Happy Monday, everyone! Before we head into Memorial Day, we have more horror and sci-fi Blu-ray and DVD releases coming our way that should definitely keep genre fans busy for the three-day weekend. Scream Factory is keeping busy with their Blus for The Seduction (a movie I saw when I was way too young, thanks to Terror in the Aisles), The Hunted, and the recent psychological thriller A Dark Place. Shout Select is showing Earthquake some love with their Collector’s Edition this week, and Kino Lorber has two stellar-looking Special Edition releases on their docket as well: Black Moon Rising and Bitter Moon.
Other exciting titles coming home on May 21st include White Chamber, She-Devils on Wheels, A Brilliant Monster, and Crank in 4K.
Black Moon Rising: Special Edition (Kino Lorber, Blu-ray)
When master thief Sam Quint (Tommy Lee Jones, The Fugitive, Blown Away, The Park Is Mine) is hired by the government to steal top-secret data from a crime organization, he hides the stolen data in the experimental supercar, The Black Moon. But when the car is then stolen by high-tech auto thief Nina (Linda Hamilton, The Terminator), Quint must pull off the most daring heist of all: break into an impenetrable skyscraper and steal it back. With time running out and all sides closing in, Quint and Nina take The Black Moon on one final ride towards a shattering climax of sky-high suspense. Screenplay by legendary filmmaker John Carpenter (Escape from New York), Desmond Nakano (American Me) and William Gray (An Eye for an Eye), from a story by Carpenter. Top-notch direction by Harley Cokliss (Malone) with a rousing score by Lalo Schifrin (Prime Cut). The all-star cast includes Robert Vaughn (Bullitt), Richard Jaeckel (The Dirty Dozen), Lee Ving (The Taking of Beverly Hills), Bubba Smith (Police Academy), William Sanderson (Blade Runner), Keenan Wynn (Dr. Strangelove), Nick Cassavetes (The Wraith) and Don Keith Opper (Android).
Special Features:
-Audio Commentary by Film Historian Lee Gambin, the author of Hell Hath No Fury Like Her: The Making of Christine
-Black Moon Ascending: Interview with director Harley Cokeliss
-Thief in The Night: Producing Black Moon Rising: Interview with producer Douglas Curtis
-Sound of Speed: Composing Black Moon Rising - Interview with composer Lalo Schifrin and film music historian Daniel Schweiger
-Carpenter’s Craft: A video essay on co-writer John Carpenter’s screenwriting career by author and critic Troy Howarth
-Making Black Moon Rising: An archival documentary featuring behind-the-scenes footage and cast and crew interviews
-Alternative Hong Kong version scenes, a presentation of selected scenes from the Hong Kong theatrical version with a different score and sound effects
-Uncompressed PCM 2.0 stereo audio and alternative 5.1 DTS-HD MA soundtrack
-Reversible Art
-Radio Spots
-Theatrical Trailer
A Dark Place (Scream Factory, Blu-ray & DVD)
Director Simon Fellows (Malice In Wonderland) crafts a moody mystery about Donny, a small-town sanitation truck driver (Andrew Scott, Sherlock) whose friendship with a young boy on his route leads to an obsession with the truth about the boy's sudden disappearance. The more that Donny recalls the boy's kindness, the more he becomes consumed by the discrepancies with the sheriff's theory that he just ran away ... and as Donny investigates and analyzes, he finds a steady and surprising resistance that mounts until the whole town seems to be against him.
Earthquake: Collector’s Edition (Shout Select, Blu-ray)
The Collector’s Edition includes a new transfer of the extended television version with over 35 minutes of added footage! Charlton Heston leads an all-star cast in an epic film about ordinary citizens who must come together in the face of an unstoppable natural disaster! When the most catastrophic earthquake of all time rips through Southern California, it levels Los Angeles and sends shockwaves through the lives of all who live there. Now strangers must become saviors as the city struggles to get to its feet before the next terrifying aftershock hits! Also starring Ava Gardner, George Kennedy, Lorne Greene, Victoria Principal, Geneviève Bujold and Richard Roundtree, Earthquake combines outstanding performances with Academy Award®-winning* sound and groundbreaking special effects.
