Arrow Wish List

[Anthony Thorne]

To be honest my dream Arrow wish list is very nearly just 'lots more of the same', as they're already perhaps my favourite video label ever, and a few more years (at least) of similar great releases will be a very exciting prospect.

Some dumb requests regardless, and my wants are all largely in the field of Eurocult. I'd love it if they could revisit PHENOMENA ala the TENEBRE steelbook remaster, with whatever improvements could be offered in both extras and transfer. This may be a forlorn hope but I am hopeful. Just as I'm hopeful for a BAY OF BLOOD steelbook with a transfer eclipsing Kino's recent tit-for-tat improvement over the already nifty pre-exisiting Arrow version.

Any of the crazy/sleazy 60's and 70's Spanish horror titles missing in action on BluRay (and in many cases DVD) would be welcome. MALENKA THE VAMPIRE (the uncut Euro version), LA RESIDENCIA, LA ORGIA DE LOS MUERTOS, CEREMONIA SANGRIENTA, any of the better Paul Naschy titles, a TOMBS OF THE BLIND DEAD remaster or take your pick from the various Spanish cult 70's wants heralded at the Latarnia forums. That said I have no idea which films would offer the most potential sales vs least expensive costs to acquire and restore. Anything from this genre would be great though, as would any other Eurohorror to accompany the gradual roll-out of the Bava catalog. I'd also love to see further spaghetti westerns, particularly including anything else by DJANGO, PREPARE A COFFIN director Baldi, BLINDMAN or the SARTANA series. The two or three peplums that cross over into the horror genre (beyond Bava's entry) would also be worth a look - I think MACISTE IN HELL is one of those. Freda's TERROR OF DR HICHCOCK would be a great release.

The first TORRENTE film with English-language extras and participation from star Santiago Segura would also be lovely fun, but now I'm truly fantasising. Anyway Arrow, please bring out Bava's FIVE DOLLS, HATCHET, KILL BABY KILL and BLOOD AND BLACK LACE with the same care and attention as shown your other Bavas and I will be a very happy customer.

On the topic of Verhoeven and SHOWGIRLS, I heard a funny story from a pal who worked for a while at a rival (now defunct) cult US DVD label, after he chatted with some Anchor Bay (US) people. Anchor Bay recorded commentary tracks with Verhoeven for their Verhoeven DVD box from several years ago, and Verhoeven initially peppered each track with variations of "Ah yes, she was a lovely actress. We still see each other and sleep together very often. And this lady was a very nice woman, very good and intelligent actress... We still have sex together very often. It was a pleasure working with this woman in this film, I thought she came across very well on screen. I had sex with her last week and we still sleep together quite frequently." The Anchor Bay guys had to stop and inform Verhoeven that those comments weren't really useable for the commentary tracks, and the final tracks you hear on the discs are actually the third attempt to record them, as Verhoeven couldn't help but spill the beans in the above manner. Anyway, the kicker is that Verhoeven's wife apparently told him he could never, ever record a commentary for SHOWGIRLS, which is why he hasn't appeared on a commentary track to date for that movie.

[TonyleStephanois]

Great suggestions all round. From the suggestions so far we will be releasing four titles, are in negotiations on a further four and many others are already on our radar to be looked into.

[Nadsat]

Any chance to license titles from Paramount? I'm thinking of titles like Nashville, Seconds and Medium Cool.

[Calvin]

Any chance to license titles from Paramount? I'm thinking of titles like Nashville, Seconds and Medium Cool.

I'm thinking of Phase IV with the original ending.

[John Hodson]

Has Arrow any kind of relationship with Sony/Columbia? Film4's broadcast of Tourneur's Night of The Demon was the same ratty old standard definition print in ful screen; the French are getting a BD release, it would be nice to wrest this from the current UK rights holders and put a beautiful new Arrow disc out there.

[L.A.]

Paul Morrissey's Flesh for Frankenstein (1973) and Blood for Dracula (1974).

[eerik]

Has Arrow any kind of relationship with Sony/Columbia?

'Sony doesn't license to UK labels' was the response when people asked about Body Double earlier this year. Which is a pity. I'm sure Arrow, Eureka and others would like to release their titles.

[John Hodson]

Shame.

[Calvin]

That's an odd stance considering that they've licensed out some of their biggest back catalogue titles in what's probably their biggest market.

[Mike_S]

In terms of Altman, it would be great to see Thieves Like Us get the love it deserves.

Otherwise, Bring Me The Head of Alfredo Garcia would be wonderful as would Arthur Penn's The Missouri Breaks.

[Mike_S]

Posted in the wrong thread originally but...

Altman: Images, Thieves Like Us
Peckinpah: Junior Bonner, Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia, The Killer Elite
De Palma: Raising Cain, Hi Mom!
Penn: The Missouri Breaks

[Koukol]

Paul Morrissey's Flesh for Frankenstein (1973) and Blood for Dracula (1974).

Yes, the former in 3D!

[manicsounds]

I'm surprised they haven't gotten around to putting out "The Burning" (1981), the first Miramax film, which the US MGM DVD was good, the Shout Factory Blu-ray was great, but the UK had it out from VIPCO in a terrible edition. (Is that company still in existence?) Probably a rights issue. I went ahead and got the Shout Factory edition, but it would be fair for this movie to get a better edition for the UK.

