Voice essay on working with composer Bernard Herrmann and a contemporary interview with De Palma on making Sisters, and the 1966 Life magazine article that inspired the film.

DETAILS: 

Region: B/2
Rating: 15
Cat No: FCD919
Duration: 93 mins
Language: English
Subtitles: English SDH
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Audio: Mono
Colour: Colour

THEATRE OF BLOOD (1973) 

Release Date: May 5th  2014
Format: Blu-ray
Starring: Vincent Price, Diana Rigg, Ian Hendry
Directed by: Douglas Hickox

Synopsis: VINCENT PRICE HAS RESERVED A SEAT FOR YOU IN THE “THEATRE OF BLOOD”

It’s never been tougher to be a critic than in THEATRE OF BLOOD, one of the greatest horror comedies of all time. Vincent Price gives a career best performance as Edward Lionhart, a veteran Shakespearean actor who, when passed over for the coveted Critic’s Circle award for Best Actor takes deadly revenge on the critics who snubbed him.

With one of the greatest ensemble casts ever assembled for a horror film including Diana Rigg, Harry Andrews, Jack Hawkins and Arthur Lowe, THEATRE OF BLOOD is an dementedly funny and deliciously macabre cult classic.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Limited Edition SteelBook packaging
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the feature, transferred from original film elements by MGM
- Original uncompressed mono PCM audio
- Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio commentary with The League of Gentlemen, Jeremy Dyson, Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith
- A Priceless Potboiler: Victoria Price discusses Theatre of Blood
- A Fearful Thespian: an interview with David Del Valle
- Staged Reaction: an interview with star Madeleine Smith
- A Harmony for Horror: an interview with composer Michael J. Lewis
-Original Trailer
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by film critic Cleaver Patterson and a reproduction of original press book material, illustrated with original archive stills

DETAILS:
Region: B
Rating: 15
Duration: 104 mins
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Audio: Mono

THE DELTA FORCE (1986) 

Release Date: May 5th 2014
Format: Blu-ray
Starring: Chuck Norris, Lee Marvin, Martin Balsam
Directed by: Menahem Golan

Synopsis: THE HIJACK....THE ORDEAL....THE RESCUE..

.
Cannon Films are known for producing some of the most enjoyable and eccentric action flicks of the ’80s – but The Delta Force, which boasts scenes of Chuck Norris flying through the air on a missile-mounted motorbike, surely stands as one of their most entertaining efforts.

American Travel Ways Flight 282 has been hijacked by a group of terrorists claiming to represent the New World Revolutionary Organisation. The Delta Force, under the leadership of Captain Scott McCoy (Chuck Norris), is called in to handle the situation. Still smarting from an ill-fated hostage rescue mission several years prior, this elite squad of special forces are determined to succeed in their mission this time – and assert the might of the American military once and for all.

Drawing on a number of true-life terrorist incidents for inspiration, most notably the 1985 hijacking of TWA Flight 847, The Delta Force is a non-stop thrill ride which culminates in one of the most explosive action flick finales of all time. With Chuck Norris on hand to provide the muscle and gravelly-voiced Lee Marvin (The Killers) in his last ever screen role, The Delta Force is one mission you can’t afford not to accept.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the feature, transferred from original film elements by MGM<
- Original uncompressed 2.0 PCM stereo Audio
- Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Genre Hijackers: Mark Hartley on Cannon Films – The filmmaker discusses the explosive legacy of Golan and Globus
- Chuck Norris Scribe: An Interview with writer James Bruner
- May The Delta Force Be With You! - An interview with Commandant Christian Prouteau, founder of the French GIGN and instructor of the first Delta Force
- Original Theatrical Trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by author John Kenneth Muir and a contemporary article on Cannon Films, illustrated with original archive stills and posters

DETAILS: 

Region: B
Rating: 15
Cat No: FCD921
Duration: 129 mins
Language: English
Subtitles: English SDH
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audio: 2.0 PCM Stereo
Colour: Colour

THE BEAST WITHIN (1982) 

Release Date: May 12th 2014
Format: Dual Format Blu-ray + DVD
Starring: Ronny Cox, Bibi Besch, Paul Clemens
Directed by: Philippe Mora

Synopsis: KILL ME, PLEASE KILL ME… BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE
Late one full moonlit night, a woman stands alone on the roadside waiting for her husband to return to their broken-down car. All of a sudden she’s pounced upon, dragged into the dark woods and savaged by a barely-glimpsed assailant. But this is only the beginning of the terror in The Beast Within…

Seventeen years on, and the devoted parents of teenager Michael are at their wits’ end. Their son lies in a hospital bed, his body wracked by a mysterious illness. With doctors unable to offer any diagnosis, Michael’s desperate parents are forced to seek out the answer themselves – by digging up traumatic past events and confronting the true nature of their son’s conception.

