Scarecrow
Uniting People With Film
New Releases for June 22
It’s New Release Tuesday and we have SO MUCH new stuff, almost a hundred titles, including local martial arts awesomeness THE PAPER TIGERS. But the most important thing is that WE’RE OPEN and you can just come in and rent them. So do that!
THE PAPER TIGERS*
As teenagers, kung fu disciples Danny (Alain Uy), Hing (Ron Yuan) and Jim (Mykel Shannon Jenkins) were inseparable. Fast forward 25 years, and each has grown into a washed-up middle-aged man seemingly one kick away from pulling a hamstring―and not at all preoccupied with thoughts of martial arts or childhood best friends. But when their old master is murdered, the trio reunites, soon learning that avenging their sifu will require conquering old grudges (and a dangerous hitman still armed with ample knee cartilage) if they are to honorably defend his legacy.
Olympia-born director Quoc Bao Tran conceived and shot this delightful martial arts dramedy with a local crew right here in Seattle, and it’s full of both highly recognizable locations as well as tons of off-the-path spots.
*Unfortunately this title is arriving a bit late. We’ll hopefully have it Thursday or Friday of this week!
ADAM
Abla runs a modest local bakery from her home in Casablanca where she lives alone with her 8-year-old daughter Warda. Their routine of housework and homework is interrupted one day by a knock on the door. It is Samia, a young woman looking for a job and a roof over her head. The little girl is immediately taken with the newcomer, but her mother initially refuses to allow a pregnant stranger into their home. Gradually, however, Abla’s resolve softens and Samia’s arrival begins to offer all of them the prospect of a new life. (DVD)
BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN – PART ONE
It’s a dark time in Gotham City. Held hostage by the powerful Falcone crime family, the city is rife with crime and corruption. Adding to the chaos is the mysterious Holiday killer, who has been targeting the underworld and leaving a trail of terror…and body bags. Batman, Lieutenant Gordon and D.A. Harvey Dent race against the calendar as it advances toward the next ill-fated holiday. Based on the critically acclaimed graphic novel, Batman: The Long Halloween, Part One begins a twisted chain of events that will forever change the Dark Knight. (BLU-RAY)
BIG TROUBLE IN SEATTLE
A gangster is on trial for murder. Before enough evidence is found to convict him, his trusted lawyer schemes a plan to frame a young woman for the crime. (DVD)
BILL TRAYLOR: CHASING GHOSTS
An eyeopening documentary that explores the life of a unique American artist, a man with a remarkable and unlikely biography. Bill Traylor was born into slavery in 1853 on a cotton plantation in rural Alabama. After the Civil War, Traylor continued to farm the land until the late 1920s. Aging and alone, he moved to Montgomery and worked odd jobs in the thriving segregated black neighborhood. A decade later, in his late 80s, Traylor became homeless and started to draw and paint, devising his own visual language to depict his memories of slavery and scenes of a radically changing urban culture. He made well over a thousand drawings and paintings between 1939-1942, which reflect the profound social and political change he experienced during his life spanning slavery, Reconstruction, Jim Crow laws, and the Great Migration. Bill Traylor: Chasing Ghosts is a revelatory examination of one of America’s most essential artists. (DVD)
CB4
Sex, Rhymes and Keepin’ It Real! Comedy superstar Chris Rock (Lethal Weapon 4, New Jack City) stars in CB4, an off-the-hook, hilarious look at the world of gangsta rap. Rock plays Albert, a.k.a. MC Gusto, the leader of the hot new rap group CB4 (short for “Cell Block 4”). The trio of CB4—MC Gusto, Stab Master Arson (Deezer D, TV’s ER) and Dead Mike (Allen Payne, Jason’s Lyric)—are living large as their hardcore albums blow up the charts. Their rise to fame takes an unfortunate turn when they’re caught up as subjects of a documentary by corny filmmaker A. White (Chris Elliott, Cabin Boy) and victims of a political campaign by Republican Virgil Robinson (Phil Hartman, TV’s Saturday Night Live). And when the reality hits the streets that these cats are just three middle-class kids posing as ex-con thugs, their world of money, power and respect takes a beat-down in the most embarrassing and ludicrous ways. This outrageous “rapumentary” is packed with cameos by real O.G. rap legends like Ice-T, Flavor Flav and Easy E, and studded with special guest appearances by Tommy Davidson, Halle Berry and Shaquille O’Neal. Directed by Tamra Davis (Billy Madison, Half Baked) and co-starring Charlie Murphy (Norbit and TV’s Chappelle’s Show), CB4 is a hysterical stroll through the streets of hardcore hip-hop! (BLU-RAY)
CHAIN LIGHTNING
Matt Brennan knows how to open eyes to the potential of the experimental jet, the JA-3. He’ll pilot it from Nome over the North Pole to Washington DC and land it on the Pentagon’s lap. The distance is beyond the JA-3’s tested range. Nor can the craft provide the pressurization needed for flight at 80,000 feet. But Brennan has some modifications in mind. And the courage to put them to the test. Humphrey Bogart plays Brennan in Chain Lightning’s lofty mix of adventure and romance. Eleanor Parker, as a World War II flame who reenters Brennan’s life, helps fuel the romance. And the adventure takes wing with a story that, like Breaking the Sound Barrier, The McConnell Story and other postwar films, taps into the era’s fascination with jet aviation. Cleared for takeoff. (BLU-RAY)
CRYSTAL BALL
For the first time on home video comes a delightful romantic comedy about a fake medium who uses her “powers” to land the man of her dreams. (DVD)
DUKE OF WEST POINT
