FEAR CLINIC is accepting appointments on Blu-ray and DVD starting February 10, 2015!
Time to face your fears. What if your fears faced you?
ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT DARES YOU TO ENTER THE…
FEAR CLINIC
Starring Robert Englund, Fiona Dourif, Corey Taylor, Angelina Armani and Thomas Dekker
Step Into The Fear Chamber Starting February 10, 2015
on Blu-ray™ and DVD
After terrifying audiences from coast to coast – Closing Night Event at ScreamFest 2014 Los Angeles and Opening Night Screening at 2014 New York City Horror Film Festival – Fear Clinic, the latest excursion into unrelenting terror will be released on Blu-ray™ and DVD on February 10, 2015 by Anchor Bay Entertainment. The highly anticipated shocker stars horror icon Robert “Freddy Krueger” Englund, Fiona Dourif, Angelina Armani, Thomas Dekker, as well as Stone Sour and Slipknot lead vocalist Corey Taylor in his acting debut, and is directed by Robert G. Hall (Lightning Bug, Laid to Rest, ChromeSkull: Laid To Rest II).
With blood-chilling special effects by award-winning FX creators Robert Kurtzman and Steve Johnson, Fear Clinic will take viewers on an unforgettable journey into the very soul of terror itself. SRP is $26.99 for the Blu-ray™ and $22.98 for the DVD, with pre-book on January 7.
Co-written by Hall and Aaron Drane, the film is based on the critically acclaimed and fan favorite 2009 FEARnet.com series. When trauma-induced phobias begin to re-emerge in five survivors a year after their horrifying tragedy, they return to the “Fear Clinic,” hoping to find the answers they need to get cured.
Dr. Andover (Robert Englund), a fear doctor who runs the clinic, uses his “Fear Chamber” to animate their fears in the form of terrifying hallucinations. However, the good doctor soon begins to suspect that something more sinister may be at work, something that yearns to be more than just an hallucination…
Bonus features on Fear Clinic Blu-ray™ and DVD to be announced.
FEAR CLINIC Blu-ray™
Street Date: February 10, 2015
Pre-book: January 7, 2015
Cat. #: BD62075
UPC: 0 1313 262075-6
Run Time: 95 minutes
Rating: R (pending)
SRP: $26.99
Format: Widescreen 2.40:1 1080p
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
FEAR CLINIC DVD
Street Date: February 10, 2015
Pre-book: January 7, 2015
Cat. #: DV62074
UPC: 0 1313 262074-9
Run Time: 95 minutes
Rating: R (pending)
SRP: $22.98
Format: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.40:1
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
MUCK arrives from Anchor Bay Entertainment March 17, 2015 on Blu-ray and DVD!
The Lucky Ones Are Already Dead
ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT
WADES INTO THE…
MUCK
With Kane Hodder, Lachlan Buchanan,
2012 Playboy PMOY Jaclyn Swedberg, and Lauren Francesca
The Race for Survival Begins March 17, 2015 on Blu-ray™ and DVD;
Limited Theatrical Engagement starts Friday, March 13th!
BEVERLY HILLS, CA – This St. Patrick’s Day, Anchor Bay Entertainment invites fans for a little bit’o the green and a LOT of the red with MUCK, a chiller seething with the greatest fear of all: that nowhere is safe! The directorial debut of Steve Wolsh, who also wrote and produced, MUCK reads like a bloody love letter filled with just the sort of jolts horror fans have been waiting to hear – and see!
Shot in state-of-the-art 4K Ultra HD resolution, MUCK is packed with old-school effects, shocks – and yes, breasts – that stick with you, creating terror with effects and stunts without the use of CGI. MUCK arrives Tuesday, March 17th – uncut, uncensored, and unrated – available on Blu-ray™ for $26.99 and $22.98 for the DVD. Pre-book on February 11th.
For fans who like their 4K horror on the big screen, MUCK will also have a limited theatrical engagement starting Friday, March 13th.
