Demolition Man (1993)

Arrow Films are bringing out Marco Brambilla's highly entertaining futuristic action picture that stars Sylvester Stallone and Wesley Snipes in 4K UHD and Blu-ray editions.

John Spartan (Stallone) is a cop known as the 'Demolition Man' because of his habit of causing 1980s action movie-degrees of explosions when performing such tasks as rescuing one small child. Spartan's hot pursuit of arch villain Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes, looking like he's having a great time although apparently he hated his hairdo) ends in disaster, with both Spartan and Phoenix sentenced to be frozen as part of a new punishment protocol for criminals.

Thirty six years later Phoenix gets thawed out for a hearing, immediately escapes and starts causing havoc. Times have changed so much that the police are unable to cope with Phoenix's levels of violence and have to defrost Spartan to fight him. Meanwhile Edgar Friendly (Denis Leary) is leading an underground movement (complete with one big Libertarian-style rant in the middle) in protest against Governor Raymond Cocteau (Nigel Hawthorne) and the environment he has created, and Cocteau might just be the reason Phoenix escaped in the first place.

A fun action SF piece that came at the tail end of a ten year period of big budget action pictures to top line either Stallone of Arnold Schwarzenegger (and there's a gag about him in here as well), DEMOLITION MAN has a decent sense of humour about itself, is well shot and moves at a clip, and is probably the most entertaining of these sorts of pictures not to have either Shane Black or Steven E de Souza's name on them. Kudos are also due to Sandra Bullock who makes the absolute most of what could have been a forgettable sidekick role in other hands. There's a gag in here about Taco Bell on the US version which was changed to Pizza Hut internationally, and in case you want to compare them both versions of the film are included on the disc. 

Arrow's 4K and Blu-ray comes with three commentary tracks - a new one with director Brambilla and screenwriter Daniel Waters (who was called in to rewrite the original script. He ended up having a ball doing so and you can tell), and another new one with film historian Mike White. The archival commentary with Brambilla and producer Joel Silver is also included.

Other extras include interviews with production designer David L Snyder (14 minutes), stunt coordinator Charles Percini (6 minutes), makeup FX artist Chris Biggs (6 minutes), and body effects coordinator Jeff Farley (10 minutes). There's also a 17 minute visual essay from Josh Nelson on the state of Stallone's career at the time of the film, plus an image gallery and trailer.

Finally, you get a 60 page book with new writing on the film, limited edition packaging, two-sided poster, art cards, 'Three Seashells' and 'Edgar Friendly' graffiti stickers and a reversible sleeve. 

Marco Brambilla's DEMOLITION MAN is out from Arrow Films on Limited edition 4KUHD and Blu-ray on Monday 16th December 2024

Creep (2014)

 

With the TV series The Creep Files starting to air on Shudder, what better time for Second Sight to release one of their whistles and bells packages (in both standard and limited editions) devoted to the original found footage thriller? And if those 'f' words have you running for the hills, let me tell you now that CREEP very much still deserves a chance, so read on.

A found footage (I know) mumblecore (stick with me) improvisational (it's really very good, though) piece featuring only two actors, the plot involves film-maker Aaron (co-writer and director Patrick Brice) answering an ad placed by Jacob (co-writer Mark Duplass) who lives in a remote mountain town. The job? Jacob is dying and wants his final thoughts recorded on video for his unborn son. 

But is any of that true? As the day goes on things get weirder, as does Jacob's behaviour. He takes to wearing a terrifying wolf mask he refers to a 'Peachfuzz' (the film's original title) and Aaron starts to realise he may be in the presence of a dangerous lunatic. When CREEP premiered at Frightfest it boasted an ending that was one of the most horrible and disturbing of the festival that year, and if you've not seen it I'm not going to spoil it for you.

Second Sight's new Blu-ray wipes the floor with previous bare bones releases. We get a new commentary from Brice, Duplass and editor Christopher Donlan to compliment the archival one with Brice and Duplass only. There are also new interviews with Duplass (19 minutes), Brice (37 minutes) and Donlan (16 minutes), a half hour Q&A with the cast and crew, a deleted scene, an alternative scene (two minutes), and two alternative endings (seven minutes). 

