Review Category: DVD/Blu Ray

SINBAD THE FIFTH VOYAGE

BLU-RAY REVIEW: SINBAD THE FIFTH VOYAGE / CERT: 12 / DIRECTOR: SHAHIN SEAN SOLIMON / SCREENPLAY: SHAHIN SEAN SOLIMON, EVELYN GABAI / STARRING: SHAHIN SEAN SOLIMON, DANIELLE DUVALE, SAID FARAJ, PATRICK STEWART / RELEASE DATE: DECEMBER 22ND

Another film inspired by the Sinbad tales from The Arabian Nights, Sinbad the Fifth Voyage shows Sinbad (Solimon – also the director and co-writer) on his latest quest to save the love of his life, Princess Parisa (Duvale), from the sinister Deev (Faraj) who wants to claim her soul for his own deeds. Along the way, Sinbad and his merry band of thieves and rogues must contend with mythical islands and strange cities filled with giant creatures and blood-sucking vampires.

Sounds exciting, right? Except it’s anything but, as Shahin Sean Solimon has made a film that not only fails in honouring the Sinbad legend but also makes this year’s 300: Rise of an Empire look like the work of an absolute cinematic genius. For many years, the Sinbad stories have resonated with audiences around the globe and the Ray Harryhausen movies have stood the test of time, with different generations being enthralled by their cinematic spectacle.

All that magic is what’s lacking in this film, and within the first opening minutes things immediately starts to go pear-shaped, and Sinbad the Fifth Voyage carries on in that vein for the rest of the film. The story is all over the place and shambolic, with many different plot points that come out of nowhere and go nowhere. The acting is incredibly hammy, with performances that wouldn’t look too out of place in a pantomime show or a CBBC programme. Patrick Stewart’s narration does add an element of class to the whole thing, and he’s by far the best aspect of the entire thing, but it’s just a shame he didn’t provide a voiceover for the whole film. Also, why does Sinbad have an accent in the movie, but the older narrator Sinbad speaks with an English one? Strange…

In terms of the special effects, the stop-motion animation seems to be paying homage to Harryhausen’s work, but it looks cheap in comparison and completely lacks any of the soul, the beauty or peril that the legendary Ray Harryhausen’s work had on the originals. The choreography, which involves Sinbad fighting these monsters made out of plasticine, looks horrendous and even Harryhausen himself would’ve been deeply embarrassed by this. Equally atrocious is the editing, and because of that it makes what could’ve have been an average movie into something that is deeply cringe-worthy.

In the end, Sinbad the Fifth Voyage doesn’t even earn the right to call itself a Sinbad movie, and is instead a hollow and amateurish attempt to recreate an iconic classic. Do yourself a favour; go watch the Harryhausen originals, as they are infinitely more appealing.

Special Features: None

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GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY

BLU-RAY REVIEW: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY / CERT: 12A / DIRECTOR: JAMES GUNN / SCREENPLAY: JAMES GUNN, NICOLE PERLMAN / STARRING: CHRIS PRATT, LEE PACE, ZOE SALDANA, DAVE BAUTISTA, VIN DIESEL, BRADLEY COOPER / RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 24TH

After doing wonders at the global box office earlier this year, Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy finally hits DVD and Blu-ray. James Gunn’s hugely enjoyable movie grabbed the Marvel Cinematic Universe by its coattails and dragged the action up into the cosmos. Much like so much of the MCU, Guardians hits a whole lot of the right notes.

Plot-wise, Gunn’s movie opens by introducing us to the young Peter Quill as he suffers the tragic death of his mother before abruptly being abducted by a spaceship. From there, we meet up with the now-adult Quill (Pratt), who is going by the cock-sure moniker of Star-Lord and on a mission to find a powerful artefact that has just so happened to have put him in many people’s crosshairs. Part-Han Solo, part-Tony Stark, loveable rogue Quill finds himself with a bounty placed on his head which leads to him being tracked down by the ragtag duo of tree creature Groot (Diesel) and the gun-toting, wisecracking anthropomorphic Rocket (Cooper), whilst the artefact that Quill holds has caused him to be similarly hunted down by the adopted daughter of Thanos (Josh Brolin), Gamora (Saldana). After a stint in prison introduces them to savage, revenge-driven warrior Drax the Destroyer (Bautista), we have our titular group of heroes. Still, Thanos is pulling the strings of the crazed, hammer-wielding Ronan (Pace), who is out to cause havoc alongside Gamora’s adopted sister, the callous, cold-blooded, clinical Nebula (Karen Gillan).

