Conan
Chronicles 4K
(Barbarian
(1982,) Destroyer
(1984)/MVD/Universal/Arrow 4K Blu-ray Set)/Deadgirl
(2008/Unearthed*)/Vile
(2011*)/Wrong
Door
(1990/Visual Vengeance/*all MVD Blu-ray)
4K
Picture: B/B+ Picture:
X/X/B+/B-/B- Sound:
B/B-/B+/B-/B-
Extras: B (C+/B-)/B/C+/B
Films:
C+/C/C/C/C
Here's
the latest set of upgraded genre releases, including two 4K action
films that still have their followers...
The
Conan Chronicles 4K
include both films with Arnold Schwarzenegger playing Robert E.
Howard's all-time great action character that has been in books,
comic books, toys and much more in 1932 and has built a loyal
consistent and serious following since. It took half a century for
any serious live action version to be made, but it finally happened
when Dino De Laurentiis (Barbarella,
Flash
Gordon
(1980,) Danger
Diabolik)
took it on and made it happen.
First
came John Milius' Conan
The Barbarian
(1982) giving Schwarzenegger his first feature film hit, though it
did not establish him as big box office at that point and many
thought it would be his only major hit film, with some (whether they
liked the film or not) were saying that the less he talked, the more
the film worked. Writer/Director Milius (Big
Wednesday,
Red
Dawn,
Spielberg's 1941,
Coppola's Apocalypse
Now)
us known for his right-wing tendencies, yet he wrote the screenplay
with Oliver Stone (JFK,
Nixon,
Natural
Born Killers,
De Palma's Scarface,
Cimino's Year
Of The Dragon)
for for being politically the opposite. However, the common
denominator is that both are realistic filmmakers who do not shy away
from grit or violence. That serves the film well here.
Comments
on Schwarzenegger's voice notwithstanding, the strength of the film
is that it has its stretches of silence that use visuals and action
to tell the story the way passages of the books and the like would in
any credible Conan adaption. James Earl Jones was already an
important, successful actor before he became further immortalized as
the voice of Darth Vader when he took on the villain role here,
giving people (pre-Internet) the chance to see the actor in live
action action.
Other
cast members delivering and melding well with the script, locales,
cinematography and atmosphere are Sandahl Bergman, Mako, William
Smith, Gerry Lopez, Jack Taylor, Sven-Ole Thorsen, Valerie
Quennessen, Franck Columbu and Max Von Sydow. That casting holds up
well here, even when the film has not always aged well, plus some
parts I did not think worked, plus some heavy-handed points that the
film has been criticized for (which we will not get into here, partly
due to lack of space) still makes for a film you can understand
people like. Fans should be happy for the most part with the upgrade
and expansion of this film.
Richard
Fleischer's Conan
The Destroyer
(1984) had a great journeyman director, the lead was back and a
larger budget was also there. This time, the cast included the
return of Mako and Sven-Ole Thorsen as a different character, plus
Grace Jones, Sarah Douglas, Tracey Walter (Burton's Batman,)
Jeff Corey, Pat Roach (Never
Say Never Again,)
Wilt Chamberlain, Olivia D'Abo (The
Living Daylights)
and Ferdinand (aka Ferdy) Mayne. Its a more eclectic cast and with
an odder script with more talk and less action, makes for an odd film
with too many missed opportunities.
I
guess the makers were trying to make the film more
family/kid-friendly down to going from an 'R' to a 'PG' (PG-13 was
just being invented) so it is one of the last such films ever made.
Some of the fights are not bad and the cast is giving it its all, but
it went too far into the wrong direction (Batman
& Robin
anyone?) and destroyed any chance of a series for decades, a series
that has not been revived or has materialized since. D'Abo is very
young here playing a princess they all have to get together and save.
It just has too many asides and humor that usually does nto work.
No cult following for this one yet, but it is sure a curio.