After narrowly escaping an ancient burial ground, long forgotten and buried underneath the marshes of Cape Cod, a group of friends emerge from the thick, marshy darkness, tattered and bloody, lucky to be alive. They have already lost two of their friends in the marsh, presumably dead. They stumble upon an empty Cape Cod vacation house alongside the foggy marsh and break in to take shelter. Whatever was in the marsh is still after them and soon after one of them goes for help, the rest of the group learns that the evil in the marsh is not the only thing that wants them dead. Something worse, something more savage, was lying in wait just outside the marsh, in the house. What happens next is unspeakable horror that cannot be unseen. These unlucky travelers spend their St. Patrick’s Day trapped between two evils forcing them to fight, die, or go back the way they came.
Featuring Kane Hodder (Hatchet, Jason Voorhees in four of the Friday the 13th films), Lachlan Buchanan (“Pretty Little Liars”), Puja Mohindra (Foreign), Bryce Draper (Bound) and YouTube Sensation Lauren Francesca (iwantmylauren), MUCK is throwback horror at its best.
About Anchor Bay Entertainment
Anchor Bay Entertainment is a leading home entertainment company. Anchor Bay acquires and distributes feature films, original television programming including STARZ Original series, children’s entertainment, anime (Manga Entertainment), fitness (Anchor Bay Fitness), sports, and other filmed entertainment on DVD and Blu-ray™ formats. The company has long term distribution agreements in place for select programming with AMC Networks, RADiUS, and The Weinstein Company. Headquartered in Beverly Hills, CA, Anchor Bay Entertainment has offices in Troy, MI, as well as Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia. Anchor Bay Entertainment (www.anchorbayentertainment.com) is a Starz (NASDAQ: STRZA, STRZB) business, www.starz.com.
MUCK Blu-ray™
Street Date: March 17, 2015
Pre-book: February 11, 2015
Cat. #: BD62847
UPC: 0 1313 262847-6
Run Time: 98:27
Rating: Not Rated
SRP: $26.99
MUCK DVD
Street Date: March 17, 2015
Pre-book: February 11, 2015
Cat. #: DV62467
UPC: 0 1313 262467-9
Run Time: 98:27
Rating: Not Rated
SRP: $22.98
Halloween 35th Anniversary Blu-Ray: The Night HE Looks Better Than Ever!
Review copy provided courtesy of Anchor Bay
If Psycho is the granddaddy of the slasher film, Halloween is the father of modern horror. While the 1970s had its fair share of horror films, including The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Black Christmas in ‘74, Carrie in ‘76, Dawn of the Dead in ‘78 and so many more, it was Halloween’s critical and box office success that put a new spotlight on horror cinema.
For many the Halloween season is a time to rewatch Halloween the film, and this year you can watch John Carpenter’s classic like never before. On Tuesday, September 24th, Anchor Bay releases the 35th Anniversary Edition of Halloween on Blu-ray.
Halloween has been released to home video many times. I personally have bought DVDs of the original cut, the longer cut with the TV footage added, the 25th Anniversary Edition DVD, and the original 2007 Blu-ray release. Given that I’ve spent so much money on Halloween, and that I already owned it on Blu-ray, I was skeptical that another release would be worth the purchase. It felt like another “double dip” Blu-ray release.
I quickly learned how wrong I was when I looked at the disc in person. Bound in a gorgeous, gold embossed DVD case, the video boasts an all new commentary with Carpenter and star Jamie Lee Curtis. There is also a new documentary following Curtis as she makes a rare appearance at a fan convention. These are great new bonus features for fans of the film. Additionally, as bonus features, you get an older featurette and the extra footage shot for the TV release.
I rarely find bonus features worth the repurchase of an entire movie, so despite the quality of these new additions I was still unmoved that a new copy was worth a buy. Special features, commentaries, these are items I watch once at most; it’s the film itself that gets played time and again in my home theater and which motivates my purchases. So could this new release impress me enough, especially since I already own a copy of Halloween in 1080p?
