Category: DVD/BLU-RAY

With a title such as "Bloodsucking Freaks," there's not much left to the imagination. Refusing such a pesky limitation, writer/director Joel M. Reed attempts to give the audience their money's worth with this twisted splatter effort from 1976, which also stomped through cinemas as "Sardu: Master of the Screaming Virgins" (which is the title on this UHD release). Pick any label you like, as Reed stages a perverse and bloody extravaganza that defies description, hoping to take a style of shock value pioneered by Herschell Gordon Lewis to fresh heights of repulsion. "Bloodsucking Freaks" isn't much of a movie, but it does retain an eye-popping sense of violence, also brazen in its contempt for women and disregard for human life. It's best to treat it all as an extended joke, which helps to digest the intentionally sickening display of pain Reed is a little too eager to share with the audience. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Barry Levinson began his career in comedy, making funny business for T.V. variety shows during the 1960s and early '70s. He's generally known as a man of humor, and eventually enjoyed a brief reign as an A-list director, making hits and scoring Oscar gold with pictures such as "Rain Man," "Good Morning, Vietnam," and "The Natural." Before such glory was achieved, Levinson was just a screenwriter trying to find a way into Hollywood, getting an early taste of the business with 1975's "Street Girls," which is meant to be a severe look at a crisis involving a young woman caught up in worlds of drug addiction and human trafficking, with her father out to find his lost child before it's too late. It's somber material handed to director Michael Miller ("Jackson County Jail," "National Lampoon's Class Reunion"), who doesn't have much money to realize the abyssal pain of the premise, showing more interest in the exploitation aspects of the production, which offers plenty of nudity, unsavoriness, and violence. True to form, Levinson also brings many laughs to the feature, though they're all unintentional. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In 1971, Herbert Ross was building a name for himself as a director, scoring respected hits in "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" and "The Owl and the Pussycat," showing his stuff with drama and comedy. Instead of going bigger with his projects, Ross aims for something considerably smaller with "T.R. Baskin," teaming with screenwriter Peter Hyams for a character study that toys with time and tone, following the acidic ways of a young woman slowly recognizing her isolation and emotional detachment after making a move to Chicago. Hyams (who would go on to an iffy helming career of his own) throws a lot of feelings and attitudes into this endeavor, but he mostly remains on casual cruelty, which is an interesting topic for nuanced writing. "T.R. Baskin" has stinging moments of personal reflection, but Ross seems a little befuddled by the whole thing, working to make character connections stick, but he's less attentive to the overall mood of the picture, which remains in a weird gray area that's not particularly satisfying to watch, often resembling a theatrical production where close proximity to actors is the selling point, not the story itself. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Produced in 1979 and aired on television in 1983, "Cave-In" (a.k.a. "Cave in!" and "Cave In") is one of the final projects from producer Irwin Allen, who looked to sustain his legacy as a man of disaster cinema, putting together yet another examination of panicked people stuck in a dangerous situation, using survival time to reflect on all the mistakes and mishaps in their lives. Formula is forever to Allen, and he delivers the usual business here, with director Georg Fenady tasked with making something thrilling about a collection of strangers stuck inside a cavern for a few hours, serving up various challenges to personal safety. As Allen-branded endeavors go, "Cave-In" has a mild sense of pace and a decent obstacle course for the actors to navigate, offering steady entertainment with a contained setting, providing a few subgenre highlights. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1979's "The Night the Bridge Fell Down" is a television movie that finally aired in the U.S. in 1983. It's an Irwin Allen endeavor created at a time when such things were out of style, finding the once mighty production force reduced to making nonsense for T.V., including this miniseries, which went virtually unwatched when it premiered, slotted against the final episode of "M*A*S*H," so don't feel too bad if you've never even heard of it. It's also fine if you've never seen "The Night the Bridge Fell Down," which is arguably one of the worst Allen offerings, rivaling "Hanging by a Thread" in terms of complete filmmaking immobility and lameness of premise. It's a real chore to sit through, carrying the vibe of a project that was slapped together to burn off a contract, with little effort put into the picture to make it compelling. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1972 was a big year for filmmaking, with top directors solidifying their reputations in endeavors such as "The Godfather," "Deliverance," and "Cabaret." Somewhere in the middle of all this artistic adventuring and tonal mastery was "The Poseidon Adventure," with producer Irwin Allen turning his attention from making television hits to the possibilities of the big screen, looking to cash in on the developing trend of disaster cinema, trying to make a proper PG nightmare for all audiences. "The Poseidon Adventure" was the big Christmas release of the year, intended for mass appeal, and it connected, making a huge haul at the box office (it's the second highest-grossing feature of the year, right behind "The Godfather"), but it also rattled the awards race, scoring nine Oscar nominations. Not bad for popcorn entertainment. With insane profit comes sequels, but Allen couldn't slap one together quickly, taking seven years before unleashing 1979's "Beyond the Poseidon Adventure," also claiming helming duties from Ronald Neame. The original endeavor is no great achievement in the art of moviemaking, but Allen really loses his way with the follow-up, which is mostly a remake with his usual formula, following a large collection of characters as they encounter various survival challenges, returning to the "Hell, upside down" arena of a capsized ship gradually coming apart. "Beyond the Poseidon Adventure" is fairly terrible, with crummy writing and stiff direction, putting pressure on a cast of talented people to support a production that's sinking faster than its setting. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1980's "When Time Ran Out" is largely credited as the final nail in the coffin of disaster movie mania. The subgenre had been on a downward trend throughout the late-1970s, but here was producer Irwin Allen trying to maintain his fortune by spending a fortune on a volcano eruption picture that cashed in a handful of contractual obligations, including star Paul Newman, who never once, not for a minute, seems interested in participating in the project. Catastrophe hits Hawaii in the feature, which intends to put on a major show of force featuring an exploding mountain, lava flow, and multiple survival challenges once again facing a collection of characters. What "When Time Ran Out" mostly comes up with is a botched final edit and cheapy special effects, with director James Goldstone ("Rollercoaster," "Charles & Diana: A Royal Love Story") working hard to make an attractive looking film, but he shows less interest in creating an even remotely suspenseful one. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1979's "Hanging by a Thread" finds producer Irwin Allen in a creative drought when it comes to picking disaster movie topics for television audiences. He goes the miniseries route with the effort, with writer Adrian Spies handed two nights of T.V. to come up with a riveting sense of danger and a deep feel for the characters. It's a big swing and a miss for "Hanging by a Thread," which is more of an extremely labored soap opera than a thriller, putting director Georg Fenady in a position to make something inherently inert at least passably exciting. Viewers are presented with 196 minutes of relationship woes and occasional elements of danger, but as a true disaster endeavor, the film can't escape its incredible dullness and, at times, painful silliness. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1977's "Fire" is a second made-for-television movie from producer Irwin Allen during his most fertile creative period. Looking to bring big screen mayhem to the small screen, Allen goes from the water threat of 1976's "Flood" to a forest inferno, following his formula by mixing scenes of survival with the emotional and physical concerns of a collection of characters. Director Earl Bellamy (returning to duty after "Flood") and writers Norman Katkov and Arthur Weiss aren't trying to make high art with "Fire," simply assembling a functional disaster film for a wide audience, showing more aggressive interest in the central threat than previous endeavors, making for a more active viewing experience. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Feeling indestructible after scoring major theatrical hits in 1972's "The Poseidon Adventure" and 1974's "The Towering Inferno," producer Irwin Allen brings his disaster movie formula to television for 1976's "Flood," hoping to give home audiences more of his special ways with pandemonium. Of course, with T.V. comes limited money, but director Earl Bellamy and screenwriter Don Ingalls do their best to secure some panic and personal issues facing a large community of characters. The pressure point here is a breaking dam, with "Flood" looking to juggle the needs of the subgenre and the personalities of the characters. The production is far from remarkable, but the feature gets the job done thanks to a committed cast and some interestingly low-fi ways to sell aquatic horror. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1986's "Cat City" is a Hungarian production, with director Bela Ternovszky overseeing a study of feline crime and rodent adventuring, playing up a Ralph Bakshi-ish vibe with the picture. It's an animated exploration of heroes and villains, only Ternovszky isn't quite sure what side of the saga he wants to remain on, presenting a feature with charming visuals but limited storytelling power, with the main character becoming a supporting player, while the bad cats prove to be far more interesting to the helmer than anything else in this riff on superspy cinema, which enjoys plenty of cartoon energy. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

David Depesseville offers a tale of extreme woe in "Astrakan," a French production that follows the days of a young, unwanted boy gradually losing control of himself due to deep emotional issues. The director goes the cinematic realism route for the endeavor, looking to capture behavior and reflection as the main character experiences a range of horrors, coping to the best of his ability. "Astrakan" provides a powerful study of adolescence and the stockpiling of pain, and Depesseville finds his way through most of the effort, capturing raw experiences and authentic performances before getting a little too drastic in the final act. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