Now
for playback performance. The 2160p HEVC/H.265, 2.35 X 1, Dolby
Vision/HDR (10; Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition
image on both films do look better than all previous video releases
of the film, but Barbarian
is looking rougher than expected with more grain and what looks like
more optical printing than I remembered. The films also remain the
only two franchise films in history that used real anamorphic lenses
(while shooting on 35mm to boot) to use two different brand lenses,
neither of which were from Panavision and both highly underrated.
Barbarian
was lensed by Director of Photography Duke Callaghan (Jeremiah
Johnson,
The
Take,
The
Scalphunters,
some key TV) with Todd-AO 35 lenses, like those used on Logan's
Run,
King
Kong,
Grizzly,
Conquest
Of The Planet Of The Apes,
Polanski's
MacBeth,
The
Devil's Rain,
Ragtime,
Day
Of The Animals, Mad Max
and Lynch's Dune.
Considering the various budgets and types of films there, Barbarian
looks the roughest of any of them and some of that may be
intentional, but some of it looks like the original camera materials
may not have held up as well as fans and preservationists might have
liked. The response to this one by others will be very interesting.
Destroyer
was lensed by one of the greatest cameramen of all time, Jack
Cardiff, whose groundbreaking work in Technicolor and color
filmmaking with The Archers to Hitchcock's Under
Capricorn,
The
Black Rose,
The
African Queen,
The
Barefoot Contessa,
The
Vikings
and The
Prince & The Showgirl,
among many others, this film looks more color rich and vivid than
Barbarian.
However, some could argue it looks too good and not as gritty as the
last film, but more money was spent here and that includes the used
of J-D-C Scope lenses. They were used on films like Return
Of The Jedi,
Year
Of The Dragon,
the original versions of Firestarter
and Poltergeist,
the Anthony Hopkins version of The
Bounty,
Razorback,
Lifeforce,
Leviathan,
Rambo
III,
Superman
IV,
Highlandler
2,
The
Sicilian,
Blue
Velvet
and the Schwarzenegger film Raw
Deal.
This looks pretty good as compared to most of the other sequels
listed above, but this transfer also has some soft moments and blur a
little more often than expected. Color is rich and more consistent,
though.
The
original theatrical monophonic sound has been remastered for DTS-HD
MA (Master Audio) 1.0 Mono
lossless mixes in both cases, but performing at least a bit better
are the lossless Dolby
Atmos 11.1 (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mixdown for older systems) upgrades that
are not the best from monophonic films I have heard to date. The
films were remixed for 5.1 for some earlier video releases, but those
mixes where considered underwhelming. Barbarian
actually sounds better in both cases, with the Destroyer
mono weaker than expected and its Atmos seeming to be limited
sonically overall. The Atmos upgrades are still not top notch, but
as good as both films will ever sound, sometimes sadly. Just wish
the mono was here in 2.0.
Extras
include three versions of Conan
The Barbarian
via seamless branching: Theatrical Cut (127 mins), International Cut
(129 mins) and Extended Cut (130 mins), plus...
Newly
filmed interviews for Conan
The Barbarian
with production artist William Stout, costume designer John
Bloomfield, special effects crew members Colin Arthur and Ron Hone,
actors Jorge Sanz and Jack Taylor, assistant editor Peck Prior,
visual effects animators Peter Kuran and Katherine Kean, filmmaker
Robert Eggers (The
Northman)
and authors John Walsh and Alfio Leotto
Conan
Unchained: The Making of Conan,
an archive documentary from 2000 featuring interviews with
Schwarzenegger, Milius, Stone, Jones, Lopez, Bergman, Poledouris and
several others
Archive
bonus features for both films, including interviews with sword
master Kiyoshi Yamasaki, writers Roy Thomas & Gerry Conway and
Poledouris, outtakes and more
A
Tribute to Basil Poledouris,
a series of videos produced by the Ubeda Film Music Festival,
including video of Poledouris conducting a concert of music from
Conan
The Barbarian
in 2006 (remixed in 5.1 surround)
So
that leaves one other unanswered question; how does it compare and do
I think it compares to the 2011 Marcus Nispel-directed (semi-)remake
with future Aquaman Jason Momoa? Here's the link to my review of the
4K release of that film with regular 2D and 3D versions:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/15045/Broken+Mile+(2016/Gravitas+Venture
Plagued
with production issues and last minutes changes, it is not a perfect
film and Momoa was simply instructed to play Conan every way
Schwarzenegger did not. That put him in the same position Roger
Moore was in making Live
And Let Die
and he did as well as he could. I still think it is the best Conan
film to date, from what I said above about these two films to the
so-so animated TV cartoon series and the live-action TV show from the
late 1990s with Ralf Moeller that strayed too far form the books, et
al.