With duty, honor, tradition, and a little romance thrown in for good measure, ClassicFlix is pleased to present the DVD debut of The Duke of West Point (1938). After an impressive showing on and off the field while attending Cambridge, Steve Early (Louis Hayward), the son of an American military attache in London, dutifully accepts a commission to attend West Point where five previous generations of Early’s have made their mark. Soon after arriving at the Academy, Steve’s confidence and manner earns him the derisive nickname “The Duke”, so dubbed by his classmates who view the plebe as arrogant and entitled. Not to be deterred, Steve devotes himself to his studies and athletics, while budgeting time for Ann Porter (Joan Fontaine), who’s become the object of his affection despite the presence of a cadet rival (Alan Curtis). (DVD)
FOR THOSE WHO THINK YOUNG
When some kids’ after-school hangout, the Silver Palms Club, is threatened with closure, a group of teenagers will do anything to keep it open, even blackmail. This classic “Beach Party” movie was directed by Leslie H. Martinson (Batman: The Movie, PT 109, Fathom) and features an all-star cast that includes James Darren (Gidget), Pamela Tiffin (One, Two, Three), Nancy Sinatra (Speedway), Tina Louise (The Wrecking Crew), Paul Lynde (Bye Bye Birdie), Bob Denver (TV’s Gilligan’s Island), Susan Hart (Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine) and Ellen Burstyn (The Exorcist). Featuring songs by James Darren, Jimmy Griffin and Bob Denver. (DVD)
GEORGETOWN
Academy Award Winners Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained), Vanessa Redgrave (Julia) and Academy Award Nominee Annette Bening (American Beauty) deliver “outstanding performances” (Oleg Ivanov, Slant Magazine) in this thrilling story inspired by true events filled with twists, turns, and political turmoil. Waltz stars as Ulrich Mott, an eccentric and smooth-talking social climber who seems to have everyone in Washington, D.C. wrapped around his finger. But when his wealthy, well-connected and much older wife (Redgrave) turns up dead in their home, her daughter Amanda (Bening) suspects Ulrich may not be all that he seems as the police investigation begins to uncover a larger deception that goes far deeper than anyone ever imagined. (DVD)
GET RICH OR DIE TRYIN’
In his film debut, hip-hop superstar Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson explodes across the screen in this hard-hitting urban drama from acclaimed director Jim Sheridan (In America). Following a near-fatal gun battle, Marcus (“50 Cent”) recalls his journey from orphaned street kid from the Bronx to making his mark in the drug trade to teaming up with a fellow ex-con (Terrence Howard) for his shot at becoming a successful rap artist. This gripping tale, based on “50 Cent’s” real life story, is “a film with a rich and convincing texture, a drama with power and anger.” – Roger Ebert. (BLU-RAY)
THE GOOD TRAITOR
April 9, 1940: Denmark is invaded by Nazi Germany with demands for immediate and unconditional surrender. The government surrenders after a few hours and begins cooperating with the Nazis. On the other side of the Atlantic is Denmark’s ambassador to the United States of America, a daredevil and a man of the world – Henrik Kauffmann, who is willing to put everything on the line. He refuses to follow the German directives and engineers a rebellious plan to defeat Hitler and give the Danish people their freedom back. (DVD)
GRANNY NANNY
This isn’t how Karin, Gerhard, and Philippa imagined their retirement. Instead of enjoying their free time, they feel bored, useless, and…old! In the search for a new perspective, they become Granny-Nannies; and each gets a family with children to take care of. But instead of harmony and gratitude, they are soon confronted with overprotective parents, hyperactive children, and all sorts of family problems. Although facing turbulent times, they will find out that it is never too late to build a happy retirement! (DVD)
THE GREAT SIOUX UPRISING
Former army doctor Jonathan Westgate (Jeff Chandler) may be the only one who can avert a bloody conflict when unethical Wyoming horse dealer Stephen Cook (Lyle Bettger) steals a bunch of Sioux horses just as a Confederate general (Glenn Strange) of Cherokee heritage plans to pit the Union and the Sioux against one another. Will Westgate still find time to romance Cook’s beautiful competitor (Faith Domergue)? (DVD)
GUNS FOR SAN SEBASTIAN
Anthony Quinn and Charles Bronson star in an action-packed Western that explodes with passion, excitement and fiery intensity. Leon Alastray (Quinn), a rebel on the run from the Mexican Army, escapes to the remote village of San Sebastian, where the locals believe he’s a holy man. But when Leon discovers that the area has been devastated by savage Yaqui attacks, he knows he cannot hide the warrior within himself. Revealing his true identity, he leads villagers against the deadly threat, while at the same time battling another enemy: Teclo (Bronson), an antagonist with a shocking secret of his own. As the tension mounts, the people of San Sebastian prepare for an explosive fight to regain their courage…and reclaim their town. (BLU-RAY)
HALF BROTHERS
Renato (Luis Gerardo Méndez), a successful Mexican aviation executive, is shocked to discover he has an American half-brother he never knew about, the free-spirited Asher (Connor Del Rio). The two very different half-brothers are forced on a road journey together masterminded by their ailing father, tracing the path their father took as an immigrant from Mexico to the US. (DVD)
HALIFAX: RETRIBUTION
With a sniper terrorizing the city, Commander Tom Saracen asks Jane Halifax to help find the killer. A professor of forensic psychiatry, Jane must return to the world she tried so hard to leave: uncovering the truth behind the most diabolical criminal minds. (DVD)
