Category: DVD/BLU-RAY

Shekar Kapur, the director of 1998's "Elizabeth" and its 2007 sequel, "Elizabeth: The Golden Age," returns to duty after a 15-year-long break from big screen storytelling with "What's Love Got to Do with It?" Shedding interest in historical dramas, Kapur joins screenwriter Jemima Khan for this study of arranged marriages and challenges with true love, endeavoring to make something that deals with authentic relationship issues while still hoping to remain approachable as a study of a tentative romance. "What's Love Got to Do with It?" (which doesn't have anything to do with the Tina Turner hit, but try explaining that to your brain) has the opportunity to say something meaningful about ongoing battles between the heart and mind, but the production isn't courageous enough to really offer an honest assessment of near-misses when it comes to relationships, eventually turning to a to-do list of cliches just to make sure the material meets expectations. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Nick Cassavetes, the director of mild sauce movies like "The Notebook" and "The Other Woman," looks to get dark and mean with "God Is a Bullet." He handles an adaptation of Boston Teran's 1999 novel, which presents a bleak study of danger involving a father on the hunt to retrieve his kidnapped daughter from the clutches of a Satanic cult. It's an epic story handed an epic length by the production, with the picture running 155 minutes, which proves to be more time than Cassavetes really needs to explore this tale. He's after an extended appreciation of pain and suffering, and that's all "God Is a Bullet" really is, taking viewers willing to put in the time to the worst areas of the human experience. There's some exploitation, but nothing major. There's a pass at emotion, but it doesn't take. What's left is a seemingly endless revenge story brought to life by limited actors, while the helmer's obsession with bodily harm wears out its welcome quickly. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There's a very specific audience for 1999's "Guest House Paradiso," which is aimed directly at fans of actors Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmundson. The comedy duo won hearts and minds with their work on British television, co-starring on "The Young Ones" and taking leading roles in "Bottom," delighting viewers with their fondness for slapstick comedy and general anarchy. "Guest House Paradiso" brings the boys to the big screen in what appears to be a spin-off of "Bottom," with "Richie & Eddie" giving their act a cinematic makeover, looking to go long-form with their interests in shenanigans. Those in the know might be a bit more receptive to the madness contained in "Guest House Paradiso," which certainly wins points for madcap timing and an endless appetite for the ridiculous. Actual laughs involving any of this weirdness is up for debate, but Mayall and Edmundson aren't phoning it in with this offering of high-speed nonsense. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Animals attack cinema takes a bit of a breather with 1977's "The Pack." It's a "Jaws" with dogs situation, with writer/director Robert Clouse adapting a book by David Fisher, but he's mostly interested in the exploitation aspects of the material, excited by scenes where the canine co-stars seek to devour a collection of characters stuck on an island with them. It should be fun, but "The Pack" isn't as animated as it should be, with Clouse (who's largely celebrated as the helmer of "Enter the Dragon," but he also made "Gymkata") going sluggish with personalities and elements of danger in this mediocre presentation of horror. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Spirit Halloween is a chain of stores that typically open for business in August, offering holiday costumes and decoration for rabid fans of the season and families trying to solve any outfit issues in one fell swoop. Spirit Halloween is big news these days, with the fetishization of Halloween growing more intense every year, and the company seems perfectly comfortable with jabs at its business model, taking over buildings previously inhabited by retail failures. "Spirit Halloween" is the first film based on the brand, emerging as seasonal entertainment for younger viewers and a commercial for the stores, pitting excitable kids against possessed inventory. Director David Poag and screenwriter Billie Bates seem to understand the creative mission, creating broad emotion and conflicts to help inspire a mildly enjoyable adventure in the "Goosebumps" tradition, keeping things relatively easygoing and mercifully short. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Turning to animation to realize the world of folklore hero Miklos Toldi, director Jozsef Gemes attempts to bring reality and emotionality to a particularly conflicted figure of power. The Hungarian production is realized through paintings, with extreme artfulness leading the charge in "Heroic Times," giving it a special cinematic power, capturing the intensity of thought and the tragedies of life. It's a unique offering of storytelling, and while the tale isn't always interested in the fine details of motivation and power plays, feelings register with potency, while the endeavor looks like a museum come to life. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

