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Category:    Home > Reviews > Horror > Monster > Thriller > Supernatural > Demonic Possession > Crime > Action > Dark Night Of The Scarecrow 2 (2022/VCI Blu-ray*)/Initiation Of Sarah (1978/Arrow Blu-ray*)/Offseason (2021/RLJ Blu-ray)/True Romance 4K (1993/Arrow 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray/*all MVD)/Umma (2022

Dark Night Of The Scarecrow 2 (2022/VCI Blu-ray*)/Initiation Of Sarah (1978/Arrow Blu-ray*)/Offseason (2021/RLJ Blu-ray)/True Romance 4K (1993/Arrow 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray/*all MVD)/Umma (2022/Sony Blu-ray)



4K Ultra HD Picture: B+ Picture: B-/B+/B+/B/B+ Sound: B-/B+/B+/B/B+ Extras: C-/B/D/B/D Films: C+/C/B-/C+/B



Now for more creepy thrills of all kinds...



The ultra low budget sequel to the cult classic from the original made for television film, Dark Night of the Scarecrow 2 (2022), isn't terrible for low budget frights and is a new story from the original filmmaker J.D. Feigelson (The Lake, Gone To Texas.)


Playing out like a PG-13 Goosebumps-style story of sorts, a killer scarecrow viciously stalks the small country town of Stubblefeld, which is the new home to an unusual little boy and his single mother. The mother, after a hard day, playfully tells the seemingly unreal scarecrow a secret and forms a bond with this supernatural killing machine she affectionately calls 'Straw Eyes'.


The film stars Tim Gooch, Amber Wedding, Carol Dines, and Richard Seng to name a few.


Dark Night of the Scarecrow 2 is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.85:1, and a lossless, English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). The film is average in terms of its filmmaking and challenged by its low budget in certain scenes. There is one scene filmed in a moving car that you can tell the image is a little warped. Nothing too groundbreaking in terms of color either sadly. The film definitely could have used a more cinematic look overall to hide its budget a little more.


The only extras are trailers, which is a shame because it would have been interesting to have an interview with the filmmaker at least to hear how this project came to be and the original film's cult status.


Obviously a bit limited in terms of its budget, I found Dark Night of the Scarecrow 2 pretty entertaining for what it is and an honest effort despite some lackluster filmmaking techniques. I'm glad that the original creator got to make it as well, and I would recommend it if you enjoyed the original.



Released in the age of
Carrie and The Exorcist, The Initiation of Sarah (1978) gets a new release on Blu-ray disc courtesy of Arrow Video. Originally made for TV, you can feel the vibes when watching this film that is essentially a tamer version of Carrie. The film isn't terrible, but pretty dated and nothing too shockingly original.


Sarah and her Sister are the new freshmen at college and have to go through several different initiations to get into the sorority, but Sarah has a bizarre superpower that comes out whenever she is upset, and she isn't afraid to use it when her or her sister are in danger. The film stars Kay Lenz, Shelley Winters, Tony Bill, Kathryn Grant, Morgan Fairchild, and Morgan Brittany.


The Initiation of Sarah is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec, a full frame aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and a lossless, English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) Mono mix. The film transfer looks pretty nice here and I don't see anything that detracts too heavily from the presentation.


Special Features:


Brand new audio commentary by TV Movie expert Amanda Reyes


Welcome to Hell Week: A Pledge's Guide to the Initiation of Sarah, a brand new appreciation by film critic Stacie Ponder and Queer Horror programmer Anthony Hudson, co-hosts of The Gaylords of Darkness podcast, celebrating the film through a queer feminist lens


Cracks in the Sisterhood: Second Wave Feminism and The Initiation of Sarah, a brand new visual essay by film critic and historian Alexandra Heller-Nicholas


The Intimations of Sarah, a brand new interview with film critic Samantha McLaren looking at witchcraft, empowerment, TV movies, and telekinetic shy girls post Carrie


The Initiation of Tom, a brand new interview with Tom Holland on this his first film writing credit


Image gallery


Reversible sleeve featuring newly commissioned artwork by Luke Insect


and First Pressing Only: fully illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing by Lindsay Hallam and Alexandra West.



Offseason (2021) is a great new horror film in the vein of Silent Hill, Dagon, or The Fog. Starring Jocelin Donahue (The House of the Devil), the film follows her as she gets a call that her famous mother's gravestone has been vandalized on a strange island where she was buried against her own wishes. As she and her friend journey to the isolated island to search for answers, they are soon stuck there as the draw bridges go up on the offseason. Once there, she finds out that the citizens of the island worship a bizarre sea dwelling demigod that has control over them, and that her mother has a connection to them.


The film also stars Joe Swanberg, Richard Brake, and Melora Walters. The film is written and directed by Mickey Keating.


Offseason is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1, and an English, lossless DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). The film is beautifully shot with a predominantly blue color palette and has a great soundtrack and sound mix that adds to the foggy and dark atmosphere of the world within the film.


Sadly, no extras.


Offseason is an exciting and well made supernatural horror film that is worth checking out and a step above anything put out by James Wan or the like. Jocelin Donahue lights up the screen and does a terrific job of acting terrified. The filmmaking is solid as well and it's a surprise that this film isn't getting more buzz aside from being on Shudder. Recommended.