HANGER
Ryan Nicholson directs this savage exploitation film that follows the vengeance-fueled rampage of Hanger (Nathan Dashwood), the now-grown survivor of a bungled back-alley abortion who returns to punish a pimp for forcing his mother into the procedure. As Hanger gets a taste for blood, his revenge spills over to the street’s other depraved bottom-feeders. Lloyd Kaufman and Debbie Rochon co-star in this graphic gorefest. (BLU-RAY)
HUMAN NATURE
A woman is in love with a man in love with another woman, and all three have designs on a young man raised as an ape. Written by Charlie Kaufman and directed by Michel Gondry. (BLU-RAY)
HUMAN: THE WORLD WITHIN
Human: The World Within explores the incredible universe inside each and every one of us. Through an examination of diverse personal stories from around the world, Human reveals how our everyday lives, our passions, and our goals are powered by the amazing systems that define our biology as a species. (DVD)
HUNTER HUNTER
Hunter Hunter follows a family living in the remote wilderness earning a living as fur trappers. Joseph Mersault (Devon Sawa), his wife Anne (Camille Sullivan), and their daughter Renée (Summer H. Howell) struggle to make ends meet and think their traps are being hunted by the return of a rogue wolf. Determined to catch the predator in the act, Joseph leaves his family behind to track the wolf. Anne and Renée grow increasingly anxious during Joseph’s prolonged absence and struggle to survive without him. When they hear a strange noise outside their cabin, Anne hopes it is Joseph but instead finds a man named Lou (Nick Stahl), who has been severely injured and left for dead. The longer Lou stays and Joseph is away, the more paranoid Anne becomes, and the idea of a mysterious predator in the woods slowly becomes a threat much closer to home. (BLU-RAY)
INVADERS OF THE LOST GOLD
From producer Dick Randall – whose international trashterpieces include ESCAPE FROM WOMEN’S PRISON, THE WILD WILD WORLD OF JAYNE MANSFIELD and PIECES – comes perhaps the most notorious all-star Philippine productions of the ’80s: In the last days of WWII, a Japanese platoon is attacked by headhunters while attempting to hide millions in gold. 36 years later, a grizzled guide (onetime Academy Award® nominee Stuart Whitman) is hired to lead an expedition – including Woody Strode (SPARTACUS), Harold ‘Oddjob’ Sakata and Laura ‘Emanuelle’ Gemser – into a jungle inferno of greed, violence, nudity and murder. Edmund Purdom (ABSURD) and Glynis Barber (DEMPSEY AND MAKEPEACE) co-star in this delicious piece of atrocity cake (Funxton) directed by Alan Birkenshaw (KILLER’S MOON) – also known as HORROR SAFARI – now scanned in 2K for the first time ever. (BLU-RAY)
IREZUMI
Drawn from the pen of one of Japan’s foremost writers of the 20th century, Junichiro Tanizaki (A Fool’s Love, The Makioka Sisters), Irezumi is a stylish tale of lust, betrayal and revenge directed by Yasuzo Masumura (Giants and Toys, Blind Beast).
Masumura’s muse Ayako Wakao (The Blue Sky Maiden, Red Angel) stars as Otsuya, the daughter of a rich merchant, who is tempted by her lover, Shinsuke, a lowly employee of her father’s, to elope. During their flight, Otsuya’s beauty attracts the gaze of Seikichi, a mysterious master tattooist who sees her pristine white skin as the perfect canvas for his art. The image of the large demonic spider that he emblazons across Otsuya’s back marks her as the property of another man, radically altering her relationships with all around her as her personality transforms under its influence. (BLU-RAY)
IT HAPPENED AT THE WORLD’S FAIR
Fun, music and Elvis all happen in this romp boasting one of the best backdrops of any Elvis Presley movie: the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair, with its showpiece Space Needle, monorail and more. The King plays pilot-for-hire Mike, whose hope of starting his own flying business is grounded by the gambling of his co-pilot Danny (Gary Lockwood). The pair hitch to Seattle, where Mike finds romance, Danny finds easy marks and both find problems prior to a Happy Ending. Kurt Russell, star of 1979’s Elvis biopic, plays the child who wallops Mike in the shins. (BLU-RAY)
LAST TRAIN FROM GUN HILL
Kirk Douglas and Anthony Quinn headline this suspenseful classic, making its Blu-ray debut—remastered by Paramount Pictures from a 6K film transfer of the original VistaVision negative. Directed by John Sturges (GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORAL), one of the greatest filmmakers of the Western genre, the film follows U.S. Marshal Matt Morgan (Douglas) on the trail of his wife’s killer. Adding a dark twist to the tale—the suspect’s father is Morgan’s longtime friend, cattle baron Craig Beldon (Quinn). Morgan is determined to capture the killer and take him away by the 9:00 train, against all odds. (BLU-RAY)
THE MAN WHO SOLD HIS SKIN
2021 Academy Award Nominee for Best International Feature Film. Sam Ali, a young sensitive and impulsive Syrian, left his country for Lebanon to escape the war. To be able to travel to Europe and live with the love of his life, he accepts to have his back tattooed by one of the World’s most sulfurous contemporary artist. Turning his own body into a prestigious piece of art, Sam will however come to realize that his decision might actually mean anything but freedom. (DVD)
NOBODY