[MichaelB]

I'm surprised they haven't gotten around to putting out "The Burning" (1981), the first Miramax film, which the US MGM DVD was good, the Shout Factory Blu-ray was great, but the UK had it out from VIPCO in a terrible edition. (Is that company still in existence?) Probably a rights issue.

The European rights are indeed currently a mess, so it's off the agenda for now.

[AidanKing]

Any chance of Kaos by the Tavianis for the Arrow Academy Line?

[MichaelB]

It's a personal favourite of mine (I'd love to work on any Taviani stuff, to be honest), but both the rights and an existing (and usable) HD master would have to be available.

[TonyleStephanois]

Any chance of Kaos by the Tavianis for the Arrow Academy Line?

It's a personal favourite of mine (I'd love to work on any Taviani stuff, to be honest), but both the rights and an existing (and usable) HD master would have to be available.

We looked into this and some others from RAI (The Tree of Wooden Clogs being one) and they were all terribly dated unfortunately. This was part of the reason we didn't release anything on Academy for a while as lots of what we looked into had poor master sources so rather than just putting anything out, we just stopped the label for a while. Happily we have lots of good stuff lined up now

[tele1962]

I would love to see Arrow go for the original Night Of The Living Dead (1968). This one has a had a few releases up to now, with the Japanese Happytime release IMHO being the best so far. However even that is far from perfect and I would love to see Arrow if they could get hold of it go back to the original negative/elements and do a proper release.

Also Rollerball (1975) could be a fantastic part of the Arrow catalogue.

[Anthony Thorne]

Forgot to mention, I'll just tentatively put my hand up over in the corner here for more John Carpenter after BIG TROUBLE. Any Arrow editions (perhaps improving on any of the Shout Factory reissues from the past couple of years) would be extremely welcome.

I've already started budgeting for next year's Arrow titles as I continue to snap up this years.

[GaryC]

But above all let's get The Lacemaker out there>

Very much seconded. That's a film I have a lot to thank for, as it was only the second subtitled foreign-language film I ever saw (on BBC2 in 1981) and it was the one which started me watching world cinema in earnest. Also it made me a devoted fan of Isabelle Huppert, which I am to this day. Arrow released this on VHS in the 1994 (I still have my copy somewhere) but I don't know if they still have the rights.

Another three from the 1980s I'd buy on Blu-ray are Margarethe von Trotta's Die bleierne Zeit (The German Sistsrs in the UK, Marianne and Juliane in the USA). If I may continue the nostalgia trip for a moment, this was the first subtitled film I ever saw in a cinema, on my first solo trip to London, and my only visit to the Academy Cinema in Oxford Street. This has never had a UK VHS release, let alone DVD or Blu-ray. No idea who if anyone owns the UK rights to this.

In addition, a couple of Bertrand Taverniers - Une semaine de vacances and Sunday in the Country. Artificial Eye released the latter in the cinema and on VHS, and Curzon Films was the cinema distributor of the former, but I don't know if they have the rights still. Neither has had a UK DVD release.

[Lowry_Sam]

It's hard to respond with anything but a list & not giving an additional shout out to ones previously mentioned, but here goes the blu-ray titles I'd buy without hesitation:

Faster Pussycat, Kill! Kill!
Dellamorte, Dellamorte/Cemetary Man (with both Italian & English soundtracks)
Irreversible
Apartment Zero
The Tenant
Dance With A Stranger
Angels and Insects
The Flowers Of Shanghai
City Of Hope
Man Facing Southeast
Boat People (1982)
Flesh For Frankenstein 2D/3D (I guess the dracula one too, though this one's better)
Black Lizard
Water Drops On Burning Rocks
Lilies
The Idiots (in proper aspect ratio & without the black censor bars or burned in subs)
Medea (von Trier)
The Fourth Man
Smile
Edward II
Maelstrom
Come Back To The Five And Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean
The Pawnbroker
Europa, Europa
8 femme
Slaughterhouse 5
Catch 22
Fahrenheit 451
existenZ
Fail-Safe
The Devil Is A Woman
Welcome To The Dollhouse
Safe
Dead Alive/Meet The Feebles/Bad Taste box
Boiling Point/Sonatine/Fireworks/Violent Cop & any other titles in a Kitano box
Whatever you can get into a Takashi Miike box
The Complete Films of Frederick Wiseman box
The Complete Films of The Brothers Kuchar box
The Early Films of John Waters (in both the original full frame & director-revised wide screen)
The Complete Films of Emmano Olmi box
The Complete Films of Pedro Almodovar box

[colinr0380]

On the above mention of the Paul Morrissey horror films, how about a boxset of his other works: Mixed Blood, Forty Deuce, Madame Wang's etc?

[Aunt Peg]

A title that would be fantastic and has yet to receive an English friendly DVD or Blu Ray release is Alain Resnais' Je t'aime je tame (1968). I understand the quality of the French edition is very good but sadly not English friendly.

[Aunt Peg]

George A. Romero's Monkey Shines.

[doc mccoy]

Didn't Arrow over a year ago or so write that, while the Academy line was on hiatus, it was working on 7 HD French restorations? In any case, are there any French releases in the pipeline?