This list includes DVD re-releases (special editions) that featured decent extras, or horror movies that were released on DVD for the first time in 2009, that also featured extras. Bare bone releases like Phantasm II were not included.
MY BLOODY VALENTINE (1981; special edition): Lionsgate
Just in time to cash in on their big budget (and 3D!) remake, Lionsgate released the original classic MY BLOODY VALENTINE on dvd, UNCUT and uncensored for the first time ever! For years, die hard slasher fans have heard the rumours about the missing gore that was trimmed away to earn an R rating. Now seeing is believing, and old Harry Warden earned his rightful place next to other slasher icons such as Cropsy and Frank Zito. The newly added, completely uncut death scenes make this dvd a fucking must have! This is my DVD PICK of 2009!!!
THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT (1972; new special edition): MGM/Fox
MGM/Fox released a brand new special edition dvd release of the 1972 Wes Craven classic LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT just in time to cash in on the big budget remake. The bonus features include a commentary track with stars David Hess, Fred Lincoln and Marc Sheffler, Celluloid Crime Of The Century documentary, Scoring Last House featurette with David Hess, and Still Standing: The Legacy Of Last House On The Left interview with Wes Craven.
CAT IN THE BRAIN (special edition): Grindhouse
Acclaimed Italian horror maestro Lucio Fulci, director of ZOMBIE and THE BEYOND, stars in this blood-soaked epic as a director being driven insane by his own movies. Fulci is thrust into an ultra-violent nightmare of death and depravity where murder and madness consume his sanity in a vortex of violence. CAT IN THE BRAIN is a ultra gory psychological masterpiece!
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- 2 Disc Deluxe Edition
- Original uncensored director’s cut
- Spectacular new hi-definition digital anamorphic widescreen transfer
- Presented with English and original Italian language soundtracks
- Never before seen in-depth interviews with director Lucio Fulci and star Brett Halsey
- Lucio Fulci’s heroic appearance at the 1996 NYC Fangoria Weekend of Horrors
- Original theatrical trailer
- Gallery of stills and poster art
- Liner notes by Antonella Fulci, acclaimed horror novelist David J. Schow, and Eli Roth
- Eyeball-popping psychedelic lenticular 3-D cover limited to the first 2500 units only!
SLAUGHTER HIGH (special edition): Lionsgate
Lionsgate released SLAUGHTER HIGH on dvd as part of their “Lost Collection” of cult classics from the 80’s. Slasher fans have been waiting a long time for this long overdue dvd release. The good news is that the film is presented in it’s original uncut version with all juicy splatter intact. The bad news is that the film wasn’t remastered and looks no better than the old school Vestron vhs releases. Another bummer is the lack of bonus features. The closest thing to a bonus feature for this “special edition” release is an incredibly annoying pop-up trivia track.
This essentially bare bones dvd release is better than nothing of course but is still a missed opportunity, especially considering how excellent the Lionsgate dvd release of My Bloody Valentine was. That disappointment aside, SLAUGHTER HIGH is still one of the all time great 80’s slasher flicks and should be an essential part of any respectable horror dvd collection.
THE LAST HORROR FILM (new special edition): Troma
Troma Team Video is proud to present for the time uncut in America, one of the late, great Joe Spinell’s (Rocky, The Godfather) most riveting, unnerving performances, since his unforgettable starring role in MANIAC, in this underrated gem of the 1980s — THE LAST HORROR FILM.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- My Best Maniac: Half-hour conversation with Joe Spinell’s best friend Luke Walter
- Audio commentary by Walter and Troma’s Evan Husney
- Buddy Giovinazzo’s short MR. ROBBIE, a.k.a. MANIAC 2, starring Spinell
- Interview with MANIAC director William Lustig
- Original theatrical trailer
- Introduction by Lloyd Kaufman
- Tromatic extras
COMBAT SHOCK (2-disc special edition): Troma
Nearly 25 years after its original release, COMBAT SHOCK returns from the cult underground to reclaim its title as perhaps the most shocking independent film of the ’80s. Writer/director/producer Buddy Giovinazzo made his indelible debut with this nihilistic saga of a Vietnam vet’s desperate pursuit to save his family from the horrors of poverty and urban squalor. Culminating in one of the most brutal climaxes ever committed to celluloid, this unforgiving masterwork remains as controversial and relevant as it was at the height of Reagan’s America. Get ready to be blown away: COMBAT SHOCK is back like you’ve never seen it before.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- American Nightmares (100 mins): The Never Before Seen Director’s Cut
- Combat Shock (90 mins): The Theatrical Cut
- Audio Commentary with Director Buddy Giovinazzo and Jorg Buttgereit (Nekromantik)