The Hunted (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)
Christopher Lambert (Highlander) and Joan Chen (Twin Peaks) star in The Hunted, an explosive adventure from J.F. Lawton, the screenwriter of Under Siege. Paul Racine (Lambert) is a high-powered executive living abroad in Japan. When he and his alluring companion, Kirina (Chen), find themselves the targets of assassins, Racine is ensnared in a web of intrigue and danger. His attacker, the ruthless Kinjo (John Lone, The Last Emperor), orders his minions to kill Racine, the only outsider ever to have seen his face. To survive, Racine must join forces with a powerful samurai warrior with a score to settle. Together, they battle against impossible odds to settle a centuries-old conflict in this action epic set in a deadly forbidden world.
The Seduction (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)
L.A. anchorwoman Jamie Douglas (the stunning Morgan Fairchild in her big screen debut) has it all: a glamorous career on a top-rated news show, a luxurious house in the hills, and a devoted young admirer named Derek (Andrew Stevens). But when Jamie rebuffs his romantic advances, Derek becomes an obsessed stalker who plays out an increasingly psychotic courtship with the frightened newswoman. Soon he is threatening every part of her life, secretly watching even her most intimate moments. Her tough-talking lover (Michael Sarrazin) can’t console her. A by-the-book cop (Vince Edwards) can’t protect her. But Jamie is far from helpless ... and ready to fight back with all the weapons at her command. When the smoke clears ... who will survive The Seduction?
She-Devils on Wheels (Arrow Video, Blu-ray)
Wild! Vicious! With motorcycles as their lovers! Experience sights and sounds beyond your very imagining as Godfather of Gore Herschell Gordon Lewis (Blood Feast, Two Thousand Maniacs!) tackles the biker chick sub-sub-genre with She-Devils on Wheels!
Have you ever heard the saying it s a man s world ? Well don t dare repeat that to The Man-Eaters a raucous, rowdy and randy gang of female bikers who ride their men just as viciously as they do their motorcycles. When they re not racing each other to get first pick of the stud line-up , these female hellcats are busy terrorizing the town and clashing with the rival male gangs.
Billed as by far the most exciting picture of its type ever filmed , She-Devils on Wheels sees splatter pioneer H.G. Lewis going full throttle with the most shocking biker flick of its kind now accompanied by his other vicious gang opus Just for the Hell of It for a thrilling, pulse-racing double-bill!
SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS:
White Chamber (Dark Sky Films, Blu-ray & DVD)
The United Kingdom in the near future. Civil war rages, and martial law has been declared by a military government hellbent on quashing the opposition. A woman (Scottish BAFTA nominee Shauna MacDonald, The Descent) wakes up in a blindingly white cuboid cell, where General Zakarian (Oded Fehr) uses increasingly sophisticated and cruel methods to torture her for information – information she claims not to have. As questions of trust are placed both on captor and captive, they find themselves embroiled in an increasingly spiraling journey into the nature of authority. Tense, shocking, and all-too-relevant, White Chamber poses the question: can there even be such a thing as certainty in these most uncertain of times?
ALSO AVAILABLE THIS WEEK:
Bitter Moon: Special Edition (Kino Lorber, Blu-ray)
A Brilliant Monster (Gravitas Ventures, Blu-ray & DVD)
Crank 4K (Lionsgate, 4K Ultra HD/Blu Combo)
Dead Hooker in a Trunk: Limited Edition (Ammo/Horrorpack, Blu-ray)
Mexico Barbaro: Limited Edition (Ammo/Horrorpack, Blu-ray)
Heather A. Wixson was born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, until she followed her dreams and moved to Los Angeles in 2009. A 14-year veteran in the world of horror entertainment journalism, Wixson fell in love with genre films at a very early age, and has spent more than a decade as a writer and supporter of preserving the history of horror and science fiction cinema. Throughout her career, Wixson has contributed to several notable websites, including Fangoria, Dread Central, Terror Tube, and FEARnet, and she currently serves as the Managing Editor for Daily Dead, which has been her home since 2013. She's also written for both Fangoria Magazine & ReMind Magazine, and her latest book project, Monsters, Makeup & Effects: Volume One will be released on October 20, 2021.
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