Dark Side Releasing Looks To Oct. 13 For The Domestic DVD Debut Of Submerged

Dark Side Releasing, with sales and distribution expertise provided by MVD Entertainment Group, looks to Oct. 13 for the domestic DVD debut of the Down Under horror/thriller, Submerged, from the writing and directing team of Ben McKenzie and Phil Moore.

The question that dogs you throughout Submerged goes something like this.   Is Lindsay (Ella Roberts) grieving from the loss of her parents and allowing that grief to play tricks with her emotional well-being, or is the photographs that she is taking — which show young girls being murdered — real.   It’s clever.

The story jumps a bit about in time, with flashbacks used to fill in details.   Is there a serial killer on the loose — with a long reach over time — and what secrets does the little town of Willow Point (out near Adelaide … wine country) harbor.   Lindsay is our guide to the picturesque landscape, a landscape that belies the danger … how quickly death can come on a pleasant day with no warning.

Bonus features include commentary from the filmmaking team of Ben McKenzie (who appeared as a contestant on the Aussie television series, Australian Idol) and Phil Moore (Mortal Fools, Old Mates) and a Q&A session with the filmmakers and cast members.

 

Wild Eye Releasing Targets The DVD Debut Of Director Daniel Emery Taylor's It's Just A Game For Oct. 13

Wild Eye Releasing, with sales and distribution support provided by MVD Entertainment Group, will be bringing writer/director Daniel Emery Taylor’s It’s Just a Game to the DVD marketplace on Oct. 13.

Bored, the four young ladies chat among themselves and hit upon the idea of summoning “Mother Murder” … it’s a game, you know.   Sounds like some goofy fun.   A game, so what could possibly go wrong?

Filmmaker Daniel Emery Taylor (The Hospital, The Hospital 2, Camp Massacre), working with a familiar crew and a smart cast, has assembled a final genre film that certainly belies its tight budget.   Once complete, Taylor worked the festival circuit, with stops at the Bloodstained Indie Film Festival, Hot Springs International Horror Film Festival and Mad Monster Party 2019 … and then Wild Eye Releasing got wind of the positive buzz and picked it up for the home entertainment packaged media market.

Indeed, It’s Just a Game could be among the top must-see indies during this Halloween season as this innocent game of “Mother Murder” becomes a night of carnage.

Back to our young ladies, Ruby (Sarah Kopkin) is sort of the leader of the group, with the mousey Brianna (Hannah Cohen-Lawlor) along for the ride.   Take special notice of Brianna, as she will become the focal character as the events of the evening unfold.  She is the type of teen that the high school mean girls love to pick on.  

In any case, the silly game begins and before you can say mother-may-I there’s something of a home invasion.  Enter Brother Thaddeus (played by Taylor) and his wandering band of “creative,” impromptu thespians; a performance art theatre group ready to give new meaning to the game of “Mother Murder” (think: band of serial killers). 

Brother Thaddeus sits back and enjoys the show as his chief enforcers, Sister Amelia (Leah Hudspeth — Driven, Union, Deimosimine) and Brother Marco (Alex Zuko, who previously worked with Hudspeth in Union and Deimosimine) take charge of the proceedings.   Other members in this murderous little group include Skullgirl (Rachel Marshall — Confessions of a Graverobber, In Their Eyes), Sister Daphne (Mallory Ivy), a couple of Pigmen … and of course, Mother Murder (Cassandra Bryson — Confessions of a Graverobber, American Slasher: Part II).

Just a game, huh?   Ask Brianna, that is, if she survives the night!!

Bonus features for the DVD release of It’s Just a Game on Oct. 13 include commentary from writer/director Daniel Emery Taylor.

 

 

 

Bayview Entertainment Tabs Sept. 29 For The DVD Debut Of Director White Cross' Mummy Dearest

Just in time for the Halloween promotional season, where all the good little ghouls get primed for scares, chills and thrills, comes word this week from Bayview Entertainment that director White Cross’ Mummy Dearest will be available on DVD on Sept. 29.

Scarlett Healy (Jennifer Cozza James) is wheelchair-bound and has a choice.  Well, not much of a choice, she can either fend for herself or move in with her daughter, Autumn (Anna Sherman — The Dorm), who sets rules, including no comments or suggestions about how she is living her life or who she is sleeping with.   Nice digs, though, so move in she does.

It seems that Autumn has found a bargain and with her boyfriend Frank (Mike Valley — Hatchet Jack, Goddess of Love), she has moved into one of those classic “Hollywood Hills” type houses.   A house, as it turns out, with a history. 

Scarlett settles in, bites her tongue and tries to make the best of it, but in no time a neighbor by the name of Quinton (Quinton Aaron — The Blind Side) stops by to tell her that the place is haunted.   He also suggests that the last tenants moved in … but never moved out.

