Blu-ray Review: THE LOST FILMS OF HERSCHELL GORDON LEWIS (1969-1970)

THE LOST FILMS OF HERSCHELL GORDON LEWIS 
Blu-ray/DVD Combo

Label: Vinegar Syndrome

Region Code: Region FREE

Rating: Unrated

Duration: 92 Mins, 74 Mins, 74 Mins. 

Video: Fullframe (1.37:1) 

Audio: English Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono

Director: Herschell Gordon Lewis 
Cast: William Vickers, Walter Camp, Stuart Lancaster, Eleanor Riggs, James Brand, Dee Howard, Bonnie Clark, Antoinette Maynard, Vincene Wallace, Sharon Matt, Kip Marsh, Roxanne Jones, Tom Thorn

Synopsis: ‘The Lost Films of H.G. Lewis’ three previously thought lost sexploitation features from the acclaimed master of exploitation cinema. All three films have been restored in 2K from their original camera negatives and are being released on home video for the first time anywhere in the world!

Blu-ray, DVD, Collector's Booklet and 3 Lab Card Reproductions 

Here in my hands I hold the debut release from Vinegar Syndrome which contain the Holy Grail of "lost films" by the "Godfather of Gore" director Herschell Gordon Lewis.A trio of sexploitation films so genuinely rare and unseen that they were heretofore not even available on the dingiest of VHS trading circuits, no grey-market releases, nothing, they just were not available and considered "lost" in a very true sense of the word. That is until now, the forensic film archivalists at Vinegar Syndrome have somehow unearthed 'em, that's right, so as of today every film in the H.G. Lewis filmography is accounted for and given a proper home video release.

Now with that outta the way let me just admit to you upfront that I have never watched any of Herschell Gordon Lewis's films in my life before setting down to view these filthy films. I say this with  no small amount of shame. Yeah, I know who he is and of his films, but the closest I've come to sitting down for a watch is during John Waters' Serial Mom (1994) when Scotty is watching Blood Feast (1963), Waters film itself was a tribute to the likes of b-movie masters like Russ Meyers and Herschell Gordon Lewis so I'm just as surprised as you might be that I've just never got around to giving at least Blood Feast a watch. Go ahead and judge me, it's okay.

So, let's dig into Vinegar Syndrome's The Lost Films of Herschell Gordon Lewis and see if maybe it's gonna make me run out and watch 2000 Maniacs (1964), Blood Feast (1963) and The Wizard of Gore (1970) anytime soon to rectify this gap in my cinema studies...  

The first film is a sex-comedy called Ecstasies of Women (1969) which features young swinging cat named Harry (Walter Camp) at a go-go-titty bar in LA with his three friends Ted (William Vickers), Fred (James Brand) and Gene (Forman Shane), it's his last night on the town as a single man before he gets hitched in the morning and his friends are sending him off in style - or at least get him drunk in a roomful of titties, and that's alright, too. Young Harry is a lingerie salesman by day, and by night (and by day too) he's quite the ladies man, seemingly able to snatch pussy straight outta the air.

While at the titty bar surrounded by go-go dancing nudies Harry and his horny friends flirt with the super-cute waitresses as he reminisces through a series of dream/fantasy sequences about his may sexual conquests through the years, this was very Schoolgirl Report sorta set-up. Most of sexed-up action happens back at Harry's bachelor-pad houseboat, it's fun softcore stuff with lots of groping, moaning and awkward writhing onscreen. If you love natural titties, thick woven snatches, softcore sex and groovy go-go dancing you are in for quite a treat. If on top of that you adore stiff acting and deliciously campy dialogue this is gonna be a vintage slice of late 60's schlocky sexploitation. Harry comes across as a fun guy, not a slimeball at all, his banter with his guy pals is fun, these guys are pretty sure of themselves and considering the way Harry has with women it would be hard to argue with 'em. The heroes here are the women of the film, gorgeous top-shelf actresses every one of 'em.

Ecstasies of Women (1969) is pretty rough around the edges and in the center, too, but in the end it's goofy sex-comedy with more than a few good moments. Porky's (1982) it certainly is not but it is an entertaining romp with plenty of groping, moaning and desperate dry-humping. 

The next film is the sexed-up western Linda and Abeline (1969) which sets out to combines the "savagery of a classic Hollywood western with sequences of intense eroticism". Notably shot at the Spahn Ranch, the very place the Manson Family called home, the films is set in 1969, it's the American Old West and a pair of siblings Abilene (Sharon Matt) and Todd (Kip Marsh) are dealing with the quite recent loss of their parents. The two do their best to comfort each other during this time of sorrow but it's difficult, especially for the grieving Abilene. Speaking of taking it hard... one day Todd gets a peek at his sister skinny dipping down at the creek and the sight spurs an unnatural attraction and before you know it the horny siblings really start churning the butter! Oh yeah, that's right, we're talking about the love that dare not speaks it;s name. Wait, the film is called Linda and Abeline, so where the Hell is Linda? Okay, we're getting there, at some point along the way Todd gets a bit confused in the aftermath of their forbidden love, as you do, and runs off to town to shack up with a strumpet named Linda. While Todd's away Abilene becomes entangled with sleazy cowpoke by the name of Rawhide and when he treats her shitty Todd comes running back to Abilene, and that's when we get some Abilene on Linda action.

