Video
Nasties: The Definitive Guide, Part 2 (2015/Severin Films DVD
Set)
Picture:
B- Sound: B- Extras: B+ Film: B
This
informative and interesting release is a sequel to 2010's Video
Nasties: The Definitive Guide, Part 1. Like the first, this is a
three-disc collector's edition box set that for the first time ever
on DVD, features previews of all 82 films that fell foul of the
Director of Public Prosecutions Section 3 list in the 1970s in
Britain. They are trailer-featured with specially filmed intros for
each title, alongside a brand new documentary - Video Nasties: The
Draconian Days, directed by Jake West - which is a pretty
interesting and well put together doc that continues where the first
one left off.
The
first disc contains the documentary and the next two discs are full
of 13 hours of trailers and more for all 82 titles on then British
Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's second banned list. Discs 2 and 3
can be viewed either as a nonstop trailer show or with newly-filmed
introductions from a wide range of critics and journalists that offer
insight to these films. This release reminds me of the 42nd
Street Forever release that came out on Blu-ray a few years ago
that featured dozens of classic grindhouse trailers that you could
watch in the same way, reviewed elsewhere on this site.
Most
of the film trailers that are featured I hadn't heard about before
including Blood Lust, Brutes and Savages, Cannibals, Dead Kids,
Death Weekend along with some more recognizable films such as
Deep Red (by Dario Argento) and the original Texas Chainsaw
Massacre.
Picture
and Sound on the disc are in standard definition 1.78 X 1 (with
various aspect ratios due to the trailers) anamorphically enhanced
with a lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 track. All in all, this isn't the
type of set that you would necessarily need to see on Blu-ray due to
the original quality of the trailers but it would be nice. There's
13 hours of material here that and that is not bad at all for a new
release of this caliber!
DVD
Extras include a gallery of original video poster art and a fabulous
peek back at Britain's independent fanzine scene, which sprung up
during the '80s and '90s.
If
you're a fan of trashy horror, grind house, and bizarre films then
this is an informational journey that you won't want to miss! I am
certainly seeking out the first volume to learn more!
-
James Harland Lockhart V
www.facebook.com/jhl5films