As well as the core cast mentioned above, Guardians has a fantastic ensemble, with the likes of Glenn Close, John C. Reilly, Michael Rooker, and Benicio Del Toro also featured in supporting roles. James Gunn uses the impressive cast, foot-tapping soundtrack, and outlandish, extravagant settings to deliver a true modern-day space opera that will pull on a plethora of your emotions. Whilst the film is drenched in humour and action, there are some genuinely touching moments to behold and it also gives us a little bit more of a glimpse into Thanos, he who was seen firing off a shit-eating grin at the end of Avengers Assemble and who is set to do battle with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes during the two-part Avengers: Infinity War tale set for 2018 and 2019.

Much like the film itself, the extras included in this set are engaging, entertaining and will have fans of the film grinning from ear-to-ear, particularly a dance-off gag scene between the Guardians and Ronan. The release isn’t quite crammed to the brim with bonus features, but the stuff included is all impressive and fun. And that’s what Guardians of the Galaxy is in its simplest form: fun. So often these days, we can take things all too seriously. Guardians of the Galaxy is good, honest fun and entertainment that will appease viewers of all ages as well as both those who are familiar with the Guardians team and those who heard the project announced and blankly mouthed “who?” Whilst many may not have heard of the Guardians of the Galaxy before this film and many may have thought that this was the property that was merely an arrogant vanity project for Marvel Studios and Disney, be assured that this is a film bursting with heart, emotion, action, humour and is a massively progressive step in the MCU and the likely ramifications of taking further action to the realms of space. A fantastic film all round and arguably the very best of the Marvel movies to date.

Special Features: Audio commentary / Making-of featurette / Exclusive look at Avengers: Age of Ultron / Deleted scenes / Gag reel

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DOCTOR WHO – THE COMPLETE EIGHTH SEASON

DVD REVIEW: DOCTOR WHO – THE COMPLETE EIGHTH SEASON /CERT: 12 / DIRECTOR: VARIOUS / SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: PETER CAPALDI, JENNA COLEMAN, SAMUEL ANDERSON, MICHELLE GOMEZ / RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 24TH

Peter Capaldi’s first season as the Doctor proved to be something of a return to form for Doctor Who. The series has been playing to diminishing creative returns over the last three series, culminating in the shoddy and irksome season seven which saw the show crash onto the rocks it had been drifting towards for the previous two years. The arrival of the brittle, unpredictable twelfth Doctor not only repositions the Doctor as a mercurial, genuinely-alien adventurer in Space and Time (rather than the arm-waving buffoon he’d become in his previous incarnation) but it makes the show a little more jagged around the edges and, potentially, slightly less family-friendly than it’s been for years.

It’s Capaldi who lifts occasionally mundane and slightly safe material – many of the stories stick rigidly to the show’s preferred post-2005 formula – and most of the scripts fixate upon the new Doctor’s on/off relationship with his occasional companion Clara (played with real gusto by Jenna Coleman) often at the expense of properly developing the actual stories. Added to this year’s mix has been ex-soldier Danny Pink (Anderson), Clara’s fellow teacher and eventual boyfriend. Their story arc is sweet (if a bit hurried) whilst other ‘themes’ present throughout the series – is the Doctor a good man?, the constant repetition of the phrase ‘shut up,’ and the core characters being utterly unable to be truthful to one another – have generally been more rewarding than they’ve been frustrating. Bubbling away in the background is the enigmatic Missy (Michelle Gomez in full-on psychopathic nutter mode – and for good reason, as we eventually discover), harvesting the recently-deceased for purposes which only become apparent in the two-part season finale, the first episode of which where we learn Missy’s true identity, is about as exciting as Doctor Who has ever been.