Finally, the limited edition comes with a 70 page book, six art cards, and the usual rigid slipcase to keep it all in. Excellent. Now who's for Tubby Time?

Patrick Brice and Mark Duplass' CREEP is out in both standard and limited editions from Second Sight on Monday, 

9th December 2024, just in time to make it a nice 

Christmas present for anyone who might also 

be getting a video camera.

The Last Video Store (2023)

 

"Nowhere Near as Good as it Could or Should be"

Back in February 2023 I reviewed a no-budget British anthology horror film called VIDEO SHOP TALES OF TERROR that, while often crude in its execution, made up for that with dollops of enthusiasm and occasionally a little style.

THE LAST VIDEO STORE, due out on Blu-ray from Arrow Films, feels almost the opposite. Don't get me wrong - this isn't a big budget affair, but everything that made VIDEO SHOP TALES OF TERROR watchable and ultimately extremely entertaining is lacking in this, a film which features stilted acting, terrible pacing, and a near-plotlessness that makes its 78 minute running time feel much longer than it actually is.

When her father dies, he leaves Nyla (Yaayaa Adams) a note asking her to return some outstanding VHS cassettes to the shop of the title. This includes a mysterious, unlabelled tape that, when played, unleashes a whole load of 1980s movie-style trouble.

And that's where THE LAST VIDEO STORE's strength and major failing lies. The film is packed with visual references to straight to video tat of the 1980s, but rather than use that as background colour it seems to be the sole reason for the film's existence, which means watching it for more than 20 minutes is a bit like sitting next to someone very annoying who keeps poking you and saying 'Weren't the '80s great?'

It also makes the mistake of having posters for Astron 6 productions everywhere (and Adam Brooks turns up at one point) which only helps remind you how much better that team are at this sort of thing. The terrific short DEMONITRON: THE SIXTH DIMENSION gets pinched and redubbed to the film's own ends, again just reminding you of how much better other satires of, and tributes to, this kind of material have been than this.

Unsurprisingly, THE LAST VIDEO STORE started life as a short film (and probably should have stayed as one). You can find the short film on the extras along with the first attempt to make the subject into a feature. Other extras include a commentary track by critics Matt Donato and Meagan Navarro (they're both far kinder to it that I've been), new visual essays by Heather Wixson and Martyn Pedlar, three more short films from the same directors, behind the scenes, a trailer and more. 

There's also a booklet with new writing from Anton Bitel and Alexandra West, a reversible sleeve and a double-sided poster. 

THE LAST VIDEO STORE is now available to stream on Arrow and on Limited Edition Blu-ray

Godzilla Minus One (2023)

One of the best films of 2023 finally gets a disc release (and in a number of different editions to boot) from distributor Anime Limited.

We're at the end of World War II. A kamikaze pilot fakes a problem with his plane and lands on a remote island, where he witnesses all his colleagues dying at the hands (and teeth) of a huge dinosaur-like creature known by the locals as Godzilla.

He makes his way back to Japan only to find Tokyo in ruins and those who knew him disgusted that he did not die honourably in battle. He meets a girl with a baby who is not hers and the three move in together. Soon he has a job helping to diffuse sea mines by using his gunnery skills, and it's not long before his boat is deployed to help deal with a huge mysterious sea creature that's approaching Tokyo.

GODZILLA MINUS ONE was a deserved smash hit on its release last year, beating out much higher budgeted contenders to win the best visual effects Oscar and providing a welcome beacon of integrity in a market swamped with soulless Disney Marvel burnout movies. 

And it's very much the human interest element that makes GODZILLA MINUS ONE the hugely affecting success that it is. As well as his makeshift family life at home, our lead has his 'bunch of mates' family at sea, all of whom come to play an important part in the climax. That's not to say the effects aren't great too because they are. Apparently achieved on a fraction of what the other films in its Oscar nomination category cost, Godzilla has never looked better or bigger or more terrifying that here. 

