Halloween DVD Review Round-Up: Part 1
It's that time of year again. Get out the Drac snacks, string up the spider webs, mix up the blood punch and gather your fiendish friends for a Halloween-time Screamfest! From classics to the latest in terror, we've got the details on a bunch of creepy DVD treats that'll make your party or sleep-over frightfully successful.
From 20TH Century Fox Home Entertainment
28 Weeks Later
In this sequel to the frightfest 28 Days Later, it's seven months after the virus outbreak that turns folks in Britain into bloodlusting, very fast-moving zombie freaks. Now London is under military control with snipers ready to pick off any last "infecteds". Major Scarlet Ross (Rose Byrne) is a doc there to make sure the virus is dead. Two kids, a teen (Imogen Poots) and her younger bro (Mackintosh Muggleton) enter the city to be reunited with their dad Donald (Robert Carlyle), a survivor whose wife was supposedly killed by the zombies. Of course, it only takes one contaminated human to start the terror all over again. Who will escape?
Video/Audio: The color palate for the film is a lot of gray, tans and blues and they look fine here on my test disc. Sound is really solid with a lot of cool ambient noises like gunshots and zombie attack sounds as well as dialogue and thumping music. Great.
Special Features: Quite a few. You get audio commentary with the director and producer. Not a laugh riot but you get some interesting notes on each scene. Pretty solid. "Deleted Scenes" have optional comments - 2 scenes, one that could have served as an alternate ending, are interesting. "Code Red: The Making of 28 Weeks Later" is a featurette exploring some behind the scenes stuff and how the sequel's story evolved. More cool info on the film but Spoiler Alert, don't watch it before seeing the film. "The Infected" - shows the zombie actors in action, how they moved and growled, etc. Creepy and interesting. "Getting Into The Action"-all about the mad running scenes and some of the visual effects. Good "28 Days Later: The Aftermath": Stage 1 "Development" and Stage 3 "Decimation" - These are representations of the Atomic graphic novels; animated shorts from the books with scenes that fill in what happened between the two films. Cool artwork.
Wrapping Up: This action-packed, frightening film will keep you on the edge of your couch. It's gruesome and super fast and furious. You also have some nice character development that makes you care about the survivors trying to stay alive. The extra features are also interesting to watch. Definitely rent for your Halloween get-together if not buy.
The Fly Collection
Nothing like an oldie-but-goodie for Halloween fun. We're not talkin' here about The Fly movies made in the '80's and '90's with Jeff Goldblum or the later sequel with Eric Stoltz. This set contains the original three films based on the 1957 short story by George Langelaan. These movies are campy but really creepy in their own right. You get three in this set: The Fly, Return of the Fly and The Curse of the Fly. All deal with the theme of teleportation; a scientist who transports himself from one "booth" to another not knowing that a fly is also in the booth and what comes out is a very smart "thing" with a human bod and a fly head! Sequel films throw in more animal/human hybrids etc. Ewwwww.. but fun. Beam me up, Scotty but don't screw up!!
Video/Audio: For the age of these films, the color transfers are excellent and the dialogue and music soundtracks come through fine. The Fly looks the best of all, but then it had the biggest budget.
Special Features: A fourth disc "The Fly Collection Disc of Horrors" has most of the extras in this set. You get a 1997 "Biography" from the A&E episode on actor Vincent Price's life that explores these films and many of his others. Cool and retro. "Fly Trap: Catching a Classic" is a recap of the films with some comments by "Fly" film fans and pros. Each one of the movies includes some campy trailers that are fun to watch and you see some lobby cards and other promo art that is typically 1950's/'60's and fun to 'thumb" through. Some on set shots are included that are pretty funny.
Wrapping Up: These films are both scary and just campy, retro silly. A nice break from watching some of the more really terrifying DVDs you might have gathered for your Halloween bash. Definitely worth a rent or, if you are into retro horror, etc. a buy. A well-put-together set.
Misery: Collector's Edition
The "monster" in this Stephen King classic is a very creepy and Oscar-winning nurse played by Kathy Bates.. a serial killer who traps her favorite romance author after he is injured in a car crash and forces him to bring her favorite heroine "Misery" back to life by writing another book! James Caan plays the tortured writer and, as he learns about his captor's past and tries desperately to escape or be rescued before she kills him, we are on the edge of the couch all the way!
Video/Audio: This DVD looks great! All the colors come through. You can see dark sequences fine. Good transfer! This isn't one of those howling creature features but the great dialogue comes through crisp and clean!
Special Features: This movie has been released before on DVD but not until now did you get some dynamite extras! The DVD includes two "Audio Commentaries: one with director Rob Reiner and another with the screenwriter William Goldman. Reiner gives up some great details on making the movie. He obviously liked doing the film and his track is entertaining if a bit sparse in some areas. Goldman, a very famous screenwriter, spills some interesting anecdotes and you do get a bit of screenwriting insider stuff but not as entertaining as Reiner's track.