The answer is an unequivocal “YES!” With the 35th Anniversary Blu-ray you can see this horror classic at home like never before. I have seen Halloween in theaters at conventions and in the above listed DVDs and Blu-rays. With all of those in mind, I say without a doubt it has never looked better to me than it does on this video release. The picture is crisp and the motion smooth, as I have come to expect from high-grade Blu-rays. But often on even quality Blu-ray releases I’ve noticed colors that are too saturated or a picture that has had too much grain removed, giving the entire film a blurry quality. None of those earmarks of Blu-ray audience pandering are on this disc. This Blu-ray contains a brand new transfer of the film overseen by Dean Cundy, the movie’s original Director of Photography. You are now, for the first time, able to see this movie the way Cundy envisioned it as it was shot, and the difference is marked. The colors are more muted than I’ve come to expect, and the result fits both that 70s vibe as well as the film’s atmospherem. The color timing was a point of contention for many with the original Halloween Blu-ray release, and Anchor Bay has certainly corrected it here. Anchor Bay did this film a great service in hiring Cundy to oversee the video.
Additionally the audio is perfect, with a mono score for the purists, as well as a 7.1 TrueHD lossless soundtrack. Carpenter’s haunting piano and synth score has never sounded as good as it does here, and the movie audio is rich and immersing. The effects are a bit center-channel heavy, which is common for upmixes of older films, but it’s a great effort for those of us who prefer multi-channel audio.
All that said, there are a few areas where I wish this release was beefed up. There are many bonus features that were released previously, including older commentaries and documentaries, that are not included here. As such, for bonus feature collectors, this release is not a one-stop shop. Additionally, the bonus made-for-TV footage is presented in an ugly DVD resolution with colors much more saturated than the actual film. I would have liked to see the TV footage given the same treatment as the movie and a branching option available to watch both the movie’s extended cut, with those scenes reintegrated, as well as the original theatrical cut. But while these are features that would have been nice to have, they are not requirements. As I’m certain this is not the last time HE will come home on video, perhaps these bonuses are being held back for a future release.
But as stated, the true value of this disc, the “feature” I’ll revisit again and again, is the movie, and now owning this disc this is the only version of Halloween I will ever rewatch. The transfer, the audio, the overall production values, are exceptions. So Trick-or-Treat yourself to this movie, available today.
As for the movie itself, you can hear Stuart, Arnie, and Brock review Carpenter’s original Halloween as well as all the sequels, remakes, and sequels to remakes in the franchise, in the archives at NowPlayingPodcast.com
Movie Review: The Package
There is nothing good inside this Package
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| The Package | |
| Starring | Steve Austin, Dolph Lundgren, Michael Daingerfield, Darren Shahlavi |
| Director: | Jesse V. Johnson |
| Writer: | Derek Kolstad |
| Studio: | Anchor Bay Entertainment |
| Release Date: | February 9, 2013 |
I knew what to expect from Anchor Bay’s The Package. Any film starring Steve Austin (no longer Stone Cold) and Dolph Lundgren is not going to have touching character moments, powerful acting performances, a gripping story, or eye-popping special effects. These types of movies exist to deliver some base thrills with lots of bone-crunching fights and explosive gunfire. But even viewers with those low expectations will leave disappointed in this adrenaline-free shoot-em-up.
The very loose plot of The Package is a rip-off of Jason Statham’s successful Transporter films. Austin plays a mob enforcer tasked with delivering a small package of high importance to The German (Lundgren). Along the way a squad of goons tries to stop Austin in the hopes of ransoming the package to The German for a higher price. The goons just hope to make some money, but as no one knows the contents of the package the goons have no stakes in successfully stealing it from Austin. This makes all the gunfire and fistfights a mere stalling tactic, dragging this film to feature-length.
Unfortunately, the fights are not even entertaining. Directed by veteran Hollywood stuntman Jesse V. Johnson (Starship Troopers, Thor), this film proves just because you can do stunts doesn’t mean you can direct them. The gunfights are loud but uninventive, and the hand-to-hand brawls are all shot with the close-up, choppy, shaky-cam effect that was passé a decade ago. None of the fights even come close to the outrageous WWE matches of Austin’s past.
The movie hits the depths of stupidity when Austin battles one goon in a construction zone. In the background, atop scaffolding, stand two welders going about their work. The light of their arc welder provides a cool strobe-light effect and delivers the only impressive visual in the movie. Despite two large men engaging in mortal combat mere inches from their work area, the teamsters work doesn’t stop. Their torch never turns off, even though a body colliding with their scaffold would likely jolt the machine and scar the workers for life.