Linda and Abeline (1969) is a sexy Western that skirts controversy with it's taboo subject but is a pretty tame affair, case in point Todd does most of his dirty work with his dungarees on but we get do get some nice exploitative elements; incest, rape and some nifty girl-on-girl action. Sharon Matt is quite easy on the eyes, all in all fun stuff even if the cast doesn't quite bring the story to life. A fun low budget Western, for a cheapie period set sexploitation flick it's decent, not nearly as fun a Ecstasies of Women, it's missing the camp and it's about incest, but if you're craving low-budget Western sexploitation flick H.G. Lewis has got it covered.

Now onto the what I would consider the main attraction. The sex-doc BLACK LOVE (1971) is HG's only known hardcore sex film, shot under the name R.L. Smith. It's said the Lewis himself will not confirm he made the film which I love. A velvet-voiced narrator walks us though this "documentary", that's right this is no erotic sex film, Black Love is a “a study of an important aspect of the black experience.”, an examination of how Black folks go about their sex on...  not to be confused with a sex film... yeah fucking right! Boom, right from the start you get a close-up of some black cock with an even closer-up shot of some down n' nasty penetration. There can be no doubt about it, this is a genuine fuck film ever-so-thinly disguised an an educational documentary but don't you believe it for a moment. 

Given the exploitative subject at hand I was surprised that the shenanigans onscreen never went quite racist, but they're definitely weird, the vignettes within are bizarre to say the least, you just gotta love it. The images combined with our narrator dropping sweet nuggets like “He sees the vaginal opening of the woman, looking like some hallowed chamber” are worth the price of admission alone, great stuff. The film never once bordered on anything erotic despite the hardcore sex acts, the scenarios preposterous and would make for great group-viewings along the lines of say Reefer Madness (1938), it's sure to be a crowd pleaser that will elicit howls of laughter, a film that once you've seen it you cannot unsee it!

Blu-ray: Vinegar Syndrome have restored all three films in 2K from the original camera negatives, they are presented with an AVC encode in their original fullframe aspect ratio (1.37:1) in glorious 1080p HD. There are some minor instances of print but considering that these were lost films I think that they look outstanding, the 1080p image is fantastic with impressive fine detail, vibrant colors and decent black levels. Quite surprised and pleased with the level of quality that Vinegar Syndrome have afforded these films, these are stunning transfers. You'll definitely appreciate the depth and clarity of the image during the penetration shots in Black Love, it's an uncomfortable degree of fine detail. 

Main Menu 

In the sound department we do not get PCM, DTS-HD, no TrueHD audio option, which I think is just fine, trust me when I say none of these films would never benefit from a sonic upgrade, the English Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono audio suffices quite nicely. Dolby nicely handles the well-balanced effects, score and dialogue, it's a bit flat but were you expecting a surround mix with these titties... I mean titles? I particularly enjoyed the over-dubbed sex moans and grunting during the Ecstasies of Women. 

Disc extras are limited to trailers for each film, the one for Ecstasies of Women is awesome and features our main character Harry speaking to the audience about his many conquests. Be warned that the trailer for Linda and Abeline is pretty much a highlight reel for the film, so lest you be spoiled watch it after the film, not that you can really spoil it. We also get a 10 pg. booklet with liner notes by exploitation cinema nut Casey Scott that also includes information about the transfer. Worth noting, my edition had an error, the booklet was missing pages 2,3,8,9 and erroneously doubles a few of the other pages which means I only got half the notes which blows because they're quite interesting. Not an extra but worth mentioning are that the chapter stops are broken down into reels, very neat. This release also comes with three Lab Card reproductions, one for each films, it's yet another nice touch, like the chapter stops. For your pleasure the release also comes with a standard-definition DVD featuring the same films and special features. 

Chapter Reels for Black LOve (1970)

Verdict: So, did the content of The Lost Films of Herschell Gordon Lewis make me want to seek out the films of H.G. Lewis? Nope, these are poorly shot and edited films, the word amateurish comes immediately to mind, but I will definitely get to some of the films from 'Godfather of Gore" in the very near future, despite this trio of filth. I cannot say I loved each of these films, but  I thoroughly enjoyed Black Love for all the wrong reasons, I've watched it three times and it gets funnier every time. I think you really need to be an H.G. Lewis enthusiast or die-hard sexploitation collector to need these films in your collection, but what I do love is the appreciation and care that upstart Vinegar Syndrome have afforded these formerly lost films, I cannot wait to see what they do with a slightly higher caliber of film, Vinegar Syndrome are definitely a label to keep an eye on, a fantastic first release from VS for a few not-so-great obscurities. 3 Outta 5 

Blu-ray Review: SUSPIRIA (1977)

SUSPIRIA (1977) 

Label: Umbrella Entertainment 

Rating: R
Region Code: B
Subtitles: None
Duration: 98 Minutes
Video: 1080p Widescreen (2.35:1)
Audio: English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD
Actors: Flavio Bucci, Jessica Harper, Stefania Casini, Joan Bennet, Eva Axen, Alida Valli
Directors: Dario Argento

Synopsis: Jessica Harper (Phantom of the Paradise) stars as Suzy Banyon, a young American ballet dancer who arrives at a prestigious European dance academy run by the mysterious Madame Blanc (Joan Bennett, TV's Dark shadows) and Miss Tanner (Alida Valli, Killer Nun). But when a series of bizarre incidents and horrific crimes (including what Entertainment Weekly calls "the most vicious murder scene ever filmed") turn the school into a waking nightmare of the damned, Suzy must escape the academy's unspeakable secret of supernatural evil. 