Sometimes the man you don’t notice is the most dangerous of all. Emmy winner Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul, The Post, Nebraska) stars as Hutch Mansell, an underestimated and overlooked dad and husband, taking life’s indignities on the chin and never pushing back. A nobody. When two thieves break into his suburban home one night, Hutch declines to defend himself or his family, hoping to prevent serious violence. His teenage son, Blake (Gage Munroe, The Shack), is disappointed in him and his wife, Becca (Connie Nielsen, Wonder Woman), seems to pull only further away. The aftermath of the incident strikes a match to Hutch’s long-simmering rage, triggering dormant instincts and propelling him on a brutal path that will surface dark secrets and lethal skills. In a barrage of fists, gunfire and squealing tires, Hutch must save his family from a dangerous adversary (famed Russian actor Aleksey Serebryakov, Amazon’s McMafia)—and ensure that he will never be underestimated as a nobody again. (DVD and BLU-RAY)
SIBERIA
Clint is a dead man who lives alone in a frozen tundra. However, this isolation cannot bring either evasion or peace. One night, he begins a journey where he must confront his dreams, memories, and visions, crossing the darkness into the light. (DVD and BLU-RAY)
THE SIGNIFYIN’ WORKS OF MARLON RIGGS
There has never been a filmmaker like Marlon Riggs: an unapologetic gay Black man who defied a culture of silence and shame to speak his truth with resounding joy and conviction. An early adopter of video technology, Riggs employed a bold mix of documentary, performance, poetry, and music in order to confront the devastating legacy of racist stereotypes, the impact of AIDS on his community, and the very definition of what it means to be Black. Bringing together Riggs’s complete films—including his controversy-inciting queer landmark Tongues Untied and Black Is . . . Black Ain’t, the deeply personal swan song that was completed after his death at the age of thirty-seven—The Signifyin’ Works of Marlon Riggs traces the artistic and political evolution of a transformative filmmaker whose work is both an electrifying call for liberation and an invaluable historical document. (DVD and BLU-RAY)
STRIKE COMMANDO
Two years before the deranged genius of ROBOWAR and SHOCKING DARK, writer/director Bruno Mattei and co-writers Claudio Fragasso & Rossella Drudi borrowed from RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART II, MISSING IN ACTION and more to create their own mind-blowing ‘Namsploitation masterpiece: Reb Brown (UNCOMMON VALOR) stars as Sgt. Mike Ransom, a one-man war machine on a screaming-for-vengeance mission against brutal Vietcong, merciless Russians, double-crossing U.S. officers and acres of bullet-blasted Philippines jungle. Christopher Connelly (RAIDERS OF ATLANTIS), Luciano Pigozzi (ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK) and Jim Gaines (ISLAND OF THE LIVING DEAD) co-star in this exploding bamboo gun-tower of Mattei magic at its finest (Good Efficient Butchery), now mastered in 2K from the original negative for the first time. (BLU-RAY)
STRIKE COMMANDO 2
Director Bruno Mattei and screenwriters Claudio Fragasso & Rossella Drudi return to the Philippine jungles with a higher budget, bigger action and Richard Harris (yes, that Richard Harris) for a crowd-pleaser that shamelessly borrows from APOCALYPSE NOW, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, RAMBO and beyond. This time, Sgt Mike Ransom (Brent Huff of GWENDOLINE fame) battles the KGB, rogue CIA agents, an army of ninjas, a tough bar owner (Miss World 1977 Mary Stavin) and all the stuntman craziness and explosions you can cram into 90 minutes (DTV Connoisseur). Mel Davidson (ROBOWAR) and Vic Diaz (THE BIG BIRD CAGE) co-star in this slow-motion machine-gun of Mattei mayhem that’s just as insane as its predecessor (Good Efficient Butchery), now featuring a 2K scan from the original negative for the first time ever. (BLU-RAY)
THERE WAS A CROOKED MAN
Arizona Territorial Prison inmate Paris Pitman, Jr. is a schemer, a charmer and quite popular among his fellow convicts – especially with $500,000 in stolen loot hidden away and a plan to escape and recover it. New warden Woodward Lopeman has other ideas about Pitman. Each man will have the tables turned on him. Academy Award® winner* Joseph L. Mankiewicz cleverly lassos a twisting, turning Wild West tale of brawls, chases, shootouts and wry wit, courtesy of a script by David Newman and Robert Benton (Bonnie and Clyde). Kirk Douglas as Pitman and Henry Fonda as Lopeman headline a sterling cast, with Hume Cronyn, Burgess Meredith, Warren Oates and Lee Grant among the solid support. (BLU-RAY)
THE TUNNEL
A tank truck crashes in a tunnel in the ice\-cold Norwegian mountains, brutally trapping families, teenagers and tourists on their way home for Christmas. A blizzard is raging outside and the first responders struggle to get to the scene of the accident. The wrecked tanker catches fire and the tunnel is filled with deadly smoke. Will the help get there in time? (DVD)
UMBRELLA ACADEMY: SEASON 1
On the same day in 1989, forty-three infants are inexplicably born to random, unconnected women who showed no signs of pregnancy the day before. Seven are adopted by a billionaire who creates The Umbrella Academy and prepares his “children” to save the world. Now, the six surviving members reunite upon the news of their father’s passing and must work together to solve a mystery surrounding his death. But the estranged family begins to come apart due to their divergent personalities and abilities, not to mention the imminent threat of a global apocalypse. The Umbrella Academy is based on the comic book series created and written by Gerard Way, illustrated by Gabriel Bá, and published by Dark Horse Comics. (DVD)
THE UNHOLY
The Unholy, based on James Herbert’s best-selling book Shrine, follows a young hearing-impaired girl who is visited by the Virgin Mary and can suddenly hear, speak, and heal the sick.As people from near and far flock to witness her miracles, a disgraced journalist (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) hoping to revive his career visits a small New England town to investigate.As terrifying events begin to happen all around him, he starts questioning if these miracles are the works of the Virgin Mary or something much more sinister. (DVD)
