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My Left Foot (1989) - 1/13/15

Dead Man in January

That is quite disappointing, was hoping the rights had reverted back to Jarmusch for a Criterion release...

The next batch of StudioCanal titles downgraded to DVD-R at Amazon are The Man in the White Suit, Contempt, Nights of Cabiria.

captveg wrote:My Left Foot (1989) - 1/13/15

One awful cover.

It is indeed. But considering the way LG is treating the SC library right now I'll gladly take a terrible cover if the disc content is up to snuff.

9/27/16

Chopping Mall (1986)
Blood Diner (1987)

Also, new editions of Highlander (1986) and Evil Dead II (1987) also coming that day, but these may be simply re-packaging.

Studiocanal remastered Highlander in the UK so I have a hard time imagining this isn't that remaster.

Chopping Mall of course opens with the wonderful cameos by Paul Bartel and Mary Woronov as their Eating Raoul characters, but the whole thing has a certain charm to it

From today's Digital Bits post:

Lionsgate has announced a new line of Vestron Video Collector’s Series Blu-ray releases, set to include new remastered special editions from the iconic Vestron Video cult and horror label of the 1980s. The first release will be Jim Wynorski’s Chopping Mall (1986) on 9/27. Extras will include commentary with Jim Wynorski, actress Kelli Maroney, and co-writer/2nd unit director Steve Mitchell, a second commentary with Nathaniel Thompson (of Mondo Video) and Ryan Turek (of Shock Till You Drop), and a third with Wynorski and Mitchell alone, 7 featurettes (Back to the Mall, Chopping Chopping Mall, The Killbots, Scoring Chopping Mall, The Robot Speaks, The Lost Scene, Army of One, and Chopping Mall: Creating the Killbots), an isolated score track by Chuck Cirino, and the film’s trailer. The second release in the series will be Jackie Kong’s Blood Diner (1987), also on 9/27 (SRP $39.99). The title will feature a newly remastered HD transfer supervised by Kong himself, along with audio commentary by Kong, 5 newly-produced featurettes (Queen Kong, The Cook, The Uncle, and The Detective, Open for Business, Scoring for Sheetar!, and You Are What They Eat), an archival interview with project consultant Eric Caidin, the theatrical trailer, TV spots, and a still gallery. You can see the cover artwork at the left there. When you think of the list of B-titles distributed by Vestron, this line could be full indeed. We can’t wait to hear what’s coming next!

Are they fucking kidding with that MSRP

But it's a Collector's Edition...

Still, that seems to be the new standard retail price for (genre) releases with any effort put into them. Hopefully these do well enough to encourage Lionsgate to start doing more with their catalogue again.
I'm happy Chopping Mall is finally coming out, been wanting to see it for a while now.

The title will feature a newly remastered HD transfer supervised by Kong himself

what?

As long as they're dipping into the Vestron catalogue, how about a set of
Ken Russell's films from the late 80s?

(Lair of the White Worm, The Rainbow, Salome's Last Dance)

Press release with news on what the next three Vestron Video Collector's Series Blu-rays will be:

SANTA MONICA, CA (August 2, 2016) – Lionsgate is exhuming classic horror films with a red carpet rollout this fall for the limited edition Vestron Video Collector’s Series. Hours of materials have been assembled for the Vestron Video Collector’s Series Blu-ray™ releases, starting with six horror cult classics! Taste the fear and the flesh, in shocking high definition for the first time, as teenagers meet their untimely demise at the hands of cannibals, killer robots, horror icons, sewer-dwelling monsters, and an army of the undead!

Vestron Video has been a leader in providing the most unique and wide-ranging selection of films. Lionsgate honors the spirit of Vestron Video by presenting the Vestron Video Collector’s Series — a line of classic genre films newly remastered and with a wealth of supplementary features. Starting with Chopping Mall and Blood Diner, and continuing with Waxwork and Waxwork II: Lost in Time Double Feature, Return of the Living Dead 3, and C.H.U.D. II: Bud the CHUD, these re-releases are for the collector and horror fan alike and will be available for a limited amount of time.

Can you imagine being assigned the blurb writing for CHUD II: Bud the CHUD after being told it's your job to convince anyone that it was a treat for horror fans and collectors alike?