Anime Limited (and Toho) are releasing GODZILLA MINUS ONE in a variety of packages. If you want the bare bones there's a standard Blu-ray with two sound options. The English dub is ok but the American accents do feel a bit incongruous. That mix is in Dolby 5.1 but the Japanese dialogue version has been mixed in Dolby Atmos.

There's also a Deluxe four disc edition which gives you the film on 4K UHD, on Blu-ray, GODZILLA MINUS ONE MINUS COLOR on Blu-ray (which is actually pretty atmospheric. It would be interesting to run it in a double bill directly before the original GODZILLA), and a fourth Blu-ray disc of bonus features. All those discs apart from the black and white version of the film are available in a steelbook. 

        The Bonus Disc includes an excellent 67 minute making of with plenty of behind the scenes footage and an interview with writer / director / VFX artist Takashi Yamazaki. There's also 20 minutes of VFX footage showing how scenes of that and live action were combined to achieve the final result, plus a 23 minute electronic press kit.

        The disc also contains four interviews from four special screenings of Godzilla movies that commemorated the release of GODZILLA MINUS ONE and all featuring director Yamazaki with special guests. These were the original GODZILLA (1954) with guest SHIN GODZILLA co-director Shinji Higachi; GHIDORAH THE THREE HEADED MONSTER (1964) which was the first Kaiju Yamazaki ever saw - the guest this time is legendary monster suit maker 88 year old Keizo Murase who made not just King Ghidorah but also Godzilla and Mothra amongst others; GODZILLA GMK (2001) with guest director Shinsuke Kaneko who directed the first film Yamazaki did FX for; and SHIN GODZILLA with guest editor, writer and chief director Hideaki Anno. Finally there's a collection of 68 minutes of footage from the various premieres around the world. 

GODZILLA MINUS ONE is out now in the three different editions outlined above and if you're a fan, definitely get an edition that includes the bonus disc.

The Second Act (2024)

"Frequently Very Funny Indeed"

The latest comedy from quirky French writer-director Quentin Dupieux, and the film that opened the Cannes Film Festival this year, get a digital release from Signature Entertainment.

David (Louis Garrel from Bertolucci's THE DREAMERS) is being hounded by Florence (Léa Seydoux from lots of things including Cronenberg's CRIMES OF THE FUTURE and Bertrand Bonello's THE BEAST) who is madly in love with him. But he doesn't have any feelings for her so he arranges for them to meet at an isolated café called The Second Act in the presence of his friend Willy (Raphaël Quenard who plays the title character in Dupieux's excellent YANNICK). Florence brings her father Guillaume (Vincent Lindon from TITANE) along and, in the presence of hopeless waiter Stéphane (Manuel Guillot), the scene is set for sheer excruciating awkwardness.

However, the story quickly becomes more awkward, and the film itself more meta, as the actors constantly break character, complain about their roles, insult each other, and prolong the telling of the story. At one point it transpires they are acting in the first film ever to be written and directed by AI, and the AI even comes to talk to them via a laptop.

Even at a brisk 80 minutes (a typical run time for a Dupieux opus) THE SECOND ACT does begin to flounder in its attempts to go even more 'super meta' at the end, but even so this is a very funny, inventive, ambitious piece of work, one which on the one hand occasionally feels like Beckett or Pirandello while on the other could almost be an 80 minute Monty Python sketch. Some of the sequences are laugh out loud hilarious, especially a wine pouring scene that just goes on and on and becomes funnier as it does so.  It might just be Dupieux's best work so far. Fans will need no further persuasion and if you're yet to encounter his work this is an excellent place to start. Here's a clip that unfortunately doesn't do the film justice as it's one of the rare bits where no-one really breaks character:

Quentin Dupieux's THE SECOND ACT is out on digital from Signature Entertainment now.

Critters: A Four Course Feast (1986 - 1992)

Arrow Films are releasing a limited edition box set of all four CRITTERS films in 1080p HD (no 4K this time around) with 2.0 stereo and 5.1 surround audio options for all the films. You also get a 60 page book with new writing, double-sided posters for all the films and reversible sleeves but for now let's take a look at the films:

Critters (1986) 

A charming, occasionally gory and frequently amusing movie which was a big hit back in the day. In the extras we're told the aim was to produce 'PG-13' horror, which meant in the UK CRITTERS got a 15 certificate, but you can certainly see where with a few cuts it could have been PG over here.