As the story progresses, Scarlett begins to unravel mentally, thinking that she can make connections to the past, people have been murdered in the house … and Frank, it seems, might be the connection.   But remember, Scarlett can’t speak of Frank to Autumn, or out she goes.   The hallucinations quicken, Cleopatra (played by former Playboy Playmate of the Month, Nikki Lee ) appears in a vision and Scarlett sees herself being buried in the backyard as, you guessed it, a mummy.  

Also on hand in this tale of creeping madness are the likes of Tara Reid, Michael Paré and Lou Ferrigno.

Vinegar Syndrome Announces Its Sept. 01 Film Restoration Slate

Vinegar Syndrome has revealed a three-strong film restoration slate for delivery as Blu-ray product offerings on Sept. 01.

Heading the list is a new 2K restoration (from the film’s 35mm interpositive) of director Arthur Allan Seidelman’s 1987 mystery, The Caller, teaming Malcolm McDowell with Madolyn Smith (Urban Cowboy, 2010, All of Me).

This is a strange movie on two counts, the first is the storyline, which is simply weird (will get to that in a moment), the second is the film’s very odd production and distribution history.

Charles Band had some indie success in the 1970s with films like End of the World, Laserblast, Tourist Trap and then launched his own “studio,” Empire Pictures and delivered The Ghoulies, Re-Animator … and then he went on a production rampage that ended in financial disaster.   He learned his lesson from this and would later launch Full Moon Entertainment, which survives to this day (in various forms over the years).

In any case, it was during this “production rampage” that Band’s Empire Pictures produced The Caller, which was so odd that it opened as an arthouse picture at the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1987.   It followed this up with screenings at Mystfest in Italy the following month and then the financial collapse and things got weird.

Instead of finding a theatrical window for the film, it was licensed to Trans World Entertainment for a direct-to-video VHS release in 1989.   This restoration by Vinegar Syndrome paves the way for The Caller’s Blu-ray debut on Sept. 1.

Now to the film itself.   “The Girl” (Smith) lives in a cabin in the woods.   “The Caller” (McDowell) shows up and claims that his car has broken down and he needs a little help.

One of them, either “The Girl” or “The Caller,” is a mouse and the other is a cat (metaphorically speaking) … and we know how that will play out.   The problem is, the two keep switching roles with their mind games … and the first thing you notice is that they seem know an awful lot about each other.   Not strangers, but have they done this before?   Hmmmm … odd.

They accuse each other of all sorts of things, she’s a killer, he’s a cop sent to investigate, but during their “cross-examinations” each blows gaping holes in the other’s story.   Intense, weird and suspenseful.  

A mystery of sorts is playing out, but as the viewer it is tough to ferret-out exactly what the “real” game is … remember the 1972 film, Sleuth, with Michael Caine and Laurence Olivier going at other, that’s pretty much what The Caller is for most of its running time.   And then it shifts to the world of The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits … now that was weird.

Bonus goodies include a video session with director Arthur Allan Seidelman (two-time Emmy nominee, with virtually all of his work in television … mini-series, series episodes, MOWs, etc.), which is titled “Boiling Over,” and an audio-only session with writer Michael Sloan.

Rounding out the Sept. 1 restoration slate from Vinegar Syndrome are director Alfred Sole’s “Canadian Mountie/Cheerleader Camp/Serial Killer” comedy, Pandemonium, starring Tom Smothers, Carol Kane and Judge Reinhold, and director Gary Graver’s 1981 adult film, Indecent Exposure, starring Veronica Hart, Jessie St. James and Georgina Spelvin.

 

 

For the period ending July 17, 2020 ... New DVD, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD selections added to the DVD & Blu-ray Release Report's database

 

 

DVD New Additions

7ideas Productions (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Portland and Westerns Toledo Branch, Part 1: Toledo to Summit

Bayview Entertainment

09/22/20 — Sets AC/DC: Back in Black, Beatles In America, Coldplay: Phenomenon, David Bowie: Inside 1969-72, Guns N Roses: Rock Case Studies, Lynyrd Skynyrd: Rock Case Studies, Madonna: Music in Review, Pink Floyd: The Dark Side of the Moon, T Rex: Up Close and Personal and Who: The Moon Years

Championship Productions

07/14/20 — Released 20+ Ball Control Drills for Better Movement, Communication & Conditioning

DreamScape Media

07/14/20 — Released Captivated: Finding Freedom in a Media Captivated Culture and Choo-Choo School

Film Movement (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released L'Innocente (Italian)

Grapevine Videos (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Chronicle of the Grey House (silent-1925), On Dangerous Ground (silent-1917) and This is Your Life (4 episodes: Mack Sennett, Victor McLagen, Boris Karloff, Joe E. Brown)

Gravitas Ventures (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Animation Outlaws, Book Week, Castle in the Ground, In Bright Axiom, Suburban Wildlife and Takeout

Gunpowder & Sky (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Lost in Florence and Third Star

Hallmark Channel (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Nearlyweds

I-Cine

07/14/20 — Released Doi Dau (10 disc set), Manh Phi Gia Dao (12 disc set) and Than Y Hoang Phu (13 disc set)

Icarus Films

09/01/20 — Sets Santiago, Italia (Spanish/Italian)

09/15/20 — Sets Earth

Jinja Films, Ltd.

