August’s home entertainment releases are going out in a blaze of glory, as we have a bunch of great titles coming our way on August 29th, including a handful of cult classics such as The Man with Two Brains, The Manster, Amsterdamned, Vicious Lips, and a two-disc special edition set for The Slayer from Arrow Video.
As far as recent horror titles go, be sure to keep an eye out for Demon, Inconceivable, Timebomb, The Hollow One, The Evil in Us, and Safe Inside. Warner Bros. put together a quad pack Blu-ray set featuring four Stephen King classics (IT, Salem’s Lot, The Shining, Cat’s Eye) undoubtedly to get everyone ready for Pennywise next month, and Paramount is keeping busy with several Blu-ray re-releases, including Clue, The Addams Family, and Galaxy Quest.
Amsterdamned (Blue Underground, Blu/DVD Combo)
The Danger Lies Just Below the Surface. Down in the murky depths of Amsterdam’s famous canals lurks a murderous predator. Surfacing at night, he kills at random and disappears without a trace. As the bodies begin to pile up and mass hysteria envelopes the city, Detective Eric Visser is assigned to head the investigation. With only the escalating number of victims to go on, Visser pursues his quarry with a vengeance, unaware that his beautiful new girlfriend may be the mysterious killer's next victim.
Huub Stapel (THE LIFT) and Monique van de Ven (TURKISH DELIGHT) star in this pulse-pounding thriller written and directed by Dick Maas (SILENT WITNESS), highlighted by an explosive speedboat chase through the city's narrow canals. Long unavailable on U.S. home video, Blue Underground proudly presents AMSTERDAMNED in a brand-new 2K restoration from the original Dutch negative, approved by Dick Maas!
Special Features:
The Man with Two Brains (Warner Bros. Archive Collection, Blu-ray)
Anyone who doesn’t think Steve Martin is one of the funniest fellows on the planet should have his head examined. As The Man with Two Brains, madman Martin is just the guy to do it, playing Dr. Michael Hfuhruhurr, famed originator of screw top, zip lock brain surgery. The good doctor pines for his late wife – but slinky siren Dolores Benedict (Kathleen Turner) sashays into his life and changes all that. They’re soon married, but the truth quickly emerges: Dolores’ beauty hides a calculating heart of stone. The situation is hopeless – until another brain specialist’s oddball research offers a bizarre ray of hope. Anyone with half a brain will rejoice in the sheer lunacy of this sublimely silly farce, directed and co-written by frequent Martin collaborator Carl Reiner (The Jerk, All of Me).
The Manster (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)
Before you started eyes, a man will change into a monster!
An American reporter in Japan becomes the unwitting guinea pig in the experiments of a research scientist in this tale of ambition gone berserk.
Larry Stanford assigned to a story on evolutionary theorist Dr. Suzuki visits his secluded laboratory high in the mountains for Japan. Unwittingly injected with an experimental drug, Stanford becomes increasingly bitter and irritable towards his boss and his wife. Then one day, the appearance of a third eye on his shoulder hurls the reporter into a state of terror. The eye soon develops into a second head setting in motion a rampage of mayhem, madness and murder.
The Slayer: 2-Disc Special Edition (Arrow Video, Blu/DVD Combo)
IS IT A NIGHTMARE? OR IS IT... THE SLAYER? One of the most sought-after titles for slasher fans everywhere, The Slayer finally rises from the ashes of obscurity in a brand new 4K transfer courtesy of Arrow Video.
Two young couples set off to a secluded island for what promises to be a restful retreat. But the peace is short-lived: as a storm batters the island, troubled artist Kay begins to sense that a malevolent presence is here with them, stalking them at every turn. Is she losing her mind, or are her childhood nightmares of a demonic assailant coming to terrifying life?
Previously only available on home video in truncated or full screen versions, The Slayer whose nightmares-seeping-into-reality theme predates a certain Wes Craven classic by several years comes lovingly restored from the original negative in a stunning transfer that will be a revelation to fans both old and new.
SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS:
ALSO AVAILABLE THIS WEEK:
The Addams Family (Paramount, Blu-ray)
Clue (Paramount, Blu-ray)
Demon (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, DVD)
The Evil in Us (RLJ Entertainment, DVD)
Galaxy Quest (Paramount, Blu-ray)
The Hollow One (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, DVD)
Inconceivable (Lionsgate, Blu-ray & DVD)
King of Horror Collection (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, Blu-ray)
Safe Inside (Tempe Digital, DVD)
Snapshot aka The Day After Halloween (Vinegar Syndrome, Blu-ray)
Suffer, Little Children (InterVision Picture Corp., DVD)
Timebomb (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)
Vicious Lips (Scream Factory, 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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