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Category:    Home > Reviews > Horror > Slasher > Exploitation > Vampire > Comedy > Supernatural > Witchcraft > Telefilm > Blood Feast (1963/MVD Visual/Arrow Blu-ray w/DVD)/Buffy The Vampire Slayer: 25th Anniversary Edition (1992/Fox Blu-ray)/Halloween Pussy Trap Kill! Kill! (2017/MVD Visual DVD)/Lilith's Hell (2015/Unear

Blood Feast (1963/MVD Visual/Arrow Blu-ray w/DVD)/Buffy The Vampire Slayer: 25th Anniversary Edition (1992/Fox Blu-ray)/Halloween Pussy Trap Kill! Kill! (2017/MVD Visual DVD)/Lilith's Hell (2015/Unearthed Films DVD)/Red Christmas (2015/Artsploitation Blu-ray + Umbrella Region Free PAL Import DVD)/Wes Craven's Summer Of Fear (2013/Music Box Films Blu-ray)



Picture: B+ & B/B+/B-/B-/B & C+/B- Sound: B+ & B/B+/B-/B-/B & B-/B Extras: B/C+/B/C+/C+ & B-/B Films: B/B/C+/C+/C/C



PLEASE NOTE: The Red Christmas Import DVD version is now only available from our friends at Umbrella Entertainment in Australia, can only play on Blu-ray and DVD players that can handle the PAL DVD format and can be ordered from the link below.



Here's more Horror action in time for Halloween 2017...



Blood Feast


Rob Zombie no doubt got some inspiration from Blood Feast (1963), the Herschell Gordon Lewis classic that's sure to make your stomach turn. It even earned him the title 'The Godfather of Gore'. Essentially a Jack the Ripper story with brutal violence that's grounded in realism, this is pretty much essential if you consider yourself a 'gore-hound'. There's even a great intro from the Director himself before the film begins!


Blood Feast stars William Kerwin, Mal Arnold, and Connie Mason.


When a clever Egyptian caterer busies himself collecting body parts from young maidens in order to bring the Goddess Ishtar back to mortal life. After several brutal murderers and not getting apprehended by police in the process, the Caterer hypnotizes a woman giving an engagement party for her daughter. At the party, he sinisterly plans to perform the ancient rites of summons, using the daughter as his final sacrifice.


Presented in 1080p high definition Blu-ray disc with a 1.85:1 widescreen aspect ratio and the original PCM 2.0 Mono audio track, this is no doubt the best this film has ever looked on disc. Nicely saturated colors, vibrant character details, and nothing visibly distracting. The blood is bright red and the special effects haven't worsened over time any. There's also a lesser looking standard definition DVD included with similar, but compressed, specs.


Special Features...


Scum of the Earth - Herschelll Gordon Lewis' 1963 additional feature


Blood Perspectives - Filmmakers Nicholas McCarthy and Rodney Ascher on Blood Feast


Herschell's History - Archival interview in which director Herschell Gordon Lewis discusses his entry into the film industry


How Herschell Found his Niche - A new interview with Lewis discussing his early work

Archival interview with Lewis and David F. Friedman


Carving Magic - Vintage short film from 1959 featuring Blood Feast Actor Bill Kerwin


Outtakes


Alternate "clean" scenes from Scum of the Earth


Promo gallery featuring trailers and more


Feature length commentary featuring Lewis and David F. Friedman moderated by Mike Grady


Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly-commissioned artwork by Twins of Evil


Nothing great story-wise but in terms of special effects, this is certainly groundbreaking for the time and classic splatter. Nice job done by Arrow Films in this restoration!



Buffy the Vampire Slayer: 25th Anniversary Edition


Before the hit TV series of the same name, there was the Kristy Swanson-led Buffy The Vampire Slayer (1992), which also features stars Donald Sutherland, Rutger Hauer, David Arquette, Paul Reubens and Luke Perry. Though a little dated, the Fran Rubel Kuzui directed film has a lot of fun moments that take you back to the 'teen vampire genre' and draws some inspiration from Lost Boys, Fright Night, and others. The ''90s Valley Girl' mentality is evident in Buffy and her friends in opening scenes, much like Clueless. The practical special effects hold up (even in HD) and this will hopefully tide over fans (and there are many) that are still waiting for the complete TV seasons to FINALLY land on Blu-ray after all these years of waiting.


