With October officially in full swing, we have a new crop of horror and sci-fi home media offerings coming out this week which would all make for some prime Halloween season viewings. Warner Bros. is bringing everyone’s favorite demonic doll to both Blu-ray and DVD for Annabelle Comes Home, RLJE Films is releasing the psychological thriller Gwen on Blu and DVD too, and for those of you still looking to bask in the brightly lit horrors of Ari Aster’s imagination, Midsommar hits both formats on Tuesday as well.
We also have a ton of older titles being released this week, From Beyond the Grave, My Boyfriend’s Back, Hercules in the Haunted World, and for those looking to upgrade some recent horror hits, both Jordan Peele’s Us and Get Out hit 4k for a double feature set from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.
Other titles arriving on October 8th include Ruin Me, Last Ones Out, Every Time I Die, the Leprechaun 8-Film Collection, and The Spell.
Annabelle Comes Home (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, Blu/DVD/Digital & DVD/Digital)
Determined to keep Annabelle from wreaking more havoc, demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren bring the possessed doll to the locked artifacts room in their home, placing her “safely” behind sacred glass and enlisting a priest’s holy blessing. But an unholy night of horror awaits as Annabelle awakens the evil spirits in the room, who all set their sights on a new target—the Warrens’ ten year- old daughter, Judy, and her friends.
Special Features:
- Behind the Scenes Part 1: The Ferryman/Demon
- Behind the Scenes Part 2: The Bloody Bride
- Behind the Scenes Part 3: The Werewolf
- The Artifact Room and The Occult
- The Light and the Love
- Deleted Scenes
From Beyond the Grave (Warner Archive Collection, Blu-ray)
Bolt the door, lower the lights and settle in for a stylish five-episode supernatural shocker possessed of a shivery all-star cast and drenched in evil. Welcome to Temptations Ltd., a decrepit antique shop whose unwary customers get more than they bargain for from the wily proprietor (Peter Cushing). Much more. Go to the head of the horror class if you can predict who’ll join the ranks of the doomed from among this role call of distinguished British actors: Ian Bannen, Ian Carmichael, Diana Dors, Lesley-Anne Down, Margaret Leighton, Donald Pleasence, Nyree Dawn Porter, David Warner and more. A mirror. A medal. A snuff box. An ornate door. All unleash novelty surprises for the characters and you in these wickedly horrific tales From Beyond the Grave.
Gwen (RLJE Films, Blu-ray & DVD)
In this stark and atmospheric tale, Gwen is a young girl struggling with her mother’s mysterious illness, her father's absence and the suspicious local community that has turned on them. Somehow Gwen must find the strength to guide her family through the darkness and overcome the evil that is taking grip of her home.
Hercules in the Haunted World (Kino Classics, Blu-ray & DVD)
Immediately following the success of Black Sunday, Mario Bava was recruited to direct (and photograph) the second of Reg Park’s Hercules films for producer Achille Piazzi. Freely departing from Roman mythology, the film gave Bava the opportunity to reimagine the sword-and-sandal genre. On its surface a jovial comedy adventure, Hercules in the Haunted World features a striking use of color, which would become one of Bava’s directorial hallmarks. But this playful peplum is tinged with a sense of genuine foreboding, voiced by a masked oracle Medea (Gaia Germani) in one of the film’s most stunning sequences. When Hercules descends into the depths of hell and confronts Lico (Christopher Lee), who has the power to call forth corpses from their tombs, the film plunges into the eye-popping, bone-chilling horror for which Bava had recently become famous.
Special Features:
Midsommar (Lionsgate, Blu/DVD/Digital & DVD/Digital)
After a family tragedy, a young American couple joins some friends at a midsummer festival in a remote Swedish village. What begins as a carefree summer holiday takes a sinister turn when the insular villagers invite their guests to partake in festivities that grow increasingly unnerving and viscerally disturbing. From the visionary mind of Ari Aster (Hereditary), comes this dread-soaked cinematic fairy tale where a world of darkness unfolds in broad daylight.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
• “Let the Festivities Begin: Manifesting Midsommar” Featurette
• “Bear in a Cage™” Promo
My Boyfriend’s Back (KL Studio Classics, Blu-ray)
Teenager Johnny Dingle (Andrew Lowery, Color of Night) will do anything to keep his date with the hottest girl in school—even come back from the grave! You see, Johnny had the perfect scheme to win the heart of Missy McCloud (Traci Lind, Class of 1999), the town beauty. Unfortunately, Johnny’s scam goes sour and he winds up dead. Even so, Johnny’s determined to keep his date—unaware of the hilarity waiting for him upon his return. The wonderful cast includes Edward Herrmann (The Lost Boys), Mary Beth Hurt (D. A. R. Y. L. ), Austin Pendleton (Hello Again), Matthew Fox (Bone Tomahawk), Philip Seymour Hoffman (Boogie Nights), Paul Dooley (Popeye), Jay O. Sanders (V. I. Warshawski), Bob Dashy (The Big Bus), Matthew McCaughey (A Time to Kill) and Cloris Leachman (Scavenger Hunt) as Maggie the Zombie Expert. Produced by Sean S. Cunningham (Friday the 13th), written by Dean Lore (Major Payne) and directed by Bob Balaam (Parents).
Special Features:
-Audio Commentary by Director Bob Balaam with Actors Mary Beth Hurt and Austin Pendleton
-Interview with Star Andrew Lowery
-Interview with Director Bob Balaam
-Interview with Composer Harry Manfredini
-Interview with Actor Austin Pendleton
-Reversible Art
-Theatrical Trailer
ALSO AVAILABLE THIS WEEK:
Alligator/Patrick Double Feature (Frolic Pictures, DVD)
Baby Blood AKA The Evil Within (KL Studio Classics, Blu-ray)
Death Rage/House of the Dead Double Feature (Frolic Pictures, DVD)
Every Time I Die (Gravitas Ventures, Blu-ray & DVD)
The Haunted House of Horror/The Werewolf vs. the Vampire Woman (Frolic Pictures, DVD)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923)/The Phantom of the Opera (1925) Double Feature (Frolic Pictures, DVD)
Last Ones Out (RLJE Films, DVD)
Leprechaun 8-Film Collection (Lionsgate, DVD)
Nightmare Beach (KL Studio Classics, DVD)
Metropolis/The Most Dangerous Game Double Feature (Frolic Pictures, DVD)
Monstrosity/The City of the Dead Double Feature (Frolic Pictures, DVD)
Nosferatu/Haxan Double Feature (Frolic Pictures, DVD)
Phenomena/Tenebre Double Feature (Frolic Pictures, DVD)
Ruin Me (RLJE Films, DVD)
The Spell (Bayview Films, DVD)
Us/Get Out 4K Double Feature (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, 4K Ultra HD/Blu Combo)
War of the Monsters/Destroy All Planets Double Feature (Frolic Pictures, DVD)
White Zombie/Assassin of Youth Double Feature (Frolic Pictures, 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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