"Pied Piper of Hamelin" is a German legend from long ago, often a source of interpretation and reinvention to suit whatever audience its being shared with. 1986's "The Pied Piper" is another version of the story, with director Jiri Barta looking to rework the inherent horrors of the tale for the animation realm, offering a stop-motion production that prefers to remain on the nightmarish side of things. "The Pied Piper" is a striking picture, with intense attention to detail and an appreciation for the macabre, reviving the inherent unease of the legend while Barta does some things differently, giving it a distinct appearance and creative approach. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The ways of mental manipulation are examined in 2018's "Black Circle," a Mexican/Swedish production looking to creep out viewers with its slow-burn study of control. Writer/director Adrian Garcia Bogliano has something sinister in mind with the picture, trying to replicate a low-budget brain bleeder from the 1970s, merging the ways of exploitation and underground cinema for this exploration of self-help gone horribly wrong. There's a fantastic idea for a freak-out at the center of the endeavor, but Bogliano has some difficulty staying focused on unnerving business in "Black Circle," which often gets lost in its own world-building. It's an interesting feature, but only periodically, eventually diminished by a weak climax, which doesn't carry the kind of payoff invested viewers deserve. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There's a world of sin and city streets to explore in 1981's "The Tale of Tiffany Lust," with director Gerard Kikoine (or Radley Metzger, depending on who you ask) overseeing a study of discontent. There's a woman craving a new level of sexual freedom, and her strange journey makes for a loose plot, with the material going episodic as this odyssey takes the main character around New York City, interacting with predators and prey as she begins to understand the possibilities beyond her marriage. There's no deep dive into psychology in "The Tale of Tiffany Lust," with the production mostly out to titillate instead of explore the emotionality during this tour of couplings. And there's walking. So much walking, with Kikoine refusing to pass on any opportunity to photograph actors in motion, making their way around the city, allowing those less interested in amorous activity to enjoy a tour of NYC the way it was in 1980. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1995's "Hackers" isn't a vision of the future or a snapshot of the era. It's a study of style and restless adolescent energy working with the technological advancements of the 1990s, merging a comic book sensibility with the internet revolution, emerging with a broad, cyberpunk-y offering of entertainment. It's heightened work from director Iain Softley, who works hard to give the feature a special screen magic, playing with the new frontier of computer-fu and the tried-and-true ways of teen cinema. "Hackers" is immense fun, especially if it's not taken especially seriously, with Softley carefully supplying a steady stream of exaggeration with his characters and environments, giving the whole endeavor a wonderful amplification and sublime soundtrack support, making for a spirited movie. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

What to do with Scott Valentine? It was a question shared for a moment in Hollywood during the mid-1980s. A dramatically trained actor, Valentine received the career breakthrough when he joined the cast of "Family Ties" as Nick, Mallory's lovably dim-witted boyfriend. Intended to pop in for a single episode, Nick hung around for the rest of the show's run, delighting audiences with his Stallone-ish ways. Valentine the actor wanted more, and he received another major opportunity with 1987's "My Demon Lover," taking the lead role in a horror comedy that's almost entirely dependent on his screen charms. Valentine is handed a juicy part here, tasked with playing a monster, a maniac, and a sensitive soul, and his enthusiasm for the material is welcome, matched by his equally charismatic co-star, Michele Little. It's the rest of "My Demon Lover" that's less enchanting, finding director Charlie Loventhal struggling to settle the complicated tone of the endeavor, which deals with genre additions, madcap comedy, and tender feelings. It's a Tim Burton-ish production without Tim Burton, making for an uneven viewing experience with sometimes questionable characterizations. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Co-writer/director Ulli Lommel needed a hit movie, and what better way to create a success than to lift elements of previous box office successes. 1980's "The Boogey Man" isn't too shy about stealing from other titles, with elements of "The Amityville Horror," "Halloween," and "The Exorcist" prominently displayed in the endeavor. One would think such "inspiration" would create a riveting study of evil, but Lommel is in no hurry with "The Boogey Man," keeping the spare effort slow and somewhat uneventful, trying to master some type of cinematic creep that doesn't register as intended. It's a handsome picture though, with unusual focus on lighting and atmosphere that helps to hold attention as the production tries to taffy- pull a small, weird idea into a feature-length haunting. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

"Killer Condom" was born in comics created by German artist Ralf Konig, with such insanity free to be explored on the page, without creative limitations. Co-writer/director Martin Walz looks to take a shot at the material in a 1996 cinematic adaptation, trying to sell the absurd horror of a monstrous prophylactic on the loose in New York City without leaning too hard into frenzied camp. It's a tonal tightrope walk few filmmakers would attempt, giving Walz points for bravery, and "Killer Condom" isn't a slapdash endeavor, highlighting some attention to detail and a love for weirdness. At two hours in length, the feature is demanding a lot of patience from viewers, with Walz refusing to create a more direct hit of peculiarity and character, making the offering more plodding than giddily outrageous. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