07/14/20 — Released Unborn

07/28/20 — Sets Nazi Undead

Juno Films

07/14/20 — Released Don't Be Nice and Supa Modo

Kino Lorber

07/14/20 — Released Bacurau (Portuguese) (ARR of 130 days; box office: $58,115), Mädchen in Uniform (German) and Straight Shooting (silent-1917)

Level 33 Entertainment (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Ovid and the Art of Love

MVD Entertainment Group

10/13/20 — Sets Bram Stoker's Shadowbuilder: Special Edition

Metrograph Pictures

07/28/20 — Sets Bigger Splash

Midnight Releasing (MOD)

07/07/20 — Released Agramon's Gate

07/21/20 — Sets Definition of Fear

Movie Detective (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Comicos (Spanish), Cure for Love (Polish), Dead Mountaineer's Hotel (Estonian), Desperate Outcast (Japanese), L'assassino e Costretto ad Uccidere Ancora (Italian), La Cuccagna (Italian), La Tour de Nesle (French), Le Noche de los Lapices (Spanish), People on a Summer Night (Finnish), Silence and Cry (Hungarian), Splendid Days (Russian), Tre Fratelli (Italian) and Woman's Place (Japanese)

Ocean Avenue Entertainment

07/14/20 — Released Seven Days in Utopia and To End All Wars: Director's Cut

Oscilloscope Laboratories

08/11/20 — Sets Cane River

PCN Productions (MOD)

07/07/20 — Released 2020 Sports Classics: 2008 PIAA 2A Football Championship, It's History: Winters Heritage House Museum, PCN Profiles: Carol Stoudt and Pennsylvania Country Roads: Yoder's Country Market and Ro-No Ranch

07/14/20 — Released 2020 PCN Profiles: John Moeller and Pennsylvania Country Roads: Lake Erie & Quilting Blocks

Rarefilmsandmore.com (MOD)

07/07/20 — Released Assa (Russian), Ja, Ja, Die Liebe in Tirol (German), Neunzig Minuten Aufenthalt (German), Oberwachtmeister Schwenke (German) and Turksib (silent-1929)

07/14/20 — Released Demanty Noci (Czech), Libidomania (German), Meine Tante, Deine Tante (German), Ober Zahlen (German), Rocco and His Brothers (Italian), Scarlet Sails (German) and Schuss um Mittertnacht (German)

Smart Mark Video (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Best of the Indies: Matthew Justice (3 disc set), F1rst Wrestling: Wrestlepalooza 16 - Minneapolis, MN, F1rst Wrestling: Wrestlepalooza 17 - Minneapolis, MN, Game Changer Wrestling: Backyard Wrestling 2 - Parts Unknown and Game Changer Wrestling: The WRLD on GWC - Philadelpha, PA

Sundance Now (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Red Sparrows (2 disc set)

08/04/20 — Sets Idiomatic: Season 1 (2 disc set)

TMC Media Group (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Returning to the Workplace: The Top Ways to Protect Your Workplace from COVID-19

Terror Films, LLC

07/14/20 — Released End Trip, Film School Africa, No Blood of Mine and Taking of Deborah Logan

The Teaching Company

07/14/20 — Released Exploring the Mayan World (2 disc set), Fundamentals of DSLR Filmmaking (4 disc set), How to Sing (4 disc set) and Shocking Psychological Studies and the Lessons They Teach

TomCat Releasing

06/30/20 — Released Carlo the Movie

07/14/20 — Released Pit Stop

Uncork’d Entertainment (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Coven and The Runners

Universal Pictures Home Ent.