There is, however, the nagging feeling that the show still isn’t quite firing on all cylinders. There’s a renewed energy and vigour in the production (Doctor Who has never looked or sounded better) but many of the episodes play it a bit too safe and don’t take any real risks. Some just don’t have enough time or room to breathe and there’s a noticeable dearth of really interesting supporting characters – mainly because so much time is spent working on the three series leads. But most of the episodes are lively and colourful affairs, even if it’s clear that an actor of Capaldi’s stature and capability deserves something just a bit meatier and more challenging. He excels in sizzling moments of angry confrontation and his rudeness to just about everyone – especially big-faced Clara – is a joy to behold. The ratio of clunkers is more acceptable than in recent series, too. ‘Time Heist’ is just plain dull, show runner Steven Moffat’s season opener ‘Deep Breath’ is too long and too pleased with itself, and the series only really drops the ball once – but drops it so hard it goes through the floorboards. Frank Cottrell Boyce’s ‘In the Forest of the Night’ is mawkish, nonsensical junk and the fact that it was commissioned at all worryingly suggests that Moffat can’t quite shake off that disturbing and misplaced image he has of the show as a ‘fairytale’.

Some stories – ‘The Caretaker’ and ‘Robot of Sherwood’ – are fun, fluffy nonsense, whilst others – ‘Kill the Moon’ and ‘Mummy on the Orient Express’ – fall at the last hurdle with disappointing denouements (giant egg and malfunctioning futuristic tech again, respectively). But second episode ‘Into the Dalek’ restores the Doctor’s deadliest enemies to their rightful place as his most implacably formidable and homicidal foes whilst Moffat’s ‘Listen’, hailed immediately as an instant classic, is really just an Emperor’s New Clothes grab-bag of motifs and clichés he’s used time and again since he started working on the show. The real series highlight is the witty and inventive ‘Flatline,’ which introduces some creepy new 2D aliens whilst trapping the Doctor inside his shrinking TARDIS. Moffat’s two-part finale is compromised by its second episode, a big and brash affair which tries to emulate the overblown season finales of his predecessor Russell T Davies but frustratingly underachieves due to his inability (rather than unwillingness) to just write a bloody big adventure story without trying to be clever.

But in the final analysis, this is an enjoyable and confident batch of episodes which sees the show getting back on track, hopefully paving the way for even bigger and better things for Capaldi’s second season. This five-disc boxset boasts a more considered collection of special features than recent releases. Fifth Doctor Peter Davison hosts two entertaining BBC America specials where he tries to define what makes ’the Ultimate Time Lord’ and ’the Ultimate Companion’, there are a scattering of brief interview featurettes, all twelve BBC Red Button ’Doctor Who Extra’ episodes (BBC3’s old Confidential strand in all but name and length) and the post-cinema screening ‘Deep Breath’ on-stage Q&A hosted by Zoe Ball. Best of all is the 45 minute ‘World Tour’ documentary which follows Capaldi, Coleman and sometimes Moffat, as they tour the globe in twelve days to promote the new series. It’s a warm and engaging documentary which reminds us just what a huge worldwide brand the series has become and how it’s touched so many people in so many different, creative ways. Sadly neither Moffat or any cast members feature on any of the four commentaries but co-writer Phil Ford and director Ben Wheatley are on fine raucous form on their ‘Into the Dalek’ track, director Paul Murphy flies solo on ‘Robot of Sherwood’ and is joined by FX bods Kate Walsh and Peter Hawkins for ‘The Caretaker,’ and director Paul Wilmshurst is joined by first AD Scott Bates for ‘Kill the Moon’.

Special Features: Commentaries on selected episodes / 12 episodes of Doctor Who Extra / Five featurettes / Cast interviews / Music video / Trailers

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HAUNTING OF CRESTVIEW HIGH

DVD REVIEW: HAUNTING OF CRESTVIEW HIGH / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: MATTHEW SPRADLIN / SCREENPLAY: MATTHEW SPRADLIN, BARRY WERNICK / STARRING: CAMERON DEAN STEWART, BEN BROWDER, AUGIE DUKE, ALI FAULKNER, JEFFREY SCHMIDT / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

To describe Haunting of Crestview High (US title: Bad Kids Go to Hell) as The Breakfast Club meets And Then There Were None would be to oversell it to such a degree as to invite ridicule. The fact that it’s a black comedy about an American High School massacre is possibly the least ill-judged thing about the film, Matthew Spradlin’s debut as director (and co-writer), wherein he demonstrates about as much affinity for the material (his own, astoundingly enough) as a bloodthirsty big cat might show for an injured impala. It’s a work of astonishing bad taste – and I don’t mean that in the good way.