The Beast Within stands apart from other creature features due to its decidedly grim tone – the scenes in which the monster violates his victims proved too strong for some critics – and standout transformation sequence to rival the likes of An American Werewolf in London and The Howling. Add to that strong lead performances from Paul Clemens and Ronny Cox (Deliverance, RoboCop), alongside a stunning score by the late, great Les Baxter, and you have yourself one absolute beast of a monster movie!

DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS:
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentation of the feature, transferred from original film elements by MGM - available uncut in the UK for the first time!
- Original stereo 2.0 audio (uncompressed PCM on the Blu-ray) 
- Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing 
- New audio commentary with director Philippe Mora moderated by author Calum Waddell 
- I Was a Teenage Cicada: The Making of The Beast Within - An in-depth look back at Philippe Mora’s creature feature classic featuring new interviews with writer Tom Holland, actors Paul Clemens, John Dennis Johnston, Katherine Moffat and effects wizard Garry Elmendorf 
- Storyboarding The Beast – An all-new animated featurette in which Philippe Mora discusses the film’s journey from storyboard to screen 
- Image Gallery – Including rare production stills from the private collection of star Paul Clemens plus new photographs of various special effects props 
- Original Trailer 
- Reversible sleeve with original and newly commissioned artwork by Marc Schoenbach 
- Collector’s Booklet featuring new writing on the film by Lee Gambin, author of Massacred by Mother Nature: Exploring the Natural Horror Film plus a contemporary article on the film’s production, all illustrated with original stills and artwork.

Region: 2/B
Rating: 18
Cat No: FCD922
Duration: 98 mins
Language: English
Subtitles: English SDH
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Audio: Stereo 2.0
Colour: Colour

THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM (1961) 

Release Date: May19th  2014
Format: Blu-ray
Starring: Vincent Price, Barbara Steele, John Kerr
Directed by: Roger Corman

Synopsis: THE GREATEST TERROR TALE EVER TOLD!

A horse-drawn carriage pulls up on a deserted beach. A sombre figure dismounts and gazes up towards his destination – a foreboding cliff-top castle perched high above the crashing waves. Thus the perfect Gothic scene is set for Pit and the Pendulum, the second of Roger Corman’s celebrated Poe adaptations once again starring the ever-reliable Vincent Price (The Fall of the House of Usher, Theatre of Blood) alongside the bewitching Barbara Steele (Black Sunday).

Having learned of the sudden death of his sister Elizabeth (Steele), Francis Barnard (John Kerr) sets out to the castle of his brother-in-law, Nicholas Medina, to uncover the cause of her untimely demise. A distraught, grief-stricken Nicholas (Price) can offer only the vaguest explanations as to Elizabeth’s death – at first citing “something in her blood”, but later asserting that she quite literally “died of fright”. What sort of unspeakable horrors are buried within the walls of this castle that could cause one’s heart to stop so? With Francis determined to get to the bottom of this mystery, the terrible truth will not stay buried for long.

Right from its brooding kaleidoscopic opening titles, Pit and Pendulum draws you into its world of cobwebs, secret passageways and dusty suits of armour. All the necessary elements are present and correct and, along with one of Vincent Price’s most tortured performances, make Pit and the Pendulum every inch the Gothic masterpiece.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the feature, transferred from original film elements by MGM
- Original uncompressed Mono PCM Audio
- Optional Isolated Music and Effects Track
- Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio commentary with director and producer Roger Corman
- Audio commentary by critic Tim Lucas
- Behind the Swinging Blade – A new documentary on the making of The Pit and the Pendulum featuring Roger Corman, star Barbara Steele, Vincent Price’s daughter Victoria Price and more!
- Added TV Sequence – Shot in 1968 to pad out the film for the longer TV time slot, this scene features star Luana Anders
- An Evening of Edgar Allan Poe with Vincent Price [52 mins] – Price reads a selection of Poe’s classic stories before a live audience, including The Tell-Tale Heart, The Sphinx, The Cask of Amontillado and The Pit and the Pendulum (with optional English SDH)
- Original Trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Gothic Horror author Jonathan Rigby, illustrated with original archive stills and posters

DETAILS: 
Region: B
Rating: 12
Duration: 81
Language: English
Subtitles: English SDH
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Audio: Mono PCM
Colour: Colour

PORKY'S (1982) 

Release Date: May 26th 2014
Format: Blu-ray
Starring: Dan Monahan, Mark Herrier, Wyatt Knight
Directed by: Bob Clark

Synopsis: YOU’LL BE GLAD YOU CAME!

Long before American Pie and Superbad came the original and best sex comedy. A firm favourite of teen movie fans, Porky’s introduced audiences to Kim Cattrall (Police Academy, Big Trouble in Little China) and made an absolute killing at the box-office.

It’s 1954 and the sex-obsessed boys of Angel Beach High School are looking to get laid. Porky’s is their destination, local nightclub and whorehouse. Only its redneck owner has other plans, as does his sheriff brother. Will Meat, Mickey, Tommy and the other guys in the gang get their own back? And will the barely-endowed Pee Wee finally lose his virginity?