VISIONS OF EIGHT
In Munich in 1972, eight renowned filmmakers each brought their singular artistry to the spectacle of the Olympic Games, capturing the joy and pain of competition and the kinetic thrill of bodies in motion for an aesthetically adventurous sports film unlike any other. Made to document the Olympic Summer Games—an event that was ultimately overshadowed by the tragedy of a terrorist attack—Visions of Eight features contributions from Miloš Forman, Kon Ichikawa, Claude Lelouch, Juri Ozerov, Arthur Penn, Michael Pfleghar, John Schlesinger, and Mai Zetterling, each given carte blanche to create a short film focusing on any aspect of the Games that captured his or her imagination. The resulting films—ranging from the arresting abstraction of Penn’s pure cinema study of pole-vaulters to the playful irreverence of Forman’s musical take on the decathlon to Schlesinger’s haunting portrait of the single-minded solitude of a marathon runner—are triumphs of personal, poetic vision applied to one of the pinnacles of human achievement. (DVD and BLU-RAY)
VOICE IN THE MIRROR
After the death of his young daughter, commercial artist Jim Burton (Richard Egan) sank into a destructive struggle with the bottle that those around him-from his patient wife (Julie London) to his concerned doctor (Walter Matthau)-were unable to pull him out of. As he bottoms out, will his fateful encounter with a fellow alcoholic (Arthur O’Connell) spur him to find a path toward sobriety, for others as well as himself? (DVD)
THE WAR TAPES
Straight from the front lines in Iraq, this is the first war movie filmed by the soldiers themselves, who poignantly tell a story that never makes it into the evening news or the morning paper. (DVD)
YOUR HONOR: SEASON 1
The 10-episode legal thriller stars 2021 Golden Globe Nominee Bryan Cranston as Michael Desiato, a respected New Orleans judge whose teenage son, Adam (Hunter Doohan), is involved in a hit-and-run that leads to a high-stakes game of lies, deceit and impossible choices. SAG Award winner Michael Stuhlbarg (Call Me By Your Name) stars as Jimmy Baxter, the much-feared head of a crime family opposite Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Hope Davis (For the People) as his wife, Gina, who might be even more dangerous than her husband. The series also stars Carmen Ejogo (Selma), Isiah Whitlock Jr. (The Wire ), and Sofia Black-D’Elia (The Night Of). Emmy nominee and Golden Globe winner Maura Tierney of THE AFFAIR will guest star as Fiona McKee, a fearless prosecutor trying a major case in Desiato’s courtroom. (DVD)
ZIEGFELD FOLLIES
Heaven’s harps and wings are nice, but what showman extraordinaire Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. wants most now that he’s no longer on Earth is to put on another extravaganza. It would have the brightest stars and creative talents. The most in glamour, gams and optimism. In short, it would be like Ziegfeld Follies. With a who’s who of credited and uncredited Hollywood talents, this all-star revue is heaven to fans of musicals. Fred Astaire dazzles once, twice…four numbers in all. Red Skelton reprises his funny Guzzler’s Gin skit. Esther Williams swims, Lena Horne sings, and Judy Garland spoofs snobbery. There’s Verdi opera and Fanny Brice vaudeville. Patter and pantomime. And The Babbitt and the Bromide, with Gene Kelly joining Astaire in their first-ever screen pairing. What a show! The man called Flo must be proud. (BLU-RAY)
We also got in a ton of imports, box sets, limited editions, and collections:
THE EUROCRYPT OF CHRISTOPHER LEE
He remains one of the most beloved horror\/fantasy icons in US/UK pop culture history, but Christopher Lee delivered several of the most compelling, acclaimed and bizarre performances of his entire career in 1960s Europe. THE EUROCRYPT OF CHRISTOPHER LEE brings together five of these Lee classics — the 1964 gothic shocker CRYPT OF THE VAMPIRE; the 1964 cult hit CASTLE OF THE LIVING DEAD co-starring an unknown Donald Sutherland; 1962’s celebrated SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE DEADLY NECKLACE; 1967’s lurid favorite THE TORTURE CHAMBER OF DR. SADISM and the rarely-seen 1963 oddity CHALLENGE THE DEVIL — with the 24 surviving episodes of the 1971 Film Polski anthology series THEATRE MACABRE hosted by Lee. Each title in the set rents seperately (BLU-RAY)
YEARS OF LEAD
The 1970s were a time of intense uncertainty and instability in Italy. Political corruption and widespread acts of left and right-wing terrorism, alongside a breakdown in social cohesion and a loss of trust in public institutions such as the government and police, created a febrile atmosphere of cynicism, paranoia and unexploded rage. Throughout this period, these sentiments found expression in a series of brutal, often morally ambiguous crime thrillers which tapped into the atmosphere of violence and instability that defined the so-called Years of Lead.
This box set gathers five films from the heyday of the “poliziotteschi” – the umbrella term used to describe this diverse body of films. In Vittorio Salerno’s Savage Three (1975) and Mario Imperoli’s Like Rabid Dogs (1976), random acts of violence committed by vicious young sociopaths threaten the fragile fabric of respectable society. In Massimo Dallamano’s Colt 38 Special Squad (1976) and Stelvio Massi’s Highway Racer (1977), renegade cops battling against red tape and political corruption turn to new and morally dubious methods to dispense justice. Finally, class dynamics are explored in Salerno’s No, the Case is Happily Resolved (1973) as an innocent man finds himself under suspicion for a savage crime committed by a highly respected member of society.