Return of the Living Dead 3!!! Fingers crossed it's actually uncut this time.

Release dates for the next three Vestron Video Collector's Series releases:
10/18 - Waxwork & Waxwork 2 Double Feature
11/22 - Return of the Living Dead 3
11/22 - C.H.U.D. II: Bud the Chud

JSC wrote:As long as they're dipping into the Vestron catalogue, how about a set of
Ken Russell's films from the late 80s?

(Lair of the White Worm, The Rainbow, Salome's Last Dance)

You get part of your wish: Lair of the White Worm coming up next, and also Bob Balaban's Parents-- hope they plan to upgrade the Ally Sheedy-Fear that shared the disc with it!

More Vestron titles:

1/31/17 - The Lair of the White Worm (1988)
1/31/17 - Parents (1989)

Cronenfly wrote:

Michael Kerpan wrote:

GringoTex wrote:I like the video essays where the critic speaks over relevant sections of the film. The most brilliant by far is Tag Gallagher's on the R2 Letter From an Unknown Woman.

Seconded -- on average, far better than either commentaries or talking heads interviews/ speeches

It does seem to be the best solution; let's just hope that more releases start including them. It would be nice if they moved out of mostly being included on boutique releases like Criterions, but I'm not sure that'll ever happen; I think that, if they're even on their radar at all, most mainstream studios seem to view them as too much work.

Bit of thread necroing, but this extra is on Carlotta's Blu-ray of the film and it's really good. I just watched it and feel kind of stupid for not appreciating the film more on first glance. So many clever touches, that I completely overlooked.

I watched Bob Balaban's Parents last night and am amazed at the dearth of critical standing it has. Seemingly dismissed at the altar of genre as a failed hybrid - 'providing neither laughs nor scares,' which on the whole sidesteps Balaban's decidedly anti-genre ambitions; mining the subjective viewpoint of a child in a Rockwellian family for quasi-political, surrealist, sometimes creepy crawly effects. Unfortunately it shies away from greatness by abandoning ambiguity for lame horror movie conventions in the third act - its figurative charms betrayed by a bloody material reality - and finally flatlines with an insipid, telegraphed coda involving grandparents.

The two lead children provide some of the best child performances I've seen (Bryan Madorsky in the central performance - shockingly his only credit on IMDB - and London Juno as his girl friend). They are naturalistic, honest, and delightful onscreen together, although this relationship is again shamefully shirked for a late kamikaze of commercial script mechanics. Interestingly, Randy Quaid and Mary Beth Hurt as the parents work in a very difference mode from the child duo - all caricature and theater - further encouraging the audience to identify with the children.

Given Balaban is a rather prolific actor, the polished performances are not surprising - but perhaps the level of formal inventiveness is. In addition to the use of wide angle lenses and split diopters that continually alienate our protagonist in his environs, there is a fun set piece in which a simple shot/reverse takes place at a dinner table that begins to spin like a merry-go-round during the height of dramatic tension. And even as the deflating climax unfurls Balaban sometimes employs the blurry, stop-and-go stutter of step printed film; almost as though he is rushing these weaker points off the screen whilst simultaneously exulting the pictorial interest of individual frames.

Highly recommend this one and I'm eager to delve into Balaban's commentary on the Vestron disc (incidentally the PQ is very good if not excellent).

Parents is a truly bizarre film with some great moments (I love that montage of 1950s suburbia set to "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White"). I wish it were less uneven. But I do remember laughing at that ending. If you see the movie as a black comedy about a child's fears about adult sexuality (as I do), the ending seems to say "you're freaked out to think about your parents having sex? Just imagine your grandparents doing it!"

ianthemovie wrote:Parents is a truly bizarre film with some great moments (I love that montage of 1950s suburbia set to "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White"). I wish it were less uneven. But I do remember laughing at that ending. If you see the movie as a black comedy about a child's fears about adult sexuality (as I do), the ending seems to say "you're freaked out to think about your parents having sex? Just imagine your grandparents doing it!"

It's a really solid dark comedy. What I remember most about it is a dream sequence that strongly recalls the opening of Sidney Lumet's Murder on the Orient Express