Schwarzenegger
tried to do a third King
Conan
film and Paul Verhoeven would have reunited with him from the
original Total
Recall
to make it, but it never took off and now that it has been awhile
since that got shelved, it will probably never happen again. It
going to take a great combination of a new lead actor, writer,
director, producer, cast and screenplay to make a new Conan film
worth everyone's time to happen. Until then, no matter their flaws,
Schwarzenegger is the definitive Conan and this set's very existence
shows that.
Deadgirl
(2008) gets a 15th Anniversary edition on Blu-ray thanks to the good
people at Unearthed Films. The grotesque thriller shows how far
unsupervised hormonal teenage boys can go when they discover a
comatose imprisoned woman in an abandoned building who (despite
several vile efforts) cannot be killed in the traditional sense. How
she got there and who put her there is a complete mystery.
The
high school boys become consumed by self empowerment and start doing
terrible things to her both physically and sexually. Of course it
doesn't take long for the word to spread to other boys in the school
that there's a naked woman chained to a bed in an abandoned building.
Other high school guys fall victim to her (lack of) charm as well so
to speak. Then the Deadgirl starts to get violent and bite back in a
rabid zombie-like state. Once that happens some very strange things
occur to the men who wronged her. The last act makes you think it's
going to go one way then goes another. While the film implies some
pretty nasty things just off camera, it still does a good job of
being pretty repulsive and sure to make most normal people shake
their heads in either disgust or confusion. As for practically or
realism, the film doesn't go to great lengths to be very realistic,
as many things don't quite add up... but it is only a movie after
all.
The
film stars Shiloh Fernandez (Evil
Dead),
Noah Segan (Glass
Onion),
Michael Bowen (Breaking
Bad)
and Candice Accola (The
Vampire Diaries).
Deadgirl
is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4
AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and a lossless,
English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). The film
doesn't have much production value so to speak and limited locations
outside of a high school and the abandoned building where most of it
takes place. The cinematography is dark and appropriate for the
story though although a few scenes could have been trimmed up a bit
dialogue-wise in the editing color. All in all, the Blu-ray
presentation is fine for the content.
Special
Features:
Interview
with Co-Director Gadi Harel
Interview
with Writer Trent Haaga
Interview
with Actor Noah Segan
Interview
with Actor Shiloh Fernandez
Interview
with Special Makeup Effects Artist & Designer Jim Ojala
Behind
The Scenes Gallery
Extended
Makeup FX Gallery
Audio
Commentary with Cast & Crew
Audio
Commentary by actor Jenny Spain
Exquisite
Corpse: The Making of Deadgirl
Jenny
Spain's Audition
Deleted
Scenes
Promotional
Stills Gallery
and
an Original Theatrical Trailer.
Deadgirl
is sure to shock some, but could have been even more extreme if it
wanted to. I'm not sure about the ending as it leaves a lot of
questions, but perhaps that was the point of the filmmakers. The
film is well made for being on the lower budget spectrum and the
special effects are performances are pretty convincing.