If the welders don’t care, why should I?
The high point in this movie is The German. Lundgren plays this mysterious bad-ass for humor. Obsessed with culinary delights, The German regales his victims with recipes for fish sandwiches, fruit smoothies, and martinis. While even in his heyday Lundgren was never one for emoting on-screen, here the aging tough-guy has a subdued sense of playfulness that makes me wish he was given more to do.
Despite the movie saying Lundgren and Austin were on the same side, audience demand the two stars face off, and sure enough they do. This climactic battle between these two action stars should be the most spectacular and memorable fight in the film. Unfortunately, the battle is over in moments, and pales in comparison to some earlier in the film.
Even the most undiscerning action film fan will be disappointed in The Package. It’s an action movie that lacks punch and punches. Not recommend.
Movie Review: Officer Down
A tight neo-noir thriller with an amazing cast.
Review Copy provided to Now Playing courtesy of Anchor Bay films
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| Officer Down | |
| Starring | Stephen Dorff, James Woods, Walton Goggins, AnnaLynne McCord, Dominic Purcell, David Boreanaz, Laura Harris, Elisabeth Röhm |
| Director: | Brian A. Miler |
| Writer: | John Chase |
| Studio: | Anchor Bay Films |
| Release Date: | January 22, 2013 |
Detective David Callahan was a dirty cop. He took payoffs from criminals, abused alcohol and drugs, and cheated on his wife with prostitutes. But when a drug deal goes bad and Callahan is shot and given a chance at redemption. Declared a hero by the community, Callahan cleans up. But two years later when the man who saved his life that night shows up and asks a favor, Callahan must return to the seedy underworld he once inhabited to stop a sexual predator called “The Angel” (Goggins). But nothing is as it seems, and Callahan’s past will return to haunt him as he tries to find the line between doing what is right and slipping back into the habits of the man he once was.
As Callahan, Dorff (Blade, Feardotcom) portrays a likeable, layered character. For the story to work Callahan must be a likable character that the audience can root for in spite of his dirty deeds, and Dorff brings the right mix of bad-boy and earnest cop to the role. You believe he is wanting, and deserving, redemption for his sins, and his personal downward spiral is the center of the film. The story’s framing structure of flashbacks-within-a-flashback reveal key plot points to the viewer in a way that allows claustrophobia to build as the walls close in around Callahan. While at first a disorienting storytelling structure, as the film hits its rhythm this technique is used to maximum effect, and repeatedly pulls the rug out from under the viewer.
This is a neo-noir thriller, full of twists and turns in the style of Body Heat or Against All Odds, even casting the latter film’s star Woods at the role of Callahan’s complicit police captain. The film style, including several scenes in black-and-white, enhance the noir style as well. Once I realized this film was a deep mystery, and not a straightforward dirty-cop drama, I was engaged and found myself rooting for Callahan and wondering what insurmountable obstacle would step in his way next. But the script by Chase kept me guessing, and even as the film’s final act started the script still had ways to surprise me.
The script is aided by a cast of name actors, mostly from television work. Several Law & Order alums are in supporting roles, as well as two stars of Angel. The budget of this film was well spent on capable actors. But despite being recognizable faces, most of the cast is kept to the background with only Dorff, and to a lesser degree Goggins (Predators, House of 1000 Corpses) being given a chance to make a lasting impression. In the role of a dirty strip club owner is Purcell (Prison Break, Blade: Trinity) and I can’t help but wonder if Purcell and Dorff spent time on set sharing Wesley Snipes war stories. But if so, none of that levity made it to screen as the dark, suspenseful atmosphere of Officer Down is never broken.
Full of impressive camerawork, including some nice aerial establishing shots of the film’s Bridgeport, CT locale, every piece of this film comes together better than your average direct-to-video fare.
Title cards that end the film feel tacked on for audiences that hate ambiguity, but other than that one element every part of this film clicks. For fans of character-driven suspense I recommend Officer Down, available Tuesday, January 22 from Anchor Bay home video.
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