It would honestly be quite difficult for me to say anything about Dario Argento's Suspiria (1977) that hasn't been said before and more eloquently, too. It's a surreal masterpiece of 70's Italian horror, the penultimate achievement by Dario Argento and his gift to horror cinema, it has weathered the past 35 years with a supernatural grace rarely afforded genre cinema, from the first frame to the last each image is captured with a painterly vision, it's a film you could snatch any scene from and it would be a work of art unto itself, on top of that it's drenched in some gut-churning, skin-crawling atmosphere, it's the kind of horror that eaves a lasting impression and is not easily forgotten. So, just from this small paragraph you should know I am about to gush all over this film, embarrassingly so.

The story is the stuff of dark fairytales, an American ballet student (Jessica Harper, Brian De Palma's Phantom of the Paradise) arrives late one night in Frieburg, Germany to attend a prestigious dance academy run by Madame Blanc (Joan Bennet, Dark Shadows). Upon arriving she witnesses Pat (Eva Axen), a young woman fleeing the academy, she bursts out the front door and utters some near incomprehensible words to a person unseen, then frantically escapes down a path through a wooded area, it's pouring rain outside. Suzy herself is unable to gain entrance to the academy and takes a taxi back into town. We then follow Pat into town where she winds up at the apartment of a friend. While drying her hair she stares out the second floor window and is startled by two burning eyes staring back at her, just as a hairy armed breaks through window pane and stabs her repeatedly, it's a tense and gripping moment, the Goblin score is overpowering and my heart is beating off the scale, this happens every time I watch it. She screams for her friends help and when she cannot gain entrance to the room she flees downstairs, as she runs across the lobby to the front door she is horrified when Pat's corpse crashes though a stained-glass ceiling, a noose around her neck stops her short of the floor and a large shard of glass lacerates her friends face and she is impaled to death by falling debris. Not to overstate it, but it's one of the greatest amped-up horror openings ever, just barely a few moments into the film it's already built up to an nerve-shattering crescendo and we are just getting started.

Just with these opening scenes we are overwhelmed as viewers with lush, vibrant primary colors, the lighting of the film is unnatural and fantastical, immediately we are aware of it's nightmarish quality, we are about to experience something extraordinary. The architecture and set design are just as striking, when Suzy arrives outside the academy during the torrential downpour we are struck by how vibrantly red the gold-trimmed exterior walls are, the set designs are outstanding, there's a weird and wonderful symmetry to everything, it's peculiar and baroque stuff and purely cinematic, when it comes to locations early era Argento was a the master, I love the crushed blue velvet walls at the academy, it's great stuff.

The next day Suzy, unaware of the bizarre events from the night before, returns to the academy and is introduced to Madame Blanc (Bennet) and instructor Miss Tanner (Alida Valli, Eyes Without a Face) and quickly meets Sarah (Stefani Casini) a student who was previously friends with the rather unfortunate Pat. At first Suzy insists on living off campus but before she can leave she becomes dizzy and disoriented by an encounter with the school's lunch lady. Under the weather she remains at the school where a doctor prescribes to her a daily glass of wine, she winds up sharing a room with Suzy who in turn tells her strange stories about her former roommate Pat and the weird things she spoke of before she mysteriously disappeared into the night.

There's a odd air about the academy, it feels weird and Pat's not the only student to go missing abruptly either. Suzy quickly begins to suspect that something not quite right is happening, it's with these fears that she meets with Sarah's friend Dr. Mandel (Udo Kier, My Own Private Idaho) who informs her of the schools dark history, it having been founded by the mysterious Helen Markos, a suspected witch known as the Mater Suspiriorum, the Mother of Sighs. With this information she returns to the academy, continuing the great Argento tradition of protagonist recalling something overheard or seen earlier but not-quite-comprehended till later, she investigates further leading to a wonderfully fantastic and fiery crescendo to an altogether stunning supernatural thriller.

More so than any other film I've seen Suspiria benefits quite heavily from the intense atmosphere and dread created by the conjoining of Argento's poetic lensing and Goblin's haunting pulse pounder of a score, without the nightmarish fairytale themes from Goblin there can be little doubt this would be a lesser entry, the two are conjoined seamlessly. At some points the score drowns out dialogue, as a purely cinematic experience separate from narrative it's completely successful, Suspiria is a film that does not rely on a linear narrative to accomplish what Argento set out to do, make one Hell of a spooky, arthouse fairytale for the ages, it's starting now it must have been a revelation back in '77!

