Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes (1978/MVD Rewind Collection Blu-ray w/DVD)/Chasing The Dragon (2017/Well Go Blu-ray w/DVD)/Legend Of The Naga Pearls (2017/Well Go Blu-ray)/Pulp (1972/United Artists/MGM/MVD Visual/Arrow Blu-ray + DVD editions)/Red Krokodil (2012/MVD Visual/Unearthed Films Blu-ray)/Kill Order (2017/RLJ DVD)/True Love Ways (2014/MVD Visual DVD)/Valley Of Bones (2017/SMG/MVD Visual DVD)

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

Our next set of genre films include a few howlers and an underrated gem...

Writer/Director John De Bello's cult classic (kinda musical) comedy Attack of the Killer Tomatoes (1978) is a B-Movie cult classic and is now finally getting some justice on Blu-ray disc as the debut disc in the new MVD Rewind Collection.

In the spirit of the Vestron Collector's Series from Lionsgate, the MVD Rewind Collection will be giving us some cult classic titles that may have been forgotten by the general public, but not by hardcore cult movie fans. Released already is D.O.A.: A Right of Passage and the next title in the series that (I personally am highly anticipating) is The Return of Swamp Thing (1989), which is coming out under the label next and that we hope to cover here as well.

Ultimately a spoof of B-Movies and low budget sci-fi films (it mentions Hitchcock's The Birds by name in the opening crawl), Attack of the Killer Tomatoes centers around tomatoes that have mutated, multiplied, gone bad and started to kill. It's up to a group of scientists to combat these deadly vegetables before they wipe out humanity!

The film stars Stephen Peace, Sharon Taylor, Costa Dillion, Eric Christmas, and Jack Riley.

This 4K restoration of Tomatoes is no doubt the best that the film has ever looked and features a nice sound mix as well. Presented in its original 1.85:1 windscreen aspect ratio and Original 2.0 Mono Audio (Uncompressed PCM on the Blu-ray), the set includes both the 1080p Blu-ray and the standard definition DVD as well. Colors are vibrant and even with stunning detail throughout the film, which is surprising due to the film's age and limited initial budget. This is a nice preservation for sure.

Special Features include...

Audio commentary from writer/director John DeBello, writer/co-star Steve Peace and "creator" Costa Dillon

Deleted scenes in standard definition

Six exclusive featurettes:

"Legacy of a Legend" offers several interviews, including comments from John DeBello, Costa Dillon, film critic Kevin Thomas, fans Kevin Sharp and Bruce Vilanch (the late Hollywood comedy writer), future Tomatoes man John Astin and actors Steve Peace, Jack Riley, and D.J. Sullivan

"Crash and Burn" is a discussion about the famous helicopter crash that could have killed everyone because the pilot was late on his cue.

"Famous Foul" is about the San Diego Chicken (!!!) and his role in the climatic tomato stomping ending

"Killer Tomatomania" is a random set of interviews with random people on the streets of Hollywood about the movie

"Where Are They Now?" updates us what the cast and crew have been up to over the past couple of decades

"We Told You So!" takes a 'deep' look at the conspiracy of silence surrounding the real-life horror of killer tomatoes

"Do They Accept Traveler's Checks in Babusuland" (the original 8mm short that inspired Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, with optional audio commentary)

Original theatrical trailer in standard definition

Radio spots

Collectible fold out poster

The slightly dated, low budget Killer Tomatoes is campy, silly, slapstick fun and is a film that you will either love or hate depending on your sense of humor. I would compare it to films like Airplane or a Mel Brooks film in terms of humor, though obviously not in the budget range that those films were in. If you are a fan already and then you will definitely want to pick this notoriously bad movie up for the presentation and extras alone.

For more on the sequel, try this link...

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/14316/Return+Of+The+Killer+Tomatoes+(1988/MVD+Vis

Based on the a real-life story drug kingpin, Jason Kwan and Jing Wong's Chasing The Dragon (2017) takes us to Hong Kong circa 1963, controlled by the mob and the corrupt police. Gangster Legendary drug kingpin Crippled Ho (Donnie Yen) and Chief Detective Rock (Andy Lau) both started out as rookies but together they took control of Hong Kong drug trade and carve out the rules for themselves. Ho takes over the gangs and controls the drug trade while Rock keeps the police in line and turns a blind eye. Together, the bring out the golden age of Hong Kong, but when corrupt British officer and forces starts moving on their territory, will Ho and Rock still be able to hold on to their territory?

While Ho controls the drug trade and keeps control between all the gangs and keeps drugs away from the civilians, Rock controls the police, the bribes and anyone who steps out of line. Together they become wealth men and bring profit to the city, but both them are under pressure and control from an enemy that unites them, corrupt British officers who only care about power and profit. As the years go by, can they protect each other when from a greater threat ...themselves?

This film was like a Hollywood (or even indie) movie of the American drug trade/culture with gangsters, drugs and corrupt cops of the 60s ...except with Chinese characters. Donnie Yen and Andy Lau plays a masterful story of the good and bad cop with a drug lord, while Western culture brought civilization to the world, it also influence the drug trade into foreign countries.