This same origin story for Buffy was essentially retold throughout the first season of the TV series as the screenplay here and was also written by genre giant Joss Whedon (The Avengers/Justice League). While its hard now to accept any actress other than Sarah Michelle Gellar as the main character, seeing this cult classic again is a treat - especially around the Halloween season.


All that teen cheerleader Buffy (Swanson) wants is a normal life. One day she discovers that her town is infested with vampires is being told by a stranger (Sutherland) that it's up to her to defeat them all - including their mighty leader (Hauer), she feels in over her head. But, with the help from a mysterious stranger (Sutherland) and a handsome mechanic (Perry), Buffy transforms from spoiled teen to Vampire Slayer!


Similar to a previous release of the film on Blu-ray disc a few years back, the 25th Anniversary edition is presented in 1080p high definition with a 1.85:1 widescreen aspect ratio and a lossless DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 7.1 track (and a lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo mix for lesser systems) the presentation is up to standards on Blu-ray disc. Nothing glaringly wrong, however based on reviews of the past release I would say there isn't too much of a difference between editions.


A digital HD copy is also included.


Special Features...


Featurette


Theatrical Trailer/TV Spots



Halloween Pussy Trap Kill! Kill!


This modern low budget exploitation film, Halloween Pussy Trap Kill! Kill! (2017), is a mix of Saw, Russ Meyer films of the Grindhouse period mixed with the traditntal slasher formula. Full of pretty girls, frontmanrug use, buckets of blood, and a tone that doesn't take itself too literally, this film was a pleasant surprise and not what I thought it would be initially.


Halloween Pussy Trap Kill! Kill! is directed by Jared Cohn (Little Dead Riding Hood), produced by Brian Perera and stars Sara Malakul Lane, Richard Grieco, Demetrius Stear, Margaret O'Brien & Dave Mustaine (frontman of Megadeth).


After getting his face cut off in an Iraq war, a psycho-maniac (wrapped in bandages) imprisons an all girl rock-n-roll band called 'Kill Pussy Kill'. Set in his 'Hell House', the band wakes up from being gassed after a confrontation and find themselves trapped inside an inescapable room filled with a vicious variety of weapons. The rules are simple: advance through all three rooms and you are allowed to go free. The catch is, in order to make it to the next room, someone must sacrifice themselves. How far will they go to get out alive?


Presented in standard definition with a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and a lossy 5.1 Dolby Digital sound mix, the film looks fine for the format but nothing particularly spectacular. Compression issues are evident and some digital effects look better than others.


Special Features...


Basement of Blood


Beyond the Music


Jared Cohn: Director of Horror and Action


Plot Description/BTS


Video Diaries


Slideshow


Jyrki - Last Halloween Music Video


HPTKK - Superstar Music Video


Trailer



By no means groundbreaking, Halloween Pussy Trap Kill! Kill! is slightly above average and fun watch.



Lilith's Hell


The Italian demonic found footage film, Lilith's Hell (2015), finally lands on DVD in the U.S. courtesy of Unearthed Films. Directed by Vincenzo Petrarolo and presented by Ruggero Deodato (Cannibal Holocaust) the brutal film is well made and fun despite following some of the traditional tropes that come with the found footage gimmick.


When a group of rich indie filmmakers try to work with horror master Ruggero Deodato on a project, the decide to film a horror film based on realism. When they go to the producer’s family's house for a weekend retreat, they soon find themselves pit against a demonic force. The spirit of Lilith, who famously was cursed by God for not obeying Adam, possesses the crew one by one and all of it caught on film! If they survive, they could have a marketable film on their hands... but at what cost?


Presented in standard definition with a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and an Italian Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo lossy track with English subs, the film looks and sounds fine for DVD. In fact, it isn't hurt too much not being on Blu-ray due to the found footage style that it's going for.