Blu-ray: Australia's Umbrella Entertainment do some fantastic work with OZploitation and b-movie cult classics releases with a usual array of excellent bonus content. They bring Dario Argento's crowning achievement Suspira (1977) to Region "B" locked Blu-ray with an AVC MPEG-4 encode in 1080p widescreen (2.35:1). No information is provided about the transfer but I believe this is the same 2007 Technicolor restoration master used on Blue Underground's 2-Disc Special Edition (2007). It would stand to reason that if you took issue with what you saw then you might have issues with it now, criticisms would be the overblown contrast, pinkish tones and the yellow color boosting. While I do not think it's as abhorrent as some might say the brightness and contrast boosting are problematic. I think this could go back to Cinematographer Luciano Tovoli and Dario Argento's decision to shoot the film with the Technicolor 3-strip camera that has a more saturated effect, the camera system which was antiquated even in '77 was used to shoot both the Wizard of Oz (1939) and Gone with the Wind (1939). I rather like the over-saturated look of the Blu-ray, it lends itself well to the surreal fairytale aspect of the story. I've seen the previous Anchor Bay's DVD edition and the colors seemed muted in comparison to what we have here but it's hard to say that the 2007 Restoration is any truer to the original color palate, would love to hear Argento or Tovoli's input on this. Regardless of what you think of the transfer and tweaking here the 1080p upgrade definitely boasts superior PQ over the previous standard definition DVD's with improved clarity and depth, fine detail gets a nice boost even if it wax and wanes from scene to scene. Overall it's a very nice 1080p presentation albeit with the inherent flaws found with the 2007 Restoration, which itself was supervised by Tovoli.  It's caused quite a bit of fuss over the years from critics and fans and reminds me a bit of Vittorio Storaro's controversial Univisium reframing of The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970) on Arrow Video's 2011 Blu-ray edition, I don't this is as egregious an affront as that but it's worth noting.

The English language 5.1 Dolby TrueHD is quite impressive, a definitive upgrade on all fronts, more depth, more oomph and Goblin's wicked score sounds superb, we are immersed in it like never before, it's a fantastic aural experience. There are no subtitle options and it's worth noting that no there is no Italian audio option either.

Umbrella Entertainment have stuffed this disc with great extras beginning with 'Fear at 400 Degrees: the Cine-Excess of Suspiria' Documentary (34:55) hosted by Director of Cine-Excess, Xavier Mendik. It's a thorough examination of the film with contributions from Kim Newman, Dario Argento and Claudio Simonetti that's peppered with clips and stills from the film and films inspired by Argento's work, many notable in their own right, including Sergio Martino's Torso (1973), Andrea Bianchi's Strip Nude for Your Killer (1975), Pupi Avati's The House with the Laughing Windows (1976) and Aldo Lado's Who Saw Her Die? (1972). It puts the film into context of the 70's era, it international success having a great effect on both Italian and French cinema at the time.

Ported over from the Blue Underground set is the 25th Anniversary Suspiria Documentary (51:00) a entertaining feature with interviews with Co-Writer/Director Dario Argento, Co-Writer Daria Nicolodi, Cinematographer Luciano Tovoli, Composers Goblin (Claudio Simonetti, Massimo Morante, Fabio Pignatelli & Agostino Marangolo), and Stars Jessica Harper, Stefania Casini and Udo Kier. This one really pulls you right into the making of the film. Daria Nicolodi talks about Argento's boredom with the crime genre and wanting to do something different, something supernatural, and basing the story on her own grandmother's experience at an elite school where it was aid that black magic was taught. Star Jessica Harper discusses having watched Argento's Four Flies on Grey Velvet (1971) and her excitement to work with the director, also the oddness of working on an Italian set where sound was not recorded on set, at the time it was standard practice to record all dialogue in post-production,  plus the uncomfortable experience of having maggots thrown in her hair. I particularly fond cinematographer Luciano Tovoli's interview as he spoke at length about experimenting with extreme color (inspired by Disney's Snow White), the unnatural tone of the film, strange lighting techniques, using the Technicolor 3-strip camera and a fun anecdote about working with Jennifer Jason Leigh on the set of Single White Female (1992), turns out she's quite a fan of the film. On a sad note it was heartbreaking to hear co-screenwriter Daria Nicolodi express her wishes to write the then as of yet unfilmed third film, Mother of Tears,  knowing now what we ended up with, it was heartbreaking as someone who enjoys this film and it's sequel Inferno (1980). 

As if the two documentaries were not enough Umbrella Entertainment also offer up Leon Ferguson's 2000 film 'Dario Argento: An Eye For Horror' Documentary' (57:58). Add it up, that's over 107 minutes of Argento/Suspiria documentaries on this disc! The near feature-length doc features interviews and commentary with Director John Carpenter, shock rocker Alice Cooper, effects master Tom Savini, George A. Romero, William Lustig, Jessica Harper, Asia Argento, Claudio Simonetti and TV Guide's Maitland McDonagh whom all offer praise for Argento's body of work. We get a brief history of Argento's early career beginning with co-writing Sergio Leonne's Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) with Bernardo Bertolucci (Dreamers) right up through his then still-in-production film Sleepless (2001) which if you haven't seen I would say was Argento's last decent entry, a nice Giallo throwback featuring Max Van Sydow (The Exorcist).