Decried by critics for their supposedly fascistic overtones, the poliziotteschi were in fact more ideologically varied and often considerably more nuanced than such superficial readings would suggest, and proved a huge hit with theatergoers, who responded to their articulation of present-day social concerns. Featuring an impressive line-up of Euro-cult stars, including Joe Dallesandro (The Climber), Ivan Rassimov (Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key), Maurizio Merli (Violent City) and Enrico Maria Salerno (The Bird with the Crystal Plumage), this collection of stylish, hard-hitting Euro-crime thrillers showcases the range and breadth of the genre and is a must-have for newcomers and grizzled veterans alike.
AUTOPSY
A wave of sudden, violent suicides have gripped Rome and are being blamed on sun spots. Simona, a young pathologist with an unhealthy obsession with death, has become increasingly interested in this strange phenomenon. But with the discovery of the body of a young woman, an apparent victim of a self inflicted gunshot, Simona finds herself thrust into a terrifying mystery and conspiracy to cloak actual murders as suicides. And the nearer she comes to unraveling the truth, the more in danger she is to entering the sights of a deranged killer, who might be a lot closer to home than she realizes. (BLU-RAY)
CRAZY DESIRES OF A MURDERER
The Countess Ileana has just returned to her family’s grand old castle, where her paralyzed father, an apparent clairvoyant, and strange younger brother, with an unhealthy interest in taxidermy, reside. Almost immediately after arriving, one of Ileana’s friends, who’s visiting the castle, is shockingly murdered and has her eyes plucked out of their sockets. While suspicion falls on Ileana’s brother, a curious police inspector (Sicilian character actor Corrado Gaipa of THE GODFATHER and MY DEAR KILLER) begins to investigate, believing there to be more to the killing than meets the eye. However, his sleuthing proves no match for this maniac, as the body count steadily rises… (BLU-RAY)
MURDER MANSION
On a dark and foggy night in the countryside, a group of apparent strangers all find themselves stranded at an old gothic mansion. Deciding to spend the night and look for help the following morning, the group pair off for bed. As the night wares on, increasingly strange events begin to occur, culminating in a murder. Tensions and suspicions rise, and fear mounts that the ghosts of the mansion have risen from the grave, especially when more bodies turn up…but is the explanation behind these ghastly events truly supernatural? (BLU-RAY)
BEYOND DREAM’S DOOR
Lately, Ben hasn’t been sleeping well. His dreams are filled with violent and terrifying visions of monsters and death. Seeking out answers, he begins to pursue the subtext and hidden meanings of his strange and terrifying nightmares, with the help of his professor and several friends. As the dreams grow increasingly lifelike, Ben fears that he’s losing his grip on sanity, especially as those around him start turning up dead; horribly mutilated just like he’s seen in his sleep… (BLU-RAY)
WINTERBEAST
Weird things are happening in and around the Wild Goose Lodge, a snowy inn located in rural Massachusetts. People are being found dead and mutilated, while others are vanishing without a trace. Realizing that the violence might have something to do with Native American black magic and the ancient secrets of the area’s historic totem poles, a trio of cops decide to investigate the goings on, and are faced with an array of monsters, ghouls, and even a sampling of murderous locals! (BLU-RAY)
FATAL EXAM
A group of college students have been given a very unusual assignment: spend the night inside of a supposedly haunted house, as part of their studies into the supernatural and occult. Although the rag tag team of collegiates would much rather party and get stoned than look for ghosts, it’s not long before unexplained events begin to occur. Initially suspecting that some of their classmates might be playing a practical joke, their fears are proven very real when someone – or something – dressed in robes and carrying a scythe starts bumping them off one by one. (BLU-RAY)
ARE YOU IN THE HOUSE ALONE?
