Reviewing films slightly off the beaten path
The Comfort of Strangers is a perfectly realized adaptation of the unsettling Ian McEwan novel of the same name. Paul Schrader directs. Christopher Walken and Helen Mirren shine in the film. Criterion Collection has given the film a pristine Blu-ray release.
Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter is easily one of the best entries in the series. The new Shout! Factory Blu-ray release features an exceptional new 4K scan. One of the best slashers from the Eighties.
Silent Running is a great science fiction film from the Seventies starring the fantastic Bruce Dern. The film is unique because of its sense of melancholy and prescient environmental themes. Arrow Video has given the film an excellent new release.
Friday the 13th Part 2 is a very important film in the series. Building upon the first film, the focus shines on Jason Voorhees and a formula is locked in place for the series. The new Shout! Factory Blu-ray looks fantastic.
High Plains Drifter is one of Eastwoods most unusual and best Westerns. Kino Lorber have given the film a stunning new 4K restoration. Highly recommended!
Friday the 13th gave the world Camp Crystal Lake and set the gold standard for camp based slasher films. Shout! Factory’s new release inside their massive box set looks the best the film has ever looked.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch has found a way to continue to grow in people’s estimation every year. It’s become a Halloween staple despite the lack of Michael Myers. The steelbook edition by Shout!Factory features a new 4K scan.
The first release from label Fun City Editions – Alphabet City is a visually exciting crime drama from 1984. Fans of the film will be excited to see it on Blu-ray.
The Dead Zone is a fantastic film by David Cronenberg from the mind of Stephen King. The Blu-ray by Paramount is visually unsatisfying, which is a shame.
Roger Corman’s Edgar Allan Poe adaptation starring Vincent Price is one of Corman’s most effective and stylish films. Benefitting from very colorful cinematography by Nicolas Roeg, this is a true horror classic.