The extras are rounded out with an interview with Dario Argento conducted in Italian with English subtitles, a Photo Gallery, Trailers and TV Spots plus an Argento Trailer Reel of six films including a very striking Italian one for Cat O' Nine Tails (1971). What more could I have wanted? It's a short list but let's begins with the audio commentary from Argento experts Alan Jones and Kim Newman that appeared on the UK Blu-ray, Italian Audio, and English subtitles, that said this is a very fine edition indeed and one I think you need in your collection.

Special Features: 

- 'Fear at 400 Degrees: the Cine-Excess of Suspiria' Documentary (34:55) HD
- 25th Anniversary Suspiria Documentary (1:49) HD
- Exclusive Interview with Dario Argento (21:00) 

- 'An Eye For Horror' Documentary (57:58) SD
- Photo Gallery 

- International Trailer (1:56)
- U.S. Trailer (1:10) 
- TV Spot(:28)
- Argento Trailer Reel (15:06): Deep Red (1975), Phenomena (1985), Sleepless (2001), Phantom of the Opera (1998), The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970), Cat O' Nine Tails (1971)

Verdict: Suspiria (1977) is a surreal, avant-garde masterpiece of arthouse cinema drenched in technicolor swatches of primary color and bloodsplatter. It stands as Argento's supreme cinematic achievement and Umbrella Entertainment's superb Blu-ray is as near definitive a document as we are likely to get, an classic supernatural assault on the senses. 5 Outta 5 

Note: Images used for the purpose of this review were not sourced from the Blu-ray. 

DVD Review: JOHN DIES AT THE END (2012)

JOHN DIES AT THE END (2012) 

Label: Magnet Pictures

Region Code: 1 NTSC

Rating: R

Duration: 99 Minutes

Video: 16:9 widescreen (1.78:1)

Audio: English 5.1 Dolby Digital with Optional English SDH, Spanish Subtitles
Director: Don Coscarelli 

Cast: Chase Williamson, Rob Mayes, Paul Giamatti, Clancy Brown

Synopsis: It's all about the Soy Sauce, a drug that promises an out-of-body experience with each hit. But some who come back are no longer human. Suddenly a silent otherworldly invasion is underway, and mankind needs a hero. What it gets instead is John and David, a pair of college dropouts who can barely hold down jobs.

What we have here is a bizarre drug-trip sci-fi fantasy horror-comedy from the demented and wonderful mind of Don Coscarelli whom you will all know from the surreal and equally weird Phantasm (1979) series. Coscarelli is an auteur whose directed too few films in my opinion, the man emerges from the ether every so often to titillate our minds with a brand-new vision of oddness, he's like a surreal horror-tinged Terence Malik. At the start of the decade he returned to the spotlight with the deliciously quirky Bubba Ho-Tep (2002) featuring an elder Elvis Presley (Bruce Campbell, Evil Dead 2) and a black (!) John F. Kennedy (Ossie Davis, Do the Right Thing) battling an ass-sucking mummy at a Texas convalescent home, a work adapted from Joe R. Lansdale's novella. Now decade later he comes to us with another movie-adaptation, this time it's David Wong's John Dies at the End (2012) and if you though the King and Kennedy battling a mummy was a bit odd you ain't seen nothing yet!

The film opens with weird pre-credit sequence featuring voice over narration from one of our protagonists, David Wong (Chase Williamson), in the act of beheading a skinhead in a striking snow-covered sequence. David's narration poses an odd philosophical question then we're thrust into a neat opening credit sequence then straight into a cool noir framing device as David relays to skeptical reporter, Arnie Blondestone (Paul Giamatti, Sideways), the strange events that have transpired since he and his best friend, the titular John (Rob Mayes), were exposed to the mind expanding drug known as the Soy Sauce. A side effect of the sauce is the ability to communicate with the dead and travel through time and space into alternate dimensions, and with this the strangeness begins.

The film is peppered with trippy sequences that might not seem outta place in  David Cronenbergs' Naked Lunch (1991) or Terry Gilliam's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998). Odd sights abound from otherworldly insects, slimy over-sized slugs, freezer meat monsters and talking dogs, it's a weird and wondrous trip. The acting is inspired, the two 20-something slacker types who find themselves thrown into the world of spiritual exorcism and inter-dimensional time slipping are quite entertaining and engaging. Paul Giamatti is fantastic as the snarky reporter whose led down the path from skepticism to utter belief, would love to see him do more horror films and from the interviews I've seen he's a horror buff so it wouldn't surprise me a bit.

The film certainly goes to some unexpected places and is rich with surreal humor and strange scenarios including a menacing flying mustache, Dave communicating with the deceased through a bratwurstr, a doorknob that turns into a cock, and a pretty young woman crumbling into a pile of snakes - there's a lot to absorb here and I don't think a singular viewing is gonna allow you to take it all in. Watched it twice just today and caught a lot I'd missed the first time around, which is not to say the film doesn't make for a cohesive viewing just that it's richly layered and there a lot to appreciate, even more so on repeat viewings. As odd as it is the film moves along at a great pace, Coscarelli keeps the momentum moving forward with great dialogue and visuals that are a feast for the eyes.

