I think this was announced earlier this year (or maybe late last year?) but Blu-Ray.com have just posted the news that Synapse Films will be releasing one of the quintessential revenge films The Exterminator on Blu-Ray in the near future.  I cannot wait.

I first encountered Revenge of the Ninja at Olympia Video in Kings Heath, Birmingham during the mid to late 1980s.  Being an impressionable young movie fan, the cover art of the Guild VHS tape, which incidentally has been used for the Optimum DVD release, immediately caught my eye.  The exotic Ninja weaponry, suit and fire shooting from the hand would attract any curious pre-teen. 

This film became a mini-obssession for me.  Due to the Ninja weaponry this film fell foul of the BBFC and existed in two different versions: the heavily cut Guild tape and the ever so slightly less heavily cut Video Collection release.  Internet access and the advent of eBay allowed me to order the American VHS releases of the film.  Frustratingly both tapes were also missing footage.  I now had four versions of the film and not one of them was uncut.  The legendary uncut Dutch VHS proved elusive.  Then, MGM announced they were releasing the film on DVD in the US.  Though presented in full frame and not widescreen, the film was finally fully uncut.  All shuriken throwing, neck slicing, arm chopping, nunchaku action was present and more.  Curiously, the theatrical trailer, included as an extra feature on the disc, contains some footage not present in the final cut.

And now we have the UK Optimum DVD, which was released last Monday.  I was apprehensive to buy this as it was not made clear on websites whether it would 16x9 enhanced.  I am pleased to report that it is 16x9 enhanced, as shown in the screenshots above, and it looks pretty good.  A Blu-Ray would have been welcomed as a HD version is regularly broadcast on MGMHD in the US meaning that a HD master is available

Despite numerous viewings I still love the film.  It is incredibly well paced and though ridiculous features some excellently choreographed fight sequences.  The climatic roof top battle is very well shot against a mountain back drop in Salt Lake City, Utah.  If you like this film, this is version to own.

The first film in Cannon's Ninja series, Enter the Ninja (Menahem Golan, 1981), has also been released by Optimum but I have not purchased it yet.  I am more tempted by the HD version of the film which can be streamed from the iTunes store.  Expect a post in the next few weeks.

I cannot wait for this.  If this is anywhere near as good as Hartley's previous documentary Not Quite Hollywood (2008) it will certainly be a treat for any cult film fan.  Here is the trailer; there are some great contributors.

Well.  A limited edition Blu-Ray release that was actually, genuinely limited and not a marketing ploy.  Who'd believe it?  The first pressing of the excellent American Blu-Ray release of The Evil Dead has now officially sold out.  This first pressing came with a DVD loaded with numerous extra features.  Starz, formerly Anchor Bay, really did produce a quality Blu-Ray release here, offering a fantastic transfer of this low budget, shot on 16mm film.  Who would have thought that the film would have looked this good in HD?  The UK release is due on Monday but will not have the original 4x3 version of the film, just the cropped 16x9 version.  Both versions are present on the US disc, which will still be available but without the bonus DVD.  If you have not purchased the Blu-Ray I would not worry too much as Starz will almost certainly rerelease The Evil Dead for the umpteenth time in yet another limited edition pack with fancy 'Book of the Dead' packaging.

It looks as if Image Entertainment have avoided for bankruptcy, for now anyway, and will be releasing the Boris Karloff hosted show Thriller on DVD and also the first season of The Twilight Zone on Blu-Ray.  Thriller will have numerous special features and will be released on August 31. Whilst I am pleased that Image have chosen to release the complete series rather than release individual season sets I was rather surprised by the $149.99 RRP.  A number of online shops will most likely be selling it slightly cheaper but £100 for a 67 episode show is a little steep.  Perhaps this is to be expected considering the slim profit margins cult television shows such as this make for independent DVD labels?  Still, it will be a must buy for me, the episodes Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper and Pigeons from Hell being the stand-out episodes for me.

Some time later in the fall, Image will also release the first season of Rod Serling's classic The Twilight Zone on Blu-Ray.  No release date has been announced yet but Amazon are already offering it for pre-order at $89.99, another high price tag.  I wonder how some of the video taped episodes will look in HD? 

Robert Rodriguez has released an 'unofficial' trailer for Machete and yes, it looks like it will be everything I was hoping it would be.  I cannot wait to see this.

UPDATE:

Here is trailer in HD:

I recently posted about VCI's forthcoming release of the cult horror film Dark Night of the Scarecrow.  The DVD cover art has now appeared online, and although I prefer the artwork found on the UK VHS release this is still very pleasing.  I am really looking forward to this.