08/11/20 — Sets Emperor

Vision Films

07/14/20 — Released Hidden Orchard Mysteries: The Case of the Air B & B Robbery and Root of the Problem

Vision Films (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Magical Reef: The Islands of the Four Kings

Vue Multimedia (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Stripes

WOWnow Entertainment

07/14/20 — Released Cannabis and Spaced Cats

Blu-ray New Additions

7ideas Productions (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Portland and Westerns Toledo Branch, Part 1: Toledo to Summit

Altered Innocence

07/14/20 — Released Starfish (with bonus CD)

Aniplex of America

07/14/20 — Released Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works - Complete Collection (8 disc set)

Code Red

07/14/20 — Released Jungle Holocaust

Criterion Collection

10/06/20 — Sets Pierre le Fou (French)

10/13/20 — Sets Claudine

10/20/20 — Sets Gunfighter and Hit

10/27/20 — Sets Parasite (2 disc set) (Korean)

Dynamic

07/14/20 — Released Puccini: Il Tabarro

Film Movement

07/14/20 — Released L'Innocente (Italian)

FUNimation

07/14/20 — Released Fafner: Complete Series and Movie Essentials (5 disc set), Kochoki: The Complete Series (2 disc set) (with Digital Copy), Ones Within: The Complete Collection (2 disc set) (with Digital Copy), Strike Witches: The Complete First Season (2 disc set), Strike Witches: The Complete Second Season (2 disc set) and Teasing Master Takagi-san (2 disc set)

Gravitas Ventures (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Animation Outlaws, Book Week, Castle in the Ground, In Bright Axiom and Suburban Wildlife

Gunpowder & Sky (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Lost in Florence

Jinja Films, Ltd.

07/14/20 — Released Unborn

07/28/20 — Sets Nazi Undead

Kino Lorber

07/14/20 — Released Bacurau (Portuguese), Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema IV (3 film set: Calcutta, An Act of Murder, Six Bridges to Cross) (3 disc set), Kiss the Blood Off My Hands, Mädchen in Uniform (German), Never Give a Sucker an Even Break, Paleface and Straight Shooting (silent-1917)

Kitty Media

07/14/20 — Released Pure Mellow Love Collection

La La Land Entertainment

07/14/20 — Released Specials

Lionsgate Home Entertainment

07/14/20 — Released Swing of Things (with Digital Copy)

Massacre Video

07/14/20 — Released Mr. No Legs

Metrograph Pictures

07/28/20 — Sets Bigger Splash

Mill Creek Entertainment

10/13/20 — Sets Ultraman R/B: The Movie - The Crystal of Bond! (Japanese) (with  Digital Copy) and Ultraman R/B: The Movie/The Series (6 disc set) (with Digital Copy)

NYEH Entertainment (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released All God's Creatures

Oscilloscope Laboratories

08/11/20 — Sets Cane River

PCN Productions (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released 2020 PCN Profiles: John Moeller and Pennsylvania Country Roads: Lake Erie & Quilting Blocks

Paramount Home Media

08/18/20 — Sets Thrills & Chills (4 film set: Pet Sematary, A Quiet Place, Crawl, Overlord) (4 disc set)

09/15/20 — Sets Roman Holiday

Retrospoitation Direct (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released 5G Zombies

Sentai FilmWorks

07/14/20 — Released Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya Primsa*Phantasm OVA and Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya: Vow in the Snow

Shout! Factory

07/14/20 — Released Kiss of the Vampire: Collector's Edition and Missing

Smart Mark Video (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released F1rst Wrestling: Wrestlepalooza 16 - Minneapolis, MN, F1rst Wrestling: Wrestlepalooza 17 - Minneapolis, MN, Game Changer Wrestling: Backyard Wrestling 2 - Parts Unknown and Game Changer Wrestling: The WRLD on GWC - Philadelpha, PA

Starry Night Publishing, LLC (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Gorgeous (Cantonese), Prisoner (Cantonese) and Touch of Zen (Cantonese)

Sundance Now (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Red Sparrows (2 disc set)

Terror Films, LLC

07/14/20 — Released Taking of Deborah Logan

Toho

07/14/20 — Released Kaiji: Final Game (Japanese)

Tokyo Shock

07/14/20 — Released Tokyo Gore Police: Lethal Force Edition (Japanese)

Unearthed Films

10/13/20 — Sets The Untold Story (Cantonese)

Universal Pictures Home Ent.

07/14/20 — Released Magicians: Season Five (3 disc set)

VIZ Media

07/14/20 — Released Boruto Naruto: Next Generations, Volume 6 (2 disc set) and Inu Yasha: Set One (4 disc set)

Vue Multimedia (MOD)

07/14/20 — Released Stripes

4K Ultra HD New Additions

 

Sony Pictures Home Ent.

09/15/20 — Sets 21 Jump Street (4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo Pack) (with Digital Copy) and 22 Jump Street (4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo Pack) (with Digital Copy)

Warner Bros. Home Ent.

09/01/20 — Sets Beetlejuice (4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo Pack) (with Digital Copy), Goonies (4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo Pack) (with Digital Copy), Sherlock Holmes (4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo Pack) (with Digital Copy) and Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo Pack) (with Digital Copy)