The film is peppered with cameos from cult movie legends including Angus Scrimm, the Tall man from the Phantasm series, as a Father Shellnut, and Doug Jones (Hellboy) appears as the inter-dimensional enigma Roger North. I kept thinking if you threw a pencil-thin mustache on Jones he would be John Waters' twin. Even Clancy Brown (Pet Semetary 2) gets in on the action with a brief but integral role as TV psychic Marconi. Glynn Turman (Gremlins) appears as Detective Appleton whom picks up quickly on the strange events happening in his town and sets out to shut down the increasingly fantastic occurrences by whatever mean necessary, even if it means committing a few felonies along the way. 

Where the film ends up might not satisfy everyone, you definitely get the feeling that there's more to this story and certainly there is, there ds a sequel novel. While I have not read the source material the interviews with Don Coscarelli and Paul Giamatti all indicate that some of the original scope had to be trimmed out, regardless, I thoroughly enjoyed John Dies at the End and would love to see Coscarelli direct a sequel!

Something I love, loved, LOVED about the film were the practical effects work done under the guidance of Robert Kurtzman (Evil Dead 2, The Hidden), pretty cool stuff from the rod puppet insects, fearsome slugs, and the freezer-meat creature, the stuff was a throwback to the 80's practical effects, it's great stuff. Some of the digital effects were of the Syfy Channel variety, the worst offense happening during the end credit sequence as our duo are reluctantly recruited for yet another inter-dimensional crusade, but the practical effects are fantastic and far out way and digital shortcomings.

DVD: The disc from Magnet Releasing comes well-equipped with a wealth of extras including an audio commentary, deleted scenes, featurettes and interviews. The commentary is a lively affair, Coscarelli is always a blast and his cohorts keep it going strong for the duration of the film. The featurettes are fairly short but interesting, particularly Creature Corps: The Effects of Soy Sauce (8:36) with effects supervisor Kurtzman walking us through some behind-the-scenes effects work, we see set-ups for a bunch of effects seen in the film, good stuff. My only beef with Magnet's DVD is the awful artwork, the theatrical one sheet was amazing and what we get here is just uninspired photo shop, if I came across the film at Walmart I would assume this was a piece of Syfy dreck and pass it by and that would be a shame.

Special Features:

- Audio Commentary with Writer/Director Don Coscarelli, Producer Brad Baruh, Actors Chase Williamson and Rob Mayes

- 7 Deleted Scenes (9:38) 

- Getting Sauced: The Making of John Dies at the End (6:45) 

- Creature Corps: The Effects of Soy Sauce (8:36) 

- Casting Sessions (7:13) 

- Fangoria Interview with Paul Giamatti (9:50)

- 2 Trailers (4:57) 

- Books by David Wong with Promotional Trailer (1:13) 
- Magnolia Trailers: The Sorcerer and the White Snake, Sushi Girl, Storage 24, ABC's of Death (7:04)

Verdict: So, can these two college dropouts stop the inter-dimensional invasion by a Lovecraftian creature? Well, like the adverts say "Don't spoil the ending" and I won't but it's worth noting that this is the sort of film that you just can't spoil. Whenever Don Coscarelli crafts a new film I will always be there to enjoy it, you never know what you'll get and this one went places I didn't expect, an acid-soaked decent into the surreal and bizarre loaded with off kilter humor and some decent splatteriffic effects including a brief but enjoyable gore strewn animated sequence. Weird, wacky and inspired, John Dies at the End, watch it, damn entertaining. 4 Outta 5 

Main Menu Screen 

The fantastic retro-panted One Sheet! 

Blu-ray Review: FROM BEYOND (1986) Collector's Edition

FROM BEYOND (1986) 

Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack

Collector's Edition - Unrated Ditrector's Cut

Label: Scream Factory
Region Code: A

Rating: Unrated
Duration: 86 Minutes
Video: 1080p Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo with Optional English Subtitles
Director: Stuart Gordon
Cast: Jeffrey Combs, Ted Sorel, Kenneth Foree, Barbara Crampton

Synopsis: The Resonator, a powerful machine that can control the sixth sense, has killed its creator and sent his associate into an insane asylum. But when a beautiful psychiatrist becomes determined to continue the experiment, she unwittingly opens the door to a hostile parallel universe... and to the deviant behavior within the human psyche. With its victims becoming creatures who feed on - and become aroused by - human brains, the Resonator is the ultimate man-made monster. And now somethings gone horribly wrong and no one can turn it off!