Rivaled only by Top Gun (1986,) the late Tony Scott's True Romance 4K (1993) may well be the director's most popular film. Starting with The Hunger (1983) until his last film, Unstoppable (2010,) every film he released was a big event and attracted some of the biggest stars and best actors in the business. From a Quentin Tarantino script early on in his career, Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette play a couple who meet, fall for each other quickly and go wild.


Turns out she's under the control of a pimp he has to kill, so on the run they go, but for how long? What follows are some wild scenes, wild dialogue, a few twists and a list of co-stars that would be hard to come by today. Tarantino's raw 1970s style mixed oddly with Scott's Kubrickian approach, but somehow manage to just complement each other without clashing or ruining the film. With that said, I still found it a little off often and even more predictable than I would have liked, but its following remains strong over the years as more than a curio.


Again, the cast is inarguable and also includes Samuel L. Jackson, Brad Pitt, Gary Oldman, Dennis Hopper, Val Kilmer, Bronson Pinchot, Sal Rubinek, Michael Rapaport, Conchata Ferrell, James Gandolfini, Tom Sizemore, Chris Penn, and Christopher Walken. We'll never see that combination again, but you can watch the film as often as you want now yourself, and in both a director's and theatrical cut with limited differences. Even if I am not the biggest fan, I can at least see why people love it.


Arrow has issued the film in a new 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray with a regular Blu-ray edition and it is loaded with a ton of extras. It is also the first major release of a Morgan Creek Production in 4K I can pinpoint and the company seems to have the rights to almost its entire catalog to itself free of any studios who released them, so it would be nice to see their films start to all get the 4K treatment (I would vote for their most underrated of all myself, White Sands, which never got an extended director's cut) and this new limited edition set is a great place to start.


The 2160p HECV/H.265, 2.35 X 1, Dolby Vision/HDR (10; Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition image is really good, having some shots that do not look as good as they could, but many others that look great and as good as when I saw the film when it opened in 35mm back in the day. Color is particularly wide-ranging and detail can be great. The 1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image on the Blu-ray is passable for the format and looks fine, but it cannot capture how good the widescreen anamorphic Panavision image originally looked as well as the 4K and is here for convenience. The 4K even has a few demo shots going for it.


As for sound, the film has an interesting backstory, starting out as an older Dolby System A-type analog sound production, but the company's improved and still-impressive Spectral Recording (aka SR) analog system in 1987, so why not go for SR? Though it is not listed on posters or in the end credits, apparently it did get some SR treatment in time for its theatrical release, but some moments in the film can still reveal the age fo the recording sonically. For this release, the sound has been nicely upgraded for a DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix and this is as good as the film is ever going to sound. Nice work and older fans familiar with the film will be pleasantly surprised.


As noted, extras are many and include Limited Edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck for the initial run of this 4K set. You also get:


  • 60-page perfect-bound collectors' booklet featuring new writing on the film by Kim Morgan and Nicholas Clement, a 2008 Maxim Magazine oral history featuring interviews with cast and crew, and Edgar Wright's 2012 eulogy for Tony Scott


  • Double-sided poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck


  • Six double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproductions


  • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing


  • Audio commentary by director Tony Scott


  • Audio commentary by writer Quentin Tarantino


  • Audio commentary by stars Christian Slater & Patricia Arquette


  • Audio commentary by critic Tim Lucas


  • Select scene commentaries by stars Dennis Hopper, Val Kilmer, Brad Pitt and Michael Rapaport


  • Brand new select scene commentaries by stars Bronson Pinchot and Saul Rubinek


  • New interview with costume designer Susan Becker


  • New interview with co-editor Michael Tronick


  • New interview with co-composers Mark Mancina and John Van Tongeren


  • New interview with Larry Taylor, author of Tony Scott: A Filmmaker on Fire


  • Deleted scenes with optional commentary by Tony Scott


  • Alternate ending with optional commentaries by Tony Scott and Quentin Tarantino


  • Electronic press kit featurettes, behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with Tony Scott, Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette, Dennis Hopper and Gary Oldman


  • Trailers and TV spots


  • and Image galleries



Finally we come to Umma (2022) which stars Sandra Oh, of whom does a stand-up job here. Known mostly for her television roles and leaning more towards the comedic, here she plays a bee-keeper who lives in seclusion with her teenage daughter on a beautiful ranch and have a quiet life and their own successful honey making business.


When her mysterious uncle travels across the world to deliver her mother's remains to her, she is suddenly tormented by the life of abuse that she left behind. All of which was by the hands of her own mother, who was steeped in tradition and had a harsh manner of raising her... even going as far as electrocuting her as a form of punishment. As the demon starts to possess her, she must keep her daughter and friends safe before the evil sadistic ways of her 'Umma' takes over.


The film also stars Fivel Stewart, Odeya Rush, and Dermot Mulroney. The film is produced by horror heavyweight Sam Raimi and directed by Iris Shim.


Umma is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1, and an English, lossless DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). The film looks fine for the Blu-ray format, but some of the darker scenes would certainly look better in 4K UHD. Still, there isn't anything that detracts from the presentation and the film is nicely shot and made.


The only extra is a Trailer. Bummer.


Umma is a surprisingly fun supernatural horror / possession film that's a bit slow moving, but is nicely made from a filmmaking perspective and features solid performances all around.



- Nicholas Sheffo (4K) and James Lockhart

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



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