The 1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer is a well-shot HD production that has its dark shots, but never overdoes it. The Cantonese DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless track is well mixed and presented, playing better than the English dub version, with a better soundfield, even if more of the Cantonese was (re)done in post-production than expected.

Extras include trailers if you count them, but such a well made film deserves more.

Long ago, The Winged People once existed peacefully with the humans, but the humans eventually destroyed their kingdom and Winged People lost their wings. Now, the surviving Winged People seek the legendary Naga Pearls to restore their power and get their vengeance. However, fate of the humans and the Winged people fall into the hands of Ni Kongkong, a street thief. Along with a constable and a mysterious mercenary, they end up in a race to save the kingdom in Cheung Tan's Legend Of The Naga Pearls (2017).

Ni Kongkong is a master thief and find himself wanted both by the humans and the Winged People when he actually gets his hands on the Legendary Naga Pearl, it is said the Pearl has the power to restore the Winged People to their former glory. He is joined by a female constable, Raven and mysterious man named Harley. Turns out Raven is the fallen princess of the Winged Tribe and Harley is the spoiled Royal Crown Prince. Unknown to even himself, Ni Kongkong is also a direct descendant of the legendary hero that once helped defeat the Winged Tribe. Now, together they must stop Vlad a mad Winged Warrior and his armies, who will stop at nothing to get the Naga Pearl to get his revenge on mankind.

This was an action filled fantasy movie, a blend of Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean mixed with Chinese fantasy, an epic adventure to save the world with a group of mismatch misfits and outcasts. This one works well.

The 1080p 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer is an HD shoot with the expected CGI work, but has some softness, partly from style and works as intended. The Mandarin DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix is also impressively recorded and mixed, so the combination tends to be very effective.

Extras once again include only trailers when we should get more.

Michael Caine stars in Pulp (1972) which is a British Spy/Thriller/ Comedy that gets the grand home video presentation courtesy of Arrow Video. Directed by the original Get Carter Director Mike Hodges (later of the 1980 Flash Gordon), producer Michael Klinger, and of course star Caine, the oddball crime flick is a little dated, but still remains a lot of fun.

Pulp also stars Mickey Rooney, Lionel Stander, Lizabeth Scott, and Nadia Cassini to name a few.

Caine stars as Mickey King, who is a pulp novelist known for such notable Erotic works as My Gun is Long and The Organ Grinder, but when he gets hired to write an autobiography about a celebrity (Rooney) he ends up getting mixed in with the Gangster world... putting his life in jeopardy! Along the way he meets many beautiful women, dodges bullets, and charms the socks out of everyone he comes across!

The film is presented in 1.85 X 1: 1080p on the Blu-ray with a restored video master supervised by Director of Photography Ousama Rawi that saves the film, recaptures its dark color schemes and the DeLuxe color meant to be on the overcast side. That same master is used on the anamorphically enhanced, standard definition widescreen, having only slight compression issues with lossy Dolby Digital 1.0 mono mix, that sound is PCM Mono on the Blu-ray. The soundmaster shows its age, but its as good as it will likely ever get. The Blu-ray is the version to get but the new DVD still looks better than previous releases (and better than the video master used for the older DVD we covered years ago) despite being on that aged format.

Special Features include...

A new Interview with Mike Hodges

A new Interview with Ousama Rawi

A new Interview with John Glen

A new Interview with Tony Klinger

Galleries

Theatrical Trailer

If you like British crime thrillers or spy or noir gumshoe detective parodies, then you may want to check out Pulp, especially in this nice new release. It's funny to look at this and think of Caine's role as Austin Powers' father in Goldmember as this could easily be a prequel to that film.

It should also be noted that the film is needling two major U.K. TV successes that barely played on U.S. TV. Lord Lew Grade's ITC production company had massive international success with Roger Moore as The Saint through the 1960s and they were trying to match that with a series of other action shows, including Department S, a spy show that was imitating the final Linda Thorson/Tara King episodes of the British TV spy classic The Avengers in the late 1960s. The hit included the great actor Peter Wyngarde (who just passed away at age 90) as Jason King, a spy who also wrote hit novels and was inspired by Caine's turn in the 1965 classic The Ipcress File that itself led to two sequels.

As that series was winding down, the makers decided on a spin-off simply entitled Jason King (both series reviewed elsewhere on this site) and it was also a hit, only cut short by a scandal Wyngarde unfortunately found himself in. The credits of Pulp and Caine's character's very similar name have fun with that success and for a while early in Pulp, the script baits the viewer into thinking this film might be a sly sed-up of those shows, down to some similar situations, but that's eventually abandoned but is amusing just the same.

As well, one of the very best BritPop bands on the 1990s named themselves Pulp and it is not a coincidence. For more about the film, try our coverage of that earlier DVD...

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/5306/Pulp+(1972/MGM+DVD

If 'Body Horror' drug horror movies are your thing, then you'll want to check out the new grotesque release from Unearthed, Red Krokodil (2012), a film that's sure to make you gag. Featuring one of the best nose peels seen on film, this stomach turner is directed by Domiziano Chistophard (House of Flesh Mannequins) and stars Valerio Cassa, Viktor Karam, and Brock Madson.