An adaptation of a Richard Peck novel, 1978’s “Are You in the House Alone?” is a television movie that puts in some effort to come across as a horror event, tracking the increasing paranoia of a teenage girl as she’s stalked by a demented individual. The endeavor dials up the sinister score, inserts criminal POV shots for maximum slasher impact, and deals with creepy characters. (BLU-RAY) (Description by Brian Orndorf)
CALENDAR GIRL MURDERS
Detective Stoner (Tom Skerritt) is getting older and growing tired of police work, eager to make a change in his life, pleasing his wife, Nancy (Barbara Bosson). However, when a model from Paradise Magazine is ends up falling from her hotel room balcony, the cops suspect murder, pulling Stoner back into circulation to investigate a possible crime. Dealing with Paradise founder Trainor (Robert Culp), Stoner is introduced to the glamor and seduction of the magazine empire, finding his way to Cassie (Sharon Stone), a former centerfold who previously had an aggressive experience with an obsessed photographer. (BLU-RAY) (Description by Brian Orndorf)
CHILD IN THE NIGHT
Luke (Elijah Wood) is a young boy who’s witnessed his father’s murder, unable to process the horrible situation as he mourns the loss of his dad. Detective Bass (Tom Skerritt) is on the case, soon realizing the child is the only witness to the crime, calling in psychologist Hollis (JoBeth Williams) to take over questioning. Reluctant to return to the field of child psychology after a troubled history in the profession, Hollis is drawn to the boy’s case, with Luke trying to communicate his feelings through the story of Peter Pan and Captain Hook. While Bass questions the dead man’s friends and family, and Hollis gets closer to Luke, the adults also find themselves developing feelings, forced to confront their own issues in the process. Filmed in Seattle! (BLU-RAY) (Description by Brian Orndorf)
I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE: COLLECTOR’S EDITION
In 1978, one film changed the face of cinema forever: I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE. Camille Keaton stars as Jennifer Hills, a young and beautiful career woman who rents a back-woods cabin to write her first novel. Attacked by a group of local lowlifes and left for dead, she devises a horrific plan to inflict revenge in some of the most unforgettable scenes on film. 42 years later, the sequel, I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE: DEJA VU, sends successful writer Jennifer Hills (Camille Keaton) back to where it all began to face the wrath of the families of those she left for dead. Kidnapped along with her daughter Christy (Jamie Bernadette), it’s a tense game of hunt or be hunted against a ruthless gang of degenerates overseen by a violently unhinged matriarch Becky (Maria Olsen). Additionally, this box set includes, GROWING UP WITH I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE, an exhaustive analysis of the film’s history directed by Meir Zarchi’s son, Terry Zarchi. Available on Blu-ray for the first time in North America, this feature length documentary is what every I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE fan has been waiting for! (BLU-RAY, each title rents separately)
TREASURE OF THE AMAZON
In the depths of the lush, steamy Amazon jungle, rife with exotic life forms, a group of adventurers embarks on a quest to discover a legendary river reportedly filled with diamonds the size of your eyes as well as precious jewels and gold, and in the process finds itself enveloped in incomprehensible barbarism. At the mercy of this mysterious jungle labyrinth, the treasure hunters are forced into fierce battles with determined cannibals, ruthless headhunters, ferocious alligators, piranhas, a tribe of topless female warriors, and, equally disturbing – the greed of their own colleagues, raising the question Which is more treacherous – the greed of man or the perils of the jungle? Created by one of Mexico’s most famous exploitation and action/adventure film directors, René Cardona, Jr. (BLU-RAY)
BERMUDA TRIANGLE
Director Rene Cardona Jr. has managed to make a very convincing horror tale set square in the Bermuda Triangle – still one of the greatest mysteries on Earth. This place; which has reportedly swallowed up hundreds of ships, planes and human lives without even a trace; now reaches out to devour the Marvin family and their crew of underwater photographers and sailors who have come to photograph the ruins of a sunken city. Once in the grip of the Triangle, the crew begins to experience bizarre happenings, starting with the reception of a radio broadcast from a ship which had disappeared a hundred years ago! Then follows a series of absurd and horrible accidents and one-by-one the passengers and crew begin to die or disappear. (BLU-RAY)
CYCLONE
An airplane goes down in the ocean during a storm and a few survivors find refuge on a small tour boat. Swept out to sea, these people slowly starve to death in the hot sun with barely any food or clean water. With no place to turn, the boat survivors resort to cannibalism to stay alive…that is ..until the rescue planes come to pick them up and the man eating sharks decide its time to eat as well. (BLU-RAY)
SCANNER COP
Samuel Staziak, a graduate of the police academy who follows in the footsteps of his adopted father, is a scanner who never used his own inherited, terrifying powers.
Soon after his graduation, cops start to get murdered by seemingly normal citizens. Although he is repelled by the nature of the senseless crimes, Sam is reluctant to call on his special “gift” to stop murders. But when his policeman partner becomes a victim, he turns to his scanner powers which will take him into the bizarre world of a demented neurosurgeon. (4K UHD and BLU-RAY)
SCANNER COP II
Two deputies stumble across an escaped convict and drag him into the nearest jail. The man is Carl Volkin, a scanner and convicted mass murderer. Blazing a murderous trail out of the desert, Volkin goes looking for revenge against Staziak, the scanner cop who put him in jail. As Volkin’s telepathic powers increase with every victim, he a Staziak head towards a deadly confrontation; two scanners in the ultimate showdown! (4K UHD and BLU-RAY)
CLAPBOARD JUNGLE
Following five years in the life and career of an independent filmmaker, supported by dozens of interviews, posing one question: how does an indie filmmaker survive in the current film business? (BLU-RAY)
OVER THE EDGE
Inspired by real-life incidents, Over The Edge is an incendiary ode to teen rebellion that quickly became a Gen X/punk-rock touchstone, and a key influence on filmmakers such as Richard Linklater and musicians like Kurt Cobain (who often cited it as his favourite film). New Granada is a brand new planned community, miles from the noise and crime of the big city and a perfect place to raise a family. The only problem is they forgot to build anything for the kids to do. Bored out of their minds and stuck in the middle of nowhere, the teens in the town, led by Carl (Michael Kramer) and Richie (an effortlessly charismatic Matt Dillon in his first film role), do pretty much anything to fill the time, quickly escalating from drugs and sex to petty crime. A rash action by an overzealous local police officer (Harry Northup, Taxi Driver) sets in motion a face-off between the frustrated kids and their clueless parents that will lead to explosive, destructive consequences… (BLU-RAY)