Somewhere in space, in a maximum security prison run by a creature named Zanti (a nice and unostentatious gag for Outer Limits fans) a renegade band of hungry bitey little furballs called Krites steal a spaceship (how maximum actually is this security?) and set off for earth. They are pursued by two shapeshifting bounty hunters and everyone converges on a small Kansas farm. The Krites start chomping and the bounty hunters start blowing everything up.

If you've not seen CRITTERS you may be expecting some ultra low-budget Charles Band-style tomfoolery. Actually CRITTERS was a New Line production, has a decent budget, good acting (from Dee Wallace and Billy Green Bush amongst others) and special effects, and a pseudo Jerry Goldsmith score from David Newman. It feels a little slower now than it did back in the day but you can still see its heart is firmly in 'fun monster movie' territory.

Extras include two archival commentaries, one from Barry (producer) & Don (star) Opper and the other from special effects boys the Chiodo brothers. There's a new commentary from Matty Budrewicz and Dave Wain who have contributed new commentaries to all four films and on this one they're joined by screenwriter Shane Bitterling (PUPPET MASTER X and similar fare). Extras ported over from the 2018 Shout Factory release include a 71 minute making of and a 22 minute tribute to screenwriter Brian (Domonic) Muir. You also get 12 minutes of behind the scenes footage of the Krites being manipulated, the alternate ending which didn't do so well with test audiences, trailers TV spots and an image gallery.

Critters 2: The Main Course (1988)

Scott Grimes, Don Opper, Lin Shaye and Terrence Mann all return from the first film for this David Twohy / Mick Garris-written sequel which sees the eggs left behind at the end of the first film hatching and causing havoc. 

Like a lot of sequels this one 'goes bigger' - instead of a farm we now have an entire small town under attack. It's actually good fun and is arguably better than the first film, with some fun ideas (the Easter Egg hunt where the eggs turn out to be critters, the Krites' battle sphere) and feels as if it's been made with as much care as the first, even if there are a couple of repeated FX shots.

Extras include two archival commentaries from Mick Garris and the Chiodo Brothers with another new commentary from Budrewicz and Wain. There's a making of documentary, which like the one for the first lasts over an hour, behind the scenes footage (24 minutes), 13 minutes of additional scenes for TV, trailer, TV spot and image gallery.

Critters 3 (1991)

Horror writer David J Schow provides the screenplay for this one, which features Don Opper again, as well as Nina Axelrod (from MOTEL HELL), Frances Bay (from IN THE MOUTH OF MADNESS) and, in his first film role, Leonardo Di Caprio. Kristine Peterson directs this tale of the Krites coming to Los Angeles. Any thoughts that they're going city-wide this time will be dashed once you realise the action is going to be restricted to an apartment building. It's not bad but the lower budget means it suffers in comparison to the first two. 

Extras include a Barry & Don Opper commentary, a new Budrewicz and Wain commentary and a making of featurette which lasts 27 minutes and includes screenwriter David J Schow but not director Peterson), plus the usual bits and pieces (trailer and image gallery).

Critters 4 (1992)

'Will they ever stop?' some viewers must have been thinking with the release of this fourth film, this time set on a space station, and making enthusiasts for crap sequels wonder quite why so many franchise part fours used the same idea (LEPRECHAUN 4, HELLRAISER 4). Don Opper and Terrance Mann are present and correct and this time we also get Brad Dourif and Angela Bassett as well as Anders Hove (SUBSPECIES and a couple of Lars Von Trier movies), Eric DaRe (from Twin Peaks) and Hammer star Martine Beswick's voice.

Extras include an archival commentary from Rupert Harvey, who produced the first film but also gets to direct this time around, and a new one from Budrewicz and Wain. There's also a making of featurette (22 minutes), trailer and image gallery.

CRITTERS: A FOUR COURSE FEAST! is out in a limited edition Blu-ray box set from Arrow on Monday 2nd December 2024