Having established his credentials as one of Canada’s top horror filmmakers with the likes of Black Christmas and Dead of Night, Bob Clark took an unexpected turn into the world of the teenage sex comedy and inadvertently made the most successful Canadian motion picture of all time, an honor it still holds today.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Limited Edition SteelBook packaging
- New High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

DETAILS:
Region: B

THE COMPLETE DR. PHIBES (1971-1972) 

Release Date: June 9th 2014

Synopsis: “Nine killed her, nine shall die, nine eternities in doom!”

Horror legend Vincent Price (The Fall of the House of Usher, Theatre of Blood) is Dr. Phibes, former musician, current murderer. Seeking revenge from the medical staff that left his wife for dead, he sets about knocking them off one-by-one in a series of elaborate murders based upon a Ten Plagues of Egypt. Death by bats, by boils, by blood and more await the nurse and surgeons who failed to save the life of the beloved Victoria Regina Phibes!

A camp classic, The Abominable Dr. Phibes sets itself apart from the seventies horror crowd with its knowing humour and art deco sets, and also prefigures the Saw movies with its increasingly fiendish set of murder devices.

Pairing the original film with sequel Dr. Phibes Rises Again, The Complete Dr. Phibes provides viewers with a double diabolical dose of macabre thrills and black comedy.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- New High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Deluxe Edition Collector’s box featuring original artwork
- 100-page Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

DETAILS:
Region: B

THE 'BURBS (1989) 

Release Date: June 23rd 2014
Format: Blu-ray
Starring: Tom Hanks, Bruce Dern, Carrie Fisher
Directed by: Joe Dante

Synopsis: HE’S A MAN OF PEACE IN A SAVAGE LAND… SUBURBIA.

The films of director Joe Dante have taken us to some strange places – a mysterious Chinatown antique store in Gremlins; a secluded resort populated by werewolves in The Howling; even deep inside the human body in Innerspace. But now he takes us to the strangest place of all – surburbia!

Family man Ray Peterson (Tom Hanks) is looking forward to a week of putting his feet up at

home in the quiet, leafy cul-de-sac of Mayfield Place. But his plans are scuppered by the arrival of new next-door neighbours, The Klopeks, whose behaviour and habits are more than just a little kooky. But things go from kooky to downright sinister when local old boy Walter disappears, leading Ray and his buddies to suspect their new neighbours of killing and eating him! Sure, the Klopeks are a strange bunch what with their digging up the backyard in the middle of the night – but they’re not devil-worshipping cannibal killers… are they?

If you’re looking for a knowing slice of tongue-in-cheek terror then look no further than The ’Burbs. A standout horror comedy from a director who has given us more than his fair share of fun frighteners, The ’Burbs assembles a superb cast including Tom Hanks, Bruce Dern, Carrie Fisher and Corey Feldman in a tall tale of small-town terror. You’ll never look at those eccentric neighbours in the same way again!

SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Limited Edition SteelBook packaging
- New High Definition digital transfer
- Newly created exclusive content
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film, archive content and more!
- More to be announced closer to the release date

DETAILS:
Region B

Blu-ray Review: THE KILLERS (1964)

THE KILLERS (1964) 

Label: Arrow Films

Region Code: B
Rating: 18 Certificate
Duration: 95 Minutes
Audio: English 2.0 LPCM Mono with Optional English  SDH Subtitles 
Video: 1080p  Fullscreen (1.33:1) and Widescreen (1.85:1)
Cast: Lee Marvin, Angie Dickinson, John Cassavetes, Clu Gulager, Claude Akins, Norman Fell, Ronald Reagan
Director: Don Siegel

A pair of hired guns walk into a school for the deaf and blind and rough-up the receptionist before walking into a classroom and gunning down the shop teacher Johnny North (John Cassavetes, Rosemary's Baby) in a spray of gunfire. Afterward the hitmen Charlie (Lee Marvin, The Big Red One) Lee (Clu Gulager, Vic) reflect on the lucrative job and begin to wonder about the peculiarities of the hit. Why did it pay so well and why did Johnny not even attempt to run - it just seems a bit odd.  The assassins decide there must be more to it and set about to uncover what turns out to be a twisted web deceit involving mob boss Jack Browning (Ronald Reagan) and his double-crossing dame Sheila (Angie Dickinson, Dressed To Kill) plus a million dollars in cold cash from a heist.

