Hello, everyone! We’re back with our round-up of this week’s horror and sci-fi home entertainment offerings, and we have some really fun titles headed home tomorrow. Leading the pack is Jack Sholder’s feature film debut Alone in the Dark, which is getting the Collector’s Edition treatment from Scream Factory. Arrow Video is showing love to a quartet of films from Sam Katzman in their Cold War Creatures Limited Edition set. As far as recent horror goes, both Censor and Howling Village are being released on Tuesday, and if you need to catch up with the most recent season of Eli Roth’s History of Horror, season two is headed to Blu-ray as well.

Other releases for September 14th include Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters 4K, The Shawshank Redemption 4K, and Stinger.

Alone in the Dark: Collector’s Edition (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)

At a secluded mental institution, Dr. Bain (Donald Pleasence) maintains order while electricity fuels the asylum's hi-tech security system that keeps the nearby neighborhoods safe from menaces like Frank Hawkes (Jack Palance) and "Preacher" (Martin Landau). Meanwhile a new doctor, Dan Potter (Dwight Schultz), arrives in town with his family, but the inmates don't take kindly to his presence and believe he has killed off their former therapist. Suddenly a power outage leaves the town in chaos…and now the maniacs are free to roam the streets and hunt down the man they believe has invaded their lives. With the area quickly descending into riots and chaos, the innocent few must fight for their lives when they're left terrified, cornered and alone in the dark!

Censor (Magnet Releasing, DVD)

When a film censor is assigned to review a disturbing horror film that echoes memories of her sister’s mysterious disappearance, she begins to unravel how this sinister film might be tied to her past.

Cold War Creatures: Four Films from Sam Katzman (Arrow Video, Blu-ray)

A mob boss hires an ex-Nazi scientist to reanimate his dead thugs in Creature with the Atom Brain. An auto-accident survivor is used as an experimental subject to create a vaccine for nuclear fall-out with hair-raising side-effects in The Werewolf. Treasure hunters get more than they bargained for in the search for a cargo of diamonds that went down with a sunken ship when they discover the zombified crew members are guarding the loot in Zombies of Mora Tau. Meanwhile, an enormous bird from outer-space descends to chow down on the people of planet Earth in The Giant Claw!

Four fantastic feature presentations from prolific producer Sam Katzman with a bounty of brand new extras and a raft of new writing by a range of respected raconteurs. These Cold War Creatures are coming for you!

LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS:

  • High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentations of all 4 films
  • Original uncompressed mono audio for all films
  • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • Fully illustrated 60-page collector’s book featuring extensive new writing by Laura Drazin Boyes, Neil Mitchell, Barry Forshaw, Jon Towlson and Jackson Cooper
  • 80-page collector’s art book featuring reproduction stills and artwork from each film and new writing by historian and critic Stephen R. Bissette
  • 2 double-sided posters featuring newly commissioned artwork by Matt Griffin
  • Reversible sleeves featuring original and newly commissioned artwork for each film by Matt Griffin

DISC 1 - CREATURE WITH THE ATOM BRAIN

  • Brand-new introduction by historian and critic Kim Newman
  • Brand-new audio commentary by critic Russell Dyball
  • Sam Katzman: Before and Beyond the Cold War Creatures, a brand-new feature-length illustrated presentation on the life, career and films of Sam Katzman by historian and critic Stephen R. Bissette
  • Condensed Super 8mm version of Creature with the Atom Brain, produced for home cinema viewing
  • Theatrical Trailer
  • Image Gallery

DISC 2 - THE WEREWOLF

  • Brand-new introduction by critic Kim Newman
  • Brand-new audio commentary by critic Lee Gambin
  • Beyond Window Dressing, a brand-new visual essay exploring the oft-overlooked role of women in the films of Sam Katzman by historian and critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
  • Condensed Super 8mm version of The Werewolf, produced for home cinema viewing
  • Theatrical Trailer
  • Image Gallery

DISC 3 - THE ZOMBIES OF MORA TAU

  • Brand-new introduction by critic Kim Newman
  • Brand-new audio commentary by critic Kat Ellinger
  • Atomic Terror: Genre in Transformation, a brand-new visual essay exploring the intersection of mythical horror creatures and the rational world of science in the films of Sam Katzman by critic Josh Hurtado
  • Theatrical Trailer
  • Image Gallery

DISC 4 - THE GIANT CLAW

  • Brand-new introduction by critic Kim Newman
  • Brand-new audio commentary by critics Emma Westwood and Cerise Howard
  • Family Endangered!, a brand-new visual essay examining the theme of Cold War paranoia in Sam Katzman monster movies, by critic Mike White
  • Condensed Super 8mm version of The Giant Claw, produced for home cinema viewing.
  • Theatrical Trailer
  • Image Gallery

Howling Village (Epic Pictures, Blu-ray)

A young psychologist heads to an infamous haunted place named Howling Village in order to find out her family’s dark history.

ALSO AVAILABLE THIS WEEK:

Eli Roth’s History of Horror: Season 2 (RLJE Films, Blu-ray & DVD

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters 4K (Paramount Home Entertainment, 4K Ultra HD/Blu/Digital)

The Shawshank Redemption 4K (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, 4K Ultra HD/Blu/Digital)

Stinger (Bayview Films, DVD)

  • Heather Wixson
    About the Author - Heather Wixson

    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.