July 9th is bringing all kinds of horror-rific awesomeness our way with this week’s genre-related Blu-ray and DVD releases. Easily one of my most anticipated discs of this year, the new Silent Hill Collector’s Edition from Scream Factory heads home on Tuesday as well as Mill Creek’s stunning Steelbook for Mothra, which looks to be a must-have for any movie monster aficionados out there. In terms of recent films, both Pet Sematary (2019) and Claire Denis’ High Life are hitting various formats this week, and for you Andy Sidaris fans out there, Savage Beach is hitting Blu-ray as well.
Other releases for July 9th include Dead of Night, Division 19, This Island Earth, and Waterworld in 4K.
Dead of Night (KL Studio Classics, Blu-ray)
A group of strangers, mysteriously gathered at an isolated country estate, recount chilling tales of the supernatural. First, a racer survives a brush with death only to receive terrifying premonitions from beyond the grave. Then a teen’s innocent game of hide-and-seek leads to an encounter with the macabre. Next, a young couple purchases an antique mirror that unleashes a horrific power from its past. In a lighter vein, two competitive golfers play for stakes that may haunt the winner forever. Finally, a renowned ventriloquist descends into an abyss of madness and murder when his dummy develops a mind of its own. But even after these frightening tales are told, does one final nightmare await them all? Britain’s venerable Ealing Studios brought together four brilliant directors, Charles Crichton (The Lavender Hill Mob), Basil Dearden (The Mind Benders), Alberto Cavalcanti (They Made Me a Fugitve) and Robert Hamer (It Always Rains on Sunday) to create this classic chiller that remains one of the most influential horror films ever made. This is the uncut and complete UK version of Dead of Night, now newly restored in 4K from original archival materials for the first time in decades.
Special Features:
-Audio Commentary by Film Historian Tim Lucas
-Remembering "Dead of Night" - Documentary (75:35)
-Trailers
High Life (Lionsgate, Blu/Digital & DVD)
Monte (Robert Pattinson) and his baby daughter are the last survivors of a damned and dangerous mission to the outer reaches of the solar system. The crew—death-row inmates led by a doctor (Juliette Binoche) with sinister motives—has vanished. As the mystery of what happened unravels, father and daughter must rely on each other to survive.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Audacious, Passionate, and Dangerous: Making High Life" Featurette
- Visualizing the Abyss: The Look of High Life" Featurette
Mothra: Steelbook Edition (Mill Creek Entertainment, Blu-ray)
Following reports of human life on Infant Island, the supposedly deserted site of atomic bomb tests, an international expedition to the heavily-radiated island discovers a native tribe and tiny twin female fairies called "Shobijin" who guard a sacred egg. The overzealous expedition leader kidnaps the Shobijin to exhibit in a Tokyo stage show but soon they summon their protector, hatching the egg and releasing a giant caterpillar. When Mothra arrives in Japan and finally transforms into the ultimate beast, impervious to modern weapons, the nation and its people face their destruction.
Special Features:
- Includes both the Japanese and U.S. edits of the film
- Contains feature-length commentary, trailers and photo gallery
Pet Sematary (2019) (Paramount Home Entertainment, 4K Ultra HD/Blu, Blu/DVD & DVD/Digital)
After the Creed family relocates from Boston to rural Maine, they soon discover an ancient burial ground hidden deep in the woods near their new home. When tragedy strikes, the grief-stricken father is driven by the cemetery’s sinister power, setting off a perilous chain of events that unleashes an unfathomable evil with horrific consequences. Some secrets are best left buried in this twisted thriller.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Silent Hill: Collector’s Edition (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)
Based on the best-selling horror/action video game, SILENT HILL stars Radha Mitchell as Rose, a desperate mother who takes her adopted daughter, Sharon, to the town of Silent Hill in an attempt to cure her of her ailment. After a violent car crash, Sharon disappears, and Rose begins a desperate search to get her back. She descends into the center of the twisted reality of a town’s terrible secret. Pursued by grotesquely deformed creatures and townspeople stuck in permanent purgatory, Rose begins to uncover the truth behind the apocalyptic disaster that burned the town 30 years earlier.
Special Features:
Disc One:
- HD master approved by director Christophe Gans
- NEW Audio Commentary with cinematographer Dan Laustsen
- Theatrical Trailer
Disc Two:
- NEW interview with director Christophe Gans
- NEW A Tale of Two Jodelles – an interview with actress Jodelle Ferland
- NEW Dance of the Pyramid – an interview with actor Roberto Campanella
- NEW interview with makeup-effects artist Paul Jones
- Path of Darkness: The Making of SILENT HILL – a six-part documentary
- The Making of SILENT HILL vintage featurette
- On set interviews and behind-the-scenes footage
- Photo Galleries – still photos and posters
ALSO AVAILABLE THIS WEEK:
The Black Gate (Bayview Entertainment, DVD)
Division 19 (Uncork’d Entertainment, DVD)
Pet Sematary 2019/1989 2-Movie Collection (Paramount Home Entertainment, 4K Ultra HD/Blu & Blu/DVD)
Savage Beach (Mill Creek Entertainment, Blu-ray)
This Island Earth (Shout! Factory, Blu-ray)
Waterworld 4K (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, 4K Ultra HD/Blu)
A Wish for the Dead (Shami Media Group, DVD)
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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