Directed by Don Siegel (Invasion of the Body Snatchers) The Killers is a gritty noir-styled thriller starring the bad-ass Lee Marvin as a stone-cold assassin joined by his younger partner played by b-movie legend Clu Gulager (Return of the Living Dead). Marvin is his usual tough as nails self while Gulager is fun as the health-obsessed scene stealer. They're a great duo and watching them it's not hard to image Quentin Tarantino watching this and dreaming up Vincent and Jules from Pulp Fiction. It was a blast to see ex-president Ronald Reagan as a women-slapping baddie here in his last onscreen role before entering politics and Angie Dickinson as his double-crossing dame is pretty cute. Add John Cassevetes to any production and he just classes it up, we get nothing less with race car driver Johnny North, a skilled driver who falls for the wrong girl and winds-up in an awful mess. 

Aside from the leads we have a few side characters along for the ride, there's Johnny's longtime mechanic (Claude Akins, Rio Bravo) and mobster Mickey Farmer played by character actor Norman Fell (Bullitt)  whom I mostly associate as Mr. Roper from TV sitcom Three's Company. Mickey is memorably interrogated by the pair of assassins while taking a sphitz at the health club. A great watch with a strong cast of characters and performers, hard to believe this was filmed as a TV movie, some of the violence is pretty shocking even today. 

Blu-ray: The Killers (1964) looks gorgeous in 1080 from Arrow Video with a new HD transfer courtesy of Universal Pictures. We have the option of viewing the film in it's original TV aspect ratio or the cinematic widescreen (1.85:1) option. The television version offers more image on both the top and bottom as it was cropped for projection in the theaters, originally filmed as the first-ever made-for-TV film it eventually ended up in cinema when it proved to be too violent for prime time. A nice layer of film grain with some fine texturing, the colors are strong and black levels are decent. We can see some very minor print damage but this is a very pleasant HD presentation. 

Audio chores are handled by an English 2.0 LPCM Mono track with Optional English  SDH Subtitles. The mono presentation is pretty flat but the very cool score provided by Henry Mancini and John Williams sounds just great, a wonderful brassy score with a lot of bongo drums. 

A nice selection of extras from Arrow including an interview with New York Times bestselling writer Marc Eliot, author of ‘Ronald Reagan: The Hollywood Years who  talks about Reagan the actor and his place in Hollywood and how the ex-President felt about playing a baddie in his last onscreen role. I thoroughly enjoyed the interview with Dwayne Epstein, author of ‘Lee Marvin: Point Blank’ who speaks about  Marvin's time on set and his place in Hollywood during the filming plus some great anecdotes about pranks he pulled and his consumption of vodka on set. The last of a trio of video extras is a vintage interview with the director from 1984 discussing his style of film making. Lastly we have a 40 pg. booklet, reversible artwork and a gallery of rare behind-the-scenes images. 

A nice set of interviews that give some interesting insights into the making of the film - surprised there wasn't an interview with co-star Clu Gulager or Angie Dickinson - would have greatly appreciated input from actors who are still alive and kicking.This is a region-B locked Blu-ray. 

Special Features:
- Reagan Kills: interview with New York Times bestselling writer Marc Eliot, author of ‘Ronald Reagan: The Hollywood Years’ (20:45)
- Screen Killer: interview with Dwayne Epstein, author of ‘Lee Marvin: Point Blank’ (30:45)
- Archive interview with Don Siegel (1984) from the French television series ‘Cinéma Cinémas’ (10:36)
- Gallery of rare behind-the-scenes images
- Reversible sleeve featuring the original poster and new artwork by Nathanael Marsh
- 40 pg. Booklet featuring new writing on the film by Mike Sutton, extracts from Don Siegel’s autobiography and contemporary reviews, illustrated with original lobby cards

Verdict: The Killers (1964) is a top notch noir-styled thriller with a great cast that moves along

swiftly with some hard-boiled crime elements, plenty of double-crossing and great shocker of an ending. Worth a watch and glad to finally get this one under my belt, an unexpected treat. 3.5 Outta 5 

ARROW VIDEO 2014 Titles Announced with Artwork, Extras and Pre-Orders!

 RABID DOGS (1974) 

DUAL FORMAT DVD+BLU-RAY 

Release Date: February 24th 2014

Starring: Lea Lander, George Eastman, Riccardo Cucciolla
Directed by: Mario Bava

Duration: 96

Following difficulties in his career Mario Bava happened across an idea that would enable him to compete with the younger directors lighting up the Italian box office such as Dario Argento and Sergio Martino.

Rabid Dogs begins as $70,000 of wages are being transferred when the Ajaccio gang hit. With a hail of bullets in a quick raid they speed off in their waiting getaway car. Tough, violent and realistic, Bava’s film ramps up the tension and doesn’t stop as hostages are added and the film builds to its dizzying finale.

Unfolding in real time, a rare device seen only in earlier films such as High Noon and 12 Angry Men yet totally unheard of in Italian cinema at the time, Rabid Dogs is a singular film in Bava’s filmography and one of the greatest crime films of the period.