Special Features...


Interviews with Cast and Crew


Interview with Director Ruggero Deodato


Unearthed Trailer Reel of Current and Upcoming



Red Christmas


Hollywood Scream Queen Dee Wallace (E.T., The Howling) stars in Red Christmas (2015) - a holiday home invasion flick directed by Craig Anderson (The Tail Job). The film also stars Sarah Bishop, Geoff Morrell, Janis McGavin, Deelia Meriel, Bjorn Stewart, David Collins, and Gerard Odwyer. Despite being shot well, the film isn't really that much fun to watch and is a little heavy on its anti-abortion message, which grows tiresome. There's some good gore moments, cheap thrills, and tasteless humor... all in all nothing you haven't seen before.


Diane (Wallace) plans a Christmas family reunion at her lavish home that reunites her dysfunctional grown children. Of course they don't get a long too well and start up a big argument in the midst of Diane's well wishes. The doorbell suddenly rings and a cloaked, Deformed Stranger appears and causes tension amongst the group. Soon the Stranger returns... bringing terror and hell on earth with him!


Presented in 1080p high definition with a 2.35:1 widescreen aspect ratio and a clear, lossy 5.1 Dolby Digital track, the presentation of the film on Blu-ray is pretty satisfying. Character detail is on point and even dark moments are pretty clear of grain. Artsploitation Films always does good on their discs and this release is no exception. Umbrella's import PAL format DVD version is not as clear or sharp, though the PAL fiormat allows for better color, but not better depth than a U.S. NTSC DVD, in its anamorphically enhanced version, yet Video Black is not as good as it could be or as good as the Blu-ray. It pretty much has the same lossy 5.1 Dolby Digital track too.


Special Features on both versions include...


Feature-length commentary with writer-director Craig Anderson


Interviews with Dee Wallace, Gerald O'Dwyer and Craig Anderson


Bloopers


BUT the import DVD adds Deleted Scenes, Teaser Trailer, Trailer and clip Visiting Gerald O'Dwyer



Red Christmas isn't the best holiday horror film ever, but at least it's an original story. The best thing it has going for it is Dee Wallace giving the performance her all.



Wes Craven's Summer of Fear


Linda Blair (The Exorcist) stars in this lesser known Wes Craven flick, Summer of Fear (1978), that is based on the best-selling young adult novel by Lois Duncan (I Know What You Did Last Summer). While the narrative is a little hokey, the film isn't amongst Craven's best work but is worth a watch once for the diehard fan. I hadn't seen this prior to this release but was expecting Linda Blair to the demonic 'host' as it were but was surprised to find that her she is just the normal innocent teen.


Aside from Blair (who isn't much of a leading lady in all honesty), the film is pretty predictable with a soapy feeling, bad hairstyles, and a lot of teen angst. If you're hoping for some R-rated Craven shenanigans, then this isn't necessarily the disc you want to pop in, especially since this seems to have been a telefilm.


The film centers around teenager Rachel (Blair) whose picture perfect life is turned upside down when her cousin Julie (Purcell) moves in following the death of her parents in a car crash. Julie enchants everyone in the family and is perfect on the surface. Rachel soon discovers that Julie has a secret. She's a master in the art of witchcraft!


The film has been remastered for high definition and is presented in its original 1.36:1 full frame aspect ratio and a new English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Mono track. Music Box Films has done a great job with this remaster from the original film elements with a nicely saturated transfer. Despite a few close-ups in soft focus, this Blu-ray disc brings the film to life like no previous release has before.



Special Features...


Newly recorded interview with Linda Blair


Director audio commentary by the late Wes Craven


Poster and still gallery


Original trailer


Since I'm a big Wes Craven fan, it was nice to mark Summer of Fear off the list of films of his that I've seen, but I wouldn't recommend it to many. Presentation-wise, this disc delivers.



To order the Umbrella import DVD, go to this link:


http://www.umbrellaent.com.au/



- James Lockhart & Nicholas Sheffo (Red import)

https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/


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