Monday, March 19, 2018

Vinegar Syndrome Announces Its DVD And Blu-ray Release Slate For The Month Of April (Apr. 24)


DVD & Blu-ray Release Report, Ralph Tribbey
 Vinegar Syndrome announced its April release calendar of film restorations heading home as DVD and Blu-ray product offerings this past week.   The street date will be Apr. 24.

Of course it is always a subjective view as where to start, but with Vinegar Syndrome having released British filmmaker Norman J. Warren’s Prey as a 2K restored (from the original 35mm negative) Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack in February, why not start with his next film, the Halloween of 1979 theatrical release of Terror.

This indie film production was picked up by Crown International Pictures for release in the domestic market, which was a better fate than Warren’s Prey, which had to go the direct-to-video route in the United States.  In any case, this very British horror/mystery is good fun, which plays more like a traditional Italian giallo film — Suspiria, Deep Red, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, etc. — which were popular in the 1970s.

DVD & Blu-ray Release Report, Ralph Tribbey
The film itself begins as the ending of a Gothic witch-burning tale (you fully expect to see Vincent Price in full costume participating in the activities) directed by a chap named James Garrick (John Nolan — as Fredricks in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight Rises), which leads us to the arrival of the “victim” pool for a preview screening of the film at his family mansion.   We get a little backstory on the film production, which Garrick believes is based on an actual curse that has followed his family around for nearly 300 years.

His cousin Ann (Carolyn Courage) appears to be at the center of some strange goings-on at the party, which quickly devolve into a series of gruesome murders that begin the same night as the party.  These all seem to have some relationship to Ann, perhaps she is a magnet … or the source?

DVD & Blu-ray Release Report, Ralph TribbeyEven the police, in their investigation of the killings, are not immune to Ann’s “following,” which will all be revealed in the final confrontation back at the Garrick family mansion (hint: it ends as it began … pay close attention to a particular character in the movie ending that was at the beginning of the story).

Terror is a 2K restoration from the original 35mm camera negative, and, as mentioned, it will be available on Apr. 24 as a Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack.  

DVD & Blu-ray Release Report, Ralph TribbeyBonus goodies include deleted and extended scenes, six newly minted video sessions with director Norman J. Warren, screenwriter David McGillivray and cast members Carolyn Courage (as Ann), Tricia Walsh (as Viv), Mary Maude (as Lady Garrick) and Peter Craze (an adult filmmaker), plus Diabolique Magazine’s Kat Ellinger is featured in an extended interview session with filmmaker Norman J. Warren. 

Also on the release calendar from Vinegar Syndrome on Apr. 24 is a Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack presentation of J. Christian Ingvordsen’s 1989 film serial killer thriller, Blue Vengeance.   Bonus features include two separate commentary tracks — one with filmmaker J. Christian Ingvordsen and the second with actor John Weiner — a documentary titled Making Blue Vengeance and the featurette titled “On Blue Vengeance.”  As an added attraction, co-writer Danny Kuchuck’s 1996 film, The First Man, is included as a bonus feature. 

Also on the direct-to-video front is director Jim Mallon’s 1986 slasher film, Blood Hook, which is getting a 2K restoration from the film’s original 16mm camera negative.   Blood Hook will be available as a Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack on Apr. 24.

DVD & Blu-ray Release Report, Ralph TribbeyBonus features include a trio of featurettes — “Hook, Line and Sinker,” “First Blood Hook” and “What’s in the Tacklebox?” — plus a video session with cinematographer and editor Marsha Kahm.

On DVD release front, Vinegar Syndrome has two adult gems ready for connoisseurs to savor.   Adult filmmaker Carlos Tobalina’s two-part tale of family greed and lust, Flesh & Laces, Part I (June of 1983) and Flesh & Laces, Part II (September of the same year) arrives as a 2K restoration (yes, from 35mm source material) and Zachary Youngblood & Curt McDowell’s 1983 adult/arthouse film, Little Showoffs, arrives with all six erotic vignettes intact and featuring a 2K restoration from the film’s 35mm camera negative) … bonus features include video sessions with writer/director Zachary Youngblood and AD Molly Seagrim.



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