Making his move into larger studio productions during the 1980s, director John Carpenter endured a few box office failures, effectively throttling his rise in industry ranks. Looking to get back to his low-budget roots and obtain more control over his projects, Carpenter turned the late 1980s into an experimental period, with 1987's "Prince of Darkness" the first of a one-two punch (the other being 1988's "They Live") where the helmer made a choice to explore his interests in the world around him. "Prince of Darkness" has the kind of grand title that promises supreme genre chaos, but the master moviemaker doesn't go furious with his tale of Satanic evil in a jar, electing to go cerebral with the work, which merges the slow-burn exploratory habits of a Hammer Films production with the scientific specifics of a college lecture. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

We all know that 1975's "Jaws" was a massive hit, changing the film industry in the process. It's also a masterful suspense effort, with extreme technical skill and intense performances giving it true cinematic power. However, in the wake of such a creative achievement and box office triumph came the rip-offs, with producers from all over the world jumping at the chance to participate in the white-hot trend of animal attack pictures. 1977's "Tintorera: Killer Shark" is a Mexican production endeavoring to be the next "Jaws," with writer/director Rene Cardona Jr. heading into the waters of Cancun to explore the dangers of the depths, with a particularly heavy breathing tiger shark on the loose, terrorizing tourists. "Tintorera: Tight Shark" has the general shape of B-movie cash-in, pitting humans against marine life, but Cardona Jr. largely skips any sort of terror, preferring to use time set aside for a shark attack feature to deal with the emotional aches and pains of a swinging bachelor and his quest to find warm, willing bodies in Mexico. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In the wilds of the blaxploitation trend of the 1970s, 1975's "The Black Gestapo" elected to remove the style and the grittiness of these endeavors, going the no-budget route while detailing the rise of fascist power within the black community. The screenplay by Wes Bishop and Lee Frost (who also directs) certainly takes a big swing, but it barely connects with ideas on power plays and criminal activity. Also not helping is overall execution, which is often amateurish, with "The Black Gestapo" more of a Coleman Francis endeavor than a barbed understanding of the black community during a turbulent time. There's sex and violence, but Frost has no coin to do anything of note with the material, which remains in neutral as the cast and crew scramble to figure out what they're doing with a vague tale of insurrection somewhere in suburban Los Angeles. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2006's "Bartender" is an adaptation of a manga written by Araki Joh and illustrated by Kenji Nagatomo. Looking to give the material a different life through animation, the producers elect to set a gentle mood of storytelling and cocktail mixing for the show, which examines the inhabitants of the hidden nightlife oasis Eden Hall and its special bartender, Ryu. Over the course of 11 episodes, the program observes the lives of troubled and distressed characters searching for a special level of peace only a perfectly made drink can provide, retaining the page-turning feel of the source material. The stillness of "Bartender" is unexpected, securing a peaceful vibe of communication as Ryu reaches out to his customers, hoping to share lessons with others and delve into the history of certain drinks. It's an incredibly odd show, but always interesting in its somewhat surreal execution and love of spirits, with most of the episodes more focused on the art of drink preparation than the visitors to Eden Hall. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There was a time in the mid-1980s when film producers actively courted Olympic gymnasts to become Hollywood actors. It's not unheard of to add sporting stars to any ensemble, but there was something in the water around this particular time, with Kurt Thomas transformed into an action hero for "Gymkata," and Mitch Gaylord went the dreamboat route for "American Anthem." It's not easy to coax a performance out of athletes who don't have experience being in front of a camera, and for Gaylord, creating a steady career proved to be impossible. However, in the midst of his short-lived starring days, the gold medalist claimed a leading role in 1989's "American Rickshaw," putting his good looks and ease of movement into the hands of Italian producers looking for ways to Americanize their genre product. The result is an ideal offering for any bad movie night event — "American Rickshaw" never slips out of control, but it remains determined to be absolutely insane. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

More entertaining than 1978's "The Greek Tycoon" is the making of the film. Movie trivia details efforts to coax Jacqueline Kennedy into starring in a picture based on her relationship with Aristotle Onassis, which she understandably refused. Unwilling to give up on the idea, the production elected to make slight changes to the screenplay (credited to Mort Fine) to avoid lawsuits, and key members of the crew set out to publicly reject any connection to real-world people and events. For example, Jackie Kennedy is now Lizzie Cassidy and Ari Onassis is now Theo Tomasis. See? Problem solved. Clearly embarking on completely different tale of a rich Greek shipping magnate and his lustful drive to woo the widow of an assassinated president, "The Greek Tycoon" doesn't achieve any of its sneaky intentions, and it's not an impressive drama either, putting steely journeyman director J. Lee Thompson in charge of a delicate story of romantic and social pursuit, and the helmer elects to sprint through a tale that demands a refined touch and greater attention to the passage of time. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Joining other filmmakers interested in paying tribute to giallo entertainment, siblings Luciano and Nicolas Onetti try their luck with "Abrakadabra," which represents their attempt to deliver an Italian-flavored shocker with extreme screen details (there's even a J&B bottle present). It's an interesting offering of pure moviemaking labor, with the Onettis constructing an effort that's determined to replicate the cinematography and sounds of lesser giallo events and, I'll admit, it took me a few minutes to realize the whole shebang was created recently (2018), finding the artistic approach quite convincing, at least until actors begin to populate the frame. That's the trick of "Abrakadabra," and really the only reason to sit through the short (70 minutes with end credits) endeavor, finding its cinematic textures alluring, while the storytelling leaves much to be desired. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

By the time 1980 rolled around, things weren't looking good for Hammer Films. The theatrical side of the business dried up and public interest was fading. It was time to return to television, with producer Roy Skeggs dreaming up "Hammer House of Horror," the company's second pass at an anthology series. Over the course of 13 episodes, the production aims to bring strange tales of terror to living room audiences, offered a more R-rated push of the macabre, with plenty of sexploitation thrown in to keep viewers interested. "Hammer House of Horror" is nicely varied, touching on the supernatural, monster affairs, and pure madness, brought to life by a talented team of writers, directors (including company man Peter Sasdy), and especially actors, with interesting British performers of the day capably communicating levels of panic and confusion required to sell the small-scale nature of the program. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Feel-good cinema receives a new offering in "Fisherman's Friends." After the recent release of "Military Wives," here comes another U.K. tale of an unlikely musical success, presenting those in the mood for comfortable entertainment with a mild ride of fish-out-of-water comedy, family ties, and business world deviltry. And there's plenty of music to help lift the production up. "Fisherman's Friends" isn't going to wow with originality, and thankfully director Chris Foggin has managed to preserve some level of charm, delivering a frightfully predictable but amiable movie that's incredibly easy on the senses. There are a few laughs, an engaged cast, and big, clear vocal performances, which help to distract from a connect-the-dots screenplay that has no discernable interest in providing anything more than what the audience expects from a cheery good time with characters from a quaint corner of the world. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com