A new drug, Krokodil, infects the mind of a man (Madson) who is hauled up in a post nuclear infected city near Chernobyl. The film is essentially one big acid trip as Madson's body begins to deteriorate due to the drugs where trippy hallucinations and thematic symbolism creeps in.

Presented on 1080p Blu-ray with a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and a nice sounding English LPCM 2.0 track, the film looks and sounds fine for the format. The film is a bit on the low budget side, but has plenty of interesting surrealism that's captured fine on the disc.

Special Features include...

Alternate Music Ending

Deleted Scenes

Photo Gallery

Nuclear Test CGI

Teaser Trailer

Trailers 1 and 2

Unearthed Trailer Reel

While the special effects work and some of the ideas are interesting, ultimately this is just another drug movie for the books and nothing too original or unique.

Kill Order (2017) is a comic book-like action film that centers around a young boy who was a test subject who was given supernatural butt kicking abilities. Directed by James Mark and starring Chris Mark, Alan Mouse, Denis Akiyama, and Jessica Clement to name a few, this kinetic action thriller will satisfy fans of films like Push (2009), TV's Dark Angel, or the Wolverine films. They should have went a bit more violent (like a hard R with more blood and guts ala Kill Bill) to differentiate it a bit more as it seems a bit too derivative of those films at times but oh well.

Haunted by visions of a horrific past, David Lee (Mark) becomes a target as armed attackers who come looking for him. When his classroom is attacked, David's eyes turn blue and he unleashes a taste of these abilities to startling effect. David soon realizes that he must discover a way to harness this power as his loved ones become targets as well... but is David the only one of these superhuman test subjects that exist? Who is behind it?

Presented in anamorphically enhanced, standard definition with a 2.35:1 widescreen aspect ratio and a lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 mix, the film looks fine for the aging DVD format, but stands up to expectations. Details are a bit muddier on close ups than they would be on Blu-ray, but the film is shot nice and was mixed pretty nice as well. No digital copy.

No extras.

Bottom line: nothing new narratively but there are some fun sequences here that may Kill Order worth a watch, though it may only be one watch.

The German thriller True Love Ways (2014) is a black and white low budget film about a girl whose caught in a game of cat and mouse when her recent ex-boyfriend crafts a bizarre plan to win her back. Written and directed by Switzerland born filmmaker Mathieu Seller (Stefanie's Present), the film finds new life on DVD from MVD Visual.

True Love Ways stars David C. Bunners, Kai Michael Muller, Anna Hausburg, Michael Greiling, and Margarita Ruhl.

After a recurring and haunting dream Severine (Hausburg) decides she needs to get away from her boyfriend Tom for a couple of days. The couple haven't been getting along too well lately and it seems like the relationship is on the outs. Desperate, Tom (Muller) makes a deal with a man he meets at a bar: Severine will be kidnapped. Tom rescues her from the clutches of the kidnappers, and will become her savior. However, what Tom does not know is that his new made friend has a different plan with Severine. Faced with violent criminals and her own primal fears, Severine doesn't have the reaction to the situation that Tom was hoping.

The film is presented in anamorphically enhanced standard definition with a 1.78:1 widescreen aspect ratio and a 2.1 lossy German Dolby Digital sound mix and English subs. The film has interesting sound design and a creepy soundtrack that is on point.

No extras.

An interesting film and story, it could be an interesting film to be remade for an American audience.

Anna is a disgraced paleontologist after she was arrested on government lands and the government stole her dig and sent her to jail, but after finding fossil of a possible complete Tyrannosaurus Rex, maybe in the Bad Lands North Dakota, she risks it all to help start over her life in Dan Gasler's Valley Of Bones (2017).

Only thing is, the claim of the find is a meth addict named Wes McCoy with a huge debt and cartel ties, so he wants to use the dig to pay off his debts to the cartel, and Anna will have to decide what is more important to her, the bones ...or her son's life. Now, along with her former brother-in-law and son, she find herself on the chance of a lifetime, will she finally have chance to redeem herself and in the eyes of her son? Even years after getting out of jail, Anna is estranged from her own son and wants to redeem herself in the scientific community. So when the dig of lifetime passes her way, she thinks the fame and fortune can make up for her lack of being a good mother, but can she be sure?

Autumn Reeser, Rhys Coiro and Steven Molony lead the cast.

This was a pretty simple movie with familiar themes, kind of like a wild west story, but instead of a gold mine and bandits it is dinosaur bones and a drug addict. In the end, it is a moral story, the story of a reluctant mother in how she learns there are things more important than her reputation, history, fame or fortune, but does that make this sexist? You'll have to see for yourself.

The anamorphically enhanced 2.35 X 1 image (shot on an Arri Alexa) and lossy Dolby Digital sound are on the soft side and require patience in viewing at times.

There are no extras.

- Nicholas Sheffo (Pulp Blu-ray), Ricky Chiang (Well Go, Valley) and James Lockhart

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