Slugs
(1988/MVD Visual/Arrow Blu-ray)
Picture:
B Sound: B Extras: B Film: B
If
this horror flick doesn't make your skin crawl then nothing will!
Slugs
(1988) is about, you guessed it, killer mutant slugs! From director
Juan Piquer (Pieces),
comes the '80s gore-fest you never knew you wanted. I had never
heard of this film prior to release but I'm definitely going to give
more of Mr. Piquer's filmography a look after seeing this. In this
film are several extremely brutal sequences that, while slighted
dated and have flaws that are ever so apparent in high definition,
will not only make your stomach turn but give you a slight chuckle as
well. This is the kind of movie that you put on with a group of
friends on a Saturday night and have some fun with. Thanks to Arrow,
this B-movie gets a grand release with cool new extras and a great
high definition presentation that will hopefully help this film find
a second life.
Slugs
stars a cast of unknowns including Michael Garfield, Kim Terry, Phill
Machale, Alicia Moro, Santiago Alvarez, Concha Cuetos, John
Battaglia, Emilio Linder, Kris Mann, Kari Rose, Manuel De Blas, Andy
Alsup, and Stan Schwartz.
A
small town is plagued by mutant slugs that grow in greater and
greater numbers as the minutes pass. Health Inspector Michael Brady
(Garfield) is in the center of the madness as most of the town's
population gets wiped out by the growing population of slugs that
hide in their food, crawl out of their toilets, and even find their
way into kitchen sinks. Unlike normal slugs, these ones love the
taste of human flesh and like to eat it quickly! How can the town
survive against a threat such as this?
There
are several memorable sequences in the film including one scene where
a woman is cutting lettuce making a salad and a slug finds its way
into the center, a man is eating dinner in a restaurant where he
implodes by slugs in his body, and a beautiful girl is eaten alive
after she steps off the bed with her lover. Fast paced and fun, this
is a creature feature is similar to films like Piranha
and Slither
in many ways. Slugs
is also based on a book by British horror author Shaun Hutson, so if
you enjoy the film you may want to check out the source material as
well.
Presented
in sharp 1080p high definition with a widescreen aspect ratio of
1.85:1, this new 2K restoration from the original 35mm negative is a
huge improvement on any prior release of the film. Sharp details
(you can see texture on the slugs especially) work against some of
the special effects (as mentioned above) but doesn't detract from the
enjoyment of the film. The audio is an original uncompressed PCM 2.0
Mono audio track that sounds clear and brings out the great score
that is constantly swelling and heightening the tension.
Special
Features include...
-
Audio commentary with Slugs
author Shaun Hutson
-
Audio commentary by writer and filmmaker Chris Alexander
-
Here's
Slugs In Your Eye - an
interview with actor Emilio Linder
-
They
Slime, They Ooze, They Kill: The Effects of Slugs - an
interview with special effects artist Carlo De Marchis
-
Invasion
USA - an
interview with art director Gonzalo Gonzalo
-
The
Lyons Den - an
interview and locations tour with production manager Larry Ann Evans
-
1988 Goya Awards promo reel
-
Original Theatrical Trailer
-
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork
by Wes Benscoter
-
Fully-illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing by writer
Michael Gingold
I
enjoyed this film and would suggest it to horror fans.
-
James Lockhart
https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/