It is possible to make hugely successful films with juxtaposing tastes simply by judging the material extremely carefully; A Clockwork Orange and The Evil Dead being two prime examples. It is also possible to make exploitative cinema of the first order on a severely limited budget and with no recognised ‘talent’ – hell, that’s virtually a blanket description of most horror movies. Spradlin, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to have the first idea about what kind of a film he wants to make; Haunting of Crestview High is neither scary nor funny, and the twists in its tail are no less predictable than the ending of most Disney movies. And there are several, each subsequent example making less sense than the previous one.

What is unpredictable is the manner in which Spradlin seems to think graphic novels ought to be adapted for the cinema. Eschewing methodically constructed creeping terror, traditional jump shocks or other well-established horror movie practices, Spradlin instead elects to leap between tones (often within the same scene or sequence) like a hyperactive kid choosing which Smartie to eat next. Most of the ‘horror’ sequences are composed of incorporating musical interludes that couldn’t be less sympathetic to the situations if they tried, with multiple changes of lens or technique guaranteeing to induce nausea rather than chills, thrills or chuckles; the dispatch of the story’s first victim has to be seen to be disbelieved. Rarely a minute goes by without the appearance of a badly composed shot to pull you out of the experience, and the film is littered with poor edits that sadly can’t manage to make the plot incomprehensible enough to be interesting.

The performances, conversely, are serviceable enough to give the impression that the cast might have been adequate enough if delegated elsewhere.

If any of the above has piqued your interest, take a deep breath and go and do something else. Even as a renter, you won’t be able to return the disc if you’ve thrown it to the floor and stamped it into splinters. An enema of a movie.

Special Features: None, mercifully

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YU-GI-OH! SEASON 1: THE OFFICIAL FIRST SEASON

DVD REVIEW: YU-GI-OH! SEASON 1: THE OFFICIAL FIRST SEASON / CERT: PG / DIRECTOR: HIROYUKI KAKUDOU / SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: DAN GREEN, AMY BIRNBAUM, WAYNE GRAYSON, ERIC STUART / RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 17TH

Back in the early 2000s, 4Kids Entertainment was riding a wave of success by taking Japanese anime properties and producing and distributing them in the United States and worldwide. The most successful of these was the global phenomenon known as Pokémon. Arguably the second most popular of these was Yu-Gi-Oh!, a show in which characters played a fictional card game called Duel Monsters. Yu-Gi-Oh! had emerged in Japanese manga magazine Weekly Shonen Jump years earlier to major success and was quickly serialised, and much like any popular manga, an anime version was quick to follow.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Season 1: The Official First Season compiles 49 episodes of the anime first shown in the UK in 2001. The title is somewhat misleading as there was a previous anime of Yu-Gi-Oh! which has never seen a release outside of Japan, but this is Season 1 of the second anime adaptation and it’s the series that most people will be familiar with thanks to its prominence on UK television back in the early 2000s. The 49 episodes come split across 7 discs and tells the story of a young boy, Yugi Mutou, who is given his grandfather’s deck of Duel Monsters cards and suddenly thrust into a mysterious world of duelling, magic, and adventure.

Yu-Gi-Oh! features a beautiful style of animation with each episode (mostly) revolving around one game of Duel Monsters. Of course, like in Pokémon where any altercation or problem resulted in a Pokémon battle, you’ll find the same in the world of Yu-Gi-Oh! Most things are settled with a game of Duel Monsters. It certainly is something spectacular watching each monster come to life, especially if you are familiar with them from the trading card game (TCG). The quirky look of the characters of Yugi and friends blends really well with the fantastical style of the Duel Monsters. Speaking of the TCG, throughout the series Yugi and friends also keep explaining the game, which might make you think cynically that it’s just an anime made to sell trading cards, but it actually just happened rather organically. Yu-Gi-Oh! wasn’t conceived as a TCG and that was only a small part of the original manga series, which was written as a story of friendship and co-operation. Both themes are visible in the show and it feels very wholesome.

Yu-Gi-Oh!‘s themes of friendship, honesty, and courage are very prevalent in the series, and over time the series delves deeper into themes of good and evil, also going deeper into Yugi’s Millennium Puzzle. As a result, a grander story emerges which surprisingly grabs your attention with Egyptian imagery, legends and Gods, and much stronger Duel Monsters battles to come. Yu-Gi-Oh! certainly had a similar appeal as Pokémon, with secret worlds full of knowledge and wonder and, well, cool looking monsters that kids could obsess over.