PRIMER
By day, a small group of engineers work for a large corporation. By night, they conduct extracurricular experiments in their garage. While tweaking their latest project, they accidentally discover it has highly unexpected capabilities … ones that may enable them to do and gain anything they conceive. Taking advantage of this opportunity is the first challenge they face. Dealing with the consequences could be their last. (BLU-RAY)
UPSTREAM COLOR
A man and woman are drawn together, entangled in the lifecycle of an ageless organism. Identity becomes an illusion as they struggle to assemble the loose fragments of wrecked lives. (BLU-RAY)
ALLEY CAT
A beautiful young martial arts expert stops a vicious street gang from robbing her grandparents’ house. The gang marks her for murder, but her grandparents are killed instead. The girl sets out to take her revenge on the gang. (BLU-RAY)
CHAMPAGNE AND BULLETS
An ex-cop comes back as a vigilante to bring down with blazing weapons an martial arts a satanic cult that has taken over his town. John De Hart (who also wrote, directed and produced this DIY opus), Wings Hauser, Pamela Bryant, and William Smith star. Contains three different cuts of the film (BLU-RAY)
GRAVE SECRETS
A woman tormented by ghostly apparitions and a professor of psychic phenomena investigate other-worldly disturbances and unlock the secret of a malevolent force reaching out for vengeance from beyond the grave. (BLU-RAY)
BEYOND TERROR
Their Nightmare Was Further than Fear… It was BEYOND TERROR ! After a drug-fueled night of violence, a group of young degenerates and their hostages find themselves stranded in a remote, abandoned church in rural Spain. Their evening of debauchery and blasphemy quickly turns to greed when they discover a local legend that tells of a vast fortune guarded by mummies in the catacombs beneath the ruins. Their lust for the treasure is short-lived as they find that the supernatural horror in the catacombs is something further than fear… it is Beyond Terror! Beyond Terror (Más allá del terror) is a lost gem that is long overdue for rediscovery. Never available on home video in the United States. (BLU-RAY)
CRIMES OF THE BLACK CAT
After a young model seemingly dies of a heart attack, her lover, Peter Oliver (Anthony Steffen, The Night Evelyn Came out of the Grave, Django the Bastard) and his butler begin their own investigation into the death and soon find an intertwined series of murders, all involving a cat and a yellow shawl. One step ahead of the police, but always right behind the killer, Peter manages to piece together clue after clue until the final, shocking showdown with the bloodthirsty killer. Released in the shadows of Dario Argento’s wildly successful The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (and one of over 30 Italian giallo films produced in 1972), The Crimes of the Black Cat delivers the style of a classic giallo with sleazy, over the top violence that rivals Italian films from a decade later. (BLU-RAY)
HOW YOU LIVE YOUR STORY: SELECTED WORKS BY KEVEN JEROME EVERSON
The American artist Kevin Jerome Everson has created a remarkable body of moving image work that co-exists within film and art exhibition contexts. With a sense of place and history, his films, shot primarily on 16mm, combine scripted and documentary moments with touches of formalism. The focus is on craft and duration, and the gestures and tasks caused by certain physical and socio-economic conditions in the lives, labour and leisure of working-class Black Americans and people of African descent. They suggest not only the relentlessness of everyday life but also reveal its inherent beauty.
This selection of four features and 17 short films, together with an ‘image booklet’ of photographs, has been specifically curated by the artist. Second Run are proud to present the first comprehensive collection to be released on Blu-ray of Everson’s award-winning and critically acclaimed films. (BLU-RAY, Region B)
CZECHMATE: IN SEARCH OF JIRI MENZEL
Epic, expansive, affectionate and deeply passionate, CzechMate: In Search of Jiri Menzel is the definitive work on the Czechoslovak New Wave. This extraordinary documentary film, a labour of love by archivist and filmmaker Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, has a depth and scale unparalleled in the study of the Czechoslovak cinema.
Jiri Menzel’s debut film Closely Watched Trains (Ost e sledované vlaky, 1966) made a profound impression on young film student Dungarpur. Years later, he invited Menzel to meet him in a Prague café – and so began a conversation and a friendship that has culminated in this epic, seven-hour film that not only explores the deceptively whimsical comic films of Jiri Menzel, but all of the artists who strove to make films that whispered subversion and rebellion often at the risk of their livelihood, or even their lives. (BLU-RAY, Region B)
PROSPECT
A teenage girl and her father travel to a remote alien moon, aiming to strike it rich. They’ve secured a contract to harvest a large deposit of the elusive gems hidden in the depths of the moon’s toxic forest. But there are others roving the wilderness and the job quickly devolves into a fight to survive. Forced to contend not only with the forest’s other ruthless inhabitants, but with her own father’s greed-addled judgment, the girl finds she must carve her own path to escape. (4K UHD and BLU-RAY)
HAUNT
Harper (Katie Stevens) and her roommate Bailey (Lauryn Alisa McClain) go out to celebrate Halloween with two other friends Mallory (Schuyler Helford) and Angela (Shazi Raja). While Harper is struggling with a trauma from her youth and is dealing with an alcoholic and abusive boyfriend, they meet up with two guys Nathan (Will Brittain) and Evan (Andrew Caldwell) and decide to go to do something fun. They end up at an extreme haunted house attraction which seems a perfect way to have a fun Halloween. But once inside, they find out what extreme means and things are starting to get a little too real. (BLU-RAY)
ZIPPERFACE
ZIPPERFACE is the name a frustrated police department gives to a mysterious leather clad serial killer whose hideous black leather mask sports a huge silver zipper covering his mouth. ZIPPERFACE is on the rampage, terrorizing the city with bizarre, cool, and calculated murders. The police can find a clue, as victims of ZIPPERFACE continue to mount. Beautiful female detective Ryder who is handling the case has no choice but to go undercover as a decoy to try to solve the mystery, only to find that she is now become the killer’s obsession. (DVD)
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