A holiday celebration is cut short in 1993's "Halloween Horrors," with director Gary Whitson and his W.A.V.E. production company trying to bring some extra kink to the night of terror. There's no monster mash here, just a custom video quickie from Whitson, who slaps together a loose study of a father dealing with the kidnapping of his two daughters, with the women sent into a basement to endure captivity as they wait for dad to cough up a hefty ransom payment. "Halloween Horrors" isn't really much of anything, but as W.A.V.E. endeavors go, it offers brevity and some restraint when it comes to the inherent ickiness of the company's business plan, supplying only mild kicks as the helmer oversees a fresh offering of bound women and their whimpering contest. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2001's "Hayride Slaughter" contains very little in the way of murder and even hayrides, with director Gary Whitson investing more in a ridiculous amount of padding to help the feature reach an 85-minute-long run time. Quite literally, a third of the picture is devoted to the mundane details of a magic act and people casually conversing in a motel room. Cinema! Whitson and his W.A.V.E. Productions largely avoid the pervy route with "Hayride Slaughter," as the helmer seems to be questing to make a legitimate chiller/thriller with the endeavor, straining to cook up a serial killer story with some red herrings and a law enforcement component. W.A.V.E. movies aren't built for excitement, but a loss of fetish interests and surge of meandering screen activity tanks the viewing experience here, making for an excruciating sit at times, especially when it's clear Whitson is just making it up as he goes. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Co-writer/director Frank Vitale looks to get ugly with 1976's "East End Hustle," which is his take on the sordid ways of Canadian crime and punishment. It's a rough study of characters hunting for some type of liberation, focusing on the actions of prostitutes who've had enough of their abusive pimp, looking to make a break to preserve what's left of their sanity. Vitale and co-writer/actor Allan Moyle (who would go on to direct "Pump Up the Volume" and "Empire Records") has something sleazy in mind with "East End Hustle," but they don't have the instincts for exploitation cinema, remaining static with material that should always be on the move, and vicious activity is mostly dispiriting when the production is clearly aiming to provide something more thrilling. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2001's "Knight Chills" hunts to find the horror in the world of role-playing games. Unfortunately, such genre intent is only part of the viewing experience, with the screenplay by Jeff Kennedy, Juanita Kennedy, and D.J. Perry more interested in the ways of romantic obsession and police nonsense, limiting the fantasy aspects of the picture. "Knight Chills" hopes to be something of a valentine to gaming, offering time with a group of friends and their Saturday evenings of "Dungeons & Dragons"-style imagination adventuring, sharing such concentration with viewers. The rest of the shot-on-video endeavor isn't quite as lively, with director Katherine Hicks unable to merge elements of fright and insanity into a more compelling feature. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1991's "Bloodfeast! The Adventures of Sgt. Lunch" is a goof. It was made as a distraction while director David Palamaro and his friends were involved with the military, using their base as a studio of sorts, giving them room to explore what's intended to be a supercop cinema parody, attempting to go silly with a shot-on-video endeavor. There's certainly the central idea of a heroic law enforcement officer on the hunt for crime, dealing with despicable villains and a killing machine. The humor of it all is up for debate, as Palamaro basically uses "Sgt. Lunch" (which doesn't even have an IMDB entry) as his film school, learning about the ways of timing and execution as he screws around with his buddies and their plastic guns. They're clearly having a ball making the picture, but it's not quite as fun to sit through it. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

A Czechoslovakian and Yugoslavian co-production from animator Dusan Vukotic, 1981's "Visitors from the Arkana Galaxy" is a live-action cartoon from the helmer. It's a take on the creative process, exploring the runaway imagination of a writer coming into contact with his own creation, experiencing all the curiosity and madness such a meeting involves. It's a wild comedy from Vukotic, who eventually allows the film to spin out of his control, but the set-up is involving, dealing with sci-fi examination, mild eroticism, and domestic pressures, generating a unique atmosphere of exploration as matters grow stranger by the minute. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1982's "Ghost Nursing" sends an anti-"Ghostbusters" message, with the characters actually calling the ghosts when there's something strange in the neighborhood. It's a Hong Kong production from director Wilson Tong, who offers a heroic commitment to the wild and weird with the picture, showing little restraint when it comes to bizarre happenings involving supernatural and spiritual matters. The story follows a woman who's down on her luck, introduced to the ways of ghost child adoption to solve her problems, keeping up with blood offerings to stabilize her seemingly ruinous life. The tale is out there, but Tong supports such extremity with a lively viewing experience, filling the run time with macabre events and bewildering battles between good and evil. "Ghost Mother" is a real ride, shedding concern for logic as it hits highlights of genre filmmaking. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1984's "Evil Judgment" is occasionally described as a giallo, as it features a black-gloved killer coming after terrified victims while a mystery of sorts fights for screen time. Missing is a sense of style, with co-writer/director Claudio Castravelli basically holding on for dear life with the slasher movie, in charge of making sense of an eye-crossing plot, overseeing a cast of hazily defined characters, and stitching together two filming periods (one in 1981, the other in 1983) into one passably coherent picture. "Evil Judgment" has its violence and exploitation interests, but the Canadian production doesn't catch fire as a thriller, often caught struggling with the details of the crime and forward momentum of the story, emerging as a chiller with limited moments of screen tension. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com