Anyone expecting to find English subtitles with the original Japanese voice cast will be sorely disappointed as it is only the English dub done by 4Kids; this is most certainly a compilation of the Western version complete with Joey’s New York accent. It might be what many people are familiar with but it would be nice to have the option of both the English dub and original version. Another disappointment is the lack of special features on the set, but we can always hope the next few sets will feature some bonus material.

While some things are a little dated, this release encapsulates the era of dubbed early 2000s anime in the West perfectly with some corny voice acting, great storytelling, and interesting characters. If Yu-Gi-Oh! was an important part of your childhood, this will be a nostalgia trip worth taking, especially as Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon were arguably the starting point for a lot of people to delve deeper into Japanese culture, anime, and manga. If you are an anime fan and have never seen Yu-Gi-Oh!, it’s certainly worth watching. And with 49 episodes in one set, it certainly provides value for money. For anyone else, it might make you want to buy some of the trading cards to find that elusive Blue Eyes White Dragon.

Special Features: None

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ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA: EXTENDED DIRECTOR’S CUT

BLU-RAY REVIEW: ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA: EXTENDED DIRECTOR’S CUT / CERT: 18 / DIRECTOR: SERGIO LEONE / SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: ROBERT DE NIRO, JAMES WOODS, ELIZABETH MCGOVERN, JOE PESCI, BURT YOUNG / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

To fully appreciate the Blu-ray release of Sergio Leone’s revered epic, Once Upon A Time In America: Extended Director’s Cut (to be know hereafter as America), it is essential to understand a little of how and why this version has come into being. When an original cut of 229 minutes was shown by Leone at Cannes in 1984, it received praise from all quarters for its visionary style and subtle yet intense performances. An unconvinced studio, however, feared the episodic structure and non-linear timelines, the very things loved by festival audiences and critics, would be too inaccessible to the general public. Leone’s masterpiece was butchered, edited into a “neater” film for general release. The result was a disaster, so much so that the director didn’t make another film prior to his death in 1989.

A version more consistent with the original European release has been available for years so what is it about this edition of America that is worth the time? And at 251 minutes, it’s a lot of time.

The initial thing to note is that the newly included scenes add virtually nothing to the central story. The familiar haunting, almost ethereal, quality of the film remains, with the lingering, poetic indulgence of many of the scenes making you hunger for a type of filmmaking that no longer exists. Initially idealised as two films, Leone refused to compromise the length or narrative, and on many occasions the camera simply just keeps rolling, allowing the full scene to play out, drawing the viewer further and further in. The inclusion of an “Intermission” card is playful and indignant, but also a slight relief as your thumb begins to hover over the pause button.

The newly included scenes are also clearly noticeable as there is a distinct difference in quality when compared with the main film, being distinctly darker and grainier. The additions themselves all add more depth to sections involving supporting characters, including the first appearance of Eve (Darlanne Fluegel) and an aggressive interaction between Noodles (De Niro) and the driver who takes Deborah (McGovern) home after their nasty altercation in the car. Filling out these subplots is interesting but brings little extra to a film that in its previous incarnation was the favourite of its director. Nothing has been added to detract from the ambiguity, certainly over the final scenes, and so may fail to intrigue all but those needing as near to completion as possible (some footage is still missing due to rights issues).

One thing is certain though, America deserves a place in cinematic history. Leone is a master storyteller whose voice was heard too few times. His final film is not perfect; there are questionable politics when it comes to the vastly underserved female characters and, while perhaps in-keeping with the times, is a little difficult to empathise with in today’s world. The overindulgence may also prove difficult for some, with some scenes drawn out over several minutes, but if you let this film envelope you, let it become a companion for a few hours, it will deliver an experience you will not find from many sources. By the end you will have developed a lasting relationship with Noodles and Max (Woods), an understanding of their motivations and an insight into their world. If you already own a copy of America you may not need this in your collection. If you don’t, buy it now and set aside a Saturday night for a little cinematic indulgence.

Special Features: Commentary by Richard Schickel / Making-of documentary ‘Once Upon a Time: Sergio Leone’

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WITCHES OF EAST END – SEASON 1

DVD REVIEW: WITCHES OF EAST END – SEASON 1 / CERT: 12 / DIRECTOR: VARIOUS / SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: JULIA ORMOND, MADCHEN AMICK, JENNA DEWAN TATUM, RACHEL BOSTON / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Based on the first novel of Melissa de la Cruz’s Beauchamp Family series, Witches of East End is another in a saturated genre, groaning under the strain of mediocrity, which no amount of magic can save.