SPECIAL 3-DISC EDITION FEATURES:
-High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentation of two versions of the film; ‘Rabid Dogs’ – Bava’s original version posthumously completed from his notes & ‘Kidnapped’ – the re-edited, re-dubbed and re-scored version, supervised by Bava’s son and assistant Lamberto Bava and producer Alfredo Leone
-Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing on both versions
-Audio Commentary with Bava biographer and expert Tim Lucas
-End of the Road: The Making of Rabid Dogs – A documentary featurette including interviews with Lamberto Bava, Alfredo Leone and star Lea Lander
-Original Trailer
-Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Stephen Thrower, a history of the multiple versions of the film from Semaforo Rosso to Rabid Dogs to Kidnapped by Peter Blumenstock, illustrated with original stills and posters
-Much more to be announced!

 BLIND WOMAN'S CURSE (1970) 

DUAL FORMAT DVD+BLU-RAY

Release Date: March 17th 2014

From Teruo Ishii “The King of Cult”, Blind Woman’s Curse (also known as Black Cat’s Revenge) is a thrilling Yakuza film featuring eye-popping visuals, thrilling samurai fight sequences and thegorgeous Meiko Kaji (Lady Snowblood, Stray Cat Rock), in her first major role.

Akemi (Kaji) is a dragon tattooed leader of the Tachibana Yakuza clan. In a duel with a rival gang Akemi slashes the eyes of an opponent and a black cat appears, to lap the blood from the gushing wound. The cat along with the eye-victim go on to pursue Akemi’s gang in revenge, leaving a trail of dead Yakuza girls, their dragon tattoos skinned from their bodies.

A bizarre blend of the female Yakuza film and traditional Japanese ghost story, with a strong dash of grotesque-erotica (the same movement was a sensibility of Edogawa Rampo whose works were adapted by Ishii in Horrors of Malformed Men), Blind Woman’s Curse is a delirious mash-up of classic genre tropes, to which Ishii was no stranger having directed everything from Super Giant films to Biker movies!

Special Features:
-New high definition digital transfer
-Newly commissioned artwork
-Collector’s booklet
-More to be announced!

Region 2/B
RRP £19.99

 PIT STOP (1969) 

DUAL FORMAT DVD+BLU-RAY

Release Date: March 31st 2014

RAW GUTS FOR GLORY! FLESH AGAINST STEEL!

The most dangerous game ever devised, to pit man against man, flesh against steel – the figure-8 race! Jack Hill (Coffy, Foxy Brown) follows up Spider Baby, once again teaming up with Sid Haig (House of 1000 Corpses) in one of his greatest roles for this action-spectacular crash-o-rama!

Richard Davalos (East of Eden) stars as Rick Bowman, a street punk who winds up in jail after a street race goes wrong. Bailed out by race promoter Grant Willard, Davalos is put in the deadly track where he comes up against Haig’s maniacal winner Hawk Sidney. Featuring an outstanding supporting cast including Brian Donlevy (The Quatermass Xperiment) in his last film appearance, Ellen Burstyn, billed as Ellen McRae (The Exorcist) and Beverly Washburn (Spider Baby) Pit Stop is one of Hill’s lesser known films but arguably his greatest.

Filmed on a real figure-8 track, Hill and his crew were able to capture gripping real-life car wreck scenes lending the film a brilliant sense of realism. You’ve never seen a motion picture like this before – can you take it?

Special Features:
-New high definition digital transfer
-Newly commissioned artwork
-Collector’s booklet
-More to be announced!

Region B/2
RRP £24.99

 FRIVOLOUS LOLA (1998) 

DUAL FORMAT DVD+BLU-RAY 

Release Date: February 10th 2014

One of the sunniest of Tinto Brass’s erotic comedies, this sets its breezy tone from the opening scene in which Lola (Anna Ammirati) cycles around a small Po Valley town in a flapping skirt that leaves nothing to the imagination.

But it’s the 1950s, and her baker fiancée Masetto (Max Parodi) is determined that Lola remains a virgin until their wedding night. However, she is equally set on establishing whether or not he’s a good lover before they tie the knot. His dough-kneading technique seems promising, but how can she be sure without an expert to compare him with? In short, can Masetto live up to the erotic ideals professed by Lola’s mother’s lover (Patrick Mower)?

Fortunately, the outwardly innocent town turns out to be a hotbed of licentiousness, with opportunities for voyeurism and maybe more around every corner - all in the interests of self-improving research, of course.

Special Features:
-New high definition digital transfer
-Newly commissioned artwork
-Collector’s booklet
-More to be announced!

Region B/2
RRP £19.99

 HELL COMES TO FROGTOWN (1988) 

DUAL FORMAT DVD+BLU-RAY

Release Date: January 27th 2014

With the 20th Century drawing to a close, nuclear war has wiped out civilization as we know it. The embattled human race’s last remaining hope lies with one man and his loaded weapon.

Sam Hell may be an ex-con, but he also happens to be one of the last surviving fertile men on the planet. Now, under the custody of a group of feisty female fighters, Sam finds himself enlisted on a mission to impregnate a harem of beauties. Sounds cushy enough, but the ladies in question are prisoners of Frogtown – home to a gang of mutant (and ill-mannered) amphibians!