I despise soap operas.  Though a fascination for many Brits, I find them to be highly stereotypical, poorly written and acted and brain numbingly dire.  But there is one soap opera that I hold in high regard.  It premiered in America on July 27 1966, a product of the ABC television network.  Initially a gothic drama, influenced classic literature such as Wuthering Heights, Dark Shadows became braver over time as it attempted to increase ratings by adding supernatural entities such as ghosts, a Pheonix and, most famously, a vampire.  Created by Dan Curtis, who became known for his predilection towards making television programmes with a supernatural slant, such as my personal favourite television series Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Dark Shadows became a daytime television phenomenon attracting a large viewing audience and leading to two spin-off films: House of the Dark Shadows (Dan Curtis, 1970) and Night of the Dark Shadows (Dan Curtis, 1971).  It is quite surprising to find that the series is little known in the UK.  But this will no doubt change as Tim Burton and Johnny Depp have announced that their next feature will be a 'reboot' (I do dislike this term) of the popular television series, with Depp, a fan of the show while growing up, taking on the role of the sympathetic vampire Barnabas Collins.

The show was aired in the UK on the Sci-Fi Channel in 1995, two episodes were shown each weekday.  Having read about the show in fan publications purchased from comic book shops I was eager to see what the fuss was about.  I was surprised to find that the early episodes had nothing to do with the vampire Barnabas Collins, as I had been led to believe, but still found the show compelling.  I had to dip in and out of the episodes due to school and then college but anticipated the first appearance of Barnabas Collins.  I recall purchasing the magazine Cult Times in order to keep up to date with the episodes aired, waiting for this episode to air.  When it finally did, I was pleased to find that it was not an anti-climatic experience, the infamous shot of Barnabas' hand shooting out the coffin and wrapping round Willie Loomis' throat caught me by surprise.  The ensuing storyline of Barnabas stalking the town of Collinsport and subsequent kidnapping of waitress Maggie Evans who resembles his long lost love Josette Du Pres is extremely engaging.  Future storylines featured Governess Victoria Winters travelling back to 1775 and being accused of Witchcraft, a Werewolf, a Frankenstein inspired storyline and constant time shifting between future, past and parallel time.  Fans of the HBO show True Blood will see many similarities between the two shows, True Blood appearing to be heavily inspired by Dark Shadows right down to the to the melodramatic acting performances.  I stopped watching sometime in the late 1990s, for no apparent reason, just after the show moved from black and white to colour.

In the mid noughties I began to purchase DVD sets of the series released in the US by MPI.  Disappointingly, MPI decided to start the collection with Barnabas' arrival in Collingwood but they thankfully corrected this by releasing the early episodes in 2007 as Dark Shadows - The Beginning.  The sets are very expensive so completing the set of 32 is a costly exercise.  I have attempted to purchase secondhand sets where possible or take advantage of occasionally discounted box sets.  I currently have sets one to twelve and all of six of The Beginning sets.  I had made my way to set seven but have decided to start from the beginning; they are an excellent background accompaniment when working on my PhD and also perfect bed time viewing.  I am now on disc three of set two of The Beginning and engrossed in the 'who killed Bill Malloy' storyline. 

Before the promotion machine starts on the Burton and Depp remake I recommend seeking out the original first.  Yes, some may find it dated, camp and will giggle at the unintentional bloopers (this show was recorded live) but you cannot deny it's unique atmosphere. 

For further details on Dark Shadows see the Wikipedia entry for the show.

You can find the American Region 1 DVD sets for sale on eBay and on Amazon.com where the sets are currently reduced. 

It looks to be official, the cult horror film The Dark Night of the Scarecrow (Frank De Felitta, 1981) will be released on US DVD by VCI in time for Halloween.  Announced early last year as both a Blu-Ray and DVD release by Image who were then on the verge of declaring bankruptcy, it was then assumed that Lion's Gate would be releasing it with newly shot sequences.  The website Horroryearbook reports that VCI will now be responsible for bringing this to DVD, though a Blu-Ray release now seems doubtful.  Hopefully this will be the original version without the newly shot sequences that were rumoured earlier this year that are intended to resolve questions audiences had about the ending.  Personally, I find the ending of the film to be superb and perfectly straight forward. 

Here is my intended viewing for my annual Halloween horror movie marathon:

1. Night of the Living Dead (George Romero, 1968) Blu-Ray
   
2. The Living Dead at the Manchester Morgue (Jorge Grau, 1974) Blu-Ray
   
3. Paranormal Activity (Oren Peli, 2007)
4. Giallo (Dario Argento, 2009)

Unfortunately, there will have to be an intermission to watch Strictly Come Dancing; arguably the most terrifying viewing of the night. 

Happy Halloween everyone.