Amidst the cheap effects and low production values is a cast of varying ability, some wooden, others forgettable, though there’s plenty of familiar faces. Twin Peaks’ Mädchen Amick stars as hip Aunt Wendy, adding a zesty spark. Rachel Boston is as close to Willow as the show could get away with without outright casting Alyson Hannigan. Buffy’s Tom Lenk shows he’s a one-trick pony as Boston’s fellow librarian, while genre stalwarts Enver Gjokaj and Joel Gretsch are sadly underused.

The script seems informed more by young adult dark fantasy than anything approaching folklore, instead doling out genre clichés like they’re coming back in style: absinthe, shape-shifting and more kitsch gothic than you can wave a wand at. While the show can be gripping and oddly moving (especially fifth episode, Electric Avenue), the supernatural side isn’t nearly interesting enough to prop the drama up.

The third episode is an extended training montage where sisters Ingrid and Freya try to hone their newly discovered powers under their aunt’s and mother’s ageless eyes. The fourth does paint an interesting look at the cause and effect of magic, demonstrating the result the mystical can have in a touching, if soppy, conclusion. One of the show’s greatest strengths is exploring the consequences of magic, and had there been more of this it would have been an altogether more memorable effort.

Given the subject matter, it’s irritating that the plot only fleetingly touches on the persecution of women during the witch hunts; chucking in the odd witch burning doesn’t cut it. There was plenty of room for something with more depth than a climax culminating in a clusterbomb of mythology-crossing and weak cliff-hangers.

Witches of East End may be left wanting up against Buffy or Supernatural, and has nothing on the gawky misadventures of Sabrina the Teenage Witch, but the campy soap opera offers viewers enough to make it through the ten episode series. If you want Charmed re-imagined for Hollyoaks’ audience, this one’s probably for you.

Special Features: Falling Under Their Spell featurette / Deleted scenes / Gag reel / Cat blooper

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RABID DOGS

BLU RAY REVIEW: RABID DOGS / CERT: 18 / DIRECTOR: MARIO BAVA / SCREENPLAY: ALLESSANDRO PARENZO / STARRING: LEA LANDER, GEORGE EASTMAN, RICCARDO CUCCILIOLLA, DON BACKY, MARIO FABRI / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Mario Bava might not be a name hugely familiar to modern moviegoers, but to reasonably well-informed cineastes he’s often regarded as the godfather of the ‘giallo’ genre of Italian thriller movie. An accomplished screenwriter, cinematographer and FX artist, his best-known works are probably Black Sunday and Planet of the Vampires and 1971’s Twitch of the Death Nerve is often cited as one of the inspirations for the ‘slasher’ horror movies of the 1970s and 1980s. Rabid Dogs (variously known as Red Light and Kidnapped) is probably his masterpiece and certainly the film that Bava, who died in 1980, was most proud of. It’s not difficult to see why.

Quentin Tarantino is on record as stating that Bava is one of his favourite directors. If not for the fact that it was filmed in 1974 but not released until 1998 (the footage was literally held for ransom for decades by the investors when the already-shoestring budget ran out), it wouldn’t be too huge a leap of faith to assume that Rabid Dogs was uppermost in Tarantino’s mind when he was crafting Reservoir Dogs, his own first masterpiece. In Rabid Dogs, a payroll robbery in downtown Rome goes disastrously wrong and the survivors of the gang take a terrified young woman hostage and hi-jack a vehicle driven by a nervy middle-aged man whose passenger is a sick and delirious child. Told more-or-less in real-time, the film follows the gang’s attempts to make their way to their hideout outside Naples where they can pick up a secondary getaway car. But the psychopathic Blade and Thirty-Two are growing restless on the journey and they start to abuse and intimidate the terrified Maria, and Doc, the more temperate leader of the gang, struggles to keep them under control as the driver, Riccardo, tries to keep a cool head as tempers fray and tensions escalate.