- Post-Traumatic, An American Nightmare All-new documentary exploring the continued impact and influence of Combat Shock, featuring: John McNaughton (Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer), William Lustig (Maniac), Richard Stanley (Hardware), Jim Van Bebber (Deadbeat At Dawn), and many more
- The Early Works of Buddy Giovinazzo: 8 Never before released short films and music videos
- New interview with Buddy Giovinazzo on Combat Shock
- Unscarred: The first interview with Combat Shock star Rick Giovinazzo
- Buddy interviews Nekromantik Director Jorg Buttgereit at the 2009 Berlin Film Festival
- Der Combat: Buddy Giovinazzo and Lloyd Kaufman (President of Troma Entertainment and the creator of The Toxic Avenger) discuss Combat Shock at the 2006 Trominale in Berlin
- Hellscapes (10 min): A Look at the Locations from Combat Shock as they appear today
- Original Press and Photo Gallery
- Original Theatrical Trailers
- Solider of Misfortune: New Liner Notes by Steve Puchalski (Shock Cinema)
THE STEPFATHER (1987; special edition): Shout! Factory
Jerry Blake (Terry O Quinn, Lost) is a man obsessed with having the perfect American Dream life: including the house with the white picket fence in the suburbs, an adoring wife and loving children. He believes he has found it when he marries Susan Maine and becomes the stepfather to her 16-year-old daughter, Stephanie. But Stephanie (Jill Schoelen, Popcorn) gets an uneasy feeling when she is around Jerry with his Father Knows Best attitude: she can see that there is a darker side behind his cheerful exterior. Could she just be going through the typical teenager rebellion against her new stepfather, or is he actually the same man who brutally murdered his family just one year earlier?
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Audio Commentary with director Joseph Ruben
- The Stepfather Chronicles: An all-new retrospective featuring interviews with director Joseph Ruben, producer Jay Benson, actress Jill Schoelen, author Brian Garfield and others on the making of the film and its enduring legacy.
THE GATE (Monstrous Special Edition) – Lionsgate
After an old tree is removed from the ground, three young children accidentally release a horde of nasty, pint-sized demons from the hole in a suburban backyard. What follows is a classic battle between good and evil as the three kids struggle to overcome a nightmarish hell that is literally taking over the Earth.
This long awaited special edition dvd release includes a commentary track with director Tibor Takacs, interviews with the cast and crew, a stills gallery, and the original trailer. THE GATE has a well deserved reputation for being one of the most creepy horror flicks to have a pg-13 rating.
MESSIAH OF EVIL: THE SECOND COMING (special edition): Code Red
Considered by many as one of the most horrifying and bizarre zombie films ever made, and as one of the least herald yet haunting of 1970’s horror film. Contains number of masterfully scary set pieces by Tim Lucas, written and directed by the acclaimed writing team of Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz (INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM, AMERICAN GRAFFITI, HOWARD THE DUCK) and starring cult actors like Marianna Hill, Michael Greer, Joy Bang, Elisa Cook Jr and starring Benny Robinson as Albert the crosseyed Albino, MESSIAH OF EVIL: THE SECOND COMING will scare your life away! NO ONE WILL HEAR YOU SCREAM!!!
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Brand new Hi Definition master in 16×9 (2.35:1) widescreen supervised by Director Willard Huyck and editor Billy Weber
- Audio commentary by Huyck and writer Gloria Katz, moderated by Lee Christian
- Remembering Messiah of Evil: Featurette with Huyck, Katz, Weber, Director of Photography Stephen Katz, & editor Morgan Fisher
- Audio interview with star Joy Bang
- Short films by Huyck and Katz : “The Bride Stripped Bar” and “Down These Mean Streets.”
NIGHT OF THE CREEPS (special edition): Sony Pictures
One of the most eagerly awaited horror dvd releases of all time! This campy cult classic chiller begins back in 1959. A college couple see an object plummet to Earth like a meteor. The boy then accidentally swallows a space-slug. In 1986, two geeky freshmen roam the campus in a scavenger hunt and stumble across the cryogenically frozen corpse of the boy who swallowed the space-slug. Once thawed out, the corpse comes to life and the space-slug escapes and infects a frathouse. “The good news is your dates are here. The bad news is…they’re DEAD!”
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Commentary with Writer/ Director Fred Dekker
- Cast commentary
- Brand new NIGHT OF THE CREEPS behind the scenes featurettes: “Birth Of The Creeps”, “Cast Of The Creeps”, “Creating The Creeps”, “Escape Of The Creeps”, “Legend Of The Creeps”
- A special tribute: “Tom Atkins: Man Of Action”
- The original theatrical ending
- Deleted scenes
- Trivia track
KEEP THE BLOOD FLOWING!!!
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