Manhattan
Baby (1982/Blue Underground Blu-ray w/DVD & CD Limited
Edition Set)
Picture:
B/B- Sound: B/B- Extras: B Film: B- CD: B
The
Italian King of Splatter, Lucio Fulci (Zombi 2, The Beyond)
created another macabre horror/fantasy in 1982 - Manhattan Baby
- that is now finding its way onto Blu-ray disc in this deluxe
limited edition from Blue Underground that fans and gore-hounds won't
want to miss!
Inspired,
no doubt, by The Exorcist and The Mummy (with a few
plot elements similar to Sam Raimi's Drag Me To Hell that
would be made over a decade and a half later), Manhattan Baby
utilizes Fulci's amazing visual talent whilst at the same time
creates intense scenes of horror that only he could conjure. The
film stars Christopher Connelly, Brigitta Boccoli, and Giovanni
Frezza with Fulci himself playing Dr. Forrester. Killer snakes,
taxidermy come back to life, haunted spirits, and other horrors await
you when you pop in this disc!
While
on a trip to Egypt, a daring Egyptologist (Connelly) defies a tomb
and pays the price when his young daughter (Brigitta Boccoli) becomes
hypnotized by a bizarre Egyptian charm that she is given that turns
her in a pawn of evil. Returning home to Manhattan, her father
(temporarily blinded in Egypt), soon sees a startling transformation
in his daughter and an unspeakable wave of death that follows them.
This
three disc limited edition set includes the Blu-ray and DVD versions
of the film. On the Blu-ray, the film is presented in 1080p high
definition looking sharp and clear throughout with a widescreen
aspect ratio of 2.35:1. The restoration here is fantastic with
vibrant colors and nice contrast even in darker scenes of the film.
The DVD looks fine for the format but the colors don't pop or have
range like they do on the Blu-ray.
As
for the Blu-ray audio, it is top notch with an English lossless 5.1
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) track that is sharp and leaves little to
complain about. There's also a English lossless DTS-HD MA (Master
Audio) Mono track that doesn't sound as good but is closer to the
original mono presentation of the film.
What
I love to about this edition is the inclusion of the original motion
picture score by Fabio Frizzi (The Beyond), that has a
synthesized Goblin-esque feel to it and stands perfectly fine
listening to on its own outside of watching the film. I wish more
companies would include CD soundtracks in their releases, being a
huge fan of scores myself.
Special
Features include
-
Fulci & I - Interview with Composer Fabio Frizzi (An
Hour-Long Career Overview Of the Soundtrack Collaborations of Fabio
Frizzi & Lucio Fulci)
-
For The Birds - Interview with Star Cosimo Cinieri
-
25 Years With Fulci - Interview with Make-Up Effects Artist
Maurizio Trani
-
Beyond The Living Dead - Interview with Co-Writer Dardano
Sacchetti
-
Stephen Thrower on MANHATTAN BABY - Interview with the author of
''Beyond Terror: The Films of Lucio Fulci''
-
''Manhattan Baby Suite'' - Live Studio Performance by Fabio Frizzi
-
Theatrical Trailer
-
Poster & Still Gallery
-
A full color collectable booklet featuring new writing by author Troy
Howarth
All
in all, this is a great edition of one of Fulci's lesser known titles
that is great watching for anyone who likes supernatural or
possession films. Get it while supplies last!
-
James Lockhart
https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/