Starring wrestler-turned-actor Rowdy Roddy Piper, known to John Carpenter enthusiasts for his body-slamming and bubblegum-chewing antics in They Live, Hell Comes to Frogtown is unashamedly a B-movie through and through with more guns and girls than you can shake a frog’s leg at.

Special Features:
-High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentation
-Grappling with Green Gargantuans: Wrestling icon "Rowdy" Roddy Piper speaks about his leading man turn in Hell Comes to Frogtown
-Amphibian Armageddon: Actor Brian Frank remembers his role as Commander Toty
-Creature Feature Creator: Effects wizard Steve Wang reveals the secrets behind Hell Comes to Frogtown's mutant manifestations
-Reversible sleeve with original and newly commissioned artwork by Jeff Zornow
-Original Trailer
-Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by author and critic Calum Waddell

Region 2/B
rrp £19.99

 SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS (1951) BLU-RAY

Release Date: March 10th 2014

VERONICA LAKE’S ON THE TAKE

Director John L. Sullivan (Joel McCrea) is one of Hollywood’s hottest talents, with an uncanny gift for getting audiences rolling in the aisles. But he’s dissatisfied: he wants to abandon comedy for Serious Statements, and buys the rights to celebrated social-realist novel ‘O Brother, Where Art Thou?’

To make his masterpiece as realistic as possible, Sullivan naturally has to understand how the book’s downtrodden characters must have felt, so he takes to the road as a hobo, is taken under the wing of a failed actress (Veronica Lake), and learns several valuable home truths about the importance of not patronising his audience.

Writer-director Preston Sturges had an inspired run in the 1940s, turning out some of the funniest American comedies ever made (The Lady Eve, The Palm Beach Story, The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek). Sullivan’s Travels is one of his best: not just hilarious but also truly wise.

Special Features:
-New high definition digital transfer
-Newly commissioned artwork
-Collector’s booklet
-More to be announced!

Region B
RRP £24.99

 PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE (1974) BLU-RAY

Release Date: February 17th 2014

Brian De Palma’s inspired rock’n’roll fusion of Faust, The Phantom of the Opera and The Picture of Dorian Gray boasts an Oscar-nominated score by Paul Williams, who also stars as an evil record producer who not only steals the work of composer/performer Winslow Leach (William Finley) but gets him locked up in Sing Sing - and that’s not the worst that happens to him along the way.

Few revenge scenarios have ever been so amply justified, but the film is also constantly aware of the satirical possibilities offered by the 1970s music industry, exemplified by Gerrit Graham’s hilariously camp glam-rock star. Jessica Harper (Suspiria) appears in her first major role as the naïve but ambitious singer, on whom Winslow secretly dotes.

Prodigiously inventive both musically and visually, this is one of De Palma’s most entertaining romps, not least because it was so clearly a labour of love.

Special Features:
-New high definition digital transfer
-Newly commissioned artwork
-Collector’s booklet
-More to be announced!

Region B
RRP £24.99

WHITE OF THE EYE (1987) 

DUAL FORMAT BLU-RAY+DVD

Release Date: March 24th 2014

THE ONLY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A HUNTER AND A KILLER …IS HIS PREY

A serial killer is on the loose in and around the small community of Globe, Arizona, and housewife Joan White (Cathy Moriarty) gradually comes to suspect that her opera-loving hi-fi engineer husband Paul (David Keith) might know more than he’s letting on...

So far so familiar, but in the hands of British visionary Donald Cammell (who wrote and co-directed Performance with Nicolas Roeg), the film becomes a dazzling kaleidoscope of images and ideas, spanning everything from Apache folklore, desert landscapes and stylish murder set-pieces that recall Dario Argento to a painfully vivid dissection of the emotional fissures undermining a modern marriage. It’s all set to an equally eclectic score co-written by Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason.

Described by the distinguished critic David Thomson as "one of the great secret works in cinema", White of the Eye is one of the most bizarre and unforgettable thrillers ever made.

Special Features:
-New high definition digital transfer
-Newly commissioned artwork
-Collector’s booklet
-More to be announced!

Region 2/B
RRP £24.99

 HELLGATE (1990) 

DUAL FORMAT DVD+BLU-RAY 

Release Date: January 27th 2014

BEYOND THE DARKNESS TERROR LIVES FOREVER

Legends abound of ‘The Hellgate Hitchhiker’. So the story goes, a beautiful young woman was once brutally defiled and murdered by a biker gang. Now, returned from the dead, she wanders the roadside luring unsuspecting motorists to their doom…

Refusing to heed the warnings of locals, a group of college friends set out on a cross-country road trip looking for fun and frolics. But they get much more than they bargained for when they wind up in the abandoned mining town of Hellgate and hemmed in by hordes of the undead!