Rabid Dogs is a tough, ugly and difficult movie, almost a psychological study in mounting desperation, punctuated by moments of raw, off-hand violence. As the gang’s heist goes disastrously unstuck and they find themselves on the run, we’re trapped in the stifling confines of the car for virtually the duration of the movie and Bava ratchets up the sense of claustrophobia and growing menace like a master craftsman. Poor Maria becomes a plaything for the bored and frankly hateful Blade and Thirty-Two – the treatment she receives makes for uncomfortable viewing, especially in the sequence where she effects a temporary escape from the gang’s clutches – and an already unbearable situation becomes even worse when a ditzy innocent hitches a ride when her own car breaks down near a garage they’ve briefly stopped at for fuel.

Utterly gripping and often unflinchingly dramatic, Rabid Dogs builds up to an explosive climax and yet has one last gut-punch of a twist up its sleeve which will quite possibly leave you breathless with its audacity. Beautifully-restored by Arrow, this new Rabid Dogs transfer positively sparkles; Bava’s ultimate masterpiece is a vibrant, intense and unforgettable experience. Essential for Bava fans and a more than worthwhile purchase for those who’ve yet to discover his idiosyncratic oeuvre.

Special Features: Commentary / Production featurette / Interviews / Booklet

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GREMLINS

BLU-RAY REVIEW: GREMLINS / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: JOE DANTE / SCREENPLAY: CHRIS COLUMBUS / SCREENPLAY: ZACH GALLIGAN, PHOEBE CATES, HOYT AXTON / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

After 30 years of referential mayhem, mischief and dining after midnight, by now we think it’s unlikely you need a full rundown on why Joe Dante’s Gremlins is so great. Straddling the line between comedy and horror beautifully, Dante’s creature feature is the defining film of a subgenre that expanded in the ’80s with the likes of Critters and Munchies. The film’s 3 golden rules of Mogwai care have almost become as iconic as the “don’t cross the streams” warning in Ghostbusters. Gremlins is a subversive mini-Christmas classic, and with that said, as we approach the holiday season, Gizmo and his slimy counterparts are back in high definition.

Gremlins for all its gross-out or anarchic comic skulduggery, is a lingering festive favourite and proof that, alongside Ghostbusters and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, mainstream cinema in 1984 was pretty great. Sure the special effects have aged a tad and the horror elements may not chill you to the bone as much as they might have back when you believed in Santa (although we attest he is real- right kids?), but Gremlins looks good in HD. The decent picture transfer amplifies the details of Chris Walas’ creatures and the facial movements now look all the more impressive all these years later – after all, Gizmo has not remained in audiences hearts this long for no reason.

The film’s bright Capra-esque Christmas setting meets crazed, tongue-in-cheek monster mayhem and the visuals look better whenever brighter colours are involved in the fray. True, it is not the prettiest picture on the format, but nor is it a bad presentation of a 30 year old film, in fact it’s pretty darn good at times. Still, the real winner from this heightened upgrade is the playful score by Jerry Goldsmith, which cheerfully skips over your speakers like Stripe on a sugar rush. Even after all this time, there is still something to be said on hearing that main theme joyfully jingle aloud in your living room, alongside the creatures’ maniacal cackling.

After various releases over the years, fans have likely waited for a definitive release of Gremlins, and while it would have been nice to have the less revered but still rather underappreciated lighter 1990 sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch in on the deal, this 2-disc release boasts a good array of special features. From commentaries with the cast (Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates and Howie Mandel) and crew (Dante, producer Michael Finnell and SFX artist Chris Walas) to a concise 6-minute behind the scenes featurette, most of the major voices have weighed in to discuss the film. As well as this, there’s a “Creating the Creatures” feature (with the film’s writer Chris Columbus and executive producer Steven Spielberg among many others speaking on the evolution of the creatures’ appearance), a “Hangin’ with Hoyt” featurette (essentially a short extra that shows the on-set wisecracking of the film’s star Hoyt Axton), and a documentary on the film’s making. Also, you get two digital comics and some trailers thrown in, too.

So while this Blu-ray release is hardly fit to burst, it is likely the most efficient release of the film yet. People well-versed in the creation and production of the film may not be too shocked by anything added, but the new material rounds off the set nicely. In the end, Gremlins is a minor classic that offers not only an astute parody of mass-marketing Christmas culture but a rebellious festive flick that (alongside the likes of Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, and Batman Returns) is still the perfect treat for those audiences ba-humbugged by the clichés and sentimentality of the world’s most relentlessly cheery holiday. Still, you already knew that and even if this set does not stand as “the definitive” version of Dante’s enduring film (there is certainly a chance we’ll see a bigger release in the future), it is a nice addition to your movie collection and a perfect introduction to a movie that, like The Goonies, is fondly held in high esteem in the halls of ’80s cinema history. Just don’t get the disc wet…