The
feature film debut from seasoned filmmaker Taylor Sheridan
(Yellowstone)
comes this low budget horror film, Vile
(2011). The flimsy horror romp results in a lot of yelling, torture,
and fingernails being ripped from fingertips. The film is in the
tradition of Saw
or Hostel,
but isn't as memorable or realistic as the any of them.
The
film stars April Matson (Kyle
XY),
Greg Cipes (Teen
Titans),
Ian Bohen (Teen
Wolf,
Yellowstone)
and Heidi Mueller & McKenzie Westmore (from the NBC soap opera
Passions).
Two
young couples offer a pretty lady a ride in the middle of nowhere at
night and end up prisoners in a hostile environment. They find
themselves gassed out in a walled up facility where a handful of
others are held, all of which have devices attached to their heads
meant to collect chemicals needed to make drugs with. The best way
for the chemicals to be released is by fear and pain, leading to the
prisoners being forced to hurt and mangle one another in order for
their bodies to dispense the necessary chemical ingredients. Once
enough physical damage has been dealt within a 24-hour period, they
can be released. The results are what you expect, absolute madness.
In essence, the film is similar to a Saw
film only without the inventive torture and an overall message. In
fact, the ending of the film is quite weak and doesn't really answer
or solve much of anything. I can see that on paper this probably
seemed like a better concept than what it turned out to be.
Vile
is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4
AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and audio that
includes a lossy English Dolby Digital 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) and
lossless LPCM 2.0 Stereo mix. The film was shot well enough for
being a low budget production, but there are still a few scenes with
bad color correction and moments of bad ADR dubbing on some of the
actors where lips don't perfectly sync up. Both are pretty normal in
the low budget filmmaking world. This is likely the best looking
option available for seeing the film due to its age.
Special
Features: Deleted Scenes, Trailer and Reversible Artwork.
The
Wrong Door
(1990) is a strange thriller where a student studying sound design
ends up down a rabbit hole ending in murder and surrealism. Shot and
produced pretty well for a low budget 1990 production, the film lands
on disc for the first time courtesy of Visual Vengeance who supplied
the film with a 2K transfer from the original Super 8mm photochemical
film elements. The film has a strong start, but looses a little bit
of steam midway. It does have a pretty cool ending though. All in
all this is a film worth checking out if you like low budget regional
horror films.
The
film stars Robin Keller, James Groetsch, Loreal Steiner, and Jim
Bullock to name a few.
The
Wrong Door
is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4
AVC codec, a fullscreen aspect ratio of 1.33:1 and a PCM 2.0 English
stereo mix that are both appropriate for the film. This looks and
sounds as good as it can on Blu-ray disc and is loaded with goodies
as is the usual with Visual Vengeance. The film's lighting is
probably its strongest suit and Visual Vengeance has done with a nice
job with the presentation on the whole.
Special
Features:
Audio
Commentary with directors Bill Weiss and Shawn Korby
Audio
Commentary with director James Groetsch and producer John Schonebaum
New
Documentary: Men Make Movie, If Not Million$
James
Groetsch Interview
Shawn
Korby Interview
Bill
Weiss Interview
Actor
Matt Felmlee Interview
Distributing
The Wrong Door:
Chris Gore Interview
Alternate
Director's Cut of The Wrong Door (2019)
Super
8 short: Raiders
of the Lost Bark
(1983)
Super
8 short: The
Pizza Man
(1988)
TV
Episode: The
Gale Whitman Show
Original
unedited Muther Video VHS intros
Image
Gallery
Original
Storyboards Gallery
Film
Threat Review
Now
Hiring Trailer
The
Wrong Door Trailer
Visual
Vengeance Trailers
2-sided
Insert
Collectible
folded poster
Reversible
Sleeve Featuring Original VHS Art
and
a 'Stick Your Own' VHS Sticker Set.
-
Nicholas Sheffo (4K) and James Lockhart
https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/