From Beyond (1986) is a title I snatched-up at my local VHS rental shop as a youth, it lured me in with pretty much everything a horny gore-hound could want: chills, tits and slime slime-covered sci-fi viscera  It's the film that introduced me to director Stuart Gordon and actor Jeffrey Combs, not to mention the teen masturbation fantasy that was Barbara Crampton. The only familiar face to me at the time was Ken Foree, from George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead (1978), which even at that young age was already a favorite of mine.
As story goes, renowned physicist Dr. Pretorious (Ted Sorel) and his assistant Tillinghast (Jeffrey Combs) are hard at work on an invention called The Resonator, a machine that stimulates the pineal gland located in the human brain with mind-expanding resonant vibrations. A unforeseen side of effect of this pineal stimulation is that those affected are able to perceive another dimension separate from our own reality. It's Tillinghast who first makes this startling discovery while making adjustments to the machine, turning it on he sees creatures resembling moray eels floating in the air, at first intruiged by their appearance his interest turns to fear when one takes a nice bites out of his face, startled he turns it off. The panicked physicist immediately notifies Pretorious who, of course, against Tillinghast's advice turns on the machine and is overwhelmed with a powerful sensation. Pretorious  spouts off  about his insatiable need to see beyond normal human perception, it's almost orgasmic the way he delights in it. All the while Tillinghast implores the scientist to turn off the machine but he refuses, the scene ends with the assistant feeling the house as Pretoprious's corpse lies next to the resonator, his now MIA head having been twisted-off in a grotesque fashion. The experience leaves the Dr.'s assistant near insane, accused of the murder Tillinghast ends up in the loony bin under the care of a Nurse Ratched-type character named Dr. Bloch (Carolyn Purdy-Gordon, Dolls).

Arriving at the psychiatric hospital to study the case is Dr. Katherine McMichaels (Barbara Crampton, Re-Animator), after some tests reveal that Tillinghast's pineal gland is larger than normal she becomes convinced that Pretorious's experiments were successful and that the discovery could benefit the science of schizophrenia. Further proving the adage that  the road to Hell is paved with good intentions McMichaels checks Tillinghast out from the psychiatric ward against Bloch's wishes and is accompanied back to the scene of the crime under the watchful eye of Detective Bubba Brownie (Ken Foree, Dawn of the Dead) with the intention of rebuilding and re-creating Pretorous's resonator experiments. That's pretty much in a nutshell is the story, it's pretty simplistic but with a great cast of b-movie stars and some inventive special effects director Stuart Gordon created of my favorite mid-80's science fiction horrors, a slime-covered Lovecraftian classic.

Once the Resonator is brought back online it's not long before all three bare witness to the strange other dimensional creature from beyond, as well as the transformed Pretorious, now transformed into a slime-covered grotesque version of his former self, the lustful doc attacks McMichaels a whom only just barely escapes with her brain intact when Tillinghast and Bubba manage to get past a toothy sandworm-esque creature in the basement to uncouple the power from the machine. The encounter leaves Tillinghast completely bald, the continued exposure to the Resonator prompts his pineal gland to emerge from his forehead like a phallic third-eye and he's cursed with a hunger for human brains!

The film is steeped in creepy atmosphere, the fantastic otherworldly score from Richard Band combines with the neon pink and blue hues to great effect onscreen. Crampton's character as the Dr. driven by ambition and overcome by lustful desires thrilled me as a teen and still does today. The role is a sweet reversal of what we saw in Re-Animator where she played victim to Comb's maniacal Herbert West, it's a delicious twist. The film is wonderfully twisted, perversely sexual and grotesquely slimy, there's a lot to love. The effects team does great work here, not all of it holds-up equally but overall the film was ahead of it's time, ambitious stuff. It's not on the level of John Carpenter's The Thing (1982) but the two are kindred spirits. The Pretorious transformations are particularly fantastic, unsettling stuff which still managed to sends shivers down my spine today.

Blu-ray: Shout! Factory imprint Scream Factory, the new home of classic horror, presents Stuart Gordon's slime-tastic classic in it's original widescreen aspect ratio (1.78:1).  I gather it's sourced from the same master as the MGM's 2007 Unrated Director's Cut, it looks fantastic, even more so with a sweet 1080p upgrade! The film benefits from increased clarity and depth, there's some great fine details, too. The old school practical and optical effects here from John Buechler, Anthony Doublin, John Naulin, and Mark Shostrom are fantastic and have never looked better.The film has a gorgeous neon color scheme and the otherworldly pink and blue hues pop off the screen. Even twenty-seven years later the film still packs quite a visual wallop. Definitely check out the  featurette on the disc explaining the difficulties incorporating previously cut scenes back into the film, the before and after restoration demo is a revelation, and it's great to see these b-movie masterpieces getting the attention they deserve.

Audio options include choice of 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio with option English subtitles. The 5.1 is quite good with some fun use of the surrounds, we definitely get a more enveloping sound field with some depth to it. Dialogue, effects and Richard Band's fantastic score are presented crisply and well-balanced, this is good good stuff. 

Scream Factory's edition incorporates all the special features from MGM's Unrated Director's Cut  including over a minute of restored footage that was excised due to an MPAA "castration". The restoration is fantastic and documented with The Editing Room – Lost and Found (4:45) which features interviews with the restoration team and director Stuart Gordon..

The Audio Commentary with Stuart Gordon, producer Brian Yuzna and cast members Barbara Crampton and Jeffrey Combs is quite entertaining. The foursome have blast reflecting on the film and their time in Italy, lots of fun anecdotes and behind-the-scenes stuff, a lot of this you will hear repeated to some degree during the other special features but it's a commentary definitely worth a listen.