Special Features: Filmmakers’ commentary / Cast commentary / Four featurettes / Additional scenes / Photo Gallery / Trailers / Two motion comics

BREAKING THE WAVES

BLU-RAY REVIEW: BREAKING THE WAVES / CERT: 18 / DIRECTOR: LARS VON TRIER / SCREENPLAY: LARS VON TRIER / STARRING: EMILY WATSON, STELLAN SKARSGARD, KATRIN CARTLIDGE, SANDRA VOE, ADRIAN RAWLINS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

When it comes to Lars von Trier and others like him (although that’s a pretty narrow list), he is as much a provocateur as an auteur. His films do not so much entertain as confront, and to that end this re-release of his 1996 drama Breaking the Waves is another example of the director’s lofty ambitions, ferocious ideology and controversial style. Breaking the Waves is the first film in the director’s ‘Golden Heart Trilogy’ (which continued with the infamously controversial The Idiots in 1998 and Dancer in the Dark in 2000) and despite its bloated running time and patience-testing potential for some audiences, it is an understated masterpiece from a very complex directorial mind.

The film, set in a religious community in the Scottish Highlands in the 1970s, sees reserved and conflicted young woman Bess (Watson) marry oil rig worker Jan (Skarsgård) and get swept away by her love for him. However, when a rig accident leaves him paralysed, Bess attempts to save her husband’s passion for life by going on a journey of sexual promiscuity to satisfy his carnal needs. There is a lot to this turbulent love story and, as is the norm for much of von Trier’s work, the film’s act-based structure splits the story accordingly across the 2 ½ hour running time. Breaking the Waves, with its scenes of sexual abuse, religious bigotry and social persecution, is not an easy watch and where some will see it as a non-event, the right audience will see von Trier’s masterpiece for what it is – a bubbling pot of desire, emotion and soul.

Breaking the Waves is nowhere near as opposing as some of the director’s consequent works (The Idiots, Antichrist) but it is possibly his most poignant film. The film’s sweeping power and Dogme 95-influenced shooting present a realist vision of romance, even if by the Dogme guidelines the film does use more artificial factors than some of von Trier’s other works. Still, this is a real-feeling presentation of marriage on the rocks and an even better dissection of personal faith versus organised religion. The film asks some mighty questions about faith, sexuality and mental health, and while it is not so much an entertaining film as a deep one, there are moments here that will make the heart sink and will linger in the memory as long as a shipwreck on a coastline. The devastating power of the film is not a result of its sexual explicitness but its delivery on the combustive themes.

Breaking the Waves is really an analysis of marital duty and how challenges in marriage can push us far further than we ever expected we’d go. It is a film that somewhat lashes sectors of organised religion as self-righteous and selective when it should be all-inclusive. This drama is not an easy watch, for sure, but it is fantastic at opening your mind to potentially tricky debates, and come the end (in a rare act of fantasy) the film ends on the chimes of beauty and leaves the viewer momentarily rewarded after a journey of heartache and turmoil. Lars von Trier’s direction is focused and piercing, but it is his cast that really do his vision the most justice.

No more is this the case than with Emily Watson (back then relatively unknown), who delivers an astonishing performance as Bess. Her portrayal of a troubled but good soul is gruelling, intimate and eclipsing, Watson truly deserved all the acclaim she received. Skarsgård is also fantastic as Jan, and even when the soul of his character is brought to question, you never truly are drawn away from him or his believable love with Bess. Then there are superb supporting turns from Katrin Cartlidge as Bess’ freethinking sister-in-law Dodo and Adrian Rawlins as Dr. Richardson.

Breaking the Waves boasts exceptional performances, story, shooting (Robby Müller’s cinematography is almost a character itself) and savage emotion.Von Trier’s landmark film make one question many things, but one thing nobody will debate (even if this is not your kind of film) is that this is powerful cinema. It is of little wonder Martin Scorsese and the late, great Roger Ebert looked at it so fondly. Not for everyone but all the same a cinematic classic.

Special Features: Excerpts from ‘Tranceformer – A film about Lars von Trier’ / Selected commentaries / Cannes Festival 1996 promo clip / Adrian Rawlins interview / Casting Emily Watson / Extended scenes / Deleted scenes / Trailer