Providing gore and gags in equal measure, Hellgate recalls the good old days of early 90s fright flicks and challenges other gleefully twisted flicks such as Re-animator and Return of the Living Dead for sheer grisly delirium!

Special Features:
-High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentation of the main feature
-Road to Perdition, B-Movie Style: An extensive interview with Hellgate director William A. Levey
-Alien Invasion, Blaxploitation and Ghost-Busting Mayhem: Scholar, Filmmaker and fan Howard S. Berger reflects on the intriguing film career of William A. Levey
-Video Nasty: Kenneth Hall, writer of the Puppet Master series, speaks about the direct-to-video horror boom that allowed Hellgate to become a classic of the cassette rental era
-Reversible sleeve with original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
-Collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Lee Gambin, illustrated with original artwork and stills

Region 2/B
RRP £19.99

 CHEEKY (2000)

DUAL FORMAT DVD+ BLU-RAY

Release Date: March 10th 2013

When free-spirited beauty Carla (Yuliya Mayarchuk) moves to London, her search for a flat leads to a lesbian seduction by estate agent Moira (Francesca Nunzi), much to the horror of Carla’s boyfriend Matteo (Jarno Berardi) still stuck in their native Venice. And then he discovers a cache of letters from an ex-boyfriend, accompanied by a highly revealing and very public photograph of her...

Ravishingly shot in two of the world’s great cities, bouncily scored by Pino Donaggio, and crammed with wall-to-wall nudity and casual sexual flings, Cheeky is as lighthearted as its title suggests, but it’s subtler and more philosophical than the average sex romp.

In particular, it’s a genuinely moving look at problems arising when a desire to remain scrupulously faithful collides with the lure of baser instincts. Carla genuinely loves Matteo, but how can she reassure him when he spots temptation around every corner?

Special Features:
-New high definition digital transfer
-Newly commissioned artwork
-Collector’s booklet
-More to be announced!

Region B/2
RRP £19.99

THE STUFF (1985) 

BLU-RAY+ DVD

Starring: Michael Moriarty, Andrea Marcovicci, Garrett Morris
Directed by: Larry Cohen
Rating: 15

Overview: Are you eating it ...or is it eating you?

The Stuff is the new dessert taking supermarket shelves by storm. It’s delicious, low in calories and – better still – doesn’t stain the family carpet… What’s not to like?! Well, for a start it has a life of its own, and we’re not talking friendly live bacteria…

Young Jason seems to be the only one who doesn’t love The Stuff – in fact he won’t go anywhere near it, after having seen the pudding crawling around the fridge one night. What’s more, everyone who eats The Stuff has started acting really weird... Now, teaming up with wise-cracking industrial saboteur “Mo”, Jason must put a stop to The Stuff and the organisation behind it or face a gooey, gloopy demise.

Coming courtesy of horror auteur Larry Cohen (director of the It’s Alive series and scribe behind the Maniac Cop trilogy), The Stuff is a titillating treat for the taste-buds which blends elements of films such as Street Trash with the straight-up B-movie flavour of The Blob. So grab a spoon and dig on into The Stuff – the taste that delivers… much more than you bargained for!

Special Features:
-New high definition digital transfer
-Newly commissioned artwork
-Collector’s booklet
-More to be announced!

Region 2/B
RRP £24.99

THE KILLERS (1964) BLU-RAY

Release Date: February 24th 2014

THERE IS MORE THAN ONE WAY TO KILL A MAN…

"I gotta find out what makes a man decide not to run. Why all of a sudden he'd rather die."

So muses hitman Charlie (Lee Marvin) after his high-priced victim Johnny North (John Cassavetes) gives in without a fight. Obsessed with the answer, Charlie and his hot-headed associate Lee (Clu Gulager) track down Johnny's associates, and uncover a complex web of crime and deceit involving his femme fatale girlfriend Sheila (Angie Dickinson) and ruthless mob boss Jack Browning (Ronald Reagan in his last screen role).

Loosely inspired by the Ernest Hemingway story, and directed by Don Siegel (whose many other taut, efficient thrillers include Dirty Harry and the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers), The Killers was commissioned as the very first 'TV movie', but was given a cinema release because of its violence - although a cast like that really belonged on the big screen in the first place.

Special Features:
-New high definition digital transfer
-Newly commissioned artwork
-Collector’s booklet
-More to be announced!

Region B
RRP £24.99

Blu-ray Review: THE BIG HEAT (1953)

THE BIG HEAT (1953) 

Label: Twilight Time

Region: Region FREE

Rating: Unrated 

Duration: 90 mins

Video: 1080p Fullscreen (1.33:1)
Audio: English DTS-HD MA Mono with English SDH Subtitles 
Director: Fritz Lang 
Cast: Glenn Ford, Gloria Grahame, Jocelyn Brando, Alexander Scourby, Jeanette Nolan, Lee Marvin 
Tagline: "Somebody's Going to Pay...Because He Forgot to Kill Me..."