As explored in the supplementary material on this release, 1987's "Night Screams" had a lot of difficulty in the editing room. The first cut of the film came up short, inspiring some to attempt to add padding to the feature to help bring it to a sellable run time. However, instead of using more footage from the original shoot to do so, outside sources were utilized, including sequences from 1981's "Graduation Day" and, weirdly enough, adult movies, with John Holmes, Seka, and Honey Wilder suddenly showing up in the endeavor. Delivery of these additions isn't completely clunky, sold as television and VHS viewing for couples trying to entertain themselves, but it's an odd creative choice, and would probably be more intrusive in a more exciting picture. "Night Screams" hopes to add some bloodshed to the slasher genre, but there's little effort to really dig into suspense, with director Allen Plone failing to inspire a more heated understanding of horror with this meandering attempt at violent entertainment. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Madness is the subject of 1972's "Delirium," and messiness is the style employed by writer/director Renato Polselli. Giallo doesn't typically welcome hospital corners when it comes to storytelling, but even with lowered expectations, Polselli remains all over the place with this tale of a serial killer on the move, combating insanity while playing dual roles in the investigation to find him. It's a neat premise, but dramatic clarity isn't readily available in the picture, with the helmer playing with dreamscapes and emotional breakdowns, going more for style and hysteria than the lure of a strange whodunit. "Delirium" isn't without some pleasures, but it doesn't fully live up to its early promise, getting lost in unreality to a point where Polselli can't find a way out of the tale. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1986's "Psycho Girls" is a few different movies competing for screen time. Normally, this would result in an interesting film of various tones and creative paths, but co-writer/director Jerry Ciccoritti doesn't have the seasoning to really manage whatever he ultimately wants from the feature. It begins as a detective story and ends with extended scenes of torture, with the core appeal of the picture difficult to discern while watching it. There's some flair in visual design choices, with the production going to war against a limited budget. And performances are strong, but they're committed to the endeavor's sense of insanity. "Psycho Girls" isn't really much fun, with the harshness of violence too abrasive to enjoy on a pure horror level, and editorial slackness isn't helping the cause, with Ciccoritti more determined to reach a sellable run time than deal honestly with his prolonged showcase of campy madness. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1992's "The Demon Rat" is a low-budget offering of future world horrors, with the star of the show a mutated beast that's out to feast on human prey. However, there's a little more to the production, as co-writer/director Ruben Galindo Jr. is also very concerned about the state of the planet, working in a message on ecological ruin while managing bloodier events highlighting monster movement. It's refreshing to see a B-movie try to bum out its audience with reminders of planetary collapse, and while "The Demon Rat" isn't successful landing the severity of the atmospheric situation, it wins points for trying, with Galindo Jr. better off exploring the state of a polluted nation than trying to mount a creature feature with little monetary support. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Director Charles B. Pierce had a dream to make movies, putting in the effort to bring 1972's "The Legend of Boggy Creek" to life. It was a regional creation intended for a small audience, but the feature managed to capture viewer imagination, with ticket-buyers choosing to believe in the "true" story of the "Foulke Monster," caught up in a mild horror show created for the drive-in circuit. The docudrama was a hit for Pierce, but he wasn't interested in jumping right into a sequel, with another creative team eventually leaping on the opportunity with 1977's "Return to Boggy Creek," offering the acting services of Dawn Wells and Dana Plato instead of a fierce Bigfoot adventure. After feeling around a helming career throughout the 1970s and early '80s (including "The Norseman" and "The Town That Dreaded Sundown"), Pierce finally gave in, returning to the saga with 1984's "Boggy Creek II: And the Legend Continues," out to make sure everything goes his way by writing, directing, and starring in the endeavor (joined by his son and wife). "Boggy Creek II" is a homegrown effort, with Pierce trying to solidify himself as a cinema star without paying attention to the realities of acting, letting the picture slowly slide into goofiness, which isn't entirely unappealing, especially for those aware of the film's silliness and vanity-driven production goals. Die-hard "Boggy Creek"-ers may find themselves horribly disappointed by this nutty follow-up. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

With the heyday of giallo productions coming to a close in the late 1970s, filmmakers were still hunting for blood in the subgenre during the early 1980s. For Lamberto Bava, the chance to once again toy with death and suspense arrived in 1983's "A Blade in the Dark," which is a thriller contained to a single location, forcing the production to generate some excitement while staying close to familiar surroundings. "A Blade in the Dark" isn't a striking chiller from Bava, who's stuck trying to find ways to surprise viewers with writing that's less committed to the cause, inspiring lengthy scenes of property tours where screen stillness is mistaken for nail-biting exploration. Despite some troublesome inertia, Bava manages to score some decent unease with acts of violence, getting a little bloody with horrible things happening to innocent people, and the whodunit has some snap to it, but only when there's interest in pursuing tension. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Like so many horror movies from the 1980s, "Terror at Tenkiller" was inspired by the success of "Friday the 13th," the genre hit that gave producers everywhere the idea that they could also assemble a cheap picture, fill it with gore, and send it out to an audience hungry for more. The 1986 feature is directed by Ken Meyer, who makes his helming debut with the endeavor, and it really shows, with "Terror at Tenkiller" a glacial offering of suspense, working with thin characters and a limited vision for grisly happenings. There's a woodsy setting, a killer on the loose, and young victims, but even with the basics in slasher cinema, Meyer puts this baby to sleep almost immediately, visibly struggling with even the most basic of scenes. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com