Featurettes: "Misery Loves Company" is all about making the film with some cool comments from Kathy Bates, James Caan, Reiner, Goldman and other crew. These guys seemed to have enjoyed making the film and spill a few tidbits. Worth a watch. "Marc Shaiman's Musical Misery Tour" is about the film's music and how composer Marc Shaiman, tried to match his music to exactly what went on on the screen. Enjoyable.
You get some shorter featurettes on the concept of fan/stalkers. Bates' Annie Wilkes character was, essentially, a crazy fan who already had a psycho killer past. In "Diagnosing Annie Wilkes", "Advice for the Stalked" "Profile of a Stalker", "Celebrity Stalkers" and "Anti-Stalking Laws", shrinks talk about the real-life syndromes that form this kind of killer. Kind of a reality mystery TV show feel to these and it's stretching it a bit to tie them in with the movie but hey, they give you some good info on our modern outbreak of stalker fan mania!
Wrapping Up: I love this film. All the actors are excellent and this is the kind of real life terror that really creeps you out because people like Annie exist.. Maybe one lives next door to you! This is a classic fright film and you should own it or for sure rent! It won't get better on DVD than this!
From Universal Studios Home Entertainment
RL Stine's The Haunting Hour: Don't Think About It
More on the "cute" than creepy side but fun is this teen and tween-aimed monster mystery packed with Disney Channel TV stars. A young Goth girl named Cassie (Emily Osment) feels out of place at her new school. Cassie escapes by reading her fave horror novels. When she finds a Halloween store and creepy storekeeper (Tobin Bell of the Saw movie series) she buys a book called "The Evil Thing." Of course, she releases a freaky, very frightening creature on the whole town. Also featured are heartthrob Cody Linley of "Hannah Montana" and Brittany Elizabeth Curran of "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody".
Video/Audio: This is a quality transfer; the darks are rich and the colors, especially on the monster, really pop. No complaints. Spooky sounds come through but music sounded a little far away. Okay.
Special Features: You get an Emily Osment music video for the song "I Don't Think About It." It's cute. Geez does every teen on TV sing now?
An interactive mini-quiz called the "Scare-O-Meter" is cute to play once. "Think About It! R.L. Stine's Journey Of Imagination" presents interviews with cast and strange-looking R.L. Stine who talks about what scares work for him and his readers. Interesting. "Making Of The Haunting Hour" offers the cast talking about the characters and the award-winning Special Effects guys talking about their creature designs. Again interesting.
Wrapping Up: A little more mature and frightening than I expected. The creature is pretty creepy and there are a lot of scares. Fun for all ages except your really little bro or sis who might have nightmares. You should rent or buy, especially if you like R.L. Stine tales.
From Dimension Home Entertainment
Room 1408: Two-Disc Collector's Edition
Back to the truly terrifying! Based on a Stephen King short story, Room 1408 focuses on a horror writer Mike Enslin (John Cusack) who visits various "haunted" buildings and debunks the myths that they are haunted. When he gets a postcard from someone at The Dolphin Hotel in New York, he is challenged to stay in room 1408 where several people have died. Manager Gerald Olin (Sam Jackson) tells him guests don't survive past an hour in the room. Enslin goes through scary and strange tortures in the room including flashbacks and ghostly appearances by his young, dead daughter!
Video/Audio: This very recent film looks very good. The creepy ghosts and colors in the room come through great. Solid details. The Dolby 5.1 puts out plenty of surround sounds to make things that go bump and slice in the night even creepier. Dialogue is very hearable.
Special Features: Lots of fun treats on both discs. On disc one are a couple of "Webisodes: John Cusack on 1408" has John sharing tidbits about the role and "Inside Room 1408" is a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the crazy set.
Disc 2 brings is really packed with an "Extended Director's Cut of 1408" with optional audio commentary by director Mikael Hafstrom and writers Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski. This version of the film isn't vastly different.. a little more violence and you get a bit more character development.. a few more creepy flashbacks and creature stuff and some other added stuff. Very interesting to watch. But, the "Alternate Ending" is really different. You'll have to decide if you like this ending or the one in theaters but it does kind of explain more. I liked it.
"Deleted Scenes" you get five of them with optional commentary by the same guys. These aren't scenes that are in the Director's Cut. You can understand why they didn't make it into the movie.
In "The Characters", "The Director", "The Physical Effects" and "The Production Design" you get info on each of these subjects from cast and crew. All very interesting, especially the one on Physical Effects which delves into the weird set and how the filmmakers worked some of the more frightening scenes.
Wrapping Up: John Cusack was really very, very good in this film. You feel his agony, terror etc. The ending was kind of strange and unsatisfying in a way but, the Alternate Ending might interest you. Really creepy, well done and certainly worth a Halloween rental and a buy if you are into the more psychological fright films!
***
Lynn Barker is a Hollywood-based entertainment journalist and produced screenwriter.