Synopsis: A dark masterpiece of film noir, pantheon director Fritz Lang’s excoriating The Big Heat (1953) takes an unflinching look at the endemic corruption of small-town America, pitting a tough cop against the forces of evil represented by a syndicate boss  and his all-too-obedient flunkies within the police force. Gloria Grahame co-stars, indelibly, as a gangster’s moll with a decent heart, exploited by both good guys and bad; and Lee Marvin makes a terrifying early appearance as a thug whose sharp clothes and fancy apartment do little to conceal his animalistic nature.

The Film: I've had the pleasure of viewing two of Fritz Lang's films the dark masterpiece of German expressionism Metropolis (1927) and the disturbing M (1931) which deals with a villages struggle to capture a child-killer, it's grim stuff with an amazing Peter Lorre performance. Otherwise I am largely naive about Lang's other works. Once again niche label Twilight Time DVD have opened my eyes to a classic bit of cinema that heretofore had escaped mine eyes, this time it's Fritz Lang's noir masterpiece The Big Heat (1953). 

When corrupt Kenport cop Tom Duncan blows his brains out at his home it's Sgt. Dave Bannion (Glenn Ford, Superman: The Movie) whom is called into investigate what appears to be a open and shut case of suicide. The seemingly grieving widow Bertha (Jeanette Nolan)  explains that his poor health may have lead to the tragedy but his mistress Lucy (Dorothy Green) casts doubt on that scenario - planting a seed of foul-play in the mind of the Sgt. There might be something to her suspicions too because the very next day Lucy's corpse is thrown from a car covered in cigarette burns and strangled. Lt. Wilks (Willis Bouchely) tells Bannion to drop the case which is out of his jurisdiction and to ease off  the widow too - the case is closed as far as he's concerned. This doesn't sit well with the justice-minded Sgt. and it soon becomes apparent that both Lt. Wilks and the Police Commissioner (Howard Wendell) are clearly having their strings pulled like puppets by wiseguy Mike Lagana (Alexander Scourby, The Stuff). Undeterred the Sgt. shows up at Lagan's home stirring up a hornet's nest of trouble which results in Lagana ordering a hit on Bannion. The hit claims the life of Bannion's beloved wife Katie (Joclyn Brando, Dark Night of the Scarecrow). The tragic loss of his wife further pushes the obsessed Sgt. to the breaking point, after resigning from the force the enraged, armed and grieving Bannion will stop at nothing to bring those responsible for his wife's death to justice - badge or no badge.  

Lee Marvin (The Big Red One) appears as Lagana's henchman Vince Stone, a sadistic brute of a man whom alongside conspirator Larry Gordon (Adam Williams, North by Northwest) carried-out the car-bombing that claimed Katie. Bannion makes the connection when Stone's sassy-mouthed boozer girlfriend Debbie (the fantastic Gloria Graham, Blood and Lace) betrays him after he throws a scalding hot pot of coffee into her face, disfiguring the mouthy dame.  She's a fiery, sharp-tongued presence who's smart-mouth makes for an amazing performance.

Glenn Ford is a true force of vengeance as a man driven by a sense of justice but who is quite willing to skirt the law as necessary. He's definitely an anti-hero who's colored in shades of grey - the man leaves a trail of dead women as collateral damage in his wake. Lee Marvin as the menacing Vince is quite an imposing figure who dishes out grotesque violence throughout the film - a truly despicable man.  While it must be said that the violence is implied rather than depicted it is nonetheless brutal and affecting - there's torture, mutilation and disfigurement - not pleasant stuff at all - this film has a definite sting to it. 

Blu-ray: Twilight Time's Blu-ray presents the film in gorgeous 1080p black and white in it's original 4:3 aspect ratio. Sourced from a pristine print it looks fantastic with great contrast. It's a sharp image with an appropriate amount of film grain and fine detail. The film lacks the classic deeply shadowed noir aesthetic but its a great looking image nonetheless. The English DTS-HD MA mono audio renders dialogue and score accurately. Overall another great presentation from Twilight Time. 

Special features include the signature isolated music score, a re-release trailer of the film and my favorite part of any Twilight Time presentation - Julie Kirgo's liner notes which never fail to enrich the viewing experience.

Special Features: 

- Isolated Score Track 

- Re-release Theatrical Trailer (1:43) 4:3
 -  8 pg. Booklet Featuring Extensive Julie Kirgo Liner Notes and Film Art

Verdict:  Fritz Lang's The Big Heat (1953) is a brutal and stinging noir thriller that holds up quite nicely and while it may not be shocker it surely once was it's still a mighty potent cocktail of sadism and corruption. As with all of Twilight Time's Blu-rays the release is a limited edition run of 3,000 - so get it while you can exclusively from http://www.screenarchives.com. 4 outta 5