Director’s Perspective (8:53) features Gordon talking about his three picture deal with Empire and thinking Dagon would be his next film following Re-Animator until producer Charles Band balked at the idea, which is how he ended up coming to From Beyond. He also speaks to the role reversal of the Combs/Crampton characters whom both appeared in Re-Animator, the connection between horror and sex in cinema and a fun story about battling the MPAA for an R rating, including a stiff scolding by a librarian in regard to the infamous eye-sucking scene, going on to discuss the origin and assembling of this director's cut of the film.

Interview with the Composer (4:33) featuring composer Richard Band whom explores the film's horror and sexuality through it's score. The last of the MGM extras includes Photo Montage (4:45) set to Richard Band's score, a the Storyboard to Film comparison (1:23) featuring five scene from the film. 

So these features are fantastic unto themselves and when I bought that 2007 MGM edition I was quite thrilled but Shout! being the fans of classic horror that they are and realizing they needed to sweeten the pot beyond the brilliant 1080p presentation and carry over extras went on to commissioned four new featurettes from Red Shirt Pictures in addition to a brand new Audio Commentary with longtime Stuart Gordon collaborator and screenwriter Denis Paoli (Re-Animator, Castle Freak) who offers a sparse commentary detailing the differences between the source material and the film, it's interesting but fairly quiet, it's a welcome addition and a must listen for fans of Lovecraft.  

Multiple Dimensions – A look at the film’s extensive Make-Up and Creature Effects with Special Effects Creators John Buechler, Anthony Doublin, John Naulin, and Mark Shostrom (23:24) is a must watch for fans of practical effects.The effects geniuses behind the film talk about the difficulty of bringing Gordon's Lovecraftian vision to the screen on a relatively budget. It's pretty great to hear the guys talk about their craft with such fondness, the best of the bunch include John Naulin telling a pretty freaky story about losing two of his fingers on-set during a freak accident and the revelation that Ted Sorel is the nephew of Universal horror legend Jack Pierce, who did so many of the classic universal monsters, it's fun stuff.

Reversible Artwork 

Paging Dr. McMichaels – An interview with Actress Barbara Crampton (13:45) features the starlet of the film whom speaks about the reversal of roles between her and Jefferey Combs characters in From Beyond versus Re_Animator, that awesome leather outfit, her characters sexual awakening, and on a side note, Crampton is still quite a cutey, too. 

A Tortured Soul – An interview with Actor Jeffrey Combs (17:46) features the longtime Gordon collaborator speaking about coming into the role, not really feeling suited to playing the victim, working with Ken Foree, Ted Sorel and Barbara Crampton. He also goes into the mechanics of some of the effects work in the film, plus an amusing anecdote about having to chew on Fixident during the brain-noshing scene, it's always a blast to hear from Combs. 

The last of the new features is An Empire Production – An interview with Executive Producer Charles Band (5:02), a new conversation with director Charles Band whom reflects on the genesis of the film and this specific period in time shooting the film in Italy. 

The 2-disc set also includes a standard definition DVD featuring the same special features, a very cool slipcase and newly commissioned artwork from designer Jeff Zornowa plus a sleeve of reversible artwork featuring the original theatrical poster art  for the film. 

Now this is a nearly definitive edition, chances are From Beyond will never look better than what we have here but there is another UK edition on Blu-ray and DVD  from Second Sight Films that feature the same MGM extras plus separate Severin Films produced extras, too. Read the review for the standard definition DVD edition from Second Sight HERE. 

Menu Screen 

Special Features: 

All New Scream Factory Extras

Audio Commentary with writer Denis Paoli

Multiple Dimensions – A look at the film’s extensive Make-Up and Creature Effects with Special Effects Creators John Buechler, Anthony Doublin, John Naulin, and Mark Shostrom (23:24)

Paging Dr. McMichaels – An interview with Actress Barbara Crampton (13:45)

A Tortured Soul – An interview with Actor Jeffrey Combs (17:46)

An Empire Production – An interview with Executive Producer Charles Band (5:02)

Extras Carried Over from the MGM 2007 DVD

Audio Commentary with director Stuart Gordon and the Cast

The Director's Perspective - interview with Stuart Gordon (1:23)

The Editing Room: Lost And Found - Gordon Stuart and MGM restoration team interview (4:45)

Interview with composer Richard Band (4:33)

Storyboard to Film Comparisions with Introduction: Introduction (1:23), Appearance of Dr. Pretorius (1:22), Death of Bubba (2:16), Hospital Escape (2:59), Katherine Frees Herself (1:09)

Gallery (4:23) 

Verdict: Stuart Gordon's From Beyond (1986) remain a fantastic mid-80's sci-fi horror classic dripping with grotesque creatures and slime covered horrors. Gordon just doesn't get enough praise in my opinion and if you haven't check out his 80's and early 90's oeuvre you are missing out on some excellent cult-classics. Shout Factory's reputation for sterling editions of beloved horror classic remains untarnished, they've assembled a stunning 1080p edition of From beyond, this gets a high recommend. 4 Outta 5